The Best Spring/Summer 2021 Beauty Trends And How To Achieve Them

We lay out the most noteworthy trends from Spring/Summer with a how-to that takes them from runway to street.

Kohl Eyes

Goth took on different faces this season, with Chanel going the soft and feminine route with smoky grey matte lids, and Dior and Chloé dialling up the drama with eyes rimmed in the most intense of black.

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Creamy, non-waterproof eyeliners work best as the pigments are the most intense. Line around the eyes, giving a gentle flick at the outer ends forsubdued seduction. Any mistakes can easily be cleaned up using your ring finger: Blend the flaw upward towards the brow bone, then apply a dark grey eyeshadow with afluffy blendingbrush.

’80S BRIGHT

There was no room for subtlety as the vivid, saturated hues of the 1980s made a triumphant comeback. Take your cue from Tom Ford with a full-on intense eye and lip. Or go the way of Bronx and Banco and Soeren Le Schmidt, and pick just one feature to play up with an audacious pop of unexpected colour.

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Ramp up the vibrance by using an eyeshadow primer or spray on your favourite facial mist on an eyeshadow brush with synthetic bristles before dabbing it on the eyeshadow pan. The latter will give a foil-like finish when used with metallic eyeshadows.

Brow Play

It’s been a while since the last big brow trend (not since Cara Delevingne invaded the runways), so we welcome the fl air at the top. Give your look a cool edge with artful eyebrow slits—as seen at Miu Miu—or add a touch of whimsy with graphic feathered brows such as those spotted at Yohji Yamamoto.

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Comb through fluffy brows with a spoolie brush to neaten them before brushing on a brow gel in an upward motion. Sparse brows, in particular, will benefit from a tinted gel, which instantly makes things look thicker and fuller. To help brows stay in place all day, go for a heavy-duty gel such as AnastasiaBeverly Hills’s Brow Freeze.

Flaming Lips

A scarlet pout never goes out of season and this time round, it’s the universally flattering blue-toned reds that showed up in full force. Dominating the runways was a matte, velvety finish that favours a more sophisticated and polished look.

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First, define your pout by lining the lips with a long-wearing lip liner in a complementary shade. Then, completely colour inyour lips with the liner—this creates a base for lipstick to adhere to—before applying your colour of choice with a brush, which lets you customise the intensity of the hue while ensuring precise, even coverage right down to the corners of your smile.

Graphic Lines

Striking eyes continued their reign with new energy. Francesca Liberatore gave cat eyes an edgier vibe by switching out the outer fl icks for horizontal V’s teamed with winged inner corners and subtle shimmer. Salvatore Ferragamo, meanwhile, upped the cool quotient by trading in regular black for arresting white.

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Graphic lines require precision, which is exactly what liquid eyeliners deliver. Select one with a brush tip so it doesn’t drag along the lash line, giving you more control. The way to work liquid formulas is to map out the lines with a series of small dots and just connect them to complete the final look.