Still on Vacation

London is lovely and as fun as always. Our hotel is a couple of blocks away from the Marble Arch, which also means a very short walk to Selfridge's. It's so good not only because it has the best brands of fragrance and makeup, but also because it's friendly and accessible: You can try things on by yourself, can ask for assistance if you need it AND the friendly staff is pretty generous about giving samples. I got some Serge Lutens and I'm already in love with the Un Bois Vanille. I see no reason to buy it here as I can get it for the same price at Neiman's, but it will be one of my first purchases as I return home.

As for clothes shopping, I've noticed something interesting: Men's fashion here is beautiful. My husband is happily shopping for interesting, colorful items. But women's clothes seem a bit boring and uninspired to me. I did get some lovely lingerie (I adore Elle MacPherson Intimates) and have yet to get to the relevant floor at Selfridge's. But other than that it's been somewhat disappointing. Also, I have a size problem. I'm a US size 0-2, but can't seem to find a good equivalent. I have yet to see a size smaller than UK 8, which is too big for me. It fits me like a US 4 would, which is exactly what it is, according to online conversion tables. But I still have hopes.

Today I'll be visiting Windsor Castle, so probably not much makeup shopping there, but maybe some royalty stalking.

Packing

I'm going away for ten days. My sister is getting married, and after that I'm flying to London for a few days. Packing is always a big issue for me and I never travel light (is there an award for understatement of the year? I think I just earned it).

On top of all the outfits, shoes and a few purses there's the whole beauty arsenal.


All of my Mario Badescu skin care products are going in the carry-on bag. I'm not taking any chances with them. Also in the can't-live-without bag goes Laboratoire Remede Double Oxygenating Booster. This tube is worth double its weight in gold. It definitely costs like it's made of gold, but it's pure magic and is worth every cent.

I'm not going to put on any makeup before getting on the plane. I have about 16 hours of flights, layovers and airports, so my skin would feel much better with generous applications of the seaweed cream. I will have a small make up bag with me for putting on a face just before the final landing. It will include: Chanel Vitalumier liquid foundation in beige, an eyeliner pencil (one of the cheap L'Oreals, probably in charcoal grey), black mascara- the sample of Hypnose I just got and tested, Benefit's Dallas powder for this instantly healthy glow and one of the Allison Raffaele soft glosses. It'll take me less than two minutes to apply and will prevent me from looking like death. Always a good thing, especially when one's parents are waiting at the airport.

I will also have a small bottle of lavender water to spray on the airline's little pillow and blanket, in the hope of catching some sleep, a travel size tube of L'Occitane hand cream (I have one in each purse) and L'Occitane lip balm.

In my suitcase there will be a manicure/pedicure bag that includes all the normal essentials, my Diamancel foot buffer, L'Occitane foot cream (say it with me: shea butter= good), Lippmann Collection polish, base coat and top coat and Cutex polish remover pads.


My body care bag includes a travel kit of Philosophy's Amazing Grace. It's a relatively new favorite. It doesn't irritates my dry skin and the smell is the essence of clean.

Additional makeup items will include Chanel liquid concealer, Sephora's primer, a few more pencil liners (brown and sage green), eye shadows: The new Chanel quad and the khaki Bourjois. I'll probably also take a Lancome gift with purchase compact that includes a couple of good neutral shadows, powder and a rosy blush that actually works for me, though I'm taking it mostly for the shadows. Ever since Dallas entered my life, blush has been pushed to the corner of my makeup cabinet.

For lip color, I'll be taking my nude Allison Raffaele, Lancome's Sugared Maple (my signature almost red lipstick) and Chanel's Summer Plum Glossimer. I'm not accountable to any other lip color/glosses that may or may not reside in my various purses.

The only thing left to decide is fragrance. I'm leaning towards an Annick Goutal for morning and Black Cashmere for nights. I also have a couple of purse sized sprays that will go with me, so I think I'm covered.

Have I forgotten anything (other than extra money to pay for over-weight, that is)?

Photo: Vogue, May 1955

Mascara Review- Lancôme Hypnôse

I haven't used Lancôme mascara in ages. I don't use many Lancôme products nowadays, but when I did I always had way too many samples of Defincilis from those gift with purchase bags. There's no polite way to say this: Defincilis is a less than mediocre mascara that belongs in the drugstore, where products that are 1/3 of its cost deliver very similar results.

A recent trip to the Lancôme counter (I still use Bi-Facil, Rouge Sensation lipstick in sugared maple and their blush in cappucine)has earned me a sample of Hypnôse mascara which I tried today.

Here is what the web site promises: "Custom Volume Mascara- Dare to go up to 6 times the volume. With each stroke, the patented POWERFULL™ brush intensifies lashes from root to tip. Exclusive, fluid SoftSculpt ™ formula, enriched with Vitamin B5, wraps lashes one luxurious layer at a time without smearing, smudging or clumping."

As I've mentioned here before, I'm not in the market for volume. I have more than enough of that naturally. But I am looking for defining and curling, and will not reject a mascara that would also add a little length. Had I been searching for volume, I'd be very disappointed with Hypnôse. It doesn't deliver at all when it comes to thickness and volume. If that is what you're after you will not find it here. However, if you need just a bit of added length and a defining color this is a great product.

The texture is just the right consistency for even coating. It didn't run, smudge or dot. The brush colored and separated my lashes with no clumping or sticking. I didn't need to use a lash comb and the result was just I was after: long, dark (I used black) and curling upward. It held nicely all day and didn't flake.

I didn't use it on my lower lashes (I rarely do), because the result would have made Tammy Faye proud. I didn't use primer (I never do) or any other lash product.

My conclusion: This mascara is a formidable competition to my beloved Clinique High Impact. It's more expensive, though ($22 while Clinique is $13.50).