Fara Homidi takes inspiration from a childhood spent at her mum’s beauty salon, archival magazines and a “sexy, lived-in” aesthetic
- Who is it? Fara Homidi, the celebrity make-up artist bringing artistry to your everyday routine.
- Why do I want it? Each formula stands out for its considered range of shades and undertones combined with sexy, smudgeable textures.
- Where can I get it? At Selfridges, or on the Fara Homidi website.
Who is it? Fara Homidi’s eponymous brand begins with her first childhood memory. Then based in Fremont, California after moving from Afghanistan, she’d happily watch her mum apply make-up each day. She remembers being mesmerised by burnt sienna lipsticks and emerald green eyeshadows, which stuck out against her mother’s blue eyes. “She was so stunning,” she recalls. “She used make-up to accessorise her features, not conceal them.” This strategic, artistic, less-is-more approach to beauty is what Homidi carries with her today – on celebrity faces, behind the scenes at fashion weeks and within her brand.
Growing up, she gravitated towards the arts: music, films, fashion. Though, living amid a “family-orientated, small-town vibe” made her feel like an odd one out. She’d study magazines for hours, poring over shoots and dreaming of a career in fashion. Meanwhile, she worked at her mum’s beauty supply store and salon, where she caught “the beauty bug”. At 17, she worked the beauty counter for a now-defunct 90s favourite, Prescriptives. She later moved to Los Angeles to work in operations for MAC Cosmetics until, one day, she impulsively sold her car and used the money to move to New York.
In the city, she assisted “industry greats” like Lucia Pieroni, Rose-Marie Swift, Wendy Rowe and Virginia Young before nabbing herself an agent and going solo, like she’d dreamt all those years ago while reading magazines in her mother’s salon. Now at the helm of her own beauty brand, Homidi still works with celebrities (Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo and Tracee Ellis Ross). “I understand different textures and tones,” she says, “and how people use make-up every day in real life.” Homidi’s brand has eclipsed its rarefied beginnings, starting in a small corner of Paris’ Dover Street Parfums Market with just a few offerings: two red lipsticks, two nudes and a lip brush.
Why do I want it? Like vintage beauty formulas, Fara Homidi products are something to treasure – direct antidotes to today’s fast-fashionification of beauty. Each product works hard and every weighty compact feels like a smooth pebble in the hand – an organic-feeling sculpture one can carry in their handbag. This doesn’t mean they’re too exalted to use. “I wanted to create something that sat in the fashion space and felt elevated without feeling elitist,” Homidi explains. “I wanted everyone to feel like they could be a part of it.”
Many of the formulas, such as the Essential Eye Compacts, are made to be smooshed on with fingers for a “lived-in, slept-in look”. They’re malleable, smudgeable, buildable and delicious. “Anyone can use them – even someone who is busy and doesn’t want to fuck about with a thousand products,” says Homidi.
The luxurious packaging won’t end up in landfill, either – the Smudge Contour Lip Pencils, for example, are made from FSC-certified wood and come with an aluminium cap. You can sharpen them down to the nub and then recycle the lid. The range is neat and considered, though the viral bronzers have golden, warm and cool pink – almost violet – undertones, mimicking the kind of tan you’d naturally get in the sun. Homidi’s newest launch, the Essential Blonzer Compact, is a creamy powder blusher-bronzer hybrid that adds a touch of sunburn to cheeks and nose bridges. The three available shades – beige Nue, reddish-pink Baie and berry Velle – also stand out for their cool undertones. “I grew up in the 90s,” says Homidi, “In that era we had a lot of cool tones. I like colours to be a little off or a little bit ugly.”
Where can I get it? At Selfridges, or on the Fara Homidi website.
