Best Beauty Always

LashControl Mascara

Nothing takes the flirt factor out of batting your eyelashes faster than smudged, clumpy mascara or lashes that are barely there. And never mind flirting – my eyes just need some definition. Even on no-makeup days, I don’t feel ready for the world without a little mascara. If you have lash issues or just like to play with mascara and eyelash products, the past few years have seen a fresh focus on the eyelashes, with new technologies in packaging and formulation. From vibrating brushes to Latisse prescription eyelash lengthener and Four Day Stay from Tarte, beauty brands are putting the fun back in flirting.  

LashControl Mascara launched in 2006 with a lot of interest in its packaging and formula and is still winning innovation awards. The packaging was designed to let users decide how much mascara gets onto the brush by controlling the pressure applied to the center of the tube. The brand owner says that the unique package eliminates the need to wipe excess mascara off the brush and tube, minimizing the introduction of foreign matter into the product and reducing contamination. It was invented by a woman, and here’s what the she said about her idea:

“The innovative thought behind this design concept began with the trust I have in the user.  LashControl® is a real tool – something to be manipulated, played with, so that the user can continuously customize the application. This package hands over the control - offering a way to contain excess within the packaging. If you wipe your brush with a tissue, you bring back into the package those fibers which contaminate the formula and cause microbial issues inside the package. Also, if we can conserve waste and extend the life of the formula, we increase value. Just consider how many boxes of tissues are used daily if even one half of one percent of people use a tissue to help in the application. ” --Jennifer Paulson Lee  

LashControl® mascara is currently offered in three versions: A lengthening and conditioning formula in natural black, color-coded with a pink wiper sleeve on the package; a high-performance zig-zag brush for those who want more immediate coverage, color-coded with a purple squeeze sleeve. The “Luscious” brush offers multiple options with every stroke; and, just out is a water resistant formulation also in black. It is a soft, sheer formula featuring botanicals and a light, feathered brush for a "Sheer and Sexy" look.

LashControl is available online and at select stores.

Chloé Eau de Parfum Intense

The original Chloé eau de parfum is described as a bouquet of roses with a velvety heart, interlaced with floral notes of magnolia and lily of the valley, and all enhanced with honeyed accents of amber and cedar wood. The new Chloé Eau de Parfum Intense takes things up a notch. The imperial rose is joined by sparkling pink pepper head notes with sandalwood and tonka bean for a little oriental intrigue. Chloé Eau de Parfum Intense was crafted by perfumers Michel Almairac and Amandine Marie. It comes in an elegant bottle accented with silver and a ribbon in natural petal beige, ivory or deep grey and is available this month exclusively at Saks Fifth Avenue and Chloé boutiques.

I just love getting news about new fragrances. So much craft and artistry goes into every aspect of a fragrance -- not just the juice but the bottle, the box and the wonderfully worded marketing materials, too. The world of perfume is an exciting one and I urge you to explore what's new, discover what's "you," and maybe even rediscover an old favorite or two.

New Beauty Advice: Wash Your Hands

Nothing ruins a beautiful face and great makeup quite like itchy, watery eyes, a runny nose and chapped lips – common symptoms of colds and flu. In the interest of both beauty and wellness – as flu season approaches – I’m sharing some information about hand washing from the Soap and Detergent Association.

In the fifth annual Clean Hands Report Card^® issued by The Soap and Detergent Association (SDA - www.cleaning101.com), America’s grade for hand hygiene rose from a “C-minus” in 2008 to a “B-minus.” The Report Card is based on a series of hygiene-related questions asked of 888 Americans during a telephone survey conducted in August 2009 by Echo Research. 

There is good news along with plenty of room for improvement in the survey results. While more Americans claim to always wash their hands before eating lunch, after coughing or sneezing and after using the bathroom, 39% of respondents seldom or never wash their hands after coughing or sneezing (on par with 2008). “The H1N1 pandemic is real. Cold and flu season is on its way.  With common sense hygiene practices, good health is literally in our hands,” said Nancy Bock, SDA Vice President of Education. 

The survey found that nearly two-thirds of adults (65%) expressed concern about H1N1 flu (women more than men: 72%, 57%, respectively).  But only one-third of respondents said they changed their overall hygiene habits in response to the growing concerns about H1N1.

