the Little Black Dress has met its Match

Yesterday I blogged about the little black dress because quite frankly it should be a staple item in any femme fatale's wardrobe. This Fall, the little black dress made a huge comeback on the runway, and the new black of the season is...BLACK. I love a black dress with a red lip and eyes played up with black liquid liner & a pale yellow/gold eyeshadow. Pair this combo with the above peek-a-boo patent leather oxford style bootie and matching patent leather clutch and your good to go! Don't forget other accessories such as the belt and little touches such as a conversation starter ring. I love BIG rings...go BIG or stay home:)



the RED lip






( Fall'08 RTW Dsquared2, photo credits: by Greg Kessler, www.style.com)

That Little Black Dress is a girl's best friend (again)

Looking for something to wear to your next party? Be it for a work party or wedding (hate to say it and a funeral), every girl needs that Little Black Dress (LBD) to fall back on. The LBD cannot just be any dress but an investment piece. Beautifully tailored, basic lines, and made of quality material. OK, so our bodies change over time, however, I'm not asking you to adopt-a-dress just that one dress that can possibly fit you time after time (now I'm humming Cyndi Lauper)... You also don't want to wear the LBD to every party consecutively and as any fashionista knows I'm sure we all own more than one LBD. However, with the philosophy of K.I.S.S (Keep It Simple Sister) the LBD paired with the right accessories can totally carry you for a few seasons, keeping some wondering if your closet is overflowing with LBD's. Lastly, don't forget to add the hottest trend for Fall/Winter 2008 the plum stained lip or if all else fails the perfect red lips. Bring out that femme fatale!






From Fall 2008 Ready-to-Wear Collections I present you the Little Black Dress.


ABOVE TOP (Calvin Klein), ABOVE BOTTOM ( Monique Lhuillier)


ABOVE TOP ( Lanvin), ABOVE BOTTOM (Lanvin)


ABOVE TOP (Narciso Rodriguez), ABOVE BOTTOM (Donna Karan)




(images from http://www.style.com/)

Pearly Whites

For the last week I've been testing out the new Whitening Listerine Quick Dissolving Strips. I was one of 75 selected Candians to test out the strips and provide feedback, thus within the next couple of weeks I will be posting my results. However in the meantime for all you fellow Canadians that want pearly white teeth here's the link to get your own FREE sample & $8 off the purchase of your first box!

Whitening Listerine Strips samples & Coupon

Treat your feet well

Your feet deserve pampering, after all, they take you from A-B and are often neglected. Since I'm on my feet all day I didn't pass up the chance of trying out a couple of Summersoles products. I tried two of their products; Fragrant Footings-Foot pads, and Summersoles Stay Dry liners.

The first are foot pads that are infused with essential oils and are offered in three scents;

Bare Shoulder Smolder Jasmine

Garden Party Lemon

Kiss Me Till Morning Mint

OK, so the scent names are not exactly feet apropriately named but lets skip that part.

REVIEWS

Fragrant Footings Foot Pads-for the balls of your feet. I tried, Kiss Me Till Morning Mint, and loved that the scent wasn't overpowering in a toothpaste kind-of-way but fragranced enough to leave a faint aroma. Aside from keeping your feet smelling nicely the foot pads actually offer light padding to the balls of your feet and don't take up room in your shoes. Package comes with two pairs ( in black or beige) & retails for $11 cdn.

SummerSoles Stray Dry Liners- are great for keeping your feet dry and from slipping and sliding. They're thin insoles that feel like suede and come in several colours; leopard (the one I got), zebra, white, black, tan, brown, rose pink, sky blue, lime, and yellow gold. My preference are the leopard and zebra print, very cute & sexy! One trimable pair in eack package & retails for $9.95 cdn.

Your feet will be happy!

Obsession with censorship

There goes Calvin again with those provocative ads! Why the surprise, Calvin Klein ads & commercials have always caused a stir within North America therefore it shouldn't come as a surprise when the commericial for the fragrance Secret Obsession was banned from airing on U.S networks.

In the commericial version actress Eva Mendes is shown drapped in a bed sheet that slids off & shows a bit of nipple. Here's the link (I was going to directly post it but fear that it might be removed):

Click here:

Eva Mendes Secret Obsession commercial

Calvin Klein's print and media campaigns have attracted atention as early as the 1980's with models such as Brooke Shields. On the left is an Obsession fragrance ad campaign from the 1990's featuring Kate Moss.

What are your thoughts? Share them in the comment section.

