Thursday, March 29, 2012

Lierac Purifying Cleanser -New


We all know that probiotics are good for us but did you know they are also good for your skin ? I didn't until I started reading more about the new cleansers from Lierac. Apparantly probiotics in skincare help the cutaneous ecoflora that skin needs to be balanced. Lierac calls their probiotic complex which also includes botanical honey - Ecoskin. 

Using that Ecoskin the company has launched 5 new cleansers including a Micellar cleansing water. Micellars are huge overseas and starting to gain traction here.

So now that you know the science , let's talks the cleanser itself.  I tried the Purifying Gel Cleanser - Demaquillant Purete.  I am always looking for a great  oily skin cleanser. I have some favs but not many totally wow me. Lierac's is a wow, one of the best I've ever used.   It cleans exceptionally well, removing most  and sometimes all makeup but without stripping. Skin feels just right after using it. Clean  and dry but not tight. It also seems to matte skin. Anything that mattes is tops in my book. I definitely see myself  needing to have this on hand at all times, especially with summer coming.


Other ingredients in  Purifying include lime extract which is an astringent for purifying and anise extract which is anti-inflammatory.  You don't need a lot of this and I love that it's a pump bottle. They're just so much easier, why doesn't everyone do this with gel type cleansers?

This new line has a total of  5 new cleansers  each with Ecoskin.  The others  are Gentle(  Micellar cleansing water), Velvet ( Oil based) and Comfort cleanser as well as Radiance Toning Lotion and Gentle Exfoliator.

Prices range from $ 24-$ 26.00

Available at select CVS stores, Duane Reades and http://www.lierac-usa.com/

Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Carolee Legacy Collection Panther Jewelry

My vintage watch

I love the panther theme in jewelry and ever since the Duchess of Windsor's jewelry sale caught my attention  so many years ago I started a  small collection.  And while I adore and lust after  Cartier pieces, of which the Duchess owned many, my budget and probably yours, doesn't allow for that. So I bought mostly costume pieces and one item of  fine  jewelry  back in the late '80s when they were a bit of trend thanks to the Duchess and through the years picked up more here and there.
Parading Panther Bracelet $ 65.00

One of the pieces  I have is a Carolee panther watch . It's pretty fabulous ( I think) and the return of panther pieces in the company's 40th Anniversary Legacy Collection has reminded me of this tucked away gem , and  that I need to bust it out more often.

Parading Panther Necklace $ 75.00
Of course I also would love to add the new Carolee items to my collection, especially this necklace .  The new bracelet is very reminiscent of my watch  and both are  total statement pieces.
Cat's Meow Earrings $ 32.00

The Legacy Collection is available now anywhere Carolee is sold as well as www.carolee.com

**Carolee will donate $5 to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation for each piece of Legacy Collection jewelry sold.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Dior Addict Lip Balm- Croisette Summer 2012


 My last look at Dior Spring is the new Dior Addict Lip Balms. I am addicted to  tinted Lip Balms so one in Dior Addict is  very  appropriate.

I have shade 003 Crystal Coral. It's fairly sheer and  more  of a pinky coral than orange.

Dior calls them Voluptuous Lipcare and a treatment as well as color . Ingredients include  hyaluronic acid and shea butter to help keep lips hydrated .

Moisture is very good, not heavy or thick, and feels creamy on lips making them  perfect for Spring into Summer when you might want a lighter formula .

Dior Addict Lip Balms are available as part of the Croisette line due out in Mid April.  They are LE and will come in  a clear and pink shade as well.

Read about Croisette's 5 color eye quads here and new 1 Couleur Eye Gloss here

Monday, March 26, 2012

Dior Summer 2012- 1 Couleur Eye Gloss

Part 2 of  a look at what's new in Dior Spring with Croisette . There is a brand new product called 1 Couleur Eye Gloss. This is a cream shadow with a doe foot wand applicator.

