RSSProduct Review : Clinique Repairwear SPF 15 Foundation
June 12, 2009
I wasn’t planning on buying foundation but I got overheated with the excitement of finding this color and formulation. And I’m still on a Winter Self-Discovery kick. And I had an afternoon alone. So what, you might say. Or, you might say, “3 hours?! In a row??” . I myself fit into the latter category.
I went to Sears to buy another tube of Estee Lauder Zero-Smudge mascara because my daughter appropriated mine. And I had a gift card, you see. So I wandered over to Clinique because they make some good, and more affordable, stuff and they had a GWP.
Their gifts are pretty good and free has a certain appeal that I’m certain you can understand, especially if you have teenagers. I wish they’d put some new lip products in those gifts. The ol’ Different Grape (this is a widely wearable color?), Apple Cider ( less wearable than A Different Grape), and Raspberry Glace (kind of boring), they’ve seen their day. I guess that among Clinique lipsticks, I really like the Butter Shine best, but I can see how not everyone would because it’s so creamy. I do like the choice of gifts, the various glosses, and how they’ve done a warm and cool option.
Clinique has a PWP offer right now of Summer Pinks or Summer Bronzes.
I’m always drawn to foundation. It fascinates me for some reason. There’s a sticky spot in my head for all those nuances of beige. My own skin issues are,
-lines under eyes,
- a lot of pigment discolorations on sides of face,
-large pores on nose,
but the skin is pretty smooth in the sense of not-bumpy.
Foundation these days is astounding in the number of finishes available and even the more complete coverage products look and feel pretty good. So I started looking for a foundation with heavier coverage that might still look believable with a face full, and would allow for less coverage in some places and much more in others. Although we all need a darker skin-tone concealer (for imperfections on the skin) along with the lighter one (for shadows), I feel unlikely to begin mixing 2 concealers to arrive at my perfect shades. Even if I did, I don’t have time to dot concealer on a hundred little spots. What if foundation alone could cover well enough to hide those pigment spots?
Decades ago, foundation used to be too pink. Eventually, I think makeup artists convinced cosmetic companies that skin is actually more yellow than it is pink. Now, I wonder if a lot of products are too yellow. The salespeople tell you that they make it that way to diminish redness. Well, ok, but you’re not supposed to see the yellow tones. Your skin becomes a different color than your ears. I see skin as kind of grayish, but maybe that’s because mine is. I freely admit that I have no experience matching foundation to anybody but myself. Does anyone remember Club Monaco makeup? Monica Lewinsky wore it, just to date it for you. Those were neutral foundation colors.
I found Repairwear in Fair Neutral 03 and Neutral 05. Micaela, the very nice Clinique saleswoman who has worked at our counter for years and knows me to be weird, contesting, and hard-to-please but does a great job of pretending I’m a normal client, gave me a sample. I’m thrilled to see they’re taking a page from the MAC book and doing this now; must have all been at the same staff meeting. You should get a sample too. It’s very hard to get a sense of this foundation, or any foundation, at the store. Like mascara, it can only be tested in your own bathroom.
What happened was this. I tried it on, just the smallest bit, as Micaela advised. She said clients who buy it love it and don’t buy another bottle for ages. Your initial impression is “No way, this is too masky”. But once it’s all spread out, after about 10 seconds, dayam, it looks good. It feels a little bit heavy if you get too much on, but your skin seems rather perfect. Maybe a little too perfect, but I can get with the drama easily. This is not the formulation to begin with if you’re leery of the artificiality of foundation.
Pick a Saturday when you have a lot of time. Apply it as you usually do your foundation. Realize immediately the coverage is more dense than you expected and the only way to make it look real is by wiping it off which will make your skin red and uneven. Rinse it all off instead. Wait 10 minutes.
Begin again. Use ¼ your usual amount of foundation. 1 pump of the bottle is about right for your face. Apply it on the side of your hand and from there, put little dots all over your face and start blending them together. You have lots of time to work it around. The sunscreen in it doesn’t sting so it can go on eyelids and at the inside corners of eyes.
