Halloween Beauty Tutorial: Jem Is Truly Outrageous
Yahoo Beauty Editor dressed up as Jem for Halloween. (Photo: Ben Ritter / Makeup: Keri Blair for MAC / Hair: Nate Rosenkranz using Alterna Hair Care at Honey Artists / Wigs courtesy of Ricky’s)
Jem was my first role model. As a little kid, I watched the cartoon every morning before school, dancing and singing in between slurps of my cereal. At six years old, I begged and begged until my mom let me get my ears pierced — so I could contact Synergy through my earrings, obviously. Jem became my idol because she was really into pink (pink hair, pink dress, pink shoes), but also because she had a strong moral compass and helped her friends tackle serious issues, all while kicking ass on stage.
As someone who’s still bummed about never being in an all-girl band (those drum lessons were sadly all in vain), I was thrilled to live out my childhood dream for Yahoo Beauty’s Halloween photo shoot. With the new Jem and the Holograms movie hitting theaters on October 23, I’m sure it will be a popular costume. As a purist and child of the ‘80s, I chose Jem’s original beauty look with punk/new wave leanings. Keri Blair, a Senior Artist for MAC Cosmetics, was the obvious choice for my transformation, seeing as she herself dressed up as Jem for Halloween back in the day. (Check out more of Blair’s work here.) Below, the makeup artist shares her pointers for getting the makeup look.
Face
You may think moisturizer will melt your makeup, but Blair says it’s great for helping makeup adhere to your skin. She mixed in a little MAC Select Cover-Up ($19) to even out my skin, and then applied MAC Cream Colour Base in Luna ($22) for a luminous effect. Next, instead of Kardashian-style highlighting and contouring, Blair says to take a stiff brush for specific placement and go right into the cheek bone with your blush. You’ll want to avoid shimmer here — “matte is truer to the decade,” says Blair, who used MAC Powder Blush in Full Fuchsia and Azalea ($22 each). Instead of using the brush in an upwards motion, you’re going to start at the back of your cheek, by your ears, and work forward following the cheekbones. “Wherever you want to deposit the most color is where you start — in this case it’s at the back.”
Eyes
Blair started by lining my eyes with MAC Eye Kohl in Smolder ($17). “I like to get it in there so it looks lived-in and the shadow has something to stick to,” she says. For Jem’s graphic shadow, she suggests using a wide, flat shadow brush and using the skinny side to draw the line, and shading with the other. “To get a clean line, use moisturizer on a makeup sponge to erase and trim the line to get it perfect,” says Blair. You could also use a stencil or curved piece of paper to get the line really even. She worked freehand (she’s quite skilled) and used MAC Pigments in Process Magenta, Electric Coral, Violet, and Vanilla ($22 each) and MAC Eye Shadows in Stars ’n’ Rockets and Sushi Flower ($16 each). If you don’t currently own pink and purple eyeshadows you don’t necessarily have to run out and buy them. “Don’t be afraid to use blush on your eyes — you can improvise,” says Blair. She advises using metallic makeup which “helps blend colors together and gives a cool light reflection.”
She topped off the whole look with MAC Fluidline ($17). “It’s not winged — it’s a straighter line, so it’s not too precious. Remember, this is Halloween.” Blair applied a few individual lashes from the MAC 30 Lash set ($17) on with glue, and topped with MAC In Extreme Dimension Lash ($22) for lock in my look. Lastly, Blair added a touch of MAC Glitter in 3D Silver and 3D Pink ($22 each). Her tip for applying loose glitter? A dollop of good old Vaseline ($3).
Lips
When you think you’re not pink enough, go pinker. While animated Jem had paler pink lips, they didn’t feel quite right for this look. Blair blended electric Barbie pink and coral lipsticks — MAC Lipstick in Candy Yum Yum and Impassioned ($18 each) — until she found the right proportions, and painted it on my lips with a brush.
Hair
As someone with slippery long hair, I’ve always wondered how to keep a wig in place. Nate Rosenkranz at Honey Artists advised adding some texture spray or not washing your hair that day for added traction. To hold hair in place, twist it up into a French twist and use bobby pins and a wig cap to secure your ‘do before putting on your wig. He used some Alterna Hair Care hairspray to hold my ‘do in place.
Related:
YB Loves: Truly Outrageous Jem Hair Dye
