Why purple deserves a place in your makeup kit this autumn.

April 30, 2015

Image via Getty.

Every girl needs a statement colour in her makeup kit, and this season, purple is the on-trend colour to wear. Just ask Rihanna!

Don’t be afraid of the purple people-eater, and forget the shimmering amethysts of your primary school dance concert days. The new breed of purple makeup is surprisingly sophisticated. and versatile.

It can look sweet and flirty when worn as a soft, light wash of colour, but once you pump it up into a deeper, darker violet, you’ve got a sultry and smoky effect. (Post continues after gallery…)

Purple makeup & celebrities

Rita Ora at the Grammys

Jennifer Hudson at the Grammys

Lorde, wearing her signature purple lipstick.

Katy Perry at the Arias

Lupita Nyong'o at the Golden Globes

Rihanna rocks ultra violet lips.

Eleanor Pendleton from beauty website, Gritty Pretty.

Backstage at the Derek Lam fashion show, SS15, #1

Backstage at the Derek Lam fashion show, SS15, #2

Backstage at the Derek Lam fashion show, SS15, #3

Matthew Williamson fashion show, SS15, #1

Matthew Williamson fashion show, SS15, #2

Backstage at the Vera Wang fashion show, SS15, #1

Backstage at the Vera Wang fashion show, SS15, #2

And, if you need further convincing, just remember that the best things in life are purple. Think about it. Purple is the colour of royalty and bravery . It’s also the colour of fragrant lavendar, my favourite Aldi coffee pods and Grimace from McDonald’s. See what I mean? Purple is awesome.

It’s the perfect colour for brunettes, too, which is why you will see it modelled by three brunettes of extraordinary beauty (*cough*) that is, Kahla, Edwina and myself from The Glow team! (Self-esteem issues? NOT HERE.)

Purple lipstick

Kahla wears Face of Australia Lasting Looks Lip Creme in 'Till Plum in the Face. (Image: Supplied)

April 30, 2015

We Just Found The Goldilocks Of All Hair Smoothing Products

You Beauty

Our lovely writer Kahla Preston decided to try a purple lip. Look at how the purple lipstick creates the perfect contrast with her green eyes, making her emerald peepers pop. Whoops, I'm getting all Dr Seuss in my enthusiasm for Kahla's purple lips, so I'll let her say it in her own words:

"To create this look, I applied the lipstick from the tube, blending with my finger. I needed several coats as the coverage was quite uneven - perhaps using a primer or a BB cream base on my lips would have helped.

"Wearing a lip colour as dull and, well, PURPLE as this one was strange - I usually favour rich reds and berries. It took me a while to get used to this look, but on the whole I enjoyed the dramatic Lorde vibe; I felt rather mysterious and quasi-gothic and received lots of compliments. I can't imagine wearing this look in summer, though - it's too dark and dramatic."

Purple eyeliner and shadow sticks

Next, here's some crazy weirdo... I mean, here's me, wearing two different eye looks. I told you that purple is versatile, didn't I?

Carla GS wears Maybelline Color Tattoo 24hr Cream Gel Shadow in Painted Purple. And hello, weird eyebrows!

Now, trust me, in one's life, it is handy to have a go-to edgy and out-there makeup look. This one is mine. You never know where your life will take you, and you need to be prepared.

Won tickets to next year's Coachella? This look would be perfect. Going to a contemporary art gallery, on a date (what a great date idea, you say!)? Wear this look. To create it, I dipped an angled eyeshadow brush into the gel shadow pot, and then drew a winged line on my eyelid. And that was it. Too easy!

Carla GS wears Rimmel Scandaleyes Eye Shadow Stick in Paranoid Purple.

Purple eye makeup is also wonderful for creating a smoky look without the full-on drama of blacks and greys. It's more of an arty-smoky look, if you like. It's passionate, it's interesting, and you should wear it on your second date with that cute guy or girl.

Or, just wear it in the middle of the night and start taking photos of yourself with a DSLR with flash, which is what I did here, because I've been married for a million years. All I did to create this look was draw the shadow on, and smudge it out with my fingers. Both of the products I've used in these looks, by Rimmel and Maybelline, are long-wearing and non-creasing. They are also super-easy to apply. Go for it!

Purple eyeshadow

Finally, here's our fearless editor, Edwina Carr. Bet you didn't think that purple could also look soft and elegant, did you? Of course, Eddie pulls it off with style. Here's what she said:

"I’m going to be honest with you, when Acting Beauty Editor Carla passed me the purple eyeshadow palette to try, my heart sank - blue eyes and purple shadow? How was I meant to pull this off without looking like I was trying to bring back the ‘80s sans shoulder pads?

"After swiping on the light purple shadow (I prepped my eyelids with primer beforehand, but this isn’t essential), I decided that a little retro colour was the perfect way to appear as though I’d made some effort in the beauty department, when really, I hadn’t (yeah, I’m all about max impact, minimal effort)."

You can't get better than that - just a little bit of eyeshadow, and a noticeable, on-trend look. This is a very pretty makeup look to wear to the office, or a daytime occasion, such as a wedding. Nice one, Eddie!

So, we've given it a go, and now it's your turn. Try out purple makeup, upload it to social media and tag us: @theglowau. We can't wait to see your new look!