Both formulas have a soft super soft creamy texture in a twist up format. They’re creamy with a satin texture and have a skin like finish. Pigment is medium to sheer and easy to blend out. Once they set on the skin they have a very subtle minimal glow so they’re not too emollient but at the same time they’re not powdery in the dry down.
So Soft Blush
The So Soft Blush sticks are available in six colors, all are creams without shimmer:
Baby is a pale pink
Lychee is a soft melon
Pearl Tea is a neutral tan brown nude
Venetian Rose is a rose
Passion is an orange shade
Bitten is a plum berry
Swatches:
Below wearing a few of the colors on the face, for my skin tone Baby is a bit too pale, but I can make it work. My favorites are Lychee and Pearl Tea. Also wearing the EM Cosmetics Lip Cushion in Magic Hour with Baby and Lychee. Pearl Tea blush on cheeks and lips. With the Passion Blush I’m wearing the Lip Cushion in Faded Clementine.
So Soft Multi Faceplay
The So Soft Multi Faceplay sticks are truly multi-taskers. You can use these as a bronzer or contour and the color range includes two very deep tones. I tried the lightest Summer on my face and it works perfectly to warm up my medium tan complexion.
Summer is a caramel brown
Terra is a cool brown (similar to Westman Atelier Biscuit)
Lasting power is pretty good for a cream product although if you have oily skin you may need to layer on a matching powder blush shade on top to make it set or last a bit longer. Pigment overall blends out to a very natural finish but you can layer for more color.
I’m still a powder blush person at heart but I do really like the formula of the So Soft sticks. In case you missed the previous roundup you can see my EM Cosmetics overview + review of other products here.
You can find these out now at EM Cosmetics. Have you tried these yet? What kind of blush do you prefer? Cream or powder?
I have a look at the Laura Mercier Rose Glow Collection today. The new Caviar Stick Eye Colors (6 shades, $29 each) and Highlighting Powder ($30) launched earlier in the summer and there are some really pretty options if you like shimmer or rose tones! I’m late to review this as it launched several weeks ago but I thought I’d add some comparison swatches in case you still haven’t had a chance to check it out.
Rose Glow Caviar Stick Eye Colors
There are six new shades of Caviar Stick Eye Color and they are all in a pink rose or plum tone theme. The shimmer is pretty high with these so if you feel like you can’t wear shimmery tones on your lids these may be too much for you. I still think you can use the deeper tones or layer 1-2 with your other shades without having it look too frosty. I really love that they did eye look swatches with all the shades on multiple skin tones and eye colors for their promotional photos (all available side by side on Lauramercier.com). I think these are so helpful!
I found these to have a little bit more shimmer than colors like Copper or Rose Gold. Similar to what I see in the Caviar Stick Eye Color in Sugar Frost. They’re easy to blend but they do set quickly and lasting power is excellent once it sets.
Some colors have sold out on different retail websites but I’ve seen them restock. You can still find all the shades at Laura Mercier, others also available at Nordstrom, Saks, Ulta, Bloomingdale’s. Colors include:
Wild Rose is a shimmery champagne rose
Kiss From A Rose is a soft pink shimmer
Bed of Roses is a mauve shimmer
Strike a Rose medium soft plum rose
Forbidden Rose copper rose
Rose Thorn deep plum shimmer
I did a look layering 3 shades including Wild Rose, Bed of Roses, Forbidden Rose + the Makeup By Mario Master Mattes. Also wearing:
Comparisons below to Bobbi Brown, By Terry, Charlotte Tilbury and a few other Laura Mercier colors
Highlighting Powder in Rose Glow
The new Highlighting Powder in Rose Glow is a soft shimmery pale rose. It has a beautiful soft texture but the highlight is quite intense on my medium tan skin tone because it’s paler than my natural skin tone. Shimmer wise it’s smooth but for me it requires a light hand. I prefer it mixed with a regular satin or matte blush for a softer diffused look.
Below wearing Highlighting Powder in Rose Glow on top of Blush in Strawberry
I love the texture of the powder but color wise I have a lot of similar colors so I wouldn’t call it super unique for my skin tone. Performance wise it’s excellent and I do think it’s a beautiful highlighter.
Happy Friday! I have a look at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale x Charlotte Tilbury Beauty Exclusives and think there some great options this year. Nordstrom launched a new Instant Look Palette for the sale along with some good value sets to try out. I have a closer look with more swatches today.
