Browsing Tag

Spring 2014

Diptyque

Diptyque Rosa Mundi Candle and Eau Rose Hand Lotion

February 20, 2014

Diptyque has re-released their candle Rosa Mundi ($65, limited-edition) along with a new hand cream Eau Rose Hand Lotion ($28 for 50 ml/1.7 fl oz). Fun fact: Rosa Mundi was my very first Diptyque candle several years ago. I never finished burning it – for some reason it was stored in one of my cabinets hidden behind boxes. I burned it again this past month and the scent is the exact same as this year’s version although the glass is a bit different (brushed with the older release versus a gloss finish with this year’s) and the wax this year is pink (my original candle is white).
The Rosa Mundi candle is a lovely sweet rose scent. It’s has a strong and sweet mix of rose and honey with a slight hint of a powdery perfume-like scent compared to the regular Roses candle. It’s described as a  rose with a “soothing, sparkling scent that features notes of blackcurrant, lychee, damask rose, centifolia rose and honey.” It’s quite a mix of scents combined into one candle. I find this one to be quite feminine and girly.
Here is the original Rosa Mundi candle from several years ago. The Rosa Mundi released today smells exactly the same. The differences are in the floral design of the vase and the wax this year is pink. Many have asked for my thoughts on Rosa Mundi versus Roses. Rosa Mundi is stronger and sweeter with a more complex blend of scents while Roses is more of a pure rose floral scent. Both are really lovely. If you want something more neutral, go with Roses. If you don’t mind stronger girly scents you can’t go wrong with Rosa Mundi.
Eau Rose Hand Lotion is a beautifully packaged hand lotion. It comes in a small white squeeze tube with a beautiful floral design on the front. It seems a bit small for a $28 hand cream but the scent is really lovely, texture nicely moisturizing and it’s compact enough to fit into your purse. Similar to Rosa Mundi candle, the Eau Rose hand lotion has a mix of many different scents. It has bergamot, blackcurrant, musk, cedar and honey. It’s a lightweight liquid lotion that absorbs quickly into the skin and leaves the hands feeling fresh but well hydrated. It contains a blend of macadamia oil and aloe vera. The scent is quite strong for a lotion but not overpowering.
Compared to the Aerin Rose Hand and Body Cream (another favorite), the Diptyque is slightly sharper in scent. The bergamot, blackcurrant, and cedar give it an extra kick making it different from your traditional rose scent. Aerin’s Rose Hand and Body is thicker in texture but feels like it blends all over better for a body and hand cream. The Aerin cream has a softer sweeter candy-like scent compared to Diptyque. I can’t pick between the two – they are both amazing in their own unique way.

Overall both beautifully designed luxurious scented items that are well worth the splurge. I always thought I didn’t like rose scents – this was until I smelled Diptyque Roses which has opened my mind to not rule out roses as soon as I see the name or it listed in a description. Rosa Mundi and Eau Rose are beautiful additions that are strong florals but not so overpowered with powdery-ness like some rose scents are.

You can find the Diptyque Rosa Mundi and Eau Rose at all Diptyque locations now, although my local Nordstrom sold out of the hand lotion by the time I got to the counter (which was the week before Valentine’s Day). They kindly ordered it for me with free shipping – I bought four of the hand creams as gifts and everyone was smitten with the beautiful packaging.

Shop for these at online at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Saks, Selfridges and DiptyqueParis.com.

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Giorgio Armani Fluid Sheer #13 and Belladonna Highlighter (Limited Edition) | Effetto Nudo Spring 2014

February 18, 2014

Armani’s spring collection this year is called Effetto Nudo. I saw the items a couple weeks ago at my local Armani counter. My favorite Armani artists called me and kindly set aside some items for me which turned out to be a good thing since items were literally flying off the shelves as soon as they arrived in store. I picked up the new Fluid Sheer #13 ($62 for 30 ml/1 fl oz) and Belladonna Highlighter ($88 for 5g/0.1777 oz).

Fluid Sheer #13 is a pale opalescent cream shimmer. Belladonna is a cream-colored champagne shimmery highlighter in a mirrored compact. Both are very light in color but not overly pale on the skin. They have a transparent luminosity that gives a nude glow effect without washing out the skin.

The Fluid Sheer #13 (limited-edition) is new for spring. True to classic Armani form, this is a beautiful sheer liquid highlighter that you can use mixed in with foundation or on top of the cheekbones for a luminous glow. #13 is a very pale cream with an oyster-shell-like opalescent sheen. It flashes a bit of pink which I think is unique compared to others in the market. Compared to other Fluid Sheers, #13 is significantly sheerer with a softer shimmer. On my skin the color almost disappears when applied over foundation/cheekbones. The shimmer adds a luminous transparent glow to the skin. Although this is sheerish – the pink shimmers show up in a way that makes your face glow. The effect is very subtle with this highlighter but still visible. If you need more color or shimmer, I’d recommend you opt for #2 or #10. If you are one who can never find a suitable highlighter because you find most too shimmery, #13 is the right pick for you.

