The Princess of Wales is an expert when it comes to gently tweaking her makeup looks, keeping them modern but always flattering. Her latest micro-adjustment is a literal masterstroke: a soft feline flick that lends an instant, ageless lift to her eyes.
Kate debuted the eye-catching addition while visiting an art gallery in Wales, showing that the day’s finest paint strokes weren’t confined to a canvas. The Princess combined a tight-liner technique with a subtle cat-eye flick angled at the optimal, face-lifting trajectory.
(Look from the side and you’ll see how perfectly the shape follows the outline of her lower lash line.)
It’s a look endorsed by mature makeup champion Val Garland, who believes the cat-eye has no age limit – and has a slightly rude (but brilliant) hack to make it foolproof.
‘For an older woman, you want to get that definition on the lash line and take the liner outwards and upwards. You want to keep the inner corner light. And what that will do again is widen the eyes and lift the eyes,’ she told GH in an exclusive chat about her favourite ageless makeup tricks.
'To apply it right, I think you need to study your face in your “resting b*tch face”. I see lots of women putting on their liner like this,’ she tells us, shutting one eye and pulling back the skin. ‘It looks great when the skin is pulled tight, but when you let go it’s like a concertina.’
Her advice is to ‘look your face straight in the mirror’ as you apply, so you can see exactly where your eyeliner is going.
Another secret of an ageless feline flick is to use a super-fine black liquid (or gel) eyeliner to keep the look delicate. Then add a dark eyeshadow over the top, which gives a flattering, slightly-blurred out finish and ‘stops that dreaded transference up into the socket line’, says Val.
What really seals the deal, both in terms of smudge-proofing and softness, is using a matte eyeshadow texture. ‘When you’re dealing with an older eye, you don’t really want a sparkly shadow, because that makes any wrinkles look worse,’ Val explains.
Her favourite for setting a smokey eye is MAC’s classic matte eyeshadow in Carbon, which looks similar to the dark, cool-toned shade Kate is using. ‘I keep rebuying it,’ Val tells us. ‘It’s like I always say: “Be bold, not old.”’ Amen to that, as ever.
