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The Story Behind Ruth Negga’s Princess-Worthy Oscar Jewels
What is the most magical thing you can wear when you step onto the Oscars red carpet—okay, besides your scarlet Valentino gown and, of course, your sky blue ACLU ribbon?
If you are Ruth Negga, nominated for Best Actress for Loving, you flaunt not just a spectacular diamond and ruby ring and accompanying dazzling earrings, but an incredible handmade headpiece, a cross between a headband and a tiara, to serve as your crowning glory.
Though innumerable celebrities rocked serious rocks last night, Negga stood out with her ruby coronet, an unconventional choice created by an unconventional jewelry designer for an unconventional actor.
Irene Neuwirth, who designed this suite of dreams, worked with Negga’s stylist, Karla Welch, to bring the stones to life, and it was quite the serious, if joyful, undertaking—the headpiece alone features more than 146 carats of Gemfields Mozambican rubies set in blackened white gold.
Neuwirth confided that the project was perhaps slightly outside her comfort zone—her pieces are typically known for their delicacy and the wild rainbow of gems they employ. For Negga, she wanted something “maybe a little cooler. The prongs are extra long, and I don’t normally oxidize metal.” The result, she said, smiling, is “a little Kate Bush.”
For her part, Negga said the jewels reminded her of another Oscar nominee, Judy Garland, who received a special Juvenile award for her performance in 1939’s’ The Wizard of Oz: “Dorothy’s ruby slippers, always. The flashing beauty of those shoes is indelible in the memory.”
Yes, yes, but Dorothy Gale was just a little girl! And Negga, as her stylist Welch pointed out, is a very strong woman. “My inspiration behind Ruth’s Oscar look was sort of a pagan goddess,” she explained. “We were looking for really strong femininity in this day and age . . . I wanted to reflect that spirit, and I always knew that I wanted it to be red, because red is the perfect ending point and it’s a very strong female color.”
The Story Behind Ruth Negga's Pagan Goddess Beauty Look
It started with the jewels for the Best Actress Oscar nominee, who had one of the most ravishing faces on the red carpet.
"I knew straight away I wanted to do a lip to match those rubies," says makeup artist Melanie Inglessis of best actress nominee Ruth Negga’s ravishing red Oscars ensemble, a custom lace Valentino gown paired with Irene Neuwirth ruby crown and earrings.
The only question was whether to go minimal or do full makeup on the talent she first met at Comic-Con in 2016. "I love a natural look, too, but I just wanted to go for it," says Inglessis. "We wanted to [make her] a Victorian gothic pagan goddess—I wanted her to walk this red carpet and be fierce and stunning."
Inglessis can consider that mission accomplished. "We wanted for everybody to go ‘Whoa, wow!’ and that’s exactly what happened." Negga’s big, beautiful eyes certainly weren’t lost in the look. The makeup artist built up the color starting with a wash of “earthy, creamy yumminess” on her lids, aka Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in New Moon ($36), but kept her brow bones and inner corners open and light. She also used just one coat of mascara — black on top and burgundy (Chanel Inimitable Intense Mascara in Rouge Noir, $32) on the bottom to further open.
But it was the actress’ full pout that was the undeniable focal point. "We wanted it to match the headband rubies and the red nail polish more than the dress," says Inglessis, adding that she didn’t want typical red lips, but was looking for a shade “a little more goth, a little more rock ’n’ roll.” It also needed to be matte — "no way I could do a gloss." The formula: Chanel Precision Lip Definer in Rouge Profound all over her lips, and then Chanel Rouge Allure Ink Matte Liquid Lip Color in Expérimenté ($37), which Inglessis applied with a lip brush and then pressed in with her ring finger, "so the color really sinks into the lips."