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All About Armani: Sheer & Shine Lipstick Collection 2009

June 1, 2009

This past spring, Giorgio Armani released a collection of limited-edition lipsticks in the Sheer and Shine Formulas.

It was designed focused on the following: “Sheers Collection spotlights two seductive nude makeup harmonies that feature a luminous skin, sunset smokey eyes and sheer better than bare lips.”

The new shades released include the following colors with descriptions per the Giorgio Armani website.

Sheers:
#30 – Pink Grapefruit
#31 – Raspberry
#32 – Haute Pink
#33 – Rose Coral

Shines:
#45 – Pink Rose
#46 – Soft Petal
#47 – Nude Taupe
#48 – Melon
#49 – Fig
#50 – Rose Antico

The Giorgio Armani Beauty Advisor also featured two looks for day and evening for the Sheers Collection.

Get the natural nude daytime look using:
* Face Fabric No. 8
* Fluid Sheer No. 7
* Two beige Maestro Mono Eyeshadows No. 27 & No. 30
* Shine Beige Lipstick No. 47

Get the more intense translucent color evening look using:
* Face Fabric No. 5
* Fluid Sheer No. 11
* Two pink beige and nude brown Maestro Mono Eyeshadows No. 19 & No. 33
* Sunset Pink Sheer Lipstick No. 30

Unfortunately I cannot find any model photos featuring these looks.

If you are a fan of the natural-lip, then you will love these new shades. There were a couple brighter more intense shades, but I did not purchase those. The ones I did purchase are pictured above. These have a soft texture and apply smoothly. They aren’t full-coverage, so I recommend applying with a lipliner to help the color last longer.

Some good natural pink lipliner shades I’d recommend:
* Armani #10 (natural pink beige)
* Armani #12 (neutral mauvey pink)
* Armani #13
* MAC Sublime Culture (perfect YLBB nude-pink)
* MAC Whirl (neutral brown-pink)
* Chanel Tulip (soft pink shimmer)
* Chanel Tawny (for a deeper pink)
* Trish McEvoy Bare (my HG bare-color lipliner)

Some close up shots here:

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All About Armani: New Maestro Eye Shadows

June 1, 2009

Giorgio Armani has finally released some new maestro single shadows! The shades released are the missing numbers in between 19 and 37, however there are still a few numbers missing and I have not been able to find information online or in store yet. Some shades appear to be reformulations of their original shadows. Below are pictures and descriptions. I highly recommend you visit makeupalley and check out member REPLICA for her fabulous notepad listing descriptions of all the armani products.

As far as I know, there are quite a few stores that do not have these in yet. Some counter managers are unaware of these even coming out, but I assume they should be trickling in very soon. E-mail me if you need a contact to order these. Just a heads up – the 2 stores near me did receive limited stock in their first shipment.

Giorgio Armani describes his Maestro shadows as follows:

“The formula of maestro eye shadow contains pure silk-like powders to create a soft, lightweight texture that glides onto eyelids in a silken veil of colour. Three different finishes replicate the breathtaking effects Giorgio Armani achieves with silk: matte gives smooth, deep colour; satin creates a lustrous sheen; sparkling illuminates with iridescent shimmer.”

Now, onto the new shades photographed with a few already-existing shades:

* Maestro #20 – shimmery warm golden brown, very similar to Maestro #4, but the Maestro #20 is more golden, slightly lighter, also the Maestro #20 could be a more golden/shimmery version of the original 20 (NOTE: Maestro #20 is pictured in one of the Japanese Magazines, posted HERE)

* Maestro #25 – satin yogurt-pink with pale mauve tones (looks like a dupe for the original #6)

* Maestro #26 – satin medium-dark brown, neutral-cool

* Maestro #27 – shimmery warm neutral taupe (looks like a dupe for original #11)

* Maestro #28 – shimmery light yellowy buttercream, paler than the more yellow than the original #9

* Maestro #29 – shimmery pale pink (looks like a dupe for original 12, but more pigmented and more shimmery)

* Maestro #30 – shimmery pale seashell pink, slightly deeper than Maestro #29 (this is a dupe for original 53)

* Maestro #32 – shimmery taupe-grey (cooler than Maestro 27 but not as cool-grey as the original 26)

* Maestro #34 – shimmery baby pink, (seems like a dupe for original 55 with a tad more pink)

* Maestro #36 – a matte buttercream (yellowish cream not pictured)

More close ups . . .

