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Chanel Intime #93 and Confident #94 Rouge Coco Shines | Fall 2014

June 29, 2014

I picked up two of the Chanel Rouge Coco Shines in Intime #93 and Confident #94 ($35 each) from the Collection États Poétiques. Both are subdued feminine colors that give a very conservative natural polished look. Intime #93 is a soft cool-toned pink. Confident #94 is a darker mauve pink. Both are on the cool-tone side but still have enough warmth for my olive skin tone that they don’t wash me out. I found the pigment of both to be quite good with more color than most Rouge Coco Shines that I have. There is a variance in pigment depending how you apply these. Straight from the tube will give a more sheer shine. If you apply with a brush you will get more color. Both shades have a slightly glossy finish. Lasting power is average, short-to-medium as is the case with most glossy sheer lipsticks.

Both shades swatched side by side, one swipe straight from the tube, another with a brush:

Swatched on the lips straight from the tubes:

I pulled a few other lipsticks to compare, no dupes from what I could see but there are definitely similar colors:

Chanel Secret Rouge Coco Shine
Chanel Fetiche Rouge Coco Shine
Chanel Boy Rouge Coco Shine
Chanel Bel Ami Rouge Coco Shine
MAC Viva Glam VI Lipstick
MAC Naked Paris Lipstick
Chanel Culte Rouge Coco (discontinued)

Overall pleased with the wearability of these two Rouge Coco Shines. They are easy swipe and go lipsticks that require no additional work to make them work (if that makes sense). I swatched the other shades on my hand at the counter but at $35 each I found them a bit pricey. I limited myself to two since I had my eye on the blush and glossimers. 

Both shades should be available at Chanel counters now. Online at Nordstrom, Saks and Chanel.com.

Did you get any of the lipsticks or glosses from the fall collection? What did you think?

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Chanel Collection États Poétiques | Fall 2014 Picks

June 26, 2014
Chanel Collection États Poétiques for Fall 2014 has arrived online and in stores. The ordered the nail polishes online and then checked out the entire collection in stores last week. The items I picked out include:
I’ll be reviewing the items in the next few days, I have the nail polishes swatched already and will be uploading pics as soon as I can 🙂

Did you pick up anything from the Fall collection? What are your thoughts?
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Burberry Summer Showers Lip Glow Balm and Nail Polish Comparisons

June 24, 2014
Here are some comparisons I swatched for Burberry Summer Showers Lip Glow Balms and Nail Polishes. First for the nail polishes, Burberry Summer Showers colors are Orange Poppy No. 221, Pink Peony No. 222 and Pink Azalea No. 223 (swatches and original post here):

Dior Red Dahlia (discontinued)
Chanel April (swatched here)
Dior Mirage 338 (gel shines swatched here)
Chanel Rose Insolent (discontinued)
Tom Ford Indiscretion (limited-edition, review here)
Tom Ford Coral Beach (discontinued, swatched here)
Chanel Starlet (swatched here)
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For the lip glow balms, there are coordinating colors for the nails/lips and cheeks, colors for Summer Showers are Orange Poppy No. 01, Pink Peony No. 02 and Pink Azalea No. 03:

Hope this helps with your purchasing decisions! You may have similar colors or dupes in your stash.
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Burberry Summer Showers Lip Glow Balm and Nail Polishes | Orange Poppy, Pink Peony and Pink Azalea

June 23, 2014

The summer beauty release from Burberry Summer Showers features three coordinating colors for for lips, nails and cheeks in Orange Poppy, Pink Peony and Pink Azalea. Check the Behind the Scenes Burberry Summer Showers footage from Wendy Rowe. The items in the collection for summer include:
  • Lip Glow Balms ($28 each for 4 g/0.14 oz) are sheer tinted lip balms with SPF 18
  • Nail Polishes ($21 each for 8 ml/0.27 fl oz) come in three highly pigmented colors
  • Fresh Glow Blush ($38 each for 5 g/0.18 oz) are sheer dewy cheek sticks with a slight tint of color
I ordered the Lip Glow Balms and Nail Polishes from Nordstrom San Francisco. I decided to pass on the Fresh Glow Blushes since my skin reacts to their Liquid Foundation and Fresh Glow Liquids. I played with the items I ordered over the weekend. The colors are beautiful classics but the only items I feel are must-haves are the Orange Poppy No. 221 Nail Polish and Pink Peony No. 02 Lip Glow Balm. Since the colors are classics there are quite a few dupes. You can check out the full collection swatches on Gummy Vision and Natural N Chic Makeup.



