Follow our five-step guide, and you too can be ready to slip into shorts and sandals the minute the clouds part, with skin that’s soft, smooth and (seemingly) sun-kissed.
Photograph by: Vancouver Sun , Handout
With another stretch of grey and gloomy days ahead keeping legs and feet under wraps, it’s tempting to let grooming slide. But here in B.C. we can’t afford to waste a day of sunshine. Follow our five-step guide, and you too can be ready to slip into shorts and sandals the minute the clouds part, with skin that’s soft, smooth and (seemingly) sun-kissed.
1. NAIL IT
Taking time out for a pedicure is one of life’s finest luxuries, and if you think we’re exaggerating, you ought to either (a) try one again, or (b) get them more regularly. The newest polish technology makes hard, thick gel nails a thing of the past (thankfully): OPI GelColor is a new salon-only service that lasts up to three weeks. Available in 42 shades (including OPI classics such as Lincoln Park After Dark), each coat of gel is flash-cured under UV light for just 30 seconds. Nail aficionados can get a similar, at-home starter gel kit by Quo by ORLY ($40, excluding the necessary $80 LED lamp), or, if you’re more of a traditionalist, stick to regular polish. The Thakoon for NARS Cosmetics is the season’s best collection of brights, but if $21 for lacquer is out of your budget, the new formaldehyde- and toluene-free Gosh OMG! Collection at Shoppers Drug Mart includes 20 miniature bottles in poppy shades for only $4 a pop.
• Thakoon for NARS group of 5 polishes
(pictured), $21 each, at Holt Renfrew, Sephora, The Bay, or www.narscosmetics.ca
• Quo by ORLY Gel Starter Kit, $40 at Shoppers Drug Mart
• Oh My Gosh! nail lacquer in Apple Green, $4 at Shoppers Drug Mart
• Oh My Gosh! nail lacquer in Orange Splash, $4 at Shoppers Drug Mart
2. DE-FUZZ
Shave it, wax it, epilate it or laser it: one way or another, you will want to lose the leg hair before stepping out sans tights. Try Evolution of Smooth shave cream, a non-foaming formula launching next month that’s so moisturizing — it has oat, shea butter, aloe, and Vitamins E and C: the works—that you can do the shaving deed wet or dry.
• BIC Soleil Savvy shaver, from $6 at drugstores, www.bicworld.com
• Evolution of Smooth shave cream,
$5 at major drugstores (pictured)
3. SMOOTHE
A necessary step for anyone who plans to partake in Step 5 — exfoliate and buff your winter-roughened skin to a smooth finish. Pay special attention to knees and ankles, and give rough patches on your feet the thrice-over with a pumice or (gently now!) a metal file. Finish off with a scrub: try a new formula such as the Sunless Tan Exfoliator by Baléa Glow or Rodial’s Brazilian Tan Body Scrub, or support local enterprise by dipping into Be Smooth Body Scrub, a sugar scrub containing almond oil, blood orange, lavender and vanilla, by Vancouver spa Spruce Bodylab.
• Sephora Collection Deluxe Pedicure Kit, $30 at Sephora stores or
www.sephora.ca
• Sephora Collection Pedicurve, $16 at Sephora stores or www.sephora.ca
• Be Smooth Body Scrub, $23 at Spruce Bodylab (pictured), 1128 Richards St., 604-683-3220 or www.sprucebodylab.com
• Rodial Brazilian Tan Body Scrub, $45 at Murale (at Oakridge Centre, 604-264-8035) or www.murale.ca
4. MOISTURIZE
Keep your tootsies soft well past your tune-up by rubbing a good foot cream all over and concentrating on heels, balls of your feet and big toe with an extra-hydrating product such as Butter London’s Stiletto Stick (which has a high urea content and macadamia nut oil). Use a silky, thick moisturizer over the rest of legs, or skip to Step 5.
• Butter London Kitten Heels Powder Finish foot cream, $33 at Beautymark (1268 Pacific Blvd., 604-642-2294) or www.beautymark.ca
• Butter London Stiletto Stick Hydrating Balm, (pictured), $36 at Beautymark (1268 Pacific Blvd., 604-642-2294) or www.beautymark.ca
• Peppermint Cooling Foot Lotion, $16 at The Body Shop or www.thebodyshop.ca
• Clarins Eau des Jardins Derivatives Smoothing body cream, $49 at department stores.
5. TAN IT
Tanning beds are so noughties — these days, it’s all about faking it. Clarins’ Delicious Self-Tanning Cream (a heavenly chocolate-smelling number) is still one of the company’s bestsellers, while The Body Shop’s Honey Bronze collection, including its Shimmering Dry Oil, is available year-round. If subtle isn’t your thing, try St. Tropez, the mother of all self-tanning brands, has released its first gel formula, while Baléa Glow Sunless Tan comes in a lotion, a clear gel (better for fairer skin), and even a tinted “gelée” (for medium to dark skin). Scott Barnes Body Bling or Prtty Peaushun by Bethany Karlyn helps conceal stretch marks, varicose veins, and even bruising while natural plant extracts tighten and firm.
• Soleil Identité de Chanel in Bronze, $44 at all Chanel beauty counters.
