Shades of autumn: fall's color cosmetics offer an array of hues

Household & Personal Products Industry, August, 2007 by LaToyah Burke

Keep An Eye Out

The eye segment, which makes up about 30% of the makeup category, grew 4% to $875 million, according to NPD. "Fall's color palette is back to nature, showing rich textures and unique exotic color combinations. Spicy reds, deep wine shades for lips; purples with smoky, dusky shadows and moss green touches for eyes and sumptuous coffee hues as the new black," said Ms. Lewis.

Wet n Wild recently launched Ultimate Expressions Eyeshadow Palettes with eight shades. Coordinating color schemes for every taste and skin tone, these compacts are perfect for on-the-go touch-ups and are small enough to slip into a purse. The Fantasy Island pallet plays up the smoky look for fall featuring blues and greens. Palettes are also available in Sand Castle and Paradise Cove.

Mirabella's warm browns play up eyes for a beautifully finished fall face. Smoky eyes get a kick from liner that's apparent but not overdone, thanks to soft, blended edges.

Mirabella's Pick 10 Palette invites consumers to pick 10 eye colors to take along everywhere. The new eye color palette comes complete with a mirror for applying color on the go, while magnets hold each shadow in place. "Available in 36 richly pigmented shades, Mirabella's Eye Colour creates flawless, long-lasting looks with an alluring range of intense shimmer, sheen and matte formulations, so there's a finish that's perfect for every mood and occasion," said makeup artist Christy Thurston, founder and president, Mirabella, Bountiful, UT.

At Bobbi Brown, this fall is all about cool neutrals. "The tones in our collection, Stonewashed Nudes, were inspired by stones that I found while hiking," said Bobbi Brown, chief executive officer, Bobbi Brown Cosmetics.

Stonewashed Nudes is a fool-proof way to get a smoky eye for fall, according to Ms. Brown. "Stonewashed is really versatile because you can make it look strong and dramatic with black gel liner, or you can make it look sweet and ladylike with a pink cheek and lip."

The Stonewashed Nudes Palette includes seven shades in soft matte and shimmering finishes--Espresso, Rock Shimmer, Mica Shimmer, Stonewash Shimmer, Ash Shimmer, Hot Stone and Navajo.

"Fall 2007 promises a cornucopia of eye shadows in gold, bronze and copper shades," said Debbie Bondar, founder and president of Face Atelier.

Lip Service

"The dark red lip made its usual appearance at the recent fall collections," according to Napolean Perdis, Napolean Perdis Cosmetics, Los Angeles, CA. "This season, the look is best suited for those with a steady hand for what could be considered the platonic lip ideal--perfect, crisp-edged garnet mouths."

"Continuing a trend that began Lipsticks are making a comeback this Fall, in the spring, lip pencils and lipsticks are back, and this fall, look for bold hues in red and burgundy," said Ms. Bondar.

Face Atelier offers a new lipstick collection, Red, Redder and Reddest. Strawberry is the ideal yellow red while Red Fuchsia is the ultimate blue red and Brick Works is a brown red that completes the trio. Ms. Bondar alerts consumers to dust off their lip pencils, "The lip is lined and defined, regardless of the shade," she added.