May 2014 in US beauty: the Met Gala ‘Charles James’ theme set a structural carpet face, NARS Audacious launched and changed the matte conversation, wedding-prep skincare narrowed to a clear timeline, the texture-spray price gap closed at the drugstore, and the Memorial Day sunscreen aisle reset.
April 2014 in US beauty: Coachella went louder than 2013, Becca Beach Tint redefined the cheek-tint category, pastel nails finally cracked the burgundy era, Easter weekend kicked off brunch-makeup season, and hair-mask routines crossed into the everyday.
Spring 2014 ready-to-wear from the major US fashion houses — Marc Jacobs went floral and softer, Calvin Klein cemented the sport-tailoring template, Tory Burch deepened bohemian, Michael Kors stayed on brand with column dresses, DVF extended the wrap-dress vocabulary, and J.Crew/Madewell/Gap defined everyday dressing.
March 2014 in US beauty: Lancôme finally signaled the cushion-compact arrival, spring color landed brighter than 2013, the skincare swap got more sophisticated about active-ingredient sequencing, Paris Fashion Week beauty went luminous-skin and stained-red-lip, and the brow conversation got the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Definer.
February 2014 in US beauty: the Sochi Olympics added a sporty-glamour register, NYFW Fall 2014 went softer-eyed, the cushion-compact rumor mill peaked without a US launch, the drugstore mascara wars hit their peak around Maybelline Lash Sensational, and lip stains got a serious next-generation launch.
January 2014 in US beauty: Naked 3 finally landed in widespread distribution, CC cream replaced BB cream as the in-conversation product, resolution skincare went minimal around CeraVe, the matte-lipstick revival started, and hair-oil routines crossed into the drugstore.
Independent US jewellery makers we kept giving and receiving as gifts at the end of 2013 — Anna Sheffield’s antique-feeling solitaires, Loren Stewart’s plain-band stacking, Erica Weiner’s antique-and-reproduction edit, Vanessa Mooney’s bohemian heirlooms, and Page Sargisson’s recycled-gold work.
December 2013 in US beauty: the metallic eye finally arrived, NYE forked into a glitter-eye and a glossy-red-lip camp, year-end best-of lists got smarter, last-minute gifting resolved around Diptyque/Kiehl’s/Fresh, and the New Year’s Eve skincare reset became a ritual.
November 2013 in US beauty: burgundy nails took over, holiday party makeup got Pinterest-ready around the Naked 2 palette, concealer got more serious, Black Friday became a real beauty event, and hand cream finally had its moment.
October 2013 in US beauty: Halloween makeup got couture, fall fragrance went deep and gourmand, holiday gift sets landed earlier than usual, the foundation conversation finally settled around buffed-in luminous skin, and Allure Best of Beauty became the actual buying list.