I love a good cream shadow and am happier yet when they claim to be long lasting , and these are said to be water resistant.   I have hit or miss luck with cream shadows due to makeup melting abilities  so I am  happy to say these are a hit.

Even those these are called "glosses" they  have good pigment. It's not sheer but full coverage with a bit of wet look.  There is shimmer and sparkle but not as much as the picture might seem to show.

The Sunset shade is a peachy pink that is a bit more pink than the image and Tan is a fabulous medium brown with hints of bronze. So summery.

With base, which is a must for me, I got good wear out of the Eye Glosses. About 5 hours, which for me is quite good.  I can think of many others  that were gone in less than an hour .

The Croisette  collection will on counter mid April and there are four shades in all  .

Sunday, March 25, 2012

Orly Dark Shadows Nail Polish Collection

Buried Alive

 Orly has a Dark Shadows collection of 4 new shades coming out early May to coincide with the new movie's release. Whether your a fan or not, you can appreciate new nail colors , right?
Decades of Dysfunction
The four shades are:


Mysterious Curse: Purple Duochrome Shimmer
Buried Alive: Rich Brown Shimmer
Grave Mistake: Deep Red Crème
Decades of Dysfunction: Pale Pink Crème
Grave Mistake

***Also there is  a Facebook contest:
In support of the limited-time collection, ORLY will launch a “Dark Shadows” sweepstakes on their Facebook page April 1 – May 12, 2012 where the winner will receive a private screening at a movie theater near the their home for up to 50 guests.
Mysterious Curse
Retail is  $ 8.50

Friday, March 23, 2012

Sir Elton John's Woodside Garden Candle by NEST


One of the loveliest Spring candles I've seen ( and smelled) is the new Sir Elton John's Woodside Garden candle by NEST.  Elton  has partnered with NEST before , and this new candle  is based  on the fragrant flowers growing in his garden at his Woodside estate in Old Windsor , England . I don't know about you but I  dream of being able to attend Elton's White Tie and Tiara ball he holds each June at the estate. Hey, I'd just like to hang there with Elton. We could spend hours chatting shopping, fragrance and royalty.


Since my invite has yet to arrive I can travel there via this extremely fragranced candle. The main flower I note here is hyacinth. I love the smell of hyacinth and it's very of the season.  It's a very true scent , as most NEST candles are. Bursting with beautiful flowers set in a bright green glass this is Spring. Other notes listed for the candle are freesia, rose and jasmine. It's one big Spring bouquet with hints of green.

While  we all need great candle for ourselves, think of this too , if you need a great hostess gift at Easter or further ahead to Mother's Day.

 Part of the proceeds  go the the Elton John AIDS Foundation. Woodside Garden sells for $ 38.00 with a burn time of approx. 60 hours. Available at Neimans, Bergdorfs and http://shop.nestfragrances.com/

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Dior Swimming Pool & Aurora Quads/Turquoise Liner from Croisette Summer 2012


Dior Summer is almost here , while I don't have definite launch date or prices yet, I do have pictures. As far as I know, these should be out mid April.

 First up are the 2 new eye quads and the new eyeliner.

The Summer line is called Croisette and the blue based quad is Swimming Pool and the golden browns is Aurora. Both are very pretty and the colors especially in Swimming Pool do take you to the azure blue waters  and my swimming pool.  There's something about those colors that even though I am far more in the gold / bronze wearing area, I just love looking at them.  The quads look a little art deco with their fab embossing  for a nice extra touch.


Also new is DiorShow Liner in Turquoise.  This is just that, turquoise and not teal. It's brighter and lighter than any teal . Quite pretty and again, very summery.

All these colors will complement a (self) tan wonderfully and I recall Dior self tanners as being pretty awesome.

A look at the new Eye Glosses coming soon as well as Dior Addict Lip Balm.

Monday, March 19, 2012

Lancome Teint Idole Ultra 24HR Foundation

Spring is looking the summer of matte foundations and I couldn't be happier. We've had dewy foundation launches for a long time and us oily gals want something new and need all the help we can get.

