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Lipstick

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Tom Ford Private Blend Lip Color in Pink Dusk

June 10, 2010
I swore to myself that I wouldn’t even look at the new lipsticks from Tom Ford. I was less than thrilled with the boxy packaging, high price tag, and unappealing ad campaign. The fact that the lighter shades sold out online within days made me feel like it wasn’t meant to be. However my friend and I just happened to see these in LA and the rep at the Beverly Hills Neimans made the experience of trying on these lipsticks so fun, I could hardly say no. I caved and shelled out $45 for Pink Dusk and I have to say I am really happy with my purchase – no regrets at all.


I tried the four lightest shades and wanted to love the nudes but they looked like concealer on me. Pink Dusk was the only one that worked for my skintone (within my comfort zone) and is a lovely light neutral creamy pink with a very slight hint of shimmer in the tube. The formulas to me are the equivalent of cashmere sweaters. Creamy and smooth. They have the most wonderful soft vanilla scent (like Sprinkles Vanilla Cupcakes). If you like YSL Rouge Voluptes, you will like these. The Tom Ford is not quite as soft, but almost as creamy.


A few lip swatches, but it’s been a cloudy day so it was hard to get a good swatch. First in natural light, no flash.



Since I know there’s bound to be at least one of you to ask if there’s a dupe, I went through my stash of lipsticks to see. No dupe to be found. In my mind (off the top of my head) I had thought it was similar to Chanel Naive Rouge Allure, but upon pulling it out – I found I was way off. The most similar ones I could find, left to right:

Bobbi Brown Blondie Pink
Chanel Naive Rouge Allure
Tom Ford Pink Dusk
NARS Catfight
Bobbi Brown Uber Pink





You can also see it swatched on Karla Sugar’s Arm and London Makeup Girl’s Lips too.

Overall Thoughts: The color selection was a bit limited in my opinion. The nudes were mostly too pale and then there were 2 middle shades and then the rest jumped to brights and darks. I had my eye on Bruised Plum but knew there was no way I could pull it off.

Are these a must have? No. Especially not at $45 and especially not for a natural your lips but better color. But I am happy with my Pink Dusk and see myself getting regular use out of this shade. That being said, I definitely don’t plan on purchasing more.

$45 is still $45 and there are probably other better things I could have used my money on.

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Paul & Joe Summer Creation 2010: Sahara Collection

June 3, 2010
Have any of you checked out the new Summer Sahara Collection from Paul & Joe yet? The standout for me is the lovely packaging in a turquoise, cream, orange and brown colored floral almost fan-like print. I had ordered a few lipsticks from BG during their last GWP event but at that time they didn’t have the nail polishes in. I recently saw that Beautyhabit was also doing a promotion and was ecstatic to find they received the nail polishes just last week. I haven’t been able to see the entire line in person yet (hopefully soon). But here are my picks plus the gifts from both Bergdorfs and Beautyhabit. My gloss and lipliner picks from the summer release was reviewed a few days ago here.

Lipstick S in Caravan 001 (sheer light pink shimmer)
Lipstick S in Morocco 003 (sheer bronzey pink brown)


Nail Enamel in Marrakesh 004 (coral-red with gold shimmer)
Nail Enamel in Mirage 005 (shimmery beige gold with silver sparkles)


The Gift With Purchase Makeup Bags
(Left from Beautyhabit, Right from Bergdorfs)

Lipstick Size Comparisons (seasonal v regular)

Nail Polish Comparisons, Close Ups and Swatches






Again, the packaging is the best part of this collection. I’ve only tried the sheer pink lipstick and it has a sheer glossy finish with noticeable shimmer (not frost though). I plan on trying out the bronzey one in the next few days. I absolutely love the Mirage 005 Nail Polish. It’s similar to P&J Gilded 27 except the new Mirage 005 is more beigey. The coral Marrakesh 004 Nail Polish is lovely too, but I’m not used to coral-orangey reds. Perhaps it will look better on the toes.
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Color Focus: Soft Pinks I’m Loving Right Now

May 29, 2010
I decided to do a different twist on my regular monthly Ten Things I’m Loving Right Now and combine this with my color focus feature. I like soft pinks because they always look so pretty in the compact and tubes. But finding a good soft pink can be a bit tricky sometimes. I can’t tell you how many soft pinks have made me oooohh and aaaahhh only to find it looks way to light or washed out on my skin (ala MAC Hue/Angel Lipstick or Trish McEvoy Gorgeous Demure Lipstick). It still doesn’t stop me from trying to make them work though, lol. That being said, the products listed below are my no-fail and no-tweaking required soft pinks.

