Rainbow bright
As seen at Nina Ricci, Rochas, Blumarine, Oscar de la Renta, Diane von Furstenberg, Jil Sander and Marni.

Brilliant hues of fuchsia, blue, lilac and green were brushed across models’ eyelids. “A coloured, smoky eye is ultra-feminine and modern,” says Pat McGrath, backstage at Nina Ricci. The key: Apply colour in layers. McGrath used a dark burgundy-red shadow and then added a dab of shimmery fuchsia to build intensity. Fuchsia, along with tangerine, was also seen on lips at Jil Sander, Diane von Furstenberg and Marni. “We wanted to keep the face very chic, very pure, but with an element of street,” explains Peter Philips, at Jil Sander. Pristine skin and neon lips create the perfect contradiction. Moisturize lips, and then dab on your favourite hue with your fingertip.

Pick a colour from the rainbow! View our gallery of must-have rainbow-bright products.

The dark arts
As seen at Yves Saint Laurent, Givenchy and Louis Vuitton.

Sophisticated purple/black lips return this season, this time with a high-shine finish. At Givenchy, Tom Pecheux complemented designer Ricardo Tisci’s sombre, gothic collection with a deep plum, while at Louis Vuitton, McGrath opted for a sultry, over-the-top glossy lip in shades of eggplant and blackcurrant.

In living colour
Greg Wencel, makeup artist for CoverGirl, weighs in on how to wear deep, dark lip hues.

Who can wear dark shades?
“Deep red or burgundy can be worn by women of any age or ethnicity and with any skin tone,” says Wencel, noting the diverse models walking the Louis Vuitton, Yves Saint Laurent and Givenchy spring/summer runways. “It’s truly a shade that all women can pull off with style.”

When to wear them
A dark lip is always a statement look, even if no other makeup is worn with it, explains Wencel. “This would be a great look for a party or special event,” he says. “Typically, we only see deepcoloured lips for the fall/winter season; this is very different for spring, and that’s what makes it fresh and modern.”

How to apply
Wencel believes that choosing a lipstain or a long-lasting lip colour is the best place to start. “You want to make sure that the shape and lines of the lip are very clean, tidy and crisp, so it’s extremely important to go with a smudge-free, budgeproof product,” he says.

Get the perfect dark lip shade by viewing our fave picks.

Cyber skin
As seen at Doo.Ri, Nicole Farhi and Alexander Wang.

Flawless, satin-like complexions at Doo.Ri, all-over iridescence at Nicole Farhi and glowing, dewy skin at Alexander Wang were some stunningly perfect star looks. (The models’ clear, luminous complexions didn’t hurt.) In Women’s Wear Daily, Gucci Westman referred to this superluminous effect as “cyberskin,” and we have to agree. Westman suggests massaging a moisturizer into your skin to create a subtle sheen before applying sheer foundation with a brush to cover imperfections and dark circles. At Alexander Wang, Diane Kendal kept models’ skin natural and used only moisturizer.

Get all the products you need for a flawless look here!

Spring hair trends on the next page …

Text by Ally Dean and Adriana Ermter

’70s redux
As seen at Alberta Ferretti, Marc by Marc Jacobs and Blumarine.

Hairstylist Guido Palau created the frizzed locks at the Marc by Marc Jacobs runway show. “I think girls like this kind of texture—it’s soft, girlie and pretty,” he says. Palau wove small sections of hair in and out of long, U-shaped hairpins before spritzing the rickrack weave with hairspray and setting waves with a flatiron. After removing the pins, he gave the hair a final brush-through, creating soft frizz.

Shellacked hair
As seen at Gucci, Versace and Lanvin.

Backstage at Gucci, hairstylist Luigi Murenu created a slick and sculpted ’70s desert-discoglam vibe. For Murenu, shine is essential to carrying off this look. To create his highgloss finish, he first applied a mix of serum and gel to the hair. Once the hair was slicked down, he gave it a deep side part and then put it in a ponytail. Next, Murenu split the ponytail into two sections, twisted each individually and then together before looping the hair under and securing it to the nape of the neck with bobby pins. He set it with another layer of serum and a final mist of high-shine hairspray.

The return of blonde
As seen at Rodarte, Stella McCartney, Givenchy and Isabel Marant.

Wheat-coloured blond, with warm, rich tones of honey and caramel, returned to overshadow platinum this spring. Rodarte’s Kate and Laura Mulleavy—famous for their dark palette and sombre aesthetic—ushered in a parade of California-esque blondes with relaxed, mussed-up styles by hairstylist Odile Gilbert. “I’m the first to want to do a hairdo, but sometimes it’s nice have something totally natural because it’s unexpected,” she says. For this bed-head style, Gilbert created textured volume by misting the underside of models’ hair with hairspray before blow-drying and then playing with it again, slightly scrunching it, right before the models hit the runway.

Blonde bomshell or bomb?
Who can go blond?

“Anyone can go blond,” says Eric Del Monaco, official hair artist and colourist for L’Oréal Paris in Canada and lead hair artist for LG Fashion Week in Toronto, “as long as you choose the right shade to complement your skin tone and personality.”

How blond should you go?

Del Monaco recommends that women with warm or olive skin tones opt for a lemony shade of blond, while women with fair skin and cool or pink undertones should choose buttery blond with rich gold tones. “The ideal shade creates a flattering contrast and prevents you from looking washed out or sallow,” he says.

When to say no

“Really blond chunky highlights on dark hair are a definite no as far as I’m concerned,” says Del Monaco.

Want to create these looks at home? View our gallery for must-have tools and products.

Spring nail trends on the next page …

Text by Ally Dean and Adriana Ermter

Metallic
As seen at Alexander McQueen, Donna Karan, Cushnie et Ochs, Chanel and 3.1 Phillip Lim.

Adding a coat of iridescent lacquer can change the look of your favourite metallic polish. Tip If you have pale skin, opt for a silver shade instead of gold.

Half-moons
As seen at Ruffian and Vena Cava.

Ruffian brought a sleek and elegant look to this season’s runways with vintage-inspired beige-and-black half-moon manicures that were both daring and feminine. Tip First, paint the nail with your base colour, suggests Leeanne Colley, owner of Tips Nail Bar in Toronto. Once the polish is dry, apply a circular stencil (or even a three-ring-binder sticker) to the tip and base of your nail to create the halfmoons. Now paint your accent colour. Once this has dried, remove the stickers for the perfect double half-moon manicure.

In the nude
As seen at Marc Jacobs, Monique Lhuillier and Thakoon.

Beige and rose-putty shades of lacquer gave models’ nails a subtle, pretty pop. Kim D’Amato, who is known for her non-toxic nail polish line, Priti, told the press that Thakoon wanted the nails to be an alien-like artifical extension of the hands. Away from the runway, the season’s choice hue is “nude with a punch,” confirms Colley. She recommends bold taupe or mushroom with a little racing stripe in a different colour for oomph. Tip Select a lacquer with a high-gloss finish that is either a few shades lighter or darker than your skin tone.

Read more:

Hair styles: Up and away

Expert hair advice

Hair styles: The best hair styling products

 Test the latest celebrity hair and makeup trends with our Virtual Makeover Tool!

Text by Ally Dean and Adriana Ermter