My Burberry Summer Showers picks:






First up are the Lip Glow Balms. These are a sheer tinted lip balm. The color on these is very sheer if you swipe directly from the tube. To get more color use a lip brush (which is how I’ve been using them). Orange Poppy No. 01 goes on quite bright if you layer it swiping back and forth. If you swipe once or blot it goes on more natural and brightens the face. I found it photographed well. Pink Peony No. 02 is the perfect natural pink glow. It’s on the sheer side but it gives your lips a healthy pink glow. Pink Azalea No. 03 is lovely plum pink but the sheer texture makes it apply slightly unevenly on my lips (this can be fixed with a plum lip liner underneath). These are semi-hydrating. They have a glossy sheen in the finish but they aren’t super moist feeling like YSL Volupte Sheer Candy. I would say the pigment level falls somewhere in between YSL Rouge Volupte Shines and Tom Ford Lip Shines. 

The Nail Polishes are all summer-perfect colors however Orange Poppy No. 221 is the only one I find unique. It’s a bright orange but not floruescent or super bright. There’s a muted quality to it which makes it a good summer to fall transition color. There is a slight pearly quality to the polish but o the nails it looks more like a cream. Pink Peony No. 222 is a gorgeous deep pink cream but similar to other pinks from Chanel, Dior and YSL. Pink Azalea No. 223 is a mauve plum with a slight dusty quality. I found it similar to Chanel April/Coup de Couer. The formula of these is really good and you can get full coverage with two coats. The brush is on the wider side which makes these a bit harder to apply if you have super small fingers like me (my ring finger is a Size 4). It’s still small enough to apply easily, for me it just took a bit more care to not get polish all over my cuticles.

Overall a lovely palette of sheer summer brights that aren’t too bright. The colors are naturally flattering and beautiful for everyday wear. I’m in love with Orange Poppy Nail Polish. I’ve swatched and photographed comparisons but haven’t had time to label the items. I’ll update this post later this evening with those for reference.

The Burberry Beauty Summer Showers collection can be found at Nordstrom and Burberry. I’m not sure whether or not these are limited-edition but will update if I receive more information.

Have you checked out Burberry Beauty’s summer items? Now that fall collections are starting to hit counters what was your favorite summer beauty collection this year?

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Surratt Beauty Lip Lustre in Soigné, Lipsliques in Gamine and Hevyn (Barneys New York Exclusive)

June 17, 2014

Troy Surratt’s beauty line has been on my radar for quite some time. Every time a Barneys New York beauty catalog arrives in the mail, I make a reminder to myself to check out the line the next time I am at a Barneys store. If you’re like me and don’t have easy access to the line in person, you will find blog reviews and swatches immensely helpful. I’ve used the Surratt features on the Beauty Professor as a pre-shopping guide. On my last day trip to Beverly Hills I stopped by the Surratt Beauty counter at Barneys. I picked out three items to try as a first run with the line, all focused on lips:

The Lipsliques ($34 each for 0.05oz/1.6g) are a twist up lipstick in a skinny tube. These are sheerish but buildable in pigment. The formula is extremely hydrating with a slight glossy finish. The texture is slightly thick so it stays put on the lips. I was really impressed with the coverage, texture and lasting power. The two colors I picked are natural. Gamine is a peachy color with a slight hint of pink. Hevyn is a natural rose. Both look more like creams on the lips. They apply with a flawless finish. No lipliner needed. Also no tweaking required. The Lipsliques are extremely pricey for the size and amount of product provided in the tube (for reference, a YSL Rouge Volupte Shine is 0.15oz/4.5g priced at $35). That being said the formula is phenomenal and pretty close to perfect.

The Lip Lustres ($32 each for 0.2 oz/6g) are a high shine gloss with a thick finish. These come with a flexible flat sponge tip applicator. I tested a few at the counter and settled on Soigné a stunning rose pink sparkle. It has a warmish-toned base with a cool-toned shimmer making this unique and naturally flattering because it has both warm/cool colors. The lasting power is quite good although the texture is a bit tackier/stickier than most glosses I use (think similar to MAC Clear Lipglass).

One last snapshot of Gamine (peach lipstick), Hevyn (rose lipstick) and Soigné (gloss):

Based on my first visit to the Surratt counter at Barneys, it appears there is lots to fall in love with. The price points seem to be a bit high with their palette system but I’ve heard so many good things about the blushes and eyeshadows, I will be checking them out on my next visit. My personal favorite out of the three items I picked is Gamine. It brightens the face in a natural way.

I’m really pleased with the three lip items I purchased. The formula, coverage and texture are phenomenal and worth the high price point. The Surratt beauty line is available at Barneys New York in the US and now at Sephora. In the UK, the line is available at Liberty London. If you’ve checked out the line or tried anything I’d love to hear your thoughts. I’m always looking for recommendations.

