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Beauty Networks

Posts for January 2009

"Our differences are only skin deep..."

January 28, 2009 3:50 pm · Posted by oldergirlbeauty
If there is one thing I am looking for besides the perfect moisturizer is the perfect foundation. If I wear anything on my face, besides my Avon Magix, I tend to favor tinted moisturizers. I do this because of my pretty freckles - I hate for them to look masked with heavy foundations and obviously look like I am wearing makeup.

Well, I seem to be aging, for some reason, and maybe, just maybe, I might be where I need a bit more coverage. Since I am not able to easily test out more foundations in the drugstore, it's hard to find a good match for my very light and freckled (with such cute dimples, btw) pretty face. But I think Prescriptives may be able to come to the rescue.
With their AllSkins line, they assure that 100% of women will find their perfect shade and formula - Guaranteed! Sounds like what I need. But, maybe you are like me and still have a few questions about finding your perfect foundation. Well, Jillian Veran - Prescriptives Director of Artistry - has some answers for us:
"1. Do different skin types need different foundation formulas?

Absolutely - the environment can affect how our skin behaves so the same skin can even need different types of foundation during the year. In today’s beauty world there are so many options, the best thing to do is to address what you want and need from your foundation. Do you like a sheer, luminous, satin or matte finish? Do you like liquid, cream or powder formulas? And of course what is your skin type - normal, dry, oily, combination?

2. What is the best way to apply foundation? Should I use a sponge, a brush or my fingertips?

Applying foundation is a personal preference and each method creates a different finish. Using your fingers will allow for a sheerer finish; a sponge is a little tricky for a non-makeup artist as it can place a lot of foundation in one spot so be sure to move quickly across the areas you are applying to; a brush is always great as it helps you create a very smooth even finish.
Also, I always recommend using the Px Buff Brush after your foundation is dry to soften the look of the makeup and create a sheer air brushed effect.

3. If I'm testing foundation in a department store, is it ok to do a swatch on my hand? Or should I always test the foundation on my face?

The best and most accurate way to test foundation is on the side of the face along the jaw line. Stick to this method for fool proof matching.

4. If my skin tone is between foundation shades, what's the best solution?

Prescriptives Custom Blend Foundation is ideal for this. Your foundation can be blended not only to exactly match your skins own unique undertones, but also to create whatever finish and skin care needs you desire.

5. What foundations are best for acne prone skin? For dry skin? For mature skin

All skin types should start with a foundation primer like Px Flawless Face Primer. This will allow the makeup to wear longer and for a seamless finish.

Dry skin should wear a moisture based formula and should steer away from powder formulas. But if you prefer powder, use a soft cream-to-powder formula like Px Photochrome Light-Adjusting Compact Makeup SPF 15.
Normal skin can wear whatever they like, it’s all about preference.
Oily or acne prone skin should wear an oil-free formula. Powder foundation is great for this type of skin.
Mature skin must be hydrated before applying any foundation. The foundation shouldn’t be too matte or heavy as this can accentuate the age of the skin.

6. Do foundations with sunscreen provide enough protection? Should I need to wear extra sunscreen?

Sun damage is the leading cause of aging. So no, using foundation as sunscreen isn’t the best idea. Foundation doesn’t provide a full mask on the skin so the sun will get through.
Always use an SPF under your foundation for that extra layer of protection. I highly recommend Prescriptives All Weather Friend SPF 40 as it’s incredibly lightweight and feels great under foundation."

Also, until January 31st, Prescriptives is offering a full size foundation brush for $17 with purchase to help you apply your new perfectly matched foundation.
Tagged with: Prescriptives, foundation

Get out the glow sticks - it's time for a Rave!

January 28, 2009 8:50 am · Posted by oldergirlbeauty
Let me tell you about the best wearing nail polish I have sincerely ever tried - Dashing Diva Polishes.

I was given the opportunity to try out polishes from an upcoming collection from them (more on that in a sec), and I chose "Central Park After Dark", which I went and had applied in a great mani/pedi after noon with one of my besties.  The girl didn't do anything special when applying the polish - used an Orly base coat and then a Poshe top coat. It looked really good. And then I just went about my daily business of being me. 
This pic is day *8*, no chips and hardly any tip wear. The only thing I had done at this point was put a coat of Seche Vite on day 4, as just a precaution. At this point I was curious how this was going to go - if the regrowth would out run the tip wear. It actually did, if you don't count the chip I got on the 10th day from running into a door. Ow.

