For those who like to keep “in style,” follow the trends, or are wondering what to get next time you go shopping, this article is for you. From fabric to footwear, the fashion is always changing with a few classic styles continuing to stay relevant from year to year. The colors of the changing leaves continue to be the ideal clothing colors for fall wear, with most bright colors being retired for the year.

Specifically, Fall 2016 is all about cool fabric, alternative streetwear with a twist, and some similar styles from last year – including faux fur and layering. Below you will find examples of the hottest fashion trends currently.

The Color Tan

Tan is in! Any shade, any piece of clothing, any accessory, the subtle color ironically adds a pop of color to a neutral, sleek look.

Bomber Jackets

Bomber Jackets are short, cropped, and typically zip-up or have buttons. Stores are selling them in a variety of colors and most that are in style now have a shiny/sheer quality to tie together the smooth style.

Knit Sweaters

They are making a comeback! In a variety of colors, patterns, and lengths, knit sweaters have been all over the runway. The revived style is now being paired with almost anything but specifically skirts or denim and thigh high suede boots.

Bodysuits

Bodysuits are the one of the biggest trends of the year. They are shirts/tanks/sweaters with a snap attachment underneath the crotch to keep the shirt in place and give a clean, tucked in look without having to re-tuck and fix lines/bulges every time you stand up like most regular shirts when tucked in.

Satin

Designers this year created a different take on satin. Originally used for things such as blouses, slips and robes, the material is being used for other items of clothing, including pants, to create a unique looks.

Knee/Thigh High Boots

Knee and thigh high boots are a fall essential, providing style and warmth. This year the material of boots are expanding to things like velvet and suede in a variety of colors. They are used to tie several looks together such as denim, dressed, oversized hoodies, and more.

Chokers

Chokers are making a comeback as well. From black fabric to diamond studded, chokers have made appearances at almost every red carpet this year. The make a statement and are a girl’s new favorite accessory.

Velvet Everything

Quite possibly the biggest fashion trend of 2016 is velvet. The eye catching fabric has been used to create any and every piece of clothing at accessory. It provides anything from a goth to chic vibe depending on what color it is and can be paired with other fabrics or accessories to give a dressed up or casual look.

The best thing in the world is getting almost the exact same thing for a lot less. In the make-up world the term “dupes” refers to getting a high-end quality product, that is cheaper than the original. Obviously dupes are not the same quality as the originals, but they are almost the same color.

Are they okay though? In our opinion, yes, because they’re not bad quality either, they’re just a little less quality for the same look.

Now, we’re not saying all of the dupes are really good and amazing, because let us just say that there are really awful dupes out there. But, make-up changes all around us, and everyday products are selling and attracting customers. You see it all over the Internet, the beautiful and interesting looks Youtubers and people all over the world are creating. One can do so much with makeup, from creating a sharp cat eye to giving yourself faux freckles, but we don’t all have the money to purchase expensive makeup products.

With all this in mind, Evelyn and I decided to get some popular high end makeup products and compare them to more affordable drugstore products.

Kat Von D, is a tattoo artist with a great vegan makeup line. One of her mosts popular products is her Tattoo Liner in the color “Trooper,” but it retails for $21. When looking for dupes we came across the wet n wild proline felt tip eyeliner, which retails from $1.99-$3.99 depending on what drugstore you go to. We tested both on Jennifer’s eyes, and they’re both very similar. Wet n wild was a little less pigmented but you could build up the product. The only difference we found between both of the products was that the wet n wild eyeliner didn’t have a smooth application. But for the most part, the products were basically the same: both waterproof, both last all day, and both come in black and brown.

We also decided to test Maybelline’s “The Rocket” mascara, which retails anywhere from $5.99-$8.99, again depending on whatever drugstore you go to, as a dupe for Benefits “They’re Real” mascara which retails for $24 at benefitcosmetics.com or Sephora. The brushes are somewhat similar and they both come in black and brown, but Benefit also has a blue shade of mascara. They both lift the lashes and give lots of volume. They’re both equally great and make your lashes ten times longer.

There are many more dupes out there but we tested some of the everyday products people wear. Hopefully, this helps you save some money so you can buy even more makeup.

What is a sew in weave? A sew in, is a form of weave for the hair that you actually sew into your hair instead of glueing onto your scalp. They last for at least 3 months before it should be taken out. It is a protective style, meaning that while you have your sew in installed, your hair underneath should grow and get healthy as long as you take care of it.

Some tips on how to take care of your weave:
1. Wrapping your hair at night with a silk scarf/bonnet.

• Silk scarves and silk pillow cases help keep moisture in.
• Cotton pillow cases cause friction and can lead to hair loss.

2. Heat protectant. ALWAYS!

• Weaves can only take so much stress before they start looking worn down.
• Keeps hair from looking dried out and has your ends looking luscious.

3. A wide tooth comb is your new best friend.

• Helps prevent breakage and damage to your weave.

4. CONDITION CONDITION!

• Will leave your hair feeling and looking lustrous.
• Try to deep condition every two weeks.
• It’s best to use a suave conditioner because some other conditioners may leave a wax coat on your hair making it look worn down.

