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Tom Ford Beauty

Loving Right Now

Sunday Details and Loves

February 7, 2016

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope you’ve been having a great weekend. The sun finally came back here in Southern California and we have weather in the 70s – I can’t tell you how much of a mood lifter this warm weekend has been. I’ve been on a fragrance kick lately, I’ll have a roundup of what I have in rotation soon on the blog. I just picked up my first Maison Martin Margiela in Replica Beach Walk (the rollerball mini) which is the most amazing beachy mix. It has bergamot, coconut milk, lemon, pink pepper, and musk … I think it’s only a matter of time before I pick up the full size spray. Right now I’ve been loving the Chloé Eau de Parfum for a soft femine scent (shown above). I have Love Story on my wishlist but it seems to have a very similar feel to the regular Chloé – if you’ve tried any of the Chloe perfumes please let me know what your favorite is!

Other details today include the Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Mascara Waterproof in Noir (a go-to these days), NARS Blush Duo in Hot Sand + Orgasm (reviewed here) and NARS Babydoll Lip Gloss (such a pretty pink shimmer, lip swatch here). I just started playing with the new Tom Ford Cream Color for Eyes last week and am beyond thrilled they’ve re-launched Platinum. It’s one of the best all over lid shades that makes a great easy wash for lazy days. It also makes for a great base for powder shadows. Today I’m testing three layered together. Shown above from top to bottom is Platinum, Opale and Caviar. I have taken photographs of all the shades + swatches, I just need to edit them for a post very soon.

Last but not least, I wanted to do a comparison between two makeup bags. I splurged on the Louis Vuitton Epi Cosmetic Case in Dune last month. The nude pink color is just so pretty and it had been on my wishlist for a long time. I really like the durability and classic look of the Epi line and after thinking about this one for months decided to go for it. A few weeks ago I featured the Tory Burch York Cosmetic Case in my Valentine’s Day Gift Guide round up post as a less expensive alternative (it’s still on the pricey side, but more affordable). I purchased one in Light Oak which is a nude pink color. It’s made of Saffiano textured leather and very sturdy. (More colors here.) If you’re looking to treat yourself, a friend or a loved one on a pretty cosmetic case, I think either of these are great.

Here’s a side by side comparison. The one from Tory Burch is slightly smaller in size compared to the one from Louis Vuitton, but the overall shape and function is the same.

Tory Burch Small York Case measures 6″W x 4″H x 2 ½”D
Louis Vuitton Epi Cosmetic Case measures 6.7″ x 4.7″ x 2.4″ inches

I hope you are enjoying the last bits of your weekend! If you have any new beauty discoveries, or found some items in your stash that you have rediscovered, I’ve love to hear about what you are loving right now! P.S. if you’re a fan of the Bite Beauty Luminous Crème Lipsticks note they are being discontinued so if you have any favorite shades you might want to stock up. On February 12th they will be launching a new lipstick formula (30+ shades) – I can’t to share more details with you.

Some press samples featured above include NARS Babydoll Lip Gloss, Tom Ford Platinum and Opale Cream Shadows.
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Eye Makeup Fragrance Highlighters Tom Ford Beauty

Tom Ford Beauty – New Spring 2016 Launches

February 1, 2016

There are quite a few new items launching this spring from Tom Ford Beauty. There appear to be mini product launches versus a full seasonal collection release. I did some major hauling over the past few weeks and have thoughts + swatches of my picks to share today. Shown above and swatches of what I picked up below:

Honeymoon Eyeshadow Quad ($80, on backorder at Neiman Marcus) 
Lip Color Shine SS16 ($52)

First up are new eyeshadow quads. The good news is that there are new eyeshadow quad colors in Disco Dust, Honeymoon, Last Dance, Starry Night and Lilac Dream. The bad news is that some like Cognac Sable are being discontinued. I picked up two of the new quads, the neutral warm ones in Disco Dust and Honeymoon. I had to call around to several stores to track down Honeymoon a couple weeks ago. I heard these are permanent so even though Honeymoon seems to be sold out for now, it should be available for purchase when they restock.

Both quads pull very warm on me. They also have shimmer in them which is absolutely stunning. Disco Dust has a cool silvery mauve sparkle, a warm satiny tan, a copper peach shimmer and a dark plum brown shimmer. Two of the shades are very similar to NARS Hammamet Eyeshadow Duo (swatched here) so if you’re not a fan of glitter, you may want to check out the NARS.

