would you use a "stem-cell" cream?

I'd been seeing the wordy ads for Amatokin, the so-called "stem-cell cream" popping up in various beauty magazines recently, declaring: "Stem Cells...The Future of Skin Rejuvenation." Allegedly endorsed by one Tiffany Strobel, the "beauty editor" of myfreediet.com (a site which looks suspiciously like a shill for quick-fix weight loss pills), the ads feature such bits of wisdom as "Stem cells are hot, really, really hot" and "Imagine new, fresh, "perfect" skin cells, undamaged by age, sun or pollution." The cream, which sells for roughly $200 an ounce, is said to harness "stem-cell technology" that may shave 20 years off of your complexion. But if you're left with the impression that the cream contains actual, potentially controversial stem cells, you're not alone – I thought the very same thing. As it turns out, this cream contains nothing of the sort (though it still sounds like something you'd see in a futuristic sci-fi movie) – it merely "highlights" the skin's existing stem cells, says the company, via a newly discovered polypeptide. It all sounds a bit vague, and maybe too good to be true, but the company claims the cream is causing near-riots over the pond.
So, I thought I'd ask my readers: what do you think of this strange new phenomenon? and, would you use a "stem-cell" cream?

burning question: are makeovers worth it?

I caught the tail-end of an episode of What Not to Wear yesterday and lo and behold it was the juiciest part: when the subject/victim (reluctantly) sits in the salon chair and gets snipped and painted by the wonder duo Nick Arrojo and Carmindy. While I love watching this segment, since it's where the real transformation from dull and dowdy to glowy hot mama happens, I couldn't help but feel for the subject, as she uttered a line that I've heard time and again on the show: "I don't recognize myself."
Now, don't get me wrong, I think makeovers have merits in that they inevitably make anyone and everyone look a hundred times better and can do wonders for boosting self-esteem – (makeup artist Carmindy often reminds us of this, when she says "we're just bringing out what you already have"), but I have to wonder whether such drastic measures are worthwhile when the subject looks nothing like they used to and seems to lose a bit of who they are (but that's not to say that they won't gain it back, of course).
So what do you think: are makeovers worth it? Let me know in the comments.

burning question: is it ever appropriate to groom in public?

It's amazing what you see on a long-haul subway trek: this morning, I glimpsed not one, but two women openly primping themselves on mass transit. The first applied lipliner – during a herky-jerky ride, no less (I've no idea how she did it without smearing it all over her face) while the second lass powdered her nose and combed her hair. Now, call me old-fashioned, but I prefer to keep my personal grooming to myself and behind closed doors (or at least, behind the doors of a public restroom). I'm not exactly sure why, but etiquette-wise, I just feel a little bothered by people gussying-up in full view of others. I think it's a matter of respecting others' personal space, really. But am I getting all bent out of shape for nothing?
What say you - is it ever appropriate to groom yourself in public?
Photo by Jupiter Images

burning question: are you a beauty contrarian?

A couple of weekends ago, I had the pleasure of meeting the fabulous Nadine Haobsh of the beauty blog Jolie Nadine (previously known as Jolie in NYC). Her blog is one of my favorites, because she doesn't shy away from pointing out the ridiculousness of the lengths some people (often, celebrities) will go to to be beautiful. She wrote a post recently about the conundrum between fawning over the fabulous life while simultaneously championing women's self-esteem and "real" beauty, and it's one that struck a chord with me as it's something I've been thinking a lot about myself. On the one hand, it goes without saying that I love all things beauty, hence, my raison d'etre for starting this blog. But I also believe that beauty and brains don't have to be mutually exclusive; you can actually be both intelligent and love beauty products and all the pretty things, while loathing a manufactured, fake kind of beauty we see in those many photoshopped covers and ads. I think it's akin to the "lipstick feminism" movement – that you can wear lipstick and still believe in feminist ideals. But since so many people don't like that word "feminism" much anymore, I guess I'm what you'd call a "beauty contrarian" – I love beauty but I won't be judged by looks alone (and I'm also a little suspect of some of those ridiculous claims spouted by the beauty marketing machine). Sorry for getting all heavy on you here, but you know I like to make you guys think!
So what say you: are you a beauty contrarian? Or are you in another camp altogether?

burning question: do glasses make you less attractive?

