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First Look at Paul & Joe Holiday from Guest Writer Joey

October 11, 2009

Paul & Joe has released some really cute items for the holiday including new pearl powders, face colors, eyeliners, eyeshadow palettes, lip lacquers and some new body items. Check out the collection details on their 2009 Smoke & Mirrors Winter Creation Collection on the Paul & Joe Beaute Website or on the Paul & Joe Facebook Fan Page. Joey was sweet enough to bring us a first look at the collection and share her makeover from the Bergdorf Goodman event she attended this weekend!

Left to right: Lip Gloss #10, Lip Lacquer #10, Lipstick #002

Top to bottom: Pearl Powder #002 and Eye Gloss #5

Left to right: Eye Gloss #5 and Pearl Powder #002

I am so thrilled to be writing a guest review for The Beauty Look Book, so I thought it’d be wonderful to feature a brand that both Lina and I have an obsession over: Paul and Joe Beaute!

I (un)luckily live and work nearby Bergdorf Goodman in NYC and today the Paul and Joe counter was having a makeover event to debut the Holiday collection. Of course, I booked myself an appointment with one of the global artists (Jocelyn from L.A.), and since I had already placed my Holiday order, all I had to do was sit and relax.

Jocelyn started by giving me a mini facial, removing my makeup with the Light Cleansing Milk and Refreshing Skin Toner (which I know Lina loves, as do I!). She then massaged my face with the Moisturizing Facial Mask, this luxurious wipe off mask. My skin was finished with a light application of the Moisture Lotion N and Moisture Gel for my undereyes. While I was being treated to that lovely mini-facial, another artist demoed the new Treatment Peel-Off Mask on my left hand. There was a significant different in the texture and feel of my left hand, but I have a sample of the mask at home to try on my face before I buy a full-size.

What I really appreciated about Jocelyn was that she incorporated products I already owned into my look, and did not pressure me to buy anything (it already helped that I had my order placed previous to my makeover). Also, she stopped after every step to show me her progress and obtain my approval before moving on.

For my face, she used the Creamy Powder Compact foundation (my HG!) in shade #40, the new Under Eye Concealer in shade #02, the Holiday Highlighting Powder (the pinker shade) under my eyes and across my cheekbones, and Face Colour #12 (which I have and love) on the apples of my cheeks.

My eyes had a simple gold-brown look. The new warm-brown toned Holiday trio was used (lightest shade allover, middle shade in crease, and darkest in outer corner). Also, Eye Gloss #4 (a pale pink) was used in the center of my lid, and Pearl Powder #002 from the Holiday collection (a reddish taupe) was placed on top of that. The purple-gray eyeliner pencil from Holiday was used to line my lids, and over that went an application of the other Holiday Pearl Powder (a sooty gray) mixed with Fluid Eye Liner (a black) for a sparkly effect. My lashes were Mascara Duo N #1 (black) mixed with that gray Pearl Powder for a sparkly effect.

My lips were Lip Liner #06 (a brick red), topped with Lipstick #063 from the Spring collection (which is what I was wearing when I went for the makeover – Jocelyn loved it and refused to remove it) and the new Lip Lacquer #10, a reddish-plum-brown shade.

To say I was pleased was an understatement! I looked dramatic but sophisticated. I ended up purchasing Pearl Powder #002 and Lip Lacquer #10 from Holiday, Lipstick L #002 from the Summer collection (a sheer vivid hot pink), Lip Gloss N #10 (a pretty sparkly rust shade that I thought would be perfect with NARS Toundra Velvet Matte Pencil), and Eye Gloss N #5, a gorgeous shimmery taupe. Also, I received a gorgeous GWP that included a notebook, a little soap dish, and four generous skincare samples! All in all, it was a wonderful experience; Paul and Joe is a makeup and skincare line to fall deeply in love with, right Lina?

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Guerlain Holiday 2009 Bal de Nuit Eyeshadow Quad

October 11, 2009

Guerlain has a lovely collection for this holiday and I picked up the Bal de Nuit quad from Neiman Marcus. I only have 1 other quad from their Fall Collection since most of their eyeshadows have so-so pigment. This one seems to have decent pigmentation, but you will be suprised to hear that the colors didn’t wow me this time.

It’s definitely a great neutral quad with pretty shades, but I found that I had a lot of dupes in my collection. The most unique shade is probably the bottom right chocolately color because it has just the right enough darkness to make it a gorgeous smokey unique brown, but there are definitely similar colors.

Comparisons to the following shades:

* White shimmer is very similar to Bobbi Brown Navajo Metallic
* Pink shimmer is similar to MAC Shimmertime Pigment
* Taupe shimmer is very similar to Nars Ashes to Ashes and Chanel Vega (discontinued, but very similar to Chanel Safari, see TAUPE SHADES HERE)
* Dark chocolate shimmer is similar to Bobbi Brown Java Metallic and Urban Decay Twice Baked

Holiday vs Fall Quads (two views – the flash makes these hard to photograph):

Overall thoughts: It’s nice to have if you’re looking for the convenience of an all-in-one neutral palette. It’s wearable for year round, but not a must have for me. The collection is definitely worth checking out since there are some pretty lipsticks and the holiday ball-highlighter is really pretty too!

