You can recreate the look of Elizabeth but be more kind to your skin than she was, writes Phyl Clarke
As if the "porcelain perfect skin" look needed another nudge to make it the trend of the season - the release of Elizabeth, the Golden Age put the rubber stamp on it. I came out of the film ready to dismiss my bronzers, smoky eyes, mascara and eyebrow tools for the clean, sculptural contours of Cate Blanchett's luminous face. Never off the job, I went straight home to find out about the "cosmetics" that sat on the 16th-century dressing table.
If you think you're hard pressed to get your face ready in the morning, spare a thought for the ladies of the Middle Ages.
Elizabeth I was the style icon of her day, and women looked to their queen as the epitome of fashion and beauty. She helped make alabaster skin the look to emulate. Pale skin was a sign of nobility and wealth, in contrast to the darker skin of those who had to work outdoors. A mixture of lead and vinegar gave the desired effect, with the benefit of covering marks of disease, pockmarks, and the signs of ageing. To set the base colour and give a glaze to the skin, a film of raw egg white was applied. Whatever about the beautifying effects of all of this, a nasty side effect was the poisonous nature of the lead being absorbed by the skin. Talk about suffering for your beauty! The noxious theme continued with the popularity of vermillion (or mercuric sulfide) to add a rosy tint to the cheeks and lips, and mercury was a favourite for a facial peel. A drop of belladonna sure brightened up the eyes no end. And if all that didn't kill you, plucking an inch or two from your front hairline and severely plucking your eyebrows to almost insignificance might do the trick.
Fascinating though all this is, I'm sure Ms Blanchett's was thankful that her contract didn't include the use of authentic materials. Luckily for Cate, Morag Ross, her make-up artist on the film, had the luxury of the MAC range at her disposal. So here's the skinny on how Morag created the look. Although the many portraits of Elizabeth were the inspiration for the film, Morag eschewed the pock-marked skin and wooden teeth that was the reality of the day. Sixteen wigs were used in varying sizes and shades of red to match the costumes of designer Alex Byrne.
On the set, make-up has to last all day in front of camera, and Morag used Prep and Prime as a base for the foundation. This means an easier, smoother application, and a longer-lasting make-up. Occasional mists of Evian hydrated the skin throughout the day, and plenty of lip balm and Refresh eye drops kept the features fresh. Full Coverage Foundation in NW15 was stippled over with Studio Fix powder foundation, using two colours, one to highlight, and one to contour the face. Loose Powder in Porcelaine gave the light effect. A mixture of Pinch O' Peach and Fleur Power Powder Blushes were used on the cheeks and over the sockets of the eyes. The eyebrows and lashes were bleached almost white, then defined gently under the eyes with Strada Powder Colour. On the lips a mixture of lip tint in Red-Brown, and crème stick liner in Red Enriched and Portside was gently rubbed onto the lips after some lip balm.
The result is a strikingly bare-faced virgin queen who is as at home astride a horse in a suit of armour as she is holding court resplendent in a lace-collared dress. Before you get carried away, remember she did start off as Cate Blanchett.
