How Eva Longoria Got Ready for the 2024 Oscars
"This year for me was about being a director," the star shares about her elegant red carpet look.
"This has been a very long awards season," laughs Eva Longoria. Last night, the multi-hyphenate star joined a slew of other A-listers for Hollywood's biggest night: the Academy Awards. Though she's certainly no stranger to red carpets, including the Oscars, Sunday marked a new milestone for Longoria, whose directorial debut film Flamin' Hot was nominated for Best Original Song.
"This year, for me, was about being a director," she says. "I was at the Oscars as a director, not as Eva Longoria the actress, the celebrity. And so I wanted a different tone this year." The star, who appeared on the cover of Town & Country last year in support of her film, added, "By the time you get to the Oscars, you want that to be the climax of the season, but you've worn so many dresses, and so many outfits, and so many hairstyles, and so much makeup. You're like, 'what can we possibly do different?'"
The answer that she and her team—including stylist Maeve Reilly, makeup artist Elan Bongiorno, and hairstylist Ken Paves—arrived at was an instant hit on the red carpet: a custom Tamara Ralph off-the-shoulder gown in a lush black velvet with sleek hair and glamorous makeup. Paired with Bucherer gems and Stuart Weitzman shoes, the style managed to evoke both sophistication and sex appeal.
Here, a behind-the-scenes look at what it took to make her Oscars moment come to life.
The day started early for Longoria. "I left my house at 9:30 a.m. because I go get ready at the Oscars. Hair and makeup started at 10 to walk out the door by 1."
"Your makeup only looks as good as your skin, so you really have to do a lot of skin prep for your makeup to last nine hours, to last through the red carpet, through the show, to the after parties," explains Longoria, who has been the face of L’Oreal for almost 20 years. "You need the 24 hour long-wearing, mattifying makeup because like I said, it has to last so long. Every time I do red carpet, people go, really? You don't want Armani or Chanel? And I'm like, Nope. My L'Oreal Infallible stuff. That's my thing."
To create her look, Bongiorno used the brand's True Match Lumi Glotion Natural Glow Enhancer tinted moisturizer, True Match Radiant Serum Concealer, Infallible Up to 24H Fresh Wear Soft Matte Bronzer, Infallible Up to 24H Fresh Wear Soft Matte Blush, and True Match Super-Blendable Powder with L'Oreal's Brow Stylist Brow Definer Mechanical Waterproof Eyebrow Pencil and Colour Riche Satin Lipstick in Worth It.
"I decide nothing," Longoria jokes. "I am powerless in this equation. But my team, my stylist, Maeve, Ken, my hairstylist, Elan, my longtime makeup artist, they kind of collaborate and really come up with this idea."
She adds, "I love the fact that the red carpets are reflecting their art as well. The makeup, the styling, the wardrobe. I feel like you're a walking art piece on that red carpet. It's not just for the actress on the red carpet, it's their work too. And so it's the collaboration that's fun."
"I have a huge pregame. My team makes fun of me because they're like, 'you're not supposed to eat! You're supposed to eat air until we go!' I like to snack. I like to drink. I'm drinking my tequila. We make margaritas," says Longoria, who is co-founder of Casa Del Sol. "We listen to eighties music. We're just having fun a lot, too little of time. A lot of the time it becomes very serious and a very stressful process, and I don't like it. I like it to be fun."
"The Oscars [red carpet] is about respect, the importance of this institution, and this award," says Longoria. "It's still this custom of old Hollywood, old glamour, and it's just such an honor to be there and to walk that carpet."
"This year for me was about being a director. I was at the Oscars as a director, not as Eva Longoria, the actress, the celebrity," she explains. "So I was like, 'Oh, maybe I'll wear a tuxedo. I'm a director.' And I was like, 'You know what? No, I want to keep my femininity.' I feel like, I didn't want to send the message that you've got to dress like a man to be a director. I really wanted to embrace that I'm feminine, and sexy, and a director, but all those things are not mutually exclusive. You can be all things at once. All things can be true. So that's why I was like, 'You know what? I'm not doing a tuxedo. I'm not doing a suit.'"
"For this specific look, I wanted elegant and classic," she says. "I also didn't want to do sparkly because I did sparkly last year. So we got Tamara Ralph to design this gorgeous gown."
The look, which was custom made for Longoria, took abut a month to design and construct. "Tamara Ralph knocked it out of the park," she says.
"The jewelry was a big part of the story, because the dress I had was so classic that we didn't want to do something classic with the hair, and classic with the jewelry because you could kind of age yourself," Longoria explains. "I didn't want to be like Julia Roberts from Pretty Woman, I wanted it a little bit more modern. The Bucherer necklace was a very modern piece."
"I think an obvious choice would be emeralds for a black velvet gown. Everybody does emeralds in that combo. And we were like, 'Let's not do emeralds. Let's do something different and fun and fresh.' And that piece, the Bucherer piece that I had on my neck was exactly that."
"Once the gown is decided, that's what dictates the hair and makeup," says Longoria. "I really love the process of a red carpet. I love getting dressed up in a gown, and the collaboration of the look, and looking at the photos. There's just so much artistry that goes into it. So I have such an appreciation for the red carpet."
She adds, "But would I rather be home in pajamas? Absolutely."
Paves prepared and styled Longoria's hair for the night using L'Oreal EverPure Bond Strengthening Pre-Shampoo Treatment, Magic Root Cover Up Spray, and EverPure Sulfate-Free Bond Strengthening Shampoo and Conditioner.
Lauren Hubbard is a freelance writer and Town & Country contributor who covers beauty, shopping, entertainment, travel, home decor, wine, and cocktails.
Jesse Plemons & Kirsten Dunst's Relationship
Angelina Jolie Debuts Design at the Oscars
The Most Stylish Oscar 2024 After Party Looks
The Most Iconic Oscar Dresses of All Time
