Here are a few things on my radar this week. Fall collections are starting to arrive and I’m excited about the upcoming releases. From the top left, clockwise:
Marc Jacobs Beauty has launched some new Lust for Lacquer lip glosses, there are three new Lip Vinyl Sheers in Shiny, Magic and Superstar and two new Lip Vinyl Full shades in Shooting Stars and Satisfaction
I’ve been on the hunt for new sunglasses and after hours of searching, I think I’m finally narrowed it down to either these Marc by Marc Jacobs aviators or some Kate Spade classic shades that are on sale
Chanel Les 4 Ombres have hit counters, I’m in love with Poésie and Tissé Rivoli but have my eye on Tissé Vénitien (greens), Tissé Grabrielle (smokey) and Tissé Vendome because the formula is just so amazing with rich smooth pigment
For the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, I picked up the MAC Coral Look in a Box, the eyeshadow trio has really pretty pigmented colors and the lips options are stunning peachy corals, I’ll review this soon but I give this a huge thumbs up
In the past few months I’ve been testing out some cleansing oils from Chanel, Tatcha and Shu Uemura, I’ll have a report soon on the ones I’ve tested but in the meantime I’d love to hear what your favorites are
What’s on your radar this week? Were you able to pick up anything from the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale yet? With fall beauty collections starting to trickle in stores, what do you have your eye on?
My makeup bag started this week with only 4 items (EB Daydream, Lancome Juicy Tube, mini blush brush, Chanel Boy Rouge Coco Shine), but since Monday it’s accumulated quite a few more things this long work-week. Today, what is inside my Laura Mercier zebra print makeup bag:
NARS Tzarine Eyeshadow Duo
MAC Blonde MSF (limited edition from January 2009)
Burberry Misty Blush (new for spring, review to come soon)
Chanel Boy Rouge Coco Shine
Laura Mercier Mini Double Sided Brush
MAC Wolf Pearlglide (limited edition from 2008ish)
Lancôme Yayoi Kusama Edition Juicy Tube in Dot Apricot (now at Nordstrom)
Edward Bess Daydream Bronzer (my holy grail bronzer, reviewed numerous times here)
Le Métier de Beauté Sheer Brilliance Lip Gloss Ibiza
Le Métier de Beauté Sheer Brilliance Lip Gloss Captiva
Perhaps it is the California girl in me that is obsessed with bronzers, but I’ve always been one who prefers to be tan rather than fair. Right now I am a Chanel Teint Innocence Shell (equivalent to what’s in between MAC NC30 and NC35, neither is an exact match for me), hardly “tan” but luckily I have bronzers to help me feel not-so-pale since I have little patience for tanning in the sun.
There are so many different effects one can achieve with bronzers. One’s skintone and skintype will also affect one’s preference for formula and finish. A bit of information about my skin & personal bronzer preferences: I have normal skin with olive tones. I get a bit oily in the T-zone only when it’s really humid. I prefer something that gives noticeable tanned look. My top 3 requirements for bronzer:
Don’t turn orangey as my skin
Don’t make me look dirty/muddy
Too much shimmer = copper bronze statue
Powder Bronzers:
Edward Bess Ultra Luminous Bronzer – Daydream $48 This is my favorite bronzer ever! Not being able to see this in person, I purchased it based on the recommendations of Leslie (see her guest review on the EB line here). Her description was right on. It’s neither shimmery nor matte but somewhere in between. It’s a goof-proof bronzer that I can never go wrong with and makes the skin glow. I like it alone or layered over a luminizer like NARS Multiples or Edward Bess’s All Over Seduction. I recently bought the other bronzer shade shade from EB, Desert Sun, and will be reviewing it soon.
Bobbi Brown Illuminating Bronzing Powder – Bali Brown $33 Part of her Illuminating Bronzer formula, I don’t find this one all that “illuminating” even though there are sparkles in this one. For some reason it applies more matte and I find the sparkle/shimmers don’t show up on my skin. This one is more pigmented so I have to apply it with a light hand in layers or else I get an intense brown streak across my face. I would say this gives a more earthy-brown look rather than illuminating glow.
