FOR Spring-Summer 2018, MAC Cosmetics presents four beauty directions—Focused, Glimmer, Honest and Unique. The brand has mastered the art of subtly blurring the line between runway and real life. Its seasonal trends and directions can be made very wearable.
The directions come from the designers and the runways, but they can be made more inclusive and expansive. We love looking at editorial and runway beauty looks but we also want to see if we can wear these trends.
Focused is all about the liner and the different ways it can enhance or change your look.
“When makeup involves a sharp line, everything around it tends to be softened…it creates a comfortable balance,” MAC Director of Makeup Artistry Terry Barber said.
Options include tightlining and waterline (“narrows the gaze for a harder look”); disconnected (“makes the eyes look larger”); and thicker strokes plus mascara (“gives a doe-y, more glamorous look”).
Products to try include: Brushstroke Liner in Brushblack and Brushbrown; Modern Twist Kajal Liner in Squid; Upward Lash Mascara in Upward Black; Brow Set in Clear; and Eye Brows Styler in Lingering, Stud, Fling and Spiked.
In Glimmer, MAC reclaims its authority over strobing and everything related to it. Remember that long before any makeup brand used the word “strobing,” MAC already had its Strobe Cream.
“The direction is an evolution of the continuous fascination with shine,” MAC Executive Director of Makeup Artistry Lyne Desnoyers said.
Glimmer isn’t just strobing and shine anymore. Think of new textures, such as glitter, rhinestones and liquid metallic.
Products to try include Pigments Silver, Copper, Platinum, Gold and Rose Gold; Prep + Prime Essential Oils Stick; Strobe Cream in Peachlite and Silverlite and Extra Dimension Skinfinish in Double-Gleam, Beaming Blush, Show Gold and Oh, Darling!
Honest is all about makeup that blurs rather than erases. This means going for the much coveted natural look.
Barber calls it an “invisible difference,” while Desnoyers describes it as a “luminous nude.” Think transparent base and touches of concealer.
“They still work with the face rather than impose a look on it,” Desnoyers said.
This means we should all forget the contoured cheek, erased lip and toffee tones. Everything is softly deconstructed and has a lived-in quality.
Products to try include Studio Waterweight Foundation SPF 50; Studio Waterweight Concealer; Liptensity Lipstick in Gumball; Clouds in My Coffee; Fireworks and Postmodern; Liptensity Lip Pencils in Honey Pecan, Enoki, Dionysus and Art District; Studio Fix Powder Plus Foundation and Mineralize Blush in Humour Me, Flirting with Danger, Happy-Go-Rosy and Sweet Enough.
Unique is about bold splashes of color but it goes beyond clean skin and red lips. It’s about diffusion. Feisty hues are worn blurred at the edges, instead of lips being lined for a more modern look.
“Strong color doesn’t have to be a fantasy,” Barber said.
Bold colors, such as orange or teal, can also be worn across the lids.
“When I think about balance and proportion in makeup, there has to be softness to sit against the strength,” Desnoyers said.
Products to try include Retro Matte Liquid Lipcolour in Quite the Standout, Recollection and Uniformly Fabulous and Powder Blush in Sketch, Swiss Chocolate, Film Noir, Burnt Pepper, Desert Rose and Pink Swoon.