Beauty Review: Schick Quattro - Razor for Women

Summer makes several beauty related issues a priority. Light summer clothes and beach season means we are all concerned with the issues of smooth skin. And, of course, getting rid of unwanted hair is one of the top priorities. Smooth beautiful legs and sexy bikinis are a must for the sunny season. In summer we depilate more often than in other seasons. That’s why the time it takes and the convenience matter a lot. In this review, let’s speak razors! Recently I was requested to review a new razor for women: Schick Quattro. For this purpose I was provided with a sample razor (thanks!). However, note - this is an unpaid for and unbiased review.

Features:
- four ultra-thin blades
- pivoting head “ to follow all your contours”
- 2 conditioning strips with Vitamins
- sleek metal handle for precise control
- comfortable rubber grip
- shower hanger (not sure if available in every package)

Promise:
"Long lasting smoothness - so you can skip a day or two"

When using the razor, I was very impressed with the angle (radius) of the pivoting head. It is very flexible and moves within about 40 degrees range which does make it easy to follow all the contours of the body.

Experience:

Before I even used Schick Quattro razor I already liked it! Why, you ask? The package includes a shower hanger. My bathroom is always overloaded with things that just get scattered around so it does not look particularly neat. However, with Schick Quattro you just hang your razor on the wall right where you need it. Convenient! Loved this feature!

When using the razor, I was very impressed with the angle (radius) of the pivoting head. It is very flexible and moves within about 40 degrees range which does make it easy to follow all the contours of the body.

Due to the pivoting head and overall design you can also easily do the knee area, reach any stray hairs underarms, or even depilate the bikini area. Shaving feels smooth, comfortable and did not give me razor bumps. And it is quicker than using an electric epilator or a depilation cream. Usually, I do not use a razor on the bikini area but I decided to give it a try. It went quite fine, but the skin felt sensitive afterwords so I still prefer using an electric shaver on this area.

Note: For shaving to be bumps and redness free you have to follow some main rules: do not apply too much pressure on the razor against the skin, do not stretch the skin, do not go against the grain and do use a shaving gel.

The time the smoothness lasts will vary from person to person. In my case, the skin usually remains smooth for a couple days.

I also enjoy some things about Schick Quattro that are not directly related to the quality of shave. For example, I like the handle. It is very convenient due to rubber grips so the razor does not slip out of your hands. I also like that due to the fact that the handle is partly metal it does have some weight to it. Feels nice in the hand.

Excellent product!

Price Time: about 10-15$ - great quality for affordable price ;-)

Read more about hair removal methods
Feel like shopping? You can buy Schick Quattro online.

Beauty News: EC Launches an On-Line Database of Cosmetic Ingredients

European Commission has recently launched an online database of cosmetic ingredients called “CosIng” (Cos(metic)Ing(redients)). It is based on several EC directives and includes information starting from as early as 1976.

The present day consumer does care about the ingredients list and the safety of those chemicals we apply on the skin. That is why, I believe, there is a need for an easy to use and understand, clear, informative and reliable search engine for cosmetic ingredients.

I checked out the new EC search trying to understand how convenient and informative it is for me as a usual consumer.

You can search by the name of the ingredient or by its official number. The search result provides a lot of reference numbers like CAS #, EINECS/ELINCS # which do not tell me anything. In addition, it explains functions of the ingredient which IS useful. You also get information about chemical composition of the ingredient you entered.
However, it does not give a clear assessment of the ingredient's safety. If the ingredient was mentioned in one of the EC directives, it will give a reference code(“Restriction/Annex-Part-Ref #”). So you have to open the PDF file of the directive and search for this information. Hmm… Yes, it is complicated and time consuming but, on the other hand, you do know that this information is for sure reliable…

I compared CosIng it to some other databases available online which are really few!

www.cosmeticsdatabase.com – provides a hazard score of a particular ingredient, information about any safety concern, usage. According to cosmeticsdatabase.com, their database is based on “50 databases and sources from government agencies, industry panels, academic institutions, or other credible bodies”. They also provide detailed explanation on how they make their evaluations.

www.cfsan.fda.gov/~dms/cos-toc.html - FDA (US Food and Drug Administration) does not have a search engine for ingredients but provides some general guidelines. You can read several articles on which ingredients are prohibited or are controversial.

