Do you know how hard it is to rock up to a meeting 25 minutes late with eyebrows this carefully crafted? "Yeah, erm, the train was delayed guys, total nightmare. [Awkward smile.]" And don’t even ask about what happens when it rains; I once lost an eyebrow to a power shower.
I love makeup. Everything about it. From buying it, to applying it, to how it makes me feel. I find it therapeutic. And I don’t feel like I’m covering up or masquerading as someone more exciting or badass, but like I’m celebrating exactly who I am on the inside.
Like clothes, makeup is an immediate platform to show the world your creativity. And while for many people, using makeup is about the subtle enhancement of features and skin, I use it to be bold — to peacock!
The painter Lucian Freud reportedly hated cosmetics; he said nothing was as "attractive as an interesting mind." And I couldn't agree more — except I also believe that makeup can be used as a tool to depict the mind.
Look at Marc Jacobs' enigmatic goths last season (copying my swag, but whatever), those Givenchy studded cheeks and nose rings; look at people like makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench changing the game. Makeup has evolved, and it's not about looking pretty anymore; I'd much rather be memorable.
Granted, from time to time I get strange looks. Once, a guy approached me at Pret and said, "You look like an alien," then walked off. I took great pleasure in this interaction.
Here's my guide to beauty, gone bad.
This is my daily face. I start by cleansing, toning, and applying a foundation base by Dermablend because it lets my skin breathe. I used to use setting powder as well, but I prefer a dewy finish these days. Then, I start the brows...
Using an angled brush and black powder, I begin in the corners and bottom of the brow and shade up; I find it easier to draw up the face so that I don’t accidentally start a brow too high and realize I'm rocking a one-incher and a permanent frown. I use a dried liquid-eyeliner brush to create a sharp point.
Then, I use a fine, pointed liquid eyeliner to draw my eye flicks, starting at the point and working toward the middle of the eye — I don’t stretch my eyelid while I do it because I find that once I let it spring back, it looks too much, so I like to go with the natural shape of the lid.
I might whack on a bit of mascara if I’m feeling fruity, but my eyelashes are so small and grow downward so it's not really my thing.
Then, I start my lips by powdering them so they’re nice and dry, using liquid eyeliner (again) to line the shape and my Cupid's bow, right into the corners. I fill in the lips with matte black lipstick by Kat Von D (a recent obsession since moving to the U.S.) — I hardly have to retouch it; once it’s on, IT’S ON! And then, I spend the day drinking through a straw, but whatever.
Photographed by Ekua King
Believe it or not, this is me on a chill day.
Photographed by Ekua King
For a bit of fun, I’ll draw on a mole with a black pencil (see right cheek). I have a habit of moving it to suit my mood (read: zit situation). I used to draw on moles at school and felt like a movie star in my math class.
Photographed by Ekua King
I pair this look with hoops and slick hair, tucked behind my big ears.
Photographed by Ekua King
I’m a big Star Wars fan and I remember the moment Padmé Amidala walked out rocking a white powder face and a smudge of red on her bottom lip, like some amazing intergalactic geisha. I loved how she was powerful (she has her own planet, FYI) and a peacock.
So sometimes when I’m going out, I’ll try something new and smudge black in the center of my lips with my finger and powder the edges. I usually pair this with a slick ponytail and keep everything else very classic and simple.
Photographed by Ekua King
Here's a close-up of that lip.
Photographed by Ekua King
On days when I fancy mixing it up and not wearing my staple black lip, I like to do thicker eyeliner, starting thin in the center and thickening it out at the flick. And I pile on the mascara and separate my bottom eyelashes with tweezers, pulling them into even little shapes. I add a little central dot; my bestie does this a lot and I think it’s so cute.
I usually use concealer on my lips on these days, so they’re super-pale, and I also powder them so they have a matte finish.
Photographed by Ekua King
I like this look with simple outfits and natural hair, which I’ve recently started tucking into neck pieces like leather chokers. These days are the only days when I am able to eat an apple in its entirety sans reapplying my lippie.
Photographed by Ekua King
Pat McGrath for Margiela SS16 with all that gloopy, slick, and shiny eye paint bolded right up to the eyebrow and nose bone: Yes, I loved that. So I bought this cheap, extra-shiny liquid eyeliner, which is one of those weird ones you put on and then peel off like rubber. So when you apply it heavily, it builds up like thick, acrylic paint, giving a cool effect.
I start in the center of the eyelid and create the shape on both (gotta be even, babe), and then I fill it in super-roughly, letting the liquid flick out, and create texture strokes from the brush to give it that painterly look.
Photographed by Ekua King
The shinier the better, in my mind, for this look. So I pair it with wet-look oiled hair, slicked back.
Photographed by Ekua King
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