The fluid sheers come with a sleek black pump:

Comparisons below to Fluid Sheer #2 and #10:

Swatched along with NARS Copacabana Illuminator swatched below, note these are blended and sheered out. These were hard to photograph blended, the effect is better seen in person. I recommend you google for other swatch examples to get a better idea of what these look like:

The Belladonna Highlighter (limited-edition) is a solid cream that comes in a mirrored compact with a brush. It has a beautiful embossed floral design on the compact. It’s described as having a texture that is both dense yet incredibly light. I did not intend on purchasing this when I saw press releases. The $88 price tag had me saying no, but I caved on purchasing this due to the stunning embossed floral design combined with the limited-edition factor. On the skin it gives the perfect halo effect. The brush that comes with the compact is the perfect shape and density for this cream.

The Belladonna highlighter comes with a brush stored in the bottom of the compact:

Comparisons to other previously released limited-edition highlighters: MAC Superb (discontinued, but has made a few comebacks), MAC Whisper of Gilt, Chanel Poudre Signee de Chanel, Chanel Mouche de Beaute:

Swatched below, also with Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder in Luminous Light swatched beside:

One last photo/swatch set:

Both items are limited-edition for spring. They are on the pricey side – if you already have a lot of highlighters that you love, I’d say you can safely skip these. I do really love the Belladonna Highlighting palette – it gives a soft halo effect to the skin, I’m just not in love with the $88 price tag.

The #13 Fluid Sheer is a gorgeous sheer highlighter – one that is different from anything I’ve seen before – it makes the skin glow in a way that makes you look like you glow from within. If you are always finding most highlighters end up looking too frosty, Fluid Sheer #13 is the best shimmery glowy highlighter I’ve tried that is also the most natural and luminous.

You should be able to find these at your Armani counter now, although note they are limited-edition items. My counter sold out of the Belladonna highlighter the first day they arrived instore, but your counters should be able to locate one and have it shipped. The spring collection items are also online at Giorgio Armani Beauty, Nordstrom, Bloomingdales, and Selfridges.

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Chanel Coup de Coeur #609 Le Vernis | Variation Collection

February 18, 2014
Chanel just released a small collection focused on lips and nails. I spotted a new tester unit of the collection at Nordstrom this past weekend and was excited to try the new lip colors, however many of the slots for lips had colors that were from spring and previous collections. The counter rep did not know which ones were supposed to be featured with this collection stating all the colors in this set were repromotes. This turned out to be partially true – for a full list of what’s in the Variation Collection check out Specktra.net. I left the counter with two glossimers (swatches later this week) and the new nail lacquer in Coup de Coeur #609 ($27 for 13 ml/0.4 fl oz).
Coup de Coeur #609 is described as a lacquered plum. It’s just that – however it proved to be challenging to photograph. It has quite a bit of red mixed into the color but on the nails and in real life it’s a purply-plum shade. In sunlight and on the camera it wants to look more red – which is why you may see it look very different in reviews or message boards. To my eye it looks more like a mauve plum with a very slight hint of red.

Coup de Coeur #609 applied very smoothly with full coverage after two coats. It has a high shine finish like most Chanel nail colors. It’s a classic shade that I think will be universally flattering.
Here it is with two coats. I used Deborah Lippmann Rehydrating Base Coat and Rescue Beauty Lounge Top Coat to finish. The photos below show the complexity of Coup de Coeur – in some light it looks more red, others it’s more plum, and yet others more mauve.

Comparisons below to Infidele (discontinued), April, Paparazzi, Provocation.

Here you can see all the shades pulling more red in the direct sunlight:

More comparison swatches, left to right (previous reviews linked for each shade in case you want to see more swatches): Chanel Infidele, Coup de Couer, April, Paparazzi, Provocation, Elixir, Rescue Beauty Lounge Bruised and Chanel Rouge Moire.

Overall Coup de Coeur #609 is a lovely classic plum. It looks very similar to April on the hands, the difference is that April is warmer and more reddish. From arms length I think would not be able to tell the difference.
Coup de Coeur #609 Le Vernis from Chanel retails for $27. I only spotted it at one store last weekend but the collection should arrive at your counters soon. Online now at Nordstrom, Bloomingdales and Saks.
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Burberry Rose Pink No. 10 Complete Eye Palette

February 14, 2014

The latest from Burberry is the English Rose Collection. The collection has been arriving in pieces here and there. There are two new quads, new nail polishes and some lip colors that are repromoted. There are two new quads in Rose Pink No. 10 and Sage Green No. 15 ($59 each for 5.4g, made in Italy). I ordered the pink version from Burberry which sold out almost immediately online. While at the Burberry counter at Nordstrom San Francisco, the artists showed me the testers of the collection and said they expected to receive the items very soon. Right now Saks.com has both quads online.

