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Final Markdowns--Save 50% on ALL Clearance Items Choose from a variety of specially discounted skin-care and makeup items—EVERY clearance item is now 1/2 off its original price!* See the remaining vanishing beauties here. *Prices are as marked on the Web site. Limited to stock on-hand. |
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Dear Paula, I am a hairstylist. I am amazed at how my fellow stylists and clients believe what the hair-care companies tell us. I really love your book and it has really helped me to make better recommendations to my clients, not to mention better choices for my own hair. One question that keeps coming up is about Pantene. Everyone says it is so bad for your hair. When I was in beauty school, if a customer used Pantene, we were not supposed to color or perm their hair until they had used a clarifying shampoo instead for at least two weeks! Supposedly Pantene leaves behind a lot of buildup that will ruin your hair with repeated use. But doesn’t Pantene contain the same ingredients as many other brands which can also cause buildup? Do you know why it has such a bad rap? I have several customers with thick, dry hair who want to grow their hair long, and I thought Pantene Relaxed and Natural shampoo and conditioner (which you review favorably in your book) would be good inexpensive choices, but others say I am crazy. Please help! Rebecca, via email Dear Rebecca, Whether it's from reading my book or not, thank you for being one of the few professionals in the beauty industry to question the overblown claims made by almost every hair-care company. I have heard various horror stories about Pantene products over the years, but have never seen evidence of the damage, nor has anyone been able to explain exactly what these “terrible” products contain that supposedly ruins hair. There is absolutely nothing in Pantene’s products that requires removal before you perm or color your hair. Pantene was originally created in Europe in 1947, and was acquired by Procter & Gamble from Richardson-Vicks in 1985. Ten years later, it was the best-selling hair-care brand in the world, and it remains a top performer in all markets (Source: www.pg.com). Of course, a hair-care product’s popularity does not guarantee that it has a great formula, but if it caused the tragic consequences hairdressers attribute to it, it would have left store shelves a long time ago. I think that at least part of this myth got started because Pantene's shampoos contain a minute amount of the potent solvent ammonium xylenesulfonate. With repeated use, this ingredient can cause hair dryness and scalp irritation. However, it does not build up on hair in any way, so even if it might be drying, it doesn’t interfere with hair dye or perms. Keep in mind that plenty of salon brands contain ingredients that can be more problematic for hair and scalp than ammonium xylenesulfonate, including sodium lauryl sulfate, TEA-lauryl sulfate, menthol, and peppermint oil. But if your clients are concerned, go ahead and advise them to avoid Pantene’s shampoos, just let them know there are plenty of well-formulated options at the drugstore other than Pantene that mimic or outshine the salon brands. Where Pantene really excels is in its conditioners, including those in the Relaxed & Natural line you mentioned. They are all excellent, affordable products that do not contain any ingredients capable of damaging hair or altering the outcome of a chemical service. The ingredients in these conditioners can build up with repeated use—but, as you mentioned, so can the same ingredients that are used in most salon brands. Silicone in some form is present in almost every conditioner sold, regardless of price. In fact, silicone technology as a way to condition hair was invented by Procter & Gamble, and is now used in 80% of all hair-care products. I believe that visiting a talented hair stylist is vital to the appearance of your hair, and that usually means going to higher-end salons where they have their own ongoing training programs and their own standards of excellence. But that also means you are likely to get a persuasive sales pitch to buy the more expensive products. I have a technique that can help reduce the pressure. When you are asked what products you are using, simply state you are using whatever products the salon sells. You won’t hear any horror stories about your hair after that. | ||||||
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 L’Oreal True Match Super-Blendable Blush ($9.99)
is a collection of silky powder blushes whose sheer colors and seamless application do indeed make them super-blendable. The palette of soft colors is beautiful and is divided into warm, cool, and neutral tones just like L’Oreal’s True Match foundation, powder, and concealer. You might find their blush groupings confusing (some of the cool shades go on more golden or peach than befits that description), but if you shop by the color itself rather than by its classification you should be satisfied. Each blush also indicates a coordinating shade of L’Oreal True Match foundation and powder, but blush color and foundation or powder color are unrelated so you can ignore that matching as well. Aside from those details, this is now one of the better powder blushes at the drugstore. (Note: Each shade has a subtle shine, but it gives a soft glow to the cheeks, not distracting sparkles.)
