To be blunt, pastel makeup for spring may not initially seem all that exciting. What’s new about softer, lighter colors for spring? Isn’t that what happens every year? The difference is all in how you wear them. Leave the pink lipstick and powder blue eyeshadow to Barbie; this spring’s pastels turn up in unexpected places and with unusual textures. Pastels can even go bold if you let them. Add a few of the new pastels to your spring makeup palette, and you’ll find them anything but conventional.
Pink Eyeshadow
Yes, if it goes wrong, you’ll look like a sickly Easter bunny. Used well, though, pink eyeshadow as an accent looks lively, not lurid. The trick is to pick the right pink for your skin tone. Avoid anything that’s the exact shade of your skin when your eyes are irritated; that means going for hot pinks if you’re darker-skinned and cooler hues with a little sparkle if you’re fair. Move pink eyeshadow farther from your lash line and use black or chocolate brown eyeliner to prevent pink eyeshadow from imparting a rosy cast to the whites of your eyes. Pink shadow also goes surprisingly well with metallic gold, so play with a hit of pink on your brow bones and gilded lids.
Yellow Eyeshadow
If pink is not your friend, try yellow eyeshadow for a sunny lift to your spring look. Another potentially tricky hue, yellow can look like a week-old shiner if you aren’t careful with choosing your color. Look for orange-kissed yellows rather than greenish yellows, especially if you’re wearing translucent colors. Pick shadows with a little sparkle to them to keep them from going sallow on your skin. Yellow eyeshadow also plays well with other colors; combine it with lilac and lavender eyeshadow for a colorful contrast, or blend it with peachy shades for a sunset look that’s perfect for evening.
Cooler than pink and more wearable than purple, lavender lipstick is the color of the season. The trend works best if you’re either very fair or very dark; if your skin tone is somewhere in between, lean toward pinks with just a touch of blue rather than full-on lilac. Wear neutral eye makeup and let your lips take the spotlight for an ethereal look that goes just a little goth without looking too dark and brooding. If you love lavender lips, invest in a tooth whitening kit; lavender is opposite yellow on the color wheel, so it highlights any touch of tea or coffee stains you might have.
Anything goes with creamy pastel polish for spring. If you love traditional and feminine pink polish, go for it — but don’t limit yourself to hues that occur in nature. Robin’s egg blue, creamy mint green and bright lilac look perfectly polished for day or evening. If you’re hooked on classic colors and styles, try a spring version of your usual manicure with creamy opaque pastel polish in place of the white polish for French manicures. For your toes, try a little nail art: polish in white, black or a favorite pastel, then dot a contrasting color randomly over the surface of your nails.
