Browsing Tag

Lipgloss

Uncategorized

Korres Zea Mays Powder Blush & Shimmering Eyeshadow

January 13, 2010

Since I’ve recently fallen in love with the Jasmine Lip Butter & Guava Body Butter from Korres, I decided to order a few things from KorresUsa.com to take advantage of last month’s promotional codes and try out a few of their makeup items.

What I ordered:
* Zea Mays Powder Blush in Natural & Purple Brown
* Love Your Lips Set with Nude, Pink Beige, Light Pink Lipgloss & Pomegranate Lip Butter

I also checked out the line at Sephora and got 1 item:
* Grey Brown Eyeshadow, which I think is going to be discontinued since it was only $7

Purple Brown Blush, Grey Brown Eyeshadow (from Sephora), Natural Blush
*** note that Purple Brown is a bit darker in real life ***

18S Grey Brown comparisons

15 Natural Blush comparisons

32 Purple Brown blush comparisons

Love Your Lips Set $29 (no swatches because I’m splitting this set up with friends)


Overall thoughts: I haven’t tested the lipglosses so I can’t give a review for those. I do already have the Pomegranate Lip butter which I love for a soft cherry pink tint. It tastes really good too!

The 18S Grey Brown is a pretty medium-pigmented shimmery cool silver taupe. It’s not as pigmented as MAC Satin Taupe or Bobbi Brown Brown Stone Metallic, but not as sheer as MAC Clue. It’s good for $7 if you can still find it, but I think I prefer my Chanel Safari or Nars Ashes to Ashes for a light taupe shimmer.

The Zea Mays blushes are interesting in that they have shimmer in the pot which doesn’t really show up on the skin. Natural is a good nude with a hint of peach/bronze to it. What I like about this is that it doesn’t look muddy and it’s not too orange. The finish is very natural and has decent lasting power. It’s most similar to MAC Warm Soul, but not as frosty or shimmery and more natural looking. I didn’t compare it to Nars Silvana, but Korres Natural is a more wearable less brownish/orange version of the Nars.

Plum Brown also has shimmer, but it doesn’t really show up on the skin. It looks a bit muddy in the compact (it’s darker than the photos show, I think the camera flash picked up the shimmers more). On the skin, I was worried it would look dirty, but I used this today and it actually gives a very natural plummy-pink-brown cheek (hard to envision how this works, but it does). It has more brown than MAC Plum Foolery and Nars Sin. Compared to the new MAC All’s Good blush, it has more purple/plum.

Overall I’m happy with the products although I probably wouldn’t have purchased these at full price. The blushes range from $22 to $24 (depending on whether you purchase them through Korres or Sephora) which is pricey. It’s great that the products are made with natural ingredients, but unfortunately it’s not something I really pay much attention to.

I also ordered a bunch of Guava lotions & shower gel sets too. One of them came with an expiration date for THIS February which is was a bit disappointing. How do they expect one to use up an entire lotion in 2.5 weeks before it expires? I emailed customer service about it so we’ll see what they say.

9 Comments
Uncategorized

More Love For Paul & Joe

January 11, 2010

Paul & Joe and Bergdorf Goodman still remain at the top of my favorites list and I am super excited about the upcoming Wild Flowers, Alice In Wonderland, and new additions in cream blushes, eyeshadows and nail polishes for spring 2010.

Since my Paul & Joe series back in November, I have added a few more items to my collection thanks to the recommendations of the Bergdorf Goodman staff and think I have found my holy grail creamy lipliners!


The loot:

  • Lipliner 01 Plum – natural pinky color with plum tones
  • Lipliner 04 Caramel – neutral beige
  • Lipstick 12 Bougainvillea – neutral-cool rose pink
  • Lipstick 27 Debutante – sheer sparkley peach
  • Lipstick 28 Darling – beige
  • Eyeshadow 22 Belle du Jour – peach shimmer
  • Eyeshadow 91 Butter & Sugar – pale cream shimmer
  • Nail Polish 06 Framboises – mauvey pink cream
  • Nail Polish 09 Full Bloom – baby pink cream
  • Holiday Blue Paisley Makeup Bag – comes with a brush holder inside



* Note #28 Lipstick is not swatched b/c I’m undecided about keeping it right now.

15 Comments
Uncategorized

Lipstick Queen Big Bang Theory Illusion Gloss, Butterfly Ball & 15 Minutes of Fame

January 10, 2010
I have a love/obsession with brands I do not have immediate access to and Lipstick Queen is no exception. I purchased a few items back in May of last year from Barneys in Beverly Hills and love everything (see Infinite, Creation & Pink Saint here).

