In January 2021, Michelle Obama thanked her Instagram followers for their birthday wishes with a selfie. She was sporting a beauty look that many makeup fans adopted when they didn’t have to head to the office during quarantine: Minimal or no makeup and a natural hairstyle. “I know this past year has been difficult for us all on so many levels, so I just hope you all are taking care of yourselves and finding joy in the smallest moments,” she wrote.
Obama didn’t spend the first months of the pandemic completely makeup-free — Carl Ray spoke to Into the Gloss about how he made her skin look “glowy and dewy,” but not overly shiny, for a Zoom event. One of his tricks was applying a highlighter before using a translucent setting powder. After brushing the powder on, he tackled oilier areas with a Beautyblender.
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When Obama turned 58 in 2022, she seemingly decided not to use Ray’s services before filming a fun Instagram video. She found celebrating her birthday without makeup so nice that she did it twice, but the mood was far more festive in her 2022 post. The fresh-faced former First Lady was seated at a table with a birthday cake in front of her. As the Stevie Wonder song “Happy Birthday” played, she smiled and danced without leaving her chair. “Wow, 58, Are you serious!! Late to this party but you look Amazing!” read one response to her post.
