Confessions of a beauty rebel: Allison reveals her secret make-up past

 By Allison Browning

 It started off at Catholic girls’ school.  A green baggy smock uniform with brown tights fostered, out of resentment, a love of all things beauty.  Makeup was out of bounds, but it was the only way to improve our Kermit the frog outfits. I quietly joined the flock of faces that pressed up against the long mirror in the loos. 

I’d religiously pat Cover Girl powder on my face, apply Maybelline mascara to my lashes and smear Vaseline on innocent lips before the school bus ferried us to dancing lessons at the local Catholic boys school. I worked with whatever I could afford from the Coles make up aisle with my meager $10 allowance.

Minimalism was my first (and very valuable) beauty lesson: If you could make it look natural you wouldn’t get caught. The penguins’ strict rules bound me to a natural look… but then 1993 brought school to an end, and I discovered The Cure. Bring on the eyeliner and pale foundation!

It was during this phase that I learnt more about make up than beauty school could ever impart. I was a teenager with time to kill and no responsibility, so I spent those hours experimenting with deep red and near-black lipsticks, perfectly articulated with matching liner. 

My eyes were masterpieces. I blended luminescent shadows like a goth Van Gogh. My baby-faced bone structure had to be accentuated with contouring. I discovered that perfectly-chiseled cheeks are completely attainable with the right tools.

Those days faded into obscurity along with the black Dépêche Mode t-shirts, however my passion for make up did not.  My skills may have been sourced from teenage desperation, but over a decade later I still get a thrill from the right shade of liner and I can whip up a transformation that would leave Oprah just a little proud with make-over joy.

What are some of your make-up secrets from the past?

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