October 2017

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BEST of

Beauty The Steals, the Breakthroughs, the 283 Products You Want Now

Kim

Kardashian West

Up Close and (Very, Very) Personal

OCTOBER IN THIS ISSUE BEAUTY REPORTER 43 Look We Love: Midas Lids 44 Editors’ Favorites 46 A Case for Popping Pills Instead of Pimples • Great Skin in 10 Minutes

50 RiRi’s Coolest Launch 52 3 Brands Empowering Women • Pretty in Pink: Supporting Breast Cancer Research

54 From Barn to Hair 56 Fortune Favors the Bold (Scent) • A Chic Car Upgrade

FASHION 59 Rare Bird. Shoes that are pretty, pink, and Prada

60 Puff Piece. A new spin on the classic bebop

62 I’m With the Brand.

Wear your heart on your nails.

65 High Gloss. Our editor’s patent picks for fall

36 My Look. Talking Beauty With Ruby Rose. The actress on gender norms.

66 Wellness. The Cannabis Cure. There’s a green taking over the wellness market, and it’s not kale.

146 BEST OF BEAUTY

All the products to get you your best hair, skin, and more

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ALLURE OCTOBER 2017

TANYA AND ZHENYA POSTERNAK

NEWS & TRENDS

OCTOBER 142 Beauty Passport. Magic Mountain. Our executive beauty director hunts for her third eye at the center of Shingon Buddhism.

BEST OF BEAUTY 72 Directory. Our picks for Instagram-worthy nails and transformative haircuts from New York City to Los Angeles.

113 Best Steals. These are the products under $10 that go above and beyond. By Liana Schaffner 121 Behind the Scenes. Allure editors pull back the curtain on Best of Beauty. See how it all goes down!

129 The Big Breakthroughs.

After months of research, we found 14 products worthy of being called game changers. By Katie Becker

146 Best of Beauty. We tested and tested—oh, how we tested.

Meet the 238 products that can officially call themselves the Best of Beauty. By Liana Schaffner 192 Workbook. How to get the most out of this year’s winners.

FEATURES 166 Kim’s Close-Up. The queen of Calabasas doesn’t do presents, unless they’re from her kids. By Devin Friedman

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174 A Letter to My Child.

Letters from writers and beauty experts on beauty, love, and life.

183 Flashback. If you haven’t already raided your mom’s closet, you will now.

BEHIND THE SCENES

We swatched over 200 pounds of makeup so you don’t have to.

86 Background Beauty. Meet the women of Astor Place Hairstylists.

90 Perspective. Beyond Obsession. Kate Moss on her favorite scents and her first love.

99 Phenomenon. The Look of Mormon. What happens when you treat your body like a temple?

106 Health. The Unknowns. As we reflect on breast cancer awareness, there are still strides to be made for trans and nonbinary patients.

REGULARS 12 Allure.com 22 Contributors 26 Cover Look 32 Editor’s Letter 40 Beauty by Numbers 212 Shopping Guide 214 My Dream Kit. Nail artist Jenny Longworth’s dream kit.

Allure Regrets. In “Yes, Queen” [September], Melania Trump was mistakenly referred to as Slovakian instead of Slovenian.

Allure regrets the error.

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ALLURE OCTOBER 2017

LACEY

ON THE COVER

Kim Kardashian’s look can be re-created with the following: Drama Liqui-Pencil Eyeliner in Noir Intense, Dual Finish Highlighter in Sparkling Pêche, Monsieur Big mascara, Sourcils Definicils Eyebrow Pencil in Brun, and L’Absolu Rouge Lipcolor in Amande Sucrée by Lancôme. Photographed by Daniel Jackson. Fashion stylist: Beth Fenton. Hair: Garren of Garren New York. Makeup: Pat McGrath. Manicure: Rica Romain. Set design: Gerard Santos.

ALLURE

Meet Your Personal Shopper The best beauty products of the year are now at your fingertips. The Allure Beauty Assistant makes it easy to shop all 283 Best of Beauty winners right on your phone.

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eady to deal with undereye bags?

We’ve got a product for that.

Want to fill skimpy brows? Yeah, got that one, too. In fact, we’ve got hundreds of editors’ favorite beauty products—all Best of Beauty winners—that’ll make your makeup routine faster, your hair glossier, your skin brighter, and your mental state healthier. Swear. Head to allure.com on your phone or tablet and click on the Allure Beauty Assistant tab. Answer a few questions about your beauty goals and gripes, and we’ll find the perfect masks, moisturizers, and lipstick shades just for you. You can shop them all without leaving the site—or, like, bed.

Are these Best of Beauty winners just right for you? Go to allure.com/beauty-assistant on any mobile device. From left: Marc Jacobs Daisy, RMS Beauty Signature Set Pop Collection, Skinfix Facial Exfoliating Pads, Clarins Joli Rouge Brilliant Lipstick in Soft Berry, and Dr. Jart+ Rubber Mask Bright Lover.

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ALLURE OCTOBER 2017

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: COURTESY OF ALLURE BEAUTY ASSISTANT; CATHY CRAWFORD; COURTESY OF MARC JACOBS; COURTESY OF RMS BEAUTY; COURTESY OF SKINFIX; COURTESY OF CLARINS; COURTESY OF DR. JART+

For fashion credits, see Shopping Guide.

Photographed by Annie Powers.

Fashion editor: Nicole Chapoteau.

Hair: Edward Lampley. Makeup: Toru Sakanishi.

Manicure: Holly Falcone. Model: Aleya Ali.

EDITOR IN CHIEF MICHELLE LEE MANAGING EDITOR AMANDA MEIGHER

B E AU T Y EXECUTIVE BEAUT Y DIRECTOR JENNY BAILLY DEPUT Y BEAUT Y DIRECTOR ELIZABETH SIEGEL

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SENIOR BEAUT Y EDITOR JESSICA CHIA

A sheet mask that leaves behind perfectly applied makeup.

BEAUT Y ASSISTANT KATHLEEN SUICO

V I S UA LS VISUALS DIRECTOR RHIANNA RULE

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BOOKINGS DIRECTOR RO PENULIAR SENIOR VISUALS EDITOR JACQUELINE LADNER VISUALS EDITOR JAMES CLARIZIO ASSOCIATE VISUALS EDITORS HANNAH CHOI, DANA DAVENPORT ASSISTANT VISUALS EDITOR PAIGE VITI

R E S E A RC H RESEARCH DIRECTOR LORI SEGAL RESEARCH MANAGERS AMBER ANGELLE, CRISTINA RIVERA

DIGITAL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR PHILLIP PICARDI

FAS H I O N FASHION DIRECTOR NICOLE CHAPOTEAU FASHION MARKET EDITOR JENNA WOJCIECHOWSKI

A RT I C L E S ASSOCIATE EDITOR LOREN SAVINI EDITORIAL ASSISTANT JESA MARIE CALAOR

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A RT SENIOR ART DIRECTOR NICOLE ARGENTO

A painless at-home waxing kit.

ASSOCIATE ART DIRECTOR KATELYN BAKER DIGITAL DESIGNER MARIA ASARE-BOADI

P RO D U CT I O N DEPUT Y MANAGING EDITOR NICOLE STUART DEPUT Y PRODUCTION DIRECTOR MATT CARSON PRODUCTION MANAGER BRENT BURKET

C O PY COPY DIRECTOR CATHERINE GAMBRELL COPY MANAGERS AURA DAVIES, LESLIE LIPTON

A L LU R E .C O M DEPUT Y DIGITAL EDITOR SAM ESCOBAR DIGITAL DEPUT Y BEAUT Y DIRECTOR SOPHIA PANYCH DIGITAL BEAUT Y EDITOR SABLE YONG DIGITAL WELLNESS EDITOR HAYLEY M AC MILLEN DIGITAL EDITORS JIHAN FORBES, SARAH KINONEN

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A translucent highlighter that shifts to rainbow hues when the light hits it.

DIGITAL PRODUCTION MANAGER MONICA PERRY SENIOR VIDEO PRODUCER MAYA MARGOLINA BEAUT Y REPORTER DEVON ABELMAN

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EXECUTIVE EDITOR DANIELLE PERGAMENT

CREATIVE DIRECTOR MARIE SUTER

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What breakthrough would you like to see?

ASSOCIATE DIGITAL EDITOR KALEIGH FASANELLA ASSOCIATE PREDITOR ANNA ST YPKO DIGITAL EDITORIAL ASSISTANT SHAMMARA LAWRENCE PRODUCT MANAGER CHELSEA FARNAM ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT LINDSAY SANSONE ANALY TICS MANAGER TULIKA SINGH

SOCIAL SOCIAL MEDIA DIRECTOR TERRON MOORE SENIOR SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER RAWAN EEWSHAH SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER REBECCA SHINNERS ASSOCIATE SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER LARA ADEKOLA

CONTRIBUTING EDITORIAL PROJECTS DIRECTOR PATRICIA ALFONSO TORTOLANI CONTRIBUTING EDITORS JILLIAN DEMPSEY, DAVID DENICOLO, MEIRAV DEVASH, JOLENE EDGAR, FRANCIS KURKDJIAN, BROOKE LE POER TRENCH, CHRIS McMILLAN, JANET MOCK, JAIME MARSANICO, LIANA SCHAFFNER

CONTRIBUTING ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR LAURA MORGAN SPECIAL PROJECTS EDITOR MEGAN SALERNO ASSISTANT BUSINESS MANAGER TAYLOR SHEA

FO U N D I N G E D I TO R LINDA WELLS

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR ANNA WINTOUR

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CHIEF BUSINESS OFFICER KIMBERLY KELLEHER VICE PRESIDENTS, REVENUE AMY OELKERS, HEDDY SAMS PIERSON, LAURA SEQUENZIA VICE PRESIDENT, FINANCE & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CHRISTINE DIPRESSO MORRA VICE PRESIDENTS, MARKETING JENNY BOWMAN, JILL STEINBACH FRIEDSON

A DV E RT I S I N G EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS KIM CONWAY HALEY, LAUREN DECKER LERMAN

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR– FASHION, JEWELRY & WATCH SARAH YORK RICHARDS DIRECTOR CARLY GRESH MANAGER ALEXANDRIA HAUGHEY EXECUTIVE SOUTHWEST DIRECTOR EZRA SEAN ALVAREZ 323-965-3564 EXECUTIVE MIDWEST DIRECTORS CHRISTINA KROLOPP 312-649-6731 ANGIE PACKARD PRENDERGAST 312-649-3509 NEW ENGLAND KRISTIN HAVENS 585-255-0207

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DIRECT RESPONSE REBECCA VOLK 800-753-5370 EXT. 489

A treatment that can heal cold sores in a day.

ITALY ELENA DE GIULI 011-39-02-655-84223 U.K./FRANCE SELIM MATARACI 011-33-1-44-78-00-62 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, FINANCE JANICE TRICHON

CONTENT MARKETING & PA RT N E RS H I PS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CONTENT MARKETING ALEXIS WALL EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC SAMPLING & E-COMMERCE LEAH ASHLEY STRATEGIC SAMPLING MANAGER NICOLE SAFIR

I N T EG R AT E D M A R K E T I N G & C R E AT I V E S E RV I C E S EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR ERIN BRENNAN DESIGN DIRECTOR MARIS BODELL

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Heat-free, healthy blowouts and 3D-printed lip color.

SENIOR DIRECTORS STEFENI BELLOCK, CHRIS MANCIVALANO

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What breakthrough would you like to see?

SENIOR MANAGER MALLORY MILLER

M A R K E T I N G S E RV I C E S SENIOR DIRECTOR, MARKETING INTELLIGENCE JENNIFER FRIEDMAN PEREZ ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR, EXPERIENCES SAMANTHA DANA

SENIOR BUSINESS DIRECTOR SHERRI GINSBERG BUSINESS ASSOCIATE CAROLINE GRANGER

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INTEGRATED ASSISTANTS ZUIE BILLINGS, CARA KURICA

P U B L I S H E D BY C O N D É N AST CHAIRMAN EMERITUS S. I. NEWHOUSE , JR. PRESIDENT & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER ROBERT A . SAUERBERG, JR. CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER DAVID E . GEITHNER CHIEF BUSINESS OFFICER & PRESIDENT OF REVENUE JAMES M. NORTON EVP & CHIEF DIGITAL OFFICER FRED SANTARPIA CHIEF HUMAN RESOURCES OFFICER JOANN MURRAY CHIEF COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER CAMERON R. BLANCHARD CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER EDWARD CUDAHY EVP–CONSUMER MARKETING MONICA RAY CHIEF EXPERIENCE OFFICER JOSH STINCHCOMB CHIEF REVENUE OFFICER, INDUSTRY SALES, CONDÉ NAST LISA VALENTINO SVP–FINANCIAL PLANNING & ANALYSIS SUZANNE REINHARDT SVP–AD PRODUCTS & MONETIZATION DAVID ADAMS SVP–LICENSING CATHY HOFFMAN GLOSSER SVP–RESEARCH & ANALY TICS STEPHANIE FRIED SVP–DIGITAL OPERATIONS LARRY BAACH SVP–HUMAN RESOURCES NICOLE ZUSSMAN GENERAL MANAGER–DIGITAL MATTHEW STARKER HEAD CREATIVE DIRECTOR RAÚL MARTINEZ

C O N D É N AST E N T E RTA I N M E N T PRESIDENT DAWN OSTROFF EVP/GENERAL MANAGER, DIGITAL VIDEO JOY MARCUS EVP & CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER SAHAR ELHABASHI EVP–MOTION PICTURES JEREMY STECKLER EVP–ALTERNATIVE T V JOE LABRACIO EVP–CNÉ STUDIOS AL EDGINGTON SVP–MARKETING & PARTNER MANAGEMENT TEAL NEWLAND

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C O N D É N AST I N T E R N AT I O N A L CHAIRMAN AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE JONATHAN NEWHOUSE PRESIDENT WOLFGANG BLAU

Condé Nast is a global media company producing premium content for more than 263 million consumers in 30 markets.

CONDENAST.COM CONDENASTINTERNATIONAL .COM

CONTRIBUTORS

THE WIZARDESS

Above, from left: Pat McGrath Labs Lust MatteTrance lipstick in Antidote and Skin Fetish 003 pigment in Iridescent Pink; surrealist lips at Maison Margiela spring 2016; a gilded mouth at Prada spring 2016.

Welcome to the fantastical world of legendary makeup artist Pat McGrath.

Cat eyes made of gold thread and silver pigment at the Viktor & Rolf spring 2017 couture show. Below: Pat McGrath Labs Lust 004 lip kit.

T

he pandemonium that is backstage at a fashion show is always punctuated by a beacon of calm: the woman in black (from headband to sensible shoes) who is somehow making the most stunning women in the world look more spectacular. The transformation might happen with a mask made out of hundreds of handplaced sequins (as in Givenchy’s spring 2014 show, above) or maybe it’s just a few dabs of perfectly placed concealer (looking at you, Calvin Klein Collection fall 2010). No matter her tool, the woman in black is a magician. Pat McGrath has worked with our cover star Kim Kardashian West as well as Gisele Bündchen, Naomi Campbell, and every major designer and photographer on the planet. Give or take. To say she is in demand is like saying our current president likes to dabble in Twitter. In 2015 McGrath created her own line, Pat McGrath Labs. After several limited-edition blink-and-you’ll-miss-them kits (like Lust 004 and Skin Fetish 003), this month she’s launching a core collection—eye and lip pencils, shadow palettes, dozens of lipsticks, and a mascara. “Everything comes from my obsessions, my addictions, and my inspirations,” she says. We expect to be as obsessed, addicted, and inspired as she was. —JESA MARIE CALAOR

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: LUCA CANNONIERI; LUCAS VISSER; JOSEPHINE SCHIELE; JASON LLOYD-EVANS (2); LIAM GOODMAN; JASON LLOYD-EVANS (2)

McGrath and Vlada Roslyakova at the Dior fall 2010 couture show

COVER LOOK

On the memories behind the shoots.

From left: Allure, March 2012; W, November 2010; Vogue, April 2014.

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M

ost of us have family albums; Kim Kardashian West has magazine covers. And OK, there aren’t any embarrassing braces pictures in her retrospective, but there were some awkward moments along the way. “I was so nervous,” says Kardashian West of her 2012 Allure cover. “Like, oh, my God, I hardly have any makeup on. This is so not my comfort zone.” It was nothing compared to shooting for W in 2010: “I was so upset when that came out. Even though I’d done Playboy, I was crying about this,” says Kardashian West. “I thought, I’m naked for my first fashion shoot? But it’s one of my favorite covers now.” Fast-forward to 2014, and her Vogue cover hid a beautiful secret: “I was pregnant here with my son,” she says. “We took [the picture] in my mom’s backyard. This is an Alber Elbaz Lanvin dress—he let me keep it, so I have that in my archive, which is super cool.”

Above: Fifi Chachnil sweater.

Fleur of England bra.

Details, see Shopping Guide.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: DANIEL JACKSON; ANNIE LEIBOVITZ; MARK SELIGER; NORMAN JEAN ROY

KIM KARDASHIAN WEST

COVER LOOK

BEAUTY LESSON

Let’s Talk About Those Eyes

Kardashian West’s look can be re-created with Dual Finish Highlighter in Sparkling Pêche (right), Sourcils Definicils Eyebrow Pencil in Brun, Drama Liqui-Pencil Eyeliner in Noir Intense, Monsieur Big mascara (above), and L’Absolu Rouge Lipcolor in Amande Sucrée by Lancôme.

Watch what happens when Kardashian West answers our burning questions— while getting a foot massage— at allure.com/kim.

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FROM TOP: DANIEL JACKSON; JOSEPHINE SCHIELE (2)

The world’s most famous makeup artist took out her brushes, studied the world’s most famous face—and it’s a miracle our set didn’t implode. What did happen: Pat McGrath began blending a smoky eye that was 90 percent elegance and 10 percent seduction. To get the same ratio, draw the shape in pencil first, then buff the color up and out with powder.

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR

I snapped this pic inside Wu’s apartment, which looks—and smells—exactly how you’d expect a fashion designer’s space would.

recently spent the afternoon at designer Jason Wu’s apartment, where he showed me his beautiful new fragrance a few months before its release. He explained that the bottle design, the notes of jasmine and fig, everything was connected to a memory in his life— the entire project was deeply personal.

We often talk about how emotional a scent can be: Smelling Chanel No. 5 brings me back to spraying it for the first time in my mother’s bedroom (for the record, she never wore it…someone had given her the bottle, and it sat on display on her dresser for years). Similarly, one sharp whiff of perm solution transports me straight back to my middleschool mall-perm days (check out the throwback image above).

I had a similar time-travel experience during a meeting with the new H2O+ team when they opened a jar of their bright blue Oasis gel, which I’d buy from the Trumbull mall in Connecticut decades ago and is finding new fans 25 years later. I sat in a boardroom, surrounded by executives, with my face stuffed in this jar for a full minute because I couldn’t get over it.

Our sense of smell is keenly connected to memory, but thinking back on my life in beauty, I recognize that other products can also bring me way back. A handful of products become an indelible part of our memories: I vividly remember the dull, waxy taste of the first lipstick I wore during a childhood dance recital and the cold, medicinal tingle of Noxzema, which made me feel so grown-up as an adolescent.

For this issue, featuring our 21st Allure Best of Beauty Awards, we sprayed, slathered, and swiped thousands of products to whittle the list down to 283 winners. Some people may look at them and see a shopping list; others may see inspiration. I look at the list of winners, and I see dozens of new memories I’m going to be making very soon.

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Michelle Lee, Editor in Chief @heymichellelee

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: MICHELLE LEE; HANNAH CHOI; COURTESY OF MICHELLE LEE

HISTORY IN THE MAKING

MY LOOK

Cotton poplin top by Tod’s.

Makeup colors (also shown below): Perversion Eye Pen and Vice Lipstick in 1993 by Urban Decay. Details, see Shopping Guide. These pages: Fashion stylist, Tiff Horn. Hair: Rachel Lee. Makeup: Beau Nelson.

Prop stylist: Ali Gallagher.

WITH

RUBY ROSE Model and actress Ruby Rose knows she doesn’t fit into your preconceived notion, and that’s exactly how she likes it.

When I was still in school, I followed all of the trends. I wore messy eyeliner and SPF 80 when I listened to Nirvana. I stopped wearing eyeliner completely when I discovered Annie Lennox and Sinéad O’Connor. And you can imagine all the makeup I wore in my Madonna, Bowie, and Blondie phase. I had dress-up parties, scoured thrift shops, and experimented with hair colors. Plus, my mum was and is a megababe, and she taught me to be expressive through fashion and art and makeup. She raised me in an environment where everyone was embraced for their quirks and idiosyncrasies. She taught me to have a sense of self and identity.

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ROGER CABELLO (EYELINER); GORMAN STUDIO (BLUSH)

talking beauty

photographed by emman montalvan

MY LOOK

feeling more glamorous and more feminine. I’ll want to wear high heels and a dress. Or I’ll feel the most beautiful at a photo shoot with a great glam team.

I think it’s become a much more open playing field. Makeup brands aren’t just marketing to one gender anymore. We have more freedom in how we want to express ourselves.

That’s what gender fluidity is for me.

Gender isn’t a defining factor of who I am.

My story isn’t traditional, nor has it been easy, but I wouldn’t change a thing. I’ve always been vocal about the aspects of my life that I believe can help people through their journeys, even if it’s just so that they can hear they’re not alone. My sexuality has been highly publicized, and I’m grateful that I’ve been able to help others by sharing my triumphs and struggles.

What does inner beauty look like to me? Inner beauty is the X factor.

It’s an essence or an authenticity.

You can just feel it, and it can’t be faked. The meaning of beauty is so unique to each individual. Just put the work in—and lead with love.

w

—AS TOLD TO LOREN SAVINI

Top left: hat by Stephen Jones for Marc Jacobs. Makeup colors: eye shadow in Armor (from the Nocturnal Shadow Box palette) and Vice Liquid Lipstick in Trivial by Urban Decay. Above: wool coat by Stella McCartney. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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JOSEPHINE SCHIELE (STILL LIFE)

hen I was 16 and graduated from primary school to high school, I felt like I was getting a lot of attention that I didn’t know how to handle. I thought if I shaved off my long hair, people would stop looking at me.

The logic behind it was strange, and of course it didn’t quite work out that way. But it was still so liberating. It sounds cliché, but you should just see beauty within yourself. You see it when you’re happiest and healthiest. Then it radiates outward. I learned to just embrace who I am as a person and to do what makes me feel the most comfortable.

For me, that means a kind of gender fluidity.

I never felt like I fit into the social constructs of gender. I never fit into those boxes. It’s just about paying close attention to how I feel from day to day. Sometimes I wake up and I feel more boyish and masculine, and that’s what makes me feel the most beautiful and the most confident on that particular day. But the next day, I might wake up

I never felt like I fit into the social constructs of gender.

To find out Ruby Rose’s favorite red carpet beauty moments, head to allure.com/ruby-rose.

BEAUT Y BY NUMBERS

PINK

18th

It’s the color you get by simply mixing red with white, but pink has come to represent far more than the sum of its parts. —JESA MARIE CALAOR

210

Yards of pink yarn needed to make an official Pussyhat Project knitted cap, the style made famous by millions of activists at the Women’s March on Washington, D.C.

2016

Year Pantone selected rose quartz as the symbol of the cultural zeitgeist.

The shade is now known as millennial pink.

$2,714

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Percent increase in the amount of millennialpink merchandise that will hit retailers such as ASOS and Urban Outfitters this year.

The cost (at press time) of a one-night stay at the Eaton House Studio, a six-bedroom mansion in the United Kingdom that has rooms decorated in all pink (including chandeliers and chaise lounges).

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4

Number of different pigments used to create a bullet of Nars lipstick in Schiap, a hot pink inspired by Elsa Schiaparelli.

FERNANDO GOMEZ/THELICENSINGPROJECT.COM

1,120,000

Number of hours of Breast Cancer Research Foundation work that the Estée Lauder Companies’ Breast Cancer Campaign has funded through the sale of pink products, donations, and other channels.

Century men wore pink suits because the color was a diminutive of “warlike” red.

look we love

JOSEPHINE SCHIELE (STILL LIFE)

golden eye Imagine a beautiful, quasi-mythical creature. She resides amid the chaparral of the Mojave Desert.

Travelers beware, locals say. She comes out at sunset, stalks the blistered earth, and stops onlookers in their tracks with a blink of her glowing eyes. If you survive her sultry gaze, this is what you will see: eyelids awash in glimmering gold shadow, cheeks as sweet and rosy as a cactus flower, and a simple touch of gloss.

It’s the stuff of legend, you might say. —LOREN SAVINI Makeup artist Deanna Melluso used her ring finger (the gentlest) to tap Make Up For Ever Color Cream in Gold onto our model’s lids, all the way up to the brow bone. She then used a blending brush to press on another layer of the shadow for a truly solid-gold effect.

photographed by colin leaman

BEAUTY REPORTER

T H E B E AU T Y N E W S YO U N E E D T O K N O W N O W

Earrings by R. J. Graziano. Details, see Shopping Guide. Fashion editor: Nicole Chapoteau. Makeup: Deanna Melluso. Hair: Sabrina Szinay. Manicure: Yukie Miyakawa. Model: Ewa Wladymiruk.

OCTOBER 2017 ALLURE

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BEAUT Y REPORTER Maybelline New York Color Sensational Matte Metallics.

Micronized pearls give these rich matte lipsticks an I-don’teven-need-good-lighting luster. $7.49 each.

Essie nail polish in Knee-High Life. A ’90s-inspired rich berry for when you’re listening to Nirvana’s “Heart-Shaped Box.” Or a Calvin Harris remix. $9.

Jason Wu eau de parfum. Wu always sends at least one floral piece down the runway. This season, he has a take on jasmine that you can easily wear with (or without) anything else in your closet. $145 for 3 ounces.

Clockwise from top: White Gold, Serpentine, Gunmetal, Copper Spark, Pure Gold, and Smoked Silver.

EDITORS’ FAVORITES

Merle Norman 24K Gold Firming Foundation Primer. Copper peptides and biopolymers firm and smooth the skin; gold flakes...look real, real fancy. $50.

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Elizabeth Arden Flawless Finish Everyday Perfection Bouncy Makeup.

Gel polymers in this powder foundation make it feel irresistibly soft in the compact and weightless on skin. $39.50.

Man Ray for Nars Glass Tears Eyeshadow Palette.

A sexy, smoldering palette made even more dramatic and exciting by its cover art: Man Ray’s iconic Glass Tears photograph. $49.

JOSEPHINE SCHIELE

Balmain Golden Styling Comb.

Do we need a 24-karat-goldplated Balmain comb?

Uh, yes. Yes, we do. Next question. $50.

THE STUFF WE PLAN TO STEAL FROM THE BEAUTY CLOSET WHEN NO ONE’S LOOKING.

BEAUT Y REPORTER

14

Number of days your skin maintains its newfound smoothness after a microdermabrasion treatment, according to a study in Skin Research and Technology.

