Beauty Buzz For April | A Montreal Beauty icon turns 50
April Edition: A Montreal Beauty Icon turns 50!
Spring has arrived, new life is beginning to bud, hormones are starting to kick-in and the heaviness of winter is melting away, hibernation is ending, it is time to rejoice; masks are less present in our daily lives and lips will get a vivid dose of color yet again.
Let’s talk about lips again
Traditionally, the category of lips in the beauty industry, has always been one of the most important, and profitable cosmetic categories and with the last few masked years, this category has taken a serious hit. Now lips are back with a vengeance, swinging hard, launching a wide variety of new products as companies are bringing out incredible lip colors and textures to perfect and pucker up your pout!
There are 2 very solid trends happening this Spring for the lip, one is essentially a cult classic revamped, and the other is a blast from the past that brings shine like no other.
Lip trend alert!
Our first lip trend is the Bold Red Lip; the defined red lip is a perfect statement look. Red has been used for millennia on the lips and there is a very good reason why. It makes the lips more apparent on the face, drawing attention to it. It is also a color associated with passion, life, heat, blood, and romance. When aroused our skin flushes and putting red on the lips emulates this to a certain extent.
Now that being said, here are a few bolder red lipstick suggestions I have for you.
Cheekbone Beauty is an indigenous owned Canadian company that is vegan and ecologically conscious and promotes sustainability in all its endeavors. Their lovely Sustain Lipstick in Aki is a great example of a classic red, all their lipsticks are infused with Shea Butter, which is renowned for its occlusive properties and capacity for hydration. This color will give you life as it hydrates you.
Another great red comes to us from BITE Beauty, their Power Move Hydrating Soft Matte Lipstick delivers excellent hydration with its cocoa butter and incredible lasting, comfortable wear, the shade Hot Tomato, is a great cool tone red for a vibrant punch of color to the mouth.
For those who prefer shopping at the drugstore, I have an excellent suggestion for you, L’Oréal Paris Infallible 2 Step Lip Colour 211 in Infallible Red, is such a stunning shade of red, a bold liquid lip colour that stays on for a long time and comes with a second end that hydrates the lip. With this 2 in 1 type of product, you can keep your lips hydrated and vibrantly radiant in red all day, who doesn’t want to look infallible.
Also, Montreal based Annabelle Cosmetics have their Edge Lipstick, which comes in a square bullet end form, that makes defining your cupid’s bow a breeze. Long lasting nourishing and buildable colour you can easily control; I love their red shade, Taylor. Did you know that Annabelle Cosmetics launched in Montreal in the 60s? Such an incredible history of beauty, just in our own backyard; great legacy, with good products at a low price point, found in most pharmacies across the city.
Glossy lip report
My second lip trend to report is Gloss. Glossy lips are making a true come back and since I remember working in makeup industry, during the mid-nineties, I remember seeing the lip gloss return from the seventies and make an incredible impact on the beauty industry.
Gloss textures, over the years, have changed as well, some are less sticky, however, let’s be real, a gloss will always have a certain sticky and tacky type of feel, it is the nature of the product to be that way. So, if you’re counting on letting your hair fly loose in the wind on a windy day, fair warning, you will be pulling hairs off your lips on occasion.
Nothing, in my humble opinion, looks juicier and more inviting than a glossy lip. It creates this ultimate dewy texture and adds so much volume to the lip as it reflects the light so beautifully and completely.
Here are a few of my favorite glosses…
This product, launched in the nineties is still the shiniest and most impressive lip gloss I have yet to try. As a makeup artist, I crush pigments and glitter into it to create custom colors, mix concealer in to create a neutral color, the possibilities are endless, scrape some blushes mix it in, voila, instant color. Now the only con, is you must be comfortable mixing, and you can’t easily touch up the color you create, but if used alone on top of a lipstick or a liquid lip color, it will give your lips a shine of their own.
This product has been a staple in my makeup kit for over 25 years now, plus MAC Cosmetics is the original Canadian makeup superstar, so be a little patriotic while you let your lip shine!
Estate Lip Icing:
Montreal brand Estate Cosmetics is featured yet again, the more I discover this brand the more I am liking their products, their Lip Icings are super beautiful and have sheer coverage and the sparkly ones are just so beautiful, my must haves are Down, a semi-sheer, raspberry-coral with gold reflects and Goodie, a semi-sheer fuchsia with purple reflects, both available online at their website here.
NYX Butter Gloss
Now for some, I understand, finding a lip gloss or product is a pharmacy story, I get it, you don’t have the time to go to a store or wait for the product to arrive, sometimes, you need your beauty as an express arrival. Well work your way to your favorite pharmacy and know that you are covered, NYX Cosmetics make one of my favorite lipglosses of all time, it’s a fan favorite , a constant beauty editor suggestion , and with good reason , the Butter Gloss, available in over 20 different shades, from the fairest pink to deepest browns and reds and plums, there is a color for everyone and the very best part of all; they’re so affordable, you can’t go wrong.
Watier 50 Years of Beauty Collection:
It’s not every day a Montreal beauty icon celebrates a milestone.
Happy fiftieth anniversary to Watier. Launched by the great iconic woman herself, Lise Watier, the company still bears her name today in one of the longest running Canadian Cosmetic companies that exists today.
