Beauty & Balance

EXCLUSIVE: Isabel Marant, L’Oréal Paris Unveil Capsule

PARIS — Isabel Marant, together with L’Oréal Paris, has conceived five makeup products for fans of her signature looks.
The limited-edition L’Oréal Paris x Isabel Marant line includes multipurpose lip, eye and cheek items to create natural or smoky effects.
The collection will prelaunch online beginning Sept. 19, followed by a worldwide introduction at L’Oréal Paris sales points and in Isabel Marant stores Sept. 27 in tandem with the designer’s catwalk display in Paris.
Marant — whose fashion brand has been credited with pioneering the bohemian Parisienne hipster-meets-tomboy look favored by celebrities such as Beyoncé, Gwyneth Paltrow and Kendall and Kylie Jenner — told WWD her objective was in part to conceive non-makeup makeup products. “But also the idea was rather to have a few necessary products that one always has in her bag and can be used in a very nomadic way,” she said.
“I think that corresponds more to the way of life of the Isabel Marant girl,” the designer continued. “She is rather natural in the day but doesn’t have the time to go back home before going out and to redo her entire beauty look. So the idea was to have the three or four products that in a flash help sublimate a face with very simple and spontaneous gestures.”
Pierre-Emmanuel Angeloglou, L’Oréal Paris global brand president, called Isabel Marant “one of the most iconic Parisian fashion brands,” and described the label and its designer as “extremely inspiring.”
Marant embodies the new vision of femininity L’Oréal Paris is focused on today, which includes human empowerment already referenced in its longstanding tag line “Because I’m Worth It.” “It’s a question of portraying a woman who is self-realized,” he said. “At the same time, she’s an exceptional woman, a role model… has this ability to relate and talk to people.”
The designer explained that beauty has always been of interest and linked to that, color cosmetics giving a barely there effect. Marant described it as “fake natural beauty.”
Channeling this are the models sent down her runways. They often seem to be wearing no makeup but have glowing skin, or slightly emphasized eyes and brows. It’s what many consider to be a quintessentially Parisian woman’s “effortless chic.”
“In fact, French women, in the end, like all women, pay a lot of attention to themselves, and even if they don’t seem to be made up, often there is a little , but it’s rather discreet,” said Marant.
Marant said when L’Oréal Paris approached her, she had seen the limited-edition capsule lipstick line it created with Balmain’s Olivier Rousteing last year.
“I found it pretty funny to show the contrast between two universes of beauty, since Olivier worked more on very colorful things, very made up, whereas my idea is rather different,” she said.
At the heart of her collection are L’Oréal Paris’ Color Riche matte lipsticks, called Smile, in seven hues. “I tried to work in a very classical manner — they are really reds or pinks,” she explained. “I took a lot of time to choose in a precise way, principally thinking about different skin complexions.
“I always make up either the eyes or mouth, and it’s true that when I make up my mouth I love to have a very strong red. I find that immediately illuminates…and gives a certain sophistication, while keeping the face rather young and fresh,” continued Marant.
Mixing lipstick colors came naturally. “It’s what I already do a lot for my clothes,” she said.
Also in the lineup is transparent mascara, dubbed Wanted. “One can use it on the eyebrows as well as on the eyes, so it really opens the eye by giving it a slightly wet aspect that I love a lot,” she said.
In the summertime Marant enjoys crafting a smoky peeper, so she conceived a palette, called Smoke, with a matte black and an iridescent green-blue black.
There’s Shine skin beautifier — a cream that morphs into a powder giving a glow effect. “And the last product is a slightly pink gloss that can be applied either to lips or on cheeks,” she explained, describing Amaze.
Prices in Europe range from 9.95 euros for the gloss to 12.95 euros for the eye shadow.
Marant was involved in all aspects of the color cosmetics project, including names and the packaging’s rubbery texture. “There is something modern and playful at the same time,” she said.
The Isabel Marant brand has in the past collaborated with Hennes & Mauritz. The designer said the tie-in with L’Oréal Paris is about “the pleasure of sharing with others my vision of beauty and makeup.”
L’Oréal Paris’ Angeloglou said: “For us there is a natural link between beauty and fashion.”
The beauty brand is among Paris Fashion Week’s official sponsors, with makeup artists working on models backstage there. And last year L’Oréal Paris staged its own fashion show on the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.
“Beauty is all about trends, it’s all about aspirations,” said Angeloglou. “There, again, is an obvious link with fashion.”
Further, designer collaborations allow the brand to show the diversity of Parisian beauty. The executive added: “Having this kind of ephemeral initiative is also a way for us to reach out to new consumers.”
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