“Hello darling!”, Charlotte Tilbury exclaims. The makeup veteran is as effusive and aglow as her sell-out products. Beaming ear-to-ear, Charlotte brims with an innocent, childlike delight as she eagerly introduces me to the newest member to her brand’s rapidly growing roster, the Matte Beauty Blush Wand.
Charlotte takes great care in crafting each and every product she puts out, from ingredient research and texture to practicality, colour and more. Her wildly popular Pillow Talk universe is but one example of this, with one Pillow Talk product sold every 24 seconds. The Pillow Talk range features a vast variety of pink-toned shades each rich in colour and depth and uniquely designed to match all skin types and undertones. “There’s a whole world to pink. It’s in your lips, in your cheeks. I’m a DNA thief!”, Charlotte laughs. “Always trying to capture beauty.”
Tell us about your Matte Beauty Blush Wands. Other than as a blush, are there any other ways you can use them?
My Pillow Talk Matte Beauty Blush Wands are a one dot wonder for a baby blush from within! I have been working for years with my world-leading laboratories to create a formula with the best ingredients for a universally flattering, easy liquid blush to lift and revive every complexion.
I call them multi-magic wands of makeup. You can dot and blend across the bridge of your nose and out towards the cheeks for a sunkissed blush. You also don’t have to use it as just a blush – you can also use it on the lips for a modern blurred lip look if you dot in the centre of your lips and blend outwards with your ring finger.
What’s the secret to glowing skin? How do you use skincare and makeup to create a smooth and flawless base?
I am obsessed with skincare. If you don’t have a gorgeous canvas, you shouldn’t be surprised that your makeup won’t apply smoothly. I use my Glow Toner, which is a mix between a toner and serum and sloughs off dead skin cells. I’m all about layering and I love that Asia really gets layering. Then I use my Magic Cream, day and night. A rich blend featuring plant stem cells and retinol. It has UV protection and leaves a flawless and poreless finish. I created this with a Korean scientist. I wanted something that acted as an incredible primer, but also had SPF15 to protect your skin.
Any tips on transitioning a makeup look from day to night?
I love our new Hypnotising Pop Shots – swipe for day and swipe for night. You can really build and intensify the shades to lift and open the eye and build that colour and depth. These two colours are stunning and really pop, no matter the eye or skin colour. They bring out light and dimension and that really comes down to formula and colour.
The Airbrush Flawless Finish powder has incredible brightening effects and is perfect for touch-ups on the go. I like to use it around the eyes or on smile lines. It lightens, brightens and lifts in a pinch. It’s a very fine powder, infused with a lot of rose wax and almond oil so it behaves differently to properly melt into the skin instead of sitting on top of it.
What are 3 beauty products that you can’t live without?
Definitely my Magic Cream. It was developed for supermodels and celebrities backstage for immediate skin revival. We live in a world where everyone is tired and everyone is dehydrated. Magic Cream plumps, smooths and gives a lit-from-within glow with instant results.
Next is my Airbrush Flawless Finish powder. It uses a Lumiblur technology for matte not flat finish, so you can adjust the shine and glow to your liking.
Finally, anything Pillow Talk. We’ve created this incredible world of Pillow Talk and it’s this universal shade that looks gorgeous on all skin tones. I just can’t live without it.
What are some of your best red carpet makeup tricks?
I have been creating magic red carpet looks for every major supermodel and star from Amal Clooney to Salma Hayek, Lizzo, Kate Moss, Penelope Cruz and so many more over my 30 year career, creating looks everywhere from the Golden Globes to the Fashion Awards, the Met Gala and the Oscars!
For years, I wanted to capture the iconic, old Hollywood camera tricks that smoothed, blurred and lifted the look of skin. I wanted to bottle this to give everyone the tools and tricks to feel and look like a Hollywood star, wherever they are. Makeup is all about playing with the power of light to enhance your beauty and my Glow Glide Guide has 6 Hollywood Beauty Glow Tricks so everyone can enhance their facial framework in minutes.
Lift your cheeks
Glide your highlighter upwards from the cheekbone to the temple. Our Glow Glide formula has a texture that doesn’t drag – it smooths over your cheekbones and re-texturises, so it doesn’t sit in fine lines or pores.
Sculpt the jaw
Use highlighter along the jawline with a tapered brush for precision. And darling, always avoid the chin – you want a clean line along the jaw! This creates a more sculpted facial framework in seconds.
Enhance your eyes
My red-carpet glow trick is to apply to the inner corner of the eye, the centre of the eyelid and along the lower lash line – emphasising in the middle – to make your eyes look bigger and brighter.
Lift the eyes and brows
Use highlighter under the arch of the brow. You can also dot under and above the arch of your brow for a lifted, megawatt glow!
Define and contour the nose
I call this my exclamation point highlight! Start at the bridge and glow down the centre of the nose and then dot at the tip – like a button. Blend with your fingertip to diffuse.
Plump your lips
Brush your highlighter along the upper lip line, focussing on the cupid’s bow. This makes your lips look fuller and wider.
What do you think will be the biggest makeup trends this year?
Given the Pantone colour of the year, I think we are going to see a lot of magenta colours. I do think that with the Barbie film and Barbiecore, we are going to see a whole pink movement. Pillow Talk definitely falls under that realm. Bright pops of colour make people look great and our ultraviolet pop shot is a vivid fashion statement for the eyes that’s also in that world.
Fresh and glowy skin is always here to stay of course, but we are definitely going to be seeing more statement lips to complement that. We’re coming up with great colours, formulas and textures.
Editor
Carina Fischer
