Sneak Preview: Ann Taylor Spring Look 2010

Beauty Break!
I had the pleasure of attending the Ann Taylor Spring 2010 preview held at Milk Studios and while getting lost on the way was daunting ,( I should have known where I was going- Chelsea Market is across the street!) all was amended when I saw their Spring 2010 looks, I can't wait for their collection! The airy feel of the clothes, silk textures, cool lavender, mint and icy blue tones are reminiscent of the Spring 2010 runway shows but office and travel friendly. Plus, they even made harem pants wearable! I am looking forward to almost everything! light on texture but very structured and will be at wallet friendly prices.

* invitation was from Ann Taylor P.R.

NARS Loves New York Set Photos!

Its been a busy one, but I didn't forget!

Here are the long awaited photos of the NARS Loves New York Set !

Orgasm Blush- no name change for this one

Uptown Girl Eyeshadow Duo- Paris Eyeshadow duo renamed. I'm pleasantly surprised at how versatile this duo is, the metallic light grey is beautiful alone or with its charcoal grey counterpart. I'm finding that this duo is very easy to work into a daytime smoky.

New York Eyeshadow- I usually shy away from eyeshadow bases that stray from the conventional browns and golds- but this is a great plummy brown that complements my eyecolor!

Soho Nailpolish- deep eggplant purple that reminds me of Lincoln Park After Dark ( for you OPI fans) but has slight red metallic flecks in it. Perfect for fall!

Sephora's Friends and Family + New Holiday Stuff!

Today is the day for Sephora's Friends and Family 20% off discount on-line, the promo runs until Novermber 2nd.

Not only that, but there are new Goodies on Sephora.com!

NARS has three 15 year anniversary palettes!

One Eyeshadow palette ( Day and Night) the other two are full face palettes complete with Eyeshadow, blush, Multiple, lipstick and gloss. Each cater to either the smoky eye/Red Lip combo ( Wild at Heart) or the Colorful shadow/ Nude lip combo ( Everlasting love). Plus there is a Multiple Coffert featuring 3 mini mulitples!

Also on Sephora.com- YSL's Holiday set! Trial Size #1 black liner & #1 Luxurious Mascara, #1 Touche Eclat and #2 Golden Praline Golden Gloss.

I have a laundry list of replenishments before I can get a hold of this new Holiday stuff- I can't believe its around the corner!

What do you plan on getting from the F&F Sale?

And the Broke-Ass of the Week is...

Thanks Brokeassstuart.com!

I'm Broke-Ass of the week, check out the post here!

Sephora's Friends and Family Sale!

Thank you Adina of Kraseybeauty for the heads up!


From Monday, October 19th- Tuesday, November 2nd Sephora will take 20% off all cosmetics when you use the code FF09 !

What would Phyllis Nefler wear today?

Happy 20th Anniversary Troop Beverly Hills!!

The girls and I are coming up with some ensemble costume ideas for Halloween, one of which includes the girls of Troop Beverly Hills.
Seriously, this was us in Jr. High School, living in So Cal.. ok maybe not ,but I bet you someone would get a patch for gemology from the Balboa Park Art Center.

With the glory of the 80’s in full revival mode for the umpteenth year, I have to ask- what would Phyllis Nefler’s makeup palette be today?
I would say back in ’89 she would have been a fan of Helena Rubenstein and or Revlon when she was having a moment while passing a Thrifty’s on La Brea en route home from an argument with the dude from Coach. She probably wore Giorgio Armani as well.
I’m thinking now she would be one of those women that were attached to Orgasm blush because the name is “sprite” but because it would complement her hair and she would be “hip and with it”. She would fancy Crème de Le Mer ( because who doesn’t!) and I bet her primary cosmetics line of choice would be La Prairie or something nostalgic that reminded her of a romantic getaway in her yesteryear.

As Halloween approaches and we still have to figure out what we are going to do, I hope this is at the top of our list ( I’m talking to you Erica, Anna, Ashley, Chloe)- I still know the “Cookie Time” song.
Here’s to you Phyllis!

photo:2.bp.blogspot.com

$25 Debate: Salon Pedi vs. Buying Polish

My work colleague and I frequent this economical debate- buying $25 nailpolish vs. getting a $25 pedicure.
While she chooses the latter and playfully shames me for buying pricey nailpolish/ varnishes ( she’s not the only one, my mom does too) , I stand firm with my position on polishes.
I buy my own polishes and do DIY pedicures at home while watching movies and listening to music- this is part of my relaxation “me” time. Plus, its more economical for me to do it myself as opposed to going to a salon, scheduling a time, waiting for a dryer, etc. I can do my nails any time I please for the price of a polish.

