After weeks of exhaustive speculation about whodunit, HBO’s six-part thriller The Undoing came to an end last night. A couple things we now know (though maybe have known all along?), besides the identity of the killer: Donald Sutherland’s wiry eyebrows just don’t quit. And Nicole Kidman is the picture of an unflappable, upper-crust bohemian beauty muse. Yes, even while darting out of a helicopter and hightailing it across a bridge to save her son, Kidman’s character maintains a total Pre-Raphaelite goddess aesthetic.
While Grace Fraser’s cascade of auburn spirals has been generating as much buzz as her rotation of sumptuous jewel-toned coats, now that we can finally exhale, it’s time to give due credit to her soft, yet bulletproof make-up strategy as well. Near-perfect skin, a healthy flush, and rose-stained lips... You don’t look that majestically laissez-faire while traipsing around New York City or enduring a grizzly murder trial (for which your husband is prime suspect, no less) without a few deft tricks.
In crafting her look, make-up artist Kyra Panchenko received specific directives from director Susanne Bier. “She didn’t want her in a box of what we would think an ‘upper east side’ professional would look like,” explains Panchenko. “She wanted her style to be very bohemian and unique. With her wild, curly red hair, Grace’s make-up was supposed to be less dramatic and more natural.” As such, it was about sticking to the basics and keeping it practical for a mother and Manhattan therapist mingling with uptown elites. “She doesn’t spend more than five minutes on her make-up, she doesn’t even think about it...” says Panchenko. “It could even be applied while in a taxi on the way to work. A little tinted moisturiser, blush, mascara, and lip stain. Done!”
To give Kidman a dewy glow, Panchenko added a veil of La Mer moisturiser cocktailed with the brand’s Concentrate, before “breaking down” Clé de Peau’s matte liquid Radiant Fluid foundation with a dose of In Fiore’s calendula oil. “Nicole has beautiful skin so I don’t like to cover it with too much foundation or you lose that natural glow,” she says. To further awaken the skin, she blended Glossier’s Cloud Paint in either cool pink Puff or rosy nude Dusk on the apples of the cheeks for a soft rouge. A sheer wash of Armani Eye Tint in frosty taupe #8 along the eye sockets, a few coats of Hourglass Caution Extreme Lash mascara, and a smack of Pat McGrath Lip Fetish in warm beige Blow Up or dark pink Love Supreme completed the look. “She had so much colour and vibrancy in her hair and clothing, I didn’t want to compete with that and used sheer and translucent washes of colour that complemented her fair skin,” explains Panchenko.
Somehow, between private school benefits, existential spirals, and high profile court appearances over the course of the show, Kidman’s soft make-up presents as both sublimely pretty and real-world wearable (particularly for the current pared-back moment). It’s a study in striking, yet low-maintenance make-up that’s worth exploring, whether you’re refining your Zoom-ready routine, looking for a touch of understated glamour against your holiday finery, or seeking revenge on one Jonathan Fraser.
