A few of my favorite beauty looks from promotional ads/photos:
Christian Dior (love the perfect liner and nude lips)
Chanel (from the Think Pink Collection, Asia Exclusive)
Cle de Peau (simple yet glowing)
Becca (pretty and natural)
Trish McEvoy (from Spring 2005 Neiman Marcus Beauty Looks)
Urban Decay (love that red on her lips)
The Sheer Brilliance Glosses & Lip Cremes from Le Metier de Beaute have been my favorite products in the line, but I have also added a few gorgeous neutral eyeshadows and blushes to my collection. Included in this post are some eyeshadow, blush, highlighter and bronzer pictures from Le Metier de Beaute.
Eyeshadows come in a single-compact format or in a set of four packaged in a unique swivel-stacking system they call their Kaleidoscope Kits. Most of their Kaleidoscope Kits are pre-made and contain shades exclusive to each kit. The Persephone Kit did contain shades available in single-compact format. Check out these links to Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman or Karen’s Makeup and Beauty Blog to see the more product photos.
Eyeshadows, left to right: Mulberry, Jojo, Milan, Spicy
Close up of Mulberry & Jojo
Close up of Milan & Spicy
From Persephone Eye Kit: Rose Quartz (available as a single)
From Persephone Eye Kit: Alexandrite (available as a single)
From Persephone Eye Kit: Canvas (available as a single)
From Persephone Eye Kit: Sequoia (available as a single)
Whisper Highlighter, Fresh Blush, Echo/Sunkissed Blush Bronzer Duo
Close up of Whisper & Fresh (note Whisper doesn’t show on the websites for purchase but is available at counters)
Close up of Echo/Sunkissed Duo (which I received as an extra from the King of Prussia Le Metier Counter)
Overall thoughts: the eyeshadows are soft and with pretty pigment. I would say the pigment is in the medium-full range – not quite as rich as Urban Decay, but not as sheer as MAC Lustre Eyeshadows. The blushes have the same pigmentation as Nars, but have a more natural finish – I find some Nars shimmery blushes can be a bit too frosty if applied with a heavy hand. The Le Metier Bronzer is absolutely divine giving a soft warm glow. A HUGE thanks to Ellen at Neiman Marcus King of Prussia for including this!
Interested in more Le Metier? Check out these links:
Le Metier de Beaute Nail Lacquers (see pictures of nail polishes in Phlox, Lenton Rose & more)
Le Metier de Beaute: Feature on Lips (pictures of Sheer Brillance Glosses & Lip Cremes – my personal favorite with a gorgeous selection of pinks and beiges)
Neiman Marcus Camp Gorgeous Event: Siena Lip Gloss GWP (details on various GWPs from Neimans for Le Metier)
Makeup & Beauty Blog: Ever Heard of Le Metier de Beaute? (pics of kaleidoscope kits & more)
I recently started to get back into NARS and just saw some of the Nars fall items on Nordstrom.com so I used their online-order-instore-pickup feature to purchase a few items. Pictures of what I picked up:
NARS Eyeshadow Duo in Silk Road (very similar to the Nars Duos in All About Eve and Alhambra, at first glance this looks a tad peachier and slightly less pale):
NARS All About Eve, Alhambra, Silk Road Comparisons (2 views):
NARS Eyeshadow Duo in Brumes:
Eyeshadow Single in Mekong – haven’t tested this yet, but the Nars rep at Nordstrom said it’s like their Night Series eyeshadows:
NARS Mekong Single vs Cordura Duo (note that Cordura isn’t part of the Fall 2009 collection):
Nail Polish in Tokaido Express:
Close up of the nail polish in the sun:
Swatch on nails:
I didn’t stop by the Nars counter to check out the Fast Ride Lipstick or Indian Summer Eyeshadow Duo since I simply picked up my goodies at customer service, but over the phone the SA described Fast Ride as a deep plum red and Indian Summer as mustard yellow.
