Tips to become forties fabulous

Today I'm going to explain how to recreate the 1940s make up look from my recent photo-shoot.

1940s makeup was glamorous and decadent. The face was pale and the lips were a bright red. Makeup was an important part of the war effort. Women were encouraged to look their best to keep up the morale. Even though clothing was rationed, women made sure they kept up with the latest trends my remaking clothes and painting lines on their legs to replicate scarce stockings.

How to recreate the...

Eyes: Brows were incredibly thin but shapely. Draw a rounded thin line in eyebrow pencil to highlight the eyes. Lots of mascara should be applied and you can add a flick of eyeliner to the corners of the eye. For a bargain eyebrow pencil try Rimmel, £2.99. 

Face: The face should be pale and powered to perfection. Powder was popular in the forties to decrease shine on the face. In an era when women began to work in factories and on fields, face powder became a makeup stable. A rouge on the cheeks showed health and vitality. Face powder, also Rimmel.

Lips: Slick on a bright red lipstick to be a real forties siren. For a super vibrant red try Sleek's True Colour Lipstick in Vixen, which I think can be found in Superdrug. I was given it as a sample and it's too bright for my skin tone, but looks great for shoots. The blusher is by L'Oreal. 

And here you have the completed look - the perfect wartime woman: glamorous, strong and beautiful.