Here are a couple other databases I came across

www.scorecard.org/chemical-profiles - Scorecard provides information about toxic chemicals. This site has a more general search engine - not specifically about cosmetics ingredients.

www.ctfa-online.org – Site by The US Personal Care Products Council that also has a search engine for cosmetics ingredients but registration is required to use it.

Beauty Talk: Tips on How to Minimize Expression Lines

My sister, who will turn 18 in a month, was visiting me last weekend. Knowing about my passion for skin care, she inquired pointing to her forehead, : “I already have wrinkles. What should I do?” I explained that those are not yet wrinkles but light expression lines but if she continues to express all the array of emotions with her forehead, wrinkles will follow soon. “But how can I be expressive otherwise?” she asked. “I can’t just have a frozen face”.

The fact is that we wrinkle foreheads, squint eyes, furrow eyebrows and crinkle noses a lot out of a habit, we don’t even notice or realize it. Very often we don't feel that our facial muscles are tightened. Remember the feeling before and after a massage session? Before a massage you don’t even realize that your muscles are so stressed. However, after the session your body feels so much more relaxed and just a tone lighter. The same with the facial muscles – we often tighten them habitually and just get used to it.

It is not necessary to completely stop expressing your emotions and wear a “mask” for a face. However, if you invest some time and effort, you will slow down the process of expression lines formation.

What you need to do is
- learn to relax your facial muscles
- don’t wrinkle your forehead or raise brows for every reason either you are thinking hard or are just telling an interesting story
- learn to make up for less forehead wrinkling by expression of you eyes, tilt of your head or hands gesticulations
- don’t squint your eyes, wear sunglasses or, if you do it for the reason of a bad sight, get lenses

Here are a couple exercises and tips I came across that will help you get started.

1.Place a mirror on your work desk so that from the corner of your eye you can see your reflection. You will look into the mirror from time to time and notice if you start wrinkling your forehead or frowning etc. Just relax the muscles. Soon you will start noticing the difference between tightened muscles and the relaxed ones.
2.When at home, wear a thin silk ribbon on your forehead. When you raise eyebrows you will feel it move.
3.Do the following exercise daily: Stand in front of the mirror and relax your facial muscles, concentrate on relaxing your forehead and eyebrow muscles, just let your eyebrows be heavy and all of your facial muscles to just “fall down”. Keep relaxing until you see almost no expression lines anymore. You can help yourself by tapping lightly on your forehead and along the eyebrows. It also helps to prepare for the exercise by doing a light massage when applying your moisturizer.
Do this exercise for at least 1 minute. Later, when you are better at relaxing your muscles, you can bring it down to 30 sec. I would recommend for the beginners to do it minimum 2 times a day in the afternoons and evenings.

I started to be more careful about my facial expressions some time ago and have been doing the 3rd exercise regularly. I do feel it when I frown or wrinkle my forehead so I just try to relax as much as I can. It has been very helpful up till now. I’m turning 29 soon – no lines yet in sight. I do get forehead lines by the evening and on stressful days but after the abovementioned evening exercise and a night’s sleep, I wake up with a smooth forehead ready to face another stressful day. :-)

Beauty Fact: Smoking Can Be Worse For your Skin than Sunbathing

Did you know that one puff of a cigarette subjects your body to more free radicals than a UV-dose needed for a suntan?

Most of us know smoking is bad for your health on the whole and for your skin as well. Inhaling tobacco smoke results in restricted blood vessels and, subsequently, reduced amount of blood flow to the skin. As a result your skin is deprived of the vital oxygen and nutrients and soon smokers develop this grey or yellowish complexion.

Another fact related to the nasty habit may make some smokers finally quit. According to German Vogue (Apr 2008), one puff of a cigarette creates over 100 times more free radicals than a UV dose enough to get a suntan. In an interview to Vogue, Professor Dr.Leonhard Zastow, Senior VP of Coty in Monte Carlo, explained that smoking also brings down body’s ability to protect itself against sun damage. Another striking fact is that only 8 hours after your last cigarette oxygen flow in the body comes to normal and only 48 hours later nicotine is completely out of your system. You will have to wait for two more weeks to get back a healthy skin color!