MY SECRET WEAPON

EASY TO SWALLOW

Why more and more women are popping pills in the name of perfect skin.

I

’ve been taking a blood pressure medication for two years. Because I want better skin. Let me explain: It’s a pill called spironolactone, and it also blocks androgen hormones from stimulating oil glands.

New York City dermatologist Joshua Zeichner prescribed it (off-label) to control my T-zone breakouts; my skin was gloriously clear within a few weeks. I’ve continued to take a 50-milligram dose every day since—along with seemingly every other woman I know under 40 (and her sister). “It’s one of the best treatments we have for adult acne in women, even for patients who don’t respond to Accutane,” says Zeichner. Dermatologists across the country are just as bullish. “It’s easy, effective, and relatively inexpensive,” says Beverly Hills dermatologist Ava Shamban. (With insurance, mine is $10 a month.) Doctors find spironolactone tackles acne best in women between 18 and 45 whose breakouts flare up on the jawline, upper neck, chest, and back. Miami dermatologist Manjula Jegasothy credits its current popularity (it has been prescribed for acne for more than 10 years) to recent findings that there are virtually no risks if you’re healthy and not pregnant. And the benefits may last long after the prescription runs out. “A patient’s skin will often self-regulate after six months to a year of spironolactone treatment and stay clear on its own,” says Shamban. —JESSICA CHIA

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“It softens the skin and increases circulation to make you look radiant and fresh,” says makeup artist Vincent Oquendo, who works with Bella Hadid, Ashley Graham, and Sara Sampaio. He recommends exfoliating and toning before an 8- to 10-minute steam. (Then follow up with a facial oil or hyaluronic acid serum.)

“After that, I can almost send a client out on the red carpet without makeup—it changes the texture of the skin,” says Oquendo. —J. C.

Don’t stick your face in the pink saucer (we tried)—hold it five to seven inches away instead. $129.99.

FROM TOP: KARINA TWISS/TRUNK ARCHIVE; HANNAH WHITAKER (PROP STYLIST: RACHEL HAAS)

Panasonic Facial Ionic Steamer

afp://tabletserver.advancemags.com/AllureTablet/ MD/2017/1017/PDF_EDITION/Inserts/Final_Inserts/ AL000_Prada_01.pdf

BEAUT Y REPORTER

Above: Rihanna wearing the line’s Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation in 340, Match Stix Matte Skinsticks in Caramel and Honey, Match Stix Shimmer Skinstick in Sinamon, and Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer for the campaign shoot.

CHANGING HER TUNE If you’re Rihanna, what can you do to keep shocking people? Well, a stunningly simple and clean makeup line is a good place to start.

By Jessica Chia

Fenty Beauty by Rihanna Match Stix Shimmer Skinsticks in (from top) Trippin, Blonde, and Confetti

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here she is with talon-like nails.

A half-shaved head. Magenta flushing her cheeks and temples and forehead and lids. Rihanna is the ultimate rule breaker, you might think. But you’d be wrong.

Rule one: A complexion must never be shiny. Two: Eye shadow is too expected. Gild lids in highlighter instead. Three: No color or culture gets left out. It was with those parameters in mind that Rihanna dreamed up her new Fenty Beauty line. (As she’s done with fashion collections, she lent it her lesspublicized surname.) The results are 40 shades of velvety-matte foundation, a spectrum of pigmented apply-anywhere sticks, several ultrapearly highlighters, a shark’s-tooth-shaped brush, and a single, neutral lip gloss. “My lifelong obsession with makeup started with watching my mom put on her makeup. I always loved to watch her and all the funny faces she was making in the mirror,” says Rihanna. “I never understood it until I got older and fell in love with makeup myself and started going to Sephora one too many times.” Looks like we’ll be following suit.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP RIGHT: COURTESY OF FENTY BEAUTY; JOSEPHINE SCHIELE (2)

Left, clockwise from top left: Fenty Beauty by Rihanna Match Stix Shimmer Skinsticks in Chili Mango, Unicorn, and Ridiiic, Match Stix Matte Skinstick in Suede, Invisimatte Blotting Powder, Portable Touch Up Brush, Killawatt Freestyle Highlighter in Trophy Wife, Pro Filt’r Soft Matte Longwear Foundation in 430, and Gloss Bomb Universal Lip Luminizer in Fenty Glow.

BEAUT Y REPORTER

I’M WITH HER

E The late Maya Angelou with Gloria Steinem marching on the 20th anniversary of the 1963 Civil Rights March on Washington, D.C. Steinem also marched—and spoke—during this year’s Women’s March on Washington.

High Marks It’s one thing to throw on a pink ribbon and call yourself an activist.

It’s quite another to do what these brands are doing: giving over 50 percent of profits during October to breast cancer treatment and research. A big round to the companies behind Ralph Lauren Romance, Estée Lauder Pink Ribbon Knockout Eyes Collection, and Ulta Beauty Hopes & Dreams Eye Mask.

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very day of every year, these three brands put profits directly into the hands of organizations that better women’s lives.

Make Beauty: Donates 10 percent of its sales to the We See Beauty Foundation, a nonprofit that connects female entrepreneurs to businessdevelopment opportunities. Philosophy: Uses 1 percent of its net sales in the U.S. (don’t scoff—that’s $3 million to date) to provide direct mental health care and resources to women through its Hope & Grace Fund. Beautiful Rights: Gives 20 percent of the sales of its lipsticks and glosses to one of five organizations that support women, including Planned Parenthood and the American Civil Liberties Union.

—JESA MARIE CALAOR

perfume and Purity Made Simple Micellar Cleansing Water; Make Beauty Skin Illuminating Primer, New Medieval Palette, and Silk Cream Lipstick in Scarlet; and Beautiful Rights Gloss Ceiling lip gloss and Pantsuit Pink lipstick.

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT: JAMES M. THRESHER/THE WASHINGTON POST VIA GETTY IMAGES; JOSEPHINE SCHIELE (2)

When is buying lipstick an act of female empowerment?

When it’s from a company that gives generously to groups that support women.

BEAUT Y REPORTER

ALL THE PRETTY HORSES THE BACK STORY

Mane ‘n Tail president Devon B. Katzev talks about the discovery that catapulted his family from the stables to the beauty world.

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Above: Mane ‘n Tail The Original Shampoo and Conditioner, $4.99 each.

GRAHAM POLLACK (PROP STYLIST: RACHEL HAAS)

M

y parents bred and showed Arabian horses in the ’60s and ’70s. Back then a lot of people were washing their horses with harsh dishwashing detergents. We decided to make a really good conditioner instead—horse hair is three times thicker than human hair, and horses are exposed to the sun for most of the day, so it can dry out easily. We mixed coconut oil, vegetable oil, and proteins and put it on our horses’ manes and tails. People would see their shiny, full hair and say, “Wow, what are you guys doing to your horses?” The conditioner took off from there. We mixed it on our farm and sold it to other breeders out of the back of a pickup truck. Instead of coming home from school and doing other things, I was making horse-hair conditioner in our kitchen sink. More and more people started calling us up and asking, “Can I try this stuff on myself?” And we thought, Why not? In 1985, we made the shampoo and started marketing for humans, too, and selling in drugstores. The conditioner had already built up such a following in the equine industry, and we just plowed right into the beauty business.

Now we’re in pet stores, and tractor-supply stores, and Sally Beauty. It sets us apart. You won’t find Oribe at the tack shop. —AS TOLD TO LOREN SAVINI

TA K I N G N OT E S

SECOND COMINGS

BEAUT Y REPORTER

Familiar scents are back—and bolder.

From left: Kenzo Kenzo World Intense, Prada La Femme Prada Intense, and Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue Eau Intense.

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es, you have seen these bottles before. But look closer. Prada La Femme has traded its white leather sleeve for a raspberry one.

Kenzo World’s ice-pale evil eye now flashes a deep indigo.

Dolce & Gabbana’s Light Blue is, well, light blue—but slightly darker (squint a little). Unlike a TV spin-off, these sequels aren’t diluted versions of the originals: They take the story line up a notch.

They’re what perfumers call intenses, and they involve adding more of whatever made the original what it is. Prada’s La Femme Prada has amped up the tuberose and entwined its ylang-ylang with patchouli. Kenzo’s Intense doubles down on plum and vanilla, making it more sweetly addictive. The extreme version of Light Blue sharpens its citrus notes—the green apple has been soaked in lemon. With options like this, who wouldn’t want seconds? —JESSICA CHIA

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Diptyque Un Air de Diptyque car diffuser

JOSEPHINE SCHIELE

That New-Car Smell What’s shaped like a pine tree and smells like bad aftershave? Only 97.9 percent of all car air fresheners. A major outlier: Diptyque’s new car diffuser, which wafts your choice of seven of its cult-classic scents, like Baies and Figuier. Its Art Deco–esque design isn’t just pretty— it clips compactly onto your air vent and cleverly slides open or shut to control just how perfumy your car gets. Is it worth $50? We’ll say this: It’s the only thing that will ever make your Subaru feel like J.Lo’s dressing room. (Rumor is Figuier’s on her rider.) —ELIZABETH SIEGEL

shop like a

b eEDITOR aut y

PRODUCED BY

WITH

DISCOVER THE AWARD WINNERS IN EACH EDITOR’S PERSONAL STASH. ULTA BEAUTY CARRIES MORE BEST OF BEAUTY WINNERS THAN ANY OTHER RETAILER!

Sally Hansen Miracle Gel $9.99

Skinfix Facial Exfoliating Pads $24.99 online only

MICHELLE LEE

Neutrogena Light Therapy Acne Mask $39.99

EDITOR IN CHIEF There isn’t a K-beauty product I won’t test (yes, even snail mucin) or a cat-eye liner trick I won’t try (do you have one?).

Currently obsessing over: DIY nail art.

“I HAD A RECENT BOUT WITH ACNE AND LOVE THAT THIS MASK TAKES CARE OF IT WITH JUST...LIGHT. PLUS, I GOTTA ADMIT IT’S FUN TO WEAR AND SCARE THE KIDS.” PRODUCED BY

Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics $54

Tweezerman Slant Tweezer $23

WITH

AVAILABLE AT ULTA BEAUTY STORES AND ULTA.COM/ALLURE-BEST

Maybelline New York Baby Lips Color Balm Crayon $6.99

Skinfix Foaming Clay Cleanser $14.99 online only Nars Soft Matte Complete Concealer $30

PATRICIA ALFONSO TORTOLANI

CONTRIBUTING EDITORIAL PROJECTS DIRECTOR I prefer cutoffs to conference calls.

Beach waves to blowouts.

When I’m not at the office, I’m on my paddle board, chasing the sun, and obsessively reapplying my SPF.

La Roche-Posay Anthelios Clear Skin Dry Touch Sunscreen SPF 60 $19.99

Honest Beauty Beyond Hydrated Moisture Milk Leave-In Conditioner $20 Aveeno Absolutely Ageless Intensive Renewal Serum $21.99

PRODUCED BY

“I DON’T EVER LEAVE THE HOUSE WITHOUT IT. I PUT IT ON MY FACE AND NECK, CHEST, EVEN HANDS.”

WITH

AVAILABLE AT ULTA BEAUTY STORES AND ULTA.COM/ALLURE-BEST

L’Oréal Paris Voluminous Lash Paradise $9.99

Aveeno Positively Radiant 60 Second In-Shower Facial $7.99

Shiseido Benefiance WrinkleResist24 Pure Retinol Eye Mask $17.50

JENNY BAILLY

EXECUTIVE BEAUTY DIRECTOR Motherhood has taught me so much—most importantly, the art of single-handed mid-commute makeup application and stretching a blowout for more days than I’d like to admit.

dpHUE Root Touch-Up $30

Elizabeth Arden Prevage City Smart SPF 50 Hydrating Shield $68

PRODUCED BY

“I LIKE ANY BEAUTY TREATMENT I CAN DO WHILE I’M DOING THREE OTHER THINGS. I WEAR THESE MASKS FOR 20 MINUTES WHILE I MAKE LUNCHES, BRUSH MY TEETH, AND CONVINCE A CERTAIN FOURYEAR-OLD TO WEAR PANTS TO SCHOOL.”

WITH

AVAILABLE AT ULTA BEAUTY STORES AND ULTA.COM/ALLURE-BEST

Jergens Natural Glow Wet Skin Moisturizer $9.99

Julep Love Your Bare Face Detoxifying Cleansing Stick $28

Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz $21

JIHAN FORBES

DIGITAL EDITOR Pointy-toe flats, flippy skirts, and fluttery lashes— I don’t apologize for being a girlie girl.

If you have an hour, ask me about my current deepconditioning routine.

Clinique Pop Matte Lip Colour + Primer in Shock Pop $18.50

“I LOVE FOR MY LASHES TO STAND OUT, AND LANCÔME MONSIEUR BIG REALLY GIVES ME THE KIND THAT MAKE YOU WANT TO SIT UP AND NOTICE.” PRODUCED BY

Lancôme Monsieur Big Mascara $25

WITH

AVAILABLE AT ULTA BEAUTY STORES AND ULTA.COM/ALLURE-BEST

Garnier SkinActive Moisture Bomb The Super Hydrating Sheet Mask $3.99

SAM ESCOBAR

DEPUTY DIGITAL EDITOR As a gendernonconforming person, I like to play around with how I present myself.

That might mean meticulous cat-eye liner one day and putting body glitter on my unshaved legs the next.

Tarte Tarteist Pro Lash Adhesive $9

Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Tint $14.99

“IT’S RARE YOU COME ACROSS A PRODUCT THAT SO MANY BEAUTY EXPERTS AGREE IS ACTUALLY REVOLUTIONARY— AND TRUST ME, THIS ONE IS.” PRODUCED BY

Dyson Supersonic Hair Dryer $399.99 available online and in select stores

WITH

AVAILABLE AT ULTA BEAUTY STORES AND ULTA.COM/ALLURE-BEST

L’Oréal Paris Infallible Paints Eyeliner in Electric Blue $9.99

Alterna Caviar CC Cream $42

SABLE YONG

DIGITAL BEAUTY EDITOR I’ve done emo, I’ve done grunge, and I’ve done punk— sometimes all three at once! But I always wash my face before bed; smudgy eyeliner doesn’t look better the next day.

Rimmel London Oh My Gloss!

Oil Tint $5.99

NYX Away We Glow Liquid Highlighter $6.99

Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Wild Ginger Texturizing Sea Spray $19.99

PRODUCED BY

“YOU CAN SHEER IT OUT BY MIXING IT WITH MOISTURIZER FOR A SUBTLE GLOW OR TARGET AREAS FOR THAT STROBED LOOK.”

WITH

AVAILABLE AT ULTA BEAUTY STORES AND ULTA.COM/ALLURE-BEST

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Pink a Card $7.99 Benefit Gimme Brow $24

Maybelline New York Curvitude Liner $8.99

SOPHIA PANYCH

DIGITAL DEPUTY BEAUTY DIRECTOR Oh, to be a French girl. I’m NYC-based but a connoisseur of all things Parisian, including imperfectly applied red lips, moody eye makeup, and the flakiest pain au chocolat.

Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water All-in-1 Cleanser & Makeup Remover $8.99

Yves Saint Laurent Mon Paris $122 for 3 oz.

“THE SEXY, SPARKLY FLORAL SCENT REMINDS ME OF LATE NIGHTS IN PARIS SIPPING CHAMPAGNE UNDER THE TWINKLING LIGHTS OF THE EIFFEL TOWER.”

PRODUCED BY

WITH

AVAILABLE AT ULTA BEAUTY STORES AND ULTA.COM/ALLURE-BEST

cult object Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird!

It’s a plane! It’s a super sexy pair of Prada sandals in electrifying pink with a big, chunky heel and wild, sassy plumage!

PROP STYLIST: RACHEL HAAS

photographed by maxime poiblanc

FASHION NOTES

rare bird

Prada satin-and-feather sandals, price available upon request, at select Prada stores.

OCTOBER 2017 ALLURE

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NOTES: EXTRAS

Photographed by Ward + Kweskin

They have all the fluff of a Seussian accessory— and enough whimsy to make the good doctor proud.

Above left, on Noah Samassa: hat by Coach 1941. Fauxshearling jacket by Miu Miu. Polyester crepe dress by A Détacher. Makeup colors: Nourishing Eyeliner in Soft Black and Lipstick in Sunset Cruise by Burt’s Bees. Above right, on Emma Surmon: hat by Miu Miu. Wool jacket by Coach 1941. Knit top by Acne Studios.

Makeup colors: Healthy Skin Blends Powder in Clean and MoistureSmooth Color Stick in Raspberry by Neutrogena.

Details, see Shopping Guide.

Fashion stylist: Haley Loewenthal. Hair: David Cruz.

Makeup: Katie Mellinger.

Manicure: Megumi Yamamoto.

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MIU MIU

MARC JACOBS

MARC JACOBS

MIU MIU

MAISON MARGIELA

FROM LEFT: UMBERTO FRATINI/INDIGITAL.TV; MONICA FEUDI (2); UMBERTO FRATINI/INDIGITAL.TV; YANNIS VLAMOS/INDIGITAL.TV

PUFF PIECE

NOTES: EXTRAS

I’M WITH THE BRAND

Call us groupies; call us fangirls. Our latest obsession is wearing graphic logos where the world can see them: on our fingertips.

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Photographed by David Brandon Geeting

Clockwise from top: canvas bag by Gucci. Nail colors: Zoya in Willa, Sally Hansen in Green Thumb and Golden-I, and Chanel in Rouge Essentiel.

Leather-andsilk bag by Fendi. Nail colors: Sally Hansen in Gigabryte and Zoya in Willa.

Leather bag

by Louis Vuitton. Nail colors: Zoya in Cala and Essie in Partner in Crime.

Details, see Shopping Guide.

Manicure: Natalie Pavloski.

Prop stylist: Priscilla Jeong.

NOTES: EDITOR’S OBSESSIONS Kate Moss in slick black latex in 2012

2

1

3

4

5

HIGH GLOSS Allure fashion market editor Jenna Wojciechowski is taking a shine to all things glossy and reflective.

FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS’ CREDITS, SEE CREDITS PAGE.

1. SHRIMPS FAUX-LEATHER DRESS. “Dress it up or wear it over a shirt. I’d even pair it with sneakers—but I’d pair anything with sneakers.” $422 (shrimps.co.uk).

2. CREATURES OF COMFORT LEATHER BAG. “The jolt of color my very subdued wardrobe needs.” $222 (creaturesofcomfort.us).

6

3. AGMES CUFF. “The design makes this great for layering—especially with silver.” $840 (agmesnyc.com).

4. ARTHUR ARBESSER FALL 2017. “A sweet take on patent leather.”

5. SIES MARJAN LEATHER SHOES. “I love the unique shape of this heel.” $895, at Barneys New York stores.

7

6. ACNE STUDIOS VINYL PANTS. “Acne makes the best-fitting pants. Throw on a white tee and life is complete.” $500, at Acne Studios, NYC (212-334-8345).

7. ALESSANDRA RICH GLOVES. “I want to bring long gloves back in style! These are perfect for a rainy day.” $560 (email office@alessandrarich.com).

8. SUN BUM SUNSCREEN. “Protects without any redness.” $17.99 (trustthebum.com).

9. MAYBELLINE NEW YORK SHINE SHOT. “I love a little face shine.” $5.99 (maybelline.com).

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WELLNESS the cannabis cure It’s leafy and potent and as likely to end up in your Vitamix as it is on your vanity. Meet the new super green blowing the wellness world up in smoke. By Meirav Devash 66

ALLURE OCTOBER 2017

artwork by beth hoeckel

weed

101

Marijuana contains over 100 different cannabinoids, compounds that interact with the body’s own endocannabinoid system. The two that get the most attention are tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD).

They are nearly identical but with one key difference: “THC activates CB1 and CB2 receptors and is psychoactive [gets you stoned]; CBD does not and works by increasing levels of your own natural endocannabinoid, anandamide,” explains neuroscientist Michele Ross, the founder of the IMPACT Network, a nonprofit for medical-cannabis research and education.

That’s not to say CBD can’t make you feel all kinds of good: Anandamide is also known as the bliss molecule for its ability to produce a state of heightened happiness. While we’re at it: There’s zero difference between hemp and cannabis. Same Cannabis sativa plant, different laws. Anything with more than 0.3 percent THC is considered cannabis, not hemp, and is illegal in states that do not permit medical or recreational marijuana use. (In those states, CBD can be sourced from legal industrial hemp.)

“IT IS A BIG MISCONCEPTION THAT CANNABIS MAKES YOU LAZY.”

WELLNESS COOCHIE COUP

cannabis to kick up your sex life Weed and sex have gone together since at least the Summer of Love, when a ride in a VW bus would cost you “gas, ass, or grass.” It’s only fitting that 50 years later, there’s cannabis-infused lube. Alyssa Dweck, an ob-gyn and assistant clinical professor at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City and a coauthor of The Complete A to Z for Your V (Fair Winds Press), believes it’s legit—and safe—to use cannabinoids, such as the ones in Foria Pleasure, around your lady parts. “There may be some absorption through the mucus membranes, but when used as intended, the absorption is minimal and it should not get you stoned,” she says. “The coconut oil base should help with lubrication, and my suspicion is that cannabis lowers inhibitions a bit or lessens anxiety through muscle relaxation.” Note: Dweck, who practices in New York—not a recreational-marijuana state—hasn’t experienced the lube, Foria, directly. “New York’s a little uptight right now,” she says, adding that physicians need more controlled, randomized studies to better understand cannabis’s systemic effects.

cannabis to alleviate pms Forget Advil or Aleve. Anecdotal evidence suggests that cannabis oil could be the future of pain management when it comes to menstrual cramps.

Whoopi Goldberg, who for years has been outspoken about her use of medical marijuana, partnered with businesswoman Maya Elisabeth to create an entire line of cannabis-powered period-relief products, including a topical rub and bath soaks designed to help relax contracting muscles. Another approach is Foria Relief, a vaginal suppository PRODUCTS with THC and CBD that works Foria Relief preventively against pelvic pain, (60 milligrams THC) says Ross, who uses it to treat her Whoopi & Maya Medical Cannabis endometriosis symptoms: “[The Rub Body Balm suppositories are] better than a (50 milligrams THC) painkiller because they can stop De La Beuh Body local inflammation and spasms Bath Bomb that might cause more cramping.” (CBD only)

juicing marijuana There may be no better way to start the day for a dedicated wellness warrior than with green juice.

As in cannabis green. Before processing, cannabis leaves are just like most other leafy greens— chock-full of fiber, vitamin K, and antioxidants. The added superfood bonus is in the cannabinoids.

“Raw cannabinoids THC acid and CBD acid fine-tune the endocannabinoid system, which regulates all your other neurotransmitters,” says Ross. When you juice or eat raw cannabis leaves, you can take in potent megadoses of raw, unheated THCa without any psychoactive effects at all. Given its reported anti-inflammatory, anti-nausea, and anti-cancer qualities, “We may find that THCa is an even better vitamin than CBD,” Ross says. Consider it Generation Goop’s version of “wake and bake.”

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WELLNESS

3

ways cannabis can help you blaze through your fitness goals Increased motivation. “It’s a big misconception that cannabis makes you lazy,” says Jim McAlpine, who founded the 420 Games and plans to open the world’s first herbfueled gym, Power Plant Fitness, in San Francisco next year. “I’ve found literally the opposite is true.”

Sativa strains (Sour Diesel, Green Crack) in particular are known for energizing, uplifting vibes.

Laser-like focus. “For me, it’s a gateway to flow state,” says McAlpine, a man who chomped on an infused chocolate bar before swimming from Alcatraz to San Francisco. “It can activate that ‘Eye of the Tiger’ mode when your mind and body become one and you’re not thinking about anything else besides that moment.”

Better recovery. Both CBD and THC are potent anti-inflammatory agents, meaning they can help manage PRODUCTS postworkout pain.

Lord Jones 5:1 Whether you High CBD Pain & vaporize, eat, or Wellness Formula Body Lotion topically apply (20 milligrams weed, it kickTHC) starts the body’s Apothecanna endocannabinoid Extra Strength system to reduce Relieving Body swelling and pain.

Creme (CBD only)

We’re not cops. But while Allure likes the perfectly legal products and services in this story, we do not condone the use of any illegal drugs, including marijuana, in states where it’s prohibited.

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“IT CAN ACTIVATE THE ‘EYE OF THE TIGER’ MODE.” the future of medical marijuana

G

ood things come in small...doses. It turns out that a little THC might have a big impact on managing depression, anxiety, and pain. The newest research in medical marijuana is microdosing, using a low dose of THC (somewhere between 2.5 and 5 milligrams) to reap the plant’s medicinal superpowers without any of the buzz or brain fog. “For a long time, you couldn’t even find products under 10 milligrams because the market was primarily people trying to get high,” Ross says. Now there are all sorts of wellness teas, mints, vape pens, and tinctures with the microdoser in mind—and they’re not all used for calming down. “There’s talk of cannabis as a nootropic supplement that helps productivity, creativity, and focus. Contrary to what you think of when you think of a cannabis user, some people take a low dose of THC, say, four times a day as a replacement for Adderall or Ritalin,” says Ross.

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beauty directory

Headchop in Brooklyn

Cozy spas and posh manicures, amazing haircuts and dreamy color.

These are the places that make America the (very, very) beautiful. photographed by ye rin mok

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N

DIRECTORY

NEW YORK CITY

BEST CLASSIC MANI-PEDI Tenoverten, Frances Liang.

Price: $65 and up. Address: 121 Fulton St. Phone: 212-619-1010.

new york city HAIR Best Cool-Girl Effortless Cut: Hairstory, Wes Sharpton. Price: $175.

Address: 95 Fifth Ave. Hairstory.com/ studio for appointments.

Best Dry Cut: Headchop, Martha Ellen. Price: cut, $60; cut with wash and style, $70 and up.

Address: 86 Berry St., Brooklyn.

Phone: 347-844-9635.

Best Hair Protégé: Serge Normant at John Frieda, Joseph Maine. Price: $85 and up. Address: 336 W. 23rd St. Phone: 212-879-1000.

Best Cut for Curls: Foster Glorioso, Yessenia Reyes. Price: $115. Address: 5 E. 19th St. Phone: 212-929-2938.

Best French-Girl Blonde: Serge Normant at John Frieda, Corinne Adams. Price: $300 for highlights.

Address: 336 W. 23rd St. Phone: 212-879-1000.

Best Edgy Color (That Won’t Wreck Your Hair): Cutler, Elizabeth Hiserodt.

Price: $120 and up. Address: 465 W. Broadway. Phone: 212-308-3838.

Best Seamless Gray Coverage: James Corbett Studio, James Corbett.

Price: $150. Address: 25 W. 19th St. Phone: 212-388-1296.

Best Sexpot Blowout: Marie Robinson Salon, Ryan Trygstad.

Price: $100. Address: 40 W. 25th St. Phone: 212-358-7780.

