Sunday, September 30, 2012

philosophy Holiday 2012- Welcome Home Set


It's time for philosophy Holiday and I've had to hold onto this info for so long. But as it's beginning to be available ,  I can now put the info out .



Welcome Home is one of the many gift sets  and has an 8 oz Hot Buttered Rum 3 in 1 and  a .5 oz Hot Buttered Rum lipshine.

This scent is incredible and as all philosophy is, a  great gift.    The packaging is a snow scene with a ribbon and  glitter sparkle.


Welcome Home is a Sephora  exclusive. Look for it soon at $20

Saturday, September 29, 2012

FRAAS Fair Isle Infinity Scarf

 
 It's getting to scarf time, in some places it already is .  Let's have a look at a new one from FRAAS.

This infinity scarf  has a  fair isle pattern and that material is super soft. A blend of acrylic, nylon and  a little wool , this is warm and cozy . I have the navy - turquoise blend  but it also comes in camel- ivory , rose-petal and black -grey .

FRAAS has a wide variety of pretty scarves on their website ,so if this isn't to your taste  , another may be. Hit them up at www.fraas.com  .

Fair Isle Infinity is suggested retail of $ 40. You can also find the brand at Amazon .com and department stores including Boscovs.

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Kiehl's Rosa Arctica Eye & Lightweight Cream



Last year's Rosa Arctica from Kiehl's was a  dry skinned person's dream cream. While I appreciated the cream, it was far too moisturizing for me. Somehow Kiehl's knew this, I expect  I am not the only oily skinned Rosa Arctica fan out there , and have recently brought out a new Lightweight Cream just for us along with an eye cream.


Both use the Resurrection Flower , a plant known to survive long periods of dehydration yet spring back to life with moisture.

The Lightweight Cream is  a much lighter version  but still packs hydration.  Meant for normal to oily  skin, it sinks in fast and feels lovely on.  And while I don't think I could use it in summer,  I see this as being  one of my winter moisturizers.  It leaves no residue behind , soften skins and is very gentle on skin.

Ingredients include Lavender Oil, White Birch Extract and  Glycerin.

Rosa Arctica Eye  takes the formula  to our eye area, one of the most driest. I don't know about you, but with the temperature changes  for fall,  I am already getting drier at the eyes. This is emollient as well as anti-aging . It seems like this would be mainly a night cream, but I use in day as well. It's very moisturizing  but despite having shea and cocoa butter,  it's not that heavy and sinks in fairly quickly meaning I don't have to wait long to apply makeup.

Other ingredients include White Birch Extract, Squalene, and Mica and Titanium Dioxide for brightening help.

Rosa Arctica Lightweight Cream  $60
Rosa Arctica Eye Cream $46

www.kiehls.com




Pixi Nail Colour Trio for Holiday


Holiday offerings from Pixi at Target include this very festive LE nail trio . All are full size and the set sells for $ 12.  



Wednesday, September 26, 2012

e.l.f Holiday Nail Cube


Check this cute, cute  e.l.f. Nail Cube  coming your way soon for holiday gifting ( or receiving).

The cube contains 14 polishes for $ 10. 

Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Chanel Holiday 2012 Glossimers- Allegore, Intrique & Mystery


New Glossimers are always  fun and Chanel's holiday 2012 are super pretty.

 I love Intrigue for the name alone , but this brown tinged wine shade hits the fall/winter bold berry lip look right on the nail head. This is  a perfect way to ease into the bolder lip as it's not as pigmented as a lipstick would be.   On lips it's sheerer and lighter than the tube . It's more medium than full on deep color and very pretty. It's a fall into winter staple shade.




Allegore is a very sheer , shimmery pink. A pretty , barely there shade  . This opalascent color is typical of the sheer pink glosses that Chanel does so well .

The third shade is Mystery, a rosy , Your Lips But Better shade that is a great complement to a smoky eye  or on a day when you need some color but are not doing a lot of makeup.

Chanel holiday is available in October, if not sooner, at all Chanel locations.

