A Royal Freckled Face |

Meghan Markle Schools us on Natural Beauty

The royal wedding has been and gone, but my obsession with Meghan Markle's beauty look has not. 

As a freckled face gal myself, I was LIVING for Markle's take on refined bridal beauty. A celebrity makeup artist was in charge of her look: full, fluffy lashes, soft winged brown eyeshadow, sculpted and defined eyebrows, natural shell toned lipstick and a slight flush to the cheeks. The hero? A fresh freckled face.

A clear and glowy complexion was on full show, with minimal coverage foundation allowing her youthful freckles to shine through. The new Duchess bucked wedding makeup trends and proved it was all about natural beauty and confidence!

BUT there is a lesson for all makeup lovers (and wearers) in her wedding day face. A nod to the less is more, 'No makeup', makeup style that is often overlooked for special occasion makeup, will no doubt become a resurrected favourite.  

To recreate this look for everyday wear or your next special occasion, try and select products that enhance your natural features not cover them up too much. Makeup is designed to enhance your natural beauty so products that are cream based will blend seamlessly into the skin and will leave a more natural and 'barely there' finish. 

Base:  The It Cosmetics CC Cream 50+ or Bareminerals Complexion Rescue are perfect options for a barely-there base. It Cosmetics CC Cream gives a 'your skin but better' result and can be applied with a stippling brush or buffing brush to blend into the skin to achieve a flawless finish. The Bareminerals Complexion Rescue can be applied with the fingers- like you would moisturiser. It gives very minimal coverage but delivers an abundance of dewiness to the complexion. 

Conceal: Cover any imperfections or dark circles with a luminous concealer. The Tarte Maracuja Creaseless Concealer gives a superior glow to the skin, but also provides medium to full coverage so a 'less is more' approach would be wise for this product. I usually apply the product under my eyes and blend out with my ring finger - as it warms the product up and works it into the skin seamlessly. 

The Maybelline Instant Age Rewind concealer is a great product for brightening the face, giving that wide awake look - perfect for those days when you're half asleep! I use the sponge applicator to run it under the eyes, around the nose and on the chin (or areas that you have redness). Blend it out with your foundation brush or separate fluffy blending brush.

Brows: Meghan's were groomed to perfection and its simple to achieve for yours too! I know I bang on about Glossier's Boy Brow, but there is a multitude of brow pomades and gels on the market. Benefit's Gimme Brow is a gel fibre formula, that adds volume to the brow hairs, with the fibres sticking to the existing hair and filling out sparse areas. It's super easy to apply and will make sure your brows stay in place all day.

Complexion: Applying bronzer to the high points of the face (cheekbones and forehead) will give warmth to the complexion. A natural bronzer like Benefit Hoola Lite, is perfect for sculpting out the cheekbones and giving dimension to the face. Apply it with an angled brush to contour or a big fluffy brush to bronze the entire face.

Adding a touch of cheek colour adds a lovely youthful glow, and Meghan had very subtle colour on the apples of the cheeks - try using a cream based blush - Clinique Chubby Stick Cheek Colour Balm is a one swipe application. Simple! Or as always, I'll be dabbing some Glossier Cloud Paint in Beam onto my cheeks. Or finish the complexion with a light dusting of  Benefit's Rockatuer blush. So many options, hooray!

Eyes: Meghan's eye look was subtly defined. She paired fluffy lashes with a slightly smoky winged shadow. Master this simple smoky eye yourself with the Stila Eyes are the Window Palette. A collection of brown-y plumb shades allows you to experiment with dark lids or keep it royal with a mix of brown and taupes. Either way, your eye will draw a crowd! Apply a neutral brown all over the lid and then buff a darker brown into the outer corner and crease of the eye - voila!

To achieve fluffy lashes, use your favourite lengthening or thickening mascara. I always gravitate to the Lancome Grandiose mascara (read my review here). Curl them first to maximize drama and then concentrate product at the base of the lashes, this will create the illusion of thicker lashes and also give the appearance of eyeliner too! 

Lips: Round off this look with a simple moisturising lip balm, or add a little pop of colour with the Loreal Sexy Balm in As If! a natural peachy nude, with a touch of shine. Apply to the lips and blot out with your finger to give a blurred, worn-in effect. 

As with any makeup look, add as much or as little product as you like. In the end, its whatever's most comfortable for you and what makes you feel naturally beautiful and confident!

Now that you're looking fit for royalty, simply spritz with a face mist - Avene Thermal Spring Water will leave your skin looking fresh and glowy, and can be reapplied throughout the day if your makeup needs a radiance boost! 

Your carriage (Honda Jazz) awaits!