NAILS Best All-Natural Manicure: Sundays Studio, Elizabeth Guairacaja. Price: $25 and up. Address: 51 E. 25th St. Phone: 646-998-5711.

Best MoMA-Worthy Nail Art: Vanity Projects, Tracy Kawaii. Price: $55 and up. Address: 99 Chrystie St. Phone: 646-410-2928.

BROWS Best Brow Tinting: W. Bob Scott.

Price: $60 and up. House calls only.

Email: william.scott200@gmail.com.

Best Brow Rehab: Sania’s Brow Bar, Sania Vucetaj. Price: $85. Address: 48 W. 20th St. Phone: 212-247-1129.

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BODYWORK Best Massage and Hammam: Marmara Park Ave., Savas Cebeci.

Price: $165 and up. Address: 114 E. 32nd St. Phone: 212-603-9000.

Best Luxe Massage: The Peninsula Spa New York, Santa Bruzika. Price: $215 and up. Address: 700 Fifth Ave. Phone: 212-903-3910.

FACIAL Best A-List Facial: Joanna Vargas Salon, Sarah Karaolides. Price: $225 and up. Address: 501 Fifth Ave. Phone: 212-949-2350.

Tenoverten in New York City

WAX Best Swift and Precise Wax: Uni K Wax Center, Adriana Garcia.

Price: $25. Address: 13 W. 18th St. Phone: 212-255-5561.

Best Facial for Acne-Prone Skin: CAP Beauty, Cara Peloso. Price: $200 and up. Address: 238 W. 10th St. Phone: 212-227-1088.

BRONZING Best Organic Tan: Sweetheart Tan, Audrey Spina. Price: $50 and up.

Address: 222 Metropolitan Ave., Brooklyn. Phone: 347-301-1333.

Best Treat-Your-Face-and-Spirit Facial: Mashell Tabe Face and Soul, Mashell Tabe. Price available upon request. Address: 611 Broadway.

Phone: 929-259-1157.

DERMATOLOGIST Best Less-Is-More Fillers: Marmur Medical, Ellen Marmur. Price available upon request. Address: 12 E. 87th St. Phone: 212-996-6900.

DIRECTORY

LOS ANGELES

BEST RED CARPET BROWS Striiike, Kristie Streicher.

Price: $100 and up.

Address: 9278 Civic Center Dr., Beverly Hills.

Phone: 310-205-2600.

A collage of past clients and inspiration at Striiike

BROWS Best Arch Support: Kate Somerville, Stevi Christine. Price: $90. Address: 8428 Melrose Pl. Phone: 323-655-7546.

austin HAIR Best Shag You’ve Ever Had: Jose Luis Salon & Boutique, Tyler Cochran. Price: cut, $85 and up; color, $85 and up. Address: 1100 S. Lamar Blvd. Phone: 512-474-1147.

NAILS Best Manicure/Pedicure: Tenoverten. Price: manicure, $20 and up; pedicure, $40 and up.

Address: 1603 S. Congress Ave. Phone: 469-660-1010.

BODYWORK Best Mind-Body Treat: Lake Austin Spa Resort, Star of India Treatment.

Price: $350. Address: 12611 Riverbend Rd. Phone: 512-372-7380.

FACIAL Best Blackhead Obliterator: Renée Rouleau. Price: $400.

Address given upon appointment.

Phone: 512-363-5296.

BRONZING Best Contouring With Tanner: Laurel Corrinne Studio. Price: $75. Address: 1107 S. 8th St. Phone: 512-799-1729.

Striiike in Beverly Hills

los angeles HAIR Best Sun-Kissed Color: Andy LeCompte Salon, George Papanikolas. Price: $625 and up.

Address: 616 N. Almont Dr., West Hollywood. Phone: 310-273-4100.

Best Cut of Your Life: Chris McMillan The Salon, Chris McMillan. Price available upon request. Address: 8944 Burton Way, Beverly Hills.

Phone: 310-285-0088.

Best Under-the-Radar Cut: Spoke & Weal, Kyle Krieger. Price: $150. Address: 8211 W. 3rd St. Phone: 323-591-0979.

NAILS Best Instagram Potential: Olive & June. Price: $20 and up. Address: 430 N. Canon Dr., Beverly Hills.

Phone: 310-247-0500.

BODYWORK Best Walk-in Massage: The Now Massage Boutique. Price: $35 and up.

Address: 7611 Beverly Blvd., West Hollywood. Phone: 323-746-5525.

Best Sports Massage: Mark Romero.

Price: $180. House calls only.

Phone (text only): 310-918-3974.

FACIAL Best Instant-Glow Facial: Kát Rudu. Price: $250 and up.

Address: 1654 Electric Ave., Venice.

Email: info@katrudu.com.

Best Skin-Firming Facial: Pamela’s Exclusive Skin Spa, Pamela Bunte.

Price: $250. Address: 8027 Sunset Blvd. Phone: 323-650-3567.

WAX Best Wax With a Side of Celeb Spotting: Queen Bee Salon & Spa, Liz Pino. Price: $10 and up. Address: 10182½ Culver Blvd., Culver City.

Phone: 310-204-2236.

BRONZING Best Body-Slimming Tan: Queen Bee Salon & Spa, Leah Hennessy.

Price: $45 and up. Address: 10182½ Culver Blvd., Culver City.

Phone: 310-204-2236.

OCTOBER 2017 ALLURE

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DIRECTORY LOS ANGELES

BEST COLOR MAGIC EVERY DAMN TIME Mèche, Tracey Cunningham. Price: $625 and up. Address: 8820 Burton Way, Beverly Hills. Phone: 310-278-8930.

washington, d.c.

HAIRCUT Best Classy-but-Cool Cuts: Immortal Beloved, Kelly Gorsuch. Price: $300.

Address: 1831 14th St., NW. Phone: 202-299-1050.

HAIR COLOR Best Ombré: Ian McCabe Studio, Ian McCabe. Price: $160 and up.

Address: 1101 23rd St., NW. Phone: 202-888-6700.

NAILS Best Manicure With a Side of Decor Inspo: Varnish Lane. Price: $28 and up. Address: 5236 44th St., NW. Phone: 202-506-5308.

BODYWORK Best Massage-on-Demand App: Veluxe, Nancy Denker. Price: $120 and up. Veluxe.com for information.

FACIAL Best Near-Painless Extractions: Semra Skin Care, Yvette Omidyar.

Price: $150 and up. Address: 1070 Thomas Jefferson St., NW. Phone: 202-944-5080.

Mèche in Beverly Hills

detroit HAIR Best Low-Maintenance Cut: Chez Loulou, Brigitte Rist. Price: $55 and up. Address: 16900 Kercheval Ave. Phone: 313-647-0525.

san francisco HAIR Best Up-and-Coming Stylist: Cinta Salon, Beau Stone Vickers.

Price: $84. Address: 23 Grant Ave. Phone: 415-989-1000.

NAILS Best Totally Zen Mani-Pedi: Ten Zen Nail Spa. Price: manicure, $25 and up; pedicure, $35 and up. Address: 207 Powell St. Phone: 415-306-8868.

BODYWORK Best Thai Massage Sans Plane Ticket: Anjalee Thai Massage.

Price: $35 and up. Address: 1617 Polk St. Phone: 415-351-1900.

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Color mixing at Mèche

FACIAL Best Natural and Gentle Facial: Credo Beauty, Abi Rooney. Price: $95 and up. Address: 2136 Fillmore St. Phone: 415-885-1800.

NAILS Best Glossy Manicure: The Ten Nail Bar. Price: $15 and up. Address: 1215 Griswold St. Phone: 313-315-3010.

FACIAL Best Resurfacing Facial: Face Skincare Medical Wellness, Hydrafacial MD. Price: $175. Address: 31350 Telegraph Rd., Bingham Farms.

Phone: 248-663-0161.

WAX Best Last-Minute Wax: Sugar Society. Price: $35 and up. Address: 1504 Vallejo St. Phone: 415-763-7607.

BODYWORK Best Detoxifying and Slimming Body Wrap: Margot European Day Spa, Ana Hodge, Seaweed Wrap. Price: $175. Address: 101 Townsend St. Phone: 248-642-3770.

BRONZING Best Custom Airbrush Tan: Bronze Organics, Geri Camp.

Price: $50. Address: 3535 California St. Phone: 415-860-4123.

BRONZING Best Just-Back-From-Bermuda Bronze: Deyo Studio, Barbara Deyo.

Price: $50. Address: 576 N. Old Woodward Ave. Phone: 248-203-1222.

DIRECTORY

miami HAIR COLOR Best Jane Birkin–esque Brunette: Sean Donaldson Hair, Sean Donaldson. Price: $100 and up.

Address: 701 S. Miami Ave. Phone: 786-646-9390.

HAIR TREATMENT Best Nontoxic Smoothing: Hair Healers, Dania Galarce.

Price: $200 and up. Address: 2626 SW 9th St. Phone: 305-643-2252.

DERMATOLOGIST Best Cellulite Smoother: Skin Associates, Jeremy Green.

Price available upon request.

Address: 4425 Ponce de Leon Blvd.

Phone: 305-443-6606.

boston HAIRCUT Best Supermodel Layers: Pini Swissa Salon, Chuck Bass. Price: $200. Address: 18 Newbury St. Phone: 617-312-9668.

Here and below: IGK Salon in Miami

MIAMI

BEST BOMBSHELL LAYERS IGK Salon, Leo Izquierdo. Price: $350 and up. Address: 1701 Collins Ave. Phone: 305-455-1431.

HAIR COLOR Best Skin-Tone-Flattering Highlights: Shag, Kelsey Rae Caouette. Price: $280 and up.

Address: 840 Summer St. Phone: 617-268-2500.

NAILS Best Relaxing Mani-Pedi: Jeanne Lee, Jeanne Lee. Price: manicure, $32; pedicure, $70. Address: 115 Newbury St. Phone: 617-536-0143.

BODYWORK Best Alternative-Use-for-MargaritaSalt Scrub: The Spa at the RitzCarlton Dallas, Dean’s Margarita Salt Glow. Price: $250. Address: 2121 McKinney Ave. Phone: 214-922-4820.

BROWS Best Thick-Brow Whisperer: Sarra, Lauren Genatossio.

Price: $80. Address: 840 Summer St. Phone: 617-269-8999.

FACIAL Best Customized Facial: Skoah.

Price: $85 and up. Address: 641A Tremont St. Phone: 857-350-4930.

WAX Best Almost Painless Brazilian: Bella Santé Spa. Price: $85. Address: 38 Newbury St. Phone: 617-424-9930.

BRONZING Best Believable Glow: Pure Glow.

Price: $75. Address: 176 Newbury St. Phone: 617-267-4455.

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dallas

FACIAL Best High-Tech Facial: Joanna Czech Dallas, Joanna Czech. Price: $450 to $1,000. Address: 2410 Victory Park Ln. Phone: 214-812-9488.

HAIRCUT Best Total Hair Makeover: The Songbird Society, Kirsten Patterson.

Price: $120 and up. Address: 4631 Insurance Ln. Phone: 214-361-2070.

BRONZING Best Bronzed-Goddess Tan: Simply Glowing at Era Salon, Kari Lord. Price: $45. Address: 4023 Oak Lawn Ave. Phone: 214-520-6767.

NAILS Best Cozy-Comfort Mani-Pedi: Hiatus Spa + Retreat, The One & Only.

Price: $100. Address: 5560 W. Lovers Ln. Phone: 214-352-4111.

WAX Best Speedy Wax: Waxing the City Dallas. Price: $37 and up.

Address: 6131 Luther Ln., University Park. Phone: 214-265-0121.

DIRECTORY MIAMI

BEST FACIAL WITH A VIEW The Spa at Four Seasons Hotel at the Surf Club, the Custom Biologique Recherche Facial.

Price: $250 and up. Address: 9101 Collins Ave. Phone: 786-482-2362.

philadelphia HAIRCUT Best Dry Cut: AMS Salon, Gail Polsky.

Price: $75. Address: 262 S. 16th St. Phone: 215-569-1515.

HAIR COLOR Best Shiny, Healthy Color: Hush Salon Philadelphia, Adrienne Rogers.

Price: $75 and up. Address: 128 N. 3rd St. Phone: 215-923-5010.

NAILS Best Extravagant Mani-Pedi: Lacquer Lounge. Price: manicure and pedicure, $43 and up. Addresses: 38 N. 3rd St.; 2051 Walnut St. Phone: 215-987-3656; 267-758-2385.

The Spa at Four Seasons Hotel at the Surf Club

atlanta

HAIR COLOR Best Sparkling Blonde: Vis-à-Vis the Salon, Shawn Warner. Price: $110 and up. Address: 327 Buckhead Ave. NE. Phone: 404-266-3320.

BRONZING Best Shower-in-an-Hour Tan: The Bronzed Bee, Busy Bee Spray Tan. Price: $60. Address: 2020 Locust St. Phone: 267-928-4393.

NAILS Best Classic Manicure: Nouvelle Nail Spa. Price: $18 and up.

Address: 1011B Marietta St. NW. Phone: 404-835-7839.

chicago

BODYWORK Best Country-Escape Massage: The Spa at Serenbe, Hot Healing Stone Massage. Price: $110 to $145. Address: 9135 Selbourne Ln., Chattahoochee Hills. Phone: 770-463-0880.

HAIR COLOR Best à la Plage Balayage: Salon 1800, Amanda Mounts. Price: $155 and up.

Address: 1133 W. Armitage Ave. Phone: 773-929-6010.

FACIAL Best Eco-Friendly Facial: The Aviary Beauty & Wellness Collective, Amy Leavell Bransford.

Price: $70 to $195. Address: 659 Auburn Ave. Phone: 404-577-2460.

NAILS Best Bulletproof Mani: ZaZaZoo Nail Salon, Margie. Price: $15 and up.

Address: 1842 N. Damen Ave. Phone: 773-687-9717.

WAX Best Sugaring: Sweet Peach Wax & Sugaring Studio. Price: $38 and up.

Address: 3077 E. Shadowlawn Ave. Phone: 404-842-1788.

BROWS Best Sculpted Arches: Benefit BrowBar at Macy’s Water Tower Place.

Price: $21. Address: 835 N. Michigan Ave. Phone: 312-335-7719.

BRONZING Best All-Natural Faux Glow: Raw Bronzing Studio, Tiffany Terranova.

Price: $35 to 55. Address: 500 Bishop St. NW. Phone: 770-683-8267.

FACIAL Best Legendary Facial: The Red Door Salon & Spa, Mirela Munteanu.

Price: $125 and up. Address: 919 N. Michigan Ave. Phone: 312-988-9191.

LASH EXTENSIONS Best Fluttery Lashes: Raney O’Keefe.

Price: $275. Address: Hush Beauty Bar & Lounge, 659 Auburn Ave. Phone: 360-970-7375.

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FOOD UTILITY

HAIRCUT Best Swingy Layers: Melrose & McQueen, Dyana Nematalla. Price: $100 and up. Address: 337 Elizabeth St. NE. Phone: 404-909-5245.

WAX Best Lightning-Fast Wax: Jason Matthew Salon, Michele Harris. Price: $35 and up. Address: 1735 Chestnut St. Phone: 215-665-8030.

HAIRCUT Best Layers for Every Texture: Mixed Co. Salon, John Mouzakis.

Price: $85 and up. Address: 223 W. Erie St. Phone: 312-929-2627.

Introducing WKH ƓUVW HYHU

The NEW The Ultimate Food Resource

I WANT TO COOK www.epicurious.com

B AC KG R O U N D B E AU T Y

astor place hairstylists photographed by diane russo The sprawling basement-level salon is wallpapered with blackand-white photos. Above: Noemi. Top: Bella’s station. Near right: Irma. Far right: Suzy celebrates her wall of fame.

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GROOMER: HOLLY GOWERS

Welcome to our new column, on the beauty influencers of America.

First up: the New York City barbershop where women wield the clippers—and run the show.

B AC KG R O U N D B E AU T Y

m

eet Big Mike, one of the two managers of Astor Place Hairstylists. Big Mike is the first person you’ll encounter when you descend the stairs—lined with autographed photos of New York City celebrities and former mayors—into this sprawling East Village institution. But if you ask him who the boss is, he’ll point over his shoulder at Bella, a curvy blonde with pigtails and rhinestonestudded nails. Or if it’s Monday or Wednesday and Bella has the day off, he’ll point to Regina, slightly darker blonde with a lime-green mani. Bella and Regina, both Russian, have worked at the barbershop for 28 years. Maybe 30; they stopped counting. But hold on a second, Big Mike forgot about Suzy. How could he forget Suzy? The Greek brunette holds court in the back corner where she’s been changing out the Santorini tourist-board calendar tacked to her station for nearly 28 years. These female barbers, with their clippers and combs, call themselves the dinosaurs of the place. Big Mike calls them the backbone. —PATRICIA TORTOLANI

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From left: Suzy, Martha, Bella, and Regina. Below: A collage of inspiration images and past clients lines the walls of the East Village barbershop.

BEYOND OBSESSION

PERSPECTIVE

This is what a beauty influencer looked like in 1993—barefaced, bed-headed, shot on film. Unfiltered and captivating.

The famously private Kate Moss is (finally) ready to reminisce with us.

By Elizabeth Siegel 90

ALLURE OCTOBER 2017

MARIO SORRENTI (2)

Outtakes from the 1993 Calvin Klein Obsession shoot, where Moss and photographer Mario Sorrenti chronicled a week in their love affair

PERSPECTIVE

“I DIDN’T WANT TO BE PHOTOGRAPHED ALL THE TIME—THAT HASN’T CHANGED.”

H

On the immeasurable happiness— and ultimate loss—of young love: “It was really a moment in time that won’t happen again—that first love, that passion, that kind of freedom, that naïveté. We were obsessed with each other. We were completely in love.”

One of Moss’s nine Allure covers, May 1994

Moss’s first Allure shoot, 1992

Moss and Sorrenti in 1993

Celebrating her 19th birthday with Elle Macpherson

With her daughter in 2011

On the particular problems of falling for a photographer: “He would take pictures of me all the time. It was such a passionate relationship. I would wake up and he would photograph me, and I would get cross. I didn’t want to be photographed all the time—that hasn’t changed.”

On meeting her great love: “It’s a real Mother Nature kind of instinct to smell your child—or know the smell of them. I like the smell of my daughter’s hair.”

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Moss’s current streetstyle uniform

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: SANTE D’ORAZIO; FRÉDÉRIQUE VEYSSET; ROBIN PLATZER/TWIN IMAGES/THE LIFE IMAGES COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES; SPLASH NEWS; MARIO TESTINO/ART PARTNER; TIME LIFE PICTURES/DMI/THE LIFE PICTURE COLLECTION/GETTY IMAGES

er voice is soft, but her Surrey accent is strong and friendly.

When Kate Moss talks— no, purrs—about the smell of coffee or the English countryside, the words drip out as slow and deliberate as honey. She’ll catch you off guard with a wholesome exclamation of “Oh, my gosh!” or pull you in with a breathy Kate Moss giggle. But most disarming and alluring are the moments of candor. Because even though this supermodel has let you see just about every inch, she’s extremely guarded about her home life, her love life, her exes, and her previous...let’s call them dust-ups.

But at the moment, Moss is reflective, her wistfulness sparked by pictures that have resurfaced from 1993. There’s one of a teenage Moss topless on a Caribbean beach. And there she is again, naked, wrapped up in sheets. These pictures, outtakes from an old Calvin Klein Obsession shoot, just traveled from archives to billboards. They’re being repurposed for ads for Obsessed, Calvin Klein’s newest fragrance. In them, Moss is 18 and freckled, on the verge of fame—and head over heels for the man behind the lens, Mario Sorrenti.

“It’s got quite a lot of nostalgia for us both, is the thing,” says Moss. “We were so young.”

Moss and Sorrenti took the pictures on a weeklong getaway in the Virgin Islands, where they were shooting—and documenting their love affair—for Calvin Klein. “There was nobody else there, just me and Mario,” says Moss. “We didn’t really know what we were doing. He was new. I was new. Calvin put a lot of trust in us, and he got something that was really intimate.” Maybe it was the memory of Sorrenti, or of a week that was “free and spontaneous,” but Moss decided to open up about love—and a few eccentricities.

PERSPECTIVE

The new Obsessed campaign is made up of outtakes from the 24-year-old Calvin Klein Obsession shoot.

“WE HAD A LITTLE BOAT THAT WE WOULD TAKE BETWEEN WHERE WE WERE SHOOTING AND THE HOUSE WHERE WE SLEPT. I REMEMBER US ON THE BOAT TOGETHER AT SUNSET...

AND FEELING LIKE WE WERE IN A DREAM IN A MOVIE.” —Mario Sorrenti

On the real secret to Kate Moss style: “I looove scissors. I love cutting things. Customizing the sofa, customizing people’s hair—cut a few inches off! That dress is too long?

Let’s chop it up, whoopsy daisy! I cut a dress [on my daughter, Lila Grace] the other day. I was like, ‘It’s too long for you—we’ve gotta cut it.’ ”

On her (other) wardrobe staples: “I’m quite basic at the moment.

I like dressing up to go out, but I just can’t dress up like that every day. Black jeans and a boot and a blazer—that’s the uniform. It’s classic, but it can be a bit punky, too.”

On her domestic engineering: “I like puttering around the house. I hang pictures. And clean vases. And dig out stuff that I have in drawers—what’s in there? And fix desks. It’s like posturing.”

when it rains, and the grass after the rain.

The smell of my boyfriend’s neck. And coffee. I love the smell of coffee.”

On talismans: “My mum bought me Anaïs Anaïs by Cacharel. That was my first perfume. I remember the bottle. I remember it was sacred.

I don’t even think I used it because it was so special. And by the time I used it, it’d probably gone off.”

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A NEW CLASSIC It may sound like Obsession and look like Obsession (say that five times fast), but Obsessed for Women is no Obsession redux. Gone are the jasmine and vanilla, replaced by white lavender (which is usually used only in cologne), herbaceous purple sage, creamy musks, and pretty violet leaf. If you love the idea of wearing men’s colognes but wish they were just a little softer, you will be, well, the name says it all.

FROM TOP: MARIO SORRENTI (2); JOSEPHINE SCHIELE

On the scents she’d bottle if she could: “The smell of the countryside

PHENOMENON

COURTESY OF RACHEL PARCELL

Blogger Rachel Parcell and her children at the Mormon temple in San Diego

THE LOOK OF MORMON

Some of the Internet’s most successful beauty personalities have a few things in common: glossy hair. Flawless eyeliner. Bright smiles. Oh, and a belief that their bodies are sacred temples where they make covenants with God. Alice Gregory investigates the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints’ growing influence on the beauty world.

OCTOBER 2017 ALLURE

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PHENOMENON

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Amber Fillerup Clark and her daughter in the Bahamas

THE LDS CHURCH’S WEBSITE HAS MAKEUP TUTORIALS. Parcell and her sisters in Salt Lake City’s Temple Square

FROM TOP: COURTESY OF AMBER FILLERUP CLARK; COURTESY OF RACHEL PARCELL

A

ny insomniac who has tried to convince herself that “just a few minutes” on Instagram will beckon back sleep has landed, circa 3 A.M., on the feed of a Mormon lifestyle blogger.

Although she probably has no idea that’s where she is. The blogger’s faith is never foregrounded. It’s obvious, though—once you know what to look for. She’s white and under 30 and married. Fit and given to flattering dresses that hit the knee and cover the shoulder, she has multiple children and Lady Godiva hair. She knows her way around a braid. She is wholesome but not dowdy; her posts are relentlessly positive but never pious. Until you Google her name and see that she was married at the Salt Lake Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), you might not know that she routinely asks herself, while shopping or applying eye shadow, Would I feel comfortable with my appearance if I were in the Lord’s presence?

Amber Fillerup Clark, aka the Barefoot Blonde, is 26 years old and lives in Hawaii with her husband, their two young children, and a golden retriever. They all appear on her blog, alongside pictures of Fillerup Clark herself, who is breathtakingly pretty. She offers up beauty and fitness tips and bubbly accounts of her balmy days, as well as a line of clip-in hair extensions, which are for sale on her site for roughly $200 and given names that sound like nail polish shades (“Melt My Heart,” “Platinum Status”).

Like most Mormon girls, Fillerup Clark was encouraged to keep journals and scrapbooks growing up, and she thinks this early education in archiving one’s own life is what leads so many Mormon women to take up lifestyle blogging. Today, Fillerup Clark, who has 1.3 million Instagram followers, just about perfectly embodies LDS church doctrine: She married young, had children soon afterward, has a job that keeps her at home, and—perhaps most importantly—makes Mormonism look not just normal but enviable. She’s not wearing gunnysack dresses and praying beneath a high desert sun. She’s eating shaved ice with her kids and prancing around in a bikini, which, while technically in defiance of Mormon scripture (“Thou shalt not be proud in thy heart; let all thy garments be plain”), is overshadowed by the fact that she continuously promotes an idealized vision of domestic Mormon life.

When Mormons first came to Utah in 1847, Brigham Young, the second president of the LDS church, instructed his followers, “Beautify your gardens, your houses, your farms; beautify the city. This will make us happy, and produce plenty.”

The direction was an early example of an animating Mormon sentiment that still plays out today: Outward appearances matter. “Your dress and grooming influence the way you and others act,” reads “For the Strength of Youth,” a widely distributed Mormon pamphlet. Tattoos are discouraged, as are multiple piercings. The LDS church’s website has an entire section devoted to grooming and dress, complete with makeup tutorials. “You are not required to wear makeup; however, wearing makeup can help you look your best,” it reads. “To minimize the appearance of dark circles under your eyes, use a yellow- or pink-toned concealer lighter than your skin tone. Use your fingers to gently apply and blend the color under your eyes, along the lash line.” Celebrity hairstylist and Kardashian inner-circler Jen Atkin, who was raised in the LDS church, describes the Mormon look as “pretty, relatable beauty, with nothing too out of reach...though they really know how to put on a face of makeup!”

Mormonism “is and has always been very genderorganized,” says Megan Sanborn Jones, a professor at Brigham Young University (BYU) in Provo, Utah. The system “promotes a kind of biological determinism. If you’re a boy, you must want to be strong, play a sport, and then go on a mission. If you’re a girl, you must love makeup. Mormon girls,

PHENOMENON early on, are introduced to makeup and hairstyling and fashion.”

It’s a fact that flies in the face of Young’s warning to women to “spend more time in moral, mental and spiritual cultivation, and less upon fashion and the vanities of the world,” which he gave just 20 years after offering up his arguably contradictory domestic instructions. “There’s been a tension throughout church history,” says Kate Holbrook, a specialist in women’s history in the church-history department of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “On the one hand, you’re taught that your appearance represents the church. But on the other, we’re taught to be modest and not to put too much time and resources into superficial things.”

Witney Carson, a dancer, model, and fashion blogger who appeared on Dancing With the Stars in 2013, explains how the two seemingly contradictory tenets can be simultaneously embraced: “From a young age, we’re taught that our bodies are sacred temples where we make covenants with God. It’s about self-confidence from the inside out. Inner beauty is really important, too.” To watch her toned legs kick up and platinum hair fluff about as she shimmies across the stage is to be momentarily converted.

