Swing into spring: update on fashion and makeup for the season

Ebony, March, 1998

SPRING is upon us, and like many women, you are anxious to pull out your linen dresses and strappy sandals. Spring is a time of renewal, which includes renewing your spirit, your wardrobe, your complexion and your makeup routine. Get into the flow of the season by revamping your makeup to create a `new' you for the season of renewal. The eyes should be soft and bright, lips full and luscious, cheeks contoured and rosy or peachy, brows playful or sculpted, and of course, you'll need a dab of powder to give that matte all-day finish.

Red continues to be a hot color this spring, and it looks great on the hues of the Black woman's complexion. In addition, softer colors so en vogue. Earth tones with a touch of frost are still strong, as with Fashion Fair's toasted bronze lipstick and bronze lip liner. Plums and mauves can be worn alone or mixed with reds, bronzes, pearls and sheer glosses (such as sheer gold and sheer bronze automatic lip color) to create a shade that is totally you.

Vicki Cochran, Fashion Fair Cosmetics makeup artist and national trainer, offers the following makeup tips to get you into the swing of spring.

* FOUNDATION AND POWDER. Before putting on foundation, cover the dark spots and area around the eyes with a concealer. This will help hold your eye makeup in place for hours and hours. Depending on your skin type, select a foundation for oily, dry, combination or sensitive skin. Select a color that blends into your neckline. Dot the foundation on at strategic points of the face, then blend it into the hairline and neck area. The foundation should look natural. If your skin is basically flawless (lucky you!), skip the foundation and Simply dust with powder that complements your complexion. If you aren't sure which foundation suits you best, get help at the makeup counter in your favorite department store.

* SEDUCTIVE EYES. After applying concealer and foundation, apply a light to medium eye shadow color directly below the brow, then move down to the crease or middle-eye area and apply a warm medium color. Blend the two colors. For evenings out, apply a navy, charcoal, black or brown shade to the lower lid for a seductive look. Line the eyes with a black/brown finer across the top lid. Enhance brows with an eyebrow powder or pencil.

* SENSUAL MOUTH. The mouth defines overall facial features. To keep color from bleeding, line the lips with a lip pencil in a shade close to your lipstick color, whether that is matte or gloss. Use it lip brush to fill in lips with your favorite color. (For more lasting color, cover entire lip with lip pencil before applying lipstick.) This spring, highlight lip color with a matte gold for a sultry shimmer.

* CHEEKS. Choose a blush color that complements your lipstick. For a polished, professional look, add check color with brush strokes just below the check bone. Then blend in with facial powder for a soft, natural look. For evening, dust cheeks with gold highlighter.

Applying makeup does not have to be a long, drawn-out ordeal. With a little practice, you can learn to apply your makeup like a pro. Makeup should look natural and enhance your appearance. Too much makeup is just as bad as not wearing any at all.

SPRING FASHIONS

This season, American and U.S. designers continue to show sleek, body-hugging dresses, including sheaths, slip dresses and clingy summer knits with T-straps. Asymmetric, one-shoulder dresses, gowns and tops also continue to be popular, as are clothing items and accessories in tasteful animal prints with brown and black tones.

The form-fitting sheath again is a favorite with women whose lifestyles range from busy homemaker to career woman. They are available in linen, cotton and silk as well as in summer knits. There are sheaths of lace and crochet knit over flesh-color lining, and sheaths covered with sequins and beads for evening. Some are short while others are knee-length, and still others fall at the calf while some styles go all tile way to tile ankle. The longer dresses are just as popular for day as they are for evening; the key is the fabric and how the dress is accessorized.

The skimpy slip also continues to be the rage. These popular lingerie-inspired garments are a favorite of the Hollywood set and other women in the entertainment business, and in general with women with toned and fit bodies. In a solid or print fabric, and whether it is thigh-high or ankle-length, slip dresses make a statement, but not one appropriate for the office.

The slinky, strappy high-heeled sandal is the perfect complement for the sheath and for the slip dress. Designers are showing them in snakeskin, a variety of fabrics, and in patent, woven and smooth leather. Other shoes popular this spring include sling-backs and the ever-dependable pump.

Additional wardrobe staples that every fashionable woman should have include:

* WHITE COTTON SHIRT that is suitable for wearing under a suit, alone with a skirt or slacks, over a T-shirt or with jeans on weekends.