Trending Beauty (What’s New, What Works)

Photo: iStock

By THÉRÈSE MARGOLIS 

Natural beauty is always the best beauty.

There is no need to go overboard with foundation, eyeliner and lip color if you have a naturally glowing complexion (which comes from faithfully following a daily skincare routine).

But even the most stunning natural beauties can use a little help from cosmetic magic.

Here are some of the best new products that deflect from minor flaws while letting your natural beauty shine through.

Bare It All (Well, Almost)

Nothing is better than bare skin, except almost bare skin, which is what you get with NudeStix, the new go-nude-but-better tinted coverage that makes skin look and feel like you are wearing nothing at all (but still covers up those nasty little imperfections).

Photo: Nudestix

Available in Sephora, Nudestix’s minimalist dot-and-dab approach to creating natural and real looking skin is through a super-light finish foundation with a combination of natural actives to protect from environmental skin aging, moisturize and improve overall texture.

This skin-loving, soft cream balm virtually melts onto skin to look naturally flushed and healthy.

Available in 14 universal nude skin tones, Nudestix use only natural ingredients that are good for your skin (the kind you in the most luxurious skincare), so they leave your skin radiant and break-out-free.

Produced in Korea, these handy, fit-in-your-purse, use-anywhere color sticks can be applied to face, lips and eyes.

There is even a new three-piece eyes, face and lips mini trio set with a honey-shaded Nudestix glow, a sun-kissed matte bronze and a blushing sweet peach peony bloom, all in a mini black tin with its own mirror and sharpener.

Nudestix employ hydra-technology to soften skin and 18 natural extracts to balance your completion and brightening minerals that blend with your natural tone rather than mask it, so the skin looks real, even and lifted.

The sticks provide skin with a resistant barrier for long wear that hydrates with lavender oil to calm nerves and reduce daily stress.

Photo: Nudestix

Eucalyptus leaf, peppermint and rosemary extract, meanwhile, fight infections and inflammation.

And best of all, each Nudestix foundation stick comes with its own built-in brush (which twists off for easy washing), so you can blend any spot coverage you may apply to avoid any no telltale lines or blotches.

The hypoallergenic, gluten-free, fragrance-free, cruelty-free, vegan composition is formulated without parabens, sulfates or phthalates, which means that you can use it without feeling guilty about its environmental impact.

And, for a limited time, Nudestix is offering a multi-tasking, dual-ended, to-go size brush that is ideal for applying cream, liquid and powder, creating a worry-free application every time.

Also available at Sephora, the Nudestix brush features silky-soft synthetic fibers that are cruelty-free and won’t shed.

Now, isn’t that better than just going nude?

Tiger Grass Skin Rescue

Likewise at Sephora is the new Cica Rescue Kit from Dr. Jart (the Korean-based brand that makes Cicapair Tiger Grass Cream, a super-soothing elixir derived from centella asiatica — or “cica” for short — that Asian tigers are known to roll around in after battles to help heal trauma abrasions and infections).

Photo: Dr. Jart

Cica has been used in Chinese medicine for centuries, and recent medical studies have shown that it does indeed “facilitate the healing process in both incision and burn wounds.”

Cica’s compounds include madecassoside, which is recognized as a powerful antioxidant, so Cicapair has anti-aging qualities.

Moreover, tiger grass not only relieves itchy or burning skin, but it also hydrates and nourishes cells on all dermatologic levels.

In fact, tiger grass is packed with an entire array of fatty acids and phytochemicals, including vitamins C, A and B1.

And there’s even evidence that tiger grass can help revitalize skin’s natural protective barrier, and that it may mitigate some of the visible effects of sun damage (although it is not a replacement for daily sunscreen).

Although cica was initially used in cosmetics and beauty products formulated for people with ultra-sensitive skin, Dr. Jart decided to market it for all skin types in Cicapair as a treatment to help reduce skin inflammation and redness of all kinds.

With the additional ingredients of Dr. Jart’s patented Jartbiome (which helps strengthen, balance and improve skin’s defenses against irritation and damage through pre- and probiotics that stimulate cells’ own natural ability to regenerate) and Centella Rx (to calm and protect sensitive skin with calcium and magnesium derived from green ivy), Cicapair Tiger Grass Cream (which contains 8,000 times the standard concentrate levels of tiger grass) became an instant success in treating a variety of skin problems ranging from acne and rosacea to dullness and puffiness.

Photo: Dr. Jart

And so now, there is an entire line of Dr. Jart Cicapair products, and the company wants you to try out four of them in the Cica Rescue Kit.

The limited edition Cica Rescue Kit incudes a Tiger Grass Color Correcting Treatment (with built-in SPF 30 sun defense, that hides and heals skin breakouts), a full-size Tiger Grass Calming Mist (for instant relief from irritation of all types), a Tiger Gress Serum (to penetrate deep to where many skin problems originate) and, of course, a Tiger Grass Cream, all bundled up in a handy little zipper bag that can fit easily in your purse or suitcase. (Remember, sensitive skin tends to react negatively to travel, so be sure to carry some Cicapair Tiger Grass Cream when you go on vacation).

The Cicapair Tiger Grass Serum (my personal favorite) can be used in addition to or instead of your usual daily serum, and since the cica acts as a barrier against external irritants and pollutants, it protects against and repairs damage from environmental stressors.

You can also purchase each of these items separately.

Photo: Revlon

Fierce Lashes

As part of its new fall/winter collection, Revlon has introduced its new So Fierce! Mascara, a no-apologies, break-the-rules mascara that gives lashes unprecedented look-at-me length and volume.

This extraordinary Blackist Black mascara (who needs other colors since when it comes to lashes, black is the only pertinent shade) is smudge-proof and clump-free, so you can dare to be fierce and push the limits of conventional beauty.

And So Fierce!’s specially designed 252 multi-layered brush, with a combination of short and long bristles, lifts lashes so that eyes shine through for a look that is at once flawless and audacious.

Infused with a unique blend of polymers and paraffin and rice waxes, So Fierce!’s formula is built to stay put and strength lashes at the same time.

In a recent study, 98 percent of women who tried So Fierce! said that they believed their lashes looked longer with the Revlon mascara, and 96 percent said that their lashes were fuller and more voluminous.

Photo: Revlon

Revlon has also revved up its ColorSilk hair color.

Always a leader in dependability and color trends, the new Revlon ColorSilk is packed with keratin to leave hair smooth and friz-free.

ColorSilk’s ammonia-free formula offers long-lasting shine and natural-looking color through a combination of pigmentations, conditioners and polymers.

Revlon’s 3D Color Technology  penetrates virtually every follicle with a nourishing fusion of silk to leave hair soft and manageable, with 100 percent gray coverage.

ColorSilk is available in a range of 25 luminous shades.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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