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Applying Eyeliner
Assuming you have a steady hand (if not, try this sitting down so you can steady your arm by placing your elbow on a table), position your brush, pencil, or applicator so it is as close to the lash-line along the eyelid as possible. Then draw a line from the inner to outer corner using one fluid stroke, following the curvature of the eyelid. Do not extend the line past the outer corner of the eye or hug the tear-drop area of the eye. To start, keep the line as thin as possible, and if a thicker line is desired, repeat the process either across the entire lash-line or simply on the outer third of the lid along the lashes. Making the line along the eyelid a solid, even one, starting thin at the front third of the lid and becoming slightly thicker at the back third of the lid can be an attractive classic look. You can line all the way across the eyelid if you like, from the inside corner to the outer edge, or you can stop the line where the lashes stop and start. Along the lower lashes, line only the outer two-thirds of the eye. Be sure the lower liner is a less-intense color than the upper liner. Also make sure that the two lines meet at the back corner of the eye. As a general rule, avoid lining all the way across the lower eyelashes. Leaving some space on the inside corner of the eye where the lashes end near the tear ducts gives a softer, less severe look. Plus, wrapping a complete circle of eyeliner around the eye tends to create an eyeglasses look and can make the eyeliner a stronger statement than the eye itself. How thickly can you line the eye? As a general rule, for a classic look, the thickness and intensity of the eyeliner is determined by the size of the lid—the larger the eyelid area, the thicker and softer the eyeliner should be. The smaller the eyelid area, the thinner and more intense the liner should be. If your lid doesn’t show at all, forget lining altogether. What about applying eyeliner in the rim of the eye? There are many reasons why this is not a good idea. The first is that this kind of application smears in a very short period of time and creates goopy dark specks in the eye. Applying any makeup that is destined to smear in less than an hour or two is not a good idea. Pencil applied along the rim of the eye usually causes the area to become irritated; after all you are putting a foreign substance next to the mucous membrane of your eye. I am equally concerned about the health of the eye area when this technique is used. While there are no studies indicating there are any risks associated with pencil being applied to the rim of the eye, it seems problematic to put cosmetic ingredients (that include coloring agents and preservatives) that close to the eye. Which eyeliner color should you use? For a classic eyeliner application, choose shades of dark brown, gray, or black eyeshadow for the upper lid and a softer shade of those—tan, taupe, chestnut, soft brown, soft gray, or soft black—along the lower lashes. Eyeliner is meant to give depth to the lashes and make them appear thicker. If the liner is a bright color or a true pastel, attention will be focused past the lashes to the colored line, as opposed to the more subtle flow of color from dark lashes to dark liner. Test it on yourself. Line one eye with a vibrant color, the other eye with brown or black, and see which one looks like it has thicker lashes. Then, if all my attempts to convince you have failed, and you still prefer to use bright or pastel liners, go for it. Checking for Mistakes After using powder eyeshadow as eyeliner, check for drippies under the eye and on the cheek. Drippies are those little powder flakes that fly off the brush and land on the cheek. Knocking off the excess from the brush every time helps prevent drippies, but there will always be flakes that end up where they don’t belong. The best way to go after drippies is to use your sponge and simply wipe them away. If you do this, your next step is to touch up your foundation if that has gotten smeared. Always double-check the intensity of your eyeliner application and blend away any thickness or color that is more dramatic than you intended. If you do choose to wear pencil eyeliner, check for smears under the eye as the day goes by. This is annoying, but letting it go without blending away the smears can make any well-applied eye-makeup design look like a mess. Eyeliner Mistakes to Avoid
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