mariankihogo.com » Beauty

Winged Eyeliner & Beehive

marian — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 01:19:39 +0000

Beauty at Jean Paul Gaultier Couture spring 2012 is proof that the Amy Winehouse influence is still in effect. Moused beehives and winged eyeliner were paired with faux piercings and bright nail polish.

Amy Winehouse is gone but clearly not forgotten.

Beauty Counter // 23

marian — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 19:01:15 +0000

This week I am wishing these products were on my beauty counter…

Rimmel London // Hot Gossip
With the wide brush and a hue to that is gossip worthy, what is there not to love? Gossip, gossip, hear all about it.
More information here.

Bottega Veneta // Murano Parfum
With base notes of tonika bean, vanilla and sandalwood, the Bottega Venta perfume is quite the memorable scent.
The leathery oriental chypre is packaged in a Murano bottle. This is hand-blown on the Island of Murano which is acclaimed for its glasswork and artisans. The contemporary flacon was designed by Bottega Veneta Creative Director, Tom Maier.
More information here.

Illamasqua // Ascend medium pencil in Debonair
A great product should not be limited to use on only one feature…
The Illamasqua pencil helps create drama and encourage individuality as used all over skin.
More information here.

Sample the Beauty Counter here.

Images via Bottega Veneta | Selfridges.

Beauty Trend Spotter // Crayola Hair

marian — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 16:31:14 +0000

Narciso Rodriguez | Issey Miyake | Julien MacDonald | Thakoon | Photos via Style.com

Every city had her incarnation of rainbow hair for spring 2012. London had Julien’s primary brights set off his future forward bad girl with her ‘don’t mess with me shades’. New York gave us the Thakoon and Narciso girls. The former girl was the meeting place of Bollywood and Western Americana with her powdery pastel hair. The hair color of the latter was slightly more faded in hue.

In Paris Issey Miyake’s woman brought a return to form with an exploration of womanhood. This was matched with ombre color on hair, almost graffiti sprayed-on in feel.

This crayola hair trend has been raging on for a few seasons now. What are your thoughts on it and how bright is too bright?

I don’t know about you but I want to be a Thakoon girl and wear lavender hair. Come spring she looks like the girl to be. Does she not look like she might fit right into a fine art portrait? Off course by way of candy sweet hair.

All the beauty trends here.

What Say Thou? // 24K Gold

marian — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 18:55:56 +0000

Fendi spring 2012 | The Blonds spring 2012 nails by CNDC | Gucci spring 2012 | Unique by Topshop spring 2012 | Images via Style.com and Images via CNDC

It was a gold rush on catwalks like Frida’s for Gucci. The art deco lashings of gold was matched with gold skunk streaks through hair. The gilded metal made an appearance across runways. At Unique by Topshop the hieroglyphics by way of 90′s went with smatterings of gold foil on hair. At The Blonds spring 2012 show, CNDC made sure nails were in keeping with the high octane collection. Eyelids and brows were plated in gold foil at Fendi.

Will you be experimenting with gold inspired beauty looks this season?

Vote in the other polls.

Beauty Counter // 22

marian — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 13:42:10 +0000

This winter treat your skin (the largest organ) to a new moisturizing experience with these two products.

Tom Ford // Jasmin Rouge

The allure of Ford’s beauty products is the packaging is as considered as the products themselves. His Jasmin Rouge perfume would look magnificent on any beauty counter.
More information here.

CHANEL // ROUGE ALLURE Luminous Satin Lip Colour

Channel the femme fatale in this lustrous lipstick.
More information here.

Daphne Guinness x MAC // Nail lacquer in Bluebood

The contrast of the name of this shade and the actual shade lend an irony to a hue that is all parts Daphne.
More information here.

Sample the Beauty Counter here.

Images via Selfridges.

Skunk Stripes Raccoon Eyes

marian — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 01:18:28 +0000

Images – Style.com

I have habit of reducing everything to elementary animal analogies and comparisions.

Frida’s beautiful 1920′s inspired spring 2012 show was fairly surreal on the beauty side. The no brow look courtesy of the blonde brow met heavy kohl eyes and the rebellion of contrasting black and gold streaked hair. All in all, Skunk meets Raccoon.

The Nail Polish Files // Diwali Chanel Nail Polish

marian — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 18:14:05 +0000

Images – Style.com

New season, new Chanel nail polish by Peter Philips (I am convinced Chanel’s creative director has the magic touch) to hold us in hypnotic court.

For pre-fall 2012 it was an aged gold, ancient in feel called Diwali.

