Daria Werbowy and Elettra Wiedemann, by Mario Testino

Lancôme’s Fall 2010 color collection, called French Coquettes, is now available, and it is gorgeous.

I’ve been experiencing a renewed love-affair with everything French recently–Once-weekly conversation lessons!  Françoise Hardy on the car stereo!  Parties with fellow Frenchies!–so naturally I was besotted with the deep plums, shimmering charcoals and sophisticated nudes in this collection.  Girl-next-door makeup?  Not here!

Lancôme Color Design Limited-Edition Eyeshadow Quad in French Touch

Artistic director Aaron De Mey took his cues from famously glamorous moments in French history, including Belle Époque opulence and Montmartre bohemian decadence.

The items in the collection which are especially wetting my whistle?

– Color Design Limited-Edition Eyeshadow Quad in French Touch, $42, featuring 4 highly-wearable shades of violet that are tailor-made for a creative smokey eye.

Lancôme La Laque Fever Lipglosses

– La Laque Fever Lipglosses, $26.50, which provide tons of color and shine (for up to 8 hours, if the website is to be believed!)

– Ombre Magnétique Extremely Long-Wear Crease-Resistant Eyeshadow, $25, a sheer-but-buildable gel featuring iridescent mother-of-pearl and long-wearing polymers.  Available in 3 shades:

Lancôme Ombre Magnétique in Black Macadam

Black Macadam, Cherry Cherie, and Urban Silver.  I want them all!

The entire collection is now available on the website, but will roll-out to stores in August.  (Meanwhile, there’s already a waiting list for Ombre Magnétique, with orders shipping on August 15th.  Get on the list here!)

View the entire Lancôme Fall 2010 French Coquettes collection at Lancome-USA.com.

As you might know, there are only a few hair brands I’ve pledged undying devotion to, and Shu Uemura Art of Hair is one of them. The entire line is super glamorous and pampering, works better than Kerastase (IMO), and while the prices are hardly bargain bin, the products are worth every penny.

Shu is offering up a giveaway for 1 lucky Jolie reader, who will get Silk Oil Camellia Smoothing Fluid, Sheer Lacquer Finishing Spray and Kaze Wave Sensual Curl Texturizing Foam. The contest will be open to North American readers, and will end this Friday July 23rd.

To enter, leave a comment on my FB fan page telling me why you want to win!  Good luck!

PS: Shu Uemura Art of Hair has just partnered with V Magazine and model Coco Young for a cool video project.  Check it out here!

Intern Kayte writes:

Give us bright and unforgettable!

NARS brings the heat with its Fall 2010 collection, mixing a variety of bold colors with cool shimmering shades.

NARS Founder and Creative Director Francois Nars was inspired by women icons that are larger than life, unforgettable and possess a charming, timeless look.

Accordingly, the collection features Francois Nars’ inimitable muse Daphne Guinness as the icon for the campaign.

He hopes the dazzling new line will “capture the old-Hollywood meets futuristic look.”

Daphne, Mangrove, and Coconut Grove are just a few eye shadows that will appear from the new line in smoldering shades of violet, yellow, and taupe.

My anticipated favorite product of the new line for fall is Strawberry Fields Lip Gloss, described as a juicy, fresh-picked strawberry taste that will linger on lips with a sexy shine of pink. I can’t decide if I will eat it for a snack or wear it to show off!

Check out more from the gorgeous new fall collection (available now at Sephora!) here.

If we’re Facebook friends, you know that I packed extremely light for my recent trip to London: all I brought were 2 small carry-on bags.  (And when I left London two weeks later, I still had only 2 carry-on bags.  Post with more details forthcoming!)

My friends were baffled.  ”How did you do it?!”

“Oh, you know…” I shrugged, “Little tricks here and there.”  (The underlying message: I am a packing genius.)

I employed similar “take only what you absolutely need” methods for my Cancun trip to the Park Royal Grand Caribe, elated that I was able to bypass baggage claim (and cheat the system)…

…until I got to the gate–having already cleared security–where officials conducted another bag search.

My anxiety levels skyrocketed as the airport dude rifled through my small toiletries bag, pulling out the few beauty items I’d deemed essential.  First he sniffed around the Nude Skincare Cleansing Oil. (“Oh, god!  Not the Nude!” I thought, panicked.)  Then his attention turned to the mini can of L’Oreal Elnett hairspray.  (“Put it back.  Put it back!”)  Finally he removed my tube of Arcona Reozone 40–my favorite sunscreen ever and the only tinted moisturizer on the planet that I like–and peered at it quizzically, rotating the bottle in his hands.  I could see the wheels turning: a sacrifice would have to be made.  I did not appreciate where this was headed.

“No.  I must take this.”

I argued, I huffed, I gesticulated, I scowled, I folded my arms, I made strange noises, I gathered all my psychic powers to will him to give me the tube back.  I did everything but stomp my foot.  No dice. Finally, with one last menacing “I hate you with the fire of a thousand suns” glare (yeah, I was a total jerk in retrospect; poor guy was just doing his job, I suppose), I stormed off down the jetway, stewing in my resentment.  (The silent shame at having acted like such a toddler came later.)

The moral of the story?  If you have a beauty product that you are obsessed with and cannot imagine living even a single day without, play it safe when flying and check your bags…regardless of whether the product is under the allowed size or not (hmph!).

RIP, half-used Reozone 40. I miss you already.

Sometimes I get fan letters from readers.  They always touch me (how awesome is it that somebody took the time out of their day to send a stranger, a message?), but I rarely post them.  I decided to post this one, because it caught me in the right mood, and it made me happy!

I loved your book!  (The beauty tips one.)

I’m still reading it, but I love how you are so matter-of-fact about facial products. I am a beauty product junkie and have been since I was two. I have always loved make-up and skin care and unfortunately have a deep desire to try the latest products (much to my fiance’s dismay). But I always tend go back to my tried and true.

When I read about the beauty industry from an inside view, it makes it seem a lot like heaven (who would possibly refuse free stuff?). I wish more people in the industry would be like you. I think if more young women could hear from people like you, the impact on their lives would be great. I used to take looks out of magazines and copy them even down to braiding my hair and putting butterfly clips in my hair for two hours!! Anyways, I just wanted to say thanks basically. Thanks for being so matter of fact and thanks for saying that the drugstore is just as good as the department store. Finally, someone tells the truth. Sorry if this was a bit long. Well, back to reading I go!

Sincerely,
M.F.

Two weeks ago, I visited the brand-new McMillan Canale salon in Malibu on assignment for VanityFair.com.  (Check out my piece here!)  It’s a collaboration between stylist Chris McMillan and colorist Michael Canale, who are both insanely famous for their talent and long celebrity list…but are perhaps best known as the duo behind Jennifer Aniston’s perfect golden locks.

My hair was done by Chase Kusero, who is Chris’s right-hand man, and also one of the most distractingly good-looking people I’ve ever met in my life. While I felt guilty for cheating on Neil Weisberg and Amanda George at Neil George Salon, it goes with the territory of being a beauty writer!

Luckily, the cut and color Chase gave me are flawless; he just snipped a bit of definition and layers into my overgrown hair (it had been a long time since my last salon visit) and then added some soft highlights to my blondie, which is still recovering from the red hair fiasco of 2008.

Here’s the new look, at right, with my friend K. in London.  Do we look happy?  Yup, we are.