From Gabbana to CHANEL and from Van Furstenberg to Dior, runway shows and fashion shoots have come to showcase the latest trends in fashion and beauty this Spring-Summer season!

Here are some of the best hair and makeup style trends that made the biggest impact and would be the ones to have for this Spring-Summer 2015.

As a rule of thumb, keep it light, natural and carefree.

In this season less is more!

THE BEST HAIRSTYLES FOR THE 2015 SEASSON

Boho Waves
This simple girl-next-door hairdo is once again in trend this spring summer of 2015 with its effortless but chic tousled with soft curls hair that look effortlessly perfect.

Bombshell Blowout
This sultry hairdo with sleek, stylish, and big curls almost never goes out of style. A look preferred by celebrities and a hairstyle that men love in their women.

Out-of-the-Water
Wet and creative just came out-of-the-water hair look is sported by models on the runways this season. Brushed all the way up or parted in the middle; gelled or splashed with water, the hair is achieved by exhibiting a slick and shiny look.

Big Buns
Long hair all pulled back into a big bun for a neat, polished, and classic look.

Long Ponytail
This is probably one of the most hassle free ways to do your hair. Yes, done in a matter of 3 seconds! Lazy but trendy this spring.

Braid and Twists and Mixed Materials
From a simple braid to an expertly made complicated twist of braided hair integrated into different hairstyles, braids and twists are definitely IN this season!
Any hairstyle adorned with any type of accessories or even flowers caught the eyes of the fashion getters this season from flowers, gems, barrettes and clips. Anything goes.

THE BEST MAKEUP LOOKS FOR THE 2015 SEASSON

When it comes to Makeup, these looks are IN!

FOR THE EYES
Eyes well outlined by black liquid eyeliner – ranging from a well defined simple and clean to a slightly flicked eye liner application.
Instead of the usual eye makeup, satin stickers, strips of leather, and even bright colored lipsticks were used to emphasize the eyes for a pop art eye makeup look. Baby blue to highlight the eyes never looked so better before this season.

FOR THE LIPS

Any bright well applied lip color for flaming high impact lips works this season. Shades of brown or a shade of purple for eye makeup for the not-so-daring girls is definitely IN!

FOR THE SKIN

Bronzed and sun-kissed skin gave the after effect feel of a well spent island vacation. One of my favorite bronzers is Nars Bronzing Illuminator in Laguna.

AND LASTLY BUT NOT LEAST, THE MAKEUP “NO MAKE” UP LOOK.

Hair and makeup trends come and go, but there’s nothing more beautiful than natural glowing skin!

Yes you could play with a bright lip color and even a dramatic smoky eye latter on the day but make sure you balance your makeup look with a natural beautiful skin.

With the use of pinky nude make up and lipstick, the trendy no makeup look is achieved. Also cream color cosmetic are wonderful to achieve this supernatural glowing makeup look.

The post Hair and Makeup Trends for Spring-Summer 2015 appeared first on Audrey Bethards..

Oh my!

The first week of summer is here, and the steaming heat and humidity came with it!

It may feel nice after such a cold winter, but the heat does not play nice with many types of cosmetics.

As a professional Makeup Artist in Washington, DC and working in Miami and New York City, I’ve dealt with the worst of heat and humidity over the years with my clients and my own personal beauty routine!

When it comes to applying cosmetics, it is always important to use the right products for the season to get the best results, so I wanted to pass on some of my sage beauty advice to all you lovely readers out there!

1.       Just say NO to powders!

One of the best tips you’ll ever get for summertime beauty is just to stay away from powders whenever possible. Why? Simply due to the fact high humidity, ever-present during summer days and nights, will melt and dissolve powder-based makeup. If you are lucky, the makeup with just disappear from your face, but most of the time and with the help of natural facial sweat the makeup will smear all over faces creating a “hot scary summer makeup mess”!!!

2.       Use the best waterproof products

This may seem like a no-brainer from some of you beauty experts out there, but just remember, not all waterproof beauty products are created equal. My favorite line of waterproof makeup is the line AQUA for Make Up For Ever. Whether you want to resist sweat, tears or humidity, this line of makeup really lives up to its promise of being waterproof.

For the Eyes, an absolute must-have from this line is the Aqua Eye Liner Pencil for Make Up For Ever. This will stay on even if you cry through an entire summertime flick like The Fault in Our Stars– ask me how I know!

For mascara, I personally prefer the Waterproof Mascaras from CoverGirls LashBlast. It is inexpensive, doesn’t clump and comes with a wonderful separating wand. With cosmetics it is all about exploring products that work for you, but by sticking to the main principles I suggest to you in this blog, you’ll look great even on the most humid summertime days.

3.       Use cream-based products

Cream-based cosmetics are a blessing from the beauty goddesses for summertime looks! Most cream-based cosmetics are naturally water-proof, so they do not smudge and smear.

For blush, I highly recommend HD Cream Blush for Make Up For Ever, because it is just wonderfully weather resistant.

For eye makeup, try the Aqua Cream Eye Color from Make Up For Ever. This eye makeup is simply amazing, it will even stays on if you take a dip in the pool this summer, so be ready to spend a little extra time removing it before going to bed at night.

