New eye shadows, lip glosses and nail colors, oh my! The New Chanel Fall Colour Collection is brimming with sultry shimmer in a highly wearable collection with something for everyone.
For me, the showstopper in this bunch of “I want it” products has to be the Pink Lame eyeshadow. It weaves together gold, silver, and rose powders to form a majestic trio reminesant of the most luxurious lame. Best of all, it’s dazzling on everyone, any age, any skin tone.
When it comes to blush, the newest Joues Contraste colors are sure to light up your cheeks. Turbulent is a limited edition bright pink that works perfectly on medium to dark complexions. These powder formulas go on smooth, never giving you a dry or chalky looking complexion.
Being a blue-eyed blonde is not all it’s cracked up to be. Besides the tanning impossibility and frequently looking washed out, it’s nearly impossible to find cosmetics with the right ingredients and coloring to complement our fair (and often sensitive) skin.
After years of toiling from one makeup counter to the next with no relief in sight, I have found a new best friend in Alchemy of Colour Mineral Cosmetics.
In the summer months, my skin tends to fall prey to redness and irritation. Alchemy of Colour’s Flawless Finishing Powder and Angel Veil Setting Powder””both created from pure crushed minerals and botanical sources””calmed my skin and provided ultimate coverage. As the ingredients are entirely organic, my skin felt silky-smooth and light.
Ah, Mother Nature””you just have to love her. On any given occasion when we want to appear our most fresh and fabulous, she has a way of stepping in and washing away all of our efforts. Not this summer.
In past seasons, when we wanted perspiration-proof products, our options were limited to those that would cake a little and those that would cake a lot. This season, it’s a whole new ball game and we have three beautiful women to whom we can thank for their homerun formulas.
First””and always a personal favorite””is Laura Mercier. Her Oil-Free Tinted Moisturizer offers a perfect solution to summer skin, plus has an SPF 20. Only a drop or two are needed, as it will provide slightly more coverage than her original formulation. If you still want a moisturizer underneath, try something lightweight like Bioré’s Shine Control (www.boiré.com).
Also from Laura Mercier comes an amazing product called Eye Basics. Despite the non-descript appearance, the velvety formulation is the perfect necessity for any summer face. Available in six skin tone shades, it’s perfect used alone to create a smooth canvas for a “no makeup” look, or as a base for other shadows.
Nothing is more exciting that a true drugstore beauty find. That’s why I was thrilled to discover the new makeup line from Pantina in my local Duane Reade. Adorably packaged in iridescent lavender palettes and pink trimmed bottles, Pantina offers a full range of products, from bronzing powder to lip gloss to brow gel.
To maximize your summer glow, try the lightweight tinted moisturizer containing light reflecting minerals to erase imperfections and give you a great glow. It includes SPF 15 to protect skin from harmful UV rays, while vitamins C and E act as powerful antioxidants to preserve skin. Green tea extract and Gotu Kola extract fight free radicals to also stave off signs of aging. The soothing properties of nettle extract behave as an astringent to tone skin, while the cucumber extract cools and hydrates your skin to boot.
The application was super smooth and the lightest shade, Pearl Glo, blended effortlessly into my fair skin. The tinted moisturizer is also available in Bronze Glo and Nude Glo.
Coral, sand, and a cabana. Seashells beneath your feet.
No, you’re not staring at a travel catalog. This is the real deal: you’re in St. Tropez with a mojito in your right hand, gazing across the horizon speckled with pretty sailboats.
The bikini? Check.
Sunscreen? Check.
But the makeup? Ahh. What to bring?
Relax. The new Azurée line from Tom Ford has some sheer and nude tricks up its sleeve. With peach tones, espresso-colored eyeliner, and nude or coral lips, you’ll effortlessly resemble a modern Bo Derek. Tom Ford, the designer turned cosmetic magician, created the collection with hopes of inspiring a world akin to Eldorado.
Clothed in robin’s egg blue packaging with oversized gold “EL” cartouches, the collection glitters with the look of the 70′s. Think jet-setters.
Apply the cheek glow (Azurée Glow) on the top of your cheekbones for a light flush. Remember to blend thoroughly. The Eye Duo comes in a light beige and espresso color; the darker color is to be used sparingly, while the combination produces a pale chocolate look. Use the espresso eyeliner to intensify or impart a smoky look.
Okay, I’ll admit it: I was afraid of liquid eyeliner. Maybe my hands weren’t as steady as the other girls, or maybe I hadn’t practiced enough.
But whatever my hang-ups about liquid liner were, I’ve finally found a product that I can fearlessly use!
Tarte’s Indelible Wink is genius for liner rookies. Available in both brown and black, one end is liquid liner, while the other is a perfectly matching shadow. Apply it by painting a fine liquid line along your lashes and retracing with the shadow tip, covering up any imperfections that might come from an inexperienced hand. Either end is wearable by itself, but the combination of the two creates a sexy, smoky nighttime eye that doesn’t budge. Now that’s something to bat your lashes at!
Tarte Indelible Wink is available at www.TarteCosmetics.com or www.Sephora.com.
