Friday, November 12, 2010

Lancome Teint Miracle Foundation- 10 years of research!

Lancome Teint Miracle Foundation @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

The long awaited Lancome Teint Miracle Foundation is finally available in New Zealand. I got my skin matched to "010" one of eight skin tones at Smith & Caughey's on Queen Street. It is the palest shade which I was a bit sketchy about going into summer, but it does suit at the moment. I find the texture of the foundation is very similar to Almay Pure Blends 97.4% natural foundation. It is very light and gives a hydrating finish. I found only 1-2 pumps is sufficient for the whole face. As it comes at a hefty $82 you would hope it would last for a few months. It's easy to blend and feels like your skin is naked not caked with make-up. The coverage is easy to build up to medium or more.

As for the luminous glow.. It puts most other foundations to shame and easily looks fresh all day. It is meant to reflect more blue and pink light on the skin to give it a natural glow. With 10 years of research and 7 international patents pending.. Lancome is onto something.

I'm a fan of Lancome's Genifique line as well. I used the Genifique Youth Activating Serum for a few months up until my wedding day and it really helped smooth and brighten my skin. I snatched some 7 day trials of the 4 products in the line. At my age I don't really need to worry about an eye cream or night cream but wouldn't mind getting the full size of the serum.

Lancome Genifique line @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

Monday, November 8, 2010

m o o c h i summer dress week 2010

Moochi Dress Week 2010 @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com
M o o c h i Summer Dress Week 2010 started at 9am Saturday November 6th! It was bubbles and strawberries and an assortment of sizes in the new garments. Well.. 10 minutes later I was struggling to find dresses in size 6! Here's my pick. I loved the fresh prints this season.

Moochi Dress Week 2010 @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

The sheer dresses were paired with exclusive Elle MacPherson knickers.

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$229 Shoulder Show Dress | Maxi Goddess Dress $369

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$289 Loft Dress | Of Course Dress $349


Friday, November 5, 2010

Summer & the Sun

check out the article about Invisible Zinc @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

It feels like Suuummer! Well most of the last two weeks did.. So it is time to invest in some super sunscreen to combat harsh NZ UV rays. Being a bit of a skincare freak, I went with Invisible Zinc. Recently launched from Australia it made waves over to NZ where I picked it up at my local health shop for around $30. There are no chemicals or sunscreen agents.. just molecular zinc. Verdict? It definitely feels like sunscreen and you can still see a slight white mask on my pale skin. I'm wishing we had some Colorscience powder sunscreen that is available in the USA.


The other day I had a haircut for the first time at D&M in Ponsonby.
I had been itching to try out the salon since I spotted it earlier this year.

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I booked in with Senior stylist Shannon for a simple hair trim. She has been with the salon from it's beginnings when there was only 3 stylists. (Danny, Michael & her?) It is now expanded into quite a large studio space with over 10 stylists. Danny & Michael were both present in the salon. Danny was doing Kathryn Wilson's hair in soft waves. She is gorgeous. Outside the salon windows were decorated with oversized pictures from her fashion shoe show in September. Shannon was a doll and created some of the best waves I have seen on this head. Definately recommend and will be seeing her again. I picked up some Moroccan Oil to nourish my dry ends. It gives spectacular shine and smoothness to my hair and cuts blowdrying time down to nil. Retails at $36.

check out Moroccan Oil @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

New Zealand Fashion Week~ Sept 2010

So the excitement of NZFW 2010 has come and gone, but there is a lingering feeling of anticipation to see the clothes on racks rather than models. Here is a collection of some of New Zealand & Australia's models showcasing what Fall 2011 will be looking like on this side of the world. We'll start out with the dark side of New Zealand..

Sabatani & Augustine, Fall 2011
Sabatani & Augustine.
Some classic black on black in sophisticated forms. Perfect for an evening out.
Snatch the fab hairdo as well.

Zambesi
Zambesi.
Love their creativity in shape, volume & texture. Clothing that looks simple, but if you take a closer look you see the well structured & high quality material. I'm a fan of the face paint that looks like conji.

Trelise Cooper.
Well sought after seating at her show! A really fun, a bit sassy and definitely playful collection.


