by Chrissy Iley
Despite my love of make-up I’m not very good at applying it. I’m very good at mastering a routine and getting it on quickly to leave the house, but a special event, something that has to last all night, I need help.
I was all set for the Viva Forever! first night. By that I mean I had an outfit but no time for nails and hair, so proper attention had to be made to make-up and that came with a make-up lesson at the Bobbi Brown counter at Liberty’s under the tutelage of Emma from Toronto. Just being in her presence was calming.
The impressive Bobbi Brown ladies don’t just give you a makeover, they give you a lesson in how to makeover yourself. Anyone can book an appointment with them. It doesn’t even have to be a special event.
First off Emma tested different sticks of foundation. She put them in stripes across my face before deciding to go with the medium coverage skin foundation Cool Beige. The texture is nourishing and it feels like a second skin.
None of the Bobbi Brown range has the unflattering pinkie tones. It’s all corrective as well as perfectly matched.
I was cleansed and given hydrating face tonic with extra repair serum, hydrating face cream, hydrating eye cream, and lip balm which doubled as a lip primer.
Emma applied corrector – Light Bisque – and concealer – Cool Sand – before any foundation. That’s the Bobbi way.
For the eyes which were to be subtly smoked up, I chose an eye cream shadow called Galaxy. It was grey but twinkled with multicolours and is extremely long wearing. Round the eye line she applied a metallic black charcoal shadow and with a teeny brush the gel liner Black Ink was set in place.
The blonde brow shaper gave my eyebrows definition that was talked about at the after show party. It was like mascara for the brow, but soft and clever.
Emma showed me that I’d been applying bronzer in all the wrong places and the idea was for me to look sun-kissed not sun-damaged.
She chose a pinkie blush called Pink Sugar and took the brush that she had used to apply the foundation and used just the amount that was left on the brush to blend everything in.
Lips come last. She found a fantastic Rose Petal that was rich and natural looking. It looked creamy, juicy and lip plumping, and the perfect face to set off for an evening of girl power.
I loved Viva Forever! because I love The Spice Girls songs. Bobbi Brown too is about self empowerment, making sure that every product has as many uses as possible and gives you confidence in your own potential. It was the perfect mix.
After the show there was the most sumptuous party. Tables heaving with red roses and sugary spicy treats. There was a choice of wine or egg nog and everyone dancing to Spice Girls tunes.
All the Spice Girls were there and the mood of the evening was tremendous optimism. No one even commented that Victoria in her white shirt and tux looked as if she was in an entirely different band to the other Spices who were in flouncy dresses. That said they were all smiling.
When someone took a picture of me and Jennifer Saunders, the writer of the musical, we both had glasses of wine in our hands and normally I would have been dewy faced with smudgy eyes. This time I looked red carpet ready thanks to Bobbi Brown.