There are so many favorites, but these are the ones I’ve been using a lot in the past month. I am actually just starting my 3rd tube of MAC Fabby (see below)! Laura Mercier Babydoll Lip Glace is a favorite that looks good on practically all my friends whether they are fair skinned or tanned.

Blush & Highlighters:

Dior Rose Diamond
MAC Well Dressed
MAC Summer Rose Beauty Powder
(this was repromoted with the Liberty of London Collection in a different compact)

Eyeshadows:

Bobbi Brown Petal Shimmerwash
NARS Nepal Eyeshadow
Becca Angel Loose Shimmer Powder

Cheek and Eye Swatches:


Lip Glosses:

Chanel Waterlily Glossimer
Dior Pink Silk 262 Addict Lip Gloss (swatched here)
Laura Mercier Babydoll Lip Glace
Trish McEvoy Pretty Pink Beauty Booster Gloss

Lipsticks:

Chanel Rouge Coco in Rose Comete (swatched here)
MAC Frost Lipstick in Fabby
D&G Shine Lipstick in Soiree (swatched here)

Lip Swatches:


Nail Polishes:

Paul & Joe Poodle #10
Zoya Jessika
Chanel Mica Rose


I have many more favorites but if I featured all my loves, this would just be a never-ending article if I pulled every single soft pink from my stash. What are some of your favorites and what is your skintone?

FYI, in case you’re new to my blog, I’m a Chanel Shell 1.5 Teint Innocence right now. This is the equivalent to what’s right in between MAC NC30 and NC35. I’m at that point again where I’m in between shades for most foundation lines. You can see My Foundation Shades HERE. I recently tried Bobbi Brown’s newest foundation and found a perfect match in Natural Finish formula shade 4.25 Natural Tan, however the formula didn’t work so well with my skin. So far, Chanel Teint Innocence and Lift Lumieres and DPFs are my holy grails.

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Dolce & Gabbana Fascination Shine Lipstick

May 24, 2010
* natural light, no flash

Dolce & Gabbana’s Fascination Lipstick is part of the mini collection that was released back in March called The Roses which consists of five new lipsticks inspired by different roses. Today I wanted to do a lip-swatch of Fascination, a cool cream pink.



As a disclaimer, I don’t know that the rose I have pictured is an actual Fascination Rose, but it was close in color to the lipstick. I like the texture and finish of this D&G lipstick, however, it’s a bit too cool for my skintone by itself. So while I think it’s pretty in the tube, on the lips, it just looks to fake. The other two I purchased, Shine On and Baby Darling, are easier for me to wear (they were previously featured in March here).

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Chanel Rouge Cocos Revisited: Perle, Secret & Cashmere

May 7, 2010
My current favorite lipsticks are all from Chanel and I’ve been enamored with the new Rouge Cocos, particularly the lighter more natural shades Perle, Secret & Cashmere. Compared to the Aqualumiere and Rouge Allures, the Rouge Coco has a different texture. I can’t say that one is better than another, they are all simply different. Aqualumieres are the glossiest, Rouge Allures are the creamiest and smoothest, Rouge Cocos seem to be a combination of Hydrabase + RA + Aqualumiere mixed together (in my opinion). I’ve scattered features on the lipsticks I picked out over the past few months. I thought it was time to try a few swatches of these three, note that they all do look very similar:

Perle 02 is a nautral pink with a pearly-champagne shimmer

Secret 03 is a nude beige-peach cream (without shimmer)

Cashmere 04 is similar to Secret, but a peachier version with slight shimmer

My lip swatches are all just the lipstick, but I added a few lipliner swatches of colors I thought would match well with these (see below). What I love about the Rouge Cocos is that they really are a nice “swipe & go” lipstick. The formula is sufficient to give full coverage and the color blends out so nicely, I don’t need lipliners with these.

About the arm swatches, I tried swatching these on my arm/hand but they all ended up looking exactly the same no matter what lighting I tried. But here they are anyways. Oddly enough, my Secret swatched darker on my arm than Cashmere, even though in the tube and on the lips, it’s the opposite (Secret = lighter, Cashmere = darker). I think the shimmer in the Cashmere reflected more in the flash.