While the vast majority receive Pedi services, that’s cool but have you ever seen the nail tech open a fresh bottle of nail polish for you and throw it away after use?
I’ve never witnessed this? Thus, this is the part that skeeves me- how many people have used the same polishes in the nail salon as you? Especially when its trendy. i.e Fall is known for dark polishes- everyone is sporting it thus tons flock to get their nails done all using the same polish. Um yeah. If someone has fungus, cuts, etc ( not to gross you out even more)- DON’T WANT THAT! Or maybe I am reading into this too much ( I’ve got to cut back on watching horror movies).
I guess the same could be said about sharing your personal polish with friends and family- which I don’t.
Additionally, who is to say that doing it yourself is 100% perfect? Yes there are smudges from turning the page and or unscrewing the topcoat to go on the polish- but I digress, its still hygenically safer than a used bottle from the salon.
What is your take on this?

Dear Readers

The Federal Trade Commission has stepped up their game with Bloggers as you and I know and refer to fellow bloggers, websites, etc for information on our purchases.
The FTC will soon require all writers on the internet to disclose any freebies or payments they get from companies for product reviews- in short.

Well, I’m here to tell you- I have never received beauty freebies, trips, payments for product reviews nor am affiliated with a blogging network in which I would receive such.

All products reviewed on Lacroix the Beauty Blog are either funded by me, gift with purchase ( purchase funded by me), Sephora Freebies ( additionally funded by me once I spend $100), reviewed/ polled by friends ( again not affliated with companies nor networks that would give away/pay for product reviews).
All products reviewed are swatched, tested , purchased and are of my own opinion, I owe it to my readers to give you the whole beauty truth and nothing but the truth.

Just recently ( in the past 2 months) I have ventured into advertising. Yes, I do feature ads however, none of them are beauty related. I also hand pick the advertisers I choose to do business with so that my readers have quality as opposed to misleading ad links and products that I’ve never heard/ read about (have you seen those ones for basically counterfeit handbags?).

Please be assured, I will not mislead or mis-inform my readers as this is my hobby and I love to share information and products with you and hope to hear about your favorite products.

An example of this recently was Fashion’s Night Out, I went on my lunch break to the Chanel Soho Store to pick up the Jade and Jade Rose varnishes- paid for it with my own money and then thought, this would be really cool to giveaway to someone who reads my blog as I bet they would appreciate this as much as I would.
And that I did.
Call me pretentious, for fluffing my own feathers but if you didn’t love beauty as much as I do, why are you reading?
Now rock on with your beautiful selves!

xoxo Lacroix

Pop Life- NARS New Velvet Matte Lip pencil

Pop Life

Everybody needs a thrill...

- Prince

NARS Holiday 2009 collection has a new Velvet Matte Lip pencil named after one of my favorite Prince songs- Pop Life! Its described as a bold bright red.

Other products in the Holiday 2009 collection:

-Luxor Multiple- Icy Pink ( a NARS MA showed me how to make this wearable on deeper tones- mix it with Mounia Blush

Goddess, Skorpios and Aigle Noir- Soft Touch Shadow Pencils

Taiga, Brousse and Eurydice Eyeshadow Duos

Mousson Single Eyeshadow

Rouge Andalou Nail Polish

Toundra and Pop Life Velvet Matte Pencils.

All are available online at Narscosmetics.com

When Lacroix Met Francois NARS

This past Thursday, October 8th, one of my dreams came true- I met Francois Nars at Saks Fifth Avenue here in NYC!

Let us rewind to last year for a moment- last September I stumbled upon Makeup Your Mind, the ultimate NARS product and tutorial guide, at the Strand at Union Square. I used to study it almost nightly ( until I found my full-time job).

Fast Forward to a few days ago, I arrived early and got my makeup done by Cindy, a NARS facialist who recommended NARS Soft Glow Foundation mixed with the Brightening Serum.

She then used the following to complete my 15 minute look ( I wanted to get in line early):

-New Black Liner in Blackness on the upper lash line

-Albatross from lid to brow

-Exhibit A Blush

-Desire blush right above the cheek bone

and my new favorite lip combination: Skorpios Shadow pencil ( a copper) with Revolt lipgloss on top!

After my mini-makeover and the purchase of my NARS loves New York Box ( more pics to come):

-Soho Nail Polish- deep metallic eggplant

-New York Single Eyeshadow- plum burgundy matte

-Uptown Girl Eyeshadow Duo- ( looks like Paris eyeshadow duo) grey and charcoal eyeshadows

-Orgasm Blush- no name change here

And gift with purchase Copacabana/ St Barths Multiple Duo!

Finally, I got in line and was so happy to finally see Francois Nars and Ayako- I was really nervous!

Then I got my book signed-

Francois Nars: Hello.. Lacroix? Where are you from?

Me: I'm from here, I mean San Diego, yeah.

FN: Ah, Ok. What is your favorite product Lacroix?

Me; Nirvana Blush

FN: Oh! a Classic! ( everyone chuckles)

Me: Yes, I love it

( FN begins to sign my bag): ok don't wash this.

