Every day for two weeks, we send beauty writer and punishment sucker Lindsay MacAdam to one Toronto fashion show. She’ll go backstage to get step-by-step instructions from a makeup pro, then follow them herself, delivering each time a verdict: do, or don’t, try this look at home. For the last show of LG Fashion Week Denis Gagnon turned his models into super-sweet schoolgirls who got into their mother’s lipstick drawer.
At the show: Denis Gagnon won over the crowd when he sent his models down the runway not only smiling, but skipping, twirling and blowing kisses. They looked like teens who had woken up for school, thrown their bed head into one of those messy side ponytails we do when we’re couch potato-ing on a lazy Sunday and decided to experiment with their mother’s red lipstick before heading out the door, otherwise bare-faced.
Speaking of red lipstick, my thought was, “FINALLY!” I’ve been waiting all week for some lip colour and all I’ve been getting is concealer and gloss. So when Eddie Malter, Official Make-up Artist for L’Oral Paris Canada, started off our backstage interview by telling me Gagnon insisted on a no-makeup look, I was about ready to lose it. Luckily, I held it together long enough to hear that he convinced the designer that a little makeup was essential—and as it turned out, the red lipstick had been a part of the plan all along.
What’s that? A dewy base again? But of course. After perfecting the skin tone with L’Oral Paris Visible Lift Smooth Absolute Instant Anti-Aging Makeup, Malter added his go-to youth amplifier, Studio Secrets Professional Eye Shadow Single in “Morning Light,” to achieve that freshman glow. He applied it to the cheek bones, the inner corners of the eyes and along the lash line. Brows, lashes, eyelids and cheeks were otherwise left bare, as this look was all about the lips. For that perfect, classic red, Malter used L’Oral Paris Colour Riche Anti-Aging Serum Lipstick in “Real Red,” but avoided the bullet’s inner layer of serum, which would have made the colour more creamy. Gagnon wanted a matte lip, so the lipstick was topped with a touch of powder to eliminate any sheen.
To achieve the bed head-y pseudo side bun, Eric Del Monaco, Official Hair Artist and Colourist for L’Oral Paris Canada, went against Gagnon’s wishes for no hair products and snuck in a little bit of Studio Line Special FX Architect Texturizing Wax. “You have to have something or else it’s just not going to look right,” insisted Del Monaco, and I’d have to agree. I suppose the key, as with the makeup, is to use the product so that it looks like you haven’t used anything, and that’s where the skill comes into play. He worked in a tiny bit of wax, distributing it evenly throughout the hair to add some natural-looking texture, and then pulled the hair over to one side, leaving the side pieces loose. He then secured the ponytail with a clear elastic, making sure to not pull the ends all the way through. The result: perfectly imperfect pillow-head, tied to the side the way us amateurs do it.
At home: Since I’ve already mastered the hair, I thought I’d give the school-girl makeup look a try—any excuse to wear red lips and reminisce about my prime. Truth be told, when I was in high school, I thought lipstick was reserved for old ladies, but that’s beside the point. Anyway, this look was the easiest to recreate by far. I started with a base of the same foundation used by Malter, some Covergirl & Olay Simply Ageless Eye Concealer and a touch of Marcelle Face Powder in “Translucent Medium.” To add a dewy glow, I used my favourite highlighter, Yves Saint Laurent Palette Metallic Colorama, on the high points of the face, and I completed the look with a coat of Colour Riche lipstick in “Real Red” and a dusting of loose powder on top.
Verdict: DO try this look at home if you’re running late for work and you only have time for lipstick. Once you’re ready, be sure to skip and twirl your way to school…er, the office.
