The Backstory to Pamela Anderson’s ‘No-makeup’ Look
Pamela Anderson still likes a makeup look — but on her terms.
Considered a beauty icon since the ‘90s, Anderson returned to the spotlight in 2023 with the release of her Netflix documentary “Pamela, a Love Story,” and her memoir, “Love, Pamela,” from HarperCollins. During the year, she also made headlines with her makeup-free looks on red carpets and fashion shows.
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Her fresh-faced era started in February when the author and activist posed for a WWD cover profile. Styled by WWD style director Alex Badia and Heather Hazzan, Anderson embraced the idea of wearing a more natural beauty look for her photo shoot — a nod to one of the scenes in her Netflix documentary, where she appears in her natural beauty.
“We presented the idea to her and her team right before the shoot and, at the shoot, we spoke again about the no makeup and she went for it,” Badia said. “I just had seen her documentary and she appeared in some moments at home without it and I thought she looked amazing and pushed for it.”
In September, Anderson went fresh-faced to Victoria Beckham’s spring 2024 fashion show during Paris Fashion Week. On Dec. 5, she also went makeup-free at the Fashion Awards 2023 in London.
Anderson published an entry title “A Gentle Routine” in her weekly online journal on Tuesday, talking about her no-makeup beauty journey. The 56-year-old author and activist explained she lost interest in “hovering over the sink with multiple steps” and has “weeded out” beauty products.
“I plant things where I’ll see them and [apply them]…a rose hydration spray in the fridge that I use every time I open it…a lip balm in my bag that I apply all day long especially in the winter,” she described.
Anderson said she is wearing homemade formulas, including a rose hip facial oil that she uses “just ‘as my makeup’ these days.” The Pandora global ambassador wrote her routine’s goal is to go “back to basics,” adding, “I prefer a bare face these days.
“I still love a big makeup look when I feel like it — there lays the empowerment,” she wrote.
Reminiscing on her beauty statement during Paris Fashion Week, she said: “Something just kind of came over me and I was dressing in these beautiful clothes and I thought, I don’t want to compete with the clothes. I’m not trying to be the prettiest girl in the room. I feel like it’s just freedom. It’s a release.”
Previously, Anderson has talked about losing interest in makeup since the death of her longtime makeup artist and friend Alexis Vogel in 2019. The two of them released a vegan and cruelty-free makeup line in 2016.
Launch Gallery: Pamela Anderson on Her Legacy, Fashion Influences, and Being an Icon
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