Weekend natural #makeup look

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Weekend natural makeup look

Subtle blush

I hate obvious blush. The worst example was Lindsay Lohan at her court appearance for violating court orders (and I feel badly about her situation, as The Parent Trap remake is one of my favorite romcoms).

Perhaps it harkens back to the nude/naked makeup of the early 1990s, but I prefer subtle blushes, and Revlon fills the bill.  I alternate between the Revlon Powder Blush in Sandalwood Beige (a perennial) and Revlon Colorstay Mineral Blush in Honey.

Revlon Powder Blush in Sandalwood Beige

I use a dome-shaped blush brush and apply blush only to the apples of my cheeks.

Raiding the closet

Today's makeup design #Beauty

Today, I'm wearing a long-sleeve tissue-weight tee in cream (a wardrobe staple) from American Apparel and a boyfriend cardigan in dark olive over the tee. I'm also wearing jeans with studs along the side seams and a chunky wood and metal necklace from Brighton (how MOR :-)

Although it's considered passé to match makeup shades to my outfit, that's what I did. I used

- ULTA eye shadow in pale Camel for the base

- Laura Mercier eye shadow in Khaki (discontinued) for contouring. I've noticed that the eye designs in Robert Jones's book Makeup Makeovers invariably use taupe for contouring.

- Shu Uemura eye shadow in M Olive 499 (discontinued), a golden olive, on the outer corner.

Again, I used Christian Siriano Silky Eyeshadow in Gilded Fierce for eyeliner and LashControl mascaras.

For my face and lips, I used Daniel Chinchilla Flawless Finish Liquid Foundation, Revlon ColorStay™ Mineral Blush in Honey, Pür Minerals lip liner in Natural Calcite to fill in the lips, and Life's A Beach lip gloss from the Robert Jones Signature Collection for Three Custom Color Specialists.

The fine print: Representatives for Pür Minerals and LashControl provided me products for review. I paid for all other products out of pocket.

Revlon® Pedi-EXPERT™ Pedicure Kit

Ped Egg has received good press, despite the cheesiness of its "As Seen on TV" ads. To my knowledge, the first product of its kind was the Microplane Foot File. Now I've found a foot file that I like even better than Microplane: it's the Revlon® Pedi-EXPERT™ Pedicure Kit:


Revlon® Pedi-EXPERT™ Pedicure Kit

Why do I like the Revlon® Pedi-EXPERT™ Pedicure Kit? There's a lifetime guarantee, unlike the Ped Egg, which sells replacement graters. What are the advantages of Revlon® Pedi-EXPERT™ over Microplane? I particularly like the ergonomic shape that you can cradle in your hand (like a good computer mouse); also, there's a finishing file built in to smooth your feet after shaving them with the grater. For the budget-conscious, Revlon® Pedi-EXPERT™ Pedicure Kit costs half of what Microplane costs.

You may find Revlon® Pedi-EXPERT™ Pedicure Kit at major drugstore chains, "big box" stores, and Ulta.

Blushes as Bronzers

Bronzer isn't just for summer; it's great for warming up pallid or drained winter complexions. Sometimes, however, products marketed as bronzers are simply too brown and muddy. Tawny or reddish brown blushes might be a better choice.

Here are four price-friendly blushes that can work as bronzers (note that the shades as portrayed may not be true):

Revlon Powder Blush in Sandalwood Beige 08 (top left) is great for fair to light midtones.

L'Oreal True Match Super-Blendable Blush, Neutral in Sweet Ginger N7-8 (top right) is marketed for deep skintones, but would be right for medium skintones.

Rubiglo in Earth (bottom left) would be great for dark reddish skintones, as would Iman Luxury Blushing Powder in Sable (bottom right).

What are your favorite bronzers and blushes for your skintone?

