"Wash-of-color makeup" is a term that's traditionally been used to connote that effortlessly cool chick at the party who seemed as if she nonchalantly threw on a dash of makeup just for fun (Zoë Kravitz, we're looking at you). But in 2020, low-key looks are more than a vibe for laidback types — it's a lifestyle for pretty much everyone.
With months of safer-at-home mandates under our belts, watercolor hues feel like just the thing to breathe life into the collective makeunder we've adopted for Zoom meetings and grocery runs. Because, honestly, right now being on trend means nothing more than a touch of warmth, a swipe of pastels and a dab of rosy tint. Ahead, find fifteen ways to find that soft-focus glow in an instant.
The variants of golden-flecked rose shimmer in this four-shade palette are so veil-like, we've stopped thinking about it as a highlighter at all. Instead, we use the sparsely sparkled and lightly tinted powder to dust over eyeshadow, blush or on bare skin. The result: a luminescence that warms, brightens and looks more like healthy skin than pretty makeup.
When a brand known for its freckle-showcasing products makes a cheek tint, you know it's going to look natural. Still, we're impressed by the ease at which this gel-cream formula sinks into skin and emits a born-with-it flush. The liquid plant collagen inside may help deliver the skin-like texture, but whatever the case, thanks to buildable color and a compact, no-spill housing, it's quickly become our new go-to.
Forget what you know about contour: This petite tube of liquid color proves the defining bone structure isn't just about hard-chiseled looks inspired by drag. What's more, it makes subtle shading along the jawline, cheekbone, nose and hairline as easy as applying a liquid blush.
After popping a few dots of the formula onto skin with the abbreviated doe-foot applicator and tapping the shade in with fingers, we achieved believable definition... without even having to pick up a single makeup brush. What's more, the angle of the applicator and tube's tight neck helps to dispense just the right amount of product.
As a standalone lip treatment, this hydrator does a bang-up job. But thanks to liquid crystal technology inside, it also imparts a cool holographic effect on lips, sometimes reading as orange tints, others as pink tints, others as a golden yellow. It's an effect that makes the formula a perfect shade-shifting topper for lip color (and gentle nod to "Euphoria" makeup) — all while moisturizing your lips.
