Chanel just released new items in the Collection La Perle de Chanel on Chanel.com. I ordered some items at the end of last week and I couldn’t be happier with my picks. The colors are classic Chanel beauties. Here is a quick sneak peek, I’ll have swatches and reviews up today and tomorrow of what I ended up ordering. Above shown from left to right:
Virevolante #158 Rouge Allure (limited-edition)
Crescendo #250 Joues Contraste (limited-edition)
Perle de Lune #916 Stylo Yeux Waterproof (limited-edition)
Mysterio #102 Illusion D’Ombre
Corset #92 and Tutu #91 Aqualumiere Gloss (both limited-edition)
There are some items I did not order that are also in the collection including:
Harmonies Levres Lip Palette (limited-edition)
Tisse Rhapsodie #248 Les 4 Ombres (limited-edition)
Tisse Vendome #204 Les 4 Ombres (repromote, review here)
Inimitable Intense Noir #10 (repromote)
Rouge Coco Baume (repromote)
Right now it appears the collection is exclusive to Chanel.com. I don’t know if counters will be receiving it at a later date. I have read reports that Bergdorf Goodman had the collection in stores. More info and thoughts on the items are on Specktra.net. If you are interested in the items I suggest ordering sooner than later since the colors look like they are almost all limited-edition colors.
For one day on February 18th, Space NK will be hosting their Spring Beauty Edit event across all of their 23 US locations. Each store will be having special experts and services on location (times and services vary by location, find your closest location here).
Exclusively for the event, and while supplies last, shoppers who spend $250 or more will receive a gift with a selection of must-haves from 28 of our featured brands (deluxe, travel and full-size items). Do note that these gifts are in limited quantities and they do sell out every year so if you’re interested in taking advantage of this promotion, call your local store as soon as you can to reserve a gift via presage or order online early tomorrow.
The gift with purchase includes 28 beauty products cased in a large black zip pouch. The contents are quite impressive (valued at over $400). The full gift list:
Space NK Limited Edition Cosmetics Bag / Foldover Clutch
Extreme Actives High Performance Anti-Aging Cream (7ml)
African Botanics Pure Marula Oil (5ml)
Algenist Complete Eye Renewal Balm (7ml)
Bakel Nutriremedy (10ml)
Bumble & Bumble Repair Blow Dry (15ml)
By Terry Cellularose Brightening Serum (4ml)
Darphin Stimulskin Divine Cream (5ml)
Diptyque Scented Candle (70g, assorted options, will be pre-chosen at random)
For spring Chantecaille has launched a palette called The Glacier Eye Shade Trio ($70 for 7 g/0.25 oz, made in USA). I picked this up at my local Chantecaille counter and saw a few lip items featured on the new display. There are two Galactic Lip Shine Lip Glosses ($34 each) in Aurora (sheer pink) and Polaris (sparkling white) and two Hydra Chic Lipsticks ($36 each) in Arctic Rose and Saxifrage. I haven’t been up to speed with Chantecaille for a while so I’m not entirely sure if the colors are new or repromoted colors. I picked up the Glacier Eye Shade Trio and Arctic Rose Hydra Chic Lipstick. Thoughts, review and swatches below.
First, here is the palette and lipstick swatches side by side:
Chantecaille eyeshadow palettes are usually beautifully designed with natural-looking eye shadows. In my experience the trios I’ve bought and tested have sheer to medium pigment for a super natural look. My one rant is that they often come with an overspray which is easily removed, but it makes it difficult to see what the true color is if you order sight unseen. The Glacier Eye Shade Trio is a super soft palette of neutrals. The colors include, from left to right, a sheer to medium matte flesh/tan, an iridescent ivory that flashes gold and some champagne, a shimmering medium brown-grey. The colors when used together will create a softly defined eye that is perfect for an everyday look if you want an ultra conservative no-makeup look. I personally prefer something with richer pigment and coverage. The shades are layerable but are still ultra soft leaning more towards the sheer side. If you’re a fan of Chantecaille eyeshadows, I think you will really like this. If you’re like me and need more color, you will find pigment and coverage lacking.
With patches of overspray removed:
Swatch comparisons below to a couple other neutral palettes. Shown below next to Chanel Tisse Mademoiselle (reviewed here) and Hourglass Infinity Palette (reviewed here). I personally prefer the Chanel for something similar and with more coverage and I found the Chanel extremely natural on the eyes.
