How to: Stage make-up

Hello Everyone,

As I have spent the last two days in rehearsals, and therefore in full show make-up, I thought I would do a tutorial on this.

Here goes, a picture of me with no make-up on, and my face cleansed properly to clear out my pores. I have moisturised (Neutrogena Visibly Clear Pink Grapefruit Oil-free Moisturiser) and put on a primer (No.7 Stay Perfect Primer) to help my make-up stay on my face for as long as possible.

No Make-up, aaaaahhhhh!

After this I apply foundation (Rimmel London Match Perfect in Light Porcelain). I use quite a lot of this because I have quite patchy skin tone. This just evens it out, and stops me from looking washed out on stage. Once I have applied this I use some concealer (No.7 Match Made Concealer in Calico) on spots or blemishes that are not fully hidden by the foundation. I also use some of this under my eyes, and then re-apply some foundation of top to make sure there are no dark circles (remember that this is on stage, and that the lights can quite easily shine through your make-up.)

In order to create some definition to my face, and start to contour it, I apply highlighter (Benefit High Beam) to the top of my cheekbones, my forehead, a line from the bridge of my nose to the tip, and to the sides of my nose. Blend in well with fingers. It will make your face look quite shiny, but that’s okay, you’re going to put powder and other things over it, and you’ll be on stage, so it will need to be exaggerated for people in the audience to pick up, and for the lights to not wash you out. Finally, powder your whole face with a transparent powder (Rimmel London Stay Matte Pressed Powder in Transparent). This will allow your foundation to stay in place, and to stop your face looking shiny on stage.

With foundation, powder and highlighter

The next stage is to contour your face. Using a small blush brush (or a specific contour brush) and a powder that is darker than your face powder, or a specific contour powder (I don’t own one, I can’t find one that isn’t significantly too dark for my face, and therefore blends well enough to look natural), brush the powder under the cheekbones, not going into the apples of the cheeks though. Blend well, until it looks like you have natural shadows under your cheekbones, although as this is stage make-up you can afford to be slightly more liberal about the darkness of these shadows, as long as it is blended well. After this, apply blush to the apples of the cheeks, and bring it upwards along your cheekbones to your temple. You can also use a highlighter powder if you want at this point, and put it in the same places as the liquid highlighter, just to create more light and shadow on the face. If you are doing this in natural light, and it looks a bit much, you’re doing it correctly.

Unfortunately, the lighting in my room didn't allow you to see this all too clearly

Now it is time to work on the eyes. Using a pale matte base shadow (I use Bed Head Makeup for Cool People Palette in Vanilla) cover your eyelids all over from the lash-line to your eyebrow. Then, using a shimmery skin coloured shadow (the same Palette, in Peach) this time, highlight your brow-bone, and just under your eyebrow. If you want, you can highlight the inner corner of your eye with this same shade as well. Now, using a dark bronze/gold coloured shadow, tap onto your lids from the outside corner until about half-way across the lid. Using a lighter bronze/ gold shadow, cover the other half of the lid and blend well. After this, using a black shadow, find the crease of your eye under the brow bone, and line the black shadow into there. Be quite liberal with this, but remember to blend well. Use some slightly along the lash-line, and on the outer corner of bottom lash-line as well.

With dark and light bronze blended

With pale matte shadow and shimmer peach colour

With black eyeshadow blended into the eye crease

Using a gel liner (Maybelline EyeStudio Lasting Drama Gel-Eyeliner 24H in black)line your top lashes, winging it out at the outer corner to where your shadow ends, creating a cat eye look. Line the inner corners of your eye, continuing the liner slightly further then where your eye ends. Also line the outer corners of your bottom lash-line to just before where your shadow ends. To create the illusion of having bigger eyes, line your bottom waterline with white eyeliner. Again be liberal with this to ensure that it can be seen on stage. Finally for your eyes, curl your lashes, and apply a lot of mascara (Rimmel London Scandaleyes Retro Glam Mascara in black) to your upper lashes. Also apply a lot to the outer corner lower lashes to where your liner ends.

This is what your liner should look like

To finish this look off, define your eyebrows with a powder, or a pencil if you want, just make them really defined and shaped. And to completely finish this look, apply some lipstick. I have used a bronze-y gold-y colour as it goes with my costume, but you can use red, pink, orange, whatever you want.

The finished look!

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial, and if you want me to do any other make-up looks, then let me know in the comments below.

Gracexxx