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Edward Bess Fall Lipglosses: Nude Satin, Sweet Dream & Love Always

October 10, 2009

Still on the Edward Bess kick, I just received the Fall Lipglosses from Bergdorf Goodman and they do not disappoint.

All the shades are creamy and have no shimmer. They do seem to be on the sheer side, but I’ve heard they are meant to be layered with the lipsticks.

* Nude Satin is a beigey-brown nude, a true nude in my view
* Sweet Dream is the brightest of the three, a deeper pinky berry
* Love Always a pretty slightly cool-toned dusty rose

More views, with flash:

In natural sunlight:

I highly recommend you check out the Swatch Cards that Krista sent me to gauge the colors of these glosses rather than rely on my own swatches of the colors.

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Dior Holiday 2009: Smoky Crystal Quint + Silver Purple Nail Polish

October 9, 2009

Dior Holiday 2009 has been spotted at my local Macy’s and I picked up the new Smoky Crystal 089 quint and Silver Purple 782 nail polish from the collection.

I just got a manicure, so I didn’t swatch the nail polish for you. I do recommend you check All Lacquered Up for a swatch of this lovely purple though. The entire holiday collection seemed very cool-toned, most of it seemed like repromoted items with the exception of a new sparkle-chrome-like single shadow and a charm with gloss.

Close up of the new eyeshadow palette:

Comparisons to a few other quints that I have to show how cool-toned it is. It’s even more cool than Sky Glow:

I don’t have dupes for the other shades, but the closest I could find to the bottom left color is MAC Moth Brown. The Dior is even more blue-cool toned than MAC Moth Brown which I consider to be one of the coolest-toned eyeshadows that I have:

OVERALL THOUGHTS: This is one of the iridescent formula quints, so the pigment is very rich. It’s definitely unique and not easily dupe-able in my opinion. Lovely for a soft silvery eye or a smokey eye. There are a lot of different looks you can create with this palette.

UPDATE: I was initially worried this would be too cool-toned or frosty for my medium olive-golden skin, however, I tried it tonight and it worked just fine for me! I even ventured out of my comfort zone and used all the shades tonight and it wasn’t too frosty.

I signed up for a Dior event this next week at my local Nordstrom – so I will see if they can show me more techniques on how to use this.

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Bobbi Brown Holiday Chrome Palette for Eyes & Cheeks

October 8, 2009

More and more of the holiday collections are trickling in and the Chrome Palette arrived at Neiman Marcus today.

Retails for $75 and the shadow pigment seems a lot better than Earth Metal. I don’t have swatches of this as I am undecided about keeping it. It’s very cool-toned. I do feel it’s a better buy than Earth Metal even though I usually don’t wear cool tones.

Top row has: White Eyeshadow, Polar Ice Shimmer Wash, Storm Cloud Sparkle Eyeshadow, Iron Eyeshadow, Thunder Metallic Eyeshadow

Second row has: Moonlight Sparkle Eyeshadow, Cyber Grey Shimmer Wash, Foil Metallic Eyeshadow, Chrome Metallic Eyeshadow, Charcoal Haze Eyeshadow

Lips: Pink Mist Shimmer Gloss, Winter Bronze Glitter Gloss, Berry Shimmer Glitter Gloss, Chrome Pink Shimmer Gloss

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Chanel Forbidden, Diabolic, Vamp, Rouge Noir and Some Other Burgundy Shades . .

October 8, 2009

Quite a few fall collections have jumped on the dark-vampy-trend bandwagon and while I’m usually very excited to find new dark colors for nails, I have mixed feelings about the new polishes from the Chanel Noirs Obscurs collection after seeing them in person.

Chanel just released two new colors, Forbidden and Diabolic and repromoted Vendetta from last holiday. I ordered the two new ones sight unseen and at first glance was less than impressed. However when I swatched them on my nails, my feelings changed.

Both Forbidden 437 and Diabolic 427 are deep chocolatey-burgundy-vampy shades and are extremely similar. When swatched, the colors aren’t as dull as I expected – they have just the right amount of brown and red. You definitely don’t need both, but they are different enough from Chanel’s Vamp and Rouge Noir to justify maybe buying one.

Difference between the two: Forbidden is slightly lighter and more chocolatey, Diabolic is deeper and darker.

