The New Generation Of Instagram Make-Up Artists Taking Face Painting To The Next Level
Follow for serious make-up inspo.
We can all agree that classic red lipstick and perfectly executed smokey eyes will never cease to take any outfit from ok, to going out-out. But, every now and then our appetite for something a little more out-of-the-box leads us down an Instagram black hole of make-up wizardry.
Enter the new wave of make-up artists dominating Instagram with their next level face painting. Whether it's trompe-l'oeil two-dimensional designs from @kickiyangz, Gucci's signature snake reimagined in black and red beads creeping across @honeydon.t's face, or @celine_bernaerts' dreamy washes of cloud-like colour, these new gen make-up artists don't follow the rules, they make them.
Rejecting old school industry education in favour of self-taught skills honed via social media, the new era of make-up renegades are using the face as a canvas and Instagram as their personally curated exhibition. Forget stuffy outdated beauty standards, Instagram's MUAs are rediscovering what make-up means, and inspiring a whole load of joy en route.
From NY-based Jezz Hill, to London cool kid Bea Sweet, check out the hottest new Instagram make-up artists persuading us to put the contour down. With over half a million followers between them, we have a feeling you'll be seeing a lot of them.
*follows immediately*
@honeydon.t
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Totally extra, super zoom images of bedazzled rainbow-hued eye make-up. Whether it's '90s skinny brows re-worked in diamanté, retro rainbow eyes contained in an eerily perfect circle, or ears coated entirely in gold foil, there's no such thing as 'too much'. As she puts it herself, 'Hi Yes Hello, Art? Sure!' As we put it, 'More is more and less is a bore.'
@celine_bernaerts
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Shaved head, model cheekbone realness. It's no surprise that the stunning Celine uses her own face to practice her dreamy make-up looks on. Think colour pop eye make-up, bleached brows and seriously flawless skin.
@madroni_redclock
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The most fabulously bonkers approach to beauty we've encountered in a long time. Whether she's creating surreal collages of abstract glitter and star prints worthy of a space-themed My Little Pony, or filming stop motion shorts of an artist's mannequin completing a 2-dimensional maze on her own face, Madrona Redhawk's humorous take on traditional make-up is more than a little refreshing.
@jezzhill
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Imaginative takes on classic editorial make-up direct from New York. Hill might describe herself as a vegan and wellness enthusiast ,but her make-up is anything but understated. And we mean that in a good way. Turning traditional make-up on its head, Hill takes highly saturated pigments and applies them to the tops of ears, drawn precisely through eyebrows and swatched across models' mouths. Combined with fresh glossy skin, it's the modern take on magazine make-up we've been waiting for.
@beasweetbeauty
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Alternative and seriously inventive twists on eye make-up direct from the frontline of indie beauty shoots. Whether it's creating a negative space cupid's bow in a neon pink lip, squaring off the end of metallic mermaid eyeshadow or using jelly gloss to give skin a vinyl shine, Bea's constantly subverting expected concepts of make-up.
Check out her eyebrow innovations created exclusively for ELLE HERE.
@kickiyangz
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Full-face monogram mania. Ignoring the conventional application of make-up, Kicki breaks the physical confines of the face by using its entirety as a canvas, applying paint wherever that day's particular design requires it. Combined with a millennial sensibility for designer branding and pop culture, Zhang's hand drawn designs are an Insta filter waiting to happen.
@emilywoodmakeup
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Fresh ways to re-work your day to day make-up with an AW19 twist that's still totally wearable. If your Instagram obsession includes trawling through pictures of make-up that looks as good on the model as it would on you IRL then Emily Wood is the one to follow. We dare you to find better feathery brows anywhere else on the Explore page.
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