Month: June 2020

June 22, 2020 at 01:00PM From ingredient sourcing to sustainable packaging, here’s how the industry’s forward thinkers are striving to tread more lightly as they produce the beauty products you see on the shelves. RETHINK (INGREDIENTS) The fine print on beauty labels tells us next to nothing about how responsibly sourced ingredients are. To muddy matters, calculating a product’s eco-footprint is far trickier than checking if the formula is all-natural or organic. For starters, natural ingredients can still cause environmental havoc—take, for instance, palm oil and its derivatives. Widely used in beauty products, they can be found in everything from shampoo to lipstick. They are largely produced in Indonesia and Malaysia, and the destruction of rainforests to clear the way for palm oil plantations is rampant. “A lot of companies are coming in and bulldozing and forcing communities out,” says Lindsay Dahl, senior vice-president of social mission at Beautycounter. Although the brand initially wanted to eschew palm oil, it realized that palm derivatives are still the best choice for many of its products. As cosmetics ingredients, palm oil derivatives are safe and non-toxic, explains Dahl. Plus, palm oil is the most efficient vegetable oil to grow, so switching to less efficient crops that demand more land could be more environmentally damaging. Beauty companies are therefore working to change how it’s produced: 100 per cent of L’Oréal Paris’s palm oil supply is certified by the non-profit authority Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO), and Beautycounter is currently pushing for all of

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June 22, 2020 at 01:00PM At the recent runway show for London College of Fashion’s master’s degree graduates, Canadian designer Stephanie Moscall-Varey—whose line is called Moskal—debuted an unlikely fabric concept. “I was researching mining because it had such close family ties, and living in Britain, it’s a big conversation,” says Moscall-Varey, whose previous designs derived influence from her upbringing in rural Ontario. For Fall 2020, she looked to her grandfather, who was a coal miner, and her father, a former coal power plant engineer, for inspiration. Her Pit Brow collection pays homage to the people who worked in the early coal mines and the hardships they endured, and it features pieces made from a material fashioned from charcoal. Moscall-Varey’s textile innovation has a wide variety of environmental implications—including its biodegradability—and it couldn’t come at a more crucial time. According to a recent report published by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, there were 53 million tonnes of fibre produced for clothing in 2015 and the equivalent of one garbage truck full of finished products either ended up in a landfill or was incinerated per second. The report addresses two key issues that continue to confound the fashion industry: How can creatives and businesses tackle more responsible creation of new materials to design with? And how can these materials be disposed of in a way that won’t further damage the planet? View this post on Instagram Pit Brow AW20// Spatial ghost apron in charcoal with particle board print // shaft trouser in charcoal

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June 22, 2020 at 01:00PM Opals are the drama queens of the gemstone world. They come with a library’s worth of stories. The people of ancient Greece believed in the opal’s prophetic power and the Romans in the optimism of its rainbow colours. In Arabic lore, opals were thought to be geologized bolts of lightning. And, of course, opals are romantic, too; they’re often called the Cupid stone. Napoleon gave one to Josephine that flashed red sparks—it was called Burning of Troy. Queen Victoria loved opals and gave them to her daughters as wedding gifts. But there is a Jekyll and Hyde duality to opals. Chromatically fickle, they are not dependable (like diamonds). They’re changelings; they’re the free-spirited hippies of the gem world. Which means that opals were often typecast as cursed gemstones leaving a trail of disaster and tragedy behind them. A victim of the Black Death was rumoured to have worn an opal that turned dull and blank as soon as she died. In Sir Walter Scott’s novel Anne of Geierstein, Anne’s grandmother Lady Hermione wore an opal barrette in her hair that sparkled and flashed colours when she was happy and faded when she was sad. On the day of her daughter’s christening, Lady Hermione’s opal was accidentally splashed with holy water. The gemstone instantly lost its light, and Lady Hermione fainted. A few hours later, there was nothing left of her but a pile of ashes. In their unpredictable transience, opals blaze with the colours of

