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Not-so-fun fact of the day: Retrograde is more than just a song by James Blake that you turn on when you're going through a breakup. It's also more than just something that happens to Mercury. It turns out, all the planets go through this phenomenon, and each comes with its own set of possible Earthly consequences. That is, if you believe in that sort of thing.
Basically, retrograde happens "when a planet passes the Earth on its orbit and [creates] the illusion that it's going backwards," Ophira Edut, one half of R29's resident astrology team The AstroTwins, told us. "It's like when you pass a car on the freeway and you're both going forward. So even though it’s an illusion, everything ruled by that planet also goes backwards."
Once a year, Jupiter goes into retrograde (the planet that rules risk-taking, experimentation, and exploration) and, every 18 months, Venus (ruler of style and beauty) does too. Well, the planets have aligned and Venus and Jupiter are both in retrograde this spring, which means big, permanent changes to your look are not advised until after June 9th, when both return to normal. What's more, in less than a month Saturn and Mercury will also both be in retrograde. That's four retrogrades, people! That means you probably shouldn't get a pixie or extensions on a whim — and certainly don't go platinum unless you've really done your research. "This is the time period when mistakes tend to happen," she explains.
Makeup, however, is a great way to have a little fun in the interim. "It washes right off," Ophira reminds us. To get your creative juices flowing, we selected some of our favorite spring makeup trends and asked Ophira to assign them to the most fitting Zodiac sign.
Click ahead to check out the beauty looks Ophira says will enliven you during this not-so-great time period. Retrograde, schmetrograde.
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