NARS Bronzing Powder – Laguna & Irresistiblement $32 NARS Laguna has achieved cult status as the most well-known and popular bronzer. It was one of my first bronzers and I used it every single day while I was in college because I found it so versatile. It worked well alone and when layered with other blushes. Irresistiblement is the newest powder bronzer from NARS. It looks rather orange in the compact and when I saw it I immediately wrote it off. However, I saw it featured on Em from Too Much Blush and it looked so good on her pale skin I had to try it. See her review here. See it on her lovely face here. She’s done a few looks with it and her review is extremely helpful. I highly recommend searching through her archives for inspiration on how to use this. I tried this at Nordstrom and fell in love.
MAC Bronzing Powder – Golden & Bronze $22 I find these to be the most natural and sheer bronzing powders. Golden is very subtle on me because it’s close to my natural skintone (when applied) so I like to use it as a contouring powder or over powder blushes to add a bit of warmth. I’ve hit pan on this one twice. Bronze is similar just a few shades darker and warmer. These give a soft bronzed glow. I like the simple mirrored compact. If you find these too sheer, try MAC’s Refined Golden instead.
Armani Sheer Bronzer #1 & #5 $49 #1 is the most brown-based bronzer I have. Looks like it would be too brown in the compact but goes on a nice tanned bronze. I would call #5 my most glowy bronzer. It on the shimmery side but doesn’t apply frosty. It’s a warm golden bronze that makes the skin glow. Darker skinned girls will find this less dramatic and more glowy than bronzey.
Cream Bronzers:
Chanel Soleil de Tan Bronzing Makeup Base $48 This replaced the Bronze Universel de Chanel Sun Illuminator. Comes in the same tub and compact. Looks virtually identical to the original. I believe it was simply reformulated and given a new name. My favorite cream bronzer for a natural contour. The tub is huge and lasts forever. This is my second tub. Looks brown but blends out naturally.
Armani Fluid Sheer #11 $59 This is more of a peachy bronze shade. I like Fluid Sheer #3 as well but find it extremely sheer. The Fluid Sheer #11 is one of the shades that shows up better. It has enough color on me to wear alone as a blush. I apply this over powder and foundation with a foundation brush and it doesn’t cake or get greasy.
NARS Multiple – South Beach $38 Another pretty peachy-bronze shimmer. More shimmery than the Armani. I like this with a powder bronzer (like MAC Golden or Bronze) layered on top. Love how this can be used on eyes, lips and cheeks. The challenge for me with this is making it last. It’s so emollient I find it hard to make last throughout the day. Still, the color is so pretty, the non-existent lasting power won’t stop me from wearing it.
MAC To the Beach Cream Bronzer – Weekend $25 I didn’t think I would like this because it looked so reddish in the container, but it works well as a subtle bronzer with warmth. Fair skinned girls will probably find this too red. If I were slightly paler this would turn orangey on me.
Discontinued Loves:
Chanel Irreelle Soleil Silky Bronzing Powder in Sierra 22 This was the best bronzer Chanel made. Then they discontinued the formula and came out with something I feel is chalky which just sits on the skin instead of blending in with it.
MAC Mineralize Skinfinish – So Ceylon, Sunny by Nature, Global Glow I find these can be a bit intense so I like these with a skunk brush.
Shu Uemura Loose Powder in Luster Bronze I don’t remember which year this came out, I think back in the summer of 2005? I got this at Bergdorf Goodman when I was in New York summers ago. I use it only for special occasions because I love the color so much I’m afraid to use this up.
Tools:
I like brushes that are more on the fluffy side for bronzer to get a sheerer application. These are my most frequently used brushes. For the creams, most of the time I use my fingers but my staple is the Prescriptives Foundation brush which is no longer available. Listed left to right:
Prescriptives Foundation Brush
MAC 129 Powder/Blush Brush $34
MAC 187 Duo Fibre Brush $42
MAC 138 Tapered $52
Bobbi Brown Bronzer Brush $50
My Top Bronzer Picks:
Best Bronzer Hands Down – Edward Bess Daydream
Best Bronzer For the Price – MAC Golden or Bronze
Most Natural Bronzer – MAC Golden & Chanel Bronzing Makeup Base
Best Bronzer Brush – MAC 129 (because it’s the most versatile)
A Side Note: I do have a number of other bronzers from the same brands listed above and other brands like Guerlain, Laura Mercier, Le Metier de Beaute, Dolce & Gabbana, Becca and Dior. The ones listed above are just my favorites for the formula and price. Also, I just got a new computer which I am trying to get used to. You may see a slight difference in the photos from my normal posting. Please bear with me as I am trying to figure out all the new settings with a new version of photoshop as well.
