(Shanghai Star)
Updated: 2007-02-19 16:24

How many cosmetics products does a woman use every day? The answer may surprise you.

In Shanghai, the figure is, on average, no less than 20 different cosmetics, the highest amount in the world, according to sources with the COSMOPROF Shanghai 2007.

"A French cosmetic maker conducted a survey and confirmed these findings to our surprise," said Zhang Shu, chief representative of the French Federation Perfumery & Cosmetic Industries in Shanghai.If your number of cosmetics is still less than 10,it is time for you to fill your cosmetics case. But the precondition is that you should be clear about the make-up trends first.

To understand where make-up trends are headed in today's market, color is no longer an issue, according to Antonella Grua from Cipria and Imagine.

As talking about colors in the cosmetics trends, the most obvious point is that designers have abandoned extreme shades in order to concentrate on more tried and tested tones such as pink, purple, burnished nuances and lots of lots of gold.

Remember, gold is one of the most popular colors in the fashion world these days. No matter on the T-stage or at the cosmetics counters,the color gold or golden shades are now widely used.

However, the real trend, that which is universal regardless of brand positioning and distribution,according to Grua, is to be found in the use of light.

The latest generation of pigments display refraction effects that are more and more sophisticated, and are no longer content merely to capture light. Iridescent, "pearlized"or glitterati results are no longer popular. Instead, the aim should be to diffuse light over the face, and at the same time conceal the skin's imperfections. This technique has been applied in the production of base products, such as foundations and powders, but is equally successful with eye and lip products.

Another trend is that consumers are more willing to see multifunctional cosmeticswith effective skincare treatment. Actually, single make-up products are a little out of date today, as many new products have a treatment effect for the skin: Moisture lip gloss, anti-aging foundation, and powder with SPF function. For example, the local brand CMM presents lipstick and lipgloss containing vitamin E in its new collection which can nourish and moisture the lips.

The technique may not be new in the lip gloss or the foundation,but in some mascara or eye shadow,more treatment elements are added in order to be protective. For example,Chanel, Clinique and L'Oreal all presented such high-echnique and skincare products last year.