Little Necessities and the Upper West Side

I am headed up to Manhattan for the opening of our Upper West Side store. I had about 5 minutes flat to pack, with two of my three kids taking my clothes out of the suitcase while I was putting them in (imagine, packing is more fun than dolls!). I am on the train now, thinking of everything I forgot.

Luckily, I will be able to get them at bluemercury in Manhattan. No more waiting until I get home to grab my must haves. What am I missing? A good pair of tweezers. The thing about tweezers is that I always need them and I always seem to lose them. I probably buy about 6 pairs a year. They are a necessity for me. Although I have my brows done by Lance, one of our Georgetown estheticians, they always seem to sprout random hairs between treatments. And, embarrassingly, as I am getting older, the hairs above my lip seem to sprout here and there at the most unexpected moment. Last weekend, we were travelling with no bluemercury for miles, so my husband picked up a pair of drugstore tweezers for me. What a disappointment. A week old and they have no grab. It’s back to Tweezerman and Rubis for me.

What else am I missing – my beloved travel size Acqua di Parma Colonia, my travel size Bumble Shine Spray and my Darphin eye serum for puffiness. I will be picking these up tomorrow at the bluemercury at 83rd and Broadway!

P.S. We have two bluemercury veterans running this location (they bleed blue) – Alexis and Michelle. They are veritable encyclopedias of knowledge and fabulous makeup artists to boot. Lucky New York and lucky me!

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My Rut is Finally Back in Fashion

Do you ever get stuck in a rut with your lipstick and lip gloss colors? I find that I repurchase the same colors year after year. Occasionally, I’ll discover a new one, which then becomes one of my staple colors.
The good news - this spring, some of my “go to” colors are perfect for the spring fashion season. The look (which I got to see at the Zac Posen show in the fall) is pink, tulle, flowy, goddess-y clothes. (On the opposite end, primary colors are also in, but that is not me, except for the color aqua blue) The makeup – sheer, shimmery and/or shiny pastels. Think pink, raspberry, lavender. (Read: no red and no coral) My old stand-bys are perfect.

Trish McEvoy Cream Pink Rose lipstick — a matte pink rose – which I always wear with her Iced Nude lip pencil.

Laura Mercier Pink Champagne lipstick, a little bit deeper pink mauve – also perfect for spring.

And my old spring and summer stand by – Laura Mercier Violet Lip Glace. It’s being repackaged this spring – still it is the perfect violet/lavender/pink gloss. Wearable alone or over any pink or rose lipstick.

I am also thinking about tracking down one of my old favorites, NARS Catfight, which I can’t seem to find anywhere.

No, these colors will not work for everyone. I am blonde (ok, they are highlights, but I was blonde up until age 22), blue eyes, with fair to medium skin and I freckle easily. (Laura Mercier Tinted Nude is my coloring).

Despite the fact that my makeup is back in fashion, I, of course, will probably not be found in tulle, pink, or flowy, goddess-y clothes. I will be wearing my staple colors, black or blue. But my lips will be perfectly IN.

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A Brightening Experiment

Last night, I had just flown in from California and was wide awake at 1 am. (Clearly, I was on West Coast time.) I was feeling adventurous and decided to try two new products - the new Bliss The Youth As We Know It Cleanser and Darphin's Clear White Brightening and Soothing Serum. (I am brightening obsessed right now.)

While I love both products, this cocktail combo was way too powerful for my hyperpigmented, somewhat dry, starting-to-lose elasticity-at-37 skin. My skin peeled right away. The kind of peel where you just sort of rub your skin and wonder what is coming off on your finger tips, and then realize it is just the top, dead layer of your skin.

The Bliss cleanser, with exfoliating salicylic acid, is a light, creamy cleanser with a clean fruity scent. This is perfect for dull, dry feeling skin. I am going to try it again tonight, without the extra powerful step of the Darphin brightener.


The Darphin brightening serum will be added to my collection of great, irresistible Darphin serums that includes: Hydraskin for moisture in the morning, Intral (launching April '08) for soothing redness post-peel or sunburn and Fibrogene for absolute dryness. Light in texture, this new serum (coming out in May ‘08) uses fruit acids and vitamin C to reduce hyperpigmentation, brighten and smooth the skin. No one does a serum like Darphin. I will be retesting this one on a different night, without a salicylic acid cleanser! While my little experiment had extreme results, the great news was that I had smooth, beautiful skin today.

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