My top Beauty Product picks for 2011 are:
TOP MAKEUP PRODUCT: Jouer Luminizing Moisture Tint
TOP HAIR PRODUCT: Bumble and Bumble’s Texture hair (un)dressing creme
TOP SKIN PRODUCT: PCA Skin C-Strength 20% with 5% Vitamin E
TOP BODY PRODUCT: Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Body Mist Sunblock SPF 30
TOP BEAUTY TIP: Bold Lippie!
My hands down favorite TOP MAKEUP PRODUCT of the year is Jouer Luminizing Moisture Tint. It’s oil-free, hypoallergenic, fragrance-free, water resistant, SPF 20, but best of all it gives the skin that elusive luminous glow and takes off at least 5 years to your face! When I received a sample I thought “Ugh, who wants a completely shimmery face?” and then I tried a dab of the Pearl color on my cheek. Oooh, surprisingly good coverage for a tinted moisturizer and it gives off a really soft and subtle reflection. No little sparkles. I put it all over my entire face (DO NOT DO THIS!) and it looked way too shiny. Then I tried my usual foundation in the t-zone and this on the rest of my face and it looked phenomenal. I took my little sample on vacation and tried it on two different ladies during impromptu makeovers. They both oooh’d and aaaah’d and demanded to know what was in the little brown tube. I smiled like I had beat them to the punch when Allure gave it a Best of Beauty award. I know you’re thinking the last thing you have time for is to put two foundations on, but you gotta trust me on this one! You can buy a both either a sample size or full size at b~glowing (a Portland-based biz!) or a full size one from the place I got my original sample, Birchbox.
My selection for TOP HAIR PRODUCT of the year is Bumble and Bumble’s Texture hair (un)dressing creme. The main struggle I and many of my clients have is with lack of interesting texture. My hair is thin and straight and so I’m always trying to find something to fatten it up and give it some grip or a tousled piece-y quality. I don’t ever expect those products to also give me volume – it’s like that would be asking too much of something. When I read the description for this, I was skeptical but it delivered on every aspect. It also holds curls and waves exceptionally well without being stiff. The finish on this is matte so if you like shiny hair this may not be for you. Sign up for Bumble and Bumble emails because they often have free samples and travel sizes of their products (including this one) as well as handy little video tutorials.
I chose PCA Skin C-Strength 20% with 5% Vitamin E for my TOP SKIN PRODUCT of 2011. This is a super powered Vitamin C serum that minimizes fine lines and wrinkles and SERIOUSLY brightens and evens out skin tone. My friend and Beauty guru Joanne McDonough of Joya Beauty turned me on to this. She has amazing glowing celebrity dermatologist kind of skin – the kind that makes you demand a recommendation so that you can get the same kind of fabulousness. She sent me this and after some initial tingling I slept on it and saw an immediate difference the next day. I sent her a facebook message asking why it worked so fast and she wrote back “The PCA products are very concentrated. That cream has a lot of ascorbic acid which is a lightner, brighter and tightner. Then the Vit. E combo is great for skin repair and the growth of new baby cells.” This is a great addition to your skincare repertoire.
My uber favorite TOP BODY PRODUCT of the year is Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Body Mist Sunblock SPF 30. If there was a Nobel Prize for beauty, I would give it to the person who invented this. I’m not even kidding. It’s winter now, but think back to those muggy hot summer days where the humidity would just hang in the air. The sun’s rays are pounding down on you and the last thing you want to do is lather up with some kind of lotion or cream. Even the oil free ones and the new liquid sunscreens (and I have really tried them all) feel a little too moist (and ultimately sticky) on the skin. Plus, you don’t really have the time to slather up, right? This product was such a life saver for me. Just spray all over (even the hard to reach back shoulders), wait 5 seconds, and go. Best of all, YOU DON”T FEEL ANYTHING on the skin. It’s dry and not sticky at all. Bonus: it’s oil free and water resistant. I went through three cans over the summer and never got burned once. Please note that the other SPF versions of this product and the cool touch versions do NOT feel the same – they are slightly stickier. SPF 30 is the BEST!!!
My TOP BEAUTY TIP of the year is to go ahead and have the guts to try a bold lipstick color. C’mon, everyone’s doing it! Lipstick is back in a major way! Here’s my challenge: Pick one that you’d normally never wear in real life but the color is very attractive to you (fuschia? cherry red? black plum?), buy it, and then wear it just once to some kind of event. Keep the makeup light so the lips are the focus of your look. I am the queen of nude and sheer gold glosses and that’s all I typically wear. When I saw all of the bright orange lips on the runways, I felt excited and I admired them from afar but didn’t have the courage to do it myself. Finally I decided to go for it and I got so many compliments and people asking what brand it was (Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense). I noticed with myself and my brides that bolder lip colors really photograph well. I’m now wearing them more often and it is really fun. Give it a try!
Cheers to a beautiful 2012…
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