Category: cosmetics

Review of Perfekt Beauty Skin Perfection Gel

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Perfekt Beauty Skin Perfection Gel

Perfekt Beauty describes its Skin Perfection Gel as:

A skin perfector that instantly per-fekts and enhances the appearance of the skin offering an easy alternative to traditional foundation, primer, color corrector and powder.

I was pleased to receive a sample of Skin Perfection Gel in Luminous. Perfekt Beauty describes Luminous as appropriate for fair complexions. However, Luminous suited my light complexion better than Radiant, which Perfekt Beauty describes as appropriate for light to medium tones.

When I applied Perfekt Beauty Skin Perfection Gel, it was evident that there was a lot of silicone, due to the slip of the product: in that way, Skin Perfection Gel is a 2-in-1 product that can serve as primer and foundation. I hesitate to say that it also functions as a color corrector, as it provides a light tint. It is best for women who don’t have major flaws in their complexion. Women who have something to hide might want to layer more opaque coverage (mineral makeup powder, for example) over Perfekt Beauty Skin Perfektion Gel. Once the product dries down, it has a matte finish that makes powder unnecessary.

The downside of Perfekt Beauty Skin Perfection Gel is that it doesn’t provide sunscreen. I still rely on smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer SPF 15 and Dermaxyl, but it has a petroleum smell that’s unpleasant. It would be great if Perfekt Beauty could formulate a Skin Perfection Gel with sunscreen and without the unpleasant smell of smashbox’s product.

Perfekt Beauty is a small line of cosmetics that consists of three products: Skin Perfection Gel, Eye Pefection Gel, and Body Perfection Gel. You may buy Perfekt Beauty at its website, Sephora stores, and Sephora.com.

Sparkled Beauty reviews Giorgio Armani Beauty face fabric foundation spf 12

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Sparkled Beauty posted a review of the Giorgio Armani Beauty face fabric foundation spf 12 I sent her. Read her review.


Photo credit: Sparkled Beauty

I also provided a few goodies for her: 2 Eye Majic Instant eye shadows and a Sukicolor Pure Creme Stain sample (read my review of Sukicolor Pure Creme Stain).

Sparkled Beauty claimed the Giorgio Armani Beauty face fabric foundation spf 12 through our continually updated Promotions article. Visit Promotions for the latest contests, giveaways, specials, and other other promotions.

Paula Dorf #Cosmetics files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy

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Given the current depressed economic environment, I am amazed by the number of new cosmetics launches. Not all brands have been so lucky: recently Paula Dorf Cosmetics filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Paula Dorf

Paula Dorf Cosmetics has been a victim of the downturn in sales of prestige cosmetics, but there’s more. Crain’s provides some key points for Paula Dorf Cosmetics’ bankruptcy filing:

  • The company has assets of $1.5 million, but its liabilities are more than $3.9 million.
  • The company is in debt to 50 creditors, including Macy’s, HSN, and a cosmetics manufacturer. Another article, which I can’t place, cites delays by suppliers since 2003.
  • In addition, the company has “too many” colors and shades, which take up valuable “real estate” in cosmetics departments.

Paula Dorf fans should know that filing for Chapter 11 doesn’t mean that Paula Dorf Cosmetics is going out of business. During a visit last month to Dillard’s at the St. Louis Galleria, I saw that Paula Dorf took up the real estate formerly taken up by Shalini Vadhera’s Global Goddess Beauty, which Dillard’s has discontinued throughout its stores (as verified by Shalini herself).

Canadian beauty brands HT Sparkled Beauty

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Some four years ago, I posted an article Canadian Beauty, about Canadian beauty brands. That was before I found Henna’s Canadian Beauty blog.

I discovered Sparkled Beauty when she claimed the Giorgio Armani Beauty Face Fabric foundation that I offered through the continually updated Promotions post.

Sparkled Beauty has an extensive article on Canadian cosmetics brands, which I had a small role in expanding.

I’m particularly impressed by the concept behind FACE Atelier‘s Zero Plus and Zero Minus Foundations. When mixed with your regular foundation, Zero Plus darkens your shade, while Zero Minus lightens your shade – a great idea as your complexion changes with the seasons.

FACE Atelier

I also have to give a shoutout to Sweet LeiLani. It’s been some years since I had contact with LeiLani, a Vancouver-based makeup artist whose TV credits include 21 Jump Street, which launched Johnny Depp’s career. Her passion, however, is paramedical makeup, in which she teaches burn victims and cancer survivors how to camouflage bruises, scars, and burns.

How to apply loose mineral powders with Beautyblender

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I’ve found Beautyblender, that pink egg-shaped sponge, indispensable for blending liquid and cream makeup. I rely on it to blend concealer.

But applying loose mineral powders with Beautyblender? That’s a new one to me. Koren Zander of EnKoreMakeup shows you how in the following video. Be prepared – the video runs 15 minutes.

I tried Koren’s method, which resulted in weightless yet complete coverage and a matte finish that lasted all day. No need to use blotting papers!

