How to Recreate the Most Iconic Beauty Looks From ELLE Covers

Elle

18-07-2025

For 40 years, ELLE covers have sparked trends and major moments. Heidi Klum's cover in May 2003 inspired a slew of women to ask their hairstylists for choppy bangs, while Rihanna's avant-garde October 2017 cover celebrated the launch of Fenty Beauty. In honor of our milestone anniversary, we chose iconic beauty looks from every era, plus how to try them yourself with tips from renowned hairstylists and makeup artists. 1980s
For this the October 1989 cover, Claudia Schiffer's glam—with her high blush placement and voluminous windswept curls—perfectly reflects a time when bigger was better. 'The '80s were all about drama,' says Dove hairstylist Clayton Hawkins, who recalls that signatures of the decade include big curly perms, bouncy bobs, and fluffy feathered styles. He remembers that every makeup cabinet had a teasing comb, mousse, and hairspray to give hair more height and body. The bouncy curled blowout that Schiffer wore here has been replicated by Hawkins today on celebrities like Rachel Zegler and Ashley Park. 'Full, bouncy hair just makes you feel powerful,' he says.
Schiffer's makeup also fit the era, according to makeup artist and face sculptor Joseph Carrillo. 'That look is pure late '80s glamour: bronzed skin, sculpted cheeks, and a glossy nude lip,' he says. It was a time of excess and creativity in makeup, and cheeks were everything. 'It was all about blush, lots of blush,' adds makeup artist Sandy Linter. 'The girls who started doing their makeup in the 1980s still rely on blush.' That same generous blush trend can be seen today on celebrities like Sabrina Carpenter, and with viral products like the Rhode Pocket Blush.
To get the look, Hawkins suggests starting with clean hair and adding a reparative serum like the Dove Intensive Repair 10-in-1 serum to protect your strands and minimize frizz. Once the hair is smooth and blown out, use large hot rollers to form big bouncy curls, and finish with a generous mist of hairspray (in true '80s fashion) to lock in the style. To recreate Schiffer's bold makeup look, Carrillo suggests opting for lots of bronzer to add definition to the cheekbones—he recommends Chanel Les Beiges. 1990s
'The '90s were all about heavy foundation, thin, tweezed brows, and brown lipstick with heavy lip liner,' makeup artist Laura Mercier tells ELLE. This was worn with hair looks that included pixie cuts, chunky highlights à la Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and choppy cuts like 'the Rachel' from Friends . In the latter half of the decade, we began to see a 'minimalist, fresh-faced aesthetic rise,' Mercier recalls. Glam evolved into a softer, more glossy look, as seen here on Alek Wek. Arriving in November 1997, this was the model's first magazine cover ever.
To get a similar glow to Wek, start with a lightweight primer followed by a tinted moisturizer or a touch of the Laura Mercier Real Flawless Foundation for sheer coverage. Next, follow up with a touch of concealer and set with a translucent powder. 2000s
The thick, choppy bangs Klum sported on the May 2003 cover sent women running to their stylists in droves to copy the style. Her ultra-smoky eye shadow was the perfect touch to punctuate the quintessential Y2K look, too. Early 2000s beauty trends can be defined as glamorous chaos—just ask celebrity makeup artist Katie Janes Hughes. 'Everything everywhere all at once makeup feels like the 2000s to me,' she says. If this cover showcased heavy shadows and choppy cuts, the next cover was just as likely to feature loose waves and shiny lip gloss.
'The chop was in,' remembers Garren, celebrity stylist and co-founder of R+Co. 'It's resurfaced recently with the blunt bob or razor-cut bob, but back then, I did it with fringe.' Bring a photo of this cover to your stylist to get the same look as women of the 2000s—and you can even achieve Klum's gritty texture with a styling spray like the R+Co Essential Blow Dry Tonic. If you want to update the look, you could opt for a slightly less edgy style. Today's version is 'soft face-framing bangs and long layers, as seen on Dakota Johnson,' says celebrity hairstylist Mara Roszak. 'It's so classic and timeless.'
To try this maximal eye look today, keep the focus on that area and keep the rest of the face more bare and minimal. 'Let the eyes be the statement,' Hughes says. 2010s
Rihanna has graced the cover of ELLE six times, but this heart-shaped beauty look, created by makeup artist James Kaliardos, is arguably the most unforgettable. The 2010s were all about self-expression in beauty (think YouTubers with cut creases and winged eyeliner). Playful hairstyles like knots, braids, and beach waves allowed for more movement and expression. For this maximalist cover shoot, Kaliardos sketched different abstract makeup looks, and Rihanna chose her favorites—which is how this particular one came to life.
'She walked in ready to create,' Kaliardos says of the megastar's energy on set that day. 'It was such a rare chance to feel creatively free, using her face as a canvas.' For the October 2017 cover story, Rihanna discussed releasing Fenty Beauty with a groundbreaking 40-shade foundation range.
At the time of the shoot, the brand was still in production. 'We used large jars of just the colors,' Kaliardos says. 'We used the original Match Stix Shimmer Skinstick in Confetti, an iridescent lavender shimmer, to create the heart on her face. Every look was memorable.' Using hydrating creams like the Fenty Hair Homecurl Curl Cream will also help to nourish the hair while in protective styles like this one.