5 Beauty Rules to Break

Here are five beauty "rules" that, in my opinion, should be forgotten, too.

1. The idea that blue eye shadow died with the disco era.

At a Revlon summer editor preview this year, makeup mastermind Gucci Westman introduced her Summer Suedes palette. The color causing the most concern in the four-shade palette? A pastel baby blue. Editors asked: How can you persuade women, especially older women who lived through the blue eye shadow craze in the 1970s, to wear blue eye shadow?

Blue eye shadow, Westman said, looks refreshing on women of all ages, as it brightens the eye. She suggested wearing it as a eyeliner or as a highlighter under the brow bone. The look is not the same overdone blue shadow look from the disco days, she promised. Still not convinced? Try it!

2. Redheads should not wear red lipstick.

Julianne Moore, Susan Sarandon and Marcia Cross all look amazing in red lipstick. The trick? Finding the right shade of red. Experiment. Each red is different.

3. Match your manicure to your pedicure.

Not too long ago, this was still OK. Now, it looks unexciting and rather old-fashioned. Mix it up. Wear a bright pedicure and softer manicure. In addition, don't wear the same light pink or off-white nail color every week. Nail color should be fun.

4.Are you still choosing makeup based on your skin tone?

Guess what? It doesn't always work. This rule does not apply to all women because some women might be both cool and warm-toned. For lip color, for instance, a M.A.C sales woman recently told me she chooses a lipstick that enhances the person's natural lip color. The result is usually a nice, flattering match.

5. A perfect blowout is required.

It is no longer super chic to have hair blown out so smooth it does not move. If you do get your hair blown out, ask for a blowout with some body and movement. Do it yourself? Try rough drying your hair for the most part and then smoothing the sections out with a large, round brush. That way, your hair will bounce and not look like you fuss over it every second.

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