If a smoker is reading this post and has not yet decided to quit, let me rub it in. According to some studies quoted by skincarephysicians.com, statistically smokers develops premature signs of aging much sooner than a non-smoker and even in 20 year old smokers “facial wrinkling, while not yet visible, can be seen under a microscope.”

Wow! I am glad I am not a smoker!

Read more about skin damaging factors you shoud try to avoid.

Beauty and Makeup: ArtDeco Eyeshadow Eye Designer # 50

I think I found the best (for now) eyeshadow tone to create Leona Lewis “Bleeding Love” look! It is Long-Lasting Eyeshadow powder by ArtDeco # 50 in the Eye Designer line (photo above: on the left #50 on the right #49). To use this shadow you have to buy a special applicator as well– see the photo.
ArtDeco, founded in 1985, is a Germany company that manufactures skin care and makeup products.
ArtDeco is available in more than 50 countries in Europe as well as in Brazil, South and Middle America and some other lands.
www.artdeco.de



Color:
#50 - I love the color! Hard to describe it though – it is something like dark earth color with green/brown tones. It also has tiny gold sparkles. Ladies who have green eyes (and Leona does) will be amazed by how this shadow brings out the green color of your eyes without actually looking green…

Applicator:
Love the applicator. On one end it is rounded - which is good for blending (or blending in another color), on the other end is pointed for more accurate targeted application. You can use the pointed end to apply shadow close to eyelashes and in the inner corner. Found this applicator very convenient for doing both a dramatic eye and a more reserved eye makeup.

Texture:
Smooth and silky. Easy to apply and correct mistakes. However you won’t get VERY intensive color. For a more dramatic look I use eyeliner pencil under the shadow and a liquid eyeliner over it. I also noticed that if you apply a lot of ArtDeco shadow to achieve maximum intensity, it becomes hard to blend in another shade. The shadow kind of gets wiped away by the next tone I am trying to blend in. And you do need to blend in case you want to create a smoky eye. (Sorry, but the color looks a bit different in the photo)

Lasting Time and Smudginess:
It does last. I should say it will easily last the whole night out or a day in the office but with some touch ups, the color will fade a bit but eyes will still look made up. It stays in place but it leaves an imprint on the upper lead.

Bottom Line:
I really like the color, how it makes my eyes stand out and how it brings out the green of my eyes. Even though this eye shadow has some room for improvement (e.g.: I wish it had better blending properties), I already bought another refill #50 and another applicator with a golden shadow.

Price:
Applicator approximately 20$
Refill approximately 10$

PS: ArtDeco has a perfect Eyeliner Soft Kajal Liner 86 to match Eye Designer Eyeshadow # 50. It is very soft and easy to apply - like it a lot!

Beauty Review: Sisley Cosmetics Roundup and Free Samples

This is a roundup of my reviews on Sisley products.

I tried and reviewed six products by Sisley:
-All Day All Year
-Sisleya Radiance Anti-Aging Concentrate
-Sisleya Eye and Lip Contour Cream
-Buff and Wash Gel
-Sisley's Energizing and Foaming Exfoliant
-Confort Extreme Body Cream for Very Dry Areas
-Gentle Eye and Lip Makeup Remover

My favorites are exfoliating products for body and face and the Sisleya Radiance Anti-Aging Concentrate.

Mostly I was impressed with the quality and effectiveness of Sisley cosmetics. I also liked the natural herbal smell and the texture. I’ve read several articles about Sisley which developed my respect for this luxury cosmetics brand. The two articles I came across recently were from Russian Glamour and from German Vogue Beauty Edition (winter 2007). In addition to the information I already knew, I found out a couple more interesting facts. As I have mentioned in my first post on Sisley, it is a family run business owned by the d’Ornanos. What I like is that the d’Ornanos are very passionate about their work and their cosmetic/perfume creations. Hubert d’Ornano, a descendant from a long line of French aristocrats (according to Vogue he is related to Napoleon’s cousin), started Sisley brand after working with his brother and father in Orlane – another wonderful cosmetics brand that the d’Ornanos co-founded together with Jean D'Albret. Hubert’s wife Isabelle d’Ornano is Polish and is the Vice-President of Sisley. According to Vogue, she personally tests Sisley’s products through all the stages of their development and her bathroom shelves are filled with samples of products that are just in the process of creation. She is also 100% faithful to Sisley’s products and does not use any other brands. Well, according to Vogue 99% as she cannot resist Touche Blush by YSL. Otherwise she lays hands on competitors’ products only when she wants to check out their presentation and packaging or how consistent the product description in various languages is. Hubert’s and Isabelle’s son Philippe and daughter Christine work together with their parents at Sisley to keep up Sisley’s success and bring new projects to life.

