Lady Gaga, our lady of prosthetic cheekbones and heels while hiking, has solidified a new phase of her style evolution. The actress and singer’s Vogue cover went live today, featuring a stripped-down, fresh, and dewy side of Gaga. The past few months have seen her step largely away from the theatrical roots that she came up with, so the look’s not necessarily new—since Joanne debuted, Gaga has increasingly let her raw self into the spotlight. Still, the Vogue cover is the most she’s committed to her bare-bones vibe yet. And as her fans can attest, no one goes for it like Gaga.
Even better? Where tons of Gaga’s looks clock in at triple dollar-sign level prices, this one came at a refreshingly low cost. As in, under $50 in all: According to Vogue, Gaga’s longtime makeup artist, Sarah Tanno, created Gaga’s light-touch look using L’Oréal Paris True Match Super-Blendable Makeup and Infallible Longwear Blush Shaping Stick in Sexy-Flush. The slightly glossy, balmy texture on her eyes came from L’Oréal Paris Infallible Paints Metallics Eye Shadow in 400 Rose Chrome, while the look’s centerpiece, her strong, dark brows, came from the brand’s Brow Stylist Definer in Brunette. Colour Riche Shine Lipstick in Shining Peach finished her lips with a gentle sheen.
As our entertainment writer Chris Rosa put it: a bargain beauty shopper is born!
If you’re wondering where this all came from, Gaga tells Vogue that she’s welcomed a “galaxy of change” over the past decade, so fronting Vogue‘s October issue with barely any makeup makes sense (even as we’re still trying to wrap our heads around it). Gaga and Tanno usually use Marc Jacobs cosmetics—Tanno is a Global Artistry Ambassador for the brand—so this is an unusually accessible change of pace for the duo. But rumors have also flown about Gaga launching a brand of her own (named HAUS Beauty, because of course), and this would’ve been a prime time to whip it out. So maybe all bets are off for Vogue, or this is a new era of Gaga that’s here to stay.
Speaking to shedding some of her larger-than-life looks, Gaga says, “For me, fashion and art and music have always been a form of armor. I just kept creating more and more fantasies to escape into, new skins to shed. And every time I shed a skin, it was like taking a shower when you’re dirty: getting rid of, washing off, shedding all of the bad, and becoming something new.”
She added: “I just remember feeling so irritated at the thought that I had to conform to being ‘normal,’ or less of whatever I was already born as. And so I took such radical enjoyment in expressing who I am in the most grandiose of ways. It was sort of like a very polite ‘Fuck off.’ It was never about looking perfect—it was always about just being myself. And I think that’s what it’s always been about for my fans, too. It was a form of protection, and a secret—like a wink from afar. I’m a monster, and you’re a monster too.”
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