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MAC Sharon Osbourne Patentpolish Lip Pencils | Innocent, Patentpink, French Kiss and Ruby

June 15, 2014
The MAC Sharon Osbourne Collection has four Patentpolish Lip Pencils ($21.50 each for 2.3g/0.08 oz, limited-edition). These are a swipe-and-go kind of lip pencil that come in a twist up packaging. No sharpening needed. Two of the colors are repromotes from the spring release of the Patentpolish Lip Pencils ($20 each) although the ones with the Osbourne Collection come in a special edition red packaging and are slightly more expensive. The four shades include:
  • Innocent (repromote) is a pale nude, it goes on streaky and extremely pale upon first swipe, after letting this one sit for a minute, it warmed up on my lips, it works alone for me but I prefer to add a bit of a darker lipliner to blend and warm up the color 
  • Patentpink (repromote) is another pale pink, another slightly streaky color and upon first swipe looks extremely mod and pale, once it warmed up it looked better
  • French Kiss is an easy to wear brownish warm nude, this one since it’s darker went on smoother in color and has better coverage
  • Ruby was a pleasant surprise, it looks dark and brown in the tube but goes on a natural ruby red with a good shine, out of all four this is my favorite

Swatches show a slightly transparent texture and glossy shine:

I didn’t test out the colors from the original release but the swatches I saw of these from other bloggers looked promising and several were kind enough to e-mail me recommendations to check these out. The Patentpolish Lip Pencils are a unique formula. It’s like a chubby stick with a thicker smooth texture and a slightly glossy finish. They glide on easily and even though there is a good amount of shine, I found they stayed put without feeling super glossy or emollient. They aren’t drying but at the same time I didn’t find them super hydrating either. My lips usually peel a day after using MAC lipsticks if I don’t use a balm underneath. The same happened with these. As long as I moisturize well in the morning and at the end of the day with a good lip balm then my lips are fine.
These are designed as a swipe-and-go kind of product. I like the convenient twist up factor and especially am a fan of the fact you don’t need to sharpen. I didn’t really find them to be a one-swipe kind of lip pencil though. My feelings for these are mixed. For the lighter colors, to get an even application I had to swipe back and forth several times for smooth decent coverage. If you try these you might not like what they lighter colors look like at first swipe. I certainly did not but after letting them sit for about 30 seconds I found they melded to my lip and warmed up to a better more natural looking finish. The darker shades applied easily and flawlessly. French Kiss and Ruby both have very smooth coverage and better pigment. Coverage on these is medium-sheer with a slight transparent look.

Here they are swatched on my lips:

Out of the four shades, my favorite is Ruby and it’s the only one that I would say is a must-have. Good natural looking reds are hard to come by for me. Most either turn fuchsia on me or have too much brown. This is the perfect balance of bright and natural to be flattering for day or night.

The Sharon Osbourne Patentpolish Lip Pencils in Innocent, Patentpink, French Kiss and Ruby are all limited-edition. Even though many items from the MAC Osbourne collection have sold out, these pencils are still relatively easy to find in stores, at counters and online. All the colors are limited edition but you can find all the Patentpolish Lip Pencil shades right now at maccosmetics.com, Nordstrom, Macy’s, and Bloomingdales.

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Color Focus: Nude Pink Lipsticks

May 26, 2014

I’m a huge fan of natural nude lips but finding a good nude that doesn’t wash out my complexion can be tricky. Luckily there are a number of shades that exist that work for my pigmented lips and olive skin. I’ve been testing a number of nude pinks over the past few months – I wanted to share some of my tried and true along with some new discoveries. Everyone has a different definition of “nude” – there are flesh nudes, pink nudes, peachy nudes, dark brown nudes. Depending on skin tone and lip tones you may find certain nudes work better for you with pink tones versus brownish tones. See some other blogger’s favorites and reviews on Beauty Professor, Temptalia and Beautezine.

Here are some that I’ve found work for me. If you’re on the hunt for a new neutral I hope this helps you discover some new options.

