Kate Beckinsale is one of those iconic Hollywood beauties and her recent appearance at the Chanel and P.S. Arts Event in Beverly Hills only reinforced this opinion. It was quite pleasing to witness how she infuses a classic starlet look (expertly crafted frock, porcelain skin, Oliver Peoples sunglasses) with modern sensibilities (effortless ponytail, softly smoky eye makeup). We were such enthusiasts of this balance that we doubled our efforts and got the skinny on how to recreate this complete beauty look at home. Beckinsale’s genius makeup artist, Vasilios Tanis, and hair stylist, Renato Campora, shared their respective dossiers of details, so read on for their thoughtful advice.
Makeup “We were inspired by the classic Chanel look—dark eyes and clean, sophisticated skin—and thought it would be perfect with her gorgeous dress,” Tanis says. He prepped Beckinsale’s skin with the botanical infused YonkaPamplemousse PG skin lotion. He supplemented the moisturizer with a few drops of Yonka’s Oil Serum. “It makes Kate’s skin even more supple than usual,” Tanis says. “Skin is happy when it has essential oils.”
He followed this with makeup artist favorite, Armani Luminous Silk Foundation (in Shade 4) with a latex wedge sponge. Cheeks got a light dusting of Laura Mercier’s Cheek Color in the true pinky shade of Rose Petal. Tanis used a natural bristle MAC brush to blend the color from the apple of the cheek back up toward the cheekbone and forehead. “The softer the brush, the less product it picks up, so you get excellent control over how much pigment you deposit,” he says. “I didn’t want to use too much because she has such beautiful skin.” He added a little luminescence to Beckinsale’s cheeks with a light dusting of Laura Mercier’s Mosaic Shimmer Block in Pink.
For Beckinsale’s eyes, Tanis used the silver and white shadows from the Giorgio Armani Midnight Eye Mania palette on the lid as a base color. (The Midnight Eye Mania palette was a limited edition release, but Armani’s eye shadows in shades 6,13, and 16 are excellent substitutes.) On top of that he used MAC’s shimmery black eye shadow, Black Tied in the crease and underneath the eyes. He lined the top lid and inside the lower lid with MAC’s Eye Kohl in Smolder and boosted lashes with Dior’s Diorshow Mascara in Black. Finally, Tanis gave Beckinsale’s lips a coat of Cle de Peau’s peachy pink Lipstick #10 for a gorgeous natural sheen.
Hair “The dress was full of details, so we wanted to do something subtle, simple, and glamorous,” Renato Campora says. “This style also showed off Kate’s neck and fine features.” To achieve Beckinsale’s perky-yet-chic ponytail, Campora first applied Kerastase Nutri Scult Mousse to wet hair before drying. He evenly distributed the golf ball-sized amount of mousse for added body and hold.
Using a round brush and T3 hairdryer, Campora dried Beckinsale’s hair and then pin curled her entire head in one-inch sections. The curls were left to set for 10 minutes, then Camporo unpinned and brushed them out for a relaxed wave. He sectioned the top triangle section of Beckinsale’s hair (her bangs), clipped it aside, and sprayed the rest of Beckinsale’s hair with Aveda’s Brilliant Emollient Finishing Gloss for added shine and softness. To give the front part a little height, Campora lightly backcombed the top section, then incorporated this part with the rest of the hair in into a high ponytail. FinallyCampora set the look with Leonor GraylLaqueSouple gentle-hold hair styling spray.