Collagen Lip Bath Set
The Collagen Lip Bath formula is one of my all time favorites. The colors Refresh Rose and Pillow Talk have been staples in my routine for an effortless look. They give the lips a plump lush shine without the strong stinging or tingle sensation (huge plus for me). Pillow Talk is the one that gives me the most compliments and I’ve gifted it to pretty much every single friend and family member close to me. Formula is comfortable and hydrating. There is peppermint which gives it a slight cooling sensation but it’s a pleasant one.
The Face and Eye Palette Set includes one of her Instant Look Palettes called Sunset Dreamscape. It also includes a mini mascara. The palette has a good mix of everyday wearbale rose tones. On my medium skin tone it gives me a neutral rose bronze shade without being too pink or rosy.
Eyeshadows include a soft champagne, warm peachy copper shimmer, matte plum. For the face there is a nice soft light tan matte bronzer (neutral tones), two blushes in warm rose tones and a pale sheer highlighter.
Overall pigment level is medium but buildable. Lasting power is excellent for wear time and I love the colors!
Skin Care
A couple other mentions I wanted to include are some of her skincare items. There are two value sets including the Setting Spray and Magic Cream Set ($75 on sale, $113 value) and also the Magic Cream Set ($160 on sale, $240 value). I’m a huge fan of her Airbrush Flawless Setting Spray and Magic Cream so I think if you’re looking to try her skincare these are some nice sets available with some good price savings.
The Nordstrom Anniversary Sale opens to the public today! In case you missed it you can see my Beauty Haul with swatches of my picks from Tom Ford, Charlotte Tilbury, NARS and more here. My Hair Care and Fragrance picks from Diptyque, Jo Malone, Oribe here.
Today I have a closer look at the three sets from NARS I hauled and after playing with them I think they are my favorites and definitely worth looking into!
The NARS Pleasure Trip Cheek Palette ($45 sale, $87 value) is a trio with one highlighter (Wanderlust), one shimmery brush (Lucky Star) and a soft matte bronzer (Wild at Heart). The palette shows up pretty well on my medium tan skin for a bronzed rose look. Colors are smooth and the shimmers aren’t too shimmery. Pigment is on the medium-high side but can be easily sheered out. The texture is that finely milled pressed texture similar to the older Banc de Sable or the more recent NARS Orgasm on the Beach – just not as glowy/shimmery on my skin.
AFTERGLOW LIP SHINE SET
The NARS Afterglow Lip Shine Set ($45 sale, $78 value) is really nice, especially if you like smooth texture lip glosses. Pigment is sheer but still visible on the lips. I like them alone but they also layer beautifully with lipsticks or lip liners. Lasting power is pretty good for a gloss. The shimmery ones have no texture even with the sparkles.
Broken Glass is a clear base loaded with silver and pale gold shimmers.
Orgasm is a medium pink shimmer.
Laguna is a warm coppery bronze with a subtle shimmer.
AFTERGLOW MINI LIP BALM DUO
Last but not least lip swatches of the NARS Afterglow Mini Lip Balm Duo ($22) in Deep Throat and Fast Lane. The lip balms in this duo are super mini, but it makes for a nice sampler size to give you a sense of how they will perform on your lips. Also makes a super cute gift. I think the full-size Afterglow Lip Balms ($28 each) are 100% worth the splurge. Love these for the soft wash of color + shine.
“Receive deluxe samples of Bronzing Powder in Laguna (0.04 oz.), Lipstick in Rosecliff (0.06 oz.), Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base (0.09 oz.) and Climax Mascara (0.06 oz.) with your $100 NARS purchase. Online and in U.S. stores.*”
There is also another gift available online with any purchase in Beauty and Fragrance with $150 purchases (sample pack).
My latest love is the new By Terry Hyaluronic Hydra-Balm ($38, available at By Terry). By Terry created six perfect neutrals for lips in a tinted balm formula and every single color is perfect. The team kindly sent 2 and after seeing a few previews online I immediately ordered the other 4. I have all 6 swatched today. I think they’re great everyday kind of colors – basic staples without being boring.
The Hyaluronic Hydra-Balms are creamy and have a moisturizing feel without too much slip. Pigment is pretty good in coverage with medium level opacity. Formula-wise they have hyaluronic acid to add moisture and give the lips a full plump look. She also added a water gloss complex to give it a naturally glossy look. They do have a perfumed powdery rose scent but on me I feel like it fades within a few minutes (or my nose gets used to it).
