BLUE EYE MAKEUP RULES
FASHION AND FILM
November 20, 2023 by Cat Quinn
A teenage hacker fighting corporate extortion. A flight attendant smuggling arms money. An aspiring actress with a deadly secret. Three iconic characters in film woven together by a single thread: a rebellious attitude and thick wash of blue eye shadow. Over the last century, the bold makeup look that has become the punctuation mark for breakout stars in cinema – often creating a false sense of innocence for powerful female characters who are woefully underestimated. “From seedy glamour to living-on-the-fringe ingénues, blue makeup is a symbol of defiant decadence and underground allure,” says Terry Barber, M·A·C Creative Director of Makeup Artistry.
Whether smudged on with a fingertip or delicately blended with a brush, pro Makeup Artists have long turned to M·A·C products to create these standout moments on set. The studio quality pigments show up as boldly in real life as they do on screen, and come in a range of colours to represent every emotion. “Our blue shadows walk the line perfectly between retro and contemporary,” says Barber. “Eye Shadow in Tilt is a perfect example. It feels like a coming-of-age blue.”
Constantly appearing on fashion mood boards, blue hues are reinvented in pop culture for every decade. Right now, that moment is borrowing from a mix of references. Ingénue Blue is defined by a bold wash of true-blue eye shadow over the lids inspired by famous film and TV makeup looks. Y2K makeup continues to reign, with Washed Denim eye shadow and Icy Lips modernizing the frosty blue makeup trend of the decade. Graphic Cobalt Liner is directly lifted from the runway collections where the vibrant hue ruled the spring and summer 2024 seasons.
Across the board, these blues have one thing in common. “There’s a punk attitude or wittiness to wearing blue makeup,” says Barber “It’s someone wearing it for themselves, not for the approval of others.”
Whether smudged on with a fingertip or delicately blended with a brush, pro Makeup Artists have long turned to M·A·C products to create these standout moments on set. The studio quality pigments show up as boldly in real life as they do on screen, and come in a range of colours to represent every emotion. “Our blue shadows walk the line perfectly between retro and contemporary,” says Barber. “Eye Shadow in Tilt is a perfect example. It feels like a coming-of-age blue.”
Constantly appearing on fashion mood boards, blue hues are reinvented in pop culture for every decade. Right now, that moment is borrowing from a mix of references. Ingénue Blue is defined by a bold wash of true-blue eye shadow over the lids inspired by famous film and TV makeup looks. Y2K makeup continues to reign, with Washed Denim eye shadow and Icy Lips modernizing the frosty blue makeup trend of the decade. Graphic Cobalt Liner is directly lifted from the runway collections where the vibrant hue ruled the spring and summer 2024 seasons.
Across the board, these blues have one thing in common. “There’s a punk attitude or wittiness to wearing blue makeup,” says Barber “It’s someone wearing it for themselves, not for the approval of others.”
Eye Shadow
$35.00
A saturated pressed powder eye shadow in four textures featuring even more pigment-packed payoff.
