James Molloy shares his secret to beautiful, balanced makeup (and the one mistake to avoid)

James Molloy is the King of glow. Scroll through his truly delicious Instagram feed and he offers up smash-hit after smash-hit of dreamy, perfectly executed, sheeny skin. And, for your viewing pleasure, he throws in next-level graphic eyes and pillowy-looking lips for good measure. 

If you're looking to spice up your makeup look with an alternative to black liner, or you're in the market for a highlighter recommendation, he's your man – which is probably why Dior tapped him up to be their Makeup Artist Ambassador. 

So, to kick January off with an injection of makeup inspo – and intel – we tapped James up to ask him his secret to incredible-looking makeup so we can bring the glow, even when our post-Christmas skin is not playing ball…

How would the James Molloy makeup aesthetic in three words?

I would say graphic, gorgeous and glam.

What’s the one major mistake you see people making with their makeup?

When I see when people go in too heavy or too hard in the beginning, there's no way to pull it back. So I always think, tread light in the beginning – light layers – and then you can always add. When you're thinking about complexion, if you're going in too heavy with a foundation or a concealer, you're having to blend it for days. Just apply a little bit and then see what it does and if you need some more. Yeah. You might not

What’s your top tip for incredible makeup?

I make sure that I spend the same amount of time on the skincare as I do the foundation. You really need to spend all of that time on making sure that your skin is smooth, and plumped, and hydrated and that you're taking care of it before you even think about applying foundation or colour. It makes such a massive difference. Lately I've been using the Dior Prestige Serum, which has a gorgeous rose base and is full of nutrients. You can use it day and night and it makes skin look a lot more plumped and glowy. With this time of year, we're coming home to central heating and everybody's skin's feeling dehydrated. Using a serum like that feels like you can massage it in makes a massive difference.

What’s your favourite makeup look you’ve created and why?

One of the faces I was really excited to work with was Christina because she's such a makeup pro herself. And I've grown up with her through her career and watched her makeup style really evolve. She enjoys makeup and I'm inspired by somebody who enjoys makeup because then it inspires me to create a look. Someone that’s like, I know you love liner, give me the best liner you can possibly do. 

What’s been your biggest beauty disaster?

I've done makeup on models in taxis on the way to a show where I've been sent to the airport to meet them and had to do makeup in the back of a cab. I've turned up to locations and the kit hasn't and you have to hit the stores or raid everybody's handbags and see what crew has. But I'm older and wiser now, so I always make sure that I carry a stash in my hand luggage. Like the Dior Backstage Glow palette, I know I can do eyes with that, I can do body with that, I can do a little shimmer on the cheek. It's my multi-use product that's always in my personal collection.

What beauty trends are you really excited for right now?

I'm excited for metallics because metals are one of my absolute favourites. Like a good gold or a silver – you can make it look really futuristic and cool, or you can make it look really timeless and elegant. I'm also happy that we're kind of stepping away from anything too heavy and matte. I feel like glow is one of those autonomous things makeup always needs and it's nice to see that we're coming away from that massively heavy makeup look and we're going back to real skin.

What are the three products you always have in your kit?

The Dior Forever Foundation is my absolute favourite because I can dial it up to a full coverage, it always feels really luxurious and bouncy, or I can sheer it right the way down if I want something like a no makeup-makeup look. A good black eye kohl is a staple because you can do a full-on smokey eye or a flick so you can take it in any direction. And then I like something quite creamy, like a multi-use bronzer that’s malleable that you can play around with.

Dior Forever Skin Glow Foundation

£45

Dior

What’s been the most memorable moment of your career?

There's been a few highlights. Keying shows at London Fashion Week has also been a big moment for me – the first time you see the makeup you created coming down the runway. And starting my own accessories brand was massive because that was kind of like a dream I've always had. MyKitCo came around because I noticed there was a gap in the market for tools and accessories. And I was always speaking to my makeup artist friends that they were like, oh you need to be in New York to find this bag and then in London you need to go to this place, or find these accessories here. And I was like, wait a minute, why can't we have a one stop shop? Something that provides everything other than makeup products – you know, great bags, great tools, great accessories – with a really affordable price, that’s accessible to everybody and actually does the job – created by a makeup artist for makeup lovers. 

How important are the tools when it comes to makeup?

It makes all the difference. People are really paying attention to how they’re applying their makeup to achieve the result they want. In the winter or evening, maybe you want something heavy and velvety, versus in the daytime you might want something light and diffused. Different tools can make the most out of your products. You can mix it up and wear one product, like your foundation, in different ways. You can make it gorgeous and luxurious and full coverage, or dreamy and sheer, like how you’d style a white shirt in different ways.

How has your makeup style evolved since you started?

I think in the beginning, of course, you're set free and you just want to try everything all at once. You've got to make all of those mistakes in the beginning just to kind of learn from it. And then, through assisting and absorbing all these different references you come out the other end and you can say what you’re about. And it’s equally as important to say what you don’t do as well as what you do.

Where do you find inspiration for the looks you create?

I'm a big fan of referencing. A lot of the looks that we feel are new are actually referenced from years ago – from movies and from music and from all of this amazing heritage. So it's always nice to look back to be inspired, but then move forward with a new idea or a new spin. And I travel a lot. I love Japan. I find that pop culture element really inspiring and that's probably where I got my graphic makeup ideas from and use of colour. 

For more from GLAMOUR's Beauty Editor, Elle Turner, follow her on Instagram @elleturneruk