Image by Getty
The 2016 announcement that Estée Lauder would collaborate on a collection with Victoria Beckham was one of the beauty stories of the year. When the edit finally launched last September, it sold out immediately – twice. According to Lauder, it was the biggest beauty launch they’d ever seen, bar none.
So the news that a second collection is on its way – scheduled for launch this September – was always going to cause excitement in the beauty world. When Bazaar was invited to meet Beckham and preview the collection along with a select number of other journalists, it caused a Bash Street Kids-style pile-up in the doorway of Claridge’s.
The updated London Look
“When we first met, there were so many things I wanted to do,” said Beckham. “I love beauty and have had so much fun working with Sarah [Creal, Estee Lauder’s lead on global partnerships]. Even with the second capsule, I’m really just scratching the surface of what I want to do, so I jumped at the opportunity to get straight back into the development and working on new things as well as bringing back a couple of things [from the first collection].”
The first collection comprised of four separate looks inspired by four cities – London, Paris, New York and Los Angeles. This time around a fifth, Miami, has been added to the range. Additionally, ten hero products from last year’s launch will be reintroduced.
The new Miami Look
Morning Aura – the stand-out piece from last year’s collection, a multi-tasking moisturiser/primer/illuminating creme – is back, along with other favourites such as the nude lip pencil shade Victoria, which returns with an accompanying lipstick. (“I joke that Victoria’s passion for nudes knows no bounds,” said Creal.)
“For me, it’s not about doing what anybody else is doing,” said Beckham. “It’s about newness and freshness and those key products that every woman should have in her make-up bag. I said that with the first collection and I’m saying it again – we’re adding to that make-up bag by taking into account different skin tones and different times of the year.”
The mother-of-four also answered questions on her own beauty regime, revealing her eye-wateringly early wake-up time. “I work out early in the morning when the children are in bed, because it’s a really good time to think,” she said. “I normally get up at around 5.30-5.45, spend an hour and a half or two hours in the gym, then I know I’m ready for when the kids come down the stairs in the morning.”
The updated Paris Look
Morning Aura – the stand-out piece from last year’s collection, a multi-tasking moisturiser/primer/illuminating creme – is back, along with other favourites such as the nude lip pencil shade Victoria, which returns with an accompanying lipstick. (“I joke that Victoria’s passion for nudes knows no bounds,” said Creal.)
“For me, it’s not about doing what anybody else is doing,” said Beckham. “It’s about newness and freshness and those key products that every woman should have in her make-up bag. I said that with the first collection and I’m saying it again – we’re adding to that make-up bag by taking into account different skin tones and different times of the year.”
The mother-of-four also answered questions on her own beauty regime, revealing her eye-wateringly early wake-up time. “I work out early in the morning when the children are in bed, because it’s a really good time to think,” she said. “I normally get up at around 5.30-5.45, spend an hour and a half or two hours in the gym, then I know I’m ready for when the kids come down the stairs in the morning.”
The new (and returning) products look slightly different to last time, Beckham having run her season-led fashion eye over every stage of the creative process. They remain, nonetheless, as satisfyingly weighty as ever. Even the pencil sharpener is stylish. “I was walking around duty free the other day and everything seemed to look the same,” said Beckham. “I wanted to create really special pieces that look great out in the bathroom. You should feel proud to have it and hopefully that will help make people feel beautiful.”
As with the first capsule collection, this second release looks set to sell out fast when it launches in September. To help you to navigate the shelves when it does arrive, see below as Beckham runs us through her must-haves – for your face, and for your handbag…
1. Skin Perfecting Powder, £62
“I wanted to create a powder that really did create perfectly clear skin. Something that closes the pores, something that reacts the way that it should when a light hits it, something not too heavy. This took a lot of development, but again this is something that I cannot live without.
“You can use it throughout the day and it doesn’t make you cakey. All the years of doing TV and magazine shoots, I’ve learnt so much. There should still be a lightness, but you shouldn’t have to compromise with what it’s actually doing either.”