There have been some details on more duos floating around the web for three more duos that I didn’t see online yet, Brousse, Eurydice and Taiga – so I called the counter to inquire about those three. The Nars rep at Nordstrom said they hadn’t received those yet, but that they will probably come out later in the fall and put me on his call list saying he would let me know when he found out more details. As of yet, they didn’t have testers and also that they were only pre-selling the Fall items for their anniversary sale. Luckily I had placed the order online before hand so I was able to pick up my items today.
But overall I have enough goodies to keep me happy for a long time!
One of my favorite beauty resources told me that Guerlain fall had arrived at Saks but didn’t have testers yet, so I stopped by Saks again to check and see if they received the products in. They didn’t have the tester or display unit out, but my sales associate looked through the drawers and this is what we found:
Volga Princess Palette for Eyes and Lips which comes in a metallic pink compact with a cute drawstring pouch:
Brun Mordore #441 – Ombre Eclat 4 Shades Eyeshadow Quad (note this was very difficult to photograph b/c of the reflection off the compact):
KissKiss Baby Lipsticks, left to right (two views):
#220 Red Nude, #241 Rosewood Nude, #240 Honey Nude, #260 Romantic Nude, #261 Rosy Nude
Also picked up the Russian Doll Liquid Blush but haven’t played around with it. Check out Yuki’s Lazy Channel Blog’s Feature on Guerlain for awesome pictures and swatches. Other items I saw included 3 metallic eyeliners and the KissKiss Baby #200 Cristal Nude which was a clear iridescent white shade.
I was in a rush, so I forgot to ask about the other eyeshadow quad with a flower print pattern on the top, but will check back sometime next week. Yuki’s blog also has great swatches/pictures.
Fall collections are trickling in! So far I’ve seen the fall collections for Chanel, Laura Mercier, Giorgio Armani, and now Dior. After seeing Karen’s fabulous article and swatches on Makeup and Beauty Blog for the Dior Jazz Club Collection Fall 2009, I went to Nordstrom to check out the collection myself.
This is what I came home with:
Smoky Jazz Eye Palette 001, the Total Eyelook Makeup Clutch for Liner, Brow, and Eyeshadows – they’ve included a nice brush!
Left to right: Liner, Eyebrow, Matte Eyeshadow, Iridescent Eyeshadow x2, Topcoat
Night Butterfly 173 Quint (5-Colour Eyeshadow) – this was lighter than I expected based on promotional pictures floating around the web, but Karen’s swatches gave me a good idea of what it looked like in real life before I stopped by the counter:
Black Plum 981 Nail Vernis:
Also picked up the Creme de Glosses and Addict Reflect Lipglosses, but for some reason these are not photographing well. For great pics/swatches, check out Karen’s blog!
Some other smokey eye palette variations for a classic smokey eye or soft smokey eye:
Dolce & Gabbana Champagne (Smooth Color Eye Quad):
Dior Sky Glow 009 Quint (5 Colour Iridescent Eyeshadow):
Chanel Smoky Eyes 93 (Quadra Eyeshadow):
MAC Smoking Eyes Quad – Next to Nothing, Satin Taupe, Showstopper, Smoking:
MAC Trip Palette Sultry Eyes – Sun Cruise Gloss, Freckletone Lipstick, Filament Lustre Eyeshadow, French Grey Satin Eyeshadow, Carbon Matte Eyeshadow (found a month ago at my local CCO):
Looking for some other smokey eye colors? To do a smokey eye, I often layer different shades with a black since blacks tend to turn blueish on my skin. Check out the 5 part series for swatches of dark shimmery eyeliners and shadows separated by color category:
Color Focus:
Smokey Eyes Part 1
Smokey Eyes Part 2 (Greys & Blacks)
Smokey Eyes Part 3 (Black Golds)
Smokey Eyes Part 4 (Mauves & Plums)
Smokey Eyes Part 5 (Blues & Greens)
As soon as I saw the new Paul & Joe summer collection, I knew I had to have the 001 Nugget Eyeshadow. However, they were out of stock at Bergdorf’s so I placed an order with Dermstore online and am pleased with the new items! They have pretty good swatches and also include color descriptions of each item which helped me since I don’t have immediate in-person access to the line to check out the products. The only item I didn’t like was the Nail Lacquer in Dress Up 23 which has big chunks of glitter (website description wasn’t as clear).
