Brighter Beauty: Spring Beauty Trends & Products We Love

Nails: OPI Brazil Spring/Summer Collection

For a hues that will take you from spring to summer look no further than OPI’s Brazil Collection ($9 each). Featuring various shades of muted purples as well as bright colors inspired by the vibrancy of Brazil – there’s a color for everyone. My favorite is Don’t Bossa Nova Me Around (pictured), a perfect creamy nude-mauve blend that is sure to be a staple in my nail polish rotation all year round!

For those that like a little texture to their polishes, pick up the Brazil Beach Sandies 4pc Mini Kit ($12.95). Which are fun brights with a matte glitter finish.

Nails: SpaRitual Spring Explore Collection

One of my favorite spring nail color collections comes from one of my ultimate favorite eco-friendly brands, SpaRitual. The limited-edition Explore collection ($12 each) was my go-to when I went on my own little spring break to Mexico last month. There are 6 shades, 3 shimmers and 3 creams, all inspired by colors found while exploring the North American forests! My favorite is Firefly. This bright yellow neon was ideal for a warm-weather getaway and I was so happy that unlike many other neons, it didn’t stain my nails!

Nails: Ciate Dolls House Collection

Blending together two spring nail trends, perfect pastels and a matte finish – the Ciate Dolls House Collection ($25) is a must for the season! Inspired by the finish on a porcelain doll, the 5 egg-shell finish, pastel shades are most perfect when worn all together, with a different hue on each nail! Bonus points for the cutest packaging ever!

Note: Be sure to use a base coat with these polishes to avoid nails drying and staining!

Makeup: Jane Iredale Magic Hour

Inspired by one of their best-selling products Moonglow and the golden, perfect colors in the sky just before the sun sets, Jane Iredale created the Magic Hour collection which has since become what I reach for whenever I’m getting ready. Included in the collection:

Jelly Jar^™ Gel Eyeliner ($28) – great for both smokey eyes or a precise cat eyeliner look, the inky Jelly Jar Gel liners are a must in any make-up bag.

In Touch^® Highlighter in Comfort ($28) – this cream-to-powder highlighter leaves a peachy irredescent glow on cheeks, brow bones, and eyes – I love to also use it to highlight the Cupid’s Bow above my lips to give them a fuller look!

PurePressed^® Eye Shadow Triple in Golden Girl ($28) – I tend to shy away from eye shadows because I find them to never look the way I had hoped. However the silky texture and amazing buildable shades of gold, champagne, and bronze in this pressed compact are to die for!

Lip Fixation^® in Craze & Compulsion ($30)  – with a gloss on one end and an opaque matte-finish stain on the other, the Lip Fixations are becoming my fast favorites. While both colors are gorgeous there is just something about the bright, bold magenta shade of Craze that has me carrying everywhere!

Makeup: Make Up Forever HD Blush; Second Skin Cream Blush

There’s something about a healthy glow that really brightens up a gal’s face! Until now cream blush had always given me a bit of a problem, likely do to a heavy hand, but Make Up Forever’s new HD Blush ($26) is the blush of my dreams! The shade that’s taken me from my pale winter skin to my fresh from vacation tan, and managed to look perfect despite my varying skin tone, has been the 410 Coral.

The blush melts into my skin and truly lasts all day when applied with the angled end of the Double-Ending Sculpting Brush ($53), patting into the compact to collect the color and then patting gently along the length of your cheekbone. I like to use the rounded end of the brush to set the color with a complementary powder blush and then further set in the glow with Make Up Forever’s new HD Pressed Powder ($36) which I feel is going to come in handy during the more humid summer months!

Makeup: Laura Geller Lip Crayons & Cream Eyeshadow

Hitting on one of my favorite beauty trends of the moment, the crayon trend, Laura Geller’s Love Me Dew Moisturizing Lip Crayons ($16)  make coloring chic! They glide on with the precision of a pencil, the color of a lipstick, and the finish of a gloss (that’s thankfully sans the sticky gloss side-effects).  I love the bright orange Mango Sorbet shade!

I’m also loving Laura Geller’s Cool Lids Cream Eyeshadows ($19).  They are cool to the touch, hence the name, and offer sheer, shimmering color for your lids! The coppery Bronze Beauty is my fave for sporting under a fabulous cat eye!

Makeup: beautyblender®

Highlighting and contouring is a breeze when you have the handy beautyblender® at your disposal! It’s designed to fit easily into your hand to help blend foundation, concealers, and even eye makeup. Best of all it’s reusable, making it eco-friendly!