Inside Chelsea Handler’s Makeup Bag
COSMETIC WARDROBE: Inside Chelsea Handler’s Makeup Bag With Green Beauty Expert Katey Denno
The all-natural beauty expert adds new green essentials to her friend and client Chelsea Handler’s beauty repertoire.
Written By JAYME CYK
Known for her extensive knowledge of all-natural beauty, Katey Denno is as beloved for her effervescent energy as she is for her ability to create a flawless complexion. Clients (who include Amber Heard, Chelsea Handler, Connie Britton, and Mindy Kaling, among others) rely on her holistic approach and ingredient insights. In her new quarterly column for The Violet Files, Denno uses her expertise to analyze and fill any voids in her clients beauty regimens with the best in natural beauty.
First, Denno suggests the essentials that would best suit the cosmetic wardrobe of her friend and client Chelsea Handler. And Handler, whos new talk show Chelsea airs tomorrow on Netflix, was certain she was already doing a bang-up job when it comes to her beauty regimen, but that was before she heard about Denno’s additions. (It’s worth noting that the two started working together after Denno cold-emailed Handler to offer help refreshing her look.)
And although Handler admitted, “I didn’t even know I had to wash my face until I was in my twenties,” and “I just started drinking water at the tender age of forty,” Denno has gotten her client thinking about what she puts in her mouth and on her skin. “Chelsea drinks green juices and eats super healthy, which we all know is step one to make skin glow,” says the organic guru. “I’m always sharing my take on the world of green beauty and, to my delight, she’s usually pretty into hearing what I have to say.”
REVAMPING CHELSEA HANDLER’S MAKEUP BAG
By Katey Denno
1 / 5
LASH ENHANCER
I love the fan shape that this curler gives to the lashes. It’s amazing how much more Chelsea’s blue eyes will sparkle when her lashes are curled just right.
UTOWA EYELASH CURLER
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2 / 5
SHINE BRIGHT
I use this highlighter on Chelsea every day when she’s filming her show, and she also needs one for home—it gives skin so much life and is super hydrating. I apply it on top of her cheekbones, along the bridge of her nose, and on her cupid’s bow to give her the natural look she loves.
RMS BEAUTY LIVING LUMINIZER
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3 / 5
NAIL FOUNDATION
I’ve never known anyone as fastidious about a manicure and pedicure as Chelsea. It would make me so happy if she switched to five-free nail polish. This RGB Base Coat would be a great addition because she would at least reduce her direct exposure to toxins and give her nails (and therefore her bloodstream) a protective barrier.
4 / 5
EYE OPENER
It’s the perfect color to make Chelsea’s intensely blue eyes pop, and it works so well with her fair skin tone. It has great blendability, so she could even smudge it on with her finger in a pinch.
KJAER WEIS EYE SHADOW COMPACT IN EARTHY CALM
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5 / 5
SMOOTH AND LUMINOUS
This oil will be great for helping Chelsea show off her fit body. I want her skin to always glow and reflect the light, and she’ll like its fresh botanical smell, especially for spring and summer!
AFRICAN BOTANICS MARULA SHIMMERING GOLD OIL
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MEET THE ARTIST - KATEY DENNO
ARTIST STATS
Name: Katey Denno
Known For: Flawless, dewy skin
Where to Find Her: Los Angeles
Clients: Chelsea Handler, Connie Britton, Mindy Kaling, Amber Heard
Years in the Industry: 10
Instagram: @kateydenno
Beauty Essential: Utowa Eyelash Curler
Mentions in The Violet Files: May Lindstrom The Blue Cocoon
Agent: Dana Gardner @ The Wall Group
Katey Denno didn’t know that the occupation of makeup artist existed until she was in her mid-twenties and was seated next to one at a dinner party. Denno, a social worker at the time, learned from her dining partner that “as an assistant I could travel the world, make three hundred dollars a day, and get to see things I never thought I would—and that the food on photo shoots was fantastic,” Denno recalls of the sudden revelation. “The next day, I called in sick to work and assisted her on a Nautica campaign. It was nothing like what I thought ‘work’ had to be.”
Denno had been (unconsciously) preparing for this vocation long before she set her sights on the beauty industry. “I was schooled on how to do makeup while I was a social worker in clinics serving HIV-positive patients,” she says. “My male-to-female transitioning clients showed me how makeup transformed them into the person they felt most comfortable being, and I was able to use makeup-talk and application as a catalyst for emotional transformation.” The experience also sparked her passion for green beauty (Denno uses only natural products). “It was the culmination of years of social work with patients with compromised immune systems and learning how to examine ingredients,” she explains.
It didn’t take long after that fateful dinner for Denno to get her big break. After only eight months of assisting, an agent at The Wall Group called her in for a meeting and said she was ready to go out on her own. Clients like Christy Turlington and a smattering of celebrities (Amanda Seyfried, Felicity Jones, et al.) soon followed.
Denno has since made a name for herself as a guru of all things green beauty, and she caters to an impressive roster of celebrity clients, including Amber Heard, Connie Britton, Chelsea Handler, and Mindy Kaling. Two years ago, she relocated to Los Angeles because of a high concentration of West Coast clients (not to mention the draw of the great weather). One of the artist’s favorite Los Angeles pastimes? Strolling through different neighborhoods and stopping to smell the flowers. “I find my inspiration in the subtle differences in shape, petal texture, and even scents,” she says. “They remind me of facial features and how makeup feels and smells.”
KATEY DENNO’S GREEN KIT ESSENTIALS
KJAER WEIS LIP TINT COMPACT IN SENSUOUS PLUM
Hydrates lips with a luxurious tint.
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