I don’t know about you, but Gwen Stefani has been one of my style icons since she came on the scene back in the 90s. I bought MAC’s Viva Glam lipstick when I heard it was her favorite, I dyed my hair as blonde as I could and (perhaps I should be ashamed to admit it) I had quite the assortment of bindis. Imagine my delight when I learned that the singer has put together a makeup line with Urban Decay.
Gwen, still radiant at 46, recently sat down with Marie Claire and confessed, “I know some people think my look is dramatic, but for me, it’s simple — it’s just who I am. I’ve always been obsessed with makeup.” She then gave a brief history about how this girl from Anaheim became Gwen Stefani, musical goddess.
On her first foray into makeup: “Growing up in the ’70s in Orange County, California, I would come home from school, and my girlfriend’s mom had tons of Mary Kay, so we’d ask her, ‘Can we play makeup?’ and then we would do that for hours. I started wearing things like Dr Pepper Lip Smacker and eyeliner to school around seventh or eighth grade.”
On her style inspirations: “I used to watch the Old Hollywood movies on AMC, so I wanted to be Jean Harlow and Marilyn Monroe. That’s when I thought, Okay, I need to have a cat eye—that’s how Marilyn did her eye makeup. All through high school, I wore it with a pink lip.”
On her trademark red lips: “Red lipstick is another one of my favorite looks, but I didn’t even start wearing it until after high school. I can remember the first time: My grandma had bought me one of those palettes that had five different colors, and I tried on the red in the rearview mirror of my car and was like, Oh, that’s the look. I love that.”
All about the brows: “In the ’90s, I was into a thin, chola brow. In Anaheim, where I grew up, there were all those [chola] girls with so much style, and I did the same thin, arched brows. Looking back on it now, I’m like, Oooh—I don’t like it as much. These days, I prefer thicker brows and a clean eye.”
Gwen’s new makeup line includes red lipstick (of course – and 7 other shades, if you’re not feeling your inner Gwen), an eye shadow palette with some bold colors, a vibrant blush palette and a brow kit. It’s a good thing my birthday is coming up…my goal is to snag her look from her recent video “Make Me Like You”, that I have played constantly since it was released. Gwen went back to a Marilyn Monroe inspired look for it, and it really works for her. But, has Gwen ever not looked good? She puts the other soccer moms to shame when she watches her kids play at the community field. I’ve never seen her look anything but perfect. But, I will have to agree with Gwen on her 90s eyebrows. They were a little intense.
Photo credit: Getty Images, WENN.com
Not that surprising a step, I suppose.
I wouldn’t buy it though – the look is too harsh for me
Her looks didn’t bother me until the last few years, but now it’s just so harsh. Dial it back a few notches, Gwen, it’s no longer a good look for you.
If her face gets any tighter, it’s going to split! Makeup is definitely this one’s bestbfriend. Sad.
Agreed. Overly Botoxed – 🙁 She’s so beautiful, it’s a shame.
Im surprised she didnt do that a while back, at least a Red lip
I liked her signature red lip.
This thing that she’s doing now. Yuck!
Agreed. To me Gwen will always be a red lip & the most original (IMO) unforgettable wedding gowns of all time.
I adore that Kingston has his arm around her waist in that photo
I find anything done to the extreme distracting. The overly blonde hair, the really red lips and caked on makeup look is a bit much for me. But to each her own.
Yeah, she’s really wearing a ton of it in these recent pictures. I guess she doesn’t believe the old truth that the older you get the less makeup you should wear. Aging skin can’t really carry a thick layer. And no she’s not old or ugly she should just keep working on her new look.
Yes and it ages her greatly
That’s the thing. You never see her with out a full face of make up. Granted it’s not as bad as Christina A, it’s still very full on though.
It’s been out for a while and it’s selling out fast (some of it might already be unavailable), so if you’re interested, get on it! It’s all limited edition.
TBH, Gwen’s fashion choices and hairstyles were always fun and bold, but her makeup was and is boring. She piles it on extremely thick these days but unless you think a red lip is exciting, it’s still a really basic, safe look.
I used to think makeup was ‘fun’ as a younger teen, then got hormonal acne at 18-19 and had to cover my horrendous skin before I could even leave the house.
Now that I have decent skin again, the thought of covering it up with gunk is totally off-putting and I haven’t worn any makeup at all for 10-plus years.
She looks so stiff these days with the Botox and who knows what else, that this actually doesn’t excite me at all.
Scratch that. It’s the lovey-dovey-barf-fest with Blake. And the ‘tox.
The eyeshadow palette is anything but bold. There are 1 or 2 eyeshadows max that do not fll in the nude (brown/boge, pinkish)-range. I like the palette since I’m not a huge fan of bright eyeshadow colours, but the shades look a lot like the Naked ones.
Gwen’s eye makeup has never been bold, why would her eyeshadow palette include bold colours? Tbh her makeup is rather boring: eyliner and red lips, it’s always the same.
Also, they brow kit is UD’s permanent one with an LE packaging, that’s it.
And no, I don’t think she looks extremely good anymore. Too much makeup, too much botox, too many fillers (or whatever it is).
It makes perfect sense that she began with Mary Kay. That look is always very heavy, IMO. I think her hair/ makeup is very similar to Carrie Underwood’s, but Carrie’s always called out for the heavily made up pageant look.
