To Makeup Artist Ehlie Luna, Beauty Is Incomplete Without Wellness
"I wouldn’t say I incorporate beauty into my wellness routines, but I find beauty in carrying them out. It’s self-love in practice"
To help us better understand the correlation between beauty and wellness, we speak to three experts — Alexandra Venison, Dr Paria Vaziri and Ehlie Luna — to gather their thoughts on the matter.
For Haitian-American and New York City-based pro makeup artist Ehlie Luna, understanding beauty and wellness has always come naturally to her; it’s no wonder that she has made a career out of it and is a master of inside-out beauty. Not one to neglect holistic health, the creator has been on a plant-based diet for over 10 years now.
Besides uploading easy-to-follow makeup tutorials and sharing beauty looks on her Instagram page, Luna actively teaches pro-MUA micro master classes and is a TEDx Speaker in her area of expertise.
Tell us about your first beauty memory.
My first beauty-related memory is connected to my mother. She was very much a “beauty girl”. She wore makeup, got her nails done, and got her hair done regularly. And sometimes, I watched her do her makeup. She was my first beauty idol.
What influenced your decision to become a pro makeup artist?
I had always loved beauty, magazines, and pop culture. I would give my sister head-to-toe makeovers, and then take pictures of her. The opportunity to get into makeup was something that came to me right after high school. That was when I went to assist at the ballet at Lincoln Center.
What have you observed about the correlation between beauty and wellness?
One is incomplete without the other in my experience. No matter how well I can project with my appearance, if I don’t feel it inside, I cannot genuinely exude any amount of confidence.
Has this impacted the way you perceive beauty now?
I think the correlation between the two is why, for me, beauty is felt as much as it’s seen.
How have you incorporated beauty into your wellness routine?
I have beauty routines and I have wellness routines. I wouldn’t say I incorporate beauty into my wellness routines, but I find beauty in carrying them out. It’s self-love in practice.
Based on your understanding of trends, what do you think we can expect to see in the future in terms of beauty’s relationship with wellness and self-care?
I believe we will see our grandmothers’ and their mothers’ remedies become more mainstream by way of tinctures, and other ingestible forms as well as different physical modalities.