It’s always really interesting to hear about forthcoming seasonal trends and then later on, see how this prediction translated into reality. Trends are taken from the catwalks where make-up compliments and keys into the clothes with a look designed for the specific runway; make-up brands then showcase to press and public how they used the looks and how these can be translated to wearable for the following season (interesting to note that make-up brands often pay to do the ‘looks’ on catwalks).
- Maybelline Sharon Dowsett
I’ll admit to a fan-girl moment here with Sharon Dowsett – Maybelline UK Make-Up Director. Her first trend prediction is all about blue – bearing in mind that brands now have access to levels of pigment like never before, going bold without going wrong is now so easy. Sharon cites black as a definer, and blue as an enhancer (she is literally a quote a minute and they’re all gems) so the introduction of a new Master Kajal in blue (yes, there is a black one!) is going to make a blue block eye quite simple.
Next up is a strong brow – bold and blunt (apparently Todd Lynn asked for ‘feral brows’ on his models – eek), but you can forget all about precision colour matching – next season’s brows are dark. For everyone. Keep your brow pencils super-sharp and in the fridge so they stay that way.
Real skin? Yes, that’s back too, except Sharon acknowledges that the art of a real skin look is, er, make-up! There is absolutely nothing about the real-skin look that allows for no make-up. That’s where Maybelline Superstay Better Skin comes in (I haven’t tried it). Sharon did some expert application of white eye-shadow over cheek bones that made the model look instantly fresh and gleaming. I know if I tried that trick at home I’d end up looking like I had white eye shadow on my cheeks. But, that’s the art of the make-up artist – to see skin in a very precise way and to understand colour as a language.
Don’t be surprised by autumnal shades such as gold and bronze featuring heavily for SS14, and keep your eyes peeled for the Maybelline Big Eyes Mascara with a small brush for bottom lashes and a bigger one for tops.
As and when I have the new products for sampling I’ll swatch and review but for now I’ll leave you with Sharon’s final tip – orange lips. If it was me, I’d hang on for the ultra-intense liquid lipsticks heading our way from lots of different brands because they’re going to be the surprise trend of next year.
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