1980s Retro Makeup Application and Styles That Will
Accentuate Any 80s Party Costume or Fashion Outfit.
Like all trends, '80s Makeup Trends seemed normal at the time, but looking back
by twenty years or so, we can see the difference in the apparent natural look of
today. In the eighties, women were coming into their own as far as workplace
issues were concerned, and the trends were towards ultra-smooth color on the
face, bright eye and lip shades and plenty of make up. The combination of
workplace politics and cheap fluorescent lighting played absolute hell with
women's makeup, turning foundations and eye shadows (blue was popular) into
strange colors indeed. And makeup was important if you wanted to be taken
seriously. It was quite usual for a woman to apply a full set of
makeup—foundation, powder, lipstick and liner, mascara, eyeliner and eye
shadow—to go to work. Like most fads, 80s makeup trends looked good: nowadays,
women who make up that heavily look like they have something to hide.
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For the perfect eighties theme party costume . . .
But if you're going to an 80's style retro party, you can easily create the
eighties look. Fashions are easy: a matching dress or skirt suit with big
shoulder pads, preferably in a bright color is a good start. Heels are
imperative, and hair should be big and fluffy but very controlled. Remember, the
'80s look is all about minimizing flaws but maximizing power. It was the decade
of the woman's power suit, along with power lipsticks in bright reds and power
perfumes heavy on the oriental floral scents. Need a model? For a perfect '80s
hair style and suits, look at reruns of Designing Women.
--Editors Tip ----------------------------------------------------------------------
Mica Makeup and Cosmetics Complete the 1980’s
Look
Before there was pure mineral makeup, there was
mica for eye shadow. Mica is a highly reflective
mineral, which makes for strong color and a
lasting look. Ground fine, it provides all the
glam of glitter without the grit or flakiness,
because mica makes a powder so smooth, you can't
even feel it once it's on. It's exotic, romantic
and lush. In the '70s and '80s, mica was de
rigueur for eye shadow, evening contours, dusting
on shoulder blades and all sorts of other groovy
places. A little pot of mica shadow will last you
about fourteen years, unless you decide that it's
so cool as a cosmetic that it would look even
better swiped onto a wet paintbrush and smeared
across a pure white wall in an iridescent rainbow.
Then, you might need to buy a second pot. Mica is
also great because you can find it all a lot of
different colors ranging from black to purple to
white, but all iridescent and shiny.
Unless you're planning to cover your entire body
with mica, it's easier to apply it damp, either
with a sponge or a brush. It's great worked into
moisturizer or mixed with lip balm or even put
into nail polish. It's inert, so if it gets in
your mouth it won't hurt you, but it will still
bother your eyes like any dust would, so be
careful applying it around the eye area. Because
it's so fine, it can be flyaway otherwise, and
truly untidy. But it's so much fun to experiment
with, you may just decide to buy a big powder puff
and go for it.
See a selection of mica makeup that will glam up your eighties look.
But if you're looking to do something more glam, Madonna is your model. Not the
Madonna of today, with her London-Pilates-yoga chic, but the younger, earthy,
in-your-face fashionista who successful combined wedding gowns with soldier
boots. Any woman who was a teen in the eighties probably has a mental picture of
Madonna that makes ordinary eighties clothing and makeup look like something
from another century. Madonna wore makeup, all right, but she wasn't afraid to
tear it up with plenty of white foundation and stark black eyeliners. Eighties
fashion for the fashionable was all about extremes: shock had its value, and the
idea that everyday women were wearing shoulder pads and big brass buttons to
claim their share of the glass ceiling workplace was laughable. There was an
interesting thing happening in the 1980's: some women were trying to climb the
corporate ladder while others were trying to capitalize on a sort of brooding
sexuality. The combination was confusing, since the clothes were hard edged but
the faces were hidden under piles of makeup. It's almost like women had taken up
full body and face armor to meet the wars of the workplace.
80s hair and make-up styles
Glam came along in the 1980s, and the cosmetic and clothing fashions were a
combination of Star Trek and an Illinois Human Resources convention. Glam makeup
practically preceded the wearer into the room: we're talking eyes so smoky they
teared from all the goopy makeup, and big, pillowy, pouty lips, the kind of lips
that say, "kiss me and then I'll sue you for sexual harassment". The average
woman put on a lot of makeup, did things to her hair with curling irons and bright hair dye color, blow
dryers and three kinds of gel, and then it was time to do her eyebrows.
More 80’s fashion and outfit ideas
Other 80's styles included workout gear, because the 80's was the time when
aerobics really hit the big time. Jane Fonda's workout video made leg warmers a
must-have, and it became fashionable to be thin so you could look really great
in your gym wear. We saw the advent of lavender jogging suits for women,
millions of cross trainers and meaningless little visors for running in the sun
while it burned the top of your head. Sunglasses were big, so big in fact, that
they reduced the wearer's face to the size of a bug's. Indoor glasses were also
big and round, covering from cheek to eyebrow and resulting in glasses wearers
pouring on even more eye makeup than ever before.
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Before there was pure mineral makeup, there was
mica for eye shadow. Mica is a highly reflective
mineral, which makes for strong color and a
lasting look. Ground fine, it provides all the
glam of glitter without the grit or flakiness,
because mica makes a powder so smooth, you can't
even feel it once it's on. It's exotic, romantic
and lush. In the '70s and '80s, mica was de
rigueur for eye shadow, evening contours, dusting
on shoulder blades and all sorts of other groovy
places. A little pot of mica shadow will last you
about fourteen years, unless you decide that it's
so cool as a cosmetic that it would look even
better swiped onto a wet paintbrush and smeared
across a pure white wall in an iridescent rainbow.
Then, you might need to buy a second pot. Mica is
also great because you can find it all a lot of
different colors ranging from black to purple to
white, but all iridescent and shiny. 
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