The right makeup and hairstyle can help you bring out your best

Madonna Fong restyled Jamie Church's hair and updated her makeup.

Dramatic eye makeup, a sheer, water-based foundation, plum blush, and a cool red lipstick give Marcia Hopkins an elegant look.

Change is in the air - in the chilly mornings, the shorter days, the blushing leaves.

It could be in your mirror, too, as the hint of a new season stirs a desire for personal change.

Maybe it'll just be a smokier eye shadow, or deeper shade of lipstick. Makeup doesn't need to be complicated, nor should it make you look like someone you're not, said Madonna Fong, a makeup artist and hairdresser who owns La Luna Salon in Sylvania with her husband, John Fong. Women "need to study their face and learn how to accentuate their features, not emulate someone else's," she added.

"The objective with makeup is to bring out personal best," Mrs. Fong said. "I think the most important thing is that women recognize and appreciate who they are as an individual."

Patrice White, a licensed esthetician and owner of Patrice Cosmetics Studio in West Toledo, agreed. "It feels good to change something when the season changes, but you can't let the fashion industry totally dictate the change. It has to work for you."

Some changes in routine at this time of year just make good sense, she said, such as moisturizers that protect against the effects of colder air outdoors and heated, dry air indoors.

"Skin color changes slightly from summer to fall," Mrs. White continued. "Even my clients who take strict precautions to protect their skin from the aging effects of the sun still feel a slight 'fade-out' this time of year. It's time to start wearing foundation again to help even out your skin. And see your hair stylist for a color boost. To compensate for the loss of color in your skin, you may want some low lighting, warmth, or contrast added."

Mrs. Fong said it's a good idea to re-evaluate your hair and makeup on a regular basis. "Even if it's just changing a lipstick color, or maybe altering the length of your hair," she suggested. "You don't have to make monumental changes."

Madonna Fong restyled Jamie Church's hair and updated her makeup.

That periodic review helps keep us out of ruts.

"The makeup we wore at 16 isn't the makeup we should be wearing at 49," she pointed out.

Life changes sometimes demand a new look, as Mrs. Fong demonstrated on a local woman who was making the transition from college to work.

Valarie Goldsmith, of North Toledo's Shoreland area, needed a more professional look, Mrs. Fong said. "She needed updating and something that was stronger, emphasizing her beautiful eyes and face without looking too trendy. I wanted to give her a very polished look she could dress up if she wanted to."

Mrs. Fong darkened and highlighted Miss Goldsmith's hair, which had been seriously damaged from coloring and perming, in order to bring out her facial features. She used warm browns to make Miss Goldsmith's eyes stand out, with a fleshy pink on her cheeks and a reddish copper on her lips.

"If you want to emphasize the eyes, then keep the cheeks and lips soft," Mrs. Fong advised. "When you make all three really strong, it looks kind of scary."

Miss Goldsmith, who is a sales associate for The Andersons, has since grown her hair a bit longer and gone to a lighter shade of brown, but has stayed with what she calls the "more adult makeup" of her makeover.

"I used to wear really young makeup - purples and blues," she said. "Now I wear more of the natural colors."

Miss Goldsmith said that having healthier hair and more sophisticated makeup has made her feel better about her appearance and helped her get established in a new stage of life. "It's a big thing when you're trying to get a job or working so people can take you seriously," she added.

Mrs. Fong gave Jamie Church of Sylvania a glamorous look in a just-for-fun makeover. Ms. Church, an account executive at Fox Toledo, is a regular La Luna customer who doesn't generally wear a lot of makeup, Mrs. Fong said.

(Ms. Church pointed out, though, that she normally wears more makeup than she had on in her "before" photo. "I don't usually look that bad," she joked.)

Mrs. Fong said she cut Ms. Church's fine hair into soft layers, colored the new growth, and enriched and toned down the color on the ends to create a "cooler" blond rather than yellow blond.

She applied foundation to even out her skin tone. To bring out her eyes, she applied a warm pink across the eyelid, brown in the crease, and a gray-brown pencil liner. She smudged the liner and dusted the eye with a large brush to soften and blend the colors. A warm pink lipstick and soft pink on the cheeks completed the look.

For both women, Mrs. Fong used eye shadow on the brows to create more definition.

Mrs. Fong recommends that makeup be put on with professional brushes rather than fingertips or sponge applicators. "You get a prettier, controlled application," she explained.

Mrs. White said many women use too much liner and mascara under their eyes. "It starts looking too heavy. It makes them look tired, especially if they work in overhead or fluorescent lighting."

Her advice: "Keep it clean and sparse. Keep most of the eye makeup on the upper eyelid and lash."

She said eyebrows are another common problem area, either because women don't get them shaped and groomed or because they over-tweeze. "If you have a great lip color and your brows look pretty, you can get by with very little makeup," Mrs. White said.

Not all makeup ruts are bad. At least one never goes out of style or season.

"You should keep wearing sunscreen, even if it seems gray or overcast," Mrs. White advised.

Contact Ann Weber at: aweber@theblade.com or 419-724-6126.