The couture shows in Paris this week were stunning. Most of the drama was in the design, while the makeup was for the most part pretty understated. For me it was all about Versace. Fierce ponytails, bronze smoky eyes, and pale pouts. Head to toe glamour like only Donatella can do.

Images from fashionising.com & style.com

Obviously it’s all about the pastels for spring according to the cosmetic brands. I adore the NARS campaign particularly the red lip and contouring. I was also very inspired by the Givenchy ad, and I wore a very similar pistachio coloured eyeshadow to work today.

From top to bottom: Dior, Givenchy, Anna Sui, Jill Stuart, NARS, Chanel, YSL

P.S Ginta appears in 3 of these campaigns!

I am so ready for Spring to get here. The new campaigns are the perfect antidote to the next 2 wintery months which can seem to drag on forever. I am particularly enjoy the retro vibes from Chanel, YSL, and Prada.

Ads from top to bottom: Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Valentino, Max Mara, YSL, Versace, Prada, Gucci.

Images from models.com & fashionologie.com

The Indian themed pre-fall Chanel show was all about the dark eye. The almond shape, intensity on the lids, and the blended outer edges are very important, false lashes add extra drama to the eyes. The eyebrows and lips were left natural, cheeks are softly sculpted. The twisted hair and ornate headdresses are stunning, and pull the entire look together.

Images from style.com

The latest addition to the Chanel lipstick category is Rouge Allure Velvet. The texture is a very lightweight matte that feels smooth and not dry on the lips. I have to say that even myself a self professed gloss girl, have converted to a less reflective pout as of late. My only complaint is the colour range is quite limited with only 8 shades to choose from. As the trend for a strong mouth with minimal shine continues to show up on the runway, this velvet texture will have you recreating the look to a tee.

Discovered at the young age of 13 Barbara Palvin, now 18, still has the cutest young looking face, but those penetrating eyes have a maturity to them. She has been modeling in top fashion magazines like Vogue, L’Official, and walked down the catwalk for Prada, Louis, Christopher Kane, and Chanel to name  a few. Currently ranked #47 on models.com she is a rising star that is sure to move up quite swiftly.

Images from models.com

Talk about saving the best for last. The Paris shows were spectacular. The clothes of course are always the main event but the hair makeup just really pulled it all together. Stand outs would have to be the underwater themes at both Chanel and McQueen. The makeup looked beautiful. Louis Vuitton’s adorable carousel runway, and equally lovely fluttery lashes. What a way to end the season.

Images from vogue.com & style.com

As the summer season starts to wrap up, here are the most important makeup trends for fall 2011.

1. Black eyeliner–we have mentioned this before as a transitional look going into fall. Straight lines in all different designs ruled the runways from New York to Paris. So get your liquid liner ready you are going to need it.

2. Flushed Cheeks–flawless skin is always a must, and for fall we keep seeing a slightly flushed cheek along with that. The placement varies from high on the cheekbone to low, and not so much on the apples.

3. Spider Lashes–Pile on the mascara to maximize your lashes. This is not about separating each individual lash, it’s about a majorly clumpy look.

4. Metallic Eyes–Copper, gold, silver, bronze are all key players for eye shadow.

5. Big brows–Strong, defined, dark that is how I would describe the brow for fall.

6. Crimson lips–It wouldn’t be fall without a red lip. Semi matte and matte textures tend to be the texture for the season.

New makeup–there’s nothing quite like it. The prestige brands like Dior, Anna Sui, Chanel, YSL, and Givenchy all pictured above, look like they have some gorgeous new colours for the new autumn season. I’m very interested in the magenta lip Arizona Muse is wearing in the YSL ad.

The couture shows in Paris have been quite spectacular. Giambattista Valli showed his very first couture collection, and it was everything we expected – beautiful. Dior on the other hand, had it’s fair share of naysayers. One thing is for sure, while the clothes may have left alot to be desired, Pat McGrath did not disappoint with her makeup direction. I loved the eye makeup at Armani Prive, the lace face at Chanel, and the flawless complexion at Valentino. All in all I have to say a nice round up of shows for couture week.

