Le Métier de Beauté Ken's Korals - Exclusive to Neiman Marcus

They've arrived - Ken's Korals were delivered just in time for Camp Gorgeous, Neiman Marcus' summer beauty event! Neiman Marcus Fashion Director Ken Downing, the definitive taste maker for Neiman Marcus, collaborated with Le Métier de Beauté to create two limited-edition products inspired by the bold, uplifting colors seen on runways. The result was Ken’s Korals. The coral-red lip and nail shades were chosen to be universally flattering.

Colour Core Moisture Stain Lipstick in Ken’s Kissable Koral ($32) is an innovative lip stain and moisturizer in one. Jojoba, lanolin, and shea butter will keep your lips soft, while a shot of rich coral on the lips will adds some drama to the classic sun-soaked summer look. The Nail Lacquer in Ken’s Kontagious Koral ($18) is available in a new, larger size, .40 ounces.

Both items are available exclusively at Neiman Marcus and neimanmarcus.com. If you are interested, you should reserve or purchase them soon. They are bound to sell out.

These swatch photos taken by Kathy Shoreman. As you can see, they are intense colors. Kathy took the photos in the store, I think, with her iPhone. Pretty good for iPhone photos! Isn't she the best?

I'm such a Le Métier de Beauté devotee, I wanted to show you the shades as soon as possible so that you red and coral fans can make sure to get these beauties while they are available. The hot colors are already hot tickets.

Photos by Kathy Shoreman for Best Things in Beauty

Freshface Blush Powder and a Fresh Event

When you think Fresh, do you think fragrance, soaps, and/or skin care? If you don't think about makeup too, you're missing one of the world's great values. Fresh makes super-quality makeup with the same love and care they put into their better-known products.

Freshface Blush Powder ($28) is a sheer, pressed powder that gives cheeks a healthy, natural glow. The micronized, pigmented powder has a velvety texture that creates a smooth and even application for a natural-looking, long-lasting flush. The paraben-free and fragrance-free formula is enriched with moisturizing aloe leaf extract, smoothing vitamin A, and protective vitamin C. What else would you expect from Fresh?

Freshface Blush Powder is packaged in a darling floral-decorated compact that includes a small mirror. It's a Fresh as the look you will create when you run your blush brush over it to "get happy." I'm a flower fan, so I find the compact delightful. It's also easy to spot hanging around with all the fashionable black compacts in my bathroom.

It's available in two colors: Nectar and Petal. Nectar, described as coral, is a coral I can wear. It's summer-like, and when summer arrives, I'm usually in the mood for peaches and corals - shades that can look ghastly on me in mid-winner. The Petal shade is what you would expect a cool-toned blond to wear to look blushingly pretty in pink.

Here's my photo of Nectar, a gift from the local Fresh account executive. Alyson is a hoot. I'll bet she gave me Nectar to shake me out of my pink and rose comfort zone.

I took some quick swatch photos of Nectar yesterday, when the sun finally came out in the afternoon. I was hoping to get a lot of photos for the week, but we had a cloudy, rainy morning. I'm glad I was able to get these. I applied Nectar with a sponge-tipped applicator in order to get a lot of pigment on my skin for the photo. Sunlight (or a flash bulb) will wash out subtle shades. The downside is the shine from reflected sunlight. My photo was taken in front of my house, where the flagstone walk meets the grass.

I applied Nectar fairly heavily in the bottom swatch on my arm. Then, I decided to apply it with a much lighter touch above. In the light application, you can see how much pink there is in Nectar - probably why I like it so much. Nectar will give any skin tone a summer-flushed look. Isn't it pretty?

Check out Freshface Blush Powder the next time you go to Neiman Marcus or Sephora. If you are lucky enough to have a Fresh boutique nearby, I'll bet you've already seen it!

Now, for my DC-area readers, we are having a Fresh party. I'm inviting you. On June 22, we are having a special party/master class at Neiman Marcus Tysons Galleria after work. Jawn Marques, Creative Director of Fresh, will be flying in to lead the class and give participants individualized beauty tips. The whole Fresh team, including Alyson O'Brien, Account Executive, and Alison Kauffman, Product Specialist at Neiman Marcus, will be with us to make sure you have a great time. Kathy Shoreman, super sales associate and an expert herself, will be there too.