And finally, I have some precious samples of Sisley’s products to give away! They include Moisturizer with Cucumber (4ml) for all skin types, Buff and Wash Gel (5 ml) with botanical extracts, Phyto Teint Eclat, fluid foundation, oil-free – long lasting (2ml). If you want to try your luck, just leave a relevant comment on any post of my blog and send me an email to beautyhealthinfo at yahoo.com marked Sisley samples in the subject line. Let me know under what nickname and where you left the comment. As soon as I have 10 relevant comments, I will randomly select the winner and send the samples.

Update (August 17, 2008): I did select the winner an the samples are mailed to Tracy! See her comment here

Get more information about Sisley products range or shop for Sisley's Beauty Products

Beauty Review: Sisley Gentle Eye and Lip Make-up Remover

Product Tag Line:

Perfectly cleansed eyes and lips, with gentleness and respect.

Product Profile in short:
(as described on Sisley Website)
•Dissolves makeup quickly and thoroughly
•Does not dry out skin
•Instantly provides a feeling of freshness and comfort

Promise:
Removes make-up thoroughly without making skin dry
“Particularly suitable for sensitive, fragile eyes and contact-lens wearers”

What’s Inside:
•Matricaria, Cornflower, Gardenia, Orange Blossom.

Close-up on Active Ingredients:
Water
Citrus Aurantium Dulcis- Orange flower extract, also contained in Sisley’s Eye and Lip Contour Cream
PEG-7 Glyceryl Cocoate – nonionic surfactant (very mild), derived from coconut.
Gardenias Florida Extract – used in cosmetics to impart fragrance and as an antioxidant
Butylene Glycol - humectant (attracts moisture to the skin)
PEG-40 Glyceryl Cocoate - conditioning, cleansing agent derived from coconut
Propylene Glycol - emollient, hydrating agent
Chamomilla Rewcutita (Matricaria) Extract – provides gentle soothing, healing, anti-inflamatory effect
Centaurea Cyanus Flower Extract – Cornflower extract, very often used in products for the skin around the eye, has soothing qualities, beneficial for sensitive skin. In addition, provides gentle stimulating and effective moisturizing, refreshing effect
Panthenol - the provitamin of B5, humectant, emollient and moisturizer, panthenol is able to penetrate into deep skin layers, provide essential moisture and a plumping effect. Panthenol is used to treat/releave minor various skin disorders and irritations
Sodium Coceth Sulfate-mild surfactant
Phenoxyethanol – has multipleuses as antiseptic, antibacterial, fixative in perfumes etc.
…

As always in Sisley products, a couple parabens at the end are used as preservatives.

Experience

Texture: light liquid with no oil additives
Smell: Very very light and natural, I believe, I did not find perfume in the ingredient list

This is another product from Sisley that I just love! It removes makeup easily and effectively and is simply a pleasure to use it. Just as Sisley promises, Gentle Eye and Lip Make-up Remover gives you an instant refreshing feeling and eyes feel comfortable, soothes and clean! I love that it doesn’t contain oil and your skin doesn’t feel oily or sticky after using. Niiicccccee!

However, what is not mentioned on Sisley’s website is that Gentle Eye and Lip Make-up Remover is not suitable for water resistant makeup. my own observation is that it works just fine with “long-lasting” products. When I was buying this product, the sales girl explained that Sisley promotes philosophy of balanced healthy skin and waterproof makeup is not at all healthy for your skin. I agree and use waterproof mascara VERY seldom.

