Katseye shares their daily essentials: Eyeshadow, Aquaphor and more
Katseye loves to embrace “beautiful chaos” — but their daily routine is anything but messy.
Despite their hectic schedule, members Lara Raj, Sophia Laforteza, Daniela Avanzini, Yoonchae Jeong and Megan Skiendiel have their makeup, skincare and tech essentials on lock.
The group has been non-stop busy the past two years since their debut; they were nominated for two Grammys, won both American Music Awards and Video Music Awards, performed at Coachella and just released a new EP, “WILD.”
While promoting the latter, Katseye spilled their go-to beauty products with GQ — including the hair tool Laforteza calls her “best friend” and the makeup palette behind Avanzini’s signature wing.
“I don’t use liquid liner to do my eyeliner … shocking,” Avanzini admitted, saying she uses black eyeshadow from the Makeup by Mario palette instead. (She’s even influenced Laforteza, who typically embraces more subdued makeup, to buy the product.)
“I like it to be a little smoked out,” she explained, “Also, I just feel like eyeshadow is way easier to use. If you mess it up, you can just use a Q-tip, wipe it off,”
“Every single makeup look, I have to have my eyeliner like this, and I always do it myself,” she added. No matter who I work with, I’m always like, ‘Can I just do it myself?’”
She starts by tight-lining her eye with a black pencil before painting a triangle in the inside corners with the shadow to give it a “siren look.”
Laforteza — who’s gone through “at least 50” Aquaphor products — admitted she was previously on Accutane for nearly two years, and depended on the classic balm to improve dryness.
“When we started Katseye, there was this whole debate in our fanbase about what my lip routine is…” she recalled. “A lot of the time, it was just Aquaphor on my lips.”
“Every single night, up to now, even though I’m not on it anymore, I still put such a thick layer on my lips,” she added. “I wake up, and when I wipe it up, I just feel so good. I can’t survive if my lips aren’t glossy or moisturized.”
The star admitted she likes to decorate each tube with stickers — which Raj sometimes steals and uses as bindis.
Laforteza attributes her shiny hair to a Dyson Airwrap, which she calls her “best friend.”
“I have more than one, because it doesn’t work in all countries — and ever since we started touring, I invested in just getting one that can work all over the world,” she explained. “I need this before I go to bed, when I wake up, when I’m doing my touch-ups. It’s just so good for my hair health.”
“We get injured sometimes, and we dance a lot, so this is the best thing,” Avanzini gushed. “It’s honestly amazing. Just roll your muscles out when you’re sore, when you’re feeling a little kink in your neck or in your back.”
The group owns foam rollers in different sizes and uses them every morning before rehearsal — particularly when they’re learning intense dance breaks.
Raj loves to embrace her Indian culture and show fans how proud she is of her background. One of the ways she expresses that pride is by wearing a bindi during every performance.
“They’re in a little book. I have so many…” she said. “I have packs from India, from my grandparents, from when I go. It’s like a sticker book, but they’re bindis.”
She described the accessory as a means of “enlighten[ing] you” and “help[ing] light come within you.”
“I like to use my bindi as a fashion statement, especially when we’re on stage and have a big event. It always goes hand in hand with my outfit. It’s kind of just how I’m feeling on the day,” she added. “But the only thing is that I have to have it. It’s a very deep, sacred symbolism of Hinduism.”
To keep their voices warm and healthy, the girls swear by tea and manuka honey. (The group even noted that their hit song “Pinky Up” is a nod to their real-life love of tea.)
“We take a spoon [of the honey] and just eat it straight,” Raj dished. “It coats your throat and it makes you sing better.”
Raj is known for her unapologetically bold personality and vocals — and her headphones are no different. Although her go-to, over-the-ear Beats are sold out everywhere, these earbuds from the brand come in the same fiery hue.
“Every time I journal, I blast music on these headphones,” she said of her signature pair. “Specifically, Erykah Badu. I have her lyrics tattooed on my arm. She’s my favorite artist of all time.”
