Getting "Tooth" the Heart of the Matter

                                     

Ever seen a flawless face with gook between her teeth? I think we can all agree that having beautiful, healthy teeth is a big part of your facial aesthetic and your overall look.  These new Oral-B Floss Picks are launching in September and are amazing because they are floss on one side and a plastic toothpick on the other side. We love the mint flavored ones because they give you minty fresh breath too. Talk about an efficient product! We have a handful of these in our makeup bags at all times. Look for these at your local drugstore next month! 

Weekly Beauty Bargains

                                     

                                                 

Bloomingdales and Clinique are offering this colorful gift with purchase on this Labor Day Weekend! Deluxe and full sizes of Clinique classics and soon-to-be favorites are yours with any $25.00 or more Clinique purchase.

Gift includes:
- NEW Moisture Surge Extra Thirsty Skin Relief
- Fresh Bloom Allover Colour with Brush in Peony
- Take The Day Off Makeup Remover (1.7-oz.)
- Liquid Facial Soap, High Impact Mascara in Black (1.7 oz.)
- Full-size Long Last Lipstick in NEW Rock Violet
- PLUS a deluxe cosmetics bag and matching lipstick case in a high-fashion print.

Available while supplies last. We love that they are including a new Fall Lip Color! To qualify for this gift, Nicciknows recommends picking up the super creamy Supermoisture Makeup ($22.50) and the Clinique Kohl Shaper for Eyes ($15.50) which has a built-in sharpener. All items available at Bloomingdales.

                                                      

Prescriptives and Dillards are offering this cute gift this week. Receive a collection of must-have products as your gift with any Prescriptives foundation or moisturizer purchase of $32.50 or more. Choose between warm and cool color combinations:

Warm Gift includes: Colorscope Lipstick in Posh Ginger, travel-size Colorscope Lip Gloss in Sporty, travel-size False Lashes Mascara in Black, travel-size Super Line Preventor Xtreme and zip-top cosmetics bag

Cool Gift includes: Colorscope Lipstick in Rose Glow, travel-size Colorscope Lip Gloss in Sassy, travel-size False Lashes Mascara in Black, travel-size Super Line Preventor Xtreme and zip-top cosmetics bag

Nicciknows recommends picking up the Good in Bed Restoring Night Moisturizer ($65). You will love this restorative moisturizer with a subtle hint of self-tanner so you wake up looking fresh with a glow! All items available at Dillards.

In the Hair and Now

                                                      

Bumble and Bumble's newest hair spray is positively amazing. It gives flexible, moveable hold and is great for use with heat styling products. You can brush hair over and over and you'll never get those pesky white flakes. Spray de Mode ($25 at BumbleandBumble.com) is truly the modern day, hairspray of the moment. We spray on our hair before using a 1 1/2 inch curling iron or a straightening iron to create soft hold and protect hair from heat damage.

For some great info on hairstyles of the moment and the current looks of your favorite celebrities check out BeautyRiot.com's Week in Hair.

The Empowerment of Looking Good

                                          

After more then a decade making women look and feel beautiful, it feels as though there is a certain romanticism as to why we make the effort. Have you ever put on something, whether it be an item of clothing, a favorite accessory or sexy lipstick; that just made you feel better? A couple items come to mind for me. The first being this sexy pair of heels, the second being a green and gold scarf and the third being a red lipstick (Venus from ck Calvin Klein beauty, available at Sephora.com).

The point is, that looking good can, in many instances, make us feel better. I'm sure there are many reasons as to why that might be. Could be that your boyfriend or husband loves it when you look great, which makes you feel great; could be that you feel more confident and self-assured within yourself when you look great, or could be that you feel more equipped to handle yourself in a professional capacity when you look great.

Whatever the reason is, if we all agree that it feels good to look good; and that is one of the few variables in life that we can control, why wouldn't we?! Life is so full of curve balls, isn't it better to go into the game with a catchers glove on as opposed to unprotected? (Anyone who knows me will get a HUGE chuckle out of the fact that I just used a sports metaphor to explain to my readers why it makes sense to look your best, so enjoy:).

So when you glance at yourself tomorrow morning before heading out to start your day, think about how great it is that you have the tools and the know-how to put your very best foot forward! If you don't feel that you do, (even after reading www.nicciknows.com) then know that I am here to guide you. Send questions, queries, and comments or even contact me about having me come do a makeup party at your home or office (only for Southern California residents, sorry). Either way, allow me to be your personal makeup guide or concierge. As you know, we at Nicciknows are all about empowerment and taking that intimidation factor out of beauty shopping!

Curly-Q

 

                                           

Micro proteins that fortify hair and improve elasticity make this Shape Activator from Alterna a must have for all wavy and curly hair styles. We love it because it eliminates frizz and gives a great, non-crispy hold hold to curly hair. If your hair is wavy, this will help to enhance the curls too.

The Life range of Alterna delivers an Elasto-Complex that includes Citrun Sandal, Blue Lotus and Myrrh extract which radically improves the condition of curly hair. Style and treat hair in one step? We LOVE that.

To use this product, take a nickel-sized amount and work through towel-dried hair and then style with or without heat. Available for $20 at Beauty.com.

