Lil Mama once sang, "My lip gloss be cool, my lip gloss be poppin'." And she was not wrong — lip gloss is always a good idea — but what we've never understood is why she left out all the other places you can put gloss. What about your lids, your ponytail, your cheekbones? Really, the stuff can put just about any feature in the spotlight.
Which brings us to our current motto: all gloss everything. Gone are the days of crunchy beach hair and ultra-matte skin and lips. We're throwing it back to the late '90s and early 2000s, when the shine was dialed all the way up (hello, body glitter!).
To demonstrate our renewed love of wet-look texture, we enlisted the help of hairstylist Song Hee and makeup artist Misha Shahzada to create looks so slick, so sparkly, and so satiny, you'll be wishing you'd held on to that tube of Jessica Simpson's Dessert Treats lip gloss. (Admit it. You totally had one.)
Click through for the looks you'll be wearing for the rest of the summer. They're...poppin'.
Blue Lagoon
What's the difference between gloss and shine? Gloss tends to have a dewy, wet texture, whereas shine feels flatter. Hee explains that the easiest way to get slick strands is to opt for a straight, smooth style. "When your hair is straight, it catches the light and looks extra glossy," she says. Luckily, it's easy to pull off.
Hee treated our model Thais' damp hair with a little oil, then blew it out straight. Instead of a typical side-part, she made one at a slight diagonal for cool dimension. To finish, she ran a flat iron down the length, and misted light-hold shine spray from roots to ends. For frizzy hair that requires extra control, Hee suggests running a touch of styling gel through the top with a comb. "If you use just a little, it won't dry crunchy."
Cos top; Thom Browne jacket.
Redken Diamond Oil Shatterproof Shine Intense, $40, available at Ulta Beauty; Clubman Styling Gel, $3.99, available at Walgreens; Dion Lee Feathered Perf Mini Dress, $1,333, available at Dion Lee; Eddie Borgo Idle Ring, $150, available at Eddie Borgo; Alexander Wang Slim Chain Link Earrings in Rhodium, $295, available at Alexander Wang.
Photographed by Kailas.
The two key items Shahzada used to create all of the makeup looks were Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream and Tatcha Dewy Skin Mist. What makes these particularly awesome for a glossy feel? "The Arden cream gives a great, glossy texture without being overly sticky or heavy, while the Tatcha mist just makes everything so dewy and fresh," Shahzada says. Prep the skin with a spritz of the mist as a base, and bring in the cream for the heavy-duty work.
For our first look — a summery take on the traditional smoky eye — Shahzada began by covering the lids in Laura Mercier's Caviar Stick in Peacock. Next, she lined the upper lashline in a bright-blue pencil with staying power — Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Eyeliner in Pool Boy. After letting the colors set for a minute, she took a small dab of Eight Hour Cream and tapped it on top, from the upper lashline to the brow, with her fingers. The tapping motion, she says, keeps the two shades from smearing together.
With a look this intense, you can play it simple everywhere else. Shahzada left the lower lashline alone and skipped mascara. As the day goes on, creasing is inevitable, Shahzada warns, "but that's what makes it so cool."
Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Skin Protectant, $22, available at Elizabeth Arden; Tatcha Luminous Dewy Skin Mist, $38, available at Sephora; Laura Mercier Caviar Stick Eye Colour in Peacock, $29, available at Laura Mercier; Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Colour Pencil in Pool Boy, $16, available at Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics.
Photographed by Kailas.
Wet & Wild
This is a case when less is more. Hee and Shahzada aimed for streamlined and pared-down with the second look: a sleek ponytail with wispy flyaways coupled with nude, glossy eyes.
Pro tip: Straight hair is the best starting point for any glossy updo. Hee pulled Thais' hair back into a low ponytail, secured it at the nape of the neck, and encouraged the strands around the hairline to come loose by rubbing them with the palms of her hands. Those loose tendrils "just add some movement to an otherwise simple hairstyle," she says. She finished with oil, focusing on the ends, which really enhances the gloss effect as you're whipping your ponytail on the dance floor.
Alexander Wang top.