Lasting power is similar to the Chanel Rouge Coco Bloom or YSL Rouge Volupte Shines. You will need to reapply every few hours but if you add a lipliner underneath lasting power is better.
I really love the colors she launched. I would love to see her add more shades to the line in the future too though! Maybe some more pink browns or toffee shades!
Shade 1 Sexy Nude is a light cool-toned nude, I thought this would be too pale but it’s really pretty on
Shade 2 Nudissimo is a light pink with coral tones, this is the only one I felt too pale for my skin tone, but if I layer it with a lip liner or another lipstick it’s perfect
Shade 3 Tea Time* is the perfect tan beige
Shade 4 Dare to Bare* is a pretty soft berry neutral
Shade 5 Secret Kiss is a brown pink (love this one)
Shade 6 is a berry red nude
Swatches below:
Sexy Nude, Nudissimo, Tea Time on the lips also wearing:
100% love and the formula is comfortable, hydrating, not too heavy or thick. I also think the colors are perfect for everyday. Highly recommend. You can find them online at By Terry.
Shop the Post:
Press samples have a * next to them. All other items purchased by me.
I have some Victoria Beckham Beauty newness to share! She recently added new Bronzer Duos to her line and a new shade of the Bitten Lip Tint in Amour. I also tried out some more of her eye products so I thought I’d add that to the roundup today as well.
Matte Bronzing Brick
There are five duos of the Matte Bronzing Brick ($58 each) and they also come in a refill format as well. These come in a hefty mirrored compact. If you’re familiar with her Smoky Eye Brick Eyeshadow Palettes, the Bronzers are significantly bigger in compact size.
The bronzers are in a powder formula with two shades. A lighter one to add warmth and a deeper one for contour or mixing. These are matte and smooth. Based on her shade charts I thought I would probably be either Shade 02 and Shade 03. After testing both I prefer the lighter option Shade 02 even though I have medium tan skin tones.
Shade 02 is a more neutral tan duo for light to medium skin tones.
Shade 03 pulls warmer and more tan and pulls a little dark on me for my bronze preference. Wearing the same as above but with the Bitten Lip Tint in Amour.
Powders are matte so they do look flat on my skin alone. They look best when layered with your blush and highlighter for dimension and sculpting. When combined with blush etc. I like how they warm up the complexion.
I liked that they didn’t darken too much on the skin (a lot of matte bronzers do). Lasting power is very good. In terms of all the bronzing powder formulas I’ve tried, I still prefer the texture and wear of Tom Ford, NARS or Hourglass because they have a little bit of shimmer or glow.
I applied mine with the Chanel Powder Brush No 106 (one of my favorites). Overall I think they are just as described. They’re good, but I wouldn’t call them the best.
Bitten Lip Tint
I reviewed the Bisou Bitten Lip Tint ($36) when the line launched (review here). I really liked the concept but the color didn’t work for me. She recently added a new shade in Amour* which is much better for me. It’s a 90s like soft peachy brown with an almost diffused watercolor wash finish. I decided to also give Cherie a try which is a lighter variation of Bisou. Cherie is a sheer rose but darkens on my lips to an almost berry color. I think it’s a classic kind of berry rose.
Both will stain the lips and has better lasting power than a lipstick. You can layer them with a lip pencil for more color or depth. These have a gel-like finish and texture that has a dry down. I’m still not the biggest fan of lip stains but I really do like Amour.
Smoky Eye Brick
There have been so many raves about the Smoky Eye Bricks ($56) I decided to try two of them. They didn’t live up to the hype for me but the quality and pigment is still pretty good. Silk has a mix of gold shimmers and one plum shimmer. I really love the multi-dimensional quality, texture and color payoff but the gold had too much yellow for my skin tone. Tweed is an all-matte palette with some lovely everyday kind of mattes. I love tones like these – it has a similar vibe to the Chanel Candeur Et Experience. The texture of the Chanel quad is better and smoother while the Victoria Beckham matte is a little bit dry but I can make it work.
Overall fun to play with. If you can wear yellow golds Silk is beautiful! I wish they made something with a little bit more warmth or something more neutral with the same shimmers. I just ordered the Patrick TA Major Dimension Eyeshadow Palette which I think will be more of what I’m looking for.
