Best Beauty Always

Make It Your Own With Layers

We've layered our hair, and our tee shirts. We've had burgers our way for decades, ordering only those condiments that appeal to us. Kids serving themselves from the soft drink station mix flavors in ways that make me a little queasy just thinking about the results. We customize our cars and our phones. One-of-a-kind is the new mass appeal. So what's a great way to get just the fragrance or nail polish shade you want?

Nail polish maven Essie Weingarten tells More magazine that she customizes her fragrance and her nail polish by layering. "Clinique Happy plus Chanel Allure has become my signature scent. And I get a weekly manicure mixing two sheer Essie shades: Blushing Bride topped by Ballet Slippers," she says in the February issue.

Layering fragrance generally means using a favorite fragrance in multiple forms - bath oil, body lotion and perfume, for example - to make the fragrance last longer. Combining two distinct scents to create something different that smells great on you is called scent layering, and it can take time to perfect. I did a little research after I read Essie's comments, and found an article that explains the fragrance layering trend and offers a step-by-step approach to creating your own custom scent. Let me know what you come up with.

Seeking Illumination?

I wasn't on any particular mission today when I stopped by my local makeup counter, except perhaps to find something new to lighten up the winter gray that surrounds me. What I found was something both new and illuminating!

Revlon Age Defying Spa Face Illuminator (with SPF 18) goes on with a built-in brush anywhere you want a little glow or highlight. You can wear it alone or with foundation, or even mix a little into your foundation. I played with it a little bit, trying it alone, with foundation applied over primer and without primer, and over a favorite tinted moisturizer. I tried "Pink Light" on my cheekbones, above the brow and a little on my chin and I liked the effect.

I paid about $12 for 1 oz.

Will You Break Piggy for Beauty?

Women's Wear Daily reported this morning that consumers grew used to doing without in 2009 and are expected to focus spending on the important things in 2010. We're dining out less, holding on to cars that are still in good condition, and thinking twice about buying status brands. So what about beauty?

What kinds of decisions are you making about your beauty regimen? Are you cutting back on evenings out to maintain your cut and color? Will you make your expensive handbag last another season so you can have that weekend at a spa? Perhaps you've stepped away from the department store beauty counter - even temporarily - to buy skin care products at discount stores or drug stores.

I was talking with an esthetician yesterday about a skin analysis and facial and she told me her price range, so I know what I'm facing there. I have also been looking for a good hand treatment plus a manicure before an evening out with friends. That's not something I do every week, or even once a month, but I am not happy about the way my hands are looking. Oh, and I need a new night cream. Winter air is dry, dry, dry. What's a woman to do?

Get me a hammer. I'm going in!

Finding My Inner Spandex

Resilient New Year!

For many people, the "nought" years were fraught with stress, change, and fear. For me, the year just past saw losses and leave-takings pile up into a mountain I sometimes felt ill-equipped to climb. But in the course of doing some mental laundry - the sort of cleanup precipitated by life's natural disasters, I read my label. And wouldn't you know it! Just like nearly every garment on the market today, I am at least one percent Spandex, or whatever it's called in the human fabric. Yep! I can be pulled and stretched, sat upon, tossed around in the gale of life and still bounce back to my hanger-fresh form.

Sometimes it takes a decade like the "zeros" to really discover what you're made of. If your mental laundry requires a little darning, be sure to weave some love, laughter, family, friendship, good memories and at least a little resiliency into that garment, and wear it every day like a favorite scarf.

A Few Items of Interest

Today, I thought I'd share some links to articles I found interesting. Food for thought, with just a little fat...

Ever wonder what really makes your hair turn gray? A BBC story says it isn't stress.

Millions are out of work. What's a baby boomer to do? Check CNN.

If those choices are not glamorous enough for you, you could try the Susan Boyle career-change route AND not have to worry about how to download music, in The New York Times.

Finally, an update from The New York Times on the potential for putting one's own fat to better(?) use.

What's on your mind today?

Dawn Hand Renewal with Olay Beauty

Entertaining is a major part of the holiday season, and we all know that entertaining means dirty dishes. Even with a dishwasher (or kitchen helpers, you lucky girl!) we're going to get our hands into a lot of soapy water in the next few weeks and it is going to take its toll. And who wants to greet or serve guests with the dreaded dishpan hands?

Now, Procter & Gamble has launched Dawn Hand Renewal with Olay Beauty, which the company says will transform the look and feel of your hands in just five uses, aided by enzymes and a unique surfactant technology. It works by sealing moisture in your hands while you do dishes. I have not tried this product but I like the idea of a detergent that protects my hands while I use it.