A Note About These Swatches: Please take these with a grain of salt. These were swatched on a bare arm without primer or moisturizer. Bronzers apply better over foundation + powder for me, so these swatches aren’t really true to life. I put as many as I could fit on my arm. There might be a few missing. Please don’t be alarmed by the furry thing at the bottom, he’s my kitty.
Last week I had one of those days where I had a million things to do during the day with no time to stop by home before a special occasion dinner. I packed my car with my laptop, papers, textbooks, backpack, purse, a change of clothes and an extra pair of shoes (to transition from day to night) but neglected to pack my makeup bag and brushes to touch up.
Luckily, I had my Edward Bess Compact Rouge in Island Rose (for lips/cheeks) and a mini Diorshow mascara tucked away in my backpack which was enough to freshen my look a bit. But it made me realize I needed to put together an emergency beauty kit to keep in my car for those times I need a last-minute touch up or days I forget to bring my makeup bag with me.
I looked to one of my favorite beauty books by Trish McEvoy “The Power of Makeup” for her tips on what to include in a beauty emergency kit. This is what I put together for my own using my trusty quilted planner:
Trish McEvoy Power of Makeup Simply Chic Page (Pink Innocence Lip + Cheek, Nude Innocence Lip + Cheek, Golden Peach AOC, Peony Pink Blush, Sand/Pink Shimmer/Snow/Blackberry Eyeshadows)
Laura Mercier Eyemakeup Remover
Edward Bess Love Always Deep Shine Lipgloss
NARS Luxor Multiple
Diorshow Mini Mascara
MAC Fix + (travel size)
Chanel DPF Compact
Chanel Spices Quadra Eyeshadow
MAC Cremestick Lipliners in Sublime Culture and Beurre
Chanel Ebene Waterproof Eyeliner
Laura Mercier Brown Copper Eye Kohl
Chantecaille Crystalline Gloss
Shu Uemura Tweezers
A bunch of mini brushes
My so-called “emergency kit” turned out to be quite a bit more than I intended. It’s probably the equivalent to a travel kit or a weekend-away kit. Yes, I am rather high maintenance, so this will probably be a work in progress. But at least I know that by having this tucked away in my car, I will always be well prepared to touch up, redo or refresh my makeup and not have to worry about finding the time to try and get back to the house before a last minute appointment or spur of the moment evening out.
Do you have a beauty emergency kit? What do you have inside yours?
Some of you have requested info, photos and swatches on a few items in the past few weeks. I apologize for the delay, I have not forgotten – here are the swatches and info you have requested. For reference, I am a Chanel Shell 1.5 in Teint Innocence (the liquid version). To see what other foundation shades I am, check out the sidebar – there’s a link to my foundation shades.
1) Can you swatch Edward Bess Bare Rose on your lips alone? Here it is by itself, please excuse the skin I don’t have any foundation or powder on:
2) Please swatch Paul & Joe 06 Nail Polish! I like this better in the bottle. On my fingers, I feel it’s a bit muddy looking. I’ve seen it on my tan friends (who are the equivalent to NC40 and a bit darker) and it looks gorgeous on them though. Here it is (2 coats):
3) How does NARS Love Devotion compare to last year’s Outsider? Love Devotion is brighter and sheerer. Here they are also compared to Beautiful Liar:
4) Can you swatch Shu IR Brown 850 compared to Shu ME 850? Sure, I’ll do one better. Here it is next to the other Shu Uemura taupes that I have. I find it fascinating how the base pulls out different undertones in each taupey color. These are swatched over a moisturized arm:
5) Can you write a post on how you pick out your makeup-of-the-day/look-of-the-day? There’s not much to write about this one. I pick out my clothes first and this is based on my mood. Makeup looks are picked out depending how much time I have and the colors I’m wearing for clothes. Sometimes, I’ll pick one product and create a look around that color. I’d like to say it’s more planned out through a more creative process, but it’s really just based on whatever works.
