Oscars 2015 Makeup: Subtlety Rules The Show Plus The One Thing That Was Missing

I know it's been a week since the Oscars but two things in particular caught my eye and I've been dying to share...

Firstly, did anyone else feel that the makeup at the Oscars this year was a bit, how do I say, underwhelming? I'm always itching to see what the makeup artist elite have chosen to bring to our most beloved red carpet, but this year felt, I don't know, a bit 'meh'. Did you agree?

On many of the female actors skin was kept low key with lips 'barely there', slight definition around the eyes (mostly brown hues) and the lightest wash of blush.

What happened to the drama? The glamour?!

Could it be possible we are experiencing a backlash, an antidote to the bold looks of recent years?

Secondly, one thing was blatantly missing from the large majority of makeup looks... Where was all the contouring?

Anna Kendrick eschewed bronzer in favour of a wash of peach blush

A Sculpting Backlash?
Even if your makeup bag rarely boasts anything more than a concealer and a six month old mascara it's likely you've heard of a technique called contouring. A trend arguably made famous by the Kardashian sisters, contouring has been one of the biggest buzz words of the past two years with the majority of cosmetics brands choosing to invest in innovative contouring products (just launched: Clinique's new contouring sticks).

But contouring this year at the Oscars was astoundingly absent.

Yes, there were a couple of exceptions...J-Lo and Jennifer Aniston both opted for their staple 'bronzed goddess' look (no surprises there) and bronzers were definitely, if more subtly, deployed with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley and Gwyneth (I desperately wanted to get out my blending brush with Rita Ora!). But for the majority of stars skin was left refreshingly nude and in some cases topped with just the slightest hint of blush.

Is Less Really More?
Take Meryl for example. And please don't get me wrong, the woman is a genius and I simply adore her... but I felt her skin this year could have done with a bit of warmth. A little bronzer around the hairline perhaps. I'm not talking colour here because I think the level of blush is bang on, but working more with a matte bronzer, 2-3 shades warmer than Meryl's natural skin tone.

Another thing I would have changed about Meryl's makeup would have been to have added a touch of highlighter, something unbelievably sheer such as Glamcor's Glamour Glow, just to the cheekbones and temples (notice her skin is completely matte in the photo which makes it look a bit flat). This is especially important on more mature skin which loses its natural sheen over time.

The New Nude
Seems I'm not the only one banging on about the rise of the new nude makeup look for 2015. Vogue recently tweeted a link to this article featuring countless examples of understated, natural looks from the A/W15 shows.

I should stress, it's not that I'm against an au naturelle makeup look, I frickin' love it! It's just that I occasionally pine for something a little more spectacular. And if you can't dazzle at The Oscars then when can you?

All images: Getty (unless otherwise stated)

Zombie Apocalypse in Camden!

I was recently asked by the wonderful people at Backyard Cinema if I would do zombie makeup for the launch of their three day Halloween extravaganza. How could I refuse?!

We got the actors ready inside an enormous storage facility at the back of Camden Lock market which was sufficiently cold and damp to get us in the mood!

The indoor market was dressed as if the Apocalypse had arrived with zombies taking over the world. Imposing army men patrolled the bar and theatre and I have to say, the whole set up felt unnervingly realistic!

I've done zombie makeup before but this time I wanted to focus more on the contouring of the skin, creating the appearance of hollowed, sallow skin (eugh) with veins showing through here and there (that bit was super fun).

Des and Beth - the two actors playing the zombies - have worked in horror before so were game to wear contacts. I think they really add to the look.

Whenever I do Halloween makeup (unsurprisingly, about once a year) I might watch one or two YouTube tutorials to get me in the mood. I came across this one which I loved (apart from the 'boils' bit at the end which made me want to vom)...but the contouring and bruising using lipstick bit is fab.

Backyard Cinema's Zombie Apocalypse is on until Saturday. Highly recommend. Plus Honest Burgers are available in the bar (need I say more?!)

Backyardcinema.co.uk
Tickets £14 (Earlybird £12)

Space NK "Lust-haves": THURSDAY

In at No. 4 on my "lust-have" list this week is....

Laura Mercier's Bronzing Gel (£26)

Matte bronzers like 'Hoola' - note: the best matte bronzer for my skin. Fact. - have long been a beauty staple of mine (I'm going to hazard a guess and say it's been 9 years! *applause*). And whilst I still use a little Hoola to warm up my skin / add a bit of structure to my face, it's GEL bronzers that have challenged the status quo.

I was first introduced to Laura Mercier's Bronzing Gel in April of last year whilst working on a commercial shoot with the amazing Red Miller. The brief on the shoot was for the 'mum' to look as natural as possible (i.e. to look like she was wearing hardly any makeup at all). When Red applied the bronzing gel just under her cheek bones and blended it out - probably taking a little up into the hairline - the effect was dramatic. Our 'mum' went from looking quite pale and tired to 'glowy' and rested.

Unlike powder bronzers, gel bronzers don't 'dop' like powders so fewer touch ups (if at all) are required.

There are three secrets to getting the most out of your gel bronzer:
1. Use to sculpt features (do not apply all over the face)
2. Less is more
3. Blend, blend, blend

Laura Mercier's Bronzing Gel gives a natural, not too shimmery 'glow' (no tango'ed faces here folks!) - and successfully mimics the appearance of having 'just come back from holiday' ("Sarah, how was Belize?"). Used subtly, it will warm up the face, bringing you closer to that 'no makeup look'. It can be worn on its own (if you're blessed with an even skin tone) or on top of your regular tinted moisturiser/liquid foundation.

Chantecaille also do a fabulous bronzing gel called 'Radiance Gel Bronzer' which is a little more spenny at £49 and a touch darker than the Laura Mercier. Being the skin care experts, Chantecaille's bronzing gel is also anti-aging owing to a formula that includes raspberry stem cell technology (antioxidant).

Have you tried a gel bronzer before? What did you think?