I first saw the new Cle de Peau Eyeshadows in the Saks Beverly Hills back a couple months ago and immediately fell in love with a cool medium dark taupey shimmer #106. I have been eyeing it since then and finally caved in and bought it from my local Neimans. I did not realize until after I got home that the eyeshadow cost $45 for 2.0g/.07 oz. The Extra Silky Lipstick #124 retails for $50 – which is a cool natural pink with slight shimmer.
Here is one of the magazine scans of the other shades:
Overall thoughts: I had tested these out at the counter and the eyeshadow was on the sheer-medium side for pigmentation. It can be layered for more color. I am actually a fan of the Extra Silky Lipsticks for their great nude your lips but better shades which give me pretty shiny lips and flattering colors that make you look refreshed. After coming home with my goodies, I did question my sanity for spending $95 + tax on only two cosmetic items – I don’t usually splurge on Cle de Peau and from now on, I will seriously need to resist temptation and weigh in the costs/benefits more carefully.
For comparison purposes: * Chanel’s single eyeshadows are also 2.0 g/.07 oz and retail for $28.50 * Giorgio Armani Maestro singles are 1.3 g/.04 oz and retail for $28 * Dior’s New Smoothing Singles are .07 oz and retail for $27.50
I picked up the Laura Mercier Essential Orgainzer from Neimans yesterday for their Fall Beauty Event yesterday. The department store gift was fairly disappointing in my opinion, which is usually the case but I still manage to get sucked in because of the gifts within each individual line. The store was packed with lots of customers which I always find suprising because the gifts aren’t really that great yet always manage to draw in a lot of sales.
Anyways, here are pictures of the set and some close ups.
To recap from my previous post, the set retails for $125 and is a Neiman Marcus Exclusive. It contains:
* 12 eyeshadows in the following colors:
Celestial, African Violet and Bamboo Luster Eye Colours Black Plum, Buttercream, Cashmere and Coffee Ground Matte Eye Colours Sandstone, Baroque, Haze, Stellar and Sable Sateen Eye Colours
(The box says that the weight of each shade is .09oz/.2.6g which I find questionable because that is the size/weight of a full sized eyeshadow from Laura Mercier – perhaps the colors in this set are deeper than wide?) * 3 double ended brushes:
Double-ended Eye Color and All Over Eye Color Brush Double-ended Eye Crease and Ponytail Brush Double-ended Smudge and Corner Eye Color Brush
Close up of the top half:
Close up of the bottom half:
Whole set compared to a full sized Laura Mercier Eyeshadow (Primrose shown):
Size comparison of case to a Trish McEvoy Petite Planner & Louis Vuitton Small Agenda:
Neimans gift with purchase: Full sized Mulberry Lip Stain, minis of Flawless Cream, Pistache Cream, lip brush and Candlelight Mineral Shimmer Powder
Left to right: #1 Steel Black, #2 Brown Copper, #3 Gunmetal Grey
The Eyes to Kill Palettes have finally arrived at my local Saks and Neimans and have been selling fast because of Saks Double Points & Neimans’s Beauty Week. Luckily my favorite Saks associate knew I had been asking about these since June so she and the Armani reps put one of each aside for me as soon as they came in.
These should be trickling in online very soon, but so far are currently available at GiorgioArmaniBeauty.com. Here are the product & color descriptions, each palette retails for $58 (for 8 g/.28 oz):
For more pictures and scans from magazines, check out this post Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Preview. I have yet to try the Eyes to Kill Mascara, but am planning to pick one up soon so I should be able to report back within the next few weeks about it!
I came home with #1 (taupe/ivory/black), #2 (coppery brown/gold/chocolate), and #3 (dark violet/cool grey/charcoal).
Here are the pictures and swatches:
Close up of #1:
Close up of #2:
Close up of #3:
Overall thoughts: My counter didn’t have testers of these so I had to buy them without trying. Luckily thanks to some other boards, I was able to see swatches before buying. Before I write the rest of my review, I have to say that in addition to being a die-hard Chanel fan, I am also a huge fan of Armani.
I haven’t been able to try these out on the eyes yet, but so far, the pigmentation seems on par with other armani shadows and palettes. Each palette has a good range of finish in the eyeshadow ranging from a high shimmer finish to satin/finish. Those looking for a matte eyeshadow palette might not like these, but the shades aren’t too shimmery or frosty (with the exception of #1). The middle darkest shades are the least shimmery but not completely matte – these seem to be on the sheerer side.
Overall I’m really happy with the palettes. I have been into a major shimmer eyeshadow kick but these are nice because they aren’t overly shimmery or matte. Pigmentation is decent in my opinion. Even though $58 is steep, I am happy with my purchases.
With the exception of the middle shades which are basic black, chocolate and charcoals, the palettes were unique enough that I don’t think I have comparable shades in my current collection.
I highly recommend you call your local Neimans to take advantage of their gift with purchase. The qualifier isn’t too high. Check the neimanmarcus.com website for a picture of their gift which includes a full size shine lipstick, a mini eyes to kill mascara and more. Even if your local neimans doesn’t have these palettes, there are plenty of other fabulous things to try out!
Hi everyone, I want to thank each one of you for your support and kind comments over the past few months since I started this blog! I am so glad I have been able to help some of you get a better idea of what some products look like and hopefully have been able to provide some ideas on new things to try out!
If you could take a couple minutes to fill out a survey for me I would greatly appreciate it. Any feedback would be awesome – I want to hear everything, what you love, like, hate, or don’t care for.
