Marie Claire magazine announced the local winners of the prestigious Marie Claire Prix d'Excellence de la Beauté Awards 2009 on Tuesday at an awards ceremony in Johannesburg.
Estée Lauder scooped the award in the Care category for its Re-Nutriv Ultimate Youth Creme while Yves Saint Laurent's Nail Touch Nail Lacquer Brush Pen was voted best product in the make-up category.
The best homegrown product was the Environ Colour Range.
Products in the care category which received citations were La Mer The Moisturizing Gel Cream, Ren Rose Synergy O¹² Restoring Facial Serum, and Nivea DNAge Range.
In the make-up category Lancôme L'Absolu Rouge, Kanebo Sensai Fluid Finish SPF 15 and L'Oréal Paris Double Extension Beauty Tubes Nourishing Ultra-Lengthening Mascara received citations.
The South African awards are run in conjunction with the international Marie Claire Prix d'Excellence de la Beauté, the winners of which were announced at an event earlier in 2009 in Paris.
"We've worked hard over the last couple of months to pick the best new beauty products launched in the local market over the past year," said Helen Clemson, beauty editor of Marie Claire South Africa. "We were impressed by the increased level of quality of all the products that entered.
"Every woman is always looking for that beauty product that will change her life and this year all the winning products have the potential to revolutionise your beauty routine."
The local winners were tested and selected by seven South African beauty editors: Helen Clemson of Marie Claire, Nicolene Strydom of Cosmopolitan, Lameez Hendricks of O, The Oprah Magazine, Candice-Lee Kannemeyer of Destiny, Caro Verster of Real Simple, Nicole Sparrow of Longevity and Elaine Nixon-Campbell of Rooi Rose.
All the winners, a behind-the-scenes look at the judging process and 50 best beauty tips are in the Marie Claire Prix d'Excellence de la Beauté section in the May issue of Marie Claire, on sale now.
Estée Lauder Re-Nutriv Ultimate Youth Creme
In the era of the super cream this treatment is a superhero. The team at Estée Lauder looked at the genes that regulate the cells' life span and the "Youth Molecule" they created as a result contains resveratrate (an antioxidant and anti-irritant they engineered) for a targeted effect. It gives youthful glow, smoothness and improved skin tone.
YVES Nail Touch Nail Lacquer Brush Pen
This nifty Yves Saint Laurent nail pen makes painting fingers and toes hassle-free: simply inject colour into the easy-to-control brush tip with a quick click-click of the bottom of the pen. The tube is thick, sturdy and easy to grip, the colour quality is high-gloss thanks to a resin with mirror-like shine and the special blend of polymers ensures long wear.
Environ Colour range
The jury was asked to pick an entry that's produced in South Africa and really stands out, and gave a thumbs up to Environ's colour range of cosmetics. The range includes Environ Colour Foundation, Light and Lift concealer, compact powder, bronzing powder, eyeshadow duo, blusher, mascara, lip colour and lip gloss.