Celebrity makeup artist Pauline Briscoe reveals her top tips for flawless makeup application and the inspiration behind the looks created for our first-ever LOOP BEAUTY shoot.

Makeup Artist to the stars, Pauline Briscoe has over 15 years of experience as a professional beauty expert working on famous faces such as Serena Williams, Jennifer Hudson, Kelly Rowland and Beyoncé Knowles, to name a few.  Her work has featured in some of the most prestigious publications including Forbes and Vogue. Pauline opens up to Sue Omar about her career highlights, new season trends and what is was like working with LOOP BEAUTY behind-the-scenes.  

1. How did you get into makeup artistry?

I always had a passion for drawing and beauty illustration so Makeup Artistry was a natural choice for me. I went to the London College of Fashion and studied BA Honours in Fashion Promotion and Journalism. During my time on the course, I modelled part-time which is when I realised that a lot of makeup artists didn’t cater to women of colour. I often had to do my own makeup and touch-ups on shoots and spotted the gap in the market. I then decided to use my connections in fashion and photography to start my career in makeup.

2.  What was the inspiration behind the looks you created on our LOOP BEAUTY influencers?

I wanted to create looks to enhance their natural beauty so I went for a neutral colour palette with a focus on seamless skin. The makeup inspiration was polished and pretty without too much coverage.                              

3. What product from LOOP BEAUTY did you enjoy working with the most?

I really loved using the Sacha Cosmetics Buttercup Loose Powder to set and highlight – it’s a great addition to makeup kit that I will be using more often.

4. Can you give us the low-down on new season makeup trends?

This season’s makeup is very minimal and natural with not much colour on the lids and lips during the day. At night, makeup is a bit more glam with contouring, highlighting, wispy lashes, groomed brows, classic winged liner and colour on the lips. Smoky eyes are also set to be a key makeup trend for evening looks which should always be paired with nude lips to balance it out.     

5. What are your thoughts on diversity in the beauty industry?

Fenty Beauty has obviously shaken up the industry with Rihanna’s inclusive collection and a lot of big brands are now following suit. Positive changes are happening and it’s great to be able to witness it and see the growth.

6. Can you share some pro makeup artist tips with us?

Whenever I am doing makeup on a client, I tend to place a powder-puff in-between my fingers so that I don’t leave marks on the skin. Another great tip is to use concealer as a corrector to erase any mistakes when creating bold eye or lip looks.

7. What is it like to work with high profile clients?

I am very lucky to work with such iconic women and it’s truly a pleasure. Most of the time celebrities like to look made up but still like themselves. It’s always a lot of fun working with such successful women in media.