2AM MOTOMAMI

Welcome to NEW ERA BEAUTY — a brand new editorial series bringing the delicious intricacies of personal beauty to the forefront. With each forthcoming editorial, I will introduce a new muse of mine and an original beauty look — paired with a step by step tutorial — inspired by their persona. As the founder of NBGA, my goal has always been to spotlight the incredible diversity of our community and start conversations around beauty that go deeper than surface-level. Having called so many influential cities around the world my home, I have been constantly energized by charming chance encounters with the women I find around me in daily life. This editorial love letter is close to my heart for that reason.

In the #NewEra, beauty doesn’t stop at the exterior. It is an expansion of my theory that beauty is a reflection of all that lives inside of you. How you see yourself, what you focus on, how you make people feel. I wanted to pause, stop the noise, and capture the multidimensional nature of beauty as I see it and as I feel it. This editorial is a time capsule of what is happening within me creatively; a celebration of the human face in all of its countless colors, shapes, and forms.

I’m ready to pull back the velvet curtains on my private beauty universe, take you by the hand, and let you in.

— Sarah Feingold, NBGA Founder

Meet: Liz

Born and Raised: Kinshasa, Congo

Age: 26

Occupation: Model, Icon in the making

Star Sign: Sagittarius

First Meeting: On my set after sliding into her DM’s

Instagram: @lizpintoemelo

Shoot Location: Manhattan, New York

In classic 21st-century fashion, I came across Liz while I was scrolling Instagram a few years ago. In the first picture I saw of her, she was styled in long white-blonde braids and she looked so fantastical and elf-like. I’m a dreamer so I’m definitely charmed by fantasy. Mystical worlds and realms; elves, fairies, aliens; myths about magical, far away places. So her whole vibe caught my attention right away. When I was in the planning stage of the New Era beauty series, I slid into her DM’s and asked her if we could do something together. She was down, and the rest is history.

Liz is even more fly IRL – it’s no mystery why she was a muse for this project. Her facial composition? A dream to work with. Her presence? Authentic, grounded, and so hilarious. I felt a connection right away. She reminded me of my friends from the suburbs of Paris who live life in such a real, unfiltered way. And this look is for people who aren’t afraid to play with their shadow side; who wear their dark sense of humor like a family heirloom. With all heart and zero bullshit, Liz owned this look like no other.

BEAUTY BREAKDOWN?

To put it simply, this look is: Dark and daring. For the cool and casual temptresses, everyday love magnets, Scorpios et al.

LOOK INSPIRATION

I wanted to portray an energy that was a subtle blend of Aaliyah à la Queen of the Damned and every version of Catwoman since the 60s – tight black leather, shadowy liaisons, dark eyes, seductress activity. I first discovered the lip combination on Sophia Sinot’s IG – as soon as I saw this look I knew I wanted to bring it to life on the right face at some point. This look is not for everyone! Basics, beware.

EYES

Liz came onto set with her brows already bleached which allowed us to play up her eyes. We used MAC Cosmetics’ Technakohl Eyeliner in rich graphic black, doubled up with their Feline Kohl pencil in the waterline which gave us an ultra black rimmed eyeliner look with lots of saturation and punch. We added a leather brown eyeshadow stick from Sunnies Face in the shade Earth onto the lid to hollow out the socket whilst also bringing it underneath to soften out the black liner under the eye. On the brows, we applied Sensorium Beauty’s Brow Engineer to enhance the model’s bleached brows. We finished the eyes off with a lot of MAC Cosmetics’ Stack Mascara and some MAC lash clusters for an added oomph factor.

LIP

For the lip combination, we used the NARS Precision Lip Liner in Nasty Girl, a vivid and deep midnight black, to create a sharp and strong lip line around the lips but also through the center of the mouth. We then added a layer of BYREDO’s Color Stick in Dravite – a perfectly smoky deep crystallized brown – so that we could take a clean eyeshadow brush to feather and blend the liner into the lips, leaving that strong center line intact. We finished with clear Fantôme gloss from BYREDO.

SKIN

We wanted this look to be very dreamy and lit from within, so we prepped the skin with Pat McGrath’s Divine Skin rose essence to create a voluminous, hydrated base. We then added a small amount of MAC Cosmetics’ Face and Body foundation, and some NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer to even out the skin tone and brighten the under eye.

I love it when beauty looks push the boundaries – when it crosses over into strange and evocative territories.

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Photography SARAH FEINGOLD

Art/Beauty Direction SARAH FEINGOLD

Model LIZ PINTO

Makeup MOLLI GLOSS

Polaroid Photographer RICKY ALVAREZ

Light ZACK SHEA

Nails TYLER PHOENIX

Sarah Feingold

Founder of NBGA