7 Iconic ‘60s Makeup Looks You Could Totally Wear Today

"I used to do my own make-up. I used to have this doll that had those big eyelashes on the top and bottom and I think I copied her when I was doing my eyes, putting false eyelashes on the bottom as well as the top. So I came up with that look myself..." - Twiggy

60s makeup

by Emma Firth |
Published on

The Beatles! Woodstock! ‘It’ girls! The ‘swinging sixties’ is still wildly considered the 'golden age of pop culture'. A technicolour dreamcoat of free love man and rock ‘n’ roll.

Of course, it’s hard not to talk about the ‘60s without mentioning the fashion during this period. Vintage fiends and designers still revel in the defining shapes; from the baby doll dresses, daring hemlines and divine houndstooth twin sets.

The beauty world was also enjoying a new mood too. While the ‘50s was all polished red lips and sleek eye-liner flicks, ‘60s makeup was fiercely rebellious; less ‘beautiful’, more colourful and celebratory. Enter lashings of mascara (a la Factory Girl muse Edie Sedgwick), 50 shades of pastel and the birth of mod makeup.

Here's Grazia's edit of seven authetic '60s makeup looks that you could totally wear in 2017...

The hippie hippie shake

60s makeup

1967 - dubbed the ‘Summer of Love’ - saw hippie ‘boho’ fashions of dress blow up in a big way. The beauty code? Anything goes. Psychedelic face painting? Flower power? Bold geometric patterns? Done, done and done.

Soft blush

60s makeup

Scrap the OTT bronzing – instead, keep your base fresh and minimal. Try non-pearlescent, pale blushers, in pastel pink and peachy tones, to lightly contour cheeks and highlight your ‘bedroom eyes’ Birkin style.

Brigitte Bardot's ‘60s makeup

60s makeup

Surely the pinnacle of Parisian beauty? Your Brigette Bardot makeup basics include smokey eye shadow, a black khol pencil (imperative), light pink lipstick and a matte powder blush. You can watch makeup maestro Lisa Eldridge’s modern ‘Baby Bardot’ makeup tutorial below…

Fake it ‘til you make it

60s makeup

The ultimate statement party look. Everyone from beauty editors, makeup artists and Kate Moss have long obsessed over ‘Twiggy’ Lawson’s iconic ‘60s look. Confidently drawn on black liner? Check. False eyelashes (both upper and lower) off-set with her porcelain skin? Check. Tip 1) Lightly brush a bit of powder underneath your eyes, to avoid the dreaded stray eyeshdadow. Tip 2) PRACTICE.

Art attack

60s makeup

‘60s girls loved pastel-toned lip liner. Orange lip liner and yellow lipstick? Why not.

Material girl

60s makeup

Preen paved the way last season for it to be legitimately cool to stick flowers on our cheeks (a modern day interpretation of the retro trend: ‘petal lashes’). Models can be seen sporting chiffon, silk and feathers in beauty spreads. Avant-garde beauty is back.

The ‘60s mod

60s makeup

Look-at-me eye makeup is *key. Fashion's movement celebrating all things monochromatic in the '60s made its mark in the beauty world too. Eye liner was essentially drawn into the crease of the lids to mimic the line of the brows. For extra drama: fill in the gap with white shadow.

READ MORE: Channel The Spirit Of The Jazz Age With These 1920s Beauty Looks

READ MORE: Brigitte Bardot: A Style Icon

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