Julia picks a few new night creams to review along with a cleanser; products featured include Garnier’s Skin Renew 3-way Cleanser, Origins Starting Over and Simple Kind to Skin Vital Vitamin Night Cream.
March 31, 2010
Do You Know How to Weatherproof Your Hair?
Kattia Solano of Butterfly Studio
Perhaps you remember around fashion week when I got that amazing haircut from Butterfly Studio Salon in NYC — a truly fabulous experience with incredible results! I recently received some tips on how to ‘weatherproof’ your hair from Butterfly Studio Salon’s Kattia Solano, the owner/founder/expert stylist who was featured in a hair segment on Good Day NY regarding preparing your coif for the unavoidable rainy/snowy days. I thought her tips were pretty good – good enough to share with the lovely FPD readers! The advice is broken out by hair type and accessory (hats or hoods)- enjoy!
TIP 1: WAVY/CURLY HAIR – HOW SHOULD YOU WEAR A HAT?
- Hair around the frame of the face gets the most frizzy, especially for those with wavy and curly hair
- Kattia suggests applying the Rahua Finishing Treatment to damp hair, leaving hair shiny and frizz-free, and then creating a simple braid across the hair line – from left mid-brow to behind the right ear
- This simple technique will allow the hair around the frame of the face to remain groomed and in place, with minimal frizz, under a fashionable hat
TIP 2: STRAIGHT HAIR – HOW SHOULD YOU WEAR A HAT?
- In order to minimize frizz and flyaways, Kattia suggests creating a side ponytail and/or a neat braid
- With the help of an anti-frizz serum, such as the Kerastase OLEO-RELAX Serum, even under a hat, this style will maintain its form
- Kattia also suggests tucking the ponytail under a scarf to keep all hair hidden from the rain and snow
TIP 3: JACKETS WITH HOODS – HOW TO MAKE YOUR HAIR LOOK IT’S BEST
- Hoods typically aren’t as constricting as hats and are sometimes easier to protect hairstyles from inclement weather
- Kattia suggests sectioning hair in four quadrants and creating loose pincurls, secured with large bobbypins and sprayed with a holding/texture spray such as the Shu Uemura Liquid Fabric
- These pincurls will be hidden and protected under the hood of the coat
- Once at your final destination, these four bobbypins can easily be removed to reveal bouncy and voluminous waves
March 23, 2010
THE DYI Glue-On Pedicure: Reviewing Revlon’s Perfect Pedicure Kit
The things I do for the sake of journalism! Fascinated by the creation of a new product category that gives you imitation nails not for your fingers but for your toes, I was too curious not to experiment with the new trend; like I’ve said before, I will try anything once! The Revlon Perfect Pedicure Kit, around $8, includes a generous amount of nails, insanely strong glue, and some sticker decals if you want to add a bit of nail art to your custom toenails. I chronicled my experience testing out the artificial toe nails, with ‘before’ and ‘after’ pics, and a play by play of the application.
- Read the instructions on the back of the pack – kind of worried about setting the toenails on perfectly the first time around (since the glue is so strong you don’t get a second chance)
- I guess my toenails are kind of tiny; spent about eight minutes matching up which faux nails should go with each toenail
- Applied the glue to BOTH the toenail and artificial nail as suggested; the glue pours very easily and is very thin and clear – I like this
- Wow, this glue is insanely strong; I had some left on my finger and while I did the recommended pressing of the nail for five seconds, I almost glued my finger to it as well!
- Three nails done – it’s hard to get used to looking at my toes look so shiny and polished; boyfriend stops by the bathroom to see what’s going on and laughs
- My fingers are more than just a little sticky – at least three of them now are coated on the tips with glue -oops! I should have been more careful when I started applying these! Debating whether to stop and use acetone nail polish remover on my fingers or keep going…
- I decided to go full throttle and decided to finish the job with my sticky fingers
- Nails complete! Total time: 20 minutes Average NYC time for a pedicure: 40 minutes How do they look? Real? Would you try it? Of note: do not wear nails for more than 7-10 days, and soak in acetone nail polish to let the nails dissolve for removal — do not try to rip or break them off. I DO have THREE EXTRA Sets: if you would be willing to write a few sentences about your experience and what you think about them, and send in some ‘before’ and ‘after pics’, I would be glad to send you a complimentary pair! The first three readers to post that they want them in the comments section below will get them!
March 21, 2010
Maybelline Sweet Thing Collection
This March Maybelline New York launches the ‘Sweet Thing Collection’ – a candy-inspired group of colors that includes fabulous pastels and brights to suit your spring-fever fancy. Found at the same price point and most of the retailers that carry Maybelline, the new product range is for lips, eyes, and nails too! The limited edition line comes in the same formulation for the Color Sensational Lip Gloss, Express Finish Nail Color, Eye Express Cream Shadow Stick and the Expert Wear Duo Eye Shadow. I was lucky enough to try out the products from the range, along with some sweet mini cupcakes from Baked by Melissa (sooo delicious!). My absolute favorites: Color Sensational Triple Yun Lip Gloss ( a great coral/pink color), Express Finish Nail Color in Minty, Eye Express Cream Shadow Stick in A La Mauve, and Expert Wear Duo Eye Shadow in Goody Plum Drop. Stay on the lookout for these fabulous limited-time-only items at your favorite retailer (I usually go to Rite Aid or Target) or head to Maybelline.com for the latest news and happenings.
