Here, makeup maestro Aaron de Mey's dispatch from Kenzo's Spring 2014 show in Paris:

Dear ITG,

So Kenzo's spring collection was inspired by California’s surf culture. (I could relate—as a kid, I grew up on the east shores of New Zealand, in a town where surfing was a legitimate school sport. The girls bleached their hair and wore eye makeup, and all the dudes wore zinc and friendship bracelets.)

This feeling really came through in the punk/aquatic-themed set: the waterfall at the end of the runway, the water splashing up from the ‘base-y’ speakers in the middle of the room. There was also an call to action to stop overfishing—the logo sweaters in the collection protested it. (And the after party was held at the Aquarium du Paris.)

The makeup was crisp, gleaming, and sharp like the white-tipped crest of a wave. We went with white eyeliner— MAC Pure White Acrylic Paint—instead of punk’s usual black—and used an angled synthetic brush to draw a thin line. I applied the color starting at the center of the lid and drew the line to the very outer corner of the eye, restarting it again at the inner-eye corner, and tracing the lash line to meet the center point. This technique makes application easier and helps to balance the line. Then I took a sharp, small Q-Tip dipped in makeup remover to clean the outer corners of the line into a blunt, square edge. It’s more aggressive. And the Acrylic Paint dries to a leatherette texture, which looks crisp, and almost like it’s a slash of surf zinc sunscreen across your eyelids. We finished the eye by brushing the brows up and outward with MAC Clear Brow Set, and left the lashes mascara-free. The white eyeliner reminded me of the kids who went to beach raves growing up: DayGlo colors, whistles, baggy clothes, and “I don't care' hair...

For the rest of the face I applied minimal concealer with a small brush to cover blemishes and patted MAC Strobe Cream on the cheekbones, the bridge of the nose, and the center of the chin to add dimension and 'watery' reflections to the skin. Lips were moistened with Homeoplasmine. The look is fresh and easy, like the girls applied it themselves.

XAaron

Photos by Aaron de Mey.