0913_PVN_BeautyAwards_Makeup

MAKEUP

AT ITS BEST

by Kiera Aaron, Amanda First & Miranda Van Gelder l photographs by Grace Huang

As with so many things in life (sex, relationships, work), makeup is something we’ve wised up about.

Sure, we’re still dazzled by pretty packaging, but it takes more than a whiz-bang mascara wand for us to hand over the plastic. Here, 17 science-backed winners that show real results.

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ruising the cosmetics aisle tends to fall somewhere between a whimsical fantasy and a night terror. It’s not that we don’t love makeup; we do. But how can you tell, just by looking at a bottle, if a product will stay put or run down your face by lunchtime? Without an advanced degree in chemistry, you can’t—which is where our awards come in. See, we’re picky and we expect results. Want to impress us? Give us a concealer that can help stave off wrinkles, too.

(Seriously. See p. 80.)

To find the best cosmetics that truly merit space in our cluttered caddies, we evaluated more than 1,500 products released in the past year. We asked scientists to comb ingredient lists and tell us what actually works and why. We also mailed boxes of makeup to readers like you and asked for their no-holds-barred feedback. In the end, these 17 products rose to the top.

Get ready to make over your makeup bag.

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THE WINNERS (1) Elizabeth Arden Beautiful Color Radiance Blush, (2) Dr. Hauschka Black Eyeliner, (3) Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Dry & Go Drops, (4) Maybelline New York Volum’Express the Rocket Mascara, (5) Sonia Kashuk Perfecting Brightening Primer, (6) BareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipstick, (7) Perricone MD No Concealer Concealer, (8) Tarte BB Tinted Treatment 12-Hour Primer, (9) L’Oréal Paris True Match Super-Blendable Crayon Concealer

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OUR PANEL What makes one eyeliner a smudgefest, while another stays put? Which makeup ingredients truly beautify skin?

We asked these three experts, whose professional duty is beauty.

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Ranella Hirsch, MD, past president of the American Society of Cosmetic Dermatology and Aesthetic Surgery and dermatologist in Boston O Perry Romanowski, cosmetic chemist in Chicago O Mally Roncal, makeup artist in Baltimore and creator and president of Mally Beauty

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PRODUCT PHOTOGRAPH BY STUART TYSON

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MASCARA

Maybelline New York Volum’Express the Rocket Mascara ($8; drugstores) Why it’s a winner with our panel: More than 25% of Prevention.com readers said their main mascara concern is finding one that lasts all day. The chemist on our panel pointed out the “combination of film-forming polymers,” which (in layperson’s terms) makes the mascara raccoon-eye resistant.

Why it’s a winner with us: We’ve seen a lot of mascara brushes in our day, but this one’s tiny spikes (producing no chunks or blobs) stand out.

Runner-up: Physicians Formula Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin FakeOut Mascara ($10; physiciansformula.com) ➔ Pro tip: Wait 1 minute between coats to build volume without creating a mess, suggests Roncal.

Dr. Hauschka Black Eyeliner ($18; drhauschka.com) Why it’s a winner with our panel: We’ve all optimistically applied a new eyeliner, only to find that by noon, we looked like Courtney Love. We were pleased to learn that this synthetics-free eye pencil has built-in staying power. Shea butter (yep, your body lotion favorite) “helps the color spread evenly and sticks to skin to hold it in place longer,” Romanowski says.

Why it’s a winner with us: We’re in agreement with our reader testers, who raved about “sharp” color that didn’t look “harsh.” The liner glides on without a single bump and stays in place for hours. The extralong pencil makes for easy application—even for the cat-eyechallenged among us.

Runner-up: Pacifica Enlighten Eye Brightening Shadow ($12; Target) ➔ Pro tip: “Don’t forget the upper inner rim; it will intensify your lash line,” says Roncal. First step: Overcome your fear of poking yourself in the eye. Then “lift your upper lid, look down into a mirror, and apply in short strokes,” she says.

BLUSH

Elizabeth Arden Beautiful Color Radiance Blush ($26; elizabetharden.com) Why it’s a winner with our panel: Blush’s No. 1 job?

Make us look naturally radiant for hours on end. This mineral-based formula (the first ingredient is mica, which we last saw in high school geology) doesn’t contain or absorb water, which means it stands up to sweat.

Why it’s a winner with us: We want a blush that enhances our cheekbones without looking clownish, so we like how effortlessly this pigment blends, doing away with our Am I applying this right? neuroses.

Runner-up: Almay Smart Shade Powder Blush ($11.50; drugstores) ➔ Pro tip: Apply to apples in a circular motion to make cheeks look fuller.