Launched in 1972, the brand has become renowned for its wide variety of incredible beauty products and excellent cosmetic formulations of all kinds to suit every woman’s needs, regardless of her concerns, her tastes in makeup or her age. Lise Watier has always been a company that celebrates the beauty of women, Madame Watier and her brand have been teaching generations of women how to apply their makeup, take care of their skins and preserve the inner and outer beauty. A true French-Canadian pioneer.
Watier products are now sold internationally, and the company has launched many innovative and beautiful products over the years. A brand synonymous with quality, Watier has long been a reference for French Canadian women and now women all around the world get to experience, the essence of the Montreal woman.
To celebrate this momentous occasion in the beauty world, Watier launched on March 7th, its 50 Years of Beauty Collection. A limited-edition collection comprised of two different 4-Colour Eyeshadow Palettes 50 Years of Beauty, one called Festive Pink, the other Warm Celebration, both featuring a unique combination of highly pigmented, easy to use shades and feature 3 matte shades and a satin.
It also features one of the loveliest blushes I have seen in years, the Blush Powder Duo 50 Years of Beauty, featuring 2 universal shades, that work brilliantly together or singularly, this beautiful blush duo is a must have for spring and summer and has a soft natural finish.
The collection also features the Illuminating Pearls 50 Years of Beauty, a collection of satin finish pearls of different shades that feature bronzers and champagnes that when blended create a lovely finishing powder to give colour and radiance to the skin.
To finish the lips Watier also has 2 different shades of Rouge Gourmand Anniversary Edition, featuring their Lip Plumping Complex for fuller, lusher lips. The lip colors are very wearable and feminine, Chic Coral and Mousseline, a peach and pink to flush out your pout.
And probably one of my favorite types of products in the summer, their universal Lip Balm 50 Years of Beauty, with its rich formula, enriched with Vitamin E, this balm adapts to your lips and gives it a more customized approach to nurturing your lip. The soft flush and the hydration it supplies the lip, can be worn alone or under your lipstick. A definite must have for anyone wanting to soften their lips.
Now to be fair, I have not yet had the chance to test these products out, even though Watier was kind enough to gift me. Pick yours up while supplies last and bask in the continuous beauty of this timeless Montreal legend.
Please don’t’ forget to sunscreen baby, keep that skin moist and healthy honey!
Now being the worrier that I am, I would not feel good about myself if I did not highlight to you the incredible importance of Sunscreen. Now I won’t lie, I wear sunscreen all year round, even on grey, wintery days, I am conserving my skin for as long as I can.
Sun damage is the main culprit in most cases of premature ageing. Excessive exposure to direct sunlight on your skin, can lead to skin conditions and even such things as melanomas and skin cancers.
Neutrogena Hydro Boost Gel Lotion Sunscreen
The first product I want to mention is Neutrogena Hydro Boost Water Gel Lotion Sunscreen, this sunscreen is not only great at a wide screen protection it also packs a wallop of hydration with its potent hyaluronic acid boost to the skin. Some people find it hydrating enough in the summer to wear as their moisturizer, I find it leaves a nice luminous appearance to the skin with no white cast. Also, you can wear makeup on top of it easily and it doesn’t interfere with the application. Best of all, it’s inexpensive and available at most pharmacies. The product was also tested independently last year and found to be one of the safest sunscreens on the market, I wear daily, unless I am trying another one, it is my gold standard for sunscreens.
MedicArt Fine Brightening Powder SPF 50 Broad Spectrum
The second product is from another local brand called Medic Art, sold online and at all Epiderma locations throughout Quebec and Ontario, this beautiful line of high-end skin care targets key concerns with quality ingredients, in a minimal chic, packaging.
I have tried several of their products and I must say every time I get the chance to try one, I am always very impressed, not only with the products, the results, but the way the products feel on my skin.
I just tried their Fine Brightening Powder SPF 50 Broad Spectrum.
I love this product so much, it is an super easy-to-use fine face powder that can be easily reapplied every couple of hours for continuous wide spectrum protection, that completely protects your skin from any possible sun damage.
Remember it’s always easier to prevent than correct, protect that beautiful skin of yours, you’re going to be together for quite a while and it kind of covers your entire body, you need it, it needs you.
Alors mes cher.es Montréalais(es), pucker up my beauties, celebrate the success of a true Montreal Beauty Icon and lather on the sunscreen to remain youthful and most of all, stay beautiful!
Xoxo
PS: Disclaimer: As an eternal lover of all thing’s beauty, I am very privileged to be in a position where I get gifted certain items to try, on occasion. I do however also purchase many items myself and in the case of my column here I am obviously talking about products I have been gifted and those I have purchased myself. Please let it be known that this monthly column, is a labor of love, one where I do not (yet) get remunerated for my time and efforts and doing all this research and writing. More importantly, I will never speak about a product that I do not care for, it goes against my ethics, if a product is unsatisfactory for any reason, it will not be focused in my articles.
If I talk to you about a product I have yet to try, I will be honest as well, sometimes I add things to my wish list and I can’t help but talk about them for various reasons.
My hope is that this place becomes a place where I can showcase products and trends that I love, especially those that are Canadian, or Montreal based, even better. I will also focus on amazing shops or beauty services you can find in the Montreal area. I will also focus possibly in the future on beauty artists and hope to begin highlighting certain salons.
