You may have heard that clean girl make-up is over. It started with stars like Doja Cat, Julia Fox and Chappel Roan pushing the envelope with bold, experimental beauty looks. And then all of a sudden the red carpet was filled with maximalist make-up. There’s Doechii and make-up artist Dee Carrion, Tyla and her make-up artist Painted by Esther, Meg Stalter and Alexandra French and, of course, Zara Larsson and Sophia Sinot, the latter of whom have been going repeatedly viral for the looks they’ve been creating on Larsson’s tour.

“I think it’s reminded people that make-up is supposed to be playful and carefree,” says Sinot on why these looks have received so much attention. “I’ve said this before but self-expression is such a core part of being human, and make-up is one of the easiest ways to let your uniqueness shine through. In a world full of rules and expectations, it feels good to stop taking ourselves so seriously and just have fun with it.”

It was, of course, Sinot who was on make-up for Larsson’s appearance at the Grammys this weekend. It was Larsson’s first time attending the show, thanks to her nomination for Best Dance Pop Recording category for “Midnight Sun”. In tribute to the song, her team decided to make her embody the shining, fiery light of the sun.

Styled by Caterina Ospina, Larsson wore a golden-yellow couture look with sun-rays from Kevin Germanier, with gold Swarovski earrings and her golden blonde hair which was tousled into long, effortless mermaid waves by John Novotny. Encrusted, gem-embellished nails that perfectly matched the couture came courtesy of Juan Alvear, while Sinot created a golden, sun-kissed glam that was fresh and radiant.

Leaning into Larsson’s signature sun-burnt blush, Sinot tells Dazed “the idea was to make her look like she’d been glowing in the sun for hours.” While the look was slightly more natural than others they’ve producer before, there were still a lot of intricate techniques involved. “The blush placement, for example, had to look like a genuine ‘I’ve been in the sun for hours’ moment,” she explains. For the eye look, Sinot carefully glued some of Larsson’s real lashes to the false lashes using a tiny amount of glue to keep everything looking natural. 

Sinot employed a full face of Maybelline, including Cloudtopia Cheek & Lip Color Mousse in 05 Coral Illusion, the Nudes Eyeshadow Palette, and the Sky High Waterproof Mascara. “I kept the base soft and glowy, then layered the Cloudtopia blush just under the eyes and across the bridge of the nose,” she goes on. “I used the Nudes palette to softly shape the eyes, adding the lighter shimmery shades to highlight the inner corners, brow bone, cheekbones and nose bridge. To finish, I tapped the Cloudtopia mousse onto the center of her lips for a fresh, cohesive look.”

“I’m lucky that I know Zara’s face so well, so there wasn’t much prep needed but one thing that’s always really important to me with any type of glam is constantly checking the mirror from Zara’s perspective, seeing what she sees completely changes how you approach the make-up and helps you notice details you might otherwise miss.”

See all the BTS images from Sinot in the gallery above, and read more Grammys coverage including the best dressed, the biggest snubs, and what the overriding message of the ceremony – fuck ICE – means for culture.