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There was not a contour, strobe or drape in sight at the Royal Wedding – Meghan Markle arrived at the wedding of her dreams (and ours) with understated, beautifully natural makeup – freckles and all.
Breaking free of homogenised wedding beauty – where girls typically favour a made-up, all-out guise – Markle set a new standard of beauty – both for the Royals and weddings, in general. Having already snubbed any kind of Royal beauty codes in the past – the messy buns, the juicy lips, the undone hair – her wedding makeup was classic Markle – refined, understated and most importantly, simple.
Makeup artist and long-time friend, Daniel Martin, was responsible for the look: a fluffy lash, soft taupe wing, groomed brows, clean luminous skin, a shell-pink lip and of course, that royal flush – albeit just a hint. The eyes were the most ‘done’ feature – a slightly smudgy wing, a fluttery lash and a few licks of mascara – but they still remained relatively lo-fi. Complexion was kept rosy and refined, a hint of peach was palpable on cheek, whilst a soft salmon balm on the lip sealed the look. Most endearing, however, were the freckles. Out and proud, a gentle smattering of freckles were left untouched thanks to light, dewy coverage – a request by the Princess herself.
A beauty message for the ages – and one that is strikingly different to the current Instagram rhetoric of masking deemed ‘imperfections’ through heavy filtering, injectables and cosmetic surgery – this was about embracing yourself. Enhancing yourself. Not hiding yourself.
On the world’s biggest stage, the new Duchess wanted her freckles on show – a profound and much-needed statement in the current, and quite frankly, alarming beauty climate.
Superbly sophisticated and elegant, her beauty look rose to the occasion, but kept its class, with even celebrity makeup artist Nigel Stanislaus musing: “Women used to look like this, and then Instagram took over.”
“NO baking, caking, ombre anything, contouring, 65 layers of foundation, strobing, draping, etc; just beautiful real skin with freckles, some lash, blush and a kind lip.”
Her makeup was the perfect accompaniment to a wedding that was so thoroughly modern (by Royal standards, anyway) and a refreshing take on beauty, particularly wedding beauty. It was just so lovely. And in the words of Stanislaus: “To all the makeup kids out there; watch, observe and learn.”
