Iris Apfel Fêtes 100th Birthday With Makeup Collaboration
Soon-to-be centenarian Iris Apfel can now add a makeup line to her résumé.
In celebration of the style personality’s 100th birthday on Aug. 29, she is collaborating with Edward Bess, eponymous brand founder, on a limited-edition makeup collection.
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Consisting of three products — a blush, a lipstick and an eye shadow — the collection will be available on Bess’ website, as well as at the Peabody Essex Museum in Massachusetts, where Apfel is being honored. The full kit in a keepsake box is priced at $150, while the lipstick will be available separately for $50.
Bess, who has known Apfel for a decade, said the project was a creative challenge — albeit a fun one.
“It’s a tall order to celebrate someone who evokes so much flair, style, individuality, creativity and longevity, but I was up for an exciting challenge,” Bess told WWD. “I consider Iris proof that great things are recognized and never go out of fashion.”
As a friend of Apfel’s, the collaboration happened organically, Bess said. “We put our heads together. She loves lipstick, she loves color. And I put the eye shadow and blush together in a shape that evokes Iris’ signature frames.”
Although Bess is a pro at infusing whimsy in his projects (his last launch was literally called “Frou Frou”), he felt Apfel’s birthday was a momentous occasion to honor. “To celebrate being alive for 100 years is a thrill in and of itself. When you do it with her signature stamp of color and vibrancy, it’s just exciting, and it’s exciting to think that there’s always something to look forward to. Iris always reminds me of that,” he said.
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