JD Vance wearing eyeliner

My makeup artist and I spent a few minutes discussing whether I should try to get the look using just mascara or if I should go for false lashes. She thought we could probably accomplish it with mascara, but looking at the pictures of Vance I'd brought with me, I doubted whether my modest lashes were up to the task. I chose a set of false lashes the artist described as lightweight and made to move like one's natural lashes. Applying them is certainly not something I could do well myself, nor is all the detailed work the makeup artist did to line my upper and lower lash lines, really getting in there but still making it look subtle—with every moment, I recognized and resented all this work it was taking just to ape something Vance wakes up with every day. Maybe he's born with it.

When I peeked at myself midway through the appointment, I was horrified at how big my eyebrows looked. But once I had the lashes on, they actually looked right. It gave me a new appreciation for yet another gift the universe had inexplicably bestowed on an undeserving Vance: I hadn't realized how much work his brows did to naturally balance his lashes

When she was done, my makeup artist pronounced, "I love it!" praising the definition and the attention all the liner and lash work drew to my eyes. Though it was a lot—a lot—more eye makeup than I usually wore, it was a nice look. I could definitely imagine asking for it again if I were going to a wedding or something. Once I was back at my desk, I confess that I tried to stage a few selfies where it looked like I might be giving a speech, looking off into the distance and gesticulating forcefully with my hands, so I would more closely resemble Vance in the hi-res photos I'd downloaded. For a wedding or if I'm ever booked to speak at a major political convention, for sure.