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NARS Fall 2015 Collection – Beauty Look Book Picks

July 30, 2015

NARS is among the first to launch their fall beauty collection for 2015. The collection has a mix of bronze and smokey colors for eyes and neutral gloss for lips with a nude shimmer blush. Everything is quite stunning. For the lips NARS relaunched two lipgloss shades in Baby Doll and Chelsea Girls. They now come in wand form without the plastic scent that the potted glosses had (yay!). A couple older formulas/colors for the eyes have been relaunched in the Velvet
Shadow Stick form including Hollywoodland, Goddess and Aigle Noir. My picks include:
Here are swatches of my fall picks side by side:

Baby Doll and Chelsea Girls Lipglosses are both stunning colors. In pot form Babydoll was always a favorite although I hated the taste/scent. The wand form is taste and scent-free. I don’t have the original to compare but from what I remember the pot version was deeper in color on me. The wand form is quite shimmery. With my slight tan this is very cool-toned on me which works but I think it looks better with a neutral lipliner mixed in. Chelsea Girls is a creamy peach pink beige. On the hands it fills in the tiny crevices so I was worried it would emphasize lip lines. I was relieved to find that once on the lips it does not sink into the lip lines and goes on smoothly. It is semi-sheer so my natural lip shows through.

Swatch comparisons to:

Dual Intensity Eyeshadows in Telesto and Pasiphae are the winners in the collection. I’m a huge fan of the Dual Intensity Eyeshadows and the two new colors for fall are exceptionally pretty. They look pretty wet or dry, alone or layered together.

Swatch comparisons to:

Velvet Shadow Sticks in Hollywoodland, Goddess and Oaxaca are shimmery. They have a satiny feel that dries relatively quickly so you need to blend fast once they are on the lids. I prefer to have a slightly creamy base (like a tiny bit of foundation or eye cream) underneath these to help them blend on my eyes better. The pigment is medium to full and the colors are easy to build. They aren’t the most unique shades though so you may want to shop your stash if you want to avoid duplicates.

Swatch comparisons below to:

Tribulation Blush was a surprise for me. When I saw it, I thought it would be frosted and chalky on my cheeks as a blush. On deeper skintones I suspect it will be more like a highlighter. On super fair skin this one might not show up. On medium-tan skin this has the perfect mix of nude and gold to look like a natural glow on the cheeks. It’s an odd color for a blush in my opinion but it works. I like it alone even though it doesn’t add much color. It also works nicely layered on top of neutral blushes to soften the entire look.

Here are a few swatch comparisons next to Charlotte Tilbury Norman Parkinson Highlighter in Dreamy Glow (review soon), Becca x Jaclyn Hill Highlighter in Champagne Pop, Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Luminous Light.

There’s a lot to love with the fall collection. I’m completely in love with both Dual Intensity Eyeshadows, Tribulation Blush and the Baby Doll and Chelsea Girl Lip Glosses. Based on how similar some of the Velvet Shadow Sticks are to other cream shadows I think I could have skipped them but I spotted them in store at my Sephora and couldn’t resist. They are classic neutrals that will go with everything so I know I will get frequent use out of them – they do last longer than the Laura Mercier Caviar Sticks but since the NARS does dry faster they aren’t quite as easy to work with.

The NARS Fall 2015 Collection is available now at NARS Boutiques and narscosmetics.com. It will launch at all other retailers starting August 1st at Sephora, Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Barney’s New York, Bloomingdale’s and Saks Fifth Avenue.
Some of the items featured were press samples including Telesto, Tribulation, Chelsea Girls and Baby Doll. Other items purchased by me include the Velvet Shadow Sticks and Pasiphae.

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Dior Eye Makeup

Dior Eye Reviver Backstage Pros Illuminating Neutrals Eye Palette – Nordy Girl

July 23, 2015

Dior has a new Eye Reviver Backstage Pros Illuminating Neutrals Palette for the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale called Nordy Girl ($62 for 9.3 g/0.32 oz). This is a similar palette to the first version Illuminating Neutrals Eye Palette 001 I reviewed back in March (swatches + review here). The overall effect, pigment level and finish of the shadows between the two is almost identical with the Nordstrom exclusive version being more pink and rosy.

