Cynthia Erivo's Makeup Artist Dishes On Her Sultry Oscars Look

Cynthia Erivo may be petite in stature, but the English actor and total vocal powerhouse brought some serious heat to this years’ Oscars red carpet and Vanity Fair after party. With her sensually smoky eyes, flawlessly chiseled complexion, and ethereally light brows — the star shared on Instagram that her look is serving undoubted “BDE” (and I’d have to completely agree).

Recently performing in 2019’s Oscar-nominated Harriet, taking the stage in the Tony Award-winning Broadway revival of The Color Purple, as well as starring alongside Ariana Grande in the much-anticipated film adaptation of the Broadway show Wicked — all eyes are fixated on what Erivo will do next.

Bustle tapped Joanna Simkin — the makeup artist behind Erivo’s sultry Oscars look — for an exclusive look inside the expertly executed glam, created entirely with a range of beautyblender products.

Using beautyblender’s BOUNCE Always On Radiant Skin Tint in the shade Deep 3 with a damp original beautyblender, Simkin lightly coated her eyes and eyebrows with barely-there coverage. Smoky and totally statement-making, Erivo’s deep eyes were clearly the star of the show, while her ultra-light arched brows took a backstage seat. Simkin goes on to share: “Cynthia likes her brows to fade into her face but not necessarily completely disappear, so the skin tint is a perfect product.”

Opting for a more neutral, bronzed look, she then applied the BOUNCE Magic Fit Creamy Bronzer & Highlighter Duo — a brand new product — in the shade Chocolate & Deep Bronze to her eyes. The bronzer is featured all-over the lid, from lash to crease, and is seamlessly blended out at the edges. The shimmering highlight shade was then placed over the lid for that light-catching, subtle sheen.

Moving onto skin, Simkin continued to work with a damp beautyblender to apply that same Skin Tint all-over, enhancing Erivo’s already stunning complexion. The BOUNCE Airbrush Liquid Whip Concealer in the shade 4.35 was then swiped under the eyes, along the bridge of the nose, on the forehead, and on the chin for some added brightness and dimension — and that same Creamy Bronzer Duo was utilized to further carve out and define the cheekbones, temples, and jawline.

To set the face for a long-wear look that lasted all through the eventful night, Simkin opted for the BOUNCE Soft Focus Gemstone Setting Powder, dusted with the BIG BOSS Brush. The lighter hue in Topaz further brightened the center of Erivo’s face, with the deeper tone Chocolate set the perimeter.

No glam would be finished without some serious blush — so Simkin finished off with the BOUNCE Liquid Whip Cream Blush in the flirtatious shade Blissful Berry, blended to perfection on the multi-hyphenate’s cheekbones.

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