T Above: Parcell and one of her favorite lipsticks, YSL’s Lingerie Pink. Right: Witney Carson shares fitness, fashion, and nail-salon recommendations with her 1 million Instagram followers.

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here’s another, more pragmatic way this all plays out, though. Since 1833, when the Lord allegedly revealed to LDS founder Joseph Smith which substances are harmful to the human body, Mormons have abstained from alcohol, tobacco, drugs, coffee, and tea. And it shows. “I look at my aunts when I go home, and it’s like, Wow! They look so good,” says Atkin. “But of course, they don’t smoke or drink—not even coffee. Their skin is amazing.” She admits that she always makes a concerted effort to stop drinking wine for a few weeks before she visits.

And since, according to former Deseret News columnist and Mormon feminist Courtney Kendrick, Mormons “are somewhat missing out on what the rest of the world does to be entertained,” they exercise together: Fitness groups are incredibly popular in Mormon communities. Only after Kendrick told me this did I realize that of the handful of instructors at my small Pilates studio in Brooklyn, two grew up Mormon in Utah.

When I visited Pink Peonies blogger Rachel Parcell at her sprawling house in a tony suburb of Salt Lake City, she had just returned from a Zumba-inspired class led by a friend. With her lanky limbs and glossy brown hair, Parcell, 26, could pass for an aspiring model in New York or L.A., but in Utah, she looks like an ordinary mom. “We want to be healthy for our family,” she told me. “I don’t think every Mormon girl is obsessed with fashion and beauty, but we do like to take care of ourselves.”

Don’t let the Zumba classes and work-at-home statuses mislead you, though—these women are ambitious.

When I traveled to Utah, every Uber driver asked if I was in town for “Young Living.” I assumed it had something to do with the LDS church. Finally I asked. “It’s like...

FROM TOP: COURTESY OF AMBER FILLERUP CLARK; COURTESY OF RACHEL PARCELL; COURTESY OF WITNEY CARSON

“One of my go-to styles when I have to do my hair in the car,” says Fillerup Clark.

(Impressive.)

PHENOMENON

“THESE BEAUTY STANDARDS ARE CONNECTED TO WHAT GETS US INTO HEAVEN.” essential oils, I think?” the driver said. “There are thousands of women here right now for it.” Young Living is indeed an essential-oils company. It’s also a multilevel marketing operation, one of dozens based in Utah and sold in Mormon living rooms. Others include Jamberry (nail wraps and polishes), NuSkin (skin care), and Younique (makeup and selftanners). “These businesses allow Mormon women to make money and be ambitious, all while not working outside of the home, which in lots of ways is still frowned upon,” says Jones.

And they perfectly align two common skill sets: a deep knowledge of beauty products and a willingness to make a pitch. “One thing we’re taught is sales and marketing,” says Atkin. “Think about it: Mormon missionaries are always knocking on doors. You’re taught to get involved in your community, to never be afraid to talk to strangers.” While you’re at it, why not ask them to consider a holographic nail wrap?

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Fillerup Clark’s skillful liquid-liner technique

standards are connected to what gets us into heaven.”

On a warm Saturday night, I drove an hour south from my hotel in Salt Lake City to Provo, home of BYU and one of the highest concentrations of Mormons in the country.

Downtown was quiet but relatively bustling, with young people, mostly in couples, strolling down the sidewalks of the extra-wide streets (Young wanted to be sure that a wagon team could turn around without “resorting to profanity”).

There was one bar at the edge of town, but it was grimy and filled with the seedy type of guy every woman knows instinctually to avoid. Everywhere else was sanitized, brightly lit, and seemingly stocked with dessert (the Lord did not apparently reveal to Smith that sugar was harmful to the human body). Beautiful young girls with freshly shampooed hair sipped virgin piña coladas while their boyfriends—or, more often than not, husbands—licked ice cream cones and offered them tastes. It was like Stars Hollow, Desert Edition: creepy at first glance, and sort of great at second. It compared favorably, I had to admit, to my own college town, which on Saturday nights reeked of tobacco and vomit. What do I know, but everyone seemed happy. Not vain or insecure, and certainly not mentally calculating the cost of a boob job.

FROM TOP: COURTESY OF RACHEL PARCELL; COURTESY OF AMBER FILLERUP CLARK

I

nterstate 15, which begins at the California–Mexico border and runs north to Alberta, bisects Utah County, with a population that is over 80 percent Mormon. Driving along it, one passes housing developments, empty expanses of arid land, and billboards for body modification: teeth whitening, CoolSculpting, liposuction, and breast augmentation. They sprout up as often as—and often right next to—signage for the Church of Latter-day Saints.

Though it’s the capital of one of the most religious states in America, Salt Lake City has more plastic surgeons per capita than Los Angeles. “It doesn’t line up, does it?” laughs Julie de Azevedo Hanks, a Salt Lake City–based psychotherapist specializing in Mormon women’s emotional health and relationships. “It’s a culture with very strong ideas about humility, modesty, and...double-D boobs.”

It can seem as though a Mormon woman in Utah is almost fated to go under the knife. “It’s a culture that prizes marriage and family, and there are more women than men,” says Jones.

“It makes for competition.” (For every three Mormon women in Utah, there are two Mormon men.) The state’s statistics—88 percent white, 57 percent Mormon, the highest marriage rate in the country, some of the fastest-growing income rates— paint a picture of exactly who is most likely to get plastic surgery: a white woman with disposable income and a few pregnancies behind her, living among people like herself. A recent report from the Utah Women & Leadership Project attempts to make sense of what to some seems like a complete cultural paradox: “Utah has the highest fertility rate and stands among the highest in breast-feeding rates [in the U.S.].... Many Utah mothers respond to cultural pressure to undergo the Mommy Makeover, which local doctors advertise as a solution to young mothers’ bodies ‘trashed’ by motherhood.”

“When you come from a patriarchal religion, your best bet for gaining power is to be appealing to the men in charge,” Kendrick told me. “It can be very hard for women who are outside of normative standards of beauty.” Harder than you can imagine. “In my religion you’re not just talking about having to look good now,” says Kendrick. “You’re also talking about your eternal salvation. Ultimately these beauty

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li Reynolds has a strand of beads about a meter long. It’s a colorful menagerie of glass and plastic and porcelain. Some are etched and oblong; some are covered in little red flowers or purple stripes. Every bead that Reynolds strings represents a moment in time: a doctor’s appointment, an MRI, a diagnosis, a biopsy. And in between each bead is a delicate freshwater pearl, one of which is added every time Reynolds is misgendered by the medical community since being diagnosed with cancer.

Reynolds, who identifies as nonbinary (and uses the pronouns “they” and “them”), was diagnosed with stage 2B breast cancer in early August of 2016. Reynolds had started taking testosterone earlier that year, and after years of tamping down their chest with

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AS WE CONTINUE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT BREAST CANCER—THE GENETIC MARKERS, THE TRIGGERS, THE TREATMENT OPTIONS—TRANSGENDER PATIENTS ARE STILL LEFT IN THE DARK. BY LOREN SAVINI

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a binder, had scheduled a consultation for top surgery (to remove breast tissue to masculinize the chest). After the appointment, they went home and took a long look at their chest in the mirror, the way you would tuck your hair up before deciding on a drastic cut. They pushed in their breasts to see what the result would look like. That’s when they discovered a lump in their armpit. “It’s really ironic,” Reynolds says. “I was so ready to have a flat chest, and then along came this thing.... It felt as though a lot of choices were taken away from me.”

Suddenly, the surgery had to wait. “My experience of breast cancer robbed me of every meaningful aspect of my transition,” Reynolds says. “Now I had to have months of chemotherapy.”

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hen a cisgender woman is diagnosed with breast cancer, the options for course of action are scary, but fairly clear.

Lumpectomy or mastectomy, chemo and/or radiation, reconstruction. But for Reynolds, the question was: Why reconstruct what already feels out of place? So they had a choice. They could have the lymph nodes removed and then go to a doctor for top surgery, or get it done all at once, which would mean that their chest wouldn’t look quite like what they had imagined for themselves in those wishful-thinking mirror sessions—it would be more scarred, more sunken. “But I told them when they went in there to just take everything out. I couldn’t wait anymore. And at least now it’s better than it was,” Reynolds says.

Being robbed of a proper top surgery wasn’t the worst part for Reynolds. Nor was the aggressive treatment. Or the physical symptoms of chemotherapy. “The gender stuff was, in many ways, as hard as if not harder than the cancer stuff. It was so painful. I had to endure this time where everyone who talked to me assumed I was a woman,” says Reynolds. Their birth name, which is not Eli, appeared on all their records.

Reynolds found what many transgender and gendernonconforming breast cancer patients find: that the medical community still just doesn’t get it.

“The biggest challenge is the attitude toward transgender persons in the medical community. There is a lot of discrimination, and unfortunately that means some trans patients don’t seek care as often—they’re driven away,” says Timothy Cavanaugh, a physician and co-medical director for the transgender health program at Fenway Health in Boston.

“And for trans men who have body dysphoria, specifically involving their breasts, mammograms and breast exams can be a humiliating and intensely traumatic experience.”

Darryl Mitteldorf, the founder of the National LGBT Cancer Project, says gender affirmation plays a big role in some people refusing to be screened. “They think, I’m a man now. I don’t want to go for breast cancer screening. But the reality is that physically you were born with estrogen, and it’s still playing a part in your life,” he says. “They’ve done this extraordinary thing, and they’re living who they are. But there are still tracings of the body they were born with. Part of being healthy and staying alive is acknowledging that.”

But let’s say a transgender or nonbinary person does get the regular screenings that are suggested if you’ve been on hormone therapy for five years or more. That’s only the beginning. There’s also a staggering lack of research surrounding their unique circumstances. Look at the state of health care today (“It’s amazing watching them play football with my health care right now,” Reynolds says as an aside).

It seems safe—if incredibly depressing—to presume that this presidential administration will not be pouring money into transgender breast cancer research. So answers are limited.

Reynolds was taken off testosterone treatments in case the surge in hormones was contributing to the cancer, though no one could say for sure. “I talked to two doctors,” Reynolds says. “There was no way to prove if the testosterone had anything to do with my tumor. And the testosterone was really important to me. It felt the way antidepressants are supposed to feel. It was helping me be in my body.”

As of today, Reynolds has an appointment scheduled with their doctor for the day after their chemotherapy has been completed in order to resume the testosterone.

And then there’s the lack of training. Of understanding.

Reynolds found that their oncologist was not totally aware of what it meant to be nonbinary. When Reynolds expressed concern that they might lose their sex drive without the hormone therapy, the doctor’s solution seemed flippant: “She said she was sure there were adaptations I could make within my community. I still don’t know what that means. I think she thinks we have, like, magic sex unicorns that fix everything.”

The trans and nonbinary patients we spoke with had tales of feeling judged or neglected. Not getting coverage from insurance companies that deemed chest reconstruction for a man unnecessary. Doctors who were more fascinated with their sex and hormones than with the breast cancer. Another who was refused a bathroom key from the front desk. When Reynolds first attended a chemo seminar at the hospital, pamphlets were passed around: Sexuality for the Woman With Breast Cancer. Sexuality for the Man With Breast Cancer.

“They passed one out to everyone but me,” Reynolds says.

“BREAST CANCER ROBBED ME OF EVERY MEANINGFUL ASPECT OF MY TRANSITION.”

“You need to reach for a friend or an advocate to go with you to appointments and stand up for you. Who isn’t afraid to correct a misgendering. Don’t be afraid to need help.

Don’t be afraid to be assertive,” says Reynolds. They found solace in friends, and in one nurse manager in particular, who would manually change the gender indicator on their hospital bracelet from “F” for female to “U” for unknown—the only option outside of male and female. “It probably only sticks in the system for about 24 hours, but she understands that I am a trans patient, and that is her way of honoring that. Of making sure I get the care that I need. Those things mean so much to me.”

Reynolds will be finishing chemotherapy in early November. “God, it feels like a very long time,” Reynolds says after saying the date out loud. “I’m in the body I’m in now, and I’m just trying to be gentle with myself, and it’s really—this is really hard. Queer cancer is here, and I know how unbearable it is. My advice is: Just don’t kill yourself.”

And for now there’s still that string of beads that Reynolds is adding to: “It’s very heavy. I like being able to hand it to someone and have them feel the weight of it.

There’s a nice symbolic feeling around that. Like, ‘Here. You take this for a minute.’ ” OCTOBER 2017 ALLURE

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Amazing shampoos, lotions, and lipsticks that all cost less than $10—and really make us feel like we’re getting away with something.

By Liana Schaffner

the best steals

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skin & body

BEST OF BEAUT Y

$6.27 Clean & Clear Acne Triple Clear Bubble Foam Cleanser. These bubbles mean business: Salicylic acid fights breakouts; aloe calms.

$9.99 Simple Skincare Hydrating

$6.99 Aveeno Positively Radiant

$3.99 each Nügg Soothing, Hydrating, and Deep Cleansing Face Masks. Each container houses a single treatment. Smooth on a different one each night and just try to settle on a favorite. Spoiler alert: You can’t.

In-Shower Facial. All the brightening power of a time-consuming, claustrophobia-inducing mask—minus the time-consuming claustrophobia part. Glycolic acid and lemon-peel extract transform skin in 60 seconds.

$6.49 Bioré Baking Soda Acne

Scrub. Combine baking soda with water and you get “a reaction that pushes oil out of pores,” says cosmetic chemist Ni’Kita Wilson. Add salicylic acid to the mix and you’re basically guaranteed clearer skin (say several Allure editors).

$6.99 St. Ives Exfoliate & Nourish

Apricot Oil Scrub. A few (OK, maybe 30) years after we first met St. Ives’s apricot scrub, we’re reaching for this new formula, which cushions the same buffing walnut powder in oils to leave skin smoother and plumper.

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Booster. This light serum locks in moisture and is thin enough to mix with foundation and sunscreen (hint, hint).

$7.99 Neutrogena Makeup

Remover Cleansing Towelettes. Our bedside-table staple: They remove makeup in one easy pass so you wake up with no (visible) trace of last night.

$6 John Masters Organics Lip Calm.

Organic oils and fruit extracts bestow the elegant sheen and soothing moisture you’d expect to find in the goopiest balm on the highest peak at the fanciest ski resort.

$9.99 Olay Duo. One side of this

soapy disc polishes rough elbows and knees; the other produces a creamy mound of lather.

$4.49 Vaseline Intensive Care

Mature Skin Rejuvenation Lotion. This velvety lotion turns tight skin supple and pliant after just one application.

(And while the over-40s in our office vouch for the “mature” thing, the twentysomethings are obsessed, too.)

$5.99 Nivea Silk Mousse Body Wash. Loaded with sweet almond oil, this buoyant foam lotion hugs every curve and softens every inch. $3.99 EOS Shave Cream. We

confused this shaving cream for body lotion, lavished it on, and didn’t realize anything was amiss. It conditions without a hint of stickiness.

$4.99 Dial Hibiscus Water Body Wash. A quarter-size dollop of this clear gel works into a rich, soothing lather. $5.97 Dove Shower Foam.

Sometimes we just want a cleanser that gets the job done. Other times, we want to feel like our body is suspended in a cocoon of weightless lather. This airy foam does both.

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hair

$5.99 each Herbal Essences

Arabica Coffee Fruit Shampoo and Conditioner. They’re an antioxidantpacked double shot of protection against the pollutants that strip hair.

$6.99 Head & Shoulders Smooth & Silky 3 Action Formula Shampoo.

With smaller-than-ever zinc particles to treat the scalp and silicone to add sleekness, this dandruff shampoo banishes flakes as well as frizz.

$5.99 Pantene Pro-V Daily

Moisture Renewal Foam Conditioner.

Big shout-out to the person who finally

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realized wispy hair still craves moisture and created a rinse-off foam that weightlessly hydrates from root to tip.

$4.99 Tresemmé Repair & Protect

7 Instant Recovery Mask. A biotin-rich treatment that imparts shine, disguises split ends, and helps seal tattered cuticles in less than five minutes.

$4.99 L’Oréal Paris Air Dry It

Wave Swept Spray. Applied to damp hair, this spray encourages languid waves and allover volume, elevating air-drying to an art form.

$2.98 Suave Professionals

Avocado + Olive Oil Smoothing Leave-In Conditioning Cream. Take dry, frizzy hair, add 95 percent humidity—and don’t sweat a thing.

This rich cocktail of omegas wraps coarse, damaged strands in a coat of buttery sleekness.

$9.99 Dark and Lovely Au

Naturale Anti-Shrinkage Clumping Curl Crème Gel. Scrunch this moisturizing mix of argan and coconut oils into your hair to add luster and define curls without a trace of buildup or flakes.

makeup

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$9.99 L’Oréal Paris Voluminous

Lash Paradise Mascara. Packed with over 200 bristles, the fluffy brush deposits a heap of glossy formula that dries to a soft, fluttery finish. A bonus: It rinses off without harsh rubbing.

$8.49 Almay Pen Eyeliner. Well, this is genius: Designed like a ballpoint pen, the rounded tip follows the curve of your lash line and delivers the most fluid of strokes, flicks, and flourishes. $4.99 Wet n Wild MegaLast Liquid

Catsuit Matte Lipstick. This slinky matte formula lingers for hours but doesn’t

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feel tight. We love Nice to Fuchsia, a sexy raspberry with a trace of plum.

$7 Nyx Away We Glow Liquid Highlighter. The silky cream comes in nine iridescent shades. Our favorites: Rose Quartz (dewy pink), State of Flux (chilly lavender), and Moon Glow, which casts a strobe of light you can see from the stratosphere. $5 Rimmel London Match

Perfection Silky Loose Face Powder.

A translucent dust that controls shine, evens tone, and obscures pores for hours. And hours. And still more hours.

$8.99 CoverGirl Outlast

All-Day Soft Touch Concealer.

The slanted sponge tip delivers a cream with a powdery finish that stays put and feels feathery, masking imperfections in an instant...and making up for bad decisions better than confession.

$9.99 Maybelline New York

Brow Precise Fiber Volumizer.

The spoon-shaped spooley is loaded with the ideal ratio of tinted gel to tiny fibers. A few upward strokes leave every last brow hair thicker and darker and Lily Collins–ier.

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These pages: Fashion editor, Nicole Chapoteau.

Hair: Neil Grupp.

Makeup: Ayami Nishimura.

Manicure: Megumi Yamamoto. Model: Robin Holzken. Set design: Lou Asaro and Sasha Flimlin at Cerutti + Co.

It all starts when you’re handed the black canvas tote bag. The one stamped with the Allure Best of Beauty seal—and filled with lipsticks, creams, masks. You dig in and there’s a Chanel, a Dove, and wait up, that’s a La Mer. It’s the first day of Best of Beauty testing, and things are looking good. Four months and two rashes later, things are looking...um...keep reading... photographed by lacey OCTOBER 2017 ALLURE

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BEST OF BEAUT Y AMANDA BOHNSON, B E A U T Y A S S I STA N T

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“I’m going to be a team player. That’s what I thought when I signed up for testing almost every category of Best of Beauty. I figured I’d get three products per category. Wrong.

It was 400—and my apartment doesn’t even fit me. I lined up as many as I could along my living room walls and windowsills, and put the rest in huge garbage bags.

My apartment was basically Sephora.”

Number of highlighters submitted for testing, a ginormous leap from last year’s 44.

JESSICA CHIA, SENIOR BEAUT Y EDITOR

“I tested lip stains, so I’d wear a different one every day for weeks.

Then one day, the subway was more crowded than usual and we were all pressed up against each other. This guy’s button-down brushed against my mouth in the shuffle. He had no idea there was a bright pink lip print on his back, and no one else said anything. I still feel awful about it.”

Bra by Araks. Underwear

by Baserange. Details, see Shopping Guide.

MICHELLE LEE , EDITOR IN CHIEF

“I had a half hour free one afternoon, so I decided I’d sit on my sofa and test body creams. I was trying to find little spots that I could put them all on. I opened a jar, put a little here, a little there—it was really thick and started gumming up. That’s when I realized my user error—I’d put hair pomade all over my arms.

“I tested everything else—on the right body parts—for at least a few weeks to know if a product was a winner. I’d do it in phases: All the products would start at my desk, where they might stay for months. If I liked something enough, it’d move to a table in my office. If I really loved it, I’d bring it home. It was like March Madness brackets— a physical representation of how much I liked something. I don’t think people truly understand how long we try each product.”

208.9

Pounds of lipstick, eye shadow, and nail polish swatched and rejected in the hunt for 28 winning shades.

331

Number of liquid lipsticks swiped, blotted, and Instagrammed.

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9,087

Number of beauty products submitted by brands hoping to win Best of Beauty.

J E N N Y B A I L L Y, E X E C U T I V E B E A U T Y D I R E C T O R

“My six-year-old son, Henri, was in the office one day and wanted to work, so he helped us test temporary hair color—blue, purple, silver glitter. Next up? Bringing products to editors. No, not bringing. Running. He was zipping up and down the halls so fast, all that hair color started dripping. It was a very Allure moment: He was sweating glitter.

“He was ultimately a little disappointed with my own gig, though: ‘Mom, I thought you were the boss of the beauty people? But then how come you sit at that computer and I get the best job on the floor?’ ”

IMANI RODRIGUEZ, BEST OF BEAUTY A S S I STA N T

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Number of times we crossed our fingers and tried a new self-tanner, which led to survey notes like “SCARY,” “terrible,” and “George Hamilton called—he wants his orange face cream back.”

1

Number of survey responses that sent everyone born after 1979 to Urban Dictionary. (“Don’t sleep on it” doesn’t mean “Wash this hair mask out before bed.”)

Underwear by Araks. Details, see Shopping Guide.

“Passing out the bags of products for testing was a big part of my job. I guessed there’d be a lot, but honestly, I had no clue what I was in for. Reality sank in one day when an editor—who’d just gotten his umpteenth bag of products—said, ‘I don’t know whether to love you or hate you right now.’ ”

DA N I C A TA LO N , BEST OF BEAUTY A S S I STA N T

“Walking into the Allure beauty closet every morning was like going on an adventure: Bags of products waiting to be handed out were piled up everywhere.

I had to walk between the stacks and watch every step. It was crazy.

And oh, my God, the highlighters. I handed out 310. I tested naturallooking champagne ones and blue glittery ones you could see from space.”

K AT I E B E C K E R , W R I T E R , “ T H E B I G B R E A K T H R O U G H S ”

“Writing this story is the ultimate assignment for a beauty reporter. When I got the call from Allure 10 months ago, I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. Did I fully realize that six months later, I’d still be reading 45-page clinical studies almost daily and dreaming about the chemical makeup of glycolic acid? Well, no. But I’m still glad I picked up the phone.

I spent hours talking with beauty brands’ R and D experts trying to persuade them to give up their formulation secrets.

And I mean, all of the different ingredients they test and formulas they reject and heat simulations they run to create something that’s innovative and new? I just have a ton of respect.”

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257

Number of times Allure staffers wrote that they “loved” a product in the testing surveys.

There were also 30 “mehs” and 27 “hates,” usually for reasons like smells “like Mountain Dew,” “orange Pez,” or “fake orange juice.”

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AN OPEN LETTER

Bra by Araks.

Underwear by Baserange.

Details, see Shopping Guide.

proof positive Living Proof is the Meryl Streep of hair care.

It earned its seventh Best of Beauty Breakthrough Award this year. To win, each product is deemed the first of its kind by independent judges, including cosmetic chemists, who know the beauty industry like the backs of their (very well-moisturized) hands.

So a brief moment to say: We love your body of work.

To the experts who studied ingredients, sacrificed blowouts, and occasionally shelved reason to help us find the best beauty products on planet Earth:

Thank you, cosmetic chemists Trefor Evans, Jim Hammer, Ginger King, and Ni’Kita Wilson, for distinguishing the brighteners from the BS. To the dermatologists who lugged home stacks of data and bags of serums, thank you for methodically and patiently—so, so patiently—finding the most effective, most inventive skin care on the market. We’re so appreciative to doctors Whitney Bowe, Doris Day, Jeanine Downie, Francesca Fusco, Ranella Hirsch, Ellen Marmur, Amy Wechsler, Heather Woolery-Lloyd, Jessica Wu, and Joshua Zeichner. A big shout-out to CNET executive editor and all-around tech authority Sharon Profis for OD’ing on selfies to take so many new beauty apps for a spin. Hairstylists DJ Quintero, Lacy Redway, and Eva Scrivo, we sincerely hope your biceps have recovered from all the blowouts. But admit it, finding the most innovative volumizer was worth the sore muscles, right? A huge thank you to manicurists Elle and Tracylee for separating the cool nail-art kits from the cheesy disasters. And to makeup artists Robin Black and Jillian Dempsey, we don’t know where we’d be if you hadn’t tried so many eyeliners, makeup sponges, and fake lashes for us, but we know what we’d look like—and it’s not good. Thank you, everyone, for making us look so good.

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For more behind-the-scenes moments from our editors, go to allure.com/bob-bts.

JOSEPHINE SCHIELE

“When I was an assistant, all of the products were sent to me to pass out.

One day I looked up and the entire mail room staff was at my desk. They couldn’t believe one person got so many packages—I was the most delivered-to person at all of Condé Nast and they’d come to meet me.

“When you try that many new products, there are going to be some mishaps. Like the time I applied a coconut oil hair mask...right before my hot water got shut off. I looked like an oil slick for days—even after my water came back, it took forever to wash it all out. This is the first year I didn’t end up breaking out in contact dermatitis from testing new skin care.

“But I love geeking out over an amazing new face mask or lipstick. It’s such a special feeling when you test so many products and then find one that changes your life, like the Tangle Teezer. No one had heard of it when [makeup artist] Pat McGrath told me about it in 2013, then it won best hairbrush. That’s the coolest thing about Best of Beauty: You can be part of discovering a product that’ll change the industry.”

Number of dry shampoos spritzed to find the best lazy-morning refresher.

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JUVÉDERM VOLBELLA XC

Why exactly do dermatologists love this new hyaluronic acid lip filler? Let them count the ways.

1. “It’s made with a lower concentration of hyaluronic acid than any other filler out there, so it has a soft consistency and is the best option for anyone who wants a very natural look,” says Jessica Wu, a dermatologist in Los Angeles.

2. “Many people find it less painful than other fillers,” says Doris Day, a dermatologist in New York City.

3. “Because it’s so soft, it’s great for smoothing lines around the mouth without risking ridges,” says Joshua Zeichner, a dermatologist in New York City.

