Putting on your party face

Brighten up dark days by updating your makeup look in a natural, safe and eco-friendly way

Brighten up dark days by updating your makeup look in a natural, safe and eco-friendly way

Women have subjected themselves to some pretty questionable substances over the years in the name of enhancing what Mama Nature has handed out. Queen Elizabeth I famously sought paler skin by using a whitening powder called Venetian ceruse. Made of white lead, it – unsurprisingly – caused lead poisoning for many. In the US in the early 1930s, a permanent mascara product known as Lash Lure caused blindness and even death in some cases, ultimately leading to the expansion of the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) jurisdiction to include the regulation of cosmetics.

Many of the basic makeup formulations haven’t changed as much as you’d think, even over hundreds of years. Sure, these days we stay away from lead and arsenic in our ingredient lists, but lipstick is still made from waxes and emollients (moisturisers) just it was made as far back as the time of Queen Bess. Carmine beetles are still used to colour products, just as they were for Cleopatra, and Max Factor’s original ‘Pan-Cake’ foundation recipe is still for sale almost a century after its invention.

Time for a fresh approach? With each changing season, the challenge is knowing how to refresh your makeup look to best enhance your features – and this applies to the makeup you choose as well as the style in which you apply it.

The good news is that there are a number of natural options to choose from, some of them made right here in Aotearoa. Louise Henderson from natural makeup and skincare brand Living Nature says it offers a limited palette of colours in its range, determined by the safety of different pigments. You won’t find many reds in Living Nature cosmetics, as Louise says those are harder to achieve safely and without lead traces, or naturally without using cochineal – a dye made from carmine beetles. Living Nature also sources the base for its mascara from the hallyosite clay deposits of Matauri Bay in Northland, famed for being among the finest in the world. They must have got something right, because it won the ‘Best Mascara’ award in 2010 from UK reference guide The Green Beauty Bible.

Look for high quality vegetable oil bases where possible. The Body Shop has just launched a range of foundations using community Fairtrade extra virgin olive oil as its base. Product manager Louise Mills says olive oil is great for keeping skin in good condition without making it oily.

Some natural and organic makeup products come with an eco endorsement – such as the Ecocert products from sustainable French makeup range Couleur Caramel. These cosmetics are made using plant-based ingredients and are packaged in recyclable materials such as wood, metal and cardboard.

Then there’s the mineral makeup trend – with products containing naturally occurring minerals such as mica, zinc and titanium. Makeup has contained these ingredients for years, but the new twist of most new mineral brands is the elimination of fragrances, synthetic dyes, preservatives and talc – all possible skin irritants. The ingredients zinc oxide and titanium oxide also have antiinflammatory properties, which is good news for anyone who suffers from acne or rosacea. Mineral makeup also won’t clog pores as conventional foundations can do.

Kiwi makeup and prosthetics artist Hil Cook, who in her career has readied stars such as Cate Blanchett and Kylie Minogue for the cameras, says mineral foundation looks good and is especially great for people with sensitive skin. “After about 20 minutes, the powder reacts with natural oils in the skin and you get a beautiful glow – a fresh, dewy look with a tiny shimmer,” she says.

Timeless looks

Somebody call the 1980s and pass it on: the key to makeup you can wear at any age is simplicity. Make sure you have a good palette of neutrals and browns – colours that suit everyone, which are as suited to the barely-there look as the carefully constructed and smokey-eyed. Eyelash curlers are worth trying, as is spending a bit of time figuring out how to best apply eyeshadow. Let the fads pass you by, and stick to the basics to avoid future equivalents of the 80s baby-blue eyeshadow variety.

Hil recommends every woman owns at least one quality mascara, highlighter, tinted moisturiser and a decent set of brushes. She suggests a basic brush kit including a kabuki brush and a big, flat synthetic brush to apply primer and foundation. Hil’s secret weapon is a simple bottle of baby lotion (the kind used for nappy rashes) containing the same ingredients as a foundation primer but at a fraction of the cost.

Freshen it up

The basics are all well and good, but there’s something to be said for occasionally revising or jazzing up your look – and a summer night out is the perfect time to try something new. Hil’s favourite makeup miracle involves using a light cream or white shimmer powder along the inner corner of the eye to make eyes pop. On a recent fashion shoot, Hil says she gave the treatment to a group of women over 50. “They all went away raving about it, and it was the easiest thing to do. It freshened their whole look completely.” A similar trick to create fuller lips instantly involves using a highlighting cream pen along the tip of the cupid’s bow of the mouth.

Refreshing your look might also be as simple as switching colours in your eyeshadow arsenal. Louise Mills from The Body Shop says many women find a colour combination and stick to it – but changing up the colours or adding a different shade of eyeliner can really make a difference. If that seems a step too far, try a new type of brush instead. “Even just changing the tools you use can help.”

The eyes have it

For a simple effect that looks anything but basic, start with the purchase of a four-tone palette. The lightest colour should go over your whole lid, followed by a darker colour over the lower lid only. Brush the crease with a contrasting or highlighting tone and finally, use the darkest shade to line the upper and lower rim with a straight-edge brush. Once you have this routine sorted, experiment with switching the colours. Use neutral tones for everyday and work environments, and brighter, more adventurous shading with a bit of sparkle for night time.