I'll put it on the list for the next time I need dish detergent. In the meantime, I try to rinse and dry my hands thoroughly after dishwashing, and apply hand lotion throughout the day.

Beauty Budget: Spend or Save?

I came across some information recently that I wanted to share with you. These days, we all seem to be watching our pennies a little more closely. So, in the interest of our skin, where should we spend on beauty and where can we save? Dermatologists Susan H. Weinkle, M.D. and Heidi A. Waldorf, M.D. have put together a list of their expert tips on getting the most out of your beauty budget. According to the doctors, the keys are to invest wisely and to arm yourself with knowledge about where you can compromise and where you can’t. They tell us that the three essential items to keep  skin in top shape now-- in order to avoid expensive corrective procedures later--are sunscreen, an antioxidant moisturizer, and a product containing retinoic acid. Here is more advice from doctors Weinkle and Waldorf:

Products – where to invest and where you can save money

Worth the Price:

• Prescription retinoids (tretinoin, tazarotene, adapalene) – nothing else has been shown to do as much for photoaged skin; and one tube should last several months
• Certain cosmeceuticals (idebenone, coffeeberry) – your dermatologist knows what works and what you’re more likely to tolerate

Option to Thrift

• Cleansers – if you need to save, a gentle over-the-counter non-drying lotion cleanser will do the job.
• Sunscreen – drug store options with appropriate ingredients abound, and you need to use a lot of it.
• Eye cream – if you’re trying to save, you can use your face cream for your eye area too.

  Augmenting in-office treatments at home

• Get more bang for your buck – use a home microdermabrasion system between professional treatments

• Non-invasive treatments work best when accompanied by an effective at home regimen of sun protection and some combination of retinoids, anti-oxidants and/or peptides.
• Don’t work against your treatment:  avoid cigarettes, tanning, and picking.
• Ask your dermatologist for a prescription to slow hair growth while you’re undergoing laser hair removal

Reasonable investments for long-term beauty

• The current long-lasting fillers are cost-effective.  A recent study of hyaluronic acid showed that once you achieve your optimal correction, keeping it up requires only half the original volume used once or twice a year.  For patients who can’t pay for full correction the first visit, there’s the option to gradually achieve correction over several months – each treatment builds on the last because the prior filler isn’t gone and new collagen has been formed.
• Tightening procedures utilizing lasers and radiofrequency cost far less than surgery, can put off the expense of a surgical lift for several years and don’t require a lot of time off from work.
• Botulinum toxins continue to be a safe and effective way to look fresher without downtime and for about the cost of hair and nail maintenance.

Doctors Weinkle and Waldorf belong to an organization called Women's Dermatologic Society. If you're looking for a dermatologist, check out the Society's Web site.

Summersent's Story Still Intrigues

I met Marjorie Kitzrow, founder of Marjorie Midgarden Fragrances and creator of Summersent perfume, in 2006 when she was caught up in the excitement of launching her fragrance. I was so intrigued by her story that I wrote it up for the magazine I worked for at the time and will tell you about here, in a nutshell: Marjorie, who had a career in brand marketing, learned about a flower with an amazing fragrance, sought it out, smelled it for herself, and decided it had to be captured (or, perhaps, released) in a perfume. With no previous experience in the fragrance industry, she sought out great advice and resources and got her perfume made and to market.

Today Summersent can be found in a number of department stores including select Von Maur locations, Liberty of London and Takashimaya New York. You can read an in-depth review of the fragrance, here. My own initial reaction to Summersent was that it seemed somehow familiar, like a sweet memory from the past that I couldn't quite put my finger on. According to Marjorie, that's a common response.

I hadn't seen Marjorie for about a year, but we met for lunch in Chicago last Friday and she was excited and full of plans for the Summersent brand. In just a few short years, her second career has taken her places and presented opportunities and challenges that I'm guessing she never dreamed she would experience, and she seems to have taken it - is still taking it - all in stride. I'll be watching to see where it takes her next, and I wish her a fabulous journey.

Fragrance Trends for 2010 Part 2

Did you notice how the second trend in the last post on fragrance seemed to fit with the fashion trends I posted about on Monday? A little fantasy is a good thing in the best of times, so in tough times, go ahead and indulge. The experts may be on to something here but I guess we'll know soon enough, as 2010 is fast approaching. Here are the last two fragrance trends from beautypress.com.

