FAUX LASHES REDUX

With retro ladylike fashions ruling the runways, an old-fashioned item is also making a comeback: false eyelashes, currently offered by cosmetics companies like MAC, Shu Uemura and Sephora. Once considered too gaudy for all but show girls, drag queens and Tammy Faye Bakker, fake lashes were a fashion faux pas in the '80s and '90s. But after Jennifer Lopez showed up at the 2001 Oscars wearing red-fox-fur lashes, the idea began to come back into vogue. "Makeup artists have been using false lashes for fashion shows and on celebrities for the past few years," says Chris Salgardo, general manager of Shu Uemura, which carries 20 styles of lashes. "It took this season's shift toward more glamorous, decorated dressing for the trend to cross over to consumers." The new lashes are more natural looking and flexible than previous versions, making them easier to apply, but makeup artists say it still takes practice and a steady hand.