Trend Alert: Lace, lace on ya’ face!

There's probably not one beauty trend that will shock me anymore. Tell me it's cool to wear sprinkles in my eyebrows, and I'll shrug nonchalantly, head to the pantry and pour a jar over my face (I am not responsible if the sprinkles find their way to my mouth). Or better yet, mention casually that neon-white eye contacts are in fashion (shudder) and I won't bat an eyelid (although probably will when trying to apply those darn things). So it comes as no surprise that the peel-and-press face lace trend, though a bit left-of-field, is fast becoming the latest thrill, up there with the big ones (think: nail art, lip tattoos and epic hair braids). And given our current beauty generation who are addicted to staggeringly bold fashion feats, I'm surprised they didn't bring this in sooner.

Type in lace makeup to Google or Youtube and BANG it's right there in yo' face (alongside a few freaky links to lacey dominatrix attire). The surrounding popularity is understandable though: these stick-on ready-to-wear eye designs look like you spent an hour in front of the mirror with liquid liner. Dude, bonus!

The trend has already been seen on the Jason Wu and Chanel catwalks, and it's now being pulled from the runway to reality. And although there's some who will argue that face lace has been around for yonks (Gaga got onto it wayyyy back, dah!), more recently the fad is making its transition from cult makeup trend to the mainstream beauty arena, as more and more beauty brands are jumping on the lace bandwagon and releasing their own interpretive versions. Makeup artist Phyllis Cohen's brand Face Lace and the renowned Nail Rock who released their own set of appliques called Eye Rock, are both culprits of the lacey facey movement and have been instigating this innovative, masquerade-style beauty progression quite fervently.

So what's it all about? This eye liner alternative is a quick-fire way to make any look appear a bit more funked-up and mysterious (though usually the type of mystery reserved strictly for the pages of a magazine or a baroque-themed costume party). All it takes is a simple peel and press motion to transform you into a hoochie mama - you can even wear these intricate designs down your face! In fact, I challenge you to a beauty duel: sport this look to any odd social event this month and I'll send you loads of cyber love and rate you high up there on a beauty pedestal for all to ooh and ahh over. What say you? Still not sold? Maybe this lass from Youtube will convince ya'...

YOU TELL EM' LACE!

All-in-all, I am totes supporting these ultra-luxe adhesives, which will either infiltrate the beauty market with eye-catching designs or die out faster than Mischa Barton's acting career. Bets on the next trend? Eyebrow Art. Yeah, I said it.

SHOP IT

1. Nail Rock Eye Rock, $9.50, nailrock.com, 2. Lace Face by Phyllis Cohen, $25, face-lace.com

By Kristina Ioannou

Images courtesy of face-lace.com

Tutorial courtesy of pixiwoo.com