4. “I can use it off-label to fill wrinkles on the cheeks and chest; other hyaluronic acid fillers can look bumpy in those areas,” says Wu.

the big breakthroughs

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The winners of our Best of Beauty Breakthrough Awards are the most innovative yet. By Katie Becker

photographed by dan forbes

BEST OF BEAUT Y

CLARISONIC SMART PROFILE UPLIFT

You know what sounds like a big bowl of beauty BS? A silicone massage head for your Clarisonic that smooths wrinkles and firms jawlines. I mean, puh-leeze...right, Whitney Bowe? “I’m impressed with the results.” Wait, say again? “You have to be patient and dedicated to see a change in your skin, but I’m impressed,” says the New York City dermatologist. According to company-sponsored clinical studies, this thing actually works: After 12 weeks of twice-daily use, participants had 12 percent improvement in firmness and 25 percent improvement in fine lines. “I haven’t been sold on the science behind other massaging devices, but I’m sold on the data behind this one,” says cosmetic chemist Ni’Kita Wilson. “They tested the optimum frequency for firming and smoothing first, and then the technology was developed around that data.” The gadget delivers more than 27,000 movements during each three-minute session. And 504 minutes later (the doctor said you’d have to be patient): firmer, tauter, smoother skin.

25 Percentage improvement in fine lines after using Clarisonic Uplift for 12 weeks.

RHOFADE CREAM, 1%

More than 14 million—million—Americans have rosacea, the skin condition marked by chronic flushing and acne-like bumps. So you’d think we’d know how to treat it by now, but nope—not that easy. There are plenty of options to help calm inflammation, but they don’t address the other cause of the redness: dilated blood vessels under the skin, says Heather Woolery-Lloyd, a dermatologist in Miami. And any prescription cream that can constrict those vessels comes with an asterisk: “After a few days of use, the flush can return, sometimes stronger than before,” says Woolery-Lloyd. That makes Rhofade cream, 1%, the first cream to treat the flushing, full stop. The prescription formula tightens only specific blood vessels near the surface of the skin, so there’s very little risk of worsening the problem; other prescription creams can backfire and dilate blood vessels, making redness more pronounced. Rhofade’s active ingredient, oxymetazoline hydrochloride, is the same drug found in Afrin, but in a prescription-strength concentration and combined with oils that help it penetrate the skin (a much trickier feat than getting through nasal membranes). According to two company-sponsored clinical trials that tested thousands of patients, after 29 days of regular use, Rhofade erases redness minutes after application for up to 12 hours.

When tested daily on 440 subjects for a full year, less than 2 percent of patients saw their flushing come back; with past prescription rosacea treatments, that number was between 10 and 20 percent, according to a study published in the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology. And these aren’t just impressive numbers. They’re life-changing ones. “The flushing can be embarrassing and traumatic,” says Ellen Marmur, a dermatologist in New York City.

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LIVING PROOF PERFECT HAIR DAY IN-SHOWER STYLER

If you want sexy, surfer-girl waves, you have to plug in a curling iron, bust out a texturizer, and commit 20 minutes to achieving the low-key look. The irony wasn’t lost on Betsy Patel, a chemist at Living Proof, who set out to create a new kind of texturizer: one that you put on in the shower and lightly rinse off, one that lets you live the dream of air-drying to beachy perfection. The challenge was finding ingredients that would deliver waves instead of just going down the drain. Patel first narrowed the field to ingredients with positive charges—“they stick to hair like magnets”—then tested more than a dozen. She finally found that polyquat resins would shrink and cause hair to scrunch into waves as it air-dries. Patel also did away with a major drawback of a lot of stylers: “Many are full of ingredients that weigh down hair,” says cosmetic chemist Trefor Evans. Rinse away those extras in the shower and your waves should look beachier, longer. And that’s exactly what happened: Both our fine- and thick-haired testers got soft, beachy waves that lasted all day.

SKINMEDICA LYTERA 2.0 PIGMENT CORRECTING SERUM

A serum that can lighten intractable dark spots is the unicorn of skin care. “SkinMedica’s original Lytera was one of the better nonprescription options, but patients with dark skin weren’t getting results—it’s really hard to treat discoloration on dark skin,” says Woolery-Lloyd.

To create a brightener that would actually brighten everyone, SkinMedica researchers went back to the drawing board and tested more than 100 ingredients and 125 formula combinations. “Other brighteners are tested on one, maybe two skin tones,” says Bowe.

“Lytera 2.0 has been studied across multiple skin tones in four different ethnicities and shown to fade discoloration universally.” Its blend of 10 ingredients (including tranexamic acid, phytic acid, and phenylethyl resorcinol) was shown to reduce melanin levels by 45 percent after 14 days of use in a study in the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology. “That result is comparable to prescription-strength hydroquinone,” says Woolery-Lloyd.

21 Hours it takes to get a custom BareMinerals foundation.

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BareMinerals’ custom-made foundation app “is a clear look into the future, when much of what we buy will be tailormade,” says Sharon Profis, the executive editor of CNET. And the future is fast.

3:35 P.M.: Our fair-skinned tester downloads the app and taps her iPhone’s camera against her face and wrists. It collects thousands of pixels of color data per second, generating an equation as unique as a fingerprint.

3:44 P.M.: The data is received at a lab in Santa Monica. In about five minutes, her blend of pigments is poured into an antioxidant lotion and funneled into a bottle with her name on it.

The next day, 12:24 P.M.: Her bottle arrives (with expedited shipping). She checks the foundation in different lights.

It’s a seamless match, closer than any foundation she’s tried.

And we tested the app on three skin tones: Undertones were perfectly matched and redness was canceled out, even for people who struggle to find foundations suited to their complexion.

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AQUAPHOR OINTMENT BODY SPRAY

Cracked lips, ragged cuticles, unruly brows—you can fix it all with a little bit of Aquaphor, and we do mean a little bit. Because the classic ointment is so rich and so heavy, you can really only use it on small areas. Until now.

It took scientists five years of testing and tweaking to turn Aquaphor into a fastabsorbing spray. A few other numbers to consider:

358 Number of problems (give or take a hundred) the spray solves, including chapped skin, rough heels, ashy legs, and sunburned arms. You get the same intense hydration as you get from the ointment, without any of the goopiness or sink-in wait time.

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92 Years since the invention of Aquaphor.

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Ingredients in the thick balm (petrolatum, mineral oil, ceresin, lanolin alcohol, panthenol, glycerin, bisabolol). “It’s incredibly hard to make these rich ingredients light enough that they can be a mist—it has never happened before,” says Wilson.

In fact, the Aquaphor people built entirely new manufacturing equipment to separate the ointment into microdroplets you can spray on skin.

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PRAVANA BLONDE WAND

Forty-five: minutes it took to get blonde highlights last year.

Twenty-two: minutes it takes today. The difference is the Pravana Blonde Wand. A colorist puts a coconut-oil-infused bleach (Pravana Pure Light Crème Lightener) on your hair and then moves the tool over the foil. “Well, that’s a cool—or maybe a hot!—idea,” says cosmetic chemist Jim Hammer (ba-dum-bum-ching). “Many reactions, including the ones that bleach hair, happen faster when the temperature is raised.

And when the hair doesn’t have to be in contact with the chemicals as long, there’s also less chance of damage.”

Colorists say the Blonde Wand’s concentrated heat cuts down on the time it takes for bleach to process by about half, and that’s a game changer for brunettes and redheads who want to go blonde. “That used to take multiple trips to the salon, but now we can lift dark hair in one process—it’s been a miracle worker,” says Clarissa Malek, a colorist at Bloom salon in New York City. And all of the colorists we talked to agreed: In the six-plus months they’ve been using the Blonde Wand, they’ve found it leaves hair with less damage than other bleaching techniques.

50 Percent less time you spend getting blonde highlights with the Pravana Blonde Wand.

SKINBETTER SCIENCE ALTO DEFENSE SERUM

Antioxidants are the great defenders of skin care, protecting against damage from pollution, sun, stress. But no single antioxidant can offer all defenses. And no single serum is able to keep more than a few antioxidants effective and stable. Actually, make that last part past tense: SkinBetter Science Alto Defense Serum has a whopping 19 antioxidants. “Combining that many antioxidants to fight oxidative stress and inflammation is a tremendous achievement,” says Marmur, who now keeps a bottle at her desk. Company trials found that skin treated with Alto had 76 percent less redness when exposed to UV light than unprotected skin and, after eight weeks, a 23 percent reduction in wrinkles. Particularly ballsy was a study pitting Alto against the industry gold standard antioxidant serum, in which skin treated with Alto had 53 percent less oxidative stress. To get this house party of antioxidants (including green tea, coffee, and licorice) to play nice, SkinBetter scientists tested 1,000 ratios and concentrations of antioxidants. “Think of baking,” says Mitchell Wortzman, the company’s chief scientific officer. “It requires specific ingredients in certain combinations.” Consider this the perfect chocolate soufflé (if a soufflé could make your skin brighter and bouncier).

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BEST OF BEAUT Y

COPPERTONE CLEARLY SHEER WHIPPED SUNSCREEN

We’ve all felt it: the sticky, heavy, do-I-have-to-put-it-on-ness of sunscreen. So Coppertone turned its sunscreen lotion into a joyously light and fluffy whipped foam using nitrous oxide gas, the same propellant used in aerosol whipped cream (why reinvent the wheel?). Their scientists tested hundreds of gas-tosunscreen ratios and even the shape and width of the nozzle opening to make sure this new sunscreen would come out airy without having to be shaken. (OK, so the wheel needed some tweaking.) It’s not the only mousse sunscreen out there—shout-out to Supergoop Super Power Sunscreen Mousse—but it is one of a kind. “Other mousses use conventional liquid propellants, so they’re not quite as easy to spread,” says Hammer. Coppertone’s is also the only mousse sunscreen with a pressurized bag inside the can so you can squirt from every angle. And then there’s the psychology at work: “It makes you feel like a kid making a banana split and squirting out whipped cream. It’s so fun that before you know it, you’ve applied as much sunscreen as you actually should,” says Bowe. “Most people usually apply only half of what they need.”

10,000 Hours of research that went into making Secret

Fresh deodorant/antiperspirant.

SECRET FRESH

You know how you’re like, “My job stinks.” Well, stop. There are people at Secret HQ who’ve been smelling rotten eggs for a living. And they did it for you.

Why? Because they want to spare you unnecessary anxiety: It’s highly likely that you often think your deodorant’s worn off at midday when in fact you’re still 100 percent covered. “We lose the ability to smell the scents we smell every day,” says Chris Putman, who does research and development for Secret. “But we don’t become nose-blind to negative odors—like rotting food.

It’s part of our survival instinct, since those odors can harm us.”

What do most of those negative odors have in common? Sulfur.

Putman’s team figured out the minimum amount necessary to keep your nose “turned on,” so you’ll keep smelling your deodorant all day without subjecting you to its rotten-egg smell. To nail the perfect balance, they screened more than 1,000 perfume materials. “It took over 10,000 hours of research,” says Putman. “It was like finding a needle in a haystack.” But the final result really works: Our tester reached across her desk at 5 P.M. and got a faint whiff of vanilla from her deodorant. Be sure you pick your favorite of the 11 scents, though—you will still smell it the next morning.

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JERGENS NATURAL GLOW WET SKIN MOISTURIZER

The 50-year history of selftanner has had its moments— including a biggie this year.

1957: The pigment-altering effects of the oral medicine DHA are discovered when it spills on skin and turns it brown.

2015: St. Tropez creates the first self-tanner that you apply on wet skin—it’s smoother and less likely to streak—and then rinse off three minutes later.

2017: Jergens creates a wet-skin self-tanner that cuts out the waiting, shivering, and rinsing steps. At the end of your shower, slather the lotion evenly over skin, then go straight to drying off (with the brightest, whitest towel). The DHA separates from the lotion to be absorbed by your skin, and a long-lasting film locks it in so you can’t rub it off. Our testers praised the speedy process and the natural color.

FLIRT FLASHES LASH APPLICATOR

M.A.C. ROLLERWHEEL LIQUID LINER

Look again. Yep, that’s right—it’s like a mini pizza cutter. And while using an eyeliner that resembles a knife seems like a curious decision, this one is a clever solution to wobbly liner. Roll the small plastic disc across your lash line and it lays down a straight, thin line of inky color. The accolades from our judges read like a movie poster: “Flawless,” says Hammer. “Brilliant,” says makeup artist Robin Black.

“It’s much easier to get a clean, precise shape with it than even thin felt-tip liners, because the rollerball doesn’t require the same kind of even pressure.”

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YouTubers have called it a lash stapler, but don’t be misled: This gizmo has made it incredibly easy to (gently) put on false lashes. Roll the dial and three preloaded synthetic lashes emerge; the curved Lash Applicator holds onto the tips of the lashes with a clamp, so you can look straight ahead at the mirror and plop the lashes exactly where you want them.

Count to 10, roll the dial again, and move on. Our testers, including both fake-lash cognoscenti and total morons (sorry, we mean novices), loved how easy the tool was to maneuver and how naturally its lashes blended in with their own.

MAGIC MOUNTAIN

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A sight that will greet you at the entrance to every Mount Koya temple

Focus. Focus. Focus, damn it.

I am in the Ekoin temple in the serene, otherworldly Japanese mountain town of Mount Koya. I have left my shoes by the door, slipped into leather slides, and put my phone away (after I took a picture of the slippers, obviously). I am here for one purpose: to find my Zen, my calm, my third eye.

All I need to do is focus. And do whatever Nobu says. Nobu, one of the monks at the temple, will guide me to inner peace.

He practices Ajikan meditation, which is kind of like saying the alphabet—without getting past a. Your (my) mantra is: “ah” (Sanskrit for a).

Nobu tells me to count to 10 and focus on “ah.” Only 10.

Over and over. This I can do. I focus on “ah.” Then he tells me to do it again. Why only 10? Any higher and you could get

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FROM TOP: JENNY BAILLY; MEI CHOO TEO/ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

Looking for peace (and, yes, better skin) in a mystical corner of Japan.

By Jenny Bailly

B E AU T Y PAS S P O RT

At night, the temples of Mount Koya glow in lantern light.

Shiseido’s new Future Solution LX line includes day, night, and eye creams and a cleanser that froths into an airy foam with a delicate cherry blossom scent.

The formulas combine Mount Koya’s enmei herb with antioxidant green tea and skin-firming sakura-leaf extract. In Shiseido’s studies, enmei has been shown to help heal and regenerate the skin.

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The monks who live here at the Ekoin temple meditate in nature as often as possible.

Ocean, it has a population of about 3,000. One thousand or so of those people are monks.

This is a place where the breeze doesn’t blow; it whispers. Just stepping inside the city limits lowers your blood pressure. Mount Koya, the center of Shingon Buddhism, is 11 square miles of forests peppered with 117 temples. It’s 76 miles south of Kyoto. And about 76,000 from a world of geishas and imperial palaces.

Technically, I’m here on official business: to learn about an herb—enmei—that has grown wild in these misty, magical hills for centuries.

The monks used to give it to weary pilgrims to restore their strength; Shiseido has put it into a new collection of serums and creams. If there is a place where Zen meets the battle against crow’s-feet, I have found it. My first meditation wasn’t a success as much as it was a study in discomfort and anxiety. But then I slept in one of Mount Koya’s temples, on a tatami mat, and woke up at dawn. By 6 A.M., I was at a fire ceremony. The tonal chanting reverberated in my chest and my forehead and actually quieted my mind, like a first glass of wine (or sake). My inbox and my distractions didn’t quite disappear; let’s say they faded into the background. Two hours later, when I walked out into a tableau of cherry blossoms set off against cypress-bark roofs, I treasured the moment—and didn’t even Instagram it.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: COURTESY OF SHISEIDO; JENNY BAILLY; COURTESY OF SHISEIDO; MISS REIN/STOCKSY.COM

competitive—which may not be the most direct route to Zen. “It doesn’t matter how many counts or how many minutes,” says Nobu. I’m sitting cross-legged, my eyes only half open (try to do this for 15 minutes—it’s not easy). I’m counting; I’m focusing. “When a thought comes into your mind, imagine it is a pebble,” says Nobu. “Widen your mind until the thought disappears, like a tiny pebble in a garden.” I try. But then my pebble takes the form of the email about the face-lift story that I never responded to last week. Crap, then another pebble about that other email. I’m at one of the holiest sites on the planet and I’m drowning in the pebbles of my inbox.

And my Instagram feed. This beautiful place is social media gold. That shot with the slippers had real potential. Did you know there is a prayer bead emoji? I didn’t, but I do now.

Nobu probably doesn’t. Nobu also seems like a very, very happy human. Come on, for the love of all that is holy: Focus.

In the monks-per-capita game, Mount Koya is a world leader. At the center of a peninsula that juts into the Pacific

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From left: sheepskin jacket by Sharon Wauchob. Cotton jacket by MM6 Maison Margiela. Sheepskin jacket by Sharon Wauchob. Cotton jacket by CĂŠline. Details, see Shopping Guide. These pages: Fashion stylist, Agata Belcen. Hair: Tamas Tuzes. Makeup: Emi Kaneko. Manicure: Megumi Yamamoto. Set design: Whitney Hellesen. Production: Patrick Van Maanen for Moxie Productions.

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How do you know if you’re using the greatest shampoos, lipsticks, scrubs, and moisturizers ever to grace this earth?

You could get together with your friends and stare off into the horizon for answers or...turn the page already!

By Liana Schaffner

photographed by tanya and zhenya posternak

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base All the best ways to build a solid foundation (and highlight, and contour).

primer

facial self-tanner

Sometimes we skip primer because whatever.

But with Paula’s Choice Resist Smoothing Primer Serum, we’re tempted to skip everything else instead. One invisible layer hydrates and gives an airbrushed effect.

Applying self-tanner to your face always feels like a gamble, but Tan-Luxe The Face takes muddied disasters off the table. Add a couple of golden drops to your daily moisturizer for a quiet glow; mix in several more for deeper color.

foundation

bronzer

contour kit It turns out that contouring with the skill of a Kardashian requires a bona fide Kardashian.

KKW Beauty Crème Contour & Highlight Kit contains a dual-ended (warm/cool) contour stick for building depth, a two-sided (intense glow/matte gleam) highlighter, and the perfect brush and sponge for blending.

powder PRESSED. In the compact, Laura Mercier Candleglow Sheer Perfecting Powder is a silky mound of light. On skin, the weightless texture and whispery glimmer are impossible to overdo.

LOOSE. Kat Von D Lock-It Brightening Powder vanishes the second it hits skin, leaving behind a veil of warmth.

sensitive skin We found (with dermatologists as GPS) the best lotions and creams for touchy types.

Skinfix Hand Repair Cream repairs the skin’s protective barrier with colloidal oatmeal; natural butters heal cracks and smooth scales. Yes to Cotton Comforting Facial Moisturizer makes skin feel absurdly soft. La Roche-Posay Toleriane Double Repair Moisturizer UV checks many boxes: Glycerin restores moisture, SPF 30 defends against damage, and the oil-free formula won’t clog pores. Burt’s Bees Sensitive Eye Cream uses cotton extract and aloe to calm and depuff. Simple Micellar Make-Up Remover Wipes lift all traces of makeup in one smooth, hydrating pass.

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UNDER-EYES. At first we thought Lancôme Teint Idole Ultra Wear Camouflage might be too creamy and opaque. But the rich color disguised our inkiest shadows without collecting in fine lines—an actual first.

BLEMISHES. The only thing worse than a conspicuous pimple is a conspicuously hidden pimple. Nars Soft Matte Complete Concealer has a creamy texture that clings to pimples and a matte finish that diffuses them.

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POWDER. Flower Beauty Flower Pots Powder Blush is so petal soft, you could almost apply it with your fingers. Swirled on with a brush, the silky color unfurls like an honest-to-goodness flush.

CREAM. The sheer blush and creamy highlighter in Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate Cheeks produce both a vibrant sheen and a clean, sculpted look.

Milk Makeup Holographic Stick in Mars imparts the peachy warmth of candlelight— not the pewter shine of candlesticks. Make Up For Ever Pro Light Fusion is a glinting powder with a creamy texture, so you can build an intense metallic finish.

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POWDER. Marc Jacobs Beauty Omega Bronze Perfect Tan Bronzer is a giant disc of tawny shimmer-free powder. It adds warmth to cheeks but also lets you cover your chest and shoulders with one sweep of a fluffy brush.

CREAM. L’Oréal Paris Sublime Bronze Wash-Off Face Bronzer Cream comes in one budgeproof, goofproof shade that warms up fair tones and gives dark skin a golden glow.

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LIGHT COVERAGE. Neither too shiny nor too flat, CoverGirl Vitalist Healthy Elixir Foundation creates the kind of bare-skin look that’s usually accompanied by perfect lighting.

MEDIUM COVERAGE. A thin liquid laced with powders, Dior Diorskin Forever Fluid Foundation skims on and blurs imperfections.

The tint stays put without sinking into lines.

FULL COVERAGE. Dense color masks pores, but it can also streak and cling to dry patches.

Shiseido Synchro Skin Glow Luminizing Fluid Foundation keeps skin dewy and gleams on the high points of the face.

OILY SKIN. Bamboo is the secret ingredient in Burt’s Bees Mattifying Powder Foundation, but we could have sworn it was gossamer. The ultrafine pigment provides shine-free coverage while allowing skin to peek through.

MINERAL. BareMinerals Complexion Rescue Tinted Hydrating Gel Cream rolls over skin, delivering luminous color that moisturizes as well as a lotion.

BB CREAM/TINTED MOISTURIZER. Infused with hyaluronic acid, Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Tint plumps fine lines, evens tone, and turns skin into a supple canvas.

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skin Brighter, smoother, healthier, beautiful-er: Meet the bottled superstars that get you there.

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DULL SKIN. More than one Allure significant other gasped (audibly) and walked out of the room (silently) when they saw us wearing the yellow, latex-like Dr. Jart+ Rubber Mask Bright Lover. Their loss. Because when we peeled it off 30 minutes later, the gleaming results were a sight to behold.

NORMAL SKIN. The only more accurate name for Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser would be Cool, Quivery Cleanser That Dissolves Makeup and Hydrates Like a Night Cream and Also Smells Like Totally Dreamy Rose Water.

But that’s a little long.

SPOT-FADING. Niacinamide breaks up dark spots over time, while glycerin hydrates instantly to brighten the skin faster than you can say Olay Luminous Miracle Boost Concentrate.

DRY SKIN. You know how water makes dry skin tighter? Rodan + Fields Soothe Gentle Cream Wash can be tissued off, removing makeup without stripping oils.

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CLEANSING WIPES. “Are these baby wipes?” scoffed every Allure editor testing in this category. And then, the next day: “Why isn’t every woman in America using these?”

Steeped in glycerin, Mustela Cleansing Wipes deposit a veil of moisture as they remove makeup (or, sure, spit-up).

OILY SKIN. Estée Lauder DayWear Matte Moisture Gel Creme provides gentle hydration that de-slicks skin and disguises pores.

facial mist Like getting caught in the rain, a lot of mists just douse our face in water. But H2O+ AquaDefense Matcha Essence delivers major hydration as well as an umbrella of antioxidants to repel free radicals.

facial oil The omega-rich Caudalie Vine Activ Overnight Detox Oil melts into skin, brightening and boosting collagen while we sleep. (Or take one dermatologist’s more straightforward words for it: “Great ingredients, smart science.”)

facial serum ANTIOXIDANT. Juiced up with antioxidantrich blackberry, Aveeno Absolutely Ageless Intensive Renewal Serum provides heavy-duty protection in the lightest possible form.

LINE-SMOOTHING. RoC Retinol Correxion Deep Wrinkle Daily Moisturizer fights lines by day with SPF 30 and fast-acting retinol. We let No7 Lift & Luminate Serum do the same by night with its potent peptide blend.

LINE-SMOOTHING. StriVectin Advanced Retinol Eye Cream diminishes lines with retinol while also fortifying skin’s moisture barrier.

DEPUFFING. A dreamy wake-up call, First Aid Beauty Eye Duty Triple Remedy AM Gel Cream cools and debloats with a reveille of red algae and peptides.

MOISTURIZING. “I love these little suckers,” sighed one editor of the gold ampoules in every jar of Elizabeth Arden Advanced Ceramide Capsules Daily Youth Restoring Eye Serum.

Break one open each morning and tap on the rich serum to wipe out crepiness. The plant stem cells in Aveda Tulasara Wedding Masque Eye Overnight are so effective at calming skin and relaxing creases, we’re ready to sleep with it. Every night. Until death do us part.

BRIGHTENING. Hearing “You look tired” is bad enough when we’re actually tired, way worse after a full eight hours. The hydrators and peptides in Clinique Pep-Start Eye Cream stave off darkness, puffiness...and unwanted commentary.

scrub With purified water, licorice, and papaya, the ingredient list of E.L.F. Gentle Peeling Exfoliant sounds like the menu at a wellness spa. But not even an hour of hot yoga can produce such taut and glowy results.

facial sunscreen UNTINTED. La Roche-Posay Anthelios 60 Clear Skin Dry Touch Sunscreen won’t turn slick or suffocate pores, no matter how much we slather on (and it’s a lot).

TINTED. The solid protection and toneperfecting tint of SkinCeuticals Physical Fusion UV Defense Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50 make it a favorite of editors and dermatologists alike.

peel Laced with natural alpha hydroxy acids and calming witch hazel, Skinfix Facial Exfoliating Pads kick dullness to the curb in the gentlest, friendliest fashion.

acne ALLOVER TREATMENT. Differin Gel contains a prescription-strength dose of adapelene, an acne-fighting retinoid that penetrates deep into the pores, obliterating zits where they start.

SPOT TREATMENT. Kiehl’s Breakout Control Targeted Acne Spot Treatment shrinks pimples and soothes skin with a sophisticated blend of sulfur and niacinamide.

SYSTEM. La Roche-Posay Effaclar Dermatological 3-Step Acne System has nabbed this title three years in a row. The cleanser, toner, and benzoyl peroxide treatment kill bacteria and control oil while refining texture.

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OILY SKIN. Philosophy Purity Made Simple Pore Extractor Exfoliating Clay Mask helps dissolve those solid plugs of oil that stop up pores, then it pulls away all the gunk.

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The flurry of petals floating in Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Facial Toner is pure romance; the effect of the rose-fruit extracts and hyaluronic acid on our skin is pure refinement.

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OVERNIGHT. Imagine a waterbed for your face and you’ll get Laneige Water Sleeping Mask. The fluid gel glides on and delivers moisture all night long.

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DRY SKIN. This gel may feel delicate, but Garnier SkinActive Moisture Bomb the Antioxidant Super Moisturizer delivers a wallop of moisture that turns papery skin pliant.

EYE AREA. Because cucumber slices no longer cut it, there’s Shiseido Benefiance WrinkleResist24 Pure Retinol Express Smoothing Eye Mask. The half-moon strips release a measured dose of retinol to smooth lines and brighten skin.

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CLEANSING STICK. If a bar of soap went to Monaco and struck it rich, you’d get Julep Love Your Bare Face Detoxifying Cleansing Stick.

The decadent balm cleans and polishes with cushy oils and pomegranate enzymes.

NORMAL SKIN. L’Oréal Paris Hydra Genius Daily Liquid Care quenches with three forms of hyaluronic acid. Bonus points for the primerlike finish it leaves.

