Yearly Archives

2014

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MAC Huggable Lip Colour: Touché, Fresh & Frisky, Out for Passion and Rich Marrón

January 20, 2014

MAC Huggable Lip Colours ($20 each for 3.2g/0.11 oz, limited-edition) are a new lipstick formula that were released several weeks ago. I would have missed out had it not been for Café Makeup who pointed them out to me and recommended I check them out. As she noted, the colors have been selling out quickly. I had to visit two different stores to track down shades. After surveying the swatches on Café Makeup, Temptalia and Weekend Ramblings, I picked out four: Touché, Fresh & Frisky, Out for Passion and Rich Marrón.

These new Huggable Lip Colours have a similar feel to Dior Addict Lipsticks (like Diablotine reviewed here). They have a creamy moisturizing feel. They are very emollient but with a thicker texture so they really adhere to and hug the lips. What surprised me is the level of pigment. The colors have a rich payoff with a soft shine finish. Lasting power is also quite impressive. You can control the coverage by swiping back and forth a few times for more color. If you have time to go to the counter to test, I highly recommend you visit soon.
The four colors I picked (with links to where the colors are located right now online):

Touché is a good nude without being too nude:

Fresh & Frisky is a fresh natural peach that brightens the face:

Out for Passion is the best watermelon pink I’ve ever tried:

Rich Marrón is a nice classic, a bit brown but still nice for everyday:

Overall really pleased with these colors and formulas. I didn’t have time to pull comparisons but these colors work well without any tweaking needed. My husband loves Out for Passion on me so I bought one more as a back-up. Right now the colors are limited-edition. I do hope that MAC considers making these permanent. There are 12 colors in the US, but various stores have certain shades sold out. You may have to do a bit of searching but stores probably still have stock of most colors. For the ones I reviewed:
Did you pick up any of the MAC Huggable Lip Colours? What were your favorites?
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YSL La Laque Couture Rose Scabiosa #48 and Rouge Pablo #49 | Spring 2014

January 19, 2014

YSL spring has two new La Laque Couture nail polishes in Rose Scabiosa #48 and Rouge Pablo #49 ($25 each for 0.34 fl oz/10ml). Both are rich vibrant creams that have a flawless finish. They have that lovely romantic Valentine’s Day feel. I’ve been a huge fan of the YSL La Laque nail polish formula. The brush is flat and wide but with a tapered edge. I can cover the whole nail with one brush stroke (except for the thumb) which makes for a super easy application. These are two coaters, but the pigment is rich and smooth. Lasting power is quite good – I can get up to 4-5 days of wear without any chipping or tip wear. Quality matches that of Chanel, maybe a tiny bit better in wear time. I use with my regular go-to’s with Deborah Lippmann Rehydrating Base Coat and either Chanel Laque Brilliance Extreme or Rescue Beauty Lounge Top Coat.

Rose Scabiosa #48 is a stunning baby pink with a slight hint of lilac undertone. I usually cannot wear baby pinks like this because I find them to be extremely sheer and streaky or too pale and powdery looking. YSL Rose Scabiosa has impressive coverage and enough pink color in it to suit my skintone. Below it’s applied with two coats:

Comparisons show it is quite different from my other pinks which tend to be warmer in color. Below shown next to Rescue Beauty Lounge Smitten (discontinued), Chanel May (reviewed here), Chanel Melrose (discontinued) and Laura Mercier Flamingo (discontinued, reviewed here).

Rouge Pablo #49 is a dramatic red-pink. It pulls warmer and more red on my hands but when compared to other reds, Rouge Pablo looks more pink. Your mileage may vary depending on your skintone. My mom is a huge fan of brighter reds and pinks for the nails. She tried this one and thought it was too bright for her taste with too much pink (she’s less olive than me in skintone and slightly lighter).

YSL Rouge Pablo is fairly similar to other reds. From arms length it’s almost identical to the ones shown below. It was hard to photograph the differences. Below I swatched Chanel Coromandel (warmer and more orange), Chanel Tapage (lighter and more pink), Chanel Rouge Rubis (almost identical but the Chanel is slightly darker) and Chanel Dragon (darker and deeper with more brown). If you have any of the other Chanels, I would say you can probably skip the YSL, although I do find it to be really pretty.

Overall really impressed with the two new YSL nail polishes. I’ve been really pleased with the formulas and textures. The application of the YSL colors I’ve tried is among the best out of all the brands I’ve tried. I give both a thumbs up. Out of the two I favor Rose Scabiosa – it’s an impressive baby pink.
You can find the spring YSL Rose Scabiosa #48 and Rouge Pablo #49 at all YSL counters now. Online at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and YSL Beauty US. 

