Half a face with war paint, half without: The startling pictures that show the true power of make-up

  • The latest internet trend sees women posting photos of half made-up faces
  • It was started by make-up artists and YouTube stars Sam and Nic Chapman
  • We asked five women to go ‘half-and-half’ with the help of the Chapmans

By Daily Mail Reporter

Published: 18:02 EST, 10 July 2015 | Updated: 00:23 EST, 11 July 2015

Last year, it was the no make-up selfie. Now the internet is awash with pictures of women who have made up half their face but left the other side natural. The trend was started by make-up artists and YouTube stars Sam and Nic Chapman. ‘It’s the ultimate contrast,’ says Sam. We asked five women to go ‘half-and-half’ with the help of the Chapman sisters. Here are the results . . . 

Half of me looks like Cheryl Cole 

TWENTIES 

Sarah Rainey, 28

I was blessed at birth with pale Northern Irish skin; the type that’s speckled with moles, goes red when I’m hot, cold or stressed, and wouldn’t tan in the Sahara. So I rarely go a day without make up.

I hate scrutinising my bare face. So the first thing I noticed when I looked at the half-and-half me is the fact my right side looked naked and exposed, while my left was so glammed up, I felt like Cheryl Cole.

My right eye droops more than my left and this was taken to a new level of lopsidedness by Nic’s use of brown and black eyeshadow.

Half of me looks like Cheryl Cole: Sarah Rainey, 28

Half of me looks like Cheryl Cole: Sarah Rainey, 28

The colours are designed to mimic the shadows that would naturally fall on my face. But the final result was anything but natural — I felt quite drag queen-esque. She also applied two layers of Eylure fake eyelashes; one to widen the eye, the other in the corner to give a feline flick. The effect is dramatic, but they obscured my vision. My eyebrow, which I normally leave bushy, was slicked into shape and had an arch to elongate my cheek, making my right brow look insipid.

Finally to my lips, which never see so much as a slick of lipstick. Nic created fullness with a nude liner and pink gloss. I looked glam.

Would I wear it on the other half? Definitely — minus fake eyelashes and with less shadow around the eyes. My unmade-up face isn’t so bad, so maybe I’ll brave that mirror after all.

Key products: Tom Ford Traceless Foundation (£64, Selfridges); Bold Metals 100 Arched Powder Brush (£25, Boots); L’Oreal Lip Liner in 630 (£3.99, boots.com).

Suddenly I'm five years younger 

THIRTIES 

Antonia Hoyle, 37

I know I’m not a supermodel — my nose is too long, my left eye is slightly smaller than the right and I’ve a square jaw — but I’ve never been troubled enough by my imperfections to camouflage them with make-up.

With two young children to look after, I consider it a triumph if I brush my hair in the morning — a coat of mascara and a dab of blusher are about as high maintenance as I get.

But as Nic drew on an exquisitely arched eyebrow, I was astounded to see I looked five years younger. Once she added a smoky bronze eyeshadow and false lashes, my made-up eye looked bigger and higher up my face than the unmade-up side.

Suddenly I'm five years younger: Antonia Hoyle, 37

Suddenly I'm five years younger: Antonia Hoyle, 37

My lips were painted with a muted red colour and the effect made me look happier even without smiling.

The change in my complexion surprised me most. The heavy duty foundation gave me flawless skin, highlighting the fact the other side is blotchy. Then she blended in sculpting cream — several shades darker than my skin — to the hollows of my cheek to give me killer cheekbones.

A cream highlighter along my jaw line whittled down the width of my face, making my jaw look softer.

The result was strange — the make-up half was a reminder of my potential attractiveness but it also amplified the flaws, so I left determined to start making more of an effort.

Key products: Anastasia Brow Powder Duo (£17, cultbeauty.com); Mac Lip Liner in Half Red (£12.50, maccosmetics.co.uk); Tanya Burr Everyday Flutter Lashes (£5.49, superdrug.com).

I've got back my luscious lips

FORTIES

Sarah Chalmers, 46

Looking in the mirror after half my face had been made up, I’m not sure which side alarmed me most. The doe-eyed, made-up me or the fact every imperfection was laid bare on the other half.

