Mark Rothko, Low Maintenance Glamour at Mandy Coon - NYFW Spring 2012

By Klaudia Tirico / September 12, 2011

When NARS National Makeup Artist Francelle walked into Mandy Coon's office to talk about the look for the designer's Spring 2012 show, she noticed Mandy's collection of crystals and precious rocks in a mix of colors like bright blues, yellows, and grays. "I automatically thought it would be amazing to do an eyelid like [the American abstract painter, Mark] Rothko," said Francelle, "and that's when the idea came up."

Francelle used a tinted moisturizer to create a sheer veil all over the face and neck, and concealer to hide under eye discoloration and blemishes. She used two different components on the cheeks: NARS Multiple Stick in Laguna on the apple of the cheek and brought into the cheekbone, and the powder version of the same color to amplify and enhance the shade. "I didn't put it all over because I didn't want to have an all-over tan," said Francelle. "I just wanted to have a healthy glow mixed in with the tinted moisturizer."

The eyes were where the Rothko influence was most obvious. Francelle created a color-blocking technique with Lhasa Single Eyeshadow, "a beautiful lavender grey," from lash line to crease, leaving the corners open; and Douces France Trio Eyeshadow - the lightest shade on the brow bone blended with the middle shade in both corners of the eye (both shades are new for Spring 2012). She also used three different eyeliners on the bottom lash line. "I wanted to give a nice special effect for everyone and for the stage so you can really see the color blocking on the lid," she said. She started with NARS Larger Than Life Long-Wear Eyeliner in Rue Bonaparte right underneath the lash line to "neutralize any pink that we all have," followed by Santa Monica Boulevard, a white shade used inside the waterline and eye duct "to make the models’ eye color pop." Finally, she made a very small triangle in Madison Ave, a slate gray, following the natural shape of the eye.

Photo: Mat Szwajkos for Beauty Blitz

Francelle was also inspired by the different textures used in Mandy Coon's collection, which led her to create a textured lip for the look. She began by applying Bilbao, a rosy topaz, to fill in the lip. Then, she added Valparaiso, a Velvet Matte raspberry shade, using her ring finger to gently press the color onto the first layer. "I mixed them because I wanted texture," she added. Both lip colors will be available for Spring 2012.

Photo: Mat Szwajkos for Beauty Blitz

Rolando Beauchamp for Bumble and Bumble created the cool, easy-to-copy hair look inspired by a modern, Parisian cool girl; “low maintenance glamour," in his words. Rolando applied a quarter sized amount of BB Gel to big sections of the hair. He used the BB Gel instead of a hairspray because he "wanted to weigh it down and have a matte finish." He explained, “Hairspray would make it shiny." Then, he combed the hair, blew it out and applied BB Grooming Cream to the ends. He curled large sections of the hair with an inch-wide iron, starting halfway down the shaft and leaving the ends out. He then took a bit of BB Texture Cream and roughed it into the hair. This created the straight-wavy-straight look that went down the runway.

Photo: Mat Szwajkos for Beauty Blitz