If you’re anything like me, you’ve been losing your mind over the new show, Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. and Carolyn Bessette, starring Sarah Pidgeon and Paul Anthony Kelly (available to watch on Hulu). While every other video on my Tik Tok feed talks about Carolyn’s (CBK) 90s minimalistic style, very few talk about her effortlessly chic hair and makeup. Shiny vanilla blond hair, clean skin, almost bare eyes and the ever striking red lip, here’s how you achieve the same allure.
The key principles to CBK’s polished but low effort look are:
- Fresh healthy and glowy skin:
- Use a lightweight foundation or a skin tint. One of my favorites is the L’oreal Lumi Skin Glow Tint.
- Spot conceal and lightly powder only the under eyes and T-zone.
- A light dusting of a rosey-pink cream bronzer around the nose and cheeks
- Soft and defined eyes:
- Natural and wispy brows combed through with eyebrow gel
- Soft shades like beige and taupe for the eyes. The MAC Cosmetics Connect and Color palette is a must and works for a variety of complexions.
- A dark brown/black eye pencil around the lower lashline to spice it up.
- One or two coats of a black/ dark brown volumizing mascara.
- Lips: Nude Days vs Red Nights:
For her very minimal days:
- Choose a satin/ matte finish nude lipstick with a shade close to your natural lip shade.
- Soft edges, no heavy lip lining.
Signature red lip:
- The tone is very important: go for bloods, reddish browns and pure reds. Avoid neons and blue-pink shades. Ruby Woo and Warm Brick Red by MAC are my top recs.
- Lightly blur the edges so it looks lived-in.
- Always go for a smudge proof formula for a red lip.
- The sleek low ponytail:
- Part your hair in the middle and comb it tightly. You might want to use the Moroccan Oil Styling Gel to slick it back in case of flyaways.
- Secure the ponytail near the nape of your neck with a clear hair tie or one that matches the color of your hair.
- Embrace your hair’s natural texture instead of straightening it.
BONUS: You can also shop for CBK’s signature headbands at C.O. Bigelow in Greenwich Village
Pair your new look with a simple black slip dress or perhaps corduroy pants and a turtleneck to combat the post-blizzard lows. And that’s it, perfecting this look might just mean your JFK Jr. is right around the corner ;)