Revlon seeks to re-energize itself

Revlon no longer creates excitement among consumers like myself who prowl the aisles of drugstores and big box retailers for reasonably priced cosmetics. L'Oreal is the clear winner among mass market brands - I love its True Match makeup and the limited edition eyeshadow palettes that are part of L'Oreal's frequent collections. I am also fond of L'Oreal HIP lip color - in the traditional wand packaging, squeeze tubes, and pots - and its unique flavor, which I characterize as something like creme brulee.

Now Revlon is trying to re-create excitement for the brand. As other beauty bloggers have noted, Gucci Westman, formerly of Lancome, has joined Revlon as its Artistic Director. Revlon has signed Elle McPherson and Oscar winner (Best Supporting Actress, A Beautiful Mind, 2001) Jennifer Connelly as new spokesmodels. It has already rolled out ads featuring Jessica Alba.


Elle McPherson

Elle McPherson might have a killer bod (a tad too masculine for my liking), but I don't think that she has a particularly beautiful face - too angular and mannish. Admittedly, her new bangs soften her look.


Jennifer Connelly - retro done right

As for Jennifer Connelly, she is a great choice. Can you imagine how great she might look in the red lipsticks for which Revlon is famous? Or in eye shadows that make her intense blue eyes pop?

Time will tell if these new developments will re-energize Revlon as a brand. Revlon should also develop a new visual image for its displays and get away from the soft focus look that has characterize its displays.

Revlon limited edition collection

No doubt about it - Revlon took a drubbing in 2006, with the collapse of Vital Radiance the same year that it debuted. One also wishes that Revlon would have brought in new faces when it totally revamped Almay, but instead model Elaine Mellencamp (wife of singer John) continues as the face of Almay.


Revlon Just Bitten Lip Stain


Enough of that - Revlon has introduced a number of flashy new products in its limited edition collection, including Revlon Just Bitten Lip Stain
and Bedroom Eyes™ Powder Liner. Just Bitten™ Lip Stain has a rollerball applicator - not the best for even layering. What's more, it dries quickly. The shade of Just Bitten™ in Blood Orange reminded me of orange popsicle stain. Other shades include Berry Juicy, Cherry Tart, and Plum Wicked.

I chose Revlon Bedroom Eyes™ Powder Liner in Smokin', which is great for creating the smoky eye. Be sure to tap excess powder from the applicator onto a tissue beofre applying - otherwise, it gets all over your cheek and countertop. Clearly, when using Bedroom Eyes™ as part of your eye makeup, do your eye makeup before you apply base. As FT Weekend columnist Edwina Ings-Chambers, who had a makeup application by NARS artist James Boehmer, writes:

The first thing to remember, Boehmer says, is that you shouldn’t try to replicate the 60s thing: keep the liner off the lid and stick to putting it round the eyes. “It’s more about the outer corner of the lid, not all over the lid,” he says.

Be prepared with cotton balls and eye makeup remover or Swabplus Liquid Filled Cotton Swabs, Eye Makeup Remover. Be sure to finish this look with lots of volumizing mascara.

BTW Generally, I find lipliners too harsh. Revlon is one of the two companies I know that offers a clear lipliner (ColorStay®) at a nominal price - the other being Paula Begoun's Paula's Choice line. Paula also recommends Lip Line Fixer from The Body Shop, which proves that she's not partisan.

I haven't seen L'Oreal's clear lipliner in ages, so I guessed that L'Oreal discontinued it. An alternative is a lipliner that exactly matches the color of your lips, which is why MAC's lip pencil in Spice has remained so popuplar.

Update on mass-market brands: 2007

This past spring brought several new launches of mass market brands. The Max Factor (owned by P&G) and Almay (owned by Revlon) cosmetics lines were completed revamped, while L'Oreal launched its HIP line and Revlon launched its Vital Radiance line for women over 50. The Style Page wondered how supermarkets, drugstores, and "big box" retailers (Wal-Mart, KMart, Target) were going to accomodate these new brands.

See The Beauty Newsletter for a critique of Almay's dated eyeshadow concept.