Seriously, the wear of these Big 3 Free polishes is crazy good. I was wearing a color from their upcoming collection honoring New York, the "Manhattan Collection":

My friend got a pedi with "NYPD Blue" the same day, and it lasted without any problem until her next appt, 2 weeks later, without ANY thing put on it in the meantime.

You can get many other colors on their site now, with the Manhattan Collection appearing soon. Or if you happen to be in NYC, stop in one of their pretty pink salons and get one of their colors on your nails ASAP.

The old grey mare...

January 26, 2009 8:51 am · Posted by oldergirlbeauty
The holidays can make a girl kinda overwhelmed and maybe not take care of herself quite as much as she should. Like, say, cover all of the grey hairs, and roots, on her head that make her look insanely older than she feels. For instance:

Yeah, so that needed to be remedied.

Thankfully I was given the opportunity to try out Clairol's Perfect 10 Haircolor in their new shade, Auburn Flash (5R). It was just the thing I needed to start the new year fresh. Check it out:

Quite a difference, eh?  It had such good grey coverage, and only took 10 minutes to process (!). This was a much easier process than what I was used to with other home haircoloring products that could take up to 30min to cover up proof of my chronological age. (And, it didn't even stink, which was such a plus to me.). Oh, and let me tell you another cool thing about this - it has two different application tips. One of the tips went right in my roots, but the other was a comb thru applicator. It took just a bit to get used to the comb, but then it was such a breeze to just go thru the rest of my hair after I had taken care of the roots.

Now, I didn't post this as soon as I colored it, so I have gotten to see how it wears, which is pretty damn good. Like any color, it settled down just a bit a few days later, so its not *quite* as glowy, but that's great for me - I really like what it is now. Overall, I really like the results and the ease of this kit. You can find it at any of the mass markets or drugstore chains for around $13.99.
Tagged with: haircolor, Clairol, Perfect 10

Shu, Fly, Shu...

January 20, 2009 8:28 pm · Posted by oldergirlbeauty

Okay, why didn't someone knock me up side the head at the beginning of last year and tell me I needed to get this, stat? I mean, yeah, I could read all the accolades, etc, but clearly that wasn't enough to get me to do it. It took a damn Sephora gift card to finally make me cave.

And boy, am I glad I did. This little devil, by the renowned Shu Uemura, has made its way on to many a "Best of" beauty list and in the bags of makeup artists, beauty lovelies and editors everywhere, and deservedly so. The shape of this curler fits just right into my eye socket. It gets all of my lashes, so, no more moving around to make sure they are all curled, and so smoothly. If I had to say anything negative about this gem, it would be the fact that the finger holes are just a wee bit on the smallish side. Now, by no means do I have dainty digits, but I didn't have any problem with my Revlon curler that I had long been used to using. So, that was a smidge of a disappointment, but all of the pluses certainly outweigh this little negative.

So, if you haven't already got one of these in your stash, run out and get one now. Don't be a silly girl like myself and deprive yourself of this any longer.
Tagged with: Shu Uemura, Eyelash Curler

...inside, everybody has a creamy center.

January 13, 2009 11:42 am · Posted by oldergirlbeauty
Cream shadows are going to be all the rage come Spring, supposedly, but not just a simple shadow, but a dual-purpose shadow - eyeshadow primer AND shadow in one.

This Spring, Too Faced Cosmetics is coming out with "Two Faced Lock Down Ultimate Creaseless Cream Eye Shadow" (gawd damn that's a hella long name). It is based on their great eye shadow primer, Shadow Insurance. I happen to use this silicon based primer and just love the way it wears on my eyes, even if it makes it a smidge difficult to blend eyeshadows after dry down (but I think we all know that I am blending challenged anyway, so can't really count that off of the Shadow Insurance, now, can we?). Right now I see that it is going to be in 4 neutral colors, one of them called "Bondage". I'm interested in this one because it looks pretty close to my Clinique Quick Eyes Cream Shadow in Lucky Penny that I am almost to the bottom of as we speak/type, which I have used as a primer/base, but with limited success.