For the lips, I picked up Arctic Rose Hydra Chic Lipstick. This is an ultra moisturizing lip color with a glossy finish. I have mixed feelings about Arctic Rose in terms of formula. It has a beautiful color, naturally glossy sheen and feels amazing on the lips but the pigment is lacking. This one requires a lot of layering for me to get even and full coverage. I didn’t find it to be a good swipe and go kind of lipstick and there was missing pigment and color around the edges of my lips when I applied straight from the tube. I am a huge fan of sheer lip colors like MAC Lustres, Chanel Rouge Coco Shines, YSL Volupte Shines and even the Rouge Baume Diors – but I find they are easier to apply and give even coverage while the Chantecaille did not. That being said I do think it will wear very well over a lipliner or if you apply with a lip brush.
Here it is packed on the lips quite heavily. I’m not sure if you can tell in the photo, but around the edges, especially on the upper lip it did not apply evenly.
The Chantecaille spring collection offers nice natural colors. If you’re a fan of the super natural look, I think you will find these are perfect for you. Long-time readers know I’m one who gravitates towards natural looking colors, but I found the formulas of the Chantecaille spring line too sheer for my taste. I do think they are worth checking out though – many have commented on the lack of natural satiny or non-shimmer shadows on the market. If you’re forever searching for eyeshadow palettes that have a more natural looking finish, the Glacier Eye Trio is definitely worth looking into. My quick take, I should have probably passed on both, but somethings pretty packaging gets the best of me.
I bought my Chantecaille items from Neiman Marcus. Note there are a number of beauty events going on right now, so if you have a wish list or shopping list that is growing, be sure to check out the gift with purchases offered now. Some promos to consider:
Neiman Marcus beauty week, Eddie Borgo designed tote with samples, with $125+ purchase, Chantecaille gift with a $200+ purchase, details here (available thru March 1 or while supplies last)
Saks Fifth Avenue beauty week gift with $125 purchase includes tote + samples use code BEAUTYW2, Chantecaille gift with a $200+ purchase using code CHANTE62, details on gift here (available thru March 1 or while supplies last)
Space NK beauty event gift bag for 1 day, February 18th (details to come later today)
Several readers have mentioned the Victoria, Victoria Beckham x Nails Inc. polishes to me over the past few months. Nails Inc. is a nail polish line that has been on my radar for quite some time but I tend to get distracted while in Sephora and usually forget to swatch and play with items in store. I ordered the Victoria, Victoria Beckham for Nails Inc. Duo Collection ($45 for 2 full-sized polishes, each 14 ml/0.47 fl oz, Made in France) online from Sephora. Both are available for purchase individually as well, but the duo is offered at a slight discount and also comes in a beautiful white box.
The two colors in the Victoria Beckham x Nails Inc. are called Bamboo White and Judo Red. Both are glossy lush creams that offer full opaque coverage with two coats. The first coat did not cover the nail entirely but was still relatively smooth, the pigment was just a bit streaky. Adding a second coat resulted in a rich opaque color for both shades. In addition to testing out the polishes for the first time, I also picked up the Kensington Caviar Base Coat and Kensington Caviar 45 Second Top Coat. I have been running low on my current go-to’s from Deborah Lippmann, Chanel and Rescue Beauty Lounge and since the Base/Top Coat from Nails Inc. have impressive reviews and high ratings I decided to try both.
Bamboo White is more of a powder pink on me. Even though it’s pale, it’s a stretch to call this one white. The color is quite lovely on the nails and flatters the skin tone nicely. It’s not too powdery in color like some pale pinks can be. Lasting power with the Nails Inc. Base + Top Coat was impressive. The top coat did indeed dry in 45 seconds although I did let the color dry for a couple minutes in between coats and about 5 minutes after the second coat. My manicure lasted 5 days before I started to see any tip wear. There was no flaking, chipping or peeling. The brush is on the medium to large side but slightly tapered making it easy to apply near the nail beds.
