Photo: Vincent Oquendo
If there were ever an event worth pulling out all the beauty stops, the Met Gala would be it. Case in point: the bejeweled eyes crafted by makeup artist Vincent Oquendo on Sofia Richie and catwalker Riley Montana. Reminiscent of the dazzling lower lash lines at Rodarte’s Fall ’15 runway, we were intrigued to see a red-carpet take on the concept.
In keeping with the Costume Institute’s latest theme, China: Through the Looking Glass, the face painter took inspiration from Far East bijoux. “I really wanted the eye to look like a piece of jewelry, like a brooch,” he says of Richie’s look. “First, I applied Charlotte Tilbury Color Chameleon Eyeshadow Pencil in Golden Quartz on the lid, then the taupe color from the Charlotte Tilbury Eyeshadow Palette in The Sophisticate under the eye.”
Photo: Vincent Oquendo
After rimming the waterline with a rich brown pencil, came the Swarovski sparkles. “I wanted to elongate the eye, so I did taupe crystals on the inner corner, and placed a bronze-y shade along the lash line. At the end, we accented the bottom corner with a dark ruby crystal.” The rest of the face was fairly simple—pink blush and a taupe lip kept the spotlight in one spot.
The face painter employed a similar technique on Montana for the after-party scene. He began by smudging a black pencil (Charlotte Tilbury Rock ‘N’ Kohl liner) over the lid, then applied a neat row of jade sparkles to the top lashes. To finish, he punctuated the outer corners with a light green gem. The majority of Met Gala buzz (and reactionary Internet memes) may have centered on Rihanna and her yolk-colored gown, but if anything, it was these two beauties that brought a whole new meaning to shine bright like a diamond.
Photo: Vincent Oquendo
—Karina Hoshikawa, Style.com
