There’s something inordinately stressful about preparing for formal occasions, even if it’s just the annual office shindig. So imagine the extra pressure stars face at the Golden Globes, next week’s Baftas, and the Oscars, when the imaginative detail that looked so good when rehearsed with the hairdresser has the potential to morph into a “red carpet fail”?

Luckily, there are plenty of aides — from the eyebrow specialist, to the body-polish expert to the eyelash person to the plastic surgeon. It does, as the saying goes, take a village. Naturopath and facialist Dr Nigma Talib, who looks after Sienna Miller and Penélope Cruz and who has clinics in London and at the Four Seasons Doheny in Los Angeles, starts getting calls from the agents several weeks before. If the “Talent” is still eating sugar (imagine!), Talib gets them off it, and cuts out gluten, dairy and alcohol to reduce any signs of facial “bloating”. “You don’t have time to get blood tests back,” she explains, “but everything starts in the gut, so I prescribe good probiotics and sleep support.” (Usually a herbal supplement called Ashwagandha, which Talib says is great for fatigue and lack of concentration — maybe it helps you to sit through all the speeches). On the actual day she’ll give her clients a facial that includes a chemical peel, LED light therapy, and applications of hyaluronic acid and jellyfish collagen. (Not one of her vegan clients has complained about the jellyfish, but then this is Hollywood).

Yes, yes, yes, but what about the hard stuff? I hear you ask. Where do they all go for their Botox and facelifts? In LA, ever since the Kardashians made him famous, Dr Simon Ourian is the go-to in Beverly Hills for that model-perfect look, and has 1.4m Instagram followers to show for it. Santa Monica’s Dr Karyn Grossman is a little more discreet and popular with middle-aged male celebrities. In London, the name that all the top facialists refer their clients to for injectables is Dr Tapan Patel.

Perhaps surprisingly, according to Huysentruyt Grey, it’s the younger women who are tweaking and fixing. “They’re altering their looks seemingly because it makes them feel more comfortable in their skin, but it also makes them more bankable.”

When it comes to make-up, however, there has been a movement towards stealthy understatement: as anyone who’s ever had to attend a black-tie event understands, one spritz of hairspray too many, one overdone smoky eye, and you’ve instantly added 10 years to your natural age.

Of course, natural doesn’t really mean barefaced. Huysentruyt Grey. cites “the quintessential natural style of European women who seem to have made that confident, effortless polish their signature,” as an example. Isabelle Huppert at the Golden Globes exemplified the look — a flawless complexion, dark red lip, and classic side-parted natural hair. Michelle Williams (pictured below), Julianne Moore, Cate Blanchett equally, never seem to make a bad move.

“There’s a temptation to try and match the gravitas of the event with hair and make-up,” says Alex Babsky, Lanc?me’s UK make-up ambassador (Lanc?me has been the beauty partner of Bafta for 17 years, which easily end up looking overly regal.”

Babsky has made up everyone from Sarah Jessica Parker to Lupita Nyong’o and Thandie Newton and prefers a matt finish foundation generally (he loves Lanc?me’s Teint Idole Ultra, ￡30). “When you can’t be sure of the lighting it’s always a safer bet: an all over glowy finish can look sweaty in the wrong conditions.”

Equally, hair needs to be kept simple. “If the dresses are couture and very formal, it’s less ageing to play down the hair,” says Nicola Clarke, who has looked after Kate Winslet, Cate Blanchett and Daisy Ridley for Bafta, and is rarely seen without a can of R+Co Vicious Strong Hold Flexible Hairspray ($29) and Color Wow’s Root Cover Up (￡28.50) for stray greys.

But is it worth the effort? “Recently there’s been a subtle shift in LA with a lot of women feeling they’re somehow diminishing their position as a feminist by putting effort into their look,” says Grey. “I guess their point is, is it politically correct to wear millions of dollars of jewellery or to be spending so much time choosing a dress? But it’s a very serious part of the industry — you’re representing a multibillion-dollar movie franchise, or a designer brand, and the images that result will affect your career. Plus, it’s Hollywood, and you’re in the entertainment business! Let’s bring some joy and fun.”