Flipping through the May issue of Essence, I saw this GORGEOUS beauty editorial by Mikki Taylor that showcased a trend for spring: bright matte makeup! This is a trend that ANY woman can pull off (if done the right way). The best thing about this is that mattes are very forgiving, so if you have wrinkles, acne, large pores, etc. mattes are for you! But since this trend is about BRIGHT mattes, you’ll still need to be careful where you place them as bright colors tend to magnify and draw attention.

How to successfully rock this trend:
1. Pick one feature to highlight with a bright and keep everything else pretty understated. Overdoing brights can make you look like you moonlight as a clown for Ringling Bros.
2. Make sure your skin looks as picture perfect as possible. Try a medium to full coverage foundation like Make Up For Ever HD Invisible Cover Foundation that will cover your blemishes, but lets your skin look like skin. To kick up the wow factor, apply a shimmery moisturizer like MAC Strobe Cream before you put on your foundation.
3. To prolong the staying power of a bright lipstick, first apply a lip base (Chapstick will do), then use a lipliner in a shade similar to that of your lipstick to line and shade the lips. Hold the pencil parallel to the lips (so that you don’t use the point of the pencil) to shade in the lips. This will give the lipstick something to hold onto and if your lipstick does fade a bit, you’ll still retain some color.

The makeup Essence showed in this feature:
1. MAC Lipstick in Show Orchid
2. Victoria’s Secret VS Makeup Lip Gloss SPF15 in Juicy Acai
3. Avon Big Color Glossy Lip Pencil in Glossy Sunset
4. Revlon Matte Lipstick in Really Red
5. Make Up For Ever Powder Blush in #26
6. Make Up For Ever Eyeshadow in #92
7. Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils in Flipside, Ransom, and Grafitti
8. Cover Girl Eye Enhancers in Turquoise
9. Clinique Blushwear Cream Stick in Peachy Blush
10. E.L.F. Natural Mineral Blush in Rose
11. Make Up For Ever Lipstick in Laque-Laquered #201

More suggestions from me:
1. MAC Eyeshadows in Atlantic Blue, Orange, Chrome Yellow, Clarity
2. MAC Lipsticks in Lady Danger, Ruby Woo
3. Make Up For Ever Eyeshadows in #75 Neon Pink, #91 Apple Green, #116 Lilac Matte, #9 Lavender

P.S. Don’t forget to enter in the Rx for Brown Skin Ultra Gentle Virtual Peel Giveaway! Entries must be in by 11:59 P.M. EST on Friday, April 24th!