Every time I get together with Jawn, I have a blast. He is so much fun - and beyond talented. He's a makeup and skin-care guru who always attracts a crowd. We'll learn how to use Fresh makeup and skin care to look and feel great and treat our skin, and we'll have a fun exposure to all of Fresh's fragrance products. Alyson, Jawn, and I have been planning this event for months to ensure you have a great time. They are shown in the photo here.

The party starts at 5:30 pm at the Café at Neiman Marcus Tysons Galleria. That's a soft start for those who want to come and chat - or maybe have a glass of wine and nibble on some food. The hard start will be at 6:00 pm, when the master class starts (of course, the food and wine will continue to flow). Fresh will sponsor a drawing for a gift basket of Fresh products. Everyone who participates will be entered to win.

To make a reservation, call (703) 761-1600 and ask for Kathy Shoreman at extension 3282. You can also reserve a spot by e-mailing Kathy_Shoreman@neimanmarcusstores.com. I hope to see my DC-area friends there! I've been looking forward to the event for months.

Photo at top courtesy of Sephora; all other photos by Best Things in Beauty

Le Labo Fleur d'Oranger 27 Eau de Parfum

From the quirky, old-time photos on the Le Labo Web site to the nature of their hand-blended fragrances, it's clear that Le Labo is a fragrance maven's company. I was delighted to stumble upon Le Labo - and that's literally how I discovered them.

I am woefully behind on reading the fragrance blogs. I need to create more hours in the day to get cracking! There are so many great ones. I read The Non-Blonde every day, and each week, Gaia delves into fragrances that are noteworthy - and in some cases virtually unobtainable. Recently, I've "hooked up" with some excellent bloggers on Twitter, and I need to snatch some time to read their archives. I learn so much about fragrances by reading (and sniffing).

I do know my own tastes, which a fragrance snob would consider rather elementary, I fear. I'm OK with that, even though I pine to join the club of those who can translate scents into words and write about those scents so well that the fragrances seem to waft off the pages - or computer display. Maybe some day. In the meantime, I tell you about fragrances I love, and I've got a new-to-me one I adore: Fleur d'Oranger 27 Eau de Parfum ($58 to $700).

If you are unfamiliar with Le Labo, here's some enticing information from their Web site.

Le Labo aims to have perfume enthusiasts better understand the time-honored art of perfume making, to hone their sense of smell and develop their olfactory “palette” so that they too can distinguish what makes up a fine perfume. Knowledge, in perfumery as in everything else, is essential to free choice. Otherwise, we’re condemned to remain in the herd of consumers manipulated by the latest in advertising, fashion trends, and gadgetry.

Le Labo’s exclusive training tools will help you to learn more, refine your olfactory buds, and enable you to choose your perfumes with a true expert’s savoir-faire and discernment. Le Labo believes that it is about time that we open our eyes, breathe in deeply, and take in all that life has to offer.

Each of the Le Labo perfumes (fragrances) is built around a primary natural essence that comes directly from Grasse, France’s “perfume capital.” Bergamot, rose, vetiver, neroli, orange blossom, patchouli, iris, ambrette, jasmine, and labdanum, each of these essences form the base of a composition. The names of the perfumes provide a valuable clue on how they are formulated. Based on the codes that perfumers use to identify their perfume trials, the perfumes are named after their principal essence and the number of ingredients combined to make them. For example, FLEUR d’ORANGER 27 indicates that the perfume is made up of a total of 27 ingredients, with the natural orange blossom from Grasse as its principal essence.

Describing our perfumes in words seems to be an absolute must and totally useless at the same time. On a street in New York City’s Chelsea, a sign was recently posted that spelled out in capital letters: “EXPLAINING KILLS ART.” You could say exactly the same thing about perfume. Above all, you have to smell and feel it. Choosing your perfume by reading an olfactory description is like asking for someone’s resume before falling in love. But until the Internet allows us to smell online, we have found nothing better than words to "explain" our scents.

Their philosophy made me question my belief that the best fragrance bloggers can capture the essence of a fragrance. I still believe they can, but I also understand Le Labo's philosophy that to smell is to know.

Orange blossom is one of my all-time favorite fragrance notes. I was excited to see that Le Labo had a fragrance to fuel my addiction to the fragrant white flower.

