Beauty: The dangers of bold makeup

If you choose to go bold with makeup, you walk a fine line between making an impact and being remembered for the wrong reasons. Photo / Getty Images

By Tracey Strange

Talking with Kim Knight for her Canvas story on red lipstick last week brought back a series of lipstick memories, not all of them positive. The most vivid involved a friend's wedding. Asked to do the bride's makeup, I realised about five minutes before she left for the venue that my own face was bare. A quick solution? Red lipstick and a few coats of mascara. Going without makeup would have been better.

Seated opposite a Hollywood A-lister (married to a New Zealander, and a friend of the bride), I spent my only chance to chat to a celebrity I wasn't contractually obliged to interview, self-consciously wiping lipstick off my glass and worrying about smudges. My mouth looked like I'd swabbed it with a raspberry ice-block. In wedding photos I am the garish wicked stepsister next to a gorgeously natural-looking Cinderella (the bride).

Lynette Collins, a clever fashion stylist with whom I worked years ago, was a genius at putting outfits together for models. But her true talent lay in styling the rest of us. Her best tip for camouflaging a non-model-like bum or tum was simple: shun "slimming" black pants or uncomfortable support knickers in of favour clothes and accessories that draw attention to the face or decolletage - the idea being that people will focus on your winning smile or twinkly eyes instead of ill-proportioned nether-regions.

Her "clients" could be recognised by their beautiful earrings and pro-looking makeup. Bold lipstick was a key feature. And while I no longer find any fault at all in saddlebags and gravity-affected bottoms (even my own), I still think the impact of a good lip is underrated.

If you choose to go bold with makeup, you walk a fine line between making an impact and being remembered for the wrong reasons. But ill-applied red lipstick isn't the only offender.

So are lurid nails and too much mascara.

Here's why ...

Bold nails: They may still be fashionable but I'm not the only one who thinks black nails look like they've been bashed with a hammer. Bonus bad points if they are chipped. Ditto over-bright blue, yellow and glittery nails (of any colour). In summer, glossy and beautifully applied, black, blue, yellow and sparkly can be gorgeous. In the depths of winter you risk being compared with a child.

Clumpy mascara: Mascara should be thick and noticeable - that's the whole point. But if it's so thick it's sticking your lashes together and falling in flakes on your face, it's too obvious. (Ditto lash extensions in need of re-doing since they tend to stick out at odd angles.)

Smudged lipstick: Bold lipstick really needs to be checked every time you make a pit-stop. If you have an exemplary bladder, invest in a compact - there's no shame in reapplying at your desk.

Foundation marks: Getting the colour of your concealer and foundation right is beauty 101. Remember, too, that even sun-screened faces can change colour in the summer.

Melting eye makeup: Not such a problem in winter, but summer heat can melt shadow and mascara into an inky mess. If you're affected (it tends to happen more if you have oily skin), switch to waterproof formulas, even if you're not going near water.

Celeb beauty tips: Louise Wallace

TV presenter, actor and director
"My absolute go-to products are my Pure Shade Brightening SPF50+ Sunblock and One Truth 818 Anti-Ageing Serum. Pure Shade is gentle, totally natural but extremely effective and it lightens my sunspots, which is an added bonus. The 818 Serum is amazing for the texture of my skin. I get comments all the time about my skin's luminosity and I put it down to this product. Say no more."