1. Michael Lewis: Lewis is footwear’s best kept secret and has impressed the likes of Marc Jacobs at Louis Vuitton, Christopher Bailey at Burberry and Tom Ford at Gucci with his shoe-shaped talents – before recently stepping into the role of creative consultant at Kurt Geiger. He brings his own label collection to LFW for the first time this season.

Has an eye for: What women really want – fun yet luxurious, affordable shoes.

Is inspired by: “Early Kenzo and Russian fairytales.”

Shop it: Exclusively at Dover Street Market for autumn/winter 2009.

2. Michael van der Ham: The Dutch born designer’s Warhol art-inspired dresses caught the attention of more than one fashion insider during his autumn/winter 2009 Central St Martins show – for which he also scooped the L’Oreal Professional Award. Prior to this, the young impresario honed his talents with stints at Alexander McQueen and Sophia Kokosalaki.

Has an eye for: The eclectic – van der Ham’s mismatch approach to design ensures there’s never a dull moment.

Is inspired by: Women who aren’t afraid to be bold.

Will be: Showcasing as part of NEWGEN’s Ready-to-Wear exhibition at Somerset House.

3. Fred Butler: New kid on the block Fred began life as a set designer and prop maker before packing a style punch with her first jewellery collection of bold, bright and sculptural designs for autumn/winter 2009. Since then she has presented workshops at London’s Design Museum, guest lectured at the London College of Fashion and collaborated with Asos.com on their limited edition ‘Hit’ line.

Has an eye for: Creating “wearable sculpture,” by using graphic shapes, clashing colours and tactile forms.

Is inspired by: The unpredictable in the everyday.

Shop it: Online at Kabiri.co.uk this season.

4. Mark Fast: Since the success of the 28 year old Canadian’s Central St Martins graduate collection in 2007 (which was quickly snapped up by Browns Focus) the young designer has gone from strength to strength. His autumn/winter 2009 show featured a bold collection of black knitted body-con dresses, embellished with fringing and dramatic cut-out panels.

Has an eye for: Exquisite pieces that are contoured to the body.

Is inspired by: Finding innovative ways with knitwear.

Will be: Available from Browns Focus.

5. Eun Jeong: 2008’s Fashion Fringe winner, Eun Jeong leapt on the scene with a collection made entirely from white cotton lace. The Korean designer has since been working hard to develop her own label ‘1st element by hong eun jeong’.

Has an eye for: Neat pleats and effortless tailoring.

Is inspired by: Uniqueness in others.

Shop it: at Net-a-porter.com

6. Emilio de la Morena: Having trained as a sculptor in his native Spain before sharpening his fashion skills at Central St Martins in 2002, de la Morena’s designs are inspired by structural shapes and traditional Spanish artisan techniques.

Has an eye for: Fluid and feminine sculptural lines.

Is inspired by: The relationship between organic shapes and defined silhouettes.

Shop it: Online at Browns Focus.

7. Josh Goot: His sleek and monochromatic autumn/winter 2009 collection had London based Goot dubbed the new king of modernism, for his simple yet sophisticated use of black and white on shifts and neatly tailored suits.

Has an eye for: Colour blocking and clean lines.

Is inspired by: Human anatomy and abstract forms for spring/summer 2009.

Shop it: At Liberty.co.uk.

8. Mary Katrantzou: Since her fun graphic print collection for autumn/winter 2009, that featured dresses emblazoned with images of perfume bottles, we have not been able to shake the feeling that Katrantzou is going places. Having worked under fellow Greek, Sophia Kokosalaki and freelanced for Bill Blass, the young print designer also makes jewellery to complement her collections.

Has an eye for: Digital prints and bold, industrial jewellery.

Is inspired by: Antique perfume bottles and 18th century portraits for spring/summer 2010.

Shop it: At Browns Focus and Harvey Nichols.

9: Maria Francesca Pepe: With style insiders dipping into Pepe’s jewellery box for her hand-crafted Italian pieces to adorn their fashion pages – including Harper’s Bazaar – it is little wonder the designer already has a loyal following. You might have seen her designs embellishing the shows of Roksanda Illincic (S/S09 and A/W09), Emilio De La Morena (A/W09) and Louise Grey (A/W09), for which she designed a shoe collection.

Has an eye for: Chunky tubular necklaces made using old, handcrafted Italian techniques.

Is inspired by: Pieces that appeal to all tastes and ages.

Shop it: At Dover Street Market and the label’s own online store that launches this December.

Mfpepe.com.

10. Veryta: Designer and Fashion illustrator Tanya Ling brings her talents to the role of Creative Director of not-for-profit label Veryta, which appears for the first time this season. Launched with the backing of Yves Saint Laurent’s Stefano Pilati and Filippo Binaghi of Italian Silk manufacturer, Lorma, 10 percent of sales from the collection will go direct to children’s charities in India.

Is inspired by: Her native India.

Veryta.com

(Harper’s Bazaar U.K.)

L’Oreal Paris has revealed their latest in spokesperson. Pop star Cheryl Cole has taken on the job for L’Oreal in the U.K. and Ireland!

LINKAGE: WWD

A model struts the catwalk at London’s L’Oreal Color Trophy hairdressing competition!

A new study, suspiciously led by a research department of L’Oreal, has found that applying makeup might contribute to better balance and coordination.

The survey of 100 women aged 65-85 revealed that those who applied even a little makeup in the morning were steadier on their feet and had better posture.

Read the whole article at Telegraph.
 