Take a little more off your hand and dab it, or stipple with your foundation brush, over pigment irregularities. It covers very well without looking cakey. If you have larger pores, drive the foundation brush into them end-on, with a little more foundation, and they’ll go away. Only the thinnest coverage goes under the eyes, as with any foundation, mostly just to blend away the concealer lines.
It is supposed to dry matte, and it does an ok job of it. You will need powder. I don’t need more touchups during the day than I normally would. I think the product looks a little “tired” at the end of the day, after a couple of powder re-applications. If I were going out at night, I’d wash it off and reapply. Luckily, I have no night life besides chauffering to soccer games so … if it ain’t my problem, … it ain’t a problem!
I start with Clinique’s All About Eyes concealer in Light Neutral, fabulous in its own right, and paint it in the usual places, the darker shadows. I don’t even blend it in, just paint it on with a lipstick brush. Wait 2 minutes and it will dry looking like Indian paint. The foundation brush will blend it for you but don’t smear. Keep your foundation brush strokes feathery, light, and quick. You want the concealer to stay where you put it.
Don’t buy makeup without visiting Paula Begoun’s group at Beautypedia. You’ll get another opinion and a better sense of what’s in this product than I can give you. You’ll learn whether it deserves Clinique’s “anti-aging”, or even better “de-aging”, label.
Unbelievable someone could have so much to say about foundation.
-->Your initial impression is “No way, this is too masky”. But once it’s all spread out, after about 10 seconds, dayam, it looks good. It feels a little bit heavy if you get too much on, but your skin seems rather perfect. Maybe a little too perfect, but I can get with the drama easily. This is not the formulation to begin with if you’re leery of the artificiality of foundation.
Read moreInterview With A Makeup Artist 2
January 5, 2009
In the previous article, Interview With A Makeup Artist 1, I introduced you to makeup artist Jenepher Reynolds. I never visit PEI without taking an opportunity to sit in her chair. It is always a great experience in beauty and learning. We chatted about makeup for women over 40 last summer. Here is the second half of our conversation.
Views on PEI's Confederation Trail.
6. The three most important products for women over 40?
JR: An eyelash curler !! Care to know the why? As we age, the lashes tend to fall and stick out rather straight from the edge of the lid, so from the front they become invisible. The eyelash curler lifts the hair up, which immediately counteracts gravity. It also exposes more of the white of the eye, which makes the eye look larger.
Secondly, smudged eyeliner. It defines and thickens the lashes, which is youthful. Where the line goes depends on the eye and the face.
Third is concealer in a yellow-orange-peach color. The light yellow-beige sold in most lines is too light and not very effective. If you think about color theory, orange cancels blue and yellow cancels purple. So since a lot of Caucasians are blue/purple under the eyes, it only makes sense to use a concealer with yellow and orange in it.
Also, a pimple is nowhere near the color under your eyes. It’s red. Green cancels red so for blemishes you need a concealer with a bit of green in it.(Not to the extent of an illusion toner). That can be a very difficult product to find but it counteracts redness and shadows better than any other.
I have several favorite concealers. One is made by Ben Nye (see the article Concealer : Ben Nye Neutralizer Crayon Should Be Famous) .
Long walks on windy beaches.
7. Any general color advice that applies to everyone?
JR: Nothing applies to everyone. You might reconsider if you are using deep, dark, or matte colors on lips. Lips are the only feature that can be big!! Darkness, especially if it’s dull and matte, is a minimizer.
I think a lot of people have experience with color whether it’s from decorating their house or buying clothes for themselves or someone else. Color theory is color theory. i.e. if you choose a color for your lips that is much darker and deeper than your skin and lip tone, there is high contrast which can be harsh, especially if it’s not blended. I mention this because so many women will not put any make-up on except lipstick and quite often a very deep lip color. All we see are the person’s lips.
This applies to eyes as well. Colors that contrast strongly with those naturally appearing on your face may appear harsh and that can be aging or unflattering.
Consider bronzer year-round, in a shade more golden than brown, for the soft light it brings.
No more dusty rose blush. That color is flattering on a small and select group of women. Peach/apricot/pink are more attractive on most fair/medium/dark Caucasian skin tones faces.
New Glasgow, PEI.
