subscribe to beauty blog via RSSThe Alluring Aromas Of Technique Indiscrete
March 11, 2011
In addition to the scores of fashion presentations that took over the Jardin des Tuileries this past week, the Paris sur Mode trade show offered up yet another tent full of fashion fancy for the style set to enjoy. Among the booths of apparel and accessory designers was a lone perfumer named Libertin Louison.
Since starting his own fragrance line, Technique Indiscrete, two years ago, the Belgian-born Louison’s star has been on the rise. A former couturier, Louison left the rag trade behind him to enroll at Paris’ esteemed Cinquième Sens, where he honed his skills as a perfumer. “I hate the ego,” he said of his reasons for leaving fashion behind him and embracing the olfactory arts. Of course there is the slightest bit of self-aggrandizing in designing fragrances, particularly when you’re culling your own memories for inspiration. “I try to make a translation of an aspiration or a feeling,” he told us of his seven different eaux, all of which are sensorial explorations of specific people, moments, and places. Santa Subita, for example, comes from the smell of Saint Catherine’s Orthodox church in Brussels, where Louison was moved by the aroma of wood and dust and incense and myrrh when formulating his citrus, cedar, patchouli, and benzoin scent. Sarfan Nobile stems from a similarly personal place. Concocted from the essences of a friend’s incredibly lavish Indian wedding, it boasts hints of orange, cardamom, anise, jasmine, saffron, and vanilla. Other scents are more whimsical still, like Veloutine, which packs notes of French violet, red fruits, rose, leather, and musk in homage to Barbara Cartland, Lady Di’s eccentric step-grandmother who had pink hair, a pink poodle, and always wore violet perfumes from Toulouse. The collection is stocked at Jovoy, Paris’ recently opened outpost for all things niche and fragrant which, despite its proximity to the beauty offerings at Colette, is becoming a shopping destination in and of itself.
Up next for Technique Indiscrete are three new colognes, wider distribution for its collection of Eaux d’Habit(a) (fragrances for your clothes and your home), teas, candles, lip balms, and maybe even a fashion show. “Fashion designers make perfume for money,” Louison says. “I might come back to fashion to make a balance for my perfumes.” In the meantime, look for the brand to become a whole lot more visible. When we left him this week, Louison was prepping for sales meetings with Luckyscent.com and Lane Crawford in Shanghai.
Take A Bite Out Of Your Beauty Routine
March 11, 2011
“It’s color and skincare all in one,” Bite Beauty founder Susanne Langmuir explained of her new natural makeup brand when we met with her in anticipation of its launch a few months back. The concept is a familiar one in this era of fusing natural cosmetics with anti-aging benefits. But Langmuir, who also started Sula beauty, is charting new territory with Bite, as it boasts a completely lip-specific lineup infused with the powerful antioxidant red-wine resveratrol—a first for the category. “Lips have been a missed opportunity for food-grade products,” she says. “I love Whole Foods, but I don’t want to shop there for cosmetics.” While the natural-goods purveyor now sells a wide selection of good-for-you foundations, blushes, eye shadows, and mascaras, you’re hard-pressed to find a vivid red lip stain or a hot fuchsia lipstick among its offerings. And vivid is the key word here. Like much of its competition, Bite uses only organic shea and fruit butters without the use of polybutenes and petroleum byproducts, but Langmuir has managed to source vibrant colorants that are all food grade for her latest venture. The Lip Rouge is as crimson as it appears in its pot and can be worn sheer on mouths or cheeks or built up for more opacity, and our personal favorite, the High Pigment Matte Pencil, comes in six shockingly bold colors. Luminous Crème Lipsticks, Lip Shines, and Sheer Balms round out the offerings. The fact that you will ingest a fraction of whatever pigment you put on your pout is inevitable; knowing that your products are actually good enough to eat makes that fact a bit easier to digest.
