The woman who never takes off her makeup
Charlotte Tilbury discovered the transformative power of cosmetics at age 13.
Charlotte Tilbury wears makeup to bed, said Lydia Slater in The Times (U.K.). For more than 20 years, she’s been a makeup artist to the stars, traveling the world to make sure that actresses and models such as Penélope Cruz, Jennifer Lopez, and Kate Moss are ready for their close-up. Tilbury, who was raised on the Spanish island of Ibiza, discovered the transformative power of cosmetics at age 13 when she was sent to an English boarding school. Her fellow students all wore mascara, and Tilbury was soon copying them. “When I went back to Ibiza, people said quite shocking things, such as, ‘You weren’t attractive before, but you look really good now!’ I was furious. Then I thought, ‘Well, this is a good secret weapon. You’re never going to see me without makeup, ever again.’” She kept her word. Tilbury, 40, sleeps in her makeup, and only takes it off behind a locked door. Her husband of six years has never seen her bare face. “It’s a mystique thing,’’ she says. “Why should he stop thinking of me as glorious all the time?” When Tilbury gave birth to her son, now 3, she was fully made up, and didn’t hold her new baby until she had reapplied her “face.” “My husband took him to be weighed, and I had a shower and put my makeup on. I felt like I wanted to look fabulous.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Scientists want to fight malaria by poisoning mosquitoes with human blood
Under the radar Drugging the bugs
By Devika Rao, The Week US Published
-
Crossword: March 31, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
Sudoku medium: March 31, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
By The Week Staff Published