Mollie King’s 13 Top (And Sometimes Surprising) Beauty Secrets – Marie Claire.co.uk (blog)

She’s one fifth of the one of the most successful bands of the moment but not that long ago she didn’t know a foundation from a concealer. Spokesmodel for Maybelline Mollie King lets us in on her beauty voyage of discovery.

I�m a woman of many contrasts�
‘I�m expected to wear make-up when I�m working so on my rare days off I like to keep everything really natural and just let my skin breathe. When I�m working my make-up is doing either one of two things; if I�m on a shoot my make-up tends to learn towards natural but if we�re on stage I go glam. It�s nice to have that contrast and I enjoy mixing things up a little.’

There�s a fine line between glam and �porny��
‘I think Brigitte Bardot was one of the few who could manage that balance. She looked really cool and glam and actually she wore a lot of make-up but it never looked too much. I would go as far as to say she is my beauty icon; I even have a massive black and white print of her at home. I love the eyeliner flick she wore and copy it on myself. Like me, she�s blonde, which I find makes it difficult to go glam without looking overdone. I need to master how she did it but with her face she could really pull-off anything.’

Touring can be bad for your skin�
�We get sweaty on stage so as soon as we�re done the make-up comes off and the hair goes up into a bun. When we�re touring I can be on stage every day for a month � on a day-to-day basis I wear Maybelline SuperStay Better Skin foundation because I feel like it allows my skin to breathe but on stage we set it with Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray, �19.50. Maybelline Baby Skin Instant Pore Eraser, �7.99 is my must-have when I�m on stage and pretty much anytime I know I�m going to be photographed.’

I have a thing about lipstick�
‘I love to wear a bright lipstick and leave everything else quite simple. I always go for bright pinks and orange-toned reds � I find warmer reds look more youthful than darker, deeper shades.’

I�m not massively high maintenance when it comes to my skin�
‘I occasionally have a facial but it�s hard to find the time to fit it in. When I manage to fit one in I always go to see Ferray at Nevilles in Knightsbridge; she uses microdermabrasion and gets really stuck in. My skin always feels like it gets a lot out of it.’

I try not to worry about getting older�
‘I have body hang-ups just like every girl and I use anti-ageing products to ward off the inevitable as much as I can, but I don�t allow myself to obsess over it.’

Exercising puts me in a good mood�
‘I used to ski regularly so I�m used to working out. If I can I try to visit Bodyism in Knightsbridge three times a week but sometimes, when my schedule is manic, I�ll only get there every six weeks. What I love about my trainers is that they don�t totally kill me and when I leave I don�t feel like I�m going to collapse on the floor. They keep me chatting while I train so that I don�t even notice how hard I�m working.’

I�ve never really dieted�
‘I prefer to eat healthy most of the time. I love fish; it�s my favourite meal and I really don�t drink much alcohol. But I do have a sweet tooth and I love dessert. When I�m on tour I�m really strict with myself and cut out all diary products so that they don�t affect my throat and my voice. I always feel my best on tour.’

I haven�t always known what I am doing when it comes to make-up�
‘When I auditioned for The Saturdays I didn�t even understand the difference between foundation and concealer so I dotted the concealer around my face and then rubbed it in like a moisturiser. I then just threw on a bit of mascara and some Vaseline on my lips. I knew I wasn�t good at doing my own make-up. The first time I had my make-up done professionally I was completely amazed.’

I learnt everything I know from being in the band�
‘My mum doesn�t wear make-up so I knew nothing about it before The Saturdays. I�ve learnt everything I know from the girls in the band. Before the band I didn�t know anything about cleansing or toning, the girls taught me everything. I used to carry around a bar of soap, the girls were like �what are you doing?� Rochelle discovered the soap when we were on tour with Girls Aloud and dragged me to Selfridges, she literally changed my life there and then.’

I thought all pop stars wore hair extensions�
‘My stylist Nick Peters banned me from getting them and now when I look back I�m so pleased I listened to him. My colour is done at Daniel Galvin in London.’

I�m terrible at doing my nails�
‘Every time I do my nails myself it�s a disaster but I feel naked if they�re not painted. So if I’m doing it on my own I always use a neutral shade so that the mistakes are less obvious. I swear by Essie.’

Oh, and here�s something not many people know about me�
‘Before I put on foundation I always have to blow my nose.’