Makeup Artist Vincent Oquendo’s Favorite Makeup Products Interview

Celebrity makeup artist Vincent Oquendo isn’t just an exceptionally talented artist behind the glam of Jenna Ortega, Nicole Richie, Misty Copeland, and so many other megawatt stars—he’s also a goddamn delight of a human. Bubbly, charismatic, and warm like sunshine, Oquendo has a sparkling personality that’s getting its own platform as part of the his YouTube series, Backseat Beauties (out now).

“Expect a good time. It’s campy, it’s fun, it’s lighthearted,” he says of the show. “It was sort of birthed by this idea that I’m always in transit when I’m working with clients, whether I’m traveling for my job or whether I am on press tours or getting clients touched up right before the red carpet.” He recalls a moment with Hailey Bieber where he did her entire makeup look in the back of a moving vehicle. In Backseat Beauties, Oquendo takes some of his star clients, like Richie, Copeland, and model Soo Joo Park, on a joy ride that is part interview, part makeup tutorial. “Being in a car kind of has the same energy as backstage at Fashion Week, in terms of the movement. You’re riding the wave, and it’s like the ebb and flow,” he says. “The car is kind of like my happy place. I drive to clear my mind. There’s something intimate about the car.”

Ahead of the show’s launch, I caught up with Oquendo (where else but in the back of a car?) to learn more about his favorite products, his makeup inspirations, and the exact number of lip balms he always keeps on hand.

What was the first makeup product you remember buying or using?

So when I first started doing makeup, it was actually around the time that I met Misty for the first time. I worked at the makeup counter, and I was getting hand-me-downs. I was getting used compacts from all of my girlfriends that I went to school with. And she was one of those girlfriends who gave me her old makeup. And that was how I built my makeup kit. So I don’t remember if there was a singular product. I remember there was a lot of M.A.C and a lot of drugstore.

Who is your biggest makeup inspiration?

I look to a lot of classic Hollywood movie stars. But, suffice to say, Kevyn Aucoin is my biggest makeup inspiration. I learned how to do makeup by reading his books. I got all of them and then applied what I read at the makeup counter. When I started, I worked at Bobbi Brown, Michael Anthony worked at M.A.C, and Sir John worked at Nars. We all started at the counter together at Saks Fifth Avenue in New York. It was a really, really, really special time.

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What’s your number-one-favorite makeup product of all time?

Eyeliner. Eyeliner pencil—specifically pencil. My favorite for a long time was the Victoria Beckham one. Now I’m really loving the Valentino ones because they’re buttery. You can feel that they go on buttery and they set. They don’t move. I like it when you put eyeliner somewhere and it stays.

Are you Team Primer or Team No Primer?

It depends on the skin texture. If there’s skin texture, primer all the way because it helps grip. If there’s no skin texture, not so much, because you don’t need to put so much on the skin. You can sort of keep it light. You can use a moisturizer sort of as a primer, but also it depends on your wearability. If you’re going to a special event, definitely use a primer.

How many lip balms or lip oils do you carry around with you?

For my personal use? I have a problem, Jenna. I think it’s like six at least. If we’re talking in my makeup kit, then we’re, like, up to 10. In my makeup kit, I have lip oils because I have tinted lip oils. I’m excessive. True Botanicals has a tinted lip balm, and it’s so good. For lip oil, Revlon. Revlon makes a lip oil that is not to be effed with. It is so good because it has this berry tint to it, but it’s sheer, so it’s my favorite. I love doing, like, a beigey lip pencil, then putting on the berry lip oil. Send me to the moon! It’s so good, because it looks sort of like your lips, but like you’ve been making out.

This is a silly question, but how often do you clean your brushes?

Oh, honey, all the time. Constantly. This is Cinema Secrets, but in all honesty, I like to shampoo a brush. I like to pamper a brush. I’m very particular. I treat them with love, and it’s a ritual. And then I go to the shower and I shake them aggressively, and then I have these brush cups that I place them in. It’s all in the wrist.

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What are your thoughts on blush?

I love the Haus Labs blush, the cream and the powder one, and that new Morphe one? That new palette is obscene. Throw it all over my face; I’m obsessed with it. Sometimes it takes a very special kind of blush to apply a cream blush and for it not to look kind of patchy. It’s a really masterful skill to be able to do that. It takes a special kind of blush, and it also takes a special kind of hand. I think when you layer, it eliminates a lot of the fuss. Here’s the trick: Do your cream blush, apply it with a brush, and pat it in.

Do you apply cream or powder blush first?

Cream first, always, unless it’s a cream-to-powder blush, which exists, and they’re heaven on earth. Shiseido had its whipped powder blush [Editor’s note: It’s discontinued], and that was a fucking dream. It was a mousse. When you’re doing your blush, press your blush into your brush and tap it on the back of your hand first so it goes into the brush. Because if you go straight to the cheek, it’s going to be a murder scene, because all the pigment is resting on the top of the brush. You’re never going to be able to buff that out.