8. What are the differences between applying makeup on models and on real women?
JR: Women should understand that it takes several hours, professional lighting and photographers, and upwards of 100 – 250 pictures to get one good shot. Add to that hair and makeup people (often several of each) and models with training in how to pose. This is before we discuss computer retouching! It is insane for women to compare themselves to model photos. There is no comparison. Go have a look at the videos on the Dove site if you need an example.
What you will see of your kids - see the line of snorkels?
9. What did you learn from working in a plastic surgery milieu?
No matter how much money you have or how much work you get done, it doesn’t mean that you will be happy or satisfied with your looks. I know this also from my own experience with cosmetic surgery. Like your insides and the outside will reflect just that.
How's that for a carbon footprint?
10. You’ve worked with so many lines of cosmetics. Why did you choose to work with the AboutFace line?
JR: I answer this question on my website’s Cosmetics page. They rely on advisors within the industry, editors, chemists, and others. They do not test on animals.
I looked at many lines before I settled on this one. I felt it best addressed the needs of many women. I also appreciate that they are always adding new products.
Brackley Beach. A wee bit different in December.
11. Have you any reaction to how media tells women over 40 to feel about aging?
JR: The most common complaint I hear from mature women is “I look so old”. They’re trying to hide this spot or that one. Sure, they don’t look like they did when they were 17, but why accept that there’s something wrong with that?
Why try to hide yourself? Why not enhance what you do have? All the makeup in the world won’t hide poor eating habits, smoking, or an angry expression.
If cosmetic surgical procedures truly will make you feel better about yourself, then go ahead. It can make a huge difference in self-esteem. But it’s not for everyone. Growing enough to accept that we are no longer who we used to be on the inside, and seeing it as natural to reflect that on the outside, can satisfy most of us.
You can do preventative things to slow down aging, concentrating on the biggest aging factors. Those are sun, smoking, and stress, not necessarily in that order.
I’d like the beauty industry to stop using the term “anti-aging”. We start aging from the day we’re born. The focus should be on taking care of yourself inside and out. I have laugh lines that end in my hairline. I’d rather that than frown lines.
Hay bales and the ocean always over the next hill.
Despite the oversight of having left out a visit to Jenepher’s studio, which I’m certain will be corrected in the next issue, the ultimate Book of Musts : The 101 Places Every Islander MUST See is absolutely unequalled for letting you in on what to REALLY do in PEI. (here it is at Amazon). I’d like to tell you it’s sunny and hot all summer but that might be an overstatement. With this book in hand, you’ll have a fantastic time, even if you’re at Value Village buying fleece.
Without it, you might not find the best Montreal bagels and Thai food. You might not know that 6AM and 9PM are the best times to be on the North Shore beaches. Pick the strawberries on Tea Hill so you can stand up and gaze out at the ocean. Cross country ski at Brookvale and you’ll feel entirely at peace.
Go to the Island but don’t go without this reference. The more kids you bring, the better you’ll like it.
Go without kids and take the forest walks at Bubbling Springs or Lover’s Lane at Green Gables.
So much more than a sub-Arctic sandbar and the home of Anne of Green Gables. Any water sport you can name. Fantastic food. Incredible shopping. Oh, it goes on and on.
The best vacation on Earth.
Visit www.peiplay.com.
-->The most common complaint I hear from mature women is “I look so old”. They’re trying to hide this spot or that one. Sure, they don’t look like they did when they were 17, but why accept that there’s something wrong with that?
Read more4 More Makeup Tricks For Mature Faces 2
October 27, 2008
Back in September, I posted an article about eye makeup for older women in The First 4 Ways To Modify Makeup For Age.
Aging faces develop sharper angles because the layer of fat under the skin becomes thinner with time. Applying makeup with sharp lines and edges, be it poorly blended blush or a sharp edge of eyeliner, only emphasizes this feature of aging. Soft blurred edges that dissolve into one another flatter a mature face. This look is more softly rounded which imparts a youthfulness.
I agree with Lauren Hutton that sheer colors are more attractive that a heavy color deposit. When I say “a soft look”, I don’t mean dusty or watery colors. In most cases, unless you’re a Summer, dilute colors add no liveliness to the face at all. “Soft” here means a light hand in putting on the product and using products that don’t put down a heavy layer of pigment. The colors are pure and vibrant but the consistency is diaphanous, or sheer.
