On May 30, RuPaul’s Drag Race season 10 winner Aquaria will launch her first eyeshadow palette with NYX Professional Makeup, available on NYXCosmetics.com and in stores nationwide. In our exclusive interview, the queen revealed that the 10-shade “punk noir” palette was inspired by late nights in the city, smoky neutrals highlighted with bright bursts of color — a shimmery mint, an orangey red, an eye-catching yellow.
The process of creating the palette was a first Drag Race’s reigning queen, who was excited that NYX’s team immediately understood her inspiration and the imagery that I was sending over for color and texture references. “They've just been very supportive of whatever colors I was interested in having, making the packaging work for the kind of vibe that I was trying to give off, and it was nice to really genuinely feel like I had free rein. It was very, ‘Girl, we are happy to have Aquaria here. We are happy for you to make the choices that you want to make.’"
It was important for the queen to create something compact and versatile that she herself would use, as she’s in a different city almost every night. “For the road, I really like to keep things as minimal as possible,” she said. For her NYX campaign, Aquaria created a trio of breathtaking looks with the legendary makeup skills that helped win her her crown, showing off how adaptable the shades in palette are, perfect for creating everything from a neutral daytime look to a smokey club eye or a colorful drag masterpiece. Not everyone is as deft with a blending brush as America’s reigning drag superstar, but with the diversity of Aquaria’s palette the possibilities are endless.
While you wait to get your hands on the palette, take a look at every gag-worthy image from Aquaria’s campaign shoot, plus a few exclusive behind the scenes photos and close ups of the palette itself.
