Beauty: A darker shade of pale

Styled by M.A.C for Blugirl. Photo / Supplied

Other-worldly glamour is the luminous look of new season's makeup. There's a darker edge, but nothing too ghostly or garish. From spring's rosy nudes and light metallics, winter is heading into more intense territory, but softened by the continuing emphasis on glowing skin. Lips are either barely there or defined with strong shades, particularly reds infused with a little black pigment to turn them purply dark. Eyes are subtly lit with a sweep of lilac, or made more boldly smoky, rimmed with black liner and with the added drama of violet.

Nude, purple and rich red are the three colours that most come to mind from winter's makeup ranges. But you don't have to wear them all together! Clarins used these shades and nodded to the 1920s with Jazzy Colours range, Chanel dubbed its line Bohemian Rhapsody and Estee Lauder's Chocolate Decadence collection went warmer, in berry and caramel truffle shades. Other ranges have added new lip and eye shades to introduce edgier colours, Clinique's new neutrals are summed up in the shadow Stone Violet, a mauve-taupe, Elizabeth Arden has the Black Currant shadow duo and Revlon's newest lip gloss shades are rich but dusky.

Toned down from the advertising visuals and the runway-ready images we show you today (styled by M.A.C makeup artists for international shows and the winter preview that was Air New Zealand Fashion Week 2008), a nod to these new colours is everyday achievable. All but the very young should skip purple and lilac tones on lips; try them on your nails instead. Better to enhance your natural lip line with a creamy nude, or fleshy pink shade, add a suprisingly flattering mauve hue into standard neutral eye-shadow shades and for evening go a little darker or richer with colours around the eyes and on lips.

Easy-to-apply gel eyeliner in a darker shade is worth trying. Smashbox makes a smashing deep blue and olive green is nice. Brows are defined and trending fuller, blusher is subtle (cream blush can be patted lightly on) and adds to the carefully contrived look of a flawlessly "natural" skin finish. That's the bit that takes the time to craft: prime skin, use concealer, apply foundation only sparingly if you can get away with it, or if needed all-over choose use a light-reflecting formula, then dust the T-zone with translucent or mineral powder to finish.

Sebastien Tardiff, Bobbi Brown's director of artistry for Asia-Pacific, gave a good tip on his trip to New Zealand this month when he pointed out that many women here have much darker skin on their decolletage and body than on their faces (we're obviously remembering the sunblock up top, if not all over). He advised thinking of bronzer - now it's past its peak-summer use as a tan enhancer - as a colour corrector instead. Blend on the pale throat area to better align the skin tone there with that on the face and chest.

On the nude and mauve trends, both of which Bobbi Brown has based colour stories around, Tardiff says they suit a wide range of women. With nudes, he recommends adding a little shimmer for interest.

"Mauve is a neutral in disguise - a purple that's wearable."

Not for you?: Then try nude lips and navy eyeliner with neutral shadows for a sophisticated look. Taupe and gold, or silver-grey and berry tones are nice combinations. For a little subtle colour and fresh take on earthy shades try sage green and apricot.

What's ahead: It won't be long before neutrals and mauves turn into stronger pink as seen in upcoming collections by Bobbi Brown, M.A.C and others. The shade is taken to glossy extreme with the May launch of Lancome's Pink Irreverence, crafted by New Zealand's own international success story Aaron De Mey.

The winter 2009/10 designer fashion collections held this month in Paris and Milan are a pointer to trends further down the track. Makeup seen on the runways was again about flawless skin and bold or nude lips, meaning that if you perfect the modern glamour look now, it will carry you through several seasons.

Watch out for the eventual emergence of a more sculpted, harder-edged, brown-based skin-tone and swipes of intense colour a la the 1980s glamazon. But will we be ready for it?

Nails: Chanel Le Vernis in darkest purple Vendetta $44, Zoya lacquer in Glimmer $20, Leighton Denny High Performance Colour in iridescent Caught Red Handed $29.

Lips: Revlon Creme Gloss in Sassy Mauve $26 Estee Lauder Berry Swirl gloss $46 Napoleon Perdis Set Lipstick in Sheer Beige $25, L'Oreal Made for Me Lip Blush 253 $21.99.

Eyes: Smashbox Muse Artist Eye Palette in Muse $84, Bobbi Brown Mauve Face Palette for eyes, cheeks and lips $125, Chanel Eye Shadow quad in Mystic Eyes $110, Yves St Laurent Collector Powder for the Eyes in Palette D'Artiste $103.

Lancome Virtuose Mascara in 24 Carats, gold-top coat to wear over Black Carat, $59, Yves St Laurent Automatic Eyeliner in No.3 Easy Blue $61, Clinique Brush-on cream liner in Bronze $44.

Skin: Elizabeth Arden Ceramide Plump Perfect Makeup SPF15 in Vanilla Shell for luminous full coverage $70.

Stockists: Department store and pharmacy counters, L'Oreal also at supermarkets. Napoleon Perdis' Set exclusive to his concept store at Sylvia Park, Smashbox, Ponsonby Rd, and www.smashboxcosmetics.co.nz, Leighton Denny stockists Phone 0800-223-288, Zoya: www.zoyabeauty.co.nz.