Next, we see that Urban Decay is offering up up "Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion in Sin". It's based on their crappily (my opinion) packaged eye shadow primer, Primer Potion. As of right now, the "Sin" (champagne shimmer color) is the only new color coming to the Primer Potion. Again, a very neutral color to use as a base or to be worn by itself. I can't honestly say that I would try this one over the new Two Faced primer eyeshadows, primarily (ha - pun!) due to the packaging. I just know that I would NOT have the patience to saw open the tube, as so many others have done, and would therefore waste half a bottle. But at least the option is out there for the many UDPP devotees.

And this just furthers the TFSI vs UDPP ongoing preference battle. But I know what side of the fence I'm standing.

I've got your Golden Globes...

January 12, 2009 3:15 pm · Posted by oldergirlbeauty
I love red carpet award shows. I can't explain how disappointed I was that the Golden Globes were cancelled last year due to the writers strike. So, I was very happy that they went forward this year and that there were stars willing to glam it up and strut the carpet - recession mocession. The Golden Globes are always fun to watch, because they serve food and alcohol to the attendees. However, the food runs out early, so that only leaves the alcohol - which makes the show all that much fun to watch the longer it goes on.

Anyway, this year I was so happy to see Kate Winslet as a leading contender in *2* categories this year, for Supporting Actress in a Drama and Lead Actress in a Drama. I just love her, esp in "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind". And I have to say that she looked every bit the Hollywood Glamour Gal last night - even if she *did* futz with her bodice of her dress just a little too much. Since she is so gorg anyway, it was nice to see such a simple, yet glamourous look on her last night. It also shows just what I have said before - you can mix high-end AND lower-end cosmetics and look fab.

Make-up artist, Jillian Dempsey (who is also the Global Creative Color Director for Avon) was the talent that made Kate glow for the ceremony. She used the following products on her:





All of these worked great to put together a very beautiful look with the pop of red on her lips. Very nicely done!

Like a sexy Bea Arthur

January 12, 2009 11:17 am · Posted by oldergirlbeauty
As I mentioned earlier I got terribly sick over Christmas (still fighting it (stupid cough), but whatever - I decided wasn't sick any more). One thing about me is that I don't get sick often, but when I do, damn, I go all out. Another thing about me is that I am a pale, freckled face lovely. Which means that when I get sick, I get pale - as in Casper is all "Damn girl, you need some color.".

So, with this being the holidays, there was lots of company around, and much to do, while looking a hint of presentable - 102.3 temp on Xmas bedamned. Luckily, I had gotten a CoverGirl Outlast Lipstain that helped me save face. It is a water-based, marker type pen that put color on my lips so easily, and lasted so long, I didn't even have to think about trying to touch it up while the family was there. Lemme tell you, I haven't been a fan of stains, mainly because the little brushes just seemed impossible for me to figure out how to use easily without looking like a clown. This marker pen changed my mind, because it made it so easy to apply - loved that. And if anything can be easy while I am whiny sick, all the better.

I figure that since it was so good while I was sick and all but useless, I can imagine how much I am going to love it when I can really dress up and get back to normal. These come in a range of *10* colors - so many more than other stains out there, and can be picked up at drugstores and mass market shops now.
Tagged with: Covergirl, lipstain

Five. Five dollar footlongs. Five for fighting. Etc...

January 12, 2009 9:11 am · Posted by oldergirlbeauty
So, I realized that an entry I made into a contest was actually a really good look back at some of my favs from this past year and what I would like to try this year, and I figured, hey - I've got a beauty website, why don't we post that damn thing up there, too? (Because I am a genius like that, ya know?).
Without much more fanfare, here are 5 things I came to love this past year and what I wanna love this year:

My Favorite Five:
1) Kate Somerville Exfolikate - I got to try a sampler kit from QVC this year and have just been blown away by how my skin feels after I used it. The tingle is just enough to let me know that something great is going on and makes me feel so clean and fresh afterwards.

2) My travel MAC brushes - I was lucky enough to get a travel set of 5 brushes in a Nordstroms anniversary set. They aren't as big as the regular brushes (so I can only imagine how good those work), but I have really come to appreciate how much a good set of brushes can make my makeup look and apply.

