London Fashion Week 2018: The secret behind Alexa Chung’s beauty look

Model massages and no foundation, Alexa Chung’s fashion week debut was a skincare haven
Sabrina Carder15 September 2018

Backstage at London Fashion Week is known for being loud and just a little bit hectic. However, Alexa Chung’s fashion week debut was quite the opposite.

In fact, dare we say, it was peaceful.

Upon arrival, models chosen to showcase Chung’s latest collection for her eponymous brand, Alexachung, were met not with a heavy handed eyeliner pencil, but instead, with a Gankin massage.

The facial, which takes just three minutes, was created in Japan 15 years ago and is specially designed for models and actresses before going on set.

A model getting a Gankin massage backstage
SUQQU

Gankin brand Specialist, Shumana Begum, explained the nine-step massage works on three areas: "releasing the stiffness of facial muscles, working on your blood circulation and lymph drainage, and it helps to define the bone structure.”

The results can be seen immediately and overall "helps to brighten the skin and give a contoured finish” that can last for 12 hours.

The results can last up to 12 hours
SUQQU

Getting the skin to look as plump and dewy as possible was a key factor for Alexa's beauty look, as the models skin was then adorned with a light layer of no-makeup makeup.

“The inspiration behind the makeup was a futuristic, hyper real alternate universe” explained SUQQU artist, Georgina Graham, who coined it “a beautiful hyper real nothing”. Meanwhile, Alexa herself likened it to Black Mirror.

When briefing her team backstage, the makeup artists said: “I don’t want to see any foundation” - a statement you don't often hear backstage at fashion week.

The models skin had a perfect dewy glow
SUQQU

But, it came with good reason, as in order to create the clean and fresh aesthetic the makeup artist instructed: "nothing should be defined everything should be highlighted".

Indeed, the main beauty statement was a strong pop of highlight, which helped to create a magical hyper real glow.

Alexa Chung SS19 at London Fashion Week

1/24

As well as there being no foundation and sparse amounts of concealer, there was also not a makeup brush in sight, as artists gently used their fingers to create the refreshing catwalk look.

Watch the video above to see how Gankin and SUQQU created Alexachungs catwalk look

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in