Here are more photos with my comparisons to similar shades:

Swatches:
Thumb = Cosmic Violine 497
Index = Forbidden 437
Middle = Diabolic 427
Ring = Rouge Noir 18
Pinkie = Vamp 18

With high flash:

In natural sunlight:

Another view:

Compared to a couple other brands: MAC All Night Long and Sephora by OPI I’m With Brad:

Overall thoughts: Even though I’m a huge Chanel fan and obsessed with collecting almost every single nail color they release, Forbidden and Diabolic were just ok for me. I didn’t gasp with awe when I took them out of the box. I was hoping for something different with those complex shimmer particles that they are known for creating.

That being said, I tend to like shimmery nail polishes, perhaps I need to get more used to those creamy non-shimmery shades. As a fellow Chanel fan and I were discussing a few days ago, they seem to be more for the Chanel collector, and while they are nice to have, we wouldn’t have died if we didn’t get our hands on them.

Bottom line: They look great on the nails, but there’s no need to have both. They are different enough from Vamp/Rouge Noir to justify trying out. If you don’t mind shimmer and want a cheaper alternative, Sephora by OPI I’m With Brad is pretty close, however do note that the Chanel formulas are superior by far. With the Sephora by OPI – you can get good results, but it will require a lot more thin coats.

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Ten Things I’m Loving Right Now

October 6, 2009

Here is October’s list of Ten Things I’m Loving Right now. There’s a slight twist on a few items because I simply could not pick one item in a certain category. I’d love to hear what you all are loving right now too.

1) Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill #1 Steel Black Mascara $28 – I finally found a mascara that thickens and holds curl! I have the straightest lashes ever and even after curling with my favorite Trish McEvoy Eyelash Curler, nothing holds the curl as well as this one. Doesn’t clump, smudge or flake. I’ve tried other Armani mascaras in the past and did not like them at all, luckily, I got a mini-sized version of this to try out first. My other favs are DiorShow (gives thick plush lashes), Dior Iconic (gives dramatic black lashes) and Chanel Inimitable (also great) – but Armani’s Eyes to Kill has won my heart.

* A few key tips – I recommend using only one coat and make sure it dries completely before touching up your eye makeup or removing smudges from eyeshadow fall out. Also, I use this in conjunction with an eyelash curler, I can’t say whether or not it is curling, but I will say it holds the curl very well.

2) Shu Uemura Natural Pony Brush 20 $50 – Soft and plush, this is the perfect size and shape with the right density in bristles to make this my favorite blush brush. There is an angled version 20h which is just as soft.

3) Paul & Joe Refreshing Skin Toner $33 – I was lucky to try a sample before I bought this. The Paul & Joe toner makes my skin feel refreshed and it isn’t too drying or heavy. I have sensitive skin and this seems to be gentle and effective at the same time. Love the price too!

4) Bobbi Brown Nude Shimmer Brick $38 – I own almost every Shimmer Brick from Bobbi Brown and this one is the prettiest to date and works on both eyes and cheeks. It features “five pure pearl pigments—pink, gold, bronze, beige and caramel” – I believe it is limited edition, but can still be found at various counters. See comparisons to other shades HERE.

5) Chanel Quadra Eyeshadows in Mystic Eyes $56 – This is one of the prettiest unique combination of colors I have seen. I love the silvery shade because it has some golden flecks in the shimmer. I like to wear it with NARS Oasis Blush and Stolen Kisses Lipgloss over Mitzi Lipstick.

6) MAC Viva Glam V Lipglass $14 – this is my classic no-fail neutral pink lip gloss

7) Black/Gold Olivey Colors – I really like black golds for fall which can sometimes end up looking olivey with the combination. My favorites right now are:

1. MAC Seriously Hip Nail Polish
2. MAC Gilt By Association Mineralize Eye Shadow
3. Laura Mercier Black Gold Kohl Eye Pencil
4. Clinique Egyptian Eyeliner
5. Bobbi Brown Forest Shimmer Ink Gel Liner

8) Sheer Hot Pink Blushes like Dolce & Gabbana Provocative Blush $44, Bobbi Brown Pale Pink $22, MAC Pink Swoon $18 and Nars Desire $25 are all clear bright pinks and when applied lightly give a pretty healthy glow.

9) Beige Shimmer Lipglosses like MAC Bare Necessity Dazzleglass $18, Chanel Freeze Aqualumiere $27, Hourglass Ignite Extreme Sheen Gloss $28, Chantecaille Crystalline Brilliant Gloss $28, Le Metier Captiva Sheer Brilliance Gloss $32 and Laura Mercier Opal Lip Glace $22 all have this lovely complex iridescence with a neutral beigey base giving a barely-there glow to the lips.

L to R: MAC Bare Necessity, Chanel Freeze, Hourglass Ignite, Chantecaille Crystalline, Le Metier Captiva, Laura Mercier Opal

10) L’Occitane Cherry Blossom Hand Cream $10 – love this for the packaging and lightweight non-sticky texture. I keep one in my purse all the time. Also comes in the larger sizes and a few different scents/formulas.