For some guys, brows are just those two things above their eyes that remain untouchable. For us girls, this can be a problem. Luckily for everyone, men’s grooming is on the rise, as is the amount of guys heading into salons to get their brows trimmed. A brow trim or clean-up not only makes your guy look more polished and better taken care of, it can also make him look more awake! We spoke with Ramon Padilla, director of Strip Ministry of Waxing and Browhaus in New York City, to find out the best way to get your guy to the salon, and how to look after those brows. Read More…

For Associate Editor Lauren Salapatek, who oversees product sections The Goods, Spotlight, Products We Love (online), as well as Style Watch, Ask the Experts and other key departments for MODERN, SALON TODAY and FIRST CHAIR, it was her first time at the show, and she was, quote: “blown away by the scope of it. I saw so many new things and met so many great people and industry experts.”

Yes, Beauty Week can create a “kid in a candy shop” effect for beauty editors and others, with a plethora of brands, sources, launches and events to experience. (And if you stopped by TIGI’s party or booth to check out the company’s latest styling launch, you actually WERE in a candy shop.) For those of us on the team who have logged “a few more” annual Vegas trips in July than Lauren, we too were impressed by the connections we made and the innovation and activity we saw on the showfloor and beyond.

After we returned to our home bases in Chicago, NYC and California late Tuesday evening, then spent the better part of Wednesday dealing with email and deadlines, we dedicated our weekly editorial meeting to a “deep dive” on what we saw as major or emerging trends at the show. Below are highlights of what we discussed. Read More…

By Kate Hahn

You have a craving for a Big Mac (or, okay, a Fruit & Walnut Salad) so you head to McDonald’s, expecting to put up with indifferent service in order to satisfy your jones. Surprisingly, the Gen-Y girl at the register gives you a warm greeting, smoothly suggests an add-on item, and when you spill your shake she practically leaps over the counter to help save your silk dress. Plus, she’s so well groomed she looks like she’s about to anchor the evening news. Do you just take your change and go? No way. This gem is a potential salon employee. And she isn’t alone. Your future receptionists and hairdressers are out there. You just have to be willing to look in a few unexpected places to find them.  Read More…

Fifteen years ago, it was “The Rachel.” Twenty years before that, it was “The Farrah.” And those are only two examples of iconic hairstyles that have graced thousands of heads over the last hundred years. But can there be another? With today’s trend toward individualism, colorist and Matrix Artistic Color Director, Patrick McIvor, and stylist and L’Oreal Professionnel Portfolio Artist, Amit Abraham, say it isn’t likely.  Read more…

mce_marker

Reinventing the names

Many diagnostic centers have coined their facilities’ official name to include the term “wellness.” Wellness is a word associated by many with alternative medicine and spas conjures pictures of well-being and relaxation.  The Diagnostic & Wellness Center for Women of Pacific Medical Center (PacMed), the Diagnostic and Wellness Center at Harbor-UCLA, and the Women’s Diagnostic and Wellness Center of Coral Springs Medical Center in Florida are examples of this trend. Even the renowned Cleveland Clinic has its Florida Health and Wellness Center. One would seldom associate these names with mammography or calcium scans. Spas on the other hand, have adopted the term “medical spas” or medispas” to emphasize the medical and health benefits of their services. In the same way, alternative medicine is trying to keep up with technology. Whereas traditional acupuncture uses manual stimulation, acupuncture centers use new technology for stimulation, from electrical impulses and lasers to moxibustion and heat.

Reinventing the environment

Many clinics are redesigning their facilities to make them less sterile and more relaxing. PacMed’s Diagnostic & Wellness Center for Women in Seattle describes its setting as “spa-like”, with interior decor in warm, soothing colors and furniture and fixtures one wouldn’t normally find in a normal clinic setting. “The soothing, warm hues of the decor and custom-made, heated robes are a few touches that aim to put anxious patients at ease,” according to their October 2007 press release. However, despite the spa-like atmosphere, this unique wellness center has all the state-of-the-art medical and diagnostic equipment as well as top notch medical staff necessary to perform diagnostic tests. “Our goal is to change the healthcare experience for the better and encourage people to take a proactive approach to wellness”, according to a PacMed Center spokesperson. The Women’s Diagnostic & Wellness Center at Coral Springs Medical Center in Coral Springs Florida calls its setting “home-like” to do away with the impersonal atmosphere that is associated with many diagnostic centers. Read more …

“Every year there are literally thousands of people who are terrified of getting into a suit and attending a pool party because they are insecure about their body image for any one or more of these reasons,” Hall proclaimed. “The good news is that these issues can be easily remedied with simple, painless cosmetic procedures, advanced treatments and techniques,” Dr. Hall said.

