Alas, the ‘future of beauty’ opens tomorrow at the flagship Saks Fifth Avenue location in NYC! Today, Charlie and I took a sneak peek of the new beauty floor, which took a trip upstairs to the 2nd floor. No longer in the lobby the space could not be more epic!
Everything is white marble and so open with incredible lighting! The move and expansion includes 58 new brands to the floor, and a plethora of space to house them in! The new floor is 32,000 square feet and now features more than 120 color cosmetics, skincare, fragrance and wellness brands.
Buxom makes some of my favorite lip products so whenever they have a new launch, I’m all over it. While I’m not usually a gloss girl, it’s hard to escape the holographic trend and anything that promises to lip plump.
The Holographic Full-On Plumping Lip Polish Top Coats live up to their name. Available in 8 shimmery, holographic shades we have (swatched left to right):
Crystal (berry sparkle)
Selena (universal opalescent gloss that shifts from blue to green to pink)
Mariah (mermaid prism)
Ariana (gold sparkle)
Iris (pink prism)
Camila (bronze sparkle)
Jordan (blue with pink prism)
Savannah (peach pink prism)
Whats cool about these lippies is the holographic undertones are what pop, even more so then the base color on lips.
The Karl Lagerfeld + MODELCO limited edition collectable beauty collection launches today and features over 50 product including stickers, which I glued onto my @prettyconnectedshop bags launching soon (the chain strap is currently available HERE to create the above masterpiece! I was lucky enough to get my hands on a handful of the collection in advance. Much like my current feelings towards Mr. Lagerfeld, I had mixed reviews over the products. I loved him so much before his negative #metoo stance — why Karl, why? But I’ll leave my recent disappointment out of the review.
Lets start with the lipbalm, $15, available in two shades. One silver packaged, the other pink! If you’re #teamkarl this will be a favorite simply because of the packaging and price. I mean for $15, who doesn’t want this on their desk? Plus the added bonus of a balm inside the head.
If you’re one of the lucky people who are in NYC today you can get your hands on the limited edition MAC Cosmetics x PUMA sneaker, for everyone else they will officially be launching May 17th at all Six:02 locations and on their website.
The collection included three colors based on MAC Cosmetic’s best-selling lip shades Lady Danger (coral-red), Sin (deep dark blue red/wine) and Creme D’Nude (pale muted peach beige).
OMG coming home from Mexico to this beautiful box featuring the new Erdem for NARS Strange Flower collection! I get a lot of mailers, but it’s rare one actually makes me stop, marvel and then literally drool. It’s almost too pretty to touch. Almost.
The shade range is insane! Usually with collections I find a few colors I like and the rest giveaway, but mine, all mine! Every piece in this collection, is perfection. I started with the Night Garden Eyeshadow Palette.
Organizing my beauty closet is my greatest struggle. Self.com recently reached out and did a great article featuring my tips and some other top beauty bloggers. After being in the beauty industry for 15years and beauty blogging for 10years you can’t even imagine the amount of boxes of products I get. Actually if you watch my unboxings you probably can… While managing your in take is the best way to stay organized (I have a beauty charity where you can donate unused beauty products to shelters!), for me I have to keep most of the new products since I judge a lot of the industry beauty awards and do trend reports for a lot of the beauty shows so finding organizing solutions are a top priority for me.
Like most, I was attracted to pretty organizers to started. I tried so many cute ‘Acrylic Makeup storage organizers‘ (search the term on Amazon, a ton of option come up) but I quickly over-cluttered them all and needed a bigger solution. While this will work for a normal person’s makeup stash or on top of your desk or cabinet, a true beauty hoarder needs to go bigger.
So last year I switched to the holy grail of beauty organizers, the IkeaAlex Drawer. There are a few different styles but I have 5 sets of the classic 9 drawer stylein my hallway (and a few by my desk) and I organize them using post-ids what’s in each since I’m always switching in and out products I receive and testing.
Microneedling, the popular skincare treatment that involves repeatedly puncturing the skin with tiny, sterile needles to stimulate collagen production just got an upgrade! And it involves radio-frequency. After three treatments my skin was so smooth that makeup just glided over my skin. I saw much stronger results then regular microneedling which made it all worth it in the end but it is a process.
