Get into the Bronze Age

by LIZ STOUT, femail.co.uk

Team the latest cream and khaki fashions with this summer's hottest shade for eyes. The new breed of soft, shimmery bronze colours are the perfect way to compliment a sunkissed complexion.

Now that the sun is finally shining a tanned complexion is a must. And it appears that we're all heeding the warnings about baking in the sun as sales of fake tan hit an all time high.

Nowadays, there is a massive choice of effective self-tanning sprays, creams and powders that can add a healthy glow to the palest of skins.

But what about make-up? Avoid anything heavy. The best way to compliment a sun-kissed look is to treat your eyes to a splash of rich, shimmery colour.

It's long been a party favourite but this year, gold has grown up and in its place, a new versatile range of metallic tones has emerged - including rich burnished bronzes and light-reflecting coppers.

Estée Lauder have come up with a tempting metallic range that's due to hit the shelves on 4th June. Their Go Wink Liquid Eyeshadows (£9.50) are delicious sheer cream eye colours that glide across the lids and are available in metal gold, bronze, red, lilac and copper.

If you can't wait until June, try the Disc Eyeshadow Wet/Dry Formula in Eggshell and Brown Sugar (£9.50), which looks fantastic with a tan and really helps accentuate the colour of your eyes.

Here are the some of the best bronze colours instore now

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Ultima II Extraordinaire Cream to Powder Shadow in Coffee, £11


A good cream eyecolour to try is Ultima II Extraordinaire Cream to Powder Shadow in coffee.
A rich antique bronze, this easily-applied cream colour is infused with thousands of tiny golden particles and dries to a perfect soft powder finish.

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Mac Eye Shadow in Amber Lights, £9


If copper is more your thing, try investing in Mac's frosted Amber Lights shadow.
Packed with lovely warm orange tones, it doubles up brilliantly as a highlighter to use around the temples and cheekbones. It also perfectly accentuates a tanned cleavage!

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Revlon Colorstay Powder Shadow in Coffee, £6.95


This double ended colour tube by Revlon, comes complete with a separate wand of colour at each end.


The coffee colour used on its own has a fairly matte finish, but blend it with a dab of white and you can create your own shade of light reflective bronze that's as strong or sheer as you want it to be.

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Stila Eye Shadow in Sun, £12.50


Sparkle the night away with Stila's sheer shadow. More like an eye highlighter than a block colour, there's just enough warm copper to ensure your eyes are beautifully - yet subtley - illuminated.
For a more metallic finish, you may want to finish off with a dusting of their Oasis shadow, which has stronger gold tones and added sparkle.

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Sisley Copper Touch, £13


The best deep red copper shade we found was Sisley's irrisistable cream colour in Copper Touch which is ideal for warm summer evenings.
This colour looks fantastic on black skin (paler skins proceed with caution, as the colour is quite strong) and applied generously to your lids completes a perfect disco diva look.

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Helena Rubinstein Colour Fusion Mono in Golden Eyes, £15


Helena Rubinstein have recreated Shirley Eaton's famous body paint effect in the classic James Bond flick, Goldfinger and packaged it up into an irresistable burnt gold shadow.


Dust your eyelids with the mererest hint of shimmery colour and you're sure to look a million dollars.

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