“Aliens” just invaded Maison Margiela’s spring haute couture show. Walking down the runway on January 5, models appeared as other-worldly creatures with supernaturally lustrous skin that left the internet completely mesmerized. The genius that she is, makeup artist Pat McGrath was responsible for the enchanting effect: “It’s a modern take on porcelain glass skin,” her team shared in a press release. “Skin is coated in a hyper-shiny glaze, mimicking the smooth, reflective quality of glass.” But we — alongside other earthlings — are still investigating exactly how these humans were transformed into such ridiculously shiny space dolls with not a single pore on their face.
Pat McGrath Labs
McGrath was coy about what product she used to create the effect, but beauty detectives quickly pointed to Kryolan Professional Make-Up’s Liquid Glass (a liquid formula typically used in special-effects makeup, making it the perfect product to create this gleaming canvas) as the main suspect.
Makeup artist Erin Parsons had a different hypothesis, based on insight from a makeup artist who worked on the show, that the product used was a custom mix made with a water-based formula. This led Parsons to conclude that McGrath applied Freeman’s Renewing Peel-Off Gel Mask — and it’s a sound theory, partially because models were seen peeling their full faces of makeup off after the show. Parsons tested it out herself by watering down the cult-favorite face mask from the mid-2000s and airbrushing it onto her skin in layers. “This look was so incredibly genius, and the technique is mindblowing,” Parson said on TikTok.
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Pat McGrath Labs
Pat McGrath Labs
McGrath hasn’t confirmed either of these theories to be true but did say that “all will be revealed very soon,” in a recent Instagram post.
In the meantime, we’re inspired to swipe on our makeup boldly, set aside our rosy pink blush for a vibrant shade of yellow or coral, and experiment with a smudge of lime lipstick, just as McGrath did on these models at Margiela.
Getty Images
Getty Images
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Getty Images
If the makeup from this season’s haute couture — like the electric tie-dye eyes at Giorgio Armani, the feathery, extra-long eyelashes at Giambattista Valli, or the bejeweled lips and brows at Jean Paul Gautier — is any indication, an astronomical year for bold makeup lies ahead.
