The Beauty All-Stars that Won Our Hearts
By Megan Mcintyre & Anne Marie Guarnieri
When we started our first ever beauty awards, we had no idea just how hard picking a winner was going to be. Even with the help of our amazing judging panel, we still struggled. Every person and product listed here was one that we wholeheartedly supported for its general awesomeness — singling out just one to win was like trying to choose a favorite child.
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But, after a lot of deliberation, some heated back-and-forths, and a few knock-down, drag-out fights, we’ve crowned our champions. Ahead, the 29 people, brands, and products that have changed the beauty landscape as we know it — and delivered some pretty kickass beautifiers in the process.
Innovator Of The Year
TROY SURRATT
There are many reasons why Troy Surratt, makeup artist and creator of Surratt Beauty, deserves an award: his incredible skill, his devotion to his craft, his boundless creativity.
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But the reason he deserves this award is his commitment to pushing the limits of what makeup can do in the service of making women look and feel their most beautiful. Surratt has married his encyclopedic knowledge of makeup with an intense interest in technology. The result is a line of cosmetics intent on breaking rules, defying conventions, and most importantly, bringing delight to makeup counters around the world.
Lifetime Achievement Award
DICK PAGE
Fashion Week around the world probably couldn’t happen without Dick Page, makeup artist extraordinaire and artistic director for Shiseido The Makeup, who is a sought-after and charming presence backstage both in New York and at shows around the world.
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His palettes for Shiseido are beautifully colored, and he creates them through a ridiculously painstaking process that starts with his own photography, which he uses to color-match paint and eventually turns into makeup.
Editorially, he is equally artistic, creating iconic looks for magazines and brands including Love, Vogue, Self Service, Isabel Marant, Céline, and Marc Jacobs. “Mr. Page is a runway and editorial legend, and his work and influence continue to inspire!” — Robin Black
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Must-Watch Beauty Vlogger
WAYNE GOSS
If you’re not already familiar with Goss, here’s an intro, by the numbers:
2 million: number of YouTube subscribers
5: number of minutes it took his brush collection to sell out
9 million: number of views for his most-watched tutorial, Contour and Highlight Like Kim Kardashian
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Goss has never done editorial. “Editorial is beautiful. Very. It’s also fiction. It’s not real,”he’s said. “The models and actresses themselves don’t look like that — so, to me, it’s promoting an unrealistic image that we all want to look like but just can’t.” Goss considers himself more of a teacher, and clearly, his students are devoted.
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“His videos have popped up in my feed for years, and when I need help contouring, awakening, or highlighting my skin, he never fails me. I’ve always loved how calm, straightforward, and informative his tutorials are. Plus, he shows that makeup and cosmetics are for all genders!” — Janet Mock
Keep Reading About 29 Beauty All-Stars That Won Our Hearts On Refinery29!