Winter Makeup Trends for the 2011 Holidays

Holiday party makeup has to look especially festive to compete with the glittering ornaments and rich colors of the season. During the day when you’re bundled up so the only thing visible is your face, it’s just as important to keep your makeup looking stylish. These winter makeup trends work for day or evening depending on how you apply them. Wear sheer versions of these makeup looks for day and transition to more pronounced color for evening.

Bold Lipstick

Every season has its classic makeup styles, but the variations within those styles is what makes seasonal makeup exciting. Vivid lipstick for winter has been a staple look before Revlon first introduced their Cherries in the Snow back in 1953. This year is no exception, but you’ll have a far broader range of colors to pick when revamping your makeup wardrobe for winter.

Bold red always works; Chanel’s Dragon is a true red gloss that’s as heavily pigmented as a lipstick and wears beautifully. Red is far from your only option, though. Try a deep merlot hue or a rich burgundy to stand out in a crowd. Don’t fear these darker shades if you’re pale; as long as the rest of your makeup remains neutral, you’ll look striking and very much on trend. If dark lipstick doesn’t agree with you, go for bright poppy, rich fuchsia and shocking pink.

The Nude Face

At the other end of the spectrum from strong lipstick is the nude makeup look. A nude face for winter doesn’t mean going without makeup, but applying makeup that intensifies the natural color variations in your skin. Look in a mirror and notice how your eyelids naturally have a slightly darker tone than your cheeks, how your lips stand out from the rest of your face and where your eyelashes leave shadows on your lids. These are the colors you’ll use to create a nude face.

A successful nude makeup look is all about the texture. Keep your foundation dewy, not matte; winter skin tends to be dry anyway, so skipping the powder leaves your skin feeling better as well as looking better. Stick to a small amount of strategically applied shimmer such as a dot of highlighter on your cheekbones and a dab of sparkle at the center of your lips. More than that will leave you looking frosted — that’s a great look for cakes, but for faces, not so much.

A nude face looks perfect for day or evening, but if you want more glamor, combine a mostly-nude face with one dramatic element like a strong lip or smoky eyes.

Offbeat Metallics for Eyes

Remember that song from “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer?” Sure, silver and gold always work for Christmas, but they’re expected. Metallic eyeshadow for the holidays looks appropriately festive, but break away from the traditional silver and gold shadows in favor of bronze, copper, gunmetal and pewter. These shades still give you the metallic gleam that puts all the focus on your eyes, but in a novel way.

Give a metallic eye look more dimension with matte shadow in the crease of your eyelid. The rest of your eye makeup will look even shinier by comparison. If you want to take the shine to new heights, dampen a brush or sponge with water before applying metallic eyeshadow. You’ll get longer wear and more gleam with a wet eyeshadow application.

Big Eyeliner

Cat eyes, smudgy thick lines, completely kohl-rimmed — all of these eyeliner looks work with winter makeup trends. Instead of the more regimented eyeliner possibilities of decades past, this season’s eyeliners are pretty much anything goes as long as it’s bold. Strong eyeliner plays well with metallic eyeshadow or with an otherwise nude eye and bold lips, so combine this trend with any of the other winter makeup looks as you like.

Liquid and gel eyeliners give you the longest wear and the most dramatic line, but they can be tricky to apply. Practice your eyeliner flip or wedge a few times before you try it the night of a big party.


People also view

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *