Belonging to the royal family is a demanding commitment.
Take the royal family’s dress code, for example.
And some of those guidelines are stricter than others.
“You never see a royal without their nude stockings,” expert Victoria Arbiter explained toInsider.
Which brings us to beauty rules, guidelines, recommendations, and traditions.
When it comes to makeup, members of the British royal family tend to stick to a script.
The general aesthetic: clean, demure, and classic.
Think blazers, mom jeans, and sequins.
And let us not forget about bold and bright eyeliner and eyeshadow.
Just look at Eric’s neon makeup in the final season of “Sex Education.”
What’s that got to do with the royals?
First off, they cannot follow beauty trends on a whim.
This may come as a total shock, but royal eye makeup is to be understated and simple.
As far as cosmetics in the monarchy are concerned, eye makeup is to be neutral in tone.
“Blue eyes should never wear blue pencil or shadow it dulls your eyes!”
Greenwall said in Stylist (viaWoman and Home).
“From that moment on, she was open-minded about trying new looks and colors.”
Just ask Princess Anne, who has pushed against tradition by wearing red lippie from time to time.
But it was her red lips that were the ultimate showstopper.
In an interview withElle, she explained, “She doesn’t want to stand out.
She wants to come across respectful and relatable and transition into this role as smoothly as possible.”
Perhaps it was a sign of things to come.
It’s just not done.
Fortunately, beauty houses have an array of muted color tones for the royals to choose from.
It’s said that Queen Elizabeth II’s favorite shade was Ballet Slippers by Essie.
And she stuck with it from that moment on.
It wasn’t just any Easter Sunday service, but the first of King Charles III’s reign.
We have to imagine Elizabeth wouldn’t have been a fan.
Her brunette hair is lustrous, glossy, and always beautifully presented.
The tabloids went wild.
After all, when pregnant, the strong chemicals in hair dye can be harmful to the unborn child.
That wasn’t the first time the world saw Catherine’s grays.
Rather, they might use a private room or a secluded area to do so.
However, thelate Queen Elizabeth IIwas caught reapplying her lipstick in public on a few occasions in the past.
AsBritish Voguerecounted, she was photographed reapplying lipstick while in Fiji in 1977.
In 1985, she was captured on camera doing the same at a Windsor event.
Many royals have adhered to the rules, likePrincess Charlene,Princess Eugenie, andZara Tindall.
She also donned Queen Mary’s fringe tiara.
It’s the epitome of the English rose.
Now, about the smoky eye aesthetic.
In 2018, she went with similar makeup to Trooping the Color.
Princess Catherine has been known to wear darker eye makeup to evening events.
The princess wore smoky eyes to the evening Christmas carol service at Westminster Abbey in December 2021.
Harry, however, didn’t bend to his brother’s request.
His wedding day marked a departure from tradition and garnered significant media scrutiny.
Rather, it’s just not… preferred.
“There’s no actual protocol about dark nail polish, royal insider Omid Scobie toldHarper’s Bazaar.
“It’s simply about being appropriate.”
It’s also rare to see the toes of the royals, as strange as that may sound.
As expert William Hanson explained toHarper’s Bazaar, “Open-toed shoes are considered informal footwear.”
Meghan Markle’s toes were accidentally on display on a royal tour of New Zealand in 2018.
On a few rare appearances, Princess Catherine has also had her toes out.
And like Meghan, she’s also donned a red polish.
The crimson toenails made another appearance when she and Prince William attended a concert at the Royal Albert Hall.
