This article originally appeared on PEOPLE.com. Reporting by Jackie Fields
Lupita Nyong’o‘s makeup looks are never short of 11 out of 10. And Wednesday night, the actress stepped out for the premiere of Queen of Katwe in Johannesburg, South Africa, rocking her most eye-catching makeup to date: an all-over metallic look that included “liquid gold”-like dots above her eyebrows and a fuchsia lip that we’re still swooning over — so much so that we had to get the details from her makeup artist ASAP.
Nick Barose, the guy behind the look, tells PeopleStyle that he was “inspired by traditional and contemporary face art in South Africa” for her makeup, which is why he went for metallic dots above her brows, which he considered a “piece of jewelry” on her eyes.
A photo posted by Nick Barose (@dilokritbarose) on
Barose first filled in her brows darker than usual, creating a greater contrast to ensure the dots would stand out more.
Then, to create the dots, he applied the gold eyeshadow from the Lancôme Color Design 5 Pan Eyeshadow Palette in Kissed by Gold palette using two different size pointy eyeliner brushes. To intensify the metallic tone, he mixed a gold pigment with Mehron’s mixing liquid, which Barose says created “liquid gold” that he also layered on top of her lipstick (!).
To perfect the look, “It helps to do faint dots first, then go over it with more intensity once you’re sure of the placement,” Barose advises.
For her eyeshadow, Barose applied a black shade from her lash lines to her brow bones to keep the spotlight on the dots. “I wet the eyeshadow so I could layer it and thin it out [where needed],” he explains. “That way, even though you’re only using one color you can build up the intensity.”
And if you’re not sure if you can pull off a look like Nyong’o’s, take Barose’s advice and keep it simple. “Avoid false lashes or any heavy liquid liner which would complicate it,” he says. “Using too many products will complicate this. Keep it fresh and modern by keeping it simple — it’s very wearable that way!”
What do you think of Lupita’s look? Sound off below!