I’m no expert but I think it’s important to understand that we wash our hands both to protect others from the spread of our germs, and to protect ourselves from other people’s germs. My mother admonished us to not touch our faces – eyes, nose, mouth – with dirty hands. Good wellness AND beauty advice.

Lancome Dual Finish Versatile Powder Makeup

Preparing for a business trip last week, I realized I hadn’t used a foundation makeup much at all during the summer, relying instead on tinted moisturizer when I wanted a little coverage. This trip demanded a great look and I didn’t hesitate for a second when deciding what to buy. I’ve tried a number of great foundation products over the past few years, but for a fabulous finish I just love Lancome’s Dual Finish Versatile Powder Makeup. You can use the puff, to apply it dry over your foundation, or the sponge, to apply it either wet or dry as a foundation on its own depending on the finish and amount of coverage you need. I generally use it dry as a foundation. It covers beautifully and, as I said, the finish is fabulous. It also comes in a fragrance free version.

As luck would have it, I got a great little GWP that included a sample of Lancome’s Renergie Microlift cream with R.A.R.E. technology – Re-bundling and Repositioning Effect, and an eyeshadow quartet with matte shadow in Daylight, sheen finish shadows in Optic and Spontaneous, and metallic shadow in The New Black. Happy Makeup Monday!

Lancome Dual Finish Versatile Powder Makeup

Preparing for a business trip last week, I realized I hadn’t used a foundation makeup much at all during the summer, relying instead on tinted moisturizer when I wanted a little coverage. This trip demanded a great look and I didn’t hesitate for a second when deciding what to buy. I’ve tried a number of great foundation products over the past few years, but for a fabulous finish I just love Lancome’s Dual Finish Versatile Powder Makeup. You can use the puff, to apply it dry over your foundation, or the sponge, to apply it either wet or dry as a foundation on its own depending on the finish and amount of coverage you need. I generally use it dry as a foundation. It covers beautifully and, as I said, the finish is fabulous. It also comes in a fragrance free version.

As luck would have it, I got a great little GWP that included a sample of Lancome’s Renergie Microlift cream with R.A.R.E. technology – Re-bundling and Repositioning Effect, and an eyeshadow quartet with matte shadow in Daylight, sheen finish shadows in Optic and Spontaneous, and metallic shadow in The New Black. Happy Makeup Monday!

Sampling Beauty's Future

Sorry for the gap in postings. I was in New York this week to attend a beauty industry trade show that included an interesting exhibit of beauty foods, which I’ve posted about before, here. These are generally foods and beverages that contain specific ingredients aimed at improving a particular beauty issue.  Of course, functional ingredients in everyday foods are nothing new. We’ve been eating enriched foods all our lives. But the availability of foods with ingredients meant to impact the skin, for example, has been growing slowly around the world. At the exhibit, I sampled Beauty Style Banana Choco Bar, from Korea, that tasted good and contained bananas, sugar coated almonds, oats and dietary fiber. I also had a taste of Gimme Probiotics, a dark chocolate candy that was not so much about external beauty as good internal operation. There were several collagen drinks for skin care that I did not try (partly because chocolate was not part of the recipe). Also there for the sampling was candy flavored either with grapefruit or rose, designed to fragrance your body from the inside out (like garlic, but nicer). Of course, from these small samples there’s no way I can tell you how effective these products are, but I can tell you with some certainty that more products like these will be making their way to your stores very soon.

Angela Ritchie's ACE Camps Part II

This is part two of my inspiring Q&A with Angela Ritchie, blogger at Grace Is Over 50 and founder of Angela Ritchie’s ACE Camps. See part one here. And take the opportunity to contribute to the discussion! I'd love to hear from you.

Karen: You’ve had what sounds like a pretty adventurous life. What were some of the best parts? What do you like best about what you’re experiencing now?

Angela: I used to grab my bedding and sleep on my roof when I was about 8 years old – it was exciting for me to wake up in the morning in the outdoors.  I’m not sure I ever told my mother this and am pretty darn sure she wouldn’t have approved.  I have never been afraid to try new adventures and guess it’s because once you start doing them it just gets easier.  I’m a bit of a nomad which I suppose sets me apart from those that have chosen a life lacking in adventure.  There’s a thrill about it.  I’m not talking about bungee jumping or cliff diving or other dangerous sports. I’m thinking it’s more of spontaneity and trusting the outcome.