Trelise Cooper.
I love her fresh denim on denim combo that doesn't look overly masculine.
Lots of ruffles and even some sequins.

The Department Store
The Department Store.
Imported from the UK, Topshop. Earthy palette with neutrals, khaki and green.

The Department store
The Department Store.
Karen Walker, beautiful rich colors with rust and navy complimenting each other perfectly. Very resort wear plus some classic shape shades (Model 1 & 3)

Thursday, September 16, 2010

The Spring Clothesline- NYC Fashion Week part I

Nicole Miller Spring RTW 2011

This week Nicole Miller showed her label collection for NY Fashion week and next week she jetsets to Auckland for NZ Fashion week. Nicole Miller is know for her simplistic but sleek styles. She does bridal and red carpet very well. Her 2011 spring collection began with soft shades of grey and white, flowing into sheer gowns. She ended with more design work and tailoring although still keeping some of the light textiles with bolder colors and prints.

Nicole Miller Spring RTW 2011

Karen Walker. NZ is most proud. She crossed oceans to be NYC to show her 2011 Spring Collection. It seems ironic as we are now in Spring here in NZ. Her collection was fresh, light, beautiful and matched some lovely prints like the ones shown here. The Karen Walker heels are on my wishlist. Her models also pulled off the coral lip color perfectly.

http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

Anna Sui 2011 Spring collection had a wonderful, wild, prairie meets native feel to it. Lots of detail in ruffles, layers, and a range of colors from soft neutrals to rich orange & purple.

http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

A Detacher showed a sophisticated mix of articulateness and detail. A narrower palette of colors but still stunning in gun metal grey and pale nudes. My favorites are the one sleeve dress that came out first and the striking nude and metallic silver dress at the end.

http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

Still more to come!
What are you favorites from NYC Fashion week?

Sunday, September 12, 2010

Orange alert at NYC Fashion Week 2010


SPRING RTW 2011
Pradal Gurung, United Bamboo, Rag & Bones, ADAM

Bright, fluorescent orange is springing back at NYC fashion week.

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Cynthia Rowley, Peter Som, Steven Alan, Lacoste

Lacking something orange in your wardrobe? Make a statement with some coral lips.

Orange lipstick trend
orange lipstick trend
Love devotion by NARS. Available @ Mecca Cosmetics, Ponsonby.


Sheer Delight for Spring 2011

SPRING RWT 2011
ADAM, Doo Ri, BCBG Max Azria, Ports 1961

There is a common thread at NYC fashion week.
Sheer esthetic in nude, neutral beige tones. Light, delicate and oh so feminine.

Friday, September 10, 2010

Neutral Palette for Spring 2010

Find these goods @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com
pants by Storm, dress by Bassike, heels by Mi Piaci, shades by SUPER, belt & cardigan by Storm

Keeping it neutral isn't about playing it safe. Sometimes it's best to tone it down and play with the tailoring and material rather than pop with color. I first saw the Berlin pants in Storm today, and then I touched them... They must be 100% silk. Storm has some great bits and pieces to look at in Newmarket or any other location.

Check out the spring collection online @ www.stormnz.com
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Thursday, September 9, 2010

This week in COLOUR

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Dress by Ruby boutique, BYS nail polish from Glassons, Grazia magazine issue 104

My birthday is coming up so I was thinking a pretty frock would be lovely. I was browsing through Ruby's boutique online (rubyboutique.co.nz) and loved the Summer 2011 collection! I'm going to take a closer look tomorrow @ their Newmarket store. I also found there is a cupcake bakery that just opened in Newmarket, Petal cupcakes. Just in time for some birthday love.


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Kingan Jones, Turet Knueferman
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Kingan Jones, Country Road

Friday, September 3, 2010

Hot hair at Blaze Salon & Pony Xpress

Read my article @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

BLAZE hair salon was awarded Metro 2009 Auckland's Best Hair Award 2009. It is a one off concept salon located in Newmarket fashion district. It's creative marketing tactics such as the eye-catching window display below has drawn much attention. For those interested, the window displays are changed about every six weeks. One of the stars of the salon is 2008 New Zealand Hairdresser of the Year, Mana Dave. He is the Creative Director of BLAZE Salon and International Platform Artist for Redken. Cost of female haircut & blowdry @ $95 with male haircut & blowdry @ $70. Not bad, compared to the $125 I paid at Toni & Guy on High Street! Other stylists at BLAZE are between $60-$80 for the same service.

