The Perfectionists Hair and Makeup Interview
The Perfectionists' Glam Team Is Spilling All the Behind-the-Scenes Secrets From the Show
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If that underwater scene in the pilot episode of The Perfectionists — which, for the uninitiated, is the Pretty Little Liars spinoff everyone's been talking about — is anything to go by, then you know the show's hair and makeup team had their work cut out for them. Forget smeared eyeliner or a lone flyaway; they were completely submerged.
"That was really interesting — a big learning curve for us," Luce Cousineau, the makeup department head, told POPSUGAR. The solution here, and in most cases on the series, was to wing it (and, yeah, plenty of waterproof products). "At the end of the day, our directors and our first AP and certainly our camera folks — they understand this is a beauty show. They understand that sometimes we just need a moment with the actors, kind of get them to reset."
That means you can expect the same giddy feeling you got anytime Emily or Aria walked in with a new hair colour or lipstick from The Perfectionists crew — although it might have been easier if their glam room was set up in a tent next to the shooting camp (it wasn't, but more on that later). Then again, isn't everything more fun when you don't know what's going to happen next? Luckily for you, the hair and makeup team is rife with behind-the-scenes beauty secrets they actually want to share, so you can get a glimpse at what's about to unfold in Beacon Heights this season.
How the Hair and Makeup Compares to Pretty Little Liars
In a word: it's close to Pretty Little Liars — with a grown-up twist. "The looks are similar in that each character in PLL definitely had a look all of its own," said Cousineau. "But in working with our originating director, she really wanted a bit of a film noir and look that would not only show the environments that we were in but would kind of lend an air of mystery to our show visually."
"I did want to separate the characters Allison and Mona a little bit by elevating them, giving them looks that were a little more elegant, a little more adult."
She also wanted to do something different with the two returning cast members, Allison (Sasha Pieterse) and Mona (Janell Park). "Now that we have two characters that have spun off and they're older, they're more mature. I did want to separate the characters Allison and Mona a little bit by elevating them, giving them looks that were a little more elegant, a little more adult than the three perfectionists who are younger, in college, and maybe still feeling out their looks."
The Tool That Saved Them While Filming
The show's hair department head Autumn Sanders admits that one challenge was being so far away from the hair and makeup trailer while shooting. "We had to work on the fly," she said. "We were quite a ways away, so we did all of our hair changes and upkeep throughout the day on set. Our production assistants set up little hair and makeup stations for us under a tent inside the set, inside the stages. We had to bring everything with us. What really helped save our bacon a few times, were we always carrying butanes curling irons like the ThermaCell by Conair Compact Curling Iron ($22). They're just little cartridges of butane and they heat up, or battery operated straighteners. That way we didn't have to plug anything in."
The Show's Secret To Perfectly Blended Makeup
"Since we were shooting largely outside, I really looks that were going to be beyond reproach — beautifully blended foundations, no lines anywhere," said Cousineau. "My staff was definitely devoted to our Beautyblenders ($20) without a doubt. Whether you're using a brush and a Beautyblender or a Beautyblender alone, having the ability to push the foundation into the skin so it just looks like skin is critical. We started our season with a huge bag of Beautyblenders, and we were washing them every night."
Q-tips Cotton Swabs, Precision Tips
"I'm the one who's putting lashes on my actresses, and I could not live without teeny-tiny pointed Q-tips," she said. (Psst: She's talking about the Q-tips Cotton Swabs, Precision Tips ($8)) "Sofia [Carson], who plays Ava, wears a very natural strip lash that we don't put liner on top of, which means I have to be very precise with my glue. Being under light and out in the wind sometimes flips the lash upward, and so I don't always want to take it off but I've got to get in there to this teeny-tiny place and put a dab more glue on. The only thing that works is the tiny, pointed Q-tip."
The Big Difference With Sydney Park's Hair This Season
Before the season started, and to coincide with the dark, ominous vibe of the show, Sanders had to bring down Sydney Park's golden highlights. "Because her character, even though she is striving for perfection in every aspect of her life, including her hair, we didn't want her to look like she's going to the salon all the time to get highlights," she said. "So even though her curls are on point, we had to make it darker. At first we used a temporary colour gloss so that she wouldn't lose the colour altogether in her real life, because she really loves those highlights. We did that a few times during the show. Then, we sprayed her hair with Illustrator, which is an alcohol-based makeup. I just painted that on with a paintbrush and it washes right out."
The 1 Product the Hair Department Couldn't Live Without
"One of the things I used the most was the ColourProof Colour Care Authority PowderFix Texturizing Powder ($25). I sprinkle that on to the scalp. Oh my God, it's the best. I use it on everyone. And everyone I use it on, they want to buy it afterward, so I always keep an extra stash to give them as a gift. I use it for men to get some height and texture, when we want to create that messy look. Or you can even do a coiffed look with it without using hairspray. You can use it in braids, too — you just powder it on and mess it up."
How They Kept the Cast's Skin Looking Fresh
"The key to any great beauty makeup is great skin," said Cousineau. "Our cast takes such good care of their skin, but because they're spending 15 to 16 hours a day in makeup, it needs time to breathe and reset. My favourite skin care product, certainly these days, and it's the buzzword for everyone, is a hyaluronic acid serum. I like the iS CLINICAL Hydra-Cool Serum ($90). It's a lightweight moisturiser that's like a drink of water for your skin, and it's lovely under foundation. It's great for touch-ups when you need a little hydration. It is definitely my go-to for midday moisturising. I keep one of them with each of my makeup artists."
Kelly Rutherford's Hilariously Unconventional Approach To Hair Care
"Kelly Rutherford doesn't like a lot of product," said Sanders. "So for her styling product, we would just use some Evian water with her hairspray if she had flyaways. Or she would use what she called her 'momma's spit.' Sometimes I would look at her, and point to the top of my head, point to her, and she would know that she had a flyaway — and then she would spit on her fingers and smooth out her hair. That's what we did kind of all season."
How They Got Through That Underwater Scene
So, about that scene. First, it had its obstacles in the makeup department: "We had to do body makeup because Sofia was in a swimsuit, and it turned out to be a bit more of a challenge, particularly when the towels on set are white," she laughed. "Largely, the go-to for any kind of body makeup is to send somebody for a spray tan. But Sofia she does not like to be tan, and when you have someone who doesn't wish to be spray tanned, it gets a little tricky. In hindsight, I wish I would have used the MAC Pro Longwear Nourishing Waterproof Foundation ($36) that I used on her face on her legs, too."
