Interview: Cara Delevingne On The Enduring Power Of Beauty, Self-Love And Spring’s Most Empowering Make-Up Shade
This month’s enigmatic make-up launch is packed with attitude and celebrates the beauty of multi-faceted women everywhere
Lips are having something of a resurgence in the beauty world of late and with Cara Delevingne fronting Dior’s 24 pink-hued new Dior Addict Stellar Shine collection, out this month, it puts beauty, feminism and multi-faceted women front and centre.
Launching with an electrifying party in Shanghai in March, that brought together Cara, Camila Coelho, Winnie Harlow and Jessica Kahawaty in a karaoke session set to Shanghai’s neon skyscraper skyline, it was a pumped up, plumped up night of beauty and feminism.
With pink the hot-hue of choice, Peter Philips, creative and image director of Dior Makeup and mastermind behind Dior Addict Stellar Shine, said the collection targets the ‘every woman’. “The Dior woman is multi-faceted, so you’ve got to have a range of products and colours that really facilitate these women. As for pink, it’s a very girly colour but like with women, there are so many facets to it.” Agreeing that pink shouldn’t be pigeonholed, Cara adds: “Pink kicked me in the butt a little bit, putting pink in a box… It shouldn’t be, because like women, pink can be so many things.”
Cara wears Be Dior, Dhs184, Dior Addict Stellar Shine
Championing the premise of enabling women to celebrate every side of themselves, the 24-piece chromatic collection offers lipsticks in dark berries (Bohémienne), sunset corals (Clair D Lune) and serious power-pout reds (Positivity) that ensure coverage for every eventuality – from office to iftar to Eid vacation.
Benefitting from several visits to the region, Peter says Dior Addict Stellar Shine also serves the Middle East’s hot climes well. “The collection has a very nourishing formula – with beeswax, five different oils and aloe vera – making it perfect for the heat of the region.” He also understands the requirements of such a beauty-focused market here, and hopes the collection will challenge his Middle Eastern customer. “I love how women here like to experiment with make-up and this new form of lipstick might tease them to discover a new aspect of beauty, but that’s quite hard, as they are experts!”
Beyond the colour connection, for Cara fronting the campaign is also about what lipstick allows a woman to feel. “People want a distraction at the moment, and make-up, especially lipstick, is something that reminds you to speak up about something. When you spend a lot of time working on your mouth, it can give you the strength or the power of your voice to say something. I also think make-up helps women to feel beautiful and feel strong in themselves, and that is so important right now. It’s all about self-love. Everyone is beautiful and beauty should be inclusive.”
Whatever your hue (the BAZAAR team is puckering up with Diorkiss at the moment), wear Dior Addict Stellar Shine with pride, safe in the knowledge that it makes a bold statement in both beauty and embracing the brilliance of women – whoever they are and wherever they may be. Sealed with a kiss.
Prices Approximate
Photography: JeanBaptiste Mondino for Parfums Christian Dior
Make-up: Peter Philips
Styling: Mariel Haenn
Hair: Ben Skervin.
Manicure: Ama Quashie
Set design: Andy Hillman
From the April 2019 Issue of Harper’s BAZAAR Arabia
Press play to watch what happened when the Dior circus came to Dubai