There was no shortage of star power at the 2026 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit runway show in Miami this past weekend. SI icons, influencers, athletes and reality stars—including Molly Sims, Bethenny Frankel, Ilona Maher, Hunter McGrady, Jocelyn Corona, Alix Earle and Tiffany Haddish—took over the runway at W South Beach, serving everything from vintage-inspired pinup glamour to sporty, Baywatch-red swimsuits.
Backstage, however, the beauty direction was refreshingly simple. As the official beauty partner of the event, COVERGIRL created a fresh, bronzed look designed to enhance each model’s natural features rather than cover them up. The result was healthy-looking skin that glowed under the runway lights and felt wearable enough to recreate long after Swim Week ends.
“Being backstage at Miami Swim Week with COVERGIRL was such a full-circle moment for me as an artist,” says makeup artist Filipe De Pontes. “Makeup is never just about how someone looks when they leave the chair. It’s about how they feel stepping in front of the camera.”
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For De Pontes, that meant focusing on skin that looked effortless. “For this event, we wanted the skin to look fresh, warm and effortless,” he says. “The TruBlend Sun & Sculpt Bronzing Glow Serum ($11) gave the skin this beautiful sun-kissed glow and dimension that really emphasized their natural beauty under the lights. Seeing the women walk onto the runway feeling confident and comfortable in their own skin was my favorite part of the whole experience.”
Speed was also essential backstage. With dozens of models cycling through hair and makeup before showtime, products needed to perform under bright lights while standing up to constant touch-ups. “Backstage at Miami Swim Week, everything moves so fast, so you need products that truly perform under the lights and constant touch-ups,” says makeup artist Dani Parkes.
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According to Parkes, three products did most of the heavy lifting backstage: COVERGIRL TruBlend Sun & Sculpt Bronzing Glow Serum ($11), COVERGIRL Clean Fresh Jelly Water Tint ($8) and COVERGIRL Clean Fresh Squishy Glaze Lip Butter Balm ($9).
“TruBlend Sun & Sculpt Bronzing Glow Serum, Clean Fresh Jelly Water Tint and Squishy Glaze made it so easy to create fresh, radiant, glowing skin,” says Parkes. “Seeing the models walk the runway looking so confident and luminous was such a special moment. It made me so happy to be even a small part of it.”
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While the swimwear stories changed throughout the evening, the beauty message remained the same: glowing skin is the best accessory.
