Category Archives: beauty

A Makeup Artist’s View on Haute Couture

Posted in beauty, City of Paris, couture, Culture, Expat, mode, Paris, Paris Fashion Week, photography, Pretty!, Style by

I am thrilled to present a Paris Fashion Week haute couture show review from the darling and dashing makeup artist Charles Gillman, a British expat who has been making magic in Paris for three years now. I was lucky to get to work with him in a wedding modeling shoot and on my own Sweet Life in Paris video. And now he has been so kind as to lend his “plume” to Prête-Moi Paris for an article on Defined Moment’s Spring-Summer 2014 couture collection.

And without Further ado!

Post by Charles Gillman

Charles Gillman

Defined moment’s show – 22nd January 2014

This winter I’m a makeup artist in hibernation, I’d spent most days nipping out to see clients and then whipping back home to spend my life by the Nespresso machine, as well as gluing my eyes to my laptop. Yes, Paris is fine-looking all year round, but it seemed easier and more tolerable from behind the window, avoiding the wind whipping, falling over undersized dogs and having disputes with fellow Parisians on the metro about ‘who got to the seat at the outset!’ (all these things are frequent occurrences.)

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My Current Perfume Preferences

Posted in beauty, Luxe, Paris, Perfume, Pretty! by
My Current Perfume Preferences
My current scent craves and faves are some that you have seen before here on my blog, like Auto portrait by Olfactive Studio, and Petite Chérie by Annick Goutal, and I do still immensely enjoy Été by Laggridore. I find these scents to be sexy yet soft. They seem to enhance my appeal rather then be the appeal, which is what I believe perfume really should do. I can’t think of anything more faux pas in terms of beauty, than a woman who fills an entire room with her own perfume that she has sprayed on in incredibly offensive amounts. My scents are intimate, and personal, and are meant for the delight of two people, me, and Chéri, only. And while I am still crazy for all of these scents… I have encountered a new one that has been added to my collection of olfactive delights : Eau de Lingerie, by Guerlain. It has become one of the scents I can’t get enough of. I spray it on EVERYTHING : my clothes, my scarves, my pillows… It is a scent to be used on fabrics, not skin. And to me it smells like the softest, most delightful hug ever. There is a tenderness to this scent, that is so gentle and discreet that I tend to reapply more than once a day.
My collection of perfumes is becoming rather fancy and fun yet remains rather unique, I like to think anyway…
And then there are the perfumes I love on Chéri!

I will let you in on my three favorites…

I got him Serge Noir for Christmas. It’s my new obsession on him. It has the slightest hint of sweetness infused into a wooded fragrance. Drives me crazy! (In a good way). ;-)
And of course I still love his Gris Clair by Serge Lutens as an every day scent. It’s a fresh yet warm scent.
For occasional evenings, more in the warmer months, I love smelling Duel by Annick Goutal on him. It’s slightly flirty and entirely elegant.

What are your favorite scents? And what does your chéri wear?

Tell me in the comments below.

*Perfumed bisous from Paris!*

Little Winter Indulgences

Posted in beauty, bon plan, DIY, Holiday, low cost, Paris, Practical info by

Little Winter Indulgences This time of year, a feeling of fatigue seems almost universal. We are over-worked, over-played, over-fed and over-spent. So I like to find small and simple ways to regenerate my energy and contentment that don’t take much out of either my pocket or my time, but have a maximum positive psychological impact.

Here are three ideas for indulging this winter, that I like to partake in…

1. Filling my home with comforting scents

2. Getting my fill of vitamin C.

3. Giving myself a little “pause beauté” to erase some of the effects of over-doing everything. Continue reading →

Dreaming of a white sparkly Christmas…

Posted in beauty, Holiday, Home Decor, mode, Paris, Pretty!, Stylist, Uncategorized by
Dreaming of a white sparkly Christmas...
It is one of the best times of the year. Paris gets decked out and we start dreaming of snow, and holiday cheer.I hope you are all planning something delightful……and may all our Christmases be bright. Continue reading →

Nayenka beauty salon

Posted in beauty, day spa, Paris, parisian, Uncategorized by

image I was invited at the end of October to this lovely beauty salon in the center of Paris. They were having an evening event in support of breast cancer awareness. I’m not sure how they were supporting breast cancer awareness other than putting up graphics by American artist, but it was a nice way to get people to cone in and discover their salon. Continue reading →

Serge Lutens at Le Printemps

Posted in beauty, Luxe, Paris, Perfume, shopping, tourist by

Serge Lutens team invited me in September to the opening of their new space in the Printemps Haussmann department store. I am always eager to attend the Serge Lutens events, merely because I am totally in love with his work!
The theme of the evening was the quintessential scents of Serge Lutens. There are three : Serge noir, Datura Noir & Vitriol d’Oeillet. Perhaps we should describe these three at the holy trinity of Serge’s creations. For him they embody the essence of his work.

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Pampering my skin chez Carita

Posted in beauty, day spa, Luxe, massage, Paris, Uncategorized by

image

After an exhausting year, no make that two years, I decided enough was enough. I needed a facial urgently. A few years ago my awesome mother-in-law (at the time Chéri and I were not yet married), gave me a Christmas gift of a facial at her favorite Carita spa in the 6th arrondissement. Since then I have been dreaming of going back. And these past couple of years I feel like my skin has aged far faster than usual. So I made that decision to stop putting it off and marched into the spa on Faubourg Saint Honoré and requested an appointment. Continue reading →

A Shop for Chéri

Posted in beauty, boutique, Paris, vintage by

This one is for the boys!

Planète Rasoir… A totally masculine boutique with all you guys need for shaving. The gentleman who runs the place is a total enthusiast. When I arrived at the store he was have an animated conversation with an equally as excited client – about shaving blades, lotions and other paraphernalia. I thought it was great that men can also be enthusiastic about their facial care. After all it is their face that they show to the world, so why wouldn’t you want to be über picky about what you shave it with daily?!?
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L’Atelier du Maquillage

Posted in beauty, day spa, Luxe by
Photo : Atelier du SOurcil

Photo : Atelier du Sourcil

Waaaaay back in the Fall, at the swanky Salons Hoche, I was invited to attend the launch party of the new eye make-up line by l’Atelier du Maquillage, a brand created by the popular beauty salons l’Atelier du Sourcil. The party was fabulous, with an amazing spread of hor d’oeuvres and an open bar, live music, and you could even get your eyebrows done at one of the beauty stations set up on one side of the rooftop even hall.

Atelier du Maquillage launch party :

As I was discovering their new product before even knowing about the concept of their service, I was more  than intrigued to seek out a rendez-vous for an eyebrow makeover! Continue reading →

Beauty is all in the Detaille

Posted in beauty, boutique, Luxe, Perfume, Pretty! by

Mme Detaille, comtesse de PresleShe was one of the first women in Paris to acquire a motorized vehicle! The wealthy countess of Presle. She loved to drive, but like any self respecting parisienne at the time (or now for that matter) took great care to preserve her  beauty while remaining fantastically wild as one of the only women to drive a car around Paris. And in those days for a jolie automobilist, some beauty preservation was indeed urgently needed. Cars did not have a roof let alone a windshield! They looked something more like this :peugeot-1905 Continue reading →