As we gear up for another year of fabulous new make-up, innovative skincare launches and a lot more fun with beauty, Gulf News tabloid! looks back at the trends that took over 2019.
Skincare goes mainstream
While the concept of ‘cleanse, tone, moisturise’ has been around for years, it was in 2019 that people became curious about the amazing — and addictive — world of skincare. It was the year that double cleansing, glycolic acids and retinols — which used to only be discussed among skincare enthusiasts — entered the mainstream vocabulary. Major brands such as Marc Jacobs Beauty and Kylie Cosmetics entered the skincare market to varying success. There was even a vegan line launched by ‘Stranger Things’ star Millie Bobby Brown — Florence by Mills.
Graphic and bold liner
No shade to the classic black cat-eye liner, but that trend was so 2018. This year it was all about getting creative with graphic slashes of colour, glitter shadow being shaped into wings, liner that was smudged and liner that was sharp as a knife. The best part about this trend was that no colour was left out of the fun — neon green was as welcome as navy blue, and purple and pink were solid favourites. We predict that this trend is here to stay for a while.
Brows get an upgrade
Overplucked, scanty eyebrows? That was left behind this year as a slew of brow beautifying techniques flooded the beauty space. Apart from the usual microblading — which is basically a semi-permanent tattoo — there was powder brows, brow lamination, henna brows, HD brows and even eyebrow extensions. Not a single brow in the world would be left looking sparse and unfilled, if the number of options available was anything to go by.
The decline of Instagram make-up
Overly Photoshopped pictures, heavy eye make-up and unrealistic expectations all went out the window on Instagram this year (thankfully). More and more beauty influencers got real about the true nature of their skin, with some even revealing pores, acne and scars. There were loads more pared-back looks featuring less foundation, more glow and real skin peeking through — thanks in part to this year’s natural-looking make-up trend.
Grungy glitter
Going hand-in-hand with the graphic liner look was the ‘emo chic, but make it fashion’ trend of dark, smokey eyes with a lot of glitter thrown in. We loved seeing looks that seemed to have been painted on with a rebellious streak — no make-up brushes needed — in shades of deep greens, rich purples, dark greys and the like. It helped that a number of brands such as Charlotte Tilbury, Huda Beauty and Hourglass released highly pigmented glitter eyeshadows in liquid and cream formats for maximum impact.
Monochrome eyeshadow
On the opposite side of the spectrum — much to the relief of beginners — was the trend of using one single shadow all over the lid, for a sweet and simple look. Pastels such as lavender and peach, and neon oranges and blues were particularly popular shades. Sometimes, eye liner was skipped completely, with only mascara added to define the eyes, for a very clean and youthful effect.