Around this time, Bandy set about reinventing himself. He underwent a nose job and face lift and capped his teeth. He also changed his name to "Way Bandy" explaining, "The name just came into my consciousness." After his reinvention, Bandy never publicly discussed the details of his previous life and refused to reveal his birth name or real age. In 1969, Bandy was hired as the makeup director at Charles of the Ritz where he met photographer Francesco Scavullo. Scavullo was impressed by Bandy's "face designing" techniques and the two became frequent collaborators. In 1971, he left Charles of the Ritz to do makeup for the Broadway show "No, No, Nanette". After the show closed, Bandy began working as a freelance makeup artist for print, television and films. Bandy's work was featured in editorials for "Vogue", "Cosmopolitan", "Harper's Bazaar" and "Rolling Stone". He also worked with several noted photographers including Scavullo, Richard Avedon, Hiro, Horst P. Horst, Helmut Newton, Irving Penn, and Victor Skrebneski.