The 11 Badass Hair & Makeup Pros Who Are Transforming the Beauty World
The secret behind many of your all-time favorite celebrity hair and makeup looks? The credit goes to badass, talented, and inspirational women. And today, in honor of International Women’s Day, we’re celebrating the achievements of a few hairstylists and makeup artists who have completely transformed the Hollywood beauty industry, and our very own hair and makeup habits, as well. From Jen Atkin and her Ouai hair care empire to Pat McGrath and everything she cooks up in her labs, here are 10 artists that we can't stop applauding.
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Charlotte Tilbury
Kim Kardashian West gave this makeup artist permission to name a lipstick after her—and so did Penelope Cruz, Miranda Kerr, Sienna Miller, Kate Bosworth, any many, many more celebrity beauty icons, if that's saying anything. Clearly, she made an impression on the Hollywood crew, but Charlotte Tilbury is a celebrity in her own right at this point. She's known for never ever taking off her eye makeup (seriously, she wears it in her sleep) and her massive beauty collection available at major retailers like Nordstrom and Bloomingdale's. The star products? Her Magic Cream ($100; nordstrom.com) and iconic Matte Revolution Lipsticks ($34; nordstrom.com).
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Rita Hazan
One name. Beyoncé.
Yes, celebrity colorist Rita Hazan is responsible for the Queen Bey's honey blonde highlights, and if in some astonishing circumstance that's not enough to impress you, her celebrity clientele roster also has included Jessica Simpson and Céline Dion. After ten years working at the Oribe salon, she opened her own salon on the Upper East Side and launched her hugely successful color care collection, including a Split End Therapy ($30; sephora.com) that'll help you push off that trim a few more weeks.
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Sarah Potempa
Beachy waves philosopher, Sarah Potempa has revolutionized the way women do their hair at home with her curling iron, the Beachwaver. But as you can probably tell from Lea Michele's Snapchat, the celebrity hairstylist, who first started working in a salon at age 15, is still responsible for some of the most beautiful hair looks that grace the red carpet. Her brand has also sponsored the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show for the past two years, giving supermodels like Gigi Hadid and Angels like Elsa Hosk the tousled hair treatment.
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Lacy Redway
You freak out over Olivia Palermo's hair a lot, right? Well, there's a chance the messy waves or slicked-back look was a creation of Lacy Redway, a celebrity hairstylist who began showing her interest in hair at age 11 and took on an apprenticeship in an African-American hair salon studying hair braiding at age 14! Since then, she's worked with some of the most sought-after hairstylists in the world—and become one with nearly 29K followers on Instagram and a vision for beautiful and conceptual styles.
A few of the other celebrities she calls her clients? Priyanka Chopra, Uzo Aduba, and even Solange.
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Mary Phillips
There was never a question in Mary's mind: This woman was always planning on growing up to become a makeup artist. Turns out, she became one of the world's greatest. Every time you see Chrissy Teigen's glowing makeup on the red carpet, there's a very, very large chance it was the handiwork of celebrity makeup artist Mary Phillips. Lit-from-within beauty looks are most definitely her specialty, and her concentrated approach to skincare before applying makeup is awe-inspiring—and likely one of the reasons all her clients have radiant complexions when we see them on camera. Oh, and J.Lo's glow? As Jennifer Lopez's personal makeup artist, she's the woman behind all the looks you like on Instagram.
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Sarah Tanno
Just named a Marc Jacobs Beauty brand ambassador, Sarah Tanno has a unique and creative stance on editorial makeup. To give you an example, she was the mastermind behind Lady Gaga's sparkly purple eyeshadow at the Super Bowl and regularly works with the singer on her makeup for magazine spreads and campaigns. With 100K followers to her name, her Instagram account is an inspiration board filled with graphic eye makeup and perfectly groomed brows.
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Jennifer Yepez
Zendaya, Jessica Alba, Gigi and Bella Hadid, Ashley Graham, and Adriana Lima. All regulars to Jennifer Yepez's outstanding hair treatments. She does it all, too, with braids, waves, out-of-this-world updos, and high ponytails that regularly make "best of beauty" lists. Born and raised in New York City, this artist, who has a massive 103K followers on Instagram, has been practicing her craft since she was 18 years old, but now she is very much a global jet-setter inspiring the world with her beautiful styles on Hollywood's biggest names.
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Katey Denno
Natural beauty lovers, here's your girl. Unlike many of the artists we've talked about, Katey Denno, a celebrity makeup artist who regularly works with Amanda Seyfried and Felicity Jones, started off her career on a completely different path as a social worker. Today, she specializes in green-focused beauty, often creating looks consisting of luminous skin, crisp lipstick, and soft smoky eyes.
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Riawna Capri
Can we just have her hair? Judging from her appearance on social media, it doesn't look like Riawna Capri ever has a bad hair day. Classifying herself as a "beauty coach," Capri is known for cutting (and even coloring) the shags, lobs, and bobs we all want and love on celebrities like Nina Dobrev, Julianne Hough, and Emma Roberts. She's a co-founder of Nine Zero One Salon, one of the hottest beauty destinations in Los Angeles that is frequently visited by the hottest celebrities in Hollywood. Her specialty, in our opinion? Messy waves that move and lived-in styles that just scream "it list."
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Pat McGrath
It’s hard not to fan-girl in front of Pat McGrath—believe us, we've tried. She's been called the most influential makeup artist in the world, and her 1.2 million followers speaks to her fame, talent, and popularity. Through Pat McGrath Labs, her self-named collection, she’s delivered her fans limited-edition and innovative products like glitter lip kits we saw on basically every celebrity or the dewy dual-sided SkinFetish003 highlighters. She’s the lead makeup artist at fashion’s biggest and buzziest runway shows, including Versace, Victoria Beckham, Anna Sui, Givenchy, and Tommy Hilfiger. To top that off, she’s a global beauty creative design director for Procter and Gamble brands CoverGirl and Max Factor. Landing on this list was a given.
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Jen Atkin
Simply put, Jen Atkin is a genius. The hairstyling legend was cast into the spotlight alongside the Kardashians and has created some of the the most beautiful hair looks we've ever seen on every member of the KarJenner crew (of course), top supermodels, and actors alike. The waves Kim Kardashian was known for back in the day? All Atkin! But she's a multifaceted genius, launching her own hugely successful and innovative hair care line OUAI and an entire beauty editorial site, Mane Addicts.
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By Victoria Moorhouse Victoria Moorhouse