This is the second generation of NuFACE, which was the first ever at-home FDA-cleared handheld microcurrent device. This five-minute treatment, which can only otherwise be done at a spa, helps tighten skin, smooth wrinkles, lift your brows, contour your cheekbones, and even give you a more defined jaw. What makes this sleeker, updated version better than the original is that it allows for interchangeable heads, which means that you can do more than one type of treatment with the same device -- and the company will be launching new treatment heads throughout 2012. It also has a skin sensor to help you get the perfect amount of current, a beeping mechanism that tells you when to move onto a different area of your face, and an auto shut-off and recharging cradle.
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Estee Lauder Invisible Fluid Makeup, $35
Until there is a mind-blowing technology that gives us all completely flawless skin at the flip of a switch, this might be our best option: Invisible foundation. This liquid formula uses a patent-pending IntuiTone pigment technology, which employs a mix of super fine pigments with optics. Together these allow the shade to adapt to your own skin tone for a perfect match, and give great coverage while allowing your natural skin to shine through. But here's the best part: The formula is so lightweight and airy (it actually contains air) it doesn't feel like you have makeup on. Plus, the 16 available shades are all oil-free, non-acnegenic, and contain hyaluronic acid, which will keep skin hydrated. Available in March, 2012.
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Clarins Extra-Firming Day, $80
This hot-selling firming cream just got a makeover. And the newly-added, hard-working ingredients sound more like items you'd stock your kitchen with than what you'd find in a face cream: organic lemon thyme, which helps prevent skin slackening; organic green banana extract from the Dominican Republic, which is a Clarins exclusive ingredient that promotes the synthesis of collagen and a healthy skin structure; and oat sugars, which create an instant tightening effect. Together they help smooth wrinkles, firm skin, improve elasticity, and deliver an instant lifting effect. Available in March, 2012.
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Frizz-Ease Sheer Solution, $9.99
Fine-haired, frizzy heads rejoice -- the frizz gurus at John Frieda have finally created a serum-like product specifically designed for you. This duel-phase product combines a lightweight, silicone-based serum with a super light (almost watery) smoothing lotion. You shake the bottle before applying to damp hair in order to mix the two phases together. The serum will smooth hair from the outside while the lotion will condition hair (without weighing it down) from the inside. Available in March, 2012.
If you're concerned about the ingredients you put on your face, this patent-pending foundation is ideal for you. Formulated without water, this shea butter-based, very concentrated foundation only contains eight ingredients: shea butter, food-grade dimethicone, sunflower oil, berry wax, grape seed oil, jojoba oil, iron oxides, and titanium dioxide. It comes in six shades and is hypoallergenic, vegan, and free of gluten, talc, formaldehyde, mineral oil, petroleum, phthalates, synthetic dyes, and synthetic fragrances. One tip: Warm the foundation on the back of your hand before applying it to your face. It'll seem thick at first, but the heat from your hand will soften it so you can apply it like you would any other liquid foundation.
It seems like every day a new beauty product comes out and with each one comes the same thing: Hope. Hope that this anti-aging serum will erase those brown spots. Hope that this smoothing cream will banish frizz for good. Hope that this spot treatment will make acne a distant memory.
Of course, we all know that most of the beauty products out there won't end our quest for perfect skin and hair. It's evidenced in the "product graveyards" we all have in the back of our bathroom cabinets. But every year there are a few breakthrough beauty products that do deliver the impossible. Heck, that's why we keep the hope alive, right?
And in 2012, we have quite a few potential "miracles in a bottle" to get excited about. Some of the new releases include an all-natural hair growth system, both digital and invisible foundations, truly game-changing styling products, plus an injectible that puts Juvederm to shame when it comes to knocking out deep wrinkles. Don't you just love technology?
