Direct from the Runway: Behnaz Sarafpour Fall 2011

"We want her to be a little bit coquette, a little bit playful," M.A.C Vice President of Makeup Artistry Gordon Espinet told me backstage at Behnaz Sarafpour Fall 2011. Behnaz gave Espinet a Kate Moss photograph as reference, and then he interpreted it as Brigitte Bardot in the film When God Created Woman. Along with Laurent Philippon of Bumble and bumble and Wanda Ruiz of CND, the look was beautiful, radiant and youthful.

"The word of the day is, if you don't need it, don't use it!" Espinet told me. He used very little concealer and foundation, and focused on applying Care Blends Oils "to make the skin look deliciously gorgeous." He used three colors on the eyes -- light on the inner corners, medium on the outer half and dark as eyeliner. He also used a cream color on the browbone for extra shine. "Everything has this real radiance and healthiness about it," he said. Eyes were dramatized with Penultimate Eyeliner from the Wonder Woman Collection, applied very thin and winged up at the outer corner. "I don't want it to look like Audrey Hepburn, I don't want it to look like Sophia, I don't want it to look long," he said. "If it gets too long, it gets too haute couture." Opulash in Uber Black was applied to both the top and bottom lashes. Lips were filled in with a lip pencil and then gone over with Tanarama Lipstick for a champagne-ish shine. "Ultimately the girls are so pretty, we're keeping them looking like themselves," Espinet said of the finished look.

 
Bumble and Bumble's Laurent Philippon wanted hair to look spontaneous, like it hadn't taken more than 2 minutes to create. "She's a modern, nowadays girl who has a really good sense of style and does her hair very fast, and she's really good!" He prepped the texture with a mix of Surf Spray (to mattify the hair) and Prep (for a healthy look). After drawing a short part in the front, he directed roots backward for "a slight 60's vibe," he said, and then tied it into a loose ponytail before twisting and pinning. "It's spontaneous, yet very stylish," he said.


And the piece de resistance? Most definitely the nails by CND's Wanda Ruiz! The tips for this show were called the Manolo Manicure, inspired by two styles of namesake custom-designed shoes by Manolo Blahnik for the show. One set was made with Blackjack and clear French tips (using Airdry Top Coat); the other was created with Putty at the base and Blackjack lines.