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Beauty

How Fashion Week Gets Made With MAC Senior Makeup Artist Victor Cembellin

A lot goes into making fashion week happen. And despite the proliferation of fashion reality television shows, there is still a lot that you might not know about. So, we decided to ask some of our friends in the industry what their day to day life is like leading up to, during and following fashion week. From the perspective of a designer, a publicist, a show producer, a pit photographer, a makeup artist and more, keep reading to learn how fashion week gets made.

Makeup, from natural to full-on body warpaint, is an integral piece of any runway show. It adds to the aesthetic of the show and helps to showcase the clothes, because makeup is truly transformative. We chatted with MAC senior artist Victor Cembellin, who has been practicing his craft for designers/labels like Zac Posen, Balenciaga, and Vivienne Westwood for over 15 years, and who has put his time in the backstage trenches (He once spent an hour and a half gluing feathers on one girl at an Alexander McQueen show.) Here’s what it’s like to be a makeup artist on a runway show.

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Photo: MAC
Beauty

BB Creams Are the Hottest New Product to Hit the Beauty Aisle–Here’s What They Can Do For You

There’s a (pseudo) new kid on the beauty block here in the US, and from the looks of it, BB creams—otherwise known as Beauty Balm, Beauty Benefit, Blemish Base, Beblesh Balm, or Blemish Balm–are quickly becoming the crème de la crème of the cosmeceuticals (skin care + makeup) industry.

BB creams can be traced back to 1950s Germany, when Dr. Christine Schrammek created a salve to aid skin healing in post-peel and laser surgery patients, while also masking splotchy, inflamed redness and shielding sensitive skin from the sun. Fast forward 50+ years, when BB creams exploded in popularity in Asia, Japan, and Europe–thanks to drop-dead gorgeous Korean actresses like Song Hye Kyo singing its praises–and suddenly everyone is clamoring to introduce their own to the US market.

Why?

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  • India-Jewel Jackson
  • Monday, Feb 6, 2012 / 5:00 PM
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Beauty

Beth Ditto Gets Her Own MAC Makeup Collection

By Cheryl Wischhover Thursday, Jan 26, 2012 / 9:03 AM

Photo: WWD

What do Johnny Weir, Daphne Guinness, Iris Apfel, and Beth Ditto have in common? They all have a distinct style point-of-view, and now they all have MAC collections. WWD announced today that Beth Ditto is the latest quirky MAC muse.

The brand and the singer have a bit of a history: Ditto performed last September at the MAC store in NYC’s Soho neighborhood for Fashion’s Night Out, making it one of the top stops on everyone’s FNO agenda. The match makes a ton of sense–MAC loves a strong makeup statement and so does Ditto. She’s rarely seen without heavy, winged black eyeliner (sometimes purposely smeared all over her face).
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Photo: Getty

Nicki Minaj Is ‘In Talks’ with Vogue for a Cover

Nicki Minaj scored herself a big profile in this weekend’s New York Times Sunday Styles section. Upon first picking up the paper, we assumed it would be all the stuff we already know: she went to a lot of fashion shows, she has a nail polish line for OPI, etc. But there was a lot of behind-the-scenes info that showed us just how determined this lady is to put herself on the fashion and style map. Here are ten things we learned about Nicki Minaj:

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Beauty

Iris Apfel Is Getting Her Own Makeup Collection for MAC

By Cheryl Wischhover Friday, Dec 16, 2011 / 3:45 PM

MAC’s Senior Vice President/Group Creative Director, James Gager, once told me that MAC likes to collaborate with people who no one else would “ever think of using in a million years.” Exhibit A? Meet MAC’s new face, Iris Apfel.

Her line will debut on January 5, and follows closely on the heels of fellow fashion eccentric, Daphne Guinness‘ collection. It’s a full line, complete with five lipsticks (our fave is called Loudmouth Orange), lip pencils, and eye shadows like Howzat, a sparkly grey. It’s rounded out by mascara (gotta make your eyes pop through those glasses, right?), a peachy “beauty powder,” and three nail lacquers–a bright blue, bright fuchsia and a neutral.
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Daphne Guinness for MAC
Beauty

Daphne Guinness on Her Beauty Routine and Why All Men Should Wear Makeup

Last weekend Daphne Guinness–like thousands of other art lovers–hit Miami for Art Basel. While we couldn’t be there with her, we had the chance to chat with her and James Gager, MAC’s Senior Vice President/Group Creative Director about her new color collection. (We couldn’t really imagine the somewhat goth Daphne in Miami among the palm trees but for the record: she loves the sun and always wears a lot of sunscreen.)