Fleur d'Oranger is a natural, "extremely rare orange blossom that took over three years to compose. Its innate nobility is enhanced by fresh floral and lemony notes, rounded out by musk and the succulent, sunny touches of bergamot, petit grain, and lemon."¹ That description from Le Labo was all it took for me to order. I expected a sweet orange flower fragrance with a bit or "rawness" provided by the citrus. When Fleur d'Oranger arrived, had it been in the old days before my body rebelled, I would have done cartwheels. As it was, I just left my nose on my arm for hours. Now it's been there for days.

I purchased the half-ounce size for $58, knowing I could go back for more if I liked it. As soon as my credit card turns over for the month (probably in a grave), I will be buying more Fleur d'Oranger. It's that special! I may never be able to retire, but I'll be one great-smelling little old lady - wherever I'm working.

My Fleur d'Oranger arrived in a spray bottle packed nicely in a utilitarian/artsy cardboard box. Both the bottle and the box have a custom label! They custom made the bottle for me. All of their fragrances are freshly made by hand - unbelievably impressive. The bottle has a printed label that says it was compounded in Nolita by Clio for Best Things in Beauty and will be fresh until May 29, 2012. Maybe my next purchase won't be the $700, 16.9-ounce size, which I have considered, but rather the $220 size - one I can probably use up in a year. On the bottom of the bottle, there is a hand-printed label that appears to read, "F027, ICUT, 5/19." So classy!

In a few more words, Fleur d'Oranger is an elegant, fresh, and green orange flower for those who want their scent to be as delightful at its conclusion as it was during its first hour. Some will find that boring; I love it. I dislike fragrances that have multiple personalities, with an opening personality that delights me, but a closing personality that terrorizes my nose. Fleur d'Oranger is suitably light for refreshing day wear. I imagine that men would find it as compelling as women - there's a bit of a unisex quality to the scent. It reminds me of my L'Artisan limited-edition Fleur d'Oranger fragrances, so dear that I ordered multiples of each vintage.

Le Labo has a sampling program. Even the samples are hand blended! Check out their Web site for information. I am going to be trying several more of them - very soon. I definitely want to try Neroli 36. I'd really love to try Tubereuse 40, but it's only available in the New York boutique. In the near future, I'll tell you about the other Le Labo fragrance I ordered when I bought Fleur d'Oranger.

You can also find Le Labo fragrances at LuckyScent. I ordered from Le Labo because New York is closer to me. I knew I would receive my fragrances more quickly.

¹LuckyScent's description is slightly different: "The zesty aspect of orange blossom is underscored by the sunny, sparkly bergamot, petitgrain, and grapefruit. The fragile beauty of snow-white blossoms is made even more dazzling when contrasted with the verdancy of vetiver and the dark richness of amber and musk."

Photos by Le Labo and LuckyScent

FBR Cosmetics Lip Gloss Giveaway Contest

Congratulations to Annie! She is going to love her gloss.

I've featured FBR Cosmetics, Rozz J., and the fabulous lip glosses by FBR. Now, thanks to Rozz's generosity, I can offer a second giveaway contest for the lip gloss of your choice! If you didn't read my feature on FBR Cosmetics, please check it out at this link. Rozz's makeup impressed me - made for women by a woman who knows what we like.

Rozz J. is an Atlanta-based celebrity makeup artist. She founded her company after assembling a network of professionals to formulate special blends of products that would feel good and look good. She started with lip gloss, everyone's instant pick-me-up.

Make your lips glisten with FBR's luminous line of lip glosses. Apply an almost-not-there shade for a natural look or a deeper, warmer shade for a more romantic come-hither look.

Every day is a good day for lip gloss. The winner of this contest will get to select the shade of her choice from the 18 fabulous shades available. There are only two exceptions because the shades are out of stock at this second: Diamond Glaze and Serenity.

What fun! I love the shades I've featured in an earlier features, Cupids Charm, a perfect shade for spring and summer, and French Bloom, a rosy plum for year-round lip love. The FBR gloss is lightweight on my lips, but offers high-wattage shine. It feels incredibly moisturizing, and it has no fragrance (a huge plus to me). It has a nice doe-foot applicator too. It couldn't be more perfect. Once you try one of Rozz's lip glosses, you are going to want more.

How can you enter to win? Here's the "fine print." There are two simple steps, plus some other options for earning entries.

Just leave a comment here once telling us which shade you would select if you win. You can see the shades at the FBR Cosmetics Web site. To be eligible to win, you must also "like" FBR Cosmetics at the company's Facebook page.