I recently visited JUVA Skin & Laser Center to meet with Dr. Katz and test out the New Intensif Handpiece by EndyMed, which is an FDA cleared device that takes microneedling to the next level. It offers microneedling coupled with radio-frequency for amazing skin tightening effects and works on a deeper level. The unique Intensif technology allows for 3 times the heating volume per pulse. This heat sends a signal to the dermis for skin remodeling — think of it like sending energy down to the skin to wake it up and work harder. Watch the procedure in the video above!
Beer in your hair, now barley on your skin. I’ve learned so much from BRÖÖ, the haircare line that took the DIY beer rinse – as in you literally pour a beer in your hair to add shine (the household trick Jackie Kennedy and other glamazons made famous), and based their haircare around. They blend a healthy mix of ingredients with Craft Beer that features malted barley which is jam packed with the B vitamins, proteins, and minerals while the antioxidant rich oils in Hops soothe.
That barley and hops magic found in beer inspired their new launch into skincare with BRÖÖ Moods ($7.49), which features three aromatherapy lotions and one hand cream. The lotions are available in three scents, Reboot (Bergamot), Sleep (Lavender), and Unplug (Clary Sage), and a Connect Touch Screen Hand Cream (as in it hydrates and dries so quickly there’s no risk of greasy residue when you swipe right).
The lotions are packed with Barley, which as we established is rich in B Vitamins and proteins to nourish skin, Hops which is antioxidant rich and mixed it with Shea Butter, which is rich in Vitamin E and known to soften dry, rough, skin. The glowing combination is free of synthetic fragrance, silicones, petrolatum, parabens, phthalates, mineral oil, phenoxyethanol, PEGS, polyquaterniums, dioxane, dyes and EDTA.
Their cruelty free and all of the above is so important to me since I rescued Charlie, who as some of you know had several skin conditions when we rescued him (and a laundry list of allergies). That dog LOVES to lick my arms and legs – shorts season is coming! So I’m very conscious of what I put on my body since I’m always so nervous about what he ingests.
I’m so honored to be in my favorite beauty magazine, New Beauty for The Beauty Report Issue sharing my tips on how to protect your hair from breakage! I always had beautiful, shiny hair until 2 years ago when I started getting addicted to color and last year when a stylist damaged my hair to the brink of daily tears. On the upside I learned and tried everything about how to fake it until your hair grows out and fix/prevent further damage.
Since I give a quick Q&A for the magazine, I wanted to dive into the subject more and what products you should look for since a lot of you have this issue. Lack of moisture can be a big cause of breakage and damaged hair. while there isn’t a shortage of hair strengtheners, split end menders, oils (bows down to Leonor Greyl), hair masks (Shea Moisture, and Kerastase are gold), and supplements (Nutroful is my ride or die) on the market, when addressing hair health and growth, I wanted to share additional tips that often get overlooked.
1. Trade in your towel for a microfiber towel or soft tee shirt. Your hair is most vulnerable when it’s wet which is why you should never dry your hair aggressively with a towel. Microfiber towels are more absorbent and gentler on strands. I’ve been using Aquis for over a decade so I’m partial to them (they come in a bunch of colors), but any brand should be fine. Alternatively you can also use a soft tee shirt, just be very gentle if you’re using a towel.
2. Stay away from hair elastics and opt for hair clips or ties that are gentler and use words like tug-free on the packaging. We make fun of scrunchies, although they are supposed to be making a come back, I personally sleep in a silk scrunchy (we don’t go out in public) and it’s best for preserving a blow-out. Grace Eleyae is a super cool brand, they have silk scrunchy and also silk inside baseball and beanie hats and silk turbans to protect your hair. Genius! Silke also makes a line of BEAUTIFUL silk hair wraps.
3. Sleep on a silk (satin works too) pillowcase! This is also better for your skin as well. It doesn’t absorb product the same way cotton can and is more gentle on your hair. Slip is really chic and comes in a bunch of colors and is so soft and luxe. Alternatively there’s The Hollywood Silk Solution or Starlet Satin, which are are great as well and boost hair and skincare benefits.
We’ll start with Skincare 101: If you want glowing skin, do not sleep with your makeup on. You’re clogging your pores, and not letting your skin breath! You’re also blocking your skincare products from working as efficiently as possible.
