Makeovers give students a taste of the star treatment

For anyone on campus this week, it was hard to miss the large truck with big letters screaming “Fresh Faces” next to a picture of a perfectly retouched model. On Monday and Tuesday, students  got a rare opportunity to participate in Clinique’s Fresh Faces Tour, which it coordinates with Teen Vogue.

It was a fun and exciting chance for students to receive the so-called star treatment, as participants got complimentary makeovers, hair styling and professional photo shoots.

This year marks the makeup company’s second annual Fresh Faces Tour. Since mid-September, Clinique makeup artists have  traveled across the country, starting in Boston, heading through the Midwest and ending at USC.

The large white tent located in McCarthy Quad housed a dozen or so professional makeup studios with mirrors and lighting usually reserved for fashion magazines. Throughout the course of the two days, dozens of students waited eagerly in line —  some fitting in time between classes — just to participate in the event.

“I’m excited for makeovers [and] to get new ideas,” said Jackie DeJesse, a sophomore majoring in biological sciences.

Although the line outside the tent did not usually grow to more than 20 students, wait times varied between 10 to 30 minutes.

Students waiting in line were given pamphlets on makeup tips according to their specific skin tone. One side of each skin tone pamphlet had a “day” look and a “night” look that focused on emphasizing one’s eyes, lips and cheeks.

Girls were also provided with a small supplement to Teen Vogue magazine that discussed behind-the-scenes hair and makeup secrets.

“I don’t know how to put on makeup, so I was wondering how it was done professionally,” said Anh Phan, a freshman majoring in cinema-television production.

Students got a taste of professional makeup once they were inside the tent. Each participant was seated in one of the cubicles in front of a mirror, where a makeup artist went to work. Pop music blasted throughout the tent, adding to the frenzy of the fast-paced makeup artists.

After hair and makeup, participants took part in their very own photo shoot — similar to what models and celebrities experience when posing for the covers of popular magazines such as Teen Vogue.

The photo shoots were not simply a gimmick, but rather another service for the students — one that lasted longer than the makeup.

“They e-mail [your pictures] to you, so you get to see the results,” DeJesse said.

On Monday, in addition to the eight hours of free makeovers, Clinique hosted a career panel discussion that featured Eva Chen, the beauty and health director of Teen Vogue. Chen and other experts offered advice to career and fashion-oriented students on campus.

In addition to the complimentary makeovers, the Clinique workers were also offered students a chance to help their careers through a contest the company was holding.

One grand prize winner will receive a paid internship working for Clinique in New York City. The winner also gets to experience the behind the scenes on Teen Vogue for an entire week. In addition to receiving a look into the fashion industry, the winners will also have the opportunity to apply to become the new “fresh face” of Clinique.

Although the main incentive is a chance to work in a major fashion publication, there is an added perk to the contest:  five finalists get to tour Clinique’s headquarters and pose for a feature spread in Teen Vogue.

Ending in Los Angeles, the tour has given students a fresh look to welcome in the fall season. And for USC students, the small event was a nice break from the chaos of school work and projects.