5. Invest in your hair!

• I don’t mean break the bank but it’s quality over quantity when it comes to buying “bundles”.
• The type of hair you buy is the most crucial step because how can you maintain a weave that was never great in the first place.
• Also, what I mean by invest in your hair is to purchase hair that you can reuse time and time again, this means good quality human hair.

It can be hard sometimes to find eyeshadows that really make your eyes pop. Below is a list of eyeshadows, and eyeshadow palettes, to help guide you in choosing which eyeshadows look best. Makeup is all about trial and error, experimenting, and finding what makes you feel the best.

Blue eyes:

The best eyeshadow colors for blue eyes are cool tones with pink/purple undertones. Shimmery shadows on the upper lid and tear duct of the eye will also make blue eyes stand out. In addition, shimmery bronze shades can look very good on blue eyes if you want a darker smokier look. The best palettes for people with blue eyes are Naked 3 palette ($54 at Sephora, Ulta and urbandecay.com), Maybelline The Blushed Nudes palette ($9.99 at Ulta, Target, Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, and maybelline.com),  and w7 In the Nude palette ($6.50 on Amazon).

Green eyes:

The best eyeshadow colors for green eyes are taupes, darker browns, warm shades, and your personal preference of purples. Really light eye makeup looks are easy to accomplish and work great with green eyes. To achieve this you can keep it fairly simple with an all over lid color that is close to your natural skin color, a transition color to enhance the crease and a small inner corner and brow bone highlight, and flirty lashes to tie the look together. The best palettes for green eyes are Naked 1 palette ($54, Ulta, Sephora, urbandecay.com), Pixi Mesmerizing mineral palette in Emerald Gold ($12 at target and pixi.com), and Wet N Wild Comfort Zone palette ($4.99 Ulta, Target, Walmart, walgreens, CVS, wetnwild.com)

Brown eyes:

The best eyeshadow colors for brown eyes are golds, warm shimmery shadows, neutral shades and specifically, burgundy. Brown eyes work the best for experimenting with vibrant and highly pigmented shades. Brown eyes look good in just about all colors since the base eye color is neutral.  The best palettes for brown eyes are Too Faced The Chocolate Bar Eye Palette ($49 at Sephora and Ulta), Naked 2 Palette ($54 at Sephora, Ulta, urbandecay.com) and Almay Intense I-Color Smoky-I Kit ($8 at Ulta, Target, Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, almay.com)

How to match your foundation to your skin tone:

Foundation was first developed for people in film to enhance their features on camera. Now all kinds of women use foundation to give their skin a fresh, enhanced look.

The first step to matching your foundation to your skin is figuring out the undertone of your skin (there are yellow undertones, pink undertones, and neutral undertones). If you are having a hard time deciding your skin’s undertone, an easy, quick way to figure it out is to look at the veins on the inside of your wrist. If the veins are blue/purple you are cool/pink toned. If the veins on the inside of your wrist are are green then you are warm or yellow toned. Sometimes you won’t be cool or warm, you’ll be right in the middle which is called neutral. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS AN ORANGE UNDERTONE.

After you’ve figured out your undertone, then you have to find a correct shade. For the shade of your foundation you should match it to your neck/chest area. This will be helpful for those who exfoliate their face and have a lighter skin tone on their face than their body. You do not want your face to be a different shade from the rest of your body; this defeats one of the biggest purposes of foundation. 

Another thing to take into consideration when choosing a foundation is how much coverage you want. There is light coverage that gives a more natural look and tends to just give a little extra life to the face, and medium coverage which gives a medium look for people who want a little more than light and a little less than full. Medium coverage foundation is usually for people who have small imperfections they want to make less noticeable or for people with better skin who want to simply enhance their skin further. Full coverage foundation is more for special occasions or for people who have large imperfections they want to cover. Full coverage foundation can also tend to look more cakey and noticeable if not applied correctly.

On top of the coverage of the foundation, there are pressed powder, loose powder, and liquid foundation options. Liquid foundations look the most natural and can give a wide range of coverage no matter how applied (since most liquid foundations can be layered). Most powder foundations are harder to make look natural and still get some coverage.

Some common mistakes girls make with their foundations is layering powder foundation on top of liquid foundation; this is one way to get a “cake face”. If you do wear liquid foundation, you don’t always have to set it, but if you do want to set it there are finely milled setting powders that help prevent your face from looking cakey. If you do notice your foundation is looking too powdery one thing you can do is use a mist/spray on your face (i.e. MAC Fix+, Mario Badescu facial spray, L’Oreal Infallible makeup setting spray, Urban Decay makeup setting sprays). Using a mist/spray will wet the powders on your face and make them look more like your real skin rather than a powder sitting on top of it.

So, please ladies, take some tips and try new things with your foundation. You might be surprised with how much better it looks by changing a few simple things.

By: Izzy Rojas

“Basic Tips” is a new lifestyle column that focuses around what’s popular with the average high school girl. Written with expert consultation from the girls themselves, “Basic Tips” centers around fashion, events, and everyday high school life. This month’s topic: leggings.

A major debate these days seems to be focused around what type of leggings are the best. Girls are wearing leggings much more regularly than jeans for comfort sake. Leggings are the go-to clothing choice for almost any occasion. You may be asking yourself: there’s more than one type of black legging? Aren’t they all the same? Think again. Below is a comparison chart of the pros, cons, and prices of the five major players in the game. Take a look and decide for yourself!