Quick Guide to Pronouncing Beauty Names
Living in a household that speaks 3 languages fluently, and is conversant in another 4, you'd think very little would trip me up when it comes to pronouncing beauty brand names. But the gift of gab across borders is really my husband's. So it was redeeming to be at The Makeup Show in NYC recently where I watched beauty editors, beauty bloggers and makeup mavens alike trip over pronouncing Shu Uemura. You might think that snobbery rules in this industry and that mispronunciation is tres gauche--but don't--we've all been there!
Here, the easy guide (we're not talking the Oxford Dictionary here) for pronouncing some of beauty biggest trip-ups:
Shiseido = She – say – doe
Chantecaille = Shan – teh – kigh
Yves Saint Laurent = Eve – Sahn – Lorr – ahn
Kinerase = Kigh – ner – ace
Lorac = La – rock
Guerlain = Gher – lahn
Decleor = Deh – clay – ore
Caudalie = Kow – deh – lee
Lancome = Lahn – comb
L’Occitane = Lox – ee – tahn
Dr. Hauschka = Dr. Howsh – kuh
Korres = Core – ezz
reVive = Ray – veev
Shu Uemura = Shoe – Oo – eh – moor – ah
Omorovicza - Oh - more - o - veet - za
and if you're shopping Dior L'Or de Vie L'Extrait, or simply looking for a great dessert wine, this is a good one to know:
Chateau d’Yquem = Shat - oh - dee - key - em
Got any other tongue twisters in beauty? Let us know!
![Madonna was Hot at Halftime & Joan Rivers Gets Orgasms from Facelifts [Weekly Round-Up]](http://i.realself.com/tiny/472721-375977.jpg)
What about Stila, as in the makeup brand? I've heard it pronounced "Stee-luh," "Still-uh," and as I prefer, "Style-uh." Tells us, Miss Multi-lingual...
Hmmm...must have missed it. Thanks, Nancy! I still think "Style-uh" sounds better, but I love Stila nonetheless (especially their lip glazes!). Laura Mercier is another one that I fear is often mispronounced. Something tells me it isn't Laura "Mercy-ear," as I so often hear...