Latest news with #IsamayaFfrench
Business of Fashion
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Business of Fashion
The End of Glitter?
Welcome back to Haul of Fame, your must-read beauty roundup for new products, new ideas and cigarettes that are really perfumes. (Sorry D.A.R.E., but they're cool as hell.) Included in today's issue: Augustinus Bader, Bliss, Byredo, E.l.f. Skin, Eos, Fable & Mane, Glowbar, Hammer & Nails, Laneige, Maelove, Noyz, One/Size, Paula's Choice, Practical Alchemy, Redken, Remedy, Sisley Paris, Typology, Wella Professionals and butter yellow hair. But first… If you're a beauty historian, you certainly remember Burberry's epic 'glitter tears.' They happened in February of 2016, when makeup artist Wendy Rowe smeared the music festival staple on Vittoria Ceretti and He Cong. What a surprise, then, for Burberry to drop an actual music festival campaign in June 2025 with a glitter dress on Alexa Chung… and zero shiny stuff on her face. Of course, Chung doesn't need any glitter to shine — but according to most beauty companies today, neither do their products. As 'wellness,' 'aura,' and 'vibes' become ephemeral goals for TikTok stars and the fans who swipe through them, shoppers are craving glowy, dewy, pearlescent textures instead of the heavy metals they wore for the past decades. The switch is starkly clear at Urban Decay, a brand rooted in glam rock that has swapped its signature K.I.S.S.-y face shadow palettes for more controlled shimmers and even (gasp) mattes. The pop queen Lady Gaga was once a glitter factory; now the breakout hit of her Haus Beauty line is a Glassy Highlighter that glints with no glitz. Kylie Cosmetics' new Dewy Highlighter and Glossier's Futuredew Solid are similarly illuminating. Last week, Too Faced founder Jerrod Blandino's second act Polite Society debuted Highlight Society which vows 'no glitter!' in its 'glassy' formula. Even Lush's new Super Milk Glitter Mist has swapped razzle dazzle flakes for microscopic particles of borosilicate, creating an earthy glow you'd expect from Vermeer instead of Van Halen. (Sorry guys. Love you.) Makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench champions an unglittery, sweatier sort of sheen in her makeup looks lately, like the one shown here. (Isamaya Beauty) 'I think it's fun to look like you've been at the club sweating, packed on the dance floor,' said makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench, whose recent master class in New York City featured a 'swamp fairy' look with slick, colour-shifting lips that mimicked the blurry iridescence of a giant dragonfly. Ffrench admits she'll always love glitter, but she's also become fascinated with a different kind of shine: a gleaming exertion, the kind you can only get from a joyful night out — the kind that, less than five years ago, was still a life-threatening idea thanks to Covid. In 2018, National Geographic reported links between cosmetic glitter and ocean pollution, prompting brands like Bleach London and Ganni to embrace cellulose versions. But the environmental stigma still lingers, along with a suspicion among some makeup artists and creative directors that glitter doesn't really suit our current times. Trading sweaty, slick shine for man-made flakes of glitter is both a return to 'natural' beauty and an endorsement of getting back out into the messy, beautiful tangle of human interaction. The goal isn't to abandon sparkle entirely, but to refine it into something that feels more integral to the skin itself. Of course, like skinny jeans and winged eyeliner, glitter makeup can't truly die. Addison Rae recently covered her body in it for her Spotify album release concert in New York to great effect. But culture moves trends, and trends move products, and this summer, Charli XCX and Troye Sivan aren't the only ones on a Sweat tour. Makeup formulators are, too. What else is new… Skincare On June 8, E.l.f. Skin said it's okay to be a Clean Freak. That's when the brand dropped its new $10 cleanser (called, yes, Clean Freak) with hyaluronic acid and a gel-to-foam texture. Dear men: I promise that getting a manicure or pedicure will not make you any less of a man. It's fine! Enjoy! Still, bro-geared salons like Hammer & Nails are thriving. On June 6, the 'grooming center for guys' announced its 50th brick and mortar location, with expectations to open 50 more by December of 2026, according to CEO Aaron Meyers. The franchise counts UFC fighter Urijah Faber as an investor, so if anyone makes fun of you for getting a man-icure, just tell him so he can beat down those bullies. Welcome to the world, Practical Alchemy! The personal care brand created by former IMG executive Doris A. Wong launched on June 10 with two key products: $48 cleansing wipes with SPF and aloe, and $20 clear pimple patches. Glowbar is going from spa treatments to at-home scrubs. On June 10, the skincare franchise famous for its 30-minute facial debuted its first-ever product, the Expert Cleanser, which has willow bark extract and alpha hydroxy acids, and retails