Spring makeup turns on the lights
A shimmering translucence is the goal to aim for, the beauty pros say. Cosmetics, subtly blended and sparingly applied, should give a luminous effect. ``It's as if all the lights had been turned on for spring'' is the way Est'ee Lauder describes her firm's makeup message. Other experts agree that whether soft or intense in color, fashions for faces are as light and airy as the season's new clothes.
Hairstyles are on the same general wavelength. Now that androgyny has receded into the distance, longer, non-mannish hair is in order. The literal boy cuts are growing out. This leaves overgrown, in-between lengths, so to give them a neat appearance hair is often cropped straight across the back of the neck. Smooth chin or shoulder lengths are finished off with a blunt cut or turned under in pageboy fashion.
Bangs, both the wispy and the smooth full kinds, are popular. They are cut so that they can be brushed down over the brow or up and away from the face. ``Lift'' is a word hairdressers like to use these days in referring to the upward sweep that gives the desired look of lightness and volume. Beginning with a really good cut, maintenance should not be a daunting affair. Control with a blow dryer is a lot easier, since the advent of styling gels and mousses.
Step 1 for the face is, of course, to start with clean, well-cared-for skin. ``Getting the skin in order is the key to looking attractive and groomed,'' says makeup artist Way Bandy. Treatment products that can help are proliferating, with new facial scrubs, collagen preparations, firming masks, and other refinements appearing on the market seemingly every other week. Due soon: the Biotherm line, a favorite of fastidious Frenchwomen and up to now only available in Europe.
In buying new lipstick, eyeshadow, blush, and face powder, shoppers may be guided along the same lines as in selecting new fashions. Colors are artfully schemed to suit the fresh, airy looks of the clothes. Romance being a spring theme, pink and peach tones are accordingly dominant. Chanel's variations go from vivid to delicate. An electric blue violet eyeliner comes with a dual shadow of maize and indigo as complementary hues.
Lanc^ome's assortment concentrates on pinks, too, with mauves and smoky blues for eyes. Romantic pastels are Ralph Lauren's theme, as in his latest linens and chintzes. Est'ee Lauder's new makeups come in three distinct groups, compatible with spring's romantic, native, and modernist fashion styles.
