The 'no makeup' makeup look - Woman of Style and Substance

The tide is turning against the multilayered makeup look favoured by the Kardashians and YouTube Beauty Vloggers and a more natural look is coming back into fashion. From the catwalks, to the MeToo movement on the awards red carpets, to Meghan Markle’s gorgeous natural look on her wedding day, breathable skin is in (personally, I have never understood the thick layers of caked on base, foundation, powders etc).

The natural or ‘no makeup’ make up look flatters everyone and the look can cover just about any daytime situation such as work (there have been numerous articles written by industry experts suggesting women should not wear heavily applied makeup to work if they want to be seen as professional), school drop off, lunch with the girls, shopping, appointments…. you get the idea.

As we get older too much make up can age your appearance, which is definitely something we don’t want. The key to this look is fresh, glowing skin with highlighting your best features without overdoing it. Remember: a fresh face is always in style!

So how can we achieve a polished “au natural” look?

Base:

Sorry, but no matter how wonderful your foundation is, it’s never going to give you a no-makeup makeup look, as it is too heavy. BB/CC creams and tinted moisturisers are light, airy, and allow your skin to show through it (but also hide imperfections, like pigmentation), so there’s no way you’ll get the cakey/pancake makeup look. If you have dry skin, pick a tinted moisturiser loaded with hydrating ingredient.

We recommend:

From left: Avene Day Protector Tinted BB Cream SPF 30, Garnier BB Cream Naturals, Estee Laude Revitalizing Supreme CC Cream, Bioderma Photoderm BB Cream and Clinique Moisture Surge CC Cream.

Concealer:

A key element of no makeup makeup is that bright-eyed “I just woke up” look. If you require a bit more coverage for dark circles under your eyes, use concealer in a triangle shape under your eyes. For an automatic eyelift, add concealer to the outer corners of your eyes. You can also add some concealer to your nose, chin and cupids bow for a highlighting effect.

We recommend: Benefit Boi ing hydrating concealer, Revlon Youth FX Fill And Blur Concealer, NYX Professional Makeup HD Studio Photogenic Concealer, Australis Bright Eyes Concealer and Jane Iredale Active Light Under-Eye Concealer.

Eyes:

You may want to skip eye liner, but just a little bit goes a long way with this look. The key is to choose a liner with a small tip in a shade that’s close to your natural eyelash colour. Apply right at the base of your lashes, either in a very fine line, a series of tiny dots or blended using your ring finger, and it’ll look like your lashes are fuller. As for mascara, the look is all about defined lashes. The idea is to emphasise your eyes but still look natural. One coat of mascara is usually enough. It has been reported that Meghan Markle swears by Maybeline’s Lash Sensation mascara and even controverted a makeup artist into using it.

We recommend:

From left: L’oreal Paris Paradise Mascara, Models Own i-Definer – Eyeliner Duo, Maybelline Lash Sensational Luscious Mascara, La Roche-posay Respectissime Soft Eye Pencil and Revlon Volume Length Magnified Mascara.

Cheeks:

A light dusting of blush is all you need to add some colour to your cheeks and add definition to your face. Cream blush (without any shimmer) looks the most natural. Pick out a blush that is soft in colour and as close to your natural ‘blush’ as possible and apple only to the apples of your cheeks. Blend until you have a subtle colour.

We recommend:

From left: Physicians Formula Argan Wear Ultra Nourishing Argan Oil Blush, Revlon Glow Powder Blush, Models Prefer Mineral Soft Touch Baked Trio and Covergirl truBLEND Blush.

Lips:

With a no makeup makeup look, you want to keep the lips simple. Completely nude lips can get lost in this look, so define them with a lip colour that’s just one or two shades darker than your bare lip colour. We love pinks and rose shades of lip colour, which are most suited for this look.

We recommend: