Every season, I can’t wait to see what Ruffian’s beauty team has in store, so I was thrilled when I got a chance to check out the backstage happenings. If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, then you’ll remember this gushy post from 2010 on Ruffian’s crescent moon mani, or this one with the tuxedo nail (later worn by Zooey Deschanel at the Globes). 

Well, this time it was the velvet mani that sparked many “oohs” and “aahs” from backstage beauty enthusiasts. Yes, plushy velvet in red, blue, and purple, sometimes solid and sometimes with a little half moon.

I got to chat with their maestro, MAC Senior Artist Keri Blair, backstage who told me she was inspired by countryside manor furniture, much like Ruffian’s Fall 2012 collection. It’s decadence at its finest. “Let me tell you, I can’t do much with these on,” said Blair. That’s okay, sometimes beauty is not so practical. 

Another surprise came in form of a stunning red lipstick, a return of the cult shade known as Ruffian Red, which was a limited edition collaboration done with MAC cosmetics back in 2009. Happy news: Ruffian Red will be available at MAC beauty counters come July. Aside from the red lip, the face was kept fairly simple. Lead makeup artist James Kaliardos channeled Catherine Deneuve with a romantic bronzed eye, using Always Sunny Pro Longwear Eyeshadow as a base and then adding a touch of shimmer with Day Gleam Pressed Pigment, and finishing it up with brown mascara to keep things more natural. 

The hair was pinned in a 1940s style faux bob. Bumble and Bumble lead hairstylist Neil Moodie prepped the hair with Bumble and Bumble Prep Spray, curled it using a quarter inch-sized curling iron and then brushed the hair into loose waves, before pinning it under and adding some Spray Shine.

I loved this entire look and its flawless execution of the English countryside sophisticate. As for the clothes,  impeccably tailored collection of rich wools, smart tweeds, and soft velvets (check it out on style.com). 

PS. A different version of this post appears on Vitamin Daily’s Editors’ Diary.

Photography: www.imtheitgirl.com