Cosmetics on the cutting edge

Science and beauty are getting even chummier in the latest crop of new products.

Remember green tea? Well, forget it. That antioxidant-packed substance infused into your jar of moisturiser is yesterday’s news. Today, white tea has beauty pundits abuzz. Just as you shed that once-adored status symbol of an LV-logo trench in favour of the softer, more romantic gypsy look from YSL, in cosmetic terms it’s also time to move on.

Jeanine Recckio, founder of Mirror Mirror Imagination Group, a New York-based futurology company that publishes the bi-annual Crystal Ball Beauty Report, paints the big picture of how a trend sparks to life. She says trends are a natural evolution of the demands of the current social climate.

“The September 11 tragedy has already had a profound effect on all aspects of life, right down to cosmetics,” she says, pausing to apologise for the trivial comparison. “Somehow, bright fashion colours and look-at-me lipsticks just don’t seem right any more.”

In skin care, the news is that the once-distinct camps of cosmetics and dermatology are fraternising.

“I recently attended an aesthetician conference in Italy and there was this huge section on machines. Huge!” Recckio says. “You will soon be able to put patches on your face to exercise the muscles to prevent aging. Then there’s the idea of converting cosmetic surgical procedures into a cream, like Botox in a jar.”

The big little news in cosmetics is white tea in the form of Origins’ A Perfect World White Tea Skin Guardian, $65. As white tea contains three times more antioxidants than green tea, it promises healthier skin.

No-sweat fitness

If your morning Pilates class doesn’t give you the pep-up you need try Lancome Aroma Fit Healthy Body Treatment Fragrance, $83. A spritz of the fragrance won’t give you Gisele’s body, but the cocktail of essential oils and vegetable extracts of orange, mandarin, carrot and basil will give your senses a high.

Also try: Biotherm Aqua Sport Energizing Mist, $71, is a fitness fragrance, developed with the French National Institute for Sport and Physical Education.

Temperature control

If the thought of summer makes you damp with sweat, reach for Magicool Hot Weather Cooler and Freshener, $16.95. Developed by British scientists, this icy-cold hydrating spray is called “air-conditioning in a can”.

Also try: Maybelline Cool Effect Cooling Shadow/Liner, from $13.95, is a water-based gel with the cooling effects of cucumber extract, aloe and glycerin hydrators.

Milking It

Since Cleopatra bathed in asses’ milk, lactic acid has been known to have a rejuvenating effect on the skin. The newest breakthrough in anti-aging comes from MPF-1, a milk protein extract that stimulates collagen and cell renewal. The research was pioneered in Adelaide and the result is available in Rocket Science Line Delete Time Suspension Plus+ by Beta Alistine, $89.

Also try: Lactessens Moisturising Body Lotion, $9.95, a milk protein-rich hydrator for the body.

Getting defensive

Cosmetics companies are addressing a growing trend towards climate sensitivity. Elizabeth Arden Extreme Conditioning Cream SPF15, $69, is a weatherproofing moisturiser that harnesses a spectrum of plant extracts including horse chestnut and watercress, a plant rich in antioxidants.

Also try: Dermalogica Climate Control, $54 a therapeutic balm containing shea butter, vitamin E and oat extract on a stick applicator is ideal for your in-flight kit.

The All-Rounder

Tend Skin, $35, is a one-stop wonder. This solution prevents in-grown hairs as deftly as it heals razor rash, hardens fingernails and reduces the appearance of acne and even stretch marks, from Mecca Cosmetica.

Also try: Elizabeth Arden’s Eight-Hour Cream, $28, promises to tame eyebrows, soften cuticles, soothe chapped lips and to even give eyes or cheekbones a reflective glow.

See The Full Post: Jeanine Recckio in the Sydney Morning Herald