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By Terry Eye Makeup

By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Bronze Moon

January 18, 2014

I’ve always been fascinated by the By Terry line but it’s one of those brands I had never ventured into. I took my first baby step into the brand with the Baume de Rose which lives up to all the hype. During my last trip to Barneys New York in Beverly Hills last month, the product specialists showed me the Ombre Blackstar Color Fix Cream Shadows and the Brow Mascara (thoughts on this soon). I had about six different cream shadows swatched on my hand. I let the cream shadows sit on the back of my hands for about a minute. When I tried to remove, I found that none of them budged when I tried to wipe them off. The colors all applied very smoothly and blended easily upon first swipe before drying down to a budge-proof finish. I literally wanted to purchase one of each color limited myself to test one first. I picked a classic shimmering bronze: the Ombre Blackstar in Bronze Moon ($43 for 1.64 g/0.58 oz).

The Ombre Blackstar shadows contain an ultra-smoothing Tahitian black pearl extract which makes most of them brighten the lids with reflective shimmer particles. Bronze Moon is a neutral shimmery bronze. The texture is creamy and pigment is easy to control but you need to blend quickly after application. Once it sets and dries, it really does have a “tattoo-hold.” It feels natural on the lids after it dries, you can’t feel any pull or layers of product like with some cream shadows. On me it lasted from 5 am past 8 pm without budging, fading or smudging. Do note that I have normal to slightly dry lids. I rarely have issues with cream shadows being too moist. Most primers I try tend to be a bit too dry in texture when they dry down causing the skin to almost shrink and stretch. By Terry Bronze Moon is a really nice color on the lids. It’s one of those colors that works perfectly all by itself. No other highlighter, base, crease or liner needed for me. Just the shadow and one coat of mascara.

Swatched heavily and then blended out:

Comparisons to Chanel Illusion d’Ombre in Initiation (review here), Laura Mercier Caviar Stick in Cocoa, Urban Decay 24/7 Shadow Stick in Rehab, MUFE Aqua Shadow Stick 20E, Chanel Stylo Eyeshadow in Moon River and Bobbi Brown Cream Shadow in Bronze Sugar (swatched here).
Out of all of these, the By Terry Bronze Moon has the best staying power. On the lids its the most neutral in color, not quite as bronzey or silvery.

I’m really impressed with the staying powder, pigment and blendability of Bronze Moon. The lasting power is far better than most cream shadows I have tried before. The price is high though which has prevented me from wanting to look at them in the past. I will definitely be checking out the other colors my next trip to Barneys or SpaceNK, however it will be a while before I can bring myself to buy another one due to the high price tag. If you have any favorites from the By Terry line I’d love to hear about them!
By Terry Ombre Blackstar in Bronze Moon ($43) is permanent and is available at Barneys, SpaceNK, Beauty.com and Bloomingdales.
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Hourglass Cosmetics

Hourglass Femme Nude Lip Stylo #5 and #6

January 15, 2014

Hourglass released their Femme Nude Lip Stylo in six shades of nude last fall ($30 each for 0.08 oz/2.4g). It took me a while to test in stores at Barneys and Sephora but when I did, I fell in love with all the shades but could only pull off the two darkest ones #5 a shimmering nude gold peach and #6 a mauve-toned nude pink. The concept behind the Femme Nude Lip Stylo pencils is that the best nude lip isn’t naked but rather enhanced. I agree since many of those perfect-looking nudes end up being too nude once applied on the lips. These pencils come in six full coverage shades to either create a dramatic nude or subtly defined nude. There is Vitamin E to help nourish and moisturize lips. I don’t see these pencils as moisturizing, however they do not dry out my lips. Paraben, phthalates, fragrance and sulfate free. No animal testing.
#5 is on top, #6 is on the bottom

#5 and #6 both look fairly similar when swatched on the hands. The difference is noticeable on the lips. #5 applies a nude peach with a slight hint of golden shimmer. #6 is clearly more mauve and pink but still very nude. I really like the packaging. These come in a sleek twist up tube with a removeable cap. Lasting power is quite impressive, I found them to last longer than normal lipsticks. The finish is not quite matte but almost. These have a satiny finish so there is just the slightest bit of shine but not much. If you’re a fan of nude lips definitely try one or two the next time you are at Barneys or Sephora.

Comparisons to NARS Isola Bella, NARS Bettina, NARS Biscayne Park and NARS Belle du Jour. I would say the texture of the Hourglass pencils is more like a full coverage creamy lipstick while the NARS pencils are more lightweight. Coverage is about the same.

