Letters from Drea:
Haute Couture Beauty printemps-été 2010
The Barr Code's Beauty Editor, Drea Von Wella, emails from Paris with her critiques of the Spring-Summer 2010 Haute Couture makeup looks.
Valentino
Image: Photo Illustration, © The House of Von Wella 2010
Mon chou,
I was pleasantly surprised by Valentino beauty this season. An evident result of Mr. Valentino's retirement. . . as he would never have let that happen. But time does renew and I’m glad to see ambition in new places. I thought the makeup chez Val was executed well and it worked, despite being a somewhat odd fit with the house’s history. I liked the bright strip of color against the milky pale skin. .. I just wish that they hadn't put a metallic-y pale lip on some of the models. . . I preferred the uniformly pale face with the nude lip. . .more uniform and mannequin. . . less clubby and more artificial.
None the less, fun!
bisou,
DvW
Jean Paul Gaultier
Image: Photo Illustration, © The House of Von Wella 2010
Robert Cheri,
I had to sit and look over the photos of the makeup chez JPG (while wearing a cone bra and Hassidic chapeau to get me in the right frame of mind) before I could reach a sound opinion.
The opening look had me alert and prepared for maximum pleasure. Alas and alack, I was presented with the right idea executed poorly on half the girls. I did indeed appreciate the direction and there were several girls with well done maquillage…but many of the girls’ paint jobs were ill suited to their faces.
Good makeup is like a good suit…it MUST be tailored to fit!
Sadly, a makeup artist can have the right face chart of the right look to blend their colors properly still wind up with mediocre paint. A good makeup artist must adjust the face to the girl so they all feel the same and look convincing. . even if the designer wants variation. Some of the JPG girls looked spectacular, but most looked awkward in the eye shadow and liner. Eye liner needs to sit on the face in a customized and seamless manor so as not to draw attention to the fact that it didn’t always exist there, at least in this context ( never say never in design ).
But some girls looked great and I will give kudos to the team responsible for those mugs. . . Arielle Dombasle looked amazing!
Smooch,
DvW
Givenchy
Image: Photo Illustration, © The House of Von Wella 2010
My darling Barr Code,
Givenchy beauty this season was a SUCCESS! Not only did it embody the spirit of the designs and styling, the makeup stood on its own. A bleached brow paired with a cool black boldly smudged in the crease and inner eye, draping down, over and around the lid. Topped off with glitter that added a wet look on the catwalk and a deep, creamy red lip. The pale faced beauties made my inner darkness twinkle. Alas, it’s just too bad that when you look at the beauty shots up close, the makeup loses some of its density in a few cases…but that’s always the case in runway looks. There are always a few paint jobs that are less successful than others.
On the whole I thought this show gave fantastic face!
Je vous embrasse,
DvW
Chanel
Image: Photo Illustration, © The House of Von Wella 2010
Bonjour tristesse,
Alors Chanel. . . what can I say?
The make-up. . . appropriate? Sure. A coral lip and an upper lash with some grey/black shadow on the upper outer lid to set the shape. . . . hardly a risk, but it worked. The girls’ faces were pretty and classic, not at all updated, but pretty. I have to be fair, this show was not about the face, and frankly it shouldn't have been. . . . . Pourquoi Drea? Vous, la reine de la maquillage and mistress of the mug saying that makeup should take a backseat?
In this particular case of Coco/Karl, the makeup couldn’t compete with those frightful hairpieces! I get the vibe they were going for: kooky older women in Chanel suits. Okay, right. . If I ever see 75 year old women with those hair/wig/ribbon wedding cakes on their heads I will most certainly applaud. However, Karl did not have 75 year old women on the runway, he had 19 year old models in that merde! Frankly, the models looked like cartoon versions of little rich girls playing dress up.
Lagerfeld’s dresses were indeed beautiful and required voluminous coiffures, I get that. A handful of girls pulled the hair off divinely (Siri in particular), but whenever I saw those ugly skunk streaks in hair, I went to another place, a dark, tacky place I hope to never visit again on the Rue Cambon.
Overall, Chanel beauty was overboard, with far too few successes.
Love,
DvW
Giorgio Armani
Image: Photo Illustration, © The House of Von Wella 2010
Roberto carino,
Apparently, Giorgio Armani was inspired by the moon for this Haute Couture collection. I must say that the beauty left me howling! Je comprends they were going for a light, minimal lavender lunar feeling, probably trying to give the skin a moonlit glow and keep it all "commercial moon goddess” but some of the girls’ faces looked sweaty under the eyes and the overall look was très, très ennuyeux. Shine under the eyes always makes a girl look tired.
A nude/clean face is one thing, but a watered down look is always a disappointment. Keep it clean or make a statement! Don’t try to add a little something like paint under the eyes and call it a look! That’s just weak!
Some of the girls looked pretty, but that was because they are pretty, not because the makeup was any good!
Bacci,
DvW
Christian Dior
Image: Photo Illustration, © The House of Von Wella 2010
Robert mon amour,
I love how we have a fantasy beauty Audrey Hepburn à la "My Fair Lady" equestrian style, meets “Bride of Frankenstein”. . . I have to say it’s not my fave. . . but the make-up is done classic Pat style; tape, highbrows, shiny cheek and all. . . I can’t say I would have done anything too different knowing maestro Galliano's taste and routine. . . .but it is an example of just that, a routine. .. nothing special, especially for Dior.
Overall, la visage chez Dior was a bit of a yawn...despite the fact that some girls did have beautifully painted mugs.
x0
DvW