Beauty Squared Round-Up for July 14, 2013

Happy Sunday, lovelies!

• If you're like me, your beauty routine more or less goes out the window when you spend any time in the heat and humidity. But, if, like me, you're not willing to forgo your beauty routine just because the weather is working against you, you may just need to change up how how you get ready and what products you use. Beautylish shares their favourite heat-proof beauty products that'll help keep you looking good all summer!
  
• If you've ever had a short hairstyle you've liked, you've probably had that moment when you've wondered if you should let it grow out or if you should keep it short. Hairstylist Bill Angst offers some tips to Beautyeditor reader Maria about growing out her short hair.
  
• Some "underrated" beauty habits, or really, just beauty tips, courtesy of Glamour readers.
  
• Minimal, matte makeup as seen on Mad Men's Jessica Paré.
  
• If you get the chance, you should check out the Lipstick Queen lipsticks. Here's a feature on the Chinatown Glossy Lip Pencil in Catalina.
  
• Summer in the city can be grand, but it can also take a real toll on your skin. Here are some common issues that arise with heat and city life and how you can protect your skin.
  
• Whatever you do, don't listen to Gwyneth Paltrow's advice on sun exposure, listen to medical professionals.
  
• Is there a discontinued lipstick that you can't forget about? For me it's MAC's Ionic from when I was a student. Check out Three Custom Color, who can recreate a number of long-gone shades from their colour library. Mine isn't there, but maybe yours is?
  
• In Canada or New York? Pick up a copy of Chloe Magazine for a spread featuring MuchMusic VJ Liz Trinnear styled as Debbie Harry by the awesome Lucky Bromhead. You can see one of the shots on Lucky's Instagram here: http://instagram.com/p/bmdNXAtwio/. 

Beauty Squared Round-Up - July 7, 2013

Here are some interesting and helpful beauty links we've stumbled across this past week and want to share with you. Let's dig in!

• Glamour magazine did a reader survey and found that young women recorded an average of 13 negative thoughts about their bodies every day.
  
• CityTV MUA Tracy Peart has some tips for keeping cool while applying makeup.
  
• Have you every wondered why some beauty products are so pricey?
  
• What beauty products and treatments do beauty editors spend their money on?
  
• Fashion Magazine's Beauty Panel has their tips for hair and makeup for job interviews. These would work well for a daily work look too. Polished and professional!
  
• Skin is drier in the summertime so Elle Canada has a round-up of their favourite hydrating skin care products.
  
• It's good to get some sunshine, some fresh air and some vitamin D. But it's not good to sit out and soak up the rays like you used to. Here are some tips for tanning safely.
  
• Sunburn, chlorine-damage, dry skin - here are ten ways to repair summer damage to your hair and skin.
  
• Did Coronation Street stars Brooke Vincent and Catherine Tyldesley break marketing rules by publicising fictitious beauty products on Twitter? An investigative UK TV series claims to have created a cosmetics firm and gotten the actresses to tweet about them. 

Butter London Fishwife Review, Swatches and Photos

On my recent trip to NYC with Catherine, we both scooped up some Butter London polishes at Ricky's as they had some hard to find colours and were cheaper down there. So imagine my delight when a few weeks ago Butter London had their Friends & Family event! 

Before we proceed I have to give props to Butter London for a few customer service related things: 1) they actually have a website devoted to selling and shipping in Canada and 2) they offered the 30% discount to their Canadian customers. In this day and age of e-commerce there are still way too many beauty companies that only sell and ship to the US, or charge an unaffordable amount to ship to Canada (i.e: Bergdorf Goodman, Giorgio Armani, Urban Decay etc.)...don't they read our north of the border blogs? We are just as beauty obsessed as our south of the border cousins!

Ok rant over...now let's look at one of a set of  polishes I ordered from Butter London.

Butter London Posh Bird and Fishwife

This post is a review for Fishwife, part of a duo set of polishes available exclusively online ($30.00 CA). Fishwife is a pale blue holo polish,with an incredibly fine holo particle. The holo effect on this polish is on the subtler side due to the fineness of the glitter. I rather like that this doesn't necessarily scream "HOLO!!!" because disco ball, retina burning nail colours are not for everyday. You could wear Fishwife to the office or club. It's that pretty and versatile.

