Wednesday Diary: In Cosmetics Global

I spent yesterday in a sea of test-tubes bursting with the latest and greatest ingredients for the cosmetics market. Whether it’s new peptides, new pigments, inventions or ideas, it’s all here. I’m not super-sciency so I was pretty much out of depth the minute I stepped into the cavernous hall brimming with colour and activity, but did manage to get my main interest of make up into a manageable chunk! I met a journalist friend in the press room who said she was also rather overwhelmed by the sheer volume of stands.

An event like this is for serious trade – it’s not really for people like me so I couldn’t easily get on any stands for fear of being in the way of a potential customer for the supplier, so the best I could do was just try and absorb the information around me.

I found my happy place at The Make Up Bar and at the Mintel stand, both showing new and interesting makeup products, some of which I hadn’t come across before. The Make Up Bar had strong micro-trend indications for 2019 from BASF – Haven, for example is about enhanced nudes; a quieter look in amongst the bustle. Think glossy shadow sticks in washes of pink for this trend and calm colour palettes like the one below.

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UP Cosmetics

Zara Cosmetics

Another micro trend indication is Masterpiece – the blending of beauty, art and cutting edge formulas. For this trend, a new ‘glass gel’ is the ingredient to look out for as well as metallic powders.

I have actually seen this product before – I ordered one from Korea a few months ago, but it hasn’t made it to mainstream yet. It’s basically a high pigment powder that can be used on eyes or lips (or even cheeks) that turns into a creamy liquid when it hits the skin. At the show it was called Tutti Frutti Make Up Powder. Technical details are that 60% of water is trapped in hydrophobic powders that give an instant water release when applied. Hemispheric beads are coated with organic treated pigments and rice starch ensures long hold. I would love to see more of these products. I did see a face powder in this kind of formula several years ago, but the brand despite it being truly cutting edge technology, decided not to go with it.

I think these mattifying powders made from fruit fibres – apples and oranges (and oat) – were some of the most exciting things: I love the talc alternative of minute fruit fibres. As you might imagine, there were a lot of products targeting the current and emerging trend of anti-pollution. That’s not going away any time soon!

The next thing I can see being huge in beauty going forward is bio-degradable glitters. There were at least three stands bringing this concept forward.

When you wonder where am existing product can be taken next, this is the place to find out. I saw several existing products in their next-gen format, such as this cushion foundation and moisturiser all in one compact.

Next gen on the lip oil concept is plumping lip oils. This gorgeous bowl full of lip oil was one of my favourite things that I saw.

Peeling milks look like they’re going to happen!

Guess where the sheet mask trend is going? Straight on your head! This is a sheet mask for hair.

I’ve seen this before from Tony Moly because I watch everything that brand does – but haven’t tried it yet.  It’s an overnight ‘Sleeping Pack’ for hair that you apply to half dried hair. You wait til it’s dry and then go to sleep – hopefully getting a big hydration boost. The best thing is that you don’t have to rinse it out the next morning. It’s hanging about on Ebay and in Ulta if you fancy it.

I also spotted products such as a nail polish/nail strengthener hybrid that is proven to stimulate synthesis of hard keratin by as much as 51%. If you’ve had your nails well and truly knackered by gel nails or even illness over the years, this sounds like a blessing – I’m hoping the nail brands are all over this and I don’t see any reason why it couldn’t be incorporated into gels. I also saw the ‘jelly’ concept re-emerging with jelly eyeshadows, so it will be fascinating to see, come 2019, how many of these concepts have been bought by beauty brands.