One of the new  foundations is Lancome Teint Idole Ultra 24 hr.  This is full coverage ( yay) and darn good. Many mattes seem to lean towards light coverage which is not my favorite. No worries here. Skin looks flawless and perfected and it leaves  a nice soft finish that is  matte but not overly so and definitely not a  dry , cakey or powdery finish.

One of the best parts is that is feels like nothing on. More  like barely there coverage than full.  That's hard to pull off with full coverage. But it feels like a dream on your face.  Lancome says it took 6 years to perfect this technology and calls it EternaSoft. Whatever it is, I like it.

It's also long wear. Now  you may have heard me mention a few gazillion times that I have major makeup melt. So longwear is different for me than many. I do get a nice wear time from this but not that much more than my other foundations. I get  most of the day basically from AM to  mid-late evening. There's no major wear by then but  I might need a little touch up here and there like around the nose.  That doesn't affect how much I like this since it's what I expect from most foundations and really I don't need 24HR wear.

Teint Idole Ultra 24 HR is $44 at all Lancome outlets.

Shade shown is 110 Ivoire (C)

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Gillette Venus & Olay Razor


Last year brought the Venus Pro Skin for  extra moisture when shaving. Now Venus has gone one better  with the Venus & Olay Razor. This new razor has 5 blades and uses Olay skincare ingredients in it's Olay Moisture Bars like petrolatum and glycerin for moisture. It's the official razor of Sports Illustrated models for 2012  , and the spokeswoman, Chrissy Teigen claims to shave twice a day for her job.  You would  need plenty of comfort and moisture if you did that .


Having used both razors,  you get a closer shave with the new Venus & Olay than Pro Skin ( 5 blades vs 3) and it definitely lives up to it's claim of not needing shave cream. It shaves super smoothly and leaves skin soft, not irritated. There's so noticeable scent either. The Pro Skin was more moisture and less shave, this gets both right. Thumbs up all around.


A refillable Venus & Olay with one  cartridge is approximately $8.99-$10.99. Packages of three replacement cartridges are about $14.99 - $19.49.  The main package also comes with a shower hook.

More info here

Kiehl's Clearly Corrective Dark Spot Serum

Kiehls brought out their first vitamin C serum about a month or so ago. As a serum lover and  a Kiehls fan, I was happy to give it a try. One of the more intriguing things is that they have come up with a photo stable vitamin C, called Activated C ,and the product is able to be housed in a clear bottle. Pretty well  unheard  of previously.  It also is said to stay potent for the shelf life of the bottle.

I've been using mine for about 2 weeks  regularly, once a day. I use one drop on each side of my face.  You can use it 2x if you want.  I've just begun to see more brightening than before . It's subtle but there. It's important to remember that any of these types of pigment reducers take time, a  lot of it. It's rare to see a lot of progress before 4 weeks and Kiehls says 12 weeks  with Clearly Corrective for the biggest difference. I freely admit it's hard to stick with anything that long term and I bet you feel the same.

Clearly Corrective is moisturizing as well. Not as much as a cream but more than enough for my combo/oily skin that I can use it without any other moisture. It goes on easily but does  take a few seconds to sink in.  If you have normal to dry skin  you may want another moisturizer over it.

Other pigment busting ingredients include peony  and white birch extract.

One of the times I think this will best is in summer. It's light and vitamin C is a great anti-oxidant and  you can use it without worrying about photosensitivity like a retinol. I love retinols, but I lay off in summer when I know I'll be out more even with plenty of SPF.

Available now for $ 49.50 www.kiehls.com

Friday, March 16, 2012

Bath & Body Works Fresh Picked Party March 17th


Bath and Body Works is hosting a Fresh Picked Party this Saturday, March 17th at all stores nationwide from 10 am- 4 pm. 

You can sample new scents in the Anti Bacterial , Home Fragrance and Signature lines as well as grab a GWP and enter a contest for a bike.