Be your own nose: Once reserved for only those-in-the know,  personalized, custom fragrance is gaining popularity, thanks to newer, more accessible ways to get it. The $10,000 bespoke blend still exists, but customized perfume is happily now at a realistic price point, about the same that you’d pay for a bottle of fine fragrance from a niche perfumer. Look for custom fragrance bars at department and chain stores, where you can sample single notes. Another custom trend: Perfume parties that let you create your own formula with three or four harmonizing blends. A consultant guides you through the notes and accords, and you walk away with a true signature scent.  “Women want something that reflects their individuality. Everyone is focusing on what’s the wisest way to spend their money now, and this is an affordable luxury that you can honestly call your own,” says Phillips, who also works with The Perfume Studio, a company that organizes custom fragrance parties and seminars. Designing your own fragrance is well worth the investment—you spend time getting to know what you like, experiment with different aromas, and leave with a memorable transporting experience.     

Tell a tale:  Perfume companies are realizing that it takes more than a whiff of the scent to get people interested. “Right now, story telling is especially relevant. People want to know how a fragrance is made and the work that has gone into it, as well as tap into its emotional connection. Fragrance sends a very personal and emotional message,” says Greene. And with more than 1000 perfume launches last year, a story is the advantage a new fragrance needs to stand out. “There’s a real quest for authenticity at the moment. When you know why the perfumer chose the notes and his inspiration, the whole experience draws you in and becomes more genuine,” says Celene Aguilar, director of US sales and marketing for L’Artisan Parfumeur. How to get the story told? Salespeople, of course, but companies are also experimenting with innovative new outlets, like social media, blogs, dvds and short films, that ultimately, leave a lasting, and fragrant impression.

There you have it - a peek into the near future of fragrance from some experts who are involved in it every day. Now you're in the know for your next visit to the fragrance counter.    

Fragrance Trends for 2010

It's no secret that I'm a big fan of fragrance. In covering the business of fragrance and beauty for many years, I developed an enormous respect for the history, the expertise, the creativity and the effort that goes into the crafting of every new perfume and eau de toilette that enters the market. Trends come and go in fragrance as in just about everything else in life, and the folks at beautypress.com talked to a number of experts in the fragrance world to find out what's ahead in scent. Here are trends one and two. Look for trends three and four in my next post.

There’s no beauty product that’s more powerful than perfume. One spritz, and the experience becomes highly personal: Suddenly, you’re overcome by memories of your grandmother’s rose garden, find the confidence to take a chance on love, or shake out a grumpy mood for a bright and cheerful one. Despite the economy, fragrance will always be an attainable luxury that suggests escape, says Kate Greene, vice president of marketing, at Givaudan Fine Fragrance.  Where will it take you next? Here’s a sneak peek at four fragrance trends, coming soon to a beauty counter near you.   

Look to the past: With economic stress, expect to see a return to nostalgia.  “We look to history to provide a glimpse into the future. We watch how the pendulum is swinging as a forecast.  For example, during difficult times, consumers seek what is nostalgia and comfort; and most often gravitate towards classic florals. During the Great Depression, it was the big bold floral statement of Joy by Jean Patou that was popular, while Chloe was a top seller during the turmoil of the 70’s—both comforting, classic florals. There’s a sense that the demand turns to what’s familiar and safe,” says Greene. Recently, big floral perfumes have been bestsellers, in response to the current economic recession.  In the next couple of months, be on the lookout for new perfumes dominated by floral notes that your mom and grandma loved, like rose and violet. “Those scents remind you of a simpler time, and that memory can be a great comfort when you’re stressed,” says Sue Phillips, owner and founder of Scenterprises Limited, a global fragrance consulting firm.    

Spot a brighter future:  For 2010 launches, think bold, exciting and fantasy. “The perfumes coming down the pipeline are going to be vibrant, saturated, a collection of technicolor ingredients. As we move out of sobering times, the consumer will crave escape and color, and will be much more experimental.  We’re all ready for some fun,” says Greene. Sophisticated, rich scents are also having a moment, edging out light citrus and watery florals, as the heart and soul of new perfumes. Look for warm, woody notes, like sandalwood, amber and resin that have heft and character. “These notes are natural, down to earth and last longer,” says Mary Ellen Lapsansky, vice president of The Fragrance Foundation. “Traditionally, strong woods have been associated with the men’s fragrances, but the lines between men and women’s fragrances have been blurring for some time now."

What are you craving right now in terms of fragrance? How has the economy affected your fragrance mood? Check back soon to learn trends three and four.