Redken Diamond Oil Shatterproof Shine Intense, $40, available at Ulta Beauty; Clubman Styling Gel, $3.99, available at Walgreens; Acne Studios Elija Flame Emb Orange Dress, $3,000, available at Acne Studios; Sarah & Sebastian Long Bar Earring in Gold, $495, available at Sarah & Sebastian; AUrate Diamond Bar Earring, $1,300, available at AUrate.
Photographed by Kailas.
For those days when it's too damn hot to spend precious time on your makeup in the morning, Shahzada has the perfect look: glossy lids (that'll be easy with the humidity) and clumpy lashes.
Shahzada curled the top lashes before applying multiple coats of black Chanel Le Volume Mascara. "It's just the perfect mascara for thick, clumpy lashes because the brush is so big that you can barely see the bristles," she says. Run the wand over your lashes multiple times, holding it both horizontally and vertically and wiggling it from the base to the ends to really clump together the lashes. Once they're to your liking, simply rub some Eight Hour Cream over your lids to finish.
Tarte Amazonian Clay Waterproof 12-Hour Concealer in Medium, $23, available at Sephora; Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Mascara, $32, available at Nordstrom.
Photographed by Kailas.
Lip Service
There are two universal truths when it comes to gloss: It always looks stellar on lips, and it's the best for bringing out details in braids and twists. That's why Hee took on the classic milkmaid braid here.
She loaded the hair with oil, divided it in half down the middle, and then split each of those two sections in half and twisted them into pigtails. Then, as you would with a regular milkmaid braid, Hee folded one section over the crown of the head, and then folded the second directly behind it, pinning to secure and hiding the tails of each twist. She finished with a mist of shine spray, explaining, "It's hard to see braids and twists in dark hair; added gloss and shine helps to bring that out."
Oribe Shine Light Reflecting Spray, $39, available at Violet Grey; Öhlin/D Mesh Top in Crimson, $130, available at Öhlin/D; Koral Dash L/S Tee, $95, available at Koral; Opening Ceremony Faux Patent Leather Utility Jacket, $695, available at Opening Ceremony.
Photographed by Kailas.
Since patent-finish lips are so 2000s, Shahzada wanted to give them a modern twist by using two different shades of pink for an ombré that doesn't look like bad lipliner.
First, she lined the lips in a fuchsia pencil from Lancôme. Then, instead of using another matte pigment, she topped the liner with a clear gloss from Maybelline. "The gloss will force the liner to run into the middle of the lip, and it will go lighter as it does," she explains. Fair warning: Things are gonna get sticky, so don't wear this on an especially windy day (or pre-makeout) — ain't nobody got time for that mess.
Lancôme Le Lipstique in Fuchsia, $25.50, available at Lancôme; Maybelline Lip Studio Shine Shot Lip Topcoat in Clear Vinyl, $4.97, available at Walmart.
Photographed by Kailas.
Slippery When Wet
Yes, we said that straight hair is best for showing off glossy looks. But with the right products, curls, kinks, and waves can hold their own, says Hee.
This look is perfect for between washes, because the key here is oil — lots and lots of it. "Just massage it into the hair to create the interesting texture," Hee says. "It will evenly distribute the product throughout the hair." Oh, and don't worry about the part — this is a devil-may-care approach to styling.
3.1 Phillip Lim top.
Redken Diamond Oil Shatterproof Shine Intense, $40, available at Ulta Beauty.
Photographed by Kailas.
If you haven't already guessed, we're not so into matte skin. Now's the time to lean into your dewy overachievers.
Shahzada applied the Arden cream and Tatcha mist all over until she reached glowy, gleaming perfection. Then, she added a coat of mascara, brushed up the brows, and...that's all. No foundation, no concealer, no bronzer, no nothing. Shahzada says you can pair this cream-and-mist duo with just about any beauty look. "It's just a dewy, fresh, youthful look," she says. (Can we add "gorgeous AF" to that, too?)
Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream Skin Protectant, $22, available at Elizabeth Arden; Tatcha Luminous Dewy Skin Mist, $38, available at Sephora.
Photographed by Kailas.
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