Exfoliation is key! (you have options)
Make sure to exfoliate to help dissolve dirt, environmental damage and whisk away dead skin cells. There are a lot of ways to do this starting with exfoliating pads. There are not a shortage of great glow pads on the market, although I always bow down to Dr. Dennis Gross when it comes to getting my skin glowing. The Dr. Dennis Gross Alpha Beta Daily Peel (available in original and Extra Strength are always in my beauty draw). I also like Exuviance, Dr. Jeannette Graf, MD Skin Rejuvenation Exfoliating & Firming Pads and a handful of others.
There are also loads of exfoliating masks on the market, like Ren Glycol Lactic Radiance Renewal Mask. Don’t overdue it with the exfoliation but start adding them into your regimen. Some can be used daily, others weekly, read the directions and don’t over exfoliate.
Pick me ups!
Skin mists are great for keeping skin hydrated and glowing throughout the day! and an awesome reboot if your skin is starting to feel/look dull or dry. I’m obsessed with the Eleni & Chris Face Mist (actually the whole line, see my review HERE), hailing from the fjords of Normay whatever they mix with their glacier water (it’s +SEA3oil) makes my skin sing. If you want something less clean and more dewy you can’t fail with, Tatcha Luminous Dewy Skin Mist. On a budget, Vichy and Mario Badescu are great options!
Look for these in your Serums + Moisturizers
Look for peptide rich products filled with brightening ingredients like Vitamin C, Licorice extract, niacinamides. These ingredients can also be in your serums for a more concentrated dose of nutrients, just make sure to seal all your products with a moisturizer (or sleep mask in the evening). AHA’s + Vitamin C are a winning combination — Skinceuticals actually has a C+AHA dropper that’s one of my favorites (They also have an epic C E Ferulic as well). You can also mix a Vitamin C liquid Serum — like an Urban Skin Rx Super C Brightening Treatment or the legendary Triple C Lightning Liquid by COSRX, into your moisturizer or do a more conventional serum consistency like Sunday Riley CEO Brightening Serum. Vitamin C is a larger conversation which I’ll do a whole blog post about but as far as moisturizers, at moment I’m loving Kat Burki Vitamin C Cream and also for skin brightening Origins Ginzing Energy-Boosting Gel Moisturize, which brings me to my next point…
Google your products! I started using Clarins Double Serum and Origins Ginzing Energy-Boosting Gel Moisturizer and saw an immediate boost and glow with both brightening but didn’t see any of the usual suspects in the formula. Apparently it’s the Tumeric in the Clarins Double Serum (or combination with), And mix of the Panex Ginseng with Coffee Bean (coffee is great for circulation and de-puffing in eye products) in the Origins moisturizer that gives skin it’s glow. I’m familiar with these ingredients for other benefits but after seeing this result I’ll be more mindful when I see them in future products.
Quick Fix: Mask.
Masks are a great quick fix. Healthy skin takes work, and when we’re stressed, sleep deprived or just busy it can take a toll. So go extra hard on the hydrate mask and self care in hard times. I you fly a lot (or notice your skin is dehydrated), sheet masks are a great way to reboot. I’ve used and loved many but the Eleni & Chris Hydrate Sheet Mask post flight took my skin from zero to hero (they also have a GLOW mask but as far as I’m concerned the whole Eleni + Chris collection makes my skin glow). James also brings me back loads of K-beauty brightening masks when he comes back from Korea, the only issue is I never know what’s in them since they aren’t in english. There are a ton more brightening sheet masks on the market, post plane or as a pick me up they are the best!
Bring on the highlighters
When all else fails, makeup to help you fake it until you make it. Skin Illuminators and liquid highlights are dull skin’s temporary best friend.
Buxom makes some of my favorite lip products so whenever they have a new launch, I’m all over it. While I’m not usually a gloss girl, it’s hard to escape the holographic trend and anything that promises to lip plump.
Organizing my beauty closet is my greatest struggle. 
Like most, I was attracted to pretty organizers to started. 
So last year I switched to the holy grail of beauty organizers, the Ikea
Microneedling, the popular skincare treatment that involves repeatedly puncturing the skin with tiny, sterile needles to stimulate collagen production just got an upgrade! And it involves radio-frequency. After three treatments my skin was so smooth that makeup just glided over my skin. I saw much stronger results then regular microneedling which made it all worth it in the end but it is a process.
Exfoliation is key! (you have options)