You know the friend you text when you’re about to visit a new city because she or he has all the best recommendations? Fiona Stiles is that friend, especially when it comes to shopping for beauty products. The celebrity makeup artist—who has painted the faces of stars like Gabrielle Union, Jennifer Garner, Elizabeth Banks and Lily Collins—is a self-professed “beauty hunter.” The thrill of searching for that elusive unicorn product has taken her all over places like Thailand and South Africa. But nothing thrills her more than the beauty wonderland that is Japan. The next time you hit Tokyo, take note of Fiona’s recommendations below. She means serious business.
On being a beauty hunter
“It’s funny, I’ve just always been that way. In high school, before I could drive, I would take the bus into San Francisco to visit a theatrical makeup store that sold very pale foundation—I was a total Goth kid—and an insane matte red lipstick that I was obsessed with. You just couldn’t buy those things anywhere else. After I graduated from college and moved to NYC, I would visit the Indian markets looking for kohl, or any interesting beauty products they might have. Once I started doing makeup and traveling internationally for work, I’d always make a beeline for the drugstores to see what was sold locally. I found a deodorant in South Africa called “Swanky Look” that had great graphic design. I bought oodles and oodles of cotton buds in Thailand. And it was always a race from the plane to the French pharmacy to buy Embryolisse and La Roche-Posay. There was no other way to get those products back then.”
On launching her beauty e-commerce site, Reed Clarke
“I found myself using certain products at work over and over again, and when people asked where they could buy them, I would say, ‘Well, there’s this one pharmacy in Beverly Hills that sells it’ or before lots of brands had their own websites, it was harder to get these unknown brands. I wanted to provide a place where people could enjoy the sense of discovery that I feel when I find an amazing product.”
On her first beauty discovery in Japan
“The first time I went [to Japan] was in the mid-90s when I was assisting Pat McGrath. I was there for about 50 hours tops, and I was barely in the hotel. I love to wander around as much as possible, getting lost and trying to find my way back. I remember going into one of those late-night drugstores and seeing a wall, a WALL of eyelash curlers. They were all different sizes, and I mean like a 3mm, a 4mm etc. They were all 1 mm different in width and there were tons of them. I was floored by the variety and the attention to detail.”
On the joy of beauty hunting in Tokyo
“I love the ‘boots on the ground’ method of discovery. Just ask my poor husband—I’ve dragged him to the outer reaches of cities like London, Tokyo and Bangkok looking for some random makeup shop that I’d read about. I didn’t get to go back to Tokyo again for a very long time, and the next time I went was for a little less than a week, but boy, did I cover some ground! I bought thousands of dollars worth of makeup because I was electrified from the experience. There’s great makeup everywhere, from the 7-Elevens to the insanely packed drugstores, to the wonder of Isetan’s beauty floor. I’ll go in any shop, down any street and see what I can. I went [to Tokyo] last year with my friend Troy Surratt. He was there for business and I came to go makeup shopping for 48 hours, which was really fun, exciting and exhausting.”
Fiona’s all-time favourite Japanese beauty buys
Addiction Eye Shadow
“Addiction is my number one favourite Japanese brand. Ayako—the brand director—worked with François Nars for years. I want to buy the entire range every time I’m there. I can’t get enough of the eyeshadows; they’re buttery, the payoff is insane, and the colours are incredible.”
Sante Beautéye Drops
“Pink, rose-scented eye drops that are minty and get your eyes super white. You can find them behind the counter at many drugstores. My friend told me about them and I’ve been hooked ever since. I believe that Reed Clarke is the only shop outside of Japan that has them.”
Hakuhodo Makeup Brushes
“The softest, most wonderful brushes ever. I walked up and down the street looking for their retail space for ages and couldn’t find it. Turns out, it was upstairs on the second floor. It’s a brush mecca in there. They also have a showroom in southern California, which I didn’t know back then, but they don’t have all of the same brushes—it’s a more abbreviated version.”
Takeda Purely Brush Soap
“This is a brilliant soap for getting your brushes clean, and you can only get it in Japan and on Reed Clarke. This is one of those items that you beganyone who’s going to Japan to bring back for you. It makes it all the more covetable.”
Strip eyelashes
“They make great fake lashes in Japan. Wispy and wearable. I love bringing them back by the dozen. I just get them at the drugstores and they’re amazing.”