DRY SKIN. Drenched in antioxidants and hyaluronic acid, Garnier SkinActive Moisture Bomb the Super Hydrating Mask locks moisture in place. And the goopy sheet won’t slip from your face. (Case in point: We’re wearing one as we type this.)

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OILY SKIN. Skinfix Foaming Clay Cleanser evolves from a thin pink putty to a creamy white lather. And while you were distracted by that neat trick, it purged your pores and hydrated.

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nails A dozen or so excellent reasons to up your hand-talking game.

nail polish

the splurges

RED. A cool and vivid cherry, Chanel Longwear Nail Colour in Gitane has the appeal of a Maraschino in a Manhattan.

For those who prefer reds of the firecracker variety, Essie nail polish in Fifth Avenue (on the model at right) is a warm, bright crimson with orange undertones.

These serums and shiny things are worth more than just bragging rights.

PINK. A soft baby pink, Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Pink a Card goes on milky and opaque, practically cuddling nails.

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NEUTRAL. Editors who can’t abide discernible chips reach for Smith & Cult nail polish in Ghost Edit. The translucent peach mimics the high shine of a vigorous buffing. OPI Infinite Shine 2 Long-Wear Lacquer in Coconuts Over OPI is a creamy taupe that looks chic on short nails, plush on rounded ones.

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BLUE. Jinsoon nail polish in Beau is a haunting mix of storm gray and midnight blue; UV filters protect nails from the sunniest of skies.

GREEN. A green so deep it inches toward black, Sally Hansen Color Therapy nail polish in Cool Cucumber is persistently lovely.

METALLIC. A translucent, holographic, brilliant wash of mauve, Marc Jacobs Beauty Enamored Hi-Shine Lacquer in Petra is all the coolest nail trends rolled into one.

home gel kit Bring on the pickle jars! The speed-texting!

The keys buried in that enormous bag you wish you hadn’t bought! Sally Hansen Miracle Gel provides the glassy, impervious finish of a salon gel manicure without the annoying light cure.

Lesser basecoats merely gloss over ridges, but Zoya Naked Manicure Naked Base actually fortifies weak nails with vitamins, proteins, and amino acids.

Our manicurist gave us a tip: Impeccable nails need not just flawless color, but a full silhouette. Essie Gel Setter Top Coat delivers both. The clear gel locks in shine and gives nails a sexy, rounded profile.

cuticle cream A fantasy of shea butter and hyaluronic acid, Deborah Lippmann The Cure Ultra Nourishing Cuticle Repair Cream turns ragged nails into silk.

nail polish remover Because more chips happen when we’re away from home, doing stuff, Cutex Swipe & Go Remover Pads come in super handy.

One individually wrapped cloth is enough to eliminate polish from all 10 fingers.

hand cream FOR DAY. Supergoop Forever Young Hand Cream SPF 40 protects skin with antioxidants and a high SPF; the greaseless formula dries in a snap.

FOR NIGHT. The Body Shop Almond Milk & Honey Hand Cream blankets skin in intense hydration, undoing the damage of frequent washing.

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The Dyson Supersonic hair dryer delivers the fastest blowouts with the lightest motor (it’s digital!) and steadiest airflow in the game. If you feel a tug of remorse as you swirl a brush over the filigreed finish of Burberry Fresh Glow Highlighter, you’ll recover as soon as the pearly wash sculpts cheekbones you never knew you had. La Prairie Skin Caviar Absolute Filler plumps skin with caviar oil. The jar releases the cream with the press of a button—way more efficient than a mother-of-pearl spoon. The deliciously wobbly Dior Hydra Life Glow Better Fresh Jelly Mask produces radiant skin with citrus extract and crushed apricot seeds. Clé de Peau Beauté UV Protective Lip Treatment has SPF 30—also known as the perfect excuse to lavish it on whenever we want. Giorgio Armani Power Fabric Foundation forms a luminous veil of coverage that hugs the contours of your face. Surratt Beauty Artistique Face Brush diffuses powder like a dream—all without shedding a single hair (and at $230 a brush, you can bet we’re keeping count). The flower extract in Sisley Black Rose Cream Mask makes complexions look as though they’ve been bathed in actual dew. Restorsea Pro Firming Eye Serum uses a natural enzyme found in salmon roe to smooth and tighten—temporarily, but still. Microscopic spheres of sea kelp in La Mer The Moisturizing Soft Lotion sink below the skin’s surface, hydrating from the inside out.

Elizabeth Arden Prevage City Smart SPF 50 shields skin with ultra-antioxidant idebenone.

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body wash

bath product

MOISTURIZING. The glycerin and shea butter in Olay Ultra Moisture Body Wash turn skin lavishly, decadently silky—even in mid-February. In Yakutsk. And the ginormous bottle is an embarrassment of richness.

EXFOLIATING. The burnt brown sugar and natural butters in Caress Evenly Gorgeous Exfoliating Body Wash sound like something off a dessert menu, but what you’re really ordering up is irresistibly soft skin.

ACNE-FIGHTING. Most acne fighters punish our skin as well as our zits. Murad Acne Body Wash is one sophisticated exception. Salicylic acid targets breakouts while green tea extract calms inflammation.

The delicate-scented Neutrogena Rainbath Restoring Shower and Bath Gel in Fresh Plum produces a mountain range of fluffy lather and moisture-rich peaks, turning our skin into velvet and our bathtub into Shangri-La. RICH. The texture of Le Petit Marseillais Shea Butter, Aloe & Beeswax Body Balm falls somewhere between custard and pudding; the shockingly smooth effect falls somewhere between silk and cashmere.

OIL. For a formula so rich in fatty acids, L’Occitane Almond Supple Skin Oil goes on remarkably light, leaving a nongreasy sheen behind.

body scrub

body sunscreen

The grainy sugar crystals and ground coconut shell in Kopari Coconut Crush Scrub are suspended in a cushion of beeswax and coconut oil that sticks around and keeps skin supple and pliant all day. Also, says editor Sophia Panych, “it smells so good, I want to eat it.”

You know the white stuff that lifeguards glob on their noses? Neutrogena Sheer Zinc DryTouch Sunscreen Broad Spectrum SPF 50 is just as powerful—but way less conspicuous. It dries to an invisible finish.

body lotion

TRADITIONAL SELF-TANNER. St. Tropez Self Tan Express Bronzing Mist delivers instant color that continues to deepen until you shower. Wait one hour for a weekend-atthe-beach glow, three for an I-moved-to-Bali bronze.

GRADUAL SELF-TANNER. We can apply Jergens Natural Glow Daily Moisturizer in total darkness and still end up with subtle, streak-free color.

BRONZER. Hydrating and fast-absorbing, Vita Liberata Body Blur Instant HD Skin Finish lays down a tinted sheen that evens tone, disguises pallor, and feels like nothing on skin.

LIGHT. Packed with natural oils and aloe, SheaMoisture 100% Tamanu Oil & Organic Shea Butter Extra Dry Skin Body Lotion cures dry knees and elbows without making skin slick.

body bronzer

deodorant We ran Jason Dry Spray Deodorant through the wringer (crowded subways, tight deadlines, stress from putting off the tight deadlines). The aluminum-free mist banished odor, no matter what.

antiperspirant If Dove Invisible Dry Spray set out on a mission to defend our clothes against sweat marks and white streaks for good, then mission accomplished.

shaving RAZOR. The pivoting head of Gillette Venus Swirl negotiates turns like a Lamborghini, leaving no terrain untouched (even ankle knobs).

SHAVING CREAM. The glycerin and shea butter in Gillette Venus With Olay UltraMoisture expand into a creamy mound that hugs and hydrates every inch.

body We’re over the moon for these 16 formulas that coddle and smooth and protect every last inch of our skin.

lips We mouthed off for months to find these flawless finishes and perfect pigments.

lipstick

lip gloss

CLASSIC RED. An ardent, opaque cherry with a sexy matte finish, Pat McGrath Labs Lust MatteTrance Lipstick in Elson (as in Karen) is the truest red we’ve ever laid eyes on. (Check it out on the model over there on the right.)

We’re not sure if the “brilliant” in Chantecaille Brilliant Lip Gloss refers to the glassy shine or the ingenious formula that makes lips appear plumper.

DARK RED. Gucci Luxurious Moisture-Rich Lipstick in Tulip deposits rich mulberry color with a glossy sheen that blurs peaks and softens edges.

PINK. Kylie Cosmetics Matte Liquid Lipstick & Lip Liner in Posie K is like pink from a parallel universe (i.e., Instagram). The rosy emulsion practically stands on top of lips, giving the hue more depth than we thought possible. For a demure flush, Butter London Plush Rush Lipstick in Playful is the shade you wish you were born with.

NEUTRAL, LIGHT SKIN. A fleshy, fragile, freaking gorgeous pink-y beige, Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lipstick in Pillow Talk makes lips appear cushion-full and feather-soft.

NEUTRAL, MEDIUM SKIN. It isn’t pink.

It isn’t purple. Bite Beauty Amuse Bouche Liquified Lip in Chutney glazes lips in straight-up mauve. The luscious berry with a whisper of gray delivers shine, depth, and a lot of intrigue.

NEUTRAL, DARK SKIN. A chestnut with a touch of pink, Giorgio Armani Rouge d’Armani Lip Color in Bamboo is a little richer, a little softer, and a whole lot sexier than most neutrals.

BRIGHT. With a sponge tip to diffuse the ultracreamy texture, CoverGirl Melting Pout Gel Liquid Lipstick in Gelfriend cloaks lips in moody violet with a velvety finish.

DARK. The texture of Nars Powermatte Lip Pigment in Rock With You is so watery and weightless, you don’t apply it; you paint it.

And the deep burgundy shade is so dark and gutsy, you don’t wear it; you werk it.

EDGY. It sounds crazy, but Maybelline New York Color Sensational lipstick in Midnight Blue is that exceptional wild shade that anyone can pull off. A smooth indigo with zero shimmer, it has the cool, democratic appeal of denim.

BERRY. A gleaming raspberry in the tube, Clinique Pop Matte Lip Colour + Primer in Shock Pop goes on without a hint of shine.

The built-in primer keeps the matte finish soft and pliant.

METALLIC. One swipe of Milani Amore Matte Metallic Lip Crème in The Ultimatte creates a stunning, and not remotely frosty, cranberry sheen.

SHEER. Clarins Joli Rouge Brilliant Lipstick in Soft Berry deposits juicy color that’s so translucent, you can sweep it on without a mirror.

lip stain The essential oils in Rimmel London Oh My Gloss Oil Tint fuse with the pigment, draping lips in gossamer color and even shine. The delicate tint stays put, so there’s never a circle of color lingering around the edges.

lip crayon We had to put Maybelline New York Baby Lips Color Balm Crayon in this category only because “Pigmented Pillow in a Stick” isn’t a thing. Each of the eight colors is as hydrating as it is richly saturated.

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liquid lipstick Chanel Rouge Allure Ink Matte Liquid Lip Colour offers a range of reds progressing from dusty rose to deep currant, all with a plush finish that softens lines instead of sucking lips dry.

lip balm With flecks of gold suspended in a clear, firm jelly, Tatcha Camellia Gold Spun Lip Balm is the balm of our dreams. Its vitamins and fatty acids hydrate while we sleep, so lips look fuller when we wake up. The shea butter in Jack Black Intense Therapy Lip Balm creates a sheer layer of pure protection that’s also a perfect lipstick primer (with SPF 25)— makeup artists (and beauty editors) reach for it every morning.

tooth whitener Crest 3D White No Slip Whitestrips With Light use a pocket-size blue light to weaken and eliminate deep-seated stains so your smile is as dazzling as your lipstick.

The sparkling results last up to three years— not a typo.

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The best fragrances can conjure a handful of petals, a freshly peeled tangerine, or a warm cup of coffee (sometimes all at once).

FRUITY. Yves Saint Laurent Mon Paris is that rare fruity fragrance that’s as tempting as it is bright. Raspberry at the top creates a sweet impression; jasmine adds softness and depth.

the naturals

FLORAL. In a landscape of dark and edgy floral scents, Gucci Bloom stands out in lush, powdery relief. The bouquet of white flowers is as layered and full-bodied as an actual bloom (hence the name). Simply put, it’s simply beautiful.

The oils in Farmacy Green Clean Cleansing Balm melt into skin as they lift away makeup.

Mix Josie Maran Argan Exfoliating Cleansing Powder with water for a paste that evens tone and calms redness. Kora Organics Noni Glow Body Oil turns every inch of skin into supple perfection. Burt’s Bees Nourishing Eyeliner glides on, then stays put. Beautycounter No. 1 Brightening Facial Oil cushions skin with seven natural oils. Rituel de Fille Rare Light Luminizer creates iridescence that shifts like natural light. The fruit juices and hyaluronic acid in Goop Replenishing Night Cream are so moisturizing, our skin is still dewy in the morning. Tata Harper Resurfacing Mask uses pomegranate enzymes and pink clay to make skin radiant, not red. Weleda Renewing Eye Cream blurs lines and depuffs.

Innersense Hydrating Cream Hairbath and Conditioner deliver weightless bounce and shine. RMS Beauty Signature Set Pop Collection is two square inches of makeup nirvana: creamy highlighters, vibrant lip and cheek tints, and a silky balm. Organic to Green Chap Guard Great Barrier is potent enough to heal cracked lips, light enough to rub on cheeks. W3ll People Bio Tint Moisturizer SPF 30 delivers a not-too-matte skin-perfecting finish. Honest Beauty Moisture Milk Leave-In Conditioner locks in sleekness with almond oil and hyaluronic acid. Drunk Elephant T.L.C. Sukari Babyfacial diminishes dullness with a high dose of glycolic acid. The cupuaçu butter and oils in Ever Lavish Ultra Rich Body Butter pamper and protect.

CITRUS. Inside Diptyque Eau des Sens is the true essence of bitter orange—flowers, leaves, peels, and all. Balancing such distinct accords takes major precision...and a little magic.

GREEN. Jo Malone London Jade Leaf Tea Cologne is an uplifting, uncluttered infusion of sesame, citrus, and sencha tea. The smooth and rounded effect practically illustrates a porcelain cup.

SPICY. Proof that opposites really do attract: Atelier Cologne Café Tuberosa seamlessly blends espresso, tuberose, citrus, and vanilla into something velvety and carnal. It’s the perfect marriage of brightness and intensity.

EARTHY. Viktor & Rolf Magic Sage Spell combines sparkling grapefruit with sage and a bitter absinthe accord (yes, the hallucinogenic spirit) to create an herbaceous scent that’s also vibrant and lucid. We must be smelling things.

OUD. Leave it to Tom Ford to redefine perfume’s sultriest ingredient. Salty marine

Hair, skin, and makeup wonders as loved for what’s in them as for what’s not.*

notes send a chill through the woody, resinous base of Oud Minérale. The result is cold, crisp, and unlike every other oud that’s out there.

HAIR FRAGRANCE. The citrus, musk, and lily of the valley in Maison Francis Kurkdjian Aqua Universalis Scented Hair Mist are so airy and luminous, they come alive with every head turn.

MEN’S. A lucid iris note tempers the assertive amber and patchouli in Prada L’Homme Prada Intense. It’s strong and silent, but way too faceted to be a “type.” (And more than one female Allure editor has it in heavy rotation.)

CANDLE. Some candles make rooms more inviting. D.S. & Durga Tomb of the Eagles seems to make rooms disappear. Bracing, briny, and mossy, it conjures tall cliffs and a cold sea, giving us a moment’s respite from solid enclosures.

CLASSIC. It’s been a full 10 years since Marc Jacobs Daisy first charmed us. Despite the name, the scent actually rests on a bed of gardenias, with the sunny sophistication of wild strawberry and violet on top. Think less open field, more open window overlooking a country estate.

REVIVAL. The bold, spicy appeal of Obsession seduced women (and men) when it debuted in 1985. The new interpretation is stunning for its subtlety. Calvin Klein Obsessed for Women draws you in with neroli and white lavender. The nuance is sexy as hell.

*These winners are free of parabens, phthalates, sodium lauryl sulfate, metallic aluminum, triclosan, talc, mineral oil, petrolatum, formaldehyde, toluene, and chemical sunscreens (such as oxybenzone, avobenzone, and octinoxate).

scent Take a deep breath: We’re about to share the most sublime fragrances ever to waft into our lives.

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hair Brilliant ways to lather, rinse, condition, protect, volumize, smooth, color. And repeat.

CURL DEFINER, FINE/MEDIUM HAIR. A cream-gel hybrid with light-reflecting minerals, IGK Rich Kid Coconut Oil Gel spoils us with weightless definition.

shampoo and conditioner

FINE HAIR. L’Oréal Paris Extraordinary Clay Shampoo and Conditioner target both flat roots and witchy ends. Kaolin clay and salicylic acid control oil; natural hydrators boost shine.

DRY HAIR. Things you can blame for your parched hair: loss of natural lipids, your age, your parents. Pantene Pro-V Daily Moisture Renewal Shampoo and Conditioner can help with one of those; therapy can help with the rest.

COLOR-TREATED HAIR. “It’s the Lord’s nectar,” says one blue-haired and not particularly religious editor of the Virtue Recovery Shampoo and Conditioner.

The duo plugs holes in the cuticle for lasting smoothness (and color retention).

DAMAGED HAIR. The castor-oil-rich Schwarzkopf Gliss Ultimate Shampoo and Conditioner form a sleeve around strands for allover sleekness.

FRIZZY HAIR. The oils in SheaMoisture Smooth & Tame Shampoo and Conditioner eliminate fuzz, while marshmallow root encourages bounce.

CURLY HAIR. What puffs up when it’s too dry and droops when it’s too hydrated?

Our curly hair—before we discovered Inoar Divine Curls Shampoo and Conditioner.

DANDRUFF. With its creamy texture and coconut scent, Dove DermaCare Scalp Dryness & Itch Relief Shampoo and Conditioner banishes flakes and years of brainwashing, proving medicated treatments can be luxurious, too.

co-wash As rich and runny as actual coconut milk, As I Am Coconut CoWash glides through kinks and spirals, depositing moisture while lifting away dirt and oil.

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CURL DEFINER, THICK/COARSE/KINKY HAIR. Curls Blueberry Bliss Curl Control Jelly is our new jam. One dollop eliminates fuzz while preserving all the good stuff: bounce, shine, and springiness.

treatment MASK. The baby-fine-haired of Allure sing the praises of John Frieda Frizz Ease 10 Day Tamer Pre-Shower Treatment. After lathering, all that’s left is a virginal gleam. For heavy-duty damage repair, there’s Redken Extreme Mega Mask: Lush moisturizers cling to hair, delivering nonstop smoothness.

SCALP. The bracing blend of witch hazel, mint, and tea tree oil in Briogeo Scalp Revival Treatment instantly eases irritation and regulates oil production.

WAVE ENHANCER. Any beach spray worth its salt can boost existing waves, but only Ouai Wave Spray transformed one editor’s “totally ambiguous” texture into pronounced bends (and without any of that moisture-sapping sodium chloride).

STRAIGHTENER. Not Your Mother’s Coconut & Marula Oil High Moisture Smoothing Cream is not your—or anyone else’s, for that matter— average straightener. It provides a touch of hold so sleek styles don’t fall flat.

EDGE TAMER. Denser than a cream, less tacky than a wax, Creme of Nature Perfect Edges Extra Hold has the ideal texture for smoothing baby hairs.

OIL. OGX Orchid Oil Color Protect Oil adds shine, boosts moisture, tames frizz, and prevents fading with UV filters.

TWISTING CREAM. Packed with oils and shea butter, Carol’s Daughter Pracaxi Nectar Curl Twisting Custard lets you shape coils without any stiffness.

THINNING. Rogaine Women’s 5% Minoxidil Foam contains the highest possible dose of the only topical ingredient approved by the FDA to treat hereditary hair loss. The airy foam dissolves on contact.

HAIR SPRAY. The superfine mist of Oribe Free Styler Working Hairspray imparts a glossy sheen and forgiving hold: You can brush it out and move on to something else at any time.

styling product VOLUMIZER. Like magic (or science), Sexy Hair Big Sexy Hair Powder Play Lite dispenses a cloud of powder that liquefies on dry hair. Massage it into roots to build tons of volume without a trace of sticky stuff (or PVP copolymers).

DEFRIZZER, THICK/COARSE/KINKY HAIR. Rubbed into hands, Alterna Caviar CC Cream has a powdery finish; raked through hair, it delivers exceptional smoothness even on air-dry days. Color Wow Dream Coat is like a sophisticated trench. Polymers tighten around strands once heat is applied, forming a rain(and humidity-) proof veil.

DEFRIZZER, FINE HAIR. With a protein complex that blocks humidity and pollution, Nexxus City Shield DD Créme has us exiting the New York City subway with our heads high and our hair sleek.

TEXTURIZING SPRAY. Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Wild Ginger Texturizing Sea Spray works on wet or dry hair, so you can build volume with a round brush or add midday oomph.

HEAT PROTECTANT. Cacti thrive in high temps. So will your hair, with Garnier Fructis 10-in-1 Rescue Leave-in Spray— it uses extracts from the amino-acid-packed succulents to protect against hot-tool scorching.

SHINE BOOSTER. Flawless by Gabrielle Union Shine Spray is like spraying on a halo of light. The mist is so fine that it even disappears into our hands.

HAIR OIL. A drop or two of Wella Professionals Luminous Smoothing Oil glazes over hair and quiets flyaways.

DRY SHAMPOO. Hask Charcoal Purifying Dry Shampoo is a Brita filter for your blowout: Colorless charcoal powder absorbs sweat and oil without turning roots white.

Embellished bodysuit

by Veronique Branquinho. Details, see Shopping Guide.

hair color SINGLE PROCESS. Good things come to those who wait by their front door. With eSalon Custom Hair Color, you fill out a questionnaire, upload a photo, and receive a box of dye formulated for you.

ROOT COVERAGE. With its chic mixing bowl and immaculate, fade-resistant results, DpHue Root Touch-Up Kit “feels very high-end,” says one editor. For a quick fix, Color Wow Root Cover Up is like the world’s smallest magnet.

Zinc particles fasten to dark regrowth and wiry grays until you shampoo.

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GLAZE. John Frieda Luminous Glaze Clear Shine Gloss is suspiciously easy to use. Apply the gel in the shower; wait three minutes; rinse. The results are too dazzling to deny.

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TEMPORARY BRIGHT. Clairol Color Crave Hair Makeup lets you paint on wild shades that rinse right out.

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eye shadow BLACK. Some shades of black go gray the moment we smudge them. L’Oréal Paris Colour Riche Eye Shadow in Noir C’Est Noir has the intensity of a gel, so its darkness never goes up in smoke.

BEIGE. With its fine shimmer and silky texture, Revlon ColorStay Crème Eye Shadow in Crème Brûlée bathes lids in a wash of champagne light.

BROWN. The velvety texture of ColourPop Pressed Shadow in Cloud Nine produces a deep chocolate haze and weightless definition.

GEL/CREAM. Shiseido Inkstroke Eyeliner is so rich and creamy, it comes in a pot. The slender brush creates strokes so smooth and intense, they could have come from a pro.

mascara VOLUMIZING. Wander Beauty Unlashed Volume and Curl Mascara is like a personal trainer for lashes. Natural extracts condition while sculpting polymers shape even lightweight corner hairs into voluptuous curves.

LENGTHENING. With a cocktail of oils, GRAY. A winking, glinting slate with just a hint of Avon True Color SuperExtend Nourishing bronze, Mary Kay Mineral Eye Color in Granite Mascara has a glossy texture that glides to the very tips of your lashes, producing imparts a cool glow that doesn’t turn frosty. the longest and softest fan imaginable.

METALLIC. Despite its name, L’Oréal Paris Infallible Paints Metallics Eye Shadow in Brass WATERPROOF. Maybelline New York The Colossal Big Shot Mascara is a waterproof Knuckles doesn’t come on too strong. The rich formula that makes waves of its own. The bronze pigments float like a butterfly, never brush has undulating bristles that scoop sinking into creases (like a bee?). up extra pigment, coating lashes in inky, COLOR. For dreamy evening eyes, Givenchy smudgeproof color.

Ombre Couture Cream Eyeshadow in Prune DRAMATIC. The ultrarich Lancôme Monsieur Taffetas drapes lids in a dusky plum with the Big Mascara contains supple waxes and subtlest shimmer. flexible polymers that let us build volume to PALETTE. Ethereal pink, burnt orange, stormy our heart’s content. slate: The 12 matte shades in Urban Decay Naked Ultimate Basics all claim to be neutral.

And because it’s impossible to pick a favorite, BLACK. The lightest touch of Em Cosmetics call us Switzerland.

Matte Gel Pencil produces a pitch-black stroke that sits tight, even on the inner rims.

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BROWN. Jouer Slim Crème Eyeliner in Matte Brown is a silky, won’t-budge chestnut with a nifty built-in sharpener.

WATERPROOF. Even the most ruthless Spin instructor is no match for Bobbi Brown LongWear Waterproof Liner. It clings to lids, no matter how sweaty the room or heated your resentment.

brows CLEAR GEL. The spooley on the Make Up For Ever Brow Gel in 00 has an angled side to fluff up arches and a flat edge to keep rogue hairs in line. And the clear formula never leaves flakes behind.

TINTED GEL. The tiny tinted microfibers in Benefit Gimme Brow adhere to brows and the skin underneath, creating the illusion of heft.

PENCIL. Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz fills in sparse areas with the slimmest point on the planet (and by “planet,” we mean our infinite beauty closet). Botanical oils add natural sheen.

POWDER. CoverGirl Easy Breezy Brow Fill + Shape + Define Powder comes in four shades that fill in brows with a featherlight finish.

CONDITIONER. RevitaBrow Advanced Eyebrow Conditioner undoes years of overzealous tweezing. The powerful peptides strengthen arches so they look fuller over time.

makeup remover Garnier SkinActive Micellar Cleansing Water All-in-1 dissolves every stitch of makeup without stripping skin or tugging on lashes.

eyes COLOR. Some blues are too dark to stand out, but L’Oréal Paris Infallible Paints Liquid Eyeliner in Electric Blue is a vibrant cobalt that makes eyes so striking, you can even forgo mascara.

LIQUID/FELT TIP. Easy on the eyes and the wrist, Maybelline New York Curvitude Liner has a tiny, pliant point that gets right in between lashes for intense definition, while the angled pen is remarkably easy to control.

These are officially the most visionary shadows, liners, mascaras, and brow things (yes, there are now several).

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Faux-fur jacket by Sies Marjan. Infallible Paints Metallics Eye Shadow in Brass Knuckles by L’Oréal Paris. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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On Irina Kravchenko: Silk top by Sharon Wauchob. Oh My Gloss Oil Tint in Smart Pink by Rimmel London. Details, see Shopping Guide.

eyelash curler Tweezerman ProCurl Lash Curler hugs the lash line from corner to corner, producing the fullest bend.

false lashes Each tapered hair on Kiss Faux Mink Collection in Little Black Dress is bonded, not knotted, to the band, so the strips fit snugly into your lash line. To keep them in place, Tarte Tarteist Pro Lash Adhesive (in black or clear) won’t budge or irritate sensitive eyes.

