By stufflovely
For almost two years, a jumbo-sized Diptyque candle sat on a bookshelf in my living room completely untouched. I insisted I was “saving it for a special occasion.” This, of course, was ridiculous. Life is a special occasion. (And it’s nothing if not unpredictable: I finally burned that candle during a days-long power outage.)
Several months into stay-at-home orders, I was reminded of this as my eyes danced over the bright lipsticks and colorful liners in my makeup collection that sat gathering dust. I could wait to wear them for a special occasion — maybe my first day back at the office, or to one of many weddings postponed to late 2021 — but… why? Instead, on a random Wednesday night, I poured myself a glass of red wine and reintroduced myself to my favorite eyeshadow palette. And fire-engine red lipstick and cream blush and a contouring palette. Because even if you have to stay inside, you can still go all out.
I’d be lying if I said I didn’t snap a few selfies (I’m a millennial, after all), but that wasn’t the point. The point was to delight in the process, to relish in every flick of my blending brush and dab of highlighter. I’ve always looked at makeup as armor — but it turns out the very act of applying it can be just as empowering as walking through the world with it on.
In the months since, I’ve taken to pairing loungewear with a swipe of lipstick or a wash of sparkly eyeshadow. Yes, even on days I don’t have Zoom calls. In fact, it’s usually the evening — once the ping of incoming emails quiets and I find myself aching for a connection to pre-pandemic life — when I find myself carefully applying a cat eye, or swiping on layers of lip gloss. And sometimes I even light a candle to mark the occasion.
So in the spirit of finding joy in getting all dressed up with nowhere to go, we asked makeup artist Maki and hairstylist Evanie Frausto to dream up fantastical at-home looks for our February issue. And boy, did they deliver. Scroll down for their inspiring takes. —Dianna Mazzone
