Browsing Tag

Spring 2014

Uncategorized

MAC Huggable Lip Colour: Touché, Fresh & Frisky, Out for Passion and Rich Marrón

January 20, 2014

MAC Huggable Lip Colours ($20 each for 3.2g/0.11 oz, limited-edition) are a new lipstick formula that were released several weeks ago. I would have missed out had it not been for Café Makeup who pointed them out to me and recommended I check them out. As she noted, the colors have been selling out quickly. I had to visit two different stores to track down shades. After surveying the swatches on Café Makeup, Temptalia and Weekend Ramblings, I picked out four: Touché, Fresh & Frisky, Out for Passion and Rich Marrón.

These new Huggable Lip Colours have a similar feel to Dior Addict Lipsticks (like Diablotine reviewed here). They have a creamy moisturizing feel. They are very emollient but with a thicker texture so they really adhere to and hug the lips. What surprised me is the level of pigment. The colors have a rich payoff with a soft shine finish. Lasting power is also quite impressive. You can control the coverage by swiping back and forth a few times for more color. If you have time to go to the counter to test, I highly recommend you visit soon.
The four colors I picked (with links to where the colors are located right now online):

Touché is a good nude without being too nude:

Fresh & Frisky is a fresh natural peach that brightens the face:

Out for Passion is the best watermelon pink I’ve ever tried:

Rich Marrón is a nice classic, a bit brown but still nice for everyday:

Overall really pleased with these colors and formulas. I didn’t have time to pull comparisons but these colors work well without any tweaking needed. My husband loves Out for Passion on me so I bought one more as a back-up. Right now the colors are limited-edition. I do hope that MAC considers making these permanent. There are 12 colors in the US, but various stores have certain shades sold out. You may have to do a bit of searching but stores probably still have stock of most colors. For the ones I reviewed:
Did you pick up any of the MAC Huggable Lip Colours? What were your favorites?
20 Comments
Uncategorized

YSL La Laque Couture Rose Scabiosa #48 and Rouge Pablo #49 | Spring 2014

January 19, 2014

YSL spring has two new La Laque Couture nail polishes in Rose Scabiosa #48 and Rouge Pablo #49 ($25 each for 0.34 fl oz/10ml). Both are rich vibrant creams that have a flawless finish. They have that lovely romantic Valentine’s Day feel. I’ve been a huge fan of the YSL La Laque nail polish formula. The brush is flat and wide but with a tapered edge. I can cover the whole nail with one brush stroke (except for the thumb) which makes for a super easy application. These are two coaters, but the pigment is rich and smooth. Lasting power is quite good – I can get up to 4-5 days of wear without any chipping or tip wear. Quality matches that of Chanel, maybe a tiny bit better in wear time. I use with my regular go-to’s with Deborah Lippmann Rehydrating Base Coat and either Chanel Laque Brilliance Extreme or Rescue Beauty Lounge Top Coat.

Rose Scabiosa #48 is a stunning baby pink with a slight hint of lilac undertone. I usually cannot wear baby pinks like this because I find them to be extremely sheer and streaky or too pale and powdery looking. YSL Rose Scabiosa has impressive coverage and enough pink color in it to suit my skintone. Below it’s applied with two coats:

Comparisons show it is quite different from my other pinks which tend to be warmer in color. Below shown next to Rescue Beauty Lounge Smitten (discontinued), Chanel May (reviewed here), Chanel Melrose (discontinued) and Laura Mercier Flamingo (discontinued, reviewed here).

Rouge Pablo #49 is a dramatic red-pink. It pulls warmer and more red on my hands but when compared to other reds, Rouge Pablo looks more pink. Your mileage may vary depending on your skintone. My mom is a huge fan of brighter reds and pinks for the nails. She tried this one and thought it was too bright for her taste with too much pink (she’s less olive than me in skintone and slightly lighter).

YSL Rouge Pablo is fairly similar to other reds. From arms length it’s almost identical to the ones shown below. It was hard to photograph the differences. Below I swatched Chanel Coromandel (warmer and more orange), Chanel Tapage (lighter and more pink), Chanel Rouge Rubis (almost identical but the Chanel is slightly darker) and Chanel Dragon (darker and deeper with more brown). If you have any of the other Chanels, I would say you can probably skip the YSL, although I do find it to be really pretty.

