Fans of Bobbi Brown cosmetics have an extra incentive to get the new holiday palettes now and to stock up on items they use regularly: 20 percent off all orders from the Bobbi Brown website between November 30 and December 2. The savings are quite significant given that there is no shipping charge if you order $65 and more, and there is no sales tax (note: in California, the sales tax is almost 10 percent). My top pick is the Chrome Palette which consists of gorgeous silvery colors for the eyes and lip shades that would look good on most skin tones. I have worn Bobbi Brown’s makeup in the past and I consider it to be consistently good. The shimmery eye shadows are not too sparkly. 

But if the colors are too “cool” for your skin tone, or if you already have too many shadows like these, try the Earth Metal Palette below which has warmer colors.

Go to www.bobbibrowncosmetics.com.

The Christmas holidays are just around the corner. If you are looking for real holiday cards, the ones you actually have to write on and send via post, check out Rifle Paper Company. I like their collection because the cards are so different from what you would find at Hallmark or other mass greeting card retailers. Rifle Paper also carries stationery, invitations, wrapping paper, prints, recipe cards and more. You can buy gifts AND greeting cards all in one location.

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I’m keeping my eye out for the best Black Friday deals. Drugstore.com (and its affiliate Beauty.com) are holding amazing sales. These are the items I have my eye on:

(1) Borghese Essentials Holiday Set: this includes the Fango Active Mud, Tono body cream, Bagno di Vita foaming bath gel, two facial moisturizers (the moisture intensifier and day lotion with SPF 15) and more. This was already being offered for $47 at Drugstore.com and now it’s on sale for $34.99. If you were to purchase these products separately, it would cost you more than $150.

(2) JimmyJane Massage Candle: originally $55, this is on sale now for $38.50.

(3) Avalon Organics Hand and Body Lotion, Lemon: on sale for $8.24.

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Please click on the link below on Black Friday to get even more amazing deals.

There’s something reassuring and comforting about rituals. Instead of rushing around, mindlessly going through the motions without paying attention, how about slowing down and focusing on each movement, as in a Japanese tea ceremony? During these darker, colder days of winter, I’ve revived the beauty cleansing ritual with Clarins Crème Douce Démaquillante (Extra-Comfort Cleansing Cream). Although the label says “for dry or sensitized skin”, this cleansing cream works very well on my (normal) skin. It feels like luxuriously soft pillows of whipping cream, yet it effectively takes off all makeup. I love using it in the morning and evening, followed by the Eau de Confort cleansing water which has a slight hint of peach. Clarins has a rather unusual instruction on how to use this cleansing cream but I’ve come love this daily ritual:

Warm Cleansing Cream to skin temperature in the palms of the hands. Apply by gently placing the flat of the hands over the face. Hold for several seconds without pressing. Briskly lift the hands off the face. Repeat 5-6 times, including on the neck: the milk will gradually thicken and create a suction effect to lift off make-up and impurities without irritating or pulling the skin. Rinse with water or remove with a tissue.

If you are using the cream to remove makeup, you will discover that you don’t need a cleansing water or toner afterwards. There’s no residue to mop up. You might need mascara remover for certain types of waterproof mascara.

You can buy Clarins products in most departments stores or online at Clarins.com.

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I have a weakness for paper goods: blank notebooks bound in leather or cloth, quirky greeting cards, unusual notecards, and even old-fashioned school notebooks. I look for paper that feels good which means different things for different occasions. For example, if I am writing with a fountain pen in a blank notebook, I want the paper to be smooth so that my pen does not skip or accumulate fibers.

If I am sending a greeting card or a note card, I want the paper to feel substantial, heavy, and to have texture like tiny grooves. Ideally there should be a good paper store in every city which sells notebooks, paper for writing and printing cards and stationery, and envelopes so you can go in and feel the paper. Since this is not going to happen anytime soon, our best option is the online paper goods store.

