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In this brave new maximalist world, colour, as it were, is huge. The coloured brow has never been so big; seen on runways the world over, Kat Von D Beauty has brought the magic to the everyday, with a kaleidoscopic brow range, 24-Hour Super Brow Long-Wear Pomade.
Run along the gamut and choose from more subtle tones like earthy Aubergine, or shock and awe with cobalt blues and acid greens. For those not ready to ride the rainbow, simply take a bold shade and add gentle flicks of colour through your natural brow to add a hint of colour (this works particularly well for those with light eyes using the correlating colour).
A beauty homage to Kat Von D’s favourite colour, we went bold and brash with red. Leah Carmichael of the Kat Von D Artistry Collective painted the perfect coloured brow using Kat Von D Beauty 24-Hour Super Brow Long-Wear Pomade in Scarlet.
A swipe of red lipstick instantly empowers. so why not a red brow?
Power up.
brow talk with leah carmichael
@iamleah
Can you explain how you have incorporated the colour brow into today’s look?
For her, instead of doing a bright red, bold brow, we mixed the Scarlet Red with the Daffodil, a bit more of a red-orange tone, a little bit more muted. We brought it down onto the lid with a little bit of gloss. If you wanted it to look more natural, I recommend using a spool to apply it and backcombing just to coat the hairs, then if you wanted to do more of a bold brow, use a super precise angle brush, #70 Pomade Brow Brush is ideal for that.
What is your approach to beauty and what has shaped you?
My approach to beauty – there’s no rules, there’s no boundaries. I think I started at such a young age and I was attracted to a specific style but that specific style was not popular where I lived. I grew up in Huntington Beach, so super beachy, and I was super attracted to Robert Smith. I had to figure out a way to balance that. On myself I looked like that, but my clients were bridal and beachy so I feel like I’ve kind of tackled it all now. So I feel like where I grew up is what shaped me to be where I am now.
Was makeup something you always wanted to do?
Turns out yes. My mom just gave me all my grade school stuff back, and as far back as fourth grade when we did a report on what our life started as what we wanted it to end as, my answer was cosmetology or makeup, and I don’t even remember writing that. My mom was like “you always knew you wanted to do this” and I went to cosmetology school when I was 15, so I was super young for anybody in the state, I don’t know how I was even able to do that. It was through a program in high school, and I went to cosmetology school and took makeup classes before I turned 16. So it’s been something I’ve been pushing myself to do for a long time.
To you, what does Kat Von D Beauty stand for?
Kat Von D Beauty for me it’s for everyone; there’s no rules, there’s no boundaries. It’s for everyone from grade school, my grandma wears it. It’s for everybody. No rules.
In terms of the aesthetic for Kat Von D, I know there’s no rules but it tends to skew towards a bit conceptional, a bit Avant Garde in a way. Do you have ay tips for the every day woman approaching that look?
To me, this is such a funny question because I don’t wear a lot of makeup. I wear little foundation or powder, and then I wear a bold lip and some brows. So seeing images and everyone that tags the brand on Instagram, everybody assumes that is what we’re going for. I personally do more makeup like this than I do crazy makeup. I think it is really easy to go in and get a foundation and a nude lip, because it’s more everyday. But there are ways to make a blue lip everyday: minimal makeup, a light brow, mascara, and have it look natural. I think it’s all about how you apply it, but to me it’s for everybody.
When you’re doing makeup on other people, do you like to do that pared back look or relish that over the top look, or a bit of both?
I love doing both. Every makeup that I do is special to me. I always listen to music when I do it; it’s almost like therapy to me. Every makeup that I do comes out different; even if it’s the same look I’m doing on myself everyday. It’s always something different and it’s always something I’m proud of.
With the music, is that ultimately what inspires you?
I’m a bit of a psycho when it comes to working on set. I always have my headphones in. There have been times I’ve listened to super sad music or really happy music, and you can always tell with the way that the makeup looks, specifically on myself. There’s been so many times I’ve been listen to classical music or something more sad and I’ve had people tell me, you look sad. But that’s just the mindset I was in when I was doing my makeup. Music has always pushed me to do different techniques and styles, and it’s something that I need in my life, especially with makeup. It’s sometimes hard for me to pick up a brush without that there for me.
How do you see this relationship between art and makeup?
I think it’s very similar. I used to paint a lot, I don’t paint anymore, but the technique is very similar. Kelsey also looks at paintings to get her inspired. I come from a really heavy art background family. My grandparents are both artists, all my aunts and uncles are all artists. My mom is actually the one who is not. I would paint, but once I got into makeup, it was my painting.
Where would you draw inspiration for colour and texture?
I look at a lot of magazines. Instagram is huge for me. I’ll look at other makeup from other artists, but necessarily just the makeup, but the texture. I’ll find different ways, like if they have it as an eyeliner with glitter on it and I’d think, that would be a cool lip. I’m always drawing inspiration from other artists. I think that keeps me trying new things.
What are your tips for trying unexpected colour and texture in our beauty routine?
I think less is more. If it’s anybody that wears very minimal makeup I would just start with a bold lip, or even the Studded Kiss, the crazy colours you can smudge a little on your eyelid and go with a neutral look. Less is always more.
Do you have one really unique makeup tip or trick?
To me, everything is normal. I think just layering products is key, especially skincare. Skincare makes such a big difference to the product, especially the complexion. It took me five years to nail complexion because every counter that I went in to get colour matched, I had freckles, so I would either come out grey or bright orange because no one knew how to colour match me. When I worked in a retail environment, I was like screw it, I’m going to figure this out on my own, because I would always cover my freckles and look like a ghost, I didn’t know any better. Anybody that came in with freckles, dark skin, textured skin, I would be the first one to grab them and sit them down in my chair. By nailing that part, the colour matching, and the cool tones and warm tones, then I added in skincare. I would do oils or moisturisers and see what worked for different skin textures. For me, figuring out those cocktails was really huge and now I’m cool, I’m like a bartender. I’ll touch their skin and I’m like ok, I’ve got this.
What’s your advice for girls with freckles?
My advice for girls who want their freckles to show, again, less is more. Unfortunately, it’s hard to find one shade so I mix two shades and I always use a sponge. I’ll apply with a brush and go back over with a sponge, and that helps bring the freckles through but you still have that coverage, and it took me a long time to figure that out. As soon as I figured that out, it changed everything for me. I’m excited when I see somebody who wants to make their freckles stand out, and hoping that they want their freckles to show. A sponge changes everything.
Credits:
PHOTOGRAPHER & Videography: E. Michael Wolf
Talent: Tatiana Rose
Makeup: Tara Buenrostro for Kat Von D beauty
Hair: Peter Beckett
content Direction: Justine O’Donnell