HIP appears to have been a success - L'Oreal has recently expanded the line with two new products: Pure Pigment Shadow Stick and Shocking Shadow Pigments, in addition to new colors for its eye shadow duos(another indicator is that searches on "L'Oreal HIP" are a major driver of traffic to this blog).

Max Factor, however, has been a disappointment: many of the main drugstore chains (CVS, Walgreen's, Rite-Aid) do not carry the line, and it is found only at Wal-Mart and KMart. Maybe the problem was the ads that featured Carmen Electra wearing scary makeup.

Revlon's much-hyped launch of Vital Radiance has been a disappointment. Due to lackluster sales of the brand, Wal-Mart, Target, and CVS plan to cut back drastically on the number of stores carrying the brand, while Revlon believes that consumers need more time to know the brand better.

According to WWD, "Market reports indicate that Wal-Mart will trim the line [Vital Radiance] from 2,500 doors to 500, while Target will cut it from 1,500 to 500."

My take is that consumers were turned off by the prices of Vital Radiance products, which are higher than those for other mass-market brands. Vital Radiance's target audience of women over 50 are probably value-conscious and rejected the higher prices.

I am not the only one who thinks this way - see comments on my post Vital Radiance UPDATED 2006-02-22.

Revlon should have priced Vital Radiance lower, or issued discount coupons to entice first-time buyers. Then there's always the dicey proposition of marketing to older women without making them feel ... old. An introduction of skin care products planned for 2007 might change Vital Radiance's fortunes.

Revlon sees a $40 million loss from Vital Radiance. Things haven't been so great on the personal front either: Revlon Chairman Ron Perelman's marriage to actress Ellen Barkin ended in February 2006, after five years of marriage.

Vital Radiance UPDATED 2006-02-22

Recent history of cosmetics lines for "older" women is strange, to say the least. Maybelline had its Revitalizing line of cosmetics in the 1990s, represented first by Rosie Vela, then by 30-something Paulina Porizkova (after her contract with Estee Lauder ended in 1993), before it discontinued the line. That was a shame, as the Maybelline Revitalizing line had some silky-smooth matte eyeshadows and subtle blushes.

Revlon has enjoyed more continuity with its Age-Defying line, represented first by Melanie Griffith, and now by 45-year-old Julianne Moore and 59-year-old Susan Sarandon.

Today, the market is brimming over with skin care for women over 50 - witness Olay's Regenerist and L'Oreal's RevitaLift lines. Cover Girl has recalled its long-time model Christie Brinkley to promote its Advanced Radiance Age-Defying Makeup (note, however, Christie's hand is always covering her neck - if you've seen the Total Gym ads she does with Chuck Norris, you know why).

Revlon has launched a complete cosmetics line called Vital Radiance, targeted at women 50 and over. It's too tempting to call this makeup for the AARP set (although I'm only a few years shy of that time when I'll get my invitation to join AARP). Also, brand names that include "vital" and "radiance" for older women are beginning to sound hackneyed.

The foundation is more highly pigmented than others to compensate for loss of color in the complexion. I'll leave it to a real makeup expert, but I question the wisdom of this approach. It seems to me that color should come from a judicious application of blush in a flattering shade.

Eye shadow trios come into soft colors. Mousse shadow contain shimmer, and I questions why Revlon put shimmer into eye shadow intended for women over 50. Consumers will find the price of Vital Radiance rather high, especially for a mass market brand: one small pot of Vital Radiance EasyBlending Mousse Eye Shadow costs $14.50, while Maybelline's new Dream Mousse Eye Shadow (an extension of its Dream Mousse line, costs less than half that price.

Vital Radiance Smoothing Eye Primer

The Style Page especially liked Vital Radiance Smoothing Eye Primer. This product does indeed smooth the eye area and provide coverage as a base for eyeshadow and contains no shimmer. Some consumers might object to the peachy shade.