Also back beginning then are the Signature Summer Vanilla scents. They were really delish, so look for them.

Details:
 -Bring the bounty of the marketplace home with our new Fresh-Picked Candles &   Wallflowers®. Our Home Fragrance Experts will be on hand to show you how to enrich any space with the irresistible scent of ripe fruits like Market Peach and Wild Strawberries.

   -Enter to win one of eight limited edition gingham-printed BBW bikes to ride to the market in style and flaunt your Bath & Body Works pride!

-  Tote your fresh picked goodies in the Market Day Jute bag, a FREE   gift  with any Home Fragrance purchase. This stylish bag includes your    choice of an Anti-Bacterial Gentle Foaming Soap in Fresh Picked Peaches or Fresh Picked Raspberries. Get to the store early to pick up one while supplies last!

 - Enjoy a luxurious Fresh-Picked hand treatment at the sink with our Hand Soap experts


Visit the Event Page at Facebook.com/BathandBodyWorks or go to BathandBodyWorks.com/Event for details.

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Chanel Frenzy Nail Polish- Coming Soon



Coming in July from Chanel is a new nail shade that debuted  on the ready to wear runway this month. Called Frenzy , it's based on a lavender/taupe compact face powder that Peter Philips created for the show. It's hard to see it well in the pictures but it looks very light and pale with maybe a hint of lavender in there.




Edit: New photos of the bottle in my new post ( July)


all photos: style.com

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Narciso Rodriguez Eau de Toilette Delicate

Eau de Toilette Delicate is  the newest addition to the Narciso Rodriguez line. The line is long known for  subtle musk fragrances.

Delicate  retains that softness with an almost powdery feel  and less emphasis on the musks this time.  There is a fruit note that comes along at the mid point , which is fig and I also get  light as air orange blossom. It's very sheer and wears close to the skin but still has decent sillage.   If I had  to pick a word to describe it , it would be nude.   Make that nude but with shimmer as the fragrance has pearl particles to give skin a little gleam.

 Retail is $ 102 for a 4.2 oz bottle and it is exclusive to Saks and LE.

Bliss -The Youth As We Know It Night Cream

Bliss recently launched a new night cream companion to The Youth As We Know It.

This rich cream helps skin repair  overnight , and has twice the wrinkle fighting power of the day cream version. It helps to firm, brighten , hydrate, plump, retexturize and boost collagen.  So you get a lot of benefits from using one cream.

It's very hydrating, but not heavy on skin  so it makes a great cream for  normal to dry skin and can be used even whe it gets warmer out and we tend to look for lighter formulas. It does give skin a nice glow in the AM and keeps it well moisturized.

Ingredients include shea butter, glycerin, black tea ferment, and grape seed extract

Available exclusively at sephora and  www.sephora.com for $ 79.

Monday, March 12, 2012

MAC By Request & A Dip Into My Archives


 MAC is having a very fun project you can get involved in . MAC By Request is a chance to vote and have your say in which old favorites make a grand comeback . The winning shades from  3 categories will be sold online in August.  I am happy to see that at least  few oldies from the 90s made it in. I have been buying MAC since between 1993 and 1995 and many of those oldies are still favorites.


With this in mind,  I dove into the archives, my archives. My stash of old makeup is rather large and a lot of it is MAC.   I found several that I really would love to see back again some day and I was surprised to find that some very old favorites , like Era , are actually still available as is CB96 which was created as a collab with Anna Sui.  Not sure how I missed that. Era was one of my 1st MAC shadows and one I wore all the time for years. However another neutral, Form is long gone.


 So these 3 shadows- Form ( a very flat but pretty basic beige), Juxt ( lime  with a little shimmer) and Glitz ( an acid yellow with green flashes, the image doesn't even come close)) are my most loved shadows that I would love to see remade. As for lipstick it's Cognac( fabulous light bronze) , Delish ( a peachy iridescent pink) .  Delish has an expiry on the back even. Never noticed that. It's 1998. Wow.