• St. Tropez Self Tan Bronzing Gel, (pictured, below) $44 at Sephora stores or www.sephora.ca
• Baléa Glow Sunless Tan Body Lotion, $7.50, exclusively at Shoppers Drug Mart
• Baléa Glow Sunless Tan Gelée, $9, exclusively at Shoppers Drug Mart
• Prtty Peaushun, $36 at Kiss & Makeup (at the Village at Park Royal, 604-922-6292) or www.kissandmakeup.ca
1. NAIL IT
Taking time out for a pedicure is one of life’s finest luxuries, and if you think we’re exaggerating, you ought to either (a) try one again, or (b) get them more regularly. The newest polish technology makes hard, thick gel nails a thing of the past (thankfully): OPI GelColor is a new salon-only service that lasts up to three weeks. Available in 42 shades (including OPI classics such as Lincoln Park After Dark), each coat of gel is flash-cured under UV light for just 30 seconds. Nail aficionados can get a similar, at-home starter gel kit by Quo by ORLY ($40, excluding the necessary $80 LED lamp), or, if you’re more of a traditionalist, stick to regular polish. The Thakoon for NARS Cosmetics is the season’s best collection of brights, but if $21 for lacquer is out of your budget, the new formaldehyde- and toluene-free Gosh OMG! Collection at Shoppers Drug Mart includes 20 miniature bottles in poppy shades for only $4 a pop.
• Thakoon for NARS group of 5 polishes
(pictured), $21 each, at Holt Renfrew, Sephora, The Bay, or www.narscosmetics.ca
• Quo by ORLY Gel Starter Kit, $40 at Shoppers Drug Mart
• Oh My Gosh! nail lacquer in Apple Green, $4 at Shoppers Drug Mart
• Oh My Gosh! nail lacquer in Orange Splash, $4 at Shoppers Drug Mart
2. DE-FUZZ
Shave it, wax it, epilate it or laser it: one way or another, you will want to lose the leg hair before stepping out sans tights. Try Evolution of Smooth shave cream, a non-foaming formula launching next month that’s so moisturizing — it has oat, shea butter, aloe, and Vitamins E and C: the works—that you can do the shaving deed wet or dry.
• BIC Soleil Savvy shaver, from $6 at drugstores, www.bicworld.com
• Evolution of Smooth shave cream,
$5 at major drugstores (pictured)
3. SMOOTHE
A necessary step for anyone who plans to partake in Step 5 — exfoliate and buff your winter-roughened skin to a smooth finish. Pay special attention to knees and ankles, and give rough patches on your feet the thrice-over with a pumice or (gently now!) a metal file. Finish off with a scrub: try a new formula such as the Sunless Tan Exfoliator by Baléa Glow or Rodial’s Brazilian Tan Body Scrub, or support local enterprise by dipping into Be Smooth Body Scrub, a sugar scrub containing almond oil, blood orange, lavender and vanilla, by Vancouver spa Spruce Bodylab.
• Sephora Collection Deluxe Pedicure Kit, $30 at Sephora stores or
www.sephora.ca
• Sephora Collection Pedicurve, $16 at Sephora stores or www.sephora.ca
• Be Smooth Body Scrub, $23 at Spruce Bodylab (pictured), 1128 Richards St., 604-683-3220 or www.sprucebodylab.com
• Rodial Brazilian Tan Body Scrub, $45 at Murale (at Oakridge Centre, 604-264-8035) or www.murale.ca
4. MOISTURIZE
Keep your tootsies soft well past your tune-up by rubbing a good foot cream all over and concentrating on heels, balls of your feet and big toe with an extra-hydrating product such as Butter London’s Stiletto Stick (which has a high urea content and macadamia nut oil). Use a silky, thick moisturizer over the rest of legs, or skip to Step 5.
• Butter London Kitten Heels Powder Finish foot cream, $33 at Beautymark (1268 Pacific Blvd., 604-642-2294) or www.beautymark.ca
• Butter London Stiletto Stick Hydrating Balm, (pictured), $36 at Beautymark (1268 Pacific Blvd., 604-642-2294) or www.beautymark.ca
• Peppermint Cooling Foot Lotion, $16 at The Body Shop or www.thebodyshop.ca
• Clarins Eau des Jardins Derivatives Smoothing body cream, $49 at department stores.
5. TAN IT
Tanning beds are so noughties — these days, it’s all about faking it. Clarins’ Delicious Self-Tanning Cream (a heavenly chocolate-smelling number) is still one of the company’s bestsellers, while The Body Shop’s Honey Bronze collection, including its Shimmering Dry Oil, is available year-round. If subtle isn’t your thing, try St. Tropez, the mother of all self-tanning brands, has released its first gel formula, while Baléa Glow Sunless Tan comes in a lotion, a clear gel (better for fairer skin), and even a tinted “gelée” (for medium to dark skin). Scott Barnes Body Bling or Prtty Peaushun by Bethany Karlyn helps conceal stretch marks, varicose veins, and even bruising while natural plant extracts tighten and firm.
• Soleil Identité de Chanel in Bronze, $44 at all Chanel beauty counters.
• St. Tropez Self Tan Bronzing Gel, (pictured, below) $44 at Sephora stores or www.sephora.ca
• Baléa Glow Sunless Tan Body Lotion, $7.50, exclusively at Shoppers Drug Mart
• Baléa Glow Sunless Tan Gelée, $9, exclusively at Shoppers Drug Mart
• Prtty Peaushun, $36 at Kiss & Makeup (at the Village at Park Royal, 604-922-6292) or www.kissandmakeup.ca
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