Tucked away behind an art gallery in the heart of Beverly Hills, a block away from famed Rodeo Drive, Nelson J Salon is a hive of activity. Bleached blondes going blonder, stylists and clients gossiping away (about anyone we know?), and owner and master colorist Nelson Chan is hustling from one chair to another, his blonde mop and black glasses making him instantly recognizable.
He takes one look at my hair and instructs an employee, “Shampoo. The rosemary mint.” I’ve been neglecting my hair of late, immobilized with indecision. Shorter? Straighter? Colored? Cropped? Needless to say, I need the calming yet invigorating deep cleansing shampoo by Aveda (most likely to get out the argan oil I’ve been using lately in a vain attempt to inject some life into my lackluster locks).
What is it about spring fashion this year? Everything is so colorful, so bright, so … downright cheery! I’m feeling positively ebullient (yes, me, the glass-is-half-empty queen), so in homage to one of my favorite feel-good movies, The Sound of Music, here are a few of my favorite things right now.
Milly for Clinique
The epitome of all things happy and bright, fashion designer Michelle Smith of Milly has created an exclusive lipgloss and shadow/blush compact for Clinique called Pretty in Prints. Just looking at the gorgeous compact makes me smile, and the pink lipgloss in a perfect-for-spring hue called Milly Pink is the perfect balance of sassy and innocent and playful. (The color is perfect, by the way, for our yellow-based skin tones.) Available for only a limited time, the set comes in the most gorgeous cloth drawstring pouch. Get it at Clinique.com
Estée Lauder's campaign for their new Idealist Illuminator with models Joan Smalls, Constance Jablonski and Liu Wen.
Earlier this month, Estée Lauder held a press event in New York City to their new philosophy of “Every Woman Can Be Beautiful.” The venerable 65-year-old cosmetics company also unveiled the launch of two new skincare products for all skintones, Idealist Even Skintone Illuminator and Idealist Cooling Eye Illuminator (more on that in our next issue).
In light of what’s happening in the world, rather than give you another trinket from an Asian American designer or some cool gadgets, we decided to ask you, our amazing readers, to do your own giveaway and help Japan in their time of need.
Jessica’s hair was dragging her down. Literally. Nearing her hips, she was always swishing it around. (Especially in my face) I would tell her for months that her tresses were too long and most importantly, too unhealthy. It was time for a cut. And a color. And a treatment. And maybe a pedicure but that’s a story for another time. We headed over to Byu-Ti Salon in Santa Monica, CA where the owner, Natasha Sunshine, is a pro at hair nutrition and not only making people look better, but more importantly, feel better inside and out. As Jess got her hair completely revamped, I set out to learning from Natasha more about her salon and about taking care of one’s hair in general. And lemme tell ya, it’s not with 99 cent shampoos.
Continue Reading »
Remember that survey that we made you all take awhile back? No? Well, we still remember all your responses! (Thanks for the overwhelmingly great and helpful suggestions, BTW!)
One of the tips that we took away from the surveys was that you wanted more “real” women to be featured in our pages. You wanted more diverse faces and body types to redefine the definition of Asian American beauty .
Well, here’s your chance!
We here at Audrey love women of all shapes, colors, ages and sizes and we want them in our pages! We’re looking for confident, sexy women (and that’s all of you, isn’t it?) to feature in a beautiful upcoming Audrey Magazine photo shoot. We’re looking for Asian American girls of all shapes, sizes, ages and personalities, of South Asian to East Asian descent, hapa to Pacific Islander. If you’re interested in being featured in Audrey Magazine, please submit the following:
1) Two photos of yourself. A full-length and a headshot.
2) A self-introduction (name, age, where you live, occupation, ethnicity) and what features you love most about your body and face and why.
Please email to submissions@audreymagazine.com with Subject Line: BODY PHOTOSHOOT
*Note: You DO NOT have to be a professional model or actress to be a part of our photo shoot! We are looking for REAL Asian American women who love their bodies and faces regardless of size, shape or color.
Looking forward to your submissions!
This season, don’t shy away from colors: wear them bright and bold! We can all use some color to brighten up our moods. I admit I’m guilty of doing the dark smoky eyes excessively and I don’t remember the last time my nails weren’t deep red, blue or purple. But since we’re seeing bright colors on models, on celebrities and on the streets, I think it’s time I give it a try, and you should too! Bright colored makeup can be used to contrast a monochromatic outfit or to complement a fun, flirty outfit with vivid hues.
Colorful eyeshadow on Gwen Lu. Glam Magazine (Malaysia), March 2011.
The devastation in Japan is heartbreaking. We feel so helpless in light of the magnitude of the situation. But every little bit counts. Here, some brands (and a corporation) who are helping you to what you can to help our brothers and sisters across the Pacific.
Evacuees stand around Shinjuku Central Park in Tokyo. Kyodo/Reuters/Landov.
OK, TMI alert. I’m gonna share something with you that perhaps you just don’t need to know.
My locks are more limp than lustrous. I don’t really need to pluck my eyebrows. I got the few hairs under my armpits zapped a few years ago (it’s a part of the job, man) and that’s pretty much taken care of that area. And I haven’t shaved my legs in more than a decade.
Now, I’m not some bohemian wild child. I’m just not a hairy person. Ask my brothers — they don’t have hair on their legs, either.
Of course, as a beauty editor, that doesn’t stop me from trying every new product on the market. The newest high tech ingredients, the latest salon treatment, the trendiest colors — I’ll try them all, being the human guinea pig that I am. If there’s something cutting edge on the market, I’m game.
What I won’t try (and perhaps this is tied in to the whole hairless thing) is anything involving waxing. And, until now, threading.
I had heard of threading years ago. Yes, it’s an ancient practice of hair removal used safely for centuries in Asia. Yes, it’s better than plucking, shaving and tweezing. And yes, it results in lighter and sparser regrowth. But I didn’t get it. It kind of freaked me out. It didn’t help when I saw esthetician Anita Sun’s new at-home threader, the Threader Lux by Karmissie.
I mean, look at that thing. You have to admit — it’s a bit intimidating. My first thought: beauty may be pain, but does it have to look like a torture device?
That is, until I tried it.
It was just last month when Ford Models declared Filipina Danica Magpantay its new face. But even a month before the competition, Malaysia had already been narrowing down its search to find the top contender to participate in the 30th anniversary of New York’s Ford Supermodel of the World 2011 competition this August.
Malaysia’s 12 finalists, ranging from ages 16 to 23, are of diverse origins including Bajau, Malay, French, Portuguese, Chinese, Kelabit, English and Punjabi. And for most of the girls, this is their first modeling industry foray.
