To celebrate Marc Jacobs Beauty ambassador and Youtuber Nikkie de Jager – or better known as NikkieTutorials – touching down in Sydney for a special master class we sat down with the makeup artist to get the low down on her ultimate tips.
For the uninitiated: Nikkie de Jager is a trailblazer in the vlogger-sphere with over 12 million subscribers on Youtube and Instagram she forged the social media path for self-taught makeup artists globally. The Dutch-born beauty influencer’s message centres on inclusivity. Nikkie proudly heroes makeup as a tool of self-expression, educating and inspiring her followers and earning her crown as the queen of glow. While the 25-year-old is best known for her ‘The Power Of Makeup’ videos, her youtube channel’s most recent uploads boast all-star guests such as Kim Kardashian and Drew Barrymore.
If NikkieTutorials had a mission statement what would it be?
“I never thought of that. It would be, ‘find your inner glam and believe it too’. Too often we think of makeup like armour and we don’t necessarily believe what we put out.”
Can you talk us through the makeup tutorial that you’ll be doing in your masterclass?
“It’s winter here – which is mind-boggling to me – so I’m bringing the heat onto the stage with my look. Really turning it up with a nice warm smokey eye. The smokey eye is super on trend right now – it’s this all-matte, brownish, smokey eyeliner that you typically see with nude glossy lips.”
What do you think of the barely there make-up trend and what’s the key to looking natural?
“That is the hardest look to do because it’s way easier to create a full glam moment. When you’re doing a no-make-up make-up look, it’s always important to ensure the skin looks like skin. One of my favourites for that is marc jacobs beauty Accomplice Concealer & Touch-up Stick and Accomplice Instant Blurring Beauty Powder.
“Both products contain blurring properties so get that perfect veil of coverage, but your skin still looks fresh and radiant. This is a full coverage concealer that doesn’t look cakey on the surface. When I’m doing my no-makeup days, I have clean skin, and I pop this on with my ring finger, so skin-on-skin, and I just feel like it blends in seamlessly.”
“Be light-handed with powders – they are only for areas where you really really need it – and other than that just keep it very light and natural.”
Which beauty products do you take with you on a long-haul flight?
“I bring my sheet mask for all that moisture, especially on a long-haul flight. I have my lip gloss for when I feel fancy, so I have nothing going on but I have a little bit of shimmer on my lips and I feel really good about it. Oh and I bring my Elizabeth Arden Eight-Hour Cream.”
Lip gloss is enjoying a revival right now
“Definitely. Along with lip liner. We’re over matte liquid lipsticks. Shimmery lip glosses are making a comeback – the borderline ’90s frost lip which I adore with a slightly darker liner. It’s the 90s but modern.”
If you could only take five products with you to a desert island, what would they be?
“Lots and lots of SPF! There would probably be three on my list! I would bring my Shu Uemura eyelash curler, I would bring this gloss, I would bring a tinted brow gel, even though no one’s going to be seeing my face on that island, I would bring, even though no one’s going to be seeing me, a little bit of marc jacobs beauty Accomplice Concealer & Touch-up Stick. Oh my God, but highlighter! That would be sweat from the island.”
Whose make-up would you love to do?
“Adele, Adele, Adele, Adele! Gorgeous. And also, last week I saw 5 Seconds of Summer, so I heard their song “Easier” and I really liked the song so I was like ‘let me check their music video out’. I don’t know their names but the main singer, he was wearing like a full glittery eye. I was like ‘oh my God! What?’ And I looked up more music videos and some girls started tweeting me that they’re really about empowering and breaking the boundaries.
“So I really want to film with them! And I’m like let’s do a glitter smokey eye together! So, Adele and 5 Seconds of Summer.”
Which make-up trend do you wish would come back?
“I feel like a lip liner and lip gloss has made a comeback and I was really hoping that it would. I just wear whatever I’m in the mood for.”
Which make-up trend do you wish would go away?
“I think one trend that we can avoid is bronzer helmets, where you wear so much bronzer that it looks like a helmet. Nothing wrong with a bit of tan, but not when it looks like a helmet.”
What’s the best piece of advice that you ever received?
“Don’t get comfortable. When I create my videos, when I create my looks, it’s very very important to always keep pushing yourself, trying new looks, trying new colours, trying new textures, so don’t get comfortable.”
This article was originally published as Nikkie de Jager On The O.G Make-Up Trend That’s Making A Coming Back.