After you comment here, feel free to send me an e-mail at bestthingsinbeautycontests@gmail.com and identify your comment. You can never be too careful about sharing an e-mail address you care about on a blog, so feel free to follow this step (an alternative is to code your e-mail, e.g., myname at gmail dot com, in your comment). If your Facebook like is in a different name than you use to comment, you should tell me in an e-mail.

You can "earn" another entry by tweeting this contest. Just make sure to include "@BTiBeauty" (without the quotes) and "@FBRCOSMETICS" in your tweet. I will tweet the contest this evening, and you can simply retweet it to earn that second entry.

The deadline for entries will be Saturday, June 11, at midnight. The next day, I will use a random number generator (random.org) to select the winner. The FBR team will ensure the winner "liked" them on Facebook. Once the winner has been verified, I will e-mail the winner on Sunday. The winner will have 48 hours to reply to my message and provide a shipping address. After 48 hours, the prize will be forfeited, and another winner will be selected. Make sure to check your e-mail - and look in your spam folder - when the contest ends.

This contest is open to U.S. residents. FBR Cosmetics will send the prize to the winner.

If you want to keep up with FBR Cosmetics and the growth that's sure to follow this wonderful new brand, check out FBR's Web site, @FBRCOSMETICS on Twitter, and FBR's Facebook page. They are fun to follow - gal's gals.

Good luck!

Photo courtesy of FBR Cosmetics

Chantecaille World Ocean Day Promotion

Chantecaille is celebrating World Ocean Day (June 8) with a promotion from June 5 to June 12. Please help them save blue whales, creatures that symbolize the health of the high seas, which are responsible for producing close to 80% of our planet's oxygen and are now threatened by industrial fishing, acid toxicity, plastic garbage, sonar pollution, and other human interference.

Online only, from June 5-12, Chantecaille is offering a free Amaretto Lip Gloss with the purchase of any La Baleine compact. Use code WHALES at checkout. A portion of the proceeds will go to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

One gift per transaction, while supplies last. I have both of the compacts shown above, and I'm mulling an order. Call me crazy, but I have been an environmentalist for a long time. If I hadn't had a job, I might have been one of these brave souls putting themselves in harm's way to save the whales.

Photo courtesy of Chantecaille

Morningside Simple Originals Linden Flower Lotion

Imagine yourself lying in fresh, green grass, enjoying the late spring air under a linden tree. The fragrance is intoxicating. You want to stay, living the fleeting experience for each moment the flowers are in bloom, but, you have to move on. The memory persists, though. You can recapture it with Morningside's Simple Originals Linden Flower Lotion ($10.99).

New to me, Simple Originals is "Nature's Own Collection." The products are made from 97% naturally derived ingredients, offer lovely packaging, and have formulas that are resplendent with rich textures, antioxidants, and the fabulous, unique, subtle, fresh, and clean fragrances of nature.

I was given an opportunity to try Simple Originals by Morningside, and I didn't hesitate to select Linden Flower Lotion, even though each of the products looked delightful. The true scent of the linden captivates me. Ever since my body lotion (more cream than lotion) arrived, I've applied it at every opportunity, trying to summon that memory. The lotion is as close to the actual linden scent as any linden-fragranced product I own. It's sweet, lingering, and addictive.

The Simple Originals Body Lotion formulas contain a range of natural moisturizers, antioxidants, vitamins, and herbal extracts, such as shea butter, glycerin, aloe, green tea extract, camellia leaf extract, grapefruit seed extract, and vitamins (A, C, and E). Simply put, the natural ingredients are good for your skin.

Morningside, founded in 2004, is a woman-owned business with the mission to give everyone access to healthy and natural body-care products that are also luxurious. Morningside believes its customers should be able to trust that they are getting safe, quality ingredients at a fair price. The body lotions are pH-balanced, without parabens or animal-derived ingredients, and have no artificial coloring. All of Morningside's products are cruelty-free and manufactured in the United States at an FDA-inspected facility. Not only does Morningside offer Simple Originals, they have three other lines - all made with the same philosophy. Lots of well-known women have already discovered Morningside, among them Rachael Ray. Wouldn't you know the Food Network celebrity likes Tomato Blossom? If she's anything like me, she has the handy pump-top moisturizer close at hand and treats herself frequently.

