Beauty
Fa-La-La-La-Lip-Glosses and More: Your Guide to Holiday Beauty
Andrea Kiliany Thatcher
The holiday party circuit can have a way of stressing a girl out. What to wear is only half the battle – then there’s hair and makeup to consider. If you usually keep your look natural for the office, but splash out a bit for parties, how do you handle an office party? When Christmas morning involves stumbling bleary-eyed to a family brunch before you’ve had your first cup of coffee, how do you look not only presentable, but also fabulous?
There are a few basic maintenance steps that can really keep you ahead of the game and feeling confident even if you’ve just had time to swipe on some lip gloss before that impromptu gift exchange with friends.
Firstly, have that great new lip gloss at the ready. Plenty of cosmetics companies are coming out with palettes that will last you through the holiday season and beyond.
Since lips can get extra dry and chapped this time of year, stay prepared for the mistletoe with the ultra-moisturizing Avon Glazewear Liquid Lipcolor Mini Gloss Set.
For more saturated color that’s posh and customizable, the Chanel Lipstick Palette – Satin Finish is the palette to keep you party-ready. Mixing some of the lovely soft pinks with a more shocking center red creates a lip look all your own.
Lips need plumping? The legendary Lip Venom creators, DuWop, have a new set of Fierce Glosses that will stay in your purse all the time (it’s been inmine since I got it). This set has all the Lip Venom plumping action you love in some great colors, like wisteria and fig.
For a gloss that smells as good as it looks, follow Gwynnie’s example and check out Estee Lauder’s Holiday Spirit Lip Gloss Palette. Their whole Holiday Spirit Collection is full of beautiful neutral colors with a little hint of gold for extra glamour.
So that’s what to keep on hand – what to do beforehand? Stay looking your best. As hard as it is, keep to your skin regimen, even when you’re stumbling in at daybreak. Skin takes a real hit with all the makeup of the holiday season, and you don’t want to neglect it and end up pasty and broken out on New Year’s Eve. Do what mama always told you and wash your face every night.
As for the skin on the rest of your body, when it’s exfoliated, moisturized, and smelling great, it’s always glowing and at it’s best. A great option is the LaLicious Holiday Gift Set including an 8 oz. Body Butter and 16 oz. Sugar Scrub. LaLicous sugar scrubs have the perfect texture and are very moisturizing, and come in peppermint or brown sugar/vanilla for the holidays (this writer swoons for the peppermint.)
Keep your nails looking clean, neat and festive if that’s your style. Pick up a cheap nail buffer and file at the drug store and it will last you through the holiday season. At least once a week and maybe before an event, file and buff nails so they look healthy and shiny.
A kit like Poshe’s Regimen #1 for Healthy and Artificial Nails can keep your nails looking a little extra polished (small pun intended). With a nail reviver, cuticle care cream that makes cuticles more presentable in minutes, a base and topcoat, you can easily look like you had a natural manicure.
If natural doesn’t seem special enough for the holidays, this is the time of year you can go crazy with sparkly or bright polish. Notice I said sparkly or bright - both can be a little much if you’re over the age of 18. Goldie has great offerings for either option. Their white shimmer Rabbit Hole nail lacquer from the Alice in Wonderland Collection is great for a hint of sparkle. Or, go with the bright reds and pinks in the Goldie Mini Nail Kit from their holiday collection, including Tackquoi, a metallic hot pink, Razzle, a bright red, and Veil, a more neutral, nude pink.
Of course, as the trends have been telling us for seasons now, nails aren’t the only place for some shimmer. The old mall standby Bath and Body Works has a Snow Glow Limited Edition Collection that can be layered on your existing makeup look for some extra sparkle anytime. The Body Shimmer Lotion has the perfect fairy-dust look with a great cherry blossom fragrance, too.
For a bit more sophisticated shimmer, the stila holiday! perfectly kitten collection is another great way to integrate some new products into your existing routine for a more festive look. It includes stila’s famous all over shimmer liquid luminizer, and kitten it gloss and shadow.
Stila also has my favorite products for when you’re ready, you’re sparkling…and now you have to decide on your actual makeup. It’s so simple when you stick with palettes. And stila has two night flower deluxe palettes you’ll adore – for different reasons. The sets include four eye shadows, a cheek color, a lip color and a lip glaze.
The blu orchid palette is great for work, family get-togethers, church or temple. The lovely golden nudes can be combined any number of ways to be subtle yet special. The rouge orchid palette is a little more colorful for a downtown bash or fancy dinner party.
Use the darker shades for contouring a more dramatic look, or with a wet brush as liner for something more subtle. Use the glimmering eye shadow options as a simple highlighter under the brow, or an all-over base to really sparkle.
Now that you have tons of product recommendations and tips to shimmer and shine all the way through the new year, remember that the holiday season is a great time to have fun with color and try out some new looks. Be bold, be daring - maybe Santa will take note.
The Daily
Ornella Muti does Jewelry
WWD is reporting today that popular Italian actress Ornella Muti is going into the jewelry design business. What spurred this calling is not immediately known, but the design comes with a social message if that is any indication. The writing on muti's jewelry...
May 16, 2008
Nicole Farhi presented with CBE
French fashion designer Nicole Farhi has been presented with one of the highest awards given in the UK. Farhi received the CBE for services to the retail industry. Although born in Nice, Farhi has worked in the fashion industry in Britain since the 70s...
May 15, 2008
Chanel Cruises into Miami
Karl Lagerfeld doesn't just invite anyone to his fashion show. You have to be part of fashion's intelligentsia. Pretentious though not overly so, aware yet not slaving to the trends, faithful yet not blindly so would describe the Chanel customer...
May 14, 2008
Fashion Designer Launches Jews Against Obama Line
Fashion designer Doron Braunshtein better known as Apollo Braun to New York's East Villagers and Lower East Side residents, has decided to launch a line of t-shirts protesting Barack Obama's candidacy for President...
May 13, 2008
Gwyneth Paltrow Makes Fashion Film For Tod's
Already coming off of a big budget and bigger profit Ironman film, Gwyneth Paltrow has gone the way of the arthouse film for fashion label Tod's. The four minute feature was written and directed by award winning director Dennis Hopper is set...
May 12, 2008
see all daily headlines >>