Rose Pink No. 10 is a lovely palette of pinks – it is very light and pale. The shades include a pale frosted ivory, a light frosted pink, a soft shimmering mauve-grey and a matte dusty earthy clay kind of pink. On my skin both the lighter shades look identical. To avoid an overly pale eye, I started applying the taupe-mauve shade first, layered the salmon pink and then blended the two pale shimmers on top. The result was a very light eye. It had a delicate look. With a significant amount of blending I was able to get the palette to work with a simple dark brown eyeliner and mascara. I felt this palette needed a darker shade to make this work better for me. For more definition I added a bit of Midnight Brown eyeshadow.

The quality and texture of this palette is very good. Some have felt the other quads were different in quality than the single shades reporting they were powdery with fallout. I personally found all the other quads to be of very high quality, I didn’t see too much of a difference in quality – the quads in general seemed to have more satiny shades which had a slightly different texture. The Rose Pink quad seems to mimic the texture and quality more of the singles.

For those new to Burberry eyeshadow quads – these palettes come in a sturdy mirrored compact with a magnetic closure. Each palette comes in a soft black pouch with tiny brushes which I find too small to use except for quick touch-ups. Some more photos of Rose Pink below.

In sunlight:

Artificial bulbs highlight the shimmer and frost:

Swatches (slightly blotchy because I had remnants of moisturizer on parts of my arm but it shows how you can control pigment depending on how moist your eye base is):

Here are some comparison swatches to a couple other Burberry Eyeshadow Quads in Pale Nude No. 3 and Pink Taupe No. 7:

Comparisons to Burberry Rosewood, Antique Rose, Pale Rose and Midnight Brown:

I’m overall pleased with the quality of Rose Pink No. 10. Color-wise I do feel it needs one or two more darker shades blended in to work for me. Right now Burberry Beauty is available in the US at select Burberry stores, a few Nordstrom counters and select Saks stores. It can be a bit difficult to find and with the recent changes some items have been on back-order and hard to find. You may have to do a bit of shopping around if you want to purchase different colors.

The list of Nordstrom locations carrying Burberry Beauty can be found here (if you have updates please share below in the comments). For your reference I’ve linked the places you can find the items I swatched:

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Tom Ford Spring 2014 Nail Lacquers | Sugar Dune, Coral Beach, Incandescent and Indiscretion

February 12, 2014

Tom Ford released four new limited-edition nail lacquers for spring in Sugar Dune, Coral Beach, Incandescent and Indiscretion ($32 each for .41 fl oz/20 ml, made in France). The colors together make a beautiful collection perfect for spring. Those who have read my reviews of Tom Ford Nail Lacquers know I wasn’t too thrilled with the formulas for the original release of colors. I’ve found the limited-edition releases to be much better in lasting power, finish and pigment. The new shades for spring have good pigment and last quite long (going on 4 days and counting with Sugar Dune). These four shades come with the limited-edition white caps to match the white packaging on the lipsticks for this collection.

Sugar Dune is a beautiful pink nude cream. It makes for a lovely natural manicure. I’m on the end of day four wearing this and there are no signs of tip wear. I did find this one a bit difficult to apply smoothly. I had to apply three thin coats – each coats need to dry completely before you apply the next coat. If you have patience to apply this one carefully you will be pleased with the color. It has a bit of pink in it to prevent it from being too flesh-toned.

Coral Beach is a semi-sheer coral peach cream color. It’s not quite a jelly finish nail polish but it has a tiny bit of transparency. I found it applied with near-full coverage with two coats. It’s more orangey and less pink than other medium corals but it’s not pure orange. There’s a bit of softness to this that makes it look bright but more natural on the hands.

Incandescent is my favorite color in the collection. It’s a metallic mix of pink, bronze and silver. In sunlight it looks more like a metallic golden rose, in natural light it looks more golden. With two coats you can see a little bit of the brush strokes, but it applies fairly smoothly. This one had a bit of tip wear by day three (as shown below).

Indiscretion is a standard bright pink. It’s a bit brighter and lighter than the other Tom Ford pinks in his regular collection. This one was a bit hard to photograph. On the screen it looks a bit neon but it’s really a straight bright hot pink.

