Weekly beauty agenda: January beauty releases

Some of the biggest beauty brands, including MAC, Chanel and Bobbi Brown, are launching their spring lines this month. Coming up over the next few weeks: China's first gay beauty pageant, and the end of Estée Lauder's 'Prescriptives.'

Spring beauty releases
January
International

Bobbi Brown has a remedy against the tired January look: her new 'Face Lift' collection includes products designed to make your face look brighter and firmer, such as tinted eye brightener and eye repair cream.

Meanwhile, MAC has released an unlikely collaboration with US preppy brand Lilly Pulitzer that features neon-pink lipstick and trendy orange hues for the lips and face (Prices: $12 to $32). 'Mac in Lillyland' was launched in the US on January 7, with Europe following in February. While the bright colors of MAC's Lilly Pulitzer line might not work for all skin tones, the brand has also released its 'All Ages, All Races, All Sexes' range, which is meant for literally anyone and focuses on eyes and brows (Prices: $14 to $21).

Also this month, Chanel will release its much-anticipated grey 'Particulière' nail polish ($23), which is considered a worthy follow-up to its successful mint-green 'Jade' shade last season.

Mr Gay China
January 15
Beijing, China

Staged at the city's Lan Club, China's first gay pageant approximates a beauty revolution for a country whose stance on homosexuality remains ambiguous to say the least. The contest's winner will compete in the Mr Gay World competition in Norway in February.

http://gayographic.org

IMATS
January 30-31
London, UK

Thousands of artists, vendors, manufacturers and makeup fans will be on site when the International Makeup Artist Trade Show opens its doors. The looks from movies, musicals and other spectacles will be recreated and some of the most in-demand makeup artists from around the world will compete against each other on stage. The same event is also staged in Los Angeles, Sydney, Toronto, and Vancouver over the course of the year.

http://www.imatsshow.com

Beautyworld
January 30 - February 1
Frankfurt, Germany

Germany's largest beauty industry gathering will be shortened to three days in the new year and present the key beauty trends for next year in a more compact setup, with visitors' reported favorites being natural products, wellness and spas, and anti-aging. The Messe Frankfurt organizes the same event in Japan, the Middle East, India, and Argentina.

http://beautyworld.messefrankfurt.com

Estée Lauder pulls plug on 'Prescriptives'
January 31
International

The beauty brand will stop selling products from its Prescriptives range come February. However, it plans to keep distributing the products to the US through prescriptives.com while stocks last.

http://www.prescriptives.com