San Francisco's 38 Essential Beauty Shopping Experiences, Spring 2015
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Ready to reboot your beauty regimen for spring? This map has everything you need to get started. From neighborhood shops to megachains to hidden gems, we curated a list of the best beauty stores San Francisco has to offer. Of course, the list is constantly changing, and we're sure that the incoming Credo on Fillmore will soon be joining the rarefied ranks of the 38. Did we miss your fave? Let us know in the comments!
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It lives up to its name: 100% Pure sells fruit-dyed makeup, and toxin-free skin and hair care products plus luxurious bath bubbles for adults and kids. Yummy Vanilla Ice Cream bubble bath anyone? You know you'll be stealing that from your little one. There's also a new location at the new terminal 3 at SFO!
Benefit has a sassy attitude and minimal makeup philosophy that SF women can relate to. You may even find that a visit to their brow bar is all you need to transform your entire face. Benefit now has six outposts in the Bay Area, in addition to brow bars at the Oakland airport and Macy's.
While Sephora's mega-Union Square location is being renovated, the Cow Hollow store is the next best spot for beauty enthusiasts and anyone needing to replace their dried up mascara. They have pretty much every beauty product imaginable, and they dole out samples of everything, including perfume. They also offer makeovers—and if you become a VIB member, they're free.
After successfully selling their goods online for years, The Balm opened up shop in SF on Valencia Street. Not only are the products toxin free, affordable and good for all skin tupes, but they'll create a personal makeup tutorial just for you, for free!
This Noe Valley gem is one of SF's oldest indie beauty supply stores. After you get a great haircut, browse the extensive selection of products, including Rene Furterer and Murad. Plus they've been doing bring-your-own bottle refills for ages.
If you find yourself in Cole Valley in need of nail polish, hair styling products (including flat and curling irons), you're in luck. This neighborhood is any beauty junkie's quick fix.
This co-op, known for its buy-in-bulk flours and spices, offers the same option for beauty products. The beauty section is HUGE, offers tons of organic products, and you can bring your own containers. It's eco-friendly AND it gives you an excuse to put pretty bottles in your shower.
Barneys not only has a "wall of scent" (see photo), but it carries many hard-to-find beauty products including Tatcha skincare and John Allan men's haircare. The Sport shampoo will make your man's hair so soft you'll want to make off with his bottle.
The polishes at this new Hayes Valley nail salon are free of the five toxins common in regular polish. We're not gonna lie, the toxin-free polishes tend not to last quite as long as the full-on chemical versions, but we're willing to make sacrifices for our health. Plus the space is clean and beautiful and the in-house brand's seasonal colors are on point.
This Noe Valley beauty supply store Common Sense proves bigger is not always better. The size of a walk-in closet, the store uses every inch of wall and floor space to carry a diverse selection of natural beauty products and candles. Don't miss the custom lotion and scented oil bars.
The name suggests that this artisinal bath, body, and home products store is for men only. But any woman who tries one of the products in this Hayes Valley boutique will want in on the action. Instead of spending money on ads and marketing, the company invests in creating quality products, and it has paid off. Online reviews are over-the-top positive.
This tiny Noe Valley salon is a longtime favorite of locals seeking electrolysis. But the best-kept secret is Sofia and her aesthetician Alicia's amazing skincare services. Their microdermabrasion facials will leave your skin clear and radiant. No matter what your skin type may be, might find yourself going makeup-free after a few appointments. If not, not to worry, the salon carries Jane Iredale mineral makeup as well as DDF and Paul Scerri products.
You'll be in good company at LaBelle—the day spa's clients include Sheryl Sandberg, Condoleezza Rice, Carly Fiorina, Michelle Pfeiffer and Sharon Stone. The Union Square outpost offers not only amazing facials, but all the products you need to keep that post-treatment look going all month. For under-eye issues, check out the BSB Beauty Globes with De-Puff & Smoothing Serum for smaller pores, puff reduction and circle lightening.