 

With Valentine’s Day coming up every girl will be looking for the correct kissable lip color. The best item to have on this sexy holiday evening is a lip stain long lasting lip color. Below are four brands that I will be using on my clients so they can be sure to not leave their lips on the champagne glass.

Laura Mercier Lip Stain is creamy and gives a natural looking stain with a light sheen very balm like satin finish.

Tarte Rise & Shine Stain and Lip Enhancing Gloss is a gel-based tint for lips with a natural rosy glow that stays all day. The gloss gives the appearance of fuller lips and even after the gloss wears away the lip tint remains

L’Oreal Infallible Never Fail Lip gloss is longwearing giving you a sheer color and high gloss for six shining hours.

L’Oreal Infallible Never Fail Lip color Compact has marine collagen and vitamin E to protect and condition the lip. The innovative mirrored packaging is cute and the lip color really does last all day.

Light blue eye shadow was the most popular eye shadow color in the “70’s and 80’s”. Back then, it was applied like a little kid painting with numbers. So much so, that it scared so many women today away from the color. But now there are so many different shades of blue, that this spring you can find many shades you will love to wear.

A transparent green-blue eye shadow would work for blondes, while fair-skin brunettes should use a shimmery blue-purple. A navy or icy silver-blue eye shadow will look amazing with a brown/olive skin tone. I love to use brighter blue eye shadow on darker skin, I find the pigments of the colors show up so much better.

When you accent vibrant colors with a kohl liner or a liquid black liner it makes the eye shadow color pop and the liner define the eyes giving them shape.

My favorite four blue eye shadows to use are:

L’Oreal HIP Cream Eyeliner in Midnight Blue

Nars Eye Shadow Night Flight

Ulta Eye Shadow Blue Velvet

Sephora Chrome Mono Eye Shadow Teal Turquoise

Some of the newest makeup shades are bold (red blush), luscious (caramel gloss)—and even bizarre (mauve everywhere). These shades that can be worn by all, below you will find a cheat sheet to help you when selecting a new color.

I know a lot of you are feeling the recession this year, but we can’t let that affect us from buying a new eye shadow color or sexy new lip gloss. So this weekend, I went to the drugstores to give you all the 411 on what’s out there. I decided to go to the L’Oreal section to see what’s new and close to some of my favorite makeup lines; Nars, Stila, Smashbox and M.A.C.

What I ended up buying was products from the L’Oreal HIP line. The HIP line has high intensity pigments that are very similar to those of NARS and M.A.C. L’Oreal has 5 new metallic eye-shadows this fall and they are AMAZING and great for Christmas and New Year’s Eve parties. Their loose pigments are also a must and they are highly pigmented allowing for very rich with bold colors. Another must have item from the HIP line is the cream eyeliner, also comes in 5 colors, my favorites colors are black, midnight blue, and teal and they come with a small angle brush. I love that the cream eyeliner goes on smooth and easy, and can be smudged for a smoky look.

They also have two great lip products; the jelly balm and the lip gloss. The jelly balm kept my lips moist and non-sticky, giving me a sheer lip color to use by itself or on top your favorite lipstick. The best part was my hair did not get stuck to my lips. The hip gloss is better for the evening because it gives more color and I didn’t have to put on a lip pencil, a lipstick and lip gloss. I didn’t have to carry so many items with me, and both lip products have vanilla in them so they smell and taste great.

So, don’t like the stress of the recession effect you staying fabulous. Check out L’Oreal and any of the other brands like Cover Girl, Revlon and Maybelline. They will make great stocking stuffers for your girlfriends.

Last night like so many women and men…yes men, I was anxiously anticipating the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. Of course, this being the one time that boyfriends and husbands will sit patiently watching television with their girlfriends and wives. I was so excited because this year Vicky’s Secret title was “Return to Glamour” and Victoria Secret model Adriana Lima hit the runway sporting a $5 million, 1500-carat bra. There was lots of bling actually throughout the entire show, that’s my favorite part.

Makeup Artist Charlotte Tilbury was the lead artist backstage, so she most likely sat in on some of the meetings with Victoria Secret designers to come up with the glamorous look the ladies were wearing. It was very dreamy, lots of champagne and gold shimmery eye shadow colors and eye lashes. The lip colors that Tilbury selected for the ladies were pale pink, soft peach and nude lipstick with lots of pale pink lip gloss. On the face, the foundation was very sheer but heavy bronzer giving the ladies serious cheekbones. For that dewy look you saw on the faces she used lots of shimmer to achieve that glow. As much as I loved this look for the fashion show, this does not mean that this weekend ladies, you get a free pass to rock it when going out. What you have to remember is at awards shows, fashion shows, and concerts the makeup has to be very heavy. Makeup and hair always has to be a little exaggerated to show up on stage. So when you’re in the bathroom getting ready to go out, remember this, the look that Tilbury gave the Victoria Secret models can be toned down and would be great for going to dinner, going dancing and even for a bride who is having a candlelight wedding.

Here’s your Victoria’s Secret for a sexy night out. Do your hair first. I suggest grabbing large sections and curling it with a medium to large size curling iron. Pin each section by using clips, spray your hair with aerosol spray very light with my favorite L’Oreal Elnett Extra Strong Hold UV Hair Spray. For your makeup, start off light using the same shades and adding more makeup until you deposit the amount of eye shadow, pigments, bronzer, lipstick and lip gloss you want. Pour yourself a glass of wine while getting dressed; spray your hair with the perfume you plan to wear and then start taking your hair down. Use your fingers to shake your hair out, give yourself one good flip, and spray to get that soft tossed sexy look. Finish your last sip of wine, check the lips one more time, and then you’re ready.

Let me know ladies, how it goes.