$ 25

Chanel Harmonie Du Soir Eye Quad- Holiday 2012



Harmonie Du Soir is the holiday 2012 eye quad from Chanel and it's a beauty.

While these may be shades you already have separately, together they make a quad that might be all you'd need all winter ( if you could do with just one , but why would you ?)


Each shadow is stamped with quilting and the double C  logo meant to evoke a button on the Chanel jacket and each shadow looks on the eyes  pretty much the same as in the pan. My swatches to the side are not nearly enough to tell you but what you see is what you get here, with good pigment.  The gold is a deeper one and   has lots of shimmer, the plum is  a rich red wine shade. Then there's a  deep taupe and light pink.

Harmonie Du Soir will be available in October at all Chanel locations.

$ 65

Monday, September 24, 2012

New York Fashion Week Nail Trends S/S '13 W/ essie, CND, butterLondon & Maybelline


CND for BCBG
It's time to talk nails and fashion week, specifically nails at fashion week. Nails backstage are as big a deal as makeup and hair  and even MAC became a full fledged nail color provider for this season's runways.  The looks were sometimes unique, sometimes not so. So what are the trends ? The pale, nude, barely there nail, nail art  were the big ones.  And  there were  just a few instances of bold jewel tone colors.

CND for Victoria Beckham

Keep in mind , as trends, these may or may not  be what everyone wants to wear next season. Pale nails are always at shows, but this season they landed at more than half the shows. Many designers simply didn't want nails competing with the colors of the clothes, which makes sense. So here's a breakdown of what Spring nails on the runway looked like.
CND for Diego Binetti

CND for Rodarte

The pale nail was literally everywhere , in every shade. Clear with matte  topcoats, pearl, beige, rosey beige, nude , blush, even white.

At Brood butter London created a custom tan polish that will be released next year.

essie used Fed Up at Tory Burch and DKNY, BBF Best Boyfriend at Herve Leger , Au Naturel at Helmut Lang and  Minimalistic at Costello Tagliapietra.

essie for Costello Tagliapietra

butter London for Brood
Maybelline  went nude at Rachel Zoe using Born With It , Porcelain Party and Sweet Clementine. Born With It was also used at Cushnie et Ochs .

CND wasn't just  doing  art, they too did the pale using Putty at Victoria Beckham and Pink Li at BCBG. 

essie for DKNY

essie for Helmut Lang
Nail art is still going very strong and when the nail artists got creative, they got really creative as shown at Diego Binetti where  CND's  Heather Reynosa-Davis designed oyster shell-inspired  nails including an actual pearl using assorted CND Colours in Tropic Coral, Flamingo Feather, Rouge Red and Blackjack.  

CND also created what they called Medievel looking nails at Rodarte

using Suede Frosting, Cream  Chocolate milk in custom made crisscrossing strips.
essie for Lela Rose
Maybelline for Carlos Miele
In keeping with the nail art trend , I hear Maybelline will have Color Strips coming out at years end ,  and L'Oreal has them in Europe so we may see them here soon as well.

And then there was color. Metallic gold as seen on Carlos Miele by Maybelline using Bold Gold, at Lela Rose with essie's Good as Gold  and deep green at Mathieu Mirano thanks to essie Going Incognito and Stroke of Brilliance.
 
CND for Behnaz Serafpour

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Christine Baranski at The Emmys


Emmy fashions were more hit than miss and there were some  major cleavage malfunctions waiting to happen, but to my eye, one of the chicest was Christine Baranski.  She's nailed it before at the Emmys ( see last year's  dress in bottom pic)  and this dress has  sass and sparkle and Ms. Baranski has legs.

 I love that this amazing actress  generally outdresses  all the starlets of the day.  Perhaps they are trying to hard  ? No idea, but age  and experience for the win.


And you might notice that almost nowhere will you see her mentioned, on red carpet shows etc. At least she wasn't last year.    Sad , that , so that's why I am highlighting her here.  Her dress is Rubin Singer and vintage jewels by Fred Leighton .