Bottom line – classic shades that will be wearable throughout the entire year. I think you can safely skip Indiscretion since it’s fairly similar to other hot pinks. The remaining three colors are beautiful with Incandescent being the most unique. It has a lovely shimmer frost without being too metallic. I finally ordered nail wheels, expect a comparison post to follow shortly.

The Tom Ford Nail Lacquers for spring are limited-edition at $32 each. You can find them now at Tom Ford Beauty counters, also online at Nordstrom, Saks, Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus and Selfridges.

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Tom Ford Lip Color Sheers | Summer Fling, In the Buff, Sweet Spot, Paradiso and Pink Dune

February 4, 2014

I ordered a couple Tom Ford Lip Color Sheers ($49 each for .1 oz/3g) online last week and then picked up several more shades at the Neiman Marcus counter in San Francisco (see swatches of all the new shades here). These new beauties from Tom Ford are called “Lip Color Sheers” although I would say they are really not all that sheer. Pigment is somewhere in between the Regular Lipsticks (full cream coverage) and the Lip Color Shines (see-thru but still pigmented and glossy). The Lip Color Sheers have this lovely natural sheen and impressive pigment. The shimmery shades are a bit more sheer while the creams are more pigmented. although they are not quite glossy. I found lasting power to be quite good. The lip colors adhered well to the lips and faded nicely after several hours of wear. I tested In the Buff yesterday afternoon and it lasted from noon until the time I ate later that afternoon at around 5:00 pm.

The colors left to right: Summer Fling, In the Buff, Sweet Spot, Paradiso and Pink Dune

Summer Fling is a soft light pink with gold shimmer. The shimmer isn’t super visible on the lips although you can still tell it’s a shimmer. This one has impressive coverage if you swipe back and forth on the lips a few times. It layers quite well. I found Summer Fling to have a glossy finish.

In the Buff is a pale seashell nude shimmer. It’s what I wanted Blush Nude to look like on me (that one is like concealer lips for me). In the Buff has just enough shimmer and color to not wash me out completely. Pink Dune is similar but darker and has more of a swirly peachy pink shimmer to it. This one is also a lovely shade. Both these two are my top picks.

Sweet Spot is a brighter coral peach. It has a bit of shimmer but to me looks more like a cream on the lips. You can blend and sheer it out for lighter color but it’s still quite bright.

Paradiso is a hot pink. It’s a medium pink in the tube and swatched on the hands. On my lips the color really adheres to the lip and brightens up with a bit of layering. This one surprised me at how pigmented it is.

For the ingredient-conscious I managed to photograph the ingredient listings on the box before I tossed them (click to enlarge).

I’m a huge Tom Ford Beauty fan. Anyone who has tried his lipsticks can vouch that they are indeed best in class. They are a luxurious splurge and in my opinion – there’s just nothing you can compare. Still $50ish is still very difficult to justify for a lipstick. The spring/summer collection offers some gorgeous fresh shades for spring, all of which need no additional tweaking or added definition. I found the colors perfect as is, straight from the tube. The formula is long lasting and pigment is flawless. Given the number of bright options that have been released, you can definitely find a similar color from MAC or NARS. I’ll try to pull some comparisons later this week once the sun returns. 
Tom Ford Lip Color Sheers are $49 each. The Spring/Summer shades are currently listed all as limited-edition. My top picks are the lightest shades in Summer Fling, In the Buff and Pink Dune. I can’t always pull off those gorgeous nudes or pales, and these are suitable with no extra work needed. Be sure to check out Makeup Magpie for her updated lip swatches.

They are available at Nordstrom, Saks, Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman now.

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A First Look at Tom Ford Limited-Edition Lip Color Sheers | Spring/Summer 2014

February 2, 2014

I ordered several items from the new Tom Ford Spring/Summer 2014 collection but haven’t had time to photograph or swatch yet. Some shades are already selling out online, but you can still find colors in stores. There are 8 lip color conditioners and 4 new nail colors (all limited-edition).

I hope to have reviews soon, but in case you can’t wait, I swatched each lip color on my hand at the Neiman Marcus San Francisco Tom Ford counter. According to the Tom Ford reps there, Pink Dune is currently their best seller, they say everyone has been asking for this one (I found it to be my favorite out of the bunch as well).

A sneak peek at the gorgeous Tom Ford counter at Neiman Marcus San Francisco (click to enlarge):

The colors swatched indoors with counter lighting and also outdoors to help you get a sense of how the colors look. For skintone reference I use the Tom Ford foundation sticks in 4 and 5 and am usually a Chanel B30. The color offerings:
Indoor/store lighting at the counter:

Outdoors with flash:

For additional reference, check out Makeup Magpie and Wondegondigo for extra swatches. You can find the Lip Color Conditioners online at Nordstrom, Saks, Bloomingdales and Neiman Marcus. Also in store at Tom Ford Beauty counters.

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