Makeup Trends

One runway trend that's making its way to Hollywood is bold, bright lips. Yesterday, the celebrities showed off a garden variety of lipstick shades, including pink, purple, and red. Kat Dennings attended the premiere of Iron Man 3 with hot-pink lips paired with icy silver eye shadow. At the Tribeca Film Festival Chanel Artists Dinner, Taraji P. Henson complemented her blue ensemble with an electric purple lipstick, and Olivia Palermo rocked a blazing red hue at a Rochas event. If you're going to go bold with your lipstick, live by the motto: the brighter the better.

Aside from recently being named the face of Burberry Body Tender, model Cara Delevingne has two other claims to fame: her famously bold eyebrows. Her embracing full brows has spawned a trend that has women contemplating their eyebrow brushes. But if you're a little scared about dusting on some pigment for fear of looking perpetually angry at the world, don't fret. Here are some things to keep in mind while doing up your eyebrows:

1. Stick to powders, not pencils. While pencils have usually been the mainstay for brows for generations (hello, '80s makeup), powders are easier to handle and create a more natural, feathered look. Grab two shades: one that is a shade lighter than your natural colour for daytime and one that is a tone darker for more drama.
2. Brush powder on your hairs, not your skin. One common mistake women make is that they press on their brushes and pencils too hard, causing pigment to adhere to their skin. This makes brows look clownish and fake. Use a lighter touch to ensure the pigment coats your hairs, not your skin, and always make sure you're brushing in the direction that the hair is growing in.
3. Focus pigment on the outer two-thirds of your brows. If putting powder on your brows makes you look clownish, take note at where you're focusing the pigment. Brushing powder into the inner corners of your eyes causes them to look fake. Instead, focus the powder from the beginning of your arch to the end of your brow. Then, using a brow brush, blend the existing pigment into the inner corner for a more natural look.
4. Mix your colours. The best way to get a natural look is to blend your colours. Use the darker shade in a thinner line along the centre hairs of your brows. Then blend the lighter shade out from the centre of your brows to the ends. This will ensure you'll always look natural.

We all know the power of a strong lip, and on Wednesday night, stars were ditching red lipstick for a bold new colour: purple. Actress Naomie Harris and singer Rihanna went for rich bordeaux hues, while Bérénice Marlohe opted for a softer wine-stained look. You can try aubergine lips, too, with a bold lipstick like MAC Lipstick in Rebel ($36), or you can go for a stain like CoverGirl Lip Slicks Lipgloss in Edgy ($10.95). Whether you have a fair or dark complexion, plush plum shades will make a glamorous statement.

When it comes to achieving a natural makeup look on deeper skin tones, avoid reaching for something too neutral. While it might seem counter-intuitive, experiment with shades rich in colour to find something that enhances, all while blending seamlessly into the skin. Think of your colour palette like your favuorite Valentine's Day treats: grab up some roses and chocolates to achieve your most natural look.

1. Because deeper skin is often prone to hyper-pigmentation, start by blending any lighter spots. For yellowish undertones, correct your light spots with a concealer, set with a powder, and then blend on a foundation that matches your skin tone. Red undertones can skip the correcting and just apply foundation, paying special attention to problem areas.
2. Dust on a copper, amber, or tawny bronzer if desired, followed by a rose-coloured blush along your cheekbone for a natural flush.
3. For eye makeup, soft, chocolate-toned shadows are the perfect way to define. Enhance your lashes by dotting in between them with a felt-tipped liner, and apply a swipe of mascara on the roots to create fullness.
4. Accentuate your lips by applying a gloss or lipstick one to two shades darker than your lip tone. Or, keep your lips bare, adding a dab of clear gloss on the middle of your bottom lip for a pop of brightness.

The irony of the no-makeup makeup look, one of the bigger trends for Spring, is that it actually requires some makeup to pull it off. So where do you start? Well, just like the model who walked for Balmain (above), it's best to let your skin tone lead. For fair-skinned ladies, beiges and peaches will be your go-to hues for looking fresh-faced. Learn the tricks and shop the look when you keep reading.

Creating a neutral makeup look for medium skin can be a little tricky because it's necessary to play with colour combinations. Unlike fair skin, which can wear a bevy of light colours and still look natural, what may work for one woman with medium tone may not work for another. Dusty pinks and bronzes will be your go-to hues if you have medium or olive skin tone:

• Grab a concealer with a yellow tint to neutralise blemishes and use it only where it's needed. Set with a powder a shade lighter than your skin colour.
• Blush will look a little obvious on medium tones, so opt for bronzer instead. Sweep it along your hairline, under your cheekbones, and along your jawline.
• Swipe on an eye shadow with a light bronze colour. Line your upper waterline, curl your eyelashes, and apply just one coat of mascara.
• A dusty rose lipstick will look best paired with medium tones. Dab some on, focusing on the fullest part of your lip.

More Becca...

Winged eyeliner will always be a classic. But if you're looking for something that revolts against the cat-eye craze, then reach for these simple runway designs. Round, square, and barely there are just a few options beyond the iconic eyeliner flick.

1. A Roundabout Way: Instead of doing a wing at the end of your liner, try this oval edge seen at Giorgio Armani (left). The rounded shape is a great way to connect top and bottom liner, and it elongates the eye. Get a rough-and-tumble feeling by smudging the liner with fingers; an imperfect line reads sultry and sexy.

2. Be a Square: To get the modernised block shape seen at Kenzo (top right), draw a boxy outline with liquid liner and fill in. The trick is to align the bottom of your rectangle with the top lash line. Otherwise, your graphic could get buried in the crease.

3. Inside Out: Defining eyes doesn't require loads of eyeliner, as evidenced by the minimalist liner look at Guy Laroche (bottom right). Take on the tight-line technique and keep product on the waterline, honing in on the inner corners. Then, wiggle a soft pencil between lashes to fake fuller fringe. Top off with a berry red lipstick for extra elegance.