Drybar now has locations in SF as well as Palo Alto and Burlingame, so no matter what your event destination may be, you can arrive with a fresh blowout. Plus you'll find all the products you need to keep the blowing going. Try their recently-released dry shampoo for maximum staying power.
Neja founder Nellie Muganda has done makeup for the likes of Annett Benning, Sofia Coppola and Kyra Sedgwick. Her SF salon, which offers hair, makeup and skin services, will whip up a custom color blend for your skin tone.
This Russian Hill beauty product purveyor is known for its Brazilian wax and airbrush tans. So if you're headed for a beach getaway but plan to sport SPF 45, head here first. Plus they carry everything you need to keep your hair and skin in great shape throughout your vacay, including products from Dermalogica, Moroccan Oil, and Embryolisse.
Don't laugh—the huge new flagship in Union Square has an amazing beauty section, which carries high-end products including the inimitable LaRoche-Posay. You'll also find an amazingly extensive and reasonably-priced makeup, skin and haircare selection.
This artisan perfume purveyor features hard-to-find scents from around the world. Visit their (semi-permanent( pop-up at Love & Luxe jewelry atelier in the Mission.
Select Target stores now have a trained beauty concierge on hand (look for the black apron and/or posted hours when you can find her/him) to help you choose products from Target's massive selection. If there ever was a one-stop shop for nearly every beauty brand imaginable (excluding the super-luxe, bien sur), plus tools like curling irons and blow dryers, this is it.
In addition to facials, waxing, spray tanning, microdermabrasion, injectables and mineral makeup application, Dermaplus will custom blend skincare products just for you. Also look for J. Sabatelli (100% organic), Obagi, Jan Marini, True Skin Care, Dermaquest and more.
They had us at "cocoa butter body massage," but we'll also go for the LED facials, waxing and spa packages. But when we don't have time for all that, we're relieved this spot carries Marie Veronique Organics, a vegan brands used at other luxe spas including Auberge du Soleil and Solage.
Veer & Wander has all the exotic-sounding products you've never heard of but know you must have. From Ellis Faas and Rodin cosmetics to Blackbird and locally-made Yosh and scents, it has all the makings of some serious je ne sais quoi. Get your hair did while you're there.
Kiehl's is beloved for its' natural ingredients and products that really make a difference, including the Midnight Recovery Concentrate, avocado eye treatment, and Creme de Corps body lotion. Also check out the Westfield, Stonestown, and many other Bay Area locations
Chanel, Clarins, Dior, Hermes, Jo Malone... they're all present and accounted for. It's a veritable clearinghouse for all the luxe beauty brands, plus their free gifts with purchase can't be beat.
This SF-based beauty brand has become synonymous with mineral makeup. Visit the Westfield Shopping Centre shop where a helpful associate will find the perfect makeup match for your skin tone. Bonus: most products are naturally SPF 20. Also check out the Chestnut Street location.
Pick up a few bottles of Unite haircare or Moroccan Oil after a quick, 45-minute blow out at this Union Street salon. The shampoo and conditioner delivers touchably soft hair that still holds shape, and the "boing" curling cream is a perennial award winner for holding a curl.
Shop for Asian skincare and cosmetics at this Outer Sunset beauty store and salon. Sune sources mainly from Korea, Japan, and Taiwan and carries brands like Dollywink, Missha, and Lioele that are difficult to find in SF. Top favorite picks are the sheet masks (at much more affordable prices than the ones from SK-II) and the BB creams. Tip: try the snail slime products for supreme moisturizing (they're a sworn secret in beauty circles).
NM is our go-to for Chantecaille and plenty of other posh brands including Cle de Peau, Diptyque, La Mer and La Prairie. The gifts with purchase are legendary.
You'll only find one brand here, but it's a good one. The M.A.C. counter is a go-to for reasonably-priced professional makeovers done by friendly makeup artists. The colors are always on trend, and their Viva Glam celeb collab lipstick colors for AIDS research make us love them even more.
