Beyond Sephora: 3 cosmetics shops to check out in New York

If you follow me for some time you know that I always hit a key when it comes to beauty shopping in New York: the city has more than drugstores and Sephora. If you are a passionate about makeup and cosmetics like me, Big Apple is a true paradise. No wonder why I wrote a beauty shopping guide with 85 stores – in Portuguese. For those who enjoy Sephora, it’s good to know that there are many other multi-brand stores of cosmetics, with very special curatorship. Today, I present three very nice to you.

Space NK Apothecary – Space NK Apothecary began as a concept store in London, a boutique selling clothes and accessories and had an interesting selection of beauty products. For the founder Nicky Kinnaird, beauty is a natural extension of fashion. With her vision for curating brands, the store became a success and today is a brand internationally respected, with 62 stores in the UK and Ireland and 22 in the United States. Its mission is the same since the beginning: to offer a selection of the best and most innovative products from around the world. Terry, Laura Mercier, Chantecaille, Eve Lom, Dr. Brandt, Tata Harper, Zelens, Oribe and David Kirsch are some of the brands available in the boutiques, that have a team of experts to help customers. The stores are complete with skincare sections, hair, makeup, sun protection and fragrance. There are male enhancement products and home items as diffusers and candles. For more details on pricing, brands and products, please visit the website.

Locations: 31 Prince Street / 968 Lexington Avenue / Bloomingdales Soho – 504 Broadway / Bloomingdales 59th Street – 1000 3rd Avenue.

Blue Mercury – A modern beauty boutique with cosmetics, knowledge of experts and luxurious and personalized spa services. Blue Mercury has an intimate atmosphere and offers an interesting curatorial brands, with more than 100 names. Among the items of makeup, the highlight are products from  Bobbi Brown, Laura Mercier, Trish Mcevoy, Hourglass and Nars. On the skin care, there are products from Skinceuticals, Dermalogica, and Darphin. Among the treatments offered, there are microdermabrasion, glycolic peels, waxing and eyebrow design. Blue Mercury is recognized by magazines like Vogue and Allure as the best place combining innovative treatments with stylish design products. Body line Morocconoil and facial line Laura Mercier occupy the shelves of stores – products that are not as easy to find in other stores in New York. For more information about prices, brands and products, please visit the website

Locations:  1311 Third Avenue / 1566 Third Avenue / 1208 Madison Avenue  / 2477 Broadway / 341 Amsterdam Ave / 695 Avenue of the Americas / 184 Columbus Avenue / 275 Greenwich Street / 865 Broadway  / 2305 Broadway / 404 Sixth Avenue.

Birchbox – Birchbox is a cosmetic subscription service. You pay a monthly fee and receive a box with samples and travel size products. And the coolest thing of this whole story is that the company decided to open a store in New York. Not only you can build your own box,  you can also find different brands with products for hair, makeup, skin care and body and fragrances. The curator is very special: Birchbox elected the products are top sales of the brands available: Molton Brown, Klorane, The Balm, Cynthia Rowley, Jouer, Dermablend and so on. In addition, the place offers services such as manicure, makeup and hair cut. Birchbox recently launched its own brand LOC (Love of Color), with pencil lipsticks and shadows. There you can also find the English brand Eyeko, super famous for masks eyelashes.

Address: 433 W Broadway.