Here at Because HQ we're getting ready for fashion week to land on our doorstep in London. Planning outfits is one thing, but perfecting your makeup looks is another conundrum entirely. If you're not a professional, being a bit bold with your beauty can seem somewhat daunting, especially when it comes to the trends ever present in those tutorials on TikTok.
How much lipgloss is too much lip gloss? How do I master a colour pop eye shadow? Should I be fearful of applying fake freckles? To bushy brow or not to bushy brow?
To help answer all your burning questions, we’ve enlisted make-up artist Rachel Singer-Clark to show you how to nail the biggest beauty trends of the new season.
Madonna Was The Muse
Driven by the recent colourful eye shadow trend, we decided to create an 80s-inspired make-up look referencing early photographs of Madonna. In signature Madonna style we added a beauty spot and intense eye makeup, alongside matte skin and super fluffy brushed-up brows.
I started with the eyes first – so any drop-down could be easily cleaned up before I finished off the base and powdering. I began with a black kajal pencil to outline the eye and then popped it on the waterline from top and bottom.
I used the deep and dark ‘Fêtes Noires’ palette as a base, blending up into brows and softening off to make the eyes appear as large as possible.
Next, I used the light, bright, shimmering ‘Syren’ palette to add a pop of purple to the middle of the lid and a flash of neon green in the inner eye.
Then I curled the lashes and applied lashings of the high definition ‘Tears in Rain ‘ waterproof mascara to both the top and bottom lashes …. Many times.
I cleaned up any drop-down and began on base. Softly contouring and concealing the face and topping it with powder to set. I then applied that all-important beauty spot using the black Kajal pencil again.
Finally, for the lips, I pressed in on the lip line liquid in ‘Flushed’ and dabbed to disperse the colour evenly.
There is no blusher or highlight on the skin – for this look the focus is the eyes!
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Get the Sophia Loren Look
Italian Belle Sophia Loren was the first to come to mind when creating a look using solely Gucci products, and we chose to celebrate the actress's matte finish and defined neutral facial features.
I emphasised the model’s natural socket line using a brown pencil and brushed up her fluffy full natural brows.
I mattified her skin using a primer, to begin with, and then applied a small amount of foundation, buffing it into the skin only where needed. Next, I sculpted using the Gucci bronzer powder compact.
For lashes, I curled and pressed five times (to get that doe-eyed Loren look) and added a coat of mascara, starting at the root and then running through to the ends of the lashes for full volumising effect. I did these several times leaving 30 seconds between applications for added impact.
The main product for creating this subtle eye look was the soft but intense, chocolate eye pencil, which I ran along the top lash line close to the root, and added it to the top lash waterline to make the lashes seem fuller. I then applied it beneath the lower lashes and softly smudged it inwards with a fluffy dome-like brush to soften the harsh line, leaving a seamless result. I then created a semi-circle almond shape accentuating the natural corner of the eye, which lifted slightly to draw the eye up and out.
I then applied the lighter nude shade as a wash over the pencil foundation and added a deeper brown shadow shade with a pointed eyeshadow brush onto the brown liner I had set in place earlier.
For the lips, I used a gorgeous matte velvety lipstick, overdrawing the natural lip line and cupids bow to poutable perfection.
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90’s Baby
This 90s-inspired make-up look, with thinner brows, natural-looking makeup and cool tone hues, is a stark change from the previous high glamour looks.
I began by minimising the model’s natural brows using a thicker concealer to block out and colour the brow hairs.
Then, after applying light foundation and concealer, I sprayed a special effects product all over the bridge of the nose and eye area, to create fake freckles inspired by makeup artist Lisa Butler, who did the same on all the models at the Chanel Couture show this season in Paris.
Lastly, I lined the lips with a taupe eyebrow pencil and filled them in with a very pale nude, which I created by mixing shade 812 with a little concealer, lightly dabbing it on to the lip.
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Photograph by Brett Russel
Make-up by Rachel Singer-Clark
Hair by Lewis Stanford
Model Freya Walton