Karl’s favourite girls Blake Lively, Rachel Bilson, and Clemence Posey, were front and centre decked out in Chanel of course. The Chanel Cruise collection was shown at the Eden Roc hotel in Antibes. The event took place just days before the rest of Hollywood arrives in the South of France for Cannes Film Festival.

Images from justjard.com & telegraph.co.uk

Autumn Winter collections finally came to a close last week with the Paris shows. The looks were fabulous as usual. Everything from the clothing to the makeup, and hair. Some of the stand out shows for me were YSL, because I love that matte, aubergine mouth. JPG for the grey hair and strong brows, and McQueen for that porcelain radiant skin. Now let’s get back to Spring 2011…

Blake Lively’s first ad for Chanel has been released. She is the new face of Chanel handbags. The entire image is fabulous, especially those cheekbones, and was shot by Karl Lagerfeld himself. It is the first in a series of ads that will run over the next few months.

I for one am so happy to see the pre-fall shows. It’s still a bit soon for Spring, and the Fall 2011 collections aren’t until February so pre-fall will tide us over until then. Karl Lagerfeld’s inspiration for the Chanel show was Byzantine Empress Theodora. The mosaic of the Empress in Ravenna’s Basilica of San Vitale, was weaved through the show from the tiled runway to the mosaic details in the clothing. The Peter Philips designed makeup was also inspired by  the mosaic of Theodora—the single red line drawn across her eye. Black lines were added to the upper and lower lashes, and lips were left nude. Philips also incorporated the soon to be released, extremely limited edition, metallic eyeshadow palette. Can’t wait for that to launch. Apparently there will be only 1500 Topkapi palettes made in total. So the chances of me getting one is slim to non!

Images from style.com

At this weekends MOCA gala in LA we saw some of our usual red carpet looks: red lips, smoky eyes, glowy skin, and lashes. I really liked Mila Kunis smoky chestnut colored shadow, natural lips, and wavy hair.
Lets put it to a vote. Who do you think had the best look?

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Chanel is on a roll with the launch of yet another nail polish, that’s bound to sell out. Riva made it’s debut at the resort show when all the models wore it on their fingers, and toes earlier this year. It hits stores this month. Even if you aren’t headed to warmer climates this season, I like the idea of wearing a pale ice blue in the middle of winter. Keep a close eye out for the cool shade because it won’t be available long.

Wearing the current collection and sitting front row at some of the best shows of the season, is definitely a perk to being an actress. Olivia Palermo NYC socialite, and The City reality star, managed to make it to all 4 cities. I saw her at Giambattista Valli in Paris looking totally flawless and gorgeous. My favourite look was Rachel Bilson at Roberto Cavalli’s 40th anniversary party in Paris. That dress is just amazing. Now that the Spring shows are complete, and the excitement has died down it’s back to Fall 2010-yesterday was the first day I actually had to wear a sweater.

We all know Freja Beha is not a newcomer to the industry. Today while flipping through a September issue, I couldn’t make it 5 pages in, without seeing Freja’s face for several ad campaigns: Valentino, Max Mara, and Chanel. That is only a few of the brands that she is fronting for this season.

This danish, tattooed, beauty started her career 5 years ago, and currently sits quite comfortably in the #2 spot on models.com top 50 women, right behind another of my favourites-Lara Stone. It’s not an exaggeration to say that everyone loves Freja. She is a fashion week staple in all 4 cities, and it’s not uncommon for her to open and close a show. The editorials and magazine covers read like a laundry list. Not to mention the designer goods named after her-Jill Stuart’s Freja bag, Chloe’s Freja clutch, and Alexander Wang’s Freja lace up stiletto booties. There are numerous blogs dedicated to everything Freja Beha. All this from being spotted by a modelling agent passing by in a cab!

Images from style.com and models.com

The most recent couture shows happened in Paris in July. Although the ready to wear shows are always at the forefront of our minds, couture this season had some very noteworthy looks. The mask look showed up at both Elie Saab and Givenchy. But the blending on the eyes at Givenchy is the real show stopper. Chanel was all about the strong liner, and when compared to their ready to wear show, this look was quite understated. Dior looked fresh and girly with brights on the eyes and lips. Armani Prive gave us a flash back to the 80′s with the strong brow, and Gaultier’s thin brows and dark skinny lips were a modern day version of the 20′s.

Images from style.com