Not only is International Orange one of the best spas in San Francisco (where you can also do yoga), the brand also makes its own luxe line of organic skin and haircare products. They've got everything—from skin cleanser to shampoo to deodorant—to make your skin feel nourished and make your whole body smell delicious.
Everything at Elizabeth W's Ghirardelli Square boutique smells divine and is made in San Francisco. Must-smells include the Tea Rose and Neroli Chamomile perfumes. And don't miss the rosemary shea butter lotion, body spray, and face wash.
The products at Fresh are so natural you can eat most of them. And you'll be tempted: the Sugar Face Polish and Sugar Lip Balm are literally delicious (and they work great). The Black Tea eye cream and honey mask are also tasty treatments. Plus the sales folks are known for being super friendly, so make sure to plan your visit for post-payday.
To find an Ulta, that large, one-stop beauty shop, you have to head to the 'burbs. The closest one to SF proper is in Colma, a short drive or Bart ride away (it's still a walk from the station but totally doable). Think of it as a Sephora-type but with more affordable options and obscure brands like Kinerase and Sun Bum. And Ulta's rewards point system goes directly toward discounts on future transactions (rather than toward free beauty samples).
This may be the most hipster-y barber shop in town, but the cuts and shaves are great and the product selection is totally lust-worthy. Don't be surprised if you drop three figures on Malin + Goetz hair and skincare after you're feeling extra sharp from a spin the barber's chair (or while you wait for your man friend to finish being groomed). You'll also find it very hard to resist the Juniper Ridge trail soaps and the extensive selection of pomades.
Though it's available in other stores, Acacia is home to SF-based Heliotrope, an all-natural, gender-neutral skincare line. Find the full range of balms, lotions, soaps, and gels at this Valencia Street shop.
Established in Melbourne with a mission of creating outstanding products for the skin, hair and body, Aesop uses both high-quality plant-based and laboratory-made ingredients with an emphasis on anti-oxidants. Plus, the Fillmore shop always smell ah-mazing.
Forget about eyelash extensions: this SoMa spa offers eyebrow extensions. (That's welcome news to those of us who went a little tweezer happy in junior high.) While the extensions we tested only lasted a couple of days, your brows will be on fleek while it lasts.
Asian beauty treatments are all the rage, and the Face Shop is one of the best local spots to shop for hard-to-find Asian skincare products. BBs, CCs, face masks: this place has it all.
Though it's available in other stores, Acacia is home to SF-based Heliotrope, an all-natural, gender-neutral skincare line. Find the full range of balms, lotions, soaps, and gels at this Valencia Street shop.
Established in Melbourne with a mission of creating outstanding products for the skin, hair and body, Aesop uses both high-quality plant-based and laboratory-made ingredients with an emphasis on anti-oxidants. Plus, the Fillmore shop always smell ah-mazing.
Forget about eyelash extensions: this SoMa spa offers eyebrow extensions. (That's welcome news to those of us who went a little tweezer happy in junior high.) While the extensions we tested only lasted a couple of days, your brows will be on fleek while it lasts.
Asian beauty treatments are all the rage, and the Face Shop is one of the best local spots to shop for hard-to-find Asian skincare products. BBs, CCs, face masks: this place has it all.
Though it's available in other stores, Acacia is home to SF-based Heliotrope, an all-natural, gender-neutral skincare line. Find the full range of balms, lotions, soaps, and gels at this Valencia Street shop.
Established in Melbourne with a mission of creating outstanding products for the skin, hair and body, Aesop uses both high-quality plant-based and laboratory-made ingredients with an emphasis on anti-oxidants. Plus, the Fillmore shop always smell ah-mazing.
Forget about eyelash extensions: this SoMa spa offers eyebrow extensions. (That's welcome news to those of us who went a little tweezer happy in junior high.) While the extensions we tested only lasted a couple of days, your brows will be on fleek while it lasts.
Asian beauty treatments are all the rage, and the Face Shop is one of the best local spots to shop for hard-to-find Asian skincare products. BBs, CCs, face masks: this place has it all.
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