(Maestro 27 is photographed again to compare with Maestro 32)
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Saks Chanel Makeover Event featuring Nude Blush, Soft Eyes and Sparkling Lips

June 1, 2009

I was able to get my makeup done by one of Chanel’s National Artists, John Fussell, about a year ago at a Saks event. The team of makeup artists prepped my skin and started my makeup with lips and blush. John then did my eye makeup and retouched my blush for a more dramatic look even though most of the shades were very neutral. The eye makeup was incredible – which was surprising since he used two very basic browns. His placement of color and blending was amazing and really opened up my eyes.

FACE:
* Teint Innocence Liquid in Shell 1.5
* Soft Pressed Powder in Rosee & Peche Tender mixed for a soft glow
* Joues Contraste Powder Blush in Nude (applied heavily)



EYES:
* Professional Eyeshadow Base (can’t remember the color)
* Soft Touch Eyeshadow in Sand dusted on 3/4 of the entire eye & under the eye close to lash line
* Soft Touch Eyeshadow in Mahogany along upper lashes & along bottom lash line black mascara
* Soft Touch Eyeshadow in Lotus was dusted on lids last for a sparkly effect



LIPS:
* Precision Lip Definer in Nude blended all over lip
* Aqualumiere Sheer Color Lipstick in Ipanema (my favorite alternative to MAC High Tea l/s)
* Glossimer in Equinoxe



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Nordstrom Trend Show: Chanel Makeover

June 1, 2009

This look was done a couple years ago, so I can’t remember the exact date. I asked for a pink lip and defined eyes. And I apologize, I can’t remember the brushes or skincare she used. All products Chanel.

FACE:
* Teint Innocence (Liquid) Shell 1.5
* Joues Contraste Powder Blush in Narcisse
* Joues Contraste Powder Blush in Rose Petale (just dabbed on cheeks for more depth)



EYES:
* Professional Eyeshadow Base (don’t recall the name, but it was a nude shade)
* Soft Touch Eyeshadow in Lotus
* Intense Eye Pencil in Noir (black)
* Soft Touch Eyeshadow in Ebony applied over the liner to give a smokey eye (this one smudged badly, so did not purchase this, I use Black Star instead, which is photographed below)



LIPS:
* Precision Lip Definer in Tulip
* Hydrabase Lipstick in Morning Rose
* Glossimer in Sesame

For a more pink lip, use Imaginaire Glossimer over Tulip Lipliner and Morning Rose Hydrabase. This combo will also go well with Narcisse or Rose Petale Blushes.

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MAC Fashion Forward Event Makeover

June 1, 2009

I’d like to start a series of posts to archive some looks I love and also some great makeovers I’ve had at some events. Hopefully this will give you ideas on some pretty color combinations of products.

The first one I’d like to write about is the MAC Fashion Forward Event I attended at Nordstrom. I had my makeup done by one of my favorites sales associates who I’ve shopped with for years, so she knew my taste and preferences. This was my first good MAC makeover (I’ve had about 5 others that turned out horrible) and now that I know a couple of the good artists, I will definitely request them for future events. Everyone received a cute pamphet with a few face charts featuring some looks.

One page of the face chart pamphlet:


This is what she used on me, all MAC products (unless specified):

FACE:
* Prep & Prime Skin
* Studio Moisture Cream
* Chanel Teint Innocence Shell 1.5
* Mineralize Blush in Dainty

EYES:
* Paint Pot in Painterly
* Eyeshadow in Soba 1/2 way up eye
* Eyeshadow in Folie on outer corners blended up
* Eyeshadow in Arena in the middle of the eye blending colors together
* Eyeshadow in Ricepaper to highlight
* Pearlglide Eye Liner in Molasses

LIPS:
* Lip Pencil in Whirl
* Lipstick in Ramblin Rose
* Dazzleglass in Moth to Flame


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Lipstick Queen for Pink Lip Lovers

May 31, 2009



I took a little road trip to Beverly Hills last week and was able to visit Barneys New York where I was able to check out a few unique brands. One of them was Lipstick Queen, a line launched by Poppy King featuring some cute lip products.

