90s make-up and hair back on the crest of the wave: I wanted, very badly I wanted

the 90s, a decade that for Gen Z is absolutely classified as vintage, they are really cool and perfect for a contemporary toiletry bag. The nostalgia effect on the younger generations thus recovers a time when they were going crazy chocolate lipsticks on the lips, Rachel’s cut of Friends and what more than Teen Spirit smelled like ck One. A time when the beauty was basic and natural in response to the colorful excesses of the previous eighties.

Of course, as we know in the case of any retro revival, it’s about today adapt the beauty musts of the 90s to the third millennium, so as not to look like an antique. How to do? Let’s start from the base.

The skin: natural finish

At the P/E 2023 fashion shows by Dior, Jason Wu, Fendi and Chanelthe faces of the models were basically bare and slightly glossy: An updated take on the complexions from the Calvin Klein Fall 1993 show, when legendary makeup artist Dick Page staged a beauty revolution by sending models with facial clean (just a dab of Vaseline on cheeks and nose) and no mascara. Today the make-up/no make-up effect can be achieved with a very light foundation and a touch of bronzer to warm up the complexion and give it a more 2023 mood.

Eyebrows: the subtle beauty line

While skin looked natural in the 90s, as we know eyebrows weren’t at all. Very thin, almost non-existent, after decades of big brows hyear began to peep out among the models. On the catwalks of the season we have seen them from Vivienne Westwood draw with a thin pencil; from Victoria Beckham and Roberto Cavalli And Marc Jacobs even bleached. But beware of the wild spin today. To emulate the arcs of Bella Hadid, Alexa Demie or Jodie Turner-Smithit is necessary to proceed with caution perhaps using concealer to cover the eyebrows and then a pencil to draw them.

Put your gaze smudged

One of the most loved 90s trends was the neutral coffee-colored eyeshadow which made a welcome reappearance on the spring runways of Altuzarra, Ralph Lauren and Proenza Schouler.

In short, less is more make-up format. To contrast if necessary with a black pencil with a grunge effect. If in the 90’s the look smudged used to be achieved by patting Elizabeth Arden’s Eight Hour Cream around the eyes and then smearing it all over, today TikTok influencers achieve a similar look by applying pencil or eyeliner and then spraying a mist on the face.

Deliciously chocolate lips

Ban red or the pop and pink tones of the Eighties, the chicest lipstick in the 90s was the one in a shade of wine or coffee and applied in a hurry, without too much precision. In this season, The Row and Chanel they took note. Today, to recreate the same vibes on the lips, the diktat imposes a creamy beige lipstick with an absolutely opaque texture.

Hair, the update of the The Rachel

If the models on the catwalks for Sandy Liang have channeled Carolyn Bessette, the minimal chic style icon of the 90s (all of us at least once in our life have desired her hair blonde butter), no conversation about 90s hair can’t not start with the The Rachel, the iconic Chris McMillan cut shag popularized by Jennifer Aniston on the show Friends.

The 2023 update is what on TikTok today is called a wolf cut, spotted on super cool stars like Jenna Ortega and Miley Cyrus. This hairlook’s big comeback may be due in part to Gen Z discoveries Friends,

but it is also about the ease of its maintenance.

Ready, then, to update the trends of the most desired decade, generator of beauty obsessions that still work great today? In the gallery we have selected a series of essential products for fantastic beauty looks and how to recreate them inspired by Nineties divas.

More stories from Vanity Fair that may interest you:

The hair trend to follow now? Julia Roberts-esque 90s curls
Sanremo Festival #story: in the 90s the ultra glass look anticipates the trends of the third millennium
Hair, all the 90s cuts and hairstyles to experiment with now (and in 2021)