Price Tag:
about $ 50-55

Reviews on other Sisley's Skin Care Products:

All Day All Year
Sisleya Radiance Anti-Aging Concentrate
Buff and Wash Gel
Sisley's Energizing and Foaming Exfoliant

Get more information about Sisley products range or shop for Sisley's Beauty Products

Beauty and Makeup: Concealer Overview, Application and Tricks

When I was looking for a good concealer, I did not have time to look into what actually makeup artists recommend and what application tricks they are using. So in this post I will mention the concealers I tried out and share some YouTube vids I found useful. A couple videos are by makeup artists and one is a show episode from Tyra Banks where she gives tips based on her experience as a model.

Concelaers/Highlighters I've tried:

So I've tried concealers from Bobbi Brown's Creamy Concealer Kit (available with loose powder), MAC (comes in a small container with a brush applicator), L'Oreal (comes in a pen with a brush applicator),Bourjouis(pen-brush), Laura Mercier's Undercover (combines Secret Camouflage & Secret Concealer in one compact), Dior's Skin Flash (comes in a pen-brush applicator), Helena Rubinstein’s Magic Concealer (comes in a tube without an applicator).
Now I am using

Highlighter - YSL's Touche Eclat (i think it is Luminous Ivory but they have no number on the pen so I need to make sure),

Concealer - Elizabeth Arden's Flawless Finish Concealer (Anti-Cernes)# 02 Medium



and am experimenting with a

concealer palette by Catrice that includes light salmon, green, beige tones.



Concealer Color and Application Technique:

First of all, what only experts don’t recommend! Some swear by yellow concealer tones, others, by salmon tones, some recommend to set concealer in with a powder, others don’t. Everybody has their own technique I guess.

In terms of the color choice, makeup artist Eve Perl made it clear once and for all. It should be salmon color! Sharing some makeup tips in her video, Eve said: “Think about it for minute, if you mix yellow with blue, what do you get? Green. That’s how we get these racoony undereyes…” Well, out of my experience, I think pink tones do help to neutralize dark under eye shades but I don't think concealer has to be intense salmon color. The light ivory tone with a touch of pink in YSL Concealer works for me excellent. See the video below.


I have not come accross many salmon colored concealers. But check Laura Mcier's Undercover.

In the next video a makeup artist applies concealer on the inner corner lower lid, of the eye (not completely over the whole lower lid) and a bit of it on the outer corner. As she says, "everybody has a bit of the red eye" on the outer corner of the eye. I tried this technique and I like it a lot - it does open up your eyes and make them look brighter.



In the next video below a makeup artist addresses the problem of a concealer creeping into fine lines and looking so obvious that you actually look better without it! So she recommeds to apply it only in the inner corner where the darkness is most intense and set it with a loose powder. She claims the loose powder will prevent concealer from getting into the lines.
As I have mentioned above, applying concealer only in the inner corner works great for me. However, I don't really think setting it with a powder makes a huge difference (at least what I noticed). I believe, it still mostly depends on the consistency of the concealer if it will eventually get into the fine lines and accentuate them or not. If you want to apply concealer to the whole undereye circle area, choose a very light texture. When I have very intense dark circles, I apply Elizabeth Arden's Flawless Finish Concealer (that has quite thick texture) close to the inner corner and then tap a bit of YSL on top and all over the circle. So the bottom line is that I would recommend using high coverage (thicker type) concealer when the circles are really-really intense and only on the inner part of the eye. See 2 videos below.



This last video is an episode from Tyra Banks' show where she explains how to apply a concealer. Her tips are mainly the following: sellect concealer to match your skin tone, warm it up before application on on your hand, apply foundation over the concealer and a ton of loose powder which you will remove together with any bits and pieces after you do your eye shadows and lashes. Have not tried this technique but will test in the near future :-) Tyra is very animated in her explanations - enjoy.

Best Beauty: German Glammies - Best Hair Products

Today I’m continuing the list of Best Beauty Buys 2008 announced by the German Glamour. I am listing in this post Best of Hair Products Nominies and the Winners.