for $28. Glowbar founder Rachel Liverman says its development came from the 250,000 hours of facials that her estheticians have performed since the brand began in 2019. Once upon a time, base-layer skincare was called a 'serum.' Augustinus Bader is raising the word game by dubbing their formula 'The Elixir' instead. Out on June 11, it's fast-absorbing with a silky gel texture, and promises accelerated skin repair. I used a swipe on my sunburned nose last weekend; it stopped the redness overnight. (And look, for the retail price of $550, it should!) For those Out East, the beauty activations are already popping. Sisley Paris began its Montauk Yacht Club takeover on June 11 with spa treatments and products available for purchase all summer long. Amazon is Bliss-ing out. On June 11, the online megastore added Bright Idea toning pads and Clear Genius gel moisturiser to its Bliss storefront; both launches are Amazon exclusives. US college basketball star Azzi Fudd is the new face of Paula's Choice, holding court at in-store appearances when she's not dominating the court during playoffs. The Seattle-based brand announced its NCAA partnership on June 11. A paradox: For moisturisers, 'skin tightening' is a promise. For cleansers, 'skin tightening' is a threat. Remedy swears there will be none of that nonsense with its newest face wash, Rich Cream Cleanser ($16) which turns from a cream into a foam because it is soap. Yep. Good talk. Eos made an orange lip balm as a tribute to Blue Moon beer on June 11. It's $5, so about the same price as a can of the summery booze at your local bodega. Laneige still dominates lip balm sales. Can it conquer the rest of the skincare aisle? The K-beauty brand is aiming to find out with its Perfect Renew cleanser ($32) and face cream ($56), which both launched on June 10. They join the Perfect Renew serum ($65), which dropped this winter with collagen, retinol and ceramides — a far cry from the boba and strawberry extracts in the brand's tween-coveted glosses. Makeup Byredo's newest lip balms arrived on June 12, and they're sooooo pretty! Created with makeup artist Lucia Pica, they include clear, baby pink, shiny magenta and a shade that could best be described as 'a latte with an attitude problem.' J'adore. Patrick Starrr doesn't want your skin to burrrn. On June 13, his beauty brand One/Size revealed a new matte makeup spray with SPF 28. Hair Care Can Redken make 'butter yellow' into a hair trend? They've got a secret weapon in OG 'butter' babe Sabrina Carpenter, whose blonde hair was transformed into a creamy pastel shade by colourist Laurie Heaps using Redken's Shades EQ gloss. You can see the shade in Carpenter's new Prada Beauty commercial… oops, sorry, her new music video, 'Manchild'... which premiered on June 6. Fable & Mane unveiled its Root Refresh dry shampoo on June 10, with tapioca starch and rosemary included in the formula. It's $30 at Sephora and smells like a savoury dessert. On June 11, Wella Professionals announced its sponsorship of 2025's F1 Academy, so if you've ever wondered how baby race car drivers have such great hair under their helmets… well… voilà. Typology is expanding into hair, or as they'd say in the brand's Paris headquarters, les cheveux. On June 10, the French skincare brand debuted its five hair care products in the US, including two shampoos, a conditioner, mask and scalp scrub. The formulas include extracts more common in serums and moisturisers, including caffeine, squalene and polyhydroxy acids, and range from $27 to $38. The same day, skincare brand Maelove also dropped its first hair products, including a scalp serum, shampoo and conditioner formulated for thicker, stronger hair. Fragrance I appreciate Noyz for insisting that its Honey, Please hair and body mist is 'sweet, but not too sweet.' The formula dropped June 12 with notes of honey, caramel, ginger and pink pepper. It's $42. Obsessed with Celui's Scent Pack Trio ($20), which packages three vials of fragrance in a cigarette carton inspired by old-school Marlboro packs. It's got a pink stripe instead of a red one, but otherwise, the box is so convincing that it was initially sent to my spam folder for inappropriate content. Obviously, that makes me love it more. Related: Over at the Times, Esther Zuckerman has noticed an uptake in 'cool' TV and movie characters smoking cigarettes again, to which I say, all American Spirit needs for a brand revival is that one perfect scene of Parker Posey in Dazed and Confused. And finally… Why are so many fancy skincare labels insisting that your abs need deodorant? Malin + Goetz, (The Business of Beauty Global Award Winner) Akt London and Salt + Stone have all released recent content with gorgeous people swiping deo on their stomach, all in service of each brand's 'full body' formulas.A pro-tip from my doctor: 'If your stomach really smells, you need medical attention.' Not a Sephora trip. K? Sign up toThe Business of Beauty newsletter, your complimentary, must-read source for the day's most important beauty and wellness news and analysis.