3) My Clarisonic brush - I finally gave in to the hype as a birthday present to my self (Thank you ezpay QVC gods) and am wishing I had got this for myself sooner. In just no time at all, I can have fresh clean skin that is so much cleaner than I could have ever gotten it with just my little washcloth. (This came with some Kate Somerville Daily Cleanser, which I also fell for in my sampler pack I mentioned earlier.)

4) My Covergirl Lash Blast mascara - Holy smokes - I adore this brush. Its huge and just makes my eyes pop so easily.

5) My Venus Embrace razor - With all those blades and the squishy handle its a breeze to shave and stay smooth for days. (Which is really great in the winter when I really don't wanna be all tied to the razor every day for shorts, etc.)


And My Wannabe Favorite Five:
1) Kate Somerville Deep Tissue Anti-Aging Treatment - I feel like I am on the hunt for the holy grail moisturizer, and I think this might be a great contender, considering how much I already love her other products.

2) T3 Featherweight Dryer - Once again, all the raves for this and I would love to try it out. It seems to take forever to dry my hair and then, oops, 2 min too long and its all frizz and my arms are too tired to wanna iron it out. Would love to see just how quick and easy this is.

3) Jurlique Biodynamic Beauty Serum - Amazing company in how the grow, harvest and make their own product. It is not easily available locally, but would love to try this serum as it is supposed to do amazing things for aging skin, naturally.

4) Daniel Sandler Watercolor Blush - This just looks too amazing not to try. A waterproof blush that looks so natural in such a range of colors. The link is to QVC, which comes with a brush, but is really limited in colors - hopefully they will add more colors, or else I will just order it from overseas in a diff color.

5) Prescriptives Custom Blend Tinted Moisturizer - I am not a heavy foundation girl, because I have freckles and don't like to cover them up. However, tinted moisturizers can be difficult to match. That is why I would love to try this, because it would eliminate the guesswork and be a match just for me and not everyone else that walks in off the street.
I guess I better get started - the year is slipping away already...

I'm pretty sure I bought that back then....

January 5, 2009 8:11 am · Posted by oldergirlbeauty

Just a reminder about the Cosmetics Settlement class action suit. There will be $175 million worth of cosmetics given out as part of a class action settlement starting on January 20th, for a maximum of 7 days or until all producct is given out (no rainchecks to be issued).

The locations to get the products is a pretty extensive list of department stores, but it is a limited list of products that are available - and they don't appear to be full sized:

  • Boucheron (USA) Ltd.:
Femme Eau de Toilette (1 ounce/30 ml)
  • Chanel, Inc.:
Coco Mademoiselle body lotion (3.4 fluid oz)
  • Christian Dior Perfumes, Inc.:
J’Adore Eau de Parfum (15 ml)
  • Clarins U.S.A., Inc. (customers will have a choice of ONE of two products, while supplies last):
Clarins Energizing Morning Cream (30 ml)

OR

Clarins Beauty Flash Bomb (30 ml)

  • Conopco, Inc. (distributed by Coty, Inc. on behalf of Conopco, Inc.) (customers will have a choice of ONE of three products, while supplies last):
Calvin Klein Euphoria Bath and Shower Crème (6.7 oz)

OR

Vera Wang Princess Body Polish (5 oz)

OR

Lovely Sarah Jessica Parker Shower Gel (6.7 oz)

  • The Estée Lauder Companies Inc. (customers will have a choice of ONE of two products, while supplies last):
Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair (15 ml/0.5 oz)

OR

Clinique Moisture Surge (30 ml/1 oz)

  • Guerlain, Inc.:
My Insolence Eau de Toilette (15 ml)
  • L’Oréal USA, Inc. (formerly known as Cosmair, Inc.) (customers will have a choice of ONE of eight products, while supplies last):
Lancôme UV Expert 20

OR

Lancôme Cils Design Pro Mascara

OR

Lancôme Fatale Mascara

OR

Lancôme Courbe Virtuose Mascara

OR

Lancôme Primordial Skin Defense

OR

Ralph Lauren Romance Shower Gel (6.7 oz.)

OR

Giorgio Armani ACM Shower Gel (6.7 oz)

OR

Lancôme Hypnôse Shower Gel

  • Parfums Givenchy, Inc.:
Very Irresistible Givenchy Eau de Toilette (15 ml)

Now, don't be thinking you are gonna get all greedy with this, because even if you bought more than one thing from them, this offer is just *1* product to a person - so, choose your replacement carefully.