Cinema Secrets Makeup Brush Cleaner in Vanilla

$18 at Nordstrom

$18 at Amazon $18 at Walmart

Haus Labs by Lady Gaga Color Fuse Talc-Free Blush Powder

$38 at Sephora

Haus Labs by Lady Gaga Color Fuse Longwear Hydrating Glassy Lip + Cheek Blush Balm Stick

Now 12% Off

~~$54~~ $48 at Amazon

$34 at Haus Labs $34 at Sephora

Morphe Cheek Thrills Multi-Finish Face Trio

$19 at Ulta Beauty

Do you have a favorite highlighter or bronzer?

The Rare Beauty one is really good for highlighter. For bronzer? Tried and true: Chanel. It’s so good. And Dior, it’s so good. Their powder brushes are so yummy. And actually, speaking of yummy? Danessa Myricks, she has a cream-to-powder blush!

What is your relationship like with eyeshadow?

Love and love. I read this whole thing that Gen Z, they don’t like eyeshadow. I want it to come back. I love eyeshadow! I love a garage door. I love, like, a ’60s [look]. I use Anastasia Beverly Hills for the powder eyeshadows. They’re the most buttery. I think Anastasia gets it so right. Who else gets it right? It’s a tough one, man, because there’s a lot of powder eyeshadows out there that are so chalky, and they don’t blend. They just don’t do the right thing. I think Dior gets it really right. This is a really obscure one—I don’t know if your readers are gonna love this or hate it—but Serge Lutens. I think that they’re so cool. It’s such good makeup.

What are some of your go-to mascaras?

I love tubing formulas. Hourglass Caution is really good. Victoria Beckham—be still my heart! Maybelline. I think it’s called Lash Sensational. I also love—it’s so obscure—Maybelline Lash Discovery. It was one of their fucking first ones. And it’s the thinnest little tiny brush, and it just gets up in there. They don’t promote it, but it’s everywhere. It’s in every pharmacy. I love a skinny brush. People don’t get into a skinny brush, but I get into a skinny brush because I’m a Virgo. I need control.

Rare Beauty by Selena Gomez Positive Light Liquid Luminizer Highlight

$25 at Sephora

Chanel Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Bronzing Cream

Now 27% Off

~~$60~~ $44 at Chanel

$60 at Nordstrom $100 at Walmart

Dior Backstage Rosy Glow Blush

$40 at Neiman Marcus

$40 at Nordstrom $40 at Bloomingdale's

Danessa Myricks Beauty Yummy Skin Blurring Balm Powder Flushed - Matte Color for Cheek & Lip

$25 at Sephora

Anastasia Beverly Hills Soft Glam Eyeshadow Palette

Now 15% Off

~~$45~~ $38 at Amazon

$45 at Nordstrom ~~$45~~ $38 at Walmart

Dior Backstage Eyeshadow Palette

$99 at Amazon

Serge Lutens Fondu enchaîné - Sépias et Taupes

$125 at sergelutens.com

Hourglass Caution Extreme Lash Mascara

$33 at Nordstrom

$33 at Neiman Marcus $43 at Walmart

Victoria Beckham Future Lash Mascara

$34 at Victoria Beckham Beauty

Maybelline New York Lash Discovery Washable Mascara

Now 20% Off

~~$10~~ $8 at Amazon

$10 at Ulta Beauty $8 at Walmart

What’s your favorite brow product?

So I like to layer a brow. So obviously, Anastasia Beverly Hills is my go-to. The powder palette. [Editor’s note: It’s discontinued, but the shades are still available in duos.] I think it’s just such an investment. I think that because they really understand the science behind powder, I have often used that palette as an eyeshadow palette too. Send me to makeup jail, but that’s what I do. Even the auburn colors—I’ve used it around the eyes, and it’s so flattering. A little wash of it, and it’s just gonna look like your natural warm eyelid. It’s gonna be a dream. But make sure you use Lumify in your eyes before. If you’re going to use warm colors around your eyes, sometimes it will make the eye seem redder, so Lumify always helps. It’s one of those things that I always keep in my kit.

Are there any complexion or concealer products you love?

I am loving the YSL complexion products—all of them, but especially Nu Skin. I love pairing that with a fuller-coverage concealer. Tom Ford just came out with a really good concealer. It’s buttery and, oh, it’s so good. I’m concealer-obsessed. I love a sheer face. I love M.A.C face and body, or this YSL Nu Skin, I’ve just integrated it back into my kit. It feels like Touche Éclat for the face. I love, like, a nothing skin.

Do you do concealer or foundation first?

Oh, that’s a coin toss. Depends on who’s in the chair. I dance between the two. Typically, I'll put a sheer base first, and then I’ll take a fluffy brush and I’ll get right up in there. In Nicole’s episode, she does eyeliner because she’s good at it. For her, I did concealer on the brow bone, and then down to just the inside corner. She left her under-eye free and clear. She didn’t need all of that there. So if you don’t need it, you don’t need it, right? Why are you covering it up? Because social media said so? It’s bespoke. All of this can be what you want it to be, so just figure out your face shape and how you want to add light and darkness to get the best result. It’s not about using a fuller-coverage makeup or a stronger makeup. It’s about placement.