AU Financial Review
16-05-2025
- Entertainment
- AU Financial Review
Luxury brands are lining up to work with this unconventional founder
Isamaya Ffrench isn't the kind of make-up artist concerned with the perfect red lip (even though she has, indeed, perfected it). She doesn't dwell on TikTok trends, like 'latte lids'. The very notion of prettiness is not really something that interests her. She is the kind of make-up artist who casually drops references to Kant and Jung into conversation, pausing before musing on what, exactly, beauty really means ('Oh god, I'm going to say something like 'inner beauty', aren't I?' she laughs over a Zoom call from her home in London). She gave Rihanna pencil-thin eyebrows for British Vogue in 2018, and sent models for Thom Browne down the runway wearing colourful feathered lashes.
New York Times
13-02-2025
- Lifestyle
- New York Times
Tinted Lip Balms to Brighten Winter Days
Welcome to the T List, a newsletter from the editors of T Magazine. Each week, we share things we're eating, wearing, listening to or coveting now. Sign up here to find us in your inbox every Wednesday, along with monthly travel and beauty guides, and the latest stories from our print issues. And you can always reach us at tmagazine@ Colorful Lip Balms That Offer Nourishment and Color In a season of weather extremes, the hardest-working accessory is lip balm. Compared with the rest of the face, the lips have a thinner protective barrier, which hastens moisture loss. Exposed to the elements and day-to-day wear — eating, talking, kissing (it is Valentine's month, after all) — the lips convey their discomfort in palpable ways. Matte lipstick can be unforgiving on a cracked canvas, so the ideal solution combines nourishment and tint. Lately, there are plenty of noteworthy options to slip into a coat pocket. Earlier this month, the London-based makeup artist Isamaya Ffrench released new shades of her namesake brand's Metal Lip Balm. Its foil-like finishes (Bronzite, Burnt Coral) give a punkish edge to a formula that's otherwise protective with castor oil and plant-based waxes. Another newcomer is Chanel's Rouge Coco Baume Shine, which features candy-bright colors and delivers hydration by way of olive leaf extract, shea butter and squalane. For a stone-fruit glaze, Glossier's Balm Dotcom now comes in Black Cherry, with old-school occlusives (petrolatum, beeswax) that weatherproof the lips. Victoria Beckham Beauty's Posh Balm, fortified with murumuru seed butter and a botanical lanolin alternative, gives a sheer wash of color in poppy red Colette and deep Cassis. Some balms incorporate gentle exfoliating ingredients to smooth and prime the lips for better ingredient absorption: U Beauty's Plasma Lip Compound borrows from the skin care playbook with salicylic acid and A.H.A.s alongside restorative peptides, and Eadem's Le Chouchou Lip Softening Balm — which comes in inviting neutrals like Boba Bounce and Fig Sauce — includes texture-refining hibiscus enzymes and lactic acid. A Newly Renovated Cornwall Cottage That Comes Stocked With Local Granola Over the past six years, Jess Alken-Theasby and her husband, Ash Alken-Theasby, have renovated a collection of rental homes in Cornwall, England's southwestern peninsula, under the company name Atlanta Trevone. This month they opened their latest, a two-bedroom cottage in the coastal town of Padstow. To update the 100-year-old property, the couple turned to the Oxfordshire-based design studio Hám Interiors, which brought in deep colors (the primary bedroom is painted a burnt orange) and nautical décor (a hand-carved wooden salmon hangs in the dining room). 'I wanted it to feel like you could imagine an old family cooking in the kitchen surrounded by all their treasures: a favorite frilly lamp, a much-loved cushion leaning against the window,' says Jess. The living room shelves are filled with worn books, and guests are invited to stoke the wood-burning fireplace. The kitchen is stocked with pots and pans as well as some breakfast essentials: a jar stuffed with homemade granola, plus Cornish scones, cream and jam. For those who'd rather eat out, two of the county's acclaimed chefs own places less than a 10-minute walk away: Rick Stein's the Seafood Restaurant and Paul Ainsworth at No6. From about $740 for three nights (the minimum stay), Issy Wood's Macabre Americana Paintings, on View in Beverly Hills This month at Michael Werner Gallery in Beverly Hills, the British artist Issy Wood will present 19 new oil paintings done in her self-described smudgy pointillism, all based on photographs depicting objects that are notably seductive in our consumer culture. There's a cropped rendering of a car's open doors, its camel upholstery bared like a jewel. On a velvet canvas, the ridges of a black foam roller become blocky tire treads. Wood zooms in on sumptuous but unsettling items whose surfaces can be charged with latent danger. The show's title, 'Wet Reckless,' borrowed from the name of a reduced D.U.I. charge in California, underscores this sentiment. Firearms, a recent fascination, are the show's most frequent subject. Some works combine menacing images of cylinders and triggers with friendly looking creatures and little gold bows. In 'Smithnwesson24,' a magnified gun is overlaid with cartoonish ghosts and what look like spectral bullets. 