"I always knew I wanted to start my own brand—even as a young girl. I worked for a ton of different places and earned my stripes, and it's been an incredible journey. But doing all of the red carpets and working on people for shoots, I was constantly frustrated by not having the right products. That, and I wanted to bring the red carpet into people's lives. Democratizing makeup has been my thing, since the beginning. Give a woman the right makeup, and she'll conquer the world.
It was also my intention to have it be glamorous. Everyone should feel gorgeous and embrace glamour. I wanted the products to feel like beautiful jewels. They harken back to when makeup was sold in these beautiful compacts—women would lay them on the dinner table when they went out. Those makeup moments. I wanted to bring those back. I remember when we came out with the Filmstar Bronze and Glow... I went to some retailers and they asked us how we did that! No one thought it was possible to create anything like that anymore.
My style is very glamorous, all the time. I'm very nocturnal. I'm always in a heel, and I can always amp it up. But most of the time I'm running from the office to an event, so I'll end up tossing on a mask really quickly. Clay is the best—I like to use our Goddess Skin Mask, and I'll leave it on for 15 minutes just to take down inflammation. After that, I'll sometimes use the Georgia Louise Face Oil—I love oils. Then I put on my Magic Cream, and I use these little depuffing tools from Georgia Louise under my eyes. I keep them on ice, and they're really good on pores, too.
I’ll wash my hair before going out, and sometimes I’ll have a hairdresser, which is fantastic. To style it I’ll use the Oribe Dry Texturing Spray and some Moroccanoil on the ends. I also use a bit of the Ouai Wave Spray. This is always my look—I don’t really play with it. I’m always like Brigitte Bardot with a bit of rock n’ roll.
You know Gisele Bündchen, the supermodel? I wanted her DNA in a bottle—which is why I made Wonder Glow. It's a soft focus foundation and it makes you look lit from within. A lot of the time, when I'm tired from running around in this polluted world, I can look a bit gray and drained and this just gives me some life. Normally I wear a bit of Ecstasy blusher—I smile and apply it on the apples of my cheeks. And I have my Bar of Gold on. I put highlighter around my eyes so that when I move, it gives me a kind of film star cheekbone. I geniunely don't use any color cosmetics from other brands—I kicked them out. I'm pretty passionate about the fact that I invented glow back in 2000. Now everything is about glow. For me, it's just subtle, healthy, pretty skin.
I wear loads of mascara—it's all about taking that La Dolce Vita look and amping it up for night. I love Legendary Lashes, and I'll layer it, top and bottom. Sometimes I'll put Full Fat Lashes on the bottom, and I can always add more. My eyes are always a little bit sleepy so I like them to look a bit '60s and elongated—I use my Classic Eye Pencil in Sophia along the waterline and on the top as a feline flick. I use the Instant Look in a Palette and put the Enhance shade along the lash line, in the corner, and a bit underneath, and then I use the Smoke shade in the outer corners. A smoky eye looks so good with a nude lip, so I use my lipstick in Pillow Talk. It's like a rose petal color...the perfect pigment.
At the end of the night, before I hop into bed, I'll always wash my face. And never with a wipe! Never! They are the worst things in the world for your skin—they are literally beauty suicide. It’s like the worst, I would never go near a wipe—always a cleansing balm. I happen to use mine. Then I put a bedroom eye on. I always, always go to bed with an eye on. And I use my Rock’n’Kohl Eyeliner, which goes on liquidy and it doesn’t move. I take it off and re-apply. Fresh skin, smudgy eye. It’s a bit more rock, I think."
—as told to ITG
Charlotte Tilbury photographed by Tom Newton at the Bowery Hotel on April 30, 2017. Watch Charlotte talk all about her favorite products below:
