Makeup for spring is flirtatious. Expect smoky, bedroom eyes, glowing skin and color-drenched lips.
For the mouth, pink is hot, and coral is back. Pale shades are cool again, and they all get extra pout with iridescent or semigloss finishes.
You can read the mood in the names of the new lipsticks:
MAC offers "poodle lipgloss," and "poodle lipstick," a fuchsia in high shine ($11.50) or creamy formula ($13.50).
Clinique has 21 new shades of lip and nail colors, including lipsticks "hot date," a sultry, deep red; "double truffle," a pink mocha; and "shimmery moon," a glimmering lilac.
Do you see where this is going?
The "stardust baby" collection, offered by Trucco for Sebastian, looks irresistible to young girls with its high-shine lip glosses ($9 each), sparkle powder ($16.50) and a purse-size compact ($25) of five pale, candy-colored eye shadows.
The collection is the No. 1 seller and one of the best-selling ever, for Trucco, said Sandra Soleiman, director of education, research and development, who said its appeal is crossing the usual age and ethnic barriers.
But if your teen years are a distant memory, don't worry. Spring makeup is favorable to older women smart enough to take advantage of it.
Many women say they never change their hair or makeup. They should, said Juana McCoy, owner of Zoe cosmetic store.
"You have to think coordinated," she said. If you let your hair go gray or if you buy some of the very colorful new spring fashions, you must change your makeup, too.
It's also true that "the older you get, the less makeup you need, which is contrary to what most people think," she said.
It's prettier to use a sheer foundation (let some skin show through) and just enough cheek color to feel good, which are the trends anyway, she said.
The new pastel lip shades "look yummy with gray hair," she said, and gloss is great if you don't have a problem with feathering. If you do, wear a darker lipstick, blot it well, then use a dab of gloss.
And don't be afraid of the glimmer in many cosmetics. It's not the old frost, which was created with minerals or even fish scales, but a more refined, synthetic sparkle that can just kiss your cheeks and eyes or play on your shoulders.
More eye makeup, possibly an influence from the '60s, is stylish again, McCoy said. Shadows in taupes, browns, greens and grays are fashionable, but give them more life and depth by blending in a bit of lilac, blue or other color.
For example, brush gray on the lid, add lilac on top of the gray, then bring the lilac up to the brow and blend it in.
Zoe makeup artist Jane Evans created smoky eyes for our model using "whisper," a soft lavender shadow; "haze," a soft plum shadow in the crease; and "glimmer dust" swept all over the lid. The colors are from a new line by makeup artist Paula Dorf, who creates makeup for many film stars, models and politicians.
She lined lips with Dorf's "lullaby," a soft coral; painted them with "Niagara," a coral by Nars and finished with "sunset strip," a shimmery golden gloss also by Nars.
Getting eyeliner to stay put is a big problem for a lot of women. If you're one of them, check out Dorf's "transformer" ($20.50), a clear liquid sealant that McCoy says will keep eyeliner in place until you wash it off.
Another interesting Dorf product is "glimmer dust" ($20.50), a refined, sparkling powder that will turn even the dullest eye shadow into a beautiful one, McCoy said.
© 1999 Scripps Howard News Service.All Rights Reserved.