tags: Bite Beauty, Makeup, Susanne Langmuir
Keira Knightley, “Chanel Superwoman;” Frédéric Fekkai Takes Flight; And More…
March 11, 2011
Pictures leaked of Keira Knightley’s catsuit-clad new campaign for Chanel Mademoiselle late last year, and now clips from the fragrance’s forthcoming commercial have hit the web. In a voice-over describing the making of the ad, Knightly refers to her character as a “Chanel superwoman”—who presumably fights for good in the face of poorly dressed evil. [Grazia]
The latest installment of WWD’s Beauty Inc.—the new monthly trade glossy for beauty industry execs, retailers, and enthusiasts—is officially out, with two articles from the March “power issue” already online for your reading pleasure. Clinique’s global brand president Lynne Greene plays cover star and talks about revitalizing the brand by focusing on dermatological products—like those that target hypoallergenic concerns and redness remedies—rather than simply jumping on board the anti-aging bandwagon, while famed coiffeur, Frédéric Fekkai, opens up about his passion for helicopter flying. Fekkai’s AStar 350 Eurocopter gets him to Montauk in 40 minutes flat—which sure beats the four hours of summer traffic on the LIE. [WWD]
Speaking of shear geniuses, Bumble and Bumble founder Michael Gordon, who added documentary film producer to his resume last month with the release of “Vidal Sassoon: The Movie,” is looking to tap into the Internet with his next venture. Gordon is launching www.IfYouKnew.com in the hopes of creating a web space for dialogue about the beauty industry. [WWD]
First Kate Winslet, now Katherine Heigl. The age of the celebrity platinum crop is upon us. [PopSugar]
A video of Galliano’s elaborate runway bow from Dior’s Spring couture show may still be on loop at the houses spa in Paris, but the deposed designer’s own beauty ventures are fairing less well internationally in the wake of his anti-Semitic outbursts. In Canada, major department stores have systematically pulled his Parlez Moi d’Amour fragrance from shelves. [StyleLite]
tags: Bumble and Bumble, Chanel, Fragrance, Frederic Fekkai, Hair, John Galliano, Kate Winslet, Katherine Heigl, Keira Knightley, Michael Gordon
Miu Miu’s Mass-Market Beauty Extravaganza
March 11, 2011
In a departure from the abundance of sixties tributes we’ve seen this season, Miuccia Prada honed in on the forties at Miu Miu, which closed out Paris fashion week. Her glam squad of Pat McGrath and Guido Palau acted accordingly. “Modern vintage and forties elegance,” is how McGrath described the makeup, which consisted of two looks, one with a bare mouth and the other with a striking, matte red pout courtesy of a precise line of CoverGirl Lip Perfection Lipliner in Passion filled in with a mix of its Lip Perfection Lipstick in Hot—”the essential red shade”—and Eternal, a hot fuchsia. Both lips were complemented by porcelain skin, thanks to a light coverage of CoverGirl Natureluxe Foundation, groomed brows, and what will likely go down as McGrath’s signature for Fall 2011, spider lashes. “It’s an excessive lash,” she said of her heavy-handed application of CoverGirl NatureLuxe Mousse Mascara in Black, which was helped along by a few individual false lashes applied to the center of the top lash line.
Palau also went with his own adaptation of the era, focusing his attention on “a loose, naturally textured half updo,” that was prepped with Redken Wax Blast 10 high Impact Finishing Spray Wax for a piece-y effect and center-parted. The key to the style came from two simple hair combs—Goody hair combs, to be exact—which Palau used to sweep side sections from above models’ ears and secure on the top of their heads. Palau’s penchant for drugstore hair accessories, spotted here, at Prada, and McQueen, is an exciting development as far as getting properly (and affordably) coiffed come September.