Just a disclaimer, there isn’t any marketing material gathered here – I simply would like some feedback on this blog 🙂
Here are 10 things I am loving right now. Please share your own list with me of things you love so much you think everyone should try it out!
1) Nars Sheer Matte & Sheer Glow Foundations $42 – I am a true skeptic when anyone tries to sell me a foundation unless it is Chanel or Armani. I have super sensitive skin (but otherwise fairly normal) with golden/olive tones and usually have a hard time finding a good match since I typically fall in between shades. I was immediately stunned by the gorgeous new advertisement Nars has been promoting for their new foundations and decided to give it a try.
In the past I had used their Oil Free Foundation and had mixed thoughts about it. I loved the coverage, but always felt like I had a heavy layer of gunk sitting on my skin. Also, I was often matched with Fiji which for some reason turned pinkish on me. The next shades up were either too yellow or too peach.
With this in mind, I went to the counter with a list of shades to try out: Fiji, Ceylan, Punjab & Stromboli. Punjab is my perfect match which was a bit odd because on my hand it looked more peachy but on my face, it blended in perfectly.
Coverage is medium but completely natural and flawless looking. Another plus is that you can barely feel anything on the skin after you apply it. I’ve tried both formulas and they last all day – I do set foundation with my Laura Mercier Loose or Chanel Powder Foundations though. If you haven’t tried this out, RUN to your counter to try it out.
I do recommend you try at least 2 to 3 different shades on your jaw line though.
Left to right: Chanel Teint Innocence Shell, Chanel Lift Lumiere Shell, Nars Punjab, Armani Lasting Silk 6.5
2) Clinique Sparkle Skin Body Exfoliating Cream $20 – I bought this because there was a gift with purchase going on at my local Bloomingdales. I had read reviews and decided to try this because Clinique had discontinued my favorite body scrub (the yellow one in the squeeze tube) and I didn’t like the other tube-packaged scrub. I have to say I was pleasantly suprised. Has a slight minty scent to it leaving your skin refreshed and smooth.
3) Stila Black Cat Smudge Pot $20 – I think I’ve found my holy grail shimmery black eyeliner. Most blacks go on greyish or blueish or too harsh on my skin. This one gives the perfect smokey silvery black liner. I bought mine at Ulta – it should be showing up at Sephoras & Stilacosmetics.com soon. I didn’t retake swatch pictures of this, but click HERE for swatches and comparisons.
5) Le Metier Lip Cremes $36 & Sheer Brilliance Lip Glosses $32 – You’ve heard me rave about these before – pricey, yes, but I absolutely love the formula and shades. My two current favorite colors are Toffee Creme & Cannes. Neimans has a gift with purchase going on right now – check out their website for details. Also click on this LE METIER LINK for more posts and pictures on products from the line.
6) Laura Mercier Mineral Cheek Powders in Pink Spark, Coral & Amberstone $22 – these came out a while back after Laura Mercier started introducing mineral makeup into her line. These are absolutely gorgeous. Amberstone makes the perfect nude cheek for me with a hint of sparkle. Neiman Marcus also has a super cute gift going on right now. Saks will be having their beauty event later this month, and Bloomingdales will have their event mid-October.
7) Nars M. Butterfly Nail Polish $16 – for some reason I haven’t been able to find this shade instock anywhere near me, but it’s still available online. The swatches didn’t turn out so hot, but it’s a gorgeous berry red shade. Nars describes it as a “poison berry.” I have seen testers at Nordstrom and Bloomingdales so they are probably just low on stock.
9) Neutral Pink Eyeshadows: Shiseido Bare Pink, Laura Mercier Metallic Creme in Pink Gold, Laura Mercier Satinee Creme in Pink Chiffon, MAC Naked Pigment, MAC Perky Paint Pot, Bobbi Brown Ballet Pink, MAC Ego Eyeshadow – all of these are like your-lids-but-better natural pink shadows that won’t give you a pink-eye look. I like to layer Naked Pigment over any of these all over the lid and then just add a simple liner in a shimmery chocolate color or deep brown. Sometimes I’ll contour the lid or crease area with a soft brown like MAC Era, Soba, Bobbi Brown Hot Stone or Urban Decay Naked.
10) Sprinkles Cupcakes – have you been to a Sprinkles Cupcake Bakery? Their cupcakes, especially their Red Velvet & Vanilla flavors are absolutely divine and the frosting is pure heaven. Luckily you don’t need to be near one of the few bakeries in order to enjoy these. Williams Sonoma carries the mix which is super easy to make and tastes just like the fresh made ones from the stores. Each come with a recipe card for the frosting too. They have seasonal flavors, right now they just released two new flavors, Spice & Pumpkin. (PS I think if you buy two mixes instore at WS, you save $3.)
I scanned in the list of gifts for each line per the mailer I received. The event starts on the 10th instore and there is a department wide gift – details should be showing up online at neiman marcus shortly. Images are clickable for larger viewing.
This is an updated/collaborated post to include all three Glow Ons from the Shu Uemura Primitribe Fall Mode Collection.
I checked out the entire collection at Neiman Marcus and the blushes were the only things that really stood out to me. They retail for $24 each and come in three two-toned shades (pictured top to bottom) called Rhythm (pink), Soul (peach) and Echo (amber).
Rhythm pictures, comparisons & online swatch:
Soul pictures, comparisons & online swatch:
Echo pictures, comparisons & online swatch (which seems a bit more plum than the actual product):
