When Clueless hit theaters in 1995, I was a teenage girl with a Caboodle filled with Bonne Bell Lip Smackers and dreams of having my very own Contempo Casuals credit card. I thought I was obsessed with Mona May’s costume design but was just as enamored with the makeup and hair—the beauty looks were just as iconic as the clothes. Cher (Alicia Silverstone) had the most enviable, glossy blowout, while Tai’s (Brittany Murphy) grunge-to-glam transformation spoke to me. I’m also convinced Dionne’s (Stacey Dash) signature red lips sank deep into my subconscious, causing red to be my signature shade, and don’t get me started on Amber’s (Elisa Donovan) penchant for hairstyle variety. She’s an underrated beauty legend!
As Clueless turns 30, there are plenty of ways to celebrate this beloved film. You can stay at the brand-new “Clueless Suite” at L’Ermitage Beverly Hills (which comes with a $100 Bloomingdale’s gift card, a makeup consultation with Dior Beauty, and a custom facial at Joanna Czech Studio) or shop May’s edit at The RealReal. Or you can come with me to revisit the beauty and brilliance behind the film that still inspires makeover montages to this day.
Keep reading to get the scoop on what makeup and hair products were used on our favorite Beverly Hills teen beauty icons, straight from the film’s makeup artists and hairstylist.
How Clueless Perfected ’90s Beauty One MAC Pencil at a Time
While the fashion world has long documented Cher’s plaid sets and Dionne’s funky hats, Clueless makeup remains the underrated star of the show. Who doesn’t want Cher’s soft, radiant complexion? “Her makeup was designed to just be clean and pretty,” Alan Friedman, the film’s makeup supervisor, tells Who What Wear. “Since there were only one or two times when the makeup was to communicate something, i.e., she’s going to a party or out on a date, I just kept the makeup simple/the same for everything, leaving time for the hairstylists and wardrobe to do their thing.”
Indeed, Cher’s makeup was all about minimal glam. Her makeup was all about “brows, grooming, concealer, and mascara, good skin. That fresh, young [look],” Geri Oppenheim, assistant makeup artist, tells Who What Wear. As for product, there’s definitely one thing we know: The girls of Bronson Alcott High School really loved their MAC. Friedman used MAC Malt lipstick and Raizin lip liner for some of Cher’s scenes. Though, you won’t be able to copy the look exactly, since they’ve long been discontinued.
Oppenheim also confirmed what I always suspected but could never prove: They used the iconic MAC Spice lip liner in the film, on both Cher and Tai! “For Brittany, I’d sometimes just fill her whole mouth in with Spice and then throw Chapstick over it,” she says. “I still do it on people nowadays, when you want something to look natural, but with a little moisture.” It’s that ’90s holy-grail combo—Spice and shine. The good news is MAC released Cool Spice, which is closer to the original, cool-toned Spice liner.
Oppenheim also shared that Murphy “washed all her makeup off during lunch” on her first day because she didn’t know she wasn’t supposed to. “I was like, what happened?” she laughs.