Check out the Paul & Joe Beaute Website for cute images like the one above, wallpaper downloads and product information.
Click HERE for the first Paul & Joe post a couple days ago featuring more eyeshadows, face colors and pearl powders.
Eyeshadow Nugget 001
Nugget Comparisons:
1. MAC Lustre Eyeshadow – Honesty
2. Benefit Velvet Eyeshadow – Rich Beach
3. Shu Uemura Pressed Eyeshadow – P Brown 820
4. Bobbi Brown Metallic Eyeshadow – Penny
5. Urban Decay Eye Shadow – Chopper (in old packaging)
6. Paul & Joe – 24 Center Stage
7. Paul & Joe – 001 Nugget
8. Dior Powder Mono Eyeshadow – #535 Beige Sunshine
Face Color Moroccan Orange 08
Pearl Powder Afterglow 04: goes on a shimmery cool pink
Afterglow comparisons (couldn’t find a dupe, so here are some other light shimmery pinks):
1. Becca Loose Shimmer Powder – Angel
2. Becca Loose Shimmer Powder – Princess
3. Becca Loose Shimmer Powder – Gypsy
4. MAC Loose Beauty Powder – Tenderdusk
5. Paul & Joe Pearl Powder – 04 Afterglow
6. MAC Pigment – Fairylite
7. MAC Pigment – Goldenaire
8. MAC Veluxe Pearl Eyeshadow – Wintersky
9. MAC Mineralize Eyeshadow – Little Madame
10. Laura Mercier Lustre Eye Color – Gilded Peony (was LE with the Nordies Peony set)
Eye Color Palette CS Ingenue 01
Eye Color Palette CS Starlet 02
Last week I received a preview e-mail from Giorgio Armani about their new Manta Ray Collection featuring 5 eyeshadow duos, 2 silk lipsticks, 1 blush, and 1 lip shimmer.
Their star product of the season features their new eyeshadow duos with a snake-like embossed surface described as follows:
“Inspired by the precious and luxurious materials used in Giorgio Armani fashion accessories, the palettes offer a beautiful selection of color harmonies inspired by nature. The collection features subtle hues that offer a new take on the timeless color “Greige,” create by Giorgio Armani. The rich filtered eye tones, presented in a matte Greige compact, give depth and mystery to the eyes with subtle contours and highlights.”
I stopped by Saks and was surprised to see these in store already. The counter did not have testers, nor did they receive everything in the collection yet, but did have all the shadow duos, Blush #12 (pale whitish pink shimmer) and Silk Lipstick #93 (plum-brown cream).
I ended up purchasing the following two items:
* Manta Ray Eyeshadow #1: Described as “charcoal and greige,” this duo seems more like an intense satin black and soft grey/brown/beige with plum undertones. At first glance it looks like a plain brown, but I compared it next to a few other shades and it seems to have slight pink/plum undertones.
* Sheer Blush #12: I am a huge fan of Armani blushes and was really excited about the new #12. It’s described as a “pale raspberry” but this is quite misleading since it’s actually a super pale cool-pink shimmer with lavender undertones. Luckily the counter did have a tester of this item. The makeup artist assured me it went on differently than it appeared in the pot. She dusted a bit on and sure enough, it went on a pretty glowy light pink. Your mileage may vary on this one, so definitely try it out before purchasing.
Close up (clickable so you can see the slight shimmer):
Comparisons, left to right: GA #1, GA #12, GA #11
Comparisons, left to right: MAC Sheertone Shimmer in Shimmersweet, GA #12, Chanel Silk Dream
Above are some comparison pictures to help give a better idea of what the new blush looks like. Overall thoughts are undecided. I usually love Armani, but the look created in this collection isn’t the most flattering. The concept of the eyeshadows are unique but $32 for an eyeshadow and $42 for a blush is pretty steep – I feel like I should have gotten more for my $$$.
For other Giorgio Armani Features, click HERE to see the new Maestro Eye Shadow extensions, Summer 2009, and some Bronzer comparisons.