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’ve worked with gel blush in the past and I have to say its not my favourite thing to use on the cheeks. Often they can be a pain to blend, or too sheer upon first application. On the other hand most wear very well, and give a natural “just went for a run outside” look. Givenchy Blush Gelee launched with their latest Spring collection. The sponge applicator makes  it pretty easy to dab on the cheeks and then blend out with the fingers. The texture is very smooth and not at all sticky so it feels comfortable on the skin. The rosy shade is suitable for a variety of skin tones, and it could do double duty as a lip stain as well. If you’re a fan of the cheek stain then chances are you’ll quite enjoy this one.

Red hair seems to be popping up everywhere this F/W season. It’s not a new trend since ladies like Christina Hendricks, Lily Cole and Karen Elson have been wearing the look proudly for many years. When Rihanna went shocking red though, it was hard not realize that perhaps there is something to this bright shade. More hair salons are reporting that women are asking for coppery locks. It’s not just hair that’s going red, Fall collections showed it more than usual too, shows like Cerutti, Brian Reyes, and Givenchy all featured the rich hue.

Joan Smalls is on the verge of becoming a major model. She is of Puerto Rican descent, which explains the perfect caramel skin and chocolate brown eyes. A relative new comer to the scene (she may only have had one significant campaign-Ports 1961) but the runways she walked for AW 10 include Rodarte, Christopher Kane, Prada and Louis Vuitton. Plus an exclusive at Givenchy Couture in Paris earlier this year. Joan Smalls is pretty much guaranteed that there will be many more great things to come.

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

There was an absence of brows on the Fall runways. Shows like Givenchy, Giorgio Armani, and Matthew Williamson featured a make up look that did not require eyebrows. What I like about this look is that it’s ethereal and edgy all at the same time. Now executing this no brow look, can make for a slightly more chaotic backstage environment, which was the case at Jonathan Saunders Spring show. All the girls that showed up with their natural brows, had to then be bleached out. After the show about 15 models swarmed the make up team as we mixed up dye to put their brows back to the way they were! Based on that, I think this is one trend that will remain on the runway.

Images from style.com

New to the scene and already making a name for herself is Ranya Mordanova. She’s already been dubbed as a “rising star” and one of the “top ten newcomers” by several industry insiders. Since debuting in New York this February, Ranya’s managed to score editorials in French Vogue, W and V magazine as well as a lucrative ad campaign with Givenchy. And that’s just to name a few!

During London Fashion week in September, I worked with Ranya at Christopher Kane and Jonathan Saunders. Intense eyes, severe bowl cut, poreless pale skin, and the most adorable pout. A guarantee that she stands out in a crowd.

Images from style.com and models.com

Red lips are everywhere! It seems like every beauty ad, tv show and award show are featuring women wearing red lipstick. With all of the 80′s trends that are so hot right now, the red lips make total sense. I don’t know if it’s because red is on my radar, but Blake Lively’s gorgeous red gown and Philip’s Lim’s Spring Summer 2010 collection — just to mention a few — make it seem like we’re going to be seeing a lot more red in the upcoming seasons. My 2 favourite red lipsticks this season so far are: Nars lipstick in Red Lizzard and MAC’s lipstick in Lady Danger. For a longer lasting red lip make sure you line your lips with a long wearing or waterproof liner like Givenchy’s lip liner in #07 Blackberry or MAC Cremestick liner in Red Enriched.

Images from style.com and justjared.com