Zara Larsson’s makeup artist Sophia Sinot breaks down the Midnight Sun Tour looks reviving full-throttle pop star glam

According to Zara Larsson, summer isn't over yet. And we're happy to agree, heads bobbing along to the beat of her Grammy-nominated song 'Midnight Sun'. Since October, Larsson has been travelling the world with fellow Vogue Scandinavia cover star alum Omar Rudberg as her opening act, with the Midnight Sun Tour’s Scandinavian dates kicking off in Copenhagen on 18th November.

It is a new era for Zara, reviving the most emblematic signatures of Y2K pop stardom with her looks, and the tour makeup reflects this. "The most important thing for me was that the makeup felt warm, sparkly and playful," Larsson's impossibly talented makeup artist Sophia Sinot shared ahead of the Manchester show. "Even though it’s November and the weather is turning colder and greyer, the worlds we’re creating in the arenas are the complete opposite." The look is warm, glowy, reflective, and (most importantly) full of colour. "I’d say overall, there’s a touch of nostalgia to it all, which I think is why people online have connected with it so much."

Like a vibrant fever dream merging Barbie, Euphoria and Lisa Frank with a pinch of "those childhood makeover games" and 2016 glam, Sinot, Larsson and the rest of the creative team behind the Midnight Sun Tour have crafted their own aesthetic subcategory: Midnight Sun Glam. "I also want to give Caterina Ospina and Kai Movellan their flowers because they have both played such a big role in shaping the overall world together. Caterina has been styling Zara for this era and Kai has played a big role in her creative direction. Both their work has genuinely inspired me while creating these looks and I couldn’t have done it without them!"

A golden tan is non-negotiable for Sinot. "I wanted Zara to look like she’s been kissed by the sun," says the makeup artist. As such, the base is kept tanned and topped with a lot of blush across Larsson's cheeks and the bridge of her nose for that ‘sunburnt’ look. "I’ve been using the ‘Blush Fusion’ blushes from Glam By Majha which I really love," shares Sinot. "And I powder her whole face down because I love a super matte base while adding shimmers on top." Take, for example, the otherworldly glitter skin that Larsson sported for her Paris show.

Eyes, however, are key to The Midnight Sun glam. Bedazzled with gems, Larsson's sorbet lids have swept our social feeds and made us crave a colour boost in our own makeup arsenals. "We’ve been in the clean girl era for so long… it’s time to bring back fun makeup," says Sinot.

But how do you succeed with a vibrant wash of colour across your eye? "The best advice for a smooth colourful base is a very light layer of foundation and set it lightly with a translucent powder," says Sinot. She then starts building the eyeshadow using a flat brush. "I don’t drag the brush; instead, I pat the eyeshadow on so the foundation base stays in place." After that, she taps her blending brushes to create more dimension. "I always start with the lightest and end with the darkest colours, that’s how you create the best gradient without it going patchy," she says. And for people who want to experiment more with colour? "My only advice is just do it! Don’t overthink. If it’s not cute, you can always wash it off, but at least dare to try."

For the tour, Sinot has been using eyeshadow palettes from BeautyBay. "They’re so pigmented and have the most beautiful bright, pastel shades," she says. She has also been loving the Dior Beauty liquid eyeliners for this tour. "I used the ‘Satin Pink’ one for the Dublin show the other day and it stayed on perfectly throughout the performance." The lashes? "Eylure. A lot. Specifically the ‘Lily’ lashes that I used for the show in Paris." Finally, the lip combos Sinot has been reaching for have consisted of Mac Cosmetics or Anastasia Beverly Hills lip pencils and lip glosses. "They have the best sparkly glosses," she says.

For Sinot, this has been the stand-out job of her year. "Touring can be quite intense and you don’t get the best quality sleep but because it’s been so fun with everyone it doesn’t feel like work," she says. The creative process itself has come just as natural. "When I texted Zara the mood board like a week before the tour she literally sent me a voice note back saying ‘Girl I don’t even care what you’re gonna do, I trust you completely!’"

And it's true. Larsson's look changes nightly for the Midnight Sun Tour, as does the makeup. "The amount of times I just start with the makeup without telling Zara what we’re doing today says it all. We know each other so well and that honestly helps my creative process a lot," says Sinot. "She always makes me feel so confident, comfortable and inspired and I think that radiates through the makeup as well."

Another reason Sinot has loved her experience on the Midnight Sun Tour so far? She doesn't have to stay backstage for touch-ups during the outfit change. "I just get to enjoy the show," she says. "Zara’s makeup stays on so well, which is surprising based on the performance cause this girl can dance!" Despite the oft-shared and physically arduous routine, Zara's makeup doesn't budge. "Her skin just absorbs the makeup. She doesn’t sweat and she keeps the microphone away from her lips which helps a lot."

That said, skin prep has been key throughout the tour. Larsson has been relying on the Shark LED face mask to help with soothing, improving blemishes and boosting brightness. Sinot then reaches for micellar water as cleanser and spritzes Augustinus Bader's The Face Mist on top. "It preps the skin really well for makeup."

Matte has been the name of the game, but could we expect anything other than a fully powdered face when paying homage to the pop star greats? Building a great foundation, Sinot uses Hydra Matte Face Cream by Caia Cosmetics as Larsson's moisturiser and the Creme Contour Des Yeux by Biologique Recherche for her eyes. "This is an eye cream I have in my personal skincare routine as well and is amazing for prepping the eye area for concealer," she says. "Other than that I just use the Wonderskin ‘Lip scrub’, which has been my favourite for years now, and the Tatcha ‘Kissu lip mask’ to prep the lips."

And while the temperatures drop outside the arenas, we're keen to linger a touch longer in the sun be it through glow, glitter or pastel pigments. After all, as Sinot puts it: "Like everyone says online, ‘Zara decides when summer is over.’" And it most definitely isn't over yet.