A Cult Following

                                 

MAC Fall collections Cult of Cherry launched this week. Characteristic of most of MAC's Fall collections, this one is very avante guard but with something for everyone! Some items that we love from these collections are Lightly Ripe ($14) a sheer mid tone pink lipstick; the fabulously textured Mattene lipstick in Kirsch ($14.50) in Blackened Cranberry; the Tinted Lipglasses in Rich & Ripe ($14) and Cult of Cherry ($14) are to die for! Don't forget to round out your look with a Nail Laquer in Illegal Purple ($11). All items available at Macys.com.

Nicciknows TIP: While the look for Fall is definitely more dramatic, a great way to wear these colors for daily activities is to pick a feature to really intensify and make the rest of the look more neutral. For instance, if you wear a deep red shade on lips, then keep eyes more neutral.

Weekly Beauty Deals and Bargains

                                   

                                                      

Macys.com and Laura Mercier have a great little gift this week. As a matter of fact, we might take part in this free gift this weekend ourselves. With any $50 Laura Mercier purchase on Macys.com, recieve free shipping as well as this three-piece gift. The exclusive gift includes a 2 oz. mini Almond Coconut Milk Scrub, 0.18 fl. oz. micro-mini Foundation Primer and a 0.03 oz. mini Thickening & Building Mascara in Black. Once you have selected qualifying Laura Mercier products, you will be prompted to add the offer at checkout. For FREE SHIPPING enter promo code MERCIER at checkout. One offer per customer. Online only. While supplies last.

Nicciknows recommends picking up our favorite under eye concealer, Secret Concealer ($22) along with Secret Brightening Powder ($22) and a Lip Glace in Bellini ($22). All items available at Macys.com.

                                                  

Nordstrom and Clinique have this exclusive online gift with purchase this week. Receive deluxe samples of High Impact Mascara (0.14 oz.), Colour Surge Eye Shadow Soft Shimmer in Frost Blossom (0.02 oz.) and Stay-Matte Sheer Pressed Powder in Invisible Matte with your $40 Clinique online purchase. Available while supplies last.

Nicciknows recommends picking up a Clinique Brush-on Cream Liner in Black Honey ($14.50), an Up-Lighting Liquid Illuminator ($22.50) in Natural-this is a great highlighter for Fall and a High Impact Mascara in Black ($14.50). All items available at Nordstrom.com.

 

                                          

Estee Lauder and Dillards have this juicy gift available with any $27.50 Estee Lauder purchase. There is also an option to upgrade the gift with a purchase of $55. Here are the details:

Receive a blue tone-on-tone dot-pattern train case and a blue dot-pattern cosmetics bag as your gift with any Estee Lauder purchase of $27.50 or more. Plus, customize your gift with your choice of skin treatment and cosmetic colors in warm or cool shades. This gift includes:

• Projectionist High Definition Volume Mascara in Black
• 1.5-ml. Sensuous Eau de Parfum
• Your choice of 2 skin treatment pairs:
  • .25-oz. Resilience Lift Extreme Ultra Firming Creme SPF 15 for Dry Skin and 1-oz. Soft Clean Tender Creme Cleanser or
  • .25-oz. Hydra Bright Skin-Tone Perfecting Creme for Dry Skin and 1-oz. Perfectly Clean Splash Away Foaming Cleanser
• Your choice of 2 color palettes:
  • Warm Palette with Hydra Lustre Lipstick in Burnished Bronze plus Silky Eyeshadow Duo in Roseberry and Pure Color Eyeshadows in Chocolate and Ivory Box or
  • Cool Palette with Hydra Lustre Lipstick in Tender Mauve plus Silky Eyeshadow Duo in Plum Sugar and Pure Color Eyeshadows in Plum Pop and Pale Moon

Step-Up Bonus Tote! Make your gift even bigger! Add a shiny navy blue tote to your gift with any Estee Lauder purchase of $55.00 or more.

To order your gift, please select one skincare/color combination from the Item menu along with your qualifying purchase; select the tote separately. One gift per person, please, while supplies last.

Nicciknows recommends picking up an Estee Lauder Idealist Pore Minimizing Skin Refinisher ($46.50) to qualify. All items available at Dillards.com.

Nicciknows is Getting Around!

We wanted to share the Nicciknows guest blog on Sephora's beauty blog! Click here to see it. xo

Miracle Oil

                                                   

We recently discovered this gem of a product on a trip to Walgreens. After doing a bit more research, we found out that Bio-Oil has a cult following and we now know why! Its phenomenal! Its a skin care oil that addresses scars, stretch marks, uneven skin tone, aging and dehydrated skin. The active ingredient is PureCellin Oil which helps ensure the targeted delivery of the beneficial ingredients. Those ingredients include Vitamins A and E, Lavendar, Calendula and Rosemary oils and Chamomile.

It's great as a bath oil but we use it as an after-shower moisturizer! At $14.99 for a 4 oz. bottle, you can't afford not to pick this one up! Available at Drugstore.com. 

Lip Fixin'

                                    

A rarely used product that is actually amazingly helpful is a lip primer. This one, called Lip Fix from the Swedish beauty gurus at Face Stockholm, is amazing. Applying a small amount on and around the lip area will not only take out any redness or discoloration; it will also prevent feathering and flaking. It's also great because its a 100% neutral so your lip color will actually be the shade you intended it to be. TIP: a little goes a long way, so you just need a bit. Available for $26 at Face Stockholm.