Hi Ladies,

The sky is as crystal clear as the reflection of an Asscher-cut diamond. (I’ve never seen an Asscher diamond in person, but I hear they are as clear as water.) The sun is beaming more than a mom at her child’s first recital. The waves are gently crashing the shoreline creating a sound that mimics the angels’ celestial chorus. And I lie here (veiled in SPF 30, of course, because no sun is too good for me not to be well protected) looking like a golden goddess: even-toned, bronzed, radiant, sun-kissed. Ahhh…I love St. Barth’s. Okay, Santa Monica. I mean, Miami.

Okay, really, I’m on the rooftop deck of my Jersey loft building. But I’m more tan and golden than I have been in years without the tropics. And I owe it all to Givenchy’s Tan To Go, Limited Edition.

Now, wait! Before you recite (because I’m sure you already thunk it), “She’s-got-to-be-kidding-me!,” know that I am so sincere. Seldom will I recommend one product for a task. But, last Wednesday (after several Fed-Ex delivery attempts) I received a package in the mail from a friend with “ties” to the house of LMVH’s Givenchy. Never, never, did I expect the contents of that package to make me smile, make me coo, make me imagine frolicking on a white sand beach.

I’m a tan-in-a-can skeptic — and for several reasons: 1) I’m naturally melanin-ed. I am of African-American, Caribbean, Native American and French ancestry. So any tan I get, I admit, is extra, 2) most faux tans I’ve seen, well…look very faux, and 3) I, like most, think orange (not bronze) when I think tan in a bottle. We’ve all seen an “orange” woman before.

Today, however, I’m a convert. For the last five days, I have forgiven my typical complexion smoothing routine. I’ve ditched mixing one part of a slightly-darker-than-my-natural-skin-tone-liquid foundation with my daily face hydrant to create a delicately tinted moisturizer. I haven’t applied concealer to camouflage the signs of sleep deprivation. (That’s my trick to flawless looking skin.) Instead, I’ve followed the directions in the pamphlet that accompanies Givenchy Tan-to-Go face spray.

Avoid spraying in eyes. Hold eight inches from face, spray. Let dry. Spray until desired complexion…

Or something along those lines. The point? I’m sold. I’m a believer. I’m buying Shade 02 in large quantities this week since Givenchy decided that this clever and effective invention should be available only for a limited a time.

It dries in less than two minutes to a powder so it won’t rub onto your (or your significant other’s) clothes. I wish it came in 5 instead of two shades, but I asked friends, some darker and others lighter than me, to try, and the shades were pretty compatible.

So, as I head to a lunch meeting in not-so-tropical New York City, I’ll look fresh, clear-skinned, and St. Tropez-ed. Thanks to Givenchy.

 

Givenchy Tan To Go, $45, sephora.com

Have you ever had a tan-in-a-bottle or spray-tan mishap? Or is there a product or method you absolutely love? Do tell!

Tai

Ladies,

Believe it or not, I am a beauty buff who rushes away from the fragrance section of a department store as if escaping a pack of wild skunks. No, I am not one of those women who prefer a “more natural” body scent. In fact, I loooove perfume. I can tell top notes (what gives a fragrance’s first impression) from bottom or base notes (the heaviest and longest lasting note that gives a fragrance its “defining” aroma). I can categorize a fragrance pretty accurately. (There are six basic categories: floral, fruits, woods, greens, oriental, and aquatic—usually determined by the heart or middle note.) And I’ve even been told I have a great “nose” by one of the world's most revered perfume aficionados, Laurice Rahme of Bond No. 9, formerly of Creed.

Still, I have always felt overwhelmed by the lovely salespeople who flood passer-bys with of-the-moment sprays.

As personal as fragrance is—it’s the one thing that can make an entrance before you do and linger post your physical exit—I usually try new fragrances only when:

a)       One is purchased as a gift

b)       I take the suggestion of a trusted beauty editor who waxes poetic about it in a magazine

c)       I feel intoxicatingly mesmerized after inhaling a scent strip advertisement in a magazine

d)       I build up the courage to ask the lady standing next to (darn near on top of) me on the subway what she’s wearing

What do all of my fragrance-finding practices have in common? Though it’s love after first spritz, I don’t choose my “love in a bottle,” they usually happen to find me.

But this season, I decided to venture outside my eau de toilette comfort zone. I wanted a few new scents that would let four of my most sprayed, warm-weather classics, rest easy on their shelves. Here are some of my new favorites.

 

 

 

My Floral Classic: Creed Spring Flowers EDP, $190, neimanmarcus.com

The Newcomer: Bath & Body Works Enchanted Orchid $19, bathandbodyworks.com

Why: It’s a fresh floral with blends of orchids, gardenia, and iris. Not to mention, it’s a tenth of the price. You can’t beat that!

 

 

My Fruit Classic: Calypso Christiane Celle Mimosa, $85, calypso-celle.com

The Newcomer: Lavanila Vanilla Coconut, $65, sephora.com
Why: I’ve always been a little skeptical of vanilla, but the coconut blend gives this all-natural fragrance crisp freshness

 

  

My Green Classic: L’Artisan Parfemeur The Pour un Ete Eau de Toilette, $95 bergdorfgoodman.com

The Newcomer: Prada Milano Infusion D’Iris Eau de parfume, $70, neimanmarcus.com

Why: It is technically a floral scent, but it’s also complex, lush, very green and clean smelling. 

