Jennifer Lopez Well, well well… what do you think’s going on here? J.Lo looks good, but she also looks a bit hardened. Maybe it’s just the expression she’s making. Or maybe she’s injected stuff into her face. I love her silky straight, highlighted hair (another throwback to the early ’00s!) as well as the grey smoky eyes. But it would be more modern to lose the lashes and choose a less goopy texture on the lip colour.
Rita Ora Oh, man! Rita killed it at
the last MTV red carpet event, but this is a huge disappointment. I just can’t get on board with false lashes this unnatural-looking, and the hairstyle combined with the earrings and choker just isn’t flattering. I feel like half-up hairstyles only work when the makeup look is quite clean, with minimal accessories.
Lorde So refreshing to see a face like Lorde’s in a sea of overdone beauty looks! This is all about the full, natural brows and the mouth—on which makeup artist Amber D painted
MAC Lipstick in Heroine, a creamy purple. For the hair, stylist Andy LeCompte curled it all over with a 1 1/2 inch iron, using
Wella Luxe Oil Reconstructive Elixir to add shine and definition.
Kesha So fun! There’s a party happening on Kesha’s head, and I want to go. The streaks of pink, yellow, blue and green remind me of ice cream—and she wisely went with a neutral face to let the hair take centre stage. I love that you can see her freckles.
Nicki Minaj This look is halfway between the pared-down Nicki we saw
at the Billboard Awards and her usual over-the-top schtick, and I think it really works for her. Even the false lashes! With her vintagey waves, flushed cheeks and glossy lips—plus the stiletto manicure—it’s a little bit camp but also very pretty.
Demi Lovato Demi tends to go pretty heavy on the makeup, and
sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Here it’s a case of the latter. The lips and brows are so unnaturally precise, it just lacks that effortless feel that I love about Lorde’s look (though we don’t all have to go that far). I’d love to see Demi with fuller, not-so-penciled-in brows and a fresher face without so much highlighting and contouring.
Gwen Stefani Gwen! It’s been a while. She looks great in this purplish-pink lip colour with the matte skin—though it would be better if she skipped the lashes. Also not sure why her hair is looking so fried and is different colours in places? I guess that’s what happens after more than a decade of platinum maintenance. No wonder
Thomas gave it up after only a couple months!
Kim Kardashian Kim, put down the makeup brush and step away from the contouring palette. I don’t get why people think this looks good? Her face appears orange to me around the hairline and underneath the cheekbones. I think it’s time for Kim to embrace her natural skin tone and start experimenting with some different makeup techniques. The contouring, false lashes and nude lips thing is well past its expiry date.
Kylie Jenner Kylie is the most stylish one of the Jenner-Kardashian clan right now, so Kim could take a few lessons from her about hair and makeup. Love the side-parted long bob on her, plus the ear jewellery, natural skin and matte brown lipstick. I wouldn’t recommend that lip colour on, say, a 30-something, but it’s kinda fun for those who were just being born in the 1990s!
Kendall Jenner Model-of-the-moment Kendall looks fine here, although I always find it hard to muster up any real excitement about her beauty looks. Kim must be giving her red carpet-posing lessons.
Iggy Azalea Iggy went for a slicked-back hairstyle with Barbie-pink lipstick, a look we already saw
at the ESPY Awards. Nevermind, it looks good on her—but she should mix it up next time. Stylist Sami Knight teased underneath the top section with a tail comb to create the volume before locking the style in place with
Herbal Essences Body Envy Volumizing Hairspray. Skin looks powdery, but I think it’s the unfortunate lighting here.
Nina Dobrev Sooo cute! If only Nina would smile, it’d be perfect. We almost never see her in bright makeup, so this orangey lipstick is a real treat—as are the bouncy high ponytail and her perfectly arched brows. To create the hair, stylist Riawna Capri prepped with
Garnier Fructis Sky-Hi Volume Mousse, and used hot rollers around the face for volume before creating the pony. To hide the ponytail hook used to secure it, she created a teensy-tiny braid.
Jessie J It’s Jessie J’s first
Beauty Editor appearance—and I think she did well! I’m kind of mesmerized by how she managed to part her widow’s peak right down the centre (I can never do that!), and though the lashes are surely fake, they’re really not too bad. I do think her usual style is edgier, though, and it would be nice if she were truer to that on the red carpet instead of adopting some “glam” persona.
Sarah Hyland Yikes, I usually love Sarah, but where do I start here? First up, the lipstick. It’s bad. I can abide by the Kylie Jenner pinky brown, but please let’s not start trying to make this dark rusty colour happen. Good Lord, it’s unflattering. Also, I guess with Sarah wearing her hair up so often lately, I missed that she’d gotten blonde highlights. I don’t like ‘em. They look stripey, and her skin tone just doesn’t glow like it used to with the dark brown.
Ariana Grande Oh look! Ariana finally changed it up… in a tiny, tiny way. After so many brown lipstick showings, she’s finally delved into red, which I think is an improvement. Still waiting for her to fix the rest of the makeup, and most importantly, the hair (!!).
Lucy Hale Prettiness! At least we can always count on Lucy to deliver. Her makeup artist, Kelsey Deenihan, used (the CRAZY-expensive)
La Prairie Cellular Cream Platinum Rare to prep her skin, followed by
Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation in #6 and
Mark Great Finish Pressed Perfecting Powder in Light to set it.
Next,
Mark Glowdacious Illuminating Powder in Amped Up to highlight and
Mark Touch & Glow Shimmer Cream Cubes as blush. On her eyes, Kelsey used a trio of shadows from the
Mark On the Dot Neutral Eye Color Compact, using the darker colours at the outer edges for an almond shape. She added
Mark No Place to Run Waterproof Eyeliner in Jet Set in the top and bottom waterlines and
Mark Lash Act Build and Define Mascara in Blackest Black on the lashes. The lip colour is
Mark Glossworks Longwear Lip Gloss in Roseland (though she later swapped it for the hot pink,
Tempest, and took out the ponytail).