You may find Beautyblender at Amazon.com and Sephora.com, among other outlets.

An interview with makeup artist and entrepreneur Ellis Faas – Part 1

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Ellis Faas is a makeup artist who has worked with leading photographers and stylists on shows, ad campaigns, and editorial work in magazines. In February 2009, she launched her cosmetics line in Europe with Ellis Lips, liquid lip colors in three different formulas: Creamy Lips, Milky Lips, and Glazed lips.

Ellis Faas – image from http://www.ellisfaas.com

I wanted to interview Faas as I believe that Ellis Faas is on the cusp of something new and different in cosmetics. She bases her line on colors that exist in every human body, a concept that she realized when she did special effects makeup (simulating wounds, bruises, and blood). She’s launched her cosmetics line with lip colors that suit all skin tones. Her signature shade is Ellis Red, a true blood-red: after all, we all bleed the same color. The line has distinctive packaging, created in collaboration with industrial designer Arnout Visser.


From concept to finished product: the bullet-shaped pens for Ellis Lips
All images from www.ellisfaas.com

1. Your biography states that you wanted to pursue a career as a photographer, but that you were too shy to approach others to model for you. You were your own model. How did you develop the courage to get others to model for you?

Besides myself, I also used friends and family to pose for me more and more, but I have only started working with professional models, since we started our own brand – I shoot all our visuals. I guess that I dare doing that, because over the past years I have been on so many numerous sets of the world’s best photographers. Combined with the knowledge I already had, that has taught me lot. Yet, I still keep things terribly small: just the model, someone to hold the lights, and me for makeup and photography.

2. Which type of makeup do you like doing best? Fantasy, special effects, or “real life”?

My origins are in special effects, so that is still a passion and I also use it a lot in the beauty and fashion shoots I work on. But to be honest, I enjoy doing any kind of makeup if I have fun with the team (especially model and hairstylist) and the story is nice – even if it means just making a gorgeously beautiful model even more beautiful.

3. Of all the items in your online portfolio, the one that most readers will recognize is the ad campaign for Lancôme’s Trésor. This is one of the most approachable (that is, real life) looks in your portfolio. How did you create this look?

Well, if your canvas is the face of someone like in this case Kate Winslet, it is primarily a matter of choosing the tones of foundation and the colours that suit the face and theme of the concept. This ad was supposed to be quite dreamy, so I kept it all rather subdued.

Kate Winslet for Lancôme’s Trésor. Photography: Peter Lindberg. Makeup: Ellis Faas

4. What was the biggest challenge you faced when you started your cosmetics line? Other entrepreneurs have told me that their biggest challenges were financing and finding suppliers.

Finding suppliers was not so difficult because over the years I have met quite a few helpful people. Financing was difficult indeed, but since we started to do everything with a team of just three (now four), the amount we needed was still small enough to get a wonderful, private investor on board. But the biggest challenge by far is the production process and what happens to deadlines if only one of the productional steps has a delay. Phew!

Continued in Part 2.

An interview with makeup artist and entrepreneur Ellis Faas – Part 2

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5. You launched your line earlier this year. What has been the response to Ellis Faas cosmetics in Europe?

So far, so good! More and more countries and retailers are “in the pocket”, as we call it. We’ve just entered Switzerland and after the Summer we’ll launch in Australia, the UK, Poland and more countries. Especially the press has proven to be wonderfully supportive, apparently because they like the concept and colours, and journalists tell me that it really gives them something to write about so that is good. And shops tell us that it brings them new customers, instead of cannibalizing other brands.

6. Tell me about your Ambassadors program. How do you select and qualify your Ambassadors?

We started the Ambassadors programme because of two things: I can’t be everywhere at the same time, so the ambassadors can do presentations and so on if I have to be somewhere else. Plus the more professionals spread the word about the brand, the better. But just like the company itself (I started it with one of my best friends and my youngest brother), we so far have chosen the ambassadors “within the family”, meaning I have known and worked with them for years and years, as colleagues and as assistants. I think that if someone knows me personally it helps them to communicate the brand best.

7. When do you plan to launch Ellis Eyes, Skin, Lights, Pencils, and Prime? Can you provide us a preview of these forthcoming products?

Ellis Eyes and Skin will be released late September (14 eyeshadows, 2 mascaras, 2 eyeliners, 4 blushers, 8 foundations, 8 concealers, 3 powders), Lights (meaning 5 highlights) before Christmas, and the rest some time next year.

8. While readers in the U.S. can purchase your products through your website, do you have plans to find retailers in the U.S.?

Absolutely. We are now finalizing talks with a wonderful retailer in New York, who is planning to launch us in November – although I cannot yet disclose who it is (so people can keep themselves posted via our newsletter, Facebook or Twitter). If all that works out, I hope that more shops in the US will follow. So far, the American customers who have bought online are coming back to buy more, so that’s very positive!

