December 2008 Archives

Below is the second and final installment of 2008 Snob Trends!

11. Healthy Candles: Who knew that candles could be a health hazard? The folks at Lavanila thankfully! This year candle lovers could breath easy knowing that they weren't inhaling the chemicals contained in many traditional paraffin candles -- which release toxins and soot that cause damage comparable to second-hand smoking -- thanks to Lavanila's Healthy Candle .

12. Pricey Skin Care: At $400 for 6.7 oz Kanebo's Sensai Premier Body Cream is pricier than La Mer, so obviously this peaked everyone's interest! Haven't tried it for myself, but judging by the quality of the Kanebo products that I have tried, I imagine that it's simply divine..ahhhh:)

13. Diffusers: Everywhere I go --bedrooms, bathrooms, restaurants, boutiques -- they're all over! This year we couldn't get enough of diffusers! Sweet Grass Farm, Verikira, Thymes, and Moments Waterbead Diffusers by Upper Canada Soap take the cake as the best!

14. Neon Polish: The limited edition Essie Neon collection hit this summer and it was all the rage -- and come on, what screams fun in the sun like fluorescent nails!

15. Beauty with a side of Humor: Tongue-and-cheek packaging was all over the place this year. Who ruled over them all? Soap & Glory! The line comes courtesy of the same lady who founded Bliss and it's inspired by tabloid-style journalism!

More after The Jump!

Sure there has been some bad and there definitely has been some ugly, but overall when it comes to beauty trends, 2008 was a smashing success! Check-out the first half of our Snob Trends of 2008!

1. Women Secretly Swear by their Clarisonic: I am OBSESSED with the Clarisonic! It is THE beauty product of 2008. It will clear your skin, make your pores smaller, and leave your face as soft as a baby's bum! Hands down worth every single penny it will cost you.

2. Mascara Wars: It was the battle between Lancome Oscillation, Estee Lauder's Turbo Lash, Givenchy's Phenomen 'Eyes Mascara , and SpinLash's Rotating Wand. In my book, it's Givenchy all the way!

3. Michelle Obama: Head-to-toe, the world was obsessed with every piece of Mrs. Obama!

4. Gadget Madness: Ladies went gaga for technology this year with everything from Zeno's Pro Acne Clearing Device, which uses heat to kill pimples, to Clean & Clear's Blackhead Eraserwhich uses a vibrating motion and foaming pad to exfoliate dead surface skin and remove dirt and oil.

5. Crimson Lips: For when you feel like making a statement -- just don't forget to brush your hair or risk looking like a Courtney Cox-esque train wreck! Plus, loving this trend is the perfect excuse to indulge in Kanebo's Crimson Red shade, Ginza, which is made with 24kt-gold-infused silk!

More after The Jump!

I've been coming across countless wonderful beauty gift sets and like Beauty Snob Tina I ended-up getting a few of my faves for most of the people on my shopping list this holiday season! One that stand-outs when it comes to hair care is the gift set from Seva . Seva means "thread" in Sanskrit which the company says implies that all things are connected...nice little holiday message, huh?! Anyway, Seva is a new line of hair care products and they use some of the highest quality ingredients for their products. The line is also sulfate and paraben free, vegan and not tested on animals and given their ingredients Seva hair products are 100% color safe which is essential for me because I only get my hair highlighted twice a year and both times it's abroad (either at Dessange in France or with a German colorist when I go visit my family in Munich), so I gotta keep my highlights safe!! The products are wonderfully light so they won't leave your hair heavy or overly greasy. Plus, all Seva items are produced locally in Los Angeles and their warehouse employs people with disabilities from the La Puente Adult School. With that in mind, check-out the Seva Gift Set which retails for $75 (a $160 value), and comes with all of the products from the Seva line.

Bag Snob wants to know if you are tempted by Temperley's Golden Apple Bag!
Couture Snob- Do you jump for jumpsuits?
Tot Snob- Light up your tot's room with Maura Daniel!
Purse Blog- Givenchy Sacca Chain Tote
Bella Sugar- FDA approves of lash growing drug! Will you dare to try it?

I've had one of the worst weeks ever:( I caught the flu (get a flu shot if you haven't!!!), and missed not one, but three birthday parties! My friend Mikael was planning a get together at a new fondue place La Cave des Fondues, my friend Lauren had a party at this super-cute dessert place Sweetiepie, and my friend Jane had what looks to me from pictures to be one of the year's best parties! It was a "Naughty or Nice Party" held at a Soho loft with Patron sponsoring it and fab gift bags (please, can someone tell me how I could get sponsors to pay for my next party!!!??), but that's not all -- all the stars from MTV's The Hills spin-off The City were there..not too shabby! Anyway this all leads me to feel very compelled to take care of myself so I get through the rest of the winter season happy and healthy! To that end, I'd like to talk about how much I'm jumping for joy about FINALLY having discovered a face cream to stop all the flaking and pealing my skin has undergone from the weather (even my two humidifiers weren't doing the trick). The magic face cream is -- dum dum dum -- Clarins Advanced Extra Firming Night Cream for Very Dry Skin! More about it after the Jump!

"The idea behind Bobbi Brights is simple. It's a library of beautiful bolts of color that a woman can pick up anytime she wants to add a little fun to her look." Bobbi Brown If you read my earlier entry on Couture Snob, you'll know I'm going through a crayola phase of my life. Color is the fastest and least expensive way to update your look; pop a bit of fuchsia blush on and you'll look instantly refreshed.  I was afraid of bright colors for my face until reading Bobbi's new book, Bobbi Brown Makeup Manual: For Everyone from Beginner to Pro-- she offers many tips on making color work for you-- no matter your complexion or ethnicity.  In addition to testing out all the different looks on myself and my willing friends, I am diligently studying the book in case I get a chance to attend classes at the Bobbi Brown University (yup, it's in the works, more on that later).