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tools An artist is only as good as her tools.

Have at it, Frida Kahlo (or Salvador Dalí).

makeup brushes

FLATIRON. “Flatiron” feels like a misnomer.

The GHD Platinum Styler has a wishbone shape and slender plates that allow us to straighten, curl, and flip with ease.

CONCEALER. Zits are like snowflakes (from hell): No two are alike. With a flat end for precise application and a rounded one for covering whoppers, Kevyn Aucoin Duet Concealer Brush targets every blemish that befalls us. For undereye circles, Sephora Collection Pro Airbrush Concealer 57 has fluffy tips that blur shadows and fine lines.

EYELINER. The teeny Smith Cosmetics 202 brush might make you squint at first (don’t— crow’s-feet). Wedge the point into your lash line for a dramatic eye-opening effect.

POWDER. With bristles that gather into a point, Real Techniques Point XL brush blends powder precisely to avoid pileups.

BLUSH. The whisper-soft slant of It Cosmetics Heavenly Luxe Blush No. 4 gives cheeks an honest-to-goodness flush.

BRONZER. The Revlon Contour brush picks up just the right amount of powder and diffuses it flawlessly.

CONTOURING. Soft and compact, Nyx 05 brush steers around angles and prevents stripes.

HIGHLIGHTER. The wide fan of Lancôme Dual Ended Fan Brush 31 spreads over cheekbones; the smaller one follows the arc of your brows.

EYE SHADOW. The E.L.F. Brush No. 201 has the ideal width for sweeping color across the lids. We love the Smith Cosmetics 232 brush for creating definition in the creases.

BROWS. The sharp slant of the Anastasia Beverly Hills Brush #12 lets us zero in on gaps and define arches like a pro.

LIP. We’ve retired our ring finger. The Sephora Collection Pro Lip Brush 85 spreads color, sharpens peaks, and gives matte formulas a lush finish that mere tapping can’t touch.

makeup sponge The egg-shaped Beautyblender Original can’t be beat for allover buffing. For smaller jobs, the Beautyblender Micro Mini goes where fingers can’t: around nostrils, under tear ducts, along the base of a blemish.

tweezers The precise steel tip of the Tweezerman Slant Tweezer grabs the wispiest hairs, the stubbiest regrowth, and our unending devotion.

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CURLING IRON. The three interchangeable barrels mean the T3 Whirl Trio Styling Wand produces every wavy look you can imagine— and a few you haven’t even thought of.

hairbrushes ROUND. The flexible plastic spikes on the ultralight Tangle Teezer Blow-Styling Round Tool form a tight pattern that traps moisture, while its pointed tips lift and unsnag.

PADDLE. A single pass with the Christophe Robin Hairbrush gets hair singularly glossy.

DETANGLER. Wet Brush Shower Flex has bendy plastic bristles that glide through damp strands without breaking them.

skin-care devices FOR ACNE. Neutrogena Light Therapy Acne Mask goes all storm trooper on zits. The full-face contraption shines UV-free LEDs on your skin to reduce breakouts. Blue light kills bacteria, while red tempers inflammation.

FOR REJUVENATION. The teeny needles on the Beauty Bioscience GloPro Microneedling Regeneration Tool create teeny holes on the skin’s surface that trigger collagen production.

Throw in the fact that this gadget also emits red LED light, and it bestows the tightest, brightest results this side of the dermatologist’s office.

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BLOW-DRYER. Weighing in at less than one pound, BaBylissPro Rapido is a breeze to maneuver and prevailed against all others in our split-head tests.

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FOUNDATION. The wedge shape of Kat Von D Lock-It Edge Foundation Brush buffs away streaks around the nose, jaw, and hairline.

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Kim’s Close-Up As the most famous Kardashian expands her makeup line—and her influence—Devin Friedman gets a day pass to the empire.

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his morning, Kim Kardashian West is a few minutes late to breakfast because she can’t get this gelmask thing off her face. She’s staying in a room in the upper reaches of the Baccarat Hotel in midtown Manhattan. A room with a giant bed in it, in which she slept, butt to butt, with her four-year-old daughter, North. And in that room she applied a mask—of the cosmetic variety, not the Halloween variety—only to discover she couldn’t really get it off. Where did she get this gold gel-mask thing that’s supposed to make your skin healthier? Man, when you’re Kim Kardashian West, you don’t know where everything comes from. People just give you stuff. The vaults and doors and express-delivery accounts of the world open and a free flow of stuff just washes over you. Kim tries to enjoy it, because that’s the enlightened thing to do. But right now she’s upstairs in her room trying to separate her face from the free gel-mask thing.

It is 8 A.M. I wait for her in the sumptuous lobby. Baccarat, for those who do not shop for $10,000 vases, is a French company that makes crystal. And being inside the Baccarat Hotel is like being inside a fine crystal lamp where an urbane French genie who wears Louis Vuitton suits lives. Here’s the kind of place it is: $46 from Le Menu du Petit Déjeuner at the Petit Salon in the hotel gets you two eggs, potatoes, bacon, juice, and…coffee! There is an actual crown on display on a shelf full of curios and crystals, unless it’s the world’s most bejeweled serving dome.

But Kim K. does not make me wait too long. Seven minutes after 8, she arrives. She looks somehow naked. Her face, anyway. It is scrubbed clean, I guess from the mask removal. There is a stunning absence of makeup, except for some lip balm that she tells me she got in Iceland. Which is ironic given that the 36-year-old recently launched her own makeup line (it’s called KKW Beauty).

Predictably, she has utterly crushed the stuff-for-your-face market the way she has crushed all other markets. I think part of the

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Earrings by Elizabeth Locke. Details, see Shopping Guide.

These pages: Fashion stylist, Beth Fenton.

Hair: Garren of Garren New York. Makeup: Pat McGrath.

Manicure: Rica Romain. Set design: Gerard Santos.

Photographed by Daniel Jackson

“[Kanye and I] talk about it all the time, about not getting too much and trying to be as grounded and well rounded as possible.”

This page: Pure Color Envy Lash Multi Effects Mascara in Black by Estée Lauder. Opposite page: Latex dress by House of Harlot. Rings, custom-made by stylist and Kardashian West’s own.

Details, see Shopping Guide.

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reason her facial nudity is so striking is that being simple and unadorned isn’t really her role. Her role is more queen of America. (Married to the king of…hiphop fashion, intellectual provocation, and possible public-insanity performance art?) Queen of Instagram, queen of a certain type of television, queen of relevance. The queen of Calabasas, California! Which, if you don’t know, is the Mount Olympus of our time. Will Smith lives there. And Justin Bieber and Drake and the Rock and the Osbournes. And if you think about who’s the queen of those people, wouldn’t you say Kim Kardashian West?

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know, you’re probably wondering what she was wearing. You’re probably saying to yourself: What did she eat for breakfast? I’m not going to make you wait for it. She wears this cool, Rocky Balboa retro gray cotton hoodie with the 1980 American Olympic team logo on it and gray sweatpants. And she orders scrambled eggs with tomatoes, mushrooms, and onions mixed in, an English muffin, and some English breakfast tea with loads of honey. Did she eat everything? Don’t be afraid to wonder. If you don’t care whether Kim Kardashian West ate her English muffin, you need to go back to Kim Kardashian West school so you can appreciate the wonderful granular gossipyness that’s part of what’s so enjoyable about knowing everything about Kim K. before you come back here with your too-good-to-want-to-know-if-she-eatsher-English-muffin-ness.

She doesn’t eat her English muffin.

“I’m, like, the most fit I’ve ever been,” she says. How do you get in shape if you’re Kim K.? The same way you do everything: Instagram. You go and you find “this bodybuilder on Instagram” and you contact her. You find someone who, as Kim K. tells it, “had an amazing transformation after she had a baby.” And Kim K. happened to be in the market for a really amazing transformation after giving birth. Now Kim’s working out an hour and a half a day.

Kim Kardashian West—I don’t want to scandalize you—has had her picture taken nearly naked before. For Playboy.

And completely nude for Paper, GQ,

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and W magazines. And that doesn’t even include the original document of her fame, the storied Ray J sex tape.

“My publicist would say to me, ‘You’re not getting naked. I have to be there,’” she says. I suggest that if your publicist keeps warning you not to get naked, she must know you’re always in danger of getting naked.

Is there an age limit for the naked photo shoot?

“Yes,” she says. “I’m like, I’m going to tone it down. But then I’m like, Wait, I can’t be doing it in 10 years, so—I might as well. I don’t know what the age cutoff is.”

We know everything about Kim Kardashian West. She has shown us everything. Talked about everything.

Many times. In different languages.

Kim has talked about basketball, and baby poop, and having no idea where pickles come from, and the texture of cardboard, and Kanye, and Caitlyn Jenner, and her sister’s boyfriend’s drug problems. Recently, on her show, we even watched her share the story of how difficult her pregnancy and birthing process was and how she’s looking at some alternatives to carrying her next kid herself. Have you ever considered, besides the solipsism, the bravery in that? You know the unflinching way she takes off her top in front of a camera? Or wears a $75 billion dress?

That’s how unflinchingly she talks about the fragility of her own human body. It’s feminist. It’s a PSA. Here, in this glass-enclosed beveled luxury maze, while wealthy French businessmen finish eating their $46 toast, I ask if she’s thought about a third child.

And she retains this unblinking steadystate feline eye contact and a sense of self-assurance that could freeze water while she says, “I would like to, but I’ve had lots and lots of complications. I had preeclampsia. And then I also had something called placenta accreta.

We’ve explored surrogacy. We’re thinking about it.”

I get the vibe from her that, just as she has the crushing instincts necessary to lay waste to our culture and create an America in her image (or is it that she’s created America’s image?), she also has the instinct to preserve the humanity of her family.

“We don’t do gifts,” she says when I ask her if she worries about her kids growing up with too much. “[Kanye

and I] talk about it all the time, about not getting too much and trying to be as grounded and well rounded as possible.” She holds herself to the same standard. “I don’t like presents anymore,” she says. “We just did absolutely nothing [for our anniversary]. We spent two days in Santa Barbara, and we slept.” Then she remembers: “You know what? I think we went to IHOP. That’s what we did.”

And then she tells me this story. A motherhood story. It’s about the time last year, in Paris, when she was held at gunpoint and bound and robbed in a hotel by masked gunmen. Well, she tells me, she’d been scared to go on that trip. She was afraid of a terrorist attack. She’d never experienced anxiety like that before. She even went to a therapist about it. And North, sensing her mother’s anxiety, wanted to reassure her.

“She gave me a little plastic treasure box, and she put her little jewels in it—like fake little plastic jewels—and she was like, ‘Mommy, this will keep you safe when you go to Paris.’ ” It is something that, despite all the jewels and Calabasas houses and red carpet gowns and original Basquiats and Rolls-Royces and pairs of Yeezy boots she has, penetrates down into the depths of Kim Kardashian West’s humanity, which, at least after spending a few hours with her, I believe is very much there.

“To have something really sweet like that is more important to me than all the jewelry,” she says. She tells me she takes it everywhere with her.

Around us, European businessmen sign their checks, step into hushed elevators and are whisked to meetings with continental vampires. Kim K. says she’s going to see what North is up to.

I’m trying to figure out what’s weird about seeing her in person, at this phase of her life. And I think it’s that she wears her crown lightly. I guess it’s that she’s chill. Which doesn’t seem like the one word you’d use for Kim K. I guess it’s that she’s really a mom now.

She is a beautiful, worldly 36-yearold woman drinking the last of a cup of English breakfast tea before going out into the world to see to her empire, with her four-year-old child at her side, bearing witness to the domination but never expecting, you know, presents.

Latex top by Atsuko Kudo. Makeup colors: Diorshow Bold Brow in Dark and Diorshow Pump ‘N’ Volume Mascara in Black Pump by Dior.

Details, see Shopping Guide.

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beauty

Kim’s first solo makeup line, KKW Beauty, debuted in June with contour and highlight sticks. Then came the powder contour and highlight kit, followed by the concealer kit in September. This month, she is launching nude lipsticks, and next month, a face palette. We had a few questions. Allure: Why did you do your own line? KKW: “I’ve been sitting in a makeup chair every day for practically 10 years, and I fell in love with makeup and how it can transform you and make you feel good about yourself.” Allure: What is it that you love about contouring? KKW: “The way that it transforms my nose and my face when I have it done is so fascinating to me that I wanted to figure out ‘How can I do this in an easy way?’ These contour sticks are like adult crayons. You don’t have to be so precise.” Allure: Was it fun?

KKW: “It’s the hardest I’ve ever worked in my life, and I love it.” Allure: What do you want to be when you grow up? KKW: “A makeup artist. Maybe I’ll be North’s makeup artist! I’m really happy doing exactly what I’m doing, honestly. I’ve never been happier in my work life than right now.” —ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY AMANDA BOHNSON

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Makeup colors: Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Colour in No. 40, Stylo Sourcils Waterproof Defining Longwear Eyebrow Pencil in Brun Profond, Ombre Première Longwear Powder Eyeshadow in Talpa, Calligraphie de Chanel Longwear Intense Cream Eyeliner in Hyperblack, and Rouge Coco Stylo in Panorama by Chanel.

a letter

to my child With wisdom, love, and a touch of fear, writers and beauty experts give their children advice on life, happiness, and what they find when they look in the mirror.

photographed by sacha maric

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My beautiful Sadye Belah, There is nothing more beautiful to me than seeing your big, bold, gorgeous smile, and I must say I am incredibly envious of your radiant, glowing skin.

To me, the most important thing is for you to be comfortable in your own skin, whether that is with or without makeup. —SONIA KASHUK, BEAUTY ENTREPRENEUR Dear Ruby, Be a girl’s girl. The most enriching relationships I have in my life today are my friendships with other strong women. Don’t be afraid to admire the beauty in others. It will be reflected back. Create and learn every minute of every day. Happiness will follow, and nothing makes you more beautiful. I love you. —JOANNA VARGAS, CELEBRITY FACIALIST

y. yes!” a s y er e . e h t ” y. “H eply ! l u f ti repl y,” I r u a be art,” I ativit o s e’s so sm er cre h S “ nd . “H “A y say the AND FOUNDER OF JOANNA VARGAS SALON AND SKINCARE COLLECTION

My darling Maclane, If I were to give you one lesson about beauty, one pearl that I’ve learned that I think is most important to share, it wouldn’t be about your physical beauty. It would be that the most beautiful thing about you is that you are brave. You feel afraid to try something new, yet you try. Your beauty lives in your heart and in your brave spirit. It will always belong to you. And I want you to let it grow every single minute of every single day until your beauty radiates so strongly that it is an undeniable force of everything you are, my very, very beautiful child.

—WHITNEY BOWE, NEW YORK CITY DERMATOLOGIST AND AUTHOR OF THE BEAUTY OF DIRTY SKIN (LITTLE, BROWN AND COMPANY, 2018)

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There’s always someone hovering over you: “She’s so beautiful!” they say.

“And so smart,” I reply. “Her eyes!” they say. “Her creativity,” I reply. And they are right—to me, you are the most gorgeous creature to ever walk the planet. But see, my mom taught me to find my worth not in my vanity but in my heart, my strength, my mind. I intend to teach you the same.

—BETHANY BRILL, HAIRSTYLIST

To my beautiful daughters, Beauty is owning your look and being comfortable in your own skin, being able to look in the mirror every day knowing that you are being the best you that you can possibly be. Oh, and don’t forget your sunscreen every day!

—NI’KITA WILSON, COSMETIC CHEMIST AND FOUNDER OF SKINECTS

To my dear Sofia and Nikolai, We live in a world where beauty and success are synonymous. Beauty is valued by external perceptions such as how young one looks, and success is measured by the size of one’s financial holdings.

True beauty, to me, originates from the inside. Internal and external beauty go hand in hand. When you are internally happy, in love, and at peace with yourself, you will radiate beauty. Self-confidence is so attractive, it is magnetic. It is beauty at its source. Try not to compare yourself with others and others’ standards. This is the human condition, and it is a trap.

Be yourselves...this is true beauty.

—SHARON DORRAM, MASTER COLORIST AT SHARON DORRAM COLOR AT SALLY HERSHBERGER SALON

Dear Baby, Laugh. Laugh a whole lot. There is nothing more beautiful than a face that is lit up with laughter. It can be hard sometimes, but don’t worry, your dad is super funny, so that’ll help.

(And I’m not so bad myself.) There was once a time before writing “lol” when everyone just actually laughed. It was beautiful. We can’t wait to meet you and bask in the beauty of your lol.

—KATIE LOWES, ACTRESS, SCANDAL

@LITTLEKINJOURNAL/INSTAGRAM

For my children, no matter your sex, I will teach you that beauty is many different things in this life: knowledge, music, dance, art, photography. It’s so important to me that you learn beauty comes in many forms, not just the obvious. Beauty is laughter. Beauty is honor, loyalty, and your word meaning something to others.

We are all full of so much beauty, every single one of us.

We all have a beautiful light that we have to work at keeping lit. You will see the beauty in just being compassionate.

Find what you love. Believe in your dreams. Set goals. Make it happen. Have backup plans. Work your ass off. Love life; love the life you live. I love you all the most.

—JOYCE BONELLI, MAKEUP ARTIST

Makeup is about experimenting, searching, playfulness, empowerment, and vulnerability.

Have fun with it, but always remember at the end of the day, when you wash your face, there you are, and you must be fully at ease with the barefaced woman who looks back at you.

I adore you. Love, Mama —FIONA STILES, MAKEUP ARTIST AND FOUNDER OF FIONA STILES BEAUTY

[You have] an aura of somebody who accepts herself. I think that that is the key to beauty.

—GWYNETH PALTROW, FOUNDER OF GOOP AND CREATIVE DIRECTOR OF MAKEUP FOR JUICE BEAUTY

Alexandre, Confidence is the most beautiful part of a person. I want you, more than anything, to feel confident—confident to meet new people, confident to try new things and experience more, and most importantly, confident and comfortable with yourself.

—LAIS RIBEIRO, MODEL AND VICTORIA’S SECRET ANGEL

Dear Becca Carol, I see your fire when you smile. For you, my daughter, have survived despite the odds, and you fight every day to just be at peace with who you are—and that fire is so beautiful.

—LISA PRICE, FOUNDER OF CAROL’S DAUGHTER

To My Daughter

BY DEVIN FRIEDMAN, WRITER AND CREATIVE DIRECTOR

So the other night we’re waiting for the babysitter to arrive when your mom comes out of the bedroom wearing a new dress. “How do I look?” she says. “Do you like my hair up or down?” My response is to freeze. My wife, your mother, is standing there before us, as long as a flagpole and as glamorous as a British person saying “jaguar.” (They say it “jagewe-are,” in case you don’t hang out with English people who talk about jungle cats.) Meanwhile you, Frankie Friedman, age eight, are freshly bathed, neatly combed, tucked into your cotton pajamas looking at me for a response. But I am literally speechless. What am I supposed to say to your mom? “You look stunning and I’d like to feel you up?” That’s one truth. Or: “I thought you weren’t buying new dresses until you pay off your credit card?” Maybe, but I don’t want to be someone who says that to his wife. Then there’s the thing I want you, my daughter, to hear: “It doesn’t matter what you look like! Relying on other people for affirmation is a recipe for unhappiness!

Especially if those people are men! Men are the worst—I read it on the Internet!” But maybe that’s not the best thing to say to my wife when she asks how she looks. The point is that there’s no perfect answer to that question. (An aside: about her hair.

The answer is that she should wear it up. Both you and your mom should always do that because you have beautiful faces and long, regal necks. But also, like I said, please don’t listen to me.) Do you know what’s hard about fatherhood? Besides that it’s a never-ending lesson about how life is just a long, beautiful loss? Knowing that I’m going to screw up my children. Watching myself screw up my children, even while realizing I’m screwing up my children. Someday, after $12,000 of psychotherapy, you’re going to sit me down and tell me how I screwed you up, and not only will you be right, but there’s a good chance I won’t remember having said whatever it is that did it. The parental serenity prayer is basically: God help me not do anything so terrible that my children won’t someday forgive me. And the whole scenario where your mom asks me how she looks and I say “beautiful” and then she’s happy seems like a bad lesson to drill into your head.

You’re eight. Your beauty regimen is sitting in the bath and pouring a bottle of liquid soap on your knees because it feels neat. Your beauty regimen is blue nail polish and a big fake diamond ring, Silly Strawberry toothpaste, and a hair elastic that you chew on. Your beauty regimen is 10 hours of sleep followed by screaming when I put sunscreen on your face.

Your beauty regimen is still having your orange juice mustache from breakfast when you sit down to dinner. Do you care about beautiful things? Of course. We are all innately moved by beautiful things. For you it’s a plastic flower you found on the street, nail polish that has sparklies in it, leggings with rhinestone cat eyes on the knees. You think your Blundstone boots are the dopest things in the world even though your toe pokes out through one of them. You like anything that seems like a wizard made it—anything magical enough that you can suspend disbelief and go back to the time when you thought Harry Potter might possibly be real, even for a second. So I can’t be against beauty. Who could be against sunsets or horses’ eyelashes? But there’s a crucial difference between loving things that are beautiful and wanting to be beautiful.

You know what’s amazing about you at this age? I’ve never heard you say someone was beautiful, or ugly, or weirdlooking, or pretty. I’ve never heard you wish, and this is what breaks my heart, that you looked different. More like Tessa or Nina or Lulu or Camila. You have never commented on the shape of your calves or the size of your nose. Yes, you think it’s funny that Grandpa has a big belly. But you do not possess a shred of self-consciousness about your body. God, I want to

preserve that forever. If I could get you to have a sense of yourself that comes from within, my work as a dad would be 90 percent complete. If I could make sure your sense of self comes from the things you’ve done and thought instead of Instagram or how it feels to be the object of another person’s gaze, I could retire from fatherhood a success.

And you know what’s hypocritical about all this? Do you know who talks about being beautiful more than anyone else?

Me. Every single night before you go to sleep, I whisper in your ear: “Good night, Mrs. Beautiful.” And every night as I sit there, your lights off, your sheets rumpled around you, your flowered lamp hanging from the ceiling somewhere in the dark, your desk covered in all the tiny worked-over scraps of paper scrawled with little doodles and phrases the significance of which I can never quite grasp, I think: Maybe it’s not good to tell your daughter she’s beautiful every day.

But how can I not? Because calling you beautiful, while possibly toxic, is the most accurate way to describe you.

You’re a beauty. You’re like an exotic woodland flower that a hiker might happen upon deep in the forest and wish there were someone there to bear witness. People comment on your eyes. People say you look like an eight-year-old Snow White. People talk about the kind of extraterrestrial-butterfly way you carry yourself, the way you have to be called back to earth any time someone wants to talk to you—to tell you it’s time for dinner requires intergalactic communications. I admit that, being your dad, I may find you more beautiful than most people do. I remember being shocked that, when I used to stroll you down 23rd Street outside our apartment in Manhattan, traffic did not screech to a halt and a hush did not descend upon the city. Whenever I took you to the coffee shop, it seemed like the only appropriate response would be like that scene in Children of Men when soldiers laid down their guns and women wept because the petty and pedestrian concerns of life had suddenly been revealed to be illusionary and inconsequential by the presence of the divine.

Here is the truth. Frankie, you are beautiful. And I love you completely. It’s the most uncomplicated love I have ever felt.

What’s even stranger about it is that I do not need you to love me back. When I met your mom, I was terrified. Beauty was central to it. I was attracted to your mother because she was so beautiful, but her very beauty terrified me. Because how could beauty like that be controlled? I have always protected myself. And I kind of beat down my love and kept it chained in the basement. That fear’s made me extremely cautious. But my relationship with you is different (obviously). I don’t care if you love me as much as I love you, so your beauty doesn’t scare me. I’m the goddamned Giving Tree. I will love you and give you everything I have no matter what, and I will be happy about it. I want you to feel beautiful. I want someone you love to find the entirety of who you are endlessly beautiful. I know it’s a cliché. I always thought I was a unique human until I had kids and started aging and realized I’m a predictable bundle of evolutionary hormones like everyone else. I also know that no one else will ever see you in as uncomplicated a way as I do. Whoever falls in love with you, it’s going to have stakes.

You’re going to want to feel beautiful to him or her; you’re probably going to wonder if you are, and this kills me because fuck him/her, what do you care what he/she thinks?

But to deny you those stakes would be a) terrible and b) impossible unless we move to a cabin in the woods where nothing bad can happen. So, what I should have said to your mother that night is: “You are beautiful.” Because she is, and she should feel it. And then I could have turned to you and said: “And you are beautiful. And let’s move to Saskatchewan as a family so we can make our own food and clothing and no bad people or things would be allowed on the property.”

Just kidding. Kind of. Not really.

Love, Papa 179

To My Boys

BY TAFFY BRODESSER-AKNER, NEW YORK TIMES WRITER AND AUTHOR OF SCHRÖDINGER’S MARRIAGE (RANDOM HOUSE, 2018)

Let me start here: You know my friend from high school, Pamela? She sent me a picture a few weeks ago. Not an iPhone picture, but a picture that was taken on a camera. Like a camera camera. It was me and her, dressed in black, sitting on a couch. We’re not posing. We weren’t prepared to take a picture. We were just sitting there.

I remember the morning it was taken. The night before had been some kind of wild thing. We must have been 22 or 23. I don’t remember much about the circumstances—just that it was a disappointment, like all the others. It went on very late, and I had nothing to show for it in the end. None of the boys that I liked were interested in me. I was self-conscious about my weight, my nose, my hair, my ankles, my shoes, my anything and everything. In my inability to think I was beautiful, I acted like someone who wasn’t. I was too accommodating and needy, too desperate to be loved, and the boys at wherever we were treated me like that, like they had an allergy to me.

We ended up at Aunt Pammy’s friend’s apartment, and we slept in our clothes. Someone said we looked like “Les Miz meets The Real World,” and you should look that up because both of those things were very big deals at the time. The next morning, the friend who owned the apartment, Amy, made us coffee and took a picture of us drinking it. It is one of the rare pictures I wasn’t smiling for, mostly because I was tired and unprepared. In the picture, I’m wearing last night’s clothing. There is mascara smeared across the area where I now apply Spackle-like concealer. I am holding a cigarette. (Mommy didn’t smoke, kids. Mommy would never smoke. Mommy knows how bad smoking is. Mommy thinks she remembers that she was holding that cigarette for Aunt Pammy.)

Anyway, all these years later, Pamela was going through her pictures, and so I got the text of this one on the way to one of your soccer games. I caught my breath, and your father asked me what was wrong. I waited until we parked, and I showed him the picture, but by then I was crying.

“But what’s wrong?” he asked me.