The Non-Blonde has a lovely review of #6 which I highly recommend. You can find the Hourglass Femme Nudes at Barneys New York, Sephora, Space NK and Bergdorf Goodman in stores.
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Uncategorized

Bobbi Brown Bronze Nail Polish | Spring 2014 Nude Glow Collection

January 13, 2014

There’s a new nail polish from Bobbi Brown called Bronze ($15 for 0.37 oz, limited-edition). It’s one of three new nail polish shades from her Nude Glow Collection. The polish is a beautiful shimmering bronze. It applies smoothly with two coats and without any visible brush strokes. It’s quite lovely.

I used two coats to apply it for full coverage. I’m on day three of testing this and so far there have been no chips, tip-wear or fading. I used it with my regular go-to Deborah Lippmann Rehydrating Base Coat and Chanel Laque Brilliance Extreme.

I pulled a few bronzey-brown nail colors to compare. Thumb to pinkie: Chanel Delight (discontinued), Tom Ford Burnt Topaz (reviewed here, also still at Saks.com), Bobbi Brown Bronze, Rescue Beauty Lounge Ghost, Rescue Beauty Lounge Decorous (discontinued).

Bobbi Brown Bronze is a lovely metallic bronze. I give it a thumbs up. I haven’t tested it for a full week yet but the formula seems to be holding up quite well.

Bobbi Brown Bronze (limited-edition) should be at all Bobbi Brown counters now. Online at Nordstrom, Saks, Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus and Bobbi Brown Cosmetics.

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Uncategorized

On My Radar

January 12, 2014

Here are a few things on my radar right now:

  1. L’Occitane Fabulous Oil looks like it could be absolutely fabulous
  2. Diptyque Geranium Rosa Candle is on my Diptyque list
  3. Burberry Ash Rose Nail Polish looks like it might just be the perfect cool nude pink
  4. Marc Jacobs Bark (listed as coming soon on Sephora)
  5. NARS Final Cut Satin Lip Pencils in shades of pink and peach
  6. NARS Adelaide Illuminator looks absolutely gorgeous
  7. Bobbi Brown Baby Pink Lipgloss from the Uber Pink Collection looks promising

What’s on your radar this weekend? Any new recent beauty discoveries or loves?

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Uncategorized

Dior Vernis in Blossom #132, Perle #187 and Pampille #192 | Spring 2014

January 11, 2014

Dior’s Trianon Collection brings us six new nail lacquers this spring. I picked out three of the six shades from my local Nordstrom. You may find yourself shopping around various stores for all the shades. Some are only available to select retailers. The regular nail colors retail for $24 each, the matte topcoat retails for $25. The six shades this spring include:

photo Blossom_zps40696958.jpg photo perle_zps3b651df6.jpg photo Pampille_zps2340296c.jpg
photo Porcelaine_zps3bab2a74.jpg photo Bouquet_zpsc9cc8520.jpg photo Bloom_zps9aae2303.jpg

I picked out the three options available at Nordstrom. I’m typically a huge fan of Dior’s nail lacquer formula. I’ve found the coverage and pigment to be smooth and rich. The three spring shades I picked are stunning in the bottles. On the nails I found them to be extremely sheer.
Blossom #132 is a lovely sparkly sheer peach with gold flecks in the bottle. On the nails even with three coats I found it to be extremely sheer and disappointing. There is something about the color of this peach that is not flattering with my olive skintone. Below is shown with three coats. It pains me to give this one a huge thumbs down.

Comparisons below to Chanel Peche Nacree (spring 2011), Dior Abricot #236 (Sephora), Dior Sweet Orange (discontinued) and Chanel Miami Peach (discontinued):

Perle #187 is an interesting matte top coat. I found it lovely by itself, with a glossy top coat, or used as a top coat over other shades. It’s a bit high maintenance but if you have extra time for top coats or like to layer colors, this one is quite lovely.

Below swatched alone with three coats:

Below Dior Perle is shown in a few different ways, thumb to pinkie:
Chanel May
Chanel May with Dior Perle on top
Dior Perle with Dior’s Gel Top Coat 
Tom Ford African Violet
Tom Ford African Violet with Dior Perle on top

Pampille #192 looked so lovely in the bottle. It has the most beautiful mix of shimmer infused with a cloud-blue base. On the nails this was extremely disappointing. I found this one to apply unevenly and blotchy. The color with three coats looks faded. It didn’t go well with my skintone. I suspect it would make a good top coat over similar blueish colors. I thought this review with one, two and three coats on Pointless Cafe to be very helpful. Below with three coats:

I ended up being disappointed with two of three colors I picked out. When I bought them at Nordstrom my counter didn’t have testers available. They looked lovely in the bottles and given my past experiences with Dior, I thought these would be true to what you see in the bottle. I ended up re-gifting Blossom and Pampille to a couple friends who love sheers and layering colors. At this time I haven’t checked out the other three options for Dior spring. My recommendation is to try before buying.
Did you check out anything from Dior spring? Thoughts? Loves?

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