News you don’t want to miss
The “hand-lift”
In today’s beauty world, there really is a treatment for everything. According to the New York Times, the latest treatment grabbing attention from nannas and socialites alike is the “hand-lift”. Like the face and breast lift before it, this procedure involves injecting synthetic fillers and intensified light to your hands, plumping the skin and removing any unwanted blemishes. The hands restructures have had an increase over the last 12 month with more cosmetic surgery customers wanting to match their aged hands with their intact bodies. Bulging veins and wrinkles finger tips no more!
Bizarre cosmetic procedures that don’t involve cutting
On the subject of cosmetic surgery, The Huffington Post UK has published an article with a range of bizarre Japanese contraptions “designed to save you from pain”, offering alternatives to cosmetic surgery. According to the report, “From nose straighteners to vibrating eye-pads, the wacky anti-ageing gadgets, which hail from (you guessed it) Japan, promise a pain-free alternative to the surgeon’s knife - all you have to do is look ridiculous for a few minutes a day while they work their magic.”
Boyfriend manicure
While getting your significant other’s name tattooed onto your skin is probably too much of a commitment for most, the latest trend in beauty, ‘the boyfriend manicure’, offers a similar effect with nowhere near as much potential for regret. The boyfriend manicure involves etching your loved one’s face or name on your nails instead of dousing your fingers in the latest OPI lacquer during your weekly R&R session. Sure, you may look like a bit of a tool, but nowhere near as bad as you would on your wedding day with “Sam” tattooed on your shoulder blade when you are clearly posing with Paul in the pics.
L’Oreal acts against animal testing
The French beauty giant has announced that they will be partnering with the U.S. Environmental protection agency in an attempt to eradicate cosmetic animal testing. After donating $1.2 million, L’Oreal is supporting the EPA’s project to generate a computer model that tests how toxic certain chemicals are. Named ToxCast, the system “uses complex mathematical algorithms and computer testing to determine if a particular product could cause harm to humans.”
New and irrelevant celebrity ‘dos
Also, stop the press. Lindsay Lohan has dyed her hair back red and Ke$ha glued gold studs to the side of her head. Groundbreaking.
Products you don’t want to miss out on...
Molton Brown London
In case you haven’t noticed, this beauty season Molton Brown London is everywhere. Seriously, wherever I look, I see the vibrant luxury packages. Maybe it’s The Secret functioning (I may very well be ‘attracting’ the aromatic packages of goodness into my life) or maybe it’s like when you buy a new car and you start to see it everywhere. Either way, the niche beauty brand has launched its first-ever anti-bacterial liquid hand wash as part of its new Rok Mint Hand Duo. After sanitising with the basil, blackcurrant and mint wash, your skin is nourished with the Rok Mint Soothing Hand Lotion. The lotion differs to market competitors because, quite simply, you’re left with a soft velvety after-feel minus the grease. The products are typical to Molton Brown’s signature style, showcasing the brand’s experience with fragrance and colour.
Apitiva
This week I discovered Aptivia, a gorgeous line of animal and environmentally-friendly organic products. Politically correct adjectives aside, this product range is special as it was founded in 1979 by pharmacists Niki and Nikos Koutsianas. The brand fuses ancient Greek values with modern production techniques, committed to making products which are “humble, yet extraordinary”. My personal favourite from the range is the refreshing fig and aloe body milk, which conjures sweet yet soft smells while still offering your skin a good, thorough cleansing. I may have been drawn to this product because it smells like the three days I had in Ios (minus the gyros and vodka) last July, or maybe because I just want it to smell like those three magical days I spent under the Grecian sun (well, moon, because I mostly slept during the day...)
Anyway, I digress. Other fabulous products from this range to look out for include the hypoallergenic firming rich texture red wine and beewax cream, and the lavender and honey made for sensitive scalps shampoo.
Now, before you rush off to buy these bad boys so you are well prepared when your future Greek lover, Khristos, stays over (not projecting here I promise), it may interest you to know that Aptivita derives from the Latin apis, meaning bee, and vita, meaning life... Lamb for errrbody!
John Frieda
This week I was fortunate enough to meet the John Frieda international creative consultant, Harry Josh, who styled Gwyneth Paltrow’s hair and the Oscars last year and Rose Bryne’s at this year’s Academy Awards. Josh introduced me to new the new John Frieda Precision Foam Colour, which is the first-ever premium, permanent hair colour from the haircare giant.
The breakthrough at-home colour uses foam technology in a breakthrough at-home colour kit which creates salon quality hair colour.
Given that there has been a reversion to bold hair colours after seasons of highlights and beach hair, the DIY kit allows you to wash away your ombre tones in just one treatment. If though, you are not quite ready to bid farewell to your balayge (it really is time to move on, but anyway) Josh suggests dying your whole head in one of the precision foam colours, and then going to the salon for highlights and styling. How’s that for budgeting?!