Beauty Studio Inc.

A $50 deposit, a $35 to $55 early fee, 20 percent on top

The deposit is $50, nonrefundable but transferable. Appointments before 8 a.m. or after 8 p.m. carry a $35 to $55 before or after-hours fee. Gratuity is not included, and the site cites 20 percent as standard. Group cancellations inside seven days are charged in full. Travel is included, though venue parking may be charged. Those are the published terms; the per-person rates for hair and makeup are not on the pages we read.

An agency guarantee instead of a named artist

Artists are assigned by the agency, which states 1,500 plus artists across 60 plus markets. The guarantee is that if your booked artist becomes unavailable, a backup artist is substituted. That is the trade: you do not pick the person, but you are not left without one. Airbrush and traditional makeup are both offered, and the site states it serves all ethnicities.

Twelve towns and parties of 30 plus

The Long Island page names Garden City, Huntington, Great Neck, Manhasset, Port Washington, Long Beach, Babylon, Stony Brook, Oyster Bay, Smithtown, Mineola and Rockville Centre. Parties range from a solo client to 30 or more people, all mobile. Where this model earns its keep is a very large party, or a venue in a town local studios do not reach, when a guaranteed body in the chair matters more than a particular artist's portfolio.