I looked at the picture. “Can you believe how beautiful I looked here? Could you believe how pretty I was? How did I not know how pretty I was?” I reached for the visor and pulled it down and looked in the mirror. I couldn’t believe I was the same person. I still felt like her, and now I was among the other soccer moms in their leggings and sloppy buns. But I wasn’t her. Underneath her inability to believe it, she was a knockout. I was a knockout. Was one of God’s curses upon kicking Eve out of the Garden of Eden that she would never know how beautiful she was when she was busy being beautiful?

So what could I do with this information? Kids, I have to tell you, I don’t know. I know I should infer a lesson, that right now is as beautiful as I’m going to get, or maybe that we’re all beautiful at some time or other (mostly a time that’s already happened), or maybe that nostalgia is just too big a beast to try to fight. But part of the curse is that you don’t learn lessons. You just experience shock after shock that you didn’t seize the moment when you had it.

One day I will cry over how beautiful I was on the soccer sidelines in my leggings and sloppy bun, and there will be no irony to those tears.

So what are you going to do? Are you going to fight it?

What is the it you want to fight? How do you win? I buy makeup and moisturizer that are designed to restore me to what I naturally had in that picture. The moisturizer has the semen of unicorns and enzymes you can find only in the

lymph nodes of the one Bedouin who emigrated to the Himalayas. I buy serums that are loaded with phytosomething-or-others that I am too smart to think are actual real things and yet and yet and yet.

The shiny, smocked women who work at beauty counters take the pads of their ring fingers and apply eye cream beneath my eyes, saying, “Wow, your skin is sooooooooooooo dehydrated. What do you use?” I give them my big reveal.

I say, “I use the moisturizer you sold me last time I was here when you said the same exact thing.” They titter, “Oh, well, I don’t think you’re using it right.” And I say, “I went to a reputable four-year college. I’m pretty sure I’m using it right.”

And then somehow I leave with even more moisturizer. I leave with eyeliner designed to highlight the borders between my eyes and skin, as they quietly become the same color. I leave with mascara, which will restore my eyelashes to a volume they used to have. I leave with blush to apply to the apples of my cheeks so that I look young and easily surprised, though it’s very hard to surprise me these days.

This is what I’m supposed to aspire to? I’m supposed to want to be the girl in that picture who wanted only to please?

How is that fair? She was a mess, I can tell you that. And somehow I should think of that as my peak? Somehow I should try to emulate that?

There are women I know who have their faces cut open and pulled tight for something they’re calling youth, but they don’t look younger. They just look like women who have had face-lifts. The same with the women who inject a neurotoxin into their faces to stop them from conveying expressions.

That doesn’t look like youth, either. To look young is to not give a shit. That’s the whole disgusting irony of this thing: The more makeup or surgery you participate in in order to look young, the more you look like you care. To care too much about beauty is to subtract from it.

I look at those pictures now, and they break my heart. Do you know how much self-loathing I had that night? Do you know how bad and uncertain things felt to me? Do you know what I was willing to do to feel loved?

My point is this: Don’t be nostalgic for beauty. Don’t be nostalgic for youth. Be happy you got through it, then be in awe of the way beauty changes and redefines itself. Be grateful for the way your face marks your most used expressions so that people will know you before you open your mouth. Be someone who allows your own notion of beauty to shift so that you won’t always be chasing young people and thinking they have the answers when you know full well that they don’t. (And yet and yet and yet.)

We were still pulled over in the parking lot when your father said something to make me smile. I don’t remember what it was, but I do remember what he said afterward. I smiled, and then I stopped smiling, and he told me that he loved the way recently my dimples remain after my smile is gone—meaning the crease is still there for a few seconds after I’m done because my skin isn’t as buoyant as it used to be. As time goes by, I told him, it’ll look like I’m smiling all the time. He said, “Oh, good” and held my head in his hands and kissed me on both cheeks. My dear boys: Be like that.

To read the full letters written by Ciara, Alessandra Ambrosio, and more, go to allure.com/letters.

Love, Mommy

Dear Zoe, You are beautiful, inside and out, outside and in. Remember that your inner life is reflected on your skin, so be mindful to take care of yourself. Sleep enough, eat well, keep writing and dancing, and continue protecting yourself from the sun. With much love, Mom

Princess Sienna, I hope to be the perfect example to you of how you can be everything you dream of. True beauty comes from within. You will shine your brightest when you believe in yourself and have the confidence to pursue your dreams!

—AMY WECHSLER, DERMATOLOGIST

—CIARA, GRAMMY AWARD– WINNING SINGERSONGWRITER AND REVLON GLOBAL BRAND AMBASSADOR

to e r u rs. s e ak othe m , t ty in a h r w beau e t t a r the m o N cove dis My dearest Anja and Noah, I look at you when you are sleeping, crying, laughing, and all I see is pure beauty. I wanted to take a minute and write a few words of advice to both of you on how to keep your beauty forever. Someone once said, “For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone.” If you follow these principles, your beauty will always shine. Be a kind person! Make sure that you always consider other people’s feelings and don’t judge them by their appearance or attitude as beauty comes from within and is sometimes not obvious at first glance. No matter what, make sure to discover the beauty in others as this world would not be beautiful without its diversity.

—ALESSANDRA AMBROSIO, DESIGNER, MODEL, AND ACTRESS IN DADDY’S HOME 2

My baby boy, Be proud of the beautiful melanin in your skin, the gorgeous coils on your head, the amazing shape of your nose and lips, down to the little toes on your feet.

Don’t ever let anyone put limitations on what you can do based on the color of your skin. Continue asking all the questions you do, continue challenging yourself and your father and me to be better versions of ourselves. Don’t ever, ever question your place here on this earth, your worthiness, or your importance to the world. My dear, beautiful, melanated baby boy, you are always enough, and don’t you ever forget that!

—LACY REDWAY, HAIRSTYLIST

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feelin’ the blues On Ajak Deng: Spandex dress and bonnet by Balenciaga. Makeup colors: TruNaked eye shadow palette in Jewels and Melting Pout Gel Liquid Lipstick in Gelfriend by CoverGirl. Opposite page, on Kristen Coffey: Earrings by Miu Miu. Scarf by Emilio Pucci. Makeup colors: Expert Wear Eyeshadow in Forest Green, Lasting Drama Waterproof Gel Pencil in Lustrous Sapphire, and Vivid Matte Liquid lipstick in Orange Obsession by Maybelline New York. Details, see Shopping Guide. These pages: Fashion stylist, Zara Zachrisson. Makeup: Maki Ryoke. Hair: Pasquale Ferrante. Manicure: Maki Sakamoto. Set design: Shelley Burgon.

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Photographed by Quentin Jones

The 1970s and ’80s made a big, splashy hit on the fall runways. Vivid shadows, wild prints, Warholian blocks of color, and mall hair (without the mall). Put them all together and the effect is, in a word, KAPOW!

a mauve, mauve world Silk dress by Miu Miu. Gold earrings by Jennifer Fisher. Makeup colors: Eye Shadow in Electric Eel, Powder Blush in Frankly Scarlet, and Lustre Lipstick in Flamingo by M.A.C. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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the graphic arts Black-and-white viscose top by CĂŠline. Earrings by Robert Lee Morris. Details, see Shopping Guide.

lady of the house Wool jacket by Gucci. Earrings by A. V. Max. Ring by Sarina Suriano. Makeup colors: Ombre Couture Eye Shadow in Kaki Brocart, Prisme Blush in Passion, and Rouge Interdit lipstick in Secret Nude by Givenchy. Opposite page: Viscose dress by Sonia Rykiel. Earrings by Erickson Beamon. Makeup colors: Infallible Paints Metallics Eye Shadow in Violet Luster and Aluminum Foil and Infallible Paints Metallics Lips in Smoldering Eclipse by L’Oréal Paris. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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general electric Silk top and skirt by Fendi.

Earrings by R. J. Graziano.

Makeup colors: Matte Multiple in Siam and Anguilla and Velvet Lip Glide in No. 54 by Nars. Details, see Shopping Guide.

going to new heights Pink-and-black mohair top by Prada. Earrings by R. J. Graziano. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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Putting the Best of Beauty Award winners into action.

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WORKBOOK MAKEUP

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full-frontal blush A wash of blush on the apples of your cheeks is sweet‚ but on cheekbones, temples, and lids? That’s very Blondie punk. Keep the rest of your look low-key-ish with tinted moisturizer, defined brows, and a sheer lip oil.

SHOPPING LIST Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate Cheeks It Cosmetics Heavenly Luxe Blush No. 4 brush Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Tint CoverGirl Easy Breezy Brow Fill + Shape + Define Powder Rimmel London Oh My Gloss Oil Tint in Pop Poppy (right)

photographed by matthew kristall

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On Jia Tong: fishnet top by Carmen March. Rayon top by Solace London.

Earrings by Robert Lee Morris and Jovana Djuric. Details, see Shopping Guide.

These pages: Fashion stylist, Katie Burnett.

Hair: Tamara McNaughton.

Makeup: Yumi Lee. Manicure: Yuko Tsuchihashi.

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high-drama eyes If you’re up for moving beyond—way beyond—safe neutrals, may we suggest up-to-there red shadow? Or maybe 20 clumpy coats of mascara and ultraglossy lids? The trick to going there with your eyes is to keep all of the focus there. Step one: Hide your nightly Netflix habit by using a concealer brush to dab concealer in dots beneath your eye, then blend the dots together with your ring finger or a small, damp sponge. If you have oily skin, creaseproof the concealer by dusting on translucent powder with a clean shadow brush.

SHOPPING LIST Sephora Collection Pro Airbrush Concealer 57 brush Lancôme Teint Idole Ultra Wear Camouflage Rimmel London Match Perfection Silky Loose Face Powder Flower Beauty Flower Pots Powder Blush in Deep Peony (as eye shadow) Tatcha Camellia Gold Spun Lip Balm (as eye gloss) Maybelline New York The Colossal Big Shot Mascara

Above: wool-blend top

by Elizabeth and James. Right, on Lia Pavlova: gray wooland-metal top by Paco Rabanne. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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THIS PAGE AND OPPOSITE PAGE: JOSEPHINE SCHIELE (STILL LIFES)

Beautyblender Micro Mini

MAKEUP FOR THE INSTAGRAM JUNKIE 1. The easiest fake lashes (in the most photogenic package): Flirt Flashes Lashes Applicator.

2. Red lipstick from an Insta superstar: Pat McGrath Labs Lust MatteTrance Lipstick in Elson.

3. The secret to high-shine cheekbones: Make Up For Ever Pro Light Fusion.

4. A brow pencil that makes selfies kinder: Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz. 5. Better than a ring light: Laura Mercier Candleglow Sheer Perfecting Powder.

Left, on Wayne Booth: twill pants (worn around neck) by Joseph. Details, see Shopping Guide.

burgundy lips Anyone can swipe on Gucci Luxurious Moisture-Rich Lipstick in Tulip (right)—and we do mean anyone. “[Burgundy] is a color that looks good on all skin tones,” says makeup artist Francelle Daly. But why not wear it with a twist? With your pinkie, blur the borders the slightest bit for a sexy, comehither-y look. Then blend foundation around the perimeter of your lips to fence in the smudgy color so it won’t bleed.

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SHOPPING LIST Clean & Clear Acne Triple Clear Bubble Foam Cleanser Philosophy Purity Made Simple Pore Extractor Exfoliating Clay Mask Sisley Black Rose Cream Mask Olay Luminous Miracle Boost Concentrate

the 17-minute facial for gleaming skin

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Exfoliate times two. Use a salicylic acid cleanser to get rid of grime and dead skin cells. Then, for the most radiant skin, double down with a mask with salicylic acid and clay.

JOSEPHINE SCHIELE

Mask. Make your skin look as plump and dewy as possible by patting on a creamy moisturizing mask.

Massage. After 10 minutes, wipe away any excess mask and massage on a silky brightening serum to give your skin a glow.

Polyester dress by Simon Miller. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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your skin-care essentials if...

You Have Hangover Face Pop a gel moisturizer or eye cream in the fridge for 20 minutes or so, and then use that sucker to calm puffiness, redness—and maybe even your headache. (Try Garnier SkinActive Moisture Bomb the Antioxidant Super Moisturizer or First Aid Beauty Eye Duty Triple Remedy AM Gel Cream.)

Your High School Reunion Is...Tonight Makeup artists love prepping under-eyes with sheet masks because it’s a quick—and really effective—way to plump fine lines and smooth bags.

(Try Shiseido Benefiance WrinkleResist24 Pure Retinol Express Smoothing Eye Mask.)

You Have a Case of the Sunday Scaries Time for HBO and a face mask (try Dior Hydra Life Glow Better Fresh Jelly Mask) with a nice-smelling chaser (Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Facial Toner always leaves us relaxed).

Your Skin Is Revisiting Puberty

JOSEPHINE SCHIELE

Dab on Differin Gel, a prescription-strength retinoid you can now buy over the counter.

White cotton jacket by Marni. Earrings by Eddie Borgo and Vita Fede. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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oomph-ify straight hair Tuck in. This is really simple, but just putting your hair behind your ears as it air-dries gives you a flattering, face-framing wave with soft volume.

Dry with care. Wrapping your hair up in a towel—so, the way you’ve been drying your hair since you were 10?—pulls your roots flat. Soooo, skip that step.

Mist a texturizing spray on your roots and through the lengths, then use your fingers to flip hair back and forth as you blow-dry.

SHOPPING LIST L’Oréal Paris Extraordinary Clay Shampoo Pantene Pro-V Daily Moisture Renewal Foam Conditioner Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Wild Ginger Texturizing Sea Spray

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Cotton top by Tome. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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define your waves

perfect your curls and coils

Put down the blow-dryer. You can be lazy and shape your waves (yay!) if you know how to air-dry. Prep with a texturizer, then twist damp hair into two low, loose braids—the trick is to undo them before your hair is completely dry, so your waves don’t get ’80s-style crimpy.

Fight dryness. Skip shampoos for a few days so your scalp’s sebum can keep your curls conditioned. In the shower, apply a co-wash or rich conditioner from root to tip.

Keep spirals intact. Pull your curls up into a ponytail on the top of your head as they air-dry—use an old school scrunchie, which will loosen curls without leaving dents.

For tighter coils, apply a styling cream or gel while hair is damp, then twirl small sections tightly and pull them apart when dry.

SHOPPING LIST

SHOPPING LIST

Living Proof Perfect Hair Day In-Shower Styler

As I Am Coconut CoWash

T3 Whirl Trio Styling Wand L’Oréal Paris Air Dry It Wave Swept Spray

This page, left: cotton dress by Ji Oh. Right: wool dress by Lemaire.

Opposite page: silk dress by Solace London. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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Curls Blueberry Bliss Curl Control Jelly Dark and Lovely Au Naturale Anti-Shrinkage Clumping Curl Crème Gel

JOSEPHINE SCHIELE

Spot-treat. Fix wonky or flat sections by wrapping them around a large curling wand, then misting hair all over with a texturizing spray.

THE ULTIMATE BLOWOUT KIT The prep: Garnier Fructis 10-in-1 Rescue Leave-In Spray.

The power: BaBylissPro Rapido hair dryer.

The smoother: Christophe Robin Hairbrush.

The finishing touch: Sexy Hair Big Sexy Hair Powder Play Lite.

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a modern updo It should be unfussy, unkempt, and deconstructed, like this reimagined French twist.

1. Mist dry shampoo or volumizing powder at the roots of air-dried hair, then ruffle up your hair a bit (as you would if you were really scrubbing your scalp) to add lift.

2. Work a texturizing spray through the lengths and ends, scrunching with your hands. If your hair is stick straight, use a curling wand beforehand.

3. Now the fun part: Pin your hair up in a messy twist or bun with bobby pins or U-shaped hairpins (the dry shampoo you’ve already applied will give your hair grip), and finish with a light mist of hair spray.

SHOPPING LIST Hask Charcoal Purifying Dry Shampoo Paul Mitchell Awapuhi Wild Ginger Texturizing Sea Spray

JOSEPHINE SCHIELE

Oribe Free Styler Working Hairspray

Wool top by Joseph. Details, see Shopping Guide.

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SHOPPING GUIDE Allure.com, page 12: Lisa Marie Fernandez bikini bottom, $390 (sold with top). Lisamariefernandez .com. Cover Look, page 26: Fifi Chachnil wool sweater, $395.83. Fifichachnil.com.

Fleur of England bra, $124.

Fleurofengland.com. Talking Beauty With Ruby Rose, page 36: Tod’s cotton poplin top, $675. Tods.com. Page 38: Stephen Jones for Marc Jacobs hat, price available upon request. Marc Jacobs stores. Stella McCartney wool coat, $2,395. Stella McCartney, NYC. 212-3208350. Golden Eye, page 43: R. J. Graziano earrings, $65.

Rjgraziano.com. Puff Piece, page 60: Coach 1941 hat, $595 for similar styles.

Select Coach stores. Miu Miu faux-shearling jacket, $2,890. Select Miu Miu stores. A Détacher polyester crepe dress, $755. A Détacher, NYC. 212-6253380. Miu Miu hat, price available upon request.

Select Miu Miu stores. Coach 1941 wool jacket, $1,200 for similar styles. Select Coach stores. Acne Studios knit top, $540. Acnestudios .com. I’m With the Brand, page 62: Gucci canvas bag, $980. Select Gucci stores.

Fendi leather-and-silk bag, $7,150. Fendi.com. Louis Vuitton leather bag, $5,750.

Select Louis Vuitton stores.

Behind the Scenes, page 122: Araks bra, $100. Araks .com. Baserange underwear, price available upon request for similar styles. Baserange .net. Page 124: Araks underwear, $85. Araks.com.

Page 126: Araks bra, $75.

Araks.com. Baserange underwear, price available upon request for similar styles. Baserange.net. Best of Beauty, page 146: Sharon Wauchob sheepskin jacket, $4,147. Selfridges.com. MM6 Maison Margiela cotton jacket, $1,195. MM6 Maison Margiela, NYC. 646-781-7852.

Sharon Wauchob sheepskin jacket, $4,466. Selfridges .com. Céline cotton jacket, $2,200. Céline, NYC. 212-535-3703. Page 153: Vex Clothing gloves, $50. Vex

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clothing.com. Page 154: Ellery fox-fur-and-wool coat, $4,495. Ellery.com. Page 157: Balenciaga cotton top, $825, and earrings, $375.

Balenciaga, NYC. 212-3281671. Stephen Jones for Marc Jacobs hat, price available upon request. Marc Jacobs, NYC. 212-343-1490.

Page 161: Veronique Branquinho embellished bodysuit, $5,089.75.

Veroniquebranquinho.com.

Page 163: Sies Marjan faux-fur jacket, $1,495.

Barneys New York stores.

Page 164: Sharon Wauchob silk top, $478. Selfridges .com. Kim’s Close-Up, page 167: Elizabeth Locke earrings, $2,675. Neiman Marcus stores. Page 168: House of Harlot latex dress, $250. Houseofharlot.com.

Page 170: Atsuko Kudo latex top, $343.15. Info@ atsukokudo.com. Flashback, page 182: Balenciaga spandex dress, $2,050, and bonnet, $315. Balenciaga .com. Miu Miu earrings, price available upon request. Select Miu Miu stores. Emilio Pucci scarf, $385. Emilio Pucci stores.

Page 184: Miu Miu silk dress, $2,890. Select Miu Miu stores. Jennifer Fisher gold earrings, $395. Jennifer fisherjewelry.com. Page 185: Céline viscose top, $4,250.

Céline, NYC. 212-535-3703.

Robert Lee Morris earrings, $32. Lordandtaylor.com.

Page 186: Gucci wool jacket, $4,100. Select Gucci stores.

A. V. Max earrings, $45.

Avmaxnyc.com. Sarina Suriano, ring, $120. Sarina suriano.com. Sonia Rykiel viscose dress, $1,570. Sonia Rykiel, NYC. 212-396-3060.

Erickson Beamon earrings, $470. Ericksonbeamon.com.

Page 188: Fendi silk top, $1,950, and skirt, $1,950.

Fendi.com. R. J. Graziano earrings, $45. Rjgraziano .com. Page 189: Prada mohair top, $1,480. Select Prada stores. R. J. Graziano earrings, $45. Rjgraziano .com. Workbook, page 193: Carmen March fishnet top, price available upon request. Net-a-porter.com.

Solace London rayon top, $500. Solacelondon.com.

Robert Lee Morris earrings, $30. Lord & Taylor stores.

Jovana Djuric earrings, $330. Jovanadjuric.com.

Page 194: Elizabeth and James wool-blend top, $275.

Saksfifthavenue.com. Paco Rabanne wool-and-metal top, $1,150. Barneys New York, NYC. 212-826-8900.

Page 195: Joseph twill pants, $585. Joseph-fashion.com.

Page 199: Simon Miller polyester dress, $410. Simon millerusa.com. Page 202: Marni cotton jacket, $1,670.

Marni stores. Eddie Borgo earrings, $150. Eddieborgo .com. Vita Fede earrings, $495. Vitafede.com. Page 205: Tome cotton top, $550.

Tomenyc.com. Page 206: Ji Oh cotton dress, $595.

Jiohny.com. Lemaire wool dress, $1,360. Lemaire.fr.

Solace London silk dress, $800. Solacelondon.com.

Page 210: Joseph wool top, $1,650. Joseph-fashion.com.

My Dream Kit, page 214: Essie nail polish in Garden Variety, Wicked, Aruba Blue, Off Tropic, In the Cab-ana, After School Boy Blazer, Chillato, Go Ginza, All Access Pass, Blanc, Without a Stitch, Play Date, and Jamaica Me Crazy; Essie nail polishes in In Stitches, High

Class Affair, and Buy Me a Cameo; Topshop nail polishes in Choppy, Nori, and Kettle; Color Club Nail Lacquer in Not-So-Mellow Yellow; Chanel Nail Colour in Beige Beige; Morgan Taylor Professional Lacquer in It’s My Party; Essie nail polishes in Sunshine State of Mind, Peach Side Babe, Hi Maintenance, Ballet Slippers, Tart Deco, Cascade Cool, Pansy, Russian Roulette, E-nuf Is E-nuf, Geranium, Wrapped in Rubies, Bordeaux, With the Band, Berry Naughty, and Forever Yummy. Christian Louboutin card holder, $280.

Christianlouboutin.com.

PHOTOGRAPHERS’ CREDITS High Gloss, page 65, clockwise from top left: Liam Goodman (prop stylist: Jillian Guarco) (2); Steven Klein; Liam Goodman (prop stylist: Jillian Guarco); courtesy of Maybelline New York; courtesy of Sun Bum; Liam Goodman (prop stylist: Jillian Guarco); Yannis Vlamos/ indigital.tv; Liam Goodman (prop stylist: Jillian Guarco); courtesy of Agmes; courtesy of Jenna Wojciechowski.

ALLURE IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF ADVANCE MAGAZINE PUBLISHERS INC. COPYRIGHT © 2017 CONDÉ NAST. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A. VOLUME 27, NO. 10. October 2017 ISSUE. ALLURE (ISSN 1054-7771) is published monthly by Condé Nast, which is a division of Advance Magazine Publishers Inc. PRINCIPAL OFFICE: Condé Nast, One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007.

S. I. Newhouse, Jr., Chairman Emeritus; Robert A. Sauerberg, Jr., President & Chief Executive Officer; David E. Geithner, Chief Financial Officer; James M. Norton, Chief Business Officer & President of Revenue. Periodicals postage paid at New York, NY, and at additional mailing offices. Canada Post Publications Mail Agreement No. 40644503. Canadian Goods and Services Tax Registration No. 123242885-RT0001. POSTMASTER: Send all UAA to CFS (SEE DMM 507.1.5.2); NON-POSTAL AND MILITARY FACILITIES: Send address corrections to ALLURE, P.O. Box 37617, Boone, IA 50037-0617. FOR SUBSCRIPTIONS, ADDRESS CHANGES, ADJUSTMENTS, OR BACK ISSUE INQUIRIES: Please write to ALLURE, P.O. Box 37617, Boone, IA 50037-0617, call 800-678-1825, or email subscriptions @allure.com. Please give both new and old addresses as printed on most recent label. Subscribers: If the Post Office alerts us that your magazine is undeliverable, we have no further obligation unless we receive a corrected address within one year. If during your subscription term or up to one year after the magazine becomes undeliverable, you are ever dissatisfied with your subscription, let us know. You will receive a full refund on all unmailed issues. First copy of new subscription will be mailed within four weeks after receipt of order. Address all editorial, business, and production correspondence to ALLURE Magazine, One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. For reprints, please email reprints@condenast.com or call 717-505-9701, ext 101. For reuse permissions, please email permissions@condenast.com or call 800-897-8666. Visit us online at www.allure.com. To subscribe to other Condé Nast magazines on the World Wide Web, visit www.condenastdigital.com. Occasionally, we make our subscriber list available to carefully screened companies that offer products and services that we believe would interest our readers. If you do not want to receive these offers and/or information, please advise us at P.O. Box 37617, Boone, IA 500370617 or call 800-678-1825. ALLURE IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RETURN OR LOSS OF, OR FOR DAMAGE OR ANY OTHER INJURY TO, UNSOLICITED MANUSCRIPTS, UNSOLICITED ARTWORK (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, DRAWINGS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND TRANSPARENCIES), OR ANY OTHER UNSOLICITED MATERIALS. THOSE SUBMITTING MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, ARTWORK, OR OTHER MATERIALS FOR CONSIDERATION SHOULD NOT SEND ORIGINALS, UNLESS SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED TO DO SO BY ALLURE IN WRITING. MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND OTHER MATERIALS SUBMITTED MUST BE ACCOMPANIED BY A SELF-ADDRESSED STAMPED ENVELOPE.

MY DREAM KIT

Nail artist Jenny Longworth curates her ultimate bag of tricks.

Top row, from left: Essie nail polishes, Zoya 3-in-1 Formula Remove+ nail polish remover, Swarovski crystals, Shiseido Facial Cottons. Second row, from left: Hair by Sam McKnight (Rizzoli New York), Studio 35 Beauty nail files, Tweezerman Rockhard Cuticle Nipper, Kiyoco Miyaji nail jewelry, Elemis Pro-Collagen Hydra-Gel Eye Masks, Essie nail polishes. Third row, from left: RickyCare Cushioned Nail Shaper, Revlon Concealer brushes, Topshop nail polishes, Color Club Nail Lacquer. Fourth row, from left: SuperNail Orangewood Sticks, RickyCare Satin Flat Tip Tweezer, CND Stickey Anchoring Base Coat, Seche Vite Dry Fast Top Coat, Sisley Global Anti-Age Hand Care, L’Occitane Nail & Cuticle Nourishing Oil. Fifth row, from left: Christian Louboutin card holder, Chanel Nail Colour, Kiyoco Miyaji nail jewelry, Morgan Taylor Professional Lacquer, Essie nail polishes. Sixth row: Essie nail polishes. Details, see Shopping Guide.

To find out why Jenny Longworth loves these products, go to allure.com/dream-kit.

PROP STYLIST: LINDEN ELSTRAN

photographed by junichi ito