When I was a kid, I longed to have a pair of glasses. They were just so gadgety-cool and the kids who wore them seemed special somehow (in a good way) – like little geniuses. But as I grew older, I began to see the stigma attached to wearing glasses that was only highlighted in '80s popular culture: that they're only for the uncool, pocket-protecting, computer-nerd set (and needless to say, the unattractive). But apparently, the kids of today didn't get the memo: according to a recent study, young children thought those wearing glasses are not only more intelligent, but also no less attractive than those without. So it would seem Chloe Sevigny, seen here in black horn-rimmed glasses this week, is channelling that very idea, and making nerd-chic cool again.
So what do you think? Do glasses make someone less attractive or more so?

man-paint is catching on

Not since the days of The Cure and Boy George have we seen such a proliferation of man-paint. But it's not just emo boys from bands like the delightfully weird German outfit Tokio Hotel (dude from said band pictured) and my Chemical Romance swiping on the liner and lacquer – according to the experts, more men are prettifying themselves and the market for guyliner is growing. Lines by Jean Paul Gaultier and Biotherm offer up a range of products for dudes, including concealer, eyeliner and even colored lipbalm. And trailblazing MAC Cosmetics has always pitched its line of beauty products as suitable for all sexes and races, giving them instant – (though perhaps under-the-radar) – dude appeal.
So my question is this: do you think guyliner should be the domain of emo boys only? Let me know in the comments.

burning question: would you wear runway makeup in real life?

On my nightly trek home yesterday, I noticed the most astonishing sight: a woman walking down the street, in fairly normal T-shirt and jeans attire, and a fairly bare face, except, slashed across her eyes, she wore eye makeup in lime-green green and vivid teal blue – literally the color of fluorescent markers. Her hair was otherwise long, wavy and looked somewhat lifeless next to these somewhat clownish, day-glo colors. The funny thing is, I actually liked her eye makeup, as it would be perfect for the runway (just like this model from the Fall 2008 Dior show), and I could envision this woman walking down the catwalk. But sadly, it was wildly inappropriate for walking down the sidewalk in broad daylight. But I really wished I had my camera handy.
So what say you? Would you wear runway makeup in real-life? Is it ever appropriate?
Photo by Matteo Volta/imaxtree.com

burning question: is lipstick your louboutin?

The beauty world is without a doubt a superficial sphere but sometimes it can also be a great sort of lens to gauge society at large. Case in point: The chairman of Estée Lauder, Leonard Lauder's claim, post-9/11, that when times are tough, women buy more lipstick, since it becomes a small-indulgence replacement for more hefty investments like a pair of Christian Louboutins. Given that we're supposedly headed into a big ole recession, the New York Times revisits this idea in an article in it's Style section today. Despite a huge push to turn us away from our beloved glosses, lipstick sales are down, but that isn't stopping brands like Clinique and Lauder from concocting all sorts of lipstick-gloss fusion products to get you hooked on the lippie again. (Why? It's slightly more expensive than gloss.)
Personally, shopping for high-end products has always been my way of indulging in a little luxury without breaking the bank. Because, truth be told, I couldn't afford a pair of Louboutins anyway. How about you: Is lipstick your Louboutin? And, do you plan to buy more lipstick in the coming months?

burning question: how important is product purity?

A while ago, I was gearing up to test a product by spa skincare brand Renee Rouleau and I happened to notice the ingredient label on the side - it was peppered with parabens in its various forms. While I was taken aback that parabens, a cosmetic preservative that's been linked with breast cancer (results have been inconclusive, but yikes!) would appear in a product line that's deemed to be "the best of nature," I went ahead and used it anyway (although I didn't use up the entire product - it's still sitting on my bathroom shelf, half-used). I was reminded of this today as I read In Women's Wear Daily that niche beauty brand Lalicious is relaunching its products without parabens. And Lalicious isn't the first to remove the ingredient from its products: Origins has recently also reformulated to become paraben-free and is currently phasing in products as we speak.
But all this got me curious to ask my readers about this: How cautious are you with beauty product ingredients? Do you steer clear of anything with parabens? Is green better?

burning question: juice fasts - yay or nay?