The Eye Reviver Backstage Pros Palette provides a selection of five soft neutrals that will give the eye a super soft polished look. The texture of the shadows is very soft and the colors meld onto the skin smoothly and evenly. Each of the 4 shadows layers well with each other and there is a dark gel liner at the end which has good pigment. I found the liner to be budge proof but it is creamy so it will take a little time to set and dry. I prefer topping any pencil or gel liner with a bit of power shadow to help it set.
If you’re looking for a super conservative eye look that you can do everyday these are the palettes for you. Either of the Eye Reviver Palettes are pretty much goof proof and impossible to overdo if you want a soft looking eyeshadow look.

The colors of the Dior Nordy Girl palette include:
Soft matte pale pink white
Shimmering pigmented light pink frost
Shimmering mauve plum
Shimmering pink mauve
Shimmering mauve
Matte plum-brown liner

For comparisons, I pulled both the 001 and Nordy Girl to swatch side by side.

Close ups:

I had mixed feelings about the original version (post + eye look here). These palettes are good staples but given the neutral nature of each, they are very easy to dupe and if you own a lot of eyeshadows or palettes it’s likely that you probably own similar colors. That being said, Dior does make very good quality palettes – the shadows are smooth with soft medium buildable pigment that makes for a polished look no matter what colors they have. These Eye Reviver Palettes have soft texture shadows that fall in between a full matte and full shimmer. The shimmer is finely milled but super natural on the eye so if you hate frost eyeshadow or complete mattes, the shadows in these palettes fall somewhere in between. If you prefer all mattes, the Urban Decay Naked Basics and Naked2 Basics are hands down my top picks.

Since they both seem very similar, I don’t think you need both. The pigment of the colors with Nordy Girl is better in the sense the colors are richer and more pigmented on the skin. The 2 lightest shades have really good pigment, however the next 3 medium shades are almost identical on my medium olive-toned skin. The pigment of the Original 001 is slightly sheerer but there is more contrast between the five shades which allows for more variation.

I own a lot of similar shadows so I can’t call them must-haves for me. I am pleased with the quality, lasting power and overall color scheme. If I were to recommend a good starter palette to someone new to makeup, I would recommend these as goof-proof easy to use eyeshadows.

If I had to pick one of the two, I favor the Original Version because it has more contrast in the colors. The Nordy Girl is more visible on my skin and has a more dramatic feel because cool tones look sharper on my olive skintone. If you’re deciding between the two, I would say base your decision on your preference for warm (opt for 001) or cool tones (pick Nordy Girl).

The Nordy Girl Eye Reviver Backstage Pros Illuminating Neutrals Eye Palette is a limited-edition product for the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale (retails for $62). I hope you found the review of both Eye Reviver Palettes helpful.

Did you check out the palette from Nordstrom? What did you think?

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Tom Ford Beauty

Tom Ford Beauty Relaunches: Nude Dip, Sugar Dune, Black Sugar, Black Cherry and Show Me The Pink

May 28, 2015

This month Tom Ford Beauty has relaunched several previously limited-edition items. If you missed out on Nude Dip Eyeshadow Quad, the great news is that it is back and now permanent! This is one of my favorite shimmery neutral eyeshadow palettes. I am beyond thrilled that it has been re-introduced.

Here’s what has been brought back and added to the permanent Tom Ford Beauty lineup:

You can find Tom Ford Beauty at select counters. Online at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bloomingdale’s and Bergdorf Goodman. If you missed out on any of these colors in the original rounds, I hope you can rest assured you can find them now!

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Uncategorized

Christopher Kane for NARS Eyeshadows: Parallel Universe and Outer Limits

May 11, 2015
There are two limited-edition eyeshadows in the Christopher Kane for NARS summer beauty collection: Parallel Universe Eyeshadow Duo ($35) and Outer Limits Single Eyeshadow ($25). I bought both of these from the NARS boutique on Melrose sometime last month – the artists on site were all wearing Outer Limits on their eyes and it looked so beautiful on each of them even though they all had different eye colors and skin tones. I played with both in store and even though they are both very different from what I usually gravitate towards I bought them.

Parallel Universe is a unique shimmer duo. The texture is almost creamy with a very soft shimmer. The texture of the shimmer is ultra fine and almost duo-chrome. There are beautiful flecks of multi-colored shimmer in each color. The left side is a grayish pink opal color, the right is a violet color. The colors in the duo are a bit too light for me to wear alone. I need a darker black or plum shadow/liner to define the eyes but both give a really pretty wash of iridescent shimmer. Online reviews seem mixed on this one but I’m completely in love with the shimmers, texture and the way it blends on the lids. I give this one a thumbs up. Lasting power is very good on this one, similar to other NARS duos and lasts from early morning until late afternoon without fading or budging.

Some swatch comparisons:

MAC Lovely Lily Pigment (discontinued) 
Chanel Utopia Illusion D’Ombre (discontinued, review)
MAC Quick Frost Pigment (discontinued) 

Outer Limits is a glittery peachy yellow eyeshadow. This one looked so beautiful on the girls at the NARS boutique. I don’t think I’ve ever liked a glitter eyeshadow from NARS, but based on how it looked on the artists at the store, I convinced myself to try something new and different and give this one a go. I’ve tried this one several times and each time it’s been a complete fail. The glitter particles are too large and chunky and it’s not something that melds with the lids. I can wear a number of Bobbi Brown, MAC and Tom Ford glittery shadows (for special occasions), so I was hoping the NARS Outer Limits would also be a wearable glitter for me. It looks so pretty in the pan. On the lids (wet or dry) it’s uneven and patchy with tons of glitter fallout. I couldn’t wear this for more than 10 minutes without taking it off – glitter fell all over my lashes.

Swatch comparisons:

Tom Ford Cream Shadow in Escapade (discontinued, review)
MAC Jardin Aires Pigment (discontinued) 

I give Parallel Universe a thumbs up. It gives the lids the prettiest wash of color that’s so different from your regular neutral champagne or bronze for summer (which I adore, but sometimes it’s nice to try something different). I really wanted to love Outer Limits. It’s so pretty in the pan and it swatches really pretty on the arms/hands with the peachy yellow gold mix. Unfortunately it didn’t work for me. I would recommend trying before you buy if you can get to a NARS counter or store to see it in person if you’re unsure.

Both Parallel Universe and Outer Limits are limited-edition colors for summer. You can find them now at counters and stores. Online at NARS Cosmetics, Nordstrom, Saks and Sephora.

Have you checked out the Christopher Kane for NARS Collection yet? What did you think?

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Eye Makeup Tom Ford Beauty

Tom Ford Beauty Cream and Powder Eye Colors Summer 2015

April 25, 2015

Summer collections are starting to surface and the color offerings this year seem like the perfect mix of natural + fresh color. I was thrilled to get an early sneak peek at some of Tom Ford’s summer collection. First up I have the Cream and Powder Eye Colors ($60 each for 0.24 oz. base/ 0.07 oz for top).

The Cream and Powder Eye Colors come packaged in a double-tiered pot shadow with a flip top lid that has a small mirror. You simply twist the bottom to get to the cream, while the powder glitter is on top. Being a glitter-phobe, I was really worried how these would perform but I’ve had really good experiences with some of the quads like Seductive Rose and the limited-edition Ombre Eye Color Trios from a couple years ago so I had high hopes for these new summer duos.

Each color is really quite stunning and perfect to wear alone. The cream shadows are creamy and emollient but don’t slide, budge or fade after application. I’ve been playing around with each duo, I like to apply the cream shade first on the lids, blended into a soft gradient. Then I take my finger and dip it into the glitter powder and dab onto the lids on top of the cream shadow. For a glitter product I was really impressed to find there was no fallout and that they lasted a long time (from morning until afternoon). If you use a brush for the powder there might be a tiny bit of debris that will fall onto the cheeks or under the eyes, I was able to get no fall out a couple times, but then some others there was a tiny bit. For this reason I prefer using the fingers to pat them on.

There are four colors which are some of the prettiest duos I’ve seen. The glittery powders are semi-sheer in terms of color but there is still a lot of pigment. When layered over the cream shadows they enhance the color of the creams and add dimension.
  • Naked Bronze has a deep warm bronzey cream and a sheer gold shimmer/glitter for the powder
  • Golden Peach has a warm pinky peachy metallic with a sheer warm peachy glitter powder
  • Black Oyster has a deep complex charcoal cream shimmer with a silvery grey glitter powder
  • Midnight Sea has a complex khaki/bronze/brown shimmer cream with an aqua teal glitter/powder

The cream in Naked Bronze reminds me of Spice, the peach in Golden Peach reminds me of Pink Haze and the cream in Midnight Sea reminds me of Spring 2015 Cream. I’m currently traveling so I don’t have my makeup stash with me to compare the creams, but once I return home I will update this post with comparison swatches of the creams.

Close ups of each color plus swatches of the shades individually, then layered:

I’ve played with each of the colors and am so impressed. Midnight Sea had me a little worried since I rarely wear blues or aquas but layering the teal on top of the deep brown shimmer creates a really interesting look. My favorites of course are Naked Bronze and Golden Peach – they add enough color to the lids to give your complexion a summery glow but aren’t over the top. As a neutral and conservative makeup lover, to say that I am afraid of glitter would be an understatement (I am almost anti-glitter). So for me to say that I really like these is huge. I think they are wearable for everyday although if you work in a conservative office environment you may want to go very light on the application of the powder shadows because the glittery is glitzy but not over the top (at least in my opinion).

Both Golden Peach and Black Oyster have held up really well in the Dallas humidity this week and I’m very impressed. If you’re a Tom Ford fan these are definitely must-haves even with the high price point. If you like color and want something new and different, these are worth looking into. 

You can find the Cream and Powder Eye Colors for $60 each. Online at Neiman Marcus, Nordstrom (pre-order), Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue (pre-order) and Tom Ford (pre-order).

The Cream and Powder shadows were provided courtesy of Tom Ford for review consideration. Book featured from my own personal collection and was purchased by me. 

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Eye Makeup Marc Jacobs Beauty Sephora

Marc Jacobs Style Eye-Con No. 7 in The Lolita and The Lover

April 16, 2015

I took advantage of the Sephora Beauty Insider sale going on this week and purchased two of the Marc Jacobs Beauty Style Eye-Con No. 7 Plush Shadow Palettes ($59 each) in The Lolita #206 and The Lover #220. The Lolita has been on my wish list for over a year now. It’s one I keep swatching in store but kept waiting on because of the one glittery shade. The Lover is new for summer and it’s quite stunning. Online Sephora has helpful descriptions of each palette which I find pretty accurate:

  • The Lolita has eyeshadows in matte off-white cream, matte nude, matte dark coffee brown, metallic warm pink with iridescent glitter, iridescent champagne pink sheen, light peach sheen, rosy copper sheen
  • The Lover has eyeshadows in matte baby pink, sandy pink shimmer, light caramel sheen, matte apricot-rose, copper rose shimmer, seashell pink sheen, matte cappuccino

Both palettes contain a mix of textures and finishes but in neutral colors. I’ve been a huge fan of The Enigma (cooler tones) and The Dreamer (warmer tones) and as a neutral makeup lover, both The Lolita and The Lover do not disappoint.

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First up is The Lolita. The first three shades are matte with very good pigment. You have a buttercream, a soft tan and a dusty brown. The middle shade is a glittery champagne which I find best applied as a topper patted on lightly over other colors. A patting motion helps the color stay on, otherwise if you apply it in the traditional way swiped or brushed over the lid, I found the glitter fell off the lids and onto my cheeks. The last three shades are stunning shimmers. You have an opalescent pink pearl, a shimmering champagne peach and a warm coppery rose shimmer. All the colors are extremely flattering and pretty on the lids (except for the glitter shade mainly because I am not a huge glitter fan). I was worried the colors would all look the same on my lids, but on my medium tone skin they look different.

Close ups:

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Next up is The Lover which is a new palette for summer. It’s listed as limited-edition online but I hope it remains permanent. For those who like a palette that has colors similar to each other for a soft gradient, The Lover offers some really gorgeous neutrals with a modern twist. In the mix you have some wearable soft pinks, lilac, tan and a peachy-copper shimmer. On the lids you can create a soft gradient and wash of color that is neutral but not your typical neutral-beiges. It’s like The Dreamer but softer in overall feel with more pinks rather than the coppery-golds. The colors are well pigmented although the third and fourth shades are softer and are close to my natural skin tone so they aren’t as dramatic as the other colors. They do layer on the eyes better than my arm.

Close ups:

Swatches:

One last shot side by side:

Side by side swatches:

I really adore both. If I had to pick only one, I would have to say that I have a slight preference for The Lover right now mainly because it’s glitter-free, although The Lolita is pretty amazing for a neutral palette. That being said I do think it can be duplicated with a number of other colors from singles or other palettes. I love that The Lover is neutral and light without being too neutral that it’s invisible on my eyes – the colors show up well and layer nicely together.

You can find the Marc Jacobs Beauty Style Eye-Con No. 7 Palettes for $59 each at Marc Jacobs Beauty and Sephora. Right now the Sephora Beauty Insider sale is going on through the 21st. For VIB Rouge enter the code ROUGELOVE at checkout for 15% off, VIBs enter code VIBLOVE for 15% off, BI members will get access starting tomorrow with 10% off with code BILOVE. In store you will need to show the card you received in the mail or e-mail sent to you with the barcode.
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Edward Bess

Edward Bess Matte Artiste Eyeshadow Palette

April 15, 2015

Edward Bess launched a new eyeshadow palette called Matte Artiste which has eight shades of luxurious matte shadows. It comes cased in a large mirrored compact and a small brush. All eight shades are well pigmented and ultra soft making them super easy to blend and layer. There are a few places you can buy it right now, the palette retails for $75 at Neiman Marcus (there’s a GWP going on this week online) and Bergdorf Goodman, but QVC has a special price online for $59.12.

The palette’s eight colors include:

  • Beige is a cool-toned beige cream
  • Mystique is a medium warm camel
  • Allura is a warm deep brown
  • Hypnotique is a cool deep brown
  • Veil is a soft powder pink (this one is quite amazing)
  • Stone is a medium soft grey
  • Mojave is a greyed-black-brown
  • Smoke is a deep smokey black with a soft feel
The texture is extremely soft but the pigment is very good. The soft
texture makes them a bit powdery in the compact. Using a brush will show
a bit of powder kick-up much like those of the Hourglass Modernist
Eyeshadow Palettes (Infinity reviewed here).
However this doesn’t translate to powdery fallout when you apply them
on the eyes. As with any powder shadow, the colors might have a tiny bit
of debris that falls to the cheeks, but I have yet to use a powder
shadow that doesn’t fall out even a little bit. On the lids, the colors
are really very good. Even the lighter neutral mattes show up well but they don’t make my medium olive skin look washed out.

I am usually not a fan of matte palettes because an all-matte palette tends to my lids look flat. I like to mix on mattes and shimmer together, I rarely will wear an all-matte eye with the exception of Urban Decay Naked Basics and Naked2 Basics. Edward’s Matte Artiste has made the cut for me to be an all-matte palette that I can wear without additional tweaking or layering of other colors. Each color is completely matte but they don’t appear flat on the eyes. The colors all work well together, there is a diverse range of options with the eight colors but some good in-between colors for those who prefer less contrast.

Lasting power is quite good. The pigment is ultra rich and they lasted on my lids all day from early morning until the evening. Having eight colors makes for a lot of options in terms of layering and combining. I have played with this one using 3-4 colors at any given time. All perform really well.

Close ups of the colors:

For those who want to know how the Edward Bess Matte Artiste compares to Urban Decay Naked / Naked2 Basics, here are the swatches side by side. I think it’s different enough to justify owning in terms of matte shades. While I really adore the Naked2 Basics, Edward’s offers a darker range of colors for more definition.

Above: Edward Bess Matte Artiste Palette shown with a selection of other Edward Bess favorites

Bottom line: a winner in my book. I’m a huge fan of all things Edward Bess and this one is no exception. If you’re in the market for a good palette of mattes, this is one definitely worth looking into. However if you weren’t a fan of the Hourglass Palettes because of the soft powdery texture, you probably won’t like this either and may want to test this one in person first before purchasing. I personally really liked the Hourglass palette and I really like this one, but I think some people might prefer shadows that aren’t quite as soft in texture. My experience is the shadows are very soft and you will see powder debris and kick up in the palette once you dip a brush in any of the pans, but that is where the powdery-ness ends. On the lids they glide on really nicely without a lot of fallout (there is a tiny bit, but that is to be expected with any kind of powder).
If you’ve tried this one please chime in with your thoughts in the comments below. I’d love to hear your thoughts, or if you have a holy-grail matte eyeshadow palette, please share! You can find the Edward Bess Matte Artiste now at QVC (where I bought mine), Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman.
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