In just a little over 48 hours across the pond, I established that East London is to the natives what Brooklyn is to Manhattanites. “Why are all these brands being so trendy?” one U.K. editor asked me via e-mail when I inquired whether or not she was making the trek across town to YSL Beauté’s “YSL Loves Your Lips” fete.
The Boiler House on London’s famous Brick Lane (like it or not) was the setting for party celebrating Cara Delevingne’s continued partnership with the company and its latest launch: Volupté Tint-in-Oil gloss. An industrial warehouse of sorts—spiced up with neon lights and the hashtag #ysllipstick projected onto exposed brick—the space felt familiar…at least to this writer who calls Williamsburg home. When I asked Chelsea Leyland (who split the deejaying responsibilities with Mary Charteris) if East London was indeed the BK equivalent, she said, “It cringes me out, but yeah, it’s the same thing.”
Before disappearing into the dark and drizzly night, Delevingne and co. were on-site to preview her new digital campaigns for the forthcoming Volume Effet Faux Cils mascara and cult classic Touche Éclat. After viewing her latest work, the Brit super said onstage: “I hope you aren’t bored of me, I’ve got a lot more to show you!” (Not that anyone doubted her.)
With everyone from Alexander Wang to Dior forcing the industry masses out of their comfort zones and subsequently causing uproar, it makes sense for this French brand to follow suit. Beauty, after all, is about blazing new trails.
—Amber Kallor, Style.com