 

 

My Aquatic Classic: Marc Jacobs perfume, $65, sephora.com

 

 

  

 

 

The Newcomer: Missoni Acqua, $75, at Nordstrom stores

Why: It’s airy, fluid, and alive. Seriously, with every inhale, feel the ocean’s breeze.

So what’s your aromatic pleasure? You can click and purchase one of these for yourself. Or even better, just in time for Mother’s Day (or even Mother-To-Be-one-day-sometime-in-the-future Day), drop a hint (or this link to Compacts & Vignettes) to your significant other or children.

Be sure to come back to share your likes (or dislikes). In the meantime, do tell what fragrances you consider warm-weather must-haves.

Tai

Ladies (Mommies, Aunties, and older Sisters especially),

I am not yet a mom; but I am a godmother and “auntie” to a few brilliant and beauty-full girls, ages 3 – 14. Each of them boasts an impressionable mind with a huge appetite for information. They listen to music, watch television, tag along to the mall with their mothers and friends and (the older ones) have computers. One has skipped the runway of a local department store kids fashion show and appeared in a magazine photo shoot. I’m not naïve to the fact that media and celebrity has a tremendous influence on how we (women of a certain-age) and, to an even greater extent, how teen and tween-aged girls form our beauty ideals. But things have gone too far!

I read several recent articles about girls, I mean, babies, and their “beauty” ambitions. One in Philadelphia Magazine discussed an 8 year old getting her brows sculpted and another 12 year old having her “down there” waxed!

“Keating [the spa owner] told one mother, who wanted to drop her 12-year-old off for a full body wax before a modeling casting call, that it wasn’t going to happen unless she, the mother, came in, signed a waiver, and sat with her daughter as any wayward hair that dared to grow on her adolescent skin — from head to toe — was ripped out.”

My mouth fell more agape by the paragraph.

Another New York Times article talked about eleven-year olds donning highlights.

And there’s a picture book being released soon explaining  “Mommy’s new look” post breast augmentation and/or a nose job. Yikes!

I thought to myself, a hard line has to be stitched (tight) somewhere, darn it! But where?

I occasionally take my 9-year old goddaughter to have a simulation-mani and pedi (They only gently file and add polish. No cuticle clipping or pumice stone buffing!). I allow her to use only tropical Skittles-like hues. And unlike my own lip color peeves, with her…the more glitter, the better. During our session, we talk about school, the importance of being kind and obedient, and sports. Though a little indulgent, I’ll admit, our trips are meant for bonding.

But for many young girls (and parents who let them), the trend is to pluck, pull, and streak. Is this too much? How young is too young? In fact, how old were you when you had your first chemical process: wax, color, or facial?

Hi Ladies,

So, tell me, do you gloss or stick? Every day? In the evenings when you’re headed out on a date with your sweetie? To a PTA meeting or an after-work mixer?

Exactly!

Now that I’ve hit my thirties, I’m ready – not to mention it’s time – to occasionally abandon my fascination with (and extremely dedicated resolve to previously wear only) the slippery, even gooey, ultra-glittery textures of Bonnie Belle-type lip glosses. Refined women, like us, should punctuate our look with seductive, creamy, smooth lip color instead. Right? But how does a woman graduate from lip gloss to lipstick?

I’ve pondered this conundrum for a while…several years actually. As a twenty-something-year-old in the beauty industry with a room full of seemingly wiser, more experienced, more sophisticated, more fashionable and well, more…or shall I say, “better lip-sticked” women, I always felt my glitter-flecked, strawberry-toned gloss was out of place. It made me feel like an awkwardly and accidentally placed kid soooo completely out of her league.

But truth be told: On weekends, when you’re rushing from Lowe's to Whole Foods to your son or daughter’s soccer match, a sheer lip gloss with a tinge of color like the infamous Lancome Juicy Tubes, $18, (I loooove Miracle) will fit the bill.

Still, Monday through Thursday, you need some color, better yet a texture and application that speaks sophistication rather than sweet sixteen. Ladies, a natural progression is an order.

Just in time for spring: I’ve discovered and “moved-on-up” (at least a few days a week) to lip colors that offer youthful application PLUS the rich and creamy textures of an all grown-up, chic lipstick. Bingo!!!

Check out a few of my favorites, and let me know what your lip color favorites are, too! 

Tai

Josie Maran, $18,

I was pleasantly surprised when the caramel-smelling (not usually my thing) sheer color went on as luxuriously as a silk Philip Lim blouse. Radiance (a soft pink) and Confession (a coppery gold) are perfect for spring and extremely wearable on all complexions.

Bonus: These babies are close to being all natural! 

Stila, $22,

For those of you who thought you couldn’t wear red, Stila’s SPF 20 Lip Color in Chelsea adds a perfect, pick-you-up wash of color that transitions from office chic to after-work drinks effortlessly.

Lancome, $23, department stores

Lancome’s new Color Fever Gloss offers high impact color with a delicate sheen. I love the rich and moisturizing texture. What it feels like? Imagine swiping on a coat of a hydrating, petroleum-rich balm that’s colorful and goes the distance.