Best of Hair-Care

Age Densiforce, L’Oreal Professional - strengthens hair with Omega-6 and provides volume

Perfect Color Rich Protective Mask, Douglas Hair – intensive treatment for colored hair

14-day Treatment Shampoo with Almond Oil, Guhl – helps against split hair

The Winner as chosen by German Glamour readers is 14-day Treatment Shampoo with Almond Oil

Best of Hair Styling

High Hair Style Foundation, Wella – spray that allows easier brushing and adds shine

Got2B Happy Hour, Schwarzkopf

Extra Volume and Shine Mousse, Dove – ensures your hair color lasts longer

The Winner as chosen by German Glamour readers is Extra Volume and Shine Mousse, Dove

For the skin care and makeup nominies and winners take a look at this post.

In-Between Internet Contracts

The recent two weeks have been a challenge. We have been moving not just flats, not cities... but countries. From Switzerland, Zurich all the way to Lithuania, Vilnius. So for the last 2 weeks I have been living in-between internet contracts and in a complete chaos of the move. But now, thanks God, everything is getting more or less back on track and life is starting to become more organized and is beginning (just beginning) to get back to normal. So now I can get back to what I love to do - beauty blogging!

Beauty Contest: We Have a Winner

Unfortunately, I did not receive any creative photos that would qualify for the contest. I guess a contest of this type turned out to be a bit too specific and challenging. I did get a couple pictures which however appear to be just snapshots (see below). But at least there was some kind of effort beacause mostly I would receive just an address (thanks) to send the samples to.

However, I do have a winner! I have received a video clip made especially for this contest by Tanita. Even though Tanita’s work did not have strong competition in this contest, it is truly creative, high quality and deserves the prize and praise! It is a video expression of Tanita’s thoughts about Beauty… see it below and turn on the sound!

Being creative is Tanita’s passion. She writes poems and songs, makes videos, and designs her own clothes. And she has just started a blog called Tanita's creative art. Unfortunately, right now it is only in Russian. Good luck, Tanita, with your work!

Actually, I decided to leave this contest open, if anyone ever decides to send me a quality creative photo or even a clip about beauty/skin care, I will be very pleased! And I always have a nice selection of skin care samples to give away ;-)

Best Beauty: Glamour Germany Announces Best Beauty Products 2008

Glamour Germany announced best beauty products of 2008 in their winter-spring 2008 special Beauty Issue. Actually these products are nominees selected by magazines and the readers were offered to select a product of their choice! So, check it out.


Best of Luxury Skin Care (Face):
Multi Recharge, Biotherm – “Intensive energy kick for the skin”, contains ginseng and thermal plankton extracts
Idealist Pore Minimizing Skin Refinisher, Estee Lauder – serum reducing pores
Aquamilk, Lancaster – rich moisturizer with coconut-, rice-, palm-milk

The Winner as chosen by German Glamour readers is Multi Recharge, Biotherm

Best of Luxury Body Care:
Soin Complet Special Vergetures (Stretch Mark Control), Clarins – promises to help reduce appearance of stretch marks
Amour Crème Corps Tres Parfum (Pure Fragrance Body Cream), Kenzo - perfumed body moisturizer
Donna Karan Gold Cleansing Lotion, Donna Karan – perfumed douche lotion, smells of amber and lilies

The Winner as chosen by German Glamour readers is Soin Complet Special Vergetures (Stretch Mark Control), Clarins


Best of Luxury Make-up:
Best Foundation:
* Mat Lumiere, Chanel –this light fluid foundation helps to keep oily skin matte
* Teint Majeur, Yves Saint Laurent – a combination of a foundation and an anti-aging treatment
* Supermoisture Makeup, Clinique – lightweight moisturizing foundation

The Winner as chosen by German Glamour readers is Soin Mat Lumiere, Chanel

Best of Makeup for Lips:
* Eclat Minute (Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector), Clarins – gloss and lipcare in one
* Kiss Kiss Liplift, Guerlain – smoothing basis for a lipstick
* Full Potential Lips, Clinique – lips plumping gloss

The Winner as chosen by German Glamour readers is Full Potential Lips, Clinique

Best Make-up for Eyes:
* Diorshow Black Out, Dior
* Bad Gal Blue, Benefit – dark-blue mascara “makes eyes sparkle”
* Virtuose, Lancome – specially shaped brush ensures that each lash is reached

The Winner as chosen by German Glamour readers is Virtuose, Lancome

Best of Luxury Perfume
* ck IN2U, Calvin Klein
* Midnight Poison, Dior
* Infusion D’Iris, Prada

The Winner as chosen by German Glamour readers is Midnight Poison, Dior

The List of Best Beauty Buys Continued:
Best Hair-Care/Styling Products.

