The No-Makeup Look Dominating NYFW
New York Fashion Week has officially come to an end, signifying the start of the next fashion season. Celebrities and influencers alike flocked to the runways of New York, commemorating the event on Instagram while gilded in the latest designer couture. While new trends emerged: floral patterns, shades of green, and neon eyeliner, one trend has stood the test of time—the natural, “no-makeup” makeup look.
The natural beauty trend is no stranger to high fashion or even to the streetwear scene. Originating in late 2014 with the hashtag #nomakeup, this trend continues to gain traction each year and remains a constant staple in the ever-changing beauty industry. This trend encourages people to ditch makeup or at least heavy makeup. The no-makeup look withholds timeless relevancy that follows a theme of empowerment, encouraging women to forsake heavy makeup applications in favor of a routine that embraces and accepts one’s natural appearance. The 2014 Marc Jacobs NYFW show made headlines for its claim to feature models without makeup. However, NARS founder Francois Nars later admitted to covering blemishes with concealer to feign the no-makeup appearance. This first attempt at no-makeup ultimately fell short because of this unrealistic expectation of beauty it set. Marc Jacobs called it “no makeup”, but they covered anything that didn’t fit the beauty standard.
Image Courtesy: Instagram
The no-makeup look gradually faded out of style as all fashion and beauty trends do but experienced a resurgence from late 2017 to early 2018. This time around, celebrities endorsed wearing no makeup at all. Alicia Keys walked the red carpet bare-faced, Francis McDormand accepted her Oscar without makeup, and Kim Kardashian attended Balenciaga’s show in Paris sans makeup.
The no-makeup revival swiftly received backlash in 2018 when celebrities wielded their privilege to distort perceptions of “natural” beauty by resorting to expensive skincare instead of makeup to perfect their complexions. The whole point of the “no makeup” trend is to embrace natural beauty, but is it still considered natural beauty if one relies on money and weekly esthetician appointments to achieve the look? Or does it instead perpetuate a natural standard of beauty that isn’t achievable?
Now, in 2021, the revival of “no-makeup” has once again come full circle to represent the unintentional Marc Jacobs technique of 2014. Instead of being entirely makeup-free, one creates the illusion of a bare face with light, flattering, and tasteful use of makeup to accentuate one’s natural features.
Brands such as Glossier and Milk have profited tremendously from this trend, selling neutral makeup that appears barely there. Glossier was founded in 2014 during the first phase of this trend, where the company initially began as a beauty blog before transforming into a trendy skincare and makeup retailer. Similarly, Milk Makeup was also founded in 2014 to create cruelty-free and vegan beauty products. Now leading the natural makeup industry, these two brands continue to offer affordable products that accentuate your natural appearance. Glossier prices range from $18-50, while Milk Makeup ranges from about $20-50.
The “no-makeup” makeup trend is immortal and has been established as a classic style, contemporized by the adaptive phases that reflect evolving social attitudes. As this trend continues to dominate influential spaces of pop culture like New York Fashion Week, it’s becoming more apparent that this trend isn’t going anywhere.
Strike Out,
Writer: Alyssa Cuevas
Editors: Noelle Knowlton & Lexi Fernandez
Graphics: Madison Dodd
Tallahassee