It’s not easy being natural. And being “super” natural is certainly no picnic because this means being dolled up without looking dolled up.
The stars have favored the “effortlessly chic” look this summer, and so, NARS took note.
This collection favors nude and coral textures that make up the palette. Apply the Caraibe lip lacquer and reap an uber glow that’s both nude and brilliant, while focusing on the cheeks with Guele de Nuit (peach coral shade) or Sertao (tawny gold). For the eyes, use the brilliant gold and copper duo Stage Beauty, or stir up some color with Demon Lover””the iridescent storm blue and deep indigo will put Aurora Borealis to shame.
Visit www.narscosmetics.com or the nearest fine retail store. As the saying goes, less is definitely more this season.
Sitting in front of a computer screen all day, I am constantly rubbing my eyes. Consequently, they are usually naked by lunchtime, at which point I run to the restroom and grudgingly repeat my morning eye-makeup routine.
Eyeliner is a tricky balancing act. You don’t want something so light that it wears away in minutes, but you also don’t want oil paint that refuses to come off at night, leaving you with raccoon eyes that haunt you until the next morning.
Eyeliner now comes in many forms and the best system is usually the most time consuming. However, you can find user-friendly products in every form that will last through the day.
You can’t beat the pencil for convenience. Body + Soul, a devilishly fun company out of Canada, has taken the idea even further with a line of pencils that double as smudging pads. The eyeliners, which come in shades of brown and black to match the company’s mascaras, are smooth, easy-gliding sticks. Once you have applied your line, flip the pencil to reveal a blending sponge – a must for a natural look. www.bodyandsoul.com
BECCA, the company known the world over for creating flawless foundations, has debuted its first eyeliner. The IBIZA pencil is the quintessential black kohl on one end and a marvelous shade of Spanish paradise bronze on the other. The combination is unendingly flattering for those with olive skin, but fair children, such as yours truly, should probably stay away. Blend the two shades along the upper lash line or encircle the entire eye in bronze for a sultry island-vacation night look. www.bergdorfgoodman.com
Two summer must-haves that have already become staples in my makeup bag are Jouer’s Essential Lip Enhancer and Essential Matte Touch from the Les Essentials d’ete Collection. These instant summer classics come packaged neatly in Jouer’s signature interlocking compacts and deliver on the spot touchups for your lips and face.
In fact, I was initially drawn to the Jouer line by the chic packaging and the convenience the compacts afforded. You can use them independently, or simply click a few of your favorites together for endless options. Each adorable compact comes complete with a discreet mirror tucked inside for touch- ups on the go.
These little gems work overtime, taking you from day to evening in a pinch. The lip enhancer, which works great either alone or over gloss, is infused with jojoba oil and shea butter that smoothed my lips, leaving a dewy, natural sheen. Vitamins E and C also moisturize lips while fighting free radicals.
The essential matte touch is the perfect degreaser for those of us who suffer from oily shine. Developed with antioxidants like Japanese green tea powder and willow bark extract to purify and sooth skin, matte touch works on all skin types. Packed with vitamins C, D, and E and using grape, kiwi, and honey extracts to firm and moisturize skin, this product can be applied easily alone, under make-up, or as a touch-up. I loved the colorless, light consistency that left me with a soft matte finish that banished any trace of excess oil on my skin.
Go light this summer and toss these lifesavers from Jouer in your beach tote and enjoy the sun!
Jouer’s Essential Lip Enhancer retails for $14 and Essential Matte Touch retails for $24. Both are available at www.jouercosmetics.com.
Applying mascara can be tricky. You want long, thick, gorgeous lashes that will make men swoon with one flutter, but at the same time you face the perils of clumping and flaking and the oh so embarrassing potential to end up with”¦well, “˜raccoon eyes’. Do you go with a lash curler? A lash base? And when it comes to brushes, I’ve got a real Goldilocks complex; they’re either too thin or too massive, but never “just right.”
Or so I thought, until I discovered Lancôme’s Fatale Exceptional Volume 3D Comb-Mascara. Honestly, this newest innovation from the experts at the French cosmetics house must have come from straight from the beauty gods. Or goddesses; who else would understand the absolute NEED for stunning lashes?
The smart design of this super volumizing mascara uses Filtex, a silicone based formula which wraps lashes to hold their shape for a whopping 12 hours. A sure-fire summer hit, Fatale is both smudge and flake resistant for those hazy, hot, and humid days ahead of us. Bye-bye raccoon eyes!
But my favorite part has to be the ultra sleek design of the 3D comb that coats and sculpts lashes with one smooth swipe while separating them. You know how you use a comb in your hair to keep from getting tangles? Well, a comb for your lashes aides in preventing that much dreaded clumping; same concept. And, these ingenious little reservoirs between each tooth of the comb hold just the right amount of product so that the effect is even and clump-free.
For truly full but natural looking lashes, place the teeth of the comb at the lash base and comb through in one upward motion. To add va-va-va-voom volume or go La Dolce Vita on your lashes, simply use alternate combs on the wand and don a second coat.
Fatale Exceptional Volume 3D Comb-Mascara retails for $22 and is available at www.lancome-usa.com.