With two coats:
Judo Red is a warm orangey tomato red. On me the orange tones are visible enough that it looks like the perfect mix of orange and red. It reminds me of Chanel Holiday but with more opaque coverage and less of a jelly finish. I have this on the toes right now and it has held up really well over the past week. On the hands it’s pretty vibrant brightening color. Here it is with two coats:
I’m in the middle of working on major closet/makeup/storage reorganization so I didn’t have time to pull out polishes for comparisons. Several others have asked for my thoughts on these commenting they did not know if these were worth the purchase since the colors look so dupable. I agree with their assessment in the sense that these aren’t the most unique colors, you can definitely find others that are similar. I do think that the formula is impressive (and I have extremely high expectations when it comes to nail polish). Pale pinks are almost always hard for me to give a thumbs up to because I find the formulas streaky or colors too white in color. I did expect Bamboo White to be more of a white/cream color instead of pink – but the formula and coverage is really good so I am giving it a thumbs up.
I’ll be playing more with the Nails Inc. Base and Top Coats over the next few weeks to see how they work with other brands and give an updated review next month. So far I’m very impressed. I hope it’s compatible with other brands of polish because the wear on these manicures was crazy good.
Bottom line, if you’re looking for polished classic creams that have extremely good wear and long lasting power, the Victoria, Victoria Beckham x Nails Inc. Duo is worth a look. The formula and application are flawless. However if you’re looking for unique colors, you may want to pass.
I bought my polishes from Sephora. The collection is also available online at Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue (Saks promo online for a full-sized Brick Red polish with a $35+ order use code NAILS2 at checkout, while supplies last) and Nails Inc.
Have you tried anything from Nails Inc. before? What are your favorites?
Happy Friday everyone! I’m relieved it’s almost the weekend. We have 80+ degree weather in Southern California right now, it’s like winter never came and we are in a non-stop state of summer (I’m not complaining, although I do feel like I should have a tan right now). A few things I’ve spotted new in the beauty world:
Christian Louboutin Beaute has a new Python Vulcano Limited Edition Nail Colour Coffret ($90, limited-edition) for spring. The three shades include Salonu, True Blue, and Hot Chick. I want to see this one in person as it looks stunning although I only own 1 yellow nail polish (Chanel Mimosa) and rarely wear it.
Glamglow released their new cleansers ($39 each for 5 oz) in Supercleanse (Daily Clearing Cleanser), Thirstycleanse (Daily Treatment Cleanser) and Youthcleanse (Daily Exfoliating Cleanser). I have the white and blue ones that I bought a few weeks ago and am completely obsessed with both. Detailed review next week.
Bobbi Brown has a new Sunkissed Nude Collection Set ($120, limited-edition) at Neiman Marcus. If you’ve been eyeing things at Neimans, save your shopping for next week when their Beauty Week Event starts on the 18th.
Chanel has released some new items this month. The Collection La Perle de Chanel has a new Harmonie Levres Lip Palette, Joues Contraste in Crescendo, Illusion D’Ombre in Mysterio, Stylo Yeux Waterproof in Perle de Lune along with more items for lips and eyes. If you’re shopping for Valentine’s Day, the have complimentary overnight shipping with orders $125+ (until 5 PM EST). I ordered several items + a few of the new Rouge Cocos. I’ll be swatching and photographing this weekend.
Charlotte Tilbury Beach Sticks ($45 each, 5 shades) have finally launched in the US. I have a few that I ordered, I’ll be swatting and have a review in the next week (fingers crossed).
Giorgio Armani has two Limited-Edition Runway pieces, a Runway Palette ($120 for highlighter + 3 shadows) cased in an embroidered silk pouch and a new Rouge Sheer Runway Lipstick ($40). The palette looks incredibly beautiful but I’m not sure about the price point.
Chantecaille has a small edited collection for spring. There is a new Glacier Eyeshadow Trio ($70), Arctic Rose Lip Chic ($36), and two Galactic Lip Shines ($34 each) in Aurora and Polaris. (I bought the palette and one lip chic, review next week.)
I hope you have a wonderful weekend! My husband and I are celebrating Valentine’s Day early with a date night dinner tonight. What’s on your beauty radar this weekend?
This week I’m loving all shades of pink for the lips, in preparation for Valentine’s Day I’ve compiled a list of new pinks that I’ve been testing along with some older favorites. Today’s focus is on lip glosses with a glossy sheen that will give the lips a lush glow.