  1. By Terry Hyaluronic Sheer Rouge in Nudissimo ($35) is a sheer light nude peachish pink, it has a moisturizing texture with a sheer glossy finish, lasting power is on the shorter side because of the glossy finish but this is a good swipe and go no-fuss sheer
  2. Tom Ford Lip Color Shine Nubile ($48) is a darker nude pink that has a glossy finish but really good coverage for a shine lipstick, it covers my lip entirely and moisturizes well, lasting power is quite good and these have that soft Tom Ford vanilla scent, it’s extremely pricey but worth every penny for the formula and coverage
  3. Tom Ford Lip Color Pink Dusk ($49) is a classic pink in Tom Ford’s classic lipstick formula, it is a full-coverage cream, it can pull a bit light so you may need to layer a bit of gloss on top, if you’re darker than Chanel 30/MAC NC35 and need darker pinks, opt for Pink Adobe or Indian Rose if you want a natural pink (swatches here and here)
  4. Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel Role Play ($30) review here, is a dusty rose pink cream, it’s easy to wear, has full coverage, lasts long and feels amazing on the lips
  5. Marc Jacobs Lovemarc Lip Gel Severine ($30) is described as a warm beige, it’s a wearable nude beige cream that doesn’t wash out the complexion, the Marc Jacobs lip gels have a unique gel-like texture in a solid lipstick, these adhere to the lips and feel slightly thick but feel good on the lips, the formula is creamy and feels moisturizing (note testers at Sephora stores can look less than ideal, but I recommend giving these a try)
  6. Lipstick Queen Saint Lipstick Pinky Nude ($22) is a 10% pigment lipstick for but those who are not quite ready for full coverage lipstick but want something with more coverage than a gloss, these are described as sheer, moist and incredibly easy to wear with
    no-shimmer, I used Pink up to the end of the tube many years ago, Lipstick Queen has since expanded the color range, Pink Nude Saint is a perfect nude pink sheer lipstick that I can see as being flattering on a wide range of skintones, texture and wear is really good for a sheer lipstick
  7. Lipstick Queen Sinner Lipstick Pinky Nude ($22) is a 90% pigment lipstick, Lipstick Queen has corresponding shades in both the Sinner and Saint formula, the colors are pretty close in each formula, Sinner Pinky Nude is more nude while Saint Pinky Nude is more pink, the Sinner formula is a good nude pink that doesn’t wash out the complexion, I’ve been really impressed with the smooth texture and level of coverage, for those who are sensitive to fragranced lip products you will like Lipstick Queen because there is no detectable fragrance
  8. Hourglass Extreme Sheen Lipgloss Canvas ($28) review here, is a high impact gloss that acts more like a liquid lipstick, it’s a holy-grail lip product, I recommend this for anyone (see linked review for more details)
  9. Edward Bess Ultra Slick Lipstick Pure Impulse ($32) is my holy grail true nude lipstick, it has a slight hint of pink mixed with beige to give the perfect nude lips, it has a soft fig scent, I’ve gone through two tubes of this over the years, it’s a classic nude color that I can wear for any occasion, it has a creamy finish with a moisturizing feel, in my mind Edward Bess can do no wrong
  10. MAKE Silk Lipstick Cream Pink Clay ($25) is a new brand I’ve discovered at Barneys, there have been numerous raves about this brand from The Non-Blonde and Café Makeup so I stopped by the counter at Barneys Beverly Hills a few weeks ago, I was thoroughly impressed by all the lipsticks for the rich smooth pigment, it was hard to pick just one color, but I decided on Pink Clay a darker mauve nude pink to try, the formula is truly incredible, it feels like silk on the lips but gives full smooth coverage, I’m definitely going to be adding more colors to my collection in the future
  11. Le Metier de Beaute Lip Creme in Socialyte ($36) is an exclusive shade to the Neiman Marcus in Downtown Dallas designed by Michael Flores, it’s a complex pink, nude, coral, rose, I wish it were available at all Le Metier counters, call the Downtown Dallas counter for more details, I believe it’s a limited shade
  12. Le Metier de Beaute Hydra Creme Lipstick in Amore ($25) is a cream peachy pink that has a brightening effect on my olive skin, in the tube it looks like a darker pink nude but on my lips it goes on a bit lighter and brighter than what I see in the tube, but this is probably just because I have pigmented lips, coverage is medium but layerable with a moisturizing feel
  13. NARS Satin Lip Pencil Isola Bella ($25) is my perfect nude peach, it’s a bit darker than your traditional nude but this is perfect for me because it covers my lip entirely and gives a hint of color so it doesn’t wash out the complexion
  14. YSL Rouge Volupte Shine Nude in Private #9 ($35) review here, is a sheer lipstick that feels like a lip balm, these are good swipe and go lipsticks similar in concept to Chanel Rouge Coco Shines, if you like a no-fuss sheer lipstick, these are good lipsticks that are layerable for more color but with a slightly glossy finish, those who like medium to full coverage will find these too sheer
More close ups and detail swatches, all are clickable for larger detail viewing:

The effects are similar in the fact they are all natural your-lips-but-better kind of shades but each lipstick featured has slightly different undertones, finishes and textures. These aren’t all the nudes I’ve tried or love, but just a few I wanted to feature today. If I had to pick my top five nudes/nude-pinks:
What’s your favorite nude pink lipstick? If you can share your favorites and skintone that would be great, I would love to hear what works for you.

Lipstick Queen Sinner and Saint Pinky Nude and Hourglass Canvas were provided for review courtesy of each brand, all opinions my own, for more see my Disclosure.

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