Today’s four are about the mouth.
1. Easy on the lipstick. Steer clear of too much or too dark. This is a very difficult look to pull off unless you really know how to balance the rest of the face. Watch out for “old lady” cliché colors like frosty coral, flat pink, and the nondescript burgundy-dusty rose blend.
Since I don’t have time to reapply lip products ever few minutes, but I find a soft, natural color becoming, I look for long-lasting glosses that work (Clinique Glosswear, L’Oreal Color Juice, and L’Oreal Infallible being among of the best in the affordable category) and use lipliner on the whole lip first.
Gloss is often marketed to younger women, so the colors tend to be fresher. The tradeoff is that it’s very difficult to find gloss without frost or sparkle. The cosmetics industry is producing makeup for 25 year olds. Hey, anyone want to put together a makeup line for us? I’m in.
Stick with colors in your season. Once you know which color type you belong to, you can choose colors that are very true (but sheer! they’re not the same, right?) and look great.
A Summer might look at L’Oreal Color Juice in Watermelon Crush. Summer is the group where frost doesn’t add anything. Their coloring is so soft that anything harsh is jarring.
A Spring is looking for a peachy pink. A light gold shimmer is nice on a Spring. Look at MAC Lustreglass in Instant Gold.
An Autumn does better with some metallic than any other because the whole look is toasty, like this.
Metallic goes overboard all too easily in today’s shimmer swamp. Subtle shimmer is always better.
Look at Almay Ideal Gloss in Bronze Shimmer or Lise Watier Plumpissimo Gloss in Bronze. Warm orange-red looks good too, especially for darker Autumns who need more color in makeup to coordinate with the extra intensity in their natural coloring.
It could be this, but even more red.
A Winter wears icy pink, like the lightest shades here, in her clothing. It looks gorgeous. As lipstick, it’s too faded. For any season, mouth color that is lighter than skin color is hard to do well. A makeup artist could probably balance this look with a stronger eye, but that’s not you and me for every day.
A bright clear blue-pink is also good.
L’Oreal Colour Juice in Raspberry Smash and Tutti Frutti are worth looking at.
If your lip color bleeds easily, gloss won’t work well. The colors stay the same, but you need to look for more tenacious formulas. Revlon’s Color Stay and Color Stay Sheers will get you there. And of course, there’s every imaginable texture in between.
2. Place light concealer at the corners of the mouth and along the outer edges of the lower lip. There are entire articles in this site on the Light Concealer’s ability to create a face lift effect. You still have to work with your own face. For instance, if the nose is thin, don’t put a stripe of light concealer, or shimmer either, down the center or your nose will look even thinner.
Some application spots apply to all of us, some more than others of course, and are easy to forget. Remember to blend light concealer at the corner of the mouth and continue it under the outer edges of the lower lip. The corners of the mouth often turn down a little with time and it can look severe. This technique is anti-aging because it lifts the corners up a little, brings some light, and makes the lower lip look fuller and more supported.
3. Discover a very effective anti-bleed lip liner. Choose a shade in the same color as the lips or a colorless product, to offset lip color’s tendency to move into cracks. Don’t spend a lot of money on this product. The best ones are often the cheaper ones. Search MUA and Beautypedia to find the lipliners that really work to prevent lipstick from bleeding into lines around the mouth. With a clear product, you could even apply it a little outside your natural lip line. Who would know?
The easiest place to buy a great clear one is from Paula’s Choice – works great, feels great, no sharpening, really does last, good price point. This is one of those you can buy several of the first time out.
4. Using concealer instead of lip liner to keep lipstick in place. If you don’t care for lip liner, another way to keep lip color from wandering is to apply a thin layer of concealer all around the lips and blend it out really well.
If you look carefully at lipstick ads, you can almost see it, because it makes the lips come out more, as will any light color. This idea is best reserved for women with a small mouth or thin lips.
A thick concealer will look heavy on lined skin, definitely not helpful. MAC Select Cover-Up comes in great colors, is thin in consistency, and doesn’t move once it’s dry.
