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Chanel

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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.

Check out last month’s list:
* September’s Ten Things I’m Loving Right Now

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I *HEART* MAC Baby Goth Girl

September 27, 2009

Purple seems to be popular this fall and there are quite a few vampy purples that have been released (or repromoted) this season. I did a feature back in July, Color Focus: Dark Vampy Polish with some of the vampy shades I have and a swatch/review on Nars Tokaido Express as well.

I just added MAC’s Baby Goth Girl from the Style Black release to my own personal collection and love it! Although it looks similar to my other vampy shades in natural light, I found it different enough in the undertone and sparkle to make my heart skip a beat when I put it on. Here are some comparisons to other purple shades.

Left to right: Nars Tokaido Express, Chanel Vendetta, Chanel Feu de Russie, MAC Baby Goth Girl, OPI Black Cherry Chutney

Three coats each shade:

Thumb = OPI Black Cherry Chutney
Index Finger = MAC Baby Goth Girl
Middle Finger = Chanel Feu de Russie
Ring Finger = Chanel Vendetta
Pinkie = Nars Tokaido Express

Same order as above, different view:

Close up swatches of Chanel Vendetta, Chanel Feu de Russie, MAC Baby Goth Girl

Swatches in natural light, same order as above:

Thumb = OPI Black Cherry Chutney
Index Finger = MAC Baby Goth Girl
Middle Finger = Chanel Feu de Russie
Ring Finger = Chanel Vendetta
Pinkie = Nars Tokaido Express

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Chanel Holiday 2009 Glossimer Duo: Les Deux Levres Scintillantes

September 26, 2009

US girls who have been eyeing or wishing for that elusive Euro/Canada Praline Glossimer – you are in luck because it is one of the glosses in the Chanel holiday sets! I went back to check on a few things and found out more details about this set which has:
* Glossimers in Spark & Praline (not Giggle like the SA had assumed and told me)
* Mini Nude Lipliner
* Retails for $50 (US)

The three sets I have seen were spotted at two local Nordstroms in Southern California but I have not seen the product is not yet online. As of yesterday, no spottings of the Noirs Obscurs or the Paris-New York Palette although I have seen the palette pop up online at a few places.

Close up of Spark (red gloss), Praline (nude pink gloss), and Nude Lipliner:

Praline comparisons:

Left to right: Chanel Giggle Glossimer, Chanel Praline #46 Glossimer, Chanel Bel Air #147 Glossimer, Chanel Glass Quartz Aqualumiere Gloss #69, Laura Mercier Blush, Laura Mercier Rose Flush, Bobbi Brown Pink Beige, MAC Full on Lust

Same order, different view:

Same order for swatches:

For the Chanel Glossimers, Giggle is the most nude, Bel Air is the most pink, Praline has slight brownish tones compared to both. Check out some more natural pink lipgloss swatch comparisons here Nordstrom Beauty Exclusives Haul Part 1.

I have a few reddish glosses but will have to dig them up. Check back for this post to be updated shortly.

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My Brow Products & Swatches

September 26, 2009

This is a follow up on my Shu Uemura haul from last week to compare Seal Brown with my other brow products. I have dark brown/black hair with red highlights – but you can only see the reddish/brown if I am wearing a black shirt or if I’m in the sun, so just consider my hair black.

Brow products are usually too harsh, ashy or reddish for my hair color. I’ve been matched with all these shades from various makeovers and I am surprised that they all work, however Seal Brown works the best. It looks really light in the pot/swatch, but works really well for a soft natural dark brow.

Here it is compared to Laura Mercier Soft, Chanel Blonde & Chanel Soft Brown with different views/backgrounds and then swatches.

* Note that Bobbi Brown Mahogany Ink is a gel liner, not a brow product, it’s simply swatched so you can gauge how soft the other brow product colors are.

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First Look at the Chanel Holiday 2009 Gift Sets: Trio Exclusif de Vernis

September 25, 2009

I was surprised to see three different holiday sets out at my local Chanel counter at Nordstrom yesterday when the Noirs Obscurs collection hadn’t even arrived yet.

I saw three different sets, although I am not sure if these are the only sets coming out:
* Mini Brush Set $125 for 6 brushes, large face, small blush, eyeshadow, angled brow and a few others
* Lips Set $50 with Praline & Spark Glossimers and a mini Nude Lipliner
* Nail Colour Trio $65 with Allegoria, Tulip Noire (repromote) and Trapeze

I immediately snagged the Nail Set which contains my holy grail plummy-gold nail polish Tulip Noire and the new Trapeze nail polish that is coming out this holiday individually.

Antilope (from Spring 2008) versus Trapeze (holiday 2009): they are very similar, the only difference is Antilope is more frosty and has a slight gold base where Trapeze is a bit darker and more pewter/taupe/silver-cool

Golden Sand, Antilope, Trapeze:

Trapeze Nail Polish, as seen in the October 2009 Issue of Elle, page 275 “Face Time by April Long” – Philips says of Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour in Trapeze “it’s an accessory you can wear with everything.”

For some more tidbits of information on the upcoming holiday collections from Chanel, check out these awesome resources:

Makeup4All – Golden Cage Makeup Collection by Chanel, Holiday 2009
TalkingMakeup.com – Chanel Holiday Beauty Guide 2009
A Blogger that falls in love with Makeup – Holiday ’09 – ’10, Chanel Birds of Paradise

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Color Focus: Deep Purple Eye Shadows

September 25, 2009

I love the smokey eye looks that come out for fall but until recently, it seems like most all the lines usually release the typical variations of black and grey for their “smokey look.” I am not one who can pull of black eyeshadow or eyeliner easily because it’s often too harsh or ends up looking blueish on my skin. I have to opt for other deep colors and did a series on Smokey Eye Variations back in June and am so excited that lines are now releasing collections with a “black/smokey” theme that include colors other than just black or grey.

I just discovered 2 new deep purple shimmery eyeshadows from MAC and Dior and thought I’d pull out some of my favorite deep purples to compare.

1. Dior Ultra-Smooth High Impact Eyeshadow in #186 Ultra Violet
2. MAC Mineralize Eyeshadow in Young Punk
3. Laura Mercier Sateen Eyeshadow in Kir Royal
4. MAC Fertile Eyeshadow
5. Giorgio Armani Maestro #18
6. Bobbi Brown Metallic Eyeshadow in After Hours
7. Stila Poise

A few other pictures of smokey purples:

1. Bobbi Brown Metallic in After Hours
2. Chanel Magic Night
3. MAC Smut
4. MAC Deep Purple Pigment (Pro)

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Chanel Tokyo Happening Nail Colors Spotted!

September 20, 2009

I was at South Coast Plaza today and stopped by the Bloomingdales Chanel Studio and was excited to see that they had all of the Tokyo Happening Nail Polishes in stock!

Other Limited Edition/Online & Boutique Exclusives they had include:
* Tokyo Glossimers in Lune (white), Wish (blue) and Galactic (white-gold)
* Jade Rose nail polish (see pics a few posts down here), but did not yet have Jade
* Symphonie White Whisper Quad, Blanc Petale Nail Polish and a few of the Highlighter Powder (see pics of the highlighter here and nail polish/quad here)
* Candy & Tea Rose Euro/Asia JCs

Being the avid Chanel collector, I picked up one of each, even though on the nails it’s pretty much a clear base with micro-sparkles.