Move over rehab, juice fasting is the latest trend du jour. From the lemon juice-and-maple syrup Master Cleanse Diet that famously slimmed down Beyonce for Dreamgirl, to the raw juice fasts said to detoxify the body and mind used by the likes of Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler, everyone, it seems, is looking for that quick "make-me-healthy" fix. And now Elle magazine reports on a growing number of lines marketing the trend to the masses: brands such as iZO Cleanze and Blueprint Cleanse will deliver to your door fresh-pressed juices, filled with pounds upon pounds of vegetables – for a fee, of course. The claim? The iZO Cleanze is described as "the Rolls Royce of cleanses": it's said to "completely detoxify the bowels, liver, gall bladder, kidney, and blood of toxins, parasites, and heavy metals." And the Blueprint Cleanse claims to do everything from boosting your immune system to promoting clear skin and reversing the signs of aging. While I can understand the desire to purify one's body after a bout of bad behavior, I'm a bit skeptical that susbisting on nothing but juice for a few days will rid me of toxins.
What say you? Have you ever done a cleanse? Would you?

it's never too early to learn about plastic surgery

Just in time for Mother's Day, there's a new book coming out all about preparing kids for what to expect when Mom undergoes a nip/tuck. Yes, it seems plastic surgery has become so rampant that plastic surgeon Dr. Michael Salzhauer felt it was high time for a book like My Beautiful Mommy, which seeks to help kids ages 4 to 7 "celebrate beauty" and understand why, post-surgery, Mommy comes home bandaged and bruised and ultimately looks not quite like Mommy anymore. Now, I'm all for responsible parenting, but to me this reeks of marketing cosmetic surgery to children.
What do you think? Is it ever too early to expose kids to plastic surgery? Let me know in the comments.

burning question: was vogue out of line?

Have you picked up the latest issue of Vogue? Even if you haven't, you've likely come across the firestorm of controversy created by the April issue's "Shape issue" cover featuring basketball star LeBron James and supermodel Gisele. Some critics say the cover perpetuates racial stereotypes by picturing James as a scary, beast-like figure, along the lines of a King Kong, grasping onto the white-woman heroine (Gisele). I have to say that I was neither offended nor entirely jazzed when I first saw the cover: I thought it just another boring and somewhat uninspired pictorial. But then I started to see the comparisons to images of King Kong and even this one at Jossip of a World War 1 enlistment poster, and I couldn't deny the similarities. For a magazine that deals with image on a daily basis, it's hard to believe that Vogue editors had never come across these iconic images either. But while I think they were trying to be deliberately provocative in order to stir up controversy, I'm not sure they were doing so with racist intentions. Naive though it may be, they likely thought were turning yet another iconic image on its ear (as magazine editorials so often do) in order to be taken seriously as "art".
So what do you think? Was Vogue off base with this cover? Let me know in the comments.

burning question: how important is exercise in your beauty regimen?

Ah, exercise. While I tend to loathe the monotony and bad early 90s dance music of the gym, I have to admit that I actually enjoy exercising outdoors - there's nothing better than going for a run on a crisp, sunny spring day. Luckily for me, there's been more and more studies touting physical activity as an age-fighter. You may have heard that keeping active can help combat disease, but a new study links regular exercise with looking younger (and not just from weight loss). In the study, British scientists followed twins and found that those who exercised more frequently were biologically younger than their non-exercising counterparts by as much as nine years. For me, exercise has been about maintaining a normal weight and combatting stress, but I'm beginning to see it more and more as part of my anti-aging arsenal.
So how about you - Is exercise a big part of your beauty regimen? Or does it not even factor in? Let me know in the comments.

burning question: to photoshop or not to photoshop?

It's no secret that models and actresses are not as perfect as they seem in magazines. Thanks to Dove's ground-breaking Evolution ad and Jezebel's 'Photoshop of Horrors' (which shows eerie before-and-afters), we've all been enlightened to the magic of photoshop and the amount of retouching that goes on to deliver an impossible-to-attain beauty. (In some cases, it's like taking a pink-rubber eraser to people's faces, rubbing out any undesirable marks, blemishes or wrinkles.)
So maybe it's no surprise that some are challenging the retouching trend: Canadian women's magazine Chatelaine, which features a mix of beauty, fashion and women's issues and occasionally has celebs on the cover, is opting not to retouch its models at all. It's a full-on parade of freckles, wrinkles and blemishes and all.
So what are your thoughts on retouching: yay or nay? Or is there a happy medium? Let me know in the comments.

burning question: can you eat your way pretty?

I feel like I've heard some pretty farfetched things when it comes to what women will do in their quest for beauty – whether it's using face bleaching creams or drinking vitamin-infused "beauty" waters - I thought I'd heard it all. This morning, however, I read something that made me do a double-take: I seriously thought it was a joke, taken directly from the pages of The Onion. (Warning: stop reading now if you're on your lunch break!)
Apparently, the hottest thing to hit the world of anti-aging is (wait for it): pig's feet. And no, it's not in a cream, but in the dishes served at Hakata Tonton, the latest "it" restaurant in New York. The menu at this Japanese resto features pig's feet in 33 out of 39 of its dishes. (Sorry, animal lovers.) The reason? Pig's feet are said to be rich in collagen, which is vital to maintaining skin's structure and moisture. While I'd agree that protein and a good diet is important for health (and possibly for the skin too), I have a hard time buying that subsisting on pig's trotters is the magical secret to beauty.
What are your thoughts: Do you think you can beautify from the inside out?

burning question: what do you save vs. splurge on?