 It's important to note that I had some difficulty capturing Fishwife's beautiful, pale blue, almost aqua colour in photographs - but I hope you can tell it's not a typical straight up silver holo. The formula on this (as on many holo polishes) was on the sheer side, but I found if I did two thicker coats, where I let the polish pool a bit more on the nail, I got complete coverage. I did find it pulled a bit in some areas but only if I didn't let the polish pool before I brushed it on. More research on the interwebs indicates if you buff your nails then apply a holo polish (sans regular basecoat), or if you use a specific aqua basecoat for holos you get better and more reliable applications.

Butter London Fishwife

I like this polish - it makes me think of icicles, glaciers and yes, the shimmery scales of a fish. This duo can be found here,Review of Posh Bird to follow.

Grade: A

Happy Independence Day!

Happy Independence Day to all our readers south of the boarder...don't forget to sunscreen your beautiful selves and have fun!

Philosophy Hope In A Jar Night: Review and Photos

Beauty Squared was recently sent some of Philosophy's new Hope in a Jar Night for review. It's an intense retexturizing moisturizer that features an innovative qusome delivery system that enhances efficacy, while limiting the potential for irritation. According to Philosophy, skin is noticeably smoother, lines are visibly softened, a rosy glow is restored and results continue to improve with nightly use. 

$48/2 oz

Some photos...

Instruction booklet

Ingredients

Jill:

This cream has a very thick, almost sticky consistency and a noticeable, but pleasant lavender based scent. On the skin it absorbs fairly quickly and leaves your skin feeling cushioned and protected.

For the first few days of testing this, I used it without my usual night time treatment (Differin 3X Gel), because exfoliating and resurfacing creams can interact with Differin (an exfoliant) and potentially cause peeling. Used alone I found that this cream did improve the texture and brightness of my skin. My one complaint was this product did not leave my skin feeling well moisturized in the morning. Compared to the night cream I was using before I began testing Hope in a Jar Night, my skin was noticeably drier and tighter feeling upon waking. When used on top of Differin 3X Gel, my skin did peel slightly at the corner of my mouth and high on my temples. This indicates to me that this cream does in fact exfoliate as it claims.

All in all I liked this cream - I liked the thick, somewhat sticky texture, the scent and the way it made my skin look fresher and brighter in the morning. The only flaw for me is that it did not hydrate my skin as much as I would like.

Grade: A-


Catherine:

I've been a fan of Philosophy products for a few years. Their products are very good, although on the pricier side. If you can afford them, I recommend them.

Hope in a Jar Night has a thick consistency, almost paste-like (but much more pleasant). It's pleasant to massage into the skin, because it really feels like it's getting in to my pores. Despite it being a night cream, this does not sit on my skin. It really absorbs quickly and my skin feels soft and supple shortly after applying it.

My skin feels the same way in the morning, soft and supple. The product is still there and I can feel it come off when I wash my face. I notice a definite change in my skin after using this product for a few nights. It's smoother and more even-toned. I don't feel like I need to exfoliate as much. It has brought forward a few small pimples, which can be expected to happen with anything that renews the skin such as this type of moisturizer. 

It should be noted (and the packaging does) that this is a night cream only. The ingredients make skin more sensitive to sun damage and so, this should not be worn as a day cream. Everyone should wear a sunscreen during the day but especially if you're using this cream or any resurfacing, retexturizing cream.

I have no complaints about this product. It does what it claims to - gives you smoother, softer, renewed skin. It's not heavy, overly fragranced or greasy.

Grade: A

MAC Tropical Taboo: Mineralize Skinfinish Review, Swatches and Photos

Undoubtedly the most anticipated products of a MAC Mineralize collection are the Mineralize Skinfinishes, and this summer's collection Tropical Taboo is no exception. Featured in Tropical Taboo are three new limited edition Skinfinishes: Adored, Lust and Rio ($35.00 CA/$30.00 US). All photos taken in natural light, swatches on NC 40/42 skin.