And for the lips, I totally love Rosebud Salve. This amazing Lip Balm will make your lips look so beautiful day and night. With out being sticky, greasy or too glossy.

4.        Care for your skin throughout the day

An important part of ensuring the long-term health and appearance of our skin over the years is not just worrying about the cosmetics of the skin, but worrying about the overall health of the skin too! With hot summer sun and humidity, summer can really do a number on our skin if we are not careful.

By using the following two products you can really help keep your skin happy. First off, you probably hear this a lot, but sunscreen is an absolute must if you are going to be out during the day.

For wearing under your makeup, I recommend MAC Prep + Prime Face Protect SPF 50 which provides protection from the sun and secures the appearance of your makeup.

Next, to help keep our skin glowing, not oily from the humidity, Oil Absorbing Sheets by Clean & Clear are going to be your best friend. These little bad soak up oil, not makeup, so you can keep the skin fresh and blemish free.

5.       Get the Sun-Kissed Glowing Look!

Some of my favorite products to get that amazing Sun-Kissed Glowing look are:

For beautiful glowing highlighting, Skin Illuminator in Copacabana by NARS and

For Toning and enhancing the skin complexion with shimmery incandescence, Skin Illuminator in Laguna by NARS.

6.       Seal the deal!

To finish-off any application of cosmetics during the summer, a setting spray really can make all the difference for avoid smudginess and messiness. Setting sprays helps cosmetics stay put during the summer, and they are great replacement for powders during the summer months. I personally recommend Urban Decay All Nighter Long-Lasting Makeup Setting Spray for 4 oz. for most skin types; however, if you would like to find the perfect setting spray for your skin type, I highly recommend reading this article from Allure that briefly goes over different types of setting sprays.

So Long to Summer Smudges!

By following all of these tips it really will make all the difference for the appearance of your cosmetics and your skin’s health. Stay tuned to our blogs for more insider tips from your truly!

The post My Professional Summer Proof Cosmetics’ Picks! appeared first on Audrey Bethards..

Hello everyone,

I have been busily preparing for the spring 2014 Fashion Beauty Trend Shows at Nordstrom in the DC, MD and VA areas! I’m really excited to work with models to showcase the latest beauty trends for women in my area who love fashion and beauty as much as I do! Shows like this are one of the many reasons that I love being a part of the fashion beauty industry!

If you love fashion, hair and makeup, these shows are a wonderful chance to attend a fashion show in your local area. And yes! They do take part nationwide.  So grab your girlfriends, sisters, daughters or whoever you know who loves fashion and beauty as much as you do to come see the Beauty Trend shows at a Nordstrom’s near you! As a bonus, these shows are a wonderful excuse to come shop- not that you needed one!

At the Nordstrom Beauty Trend shows, I’m personally working to showcase the latest fashion trends in hair and makeup. Working with twelve different models, twelve different cosmetic lines including Chanel, MAC, Trisha McEvoy, Nars, Bobbi Brown and Yves Saint Lauren will showcase their different cosmetics makeup trends. It is fun work with all these different cosmetics lines! It also gives me a chance to review all the latest products, so I can choose which products I like best to use on my clients. I like using only the best products on my clients, so events like this keep the quality of my beauty tool kit up-to-date.

Events like gives me the ability to showcase the latest fashion trends of the season. Being a hair and makeup artists is not just about applying makeup and styling hair, but one must also keep up with the latest fashions. For this particular fashion show, I looked for inspiration from one of the biggest trend setting events in the world- the Oscars!

We all love watching the glamorous and elegant celebrities walk the red carpets. To me the beauty and fashion of the celebrities is the most interesting part of the show where I do invaluable research for my profession. This year the hairstyles of the celebrities especially inspired me; the hairstyles included waves, side-swept hair, soft curls and informal, girly styles that I just absolutely love. After watching the Oscars I decided I wanted to adapt this style to make it my own to showcase on models at the Fashion Beauty Trend Shows at Nordstrom’s!

Of course, being a creative artist, not a copy-cat, I wanted to add my own twist to the girlie and curly style trends of spring 2014. To make the hairstyle more dramatic and fun, I decided to feature some Wild Faux Hawks and wavy tailored pony tails on some of my models. The Faux Hawk adds a dramatic contrast to the wavy, side-swept style!

I just love spring, so these wonderful hair styles would be a wonderful way to celebrate this beautiful spring weather we are finally having in the Washington D.C. area. What is even more important to me though is that I thought it was a style you, the audience at Nordstrom’s, could adapt to your own everyday style!

For some of you, this may be more than you ever needed to know about my preparations for a beauty show, but for others out there I know you may secretly be reading this wishing to expand or start your career as a hair stylist and/or makeup artist.

Just as a friendly reminder, I do offer continuing education that can help beauty and makeup artist start and expand their careers, so that you could get a chance to do an event like this one. If working with models and the latest fashion trends sounds like something you’d love to do, make sure to check out my Hair Stylists and Makeup Artists Training in Washington, DC. I can help you make your dreams come true to expand your career as long as you are willing to put in the effort!

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