BACKSTAGE PASS
Top beauty tips from the talent behind the stars
For every red-carpet moment, there’s a glam squad behind the scenes ensuring the whole thing is pulled off to perfection. With that in mind, here are some words of wisdom from a few of the A-list’s most trusted beauty advisors...
Tackle oily skin with baking soda
Hollywood aesthetician Emma Goodman (aka the Skin Witch LA) is the woman responsible with keeping model Hailey Bieber’s skin looking amongst the best in the biz. If you suffer from an oily complexion or your skin feels clogged, Emma swears by this at-home trick: “Mix a bit of baking soda with your cleanser for glow-giving exfoliation applied in a safe way. Do this a few times a week if you feel exceptionally oily or have blocked pores.”
Apply foundation to damp skin
Known for crafting his signature look on Zendaya, Naomi Campbell and Queen Bey, makeup maestro Sir John has a top tip for ensuring your skin looks its bouncy best. “Using a Beautyblender or sponge, stipple on your foundation when your skin is still slightly emollient from your moisturiser,” he advises. “This is the key to making sure your skin actually looks like skin. It doesn’t matter if your base is full-coverage or very sheer – once your moisturiser is fully absorbed, your foundation will look like it’s air-dried on.”
Blur lipstick for fuller-looking lips
Makeup artist Katie Jane Hughes works with celebrity beauties like model mum Ashley Graham, and is known for her love of colour and glossy skin. Her top tip is after you’ve put your lipstick on, “take a soft brush and slightly brush the top of your lip, like you’re blurring it out. It doesn’t matter what colour it is – I’ve been doing it on everyone. It’s so cool because it makes the lip look fuller without being intentionally overdrawn.”
Layer your liner
Wondering how your favourite celebrities manage to nail a high-impact smoky eye on the red carpet? Sandhya Shekar, the makeup artist responsible for many of actress Deepika Padukone’s best looks, says the secret lies in inviting more than one eyeliner into her makeup kit. She advises, “If you’re looking to intensify the effect of your eyeliner, it helps to use a kohl pencil first and then top that with a liquid or cream eyeliner. Since the tip of the pencil is chubbier, it tends to glide very easily, cover a lot of area and allows you to go very close to the lash line, as opposed to liquid, which makes it harder to get that perfect finish if you’re not doing it every day.”
Boost your bold lip look with a concealer pen
Fashion’s favourite makeup artist, Charlotte Tilbury works with the names on everyone’s lips, from Kate Winslet to Cara Delevingne, so it’s safe to say she knows all there is about makeup trickery. She loves a strong lip look, and says that
‘Mix a bit of baking soda with your cleanser’
when you’re happy with your colour, “use a concealer pen around your lip line and on the Cupid’s bow to add volume”. This framing technique accentuates your pout. “Kate Winslet does it a lot,” Charlotte discloses, so we’re all in!
Change up how you highlight
Uzo is the mononymous global director of artistry for Nars Cosmetics, with a slew of A-list clients clamouring for red-carpet appointments. She is a fan of unexpected ways to apply highlighter, suggesting popping on your favourite formula before foundation or tinted moisturiser, rather than over the top. “This will give the skin a luminous glow without any harsh highlighting lines,” explains Uzo.