All Posts By

Sabrina

Uncategorized

Edward Bess Sun and Stars Prismette Eyeshadow Quad

December 28, 2012

Edward Bess has recently added three new palettes to his line called Prismette Eyeshadow Quads ($68 each for 0.25 oz/7g). These come cased in a black rectangular mirrored compact with a double-sided brush. According to Bergdorfs, these quads have Edward’s Classic Ultra Luminous Eyeshadow formula in a combination of some new shades and signature shades.
There are three sets right now: Cosmic Bliss (all taupe), Over the Moon (plummy greys) and Sun and Stars (day and night look). All quads include the same basic light all-over-base-shade. For the repeats of his singles, Cosmic Bliss includes Intimate + 2 new taupes. Over the Moon contains all new shades and Sun and Stars include Escape, Dusk and Night. I will review all three in the upcoming weeks. First up is Sun and Stars.

Sun and Stars contains three existing shades, Escape (a warm coppery bronze shimmer), Dusk (a metallic taupe, looks greenish/khaki in the photos but applies more neutral), and Night (a cool satiny black). The base/matte shade is new. It has a similar color to his single shadow in Nude but is slightly darker and more pigmented. It works well as an all over base to even the lid softly without looking chalky.

I’ve been using Sun and Stars over his illuminating eye primers (which I think are the best eye bases I’ve tried) and it has performed exceptionally well. The colors are well pigmented with just enough shimmer to add depth but not overly frosty. Compared to the singles, the Sun and Stars quad applies with the same pigment and smoothness. If you already own the individual shades, then purchasing the quad isn’t necessary. It is very convenient for travel and if you’re new to Edward Bess, this is a perfect introduction to his line.
Here it is swatched on my arm:
Comparison shot to the singles: Nude, Escape, Dusk and Night (no swatches since the shades swatch identical between the singles and quads, with the exception of Nude which is a lot lighter/sheerer)
Bottom line: excellent! For me it’s not a must-have simply because I already own the shades individually. I do like the sturdy packaging which is much easier to travel with (versus singles). Sun and Stars has performed very well. Lasting power with his eye bases is all day for me. It’s a palette that can be incorporated into any look and versatile enough for day or night. I believe it will suit a wide range of skintones. While I was at the Beverly Hills counter over a year ago, I saw Edward apply Night to lovely woman with a dark complexion – it gave her a stunning smokey eye.
I’m sure all Edward Bess fans have already seen reviews on other blogs, but in case you haven’t be sure to check out:
I purchased my Edward Bess quads from Bergdorf Goodman. They are also available online at Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus and Sephora. Right now there appears to be a limited-edition set exclusive to Neimans online called Private Eye which has the Sun and Stars, Dune Eye Base and his mascara for $100 (individual products added up total $128, I haven’t tried his mascara so I can’t report on it, but I do love his eye bases).

Have you tried Edward’s latest?

Uncategorized

Chanel Or Rose, Santal and Beryl Stylo Yeux Waterproof

December 27, 2012

Chanel has released three new eyeliners in the Stylo Yeux Waterproof formula for spring ($30 each, made in Italy). The three shades are Or Rose #89 (a luminous sparkly champagne), Santal #100 (a neutral shimmering brown) and Beryl #102 (a pale lavendar). Currently, only Beryl is listed as limited-edition on Chanel.com. The Stylo Yeux Waterproof pencils come in a twist-up packaging with a hidden built-in sharpener at the end of the pencil (see example from Karen at Makeup and Beauty Blog for close up). They are designed to be a long-wear pencil and I find them to be among my longest lasting eyeliners. For me they stay put all day.
The new shades for spring performed just as well as others in the same formula. Shimmery champagnes like Or Rose are good for lining the inner corners or lower waterline. I’m still experimenting with Beryl – it’s such an unusual shade for a liner! Santal is a pretty classic warm brown shimmer. Chanel does lovely neutrals and Santal works perfectly with the Raffinement quad that was released for spring.

Swatches: Or Rose pulls a bit peachy on my skin.

In terms of dupes, I couldn’t find any. Some comparisons are featured below. Or Rose is a lighter version of Peche Cuivre. Shown next to other champagnes you can see Or Rose is definitely on the peachy side. Santal is quite unique and warmer than other brown neutrals. I didn’t compare Beryl to anything since I don’t own any lavendar-colored eyeliners.

Based on my preferences and normal makeup routine, I like Santal the best. Or Rose is gorgeous but I would prefer it as an eyeshadow instead. Same with Beryl. I occasionally use champagne eyeliners but not frequently. They are both stunning though.

Did you pick up any of the spring eyeliners?

