“It’s always about the beauty of the eyeliner—everything begins there,” explained Pat McGrath of the soft black flicks she created today. The designer’s favorite Italian film icons, Sophia Loren and Monica Bellucci, once again served as inspiration, but in lieu of the heated Mediterranean woman, a more enchanted spirit was embraced. As The Nutcracker Suite played and snow softly cascaded down over the barren almond blossom trees (seen in full bloom this past Spring) at one end of the runway, a softer, more “fairy tale and woodland” look emerged onto the catwalk.
To bring models’ features forward and achieve that “lit-from-within” glow, McGrath used two tones of Dolce & Gabbana’s Perfect Liquid Luminous Foundation—one to match the complexion, and a paler hue on the high planes of the face. Cheeks were lightly dusted with Blush in Nude. Being the main focus, eyes were rimmed with Crayon Intense in Black, then layered with Glam Liner, a liquid formula, to intensify the winged shape. The lower lashes were given the same treatment, but the majority of the pigment was wiped away with a cotton bud, leaving only a trace of color for definition. A new launch from the brand, Perfect Mono Cream Eye Colour (on shelves this Fall), was washed across the lids—Cocoa in the socket and Innocence, a pearly white, in the center and on the brow bone. (Innocence was also mixed with Gold Dust and tapped onto the cheekbones to highlight). After using a nude pencil on the water line, two tubes of mascara were pulled out to polish everything off—Intenseyes Mascara in Black Intense on top and Passioneyes in Terra, a brown shade, on the bottom—to sweep lashes up and out. Using just her fingertips, McGrath pressed Classic Cream Lipstick in Honey onto models’ mouths before dabbing a clear gloss in the center. “Stefano and Domenico spoke about the fact that they don’t want the gloss on the top of the lips because it can look really old-fashioned,” she noted.
The hair was put up in “a classic Dolce manner,” explained Guido Palau—meaning a “sensitive” style swept off the neck and face, but not “snatched back and hard.” This season, strands were prepped with Redken Body Full, a thickening spray, to create “guts and a little bit of friction,” then misted generously with Pillow Proof Two Day Extender, a dry shampoo, for texture. The length was loosely braided and coiled into a low chignon; tendrils and “floaty bits” were pulled out to frame the face. “I think they’ve really defined their woman, the boys, and it’s something that’s very successful for them,” noted Palau. The one thing they did change up this season: The elaborate hair accessories were swapped out for chain mail-like hats encrusted with crystals or sequins. After all, what fairy tale would be complete without a knight in shining armor?