Lipstick Queen recently released a few new products to her line and I blame the drool-inducing swatches and photos from Karlasugar, Just Makeup, London Makeup Girl and Beauty Moogle Zone for making me break my resolve to wait and see these products in person. From LipstickQueen.com, I ordered the following, left to right:

  • Butterfly Ball Lipstick in Trance & Float
  • 15 Minutes of Fame Lipglosses in 1, 4 and 5 minutes
  • Big Bang Illusion Gloss in Expansion

I did a few swatches of the Butterfly Ball lipsticks and Big Bang lipgloss but I highly recommend you check out the other links to the other listed blogs above for better swatches! I hope this will show you why I don’t usually do lip-swatches, they just don’t turn out well with the flash 🙁

Trance: sheer raspberry with a slight greenish shimmer


Float: very sheer natural pink, doesn’t give much color, this is pretty much my natural lip color with a bit of shine (also has greenish shimmer which you can’t see in the photo)


Expansion Lipgloss: pigmented iridescent peachy-pink, the flash washed this out in the photo so it looks very natural, but in real life it does show up pretty well on the lips


One more view of the lot where you can see the greenish tinge in the Butterfly Ball Lipsticks. No swatches of the 15 Minutes of Fame lipglosses. Karlasugar and Beauty Moogle have *awesome* swatches though!

Overall thoughts: I haven’t been able to test out the 15 Minutes glosses yet, but the colors look very natural and light. I love the Big Bang Lipglosses because they are pigmented but not sticky or slimy and have no scent. The Butterfly Balls are sheer and glossy with a greenish tint in the shimmer (like MAC’s Lollipop Lovin Lipstick). I knew there would be a chance Float might not show up well on the lips, but it didn’t stop me from wanting it. (I’m a sucker for light pinks.) I think it will work well layered over a creamy pencil or chubby stick to add shine. Trance gives a pinkish-raspberry stained look on my lips.

Have you tried these yet? What are your Lipstick Queen faves?

12 Comments
Uncategorized

New Laura Mercier Crystal Pink Lip Shine & Barely Nude Satin Lipstick

January 1, 2010

The spring collection from Laura Mercier this year is very simple and polished looking with neutrals in the pinky-brown color family. Most of the collection was actually a bit too neutral for me but I really liked the new Lip Shine in Crystal Pink which is a potted rich-pigment gloss (bronzey peachy pink) and Barely Nude Satin Lipstick (creamy beige).

L to R: Crystal Pink Lip Shine & Barely Nude Satin Lipstick

Swatches in the same order (with flash)

Swatches by the window, natural light


The other lipsticks are in the brown and pink-brown family similar to MAC Spirit and Twig but more wearable. If you liked the Renaissance Eye Color Duo from Nordstrom’s Anniversary sale last July, you will probably like the new eyeshadow duos as well since they are all very natural and light.

Also in the collection is a cream highlighter with 3 different colors (pale pink, rose, bronze) placed into layers in the compact. It seemed a bit too messy for me, but was really pretty – it’s something I might go back and look at again.

11 Comments
Uncategorized

MAC Dupes: Can You ID These MAC Colors Or Tell the Difference?

December 31, 2009


I don’t write much about MAC because I find that since there are so many MAC experts out there, I don’t feel like I would be contributing much by writing about the line. But I actually do like MAC products quite a bit. To me, they are definitely the most fashion-forward with trends and I love that they have such a wide range of colors, textures and finishes for all their products. Because there are so many colors, I think that just about anyone can find something they like.

One of the things I’m not crazy about though is their frequent discontinuation of colors to make room for new ones, but if your favorite product has been discontinued, there are chances it may be re-promoted with a new collection or that a very similar color will be released under a different product name.

All the products above are different colors, and while they aren’t 100% the same, they are so close that once you apply them on the skin, you can barely tell the difference. Can you ID these or tell the difference?

  1. Pink Swoon Sheertone Blush
  2. Pink Glow Matte Blush (discontinued around 2007)
  3. Dark Edge Satin Eyeshadow (LE with N Collection, January 2008)
  4. Rummy Satin Eyeshadow (LE with D’Bohemia, May 2005)
  5. Bendel Girl Lipglass (Henri Bendel exclusive in September 2007)
  6. Light That Fire Lipglass (LE with Warm & Cozy 2009 Collection)
  7. Sugarshot Lustre Eyeshadow (LE with Sugarsweet, March 2009)
  8. Light Ray Lustre Eyeshadow (LE with Turquatic, July 2006)
  9. Cherry Blossom Lipglass (LE with Cult of Cherry, August 2008)
  10. Cultureclash Lipglass (LE with Electroflash, July 2008, will be re-promoted in Feb 2010)
  11. Trifle Lipglass (LE with Antiquitease, October 2007)
  12. Tongue-in-chic Lacquer (discontinued, unsure of date)
  13. Flash of Flesh Lipglass (LE with D’Bohemia, May 2005)
  14. Bare Necessity Dazzleglass
  15. Camel Eyeshadow (discontinued in 2000?)
  16. Modelette Eyeshadow (released with MAC Warm & Cozy 2009)

My New Years Resolution is to use up more and buy less (we’ll see how well that actually goes). All of these from my stash are still good, I normally don’t throw out things according to the standard expiration dates.