The bottle of Linden Flower Lotion I received is beyond generous at 16 ounces! When I go to replenish, I won't break the bank either. I'll definitely order another Linden Flower Lotion (it's simply divine - in addition to being Simply Original). I'm also going to have to get my hands on the Blood Orange Body Lotion, and a few of the hand soaps. There's currently a buy two, get one free offer. Maybe I shouldn't wait.

I think I just entered a long-term relationship. You can join me in the Morningside cult by visiting the company's Facebook page to learn more or their Web site to browse. You'll see a free shipping offer (for purchases over $35).

Photo at top courtesy of Morningside; botanical print courtesy of etsy.com

Rouge Bunny Rouge Cheeks in Bloom Blush Wand

More Rouge Bunny Rouge - my latest makeup obsession! I ordered two Cheeks in Bloom Blush Wands ($43.43) from Zuneta. I could not be more delighted with them. I am reminded of a known saying, "Love is like the sun coming out of the clouds and warming your soul."

Rouge Bunny Rouge's Blush Wand is a cream blush. I love cream blushes because they melt into my skin and make the color look natural - like magic. Here's the description of the Blush Wand at Zuneta.

When acts of magic happen in our world, the weave of the Enchanted Garden opens and captures it as swiftly as the wind's winged messenger. This line of blushes was born in just such an auspicious instance - when the muse inspired the great painters.

Charge your cheeks with ultra-sheer, natural-looking color in a starry instant. A decadently ravishing, sitting-by-a-glowing-fire flush, or an innocently alluring frolicking-in-the-meadow bloom is yours. This magical-sceptre-of-a-blush enlivens your face with a subtle, youthful shine and a hint of even, blendable color.

Four charming shades are available to paint a "soft aquarelle inspiration or a vivacious oil-on-canvas muse to your cheeks." The Blush Wand contains a blend of natural oils and spherical powders for a super-soft emollient cream-to-powder finish in an easy-to-use portable wand. I have applied it straight to my cheeks from the wand, blending with my fingers or a brush, or running a synthetic brush over the top of the wand to pick up the color.

I purchased two shades.

• Rubens, a semi-transparent medium sangria with ice - great on all complexions
• Vermeer, a semi-transparent medium-soft rose petal pink, probably best for light or medium complexions.
  

As usual, Zuneta's shade descriptions were spot-on! Here's a photo of both shades in their tubes, used. Sorry, I couldn't help myself. Rubens is on the left, and Vermeer is on the right.

I swatched them for you and took my photo in full sun, in front of my Satsuki azaleas. Rubens is shown at the top of my arm, and Vermeer below. I applied them fairly heavily to ensure the shade differences would be apparent.

Both shades are perfect for me. Rubens is rose, with just a hint of plum, and I think it will work for many skin tones, not just pale faces. Vermeer is a lighter shade, pink but not candy-pink, a very flattering shade to make you look pretty. The shades are not sparkly; they just look that way from the sun's reflection on my arm.

There are two more shades available: Goya (peachy-coral) and Manet (rosy-coral). With four shades, there's bound to be one you'll like.

As with all Rouge Bunny Rouge at Zuneta, there's a product application guide. You can count on accurate swatch photos. It's a great place to shop! As I mentioned earlier in the week, Zuneta's customer service, helping me (or you) select colors online is superlative. The shipping from the U.K. is free to U.S. customers who order enough. I didn't have any trouble achieving the free shipping level. I've done it multiple times! There's even more Rouge Bunny Rouge to come here at Best Things in Beauty. If you missed my earlier features, just scroll down.

You can find the Rouge Bunny Rouge Web site at this link. They have a Facebook page here. Head over to Zuneta to browse and order. Just remember, the U.S. dollar isn't what it used to be.

Update 6/5: Sometimes I feel like an idiot. This morning, thinking about painters (and these blushes named after them), I looked at my copy above and saw that I changed poor Mr. Vermeer's name to veneer, which is a thin covering some put over wood and art. I must have done that because of the intoxication caused by Rouge Bunny Rouge. I can tell you that the Enchanted Garden really does have magical effects - perhaps as good as I've heard hallucinogens are! Laughing... There's been so much interest in the Blush Wands, I threw in another photo. I probably should have used it when I published the feature.

Photo at top courtesy of Zuneta; other photos by Best Things in Beauty