Almost Pretty

Borghese Splendore Brightening Makeup

We are naturally incredulous about shimmers and other ski brightening products. The appeal of brightening one's complexion is natural but we have never actually seen a product that delivered on the promise of a more luminous complexion through the power of sparkles! You usually look like you spent too much time in arts and crafts with the rest of the toddles. But we recently were given a sample of Borghese's Splendore Brightening Makeup at the opening of their new boutique at the Manhattan Bloomingdales.

We generally mix tinted moisturizers to achieve a color that goes with our unique skin tone but we were out of our lighter shade on this particular day. Searching for a solution to "mask face" we mixed our darker tint with the Borghese. It was love at first application. We literally glowed just as one does after a good facial or on one of those perfect good skin days. We may actually spring for this product when the sample runs out.

Are You a MAC Original?

M·A·C Cosmetics announced the “Are You A M·A·C Original?” contest to launch their new limited edition collection The Originals.  The contest is a celebration of one’s individuality and originality—qualities intrinsic to the M·A·C brand.  Launching nationally through the M·A·C website, the contest will also run regionally in 6 key cities across the United States: New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Las Vegas, San Francisco and Houston.

The Originals pays tribute to popular product shades both discontinued or existing that consumers covet and can’t live without.  The Originals, a collaboration of the new and the old, introduces new textures and modified formulations of must-have Lipsticks, Lipglass, Eye Shadows and Pigments. We personally love the creative that goes with the campaign.

MAC has always celebrated the unusual and even though too much  deliberate originality can in fact have the opposite effect we think MAC toes the line perfectly.

Gucci Westman To Leave Lancome

We are a tad sad to learn that Gucci Westman will be leaving her home as the International Creative Director of Lancome. We have always enjoyed her work and found her collaborations to be particularly innovative.

Before Gucci came to Lancome we had in truth never given the brand much thought, considering it to be a staple of our mother's beauty closet. But in the last two years it has grown into one of our favorite brands. So long Gucci! We can't wait to see where you end up.

NARS Makeup Your Mind Beauty Guide

Russian-American poet Joseph Alexandrovitch Brodsky said that "There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them." And even if you prefer a life that is more visually inclined there is still much one can do to learn. This NARS Makeup Your Mind Beauty Guide includes 65 before-and-after photos of models of various ethnicities and looks, including Naomi Campbell and Erin O'Connor to help you learn about the entire process of makeup application from start to finish.

Coach Beauty Collection

Saint Augustine said “You aspire to great things? Begin with little ones.”

We are starting to believe that Coach is bent on world domination. They started with simple logo bags and now they are a full fledge multinational lifestyle company. But why stop with bags, clothing and tchotkes when you can literally corner the market on aspirational products?



Coach Beauty has products ranging from shimmering powders to embossed lipsticks. What can they possible sell next? Thanks to I Love Makeup for turning us on to this new development.

Sheisido and The Importance of Plump Lips

Having plump lips seems to be something of an obsession these days. And according to this Japanese Sheisido commercial for their soft color lipsticks it is the best way to capture a man.

Aside from the curious trampoline metaphor (your lips must be springy now too?) we find ourselves wondering about the implications of this capturing technique.

If a man just has to fall into your big plump soft lips we imagine he probably doesn't want to accidentally drown in a stinging vat of DuWop Lip Venom.

Unless of course you are doing your best Venus Fly Trap impression. Actually these flowers do look a little bit like made-up lips. And the Japanese have always been fond of that very unsettling dentata thing in their anime.

 

Finding The Perfect Shade of Red Lipstick With Coty

Finding the perfect shade of red lipstick has clearly been an obsession for a long time if this Coty Red Lipstick commercial from the 1950 is any indication. We literally cannot tell the difference between the 12 or so shades they show us. But they all look equally alluring.

We aren't quite sure how to recover the lost art of truly red lipstick but we do think that this Guerlain KissKiss Lipstick in Folie De Grenat is as close to classic as they come. The gold casing makes it something any girl would feel good about pulling out of her best clutch. 

How Is Lipgloss is Made? Stacy London of TLC's What Not To Wear Visits Lancome's Lipgloss Factory

Lights, Camera, Glamour From Too Faced

The holiday season is clearly upon us and even with a slowdown in the economy beauty brands are still looking to score big with whimsical and luxe gift sets. We are loving this Lights, Camera, Glamour From Too Faced kit created exclusively by celebrity makeup artist and Too Faced Color Creator, Jerrod Blandino.

With a fully functional “vanity” with working light bulbs for easy makeup application it really does go all out.  It contains 8 eye shadows, 6 lip glosses, face powder, duo bronzer, face illuminator, 2 powder eyeliners, brow powder, blush and applicator brushes all for $40

MAC's Stylistics Collection

MAC, ever on the new product launch bandwagon, has just released images for their new Stylistics Collection.

The pearls, classic colorings and downtown twist really do evoke the message that this is for those with taste, style, and a certain je ne sais quoi.

We are guessing that they hope to attract that ever elusive PTY (pretty young thing) crowd and the women who wish to live that life. Heck the brush bag is just the sort of bag a true "it" girl would re-purpose as a clutch!

We love the lipstick and compact in particular. Styling indeed!