Beauty Boss: Donni Davy, Founder of Half Magic Beauty and Department Head Makeup Artist on Euphoria

Donni Davy, Founder of Half Magic Makeup and Department Head Makeup Artist for Euphoria

Donni Davy, the Emmy-winning makeup artist behind the trendsetting looks from the hit HBO series Euphoria says she’s always been inspired by art and emotion. “My parents are artists, I went to art school, and I have always had a close relationship with color. I have a vivid imagination when it comes to color and different color combinations, and I treat the eyes and the face as my canvas,” shares Davy.

After graduating from Pratt Institute with a BFA in Photography, Davy was living in Brooklyn, interning at art galleries, and nannying when a friend’s mom asked Davy if she would ever consider doing makeup for movies.

“I was really intrigued with the storytelling aspect of designing makeup based off of movie scripts, and I missed certain elements of my visual art background, like working with my hands and using painting and drawing techniques. Makeup and storytelling seemed weirdly perfect for me,” says Davy.

She found it fun to imagine what different characters would look like and why, and how she could use makeup to tell their stories.

After cold-calling an LA-based film and television makeup artist who was teaching a crash course in movie makeup, Davy took the class and offered her assistance to the teacher for free. When Davy was ready to take on her own projects, she started at the bottom, answering ads on Craigslist to do makeup for headshots and student films.

Davy juggled student projects, short films, odd jobs doing makeup, and a part-time wine bar job for a few years until she eventually met a producer who brought her on to her first feature length film, Kicks. While working on Kicks, Davy met another producer who hired her to work on Moonlight which as it turns out would wind up winning the 2017 Oscar for Best Picture.

“Moonlight was all about highlighting the actors’ skin and making it glisten in just the right way, as well as using very minimal makeup to convey drug use as well as a character aging 15 years. Working on Moonlight made my résumé stand out a bit, and I got the opportunity to interview for a film called Under the Silver Lake.”

On this project Davy got to use color, glitter, and rhinestones. The director wanted Davy to have fun with creating vibrant, modern looks. Davy says this was a dream for her.

“When I got the call to come in and interview for an HBO pilot about teens, the first thing I was told is that its creator, Sam Levinson, liked my work on Under the Silver Lake and wanted me to use his show, Euphoria, as a platform to showcase the use of bold makeup as self expression.”

Half Magic Mouthcloud soft matte lip cream colors

Since working on Euphoria, Davy’s award-winning work has been transformative when it comes to setting trends for Generation Z.

Davy brings her imaginative ideas to her brand Half Magic, which she launched in May 2022 to help anyone achieve creative expression through makeup. We caught up with Davy to learn more about Half Magic, her experience working on set, and her makeup tips.

When was Half Magic founded and what’s the meaning behind the name?

We’ve been working on it for over three years, and it just launched in May. The makeup is half of the magic and the person wearing it is the other half. The other, and perhaps deeper meaning is that the looks I’m known for are all about bridging the gap between fantastical makeup and the makeup you wear in your everyday life. The merging of the two is what excites me and what I want to inspire more of with Half Magic.

Readers may know your work from Emmy-winning makeup on Euphoria. Do you have a favorite look that you’ve created from the show?

Kat’s Halloween makeup with the glittery upside-down crosses in Season 1 is one of my favorites. In Season 2, it was challenging to keep the excitement of Season 1 makeup but showcase a different version of it. I was nervous that people wouldn’t be as into it, and I’m not even really sure what people think. I don’t really look at what people say online other than people who support me and are fans of my and my team’s work.

I ended up loving the Season 2 makeup so much. There are things I wanted to do, but they weren’t right for the script and the visual style of Season 2. The biggest challenge on Season 2 was holding back, and finding the magic in a tiny detail of a makeup look, rather than something that is visible from across the room.

“I have a vivid imagination when it comes to color and different color combinations, and I treat the eyes and the face as my canvas.” —Donni Davy

The looks from Euphoria have been quite trendsetting! When you’ve created looks for the show, does how the makeup may influence trends play a role in your decisions?

I think the reason #euphoriamakeup became so popular is because the show bridges the gap between fantastical makeup and everyday life. I think people were used to seeing bold, colorful, and glittering makeup on the runway or in fashion but not on TV. Seeing these looks on a group of relatable TV characters who were not lit for “beauty,” but who were instead portraying real life scenarios and really “living” in these makeup looks helped redefine this kind of makeup as accessible and totally wearable.

I try not to become consumed with what I think will or will not be trending, but rather just try to stick with what I love and what feels right for the characters. I don’t really care about trends, and I’m usually the last person to know what’s trending. It’s been thrilling to see the effect that Euphoria has had on mainstream beauty practices, and to see a collective rise in colorful and sparkly makeup. If there was one more element of Euphoria makeup that I’d love to see affecting trends it would be the super realist take on skin. Less foundation, concealer and powder, and more skin looking like skin.

I’ve seen a lot of layering and shade mixing being used for lip looks lately, and doing this can really transform your lips and make lipstick so much more fun and unique to you. I designed Half Magic’s lip collection to take the guesswork out of customizing your own lip colors.

The intimidation with customization comes from not knowing where to start, so I made it super easy by pairing one shade of MOUTH CLOUD Lip Cream with two shades of SCULPTITUDE dual-ended lip liner in each of our LIPTRIK Kits. You can use the two lipliner shades to either lighten, darken, warm up, cool down or even infuse a new color into your lip. Once you get comfortable, you can unlock the next level in your personal lipstick journey by mixing different colors from different sets. Each MOUTH CLOUD AND SCULPTITUDE is sold separately too so you can mix and match. It’s been so inspiring to see what people create, especially when it’s not something I would never think of!

