Carthen is one of the faces of MAC Cosmetics’ new We All Wear MAC campaign and opens up to PEOPLE about her beauty journey, from college to post-‘Love Island USA’ fame
Credit: MAC Cosmetics
NEED TO KNOW
- Olandria Carthen stars in the new MAC Cosmetics campaign, We All Wear MAC
- The Love Island USA season 8 star poses with the new Studio Radiance Skin Tint Stick in the ad that also stars Doja Cat, Rhea Raj and more
- In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Carthen talks about her beauty routine and navigating reality television fame
Olandria Carthen is a trendsetter to the core. The Love Island USA alum is all about a seriously flushed cheek or a little extra shimmer on the ears and collarbones, looks her millions of followers are quick to embrace. So it’s not surprise MAC Cosmetics took notice of her hight beauty IQ and brought her into the fold.
The social media influencer stars in the We All Wear MAC campaign debuting the Studio Radiance Skin Tint Stick, a serum-infused face makeup product that promises buildable coverage and 24-hour hydration.
“MAC Cosmetics has been a part of my beauty routine from the very beginning. I remember using the Ruby Woo lipstick for the very first time and how it made me feel as a young adult. I felt so grown at the time,” says Carthen. “Being able to actually work with the brand at this level has been such a full-circle moment for me.”
Credit: MAC Cosmetics
Carthen, who landed a MACzine digital cover earlier this year, trialed the new skin tint along with her makeup artist Ngozi Esther Edeme (Painted by Esther) on the set of her campaign shoot.
“The Skin Tint Stick is for a light day where I don’t want to have any heavy makeup, because the coverage is absolutely amazing. I wish you could see the reaction from me and Esther on set, being able to use it for the first time and see how little [of the product] goes a long way. If I’m just running day errands, but I still want to have a cute little pop of glam, that’s my go-to.”
You might be surprised to know the 28-year-old once considered herself a “natural girl” when it came to glam, “I didn’t really start doing a full face of makeup until my senior year of college. I would literally just wear lipstick by itself, without [using any face products],” she tells PEOPLE. “Could you imagine? I only knew how to do mascara, maybe some eyeliner and lipstick.”
Carthen never got the chance to play with makeup as a kid, and was taught to keep her routine minimal and all about natural beauty growing up. But, “once I got into college and I would see the other girls playing with makeup, I’m like, okay, I’m kind of tired of going out with a red lip with a bare face. I need to learn how to do my makeup, especially before I go out into the real world and have a career.”
And now, Carthen loves to embrace maximalism. “I’m a huge blush girl. I want you to see my blush from a mile away. I always say ‘blush blindness’ doesn’t exist over here.”
Credit: MAC Cosmetics
“Being in the beauty space and wearing makeup, it’s all about self-expression. We’re not all meant to look the same,” she says. “A lot of the beauty decisions that I choose to make [she uses her brightened under-eye look a n example], get backlash, but if it makes me feel good, that’s all that matters.”
And she never fails to bring the energy on a red carpet or the front row of a fashion show. With New York Fashion Week (and likely stops in Paris and Milan) on the way, Carthen reveals the prep work that goes into her wardrobe.
“It’s a process. Before you even get to decide on what look you’re going for, you have to first get approved by the fashion houses of which shows you can actually attend. After you get that, they give you a list of items to choose from the collection. Once we decide on the outfit, that’s when [her glam squad] start doing collaborative FaceTime calls and group chats.”
Carthen says she also thrives off of last-minute adjustments. “Sometimes we don’t even think of things until I’m fully dressed and we’re looking if something is missing. Do we need to take in the dress a little more? Do we need to make it shorter? Do we need show a little more cleavage to make this look a little more young, a little more modern? A lot of those amazing things that you guys see when I’m out and about is something that happens last minute.”
Credit: MAC Cosmetics
She may be setting trends, but she’s also picked up new lessons along her personal beauty journey, especially since becoming a public figure with over two million followers on Instagram. “You know how you prep your skin prior to putting on makeup? I really didn’t take that seriously, but I realize that having a good base before you even apply makeup is just as important.”
With another MAC Cosmetics campaign added to her resume, Carthen is reaching new heights, but not without the parts of her life that keep her grounded.
Many of her fans know her as “Bama Barbie,” a title that nods to her Alabama roots and, she says, “reminds me a lot of the small town girl from the South who always acknowledged her beauty.”
“Bama Barbie is the down-to-earth girl and Olandria is the superstar. They’re two different people to me, but the way that Bama Barbie stays grounded is by always keeping friends and family [who knew Carthen before Love Island USA fame] close. And when I’m overwhelmed, what do I do? I go to the gym, journal, walk, pour into myself the way I did before I decided to introduce myself to the world as Olandria Carthen.”
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With her life, including who she dates firmly in the spotlight, she’s learned how to keep the important things close to her heart.
“If you care about something, keep it close. Being open and honest doesn’t always mean you have to share every single part of your life, because you deserve to keep some things to yourself. There are some things that I might later on in my career, would love to share, that I’m not comfortable sharing now. There are still so many parts of me and my story that the world doesn’t know, but I’m waiting for the right time to discuss them.”
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