tags: CoverGirl, Goody, Guido Palau, Hair, Makeup, Miu Miu, Miuccia Prada, Pat McGrath, Redken
Liv Tyler Puts On A Side Show
March 11, 2011
Liv Tyler has been making the front-row rounds this month and let us just say, bravo. At Givenchy, she easily bested Kanye West in the battle of the Rottweiler sweater, accessorizing it with minimal makeup and her signature lustrous locks blown out and middle parted. A few weeks earlier at Proenza Schouler, she added a retina-burning red lip to the equation. But last night may have been her best showing yet. At the Target GO International Designer Collective Launch in New York, she worked an interesting (and less permanent) adaptation of 2009’s “side shave,” tightly French-braiding the right side of her head to create the illusion of a buzz cut and leaving the left side long and flowing. All the better to properly rock that cropped leather jacket, of course. Thoughts on her latest beauty effort?
tags: Givenchy, Hair, Liv Tyler, Proenza Schouler
Exclusive: Make Up For Ever, Unretouched
March 10, 2011
About two years ago, digital retouching—a standard industry practice—began to go too far. Limbs went mysteriously missing; waists, arms, and hips were made unrealistically slim; skin color was lightened; and crow’s feet and wrinkles magically disappeared. Cue the backlash: The magazine-reading public started to question the practice and its effect on our impossible ideals of beauty. Cosmetics companies had their hands full with lawsuits in which it was determined that if the magical powers of false lashes, wigs, and computers were used to create images, it had to be noted in (fine) print. As a result, celebrities like Jessica Simpson and Monica Bellucci went sans makeup in fashion glossies, while others refused airbrushing altogether. And so, the “real beauty” movement was born.
Now Make Up For Ever is taking that movement one step further. In a first for the brand (and a novel idea for the industry), the professional-turned-consumer line is debuting an unretouched ad campaign—which has been certified by a notary public so there’s no question that it’s legit. The image highlights MUFE’s HD Invisible Cover Foundation range, which, it is claimed, provides results so flawless that your skin does not need retouching even when photographed with a digital lens. Seeing as how there was no blending tool used to smooth out discolorations and imperfections, a few things were obviously taken into account to make for a pretty picture: a) the model is young, ensuring that there are no physical signs of aging to contend with, and b) the photo is not a close-up but pulled back slightly.
Still, it’s a monumental achievement and one we hope more brands will follow. The campaign officially drops tomorrow equipped with a microsite that will contain a special interactive video and behind-the-scenes footage from the shoot. But for now, we’ve got a preview of it right here. Thoughts on the image and the notion of a new age of unembellished ads?
tags: Make Up For Ever
Drugstore Discovery of the Week: French Pharmacy Finds
March 10, 2011
In France, where good skincare trumps expensive makeup—there’s more of a “solve the problem, rather than cover it up” mentality—the pharmacy is king. Sure, there are loads of Sephoras from which to procure your favorite upmarket, niche cosmetics, but the regular old drugstore has a wealth of options to keep your complexion blemish-, wrinkle-, and oil-free. And thanks to the wonder that is globalization, many of the country’s best-kept skin secrets have been imported to the U.S., making Avène, Nuxe, Biotherm, Lierac, Klorane, and La Roche-Posay nearly household names. Others, however, remain without distribution deals, rendering them that much more coveted a souvenir.
While in Paris for the shows, I headed out to La Pharmacie on the corner of Rue du Four and Rue Bonaparte right off Boulevard Saint-Germain on the recommendation of a friend who called it “the best-priced beauty pharmacy in town”—which, for the record, must be widely known; at 10 a.m. on a Monday, the place was packed with locals and tourists alike. In a painfully anglicized accent, I asked a saleswoman to direct me toward “Les choses que ne puis pas acheter en Les États-Unis” (high school French coming through!) and subsequently test-drove a lion’s share of new brands. Here, the report from my haul.
What: Bioderma Solution Micellaire Créaline TS H20
Why: This is the makeup remover of choice not just for Parisiennes but for the world-class makeup artists that pass through their fine city during PFW. Lucia Pieroni does not go to shows without it, and that’s all the proof I need of its efficacy.
Meh or Yeah: Yeah. It’s great at removing eye makeup without leaving behind an oily residue, so if you can only remain conscious for a single part of your skincare regimen after a long day of shows, you won’t go to bed with greasy skin. It’s less effective at removing lip stains because of it, but I reserve the hard stuff for that job anyway.
