18-year-old model and Teen Vogue 21 under 21 2018 nominee Aaron Philip has had a big year to say the least. She was the first disabled transgender model signed to Elite Models, starred in Sephora’s latest ad campaign, and last week she made her runway debut in Willie Norris Workshop's fashion show.
And, while Aaron is breaking boundaries in the fashion space, she still likes to do normal teenager things like: going to prom, which she went to last night. “You only get one high school prom in your life and it feels like such a milestone with ending your time as a high schooler/school kid as well,” Aaron tells Teen Vogue. The Bronx native, who will be graduating from high school next week and was accepted into Parsons School of Design, shared every detail of her getting ready routine for prom, from the dress she wore to the makeup and hairstyle.
Aaron's prom prep started with her skincare routine. On the day of the event, her makeup artist and hairstylist Remi Odunsi primed Aaron’s skin with an Indian Clay Healing Mask, St. Ives Collagen Elastin Facial Moisturizer, and Makeup Forever Skin Equalizing Primer.
For makeup, Aaron wanted to achieve a "fairy-like" look, which meant gloss, glitter and pastel hues. To get the skin as smooth and dewy as can be, Remi used Vera Moore Cosmetics Liquid Foundation in “Mocha”, SOL DE JANEIRO Glow Oils Color Copacabana Bronze, Milk Makeup Holographic Stick, and Tarte 4-in-1 Setting Mist - Rainforest of the Sea.
Remi went all in for the eyes, using the Hudabeauty Eye Shadow Palettes in “Neon Green” and “Neon Pink” for the base, lining her eyes with Clarins black liquid eyeliner, and finishing with Clarins Supra Volume for mascara. For the rest of Aaron's face, Remi went big too, finishing off the look with Lip Bar “As If” and Violet Voss Rainbow Palette in “Flamingo” for blush. For hair, Aaron wore a super chic bleach blonde wig cut into a precise bob.
And finally, there's the dress. Aaron decided on a Marc Jacobs ruffled voluminous sheer number with a velvet pink bow loosely tied at the bust to complete her "fairy-like" look. She gave us Glinda The Good Witch vibes, and we'll never look at The Wizard of Oz the same.
“I wanted to wear Marc Jacobs for my prom being that an important milestone deserves an equally important look,” she says. “I love Marc Jacobs so much because of how authentically beautiful, whimsical, recognizable & imaginative it is.” Aaron said that to her the dress is an “antithesis of what a prom dress is supposed to look like.”
Prom, Aaron recognizes, is often associated with “cis heteronormative standards like king and queen, and homecoming and promposals” and says that prom can be tough for people like her as it involves a “weird mix of desirability politics, just a little bit of internalized patriarchy, and heteronormativity.”
But last night, Aaron was excited to have fun and bask in the moment with her closest girlfriends. She brought her brother Aren along as her date (“He’s funny and sweet so I don’t mind”) and couldn't wait to hear songs she could dance to. By sharing her experience, Aaron hopes to show other trans disabled teens that they can have fun at prom just as anyone else can. All hail to Aaron Phillips, our prom queen.
Photos courtesy of Elite Models