You'll notice all my old ones are the old packaging as well.  One thing I would also love to see is the old eyeshadow formula . It was harder but the pigments were even stronger then and the wear time longer. I love new MAC but there was some things about old MAC that made the brand what it was and what it came to be.

OK,  here's the details on MAC By Request ( what are your favorites?) :

Voting opens to all Facebook fans March 12 -30. The collection will be available online in North America in August and internationally Fall 2012.

Do you have a favorite shade or two? We invite you to start your own campaign; tweet about it using #MACBYREQUEST

 Lipstick:
3N as seen in N Collection (January 2008)

Candy Yum Yum as seen in Quite Cute (April 2011)

Eden Rocks as seen in Eden Rocks (May 2001)
Moxie as seen in Retro Matte Lipsticks (September 1999)

Rocker as seen in Time Rocker (Fall 1999)

Shitaki as seen in Cuisine (March 2001)

Lipglass:

2N as seen in N Collection (January 2008)
Bait as seen in Lure (June 2006)
Cult of Cherry as seen in Cult of Cherry (September 2008)
Emancipation as seen in Wonder Woman (February 2011)

Flash of Flesh as seen in M·A·C D’Bohemia (May 2005)

Icescape as seen in Love Lace (December 2009)

Eye Shadow:

Cool Heat as seen in Cool Heat – June 2008
Guacamole as seen in Salsabelle (May 2005)
Heavenly Bliss as seen in Eden Rocks (May 2001)
Jeté as seen in Danse (January 2006)

Moth Brown as seen in Madame B. (March 2005)

Solar White as seen in Cool Heat (June 2008)

Saturday, March 10, 2012

Erno Laszlo - The Hollywood Collection


With the Oscars recently past we once again were reminded of Hollywood's glamour. Of  course Hollywood was the most glamourous in the 30s, 40s and 50s. The heyday as it's usually, righfully, called.

Back in those days Erno Laszlo was the skincare secret of  top actresses and  legendary beautys like Greta Garbo, Ava Gardner and Marilyn Monroe.

I remember when I read years ago that Garbo favored Laszlo skincare. She always looked luminous on screen Her skin simply glowed and that was in old black and white. Right then I knew it was a line to check out and through the years have used various products.

Now to honor that Holywood heritage, Erno Laszlo has come out with the The Hollywood Collection . Each item is inspired by an actress  who had  loved and used the brand .

It's vintage inspiration but modern and new  formulas and the two I tried are especially nice as the weather gets warmer and you want moisture but maybe in a lighter formula than you used all winter.

The Refresh Moisture Infusion( inspired by Grace Kelly) has a gel-cream hybrid feel.   More cream than gel, but light and very refreshing on skin. You get plenty of hydration but no heavy feel on skin after it sinks in. It's an instant moisture boost using vitamin e, glycerin, and apple fruit extract with  tourmaline for brightening.

The Instant Eye Repair ( inspired by Ava Gardner)  is much the same. Not heavy but not light. It's in the middle, feels good on the eyes and adds moisture and  firms. It has apricot kernal oil, shea butter, vitamin e,  and rosemary . It's deceptively light for a product containing shea butter.

You can buy the products individually or in an set of all 5( trial sizes) for $ 125.00.

Instant eye repair is $ 85
Refresh Moisture Infusion is $125

www.ernolaszlo.com

Thursday, March 8, 2012

Chanel Las Vegas De Chanel Powder and Lips



The rest of the Las Vegas De Chanel collection( I previewed the nail polish earlier this week) is all about the golds and bronze. Basically it's me.  Very, very me. The new Rouge Coco Shine lipstick Brilliant is very reminiscent of one of my very first Chanel lipsticks  and one that remained a favorite  as long as they made it.  New Brilliant is a sheer, sparkly gold ($32.50). It has plenty of shimmer but is not over the top. It looks great on it's own or over deeper shades.