What: Avibon Vitamin A Ointment
Why: A publicist friend said that this is a must-purchase while in Paris and that her middle-aged father swears by it for keeping his wrinkles at bay. An emollient retinol, it also helps boost clarity and hydration. And Gwyneth is a fan.
Meh or Yeah: Yeah. The ointment is super-thick and yellow and therefore super-questionable at first. But I slathered it onto my face anyway and when I didn’t break out, I kept using it to the tune of smoother, softer skin. It also seemed to help minimize some unfortunate pigmentation issues I’ve been having on my forehead, which is a huge bonus.
What: Rogé Cavaillès Soin Hydratant Corporal
Why: I ran out of body lotion in Paris and since I got into the habit of taking baths every night at 3 a.m. (damn you, jet lag), getting something to replace my Kiehl’s body cream was essential. I liked this one because its packaging reminded me of Queen Helene Cocoa Butter, which I love.
Meh or Yeah: Meh. It’s not nearly as emollient as Queen Helene and its fragrance is really overbearing—which in my mind equals skin-irritating. This one is worth passing on.
Continue reading ›
tags: Homeoplasmine, Skincare
Pretty Prevails, Backstage At Valentino
March 9, 2011
Throughout Guido Palau’s ponytail tour this season, in which he has constructed the easy updo from New York to Paris, the coiffing star has stressed that the beauty of the familiar style is the way you can make it look different by implementing small changes. Said changes have come in the form of sleek severity, texturization, or in the case of Valentino, a girly sixties vibe. “It’s femininity and a nod to the sixties, but not in a retro way. More in reference to Valentino’s heritage,” Palau explained, coating strands in Redken Velvet Gelatine 07 Cushioning Blow Dry Gel before fashioning middle parts and back-combing hair at the crown for a bit of height. Razor-cutting wispy sideburns (another Palau signature for Fall), he placed black ribbons around models’ heads for an added dose of pretty—a rare word in the wealth of borrowed-from-the-boys homages we’ve seen over the past month.
“She’s a perfect-skinned beauty,” Pat McGrath added of the Valentino woman, whose complexion was given a light base courtesy of CoverGirl’s NatureLuxe foundation. Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli “wanted a cool girl—as if she’d done her makeup herself,” McGrath elaborated, dusting a gray/brown “smoke” onto lids and fashioning “perfected lashes” on both the top and bottom lash lines using CoverGirl’s NatureLuxe Mousse Mascara to complete the sixties homage. Spider lashes strike again!
tags: CoverGirl, Guido Palau, Hair, Makeup, Pat McGrath, Redken, Valentino
At McQueen, Guido Palau’s Night Of Shining Armor
March 9, 2011
“You’ve got to mention Goody,” Guido Palau modestly implored as the oohs and ahhs over his “hair helmet” backstage at McQueen started flying. The popular mass-market hair accessory brand sent him 6,000 silver and metallic black barrettes for the show, which were splayed out in Tupperware buckets in a cavernous area behind the makeshift runway setup at La Concierge. With 100 barrettes designated to each of the 34 models in Sarah Burton’s show, Palau used over half of them.
This is the second extraordinary coiffing feat the shear genius has pioneered with Burton, after implementing box-woven panels at her debut outing last season. “I know the DNA of the brand—I’ve worked with them for so long so it’s almost instinctual. Sarah is the same way,” Palau said. For Fall, the idea was “robotic and fetishistic—almost futuristic,” which Palau achieved by essentially covering the whole head with metal, either in linear patterns or crisscrossed shapes. “I tried it on a ponytail originally but we wanted to take it to another level.” (Suffice it to say, mission accomplished). “[It’s] strong but still beautiful—not weird and ugly, but aesthetically and visually pleasing,” Palau pointed out of the style—not unlike the “Crystal Cave” nail designs Minx co-founder Dawn Lynch-Goodwin had flown in for the show from L.A. by way of the Eurostar from London. “We presented 20 to 22 different designs in the theme of the ‘Ice Maiden’ inspiration,” Lynch-Goodwin said, explaining that the winning nail was taken from an image of an ice storm seen through the confines of a cave.
