Make up bold enough to break the rules

Picture / Carolyn Robertson

Don't be shy about makeup this winter. Timid applications of nude eyeshadow and barely-there beige lipstick really are all very well and good for the beach but this is winter and the clothes demand colour.

Some looks are even so bold as to flout the cardinal rule of makeup that says you focus on either the eyes or the mouth but not both. Lancome is a case in point. The French company painted up the lovely Elizabeth Jagger in high visibility blues for the eyes and an ever so bold pink mouth for its Sweet Vintage colour story. While it sounds very Anna Piaggi, the result is nothing less than sensational and has a real devil-may-care attitude. The key is to keep the colours clear and vibrant rather than dirty and dark.

For a slightly less extroverted look, play up just the eyes and go neutral with the lips. Choose your colour - blues, purples and greens certainly make a statement but so does a dark, smoky eye using browns and inky blue.

Go the smoky eye way though and eyeliner is compulsory. Pencil works but so does the liquid liner look sex kittens of the 1960s used. Some of the new liners have made it easy on us and reduced the high skill level required to paint on a line of the thin, runny stuff by making a gel do the same job. Bobbi Brown's Gel Eyeliner is far less Fear Factor in terms of application, as is M.A.C's Fluidline which just happens to come in brights as well as souped-up dark versions. Finish the look with plenty of mascara.

But if the mouth is your thing, you can't go wrong with a screen goddess red lip as the only hit of colour aside from some warmth on the cheeks. Otherwise, obvious full-colour pinks are attention grabbing, as are berry stained lips. Estee Lauder's Pure Colour Berry Kiss Lip Tint manages to give the impression you've just been eating blackberries. Alternatively, a shimmering lip in a more subdued colour also works as long as it has a metallic finish to make an impact.

However you go about it, this season is all about being bold and committing to colour one way or another. Shrinking violets don't get a look in.