Aquatic-inspired hair and makeup is the must-try look of the summer

The spring/summer 2023 catwalks gave us our first glimpse of the fashion and beauty movement dubbed “mermaid core”. Models at Gucci sported undone, waist-skimming hair, their faces painted with holographic highlighter. While at Dries Van Noten, models looked like they'd just stepped out of the surf onto the runway.

The release of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, has only added to the aesthetic’s popularity. Given the original fairytale was written by Danish author Hans Christian Anderson, it seemed only fitting that the beauty shoot in Vogue Scandinavia’s June/July issue should take its inspiration from mermaids – but with an artfully, modern twist.

Rather than use shimmer, makeup artist Riku Campo swept glossy formulas over the skin to elevate each look and create what he calls ‘The Finnish Sauna Glow’. “It’s essentially the healthiest skin/makeup look,” says Campo. “I used the Westman Atelier Vital Skincare Complexion Drops all over the skin before tapping the Lit Up Highlighter Stick over the top for maximum shine.”

Of course, the only drawback with shine is that it can accentuate dry patches and bumps, so skin prep is of the topmost importance, says Campo. “Exfoliate your skin, apply a face mask that matches your skin type for 15 minutes and then, after rinsing, use toner to balance the pH of your skin,” he recommends. A serum, light day cream and SPF50 sunscreen complete the lineup for the base.

Another consideration is scaling back the amount of makeup you use to just one key facial feature. “With glowing skin, it looks better to have less makeup elsewhere; choose one area of the face – eyes, lips, brows or cheeks – and make it stand out," Campo notes. "That is the modern and more trendy way to wear makeup.”

Specifically, Campo matched a vibrant green eyeshadow from model Anastasiia's dress to Dior's matte Mono Couleur Couture High-Color Eyeshadow in ‘280 Lucky Clover’. “I only applied the eyeshadow to the middle of the eyes as that felt more modern and the pearls on the lower lash line give the look more of a mermaid feel.”

In another shot, he used a cream silver eyeshadow (Haus Labs By Lady Gaga Hy-Power Cream Eyeshadow in ‘Silver Shimmer’) in the inner and outer corners of the eyes - “it opens up the eyes by giving a beautiful light reflecting effect,” Campo remarks.

While for the blue chromatic eye, glitter sat atop cream eyeshadow in the same vibrant hue. “Anyone can take inspiration from these looks – there are no rules,” says Campo. “You may choose to maybe limit the amount of shine to the cheeks only for daytime or, if you don’t usually wear glitter, opt for a glitter eye pencil" and create a shimmery wing instead of loading up the whole lid.

Hair-wise, a just-stepped-out-of-the-ocean wet look was the brief. Hairstylist Daniella Midenge leant on both a centre-parted, slicked back ‘do and a low-key, stylised quiff, using just four tools on set: L’Oreal Paris Pure Wet Gel, a comb, pins and, all importantly, a spray bottle filled with water.

“I use the Wet Gel on all my shoots – even when I’m not going for a wet look – as it creates the type of shine and texture that I love seeing in the roots,” says Midenge. “It is also excellent for creating shapes with, as the gel is quite firm.”

As for switching up your look once when the hair has dried? That’s where the spray bottle with water comes in handy. “Water and gel live well together”, she says, adding that a generous misting with water, followed by gel application, allows you to mould the hair into a different shape.

“Gel is my go-to product, I never use oil or hairspray,” Midenge notes, which makes for a very modern approach to setting mermaid hair, indeed.