The Voice UK contestants not only want to perform their best, but look their best to impress the coaches during their appearances on the ITV show. Luckily make-up artist Lauren Murphy is on hand backstage as part of her job with the show's official Backstage Care Partner NIVEA, working her magic to create flawless beauty looks and an all-important skincare routine. We caught up with Lauren to find out her top make-up tips and the tricks she uses to ensure the contestants look camera-ready at all times.
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Tell us about your work with The Voice UK contestants
Working on The Voice UK is so much fun, each act is uniquely talented and I love following their journey throughout the show, whilst helping them look and feel great every step of the way. A big part of my job is to help the acts relax backstage, we have a lot of laughs and I get all the juicy goss as you can see in my online videos.
How do you ensure the contestants' skin looks flawless on camera and under the bright lights on set?
Flawless skin starts with great skincare. Before applying make-up the skin needs to be cleansed and well prepped to ensure make-up has staying power under the bright lights! Hydration is key, when the skin is well hydrated it creates a smooth base for me to work on and doesn't suck all the moisture out of your make-up. I massage a few drops of serum to cleansed skin before applying a hydrating moisturiser. When I have time a quick boost from a hydration mask works wonders. I prime the skin with a smoothing primer which is key to a long wearing base, I use warmer toned foundations with a full coverage so the bright lights don’t wash them out on camera.
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What skincare products have you been using on the contestants and why?
The acts arrive with make-up on, and even if they say they haven't applied make-up, I will always start by cleansing the skin as a build-up of the skins natural oils and pollutants from the journey in will affect the application of make-up. It's like painting a picture on a dirty canvas, it will show the flaws and distract away from its beauty. I use NIVEA Sensitive Caring Micellar Water to double cleanse the skin, never has a double cleanse backstage been so easy! It's so gentle and refreshing, the acts love it and it removes make-up and dirt with ease without interfering with the lipid barrier of the skin which is integral to skin health.
Lauren uses NIVEA skincare to ensure the contestants' skin is clean before applying make-up
I use NIVEA Double Effect Eye Make-up Remover on stubborn waterproof mascara and gel eyeliner, this also works perfectly to ease off false eyelashes which I use a lot backstage. Time is limited so I need a product that is fast and effective yet gentle on the skin and lashes which is where the cornflower extract comes into play – I love this product!
NIVEA Cleansing Micellar Wipes are great for on the go cleansing, I advise the acts to keep a pack on them always! They are great for doing a lipstick change, removes lipstick so quick and easy without removing the rest of their base, it is soft on the lips and using a light circular motion I can gently buff away dry skin.
What make-up tricks do you use to help the contestants look their best? Any go-to products?
My focus with make-up is always to enhance my client's natural beauty and features. I use matte shadows to enhance natural contours and shape the eyes. The key to blending eyeshadow is to use a transition shade, a shade lighter than your darkest, to blend the edges and fade the colour into the skin. I love using Tom Ford eye quads they are well pigmented and silky, so easy to blend.
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I love using cream eyeshadows for a glossier on trend look and they work well on mature skin. Urban Decay Liquid Moondust are fantastic and Stila's new glitter and glow liquid eyeshadow collection are amazing to add a touch of sparkle to the centre of the lid to really open up the eyes or I use all over to create a full on glam look– they have staying power which is a must on stage!
Colour correct under eye areas using Nars creamy concealers – they are magic! I use whitening drops to brighten and soothe tired eyes for that extra sparkle! For stress pimples/breakouts, I use a mattifying primer and colour correct redness with a cooler yellow based concealer closest to the shade of foundation – I use Make-up Forever Ultra HD foundation. Using a small soft blending brush I mattify with Ben Nye translucent powder to stop the shine and deflect any attention away from this area.
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I use false lashes to enhance the eyes, make-up needs to be stronger on camera and I love how they intensify the lashes to add that wow factor to an eye look – I apply black eyeliner to the base of the strip and allow the glue to go slightly tacky before applying.
When using darker shades of lipstick I overdraw the lips slightly so they appear bigger as darker shades tend to make the lips appear smaller, for that extra fullness I add gloss or a touch of highlighter to the centre of the lips and the cupids bow.
Keep up to date with all the latest The Voice UK news here, and see Lauren's backstage posts on Instagram @laurenmurphymakeup.