'Any attempt to make a killing machine somehow whimsical is exactly the sort of doomed effort I like in art,' says Wood. 'Issy Wood: Wet Reckless' will be on view at Michael Werner Gallery from Feb. 15 through April 5, A Perfume Line That Embraces the Unexpected Trey Taylor was working as an editor for the British culture magazine The Face when he began making scented candles in his apartment during the pandemic. Eventually he began taking fragrance-making lessons with the Brooklyn-based perfumer Marissa Zappas, who introduced him to essential oils and helped him mix formulas. Now, after four years of experimentation, Taylor has landed on a set of scents that make up his new line, Serviette. Each one features an unexpected ingredient. 'Like a person, a scent must have something compelling — maybe sometimes off-putting — that draws us,' says Taylor. Byronic Hero features rose oud, which offers a finish similar to diesel exhaust. Ruche combines raspberry and the sharp herby scent of galbana, an ancient woody plant grown in Turkey for its resin. Frisson d'Hiver mixes bergamot and camphor, while Sour Diesel blends the titular marijuana strain with Egyptian geranium. Taylor chose the name Serviette ('napkin' in French) in part because it was once a term that marked class division in England. Working-class people would say 'serviette,' while the elite used the term 'napkin.' Taylor sees it as a symbol of unseen yet powerful societal expectations, the kind he hopes to explore and disrupt through Serviette's scents. Also, he adds, 'it's just a fun word to say.' From $40 for the Discovery Set; available at and at Stéle boutiques in New York. A New Upstate Cafe Serving Asian Dishes and Pantry Goods When Patty Wu moved to the Catskills from Brooklyn in 2020, she quickly began to miss the cafes of Manhattan's Chinatown that she'd frequented since childhood. 'Every weekend my family and I would go to Manhattan to see a movie and have some dim sum,' says Wu, who emigrated from Taiwan in the '70s and grew up in Woodside, Queens. 'I remember the typical Chinatown cafe would have coffee and a variety of savory and sweet pastries, like pork buns and custard buns and Asian bread. You'd have a snack and take something to go.' In December, Wu channeled those memories into the opening of Lucky Catskills, a cafe and provisions shop in the mountain town of Tannersville. Wu, who also runs the home goods boutique Sundry and the restaurant Tabla nearby, has combined her love of Asian flavors and dishes into small bites that rotate from week to week. The menu might include pork-and-chive dumplings, steamed red bean buns and custard buns, vegetarian radish cakes and ramens and rice bowls (most recently lu rou fan, a Taiwanese dish of pork belly and rice with pickled mustard greens and a stewed egg). A Vietnamese-inspired coffee menu features various condensed milk flavors, including black sesame and red bean, plus an in-house condensed oat milk made from scratch (drip coffee is made with chicory-flavored Café du Monde). There's also a wall stocked with a rotating selection of packaged snacks, like tempura-battered seaweed, Turtle Chips and Japanese sodas. Symbolic Speakers at Duke University's Nasher Museum In 2022, during a residency at the University of California, San Diego, the New Mexico-based artist Cannupa Hanska Luger had intended to work with clay, but the air was too humid for the drying process. Instead, he began tinkering with steel, creating the metal frames for a set of speakers. That was the genesis of Luger's upcoming exhibition 'Speechless' at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University in North Carolina, which explores themes of Indigenous history, colonization and the power dynamics intrinsic to communication. Luger, who was born on Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota and is Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara and Lakota, found inspiration in structures created by Indigenous people in the South Pacific in the 1940s. During World War II, the Allied powers transferred loads of cargo to islands, including Vanuatu and Fiji. When the Western military left, islanders created makeshift imitations of the infrastructure — control towers built from bamboo, a plane carved from wood — in the hope that this ritual would cause more cargo to arrive. These would later be referred to as cargo cults. In 'Speechless,' lodgepole and white pine beams converge to form a radio tower, surrounded by speakers whose parts have been replaced with colorful ceramics, handblown glass and synthetic hair, rendering them unable to produce sound. The exhibition is meant to be both an indictment of American materialism and a tribute to Indigenous artists who have been silenced by Eurocentric institutions, says Luger. 'What does it mean to be a speaker who nobody's listening to?' he asks. 'Cannupa Hanska Luger: Speechless' is on view at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University in Durham, N.C., from Feb. 13 to July 6, The Artist Who Turned Her Studio Into a Family Archive
