Beauty trends seem to have taken a turn in a direction that fashion has only recently ventured deeply into. The fashion community has resurrected a number of trends from the past and given them a modern-day, even futuristic twist. Simply watching or paying attention to Fashion Week can be confusing for the everyday dresser who is not enchanted by the lengths and depths high fashion takes in its shows. So, how can we simplify these immaculate shows and dissect what the designers, make-up artists and hairdressers are trying to portray as their ‘newest’ and most ‘fashion-forward’ endeavors? This article breaks down the trends that your eyes might have floated over during Fashion Week, and invites you to capture the essence of each style and try it out for yourself! After all, fashion is merely another tool for you to utilize and express yourself, so if you feel good in it, there is never a wrong attempt to a trend.
Monochromatic Eyeshadow
The term “monochrome” means one color. This trend has been around for a long time, and most girls will probably admit to wearing only one shade of eyeshadow on a daily basis anyway, but within the last year, the fashion world has taken this very regular habit and transformed it into a ‘mono-movement’. The monochromatic eyeshadow look has turned into a system of using dramatic and bright colors to make your eyes almost pop out of your head, and to make this simple trend stand out, even more, it’s become routine to match your lipstick with your eyeshadow. This means red eyeshadow with red lipstick, blue eyeshadow with blue lipstick, yellow eyeshadow with yellow lipstick—and on and on. Although most popular with makeup, this trend seems to also be seeping into outfit trends as well, meaning you would dress head to toe in one color scheme for an entire statement outfit instead of having just one statement piece. Here is an example of the monochromatic makeup look courtesy of Maybelline:
This photo depicts a purple take on the monochromatic style. The purple eyeshadow and matching purple lip combine for a very put-together look that you could wear every day because you could switch color palettes as often as you would like. You could even assign a color to every day of the week, or showcase your mood with your choice of color! Celebrities like Lucy Hale and Lily Collins have also worn this look.
Bare, Dewy Skin with Single Accent
Although clear skin never seems to go out-of-style, makeup artists and celebrities within the past few years have brought a new kind of obsession around the idea of bare, naked skin: dewiness. Tossing your foundation doesn’t have to be a concept kept only for scorching, sunny beach days anymore. Instead, collecting the secrets to a consistent and solid skincare routine, as well as keeping a bottle of rose water on deck at all times, seems to be the new facial trend wave. This dewy, glowing skin that puts the sun’s shine to shame is only amplified when you incorporate bare skin with bright lipstick, winged eyeliner, colorful mascara or highlighter. The whole idea behind this look is the simplicity and cleanliness of accenting only one makeup concept and pairing it with glowing, clear skin. As Glowsly puts it, “For the spring/summer 2019 makeup trends, their focus was on clean, ethereal beauty punctuated by just a single messy or unusual element.” Here is an example:
(Left) Clear skin paired with only winged eyeliner; (Right) Dewy skin paired with only lipstick.
Celebrities like Lupita Nyong’o and Kaia Gerber have also sported this bare look.
Bright and Dramatic Winged Eyeliner
Another huge trend among everyone from runway makeup artists to Instagram models is overly exaggerated or colorful winged eyeliner. This trend—much like the monochromatic look—is amplified by the use of a single color, but unlike the monochromatic concept, the eyeliner does not have to follow the “simple and one-color-only” strict trend. In this concept, you will see artists use multiple patterns and colors within the boundaries of this trend.
(Left to right) Burberry SS19, Versace SS19, Valentino SS19
Celebrities like Bella Hadid and Youtuber Kristen Leanne have mimicked this trend. Leanne even made a Neon Lights Eyeliner Tutorial Youtube video.
Patterned Two-Piece Outfits
Two piece outfits have always been a trend and date back many years amongst an array of fashion eras. As the fashion world continuously develops, two-piece outfits can feel lost in time: how many times can you update the same look? Wouldn’t you run out of trends? Patterns? Fabrics? Styles? This is when designers have to pull high creativity into play and figure out a way to revamp a piece that never really goes out of style, but also does not evolve quickly either.
A woman during New York Fashion Week wearing a heavily patterned two-piece outfit. Other NYFW goers have styled this look too, as well as famous designer Victoria Beckham.
Cargo Pants
Yes, you read that right. Run to your attic and pull out those cargo pants you got made fun of for wearing in middle school because they have finally been granted access to the fashion world throne. This is a trend that people seem to either really love or really hate. It seems like the overall hype around these pants is the idea of incorporating that aspect of ‘casual and comfortable’ into high fashion. Recent fashion trends also favor the uprise of the ‘dressy sweatpants era’, pairing joggers and sweats of the like with sky-high pumps and stilettos and formal tops. Since this nostalgic trend will have your head stuck in 2006, these pants can be tricky for people to begin to style within modern trends.
(Left) Bella Hadid goes for a more laid-back, high-fashion grunge look in black cargos with Off-White Hiking Mountain Boots. (Middle) Kendall Jenner combines multiple trends: denim cargo pants paired with chunky white sneakers. (Right) Hailey Bieber wearing beige cargo pants and black pumps.
Mixing Prints and Trends
Mixing prints and trends is a scary concept for most people because until recently, mixing too many different prints, fabrics, styles and trends was a recipe for inevitable fashion failure and binding ridicule. For fashion go-getters and risk takers, the current fashion climate is the perfect place to test out your wildest print combination. From mixing animal prints to mixing patterns like houndstooth with herringbone, the rules have been lifted for the time being, so experiment while you still have time and before the solid color takes over for good. Check out blogger Sarah Styles for some awesome mix and (not) match style inspiration.
Here we see Sarah mixing a casual white hoodie with a more formal slit skirt and a long coat. To make this look even more interesting, Sarah has chosen a bright coral and lace skirt, paired with a leopard print trench and an Off-White bag, which in itself has a bold pattern already.
Midi & Maxi Skirts with Sneakers
Usually, a look we reserve for our grandmothers, the long skirt and sneaker combination has made a giant plummet into the everyday fashion forward universe. Midi or Maxi skirts of any print, pattern or fabric can be partnered with a chunky sneaker for a refreshing take on a typically unpopular style. Top choices to match this style range anywhere from tiny tube tops and lace bralettes to big, oversized sweaters and jackets. Supermodel and trendsetter Elsa Hosk debuted a sheer, white and lace skirt with Adidas Gazelle sneakers and a gray crop top in New York City.
Sarah Styles showcasing her cheetah print maxi skirt and chunky, white Fila’s with a baggy jacket.
Neons
Most people are afraid to wear these over-the-top bright colors unless it’s in small doses: nail polish, socks, earrings and other accessories. But with the rise of the ‘more is more’ culture of fashion—mixing drastically different prints, dramatic makeup and extreme statement pieces—neon falls right in place with this seasons’ beauty trends.
(Left to right) Adeam SS19, Kate Spade New York SS19, R13 SS19, Jeremy Scott SS19
These are only a few of the trends that have so far been showcased for this spring, and fashion is a never-ending cycle: trends rise and fall (but always come back full circle), you just have to be able to keep up with the current. Following these trends is easy when you focus on what you’re comfortable wearing first—always start with that basic beginning, and then build upon the trend from that point forward. And best of all, now you have an excuse to do some much-deserved spring shopping!