Hot trend: metallic makeup

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Now that winter is on its way it’s time to say goodbye to the bright, matte colours of summer and hello to rich, shimmering colours to warm things up - find out how to wear them....

The metallic makeup trend does not mean you have to jump on the glitter train and go to town. It's about moving away from matte and choosing colours and products that dance on your skin and reflect the light at different angles.

For you it may just mean swapping your tinted, glassy gloss for a juicy, ruby shimmer, adding highligher to your cheekbones, or going for a metallic bronze - brown eyeshadow over your normal, matte brown look.

A little bit here, a little bit there makes one very pretty girl for winter!

This is a trend you can add this season very easily, and for very little cost - show me a women who doesn't have somethiing shiny hidden in the bottom of her makeup bag!

Sheeny, shiny, smoky eyes

GET THE LOOK: Next time you do smoky eyes, follow these instructions HERE and then finish them off by glitzing them up with some sweet metallic shadow. Press some silver, gold, bronze or gun-metal shadow on to your top eyelid and underneath the lower lash line. Deep, dark, rock’n’roll eyes at their finest - just like the look at Roberto Cavalli's A/W 09 show above

Big night out? Go all out and press a small amount of full on glitter shadow ontop of your smoky eye instead.

Keep it simple - go nude

GET THE LOOK: As you can see in this image (backstage Donna Karen S/S 09) a simple wash of a peachy, nude metallic shadow around the whole eye with lashings of mascara and nude lips can be extremely effective. Great for work mornings when you would rather spend your time reading the paper over a coffee than blending eye makeup.

Decorate the corners

GET THE LOOK: Apply your eye makeup as usual – and then finish it off by adding a generous amount of a super shiny metallic to the inner corners of your eyes, bringing it out to just before the half way mark of your upper and low lids. Easy, sexy, and totally eye-brightening. A great trick for tired girls who need to look pretty (and awake) fast.

Fools gold

GET THE LOOK: Pallid winter complexions need warming up – cue gold eyeshadow – and don’t be shy.
A smudged line of brown liner on the upper lids, a crisp line of brown liner on the lower rim, and some gold eyeshadow pressed in with your fingers, heading up toward the brow is a perfect way to heat up your makeup this winter. Don’t try to be too tidy with this on. Haphazard pressing will do just fine.

Cool silver

GET THE LOOK: If heavy black smoky eyes are not your thing, a softer silver smoky look is just the thing - check out this look backstage at Fendi above. Follow these instructions here, using silver rather than black. Make the look as subtle or as strong as you like. Remember to use a warm colour on your cheeks to avoid cooling down your complexion too much.

Products we love for creating these looks

Jane Iredale Eye Gloss:

There’s a reason why these six beautiful shades are called “Silks”, because that’s the way they go on and that’s the way they look on the lid. Smooth and luscious, they won’t crease or smear and they’ll stay on until you take them off - We also LOVE the Jane Iredale 24-Karat Gold Mine pots - check them out here

Bobbi Brown Chic Shimmer Metallics Range:
Bobbie Brown eyeshadow
From lip colours to eyeshadows, this range showcases metallic at its best. It’s all about high shimmer and high shine and the product goes on with restraint so you can build your desired effect up slowly! My picks of the lipsticks are Plum and Dusk while I just adorethe Rockstar and Sage shadows.

L’Oréal Paris Star Secrets Color Appeal Trio Pro in Penelope Cruz:

A smouldering, glamorous eye shadow trio of beautiful gold and bronze shades! Especially hot when layered over a matte brown eyeshadow for depth.

Napoleon Perdis Loose Eye Dust #1 Shiny Gold and #8 Blue Velvet:

Napoleon Perdis Loose Dusts are highly pigmented loose pwoders that have optimal shine, shimmer and texture so you get a hi-sheen effect. Pro tip: try using Napoleon cake eyeliner sealer to turn Loose Eye Dusts into metallic liquid eyeliners or a full bodied shadow crème effect.

Maybelline New York EyeStudio Quad Shadow in Venice Carnival: