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Beauty Look Book | Favorite Nude Pink Nail Polishes

March 27, 2014

I’ve been on a natural nude-pink nail polish kick ever since Tom Ford Sugar Dune was released for spring. I’ve since been wearing a lot of light and neutral pinks on the nails. For me light pink is a bit difficult to find, most are either too pale, too sheer or apply unevenly. I’ve still managed to find quite a few variations of light and nude pink with great formulas, application and wear. The colors that made my top picks:



Rescue Beauty Lounge Thank You ($20) is a nude pink with light pearl particles. It flashes blue and pink for a cool-toned sheen but has a nude pink base to prevent it from looking too pale. This color looks good on everyone I’ve seen it on. It’s shown below with two coats.

Tom Ford Sugar Dune ($32) is my ultimate perfect nude pink. As discussed in my review a few months ago, application can be a bit time consuming, it is one of the higher maintenance nudes but once applied is a clean polished neutral light pink. It is limited-edition so if you’re interested I suggest you try to track one down sooner than later.

Burberry Nude Pink and Ash Rose ($21 each) both beautiful polished clean neutrals. Scroll down through the archives (last couple weeks) to see a more detailed review on each shade.

Nude Pink:

Ash Rose:

OPI My Very First Knockwurst can be found at a number of retailers. I either purchase my OPI from Drugstore.com or Ulta. I found this to be the most difficult to apply and it required three coats. However the price of OPI is much more affordable compared to high end brands. Most of the time OPI applies just as well (sometimes better) than other luxury nail polishes. In this case, this one was a bit of a nightmare to apply. It required three coats but I love the color of this shade.

Chanel Rose Cache ($27) is a classic sheer natural pink. It has that secret-shimmer in the bottle that disappears once applied on the nail. It looks different on everyone I’ve seen but is a universally flatting easy to wear/go with everything kind of nail polish.

Dior Incognito ($24) is my favorite classic nude pink. It’s not too dark and not too pale. Just the right in between. Do note this one is coming out in the gel formula (have not tried yet). You may want to wait for that color to be released in stores near you. But for now I’ve been a huge fan of all Dior’s nail polish formulas. The application is smooth and flawless with very good lasting power. Everything from the formula to brush design of Dior’s nail colors makes application very easy.

Zoya Rue ($9) is a classic nude pink with a hint of cool-mauve. I haven’t had much experience with Zoya but the brand has performed well for me on the occasions I have tried it. Rue was part of a recent nude collection. It’s a lovely natural pink cream. Below is Rue shown with three coats.

Comparisons to other lighter pinks: OPI Care to Danse?, OPI Don’t Bossa Me Around, Rescue Beauty Lounge Sheer Nude, Bobbi Brown Pink Pearl, Deborah Lippmann Naked, Deborah Lippmann Fashion, Deborah Lippmann Modern Love, OPI Butterfly Moment, Guerlain La Petite Robe Noire and Tom Ford Show Me the Pink

What’s your favorite nude pink nail polish? Do you have any staple go-to’s? If I were pressed to pick just three, I would narrow down my picks to Tom Ford Sugar Dune, Dior Incognito and Burberry Nude Pink as my favorites.

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Dior Yacht 210 and Captain 750 Nail Polish Comparisons

March 21, 2014

As promised here are some comparison swatches for two of the Dior Voyage Transatlantique Manicure Sets in Yacht 210 and Captain 750 (Saks exclusive, limited-edition).

Yacht is a grey-beige-nude blend. It’s more beige than Gris Trianon but not quite as grey as Chanel Frenzy. Below are also comparisons to Deborah Lippmann Fashion, Dior Nude Chic (discontinued), YSL Beige Gallery and YSL Beige Leger.

Captain is a classic red. You will most likely find it very similar to other classic reds. It has a bit more warmth than other Diors without being orangey. Captain has no blue. It’s a bit brighter and warmer than Dior Trafalgar. Captain also has a jelly finish. Below compared to Dior Calypso (discontinued and more pink), Tom Ford Ginger Fire (more orangey), Chanel Coromandel (deeper and more red), Chanel Enthusiast (pretty close but slightly darker) and Dior Tie & Dye (darker).

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Dior Voyage Transatlantique Nail Polish and Couture Stickers Duo | Captain 750 and Yacht 210

March 20, 2014

Dior Beauty has released a Saks-exclusive collection called Voyage Transatlantique which consists of a new highlighter, 5-pan eyeshadow palette, two glosses, two lipsticks and three nail colors. I picked up two of the Manicure Duos in Captain 750 (a vibrant red) and Yacht 210 (a cool-toned nude), both of which come in a manicure set with a mini Dior nail file and nail stickers ($30 each). I spotted the items at Saks Beverly Hills a few weeks ago but they did not have a tester unit up yet and some of the product had not yet arrived in store for sale.

Both Dior Captain and Yacht nail polishes applied smoothly with two coats. I found the brushes to be a bit thinner with these than other Dior nail polishes but the brushes still have the tapered round tips. There was no difference in application for me though. Both were applied with Chanel Base Coat and Top Coat. The stickers look super cute but I found them to be a bit too big for my fingers – at this point I’m still not entirely sure how to use them. More photos and swatches below (comparisons to come in a separate post shortly, but so far no dupes.)

Captain 750 is a flawless vibrant red. It’s has a slightly warmer tone than most other Dior reds but it’s not orangey. This had a thin jelly like texture but the pigment is very impressive. The application was absolute perfection with one swipe. Below I have it applied with two coats.

Yacht 210 looked like your standard nude cream. However it is a bit cool-toned making it more clay-like but not quite grey. It’s a mix of beige and grey cream and doesn’t make me look like death. It applied perfectly with two coats.

Both colors are beautiful classics. The colors are fairly simple and seem standard but they apply flawlessly and give a nice clean polished look without extra work involved. Lasting power for me has been very good with Dior nail polishes so far with up to 6 days no tip wear or chipping. (Note there is a third shade called Sailor which is a bright deep blue if you like to collect Dior nail colors, however I passed on it.) Stay tuned for comparisons later this afternoon. Did you pick up anything from the Dior Voyage Transatlantique collection?
The Dior Voyage Transatlantique collection is currently exclusive to Saks locations and the Dior Palazzo Boutique in Las Vegas. Both Manicure Transat duos retail for $30 each for the set of stickers and nail file.

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Dior Vernis in Blossom #132, Perle #187 and Pampille #192 | Spring 2014

January 11, 2014

Dior’s Trianon Collection brings us six new nail lacquers this spring. I picked out three of the six shades from my local Nordstrom. You may find yourself shopping around various stores for all the shades. Some are only available to select retailers. The regular nail colors retail for $24 each, the matte topcoat retails for $25. The six shades this spring include:

photo Blossom_zps40696958.jpg photo perle_zps3b651df6.jpg photo Pampille_zps2340296c.jpg
photo Porcelaine_zps3bab2a74.jpg photo Bouquet_zpsc9cc8520.jpg photo Bloom_zps9aae2303.jpg

I picked out the three options available at Nordstrom. I’m typically a huge fan of Dior’s nail lacquer formula. I’ve found the coverage and pigment to be smooth and rich. The three spring shades I picked are stunning in the bottles. On the nails I found them to be extremely sheer.
Blossom #132 is a lovely sparkly sheer peach with gold flecks in the bottle. On the nails even with three coats I found it to be extremely sheer and disappointing. There is something about the color of this peach that is not flattering with my olive skintone. Below is shown with three coats. It pains me to give this one a huge thumbs down.

Comparisons below to Chanel Peche Nacree (spring 2011), Dior Abricot #236 (Sephora), Dior Sweet Orange (discontinued) and Chanel Miami Peach (discontinued):

Perle #187 is an interesting matte top coat. I found it lovely by itself, with a glossy top coat, or used as a top coat over other shades. It’s a bit high maintenance but if you have extra time for top coats or like to layer colors, this one is quite lovely.

Below swatched alone with three coats:

Below Dior Perle is shown in a few different ways, thumb to pinkie:
Chanel May
Chanel May with Dior Perle on top
Dior Perle with Dior’s Gel Top Coat 
Tom Ford African Violet
Tom Ford African Violet with Dior Perle on top

Pampille #192 looked so lovely in the bottle. It has the most beautiful mix of shimmer infused with a cloud-blue base. On the nails this was extremely disappointing. I found this one to apply unevenly and blotchy. The color with three coats looks faded. It didn’t go well with my skintone. I suspect it would make a good top coat over similar blueish colors. I thought this review with one, two and three coats on Pointless Cafe to be very helpful. Below with three coats:

I ended up being disappointed with two of three colors I picked out. When I bought them at Nordstrom my counter didn’t have testers available. They looked lovely in the bottles and given my past experiences with Dior, I thought these would be true to what you see in the bottle. I ended up re-gifting Blossom and Pampille to a couple friends who love sheers and layering colors. At this time I haven’t checked out the other three options for Dior spring. My recommendation is to try before buying.
Did you check out anything from Dior spring? Thoughts? Loves?

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The Top 13 Beauty Discoveries in 2013

December 31, 2013
The top 13 beauty discoveries of 2013 from The Beauty Look Book (reviews from the past year are linked for each item listed):
  1. Caudalie Divine Oil – my absolute favorite beauty discovery this year
  2. By Terry Baume de Rose – pure luxury for the lips, worth every penny
  3. Drybar The Chaser Shine Pomade – my holy grail hair product to add shine, remove frizz, long lasting and smells amazing, my husband also loves this for his hair
  4. Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder – the perfect answer to glowing skin and my second favorite discovery this year
  5. Urban Decay Naked3 Palette – lovely rose-gold neutrals
  6. Chanel Taboo Le Vernis – a dramatic purple with red and silver shimmers, The Beauty Look Book’s second most popular post from 2013
  7. Dior Diablotine Le Vernis – the most striking intense coral red shimmer
  8. Tom Ford Illuminating Cheek Colors – unfortunately these were released in very limited quantities, but close alternatives you can get right now are MAC Magnetic Nude Skinfinishes in Magnetic Appeal and Fairly Precious
  9. Edward Bess Black Sea Mousse Foundations – I’ve mixed Light and Medium to get a good match, I’ve found that this is indeed the perfect full coverage foundation that gives a flawless airbrushed look that still manages to look natural, I truly hope Edward releases this to all his counters and in more shades (it was a QVC exclusive that sold out almost instantly)
  10. Chanel Les Beiges Powders – my favorite is 20 for all over, 30 and 40 work wonders for natural contouring and adding a soft glow of color to the face
  11. Diptyque 10-Piece Set – special release this holiday and the perfect way to try multiple scents at a more affordable price than buying the full sizes of each candle
  12. YSL Rouge Volupte Shines – my favorite lipsticks of the year for and The Beauty Look Book’s most popular post from 2013
  13. Chanel Illusion D’Ombre in Initiation – holiday 2013 release and the perfect bronze shimmer
I am thankful from the bottom of my heart for each and every one of my readers. You inspire me every week with your thoughtful and insightful comments/e-mails/tweets. I can’t express enough how appreciative I am for those of you who take the time to share your expertise and add your input to my weekly features. Your experiences, tips and tricks help others like myself figure out what works or how to make things work better. Thank you for following my blog and for your support.

What were your top beauty discoveries this year?

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Diorific Vernis Gold Coffret – Saks Exclusive | Holiday 2013

December 3, 2013

Saks has released an exclusive nail trio this year, the Diorific Vernis Gold Coffret ($70, limited-edition). The colors in this set include Almee #291 a sheer sparkly gold with tiny micro glitters, Aladin #668 a warm metallic copper, and Apparat #871 a shimmery red infused with gold. It’s a repeat of last year’s Printemps Christmas 2012 set released in
limited quantities and stores. It also contains Apparat, a repeat from
holiday 2011.

Each shade comes packaged in the beautiful holiday bottles with the gold twist off caps. Everything from the gold box to the packaging and colors is exquisite. Dior really created lovely nail colors for the holiday.

Almee #291 is a sheer sparkly gold. I suspect this will be a better top coat on warm colors to add shimmer and sparkle. The shimmer is infused with tiny clear glitters. It’s beautiful in the bottle and on the nails (even though it’s very very sheer). Here it is with three coats:

Aladin #668 is a beautiful warm coppery gold metallic shade. The metallic quality makes it apply slightly lighter on the nails compared to what you see in the bottle. I was impressed with this and how it applied pretty much streak-free (considering it’s a metallic). I didn’t have time to photograph swatch comparisons next to other Dior or Chanel golds, but Aladin is softer and lighter with a more refined shimmer giving it a softer look. Two coats below.

Apparat #871 is a repeat from holiday 2011 in special packaging. It’s a lovely neutral-cool red with gold shimmer. The pigment is incredibly rich and applies smoothly. I don’t think I ever swatched this one on the nails on this blog but it’s a lovely metallic red. (Nail wheel swatch here.)

Dior’s Diorific Vernis Gold Coffret Trio is a luxurious boxed set. The colors are lovely – especially for the holiday and I think it would make a lovely gift for the holidays. Even though I already own Apparat in the regular bottle I still think this is worth purchasing just for the packaging alone. It’s limited-edition and available in stores at Saks and online at Saks.com.

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Tom Ford Shameless Nail Lacquer Comparisons

November 21, 2013

Today I bring you a delayed comparison post for Tom Ford Shameless (reviewed here). You can definitely find colors similar since classic reds are very popular and done in almost every nail polish brand. I still find Tom Ford Shameless a gorgeous red cream that brightens the hands. My thoughts:
  • Chanel Dragon is the closest to Tom Ford Shameless. The Chanel is slightly cooler while the Tom Ford is warmer with a brighter quality.
  • Chanel Rouge Fatal is significantly darker than Shameless.
  • Chanel Rouge Rubis (reviewed here) looks electric next to any other reds I own.
  • Dior Marilyn (from the 2012 holiday set) is also very close in color, but more blue-based with a wine colored finish.

Tom Ford Shameless swatched below:

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