AD | Three different make-up looks with No7

I should probably begin this post by admitting that I am Not a Make-up Person. I mean, I love make-up, don’t get me wrong: I’ve been using make-up since I was in my teens, and I still wear it every day –– yes, even when I’m not planning on leaving the house –– so it’s not like I’m totally unfamiliar with it here. As a pale-skinned redhead, though, I’ve always found it difficult to find products that suit me: a lot of the techniques and colours I see on TikTok and YouTube just look ridiculous on me when I try them at home, so, over the years, I’ve fallen into a bit of a rut whereby I wear the same products every day, and rarely attempt anything even slightly different. 

All of which is to say that when No7 asked if I’d like to try my hand at creating three different signature looks from their No7 range, I was both intrigued and… well, a little bit worried, to be perfectly honest, given that I have literally ONE make-up look that I wear all the time. But a change is as good as a rest, and, fortunately for me  –– and anyone else who’s unsure what to buy –– the No7 Make-up Virtual Try-On tool allowed me to first of all figure out which products might work for me. This is a clever little tool which, as the name suggests, allows you to virtually try on different colours and products, either by uploading a photo or simply using live video from your phone/PC to see what it would look like on you. 

The tool also suggests products it thinks might work for you based on your photo/video, so if you’re a complete newbie to the world of make-up, or just looking to change things up a bit, it’s an excellent starting point. And here’s what it chose for me to create three different ‘signature’ looks…

LOOK ONE: ALL DAY EVERYDAY MAKE-UP

This All Day Everyday Make-up Look is probably closest to what I usually wear during the week, when I don’t have any plans beyond working from home and doing the school run. Because I don’t have a lot of time in the mornings, I like to keep things as natural and easy as possible, and that’s exactly what this is: one of those ‘no make-up’ make-up looks, which make you look that little bit more polished, without having to spend a lot of time on it, or use a huge amount of products. 

To create this, I started off with the No7 Intelligent Colour Foundation, which I’m wearing here in Fair/Light. This is a super-lightweight formula which feels like you’re not wearing make-up at all, however it has a slight mattifying effect which I really liked as I can easily look like an oil slick without something to control the shine. So it’s that ‘my skin, but better’ look, basically.

With this, I used the No7 Skin Illuminator in Nude on my cheekbones; again, this is very light and easy to wear, but it adds a subtle glow to the areas that need it. For my eyes, I used a coat of No7 Define & Enhance Mascara in black. To finish the look, I used a quick swipe of No7 High Shine Lip Crayon which gives a sheer wash of colour which you can either wear on its own or layer over lipstick. As an optional extra I also added a sweep of the No7 Shade and Define Eye Pencil, to my eyelids: the No7 Eyeshadow Palette is also available if you want more colour options here, and you want to define the eyes a bit more, you could also use the No7 Stay Perfect Felt Tip Eyeliner.

LOOK 2: WEEKEND GLOW

The Weekend Glow Make-up Look is still pretty natural, but it’s just a little bit more ‘elevated’ and polished than the first look I tried, so perfect for casual weekends, or those weekdays when you’re NOT just stuck at your desk all day, but still don’t want to go all-out with the make-up. This is more or less what I used to wear day to day before Max came along, and trying it out for this post has inspired me to do it more often; it really doesn’t take much longer than my usual routine, but the results are a step above my ‘school run’ appearance.

For this, I started out with No7 Lift & Luminate Triple Action Serum Foundation, which I’m wearing in ‘Shell’. As the name suggests, this has the consistency of a serum rather than a foundation, so the coverage is thicker than the ‘barely there’ look above, but still natural. This foundation also helps conceal fine lines and wrinkles, contains SPF 15, and Vitamins A, C & E, so it’s good for your skin, too. As I get older, I find that full-coverage foundations can be too much for me, and have a tendency to settle into those lines, so this is a perfect compromise: not too heavy, but not too light, either. 

I used the same mascara for all of these looks (Although it’s the No7 The Full 360 Ultra Mascara that’s actually used to create the Weekend Glow), and I once again used the Shade and Define Eye Pencil, although this time I chose a dark brown colour and used it to line the upper eyelid, rather than sweeping it over the lids. (No7 Eyeshadow Trios are another great eye product to use here.) The No7 Matte Powder Blusher was the biggest surprise here: I’m wearing it in ‘Honey’, which is a kind of peachy-brown shade I’d never have picked up on my own, as I normally go for rose pink blusher. This colour got me so many compliments, though (Even my husband noticed I’d done ‘something different’, which is unheard of…) that I’m a total convert. Feedback was that it’s much more natural and ‘golden’ on me than my usual shade, so it looks like I’ve found a new ‘hero’ product in this one. 

I finished off this look with No7 Velvet Matte Lipstick in Amonite. I’m generally a red lip kind of girl when it comes to lipstick, so, again, this isn’t a shade I’d normally have picked up, but, again, I ended up really liking it, so it would seem that the No7 Virtual Try on knows me better than I know myself!

LOOK 3: ALL OUT GLAM

Finally, the All Out Glam Make-up Look! This is exactly the kind of look I’d do for a night out or special occasion: I’ve always been a sucker for a red lip and a cat’s eye flick, and although I don’t have many opportunities to wear make-up like this these days, it’s the look that feels most like ‘me’ when I do attempt it. 

The starting point for this one is No7 Stay Perfect Foundation, which I’m wearing in Crème. This offers the fullest coverage of the three foundations I’ve tried, although I’d describe it as ‘medium’ rather than ‘full’. It’s designed to last for 24 hours (I haven’t put that to the test because I like my sleep too much, but I can confirm that it does, indeed, last all day, which is good enough for me), and it contains SPF30, which is good news for those of us with fair skin. 

 I find that the No7 Define & Enhance Mascara does a great job of lengthening and thickening my lashes, so I’m wearing it again as part of this look, but the Intense Volume Mascara should be used here instead. 

Although I don’t often use bronzing powder as I struggle to make it look natural on my pale skin, I did use No7 Matte Bronzing as a contour here, to try to create the illusion of cheekbones. Finally, the star of this look is No7 Moisture Drench Lipstick, which I’m wearing in Pillarbox –– a glamorous, orangey red which is the perfect finishing touch for the look.

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If you’d like to try any of these looks out for yourselves, you can find all of the products I’ve featured at www.no7beauty.co.uk/. Which look is your favourite?