VIOLET, poppy red, emerald, lemon and nectarine: spring's vibrant hues have made the leap from wardrobe to makeup bag.
The hottest catwalk makeup trends flaunt bright pops of colour. From hot pink lips to a stroke of teal liner on the eyes, makeup artists are experimenting with bold beauty looks.
Now, as the weather heats up and bright colours come out of the closet, is the perfect time to have fun with makeup and experiment with a few fresh looks.
A cruise through the beauty counter finds more fun shades than a Crayola box. Here, what's on offer at a few top beauty brands.
Palettes that pop
For spring, Nars introduces a vibrant, 1990s-inspired colour palette. The collection boasts a lot of fun colour, says creative director Francois Nars in a press statement. The artist's favourite products of the season: Dressed To Kill ($30), a fuchsia rose lipstick with gold shimmer, and Mad Mad World (439), an eyeshadow duo of vivid cyan and parakeet green. Wear each bold eye shade solo or use one as a base and the other as a liner or accent, he suggests.
The summer collection from Nars, just hitting beauty counters now, plays on the futuristic glam of the 1970s, with an outrageous flamingo pink lip, eyes swept in seafoam green, dandelion and African violet, and an electric orange nail.
Bold to bare
The beauty professionals at MAC Cosmetics cover a gamut of looks by identifying four trends for the season.
The first trend, Sig-nature, is described as a feminine interpretation of boyish beauty, with minimal makeup, no mascara, framed brows and natural toned lips.
The second trend, Nu-ance, features a wash of colour that takes in shades of highly pigmented pastels of turquoise, lilac, lemon, mint, aqua and peach.
The third trend story, Sci-chedelic, features edgy colour blocked on lids or lips. To try: Auto-De-Bleu Technakohl Liner ($19) for a flash of sea blue on the eye.
The final trend, Puri-tan, burnishes skin in honey-beige tones.
Seeing double
Made-in-Montreal brand Annabelle makes its Western Canadian debut this spring. London Drugs is wrapping up six weeks of exclusive promotions. New from Annabelle for spring is the Expandable Mascara ($11), a mascara with an accordion-like brush that expands for maximum volume and retracts for compact bristles that deliver length and definition. Now through May 8 at London Drugs, buy any Annabelle mascara and receive a free Annabelle single eyeshadow.
To get those colourful cat eyes that are oh-so-stylish this season, pick up the Twinset Eyeshadow Eyeliner Duo ($9). Use the rounded eyeshadow tip, available in Cobalt, Aqua or Vendetta (violet), to apply colour to the entire lid. Use the opposite end black kajal as a traditional eyeliner and to contour the waterline.
BONUS BEAUTY
New for spring, Elizabeth Arden's Beautiful Color Collection aims to prove that beauty is more than skin deep. These four new products not only add colour, they treat the skin. Luminous Lip Gloss ($22), available in 12 shades with high shine, pearl and high shimmer finishes, soothes lips like a balm. It's packed with mango butter and shea butter to lock in moisture and vegetal emollients to condition lips. Radiance Blush ($35) in eight shades with matte and pearl finishes sculpts cheeks and contains antioxidants to help protect skin from environmental damage.
Beautiful Color Eye Shadow ($24 singles, $32 duos) in 24 single shades and seven duo shades contain retinyl linoleate, a vitamin A derivative that is said to reduce the appearance of lines and wrinkles.
Beautiful Color Lash Enhancing Mascara ($30) lengthens and curls lashes and includes peptides to help reduce lash loss and carob seed extract to strengthen lashes.
GOLDEN GLOW
For spring from Aerin (the newest beauty brand from Estée Lauder group of companies) is the Garden Color Collection, inspired by the shades of early spring flowers. The collection arrived in stores in February in limited supply and features a pair of eyeshadow-blush palettes in pretty linen-covered zip-around compacts ($78 apiece) and other spring essentials.
Aerin's summer Shell Color collection, at the beauty counter now, captures the warmth of the sun with golden highlighters, rose lip colour and neutral shadows. Aerin cosmetics are available exclusively at Holt Renfrew and online at esteelauder.ca.