Lid Lustres
In my initial haul I really loved the Mink Lid Lustre ($36) and I was really looking forward to seeing new colors. The newer shades were released sometime last year in Honey (shimmering honey gold) and Tea Rose (plum gold rose shimmer). Both of these are beautiful! You can wear them alone or layered. These have pearl pigments in a pressed powder format. In my experience they apply best with fingers in a patting motion. They are easy to blend and layer and stay put pretty well on the lids. Swatches below, also next to a few of the Hourglass Scattered Light Eyeshadows (still my favorite sparkly toppers).
Overall love the new Lid Lustres and Bitten Lip Tints in Amour and Cherie. The quads didn’t live up to the hype from what I’ve seen in other reviews. I didn’t know what to expect from the Matte Bronzing Bricks as I’m usually not a huge fan of matte bronzers. I like the concept and will wear Shade 02 to warm up the complexion and add some depth. I still prefer something with a bit of glow when it comes to powder formulas, but if you’re looking for a matte option to try, this might be just the one for you.
That wraps up my Victoria Beckham Beauty haul! Have you tried anything from the line? What did you think so far? Available online at Victoria Beckham Beauty, Violet Grey and Net-A-Porter.
Amour Lip Tint provided for review. Everything else purchased by me.
I’m so excited to share a look at this year’s Chanel Les Beiges Summer Light collection. I look forward to the new additions every summer! Everything is available now online at Chanel.com. I think the entire collection is effortless and beautiful.
Chanel added a deeper shade of the Les Beiges Healthy Glow Bronzing Cream in 395 Soleil Tan Deep Bronze which is a darker cream bronze shade. It is quite a bit darker than the original 390 Soleil Tan Bronze. For me I find the original one shows up for a more natural look on my Chanel Foundation B40/B50 skintone. If you’re B40 or deeper you may have found it matched your skintone too much.
395 Soleil Tan Deep Bronze definitely works better as a deeper bronze shade for my medium tan skin. It is quite intense in color but is easy to blend and make more natural looking. That being said if you are fair toned I think this will be too deep for you, especially if you want a more natural bronze look.
Lasting power is pretty decent as long as I’m not outdoors too long. Weather here is warmer but not intense yet.
Les Beiges Healthy Glow Natural Eyeshadow Palettes
There are two new Les Beiges Healthy Glow Natural Eyeshadow Palettes in Intense (neutral bronze tones) and Tender (pink reddish tones). I love both and they have that finely milled smooth shimmer with sparkles similar. They have a soft texture with medium pigment. You can layer them on top of cream shadows to intensify the color payoff.
Intense has shimmers in a soft cream, bronze, darker khaki, medium khaki and soft bronze. The shimmers are complex in the compact so if you see different photos online the palettes may look different depending on how the light catches.
Tender has a mix of soft pink, wine, champagne and rose tones. I added a couple other swatches to Medium (the original one) and Warm (from last year).
Rouge Coco Flash
Chanel has four new shades of Rouge Coco Flash and I think they’re perfect for summer! Dawn is a light neutral nude beige, Sunbeam is a perfect coral (reminds me of a more pigmented version of their discontinued shade in Flash), Flame is a pretty plum, Heat is a bold red. They’re glossy and have pretty good pigment for a shine lipstick formula.
Last we have a look at the new Le Vernis Longwear Nail Colors. I do think at least two of these may have been previously launched many years ago (I know Golden Sand for sure was a color before). I do not have the older shades to compare, but I really love the four options this launch. I applied each one with 2 coats. The metallics will show some of the brush strokes but I think they’re still really pretty.
Glimmer is a pretty neutral cream beige with a hint of silver sparkles (but they don’t really show up on the nail)
Sunlight is a metallic rose pink
Golden Sand is a golden metallic sand color
Solar is a pretty bronze sparkle
Overall a solid A+ for everything. I love how effortless and easy the colors are to wear. I still would have liked to see them launch a beautiful new powder bronzer or highlighter but I have plenty in my stash to pick from. The lip colors are perfect for summer to me – love that there is a nude and a few brighter colors that are fun but still nice to wear for everyday.
You can find the entire collection available now at Chanel.com. Have you checked out the new launch yet? What did you think?
Les Beiges collection provided courtesy of Chanel for review.
