We all are probably feeling a bit of spring fever as we anxiously await the warm weather that signifies we should put our winter coats away, but my favorite thing about spring is the makeup! COLOR! Spring is the time to shed winter skin and get colorful with new beauty products. I will break down the essentials to get your skin glowing and ready for spring.

We all need to punch up our color palette from the deep jewel tones of fall and winter. This spring season the trends are fluorescent colors, coral, and glowing complexions. Use a tinted moisturizer (with sunscreen, of course!) to let your skin peek through, add a bright coral to your lips, a warm peach to your cheeks and get your skin glowing with a luminizer. Here are the necessities to update your makeup routine for spring 2012:

1)  Tinted Moisturizer. Laura Mercier’s Tinted Moisturizer (available at Sephora. Suggested Retail: $42) is basically the reigning queen in this department. This tinted moisturizer has been the frontrunner for quite some time and there is a reason why- it stays where you put it and it moisturizes really well. NARS also makes a really fantastic tinted moisturizer, especially if you have a slight yellow undertone or have a red complexion you are looking to balance out with a yellow base. NARS Tinted Moisturizer is available in 9 shades and has SPF 30. Available at Bloomingdales. Suggested retail: $42.

2) Cheek Stain. Hourglass Aura Cheek Stains and Tarte Cheek Stains are fantastic, but a really great makeup artist tip is to take a lipstick and put it onto your cheeks! This is especially  significant after watching the Fall/Winter 2012 Fashion week in February, where we saw monochromatic cheeks and lips. For a modern look, take the lipstick you apply to your lips and smudge a bit onto your cheeks. I recommend the Tarte Cheek Stain in the color Tipsy (Available at Sephora. Suggested Retail: $30), a peach/coral with a slight white shimmer, that can also be used on the lips and eyes (we talk more about  this in our “Give Me 5 minutes! The Perfect 5 Minute Face” article). Hourglass has a similar color, Petal (Available at Barneys New York. Suggested retail $45), that is a peach/pink liquid and blends seamlessly into the skin.

3) Luminizer. I am huge fan of the Make Up For Ever Aqua Cream in #13 Warm Beige (Available at Sephora. Suggested retail: $22). It comes in a pot and can be applied with your finger or a brush. Laura Mercier’s Secret Brightener is also a beautiful luminizer that comes with a slightly easier application with the brush on the end of the wand. To achieve the perfect glow, apply luminizer to the brow bone, cheekbones, and cupid’s bow.

4) Bright Lipstick. Try a coral lipstick (check out our previous article, ‘Crazy for Coral’) like Sonia Kashuk’s Vivid Coral (Available at Target Stores. Suggested Retail: $9.99) or Make Up For Ever’s Rouge Artist Intense #38 Satin Coral (Availale at Sephora. Suggested retail: $19). You can also try Yves Saint Laurent’s Vernis À Lèvres Glossy Stain (Available at Sephora. Suggested Retail: $32) in 8 Orange De Chine (that’s tough to say!) for a stain that will last all through dinner and drinks without reapplying. Coral lipstick is a fresh take on the fall/winter red lip. A coral lip is meant to stand out and be the center of attention. So when you do a coral lip, keep the rest of your face soft and neutral.

The goal of springtime makeup is to liven up our skin and features with color and a warm glow. Just as we start to wear lighter weight fabrics, we should also lighten up our color palette and coverage. Think: bright and light! Enjoy, experiment with color and have fun with it.

Happy Spring! (Well, almost!)

-x-

JenniferK