If your new meeting point is online, we’re willing to bet you’ll be spending at least some time oblivious to the conversation and examining your own face (or is it just us?) Whether its HDTV, Zoom or social scrolling we are daily confronted with an abundance of faces and whilst the tech is there to manipulate the reflection looking back at us, so is the make-up and we know which we find more fun.
First up, primer. Latest launches offer so much more than a simple base and there are some fantastic choices available. We have such a soft spot for Barry M, and their new illuminating primers, Fresh Face are properly pleasing. Packed with active moisturisers (hyaluronic acid, Vitamin C, berry exracts) to plump and prime, and also containing iridescent particles in either silver (Cool) or gold (Warm). They are barely discernible once you’ve smoothed the cream into your skin but give a really natural-looking light and enhanced glow.
£6.99 barrym.com or Superdrug.
To ramp it up a little further, consider adding a drop or two of Dr Hauschka’s Translucent Bronze Tint in with your primer or moisturiser. The natural based formula blends beautifully and adds a shot of colour to even the pallid complexion. We’re not talking a week in the sun (unless you really pile it on) but certainly a healthier, even-looking face.
£19 drhauschka.co.uk
Before you’ve even swatched Fenty Beauty’s Pro Filtr Soft Matte Powder Foundation over your jawline, take pleasure in the sponge applicator and decent mirror included in the compact. It is fully buildable (beauty-speak for you can trowel this on all you want) but equally effective as a light veil. Designed to resist both creasing and sweat, it more than meets our basic foundation requirements: to whit, does it feel mask-like? No. Is it available in an inclusive range of colours? Yes.
£27 boots.com
We doubted there could be a more realistically pretty way of giving colour to your cheeks than a smattering of Daniel Sandler’s famed Watercolour Blush. However, we were wrong. Sandler’s latest innovation takes the same spectrum of naturalistic colours and offers them in gel form. The original is a silicone-based oil free liquid formula which is easy to build and blend: the gel (of which you will need a mere pin-head sized blob) is light, sheer and stretches with the skin. Both are exemplary.
£16.50 danielsandler.com
Sculpted is the collection of make-up products devised by Ireland’s top MUA Aimee Connolly. The latest drop, Liquid Lights, is a mini-sized tube packed with creamy pigment to be tapped or brushed on to add gleam and luminescence. If your dewy glow is lacking (and let’s face it, who’s isn’t?) this is an easy, speedy route to skin which looks lit from within. As always, dab it on where the light is inclined to hit – we suggest angling your face to the nearest light source for the best effect.
Your lips, but plumped and pouty? Check out MY Lip Gloss by Mahina Make Up Artistry, the small, independent brand founded by MUA Mahina (find her on Instagram at @mahinamakeup). £8.99 buys you a gloss in which the balance between creamy and shiny is great, and any stickiness is minimal. Also, central-heating blasted lips will love the added shea butter and Vitamin E.
