a lesson in make-up

When it comes to her resume, make-up artist Cassie Lomas certainly has her shadow daubed finger firmly on the beauty pulse. She’s created faces for magazine shoots and red carpet events for 14 years including The BAFTA’s and the MTV awards, as well as dusting her make-up brush over Lady GaGa, Minnie Driver, Holly Willoughby and Jenny Frost. All of which makes her the perfect ambassador as Bourjois’s celebrity make-up artist. However, not content to rest on her laurels, Cassie has just added another colour to her make-up palette - opening up her own make-up academy.

“I wanted to open the academy to give people the opportunity to enjoy a successful career in make-up, as well help women who struggle with trends and application,” Cassie tells me. “It’s been a dream for years to have my own school, and I believe I can provide a great framework for budding make-up artists who want to get into the industry.”

Located in Manchester (Cassie’s home town), the school aims to teach all the trickery and skills to make your mark in the fashion and TV industry. All tutors have been cherry picked by Cassie where there’s only a maximum of 12 students in a class, ensuring everybody is given personal attention. For further information on courses and classes visit: www.cassielomasmakeupacademy.co.uk

In the meantime, I’ve quizzed Cassie on her top 10 products which you can start adding to your make-up repertoire:

1. Elizabeth Arden 8 Hour Cream, £23. “It always makes a model smile.”  And rightly so. The texture is delicious, where it can be swiftly slicked over dry lips, cuticles and used to give a sexy gloss to brows.
2. Benefit Brow zings, £22.50. “Perfect for immaculately groomed brows that stay defined all day.”  Use the natural shaded powder for filling any gaps and the angled brush to blend.
3. Chanel nail polishes, £16.50. “Simply because their colours are always amazing and make fingertip impact. Set by dipping fingers into cold water.”
4. Bourjois Little Round Pot Eyeshadows, £5.99. “These work wonderfully, as the pigments are intense and they blend with no effort at all.” Furthermore, the baked powder formula can be applied wet to really pop the colour.
5. Daniel Sandler Watercolour Fluid Blusher, £10 (www.danielsandler.com).  “It gives amazing cheek colour with ultimate staying power. I often see blush applied too high, so smile, apply to the apples of your cheeks, taking up to the centre of the ear.”
6. Laura Mercier Secret Concealer, £18 (http://www.spacenk.com/). “Covers blemishes amazingly well without leaving the skin looking overloaded. Apply after all other make-up.”
7. Shu Uemura UV under base mousse spf30, £28. A weightless formula that evens out skintone and texture for flawless appeal. Keeps make-up staying true through the day.”
8. Bourjois 3D Effect, £6.99 “Sexily plumps and glosses your pout.”
9. MAC Face and Body Foundation, £23. “A water based formula that’s easy to blend and looks super natural. You can layer it to build up coverage where needed.”
10. Diorshow Mascara, £21.50. “Inspired by the runway, it leaves lashes luxuriously thick, lengthened and curved. For a false lash effect, comb extra layers on the outer corners of the lashes to accentuate further.”