Beauty news: Gucci Makeup is coming to New Zealand

Raw, punk and totally anti-beauty, it was a campaign that was instantly iconic – and drove luxury beauty fans wild. It heralded the fact that Gucci Makeup by Alessandro Michele was officially here, and in just over a month, it will be making its way to New Zealand at long last.

Ever since Gucci launched an Instagram feed for beauty last year, the industry has been gagging to see what Creative Director  Michele's vision for the Italian house's cosmetics range would look like. After months focusing on fragrance, he finally turned his attention to makeup, with a 58-piece lipstick collection featuring three different formulations that dropped in major markets in May this year. 

It came with the aforementioned beauty campaign, photographed by Martin Parr. The images feature Dani Miller, the lead singer of punk band Surfbort, as well as models Mae Lapres, Achok Majak and Ellia Sophia Coggins. The '80s-inspired campaign is meant to communicate that "makeup should not mask, but rather exalt, flaws and make them part of the language of beauty,” and it was a hit (and naturally generated a LOT of conversation).

Michele’s vision disrupted the Italian house’s narrative in fashion from the moment he arrived on the scene four years ago.  A champion of expressing the self as much as possible, the creative director also sees makeup as a way to show one’s true character inside. “Defects should be evidenced and not hidden away,” says the makeup brand’s first press release, “and within this language everyone should be able to wear makeup how they want to, whether to reveal your true self, allowing you to be yourself, or as a means to transform, allowing you to be who you want to be”. 

A lipstick is the ultimate makeup tool, and was a fitting place for Michele to start. Gucci’s three lipstick collections are diverse formulations: Rouge à Lèvres Satin with a satin finish, Rouge à Lèvres Voile with a sheer finish, and Baume à Lèvres, a lip balm with a translucent finish.  Ehen creating these formulas, Michele was reportedly inspired by the lips of Hollywood stars from the Golden Age, which expressed sensuality, charm and influence—sometimes within the same look. 

Imbued with the House’s philosophy of transforming the past into the absolutely contemporary, the lipsticks are full of colour and come in a broad palette. The names of the shades are inspired by iconic Hollywood movies and characters from the gilded era, played by the likes of Jean Harlow, and other famous actresses – Maureen O’Hara, Anne Baxter, Bette Davis, Greta Garbo and their peers. The themes of the legendary films embodying the glamour and folly of the time also inspire the lipsticks, including titles such as ‘Love Before Breakfast’ ‘Three Wise Girls’ and ‘A Royal Scandal’. 

The Rouge à Lèvres Satin formula is creamy and high pigment, delivering a perfect and long-lasting satin finish. It leaves lips smooth and soft, and is lightweight with a comfortable feel. The 36 shades sweep from nudes to reds to pinks and even an unexpected black hue, ‘Crystal Black’. 

Rouge à Lèvres Voile is a more sheer formula that gives a luminous finish in a pop colour palette of 18 shades, whilst the Baume à Lèvres is a lip balm that bestows the wearer with a soft glow of colour in three shades and one transparent. The collection’s Colour Star is 25* Goldie Red, an emblematic red shade formulated in satin and sheer finishes that recalls the red lipstick the Creative Director saw on the lips of women when he was a child in the 80s. The starred 25 on the label is a reference to his lucky number. 

The packaging is naturally also quite fabulous, and instantly recognisable as pure Gucci.

Packaged in a gold tube, Rouge à Lèvres Satin is etched with a decorative style that borrows its flair from Art Deco inspirations. Rouge à Lèvres Voile makes a feminine statement in a pink rosebud print on ivory with a gold base as if they came from a 1940s dressing table. Baume à Lèvres is contained in a turquoise coloured tube, a hybrid shade of blue and green chosen specifically by because it represents an attention to colour. 

Gucci’s three lipstick collections will be available from David Jones Newmarket from 1 November, 2019. All three formulas will have an RRP of $67 and yep, I want them all. New products for the other elements of the face will reportedly also debut soon, so keep an eye out.