What used to be morning rituals and evening fun is no longer so important: applying make-up to go to the office or to the club. We stay at home more. That changed the makeup trends.
Berlin / Frankfurt – The relationship to make-up, like much in people’s everyday lives, has changed significantly as a result of the pandemic. In the past, you put on make-up for everyday life – and put on a little more when you went out.
All of this is still there – or is finally back in part – but new situations have also arisen in which we can need special make-up. For video calls, for example. And while wearing the mask.
“The focus is now on the eye,” says Boris Entrup, make-up expert for the VKE Cosmetics Association. You emphasize the eyebrows, use mascara, eyeshadow, kohl or eyeliner heavily – “those areas that you can show with a mask”. Here, the emphasis is on being conspicuous and unusual: for example with a statement eyeliner.
The trend: the flapping of the wings on the eye
The strikingly colored, particularly thick, graphic or drawn with extra curl eyeliner has long been used by fashion fans and for staging fashion images and models on catwalks. But in everyday life it only becomes more popular in the pandemic – as an accent next to the masking protective mask.
Discreet enough for everyday use, but more striking than the usual eyeliner only on the lash line is the so-called wing: It is a clear extension of the eyeliner towards the outside. “To make the wing symmetrical on both sides, first draw the base line directly on the lash line,” explains Ricarda Zill, make-up artist and expert for the body care and detergent industry association (IKW).
Then think a line from the nostril over the outer corner of the eye or alternatively put a pencil on. A small point is placed on this line where the later drawn eyeliner should end. It should be level with both eyes. “Then draw a line with the eyeliner from the point to the base line – and the perfectly symmetrical wing is ready,” says Zill.
More transparency and information
According to Ricarda Zill, while the decorative cosmetics market fell sharply in these pandemic times, the business with care products is booming – from hair treatments to nail care. Above all, it can be seen here that consumers are attaching increasing importance to quality. There is also a need for transparency regarding the ingredients and that the cosmetics are produced sustainably.
This goes hand in hand with a demand for “clean beauty”, which translates as clean cosmetics. Manufacturers of these products do without critical ingredients; organic, organic and vegan cosmetics are often behind them. At the same time, there is a growing interest in caring, supportive products for facial skin – often instead of thick, opaque make-up.
Make-up for the home and home office
And when make-up is bought, it is often the one that suits everyday work from home and also gives you more time in your own four walls. Like the clothes, many people have changed the make-up for it, says make-up artist Boris Entrup. He speaks of a “home level”.
But since people are increasingly involved in digital communication at home in the form of conversations in front of laptop cameras, there is also a counter-trend. Because you always have your own image in front of you as if you were looking in the mirror, especially since cameras do not conceal anything benevolently. So some pimps up the sight – for example with concealing cosmetic products with terms such as “blurring” and “pore refining effect” in their names. Roughly summarized, these promise an alert, fresh and even complexion with smaller pores.
Hang up hard – when you go out
But there is also something going on out there again: restaurants are open, theaters are playing again, and there is dancing in the first clubs. Therefore, when going out, people are now pounding instead of messing about. “The relief of being able to move more freely again is also evident in the make-up,” says Boris Entrup. “The trend towards more elaborate make-up was already evident before the pandemic.”
He is referring to the bonds from the 1980s, for example. “Rouge is on the rise, and eyeshadow is multicolored again,” Entrup says. And the already mentioned eye-catching eyeliner and an emphasis on the eyebrows are part of it. “However, the eyebrows remain strong and bushy – not as narrow and neatly plucked as in the 80s.” And from autumn, but also with a view to Christmas, the make-up artist expects a lot of shine, especially the use of gold.
And: Despite the frequent use of a mask, the lips are currently often made up in intense, bright colors. “At first you saw a lot of classic red, which was then replaced by bright pink,” reports IKW expert Ricarda Zill. “Lipsticks with a glossy finish are particularly popular again.”
Kiss-proof, mask-proof
Who is wondering how this should work in combination with a mask? With long-lasting products that survive kissing and eating. Here, the paint is sealed with a cosmetic varnish, which means that it does not stick to the mask or clothing.
Although there was a rethinking of some people in the time of lockdowns and being at home, how to dress or make-up, the desire to go out and thus the elaborate dressing up, that will certainly persist. And with the right products, even the mask is not an obstacle. dpa