Top Photo By Matt Sayles/Invision/AP via Zimbio

Flirt Cosmetics Big Flirt Lipgloss- New Shades

Big Flirt is one of the fun  lipglosses as it comes in an extra large tube that always reminds me of those old giant Lipsmackers.  It helps that it's also a great gloss .  Coming next month , but with a couple colors already online , there will be 4 more ways to get your Big Flirt on.  





Big Flirt is $ 15.50 at all Kohls locations and remember you can use those discount coupons on cosmetics.

Friday, September 21, 2012

Herbal Essences Honey I'm Strong


Shampoos providing strength and softness are the catchword right now and that's a good thing since many need just that.

Herbal Essences Honey I'm Strong line uses honey and apricot extracts to give hair moisture and  health as well as  help repair damage .

  Hair is very soft and manageable after using this but not weighed down.  It helps to smooth as well . Along with the  shampoo/conditioner there is a deep  rinse out conditioner in a tub that really adds extra hydration and leaves hair silky. I was impressed by how well it worked since , in all honesty, I usually use more high end  leave ins.


If you have  damaged hair, you use a flat iron  all the time , etc, then Honey I'm Strong is  a great way to whip hair  into shape on a  budget.


$2.99 for 12 oz Shampoo and Conditioner
$4.99 for 7.8 oz for Rinse Out Treatment

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Ciate Sequin Manicure


Launching soon, fall per Ciate, is the new Ciate Sequin Manicure. This will make your nails look like disco balls . Fun for the holiday season and even Halloween parties.

 Colors are :Harlequin (multi-colored), Tutu (pink, red and champagne) & Super Duper (black, silver holographic and gold sequins).
Sequin Manicure will be $ 15 at Sephora, Nordstrom and Bloomingdales, in stores and online.

Chanel Holiday 2012- Eclats du soir de Chanel


 Chanel Holiday 2012 is Éclats du soir de Chanel . It's a lovely looking group of sheer pinks and deep reds for a striking winter face.  The matte lip color L'Impatiente is perfect for this  fall's bold lip look.

Look for  it on counter in October.



 
Eyes: 

-Regard Signe de Chanel quadra eyeshadow in Harmonie Du Soir $ 65
-Ombre Contraste Duo in Nuit Claire $ 42
-Illusion D'Ombre in Apparence ( gold) $ 36



Lips :
 
-Glossimer in Allegorie( Sheer pink), Mystery( fresh rosewood) , Intrique( red-brown)  $29.50
-Rouge Allure Velvet in L'Impatiente ( deep red black)  $ 32.50
 



Nails:
 
Les Vernis Nail, Colour in Malice $ 26 ( deep red black)
 
Face :

-Joues Contraste Blush in Star Dust( shimmering soft pink ) $ 43
-Poudre Universalle Libre in Reverie ( rosy golden beige) $ 52



Sally Hansen Halloween Salon Effects 2012




Browsing the store yesterday I came across the Salon Effects Halloween display. Several  are new and different from last year's  styles.  All are fun,  especially Patch O'Lanterns.

 

Nails Inc. Paint Your Pinkie Pink

 
Nails Inc “Paint Your Pinkie Pink”  is the new nail polish  that's part of the The Paint your Pinkie Pink campaign and  designed to raise awareness of The Breast Cancer Campaign . This bespoke LE pink glitter nail polish  retails at $10.
 
$1 (10%) from every nail polish sale will be donated to Breast Cancer Campaign. Breast Cancer Campaign was established in 1988 with the aim of researching the cure for breast cancer.
 
So, good cause, cute polish and a decent  donation. I like when companies list the exact amount they plan to donate.


 Paint Your Pinkie Pink is  available exclusively at  Sephora 
 

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Degree Women Unapologetically Strong Contest

To coincide with new Degree Women® Clinical Protection with motionSENSE™ in new  Cotton Fresh scent  Degree  Women wants to know how strong you are ? How Unapologetically Strong to be exact. And you know you are. Every woman has that depth of strength to call on whenever she needs it. 

