Pat McGrath Put a Dark Spin on French Girl Beauty at the Jean Paul Gaultier Couture Show
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The legendary makeup artist gives us the exclusive details.
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While summer usually means things slow down a bit, the fashion industry never stops. This week, the city of lights is swarming with celebrities for Paris Haute Couture Week. Jean Paul Gaultier just debuted its Haute Couture Fall/Winter 23/24 collection guest designed by Julien Dossena of Paco Rabanne, and models graced the runway in flowing gowns with hyper-realistic rosettes, gold leaf headpieces, and fishnet dresses layered over classic Jean Paul Gaultier printed bodysuits. The collection had a Joan of Arc-meets Aphrodite-meets ‘90s elegance feel, and Dame Pat McGrath created a fresh-but-muted makeup look on the models to complement the pieces.
Luckily, we caught up with McGrath to get all the details on how she created the look.
Courtesy of Pat Mcgrath Labs
"Jean Paul Gaultier Haute Couture FW23 by Julien Dossena blends Haute Couture with everyday allure,” McGrath tells Byrdie exclusively. “Dossena's reimagination of Gaultier's iconic styles lead us through a Parisian spectacle, where ordinary transforms into extraordinary, and couture exudes effortless elegance.”
Models walked down the runway in makeup that, honestly, looked like a photo with the saturation dialed down a smidge. Instead of typical French Girl look with a glowy complexion and bright red lip, McGrath created a satin complexion and muted burgundy lip on all models to go with the sophisticated pieces.
“The makeup is an echo of [the collection’s] elegance," says McGrath. "Naturally glowing skin is complemented by eyes defined in warm taupe and brown shades, embodying Parisian sophistication. The look culminates with a rich, deep brown lip, seamlessly mirroring the collection's balance of luxury and simplicity.”
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Naturally, McGrath used all Pat McGrath Labs products to achieve the look. To start, McGrath first massaged the Divine Skin: Rose 001 The Essence ($86) and then prepped the complexion with the Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Primer ($46). After that, McGrath and her team used a combination of the Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Foundation ($69) to even out the complexion and the Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Concealer ($34) to add additional coverage and correct the under eyes. She set the makeup with the Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Setting Powder ($42) using the Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Powder Brush ($62) to give the skin an airbrushed glow and then used the Skin Fetish: Sublime Perfection Blurring Under-Eye Powder ($32) to set the eyes and smooth the skin.
McGrath created an alluring soft smoky eye on the models by first applying a soft taupe shade on the lid, crease, and lower lash line (which shade, you ask? McGrath says that it’s coming soon). Then, she defined the upper lash line with the PermaGel Ultra Glide Eye Pencil ($29) in Blk Coffee and used the liner to define the lower lash line before blending it outward to create a soft wing. McGrath further emphasized the upper and lower lashlines with the liner in either shade Xtreme Black or Blk Coffee depending on the model’s skin tone, and added volume to the top lashes with the Fetisheyes Mascara ($34).
To sculpt out the features, McGrath applied the Skin Fetish: Highlighter + Balm Duo ($50) in either Nude or Bronze and then added a subdued flush with the Divine Blush: Legendary Glow Colour Balm ($29) in Divine Rose. To round out the look, McGrath lined models’ lips with the PermaGel Ultra Lip Pencil ($12) in Living Legend and finally created a velvety lip with the MatteTrance Lipstick ($39) in Flesh 3.
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