6) Will you show stash/closet pics? Most likely not. It might seem like I’m organized, but I am far from it. Just ask my husband. Granted, I do keep an organized mess – everything has their own section/pile – but it’s still very chaotic. I will share an old photo of my purse organization (this is an older photo from long before I started blogging, before I started my MBA, back when I was much more organized):
7) Did you purchase the new Chanel Shanghai-Paris Nail Polishes? What are your thoughts? But of course! How could I resist? I wasn’t going to write about these because so many other bloggers did, but since I’ve received several requests, I will. This one will be a bit more comprehensive, so I will do a separate post on this topic in a few days or so.
8) Will you be swatching NARS Versailles? Here’s a swatch, but I plan on this being my next manicure, so stay tuned for more pics! (FYI, I’ve seen this swatched on other blogs and it looked very streaky, I had to apply with a really steady hand to get an unstreaky result on my finger.)
9) Is there a dupe for Rescue Beauty Lounge Pink Shimmer? Yes – I’ve found 2 dupes, Chanel Le Perle (long discontinued) and China Glaze Heaven. They look really different in the bottles, but on the nails, the result is strikingly similar. If you look close you can see the difference in finish and opacity, but’s not really noticable from afar.
I had a $50 giftcard to Neimans that expired on the 18th and since Shu Uemura was going to be pulled from the store soon, I decided to look at the line to see if there was anything I could find. I found two shadows that I didn’t recognize in IR Brown 850and P Purple 781, and to reach the $50 minimum for my gift card, I decided on one of the new Laura Mercier summer lipglosses in Glistening Sand. I also had a few cards I received in the mail for a mini Rouge Coco in Legende and a mini DiorShow. I had received the cards in the mail about a month ago – but they didn’t get their samples in until recently.
Laura Mercier has 3 featured glosses for the summer collection: Glistening Sand (a beige with gold sparkles), Bon Bon (repromote, a bright salmon coral pink), and another bright coral (forget the name). She reformulated her bronzers with a wave-like pattern, but as far as I could tell they looked the same as the older ones. There were also 3 new eyeshadows which I neglected to pay attention to, one was a teal, the others were golden. Glistening Sand seems pretty sheer unfortunately – but it will be pretty over other beigey-nude lipsticks. (I don’t test glosses at the counter for sanitary reasons.)
The Shu Uemura eyeshadows have good pigment when applied over a base or with a damp brush. IR Brown 850 is a taupe with a slight greenish tinge on my skin. P Purple 781 is a matte purple-brownish base with silver micro-sparkles.
Eyeshadows are swatched wet (with a damp brush) and dry:
You can’t go wrong with a soft peachy-gold eyeshadow for an all-over easy & quick eye look. For girls with medium skintone, there are tons of your-lids-but-better options out there for a no-fail shimmery peach. My all time favorite is Chanel Abricot which I hear has now been discontinued. Luckily you can probably still find it at one of your local counters. Some of the peachy shades look pale on my skin even though they look peachy in the container.
Dior Beige Select, Chanel Abricot, Trish McEvoy Golden Apricot, Bobbi Brown Golden Peach, Laura Mercier Guava (old formula)
MAC Rubenesque & Shu Uemura Cream P Beige
MAC Hush, Motif, Jest, Arena (in pro-palette form)
Urban Decay Blaze, MAC Evening Aura, MAC Say Yeah
Paul & Joe #22, Paul & Joe #003, Armani Maestro #19
MAC Jardin Aires Pigment, MAC Melon Pigment, Laura Mercier Gemstone Mineral Eye Color, Laura Mercier Peach Luster Mineral Eye Color
All the shades grouped together (note, I apologize for the error below, but the color labeled Dazzleray is actually Jardin Aires):