The Daphne Guinness MAC line, which launches December 26, is full of shades on the cool end of the spectrum. We got our hands on it and can say that the eye shadow quad is a must-have and the sage/silver green nail polish and lip gloss are especially intriguing. We were dying to talk to the mistress of all things over-the-top about how she came up with the surprisingly wearable collection. Click through for her thoughts on guys wearing makeup, her own (minimal!) makeup routine, and why she doesn’t think very highly of trends.

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Photo: Armani (Yep, that's Megan Fox)
Beauty

Here Are Our 10 Favorite Pieces From the 2011 Holiday Makeup Collections

It’s December, and that means one thing: You can now indulge in all the Christmas music listening that you want, and you are free to abuse glittery eye shadows to your heart’s content. It’s the holidays!

The holiday makeup collections are always our favorites, because of the sheer fantasy of it all. Forget about sedate neutrals–go metallic and smoky and red and fuchsia. And this season’s offerings are truly stellar. We picked through all the collections and chose our favorite pieces, which was no easy feat. From the most gorgeous red lipsticks to shimmery face highlighters (and even something “lickable”), click through to see the winter wonderland of makeup available now.

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Lady Dior Palette
Beauty

Makeup Gets Artsy: Palettes and Powders That Are Too Pretty to Actually Use

Arguably you shouldn’t pay attention to the way a makeup is packaged–it’s all about how it looks on you, right? We all know (and so do cosmetics companies) that subconsciously we’re drawn to the most appealing and beautiful packaging. Companies have taken this concept a step further lately by making the palettes themselves into tiny works of art: Embossed designs and colorful patterns mixed into pressed powders are making our medicine cabinets a lot prettier. From the poshest of brands to the drugstore, you can find these gorgeous palettes everywhere.

Click through to see makeup that looks as good in the package as it does on your face.

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Beauty

First Look: Nicki Minaj and Ricky Martin Pose For MAC’s New Viva Glam Campaign

By Cheryl Wischhover Thursday, Nov 17, 2011 / 12:00 PM

We’ve been anxiously awaiting this campaign pic ever since we heard that Nicki ‘n’ Ricky would be the new MAC Viva Glam ambassadors, replacing Lady Gaga. Read more »

Karlie Kloss Dior Beauty Holiday 2011
Beauty

The Winter and Holiday Nail Polish Collections Have Arrived! Here Are The 12 Best

It’s officially chilly out, so that means it’s time to start thinking about your holiday nail wardrobe (yes, you need a holiday nail wardrobe). While red is obviously a classic (and look how amazing it is on Karlie Kloss in Dior’s beauty holiday campaign), and we’ve been wearing a lot of it this fall, there are tons of other offerings out there. From pearly neutrals to metallics to the highest concentration of glitter you’ve ever seen, you are a complete Grinch if you can’t find something suitable.

Click through to see all the little bottles we hope to find in our stockings this year.

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Beauty

Finally! Here’s the Gareth Pugh for MAC Makeup Collection

Back in June, news leaked that Gareth Pugh was doing a makeup line with his long-time runway collaborator, MAC. We got to meet and chat with the designer at an event back in July, where we ogled his nail polish and learned that the packaging was like a weapon. Well, now we finally get to see it in real life.

“With a collection that goes from strong, deep and mysterious to light, fragile, and ethereal, I think we’ve created a truly versatile collection that hopefully you’ll be inspired by and want to wear.” Gareth Pugh said in a release. And based on the individual pieces and the beauty look at left, we definitely want to wear it.

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Entertainment

Miss Piggy’s Style Evolution from the 1970s to Now

Miss Piggy is poised to make her silver screen comeback this November in the latest (and long overdue) Muppet movie. Some big fashion names are attached to the film, too (in which she plays a Vogue Paris editrix)–Zac Posen and Louboutin made her costumes.

Like any good star plugging a new film, she’s been all over the place lately. She appeared at Opening Ceremony in NYC during Fashion’s Night Out. Last week Lifetime announced she’d be a judge on Project Runway All Stars, and a few days ago there was an unconfirmed rumor sweeping the internet that she was the new face of MAC.

Miss Piggy has always owned her sometimes over-the-top style and her zaftig proportions since she first hit the scene in the mid-1970s. And she looks pretty damn good for a lady who’s been in showbiz for 40 years. (Though it’s fairly obvious that she’s had a nip and tuck here and there).

Miss Piggy loves fashion, and she’s gone through the same bad trends we have. She’s done Farrah Fawcett hair, perms, the Rachel, and even gone brunette.

Click through to see how Miss Piggy’s style has evolved through the years. Just don’t make fun of her–she’s been known to hurl frogs through a window.

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