New in November

Here are just a few of the highlights of the products arriving in the Boutique:

• Benefit BADGal Lash mascara and eyeliner double-pack - limited edition bonus pack; get a full size BADGal mascara and a BADGal waterproof eyeliner for $32!

• Anna Sui Fall 2011 Eye & Lip Palette - this purse friendly compact contains 2 lip glosses, 2 eyeshadows and applicators!  Soft pinks give just enough color to the lips, while the highly pigmented eye shadows are rich in color!

• Neostrata BOGO bonus packs - these sets are fantastic deals! Buy the Total Anti-Aging Intense Day or Night and get the All-in-One Eye Serum for free ($47 value), Buy the Daytime Anti-Wrinkle Cream and get the Anti-Wrinkle Cream free, Buy the Daytime Wrinkle Repair and get the Wrinkle Repair free ($68.50, $130.50 value!), or Buy the Skin Renewal Peel Solution and get the Skin Resurfacing Duo free!

• Lancome Gift with Purchase - your gift with any $34 or more Lancome purchase contains a deluxe size Hypnose Doll Lashes mascara, La Crayon Kohl eyeliner in black, Bi Facil eye makeup remover, Visionnaire serum (7 ml), Genefique eye (7 ml - half size!) and a sample eye shadow quad in green/greys or pinks/plums! Quantities are very limited.

• Stila Holiday Daydream eyeshadow palette - this compact contains 22 shades that you can mix and match for a new look everyday!

• Clarins Perfect Skin, Perfect Complexion Gift - with the purchase of any 2 Clarins products, one being a foundation, you receive this cute gift containing a mini Instant Smooth face primer and an Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector!

Fall Favourites

Fall is here, and these are some of the newest products to arrive in the Beauty Boutique that are sure to be a hit:

• Essie Carry On Collection - fall colours are all over these soft nudes and neutral greens and oranges

• Benefit's They're Real mascara - love BadGal lash but wished you had a little more length and definition? You're sure to get it with They're Real! For the ultimate in volume and length, you can layer BadGal with They're Real.

• La Roche Posay Derm AHA - help your skin adjust to the cooler fall weather with LRP's new Derm AHA resurfacing serum! This dry serum will brighten your complexion and help fade winkles.

• CK Shock - the newest member of the Calvin Klein fragrance family, CK One Shock...Available in men's and women's scents, CK One Shock for Her has a floral first impression (with top notes of passion flower, pink peony and jeweled poppy flower) but then softens up with chocolate, vanilla and patchouli notes, while the men's scent is more spicy then it's sister (black pepper, basil and musk are some of the deep notes with clementine, cucumber and Red Bull (?!) as top notes). A Beauty Boutique exclusive!

• Lise Watier Natural Glow Kit- are you sad at the prospect of losing your summer glow? With the days getting shorter, there's less sunlight around to keep your bronzed look. Solution? Lise Watier's Natural Glow kit! This fabulous set comes with three full-sized products: Eye Shine eyeliner in Fauvre, Rouges Gourmand Biscotti (a beautiful nude-pink) and Natural Glow blush (how appropriate!).  Also included, a mini loose-powder mineral eyeshadow in Folie Douce (a golden brown). 

• Stila Stay All Day Liquid Eyeliner - personally, this is an all-year favourite, but with the winged liner being a hot trend for the fall, this liquid liner is unmatched! Whether you're liquid liner virgin or a longtime pro, this liner makes it simple--use the felt tip straight on for a fine line or angle it sideways for a more dramatic line.  The staying power and ease of use make this a must have!

Find Your Perfect Foundation

Do you find yourself longing looking at photos of yourself from when you were a teenager---a flawless complexion without a care in the world, except for the fear of the odd world-ending blemish? While you may not be able to go back in time and have a redo on your high-school prom, you can achieve a the look of a flawless, evenly toned complexion using the right foundation. So how do you know what product will take you back to your teenage years? It all depends on the format, texture and coverage that you are looking for.