-->
Aging faces develop sharper angles because the layer of fat under the skin becomes thinner with time. Applying makeup with sharp lines and edges, be it poorly blended blush or a sharp edge of eyeliner, only emphasizes this feature of aging. Soft blurred edges that dissolve into one another flatter a mature face. This look is more softly rounded which imparts a youthfulness.
Today’s 4 are about the mouth.
Why Does This Concealer Work So Well?
October 8, 2008
When I look in the mirror, I see deep (and deepening) shadows on each side of my nose. We all have one single feature we focus on and that’s mine. Well, no, actually, I have several things I spotlight, but this is the one we’re on today.
Regular concealer works ok, but what works better is to precede the concealer with Bobbi Brown Corrector. This will brighten an area better than concealer alone. I’ll tell you straight off that I don’t get why it works, just that it does.
Bobbi Brown Corrector in Light Bisque
Corrector is intended to be used under your usual concealer, to provide extra coverage for dark shadows. The Bisque series cancels pink-blue (the most common color of shadows under the eye). The Peach Correctors neutralize “purple-brown undereye darkness” common in olive, golden and tan skin tones. I’m guessing purple-brown is the shading on those women who look like they’re wearing light brown eyeshadow all the time, all round the eye, upper lid as well.
This is an odd product. It reminds me a little of Kevyn Aucoin’s Sensual Skin Enhancers, also weird products. They both put me in mind of glistening putty in the container though neither is shimmery once on. Both are heavy in weight with only a tiny amount needed, and both have a grayish cast (at least, the Bisque Correctors do; Peach not so much).
With reliable guidance in finding the right color for you, these are both powerful skin enhancers. The folks at BB counters are very good at recommending a shade (I bought mine at Holt Renfrew in Toronto. I wear Light Bisque.)
It is kind of greasy but it blends well and has good coverage. I will use it as a VERY thin layer under my eye (side of nose, inner corner, just below the lash line, outer corner) as well as in the crease beside my nose, so the color matches.
I generally put on foundation, then concealer. For this sequence, I begin with the corrector, then foundation. My usual concealer comes last because I find I use much less once the Corrector is in place. Some women use it without traditional concealer over it – which I don’t fully understand because the corrector is gray/pink. It has a brightening effect but it’s not the color of skin on its own.
If you belong to Makeup Alley, and I strongly recommend you do, you’ll find 17 ! pages of reviews, almost all raves, and some great application tips. If not, you’ll find a good review at epinions.com. Averagejane loves it as well.
-->Regular concealer works ok, but what works better is to precede the concealer with Corrector. It brightens an area better than concealer alone. I’ll tell you straight off that I don’t get why it works, just that it does.
Read moreThe First 4 Ways To Modify Makeup For Age
September 23, 2008
--> We’d all like the skin we had when we were 20. We’d like the skin we had when we were 5, if it comes right down to it. But that’s not the deal.
Makeup that looks fabulous changes with age just as everything else does. Your face is not the same as it was 20 years ago. It’s better. Your character is beginning to shine through. The makeup can take a back seat.
Unrivaled Products 2 : Hydrating Treatment Cream
September 12, 2008
This is one beautiful cream. In the article Unrivaled Products 1: Beta Hydroxy Acid Gel, 3 unrivaled skin care products for alluded to. This article will focus on the second item in the list. It appears among the 3 because of its incredible performance for the price.
As with all products made by Paula’s Choice, you can accept certain things as guaranteed. The formulation is state-of-the-art. The inclusion of high levels of ingredients known today to be of great benefit to the health and appearance of skin is certain. You won’t sweat over the price. No animal testing takes place at any stage of the development of the product.
What you get with Hydrating Treatment Cream is a medium weight moisturizer that glides over the skin. It is so soft and smooth, not too rich, and completely non-greasy. It is the perfect all-purpose moisturizer. I use it every night on face/neck/upper chest/ and arms.
I have used it around my eyes, though I now use the Skin Recovery Moisturizer as an eye cream (take a look at the article The Best Eye Cream), only because I figure “the more emollient, the better; maybe it will keep the lines away longer”. Wishful thinking maybe, but I’ll use any ammunition I can get. Also, because the Skin Recovery is thicker, it doesn’t migrate into my eyes when I’m reading before bed, if I’ve gotten some too close to the edge of the eyelid.