Uncategorized

Chanel Raffinement #39 Quadra Eye Shadow – Spring 2013

December 24, 2012

The winter-to-spring season brings quite a few lovely neutral palettes from Armani, Burberry, Edward Bess and Chanel. The Printemps Precieux de Chanel brings us Raffinement #39 Quadra Eye Shadow ($58 for 6.8g/0.24 oz) which is every neutral-lover’s dream. The quad has a mixture of three shimmery earthy warm neutrals and a dark warm matte brown. This is hands down my favorite neutral of all the recent releases. The pigment is excellent, much better than most Chanel palettes in my opinion. The texture is soft and easy to blend. The shimmer is visible but not over the top. It’s a definite must-have.


Here it is swatched, on me it pulls very warm:

Chanel recently discontinued Kaska Beige (which I found to be a good staple, I had to get backups) so I thought that Raffinement would be very similar. However looking at them side by side you can see how they are very different. The color/finish of Raffinement is similar to Armani’s #6 Boudoir. The difference is that Armani has 2 light shimmer/2 mattes while Chanel’s has 3 shimmers/1 matte. If I had to pick one, it would be the Chanel. I added Prelude below to show the undertones.

I could only fit three sets on my arm, so I picked the ones that were most similar, Armani #6 and Chanel Kaska Beige. There are two views below with different lighting. Right now I’m a Chanel B30.

Overall love. Raffinement is a gorgeous palette. The quality and pigment are excellent. Did you pick up Raffinement? Or anything else from Chanel spring?
Uncategorized

Comparisons for Chanel Emprise, Fracas and Accessoire Le Vernis

December 18, 2012

After swatching some shades from my Chanel Le Vernis collection, this is the verdict on dupes/similar colors:

  • Emprise seems to be most similar to Pêche Nacrée, but Emprise is more opaque and pinkish on the skin while Pêche Nacrée is more pearly/peachy. I thought Emprise would resemble Django but it’s quite a bit darker and more peachy. Compared to Rose Satin, Emprise is similar but more opaque and peach. I thought Emprise would be most similar to Inattendu, but swatched side by side, Inattendu almost looks tan.
  • Fracas is a warmer and more vibrant version of Rose Insolent. Compared to other pinks, Fracas makes May look pastel. Fracas has a hint of melon when compared to Dior Plaza, but Fracas is still clearly pink. On the nails on my skin, I feel it’s almost identical in finish to Rose Insolent.
  • Accessoire is a lighter version of Rouge Noir. Compared to others, Accessoire is warmer/redder than Provocation (more purple/plum), more plum-red than Forbidden (most brown), and lighter and redder than Diabolic (the darkest one I have). On the nails, it’s hard to distinguish the difference between shades.

On the nail wheels: Tendresse, Pêche Nacrée, Emprise, Rose Satin, Inattendu, Morning Rose, May, Fracas, Rose Insolent, Dior Plaza, Accessoire, Provocation, Rouge Noir, Forbidden and Diabolic.

Some photos under artificial light, I hope this alternate view will give you a better idea of comparisons:

Although the spring shades from Chanel are very similar to existing colors, I still think they are beautiful options for the season. Perhaps not the most unique, but they are very flattering. My personal favorite is Accessoire even though I do not need another vamp in my stash.
Have you tried Chanel spring yet? What were your thoughts?
Uncategorized

Chanel Emprise, Fracas and Accessoire Le Vernis for Spring 2013

December 16, 2012
Chanel’s spring 2013 makeup collection Printemps Precieux de Chanel offers some beautiful colors this year. I ordered my items sight-unseen from Bergdorfs and have been very pleased with everything so far. First up are the three new Le Vernis shades in Emprise 569, Fracas 571 and Accessoire 573 ($26 each for 13 ml/0.4 fl oz, made in France). I found the shades from Chanel spring to be fairly similar to prior
releases, but think they are still beautiful options for spring. The
colors are solid staples that I think everyone should have in their nail
wardrobe. However, if you have a lot of Chanel or Dior nail polishes, you may want to shop your own stash or test these in
person before buying. The shades this season:
  • Emprise 569 is a soft peachy shade with a hint of pink, there is a subtle pearly shimmer infused in the bottle but the color goes on a cream, finish was semi-sheer, I found it needed three coats for even coverage
  • Fracas 571 is a hot pink melon fuschia, this shade also has that shimmery pearl in the bottle (like Distraction) but doesn’t quite show up on the nail, the shimmers made this one difficult to photograph, in some photos it appears more melon, but it goes on very similar to Rose Insolent, pigment and coverage is excellent
  • Accessoire 573 is a rich plum-brown cream that applies flawlessly with two coats, it’s very similar to other Chanel vampy shades, I was a bit surprised Chanel decided to release something so similar to Vamp, Diabolic, Provocation etc.
Below you can see in direct sunlight that Emprise and Fracas are infused with beautiful shimmer. I wish the shimmer was more visible when applied on the nails!
Close ups and swatches below, Emprise 569:

Fracas 571, note colors may vary per screen, this was really hard to photograph for me, I recommend checking Loulou17 and Blondy Candy for other swatches/photos:

Accessoire 573:

I’m working on comparisons now. Follow up post to come soon!