(Copyright 2008 Coty Prestige / Calvin Klein Fragrances / Coty Prestige)

Summer Clean

As a beauty junkie the search for facial cleansers is never ending, even when the HG (holy grail) of cleansers has been found the search never ends. Why is that? Hmm, there's so many facial cleansers out there that we junkies always think "just one more to try" and hope that the promise of gorgeous skin will exist within that bottle.

This past summer I've been testing out a few cleansers (surprise! suprise!) and here's a list of my favourite. For reference I have combo skin that gets oilier in the summer & has been dehydrated. Also, as a staple I use Shu Uemura Premium A/I Cleansing Oil, I use this daily at night. However, lately I've been a bit lazy & have been sticking with just liquid cleansers or a combination of both the cleansing oil & liquid cleanser for those days that I wear heavier makeup.






Clinique Liquid Facial Soap

Clinique has some really great skincare products but as with any skincare line trial & error is the only way to find out what works for you. I have never been a fan of their 3-step skincare system & don't believe that you have to be loyal to one skincare line when using facial products. That being said, in the past I had tried their facial soap bar & did not like it at all. However, my tune changed when I received a large sample of the Liquid Facial Soap as part of a GWP (gift with purchase). Washes off makeup, doesn't strip my skin, and I don't feel a film on my skin afterwards (which was the issue with the bar soap). Very gentle and all you need is a pea size amount. Also, there's no fragrance!



Fancl Washing Liquid

I can't rave enough about this cleanser! Free of preservatives, sterilizers, petroleum surfactants, fragrances, mineral oil, and mildly acidic. (as stated on fancl.com)

I find this cleanser similiar to the Clinique Liquid Facial Soap, doesn't strip my skin, washes off all traces of makeup, & no film left behind. A little is all you need as it foams up.

Pure & Pretty Gentle Cleanser

I first heard about this line on the skincare forum on MakeupAlley. I feel Pretty Products are hand-crafted skincare products created by the owner Kim. Her cleansers are made with fresh botanical infusions and essential oils. I love products that contain essential oils especially lavender. My skin tolerates lavender very well but my advice is not everyone can tolerate essential oils therefore trial & error with using any products with it.

This cleanser is very gentle & not strong smelling. Lathers nicely & a little goes a long way! Removes makeup well & doesn't leave me feeling dry. I love this as a morning cleanser because it is so gentle & I love the light scent.

Kim does offer samples at a small charge therefore its a great way to test out her products.

Well, three facial cleansers for the entire summer is not bad at all for a beauty junkie! OK four if you count the cleansing oil (but whose counting anyway). I would definetly use any of these cleansers again for the Fall/Winter as I feel that neither of them would be too drying. I'll keep you posted as to which ones I will continue using.

What are you summer favourite facial cleansers? Or HG cleansers?

(Photo credits: http://www.clinique.com/, http://www.fancl.com/, http://ifeelprettyproducts.com/)

Eyespy Eyebrows

Prior to my little mini-vacation I went to have my eyebrows threaded at CURE Salon Spa in Toronto. Usually I tweeze my eyebrows and occasionally have them waxed for shaping, however, I've been reading about threading and how its less painfull than waxing. I naturally have thick eyebrows (I'm European descent) and although thick eyebrows are the trend for Fall/Winter 2008 I wasn't about to sport a catapilar on my forehead. But I do love a natural, clean eyebrow that has a nice arch. So, off I went and booked an appointment with Cure Salon Spa. I initially went there because it was close to home and quite frankly when I searched "eyebrow threading" for the Toronto area that was one of the few places that resulted in my search and could book me at such short notice. Needless to say I was very happy with the results! It was quick and less painfull than waxing and the result was exactly what I wanted, natural full eyebrows with an arch. The total charge was $18 which was more than my usual $5 eyebrow wax. And the best was no redness afterwards which is the norm when I wax. Would definetly get my eyebrows threaded again in the future.

Anyone else get this done? Share your experiences in my comment section? Other places in the Toronto area that you would recommend? I'm also curious about Gee Beauty, although Cure Salon Spa did an amazing job so why ruin a good thing!

(photo: Ralph Lauren Fall'08, credit: Greg Kessler, www.style.com)

I am off again but will be back soon!

Just wanted to update & let you all know that I will be M.I.A (again)! Sorry, very busy Summer but when I get back in a week I will promise lots of postings:)

Cheers!

Bijoux xoxox

(image: photobucket)