From Courtney Love to Wednesday Addams, unleash your new romantic

Trend: The New Romantic

The inspiration: Girly goth, 1980s-1990s grunge era, Courtney Love, Black Swan, Wednesday Addams

As seen at: Fendi, Chanel, Dior, Rodarte, Simone Rocha

Miranda Priestly (The Devil Wears Prada) was right — florals for spring aren’t that groundbreaking. But what is groundbreaking is the new interpretation of romance — one that is more transitional and leans towards a darker femininity. Think modern-day Wednesday Addams mixed with the theatrical, dark elegance of Black Swan or the girlie, rock-glam appeal of Courtney Love.

Model walks the runway at a recent Chanel show. (Chanel)

Model walks at the New York show for Rodarte. (Fernanda Calfat/Getty Images for NYFW: The Shows)

When the new bloom-laden season rolls around, one would expect the natural inclination to be a shift to traditional pastel hues and pared-back, angelic skin synonymous with romance. However, the runways proved otherwise this year, as seen at the Chanel, Dior, Rodarte, Fendi and Simone Rocha shows.

Dark, gothic makeup championed the classic markers such as a dark lip and sultry, smoked-out eyes, but it felt much softer and more wearable. Less lifeless vampire and more dark Disney princess, the once intimidating aesthetic comes with hyper-feminine touches such as glowing skin, pigtails, high-shine layering, sparkle and bows.

Jenna Ortega embraces Wednesday Addams's style on the red carpet. (Michael Tullberg/FilmMagic)

At Chanel, dark burgundy lips were lifted into high-gloss territory that paired well with the subtle glints of sparkle coming from dark, smoked-up eyes in a gunmetal finish. At Dior, diffused, smoky eyes in elongated Black Swan silhouettes were paired with hyper-girlie hairstyles such as Josephine Baker kiss curls and low pigtails.

The key is to go for darker hues such as plum, purple, deep brown, burgundy and black but keep application light and diffused. Aim for emollient finishes over eyeshadows, created with a cream highlighter or clear balm lightly tapped into colour. Skip the lip liner and tap a bit of lipstick straight from the bullet onto the centre of the lips and use the warmth of the fingers to blur the rest of the colour to the edges.