Look, it goes without saying that it’s been some time since we got appropriately gussied up for a party. But that doesn’t mean we aren’t missing it. Like a muscle just begging to be flexed, we stare at our most audacious eyeshadow palettes and lipstick shades with longing, pining after the days when we could apply makeup with both enthusiasm and purpose – rather than the reluctant neutral base we’re currently putting on to appease our own reflections on Zoom.

Enter New York Fashion Week in all its splendour, serving us a much-needed dose of cosmetic drama. The perfect entrée? RVNG’s bold glamour, as directed by Jackie Gideon, which paired frothy sartorial confections with a serve of negative-space winged eyeliner and brilliant pouts on the makeup menu. It’s exactly what we’ve been craving throughout those long periods in lockdown: an unapologetic optimism via the much-missed medium of cosmetics.

rvng beauty nyfw 2021
Credit: George Pimentel

Striking ’60s-style eyeliner and shadow span the width of models’ eyes and then some, stretching all the way out to just beneath the tip of the brow. But the hues applied to each individual eye ran the gamut of inky 80s shades, from azure to soft indigo.

Each colour was kept contained inside the confines of the dual winged liner, with one line arching through the crease and the other along the lashline before meeting and flicking out at the edge of the eye.

rvng beauty nyfw 2021
Credit: George Pimentel

The lips were amped up also, with varying shades of magenta, scarlet and neon pink breaking the age-old axiom that dictates eyes and lips should never compete for attention on a single complexion. Each pout was given an extra touch of lustre, be it a glossy finish or even a smattering of glitter on a few feature kissers.

rvng beauty nyfw 2021
Credit: George Pimentel

Hair was styled super-straight but soft and glossy, as if the wearer had just left the salon – a mere many for many that will no doubt be cherished post-pandemic. It plays into our collective penchant for all things early ’00s, which has informed the revival of a number of retro beauty trends in recent months – think separated strands and chunky highlights – but with an elevated appeal that will rope in the sophisticates among us.

rvng beauty nyfw 2021
Credit: George Pimentel

So why not treat the 2021 RVNG show as your post-pandemic makeup moodboard and start embracing the forgotten magic of beauty’s brightest – even if only for an evening at virtual drinks.