News

I still can’t believe Estée Lauder pulled the plug on Prescriptives…

It must have been a difficult decision for the maker of MAC, Clinique and Bobbi Brown. Any time you shutter doors on a 30-year-old cosmetics line it has to hurt, even if sales of the line have been underperforming for a while.

Global distribution will end about four months from now (Jan. 31, 2010), so there’s still time to stock up before the counters disappear. After that, any remaining stock will be cleared out through the website.

I can’t say I’m heartbroken, but I will miss certain things about Prescriptives, like their approach to color, specifically their range. Even as far back as the ’80s and ’90s I could count on Prescriptives to carry foundation shades that matched my skin tone.

But it wasn’t enough to fend off the competition, and they grew to be overshadowed by EL’s other brands.

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For whatever it’s worth, fellow fans of Prescriptives’ still popular Calyx fragrance are in luck. We’ll still be able to get our hands on it through Aramis at department stores and online. I guess that’s better than nothing… I do like fruity, fresh Sheer Calyx Exhilaration. 🙂

Farewell Prescriptives…

Prescriptives Mineral Bronzer in Warm, $30

Prescriptives Eye Color Compact in Warm from the Well Suited Collection, $40
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Hi, ladies. Have you noticed any problems lately accessing MBB? Any weird errors or hangups? The past couple of days have been filled with technical challenges for me. Day before yesterday I attempted to upgrade the software I use, which is called WordPress, because of this warning about a new worm, which is like a virus that in this case infects blogs.

I thought things went well, but now I’m not so sure. A couple of you have emailed or commented to report glitches.

If you’re getting page errors or other weirdness when you visit, would you mind leaving a comment or sending me a note to let me know? Any details would help, like the type of web browser you’re using (Internet Explorer, Firefox, Safari, etc.), a description of the error, and approximately when the glitch occurred.

It’s either due to the WordPress upgrade, a new caching plugin I installed (to speed things up) or Godaddy (the company that hosts the blog, like its landlord). If I can figure out what’s causing the problems, maybe I can undo the change.

Thanks a lot for your help.

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Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Hi, ladies. I clicked the wrong button this morning and accidentally deleted the last few posts and ALL of the comments from the past 24 hours or so.

I can republish the posts… but everything we’ve commented on over the past 24 hours is kinda lost.

No, not kinda lost — it’s just plain lost.

I’m very sorry, especially since you guys left some absolutely fantastic and helpful comments on the makeup expiration post in particular.

Your friendly neighborhood (clumsy) beauty addict,

Karen

Daily Makeover wants to know your makeup and beauty buying habits, and they’re willing to pay you for your time.

How much are we talkin’?

What about $5 just for registering and answering a 29-question survey? It took me about 7 minutes from start to finish, with questions like, “Which of these best describes your hair type?” Answers: 1) Oily, 2) Normal or 3) Dry.

NOTE: In the comments, some of you said that you were asked more questions than I was (I had 29), so it looks like the number of questions varies based upon your answers along the way.

New surveys will appear from time to time (I’m not sure how often, but I’ll let you know when I find out), so check the site on a regular basis. Each survey you answer will earn you more cash.

For every $25 earned, you can elect to receive your cash securely through Paypal or redeem it for gift cards from Amazon or Nike — or even have your earnings donated to charity. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

I remember being a kid and loving the heck out of Sears. Why? Because back in the days before Sephora and MAC, Sears meant popcorn, warm nuts and Icees, yum!

Sears may not be the retail powerhouse it was when Reebok high-tops ruled, but they’re hoping to change that with the help of high-margin beauty products. Eight years after getting out of the cosmetics biz, the 115-year-old company is getting back in, hoping that beauty can give their flagging bottom line a boost.

The company plans to open full-service beauty counters at 13 pilot stores in LA, Chicago and New York this week, with hundreds more to open in other Sears locations over the next two years.

The words “beauty” and “Sears” don’t really go together in my mind, but they’ll be carrying big drugstore brands like CoverGirl, L’Oreal and Maybelline, as well as niche brands like Burt’s Bees and Yves Rocher (for which Sears will be the sole US retailer). Who knows, right? Stranger things have happened.

Sears will try to differentiate its beauty business by mixing mass-market prices and displays with department-store service in a mall.

I wonder if they’ll bring back the Icees and warm nuts… 🙂

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Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. According to Sears, grand opening celebrations are being held in each of the pilot Sears Beauty locations on Aug. 29-30 and Sept. 5-6, featuring complimentary makeovers and gift baskets (in case you live near one of the stores).

Other offers include a free cosmetic bag and brush set with any $25 cosmetics, fragrance or bath purchase and a $10 Sears reward card with any $50 cosmetics, fragrance or bath purchase.

Good morning, ladies. It’s Wednesday, yea! We’re at the foot of the hump, working our way up to the crest. 🙂

To help us get over the hump day hump, Korres is offering MBB readers 30% off purchases with promo code MAKEUPBEAUTY entered at checkout (valid through Sept. 15).

Why Korres?

The Face Primer and Lip Butters are awesome

If you’re new to Korres, consider trying their Silicone-Free Face Primer (here’s my review from earlier this summer) or Lip Butters.

I have two of the seven Lip Butters — Jasmine (a light pink) and Plum (a bright berry). They add just a hint of color while moisturizing the lips and don’t have any funky flavor or scent to get in the way. The 30% off discount lowers the price of each one $9 to $7.30 — that’s a good price-quality ratio.

Plum

Plum

Jasmine

Jasmine
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