After years of fan-demand, Rupaul’s Drag Race has finally given us an all-winners All Stars season. To celebrate, we sat down with three of the show's famous faces (and front-runners for this season’s top prize): Jaida Essence Hall, Trinity The Tuck, and Yvie Oddly. Ahead, a look at their favorite beauty products and best glam secrets, their thoughts on the transformative power of drag as an art form, and the importance of being, above all things, a fierce queen.
What’s the best beauty advice you’ve received from another drag artist on or off the show?
"Don’t be afraid of the makeup. We can have as much fun or as little fun as we want to with it. We can always take it off and start again. It’s just makeup."
If you could leave the house with only two beauty items in your bag, what would they be?
"First, probably a palette. Does that count as one? A palette and then a wig, because when the hair is on, the fantasy is real."
What’s a beauty tip you live by?
"I spray my foundation brush once with setting spray. Next, I apply a pump of foundation to the brush and then spray it a second time before putting it to my face. It allows the makeup to set and the color to go a lot further."
How do you hope drag changes the way people see you and the queer community?
"I hope it shows that it’s possible that even a little boy from Wisconsin can be in the spotlight."
Jaida's Go-To Products
“Honey, even if perfect skin comes naturally, you have to maintain it with the best ingredients!”
"It goes on with amazing coverage and makes me feel stunning.”
“I love to mix Fenty lip colors to create the perfect shade. But straight out of the tube, they are perfect too!"
Why is drag such a powerful art form?
"It allows anyone to transform into anything! It’s their very own Superman/woman/they suit."
What’s a surprising makeup hack that everyone should know?
"Adding contact lens solution to any of your powder eyeshadows can turn them into liquid eyeliner."
Has fame changed the way you present yourself?
"I definitely think it requires you to step up your game at all times. It also makes you a little more on guard about what you put out into the world."
What do you hope your legacy will be?
"Without a doubt, that people will remember that I am a fierce queen and that I’m great at what I do."
Trinity's Beauty Must-Haves
“This setting spray keeps makeup looking right while I twirl and shake this bootay!”
“It’s hydrating plus you can immediately add on concealer.”
“It doesn’t crease and it does the job perfectly. I haven’t found another product as good.”
How do you feel while getting glammed up?
"Like a blank slate. Getting into drag puts me in a sort of meditative trance that I only start to snap out of when I finally become Yvie. It’s like my mind’s equivalent of being on Airplane Mode."
And do you have a mantra that you repeat when you’re getting ready?
"Stay focused and hurry the fuck up, girl!"
What’s your best skincare advice?
"If you wait for your skin to fully dry after washing your face, it will absorb oil-based moisturizers better than if you slap them on right out of the shower. Ground breaking for me."
How do you want people to remember you?
"I think my legacy will be that I inspired others to live more exploratory, authentic, and radical lives. But at a bare minimum, I’ll take “She won RuPaul’s Drag Race!”
Yvie's Glam Essentials
“Pigment, pigment, pigment! The blendability is incredible too! The possibilities are endless, mama!”
“They exfoliate, do your serum, moisturize, and prime all in one pad. They’re also individually packaged, so they’re great for travel.”
“I wear false lashes but use this mascara to paint them even blacker.”
Julee Wilson is Beauty Editor at Large at Cosmopolitan. Previously, Julee was Beauty Director at Cosmo and Global Beauty Director at Essence and has held various editorial positions at Huffington Post and Real Simple. She counts herself lucky AF that she gets to play with beauty products for a living and tell dope stories. And if you’re as obsessed with beauty as she is, make sure to follow her on Instagram for plenty of product recs, natural hair inspo, skincare testing, and Black girl magic shenanigans.
