excitement.’
I turned away from her. ‘I’m not sure if I’m a makeup kind of girl. This isn’t going to make me look ridiculous, is it?’
Beth grabbed my arms and looked me in the eye. ‘Juliette Mackenzie. How could you say such a thing? Cross my Armani and hope to die – you’ll look nothing short of sensational. OK?’
I nodded, still not completely convinced, and followed Beth back into the store. ‘Are you sure we need all this stuff?’
‘ Positive.’
‘ It seems like an awful lot of fuss. I only ever wear a bit of lip gloss.’
She gave me one of those looks. ‘Exactly, Juliette. That’s why we’re doing this.’ I guess, in her own Beth way, she was being nice.
Happy with their choice of foundation, Beth and the make-up woman moved onto my eyes.
‘They’re a rather intense blue but a little too deep set. I think a copper colour would accentuate the colour and lift the shape. I think we want glamour eyes.’
She tickled a brush over my eyelids. ‘Now a darker colour to shape and define.’
They added three eye shadows and two eye brushes to my pile on the counter. ’
‘ Now, we should go light on the lips so as to emphasis the eye area,’ the woman said. ‘We have some lovely lip stains. They’d look wonderful on her.’
She grabbed the tube and applied some to the back of her hand to demonstrate.
‘Oh, they’re lovely,’ said Beth. ‘Maybe I need one of those for myself.’
Imogen wandered back from the nail polishes. ‘You’ve got more stuff for yourself than Juliette. How much makeup do you need?’
‘ You know, you could do with a new lipstick yourself.’ Beth picked up a tester from the display. ‘This one’d be great on you. “True Red”. Nice and bright.’ She leaned over and whispered, behind her hand. ‘I usually call that colour Cocksucker Red .’ We giggled.
‘ What’s so funny?’ Imogen asked.
‘ Nothing. I was just saying that every bad girl needs a sexy lip colour.’
Imogen put on the lipstick. It looked fantastic on her. With her dark hair, she looked like a gypsy or one of those Spanish women.
‘It’s too bright,’ she said and grabbed a tissue to wipe it off.
‘ She’ll take it,’ said Beth.
We left the store with bags stuffed full of lip liners and eye liners, concealers and revealers, eyelash curlers and free gifts with purchase.
‘Now, we need to get you some decent clothes,’ said Beth.
She marched off through the shopping centre, leaving Imogen and I to dodge shoppers in her wake, straight into the scariest shop possible. I stopped. I couldn ’t go in there. Music thumped out so loud – more like a nightclub than a shop – and the whole place gave off a whole ‘we’re too cool for this shopping centre and definitely too cool for you’ feel.
Beth turned back and grabbed me. ‘Come on, Juliette.’
Inside was even worse. I tripped over a basket of clothes sitting on the floor and fell into a guy in a tight black t-shirt. He glared at me like I was last week ’s fashion and walked off. After that, I tried to be inconspicuous. But not Beth. She was a woman on a mission, rifling through racks of clothes, pulling things out and rejecting them. Lucky Imogen – left in peace. She could muck around, trying on funky sunglasses and hats.
Finally, Beth found something she liked. She held up a swirly, black skirt. I nodded. It was nice and plain. I could handle that.
‘Hey, Imogen, what do you think?’ Beth asked.
Imogen screwed up her face. ‘It looks like something you’d wear.’
Beth gave her the look this time. ‘And what’s wrong with that?’ she said. I’d have backed down but not Imogen.
‘ This is for Jules, not you. It’s a bad girl makeover remember, not a Beth-clone makeover.’
‘ Fine then.’
Beth folded her arms. She grabbed a tiny piece of black leather off a table and handed it to me. ‘Here, Juliette, try this skirt on then.’ And she wrinkled her nose at Imogen.
I looked around. A
I turned away from her. ‘I’m not sure if I’m a makeup kind of girl. This isn’t going to make me look ridiculous, is it?’
Beth grabbed my arms and looked me in the eye. ‘Juliette Mackenzie. How could you say such a thing? Cross my Armani and hope to die – you’ll look nothing short of sensational. OK?’
I nodded, still not completely convinced, and followed Beth back into the store. ‘Are you sure we need all this stuff?’
‘ Positive.’
‘ It seems like an awful lot of fuss. I only ever wear a bit of lip gloss.’
She gave me one of those looks. ‘Exactly, Juliette. That’s why we’re doing this.’ I guess, in her own Beth way, she was being nice.
Happy with their choice of foundation, Beth and the make-up woman moved onto my eyes.
‘They’re a rather intense blue but a little too deep set. I think a copper colour would accentuate the colour and lift the shape. I think we want glamour eyes.’
She tickled a brush over my eyelids. ‘Now a darker colour to shape and define.’
They added three eye shadows and two eye brushes to my pile on the counter. ’
‘ Now, we should go light on the lips so as to emphasis the eye area,’ the woman said. ‘We have some lovely lip stains. They’d look wonderful on her.’
She grabbed the tube and applied some to the back of her hand to demonstrate.
‘Oh, they’re lovely,’ said Beth. ‘Maybe I need one of those for myself.’
Imogen wandered back from the nail polishes. ‘You’ve got more stuff for yourself than Juliette. How much makeup do you need?’
‘ You know, you could do with a new lipstick yourself.’ Beth picked up a tester from the display. ‘This one’d be great on you. “True Red”. Nice and bright.’ She leaned over and whispered, behind her hand. ‘I usually call that colour Cocksucker Red .’ We giggled.
‘ What’s so funny?’ Imogen asked.
‘ Nothing. I was just saying that every bad girl needs a sexy lip colour.’
Imogen put on the lipstick. It looked fantastic on her. With her dark hair, she looked like a gypsy or one of those Spanish women.
‘It’s too bright,’ she said and grabbed a tissue to wipe it off.
‘ She’ll take it,’ said Beth.
We left the store with bags stuffed full of lip liners and eye liners, concealers and revealers, eyelash curlers and free gifts with purchase.
‘Now, we need to get you some decent clothes,’ said Beth.
She marched off through the shopping centre, leaving Imogen and I to dodge shoppers in her wake, straight into the scariest shop possible. I stopped. I couldn ’t go in there. Music thumped out so loud – more like a nightclub than a shop – and the whole place gave off a whole ‘we’re too cool for this shopping centre and definitely too cool for you’ feel.
Beth turned back and grabbed me. ‘Come on, Juliette.’
Inside was even worse. I tripped over a basket of clothes sitting on the floor and fell into a guy in a tight black t-shirt. He glared at me like I was last week ’s fashion and walked off. After that, I tried to be inconspicuous. But not Beth. She was a woman on a mission, rifling through racks of clothes, pulling things out and rejecting them. Lucky Imogen – left in peace. She could muck around, trying on funky sunglasses and hats.
Finally, Beth found something she liked. She held up a swirly, black skirt. I nodded. It was nice and plain. I could handle that.
‘Hey, Imogen, what do you think?’ Beth asked.
Imogen screwed up her face. ‘It looks like something you’d wear.’
Beth gave her the look this time. ‘And what’s wrong with that?’ she said. I’d have backed down but not Imogen.
‘ This is for Jules, not you. It’s a bad girl makeover remember, not a Beth-clone makeover.’
‘ Fine then.’
Beth folded her arms. She grabbed a tiny piece of black leather off a table and handed it to me. ‘Here, Juliette, try this skirt on then.’ And she wrinkled her nose at Imogen.
I looked around. A
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