FOUNDATION

Tarte BB Tinted Treatment 12-Hour Primer ($34; sephora.com) Why it’s a winner with our panel: This BB formula (that’s “beauty balm,” to the uninitiated) contains titanium dioxide and zinc oxide for an SPF of 30. Mineral sunscreens can be a drag to rub in, but here, siliconebased add-ins create great blendability.

Why it’s a winner with us: You know the fluffy, weightless texture of meringue? This is it in makeup form, and yet it manages to cover flaws. “My patients said their skin has never felt better,” says Dr. Hirsch, who also called the foundation a “clear winner.”

Runner-up: L’Oréal Paris Visible Lift CC Cream ($13; drugstores)

Hair by cecilia romero for rené furterer at art department; Makeup by thora vikar for kate ryan, inc.

EYELINER

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CONCEALER (It’s a tie!)

LIPSTICK

Perricone MD No Concealer Concealer ($45; sephora.com) Why it’s a winner with our panel: It got on our chemist’s good side, thanks to the hit of antiwrinkle SPF 35. “The most important ingredient in your skin products is sunscreen,” Romanowski says.

Why it’s a winner with us: This moisturizing, nonchalky camouflage conceals circles without depositing pancakey crud in fine lines. Plus, it doesn’t require tons of pulling to blend in.

BareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipstick ($18; bare minerals.com) Why it’s a winner with our panel: Like many lipsticks, this line features castor seed oil for moisture. What distinguishes it from the pack: “It has additional emollients that help the skin retain water and give it a silky feel when you apply,” Romanowski says.

Why it’s a winner with us: Though it took us a minute to figure out the case’s silver latch (fellow butterfingers: pull, don’t press, the button), once we did, we were converts. Supple and satiny, the lipstick goes on like a light lip balm yet deposits stay-put color that’s far richer than expected. Bonus: a pleasantly faint scent that’s natural, not cloying, thanks to a hint of peppermint oil.

Runner-up: Nivea Lip Butter ($4; drugstores)

L’Oréal Paris True Match Super-Blendable Crayon Concealer ($9; drugstores) Why it’s a winner with our panel: “Super-Blendable” isn’t just hype: “A combination of waxes and oils helps the concealer glide on smoothly,” Dr. Hirsch says.

Why it’s a winner with us: Some cover-up jobs (such as sun spots, small scars, and notso-small pimples) call for precision. Happily, this crayon makes it easy to pinpoint and obscure imperfections when needed.

Runner-up: BareMinerals Stroke of Light Eye Brightener ($22; bareminerals.com)

Sonia Kashuk Perfecting Brightening Primer ($15; Target) Why it’s a winner with our panel: This base layer’s secret weapon is something called nylon 12, which absorbs your skin’s natural oils much like “tiny sponges on your cheeks, so makeup looks better, longer,” Romanowski says.

“It helps products like powder and foundation slide onto your skin evenly, and the oil control lasts all day.”

Why it’s a winner with us: We tend to view primers with both longing and reluctance: We appreciate a finished look but don’t care for the masklike veneer they can create. This lightweight cream did an admirable job of keeping the rest of our makeup from flagging, without making our skin look lifeless.

Runner-up: Jane Iredale Smooth Affair Facial Primer & Brightener ($48; shop.janeiredale.com) ➔ Pro tip: Don’t smear it on. “Apply in a dabbing motion to work the primer into your pores so that the finished result looks smooth,” says Sonia Kashuk, who created the product.

PRIMER

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NAIL PRODUCT

Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure Dry & Go Drops ($8; drugstores) Why it’s a winner with our panel: The chemist on our panel immediately zeroed in on a key ingredient, disiloxane, which is proven to help the solvents in polish evaporate faster. And unlike with messy speed-dry nail sprays, half the product doesn’t end up on your skin.

Why it’s a winner with us: A dropperful of the formula, which is spiked with moisturizing jojoba seed oil, fast-forwards the drying process so we can walk away unsmudged from a DIY mani-pedi. Now we tuck our hands into our jacket pockets and hit the road within a couple of minutes, compared with the usual 10.

Runner-up: OPI Liquid Sand Nail Lacquer ($9; opi.com for salons)

Enter for a Chance to

WIN

The Year’s Best Makeup!

Five readers will take home our 17 top picks (value: $310.50)!

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. Void where prohibited. To enter, go to prevention .com/beauty-makeupsweeps. Starts 8/21/2013 and ends 9/24/2013. Must be 18 or older and legal resident of 50 US or DC (excluding residents of Puerto Rico) or Canada (excluding residents of the province of Quebec). For official rules, go to prevention.com/beautymakeup-sweeps. Sponsor: Rodale Inc., 400 S. 10th St., Emmaus, PA 18098.

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