Since Hydrating has been my favorite cream for so many years, I’ve devised a couple other uses for it along the way. Both take advantage of the cream’s ability to form a very thin, weightless film.
Line softener
I never use powder anywhere under my eyes because the drying effect accentuates the wrinkles there. But, really, any product in that area seems to make the skin more prone to creasing, even concealer or foundation.
After your makeup is on, put a tiny bit of this cream, like the size of a sesame seed, on the end of your 2 ring fingers. Smudge it round till it becomes a film, then tap it (with an up and down motion only) on the whole region at the outside of the eye just to the top edge of the cheekbone, and extending a little to the inside corner if the skin is lined there too. Can you see a marvelous, instant line-softening effect?
Be careful to stay at least 1/2″ or so away from the eyelid margin because the cream can wander into your eyes. While not painful, it blurs vision a little and will cause eyeliner and mascara to smudge more than usual.
Placement of Hydrating Treatment Cream
The area looks moist. Light shines off the top of the cheekbone without shimmer or frost, just to accentuate it a little. It still blends perfectly with the rest of the face. The makeup previously applied under the eye does not crease any more easily, or at all. In fact, I will do this process several times a day, especially in winter. It works incredibly well.
Make your own cream eyeshadows
I use very few cream eyeshadows. I’ve never really found one I like enough to buy till very recently, though I do think the gleam is attractive… but it has to be a gleam. If it’s shimmery, unless the skin of your upper lids is very tight, it will only make the looser skin there more obvious. Most cream shadows are either too frosty, don’t blend out without some tugging, or don’t last well.
Here is a way of making a powder shadow have that moist appearance of cream.
So apply your regular eyeshadow. Just as you did above, spread a small amount of Hydrating Treatment Cream between 2 fingers just to create a thin film. Now tap the cream over the eyeshadow. You really want a very, very thin film. The gleam will look very much like a cream eyeshadow application. The makeup doesn’t crease any more easily than before. Isn’t that good?
Less is always more
You wouldn’t do both of these methods on the same day or you could risk looking a little greasy. But, really, both effects are so subtle and real-looking that even together, they would not be overpowering. Both bring light to the eye, soften the skin so it seems to crease less (or less noticeably), and give an appearance of tight glowing skin.
Cool products multi-tasking. Love it.
-->This is one beautiful cream. In the article Unrivaled Products 1: Beta Hydroxy Acid Gel, 3 unrivaled skin care products for alluded to. This article will focus on the second item in the list. It appears among the 3 because of its incredible performance for the price.
Read moreConcealer : Ben Nye Neutralizer Crayon Should Be Famous
September 10, 2008
-->Concealer makes such a difference on mature faces. It’s just amazing how much you can do with the stuff. I think it’s the most under-utilized beauty weapon.
By now, we all have some shadowed areas and some discolored areas. There are many women our age who really don’t need foundation, but I don’t know one who doesn’t look better with a little concealer.
10 WRONG WAYS TO USE SHIMMER IN MAKEUP
January 18, 2008
Shimmer in products is one of the top 3 beauty mistakes that women make. It’s not entirely our fault, since over half of what’s out there has a shimmer in it. It sure looks nicer in the container that the flat matte choice does. Once it’s on your face, it can make your worst feature [...]
Read moreCUSTOM-BLENDED FOUNDATION
November 29, 2007
Foundation mistakes are the most obvious Foundation is the most critical makeup item and the most difficult to buy. These are the stumbling blocks: 1. The time it takes to find a perfect color. 2. The confidence you have in the advice of the woman at the counter who sells by commission, under department store [...]
Read moreYES, YOU REALLY DO NEED 2 CONCEALERS. PART 2:THE DARK
November 23, 2007
After reading the article on light concealers, you’ll recall why concealer becomes more beneficial as you get older. The lighter concelear is used in shadowed areas. It also brings forward certain areas of the face which helps accentuate the bone structure. Why you need a skin-tone concealer The darker concealer should be an [...]
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