She’s so Cult: Sara Hill
Make up artist Sara Hill has worked on campaigns, cover shoots and countless A-List-canvases for upwards of two decades. Bringing an edgy, editorial aesthetic to everything she does, she is the queen of reinvention - injecting something effortlessly 'fresh' to everything she touches. Having now distilled her years of expertise into a comprehensive, eagerly-anticipated range of make up must-haves - in colours that she's struggled to find elsewhere - we caught up with {Sara Hill} about her influences, hero products and the best way to disguise signs of a hangover...
{Sara Hill} I’ve been a Make up artist for 20 years; working mainly in fashion and with musical artists. I started out in film and TV and then moved to fashion, which is where I feel most 'at home'. I have worked at fashion weeks, on campaigns, with celebrities and magazines worldwide, and I love my job. I still get excited about all things make up.
I still work as a freelance artist and now own two make up schools - one in Glasgow and another one in Aberdeen - an online fashion magazine called HOPE ST and finally, my very own, self-named {make up range}.
{SH} I have travelled a lot and lived in lots of different countries, but I love my home town. The fashion and arts scene is booming, with artists and designers coming from across the world to study and live here. What I love most about the 'scene' is its lack of pretentiousness - everyone is welcome. It’s culturally diverse; it's positive and inclusive.
Glasgow grounds me, the humour, the people. I feel I can be myself here and I have an amazing bunch of creative pals and family around me cheering me on.
{SH} Thank you. I sometimes think the editorial look is closer to real life make up - it's not always perfect, it is often undone and stripped back and more than anything it's about the individual. I think editorial skin is my favourite to create. Perfectly hydrated, natural, glowing, real and just beautiful. I’m personally not a fan of a heavy base in my own work as I love a freckle. That said, I make no judgement on those who love a more made up look - I firmly believe that it's up to each individual to create what they wish.
{SH} Fashion and pop culture continually inspire me. My editorial work is about stripped back real looking skin and a pop of colour or a bold shape. I sometimes give myself the challenge of working with just one shade and seeing what I can create. I take inspiration from the individual's face and the personal connection I make with them.
{SH} You should feel as happy to go make up free as you do going for that full polished look.
Fashion for the face is about expressing the truth within you at any given moment. Maybe, showing the world how you are feeling or creating the image that you want to project to your friends and colleagues. That creativity can be radically different from day to day. A new face for every day of the week.
I love to watch trends develop and pass. I love fashion. With my make up, I wanted to create the colours, shades and products that I would love. So it's a range that embraces creative freedom.
{SH} I was talking to a hair stylist at a shoot down in London who had his own beard oil. He talked me through the process he went through to create his range. At that time there were shades and textures of {foundation} that I had been dreaming about and could never find. So after five years of hard work my own brand was born.
I had no idea it would take off like it did and I feel so grateful for all the support and amazing feedback. I love the challenge of developing new products and shades. It's so much fun.
{SH} There’s a lot of pressure on people to create “perfect” make up. It should be fun, a form of self-expression, a judgement-free zone. Whether you want to dip your full face in glitter, smear pink lipstick across your eyes or just pop on a bit of mascara it's all good in my book. Just paint and play.
The best first step is to to be brave and just add in even a little bit of colour. Something that connects with your mood or your shade of nail polish, even if it's a subtle touch of coloured liner.
{SH} My make up menu regularly changes with my mood and what I'm wearing. The only real go-to for me is fresh, healthy looking skin. Good skin care, a sheer base and pop of concealer.
With everything else I like to mix it up as much as possible by experimenting with new colours and styles.
{SH} Matching your concealer to your foundation is key. So many people go for too light a concealer under the eyes and end up looking like they've been sunbathing with sunglasses on. If your dark circles are from pigmentation then going warmer is often the best way. When covering blemishes make sure you use a translucent powder to set after covering with concealer. This means the spot or bump isn't shiny, and it also keeps the concealer in place as well. My {Little Pop} concealer works well for under eyes and blemishes - it's smooth and creamy and blends like a dream.
{SH} I love every thing in my make up range. It's so selfishly me. It's everything I wanted and needed for my kit; the colours and textures I like to work with and that's why there are so many unique colours in there. I didn't make my range with the mass market in mind, I made it because those colours and shades were missing and needed to be made.
{CB} And, when you’re running late and need to look fabulous fast, what’s the quickest way to make it look as though you’ve made an effort?
{SH} I always say wear red lipstick if you have a hangover, it's the instant "I look alive" trick. Anything that will distract from your bleary, puffy eyes. Ha ha!
I suggest my {Sadie Doll} lipstick, it's the perfect orange-y red for this.
{SH} The walk from Botanic gardens to Kelvingrove park down by the river is magical, the vintage market at BaAD or any of the art and club events at SWG3 are not to be missed. There are so many cool bars and amazing restaurants in Glasgow – I could write a whole article on that – but I'd make a start at the strip down in Finnieston.
Thanks so much Sara! You can shop the range {here}...
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Cult Beauty’s Content Editor and a Cult Beauty OG, Verity loves nothing more than the marriage of language and lip balm. A quintessential Libran, she’s a self-professed magpie for luxury ‘must-haves' and always pursuing the new and the niche — from the boujee-est skin care to cutting-edge tech. Balancing an urge to stop the clock with her desire to embrace the ageing process (and set a positive example for her daughter), Verity's a retinol obsessive and will gladly share her thoughts about the time-defying gadgets, masks and treatments worth the splurge...
