Luminous beauty

The current, key trends of dewy, luminous skin; soft, neutral eyes; and sheer lips, are inspired by the Alexander Wang, Stella McCartney, Balmain, Isabel Marant, Chloé and Gucci Spring/Summer 2010 runway shows. Long gone are the days of heavy coverage with matt powders.
Nothing beats the natural radiance of clear, even skin, which can only be achieved through a healthy lifestyle and beauty routine using the correct products for both your skin type and age. Regular daily cleansing, toning and moisturising is imperative, supplemented with weekly exfoliation and a mask, for your specific skin type.
There are many spa treatments which can assist in revealing luminous fresh skin, including peels and microdermabrasion. If you start your “slate” off right, then it can make all the difference when you apply your other techniques to make your skin glow.
An addition to the three basics in a beauty routine, is the use of a good face serum (Clarins has a complimentary serum in each skin care range), before applying your normal moisturiser. A serum is a “booster” or a “party for your skin”, high in concentrates of plant extracts, vitamins and minerals. It aims to penetrate deep into the three layers of the skin to strengthen the cells and deliver active ingredients to your skin. Allow the serum to be completely absorbed by the skin, before applying your moisturiser.
Clarins have what we call ‘magic’ products in their Instant Light range.
Instant smooth perfecting touch casts its make-up magic and lines and other small imperfections literally “disappear”. It is a little pot of silky-smooth, oil-free skin perfector, which fills and smoothes as it glides invisibly over the skin. In fact it’s a bit like applying a perfect and much younger-looking second-skin! The secret? Line-filling and skin-smoothing Acacia Micro-Pearls — miniscule spheres of dehydrated Acacia — which lodge themselves in wrinkles and like tiny sponges swell and plump the skin as they absorb moisture.
Using the fingertips, stroke sparingly over the skin, just where it’s needed…over wrinkles, fine lines, open pores and any other imperfections. Instant Smooth can be worn on its own, over a day cream; or worn over a day cream and under foundation or powder. And for best results, leave for a few minutes before applying make-up.
Trends this season range from raccoon-eyed rock ’n’ roll to the nude-and dewy, but makeup experts say there are some commonalities between the looks that ruled fashion shows by designers as diverse as Badgley Mischka, Zac Posen, and Moschino. “There’s a femininity to a lot of the collections: last season they were doing tonnes of masculine shapes, and the makeup was androgynous,” she explains. “There’s a new gentleness, a womanliness—and that’s echoed from the other artists. It just does not have that really hard edge that we saw last season.”
One of the strongest new faces is the look that has been dubbed Hydraluminous. Based around natural skin-tone shades it features skin that looks super-hydrated, as if you’ve just walked out of the tropics.
Next to come is your foundation. Be sure to choose a shade of foundation that matches your skin tone. Don’t test foundation on your hand – the skin on your hands can be very different to that of your face – but rather test it on your face, in natural light. The Instant Light Complexion Perfector  is a true beauty secret. It illuminates and evens to reveal skin’s radiant freshness and natural transparent beauty. The gliding, lightweight, fluid texture instantly melts into the skin to leave the complexion smooth and even. Imperceptible on the skin, it illuminates the complexion which stays flawless and satin-smooth in any lighting. It fixes make-up, giving a natural, long-lasting result. For all women and all skin types.
There are three ways in which it can be used. It can be used alone as a foundation; to awaken and refresh the skin, apply it before foundation or it can also be mixed with foundation. As if gorgeous looking skin isn’t enough, the Instant Light Complexion Perfector is also a protective skin care, thanks to Clarins Anti-Pollution Complex which protects against free radicals and environmental aggressions.
Highlighted at runway parades of designers like Blumarine and Emilio Pucci, Hydraluminous is about neutral cream eye shadows and cream blushes; at the Alessandro Dell’Acqua show, models were even more stripped down, simply wearing clear gloss eye shadow and lips. This is a trend that women will love because it’s fresh and outdoorsy and not super-painted.
With or without make-up, Clarins Instant Light Perfecting Eye Base smoothes eyelids and illuminates eyes. The invisible and lightweight texture gently evens and smoothes the eyelids, for easy make-up application and more youthful-looking eyes. Eyeshadow colour is more beautiful, more intense and very long-lasting. Apply a small amount with the fingertips from the base of lashes up to the eyebrow, for smoother, more luminous eyelids and the guarantee of flawless, long-wearing eye make-up.
That dewy skin is also key to a darker make-up trend, a smoky-eyed effect that has been likened to the “rocker–Avril Lavigne” look. There was a lot on the runway—it’s very sexy because it’s a little bit rough, something that anyone can do. It’s darkness that goes all around the eye, and then dissipates out from there. You can see the messiness of the application; that’s what makes it a little more rock ’n’ roll. It’s not perfectly blended all the way around.
If you’re craving colour, there are two other looks that add some pop. Artifice, inspired by the shows of Macqua and Veronique Branquinho, finds stunning orangey lips set against an otherwise neutral face. And a favourite at Aquascutum and Emmanuel Ungaro, features eye shadows that blur together soft blues and lavenders and glossy, blossom-tinged lips. For fuller, irresistible lips, Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector gives a superb reflection to lips’ natural colour while protecting them. A melting gel with a deliciously sweet flavour and 3D shimmer, for luscious, smooth, shiny lips and a natural-coloured, luminous smile. It nourishes, repairs and protects lips to leave them incredibly beautiful. Day by day they are more kissable and simply irresistible.
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