There were three items that stood out to me that were pretty pink shades (left to right, Infinite, Creation, Pink Saint):



* Big Bang Theory Illusion Gloss – Infinite ($20) – Described as “Glittery nude . . . peachy keen” this one seemed more of a pink-gold to me, but I can see how the gold mixed in makes it look almost peachy-nude on the lips.
* Big Bang Theory Illusion Gloss – Creation ($20) – Described as “Sparkling rose . . . cheers!” this seems right on, a pretty unique sparkling rose.
* Saint Sheer Lipstick 10% Pigment in Pink Saint ($18) – Described as “A sheer touch of ballet style pink that is almost nude and not flashy” to me, this is a bit more rich in pink, to me a ballet pink is lighter, still this is pretty and elegant looking.

Overall, some cute pinks in the line! There are some other nice shades including some nice reds and rosey shades, but since I’m more into shimmers, most weren’t must-haves for me. The line selection is very limited but has cute unique packaging.

Hopefully I will be able to try some more lipglosses in the near future. Definitely try out her lipglosses though! She has some great nude/beigey shades in addition to the 2 pink ones I got. Other items I tested included the Pink Exact Match Lipliner (which was a pretty creamy pink, slightly deeper than the sheer lipstick version), Sinners Lipsticks (found too rich/opaque for my taste), Oxymoron Matte Gloss (a bit too thick/messy looking, but some nice nude shades), and the Shine Gloss (opal saint was gorgeous, but incredibly sticky, so I passed). Another interesting product was her lip tint in Medieval which gives a berry-red tint to your lips. If you’re a fan of berry or reddish lips, definitely check this one out! There are some excellent swatches online of the lipsticks and glosses. Check out Karlasugar and also some reviews/pics at Makeupalley!

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Les Naturels de Chanel

May 30, 2009

Chanel has released a new natural-look collection this May 2009 featuring two new matte single eyeshadows along with several repromotes. I’m really excited they decided to repromote Bel Air and Waterlily Glossimers!



The theme for this collection is: “A quintessential makeup collection of universally wearable, natural colours designed to enhance and flatter the face. . . and ensure a woman’s best look is naturally her own.” Les Naturels de Chanel includes the following items:



Here are some close-ups of the collection:

Left to right: Curious Rouge Allure (63), Unity Glossimer (41), Waterlily Glossimer (112), Bel Air Glossimer (147), Naive Rouge Allure (25)



Orchid Rose Joues Contraste (15)

Left to right (matte shades): Lily Ombre Essentielle (84) & Slate Ombre Essentielle (83)

Left to right (repromote shades): Lotus Ombre Essentielle (46) & Mahogany Ombre Essentielle (51)



Some comparisons for Bel Air Glossimer:

1) Chanel Curious RA
2) Chanel Naive RA
3) Chanel Bel Air Glossimer
4) Chanel Giggle Glossimer
5) Chanel Glass Quartz Aqualumiere Gloss #69
6) Dior Addict Ultra-Gloss Reflect Satin Pink #657
7) Laura Mercier Blush Lip Glace
8) MAC Ample Pink Plushglass

Overall thoughts: I am a huge Chanel fan and am so happy I finally got my hands on the Bel Air glossimer since I missed it when it first came out and was exclusive to Chanel Boutiques and online. The matte shadows are gorgeous, but are on the sheer side for me. I need to use a cream base like Laura Mercier’s Metallic or Satin Cream Shadows or MAC Paint Pots. And even with a base, I need to layer it heavily with a stiffer brush. I’m crazy about the natural no-makeup look, but the new matte shadows are a bit “too natural” for me to be absolutely in love with them. Still, they are great for layering over other shades to softly blend colors together.

Luckily, I already have all the other items featured in this collection, so I felt this was nice to give me some ideas on how to incorporate some staple products with new shades. If you don’t have Orchid Rose Blush, it’s a definite must have, it goes with just about everything. I’m a Chanel Shell/Beige = MAC NC30-35 for reference. At one of the Chanel events I went to, the makeup artist used this on one of my friends who is a couple shades lighter than me and it looked gorgeous on her too!

* Promotional images from Chanel.com

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