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish: Adored, Lust and Rio

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Adored

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Lust

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Rio

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish: Adored, Lust and Rio

Adored - described by MAC as "coral with a light beige pearl." Once mixed Adored turns into a champagne beige shimmer with a hint of peach/pink. On most skin tones it would work best as a neutral highlighter, as it's pigment is on the light end and it's colour is essentially close to that of skin. On darker complexions it will obviously look cooler and more dramatic. It's texture is very finely milled and a little powdery so it tends to blend out very easily.

Grade: B+

Lust - the description of Lust as a "pale pink with cranberry pearl" is somewhat misleading as I would peg Lust as a light-medium pink with pink pearl. Unlike Adored or Rio, Lust has an added pearl or fleck, which gives it's finish a slightly glittery/metallic look. It's texture is a little bit grittier than Adored or Rio due to this added pearl. Out of the three this one was the most pigmented on my skin, so on  light skin tones I could see this working as a blush. On medium and dark skin tone sit would be a slightly more dramatic/metallic highlighter.

Grade: B

Rio - a "bronze with a bright pink pearl" is more like a beige-coral on my skin tone. My favorite out of the three, it has a finely milled, powdery texture and a warm tone that I would imagine would be flattering to both warm and cool complexions. Pigmentation is on the light side, so this would again be best as more of a highlighter than a blush. On really fair complexions this would make a great companion to soften or blend out bronzer.

Grade: A-

I was very pleased to see MAC producing a refined group of MSF's. In the past this product has been extremely frosty/glittery which is fine for more dramatic looks but much too obvious for a "natural sheen" effect. I would like to see MAC continue to move towards this trend of finely milled highlighters...maybe they could end up somewhere in the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powders end of the spectrum?

J

Deborah Lippmann The Stripper To Go Nail Lacquer Remover Finger Mitts Review

The Deborah Lippman Stripper To Go Nail Lacquer Remover Finger Mitts (deep breath) are convenient little sealed fingertip mitts that you can use when travelling or whenever you need to quickly remove your polish.

The fingertip mitts are individually packaged and saturated with Deborah Lippman's award-winning lavender lacquer remover. It contains aloe vera to help prevent dehydration and lavender for fragrance and anti-bacterial properties. One mitt cleans all ten nails.

6 for $12.00 at Nail Polish Canada.

Jill:

The first thing I noticed when I opened the package was the absence of nose hair burning scent. On the contrary to most nail polish removers, this product has a lavender scent which though strong, is much more preferable to the majority of polish removers out there. I was skeptical that one little mitt would clean all 10 fingers, but I used one mitt to clean off a dark polish (plus base + top coat) and it worked quite nicely. I did find that for that final wipe to remove any last traces of polish it was better to just use the mitt as you would a cotton pad as the inside of the mitt gets saturated with polish fairly quickly. The mitt stays wet with remover for quite a long time because it is very saturated - so you don't have to worry about working super fast.

These would be a great product for travelling, but as Catherine mentions below, they work out to be quite expensive on a per use basis. Like any polish junkie, I like to change my nails once a week and I could never afford to use these year round! I have given them a grade to reflect their effectiveness, not their relative expensiveness.

Grade: A

Catherine:

These are the second nail lacquer remover finger mitts/pads that I've tried (the first came in my June Glymm box). They're a clever idea, especially for travel purposes. They cost $12 CDN for 6 mitts and each mitt claims to clean all ten nails so that works out to $2 per nail polish removal. Pretty pricey if you remove nail polish weekly like I do. Just like with the La Fresh finger mitts I tried, the scent of these is refreshing compared to the cheap drugstore polish remover I typically use. These have a distinctive lavender scent although there's still a strong chemical scent underneath. The feel of the Deborah Lippmann polish remover is different too; it's soft and moisturizing rather than drying. I found the mitts well-moistened and effective for removing even thick, multi-layered polish like butter LONDON's Gobsmacked. 

Grade: A