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Burberry Beauty Blushes: Russet & Blossom

October 29, 2010

My initial thoughts about the blushes from Burberry Beauty were that most of the colors would be too dark for my medium skintone. Diane and I had visited the counter the week after the line launched at South Coast Plaza back in July. After swiping and brushing several shades on my hand and testing a couple on the face I thought they swatched pretty dark except for Peony (reviewed here). I tested out Cameo on the face and it turned really dark on the skin so I thought the other shades would be just as dark. Diane from Orange To L.A. did a lovely review of Blossom and it has been on my lemming list ever since.

Left: Russet, Right: Blossom

I checked out the Burberry line again in San Francisco back in August and tried Russet and Blossom once again. I was pleasantly surprised to find that these two shades applied much better on the face compared to what swatched on my hand and also were much better than what I saw in the compact. The blushes have a similar texture to the eyeshadows: soft finish, finely milled, slightly more powdery feeling than most pressed powder blushes. There is a lot of pigment in these but the soft texture allows you to blend and layer softly for a natural look.

In natural outdoor lighting, no flash:

Russet is the perfect shade of tawny – beautiful for fall. This was the shade I had my eye on from the beginning but when swatched on my fingers appeared way too brown and orangey. Don’t let that fool you – if you can get to a counter try it on the face. It’s beautiful. Amy from Café Makeup just did a beautiful review – you can see how pretty it is on her and she has fairer skin than me. I didn’t have time to do a comparison but it reminds me of Chanel Tweed Sienna and Ambre.

Blossom is a beautiful complex-but-not-too-frosty coral that brightens the skin. I thought this would turn orangey on my skin as well but it brightens the face with a lovely glow. It’s like NARS Torrid but with a bit more pink and doesn’t have that overly-frosty finish that NARS shimmer blushes can sometimes have.

All three of my Burberry Blushes swatched on bare skin: Russet, Blossom & Peony

One last view:

Overall thought: Love but I wish the line had a bigger color selection. The Burberry Beauty Line has beautiful packaging and design with high quality products. For those not familiar with Burberry Beauty, it is currently exclusive to Nordstrom.com and a few select Nordstrom locations in the US.

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Dior Holiday Continued: Minaudière in Pink Golds & 5 Couleurs Gold Edition in Five Golds

October 22, 2010

I picked up two more items from the Dior Holiday Collection – the Dior Minaudière in Pink Golds 002 and the 5 Couleurs Gold Edition in 5 Golds 001 (see Part 1 here). Both are elegant, stunning and perfect for taking the holiday season.

The Dior Minaudière in Pink Golds 002 ($80) comes in a heavy but small clutch and contains three sparkley eyeshadows (dark plum, silvery plum taupe and light opal pink). There are two glosses, also sparkly pinks. The detailing on the compact is absolutely divine. I like that there is a slim swiveled covering over the glosses to prevent any debris from the shadows from mixing with the gloss. I’ve never been a fan of Dior’s trendy-packaged items but this clutch was just too pretty to pass up. The colors are dupeable with similar other brands and colors but there is no substitute for the luxurious soft texture and quality of these eyeshadows. They have a multi-dimensional quality that no photo or swatch can truly capture. I love it and also purchased the grey version from Saks (coming soon). It’s not the most practical compact but every once in a while I’ll see something so pretty I really don’t care that it’s impractical.

Beautiful detailing (the tag comes off):

Close up of the eyeshadows and glosses:

The new quint in Five Golds 001 ($58) was one of the items I was most excited about. This one has been a bit tricky to locate. I checked my local Nordstrom, Neimans and Bloomingdales and all had the tester but no product to sell yet. They said their shipment had been delayed for this item. Being the impatient girl that I am, I searched the web and found it online at Sephora. This quint seems different than the regular and iridescent formulas because it’s labeled “Gold Edition.” All the colors are a powder formula but there is no quilting imprint. Also, the bottom left pearly shade seems to have a slight cream-glitter finish. Those who cringe at glitter need not worry – the glitter is fine so it’s not over the top. I would describe the colors as a midnight black with silver microsparkles, a warm copper-gold blend, a warm bronze, silver, and beige-opal sparkle.

Overall thoughts: LOVE.

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Burberry Beauty Rosewood: The Lipstick, Lip Gloss & Eyeshadow

September 2, 2010

The new Burberry Beauty line has still managed to capture my heart with even more cravings as I was able to visit a counter for the second time this past weekend. On this occasion I visited the location at Nordstrom in San Francisco and was thoroughly impressed with the two Burberry reps I met with – especially with their extensive background and knowledge of the cosmetics industry. They were spot on in describing the avid Burberry Beauty customer, the type of woman who knows what she wants and appreciates the details in everything down to the packaging design and functionality. I added quite a few more products to my Burberry collection (blush, lipgloss, eyeshadow, pencils) – all of which I will review in the upcoming weeks.