That being said, it still doesn’t stop me from wanting MAC to repromote Maroon pigment, Brass Pigment, Coco Pigment, Pleasureflush MSF, Shrimplette Lipstick, Sharp Beige Lipstick, Fringe Eyeshadow, Heavenly Bliss Eyeshadow, Camel Eyeshadow, those cute Diana Ross pink makeup brushes and a bunch of their original blushes that they discontinued. The closest thing I’ve found to MAC Camel is the new Modelette Eyeshadow, but it’s still a tad bit different. Close enough for me to be happy right now though.

I wish MAC would do an “Originals” collection every year and repromote discontinued products from the past as a collection.

Have you found any MAC dupes?

4 Comments
Uncategorized

Estée Lauder Michael Kors Very Hollywood Collection Spring 2010

December 26, 2009

This spring Michael Kors has designed a collection for Estée Lauder “Inspired by iconic Hollywood glamour for everyday life.” I’ve been looking forward to the release ever since preview pictures were posted on BeautyEditor.ca back in early November which featured a fresh and modern looking collection. I was excited to see that Nordstrom put out their tester unit a few days ago. The collection is divided into two categories: beige/peach and pink/rose.


What I picked up:
* Blushes in Sunset Coral (a soft healthy coral) & Sunset Pink (a vibrant powdery pink)
* Eyeshadow Duo Blonde Mink (dusty beige shimmer and dusty-brown)
* Lip Gloss in Starlet Rose (pale light cream) & Starlet Peach (soft milky baby peach)
* Lip Sheen in Hollywood Gold (pale beige-gold), Starlet Peach (soft coral peach), Honey Blonde (medium beige shimmer)
* Shimmering Loose Powder (a soft medium pink shimmer powder)

L to R: Sunset Coral & Sunset Pink

Sunset Coral Blush

Sunset Pink Blush

Blonde Mink

L to R: Blonde Mink Eyeshadow Duo,
Starlet Peach Lipgloss, Starlet Rose Lipgloss


L to R: Starlet Peach Lipgloss, Starlet Rose Lipgloss,
Hollywood Gold Lip Sheen, Starlet Peach Lip Sheen, Honey Blonde Lip Sheen

Loose Shimmer Powder


Beige packaging & cute coral boxes


Overall thoughts: I think the colors are great for a fresh and simplistic look. Standouts for me are the lip sheens which are a semi-sheer creamy lipstick. I picked out the most natural beige and peach colors for the lip sheens (there were 2 other colors, a powder pink and bright rose). Most of the lipglosses seemed on the sheer side and have that distinct EL gloss scent (which I’m not sure my nose will be able to stand). The blushes are nice for a healthy glow.

Overall, stunning for Estee Lauder, and definitely great for everyday and extremely wearable, but the colors seem pretty dupeable. In the near future, I will need to think over my purchases more carefully before being sucked in by pushy sales associates. However, the colors are well coordinated and the nude lipsticks are very flattering and wearable where I find most other brand’s “nudes” and “beiges” look like death on my face.

Very pretty and suitable for spring. I think it will be flattering for all ages.

20 Comments
Uncategorized

Bobbi Brown Brightening Lip Gloss

December 21, 2009

I was browsing Nordstrom yesterday and was surprised to see that Bobbi Brown and Clinique had already put up their spring collection tester units. The newest collection for Spring 2010 is her Face Lift Collection which includes 2 new brightening lipglosses, new brow pencils, a new eye cream, 2 eyeshadows, and a twist-click pen eye brightener. The collection also includes 2 repromoted pot rouges.

I ended up getting the Popsicle (brighter pink) & Nectar (pink-peach) Brightening Lipglosses. Here they are photographed with the rest of the Brightening Lipglosses:


Swatches in the same order. BEFORE you write these off as being too sheer, I want to reiterate to you that my swatches aren’t capable of capturing the true glowiness or pigment. While these are sheer, they aren’t completely transparent like these swatches make them seem. I highly recommend you check these out in person before making up your mind.

L to R: Pink, White, Peach, Pink Lilac, Popsicle, Nectar

L to R: Pink, White, Peach, Pink Lilac, Popsicle, Nectar


Bobbi Brown’s Brightening Lipglosses are a sheer version of her regular lipglosses with the slightest hint of shimmer/sheen to them. They are supposed to be infused with “brightening pearls” which create a fuller-lip look. I already have full lips, so I can’t really say if these truely make my lips fuller, but I can say I like these over any cream or shimmer lipstick. Many times I have a cream lipstick on that needs just the slightest bit of moisture to it b/c by itself it looks too dry – I avoid adding clear lipglosses because most times it looks too shiny and adding a bit of lipbalm makes it wear off faster. These are good because they enhance your lips while adding a bit of color and they aren’t too frosty or too flat.

I’m not the biggest fan of that bristle brush she has in these tubes, but I’m happy with the formula, scent and the fact that these tiny tubes seem to last FOREVER. For me, her lipglosses are also the longest lasting glosses. They do tend to be a bit tacky/sticky, but the finish is pretty so I don’t really mind.

I passed on the rest of the spring collection, although I might go back for the Caviar Eyeshadow which was released in her last Nudes eyeshadow palette – it’s the perfect matte black for me because it doesn’t look grey or blueish on my skin like most blacks do.

10 Comments