Eye of Horus...

As a fan of Only Connect I am familiar with a couple of anicent Egyptian hieroglyphs, so was excited to spot an "Eye of Horus" make-up effect during Saturday night's Strictly.  Oh yes, I'm raving on about the charleston- again - but it was my favourite dance in terms of music, costume and... well ..dance.  Denise's make-up was a variation on the striking look epitomised by Elizabeth Taylor in Cleopatra. 

Note: this is not a subtle day look I would suggest for the office; in fact only to be evoked with emergency protocol 101 (i.e. you wish to divert attention from a serious work misdemeanour, such as having deleted the sysinfo file on your PC). Saying that, I know if I tried to recreate this, I would achieve the "Eye of Horrors", the look of either Coco the Clown or Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean. Ok that would divert attention but not in the same "oh my goodness you are an Egyptian goddess" type way!

The Eye of Horus is a symbol of protection, royal power and good health:

The eye is personified in the goddess Wadjet, a name derived from "wadj" meaning "green". This reminded me of a post I had seen on the Dr.Hauschk Facebook page concerning the Green Kajal Eyeliner 06 - Eucalyptus Dew

"Dr.Hauschka's Limited Edition collection captures a serene mood, offering natural radiance and composure for a beautifully accentuated subtle daytime make-up, or a more intensely sophisticated evening look"

Kajal is another name for Kohl, which literally means "to brigthen the eyes" (I am now about to burst into a renditon of the Art Garfunkel song from Watership Down, but that film makes me cry, which is bad news for any form of eye make-up.. I shall refrain).  Kohl was traditionally a paste of lead sulphide and antimony sulphide, used since circa 3100 BC by Egyptian queens and noble women.  They believed it would guard from disease and ward off evils spirits whilst protecting their eyes from the sun; hence it was used in conjunction with the eye of horus symbol (used in conjunctivitis if you ask me, you wouldn't catch me putting those chemicals anywhere near my eyes). Thankfully, the version produced by Dr.Hauschka doesn't contain any lead sulphide, or in fact any scary ingredients at all - http://www.drhauschka.co.uk/ingredients/product/kajal-eyeliner-06

• Enhance your eyes by using Kajal Eyeliner along the upper and lower lid lines. Use the applicator to smudge the eyeliner lightly for softer contours and a more natural appearance.
• Always keep the Kajal Eyeliner sharp enough to draw a fine line. This creates a natural look to open and accentuate the eye.

Encouraged by Rita's lovely description of a "beautiful golden look" I shall give it a whirl, hopefully not a Jack Sparrow in sight!