Hannah Betts's Better…not younger: Ditch the (un)natural glow

A box of summer slap crossed my desk this week that looked utterly depressing, both in tone and texture.

All dense, dirty browns and grubby bronze gloops, it felt dispiritingly old-fashioned.

It’s the same aesthetic that sees Love Island’s young lovelies trowelling on so much messy gunk that it ages them by decades.

Try this in middle-age and you’ll look as though you have been mud-wrestling.

The word that springs to mind regarding this heavily bronzed face is ‘flat’, in both mood and look.

There is something about neutrals that is just very, well, neutral. And neutral is the complete opposite of summer spirit, not least during what’s supposedly the party summer of the Roaring Twenties.

While the sun is shining, shouldn’t we all be having fun? And fun means colourful fabulousness, not identikit anonymity.

Hannah Betts shares advice for how to embrace this summer’s bold trend (stock photo)

If you think you can’t do colour because you did it as a 1970s disco dolly, 1980s New Romantic or 1990s rave queen, or that it doesn’t sit well with wrinkles, think again.

And if you’ve chosen to go grey over lockdown, then nothing could be more enlivening.

It’s a myth that we need to play it safe as we get older — all this does is make us look old.

Go for brightly coloured lids or lips, offset by luminous skin, instead.

When playing with eye pigment, always start with a primer. Kiko Pearly Eye Base (£5.59, kikocosmetics.com) fixes and ramps up hot hues.

To make a punchy lid work, you need to really look at yourself and consider what shades make your features pop. Brights are still either underlyingly warm or cool-toned; a yellow, say, can be on the mustard (warm) or citrus (cool) side.

Brown eyes may look good with teal; blue with hot pink; hazel with orange.

If you want to be really technical, take note not merely of what your iris colour is, but also your limbal ring — the circle around it.

Mine is purple, which — with my dark green eyes — means that mauve and cornflower blue will subtly complement it, while juxtaposing with the iris. Cue instant oomph.

But don’t overthink things. As Mac’s director of make-up artistry, Terry Barber, notes: ‘With pops of colour being essential for new beauty, try a vivid orange as an alternative to a smoky eye. Wearing a shot of orange on an otherwise decluttered face will always ensure it’s chic, not garish.’

The brand’s Powder Kiss Soft Matte Eyeshadow in the blood orange shade So Haute Right Now (£8.75, maccosmetics.co.uk) is his summer ’21 hot tip.

Alternatively, get yourself to colour-crazed Kiko, or a cheap and cheerful Barry M stand. Everyone can afford to play about with Bazzer’s Neon Brights Eyeshadow Palette (£7.99, barrym.com). Cover the entire lower lid in a solid block of colour.

Or, if you’re not ready for this kind of statement, opt for a sheer shot of colour such as Barry M’s Colour Glide Eyeshadow Wand (£3.99), or seek out a bright kohl and/or mascara. Again, Kiko’s come in some cracking shades.

Women tend to be more relaxed about pigment hits on lips, finding loud pouts more socially acceptable, for reasons not entirely clear. So, go your own way here: scarlet, satsuma, Schiaparelli pink. Head to a YSL or Nars counter and indulge in something wild.

The key to making all this colour popping look agelessly modern is minimal make-up elsewhere. Chanel’s Le Blanc Rosy Light Drops (£40, chanel.com) are a UK bestseller beloved of make-up artists. It gives you an exquisitely rosy glow and can be used on its own, or under a light base.

For those who like their gleam more golden, seek out Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Highlighting Fluid in Sunkissed (£40).

Armani’s barely there brilliance is no less desirable. I love using its classic Fluid Sheer Glow Enhancer (£30, armanibeauty.co.uk) under its 24-shade Neo Nude Glow Foundation (£33.50), packed with hyaluronic acid for a dewy finish.

In the end, this is how to look young: being a painted lady in some respects, while keeping things fresh in others.

RACE YOU TO IT!

Shiseido’S original Ultimune Serum scooped more than 200 awards, and a bottle is sold every seven seconds.

This new antioxidant-rich formula (£83 for 50ml, lookfantastic.com) visibly boosts radiance in 72 hours.

Those in the know are stocking up while it previews on Lookfantastic, before it goes on sale nationwide on September 1.

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Singer Beyoncé (pictured) has been talking about hitting 40 next month

MY ICON OF THE WEEK

Beyoncé

Singer Beyoncé has been talking about hitting 40 next month.

She recalls turning criticism over her weight gain aged 19 into the spur for anthem Bootylicious, but also how she ‘spent too much time on diets, with the misconception that self-care meant being overly conscious of my body’.

Her conclusion: ‘Many aspects of that younger, less evolved Beyonce could never f*** with the woman I am today.’ Amen to that.

COSMETIC CRAVING

We’d all like less frazzled locks, but just how much faffing is a woman prepared to put up with? Answer: precisely eight seconds’ worth.

L’Oreal Paris Elvive Dream Lengths 8 Second Wonder Water (£4.99, boots.com) is a smash hit here and in the U.S. and genuinely lives up to the hype — never more so than in summer. It’s ideal for dry, damaged, frizzy hair. Use it in place of conditioner — simply douse it over mid-lengths and ends, squeeze it in a bit, then rinse it off.

L’Oreal recommends blow-drying to seal in the wonder, but I’m too lazy. Either way, the upshot is shampoo-advert silkiness and shine without dragging down fine hair.

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SOPHISTICATED SUMMER SCENTS