Watch Diwali (which is the name of the festival of lights in India) become the shade everyone is set to lust after.

Explore The Nail Polish Files series here.

Tester // Benito Brow Bar Eyebrow Shape

marian — Sun, 04 Dec 2011 20:46:48 +0000

Benito Brow Bar, Debenhams, Oxford Street, London.

Eyebrow Shaping (threading)

I have never had a go to person to get my eyebrows in shape. I have flitted around from brow bar to brow bar with little loyalty and even smaller attention span.

Since the launch of this site in December 2011 I have lost track of the number of brow bars I have tested. Many were on a complimentary basis. Non of those reviewed ended up on this site. If it is negative I will not write a glowing review. If it is bad I will write nothing on it at all.

The nomadic wandering from brow bar to brow bar has ended. I will be returning to the Benito Brow Bar and asking for the lovely beautician who patiently listened to me anxiously repeat that I did not want question mark brows.

Now that I look back on it, I realise she must have super hero skills for understanding the mumbo jumbo that was my attempt at explaining what I did not want. Instead of saying what I wanted I rather expounded on what I did not want my brows ending up looking like. This I did through my limited personal brow terminology; question mark brows and line drawing brows.

For her to have gotten some sense out of this nonsense garbled, is a feat in itself.

The threading experience in terms of pain, is not for the faint of heart. However, having tried brow waxing, I have to say give me a thread to my brow any day.

The brow genius that is the lady who worked her magic (on what was a very scraggly pair of brows) was efficient, had great customer service skills and incredibly attentive.

Her attention to detail and me as a customer was impressive given that she had no idea that I was there to review the service.

The Eyebrow Shape at Benito Brow Bar is £15.00.

All on Benito Brow Bar here.

Please note that this review is on a complimentary beauty service.

Beauty Counter // 21

marian — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 20:32:37 +0000

This winter treat your skin (the largest organ) to a new moisturizing experience with these two products.

Weleda // Skin Food

Sustainable beauty brand, Weleda is beloved. Their natural products boast ingredients grown in Weleda farms.

As its name suggests, this product feeds your skin. Soothing Rosemary, antiseptic organic Pansy and anti-inflammatory calendula and Biodynamic come together the super nourishing moisturizer by Weleda.

More information here.

Bodhi // Ylang-Ylang Incensa Moisturizer

The Bodhi brand as founded by Elijah Choo, has become a firm stay on my personal beauty counter top. This love affair began since its launch which I had the pleasure of attending. The vision of the brand which sees the perfect mix of luxury and the all natural, is in my opinion the making of the perfect beauty brand.

Choo’s Ylang-Ylang Incensa moisturizer is free of all the harsh chemicals (no parabens, no petrochemicals, no sulphates, no synthetic colours, fragrances or animal ingredients) that your body does not need. In their place there is the stimulating aphrodisiac properties of Ylang-Ylang, the sebum regulatory and skin toning of Patchouli, Neroli, Peppercorn and Honeysuckle.

More information here.

Sample the Beauty Counter here.

Images: Weleda | Bodhi

Beauty News // Madonna Truth Or Dare Perfume

marian — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 10:59:41 +0000

Truth or Dare eau de parfum by Madonna.

It has been announced today that Madonna has signed with Coty Prestige to create a perfume called Truth or Dare.

This will mark the first perfume for the singer whose career spans a period of over three decades. The partnership with Coty prestige further reiterates that they are leaders in global beauty.

“Madonna is the marquis addition to Coty’s unrivaled brand portfolio and further establishes us as cutting edge leaders in the global beauty industry,” Bernd Beetz, CEO, Coty Inc said. “We are thrilled to embark on this new venture with Madonna, a global icon with unprecedented star power and cultural relevance.”

Madonna is said to have stated to Women’s Wear Daily, “I have always been obsessed by fragrance and for years wanted to create something personal that was an expression of me but that other people could relate to as well. Something honest, and yet daring, hence the name Truth or Dare.

The Truth or Dare fragrance is a signature floral fragrance with a notable duality. Narcotic florals are balanced with addictive woods and vanilla, creating a scent that is both dark and light.

The sophisticated design of the bottle (seen above) seeks to embody that dual identity.

The scent will debut in Macy’s in USA in 2012, followed with global distribution in May 2012. It will be available in a 75ml EDP ($68 / €62), 50ml EDP ($55 / €46), 30ml EDP ($39 / €35), Body Lotion ($28 / €22), and Shower Gel ($24 / €21).