Is there anything you’d like people to know about what it’s like to be a makeup artist on set that most people are unaware of?

It’s not glamorous, the hours are inhumanely long (12-16 hour days). We are constantly in a rush and being asked to work even faster. We spend a lot of time covering up actors’ tattoos, mopping up their sweat, re-doing their makeup after they have fallen asleep in their trailers, making their stunt doubles look exactly like them, and following them around on set to make sure their makeup looks perfect, while also trying to respect their personal space.

As a makeup department head I am responsible for leading my team in the design of all the looks, as well as keeping my department and makeup trailer functioning with regards to accounting, administrative, managerial, and even janitorial / sanitation responsibilities. My job is also incredibly rewarding, and there is nothing like seeing my work on the big screen and knowing how much effort my team and I put into it. Most of all, there’s nothing like getting to witness our work being brought to life by the cast, directing, cinematography, lighting, costumes, hair, music, and editing!

Tell us more about your products. What makes them special?

The formulas are high-end and incredible, and the products are designed so you can layer colors and textures together without everything mixing together and becoming muddy. Half Magic is for the bold, unbold, and the makeup newbies alike. Aside from visually impactful bold and vivid looks, Half Magic is also meant to add a little subtle magic to your “everyday” look.

For bold and vivid, start with CHROMADDICTION MATTE, layer CHROMADDITION SHIMMER on top, and finish with GLITTERPILL for a multi-dimensional look. Then use our Adornment tweezers to add a few of our stick-on Face Gems (made with medical grade adhesive) for another layer of sparkle. No glue, no mess, and it only takes a few seconds to do!

To add a subtle sparkly touch to your everyday look, trace your eyeliner with GLITTERPILL or pat a little CHROMADDITION SHIMMER onto your lids and see what happens when the light hits it!

We’ve had incredible feedback on our lip collection too. The MOUTH CLOUD texture feels like cocoa butter, the finish is a blurring soft matte, and the colors are bold “it” shades, but they sheer out beautifully for a more subtle look.

“The MOUTH CLOUD texture feels like cocoa butter, the finish is a blurring soft matte, and the colors are bold it shades, but they sheer out beautifully for a more subtle look.” —Donni Davy

Do you have a favorite product from the collection?

Half Magic is a collection of my favorite ever products — my dream products! I can’t pick just one but I’m really proud of our MOUTH CLOUD formula. CHROMADDICTION SHIMMER in Spirit Guide is our hero shade of eye paint made with finely-grained duo-chrome pearls that appear periwinkle but reflect lilac in the light. All of our CHROMADDICTION eye paints are buildable so you can sheer them out or build them out, as well as use them as eyeliner for precise lines and delicate details. Our Face Gems are the first made with medical grade adhesive. They come in different colors and sizes and are easy to apply and stay put all day and night

Is there anything you want people to know about the ingredients in your products?

Our products are 100% vegan and cruelty free. All of our red and pink pigments are 100% vegan and FDA approved for use around the eyes, which is not always the case with bright reds and pinks! Our glitters are ophthalmologist-approved and the glitter particle sizes are safe for use around the eyes. We do not believe in plastic compacts for any of our pressed products. For our Light Trap glow powders we use recyclable hard paper palettes without mirrors or magnets! (Mirrors and magnets are not curbside recyclable.) The plastic packaging that we use for our liquid and cream products are made from post consumer recycled materials.

We have some more exciting innovations in sustainable and compostable packaging coming soon!

Where are your products sold?

Halfmagicbeauty.com! And we’ve been doing some pop-ups at music festivals and things like that, which people can find out about if they follow us at @halfmagicbeauty.

What’s next for the brand?

We’re such a new brand so we have so much that lies ahead! We have dozens of launches ahead of us. Until then, we have several music festival pop-ups that we’re doing, which allows us to meet our fans, sell products in person, and introduce people to the brand!

Secret to success?

You have to be extremely connected to small details, extremely detail oriented, and care about everything you are doing. Place equal importance on everything that you do, and don’t be entitled. Now that you need to work extremely hard, say yes to every job and every opportunity and place equal importance on how you tackle each job.

Biggest beauty secret?

I don’t keep beauty secrets, and I don’t believe in beauty or makeup rules. I don’t even like the word “beauty.” It’s too generic. I think embracing your own unique brand of you and having the confidence to own your look and love who you are (while also growing and evolving as you live your life) is super admirable and inspiring.

Wellness tips?

I love Epson salt baths with lavender oil. It’s really hard for me to transition out of work mode, and a bath helps me to relax and signal the nightly wind-down. I also listen to zen music on Spotify every single night all through the night. In the morning I have a hard time transitioning back into work mode, and it’s typically a rocky plunge into my day, where I tend to run late and not eat breakfast. I’m currently trying to get my wellness routine in order for the mornings. I need to prioritize eating!

Best advice?

Listen to your gut and trust your intuition. Even if your intuition is giving you an uncomfortable message or pointing you in the more difficult direction. Anything that’s hard is an opportunity to grow, which is really annoying because it means you should do the hard stuff. And it’s much easier to do the easy stuff.

[Images courtesy of Half Magic]

A University of Michigan graduate, Lizzy Sherman is an award-winning digital content writer/editor. Her work has appeared in publications including Beauty Launchpad, Nailpro, DAYSPA, CNET, Entertainment Tonight, and more. She has been a featured guest speaker at Cal State University Northridge, Digital LA, and The National Association of Audience Marketing Professionals. When she's not writing, Lizzy enjoys yoga and playing guitar. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter: @zillizy, @zillizy16

beauty, beauty bossLizzy ShermanOctober 27, 2022Donni Davy, #beautyboss, #BeautyBoss, Half Magic, Euphoria HBO, #euphoriamakeupComment