Lisa Eldridge
To say that Lisa Eldridge is passionate about makeup would be a vast understatement. If her bursting portfolio of editorial and celebrity clients weren’t enough proof, her impassioned and widely watched video blogs certainly do the trick. Having created looks for celebrities such as Naomi Campbell, Cate Blanchett, and Sienna Miller, Lisa’s love for makeup surpasses simple application to development and education. Eldridge goes beyond the call of duty by working to educate women on proper makeup techniques, applications, and her favorite products.
The Fashion Spot: How did you get your start in the industry? What made you want to be a makeup artist?
Lisa Eldridge: I kind of knew from a really young age I wanted to do makeup. I loved coloring and crayoning and I was really obsessed with drawing faces. I ended up doing theatrical makeup and costume design because I couldn’t find the course I wanted, which was more photographic editorial style makeup. So after that, I moved to London and I found a great place who did an intensive. It was the only place I found at the time, and this is going back a long time, that was doing photographic makeup. It was really good because we got to work with photographers and learn about lighting and from then on I just worked my way in and started testing and went to Milan for a few months. After about a year or so of having an agent in London, I moved to Paris for three years and then I was in New York a lot until about 10 years ago when I was pregnant and stopped doing the full-on editorial because I had been traveling non stop for 8 years. As much as I loved it, it didn’t fit with family life.
tFS: Your blog, and more specifically your YouTube channel has a very loyal following, what made you want to bring your expertise to the public?
LE: I was asked to do this TV show in the UK and I was a bit unsure but I liked the challenge and I did it. I liked doing it because it was working with real women, but what I hated was that I would talk to people about makeup and I would teach them and they sent it off to a 22-year-old guy who was editing it and I was watching it on TV and gasped ‘oh, they edited out the wrong bits, the things that were so important and the most useful’ and so I was moaning about the editing and the lighting, they didn’t light it properly to show the makeup. I spent so much time working with the best photographers and beauty editors so I knew it quite well and I was doing this TV show and I didn’t like the lighting so that’s why I was thinking about doing it. I noticed all these people were doing things on YouTube and now I’ve got this big following there. It has really happened quite organically.
tFS: What do you think the most underrated beauty product is?
LE: Concealer. When you use it right and have a brilliant one, you can turn your face around in five minutes. It is the most misused product of all time because people never really understand it. Makeup artists use concealer in a magical way and can almost use it to sculpt a face and conceal bad things, highlight good things.
tFS: Your videos often feature a variety of products from drugstore finds to designer products, what do you think is work the splurge?
LE: Everyone needs to find a foundation shade that really suits them and sometimes the only place you can go is to an expensive brand. I think foundations are an area where you often have to spend money purely just to get the right color. Drugstores are usually self service and self service means a smaller color range.
tFS: What is the best way to stay fresh for the summer?
LE: I think people put a bit too much of everything on. The layers are just sitting on top of one another and as soon as you perspire or wipe your face you’re wiping off the top layers. You need to put on less than you think and really work it in well to the skin. If it’s moisturizer, just put enough on to nourish the skin and same with foundation, then really work it in to the skin. If you don’t need it all over your face, don’t, just put it where you need it. Then when you put on things like highlighters or concealers, really blend them in so they’re in synergy with the foundation, which is in synergy with your skin. Make it so it’s one layer and then that one layer with a bit of powder will last you SO much longer.
tFS: What can we expect to wear next season?
LE: My next collection is AW11 and it’s very paired down in the spirit of the Stella McCartney and cool Chloe girl. It’s a natural but a really updated nude.
All photos from LisaEldridge.com.
