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Lisa's Annual Cold Weather Color and Product Report

It is that time of year again! The weather has finally turned cooler here in the Midwest. The leaves have turned into a beautiful, fiery array of reds, oranges, and golds, and soon enough the snow will be flying. Many of our readers know what that means: time for my annual fall and winter color report!

I splurge on new makeup when the weather turns brisk because it is a lot more fun to experiment when it isn't a sweat-inducing 95 degrees, with roughly the same percentage of humidity. No one, not even a hardcore makeup junkie like myself, wears a full face of makeup in the heat and humidity of a midwestern summer! The cooler weather brings clothing and accessories in rich textures and colors, and the makeup to complement them. I recently started a brand new job about 6 weeks ago, so I treated myself to some goodies that would look great with my new wardrobe additions. I've been sampling all sorts of new goodies in a variety of price ranges, so whether you have cash to burn, or are a diva on a budget, there will be something for you!

Lately, I have had so much luck with drugstore-brand foundations and tinted moisturizers (be sure to check my review on the tinted moisturizer from Neutrogena) I am loath to purchase the more expensive department store formulas! Maybelline Dream Matte Mousse Foundation is another winner! The formula is so light, almost weightless, yet it covers like a dream without making my skin look cakey or chalky like other matte formulas. It delivers medium coverage, with a soft, powdery "china doll" finish. And, a matte complexion is the perfect canvas for the deep, shimmering palette of rich plums, copper, and olive we are seeing this season.

Now, I do have combination skin that tends to get oily after a few hours, so the extra help with oil control is wonderful for me; if you have very dry skin your experience might be different. But, for the excellent price point (around $8) it is worth a try!

Stila has an amazing collection of new colors and formulas that will make any product enthusiast swoon! I especially like the new collection of eye & cheek palettes. Each contains three eyeshadows and one blush in an adorable tweed "clutch" that is perfect if you travel and have limited space. I tried three color collections: Peach, Sage, and Plum, and found the Peach one to be my favorite. The colors looked way too orange in the palette, but once applied, the shadows and blush made my complexion come alive with warmth - thanks to the sheer formulas and great pigment. Each palette is a limited edition release, and costs a mere $30, so be sure to snag at least one before they are gone. I also think they would make a perfect gift for any makeup maven on your "nice" list this holiday season!

For lips, I fell in love with two new shades, Ashton, a bronzey, mocha brown (it made my top three favorites list we did about a month back), and Penelope, a wearable, sheer pinky rose shade. These limited edition shades are sheer, and fall right in the middle of the matte-shiny spectrum. If you long for a glossy finish, slick on a layer of Stila IT Gloss. I tried three fabulous shades: Iconic (shimmering plum-purple), Fashionable (clean, medium-toned pink), and Humorous (Golden Apricot). Not at all sticky or tacky, these glosses are smooth and moisturizing, with enough pigment to give great color and shine.

One new product I tried really did NOT impress me. The new Kajal Eyeliner Pencils have great color choices, but are far, far too soft and mushy. I barely applied any pressure and was left with little "blobs" of color in my lash line. When I tried to blend them with a cotton swab, 90% of it came right off! I liked the colors, but the formula just didn't work for me. I like my eyeliner to deliver silky, smooth results, and these pencils just didn't cut it. I suggest Urban Decay or MAC, which are both wonderful, but I especially LOVE Rimmel eyeliner - great colors and an even better price point!

Stila has also made the foray into skincare with their new Petal Infusions line. Chocked full of all sorts of botanical goodies, I was overall pretty impressed with this line of skincare. You probably read my review of their wonderful Retexturizing Scrub - I also loved the moisturizers in the oily and normal formulas. I tended to use the "normal" one as a night cream, and a combo of the "oily" and "normal" during the day. Each one has a light, fresh scent and a load of skin-loving ingredients, and left my complexion moisturized and calm. For sun protection, just add a layer of the Sun Visor SPF 30. I found it to be amazingly lightweight and sheer for the high SPF. The one product I didn't like? The H2off Makeup Remover Cloths. While the botanical formula itself is just fine, the cloths themselves were incredibly small and "paper-y" feeling. Considering you can get the large, luxurious makeup remover cloths from Comodynes for a fraction of the price, don't bother with the ones from Stila.

Usually, I don't get excited about a product as basic as eyebrow pencil, but this one from Models Prefer is definitely worth mentioning. The mechanical pencil never needs sharpening, and even has a spooly brush at the other end to blend and brush to perfection! The color is a perfect, neutral taupe shade that is neither too warm or too cool, and will work with any complexion. The formula itself is neither too dry or too soft - simply perfect! If you are as uptight about your brows as I am, these are a must-have! You can find Models Prefer at QVC.com. The pencils come as a set of two for about $17.

For those of you who have not tried Revlon SuperLustrous Lipgloss, you don't know what you are missing! These are far and away the very best mass market lip glosses, and easily rival formulas twice the price! The color choices are fabulous (I have been wearing "Rocker Chic," a limited edition burgundy gold, almost every day) and the formula is smooth and highly pigmented with no stickiness. Even the packaging is classy and substantial. Almost every woman I know has at least a couple of these fabulous lip glosses in her purse!

If you are looking for a new fall fragrance, check out Love by Aveda. This fragrance has been around for over 10 years, but I recently fell in love with it all over again. Love somehow manages to be warm, fresh, and soft all at once, and is never overbearing. I have the nifty, purse-sized with roll-on applicator, and it goes with me on all my business trips! It also makes my sweet husband want to nuzzle my neck :)

Since the colder weather makes the skin on the rest of my body quite dry, I tried a couple of great new products from Lush, which is hands-down my absolute favorite bath and body product manufacturer! Sonic Death Monkey is a lusciously-scented coffee/chocolate/orange shower gel that leaves skin moisturized and happy. I also like Skinny Dip Buttercream, which is like bar soap, only softer in texture, and with more moisturizer (it only contains about 20% soap - the rest are moisturizing oils and botanicals). The clove/violet/white chocolate scent tends to illicit a strong love-it or hate-it response from most people, and I just can't get enough of it! Since the Buttercream formula is very soft, slice small chunks of it off to use, and store the rest in your product closet. If you leave the whole thing in your bath or shower, it will melt away instantly!

Lastly, I tried two products from the Olay Regenerist Line. Since I am turning 34 in about a month, I have become more interested in products that address aging and wrinkles. I do have to be careful, though, because many formulas are too oily and break me out almost immediately. It is so maddening to (still) have to be concerned about acne while addressing wrinkles and other signs of age!

Enter Regenerist from Olay. I was delighted with my experience with this line! I was worried, because many of the Olay anti-aging formulas have broken me out in the past (Total Effects was a nightmare for me!) but the Daily Regenerating Serum (fragrance free for me) was a wonderful surprise. It applies with a silky feel and matte finish, and works perfectly alone, under moisturizer, or under makeup. After using it for two weeks, I was amazed at how smooth and clear my skin looked! This is fairly expensive for a drugstore brand (about $20) but the results suggest a much more exclusive, department-store formula! I also liked Regenerist Eye Lifting Serum. It makes the skin around the eyes look much more toned and brightened, thanks to very subtle, golden flecks. Trust me, once it is applied, it blends perfectly, and brightens without looking sparkly. I especially like it because you can apply it to the entire eye area, including lids, with no irritation or puffiness. If you have not tried Regenerist, you should. I think it delivers great results for the price!

This concludes this year's annual cold weather color and product report! Hopefully, you'll like some of these items as much as I did. Enjoy the change in seasons, and upcoming holidays.

find out about this reviewer and more about the panel...

Posted November 7, 2005

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