I wanted to feature all the Rosewoods in their lineup: the Lipstick #04, the Lipgloss #01 and the Eyeshadow #09. Here are the photos and swatches, read on below for my descriptions.

Swatched on bare skin:

I had already featured Rosewood Lipstick ($30) back in July (Burberry Beauty Soft Cover Satin Lip Cover Lipsticks). I’ve been told this has been their best seller and is currently out of stock company-wide (although I cannot confirm this myself). It’s a lovely cameleon-like color: in the tube it’s a lovely brownish rose with gold shimmer. On my hand it’s a rosey pink. On my lips, it’s a medium-deep browned rose. The shimmer is very subtle so I wouldn’t call it a frost. It’s soft and creamy with a slightly glowy finish. The pigment and coverage is good – but will probably look different on you depending on your natural lip tone. See it on a Chanel Cameo here from Cafe Makeup. FYI I am a Chanel Shell (as seen below). I have been smitten with this!

This past trip to SF, I knew I had to add the Rosewood Lipgloss ($27), even though it was very different from the lipstick with the same name. The lipgloss is a soft light nude-mauve. I hear this has been selling well too. I find it almost identical to Nutmeg (which is just more brown, less pink/mauve – to be reviewed soon). It’s creamy, non-shimmery, and very glossy with an opaque finish. I find it lighter than the lipstick version, but still very pretty.

I also finally caved on Rosewood Eyeshadow ($29). I initially thought it would be too mauve for my skintone. Yes, it’s a lovely taupe shimmer in the compact, but on the skin it pulls purple, especially on the back of my hand and arm. On the eyes, it’s not so purpley, so I would say the swatch might be slightly deceiving. Check out Diane’s review on Orange To LA and Amy’s review on Cafe Makeup for more swatches and thoughts on this gorgeous eyeshadow.

Overall thoughts: Classic, natural, yet polished. It’s pure love and definitely worth every penny.

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Burberry Beauty – Cameo Lipstick #02

August 4, 2010

So I’ve raved about the Burberry Beauty line and still love everything I’ve bought. Well almost everything. The eyeshadows and blush are my favorite items – all of which I’ve been getting regular use out of. The lipsticks are creamy and divine, yet I have one exception for my gushing adoration. The exception is Cameo Lipstick #02. I tried this on in the store and liked it, but after wearing it at home for a few days, I just don’t love it. I’ve finally found a lipstick that is too neutral even for me.

Cameo Lipstick is a sheer peachy-nude beige. Swatches amazingly (see here). Applies less-than-amazing on the lips, just like my lip color. Not my-lips-but-better, just like my exact lip shade. I think if the texture were a little more matte and a little less creamy, the color in the tube might show up better rather than just blending with my lip. This one seems extra creamy which leaves a more glossy looking finish on my lips. There is a subtle shimmer/sheen to it, but it’s not a full on frost. I didn’t get the Cameo Lipgloss – it was a shimmery apricot, almost orangey looking next to the lipstick.

Still, this is simply my own personal preference. You don’t have to take my word for it – if you can get to a Nordstrom counter, I still recommend you try it on. I like Cameo Pink more because it shows up better on my skintone. Those who want a natural beige nude lip without looking washed out will probably like this one. Also I feel like I’m probably *right* at that skin-tone where it looks very natural. Fairer skinned girls will like this more than me. Darker skinned girls, I think this will look stunning on you as it will contrast with your skintone better.

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Chanel Taupe-Délicat & Misty-Soft Ombres Contraste Duos & Gris Stylo Yeux

August 3, 2010

Chanel has released a new collection of Eyeshadow Duos called Ombres Contraste Duo ($42) along with a new mascara called Inimitable Intense. Also in the collection are a few repromoted Stylo Yeux Waterproof Eyeliners ($28). I picked up Taupe-Délicat & Misty-Soft Duos and the new Gris Eyeliner. The eyeshadow duos are all on the neutral side and very basic for a neutral eye. Each duo has one side that is darker with a satin finish (not quite matte, not quite shimmer), and then one other side that is paler more shimmery. Taupe-Délicat is your basic soft neutral brown and a shimmery pale champagne with a slight pinkish sheen. Misty-Soft is has purple tones on me. One side is a brown with plum, the other is a soft light mauve-purple.

I’ve already reviewed my Stylo Yeux Eyeliners a few days ago here. Gris is their newest addition which is a light-medium cool grey. At the counter at Nordstrom, it looked like a full matte. However at home in different light, it looks like it has a subtle sheen.

