Schiaparelli Puts Black Lipstick Back On The Map at Couture

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Photographed by Acielle/Style Du Monde

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When it comes to beauty, Schiaparelli never disappoints. From Kendall Jenner’s runway bouffant—the one that sparked a thousand big hair ideals—to Pat McGrath’s crystalized “chandelier face” (both in the brand’s spring/summer 2024 show), there’s always a bounty of beauty inspiration to take away. It makes sense, then, that for the autumn/winter 2025 couture show, the brief would be no different: Striking, moment-making beauty that requires a second look to glean every last detail.

Hot on the heels of Sunday s glittering Le Bal d’Été, Schiaparelli presented a glamorous, ethereal take on modern beauty, keyed by the pairing of makeup artist Dame Pat McGrath and hairstylist Guido Palau.

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Schiaparelli’s autumn/winter 2025 couture show.

Photographed by Acielle/Style Du Monde

“It’s almost a study of black and white photography,” McGrath shares, speaking to Vogue backstage. “So, as we always do at Schiaparelli, the skin is very angelic and highlighted with beautiful, gleaming skin texture with the glass skin spray (the Skin Fetish Glass 001) on the cheekbone area alone.” For the eyes, which were noticeably devoid of much adornment, McGrath used just one lick of her Pat McGrath Labs Fetisheyes Mascara on models lashes.

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Schiaparelli’s autumn/winter 2025 couture show.

Photographed by Acielle/Style Du Monde

The pièce de résistance, though, came in the form of the lip. Models either sported a rich, inky black shade, topped with a lacquer of clear gloss and—for a chosen four models—a punchy red. The shade, of course, is the Legendary Longwear Lipliner in shade Elson to outline and color in the shape.

Her advice to recreate it at home? Draw the outline as cleanly and sharply as possible, taking a small eyeshadow brush to buff the color out into the center of the lip, filling it in with more pencil. Ultra-clean and stark, the effect is, in McGrath’s words, a futuristic take on the glamour of black and white photography. “I wanted a really modern take. That’s where we went with the power of the lip and the power of the mouth,” she says. “It’s all about contrast.”

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Schiaparelli’s autumn/winter 2025 couture show.

Photographed by Acielle/Style Du Monde
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Schiaparelli’s autumn/winter 2025 couture show.

Photographed by Acielle/Style Du Monde

For the hair, Palau pushed a classic style into the future, playing with shape, dimension, and projection. “For Schiaparelli, we worked out this idea of a beautiful, pulled-together woman with a snatched-back, clean, sophisticated, chic chignon that’s kind of conical,” Palau shared. “[The chignons] extend the head shape. Doing a chignon or a knot but pulling it out really gives you a great lift,” he explained.

Naturally, the front row glinted with stars. Hunter Schafer, with an elegant chignon of her own, and Cardi B, wearing a sleek bumped bob and dramatic beaded ensemble, shared the pew with a faux-feathered Dua Lipa.