The new Bobbi Brights collection has every shade under the sun; it is a range of 35 matte shadows in pinks and greens to blues and purples, and includes four new shades of Creamy Lip Color. Also new to Bobbi's line- six Lip Glosses in Bobbi's signature compact that can be popped into her customizable palettes!

Go check it out at Bobbi Brown.com and cosmetic counters worldwide.

I just got an offer emailed to me that I wanted to share with you before it's too late! Phyto Universe has a New Year's Eve Before and After Special. The luxe salon is located in New York City (715 Lexington Avenue at 58th St., 212.308.0270), and is the perfect spot to relax while prepping for the biggest party of the year - or unwinding after the party is over! Especially for any host of New Years parties -- like me! On December 31st, indulge in complimentary bubbly and strawberries while enjoying a hair treatment specifically designed for you. For example, The Thirst Quencher treatment, designed for dry hair, quenches thirsty hair with aromatic jojoba oil and essential oils of sage and rosemary. All treatments are finished with a blowout. January 2-4, you can enjoy complimentary vitamin shakes and juices while you enjoy a much needed post-fiesta facial or hair treatment:) They have countless other treatments on their menu, so pick what fits, indulge and relax!

This is my bad purchase of the year. Like a victim of infomercials, I fell for the sales associate's spiel about this "one step instant smokey eye brush that will save you time and create perfect eyes". Yeah, sounds too good to be true, right? Except this wasn't $19.99 after being discounted from $199.99 and I didn't get 2 extra brushes if I purchased "right now". The brush quality is good, it is sable and well constructed but this "one step" process just does not work, and if I thought about it for more than 20 seconds before I bought it, I would have made the realization. You are supposed to dab this with shadow but the shape of this prevents you from getting a good dab so I made a big mess of my shadow while smashing the brush down so I can get powder in the middle. Then you put this up to your lids and press down and tilt from side to side. Uh, shadow doesn't work this way, it does not stick and I got a ton of loose powder all over my face. And the brush is so rigid and wide that when I tried to blend with it, the shadow went up, down and around my eyes so I looked like a crazy mess. To get this to work, I had to use another brush to blend. In other words, I used the brush that I usually use to get the smokey eye look to get the smokey eye look with this brush. Now you tell me if that makes any sense. This brush sucks so badly that they don't even carry it Barney's anymore, where I bought it. Total waste of $95. Always stick to Shu Uemura for brushes. Lesson learned.

I have a new obsession and everyone who gets in my way suddenly has fabulous curls in their hair. Yes, I made my 3 year old daughter sit there and let me style her hair, I was so compelled to do so that I bribed her with chocolate. This new blow dryer from Remington called the Emi Airwave is incredibly fun and amazing! There is a funnel contraption at the end of the blowdryer (you get the entire system, attachments and blow dryer) - you feed 1 inch strips of hair through while your hair is wet. It spins the hair in there and creates luscious curls while it is drying. It twists them into spirals and when you loosen them, your hair is perfectly wavy! Totally ingenious! You end up with hair like Blake Lively in Gossip Girl - messy windblown curls with ringlets throughout. Well, it takes a bit of practice to get it to look that way. Here are some helpful hints:

- The smaller the hair segments, the tighter the curls, so experiment to get the look you want.
- Do the top of the head segment separately from the bottom that is closer to your neck. This will allow the curls to start closer to the roots.
- Make sure you allow the ends to twirl in the funnel or they will end up straight. Get the twisting going first and then move the dryer to the ends. When the ends are dry, move up to the roots.
- Leave the spirals in for a few minutes before you loosen them, this will set them in.
- Use some sort of control product beforehand so the curls will stay longer.
- Keep some smaller spiral segments intact to get that messy but coifed look.

Get the Remington Emi Airwave Dryer with Wave Attachment at Amazon.com for $29.99.

Since I've had my babies I have been unable to wear perfume, there is something about all those scents mixing in my system that just makes me feel ill. And things that used to smell good to me no longer does, my entire olfactory has been altered. And for some reason, all fragrances smell the same, there are 3 general scents that they all fit into: musky, floral and sweet. Recently, I discovered Neil Morris Fragrances that has perked my nose. These are truly original scents that has refreshed my system and made me want to wear perfume again. He recently made a new scent for Takashimaya New York, and if you know anything about Takashimaya it is that they distinguish themselves with their unique collection. Each scent has a story behind it and where the inspiration came from, like for "Storm" - "I remember the sudden stillness and "smell" of the storm - ozone in the air - that charged the scent of everything around me. The aftermath left the flowers, sand, earth and trees wet and incredibly fragrant." So beautiful, descriptive and stirs the imagination. My favorite scent is called "Clear", it has hints of grapefruit and linden blossom, it is like the name says, it is clean, refreshing and light with a bit of floral but not overpowering and the grapefruit is obviously not too sweet but gives a good crispness and tang. I was told that the scent of grapefruit makes men think you look younger than you are so I tried to test this theory out, but men are really bad test subjects and none would cooperate with me. They just thought I was flirting with them and gave me answers like, "How old do you want to me say?" or they'll say something ridiculous like, "You're 19". Whatever, I don't really care what men think, I am just happy to have found a fragrance that smells amazing to me again. You can order samples from his signature collection for $4 each or get the entire collection of samples for $25. Neil Morris Full size 2 oz. spray bottles are $95. He can also create custom fragrances for you or for a special occasions, like your wedding. How fabulous would it be to create an original scent for you and all your bridesmaids? Call 617.267.2315 for more information or read more about it on the Neil Morris website.