Local beauty experts weigh in on the season's trends
There’s a line in The Devil Wears Prada (yes, it’s been on cable
lately) where malevolent editrix Miranda Priestly snipes at a lowly
fashionista for her misguided edit meeting contribution. “Florals? For
spring? Groundbreaking.” The more we thought about it, though, the more
we realized that we certainly didn’t just trudge through a miserable
New England winter only to pile on more neutrals come March 20th. So
what if we’ve seen it before? Bring on the color.
That sentiment in mind, we caught up with three local experts for their
take on the warm-weather beauty trends for spring ’09. Dani Wagener,
atelier artist at Shu Uemura, refuses to succumb blindly to every
makeup fad that passes her counter, but she does identify two of the
upcoming season’s key stories: the super-glossy lip and bright pops of
color. Coinciding nicely is the brand’s launch of its Gloss Unlimited
Pink Collection, featuring five shimmery new lip shades. Explains
Wagener, “It’s just a nice sheer, high-shine pop of color, which I
think is really pretty and a great way to incorporate some of the
trends. The trends will be so extreme, where they’re doing such bright
color; I think if you choose to focus on one feature and add a pop of
color, that can be really pretty and not too over-thetop.”
Lauren Genatossio, owner of Southie beauty outpost Sarra, concurs.
“Huge on the runway was color on the eyes, color on the cheeks, color
on the lips — but not together. When you’re doing color for spring,
[I’d suggest] going with one thing: doing a really bold lip and then
keeping everything else very clean, very simple. I saw a lot of color
on the lip, whether it was bright pink or a violety pink, or even a
tangeriney orange. And then, a really sleek, black liquid liner [on the
eyes]. I think women will always love that look.” As an alternative,
Genatossio even dares to dabble in smoky eyes rendered in bright hues
like plum and hot pink.
Speaking of color, over at NARS, it’s all about the inevitable — yet
beloved! — pastel: a veritable rainbow of baby pinks (think a sweep of
shadow across lids), lime greens, and light blues. And, in addition,
product specialist Kerri Herlihy is loving her line’s upbeat embrace of
shimmer and sparkles. Her current favorite? NARS’s versatile Hungry
Heart Blush and Bronzing Duo. “It’s a highlighter and a blush with tons
of shimmer, almost sparkles. You can use it on your eyes, you can use
it on your cheeks, you can use it as a highlighter.”
Other new concepts to look out for, according to our beauty gurus,
include cutting-edge primer formulations (Genatossio points to her own
line, as well as Smashbox’s Hybrid 2 in 1 Luminizing Primer); fun,
albeit gimmicky, mascaras like Lancôme’s new oscillating brush and
conditioning treatments that promise longer, fuller lashes; and
raspberry lips with that just-bitten look.
Of course, feel free to take it all with a grain of salt, too. Says
Wagener, “I usually just tell people to try to mix it up a little bit
[for spring]... They absolutely need to adjust their foundation, maybe
go from a liquid to a powder or vice versa. And then definitely
brighten a little bit, because as we go into the spring, it’s still a
little bit cold, so I think it’s nice to break things up.” Maybe it’s
just us, but our outlook is already feeling sunnier.
We didn't forget you, boys
The last thing we want to sound like is a nagging girlfriend, but
promise you won’t flip the page just yet? The beefy dude who’s been all
up in your business since Park Street isn’t reading over your shoulder
and judging, we swear. Okay, deep breath: we’ve consulted the experts,
and we’ve come to the conclusion that a little makeup wouldn’t hurt.
No, we’re not asking you to go all Pete Wentz on us, but hear us out.
Concealer. Maybe a matte bronzer. Some clear mascara or brow gel. And
just a dab of lip balm. Think you can handle it?
Sarra’s Lauren Genatossio, who does editorial work on the side, is a
big proponent. “I tell guy friends all the time, there’s not a man that
you see in print or on television or in a movie that has not had their
makeup done by a makeup artist. [Guys] get dark circles the same way
that we do. They get a pimple the same way that we do.” Genatossio’s
expectations are realistic, however. “Now, I’m very limited in what I
think a guy needs. I have a short list.” A clear gel or mascara works
in a pinch to tame unruly brows or flyaways, an exfoliating lip balm is
a must in this harsh climate, and concealer isn’t as scary as you’d
think; she advises guys to apply just a dab in the inner corner of each
eye. Hell, she’s even gotten a cousin’s army ranger husband on board.
NARS’s Kerri Herlihy adds bronzer to her list of prospects. “NARS has a
bunch of really matte cream bronzers. So a guy could put it on, and it
would just look like he went tanning. It’s more [with] the powders that
you start to look a little metro.” And, for the colorphobes, Dani
Wagener of Shu Uemura recommends the brand’s UV Under Base skin primer
with SPF. “You can use it underneath foundation, powder; you can use it
on clean skin, but it really helps reduce redness in the skin. It really smoothes the skin and gives it an all-over polished look.”
No matter what your comfort level, we urge you to at least consider the
possibility. Soon enough, we’ll have you boys trading tweezing secrets
and skincare tips over beers at Clery’s... On second thought, maybe
we’ll just keep this one between us.
