Georgia: Which looks did you create for Priscilla’s Spell Magazine cover?
Pauline: Diamanté eyeliner – a liner with a flick of diamonds – and a nude glossy lip. For the second look, we did a sort of a neutral, clean eye look. A liquid liner flick with some lashes and like a brown glossy lip.
Georgia: What era is your favourite in terms of makeup?
Pauline: I think my favourite is probably the 90s. The thin brow – obviously a lot of people don’t like it any more; they like the bushy eyebrow. I like thin brows but because I’ve got quite thin brows myself. And I actually like a graduated lip liner look. So you’ve got the darker lip liner and an ombre lip look where it sort of blends through, plus really contoured but pretty makeup and quite matte. That’s my style. It’s really polished looking, but enhances your features.
Georgia: like Aaliyah’s makeup from the 90s.
Pauline: Exactly. I think that’s my fave. Or like Naomi Campbell back in the 90s.
Georgia: On TikTok the girls (especially those from the States) are going crazy about what they’re calling ‘UK Black girl makeup’. So how would you define how the girls in the UK do their makeup? And would you say there’s a difference between makeup styles in the UK and US?
Pauline: In the US, they like a very polished, really contoured, more matte look and chiselled features. They also use lots more foundation. Maybe in the UK, you might be talking about more of a glowy makeup look – glossy on the cheekbones or face more aglow and lashes, so not so matte looking. And probably less-is-more foundation. But I don’t know for sure, because there are also UK girls that wear loads of foundation.
Georgia: Do you have a preference when it comes to the heavy makeup look over the more natural?
Pauline: I prefer medium coverage makeup. I’m not a fan of lightweight, but then I’m also not a fan of heavy weight makeup – like two extra layers of foundation, where you can get through a bottle a week. And I’m not a fan of massive lashes as well. I think they just look crazy on girls. Huge, huge lashes where you like like a cow. That’s the only way I can describe it. So my whole motto and ethos is ‘makeup should enhance your features, not mask it’.
Georgia: Yeah, I like that motto. My eyes are way too small for thick eyelashes.
Pauline: They make eyes look closed. If you put them on, it’s like you’re sleeping all the time.
Georgia: We all know about the cost of living crisis at the moment. What’s your advice for those who are on a budget but still want to look like a baddie?
Pauline: I did Steph’s Pack Lunch yesterday and I was talking about makeup under a tenner on the high street. Basically, high street makeup has come a long way. A lot of it is as good as the high end brands, so I would say check out high street or drugstore makeup because they’re just as good. Sometimes even better.
Georgia: So you’ve created a five-minute beat. What five products are you using, and why?
Pauline: I’d probably use foundation, mascara, blusher, lipstick and probably concealer to brighten up underneath the eyes. You could also use that to contour as well. The nose, cheekbones, forehead and chin. Mascara obviously makes lashes more accentuated and opens up your eyes. Foundation covers and hides any uneven skin tone and spots, some dark marks, that kind of thing. You can use lipstick as a multifunctional product on your lids, cheeks and lips.
I’ve always loved blushes. They’re like my desert island favourite. If nothing else, I’d use blush. Because again, you can double up and use that on your lips if it’s a cream blush.
Georgia: What’s your favourite blush at the moment?
Pauline: I like bareMinerals Gen Nude Power Blush, though it’s not a cream blush. They’ve got a lovely shade called ‘You had me at Merlot’, which is a plumby reddish shade and it’s just gorgeous. It really suits all skin tones. I love it.
Georgia: You’ve worked on a set with Loose Women. What’s the difference between working on TV and a cover shoot?
Pauline: TV is faster, so you’ve got less time to make someone up. And the makeup has to be heavier, so that it can translate onto screen, because if you do it too lightly, it’s gonna look like you’ve got nothing on and you’re washed out.
So, heavier makeup and you have to be able to work in a fast-paced environment under pressure.