Beauty Trends: Lips in Pink Spring-Summer 2008

Pink lips are a classical color choice for a spring/summer season. This year it is really a popular lips color. A great selection of lip glosses and lipsticks is available in new spring 2008 makeup collections. I want one but really am torn between the options! So here is an overview of some of them.


For those who like glitter, there is Shiseido’s Spring Collection which includes various shades of pink shimmer lipstick.

Another new pink lipstick launched for spring/summer 2008 season is something special. Lancôme’s Color Fever Shine Lipstick in Pixel Pink was created by a fashion designer Thakoon and a celebrity makeup artist Gucci Westman. This lipstick in sheer raspberry shade was worn by the models at Thakoon’s Spring 2008 fashion show.

Guerlain’s new KISS KISS Stick Gloss Fleur de Feu is in “blazing” raspberry pink shade and is a combination of a lipstick and a lip gloss that promises “extreme shine”. For a selection of other fruity colors, check out Guerlain’s KISS KISS Stick Gloss - Extreme Shine Fruity Colours.

I discussed Dior’s floral pink look in my previous post. For lips "Bloom in Dior" use: Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss Reflect 457 (Pink Liberty) or Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss Reflect 127 (Beige Velvet)


If you are looking for lilac and purple shades, consider limited edition gloss in lilac from Clarins Spring Collection or Givenchy’s limited edition Rouge Interdit from their New DENIM GLAMOUR collection in 35 - Mauve Fetish, 36 - Stylish Purple. I was intrigued by the description at Givenchy’s site: Indigo pink, highlighted with white pearlescent particles, and sooty plum (a favorite), with pink pearlescent particles…. Notice the combined white pearlescent particles for MAUVE FETISH, that gives it a moist, sensual look and of pink pearlescent particles that light up STYLISH PURPLE...”

For more ideas about products you may use for create spring-summer 2008 makeup click here.

Beauty Trends: Makeup in Pink Spring-Summer 2008

There is quite a choice of spring 2008 makeup collections to do a look in pink.
New collections from Dior, Bobbi Brown, and Guerlain have great products for pink cheeks, pink lips and pink eyelids.

DIOR Spring-Summer 2008


Dior’s two new looks for Spring 2008 are in pastel pink/violet flower tones and are called “Bloom in Dior”.

Dior Spring 2008 Must-Have: Limited Edition Dior Flower Blossom-Floral Illuminating Powders for face. The powder contains five shades and can be used as a corrector/illuminator for complexion, blush and eye shadows.

Other products used for Dior’s Spring 2008 Look include:
Skin:
*Dior Powder Shimmer for a glowing skin
Eyes:
*5-color eye shadow palettes that are available
-with a more matte but silky finish – 5 Colors (check out Spring Bouquet 470 palette or choose for a more intense look Stylish Move)
-in a glittery “ultra-wet” texture - 5 Colors Iridescent in with a touch of violet (the palette name Pink May 909 speaks for itself)
-Diorshow Mascara
Lips:
*Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss Reflect 457 (Pink Liberty) or Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss Reflect 127 (Beige Velvet)
You can see more details and a video at Dior’s site.

