DC-Area April Beauty Events

It's Cherry Blossom month, and with the flowering trees come blooming beauty events in the DC area. There are some great ones lined up this month, so please take advantage of advice and consultations from the pros. The events are listed here in date order. I'm going to show up at all of them! Don't live around here? I'll bet your own stores are celebrating spring's beauty.

This Saturday, April 10, Nordstrom Tysons Corner is having their Beauty Trends Show. The show is a great way to learn about new products, and the counters upstairs will be hopping after the show because there are so many specials that day. Almost every line will have something going on. I hope you will stop by to see Rene Marshall, Perricone MD guru, who has so many great tips on skin care - and a prestige line to sell. Cold Plasma won a WWD Beauty Biz award for good reason! Recently, I watched Rene show a 40-something guy (who walked into Sephora!) how to care for his skin. When she finished with him, he looked fabulous! She's amazing, and I hope you will look for her. She's one of my all-time skin care favorites. If you want to attend the show, call your favorite counter at Nordstrom to sign up. The phone is (703) 761-1121. There is a minimal cost, but it's fully reimbursable for products that day. The show starts before the store opens.

On Thursday, April 15, Raychel Wade, La Prairie Colour Ambassador, renowned makeup artist, and founder of Cheek to Chick, will be at Neiman Marcus Tysons Galleria to spill her secrets on color and give you her insider picks on La Prairie must-haves for your makeup bag - from foundation to finishing products. Raychel’s expertise is in sizing up women’s “makeup personalities” based on their lifestyles, then helping them edit their makeup bags to streamline keepers and fill in the holes of anything that's missing. From CEOs to recent college grads, brides to baby boomers, and A-listers to Fashion Week models, Raychel has worked her makeup magic on them all. This should be a fun event. If you would like to make an appointment, call Neiman Marcus at (703) 761-1600 and ask for the La Prairie counter. If you are interested, I would make that appointment quickly. Appointments are limited.

Bloomingdale's at Tysons Corner is having one of my favorite events on Tuesday, April 20, and you can attend at either 11:00 am or 6:30 pm. It's a Beauty 101 Workshop/Master Class. I went in the fall of 2009 and had a blast. This season, the event will be set up as a classroom-style learning seminar. Each session will last about 45 minutes. Tickets are $25, which is totally redeemable in product, and each attendee will receive a composition book to take notes and a tote bag. There will also be lots of samples of various products for you and prizes to win as well. Take my word, this is always a fun event! If you want to participate, call your favorite counter at (703) 556-4600 to reserve a seat.

There is an Armani Beauty Master Class with Loyd Cassler and his Armani Beauty Team at Saks Fifth Avenue at Chevy Chase, Maryland. It will be held on April 22 at 5:30 pm. You will need a reservation, and you can e-mail me at bestthingsinbeauty@gmail.com to make one. There are a few seats left. The event is free, and it's the first day of Saks Friends & Family, so if you decide you can't live without any of the wonderful Armani Beauty products, you will receive the Friends & Family discount.

Shiseido is having a fabulous event at Macy's at Pentagon City on April 24 from 10:00 am to 6:00 pm. With an appointment, you will be able to have a consultation and makeover with Renato Almeido, Shisedo National Makeup Artist, to celebrate the Spring 2010 makeup collection. Designed by Dick Page, the collection allows you to create an entire spectrum of flattering looks, perfect for any occasion. The latest Shiseido collection is hot. To make an appointment, call the Shiseido counter at (703) 418-4488. These appointments are going to go fast, so hurry if you want a fun Saturday makeover.

Wondering where the snazzy graphic at the top of this post came from? Shiseido sponsored a Graphic Design Challenge at the National Cherry Blossom Festival. The winner, Joe Parisi, was awarded a $5,000 tuition prize from Shiseido to attend the Westwood College School of Design.

The awards ceremony took place this past Friday at Cherry Blast, a lively party that celebrated both Japanese and contemporary DC culture. At the event, guests explored two rooms packed with interactive art – a merging of art and real life – created by local artists. Congratulations, Joe! And many thanks to Shiseido for supporting our local artists.

Design by Joe Parisi and courtesy of Shiseido