I’ve always had good skin, but with age, deep lines have appeared around my mouth, my cheeks are hollower and my lips thinner. I look washed out without make-up, so I never leave the house without eyeliner, mascara and lip gloss.

Sam applied foundation to even out my skin tone before using tiny strokes on my brows to mimic hairs until they were much bushier and more defined.

I've got back my luscious lips: Sarah Chalmers, 46

I've got back my luscious lips: Sarah Chalmers, 46

Whereas I apply eyeliner only to my lower lid, Sam also applied it to my top lid. I was horrified to see her drawing a thick bold line with an exaggerated flick up to my brow in the outer corner. But it was a masterstroke — opening up my eye, making it look bigger and more awake.

Finally, Sam used a lipliner slightly outside my natural lip-line to make my mouth appear fuller, thus restoring the volume lost with age. A revelation — I’ve got my luscious lips back.

Sam says because the red lipstick has a blueish tint, my teeth appeared whiter too.

Key products: Laura Mercier Creme Eyeliner (£19.50, John Lewis); Real Techniques Fine Liner Brush (£5.99, Boots); Mac All Fired Up Lipstick (£15.50).

It's not the real me but I love it

FIFTIES

Alice Hart-Davis, 52

I wear very little make-up. When I do, I’ll go for a thick flick of black eyeliner on my top lid, lashings of mascara and orange lipstick.

Nic set off on an entirely different tack. She used base foundation and a bigger, better-defined eyebrow. But the real magic started when she sculpted my cheekbones using powder several shades darker than my natural skin tone under my cheeks to make them look more hollow.

She said this would help add definition as she heaped bronzer over my pale complexion, putting it ‘everywhere the sun would hit’ — along my cheekbones, across my forehead and down the middle of my nose. My face looked thinner and more sun-kissed. I began to glow.

It's not the real me but I love it: Alice Hart-Davis, 52

It's not the real me but I love it: Alice Hart-Davis, 52

Even better was the huge smokey eye she created. This was amplified with eyeliner around the lids with huge false lashes to make the eyes look more open — and therefore more youthful.

The transformation was extraordinary. Not the usual me, but I loved it. I felt strangely confident, a bit wild, rather Seventies. As I was off to a work dinner, I persuaded Nic to make up the other half of my face. This done, I revelled in my newfound glamour all night. That was until I showed a colleague the half-and-half snaps and she told me I looked younger without it. Ouch.

Key products: Becca Lowlight Sculpting Perfector (£32, cultbeauty.co.uk); Mac Bronzing Powder (£22, maccosmetics.co.uk); Mac no 34 False Lashes (£10.50, maccosmetics.co.uk).

This is why I adore make-up 

SIXTIES

Patty Parfitt, 64

Make-up has always been a necessity for me. Even at home, I’ll wear mascara to widen my eyes and lipstick to brighten my face. I’d feel naked without it.

When Sam showed me my half-and-half face, it made me realise how much better I look with make-up. My left side could pass for ten years younger. Everything looks lifted and chiselled.

I’m lucky my skin hasn’t aged badly, but it lacks that luminosity of youth, so Sam chose a foundation which has been designed to give the skin a glow. She then used cream bronzer to make my cheekbones more prominent. She blended it into the hollows of my face, under my cheeks and along my jaw and temple. This is something I will try at home, as it’s more effective than the powder blusher I was using.

This is why I adore make-up: Patty Parfitt, 64

This is why I adore make-up: Patty Parfitt, 64

As I’ve got older, I’m aware my eyelids have sagged. But Sam makes my eyes appear rounder using white eyeliner inside my top and bottom lash line. She repaired the thin brow I over-plucked years ago with brown eyeshadow, painting it upwards into an arch. Finally, a berry-toned lip pencil, drawn slightly over my lip-line, made my lips appear so much fuller.

My skin’s never looked this good. The lift in my eyebrow and cheekbones transformed me into a younger version of myself.

Key Products: Smashbox Step By Step Contour Stick Trio (£35, smashbox.co.uk); Real Techniques Sculpting Brush (£9.99, Boots); Charlotte Tilbury Eye Cheat Kohl Pencil (£19, Selfridges).

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