Famed face painter Peter Philips was also building off his new relationship with Burton by playing up a similarly ethereal look to the paled-out faces and golden highlights he designed for Spring. “We’re trying to find an identity here—the Alexander McQueen girl,” Philips said. “The clothes are like armor, so we didn’t want to distract from that with complicated makeup.” The result was alabaster skin, which Philips created using his go-to bottle of Chanel Pro-Lumiere Foundation in #10, the lightest shade in the range, whitened even further with a special mix of shimmering pearl pigment that was blended into the base. After lining lids with Chanel Le Crayon Yeux in Khaki Platine, Philips dusted shimmering ivory and gold highlights onto the sides of the face, the nose bridge, the inner corners of the eye, and the cupid’s bow of models’ mouths “just to bring it all alive so they don’t look dead.”
As yet another example of Fall’s departure from the color-blocking of seasons’ past—the bold lip colors, pastel nail varnishes, and bright eye shadows that have made a comeback of late—Philips pointed out that he is embracing a new, “cocooning effect” of makeup. “It’s less graphic and more about applying pigments with your fingers while playing with shine and luminosity. But that’s just my opinion”—which holds a lot of weight, as far as this reporter is concerned.
tags: Alexander McQueen, Chanel, Guido Palau, Hair, Makeup, Peter Philips, Redken
A Metallic Moment Backstage At Chanel
March 9, 2011
The Chanel show always offers up a well-choreographed example of how the connection between high fashion and beauty can be a seamless one. Karl Lagerfed tells his go-to face painter, Peter Philips, about his sartorial vision—the fabrics, the colors, the themes (which for Fall included a dark forest equipped with dancing shadows and breaks of light)—and Philips doesn’t just oblige with a corresponding makeup look, he actually makes products to properly fit the bill. This season, it was all about metallics. “It’s just communication,” Philips says of the unique designer/makeup artist relationship. “Karl said he wanted silver,” and so Philips turned to Épatant, a gunmetal shade from his new-for-autumn Illusion d’Ombre cream eye shadow collection, which he mixed with two of the range’s other shimmering shades in white and black to create the focal point of the look. “They come with an applicator, but I prefer to use my finger,” Philips said of the mousse-y pigments, which can go on thick for opacity or sheered out for transparency. “You can actually use it as an eyeliner, too,” he pointed out—dipping an angled brush into the sparkling onyx pot and scrawling it across the upper lash line. A similar smudged line was drawn using Chanel Stylo Yeux Waterproof Eyeliner in Ébène below the lower lash line before Philips whipped on a few coats of its Inimitable Waterproof mascara in Noir. Finishing touches came in the form of a pinkish nude lip from Philips’ forthcoming Rouge Allure lipstick offerings and a ten-finger salute to the gray/gold Graphite, the latest addition to the Chanel nail polish arsenal.
Lagerfeld has a similar rapport with coiffeur Sam McKnight. “Karl always sends a sketch,” McKnight said of the inspiration behind his “simple little side knots.” Prepping hair with Frédéric Fekkai Coiff Bouffant Lifting & Texturizing Spray Gel, McKnight created side parts, adding a slight bend with a curling iron and then letting hair fall out in wisps around the back of the head, where he gathered the remaining lengths into a loose chignon. “We’re keeping it young and fresh,” he said, spraying a halo of Pantene Classic Hairspray for hold—and also embodying the boy-meets-girl trend Lagerfeld successfully interpreted on the runway. Half of the loose, tomboy twists were embellished with Chanel jewelry baubles so there was an elegance at play to balance out all those biker boots.
tags: Chanel, Hair, Karl Lagerfeld, Makeup, Peter Philips, Sam McKnight
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