Looking around my increasingly crowded, beauty product-lined bathroom the other day, I noticed a bit of a trend when it comes to what products I'll spend money on as opposed to the ones I'll scrimp on. While I'd like to say that I'm a high-end girl all the way, I seem to (unconsciously) splurge on facial skincare and makeup, but save on things like body wash and shower soap. Having said that, when it comes to hand soap, it's got to be quality, and for me, that often means high-end. Since I wash my hands so often, I'll shell out those few extra dollars for a soap that isn't drying or aggravating to my hands such as Savon de Marseille, which actually feels like I've put on moisturizer after washing (when I really haven't). It also doesn't hurt that it looks super-stylish in my bathroom, too.
What about you? What are your must-splurge-on items?

burning question: do you wear fragrance every day?

I've been thinking a lot about fragrance and how we wear it lately, especially since I saw this article in the New York Times about how women are wearing less scent than they used to. It turns out that sales of perfume have dropped slightly in the last year, and a pretty sizeable portion of women (15%) don't wear perfume at all. Why? They don't want to offend others with a big cloud of reeking perfume. As for me, I wear fragrance (often my coveted Fresh Sugar Blossom – in reasonable doses, I might add) most days of the week and when I'm going out at night. On the days when I'm not wearing it (simply because I've forgotten to, or just didn't feel like it), I feel kind of naked, truthfully. Scent, for me, helps me feel polished and put-together, and my favorite citrusy scent honestly puts me in a better mood.
So, how about you? Do you wear scent every day, just for special occasions, or not at all?

burning question: are celebrity scents on the way out?

Flipping through a fashion mag the other day, I came across an ad featuring a serene-looking Britney Spears holding an (admittedly fake-looking) bird in her hands. Promoting her latest fragrance (and one of many), Believe, the image of a seemingly pulled-together Britney was reminiscent of the late 90s girl we all fell in love with, but one that's a far cry from her recent real-life troubles.
While many have been predicting the fall of celeb scents for a while now, I got to wondering: have celebrity perfumes finally jumped the shark? I find that many of the perfumes (excepting Sarah Jessica Parker's Lovely, which I adore) are truthfully rather dull and you have to wonder how much actual involvement the celebs have in creating them, since they seem to release a new one (or in some cases, just an updated version of the same scent) every few months. As a sort of response to the revolving door of celebrity fragrances, there's been a rise in niche perfumery, which focus on the art of fragrance-making: lines such as Frederic Malle and even a new one called Le Labo, which enlists the world's best perfumers to mix scents right in front of you when you buy. So, maybe we don't all want to smell like lychee, honeysuckle and jammy fruit, a la Paris Hilton and J.Lo.
So what do you think? Are celeb scents here to stay or are they on the way out? Let me know in the comments.

burning question: eva mendes & calvin klein – a match made in heaven?

In the same week that Calvin Klein annointed Eva Mendes as it's latest fragrance spokesperson, it was revealed that the celeb had just entered rehab for substance abuse. Eva's the last person I would have expected to enter rehab, but I suppose these days, it's the latest craze in Hollywood, akin to Kabbalah and Scientology. Now, I usually try to stay out of celebrities' increasingly bizarre escapapdes here on SugarShock, but I just had to wonder: should Calvin Klein drop it's newest face in order to save face? Or, given the Kate Moss drug scandal which garnered her millions via scores of ad campaigns, was this a very calculated marketing scheme on the part of CK to boost sales?

What do you think? Should Eva stay or should she go? Let me know in the comments.

burning question: how important is scent in beauty products?

The other day, I was sampling some divinely-scented products by Linden Leaves, a bodycare line from New Zealand. Infused with rose petals, orange blossoms and lime leaves, it's perhaps some of the most amazing smells I've ever experienced. Which got me thinking about how much scent plays into what we buy, particularly when it comes to bath and body care products. For me, sometimes scent is the ultimate lure in body products, even if the quality of the product ends up being lacklustre. But for facial skincare, I prefer little to no scent at all.

How about you? How much does scent drive you when buying beauty and skincare products? Let me know in the comments.