These are different in the tube but the difference is very slight. Unfortunately the swatches all look very much the same. I highly recommend you check out other blogs such as Karlasugar, Temptalia, Makeup & Beauty Blog for more swatches, photos etc.
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Ten Things I’m Loving Right Now

April 23, 2010
I can’t believe it’s nearly the end of the month, where did the time go? This is April’s Edition of what I’m loving right now. As always, I’ve love to hear what you are loving right now too!

1. MAC Goldenaire Pigment – From MAC Lingerie 2006, a lovely pink with pearly shimmers. Goes well with almost everything for a neutral all-over wash.

2. Bobbi Brown Bronze Gel Liner – A nice soft but defined bronze shimmer. One of the few gel liners I’ve actually used up.

3. Diorshow Mascara – A mini one, but this is one of my holy grails. Love that the minis are just as good as the full sized ones. Can’t say that it really holds the curl, but it does give full lush lashes without clumping, smudging or flaking.

4. Dior Iridescent Leather Quint – Limited from Fall 2008. A gorgeous palette of neutrals and warm beigey taupes. The closest alternative is Earth Reflection which is cooler-toned. I read from Rouge Deluxe that this was re-released in Asia. If they brought this back in the US, I wouldn’t have to use this so sparingly.

5. Bobbi Brown Maui Illuminating Bronzer – A lovely natural pink glow. You can see it here compared to Antigua. Maui is the darker version with a bit more pigment.

6. Dolce & Gabbana Desert Bronzer – Lovely soft warm bronze with subtle shimmer. Those who find NARS Casino/Laguna too shimmery, this one is a nice option that is softer but not completely matte.

7. Chanel Pink Crystal Glossimer – Came out Holiday 2007, not the most unique pink shimmer. Chanel has released quite a few similar shades including the new Spring Futile. But I love this one over other lipsticks.

8. Chanel Bondi Beach Aqualumiere Gloss – New for Summer 2010. A soft peachy gold shimmer. I love the way this looks on the lips even though it’s medium-sheer. You can see an additional swatch here.

9. Chanel Stresa Aqualumiere – I’m not sure if they still make this shade, but it’s a sheer hot strawberry iridescent cool pink. I love this with Chanel’s Nude Lipliner and Bon-Bon Aqualumiere gloss on top for a healthy pink lip. Bright as it looks in the tube, on the lips it’s very wearable. See a makeover breakdown I had with it here.

10. NARS Mojave – I’ve been a longtime fan of NARS Viva Las Vegas. Mojave is it’s darker more pigmented sister which is like what I wanted MAC Plastique to be (still lovely, but too frosty for my taste without gloss on top).


Check back soon for my list of what I’m loving right now – the non-beauty edition!

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NARS Summer 2010: Love Devotion Lipstick + Versaillies Nail Polish

April 22, 2010

NARS Summer Collection has been spotted at Nordstrom along with the new Pure Sheer Lip Treatments. I stopped by to check everything out and left with only 2 items:

  • Love Devotion Lipstick ($24) – a bright peachy coral with a super sheer texture
  • Versailles Nail Polish ($16) – a light pale shimmery yellow gold

NARS Love Devotion actually reminds me a lot of MAC Blow Dry. Looks bright in the tube, but the sheerness makes it so it only gives you a sheer peachy tint to the lips. The main difference is that MAC Blow Dry has a slight pinkish tint while NARS Love Devotion is more of a straight peach.


NARS Versailles is a pretty shimmery light yellow. Not quite a baby-like yellow, but pretty close in my opinion. Here it is compared to some other golds: Chanel Gold Lame, Chanel Beige D’Or, NARS Adelita, and Chanel Antilope.


I was initially excited about the new Enchanted cream blush and Lamu multiple from promo photos, but unfortunately, they both have a sheer base with chunky glitter making them completely unwearable for me. Enchanted was too sheer for my liking. If it had been a powder formula, I think the finish on the skin would have been divine. Lamu is a more intense version of South Beach. It has a slightly deeper color and also contains micro-gold-sparkles. I tried it on my cheeks at the counter but it turned out to be a glittery mess.

I passed on the cream eyeshadows and lipgloss – they were just not me. I didn’t find them very “summery” either.

The Pure Sheer Lip Treatments were all incredibly sheer (just like the name implies). I could barely see a slight tint on my hands. So I didn’t bother to ask the sales associate to clean any for me to test on my lips.

I typically find NARS to be very inspirational for me. The collections are usually artistic and fun, but this one just wasn’t as impressive to me mainly because of the formula and finish of most of the new shades in this collection.

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