Overall really impressed with the two new YSL nail polishes. I’ve been really pleased with the formulas and textures. The application of the YSL colors I’ve tried is among the best out of all the brands I’ve tried. I give both a thumbs up. Out of the two I favor Rose Scabiosa – it’s an impressive baby pink.
You can find the spring YSL Rose Scabiosa #48 and Rouge Pablo #49 at all YSL counters now. Online at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and YSL Beauty US. 

11 Comments
Uncategorized

Bobbi Brown Bronze Nail Polish | Spring 2014 Nude Glow Collection

January 13, 2014

There’s a new nail polish from Bobbi Brown called Bronze ($15 for 0.37 oz, limited-edition). It’s one of three new nail polish shades from her Nude Glow Collection. The polish is a beautiful shimmering bronze. It applies smoothly with two coats and without any visible brush strokes. It’s quite lovely.

I used two coats to apply it for full coverage. I’m on day three of testing this and so far there have been no chips, tip-wear or fading. I used it with my regular go-to Deborah Lippmann Rehydrating Base Coat and Chanel Laque Brilliance Extreme.

I pulled a few bronzey-brown nail colors to compare. Thumb to pinkie: Chanel Delight (discontinued), Tom Ford Burnt Topaz (reviewed here, also still at Saks.com), Bobbi Brown Bronze, Rescue Beauty Lounge Ghost, Rescue Beauty Lounge Decorous (discontinued).

Bobbi Brown Bronze is a lovely metallic bronze. I give it a thumbs up. I haven’t tested it for a full week yet but the formula seems to be holding up quite well.

Bobbi Brown Bronze (limited-edition) should be at all Bobbi Brown counters now. Online at Nordstrom, Saks, Bloomingdales, Neiman Marcus and Bobbi Brown Cosmetics.

11 Comments
Uncategorized

Dior Vernis in Blossom #132, Perle #187 and Pampille #192 | Spring 2014

January 11, 2014

Dior’s Trianon Collection brings us six new nail lacquers this spring. I picked out three of the six shades from my local Nordstrom. You may find yourself shopping around various stores for all the shades. Some are only available to select retailers. The regular nail colors retail for $24 each, the matte topcoat retails for $25. The six shades this spring include:

photo Blossom_zps40696958.jpg photo perle_zps3b651df6.jpg photo Pampille_zps2340296c.jpg
photo Porcelaine_zps3bab2a74.jpg photo Bouquet_zpsc9cc8520.jpg photo Bloom_zps9aae2303.jpg

I picked out the three options available at Nordstrom. I’m typically a huge fan of Dior’s nail lacquer formula. I’ve found the coverage and pigment to be smooth and rich. The three spring shades I picked are stunning in the bottles. On the nails I found them to be extremely sheer.
Blossom #132 is a lovely sparkly sheer peach with gold flecks in the bottle. On the nails even with three coats I found it to be extremely sheer and disappointing. There is something about the color of this peach that is not flattering with my olive skintone. Below is shown with three coats. It pains me to give this one a huge thumbs down.

Comparisons below to Chanel Peche Nacree (spring 2011), Dior Abricot #236 (Sephora), Dior Sweet Orange (discontinued) and Chanel Miami Peach (discontinued):

Perle #187 is an interesting matte top coat. I found it lovely by itself, with a glossy top coat, or used as a top coat over other shades. It’s a bit high maintenance but if you have extra time for top coats or like to layer colors, this one is quite lovely.

Below swatched alone with three coats:

Below Dior Perle is shown in a few different ways, thumb to pinkie:
Chanel May
Chanel May with Dior Perle on top
Dior Perle with Dior’s Gel Top Coat 
Tom Ford African Violet
Tom Ford African Violet with Dior Perle on top

Pampille #192 looked so lovely in the bottle. It has the most beautiful mix of shimmer infused with a cloud-blue base. On the nails this was extremely disappointing. I found this one to apply unevenly and blotchy. The color with three coats looks faded. It didn’t go well with my skintone. I suspect it would make a good top coat over similar blueish colors. I thought this review with one, two and three coats on Pointless Cafe to be very helpful. Below with three coats:

I ended up being disappointed with two of three colors I picked out. When I bought them at Nordstrom my counter didn’t have testers available. They looked lovely in the bottles and given my past experiences with Dior, I thought these would be true to what you see in the bottle. I ended up re-gifting Blossom and Pampille to a couple friends who love sheers and layering colors. At this time I haven’t checked out the other three options for Dior spring. My recommendation is to try before buying.
Did you check out anything from Dior spring? Thoughts? Loves?