Some of my favorite times have included experiences in nature and in cultures – like skiing in deep powder in the trees in Whistler, B.C., hiking the Grand Canyon, hanging out in the Sahara desert, running a hotel in Mexico where all the staff spoke another language or walking in the bush in the Yukon staking a gold claim after being dropped off in the middle of who knows where by a helicopter – to meeting a guy in a bar in Rio de Janeiro and trusting that he would meet me at the bus station in Buenos Aires after 48 hours on a bus.  We never spoke one word to each other – he Spanish, me English but there he was waiting for me when I got off the bus. Some things I did would not be regarded as safe today and I certainly don’t recommend them, like hitchhiking to our cottage in Northern Ontario or driving with 4 other girls across Canada in a tiny push button gear changing Renault.

What I like best about what I’m experiencing right now is the challenge of making the Ace Camps successful. I like to work and have figured out what type of job would best fill my days.  One morning I woke up and basically the word Ace Camps was in my head and I went from there.  I have a lot of great ideas for the camps and hope to have a following of great people who upon reading of the newly listed camps will sign up right away.  I’m working on the new website and hopefully soon it’ll be launched.

Karen: What else would you like to experience for yourself?

Angela: I would love to camp across Australia in an Airstream bus, live in Paris for a few months, build a pond yacht at The Wooden Boat School, laugh with Shirley MacLaine, play one song on a musical instrument, travel India by luxury train, travel through wine country in Argentina, build a rustic cabin on a lake…ah, so much to do!

Karen: Are all of your camps art related? Any trout fishing or adventure cooking with interesting chefs? What’s on tap for future camps?

Angela: There will be all sorts of different experiences involved with the Ace Camps.  I would like to have travel writing workshops with Tim Cahill in Yellowknife, NWT – (hey, Tim, are you reading this?), journeys in New York with Charleston lessons and attending the Jazz Picnic on Governors’ Island, tennis camps, fly fishing, cooking in Italy in a castle, mystery writing in an ice hotel and even a glass of wine (or two) with Francis Ford Coppola at his winery.  In January 2010 I have a four-day camp in Panorama, B.C. with Heather Bilodeau, one of Canada’s best ski instructors.  If she can’t get you skiing like you never thought possible no one can. And if you know any “kick-ass” boomers whom I should feature on Grace is over 50 – feel free to contact me at [email protected]

So, Best Beauty Always readers, are you itching to experience adventure, culture and education? The ACE Camps in the Baja are filling up fast.  Sabrina Ward Harrison will be leading the first one from October 24^th – November 2^nd, followed by Suzanne Northcott – November 7^th – 14^th.  If you want to keep in touch and check in on the camps you can follow Angela’s Facebook page for updates and as soon as the Ace Camp website is finished there will a link from www.graceisover50.com, and find the tab for ACE Camps.

I have a long list of adventures I’d like to experience. How about you? Please share a few of the experiences you would like to have in a comment here at Best Beauty Always. I can’t wait to read them! -- Karen

Angela Ritchie's ACE Camps Part I

"You have to try to do what you really like – or what’s the point?  Angela Ritchie

 On her blog, Grace Is Over 50, Angela Ritchie paints 50-plus with a “cool” brush, seeking out people living lives of art, inspiration and adventure and assuring us that we are not living our mothers’ 50 plus. She also runs a venture called Angela Ritchie’s ACE Camps, through which she takes “cool people on adventurous, cultural and educational trips,” thus the name, ACE. While ACE Camps is for people of all ages, I think the opportunities Angela offers, and others like them, could be especially wonderful for women over 50 looking for new challenges and new ways to express themselves. In a two-part post that will finish up on Thursday, Angela answers a few questions I had for her about being 50 and doing what she really likes.

Karen: I love your blog. It says to me, 'See, 50 is not the end of hip and interesting!' Being over 50 hasn’t always seemed so cool, but you clearly know of a lot of people who are making exciting things happen for themselves. Is our generation changing notions about middle age?

