by In this regular series, Ageless Beauty, The Telegraph’s beauty experts Annabel Jones and Lisa Armstrong tackle the problems they’ve been searching for answers to, and share their favorite tips and tricks.
This week, they discuss party makeup. Ask them your questions below…
Party makeup, like wedding makeup, can easily be overdone. What I realized after being wrong myself many times, is that less is definitely more. As long as you introduce one or two elements of surprise.
Who knows why but one rule that has value is like dialing your coin in the middle of life. Real skin, no matter what age, is younger. Therefore if you choose comprehensive cover you run the risk of doing your own thing. In general I agree. Although on all-night occasions, I use the underpainting technique.
Underpainting turns everything on its head. On bare skin, you start with contour, then blush high on the apples of your cheeks. At this stage you can look like a clown, but this is the point (trust in the process). Then, using one pump of medium coverage foundation, spread the base thinly on the back of your hand.
Take the thick end of a beauty blender and press it into the foundation before reaching the skin, leave the blush and contour at this stage. With the same sponge (don’t go in for more bases yet) press what’s left over the cheeks repeatedly until you have a seamless finish. Then again on the other side.
What’s amazing about blushing is that you look the way you’re blushing naturally from within – rather than artificially. If you find the effect too subtle, you can always dust a final flower of blush for extra staying power, just a light touch.
Lisa, I know you can’t stick to glitter on an aging eyelid. I sort of agree but I have found a way to get into the spark without overdoing it. There are two ways to approach it.
The first thing is to line the outer corners of your eyelids in black liquid eyeliner, creating a cat eye that stretches the eyes upwards. Next, apply a metallic liner over top focusing on the center and inner corners. I love a deep liquid caramel shade and, if applied gently and close to the lash line, it’s a discreet way to reflect light and enhance your eye color.
Makeup by Mario Ethereal Moonlight Palette, £69, Sephora; NARS Limited Edition Single Eyeshadow in Gold Rush, £20, John Lewis; Bronze Merit Bronze Balm, £32, Beauty of Merit
When I’m pressed for time, I’ll take my ring finger to a pot of matte brown cream shadow and blend a small amount into the eyelids, contouring in the crease but lightly. Then, with the same finger I’ll take a high impact foil shadow and press it into the center of the lid and inner corner (leave out the browbone – too 80s).
NARS has launched a limited edition eyeshadow called Gold Rush, but Makeup by Mario’s Ethereal Moonlight Palette includes a mix of 12 neutral matte and shimmery shades from pretty sparkling oysters to warm shimmery nudes that look especially grown-up. Less is more than a path lightly – you are aiming for a visible mesh glitter.
Haus Labs by Lady Gaga Color Fuse Talc Free Blush, £28, Sephora; Too Faced Born This Way Foundation, £38, Boots; Nude beauty blender, £17.50, Boots
While wearing sparkle, I play down other areas. I’ll leave out mascara or coat lips with a clear balm instead of lipstick. Subtraction is often the key to modernity in the middle of life. Matte lip with shiny eyelids. As this is a thin makeup look, I won’t leave out mascara.
Violette FR Bisou Balm in Betise, £30, Violette; Road Jones Magic Hour Miracle Balm, £36, Liberty; Tower 28 MakeWaves Mascara, £19; Revolve
If I choose a bold lip, it will probably be a soft matte red. In this case, I will not do the underpainting for clean skin and concealer – mainly under the eyes.
I might put Vaseline on the eyelids for a clear glaze or use one of Jones Road’s tinted Miracle Balms (Magic Hour is my favorite).
Elf No Budge Top Mirror in Dummach, £5, Amazon; Fenty Shimmer Lid Liquid Eyeliner in Boozy Bronze, £19, Self-identifiers
The key here is not to overdo everything all at once. Mix textures, and don’t be afraid to bend the rules.
This was the year when conversations about Pamela Anderson’s no-makeup policy turned the dial clear. I’ve noticed that even at industry events, no one wants to look overdone. That said, as cool as the bare look is, most of us want defined features and great skin, so in 2024, sophisticated party makeup is all about delivering that in the most ways as little as possible.
I tried your underpainting technique, Annabel – and, with a few product tweaks, I like it. When it comes to my skin, I keep everything very strong, so I start with a primer, because strong makeup usually penetrates the skin and disappears after a while. Next, I brushed on some of my favorite gel-to-powder highlighters from RMS – first the Hydra Dew Luminizer around my eyes, temples, under my browbones and out and up along the upper wings of my cheeks, and in the bow of my cheek lips
RMS Beauty Redimension Hydra Luminizer Dew in Prosecco Fizz, £40, Space NK; Re-dimension Hydra Bronzer, £33, RMS beauty; Big Skin Instant Glow Serum, £40, Merit
If my shoulders or décolleté are going to be visible, I’ll dab some on there. The name pretty much tells you what it does, all without any sparkle. It’s a kind, lightweight veil that works for all ages. RMS bronzer is the only one I use. Then I applied one pump of Great Merit Skin Serum on top – it’s as light as it gets, but glossiness is effective. If you use the products in this order you can really blend your highlighter and bronzer so it doesn’t look obvious. A dot of concealer around the nose and under the eyes, and your “bare skin” is done.
I like to do my brows before any other eye makeup. That way I can measure how much I need. I’m currently trying Rumi’s Power Brow and Tinted Gel which gives a natural yet defined look and also covers gray hairs.
The other change to my makeup this year is moving on from eye powders and liquids. Instead, I use a pencil to draw a thin, soft line near my upper lashes and in the waterline.
For evening, I love Victoria Beckham’s Kajal liners because you can smudge them out across the board, adding intensity as you go. Once you’ve achieved the effect you want, set it aside for the evening. Unlike Pam, I’m not ready to abandon mascara. The bigger and darker the better. I’ve tried so many great ones this year, but for a party, Lash Lift by Sculpted by Aimee really works – and with zero clogging.
PowerBrow+ Tinted Eye Gel, £26, Rumi Cosmetics; Satin Kajal Liner in Orchid, £32, The beauty of Victoria Beckham; Lash Lift mascara, £20, Sculpted by Aimee; Lip Duo in Naked, £17, Sculpted by Aimee
I had never heard of Aimee until recently. Now two of her products are in my top seven right now. Their Lip Duo is two in one: one side a pencil, the other a lipstick. Together they provide long-lasting, winning color that’s similar to your natural lip shade, but stronger.
That’s another subtle change I’ve made – switching from pink nudges to pale ones, which are much warmer and nicer to my skin.
Lesson: just because it looks pretty in the tube or on the palette, doesn’t mean it’s right for you.
