Makeup can express someone’s personality or the mindset of a generation. It is a type of art and, because of that, many trends and techniques appear (and disappear) throughout the years. Today, we bring you a round up of the 10 most iconic makeup looks from celebrities to see some of the people and styles that have made history.
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn’s makeup has been one of the most popular looks for almost 70 years. Her bright red lips, long, defined eyelashes and white eyeshadow immediately make you think of Old Hollywood glamour. It’s a simple look, but it causes a big impact. Although there is much speculation on whether her beauty spot was real or not, thousands of women worldwide, to this day, draw (and even tattoo) a similar mark on their faces.
Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn’s timeless beauty is just one of the many things that made her an icon. Bold eyebrows and big eyes were her signature look. She also had a lot of volume on her upper lashes, which just made her eyes look more doe-like and innocent.
Twiggy
In the 60’s, the biggest makeup trend was enhancing your best features. Fashion model Twiggy popularized the long-eyelash look with a twist. The lower lashes were also made to look bigger. Twiggy was named “The Face of 1966” by The Daily Express and her look has been inspiring many people, famous or not, since then.
David Bowie
From Ziggy Stardust to the Goblin King to his later years, Bowie had many, many iconic looks in his life. Perhaps one of his most famous looks is on the cover of “Aladdin Sane”, which marks the end of his Ziggy Stardust era. Bowie himself once said that he “didn’t want to be trapped in this Ziggy character all my life. And I guess what I was doing on Aladdin Sane, I was trying to move into the next area – but using a rather pale imitation of Ziggy as a secondary device”. The blue and red lightning bolt is still widely representative of Bowie, appearing often art and fashion. It is one of the most mimicked by beauty enthusiasts on the internet.
Grace Jones
Grace Jones may have become famous for being a supermodel and a singer, but she has always been incredibly stylish. She has been widely known for wearing bright colors on her eyes, cheeks and lips and angular eyebrows. Today, her signature bold look still inspires makeup artists for fashion shows and red carpets.
Debbie Harry
The lead singer of Blondie is known for her signature smokey eyes and heavy eyeliner. In the brightest brights or the darkest darks, her look is the epitome of rocker chic.
Amy Winehouse
Amy Winehouse’s super winged eyeliner is so iconic, you can no longer see them separately. The singer was so fiercely loyal to her style there are hardly any pictures of her not wearing it.
Kim Kardashian
Although she did not invent the contouring method, she might as well have. Thanks to Kim Kardashian’s behind the scenes snap of her makeup being done, it became wildly popular on the internet. Beauty experts on YouTube and Instagram have not only recreated, but played with the technique for their audience. It is one of the most popular beauty trends of the past few years and it is still going strong.
Kylie Jenner
Kim’s youngest sister Kylie Jenner is a beauty trendsetter of her own. Her overlined lips led to the opening of Kylie Cosmetics, her very own makeup brand. Jenner’s liquid lipstick and lip liner set – Kylie Lip Kit – sold out within one minute on launch day in 2015. Overlined lips are also one of the biggest makeup trends right now.
Lady Gaga
Every time she makes a public appearance, Lady Gaga has, at the very least, a memorable ensemble. The artist has a flair for the dramatic and is famous for wearing unique styles. From impossibly long eyelashes to a no-eyebrows, pale face look, Gaga is always unquestionably bold. She even has a makeup brand in the works, coming later this year. Lady Gaga does with makeup what she does with music – expresses herself. And encourages everyone else to do the same.
