Whether you’re choosing between pencil or liquid liner or wondering how to make your next blush look more “boyfriend,” Bazaar editors understand better than most that beauty is personal. In this edition of Makeup Diaries, we take a deep dive inside the cosmetics bag of Grammy award-winning singer and songwriter Victoria Monét to learn more about her holy grail products, makeup inspirations, and the transformative power of beauty.
For Hulu's three-part Faces of Music series in partnership with Sephora—also featuring Chappell Roan and Becky G—the star opens up about her road to fame, along with some of her favorite makeup moments over the years while getting ready with artist Angie Mar and hairstylist JStayReady. "I was really excited to do it. I've been a huge Sephora fan for years and years," the star tells Bazaar. "So, I was really excited to be a part of it, especially with the girls. I love Becky and Chappell."
We caught up with Monét ahead of her episode's premiere for a closer look at her makeup process. Here, the Jaguar shares more about her go-to routine on and off camera.
What was the first makeup product you remember buying or using?
The first makeup product I remember was my mom's red lipstick, and it was used on me as a blush. Whenever I came home from P.E. or something, my cheeks were always a little rosy, so I wanted to recreate that look. I was maybe like eight, but I thought the best way to do it was to use my mom's lipstick on my cheeks and rub it in, use a little on my nose and rub it in. That was one of the first makeup products I remember using that I probably wasn't supposed to use.
Also, something I was really into all through junior high and high school was lip gloss. The first lip gloss I owned was on a ring—you could open it, and there was gloss at the top, which was so convenient. I also remember a fad that went around where people would hang pacifiers from their necks on a string, and inside was lip gloss. I guess my earliest use for makeup was an enhancement to what was natural, so clear lip gloss and a rosy cheek. I used to love MAC Cosmetics so much, I feel like they did a really good job marketing. I'd see my mom using it—she has these beautiful, luscious lips—and would always line them and put lipstick in the middle, then add MAC's Lipglass on top of it. I was always enamored with lip things, so glosses and liners.
Who or what is your biggest makeup inspiration?
My mom in the very beginning. When I was younger, my mom used to do a lot of priming. She was a young mom in her twenties, so I feel like she had the energy and wherewithal to do all of that. Now, not so much, [laughs] she's chillin'. But back in the day, I definitely looked at my mom and saw how she was putting roller sets in her hair, going to the beauty salon every few weeks, and doing makeup things. She just cared a lot about self-confidence and making herself feel good.
Are you Team Primer or Team No Primer?
If I'm doing my own makeup, no primer. I don't have all the steps down, I just get right into it. But I am a big skincare person so I think that's what I use as my primer. If I'm getting glam done though, they definitely use primer—it helps everything last longer and lay more smoothly.
How many lip balms or oils are currently in your bag right now?
Ooh. Like my purse? Probably a good six tubes, and they're definitely clear, glassy lip glosses. Sometimes, I'll even use coconut oil. I also like using lip masks at night, like Laneige's Lip Sleeping Mask in vanilla and I like the little applicator. There's just something about lips. I feel like you'd be good with eyebrows, lashes, and lip gloss.
What's one of your favorite makeup products to shop for at Sephora?
Definitely Anastasia Beverly Hills brow pencils. They're often sold out in the color that I like, so if they have them in stock I'm grabbing three of them at a time. I also really love that Sephora is now on Instacart, which is a problem. It's great, but it's also a problem because I can just order things, and by the time I start my makeup after a shower, it can be there. So, it's great but also dangerous for my bank account.
What’s your skin type, and what kind of foundation do you typically use?
My skin type is pretty normal except for my T-zone, where I tend to be a little oily. When I'm performing, one tricky we do is use One/Size primer around my nose, or the old school trick, using Milk of Magnesia to keep the area dry. As far as foundation goes, I really like NARS Cosmetics and Pat McGrath Labs. I also like using Fenty Beauty for spot treatments because they have the perfect shade for my skin tone. I just kind of put it on little dark spots I want to conceal and then pat it in, so it doesn't feel like a full beat but there's coverage there.
One/Size by Patrick Starrr Oil Sucker Extreme Mattifying Alkaline Primer
Fenty Beauty by Rihanna Pro Filt’r Instant Retouch Longwear Liquid Concealer
What are your thoughts on blush, and which ones do you love right now?
I really like using blush, and I like a glow, too. I'm into Fenty Beauty's cheek treatments, their blush and glow, and some sparkle that gives a reflective, dewy vibe. I'm also still a fan of using lipstick and even some pigmented lip glosses as blush and blending them how I want to, so I guess that never stopped.
Fenty Beauty Killawatt Freestyle Highlighter in Ginger Binge/Moscow Mule
Are you into using highlighter or bronzer?
Definitely. If I'm going out for New Year's Eve or a birthday party, give me sparkle. We want all the sparkle, diamonds, and glow you can get. But on a normal day, I want to make it look more natural. So, it's more bronze and glow and setting sprays for more of a misty, dewy look versus glam girl.
Some days it can feel like you need a degree in architecture to craft an eye look. What's your relationship like with eyeliner and eyeshadow right now?
If I'm doing my own makeup, eyeshadow is usually my last concern. If anything, I'm more into contouring the eye rather than using a color. So, I'll go between my concealer and contour color, use it on my eyes, and add extra brightness under the ends of my brows for an illusion and not necessarily color.
If I do add anything extra, it's probably a subtle shimmer, but I do like eyeshadow for stage and things where you want your eyes to be more dramatic. I love a cat eye, too, to look more fierce and exotic. I go for a black liner for a smoky cat eye look with maybe a bit of brown eyeshadow underneath eyeliner under the eye and blend it out. But on a day when I'm going to a friend's or going to the studio, I'm definitely more of an illusion girl, so just more natural. Things that appear to be skin tone, skin color, and just shadowing and contouring for a no-makeup-makeup look.
Do you have any go-to setting sprays or powders?
I really love One/Size, they do such a great job. It gives me the opportunity to weather any storm. I'm not scared [laughs]. Whether it be a hug and not having to worry about printing my makeup on someone's collar or shoulder, going into the rain, or sweating, they're great. I also love Laura Mercier's classic translucent powder and Huda Beauty's setting powder as well.
Of course, you're known as a musical Jaguar. Has the animal ever inspired any of your makeup looks?
Yes, for sure. When I do a cat eye, it's usually coming from the place of embodying the jaguar and essence of a wild jungle cat. I also have done jaguar print as eyeshadow on my eyelids, which was really cool. It was kind of like a '70s vintage look with a headband, and it was still a cat eye shape, but if I closed my eyes, you could see rosettes all over the lid in browns and gold with black trim—it was really pretty.
