Ariana Grande has had many eras over her nearly 20-year career, but I will always have a soft spot for what I like to call “Peak Ponytail.” Spanning roughly 2014’s My Everything to 2020’s Positions, these were the years when the vocal runs were running, the eyeliner was flicked, and that high pony was snatched; basically, major 1960s femme fatale vibes. Lucky for me, it looks like Grande might be returning to, or at least evoking, that mid-century energy for her upcoming album, Petal — because she’s rocking some serious ‘60s-inspired, literal petal eyelashes on the cover.
For a Target-exclusive cover of her eighth studio album, shot in black and white by photographer Katia Temkin, Grande dons fluffy lashes with floral leaves affixed to the upper lash line. And the accents are the real deal: “We used REAL flower petals to make these petal peepers, and I don’t know if I’ve loved anything more!!” Grande’s longtime makeup artist, Michael Anthony, shared on Instagram.
While the creative team has yet to share any specific inspiration, it’s hardly far-fetched to assume they looked to the flower-obsessed 1960s and early 1970s; think this 1969 shot of a model with (false) petals around her eyes, or Twiggy on the July 1967 cover of Vogue with a flower drawn around her right eye.
All that being said, given the rest of the album art that’s dropped so far — which has seen the singer with natural makeup and tousled, undone hair by stylist Alyx Liu — it seems highly unlikely that we’re for Positions-level ‘60s inspo with the Petals imagery. But that doesn’t make me any less excited for what Team Grande has in store, visually and sonically, when the album drops on July 31.
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