Read my article @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

Mana Daves also had something beside BLAZE salon in his imagination. It was the idea of Pony Xpress blow dry bar, which is open now in Glassons flagship Newmarket store. Some of the blow out styles are shown below on their little card menu.

Read feature article @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

I arrived at the bright, bubbly Glasson store to snap this quick preview of the salon. I'm thinking about doing a birthday blow out in a couple weeks and see what magic they can work!

Read my article @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

On the side of the salon is a flash video screen showing each style. Very modern. Reminds me of the runway screens in designer stores.

Read the feature article @ http://nzfashionista.blogspot.com

I'll post more when I have an appointment at BLAZE & Pony Xpress salons. Have you tried either salon? Let me know what you think.. Ta!

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Grazia ~ a fashion feed!


Grazia, a fabulous australian read available in NZ for only $6.
It's the perfect fortnightly fix for the newest fashion & celebrity gossip.
I get mine a week early, stashed for me at the dairy across
the street. Unfortunately, all competitions are closed to NZ!

Snowberry; NZ's finest skincare

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Great skin is always in fashion, so I met with Snowberry last week to trial their range of skincare products. I had loved what I read on their website about their inspiration, ingredients and process of making Snowberry. Firstly, it's green! They are the only company in NZ to be certified CarboNZero which means in simple terms 'carbon neutral.' Founder Soraya, created a beautiful range of natural but active products from her philosophy of natural beauty and authenticity. She wanted to create something that didn't have any restrictions to quantities of the best bioactive ingredients from around the world. Snowberry uses 130+ exotic ingredients in their range and absolutely no parabens or fillers. They created their own self preservative system through extensive research with some of NZ's own rainforest plants. Shelf life isn't a question and products are good for up to 3 months upon opening them.

The anti-ageing range is the first range of Snowberry. Recommended for 30+

Instant Deep Cleanser- 100% oil, is bright orange from the amount of carotene in it.
Gentle Remineralising Toner- a light foaming cleanser/toner combo
Nourishing Exfoliator- shea butter base exfoliant with jojoba beads, absorbs quickly into skin
Intensive Renewal Face Serum- absorbed quickly with no residue, no sticky feeling
Smoothing Eye Serum- feels cool and tightening
Nourishing Lite Day Cream- smelled nice, was light and tightening/firming as well.
Nourishing Rich Day Cream- an alternative to the light day cream
Cellular Regeneration Night Cream- helps to heal and repair skin at night

**Snowberry is introducing a new anti-oxidant range BRIGHT DEFENSE in November 2010!**
This range is for 18+ and is designed to create a radiant complexion through reducing skin discoloration and brightening the skin safely without bleaching or peeling. The new range will include 3 BRIGHT DEFENSE creams for Oily, Combination and Dry skin as well as a Night Cream and Face Serum. Snowberry will also be releasing a natural broad spectrum sun protection cream SPF 15 that absorbs quickly and does not leave a white residue on the skin. It's ingredients include Zinc Oxide, Galanga Root, Coffee bean oil, Shea butter, Inga and Raspberry seed oils. It is much better for the environment than most sunscreens and sunblocks that contribute to the 4,000 tonnes of product washed onto coral reefs around the world leading to coral bleaching.

Visit Snowberrybeauty.com, available only at Smith & Caughey's in NZ.


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All artwork created for the award winning Snowberry packaging and design by London artist, Rob Ryan.

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Lace me up baby!

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I'm loving the peep toe lace up heeled boots this Spring 2010/Fall 2010 (the rest of the world.) I'm torn between the soft grey or ever black. Above; Marc Jacobs. Below; Gianvito Rossi, ASOS
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The black on black versions make more of a statement! Below; Tory Burch, Alexander Wang, Givency
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