Now is the perfect time of the year to consider the following six cosmetic procedures to restore self-image and to heal properly before swimsuit season:

1. Tumescent, Laser or Smart Liposuction to Remove Unwanted Fat and Bulges: Tumescent, Laser and SmartLipo™ are of the latest advances in body contouring, fat removal and skin tightening. Men and women who want to look and feel better seek out doctors that perform liposuction surgery. It is pain free and patients are back to a normal, active life within days.
2. Candela Gentlelase Plus® for Laser Hair Removal: Laser hair removal has never been easier. A flash of light and a few treatments is all it takes to make unwanted hair disappear, permanently and safely. Remove unwanted hair on the face, back, legs, bikini line or just about anywhere else.
3. Varicose/Spider Vein Treatments and Elimination: The most commonly used treatments are sclerotherapy and laser treatment for vein removal. Vein removal treatments are permanent and successful, so patients can feel less self-conscious and more comfortable wearing summer clothes.
4. Endermologie Treatments for Cellulite Removal: Endermologie® is an innovative cellulite treatment available to sculpt most areas of the body. Endermologie® treatments work by massaging the tissue where cellulite exists with a state-of-the-art machine to break down the gatherings of fat groups and increasing circulation. Endermologie® treatments help remove cellulite and dimpling of the skin and help restore patient confidence.
5. Mole, Stretch Mark and Scar Removal: Many people have scars, moles, stretch marks, warts, pigmented spots and other lesions on their head, face, neck and body. There are several laser treatments that remove moles, scars and stretch marks and result in smoother, even-toned skin.
6. Levulan Kerastick Treatments for Age Spot/Sun Damage Removal: Levulan PDT Therapy treatment is a new procedure now available to treats sun damage and active acne. The treatment is a photosensitizing agent (Levulan) applied to the skin and then activated with a specific wavelength of light. After the procedure, the results leave a smoother skin tone. Levulan has been used extensively for the treatment of a variety of different skin conditions, and it is approved by the FDA and Health and Welfare Canada for the treatment of sun damaged skin.

Read More

The financial crisis meant the keenest users by far of medical aesthetic treatments, women, pruned spending on their quest for youthful appearances or beauty in whatever shape or form.

Revenues in the medical aesthetic treatment industry as a whole fell 15 percent to 3 billion euros ($4.30 billion) due to fewer surgical acts and a 40 percent decrease in energy-based therapy equipments like ultrasound massages or laser skin treatments.

However, wrinkle fillers and active cosmetics — creams that contain vitamins or promise to lift the skin — resisted the crisis best, down 0 to 5 percent in 2009.

Read more…

Twitter is growing popular with businesses locally and abroad. A Nu-U Salon and Spa owner Maria Waibel first saw the success of using Twitter when she posted a “tweet” about an appointment opening at the last minute.

“As soon as we put our number up, we have people calling us,” she said. “(The first time) it was literally seconds. It was so quick it startled the receptionist.”

Waibel posts messages on the spa’s account – @mariaw1 – about three times a week about discounts, promotions and appointment availability. The spa has 140 followers as of Monday.

Source: Lancaster Eagle Gazette

Mintel conducted research in France, USA and the UK to monitor how consumers were reacting to beauty purchasing in the face of the financial concerns and found that a very small number of people were actually purchasing lipsticks. Just 3% of women said that they purchased a lipstick to make themselves feel better, indeed lipstick came top of a list in of cosmetic products that women would actually spend less on or stop using altogether.

Nica Lewis, head consultant for Mintel Beauty Innovation said of the trend, “In this recession, Austerity Chic – or looking good for less – is replacing the Lipstick Effect. Beauty is now marketed as a necessity rather than a luxury and women are being creative with their spending to keep up appearances. This means women are investing in moisturisers, body lotion and hair care, rather than lipstick.”

Read more…