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THE OSCARS HIT HOLLYWOOD TONIGHT, BUT YOU DON'T NEED AN ENTOURAGE OF MAKE-UP ARTISTS TO GET THE A-LIST LOOK. JUST FOLLOW OUR EASY TIPS TO RED-CARPET GLAMOUR...

SAY NO TO NEEDLES

Some celebs are no longer happy with the frown-freezing effects of Botox. Instead of opting for the needle, stars are now prepping skin for big events with these alternatives. Rodial Glamotox SPF18, £98, is the Spice Girls’ favourite way of giving skin a boost. This product moisturises, fills wrinkles and freezes muscles. Genius! Or you could try Jennifer Aniston’s favourite line smoother, Athena 7 Minute Lift, £49.95. Twelve organic Greek essential oils minimise wrinkles in seven minutes. Use as a quick fix or every day for a long-term solution. For amazing glow, get Lancôme’s Hydra Intense Hydrating Gel Mask, £27. Celebrity make-up artist Ruby Hammer, whose clients include Sienna Miller and Elle Macpherson, uses it to give skin a boost before big events.

BODY SHIMMER

OK, so you’ve got a fantastic frock and your face is flawless, but don’t forget the rest of your body. Try applying a hair shine product to legs and arms. Make-up guru Daniel Sandler says: “Urban Retreat Afrodisiac Gel Wax, £7.95, will make skin look shiny and wonderfully smooth, plus it doesn’t come off on your dress or build up in the creases on the backs of your knees.” Lee Pycroft, Cate Blanchett’s favourite make-up artist adds: “Applying foundation and luminisers to your legs, arms or cleavage is a great way to help exposed skin look lustrous and blemish-free.”

BRAVE A BEEHIVE

It’s not just Amy Winehouse who backcombs her barnet to oblivion. Now the beehive is being seen on normally ‘safe’ stars like Natasha Bedingfield and Eva Mendes. Sascha Breuer, hairdresser to Eva Herzigova, says: “For a style with lasting volume, blow-dry hair until it’s completely dry, then work in Sebastian’s Body Double Thickefy Styler, £15.95. Take a section of hair from the crown of your head, mist with a hairspray like Silvikrin Natural Hold, £1.99, and wind around a large heated roller. Repeat as far as two inches behind your hairline. Once the rollers have cooled, remove, backcomb each section and spray again. Fix with a hair clip, brush an unbackcombed section over the top to give a smooth finish, and fix with a final spritz of hairspray.”

RAID THE FRIDGE

Hollywood’s biggest stars hit the kitchen before a show-stopping event. Not for a snack, but to find ingredients to use as part of their make-me-gorgeous routine. Take Catherine Zeta-Jones. She not only whitens her teeth by brushing them with crushed strawberries, she also rubs caviar into her hair for a pre-party shine boost. And Desperate Housewives’ Teri Hatcher says red wine is a great exfoliant – she adds it to her bath to make her skin glow.

HAIR-RAISING

If you haven’t the time, money or inclination for surgery, but your face needs a little lift, try a Hollywood trick favoured by the likes of Madonna. Tightly plait a section of hair from above each ear, fasten them together at the back and voila! – a pain-free facelift.

EYE LIGHTER

The Spice Girls’ make-up artist Daniel Sandler says: “Don’t be heavy-handed with dark eyeshadow or you’ll end up more ghoul than glam. To get Keira Knightley’s look, line the inner and outer rim of your lower lid with a pencil like Urban Retreat Seriously Black Kohl Pencil, £6.95, then smudge the outer line. Finish with a mascara like Bourjois Volume Clubbing Mascara, £7.95.”

STOCKISTS: ATHENA (WWW.ATHENA7.CO.UK), BOURJOIS (STORES NATIONWIDE), CHLOÉ FRAGRANCE (STORES NATIONWIDE FROM MARCH 1), LANCÔME (STORES NATIONWIDE), NATURA BISSE (020 7730 1234), OPI (01923 240010), PAUL LABRECQUE (0800 123400), RODIAL (WWW.RODIAL.CO.UK), SEBASTIAN (01256 490500), SILVIKRIN (LEADING CHEMISTS NATIONWIDE), URBAN RETREAT (WWW.BEAUTIQUE.COM)

Credits

Writer and Stylist: Beauty Editor Donna Francis Photography: Studio 21, Rex, Wire Image