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June 22, 2020 at 01:00PM Flea markets and summer yard sales are on hold. There are no day trips to antique malls, and standbys like Nova Scotia’s stalwart used-clothing store Guy’s Frenchys are temporarily closed. Instead, we’re left to virtually scratch our itch to thrift. Vintage shopping online requires a well-thought-out approach – whether you’re motivated by the thrill of the chase or have a zero-waste-wardrobe goal, here are some tips for taking your treasure hunt virtual. Know Your Sources From mainstay platforms like eBay and Etsy to niche sites like Collectors Weekly and Ruby Lane (a great resource for vintage costume jewellery), there are a wealth of ways to seek out previously loved pieces. View this post on Instagram Exquisite Tiffany bracelets to complement your look can be found in the shops. ​​Click the graphic to purchase or to search Ruby Lane. ​. ​#rubylanecom #rubylane #vintagebeginshere A post shared by Ruby Lane (@rubylanecom) on Jun 11, 2020 at 11:15am PDT //www.instagram.com/embed.js Make Time Patience is a virtue, especially when you’re browsing, and the same commitment is required whether you are thrifting in person or online. Perusing sites regularly won’t replace the IRL serendipity of spotting a gem, but getting into the habit of checking your favourite vendors a few minutes every day or week pays off. Opt into Instagram push notifications from chosen accounts, or create a profile on Etsy and favourite the shops you want to keep an eye on. It’ll almost feel like you’re out at your

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June 22, 2020 at 01:00PM With non-medical face masks – like the one from Toronto-based brand Kaela Kay, pictured above – becoming part of the new normal in our daily life, it’s important to make sure you’re not compromising your health, and that you care for your face covering properly. Here’s six ways to take care of your non-medical mask: Every time you handle your mask—to put it on, while you’re wearing it, when you’re removing it–ensure you have washed your hands with warm, soapy water for at least 20 seconds, or that you have used hand sanitizer (that contains enough alcohol to kill bacteria) thoroughly. You must wash the mask after every use. Before washing, ensure that you removed any filter that you might have inserted. Some fabrics will have certain care specifications, so make sure to check with the brand that you bought it from in case they have specific material care guidelines. You must wash it thoroughly with soapy water (either in a washing machine or by hand) and allow it to dry completely before re-use. Spraying with an anti-bacterial solution is not enough. Store your mask somewhere clean and safe, such as inside a sealable plastic bag. Never handle someone else’s mask or share/allow others to touch your own mask. It’s important to note that wearing a mask is considered a complement to other precautions you must take during the COVID-19 pandemic. The post Here’s How to Care For Your Non-Medical Face Mask appeared first on

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June 22, 2020 at 01:00PM Self-tanners sure have come a long way. Today, there are lots of innovative formats to dabble in—from mousses to sprays to overnight facial masks to mixable drops—and the best formulas are spiked with ingredients like hyaluronic acid, hydrating oils and encapsulated retinol. Many brands have also successfully masked that funky sunless-tanner smell—a natural after-effect of dihydroxyacetone (a.k.a. DHA) reacting with skin. Derived from sugars, DHA is a skin-darkening agent that acts on proteins in the topmost layer of skin, which is composed of dead cells. In addition to being a much safer option than exposing yourself to harmful ultraviolet rays, bottled bronze has become more inclusive of richer skin tones. Just take it from Los Angeles-based faux-tanning pro to the stars and Pradas Glow founder Kristyn Pradas. Pradas was the resident skin-finishing expert for the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show for a steady six years and has tanned down many a supermodel, from Gigi Hadid to Joan Smalls. “Self-tanner can help colour-correct your undertone,” says Pradas of the sunless pick-me-up. “Certain self-tanners will cancel out yellow, pink or red in your skin. Other shades can give you a golden glow if your skin is looking too blue or grey.” View this post on Instagram Pradas Glowing ✨✨ . . . . . . . #glowingskin #organic #organicskincare #vegan #glaze #glow #selftan #sunlesstan #selftanner #glowup #thathighlighttho #contour #spraytanning #spraytans #skin #bronze #skincare #beauty #highlight #highighter #pradasglow #glowing #luxury #luxurylifestyle #lifestyle #skincare #spraytan #highfashion A post shared by

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