GUERLAIN Spring-Summer 2008


For a more dramatic look you can use a new spring 2008 palette from Guerlain. Guerlain Spring 2008 collection includes:
*Limited Edition (see the photo):
- Ombre Eclat Fleur de Feu eyeshadow
- KISSKISS Stick Gloss Fleur de Feu (raspberry pink lipstick)

BOBBI BROWN Spring-Summer 2008



Bobbi Brown developed limited edition palettes in pink for two looks: Pink Raspberry look and Pink Satin Look for spring-summer 2008 (see photos)

*Pink Raspberry palette includes:
-Navajo and Fog Eye Shadows;
-Pink Raspberry Blush;
-Raspberry and Blue Raspberry Lip Sheers

*Pink Satin Collection includes:
- Metallic Palette with the latest velvety, shimmering shadows: Navajo Metallic Eye Shadow, Hot Stone Metallic Eye Shadow, Pink Ice Metallic Eye Shadow
- Lip Gloss Palette with three shimmer shades in pink: Spring Blossom Shimmer Lip Gloss, Posey Shimmer Lip Gloss, Pastel Ink Lip Gloss
- Mini Brush and Palette Case with three mini brushes: Blush, Eye Shadow, and Lip Brush (with protective cap).

For more ideas about products you may use for create spring-summer 2008 makeup click here.

Beauty Trends: Spring-Summer 2008 Look with New Spring Makeup Collections

There are several new and exciting makeup collections for spring-summer 2008 that you can use to get beautiful spring-summer looks.

Get the Look Inspired by Makeup at Dries Van Noten, Michael Kors, and Karl Lagerfeld Spring 2008 Shows: Spring and Exotic Colors

Clarins launched spring-summer collection 2008 called FIZZ. As I understand from the video on Clarins site (and the name), the inspiration for Clarins spring 2008 look came from soap bubbles :-) … you know, all the various colors you see reflected in a bubble… To me, however, colors of Clarins spring collection give an association with a yummy exotic fruit. Think… papayas, pine apples, melons and figs.
Clarins Spring 2008 eye shadows come in mono-packaging and include: Sunny Yellow, Sweet Melon, Gold Leaf, and Sweet Lilac. Actually only 2 colors appear to be new Sweet Lilac and Sunny Yellow. Just as Clarins promises, the shadows are ultra-smooth and blend beautifully.
Two new lip glosses that come in Clarins’ spring 2008 collection are Lilac and Toffee.
New Eyeliner: liquid eyeliner in Chocolate Brown
New Eye Pencil: Copper

With Clarins’ new makeup collection you can do looks inspired by Dries Van Noten, Michael Kors, and Karl Lagerfeld (in the latter case, colors will be completely different though, but the idea/style remains the same).
Clarins makeup seems to be a good fit to do Michael Kors look for spring 2008 (see the photo): Sweet Melon goes under an eye brow and Sweet Lilac- in the middle of an eyelid. The only thing missing is a blue eyeliner.

Tip: you can achieve tones of various intensity by layering Sunny Yellow, Sweet Melon, Gold Leaf. For example, for a more intense golden shade try layering Sunny Yellow and Golden Leaf!

Get the Look Inspired by Makeup Seen at Sonya Rykiel, YSL, Karl Lagerfeld Spring 2008 Shows: Add Some Glitter and Sparkle

The texture of Clarins eyeshadows is matte, so if you want to have a bit more metallic texture and some glitter, like makeup at Karl Lagerfeld’s and Sonya Rykiel’s shows, go for the gorgeous Shiseido’s spring-summer 2008 collection. I tried it out – it has wonderful sparkle! Not so intense as at Sonya Rykiel’s though.

Shiseido’s new collection colors are, in my opinion, beautiful. But again, just like Clarins’, Shiseido’s eye shadows come in mono-packaging.

Eye shadows have a moussey texture and come in the following colors: Languid Lagoon, Rose Tulle, Lemon Sugar, Clover Dew.

Four new Shiseido lipsticks are all in warm shades, shimmery, and not bright. Even though shimmering lips don’t seem to be extremely popular this season, colors are gorgeous and just classical: Cheerful Pink, Spring Violet, Pale Coral, Summer Sunset.

Another new Shiseido spring product is tinted powder Multi-Shade Enhancer:
*Terracota Glow for a bronzed skin look with golden shades for a golden glow.
*Sunset Glow for a warm summer pink tone.

With Shiseido collection, you can do a Karl Lagerfeld inspired look. For example,
try Languid Lagoon on the upper lid and Clover Dew or Rose Tulle on the lower. Also just a single color will look great. Single color eye is a hot trend this spring-summer.

For more about products you can use to create spring-summer 2008 looks click here.