After months of loungewear and makeup-free faces, let’s put on our red lipstick and kiss 2020 goodbye! What’s trending for spring 2021 is a minimal makeup look — your skin, but better.
GLASS SKIN
Healthy, effortless beauty can be spotted all over this season. The runway always has loved the glowy skin trend, but I have noticed more and more beauty influencers edging toward the minimal makeup look over the last several months.
Skincare is more prominent in the beauty world than ever, so a lot of women are embracing their natural skin and stepping away from heavy, full-coverage foundations and swapping them for lightweight creams and liquids.
An all-time favorite of mine is MAC Strobe Cream. Apply a coin-sized amount, with or without makeup, and it will give you an ethereal, lit-from-within glow without looking greasy. (MAC Strobe Cream, maccosmetics.com, $16-$35)
FLUFFY BROWS
Eyebrow trends are ever-changing in the beauty world. From thin to full and arched to straight, they’re always evolving.
As we move away from the more sculpted “Instagram brow” of the 2010s, we’re starting to embrace (and enhance) our natural brows in the 2020s. To perfect this trend, if you still enjoy filling in your brows, try to focus on the mids and ends, leaving the fronts mostly bare.
If this still feels a bit foreign, try using a multi-pronged brow pen to create small flicks, mimicking a microblade effect. Finish off your brows with a clear brow gel (or a spoolie brush rubbed in bar soap) brushed in an upward motion. (Urban Decay Brow Blade, ulta.com, $26)
MATTE RED LIPS
Who doesn’t love a good red lip? Actually, as a professional makeup artist, I know a bold lip terrifies lots of women. But after months of hiding our smiles behind a mask, we should celebrate our lips when they can be seen.
It’s all about finding your perfect shade of red. Are you a true-red girl? Maybe a deeper, wine red is more your thing.
One shade you can’t go wrong with is MAC’s Ruby Woo. When I worked for the brand, this lipstick always was on our best-sellers list. It’s also kiss proof — and dare I say mask proof. It’s the perfect, classic blue-based red, which flatters a multitude of ages and skin tones.
A bold lip is the perfect complement to the otherwise minimal makeup look we’re sure to be rocking this year! (MAC Ruby Woo, maccosmetics.com, $19)
Crissy Cox is a freelance makeup artist on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, specializing in on-location wedding and special event makeup. Contact her or learn more at facebook.com/CrissyCoxMUA.