New York Metro Shopping Beauty

Beauty Bulletin
BY BETH LANDMAN KEIL Week of August 19, 2002
They Give a Fig Lavender, rose, vanilla, peach, even bergamot and patchouli are fragrances we've come to know and love. But fig, the latest scent to capture our noses, is quite a bit more, well, subtle — to us, at least, the fruit is more remarkable for its texture than for its fragrance. Still, L'Occitane has harvested the essence for fig soap ($5) and foaming bath ($21 at L'Occitane); Miller Harris has just launched Figue Amère ($110 at Takashimaya); Marc Jacobs Men, with fig and musk, hits stores next month ($50 for 2.5 ounces at Bloomingdale's); and Jo Malone's Wild Fig and Cassis cologne and scented candle will be available in November ($75 for 100-ml. cologne and $65 for the candle at Bergdorf Goodman). Even Estée Lauder's new PureColor lipsticks contain fig fragrance ($22 at Bloomingdale's). "We wanted something sweet but more sophisticated than the typical florals," says a Lauder spokeswoman.

Knead It You may feel the desire for a massage every day, but there's just so much pampering the budget will allow. Now BeYoga (formerly known as Yoga Zone) is offering a class called Restorassage, taught by a licensed massage therapist accompanied by an assistant or two. As the students move into gentle, comfortable yoga poses —- mostly on the floor, with blankets, pillows, bolsters, and eye pads as props — the instructors come around to stretch and knead muscles. "If you felt like a nap, this could substitute,'' says BeYoga co-owner Beverley Murphy. "It's purely about relaxation; we do mostly variations of corpse pose." The only real effort is scraping yourself off the floor when it's over ($20 per class at all New York City locations).

Pale Fire Usually, the onset of fall makes us long for rich burgundies, plums, and deep reds with which to shellac our fingers and toes. But this year, those autumnal hues are being replaced by softer tones that pack a whole lot of shimmer. There are demure, girly shades, like Versace's pearly-pink Heat nail lacquer ($15 at Barneys New York), which looks like cotton candy; Clinique's Moonlight Pink Glosswear nail enamel ($9 at Saks Fifth Avenue); and Urban Decay's youthful Burnout nail enamel, a sheer peach with tiny flecks of gold sparkles ($9.50 at Bloomingdale's). Or you can go a little bolder, with Revlon's iridescent nail enamel ($4.75 at Duane Reade) or Helena Rubinstein's sophisticated Gold Fusion ($16 at Saks) — all holiday-ready and lustrous as jewelry. "Frosted polish keeps a fresh, wet look longer, while opaques tend to get dull," explains Josephine Allen, of the Upper East Side manicure mecca Josephine Beauty Retreat. It's enough to make you hang on to your sandals for an extra month or two.

Editor's Pick: Creed Bath and Body Though Creed has been making fragrances since 1760, it will launch its first bath and body products next month. The line includes hair-and-body wash ($50) in three scents, Green Irish Tweed, Silver Mountain Water, and the oceanic Erolfa, and body lotion ($68) and bath gel ($50) in two, Spring Flower and 2000 Fleurs. September is a big month for the perfumer: It will also be opening a third store, at 680 Madison Avenue, near 61st Street.

Previous Features The Beauty Archive
Photos by Carina Salvi (yoga) and Lisa Shin (products).