9. Is there anything else that you would like to share with our readers that I haven’t covered in my questions?

Well, I hope your readers will take the time to visit our site to read more about the Human Colours concept, because it is not as scary as it may seem at first glance. I merely believe that daily makeup should be used to highlight someone’s most beautiful features and to mask their less attractive ones. So what better way to achieve this than with colours that by nature are already present in a person’s face. So if you look at the colours, you will see that they are all broken, non-primary colours, and because of that they look good on anyone, from a pale, 16-year-old white girl to a 80-year-old black grandma, and anyone in between!

This article first appeared on blogcritics.org.

Lioele Beyond the Solution BB Cream

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The Washington, DC metro area is home to a large Korean community. Koreans have found a niche in dry-cleaning establishments, nail salons, and cafés that serve office workers breakfast and lunch. They have also been active in establishing church congregations. Two Korean firms Lotte and H Mart have opened large supermarkets-cum-department stores in the Washington, DC metro area to serve the Korean community.

I was roaming around the recently opened Lotte Plaza in Chantilly, VA, outside Washington, DC. I stopped at the beauty counter, where the beauty advisor graciously supplied me with samples of skin care products by Lioele.

One of the most popular cosmetics products to come out of Korea is BB Cream, a combination foundation and acne treatment. BB stands for Blemish Balm. Several Korean companies in addition to Lioele market BB Cream.

Lioele Beyond the Solution BB Cream

In hot, humid weather, my skin gets oily and I get pimples on my nose. Paula Begoun, in her book The Original Beauty Bible, identifies bacteria, clogged pores, and oil secretions as the culprits in forming pimples. Benzoyl peroxide lotions disinfect and BHA preparations penetrate the pore and exfoliate. I’ve found that BB Cream handles the oil problem nicely. I apply it to my nose in lieu of ordinary foundation or mineral makeup. It stays matte all day, and there’s no need to use blotting papers on my nose.

Bésame Voluptuous Lipstick

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Bésame described its Enchanting Lipstick as “absolutely the perfect lipstick.” I’m not readily given to superlatives, but Bésame (Spanish for “kiss me”) Enchanting Lipstick certainly is one of my favorite full-coverage lipsticks, along with MAC Satin and Lustre lipsticks and American Beauty Enduring Beauty™ Longwear Lipcolor. All three have the not too matte, not too creamy finish that I seek in a lipstick. In addition, I loved the retro look of the goldtone metal tube.

Lately, Bésame founder and owner Gabriela Hernandez has been re-designing her brand. The first product from the re-launch of Bésame is the Voluptuous Lip Color Set. The set consists of a full-size lipstick (Enchanting Lipstick is a mini-size) with a “fishtail” tip, a matching lip liner, and a lip brush.


Voluptuous Lip Color Set in Red Velvet

I received the Voluptuous Lip Color Set in Red Velvet. It is also available in Rapture Rose and Champagne. I chose Red Velvet because red lips are Gabriela’s signature: she’s her own best advertisement for the retro glamour of Bésame.


Gabriela Hernandez, founder, Bésame Cosmetics

On my lips, at least, the Voluptuous lipstick set very quickly and felt drying. I wrote to Gabriela and told her I still prefer the Enchanting lipstick. She was surprised, as Voluptuous lipstick was supposed to be more emollient than the Enchanting lipstick. In both Voluptuous and Enchanting lipsticks, clay is used to makes the color stick and lock on color to your lips.

Good news: Gabriela also told me that a new Classic lipstick will be released in the fall with the Enchanting lipstick formula and a full size chisel tip. I prefer the chisel tip to the fishtail tip, as the chisel tip contours to the lips. Other new Bésame products will be launched this fall.

Nude lips

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Pardon me if I don’t get overly enthused about the latest fashion and beauty trends. Everything old is new again. For example, net-a-porter.com and other trendsetters say that leopard prints will be big for fall: did leopard prints ever really go out of fashion?

It’s the same way with beauty trends. The August 2009 issue of Allure highlights nude lips with smoky eyes on the runway. This is a classic look. Makeup artists advise women to focus on either the lips or the eyes: thus, if you wear a smoky eye, keep lips neutral.

Pür Minerals is pairing matte nude lips with a twist on the smoky eye. To create the nude lip with Pür Minerals, use its lip liner in Natural Calcite (all Pür Minerals’ shades are named after minerals) to line and fill in the lips. Then apply its lipstick in Sheer Zircon. To make the lips matte, apply powder over your lip color (not surprisingly, Pür Minerals recommends its 4-in-1 Pressed Mineral Makeup Foundation With SPF 15).

Pür Minerals Mineral Shea Butter Lipstick in Sheer Zircon

The smoky eye is created with Pür Minerals Pressed Mineral Eyeshadows in Champagne Citrine and Midnight Jade.

I’ve discovered that after the lipstick fades, the stain from the lip liner remains, even through donuts and salad dressing. Also, what if there’s pinkish skin beyond your lip line? I use concealer applied with a tightly wound, pointed tip cotton swab (I bought my swabs in Japan) just outside your lip line and blend: I use a dampened Beautyblender.