Looking to elevate your beauty look from commoner to queen?
The royal family is known for their always-polished appearances, but since they typically keep their private lives close to the vest, it can be a mystery as to exactly how they achieve their flawless hair, skin and makeup.
If you’ve ever wondered how your favorite members of the monarchy get their glowing complexions or the perfect smokey eye, look no further.
From Kate Middleton’s secret to fading fine lines to the Queen’s go-to nail polish shade, we’ve rounded up some of our favorite royal-approved beauty products for every budget below.
This is reportedly the mascara Middleton trusts to keep her lashes long and lush. The brand says it “volumizes lashes without clumping or flaking,” which is definitely a must when you’re on duchess duty. Princess Diana’s makeup artist, Mary Greenwell, also used the product in a YouTube tutorial showing how to get her beauty look, saying she never used false lashes on the late royal.
Meghan Markle uses this beauty tool many of us already have in our makeup bags, sharing with Birchbox that you should “only apply foundation to the spots you need it and spread it with a Beautyblender Original.” Her former makeup artist, Lydia Sellers, told Today Style that the brand’s classic pink sponge was “the perfect tool to sheer out foundation and ensure Meghan’s freckles were popping!”
Like many people in the 1980s, Princess Diana loved blue eyeliner and even navy mascara. And while her makeup artist, Mary Greenwell, eventually steered her away from the dated look, it’s definitely a fun way to try an occasional bright eye. Diana’s Elizabeth Arden pencil in Blue Kohl 636 is no longer sold, but you can get an affordable dupe with this Sephora version.
The Duchess of Cambridge is said to have become a fan of this age-defying oil when she was pregnant with Princess Charlotte. According to the brand, applying three drops two times a day helps to fade “the visible appearance of scars, stretch marks and fine lines and wrinkles.”
While we’ll probably never know for sure what the Queen’s favorite scent is, experts believe she favors Floris London’s White Rose, per the Telegraph. The elegant bottle boasts royal warrants, so even if it turns out the Queen doesn’t wear this particular scent, you’ll still have a touch of royalty in your perfume collection.
While you won’t hear Middleton giving interviews about her favorite beauty products, this one was actually spotted in her hands while she was sitting courtside at Wimbledon. The duchess pulled her Clarins gloss out for a quick touchup during the 2019 tennis championships, and with its sheer pink shade, it’s perfect either on its own or to give another lipstick some pretty shine.
YSL’s cult-favorite concealer is beloved by many a celebrity, and Markle touted its benefits in an interview with Allure during her “Suits” days. Sharing that it was one of the few products used for her “five-minute face,” she said, “It’s just Touche Éclat, curled lashes, mascara, ChapStick and a little bit of blush. That is my favorite kind of look.”
Middleton goes for this shimmery pink Bobbi Brown fave to add a rosy flush to her complexion, and even used it on her wedding day (she did her makeup herself!). According to Us Weekly, she switched to the bronze shade for an added glow while she was pregnant, opting to avoid spray-tanning treatments.
Princess Diana wore this fragrance, described as “the first-ever true multi-floral blend ever created,” on her 1981 wedding day. Filled with notes of lemon, jasmine, lily of the valley, bergamot and orange blossom, it’s an elegant choice if you want to feel like a royal … even if you’re wearing leggings instead of a wedding gown.
Describing this eyeliner as “a really beautiful brown that has some gold in it,” Markle shared with Allure that she reaches for it before a night out. “A makeup artist I work with often, Kayleen McAdams, turned me on to it,” Markle said. “It’s what she uses on Sofia Vergara, and who wouldn’t want those gorgeous brown almond eyes?”
Chances are you’ve tried (or at least heard of) Essie’s cult-favorite pale pink nail polish, and even the Queen can’t resist the shade. While she often goes with a polish-free look, the barely-there look of Ballet Slippers is perfect for those times when she wants a pinkish-white manicure. In fact, the brand’s website shared that Essie received a letter from her hairdresser asking for a bottle in 1989, as it’s “the only color Her Majesty would wear.”
Markle thanks this super-smoothing lip treatment for her “soft, kissable, buttery lips,” telling Beauty Banter that the balm — which comes in 14 colors, along with a clear version — “is the very best.” Packed with grapeseed oil and meadowfoam and black currant seed oils, Fresh’s bestselling balm also uses sugar to serve as a natural moisturizer.
The Duchess of Cambridge turned to this semi-matte shade on her wedding day, wearing the brownish-pink hue to walk down the aisle of Westminster Abbey. It’s noted on the detailed chart Bobbi Brown created to help guide Middleton during her makeup application.
Markle is a big fan of this iconic blush, which is now available in multiple versions of the original Orgasm shade. “I use it on and off camera because it gives you a nice glow from within,” she told Allure when she was starring in “Suits.” Sister-in-law Kate is also said to be into the shade, according to Us Weekly.
This mud-like product was partly to thank for Princess Diana’s famous tousled hair. Stylist Sam McKnight would use it — and a healthy dose of hairspray — to keep her shaggy style looking fresh all day.
Middleton is said to be a devotee of Karin Herzog’s 2% active oxygen cream, per Us Weekly. The product, which claims to detoxify acne-prone skin, both corrects and treats to create a flawless complexion fit for a duchess.