• Want minimal coverage? Use a pressed powder to get rid of shine or small imperfections, or a tinted moisturizer if you want to combine a moisturizer with a foundation, and still even out skintone.  This option is ideal for someone with no major skin concerns who wants light coverage.  Keep a concealer handy for extra coverage under the eyes or for the odd blemish. Try Lancome's Bienfait Multi-Vital (same formula as the moisturizer) with an SPF 30 or Stila's Sheer Colour Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20

• Want medium coverage? Using a light-texture liquid foundation will give good coverage without the feel of makeup, although a concealer may be required for serious breakouts.  Try Lancome's Teint Idole Fresh Wear SPF 20 or Bourjois 10-hour Sleep Effect for a barely-there feeling.

• Want full coverage in a liquid? A liquid foundation is by far the most common, and can be found in any cosmetic line.  Depending on your skin type, you may want something oil-free (try Stila's Natural Finish Oil-Free Makeup or Lise Watier's Teint Mousse Matifiant) or something richer if you are a dry skin.  The possibilities are endless with a liquid foundation, and most often it comes down to which company has the shade best suited to your skintone.

• Want full coverage with a light texture? Use a powder foundation.  Powder foundations are great as they give buildable coverage!  This gives you many options: if you use a brush, you get good coverage but the option of getting more coverage by going over an area a second (or third) time as the product will build upon itself; if you use a sponge you get full coverage right away.  I like to go over my face with a brush, but then use the sponge for the under-eye areas to set my concealer and get that extra coverage. And being in a compact makes them easy to carry with you for touch ups throughout the day. Try Pur Minerals 4-in-1 Foundation with SPF 15 (this award winning product is your concealer, foundation, powder and sunscreen in 1), Lancome's Dual Finish (can be used wet or dry), or Clarins Everlasting Compact Foundation for fairer skins.

• Want your makeup to last all day and into the night?  Sometimes you don't have time to race home and redo your makeup before going out after work. Having a foundation that stays put from day to night can give you peace of mind that your makeup isn't wearing off before the first round of appetizers are gone.  Try Lise Watier's Glam 24 hours (it comes with a concealer built into the tube!) or Lancome's Teint Idole Ultra (oil-free).

• Special concerns? Maybe you need to cover up a scar, birth mark or tattoo gone wrong---Cover FX has a wide variety of highly pigmented full-coverage foundations in either a liquid or cream texture that will do the job. While this option is a bit heavier texture, the liquid Natural FX has an SPF 15 and is a water-based oil-free formula and is sure to hide anything from hyper-pigmentation to a tattoo that is instantly regretted the next morning...

A perfect complexion provides a bare canvas for the rest of your face, and allows you to get away with minimal makeup elsewhere! Find yours in store today.

Start With Smokin' Eyes!

They say that the eyes are the window to the soul.....but we don't necessarily wanting someone having a clear view into our soul!  (at least not on a first meeting).  Solution: put up a smoke screen.  A sultry, smokey eye can add drama, draw attention to the eyes and make your eye colour stand out!

A traditional grey smokey eye always does the job, but one of the trends for this fall is a green or purple smokey eye which is great for enhancing eye colour.  Creating a smokey eye doesn't have to be difficult--and we're going to show you how! But first, a couple of disclaimers:

1. I was already wearing some makeup before starting this tutorial--so in the pictures displayed I am already wearing eyeliner and mascara but normally it would be applied after the eyeshadow.
2. You will also want to wait to do your face makeup until after the smokey eye is complete as it is highly likely that some of the eyeshadow will fall onto the tops of the cheeks from the eyeshadow applicator. In the photos below my face has already been made up, partly because the makeup artist has the skills to apply darker eyeshadows without any pigment falling, and partly because it was scary enough sitting in the Boutique without any makeup on my face, let alone have photographic evidence taken of my uneven skin tone!
3. I am currently sporting long straight across bangs, but for the purpose of showing my full face I pulled them back with a headband which gave my a funny hair-halo, as well as displayed the fact that I have been lazily maintaining my eyebrows (or not) which are normally hidden behind the bangs.  After looking at the photos up close, I am now armed with tweezers to do some grooming...

Here are some simple steps to get a smokey eye:

• To begin with, you need to start with a clean, even toned eyelid.  Make sure that the eye area has been moisturized and is free of dry skin.  Next apply a primer all over the eyelid.  We used the Lancome eye primer in Nude. (* the photo below I was already wearing my mascara and eyeliner, but normally these would be applied later).

