Back in Line : The Latest Trend in Retro-’60s Makeup Is Bold, Black Eyeliner
NOT SURPRISINGLY, in a year that has ushered in such ‘60s looks as the flip and pale lipstick, the newest trend in eye makeup also recalls the mod decade. Black eyeliner--actually, an ‘80s interpretation of the trademark look of Diana Ross and models Jean Shrimpton and Twiggy--is back. But this time, it didn’t start with fashion trend-setters. It started in the streets.
Credit kids who were intrigued by the looks that their moms wore in the Summer of Love. Or the way Cher appeared on early album covers with Sonny. Credit also goes to the street-smart fashions seen in such movies as “Salsa” and “Rooftops,” which inspired many fans to wear vivid colors and strong, ethnic-looking makeup. And Academy Award winner Jodie Foster’s heavy eyeliner looked so modern in “The Accused” that she has apparently adopted the look for some of her outings around town.
When young women first picked up on the trend, they began with a fine line of black at the root of the lashes. Now the line is a bold stripe that often extends beyond the outside corners. On the cover of the April issue of Vogue, makeup artist Mary Greenwell turns heavy liner into high fashion, accentuating the eyes of actress Talisa Soto with dark, though subtle, makeup.
The cosmetics industry is reinforcing the new appeal of eyeliner. Lancome, for example, features Isabella Rossellini wearing obvious dark liner in her recent ad, and the company has recently introduced a felt-tip eye pen called Liner Plume. Estee Lauder’s Signature Automatic Pencil for Eyes in black is already a hot item at beauty counters.
In Century City, cosmetics maker Gale Hayman says she has always worn some form of liner, “but now it seems especially right,” she adds. Back from a recent trip to India, Hayman, whose collection is sold exclusively at Nordstrom, says she observed Indian women wearing kohl on their lower eyelids, “giving the eyes a very soulful look.” Kohl, which was popular in the ‘60s, smudges. The look that Hayman says is best for the late ‘80s doesn’t smudge, because it is produced with pencils or powdered eyeliner.
Accessories designer Paloma Picasso, whose beauty signature is matte red lipstick, says: “I always wear black eyeliner. Sometimes I wear it smudged and smoky, other times defined and strong. For evening, I often extend the line at the corners and smudge it.” Picasso, whose lipstick is being sold in America this month after two years of success in Europe, recently launched a black eyeliner pencil and mascara in Paris. “Glamour is the order of the day, and black liner creates the right look,” Picasso says.
Makeup artist Angelo di Biase adds that the trend is sweeping Beverly Hills. “It’s part of a natural look,” he says. “When there’s very little makeup on the rest of the face, eyeliner and some mascara are all a woman needs. Liner brings the eye into focus.”
Model: Nancy Sheppard / Prima; makeup: Dominic Cervantes / Zenobia
