I’ve created a lot of red-carpet looks over the years. As we head into this awards season, I wanted to share three of my favorites:
Ming-Na Wen
‘Ralph Breaks the Internet’
Red Carpet, 2018
Ming-Na typically likes her hair down and flowy but wanted to try an updo for this fun-themed Disney movie premier. So, we kept it loose and what I like to call “perfectly imperfect”— leaving some hair down to frame that gorgeous face. This easy-breezy style perfectly complemented the dress, which had lots of different textures.
Yes, you have to consider the entire look to ensure wardrobe, hair, and makeup enhance each other as well as the occasion and client’s vibe.
As for the makeup, I chose shades of gold and rust and kept the liner minimal for a youthful wide-eyed glow. A cream blush brought Ming-Na’s inner radiance to her enviable cheekbones, and I topped the lips with a peachy nude.
Miranda Lambert, 2014 Grammy Awards
A lot of times I do both hair and makeup, but for this event I had the pleasure of focusing solely on the makeup. Having the hair pulled back on one side opened up Miranda’s beautiful face, inviting the drama of a red lip without it being excessive. At that time, she didn’t usually wear bold red, so it was fun to step out of our makeup comfort zone and really go for it.
I did a very subtle, darker eye to make her piercing blue eyes pop. Whether the focal point is the lips or eyes, the other should be simpler to balance the look. The mix and match of bold and subtle elements created a sexy, timeless red-carpet moment.
Hillary Scott, 2011 Grammys
This was my first Grammy Awards with Hillary and one of my all-time favorite red-carpet looks. She wore an elegantly simple black dress with some detailed beading that allowed us a lot of room to be playful with her glam.
It’s funny because she was indecisive about cutting her bangs, so I said, “Let me make you some bangs and you can wear them and see how you like them!” And that’s really where the bang idea came from. She tried on the bangs I made and loved them so much she got real bangs cut the next day.
The bangs created this sort of ‘60s mod vibe, which I wanted to highlight. I used a seafoam green eyeshadow that amped up her luminous hazel eyes. A heavy coating of mascara on the top and bottom lashes and a nude lip played up the ‘60s attitude and completed the look.