• Next, using an angled or rounded eyeshadow brush, take the main colour that you are going to be using for your smokey eye and apply it all over the lower lid and up into the crease.  (the colour shown below is Stila Pigalle).

• Now using a crease brush (a fluffy, round tip), take a lighter complimentary eye shadow colour and put it in the along the edges of the darker shadow (in the crease and along the outside corner), making sure to blend it with the darker shade, and further upwards. (we used a golden eye shadow from Lancome). Be sure to get the inner part of the eye as well. 

• Next take a light coloured eye shadowed and put it right below the brow bone as a highlighter (usually a shadow that is being used as a highlighter will have some sheen).  We  used Stila's Kitten, and put it under the brow bone, but also in the inner corner of the eye and along the tops of the cheeks after the final makeup was complete.
• Using an eyeliner brush, take the darker eyeshade (Pigalle) and line the bottom lashes with it.  Make sure to connect the colour all the way around the eye, including the inside corner.  For extra drama, we used Metamorphix by Lise Watier, which is a liquid transformer that automatically turns any eyeshadow into a waterproof eyeliner. We also used the lighter eyeshadow and lined underneath Pigalle, but that's optional.

• Line the upper lash line with a dark eyeliner complimentary to the colour on the lower lid.  We used Stila's Stay the Day Longwear liquid liner. Apply mascara on the upper and lower lashes and your eyes are done!

• The key to a smokey eye is to blend, blend, blend!  Also, since a smokey eye tends to be fairly dramatic, keep the rest of your face simple (it's common to use a pale or nude colour on the lips.  We used Stila's Longwear Lipcolour in Adorable).
• As for the rest of the face, this is what was used:  Stila's One Step Correct facial primer, Pur Minerals 4-in-1 powder foundation in Light, Correct & Perfect Concealer in Tone, Glamoureyes mascara, Custom Colour blush in Coral (all by Stila), Lancaster bronzer.

Try it out today!  And if you are wanting some one-on-one lessons come on into the Beauty Boutique and we would be happy to demonstrate it for you!

Thanks Christine for a great job!

Stila Fall Collection

Fall in love with the Stila Fall 2011 colour collection---just arrived in store!

What's that you say? It's only August? Thankfully the new colours are like a continuation of summer--warm, fun and playful.  A perfect example is the Living the Laguna Life palette. This travel ready set contains 4 eye shadows, a blush and a highlighter--everything you need for a day at the beach! And this cute little set is a steal at $18 (a $62 value).

Another great deal is the Lip Gloss trios; these lip glosses are the perfect combination of colour and shine, and not the least bit sticky!  Choose your set with either warm or cool colours, with each set containing two new colours and a best seller!

The piece-de-resistance for the fall collection is definitely the In the Light eyeshadow palette.  This stunning palette contains 10 highly-pigmented eye shadows, in colours ranging from a light golden to a rich bronze.  This palette contains all of the colours needed to transform your look from naturally gorgeous at the office, to a dramatic sultry evening pop.  And all of the colours are neutral so they are flattering for every skin tone.  As a bonus, this kit contains a bonus Stay All Day waterproof eyeliner in Damsel, which is a matte chocolate brown.  At $50, this limited edition palette is sure to sell out!

Another new addition is a new shade of the popular custom colour blush in a soft coral!  For anyone not familiar with this product, the highly-rated custom colour blush comes in it's original pink colour and now the coral, and works with all skin tones by adjusting to each individual's colouring.

There are also more staples added to their Stay All Day line; Stay All Day liquid liner is now available in green and grey (FYI - this stays the day and then some if you don't have a good makeup remover! I wear it every day without smudge or smear), as well as more colours in the Stay All Day waterproof eye liner.   Also new is a Stay All Day waterproof eyebrow pencil, which is available in two shades. These pencils go on soft and smooth, and are twist up so there's no need to sharpen.

Other new products include the Perfecting Concealer, available in 5 shades, and the Perfect and Correct Foundation.  I tried both of these products and really like both the texture and finish--they went on really smooth and rich, leaving a flawless complexion without the feel of makeup!

When the products are this hot, summer is sure to stick around for a while! But the limited edition colours and sets will not, so hurry in to get yours today!