Lupita Nyong’o never fails to bring it on the red carpet, and the Black Panther star was serving up all kinds of holiday beauty inspiration at the 2018 WSJ Magazine Innovator Awards in NYC on Wednesday, November 7. To contrast her super chic white Ralph Lauren suit and Harry Winston bling, the Lancôme ambassador opted for a sultry makeup look that included glittery “disco” eyes that are all kinds of festive. On Instagram, her go-to makeup artist Nick Barose broke down exactly how to recreate the glam.
“I know it’s not Thanksgiving yet, but my posts [are] always kinda long lead,” he captioned a gorgeous close-up snap of Nyong’o’s makeup. “Adding glitter disco details to the eyes is a fun, easy holiday idea.”
Calling the look “showgirl vibes” with “black diamond eyes,” Barose started by drawing that bold, wing-like shape with the Lancôme x Proenza Schouler Eye Kajal in Black Chroma. For a smokier effect, he smudged the shimmery grey, black and pewter shades from the Lancôme Color Design Eyeshadow Palette in Gris Fumee on top. From there, it was all about the sparkle.
While we love ourselves some glitter, the flaking and fallout from most formulas makes it super messy to apply and wear. To avoid the fuss, the makeup guru used the Lemonhead.LA Glitter Gel in a pewter shade “for extra drama and sparkles that once it’s on it doesn’t move.” Barose loves the brand because “once it’s on, it lasts all night.”
Those glistening peepers were a statement on their own, but he upped the ante even further by giving the Academy Award winner an equally dramatic lip. On Insta, Barose gave a #ProTip for ensuring dark lipsticks don’t read purple on deeper skin tones.
“Most dark lipsticks just turn too plum on dark skin, so if you want it darkkkkk 🖤🖤🖤, layer black eyeliner underneath it,” he suggested. Another hack: “just use the black eyeliner straight up and add a little lip balm so it’s not drying on lips[.] Keep it on the matte, not too shiny side, so the shine won’t soften the dark, dramatic shade.
With the eyes and lips complete, the celeb makeup pro gave Nyong’o’s complexion an all-over glow, while her mane man Vernon Francois crafted a super cool pompadour. Oh, and then there was that fierce Deborah Lippmann onyx mani. Safe to say we’ll be filing this one away for future reference!