Taupe-Délicat 20, Misty-Soft 40 and Gris 35

Gris Stylo Yeux 35

Swatches of Taupe-Delicat, Misty-Soft and Gris compared to my other grey eyeliners, Chanel Black Shimmer, MAC Wolf, MAC Earthline, MAC Dig It!, Laura Mercier Stormy Grey, Bobbi Brown Graphite, Bobbi Brown Gunmetal

I definitely love the Gris eyeliner. It makes Black Shimmer look black (when it’s actually more greyish compared to a true black, like here). It goes perfectly with NARS Tzarine Eyeshadow Duo. The eyeshadow duos are lovely, but I don’t think they are worth the high price tag. At $42, I personally would rather have another Burberry Blush. Just my two cents. If I didn’t have a gift card, I probably wouldn’t have purchased both. Granted, I know I will definitely get a lot of use out of both in the upcoming weeks (currently interviewing). They are perfect neutrals for everyday wear. Subtle but sophisticated to give a pretty soft eye-look.

For other swatches of the other shades, check out Yuki’s Lazy Channel here. She has amazing photos and swatches. Unfortunately, in the U.S. we didn’t get the new mascara or eyelash curler that Asia did.

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Burberry Light Glow Natural Blush Peony

July 26, 2010

When I saw the Burberry Beauty line at Nordstrom I was most surprised by the blushes, mainly because they were nothing like what I expected. Based on the online photos, I was expecting softer more nude and brown based colors. The actual product is very different – darker than I had anticipated, but the colors are still very pretty. The blushes are called Light Glow – Natural Blush $42, I find appropriately named, because they really give a glow. All the colors I looked at had a slight shimmer to medium shimmer. I tried on Cameo a lovely pink, but it went on too dark for my taste. The artist suggested Peony which looked extremely pale and powdery looking but I was pleasantly surprised.

Peony is a soft natural pink. The blushes are all very pigmented but the texture is soft making them easy to blend and layer for that natural blush finish.

No flash:

Compared to a few other pinks, they look strikingly similar to Edward Bess’s Soft Orchid and Chanel Narcisse. The difference is noticeable once on the skin. EB Soft Orchid is cooler toned and I also find this one softer/sheerer in finish. Chanel Narcisse has a more powdery-looking finish because of the shimmer in it. I would say that Burberry’s Blush finish seems similar to that of Chanel Narcisse (the US version). Out of all my Chanel blushes, for some reason I find Narcisse the softest. All are swatched over a mixture of MAC Prep & Prime, Armani Lasting Silk 5.5+6.5.

How I swatch my blushes on my arm:

I also had my eye on Russet and Blossom. They were sold out of Russet and I decided to wait on Blossom. Diane from Orange To LA has an amazing photo of Blossom which has me drooling with slight regret that I didn’t buy it too.

At $42 these are fairly pricey. I’m not sure how I feel about the price. At this time, it’s cheaper than Armani ($43) and D&G ($44) the same as Chanel ($42). More than Dior ($40) which I’m not a huge fan of because they are so sheer. Prices keep going up which I’m not really happy about. I guess it’s something we all have to deal with. In my mind, I think ideally a blush should be $35-ish maximum.

In my mind I still feel like skincare, foundation, brushes and powder should be the only items that exceed $45. Still doesn’t stop me. Personally I would love to have less fancy packaging with no brush in the compact for a lower price. I never end up using those brushes anyways. One reason I love Bobbi Brown individual blushes and eyeshadows, along with NARS.

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Burberry Lip Glow Natural Lipgloss: Tea Rose #05, Cameo Pink #07 and Nude Beige #09

July 22, 2010

Burberry Lip Glow Natural Lip Gloss ($27) comes in 12 different shades ranging from pale mauve, beige, tan, pink and red. These are packaged in a clear tube with a sponge tip applicator. The formula is smooth and pigmented, although I will say the testers at the counter had their tips cut off for sanitary reasons and the disposable wands at the counter did not pick up the color like the actual product tip does. Therefore, if you try these at the counter and find them sheer it is most likely the tester tip that is affecting the application. They have a soft almost powdery scent that isn’t too strong. Lasting power is medium as with most glosses. I like that these are non-sticky. They have enough pigment to wear alone, but are lovely over the Burberry Lipsticks to enhance the color of your lips.

The beautiful packaging:

I picked up three shades in 05 Tea Rose (creamy cool pink, no shimmer), 07 Cameo Pink (shimmery warm pink with slight coral tones) and 09 Nude Beige (nude beige-peach with a very slight sparkle). I reviewed Cameo Pink Lipgloss compared to the Lipstick yesterday. I can’t recall what Tea Rose Lipstick looked like exactly, but I believe it was even more blue-based and cooler toned than the Tea Rose Lipgloss. Nude Beige Lipstick is significantly paler than the Lipgloss version. I found the Nude Beige lipstick too pale for my skin, but the lipgloss version is very wearable.

L to R: Tea Rose, Cameo Pink, Nude Beige