Me, I'm an unapologetically strong friend. My friends know me as their best cheerleader. I celebrate their every achievement and am the first to tell everyone else the  good news. I used to mail it or phone it. I was Facebook for my friends before it existed. If only I'd thought to invent it.  Now I tweet  or email  it.  I'm the friend who went down the aisle ahead of two besties as maid of honor ( one in late July, near the ocean, talk about needing sweat protection).  I  held one of them  together when the man she deeply loved shattered her heart.   Years later after  watching her be that beautiful bride, I then was at the hospital for the birth of her first child, my Godchild. 

Now it's your turn. Head over to Degree's Facebook page and share your story. They want to know what your Unapologetically Strong goal is and  one winner will win 5,000.

While there you can also see spokewoman Erin Andrews own video and story or click here


    **Sponsored Post***
But all opinions are strictly my own

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Sebastian Trilliance Shine Shampoo/Conditioner

 


Sebastian has a great product in their Trilliant . It's  heat styling protection and a shine spray with built in little sparkles.  It's nice in that it  doesn't add  extra moisture , so if you've already heavily conditioned, this is great.


Now Sebastian has added to the line with the new Trilliance Shampoo /Conditioner.

Trilliance, is as you would think, all about the shine. Using rock crystal extracts, it amps up shine but I also found it to add a lot of moisture. My hair was very soft but still with plenty of volume and needed minimal leave in conditioner.


The individual products are available now  and  in October the duo is available in this gift set that for $ 25  includes a pair of  rhinestone trimmed sunglasses by  eyewear designer Kerin Rose of a-morir and the new Sebastian Visionary .The glasses have a retro vibe are  good sized and good fun.

http://www.sebastianprofessional.com

Monday, September 17, 2012

Kiehl's Friends and Family Sale

 
It's Kiehl's Friends and Family time.  It may be early but think holiday gifting as well as stocking up.

I can also highly recommend their new Rose Arctica Lightweight Cream , that I've just  tried.  A lighter version of the fab Rose Arctica for those of us with oiler skins.

Use code FRIENDS at www.kiehls.com

Chanel Les Exclusifs De Chanel Fresh Body Cream

 
When I heard Chanel was coming out with  Les Exclusifs Body Cream, I got really excited. I imagined body lotion in Beige, La Pausa, Coromandel and wondered how I would ever afford all of them.

As it turned out, there are not body creams in each scent, but one  rather nice scent meant to complement all the fragrances. I can work with that.

Les Exclusifs Fresh Body Cream does have a fresh scent. It's lightly floral and lightly green. Nothing strong but pretty enough to wear solo if you wished.  I am not sure how it would mingle with some of the stronger Les Exclusifs but it will definitely work with the lighter ones like Beige,  Eau de Cologne and Gardenia.

The cream itself is very rich and soft but sinks in quickly and will make quite the luxurious lotion.


Available now for $ 130

Shown is my small sample jar. The main size is 5 oz.

Sunday, September 16, 2012

G-III NFL 4 Her Football Fan Wear

 Are you ready for football ? I am.  And I love the proliferation of more football apparel made  just for us gals. New  is G-III Apparel NFL 4Her created by Hall of Fame member Carl Banks that recently debuted on HSN.

$29.95
There are several  fun styles available including tees, jackets and pants .  Hit up HSN to see and shop.

$59.95



Saturday, September 15, 2012

Nivea Lip Balm Cap Design Contest Finalists

Charlotte Ronson teamed up with NIVEA Lip Care to host the first-ever “Kiss of Style” contest where people were given the opportunity to design a cap on a NIVEA lip balm.

The entries were then narrowed down by Charlotte and a team of judges to ten finalists. Charlottes' fav? The stars and stripes  one.

 
  There are some pretty nice designs and if you want to get your vote in head to NIVEA’s Facebook page  to become a fan vote. The winning design will be unveiled on Sept. 20 and next year it will go on sale.