That there is a matching gold lipliner thrills me to no end. I've never seen a rich gold lipliner before. Maybe it's because I never really looked, but this seems unusual to me. Vegas Gold has more pigment than Brilliant lipstick and has enough coverage to be used by itself .( $ 29)

Lastly, but not at all least, is Lucky Stripes Iridescent Powder ($95). This is Pretty with a capitol P. For me this works as a blush and is one I'll be using all  spring and summer long. It leaves a nice wash of shimmering golden bronze on cheeks. Not over bronzed, but just enough  to brighten and give me color. For darker skin tones this may work better as a bronzer or highlighter. Chanel calls it for "eyes and cheeks" but I haven't used it on the eyes yet.

Las Vegas De Chanel is available only online at www.chanel.com and at the Wynn and Bellagio Chanel boutiques. It is LE.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

New Clinique Chubby Stick Shades Coming Soon


In fabulous news, Clinique's uber popular and wonderful Chubby Sticks will  be out in 8 new colors come June.  Now that's news you can use. No word on actual shades yet but stay tuned....

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Chanel Gold Finger Nail Polish, From Las Vegas De Chanel



Gold Fingers is  the new nail polish from the   Las Vegas de Chanel collection to celebrate the remodeled Chanel boutique in the Bellagio hotel  .


Gold Fingers as you can imagine is very metallic but it isn't a molten gold. It's more sheer than expected but you can only see that when you look really close at the nail. With 2 coats it looks  pretty full coverage and almost opaque. It has lots of sparkle ,  and goes on easily. No  bumps or  glitter pieces sticking up.  This will really complement a summer , or " I got it in Vegas" tan .


Chanel did two pretty golds with the  Noir  et Or collection , so I took them all together for reference. ( My Noir et Or post is here) Gold Lame is less bright and more  beige and Illusion D'Or is  sheer and holographic. It can be worn on it's own or as a topcoat.

Chanel Gold Fingers is available now at  the Bellagio and Wynn casino boutiques and at www.chanel.com for $ 28.00

Sunday, March 4, 2012

Estee Lauder Bronze Sands Pure Color Eye Palette


Here's a  quick look at the  Bronze Sands eye quint from this year's Bronze Goddess collection, called Bronze Goddess Capri.

The shadows here are very metallic and are the gelee formula they've  been doing with blush lately. It's very soft and the shadow glides over lids with a bit of a liquid looking effect. It's very pretty  on  and the wear time is  good , which is something  I've found wth previous palettes as well.

Available now for $ 45.00

Saturday, March 3, 2012

Coming Soon- Dior Crackle Nail Polish


 A new nail polish from Dior went down the runway this week according to Style.com. It's their version of a crackle and apparantly is less "cracked" than other brands. Style.com calls it almost " snakeskin" looking.  I'm not a huge crackle fan but I am a huge Dior fan so I'm intrigued.  No word on release date yet.


All photos: style.com

Thursday, March 1, 2012

MAC Sheen Supreme Lipgloss

Mango Sheen, Fuji Pink, Sweet Bean
New today from MAC is Sheen Supreme Lipgloss in a click pen applicator. It seemed for a time that many brands had this type of lippie but now not so much .  Sheen Supreme gloss is like it's lipstick counterpart Sheen Supreme Lipstick in that it's  moisturizing and feels great on lips. The gloss is a little bit sheerer than the lipstick with the pigment getting stronger the deeper the shade.

There is shimmer and good shine but it's not sticky on lips.

The 2 lighter shades here are both sheerer on lips than they look. Sweet Bean especially just gives  a wash of color . Fuji Pink is less sheer and more peachy than the name implies and Mango Sheen has more  pink/red and less coral than the name implies. It is , however, quite pretty if you're looking for a sunny red for summer.

The lipgloss is LE thru April 5 and retails for $ 19.00

See my original post for the list of all colors