Marc Jacobs Lust for Lacquer Lip Vinyl Sheer in Pink Diamond is a glossy sheer pink gold that gives the lips a tint of gold and pink, right now it seems to be removed from Sephora and Marc Jacobs Beauty so I’m not sure if these are being phased out or reformulated, for a similar effect check out MAC Nympette Lipglass
Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in Rose Shimmer 01 is a sheer light pink balm-like gloss, on the lips it gives a sheer natural wash of light pink with a tiny bit of shimmer, it has a soft vanilla scent
NARS Lip Gloss in Turkish Delight is a super pale powdery pink gloss, on my super pigmented lips this is high maintenance when worn alone, I find it’s best worn as a layering lipgloss mainly because I have a lot of color in my lips
Zelens Lip Glaze in Rose is a lush baby pink cream, I have a hard time pulling off baby pinks on the lips that are non-shimmers, they are often too pale on my lip but this one was surprisingly good, it’s pricey for a lip gloss but the texture and color are really really good, coverage is medium
Bite Beauty Lush Fruit Gloss in Strawberry is something I bought in the mini size over the holiday, this is the first Bite Lip Gloss I’ve tried and the color is absolute perfection for the perfect light-to-medium rose pink but the formula is less than stellar. I wonder if this is one of those glosses you need to “break in” with a few wears to make the formula better, it settled into lip lines like crazy which is a shame because the color and pigment is so pretty
Laura Mercier Lip Glace in Pink Pop is sheer bright pink gloss perfection, I love a good bright lip gloss that has a sheer texture because they give the lips just enough color to get that glow, this one has a very strong vanilla scent so if you’re sensitive to fragrance, you might not be able to wear this one easily
Giorgio Armani Flash Lacquer in 521 is a sheer medium cool-toned pink, it’s very sheer so alone it will give you a very subtle tint of color, it’s lovely over a lipstick or lipliner
NARS Lip Gloss in Angelika is a bright cool-toned pink with gold flecks of shimmer, this one is a pretty azalea pink kind of color with medium coverage
Hourglass Extreme Sheen Lip Gloss in Ballet is a lipgloss that acts more like a liquid lipstick, this one has crazy intense pigment and covers the lip entirely, if you want a glossy bright pink with super rich coverage, this is the best one I’ve tried
MAC Viva Glam Miley Cyrus is a super fun glitzy pink, I’m usually ultra conservative when it comes to anything with visible sparkles that is more than just shimmer, but this one is really pretty on the lips, I’m not sure that I would be able to rock this comfortably everyday, but it’s not too glitzy if you layer a sheer wash of this on top of a lipstick
Zelens Lip Glaze in Pink is a healthy medium-bright pink, it has medium coverage leaning slightly more towards full but still has a glossy finish so it’s not like a liquid lipstick, it’s like Laura Mercier’s Pink Pop amped up a few notches in terms of pigment and oomph, I highly recommend the formula because it plumps the lips naturally and feels ultra hydrating and smooth
Chanel Glossimer in Crazy Fuchsia is part of the spring collection, it’s a super pigmented glossimer that has the prettiest mix of pink, violet and rose shimmers, long-time readers know I’m all about lighter neutral lips, but this one is just insanely gorgeous
Lip swatches on me (for reference some of these were taken over different days, foundations worn include the NARS All Day Weightless Luminous Foundation in Punjab and Tom Ford Traceless Perfecting Foundation in Bisque 04 with various setting powders):
I hope you found this lip gloss guide helpful in terms of picking out pink lip glosses with a diverse range of finishes, textures and different levels of color. To narrow down my top picks by category:
Favorite sheer light pink:
Clarins Instant Light Perfector in Rose Shimmer and Zelens Rose Lip Glaze
Favorite medium pink:
Laura Mercier Pink Pop and Zelens Pink Lip Glaze
Most unique:
Chanel Crazy Fuchsia Glossimer
This is by no means a comprehensive of all the pink lip glosses I’ve tried or adore, but rather an edited version of what I’ve been testing or using right now. What are your favorite pink lip glosses?
The Zelens Lip Glazes, Hourglass Extreme Sheen Lip Gloss and Laura Mercier Lip Glace were provided as press samples for review consideration, all others purchased by me.
