Fantasy Makeup On The Streets of Milan Fashion Week

The Milan Fashion Week street-style stars are showing up in their most avant-garde makeup looks this season.

With Milan Fashion Week’s Fall 2023 shows in full swing, there has been no shortage of dazzling street style to look forward to. The famous and fashionable were all in attendance this week, with celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Selma Hayek, Florence Welch, Julia Garner, and more all gracing the Milanese front rows.

After departing from London’s punk celebration in honor of the late Vivienne Westwood, the Italian fashion houses kept in tune with the tone of counterculture nostalgia. Moschino’s models were styled with aristo-punk, grunge headwear, while Gucci and Etro’s collections recalled back to ’80s glam rock New Romantics, and early Y2K proportions.

On the streets, the stylish show-goers spared no ounce of effort with their off-kilter, eclectic makeup. Aligned with the bold trends that came out of New York Fashion Week, street-style stars appeared with their faces painted in fanciful and unconventional color placements.

Several experts point to the “Wednesday effect” which ignited “goth fairy” eyeliner, or the “Euphoria effect” which defined a wave of glitter-fueled fantastical makeup, as this trend’s origins. Whether it was that or a reignited desire for escapism, graphic and abstract shapes, along with gems and sequins, was this week’s biggest accessory.

Traditional qualms about “pretty” and “minimalist” makeup were cast aside for many attendees, who instead opted to lend themselves to fashion as blank canvases. The bright pigments often extended to vibrant hair colors as well, with shades of pinks and greens leading the pack.

The more toned-down versions of the trend featured bleached eyebrows, still paired with a statement eye or lip color. However outlandish or held back these voguish attendees decided to go, it was clear that they fully committed to fashion’s ability to allow people to dream.