Jem-inspired Makeup!

Jem, Jem, Jem, Jem, Jem, JEM!

They're making a movie! Argh!!! Old news, I know, but I'm so excited and have been consistently so since they announced it!

Jem came to me in an edited movie form on VHS in the nineties. My poor parents didn't realise what they'd let themselves in for by buying a random tape for me. I was obsessed. The songs, the all-girl band, the costumes, the adventures! It was rad. And Jem was a perfect heroine - kind, unselfish, talented, humble, glamourous and more than capable of defending herself while running a record label and secretly being a superstar. Everything I wanted to be.

The love for this cartoon that came out before I was even born has stuck with me. When I was studying for my Italian oral final exam two years ago, I rewatched the whole series (not the edited movie) in Italian. I know the words to the theme tune in Italian AND English.

I am, indeed, that cool.

But nerdiness aside, I always come back to the glamour and fashion of Jem. The eighties, clothes-wise, are not my thang but Jem and the Holograms' wardrobes spoke to me. The makeup too - so dramatic - worked on the perfect and lovely Jem. Which is what inspired me to recreate her most iconic makeup look, a lesser known one and a tamed down modern-day Jem look.

Here we go!

I got my most Jem earrings ready to go (by Betsey Johnson).

1. Glitter and Gold Jem.

I changed this up a little. While I stuck with the premise of a dark purple over the upper lid and pale purple below the eye with thicker brows and pale pink lips, I altered the shapes a little. As Jem is a cartoon character, she got away with eyeshadow right up to the brow. That's a little cartoonish for me so I made it into a cateye flick instead.

(Base was just Maybelline Dream Pure BB applied where a little coverage was necessary with a concealer brush and a Maxfactor Translucent setting powder on top at the end)

1. First I primed my lids with That Gal by Benefit. I could have used an eyelid specific primer but this works just as well for me. Multi-use is good use!

2. Using my Benefit Brows A-go-go kit, not for my brows but for the highlighters, I took the powder first. This I applied to my brow bone and on the tip of my nose to make it look cute.

3. The other highlight was then applied to my inner eyes as per the instructions on the pack but I also use it to highlight my cupid's bow and draw flattering attention to the mouth.

4. I then took a duo from bareMinerals in the shades Muse and Passion and applied Muse all over my eyelids.

5. Next I took a darker purple from a Primark palette and applied this over 2/3 of the eyelid, blending out.

6. The Passion shade then went on the outer corners of my eyelids and was used to build up the cateye shape.

7. I then took a Rimmel single  in the shade Iris and applied this under the eye in a thick semi-circle, aiming to get the truest, most pigmented colour. 

8. To finish, I applied a couple coats of Primark's Volume Boost Mascara (which is AMAZING), mainly focusing on the outer corners to accentuate the cateye. I filled in my brows with a Clinique eyepencil in Brown Sugar which I like to use for eyebrows as it gives a thick, fuller shape. And, finally, I applied a light pink lipgloss from Fearne's Boots collection.

2. Iconic Jem.

So, this look is all about those dramatic, iconic pink eyes. And really, it's quite simple.

1. Find a pink enough shade. It's quite difficult to do to make it stand out and not look like bruising on your face! I ended up using a random brandless blusher I've had for ages.

2. Outline the shape you want. Again, I altered the "to your brow" thing and created rounded shapes towards the outer edge of the brow only, taming it somewhat. I then marked the spot on my cheek I wanted the lower point to hit and connected this to the inner and outer corners of my eye in curved lines.

3. Fill this in and build up colour. You'll need to layer on the eyeshadow to get the desired effect. It takes a while but it'll look even sillier if you half-ass it!

5. To finish, just line the upper lash line with a Jet Black liner from Rimmel and plump up the lashes as much as possible with Rimmel's Scandaleyes mascara.

3. Wearable Jem.

And here we bring Jem into the 21st century! Perhaps not a look for the everyday but a little more wearable!

1. Take a pale pink, such as this one from an Oriflame duo that I had, and use it on your brow bone.

2. Take a dust rose pink such as this No. 7 in Antique Rose and apply all over the lids.

3. Apply a bright pink like this one from a Catrice quad I had to 2/3 of the lids, blending out.

4. Take some glitter and apply this over the top of it all, right up to the brow.

5. Continue the pinky tones in a nude variation on the lip with Clarins' Eclat Minute Embellisseur Lévres and a peachy shade on the cheeks with Nars' Deep Throat (I know, I know).

6. Create a graphic cateye with a cream shadow such as Topshop's Darkness and use an eyeliner brush - this gives much more control over the shape than by just using a pencil etc. It's a nice touch that this shadow has glitter to add more of it to this look.

7. Finish with a decent serving of L'Oreal's Mega Volume Manga Eyes in Violet for more Jem tones.

And, if you really wanna be Jem for a night, use some hair chalk to temporarily have the pink hair you've always dreamed of!

Whacha think? Will you give Jem a go?