"Ethereal, Intelligent, and Quietly Sensual": The BTS Breakdown of Maude Apatow's Stunning May Beauty Looks
Straight from her hairstylist and makeup artist.
ICYMI, Maude Apatow is Who What Wear's May Cover Star, and I'm about to take a glamour-soaked nosedive into the hair and makeup details behind each of her gorgeous looks. According to makeup artist Alexandra French, the beauty aesthetic was meant to be "ethereal, intelligent, and quietly sensual." Soft skin and hair, subtle structure, and just enough definition to hold up against the styling and photography (without overpowering Maude, herself), was the goal. Below, French and Apatow's hairstylist Rena Calhoun take me through their process, must-have products, and favorite moments from shoot day. Keep scrolling!
According to Calhoun, the inspiration for Apatow's various hair looks was a true product of the team's collaboration. "With every look, we took a moment to connect on what felt right in that specific context, allowing things to unfold intuitively," she shares. "It was very much about moving together with a shared sense of creativity."
"Collaboration on set is always one of my favorite parts of the process," agrees French. "With a shoot like this, everything has to feel cohesive, so, from the beginning, there was a constant dialogue between hair, styling, nails, and makeup—the goal is to work together to create the same emotional tone and visual language, instead of separate standout moments that feel siloed."
Since the styling had a beautiful balance between softness and graphic structure, French wanted to echo that in the makeup by keeping the skin soft while still adding subtle sculptural elements around the eyes and cheeks. "Rena and I didn't want anything to feel too 'done,'" she explains. "Every adjustment was made with the lighting and photography in mind."
Artistic restraint was also pivotal. "Sometimes the most impactful beauty looks come from knowing when to stop adding," she tells me. "Maude naturally brings so much atmosphere and emotion to an image, so the makeup was really about supporting that energy rather than competing with it." If the final images feel timeless, soft, and a little dream-like, that was, according to French, exactly the intention.
On shoot days, especially when she's creating multiple looks as she did here with Apatow, Calhoun likes to keep product use light so that the hair stays flexible all day long and is easy to transform. "It’s all about maintaining movement and being able to pivot quickly without any buildup," she explains. But one product she does always start with is the Virtue Labs Create Style-Setting Hair Volumizing Primer ($40), which she applies to her clients' damp hair. "It gives me the perfect foundation; it's light, workable, and has just enough memory to support the structure of whatever direction the shoot takes us in."
In addition to the Virtue Labs Volumizing Primer (aka "the scaffolding" of each look), Calhoun also recommends Oribe's Superfine Strong Hold Hairspray ($46), which she dubs "the absolute best hair spray" thanks to its incredible versatility and strong, yet feather-light hold. If she's trying to inject a shot of quick texture into a look, she'll reach for Bumble and bumble's Surf Infusion Sea Salt Spray ($36). "A good salt spray works on many textures to give the hair a lived-in feeling—it helps negate that freshly ironed or styled look I sometimes want to avoid."
For this shoot, French tells me she wanted the makeup to feel cinematic and emotionally understated—polished but still intimate and human. "Maude has such delicate, expressive features, so the process was really about enhancing what’s already there rather than transforming her." Vintage fashion editorials also served as inspiration. "Think soft analog photography, and that dreamy, slightly surreal feeling one gets while looking at old magazine campaigns," she explains. "One image feels very earthy and romantic, while the other leans more graphic and experimental with color and light. The makeup had to sit beautifully in both worlds."
Unsurprisingly, skin prep was a huge part of French's process as she wanted to ensure Apatow's skin looked hydrated, alive, and almost light-reflective without appearing overly glossy. For makeup, she kept the actress's complexion extremely sheer by using a lightweight skin tint mixed with moisturizer that she worked into the skin with a damp sponge and small buffing brush. Concealer was only placed where it was needed, mostly around the center of the face to keep the skin dimensional and natural. "I softly set only the areas that needed longevity while allowing the high points of the face to keep their natural sheen," she notes.
For Apatow's eyes, French started minimal with some fun, spike-y lashes to achieve a '60s-inspired look before transitioning to a more dramatic smoky-eye vibe later on in the day. "My favorite features to emphasize on Maude are definitely her eyes and bone structure. She has this incredible ability to communicate emotion very subtly, so I never want the makeup to distract from that."
"For lips, I used a neutral rose tone pressed into the lips with my fingers instead of applying it directly from the tube," shares French. "This created a softer, more lived-in effect—the overall application process was very layered and diffused, with most products pressed into the skin rather than heavily brushed on."