Angela: Most definitely our generation is changing the notion.  We have lived through some of the most interesting eras especially the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s.  We are redefining what it means to be 50 – celebrating in our own unique style and with an enthusiasm for life.  I think most of us have a belief just because we’re getting older that doesn’t mean we stop doing incredible things.  My blog is not about health concerns, retirement or complaints about aging but rather to encourage the growing older crowd to get out there and live life to its fullest.  I also want the readers to be proud of their age and not hide it.  I am hoping to tell everyone that we as the older generation can live as mentors of style, grace and encouragement, not just old folks to be ignored.

Karen: Your blog is about growing older with adventure, audacity and style. How can owning those three things make life better after 50? If you feel as though you’ve never really embraced those things, where do you begin?

Angela: I’d like the readers to grasp on to the adventures ahead and to explore what is meaningful to their lives – to take on the challenges of their dreams without fear.  I feel that if the older generation is grabbing their challenges and making an effort to follow their dreams it can only prove good to the younger folks.  I can’t think of anyone who doesn’t admire strength in someone – let’s say Audrey Hepburn who, even as she grew older, participated in causes that were very dear and important to her as a person.  If someone over 50 has never embraced the things in life they deemed important now is the time to start.  It’s not frightening – it’s wondrous.  It does not matter how simple your goals are.  It matters whether or how you achieve them.  Style is about the way in which something is said, done, expressed, or performed and no matter what it is that you try to learn about, no matter if no one around you has the same desire, it is only important if you take the chance and the steps to move forward and continue learning.  No cranky oldies – respect is my hope.

Karen: There are a lot of people over 50 who just wouldn’t be so comfortable with what Suzanne Northcott (ACE Camp artist) calls “following the mapless terrain of the creative life.” They like a little more structure in their days. How would you encourage them to sign up for an ACE Camp adventure – or just get out and try something new?

Angela: I contacted Suzanne Northcott to verify her statement and I think it fits in quite well with the message I’m trying to get across.  Suzanne wrote me back and stated the following:  “It means that when you are learning to listen to your best, wisest instincts, you don't know where that will lead. She is right to wonder if this could be risky because living this way is exciting and energizing and can cause changes in your life.  The "muse" is another name for your own voice, the voice of the creative courageous you that would never ask you to go in a direction that isn't ultimately good for you.  Our job is to sort this voice out from the often louder voice of fear and dysfunction.”

I know that participants will come back from an Ace Camp renewed, rejuvenated and excited by spending their time with other like-minded people.  Ace Camps are about learning, exploring, inspiration and having fun.  The camps are small and a great opportunity to create new friendships.  It is my ultimate desire to have participants stay in touch with each other, join up for other Ace Camps opportunities and be able to step out of their norms.  I have never known a person who has successfully taken a risk and not evolved.

I love that last line! Be sure to come back on Thursday for part 2 of Embracing Adventure. In the meantime, be thinking about the next adventure you’d like to have.

Daisy Marc Jacobs

Marc Jacobs isn't gilding the lily here. He's dressing up Daisy Marc Jacobs with limited-edition forms and packages. Available now at fine department stores throughout the U.S. and online is Daisy Silver Edition, a reinterpretation of the Daisy bottle with a silver metallic finish. Also in stores now is Daisy Marc Jacobs Eau de Toilette Rollerball, a tiny clear glass bottle holding .20 oz of Daisy, decorated with white daisies, to toss into your bag. It sells for around $20.

In stores in October for a limited time is the Daisy Marc Jacobs Solid Perfume Pendant Necklace, .02 oz of solid perfume in a daisy-shaped pin that can be worn on a chain. It will come with a gold pouchette and will retail for about $40.

Lush Vanillary

Happy September! For years, when September approached and the temperature started to drop a little, my thoughts were always about the happy return to school. But as my school days receded into history and my interest in cooking and baking grew, the approach of autumn signaled a return to the kitchen. The scent that goes along with the shift from outdoors to inside for me is vanilla.

This month marks the debut of a new fragrance from Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics. Called Vanillary, the fragrance builds from a velvety vanilla base to include tonka bean and jasmine. The folks at Lush say its note of burnt caramel is reminiscent of toffee. Sounds good enough to eat!

Vanillary comes in atomizer and solid forms. The solid perfume is made with a blend of 30% fragrance, pure vegetable waxes and jojoba oil, and is packaged in 98% recycled aluminum tins. Lush Vanillary is available at Lush stores and online at lushusa.com.