Me: Trust me I wont, I'm going to put it in a time capsule for 30 years to pass down to my children.

( everyone at the table cracks up)

FN: So nice to meet you.

Me: So nice to meet you!

Fall ’09 Beauty Trends: Smoky Bronze Gold Eye

Pale gold shadows and liners should go in the inner corner of the eyes to make them pop, while deeper bronze shades should go on the crease or outside of the eyes.
Textures that create a halo are metallics that are just on the cusp of being frosty but not ashy frosty- so they also need to be highly pigmented.
MAC and NARS are my favorites in the eyeshadow category as they are heavily pigmented and have an array of finishes. From Frost, Velvet, Veluxe Pearl, etc.

My Fall Faves:
MAC Bronze, Sable, Honey Lust, Tempting
NARS- Fez, Galapagos

Fall ’09 Beauty Trends: Vampy Lips

It’s the return of Glamour, Mystery and the Femme Fatale- clearly, you.mean.business in a read-my-lips way.
Let them be read! Or Red-Cherry, Berry or Burgundy with heavy pigments.
Day calls for sheer tones, night calls for opaque with a bit of shimmer.

My faves:
MAC- Sin, Media, Desire lipsticks, Night Moth& Bing Mattenes.
Milani- Chic & Classy Velvet lipsticks
NARS- Viridiana, Fastride, Hindu and Tamango lipsticks

photo: Style.com

Paris Fashion Week Spring 2010: Insects, Aliens, Alexander McQueen

Last night I tuned into Alexander McQueen's broadcast of his Spring 2010 show and didn't know what to expect- now I know. The future of the It shoe is six months away with the help of these 10-inch McQueen "Alien" shoes featured on the runway show. I anticipated a serious spill during the show but everyone trotted along (albeit at varying speeds).

The other standouts- the hair! The first batch of girls had insect inspired hair to match their print dresses while the aquatic girls had hair that looked like razor sharp wings.

Overall, the dresses look wearable but the hardware is definitely something I will be looking forward to in editorials until I get the shoes myself, what I will wear them with? Oh, just a t-shirt and jeans.

Video of the show is here and NSFW.

photo: jezebel.com

Fall ’09 Beauty Trends: Soft Skin

Shed the summer skin and prepare for fall’s polished skin with sensitivity in mind.
A little ( a quarter size and use 1-2 times a week) goes a long way, so these recommended may last you until the New Year and beyond!
After exfoliating, I follow-up with my favorite moisturizer.
This has been my Sunday wind-down routine – especially when the sun sets earlier and the temperature gets colder.
Have some Vanilla tea.
Exfoliate
Moisturize
Watch a film
Fall asleep while watching the film J

Here are my favorite scrubs for fall:
MAC Volcanic Ash
YSL Natural Action Exfoliator
Laura Mercier Face Polish Gommage Facial
Chanel Deep Purifying Exfoliating Mousse

photo: Sephora.com

Fall '09 Beauty Trends: Very Berry Cheeks

The initial push of Fall has kicked off- we are now almost a month vested in Fall, although today felt like a typical day in San Diego here in New York- please be assured the chilly winds are just around the corner..like next week.

So what does that mean? To reflect the uniqueness of a new season, its time to turn the brights dim for fall- lets use nature as an example. Fallen leaves of maple brown, cloudier days and the sun setting at 6pm- regretfully its time to turn the maquillage down for day, play it up for night and highlight features while transitioning from day to night.

One reflection of this seasonal change and beauty must have is the very berry cheeks. Just like the wind chill whips around and hits your dimples and leaves them numb and perplexed for a quick minute or two. Let's take that minute or so make make it last for the day with pretty plums, berries and deep mauves!

Here are a few of my favorites:

- NARS Montenegro - a cream blush that gives a nice mulberry flush, very great for all skin types as its very easy to blend.

- Cover Girl's Cheekers in True Plum and Plum Plush- poweder formula, sheer plums that are budget friendly- under $10!

- MAC's Ambered Rose-is in the MAC Sheertone blush family, a great sheer raspberry red with golden and red shimmer.

photo:style.com

Chanel is having Deja Vu!

Chanel has brought back some of their classic beauty items!

Here is just a snippet:

Rouge Hydrabase:

- Wild Violet

- Siroco

- Aura

- Shanghai Red

- Inspiration

- Muse

- Grace Poise

- Lily Beige

- Rose Secret

- Great Copper

Le Vernis:

- Shanghai Red

- Flamingo

- Dazzling

Facettes D'or: Highlighter in Gold Fever

photo: Chanel.com

FRANCOIS NARS @ SAKS, OCTOBER 8th

Thank you Blogdorf Goodman for the head's up. Details are here!

Francois Nars will be at Saks Fifth Avenue on Thursday, October 8th from 1:30pm-3:00pm.

Anyone want to take a glorious lunch break next Thursday?