She looks like Faith Hill in the 2nd photo from the top. Or at least like Faith Hill used to look.
Yes! I was just scrolling down to post that!
I was going to say Ivana Trump!
RAD shirt pic = Brittany Murphy
Yes!
She went too far with the botox and full on make up while running for a bottle of milk.
She always looks perfect.
I’m so used to her “usual” look that these pictures look like an entirely different person (to me). I think she looks fantastic though.
I am also obsessed with Gwen’s new Make me Like You song and video; I’ve been playing it on my exercise list. Love it! It’s a little bit of a rip off of The Cardigan’s Lovefool, but I don’t care. It’s catchy as heck and she’s so cute!
Does anyone else think that there are way too many makeup brands and companies out there? You can find the same product in 20 different ways. ..it’s a bit ridiculous.
Nevah!!!! It’s great there is so much because there is so much more than color. Texture, lasting power, and everyone’s body chemistry is different so everything works differently on everyone.
I love makeup and loved Gwen since I was 13 and had the no doubt rolling stone spread plastering my room! I bought MAC red because i read she wore it, even though it looked terrible on me. Wish I had the money to buy the ud palette, but alas, gotta feed the kids. Boo.
As a makeup addict, I almost had a stroke when I read this haha. To each their own though. 🙂
Yes I do! 🙂
She looks fabulous. I love that she is always full on glam!
she looks plastic, to me.
i am bummed.
Gwen is so pretty but her bleached hair & heavy make up age her considerably. Way too harsh, less is more!
I love her new eyeglass frames she just came out with.
She looks like Holly Madison. Too much Tox. But the UD eye palette..ahhhh.
I was just thinking too much filler and she looks like Faith Hill (especially in photos with her hair up) lollll.
Ha, you are spot on! She is a Holly Madison clone. She looks good, but totally unrecognizable.
You know I can’t imagine how much Tox and fillers these people have. I am so regular and so basic seriously I wear Target clothes but I have had Botox and a pretty decent amount. My face moves, I can smile, I still have some lines, I just look a little fresher.
These people HAVE to have so much work done. She is 10 years older than me and nothing moves, there is just no way this is all water, sunshine, and a dash of Blake. NO WAY
I am just so floored by Gwen’s machine: new albums, hit songs, new high profile relationship and now a makeup line– plus the divorce. How/when did she and Gavin schedule a divorce? Do celebs arrange them two years prior to announcing it to the public? A makeup line surely takes time to develop– (I recently worked at a skin care company, it took two years to bring a product to market after all the testing, packaging tweaking, etc– it is a puh-lanned process) and she has always been prolific with working on something… I am just amazed.
Hmmm well she started a new album a couple years ago along with the makeup line…the divorce was a loooooong time coming. Gavin’s been a douche with a capital D forever so I wouldn’t have put it past Gwen’s team to advise her on the time line of the separation for maximum effect
She always looks over done in my opinion but still very pretty. I actually don’t like her new music at all. Hope she’s happy as she seems like a nice person from watching the Voice.
She saddens me. She clearly has very low self esteem and needs a man to tell her she is pretty—in full on makeup. I hope she is comfortable in her own skin before she dies.
Oh my lord, that kid ( in the RAD picture ) is the spitting image of his dad!
I’d buy Iman’s over Tyra’s.
Tyra over Gwen
Gwen over stupid Jay Manuel ( who named a blush colour after his dog!! Ugh!!)
But really I just buy Clinique when I can afford to and Revlon when I can’t. Though I like Shimmering Sands eyeshadow by Cover Girl the best.
Nothing beats Clinique mascara though.
I like Cover Girl’s concealer, powder and professional mascara, but all my other skincare products are Aloette: foaming cleanser, toner, moisturizer, foundation when I wear it (CC cream), lipstick, and Visible Aid for blemishes.
I feel like she is heading towards Nicole Kidman territory. She looks harsh and frozen.
I like Gwen, this seems like a natural step, late but a natural next step for her. Wish her well!
It’s a great if you’re after the tranny/drag queen look. She wears make-up like frosting. I can’t stand looking at her face.
It’s a smart move for her. My sister absolutely loves her Urban Decay palette. She’s got a good look. She looks great with red lips or when she goes natural/soft.
This is old news.
I received her eyeshadow pallet for Christmas from my husband. The pallet has so many variations of nudes, but I have a lot of bold urban decay colors that it’s a nice change. I went into Ulta this week and saw that her lip line came out. I got Spiderweb – it’s a perfect red (and a perfect song!). I love everything about it. I’m surprised she doesn’t have an eyeliner out yet. I felt like Veruca Salt, when I saw all those shades of lipsticks. Don’t care how I want it now!
Good for her, but her ‘look’ is not for me. Such a shame whats shes done to her face. Sad, really.
She does look fab in her soccer mom outfit!! Love those sneakers and her pony! I can’t believe she’s 46….makes me feel so old. Tragic Kingdom was the first cd I ever bought. And her eyebrows are looking so fab now!
Oh yes, will def shop her makeup. I love her street “paparazzi” style more than her working look. But I love it all. She does keep a soft spot in my heart, even if she may annoy me now and then. Love those orange high tops!!!!