I found one called Felt & Wire Shop. They sell beautiful note cards, greeting cards, blank notebooks, invitations, posters, gift wrapping paper, memo pads and more, from different designers.

Felt & Wire also has a blog, which I read regularly: http://www.feltandwire.com/.

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Giorgio Armani makeup favorites by Esme Vos on Polyvore.com

By now, you have seen the holiday makeup kits stacked up on cosmetics counters in department stores. For some reason, cosmetics companies believe that our faces should be as decked out as Christmas trees: that means lots of sparkly eye shadows, heavy blush, glittery powders in lurid colors, and more. This is a mistake. Many women will be going to a holiday party in a sequined dress or wearing more jewelry than usual. Applying heavy, sparkly makeup is vulgar and unattractive; it throws your entire look off balance. What to do?

Go to the Giorgio Armani counter and check out their makeup range. Armani has a few bold colors but even those go on sheer in the beginning, allowing you to build up more color, just in case you do decide to go for the Christmas tree look. To help you narrow down the best products, see the photo above. These are the Armani products I recommend (beginning from left, clockwise):

• 4-color eye shadow: finely milled powder makes this shadow silky and easy to apply, colors are gorgeous;This palette is called the Pink Light palette;
• Single color eye shadow #5 – silky, rich brown color;
• Blending blush duo: a cream to powder blush which gives the face a fresh, healthy youthful glow;
• Rouge d’Armani: the latest lipstick from Armani, emollient yet long-lasting. The color above is #403, a warm red;
• Luminous Silk Foundation: cited by most women as the best of all the Armani makeup products. This foundation goes on sheer and makes the skintone look more even; and
• Luminous Silk Powder: use this powder to finish your look.

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Apple has finally opened its first store in Paris. The location couldn’t be better: beneath the Louvre Museum in the shopping center called Carrousel du Louvre. Although Apple has enjoyed a significant share in France, it’s been a mystery to me and to many French Apple fans why Apple has delayed opening a store in Paris.

Most people have never heard of Pierre Marcolini, a Belgian chocolatier who has been my favorite for so many years. The reason people have never heard of him is that he does not have shops on every high street, airport, and shopping mall (unlike Leonidas and Godiva, two chocolate brands that I do NOT recommend — they are far too sweet and crude).

What makes Pierre Marcolini special is that he pays attention to every detail. The chocolates are still made by hand. His boutiques are temples of temptation with unusual pralines and truffles. Among the pralines, there is the Baies Roses, a bitter ganache flavored with Moroccan pink pepper berries; Thym et Orange, pure ganache flavored with fresh thyme flowers and a zest of orange, and many others. Marcolini’s pralines, truffles, and macaroons make perfect gifts, especially during the holiday season when people are looking for something unique.

Pierre Marcolini
Rue des Minimes, 1
Place du Grand Sablon
1000 Brussels
Belgium
www.marcolini.be

Marcolini has boutiques in Brussels, Antwerp and other cities in Belgium, and also abroad (Japan, France, New York City, etc.).

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Cold wintry days are upon us again, If you’re looking for that one cozy, unique, warm coat that feels like a warm blanket and wraps all the way around you, then you have to get this playful wrap coat from Vivienne Westwood’s Anglomania line. The coat closes at the neck, has large side pockets and wide belt loops so you can wear it with different belts. Price: $1332 (from La Garçonne).

You can tell the Great Recession has not receded judging from the uninspiring holiday makeup palettes this year. Compared to previous years, I did not see anything that I really had to have. If this is the maximum that cosmetics companies can do to get us to spend money, heaven help us all. The best one I’ve seen so far is the Bobbi Brown Chrome Palette I wrote about yesterday.

Above, (clockwise from left):

• MAC 6 Devil May Dare eyeshadows, $36
• Laura Mercier Colour Wardrobe, $98
• Guerlain Bal de Nuit, $58
• Clarins Gold Attraction palette, $40

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