20 Comments
Uncategorized

Spring 2014 Beauty Previews

January 5, 2014

A few previews of spring beauty that I’ve spotted around the web:

Right now Armani and the Dior nail polishes have caught my eye (review of the polishes soon). I don’t know when the Tom Ford will be out, but the lipsticks look stunning!

13 Comments
Uncategorized

Guerlain Stardust #900 Maxi Shine Lip Gloss | Spring 2014

January 4, 2014

Guerlain Stardust #900 Maxi Shine Lip Gloss ($30 for 7.5 ml/.25 fl oz) is a sheer sparkling white that flashes shimmers of blue and white silver. It’s an exact match for the Stardust Nail Lacquer reviewed here.

Stardust Maxi Shine Lip Gloss comes with a sponge tip applicator. I love the simple and sleek packaging. The applicator applies the gloss perfectly. Stardust is a sheer clear base with subtle sparkles. The sparkles are large enough that you can see them on the lips but the overall effect is very subtle and sheer. If you’re a fan of sheer sparkle glosses you will really like this. If you’re one who craves more impact and color you may want to skip. There is no detectable scent with the Guerlain glosses when applied, at least not that I can tell. There is a soft floral powder scent if you smell them closely, the scent fades quickly though. Lasting power is medium. Texture is smooth and slightly moisturizing. It’s one of the least tacky/sticky feeling glosses I’ve tried.

More photos and swatches:

 
Guerlain Stardust has a similar feel to other white-silvery sparkly glosses. Stardust is more of a true silver sparkle while others flash more violet, pink or glitter with the sparkles. Comparisons below to some discontinued Chanel Glossimers and one MAC Dazzleglass. Left to right: Guerlain Stardust, Chanel Aragonite, Chanel Galactic, Chanel Surprise, MAC Sugarrimmed.

The effect is really similar in natural light:

Different view to highlight the sparkles:

Overall a lovely soft shine gloss. You have to see the gloss in person to really see how lovely the shimmer is. I have tried and love both Bobbi Brown High Shimmer Glosses and MAC Dazzleglasses both of which are extremely glittery. If you like the concept of those glosses but want something more subtle, I recommend checking out Stardust by Guerlain.

Guerlain Stardust retails for $30. It’s currently available at Guerlain counters along with the rest of the spring collection, also online now at Nordstrom and Dillards.

11 Comments
Uncategorized

Guerlain Stardust #862 Nail Lacquer | Spring 2014

January 2, 2014

Guerlain’s release for spring is called the Météorites Blossom Collection. It’s full of pinks and pastels along with some reformulated météorites pearls. I spotted the collection at a few counters in Beverly Hills last weekend. The two items that caught my eye were the Stardust Nail Lacquer and Lipgloss. After a few swipes of the nail polish on my finger, I decided to purchase the Stardust #862 Nail Lacquer ($25 for 10 ml/.33 fl oz).
Stardust #862 is an iridescent sheer pearl that flashes blue. It covers the nail with three coats with a transparent finish, but the base seems to be milky enough to be more than just a top-coat like YSL’s Premiere Neige (from 2012ish, now discontinued). I tried this as a regular nail polish and also over other colors as a finishing top coat. It applied well over light to medium shades of blue, pink and beige adding a subtle sheen and shimmer. On darker shades the base was too contrasted and ended up looking a bit messy with a coat of the Stardust. I’m still not sure how to wear this one. It works for me as a sheer nail polish. I wish it had more coverage and pigment.

Here it is swatched with three coats:

Comparison swatches below to Dior’s Spring Pampille, YSL Premiere Neige, Deborah Lippmann Moon Rendezvous (review here), and NARS Disco Inferno (review here).

Guerlain Stardust is a lovely sparkling pearly shade. I love that you can layer it for coverage and that the sparkle is visible. I still wish it were a bit more pigmented although perhaps it was designed to be more of a top coat rather than regular nail polish. It’s a pretty fresh light color for spring, but as pretty as it is, I’m still left craving something with more color.
Stardust #862 should be at all Guerlain counters now. I found mine at Nordstrom. Did you check out Guerlain spring yet? What did you think?

30 Comments