Photo: Courtesy of CK One.Since our first encounter, back in 2012, we've had our eye on the enigmatic Dev. In addition to being a crazy talented singer — her new EP, Bittersweet July, is available for pre-order on iTunes now — the girl loves her some eye makeup. So, we jumped at the chance to hang with Dev while she got ready for her album-release party in Hollywood.
And then, we found out that none other than the charming, gorgeous Kayleen McAdams, CK One Color's global makeup artist, would be doing Dev's makeup for the event — and it was like the stars had aligned. McAdams, too, has some strong feelings about eyeliner — not to mention, she's an all-around whiz with cosmetics.
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If there's one thing we love in this life, it's when two liner junkies get together to talk shop — so, we let the girls have at it. Read on as McAdams interviews Dev, and get ready to learn some pretty genius hacks, the singer's simple secret to glowing skin, and her thoughts on the latest eye-makeup looks.
Photo: Courtesy of CK One.You always have such beautiful skin, which makes it so easy to do your makeup. What's your skin-care regimen like?
"It definitely changes depending on how much I'm traveling, or how much I'm doing with my daughter, but I do make sure to exfoliate three times a week. I feel like that really helps to keep it clean, since I have to wear a lot of makeup onstage — and I obviously sweat when I'm performing — so my face tends to feel a little heavy after."
Any skin products you're loving right now?
"Lately, I've been using Murad products on my face, and I really like them a lot. They're not too heavy on my skin, and they just feel really good. I use all the products in the Environmental Shield Day Regimen, and I find that they really help keep my skin to stay bright and clear, especially when I travel. My fiancé also uses a lot of Kiehl's products, and I like to steal those sometimes."
What are some cool beauty hacks you love doing? Share your secrets!
"Well, I love the trick you taught me, actually, about using a pencil eyeliner first — and then a liquid over [it] to make it last forever. It...gives the liquid something to stick to and helps it stay a lot longer. I wear so much eyeliner when I perform, so it's really important that it stays put."
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You're known for playing up your eyes — especially onstage. What do you love about dramatic eye makeup — over a bold lip or bare-faced look?
"I just really love a cat-eye: It's kind of become my signature look. I feel most like myself that way, I guess. I don't always like to wear a lot of lipstick when I perform, because the microphone smudges it up so much. But, I do like to use lipliner to...make my lips look a little larger sometimes. I would love to have larger lips, but I'm way too scared of filler — so, it's great to use lipliner right outside my natural lip line to...cheat them out a little bit and give them a little extra oomph.
"I don't really ever go bare-faced. I was a tomboy when I was a kid, and I didn't ever really wear makeup until I was about 18. And then, when I started doing shows, I really got into it. Now, it just makes me feel really sexy to have a full face of makeup. I'll even go to spinning with makeup on sometimes — which is probably so bad for my skin — but I just think I look cute in the mirror, so I do it anyway.
"I went through this phase where I kept thinking, Is it wack that I like having a full face on? And then, I read this really cool article that Gwen Stefani wrote, where she was saying that her husband really likes her with makeup on, so she'll re-apply it like three times a day. I was like, Sick, I'm so into that, you know? I'll go bare-faced when I have days off, because I think sometimes my skin needs to take a breather — but only if I've been doing a lot of shows or something like that."
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So, if you were going to experiment with lips or eyes, you would pick eyes?
"Yes, I'm much more adventurous with my eye makeup. I love experimenting with color on my eyes. CK One Color has this shadow called Muse that I've been loving lately. It's almost like a cranberry color that looks really cool on my eyes. I love pairing it with the CK One Color Gloss Eyecolor in Loud, which is this really thick pencil in a peachy shade that has almost a wet look when you put it on. I use that all over and then use Muse in the crease."
What's your best eyeliner trick?
"Aside from the layering trick you taught me: To get a nice, straight line, I like to rest my arm on the table, so it's really stable when I'm drawing it on. Then, I just draw as close to the lashline as possible. I prefer a really long tail on my cat-eye to a little kitten-eye or something like that — just really dramatic."
Photo: Courtesy of CK One.Do you like to do other peoples' makeup? Like, your friends' or sisters'?
"I do love to do makeup on my sisters, although they're both pretty good at it, too, which is awesome. I just did my sister Sierra's makeup for prom, actually, and I like to do it for other special occasions, too."
Can you tell me a little about your personal style?
"I go through a lot of phases, so it changes a lot. I do really like neutral colors and...playing with the androgynous thing a bit. Sometimes, I like stealing my fiancé's clothes. I like to keep it balanced, though. If I'm wearing something super masculine, I'll pair it with a killer heel. Or, if I'm wearing something super girly, I'll do a cool boot or sneaker. I tend to keep my clothes kind of neutral, because I really like my makeup and hair to be fun. My hair is always a different color, and my makeup is always pretty intense — so, I like to let them shine."
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What's the latest with your music?
"[My] new EP, Bittersweet July, [is] on iTunes right now for pre-order, and if you pre-order it, you also get a gratis track called 'Kids,' which is really fun. I'm so excited to finally have new music out, because it's been a little while. The album is officially out September 23."
What's your performing style?
"I love to jump around a lot and do a lot of hair flips. I do like to wear comfortable shoes, since I jump around so much — but, it really depends on what mood I'm in and what the stage is like. I grew up loving Karen O, who really just goes all out when she performs, so I always try to channel that energy when I'm onstage. I throw water out onto the fans and just really vibe out. It's funny because I perform girly pop songs, but if I was on mute, you'd think I was performing...thrash metal or something like that."
There are a lot of cool, new trends happening in eyeliner right now. What do you think of each of them? First up: the swan-eye.
"I like this! It's really theatrical and dramatic. It has a kind of Black Swan thing going on. I'm not sure it would suit my features, but I definitely think it's cool."
What about divergent liner?
"I love the name! This is a really cool look, and I love that it's a totally fresh take on a cat-eye. I think this look is better suited to someone with softer features, though."
And, gap liner?
"I really like this one. I have pretty big eyes, so I think this one would suit me best and could look really cool. I'm always scared to go all the way around my eye with liner, so this seems like a great solution. I think I would be most likely to try this look."
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