Link to ‘Vlog: Backstage at LFW with Maybelline’ video
Yesterday I was lucky enough to be invited by Maybelline to see the the backstage goings-on for two of the London Week Fashion shows that they were creating the makeup looks for; Kinder Aggugini and Todd Lynn. To be able to go backstage and see the makeup magic happen has always been a bit of a dream, so off I trotted to Somerset House – notepad and camera in tow to bring you a sneak peek of the backstage action. When we arrived we were introduced to Sharon Dowsett, the UK Makeup Director for Maybelline New York, who talked us through the inspirations behind each designers collection and how they transferred that through to each makeup look. Sharon also shared some great tips and listed her must-have backstage products and gave a step-by-step guide of how to create each look (she also complimented me on my eyelashes which made my day!).
Kinder Aggugini’s collection was loosely based around the type of girls who hang around in art galleries, artisan chic, and girls who borrow from both their boyfriends and Mothers wardrobe. Sharon explained how Kinder wanted the makeup to reflect a tea-rose glitter toe accent from the shoes from his collection, so Sharon decided to create a statement 3D glitter lip, paired with a clean, fresh face. The makeup look created for Kinder focused on 3 main aspects – the dewy luminous face, long natural lashes and a bold glittery lips. The models skin was firstly prepped and treated to a nice dose of moisturiser, and a balm applied to the lips. The Maybelline artists then used a top-secret yet-to-be-released base, which will hit counters in April to add a natural luminosity, with a small amount of coverage. The skin was then perfected using a small amount of concealer over any imperfections. Lashes were curled and a heathy coating of Maybelline’s soon-to-be-released Illegal Lengths mascara was added to the top lashes only. It was the first time Illegal Lengths had been used, and Sharon demonstrated the large amount of minuscule fibres that were containing within the formula. Brows were brushed upwards and a hint of the Maybelline Shine Sensational Gloss in Minty Sheer was applied to the brow bone to add a slight highlight. Cheeks were left bare so the main focus was the lips. To prime the lips for the 3D glitter and too add a touch of nude rosy shine the Maybelline Watershine Lipstick in Tea Rose was applied, before the makeup artists packed on a 3D warm golden coloured cosmetic glitter. Each model then had around 15-20 swarovski crystals handplaced onto her lips to give that extra dimension before they were ready to hit the catwalk.
Todd Lynn’s collection was created with the wife of a rockstar in mind; a woman whose outfit looks as good from the back as it does from the front. Capturing a worn in opulence using textured furs and dark emerald autumnal colours. Sharon wanted to use the dark cooler tones on the eyes, making them the focus of the makeup and said that she had encouraged the team to hold their brushes looser to create a wider shadow around the eye, and to worn with the natural grease on the model’s eyelid to give the makeup that ‘worn-in’ feel. Todd didn’t use any black in his collection, so Sharon decided to echo that in the makeup, using dark chocolate to darken areas instead. A similar base was used to the Kinder Aggugini show, giving the models a natural, skin-like finish. The main focus was the eyes, so the artists mixed shades from the Maybelline Eye Studios in Bronze Drama and Sapphire Siren, to create a a veil around the eye of smokey teal. This time the Maybelline Falsies Flared mascara was used on both the top and bottom lashes; apparently this mascara is know in Maybelline HQ as viagra for your lashes! To finish the eye, Sharon used the Maybelline Masterdrama Khol Liner in Brown to give a more intense look.
It was so interesting to see the Maybelline Makeup Artist’s at work and see how the makeup looks tied in to the designers collections. I think my favourite element of all the makeup was the tea-rose glitter lip, now where did I put that glitter…..
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