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RetroFit: A Forties Fashion Revamp [ Contents ]

Spring Trends: Eye on the Flower

By Heather Harlan

Whether you’re looking for dramatic eye makeup to complement spring’s hot graphic prints, or just some glittery nail polish to peek out of those 1940s-inspired open-toed pumps, Shu Uemura, 5S, Shiseido and Anna Sui have a lot of new choices to check out this season.

Shu Uemura

Shu Uemura’s new “Fleurs” collection is meant to be as vibrant and lively as those psychedelic, Pucci-inspired patterns that have been popping up everywhere this season. “It’s a very fun, lighthearted face created around making the eyes look like flowers”, says Laura Lee, public relations director for the Shu Uemura boutique in SoHo. It all starts with one of Uemura’s shadow quad palettes. The highlighted one for this season is called “Fleur,” a combination of four separate shadows — a sparkly violet, a glittery fuschia, a matte yellow (“Exactly the color of a daffodil”, Lee notes), and a matte white. “The colors are applied in gradation,” she says. “It creates a flower-petal look with the illusion of your pupil as the center of the flower.” For added dramatic effect, she suggests adding flares of Uemura’s fake eyelashes in strategic clusters. Uemura’s spring cheek colors are equally bold. There’s Glow On Orange #M54, a bright tangerine orange; and Glow On Rose M#19, a matte fuschia. “They sound bad, but — especially if you use a fluffy makeup brush — you can create a kind of ‘whispered on’ or ‘blown-on’ feel,” says Lee. “The orange looks especially pretty on dark skin tones.” Lee suggests light pink lipstick to balance the look and keep the focus on the eyes. For a retro ‘60s feel, there’s N#322, a pale pink. Other options include N#319, a soft pink with a gold oversheen, or N#321, a coppery rose.

For skin care this spring, Uemura is introducing Lipo FD/C, a new line of whitening products that looks more like a high school chemistry experiment than the latest beauty treatment. The freeze-dried powder comes in four airtight glass vials, and you just add water to when you want to use it. Once the solution is mixed, it has a shelf life of only five days. That’s because its primary ingredient is Vitamin C, which becomes unstable — and therefore less effective — once it’s exposed to air. “It helps stop the production of melanin and helps boost cell turnover in your skin,” says Lee. “So, if you have sun spots, it removes them faster. Vitamin C is also an anti-inflammatory agent, so it’s also really good for getting rid of puffiness under the eyes.”

“The colors we are showing for spring are very soft and natural,” says Ebony Haith, a makeup artist at the 5S flagship store in SoHo. Haith suggests starting with one of their four new lipstick shades: #104, a purple sheer; #003 a brown matte; #001, a dark red; or #002, a brownish red. All coordinate well with lip-liner #355, a bronze brown. “The dark red works especially well on most East Asian skin tones,” she notes. “And the other colors are more natural-looking and less strong than you might expect.”

For eyes, she suggests taking powder color # 133, a cream tone, and applying it near the eyebrows, and then putting #136, a yellow, on the lids. Finish off with mascara #291. “It’s a lighter brown that really goes well with any kind of skin,” she says. “It’s much more natural than black or the more typical chocolate-toned mascaras.”

5S

The 5S system is designed to be flexible. Colors come in either a powder, stick or tube form, and many can be used interchangeably on the lips, cheeks or eyes. Haith suggests tube color #523, a rosy red, on the cheeks with any of the combinations above. For a warmer look, try powder color #33, a walnut brown. But don’t hesitate to try mixing things up and using these two with, or instead of any of the variables. “The tube colors and powders can be used anywhere on your face,” she says. “You have to play around and find what works best for you.”

Nails should also have a soft, light, touch, with maybe a little bit of shimmer, such as #P5, a rose pink; #P2, a pale gold; or #L4, a pink with line-shaped sparkles.

To keep skin smooth in the chill of early spring, Haith suggests 5S’s line of scented moisturizers and sparkling powders. “They give your skin a nice fresh smell and leave your face glowing,” she says. There are several to choose from, including “Charm”, which contains rosemary extract; “Rebirth”, a white lily-based scent, and “Refreshing”, with orange extract. “ ‘Refreshing’ is my favorite,” says Haith. “It’s like no other fragrance you’ve ever smelled.”

Anna Sui

At Anna Sui, the look for spring is all about warm tones of pink and red. “Everything is a bit reminiscent of the ‘70s or early ‘80s,” says Katherine Holmes, senior beauty director for Anna Sui cosmetics. Lips are glossy with a sheer tint of color. The glosses come in pots and jewelry — namely, plastic rose rings that pop open to reveal one of 12 different shades ranging from nude to ruby red. Nails are bright and sparkly. The centerpiece shades for spring include #311, a pink lavender; #310, a glossy fuschia; and #605, a red with metallic flakes. For eyes, Sui has added three new powder colors for spring; #907, a lime green; #110, a sky blue; and #304, a deep rose.

Shiseido

This season, cosmetic giant Shiseido is showing off more than a few new hues; it’s introducing a whole new line of makeup for skin, lips, eyes and nails. With typical Japanese disregard for proper use of English articles, it’s aptly called “Shiseido The Makeup”. The foundation and concealer products featured in the collection are said to balance skin color, using special “prismatic” powders that allow the penetration of green light and red light to neutralize ruddiness and reflect against dark surfaces caused by a high melanin level. The company also promises that, unlike many other cosmetics that often turn out looking quite different on your face than they did in the container, “The Makeup” uses technological advances to ensure color fidelity.

For lips, shades include Beige Rose #M7, a light matte pink with a late ‘60s, early ‘70s feel; Real Red #8, a classic ‘40s bright red; and Heather Rose #S6, a sheer pink/nude gloss. Eyeshadows come in paired sets, including: Shadow Duo #1, Granite Stone; #7, Deep Violet; and #5, Deep Brown. Each contains a darker color with a coordinating lighter hue. To add a little more color, there are tinted mascaras in unexpected shades such as Bronze Green and Violet. Blushes also come in soft duo sets, including Rose Nature #5.

To wash it all off at the end of the day, there is Shiseido’s new “The Skincare” collection. Gentle Cleansing Soap uses taurine, an amino acid that is said to soften hard water, keeping skin soft. There’s also a cleansing massage brush with which to use it. And to clean out all those clogged pores, you can try Purifying Mask, which contains mineral clay extracted from sea mud in Northern Japan.

Last fall, Shiseido debuted a new perfume, “Zen”, with main notes of Valerian and Eastern Kyara wood. From April, “Zen” will also be available in a new trio of products — shower gel, body lotion and body powder.