Ruby Martin is a writer, artist and comedian who runs her own honest lifestyle website for millennials trashfiremag.com, her own comedy night Comical Comedy, and can be found talking and drawing all sorts on Twitter and Instagram.

At the time of writing this, I am two episodes deep into Rupaul’s Drag Race UK; this new British version of the US hit is a refreshing new edition to the canon and I’m already in love with a lot of the queens. However it’s not that long ago with the sequins-on-steroids world of drag burst into the mainstream and my life

I was pretty late to make-up. Growing up as an unpopular teenager in a relatively poor household meant that make-up tended to be a treat, primarily obtained through a ‘girls’ magazine freebie. However, I watched a lot of fashion shows (Project Runway, Gok Wan, Ugly Betty) and as it was the early 2010s, the emphasis was on the ‘natural’ look, ideally with the aim of impressing men to think you naturally looked like a Hollister model rather than the awkward 14 year old with acne that you actually were. This was the era of ‘What Not to Wear’ and I read countless articles on how to dress for your body shape, what lipstick doesn’t go and most importantly, what eyeshadow to wear (or more importantly, not to wear).

 After a few years of tentatively playing around with mascara (as a teen feminist who also desperately fancied boys, the dilemma of showing myself not to care about my appearance was always a hard one) I discovered eyeliner at university. Becoming a big fashion nerd from an early age I was obsessed with the 60s look and finally with income of my own, I channelled my inner Anna Karina, if somewhat less French and certainly less sophisticated.

Eyeshadow was still not touched on though. To me, eyeshadow seemed too showy in the world of Gillian Flynn’s ‘Cool Girl’; however like Gone Girl sparked a conversation about the kind of characters women could be, so did Drag Queens.

Whilst things coded as feminine like beauty and fashion are often looked down upon for being ‘trivial’, drag queens taught me it can be a means to subvert expectations, convey a message or sometimes just look really pretty

I binged most of Drag Race after discovering it in the depths of Netflix on my year abroad and whilst it’s OTT challenges and bawdy humour marked it as otherworldly, like Project Runway, it informed the world of a new craftsmanship: Make-up. With one foot in the glam world of Bobbi Brown and MAC, the other in campy stage make-up, it was fascinating to see these contestants create and recreate distorted images of ‘femininity’. I have always loved fancy dress, and it became clear with each weekly theme, their make-up was not just to look pretty but could be an expression of their creativity. The eyeshadow was the paint, the face was the canvas. This notion opened a Pandora’s box, and I don’t just mean in terms of my now heaps of eyeshadow palettes.

We are in a new era of makeover shows. Queer Eye, the remake of the noughties hit show, now preaches a kinder message of loving and caring for one self. The clothes and the hair is not just about what others see, but how you see yourself. I couldn’t help but be inspired. Whilst things coded as feminine like beauty and fashion are often looked down upon for being ‘trivial’, drag queens taught me it can be a means to subvert expectations, convey a message or sometimes just look really pretty, in a definitely not-‘natural’ way! Whatever you choose to do for it, its about you and your intentions.

As they say, we’re all born naked and the rest is drag.

The post Ruby Martin: Drag Queens Taught Me to Love Eyeshadow appeared first on Stories.

The post WATCH | TUTORIAL | How to do easy Halloween make-up: spider eye appeared first on Stories.

The post WATCH | TUTORIAL | How to do easy Halloween make-up: stitched mouth appeared first on Stories.

Rather than waking up with a pillowcase of smeared skeleton, or – even worse – aggravating your skin by scrubbing with cleansers that aren’t quite up for the job, make sure you’re prepared. Stock up on cleansers that will make light work of heavy duty make-up, with minimal effort required.

The post Heavy-duty cleansers to help remove Halloween make-up appeared first on Stories.

Ready to create your own Halloween skeleton? Shop the look below.

The post WATCH | TUTORIAL | How to do scary Halloween make-up appeared first on Stories.

The gorgeous Anchal gives us pure J.Lo vibes with this glowy make-up look.

Watch to see which products she recommends for that lit-from-within J.Lo glow, and how she achieves the look.

The post WATCH | TUTORIAL | Get the look: J.Lo Glow with Anchalmua appeared first on Stories.

Join the gorgeous Monalisa as she tries Doll 10 make-up for the first time.

See how she creates a full look using only Doll 10 products, and what she thinks of their make-up range.

The post WATCH | TUTORIAL | A full face of Doll 10 with Monaseyesbeauty appeared first on Stories.

If you suffer from mild to moderate dryness in your skin, the first place to start is skincare, as even the best foundation can only sit so well if your skin hasn’t been nourished beforehand. But once you’ve got your skincare covered, which foundation type is the best for your dry skin? Bobbi Brown’s Senior Pro Artist Amy Conway recommends looking for liquid formulas, as “they are packed with more moisture and often have so many nourishing ingredients”. She lauds the Intensive Skin Serum Foundation SPF 40: “it’s a treatment and foundation in one, which leaves the skin looking radiant and plump whilst locking in all the moisture to the skin. The sheer to medium coverage of this formula is so great to wear everyday and build up for evening also.” And with regards to ingredients, she adds ” the Cordyceps mushroom in this formula acts as an energy in the skin to ensure the formula looks radiant and glowing all day long.”

If you have dry skin, Amy also recommends using a brush to apply your foundation, as “a brush will always give you the most flawless finish”. She adds: “A top tip for dry skin is to apply with a brush, and then use the warmth of your hands to press the formula in throughout, for a really dewy finish.”

With Amy’s advice in mind, we rounded up the best foundations for dry skin below.

The post The best foundations for dry skin appeared first on Stories.

We gave the lovely Anchalmua the chance to try anything she wanted from the Tili beauty stash.

Find out what she picked out and what she really loved, plus see how she created this gorgeous make-up look.

The post WATCH | TUTORIAL | A beauty haul with Anchalmua appeared first on Stories.

Bareminerals‘ National Education Manager, Anna McCann Ellerington, says the trend has been building since the beginning of the year: “We first saw the metallic trend start for SS19. Soft metallic eye make-up was spotted at Paris Fashion Week, whilst shimmery smoky eyes rocked the NYFW shows.”

Since then it’s a trend that has only gathered momentum, as some gorgeous metallic products for eyes and lips are hitting the shelves, in warm, neutral shades that make us look forward to the first pumpkin spice latte of the season. Anna notes: “as we move into a/w the pallet inspiration of deeper, rich hues – copper, bronze and crimson – captures the spirit of the autumnal season. Imagine an oak tree just as the leaves begin to fall.”

Anna adds that it’s easy to make this look work for you: “the beauty of metallics is that they are so versatile.” With supremely wearable looks for day and evening, she suggests: “For a more every day dialled-down look opt for a soft diffused wash of colour to the eyes and lips.” Or, if you want to take it up a level for a statement look, Anna advises creating “a monochromatic look by using the same tones on the eyes and lips. Or to focus on one feature, try wearing a bolder lip or eye.”

Armed with Anna’s tips on how to wear metallics, we’ve compiled a list of the on-trend metallic make-up you’ll need to get started.

The post Metallic make-up: the most wearable trend for AW19 appeared first on Stories.