The Friday afternoon heat was certainly fierce but this did not stop us Chic Today ladies braving the hustle of Oxford Street to get our seasonal make-up fix. We had the pleasure of attending the MAC Autumn Winter Trends 2008 event held at the British Museum which involved a seminar style talk hosted by Terry Barber (the Director of Makeup Artistry at MAC Cosmetics and who has dressed the faces of celebrities including Mary J Blige and Linda Evangelista), who gave us an insight into the make-up trends we should be looking out for.

A key point which Terry raised and one I have often reflected upon myself is how exactly do we define make-up trends and is one season drastically different from another? Surely good make-up is all about making the individual look their best despite what may be ‘in trend’ at the time. This indeed is the case, but there are without doubt some great looks which have taken inspiration from the catwalks and can be tailored to each individual with the use of the correct shades and products.

MAC is renowned for its vibrancy and is perhaps one of the more daring and creative of the make-up brands. The main theme that Terry conveyed through his talk is that make-up artistry is now similar to that of an actual artist; it is all about art upon the face and takes make-up to a different dimension.

Terry took us through the key looks and trends including New View, which experiments with balancing perfect skin upon mineralized starshine features and contours the face with a high resolution finish. This look is all about appearing naturally perfect but knowing that a great deal of effort has gone into the finished effect! Another huge make-up trend to look out for is quite artsy and creates almost a ‘pinched’ look with a high blush and pinched lips, taking much inspiration from the works of artist Gustav Klimt.

The De-Vine look is based upon the concept of a young girl taking her first steps into the ‘gothic look’ and could be described as ‘innocent emo’. This incorporates various shades of rouge upon the lips with the remaining features left natural.

Perhaps the most dramatic of the looks, which we had previously seen in the last Gareth Pugh Show during London Fashion Week in February, is the aptly entitled Glamodrama. The imagery is almost an evil sci-fi version of Dorothy from the Wizard Of Oz, where a clear, intense sky blue colour is applied upon the lips, eyelashes and even eyebrows and contrasted with a milky-white skin base. I personally would be apprehensive about trying this look, but it certainly has its dramatic appeal for the more daring types!

Terry also introduced us to some key products to look out for. A huge revolution in make-up cosmetics is mineral make-up. The Mineralize Skinfinish (£18/$35) is moulded onto terracotta tiles and baked for 24 hours, which allows a sheer and light application. This product provides a dimensional matte finish but will simultaneously highlight the key facial areas such as the cheeks and brows. It is also a great product for precise blending and sculpting. As acidic brights are key this season, the Mineralised eye shadow duos (£12.50/$24.35) are also a great way of achieving this look, especially when juxtaposed with pastels (The Electro Flash look). The Nightmoth lip pencil (£9/$17.50) is also fantastic for achieving the dark, smouldering red lip look.

To end the seminar we were treated to a mini show where a selection of the key looks had been applied to four models kitted out in varying fabulous gowns, including Ungaro and Vivienne Westwood. It was fantastic to see how the various trends looked upon the skin, but I have to admit, the audience was more pre-occupied with the seven-inch heels the girls were wearing!

In summary, storytelling, impressionism and combining classic looks with contemporary moods are definitely the MAC buzz words and phrases for the make-up trends of A/W 2008. How far you dare to go is up to you!

Please go to www.maccosmetics.co.uk/ www.maccosmetics.com  and watch out for these upcoming trends.

Images courtesy of M.A.C Cosmetics

Filed under: Beauty & Make-Up