Honeymoon is one of the warmest eyeshadow quads I own. It has a shimmering tan, shimmery copper bronze, reddish auburn shimmer and reddish plum. This one pulls very warm on my eyes but it’s still very wearable if I layer and blend it and use the two darker shades along the lash line smudged. If you are very fair this one will pull a lot more red on your skin compared to me. On deeper tan skintones, I think this one will look absolutely amazing on.

Swatch comparisons to Charlotte Tilbury The Dolce Vita (another warm quad I have) and Tom Ford Orchid Haze. In terms of neutral quads, Orchid Haze is one of my favorite everyday neutral palettes from Tom Ford.

Quick eye swatch/look of Disco Dust:

There are two scents launched for early spring called Soleil Blanc. Since I was a huge fan of the Shimmering Body Oil from last year, I picked up both the fragrance and oil. I think I could have skipped the Soleil Blanc Shimmering Body Oil, although it smells amazing. I prefer the fragrance simply because it’s stronger and I feel like it’s not as messy as the shimmering body oil. Also this year’s oil seems to be more emollient than last year’s which I found absorbed quickly into the skin. This one has a lingering feel that isn’t greasy, but definitely noticeable, almost like it’s slightly sticky. For both of these, there isn’t much I could find online to describe the notes except that it has floral combined with amber. 
Soleil Blanc Eau de Parfum is a white floral. I don’t find amber notes to be very strong – but when I smell it closely, I can see how there is some blended in because this isn’t an overly powdery floral. It’s a warmer weather scent but I’m completely obsessed with it right now. The Soleil Blanc is what I wanted the Guerlain Terracotta fragrance from a few years ago to smell like (which I found too strong and too floral last time I smelled it).

Next up are one hit and one miss for me. I had very high hopes for the Lip Color Shine in SS16 and Shade and Illuminate in SS16. I almost never try lip color testers at the counters because they are loaded with germs, so I bought the Lip Color Shine without trying it on the lips. On the hands it swatched like a gorgeous glossy nude. On my lips it looks like concealer.

Swatched below is uneven, streaky and concealer-like on my pigmented lips:

If you’re like me and can’t pull off pale nudes, you may want to check out Lip Color Shine in Bare instead which is more pink in color:

Swatch comparisons:

Tom Ford Lip Color in Nude Vanille
Tom Ford Lip Color in Sweet Mystery (swatched)
Tom Ford Lips and Boys in Eddie (swatched here)
MAC Lipstick in Creme de Nude

Last but not least is the new Shade and Illuminate in SS16. This is the first Shade and Illuminate product I’ve tried from Tom Ford even though there are two other shades. This is a sheer dewy cream illuminator duo. The texture is very dewy and glossy for a natural sheen. I don’t think it will be everyone’s cup of tea since it’s on the dewy side. I like using this as a base for powder blushes or bronzers because it gives the skin a natural glow from within look. If you have oily skin you many want to proceed with caution on these. On my skin this gives a barely there glow. I actually still prefer the Edward Bess All Over Seduction highlighters (they are my holy grail cream highlighters), so if you want something more versatile and more visible, check out the Edward Bess ones instead.

Two sets of comparison swatches:

Tom Ford Skin Illuminator in Fire Lust (discontinued, review)
Tom Ford Cream Blush in Pink Sand (discontinued, review here)

Edward Bess All Over Seduction in Sunlight, Afterglow and Paradise

There’s lots to explore from Tom Ford right now. I believe there is a mix of permanent and limited-edition items. I suspect the SS16 items are all limited, but the quads are reported to be permanent. Also new from Tom Ford includes a new Purifying Cleansing Oil that I’ve been testing (review soon). It looks like new items for lips and eyes that just launched online including Cream Colors for Eyes, Patent Finish Lip Colors and High Definition Eye Liners.

Out of the items I reviewed on the blog today, I would say that my top picks are the Soleil Blanc Eau de Parfum, Disco Dust Quad and SS16 Shade and Illuminate Duo. The SS16 Lip Color Shine doesn’t work for me by itself – I suspect it can be easily fixed with a deeper lipliner like MAC Boldly Bare or Subculture though. Honeymoon is all kinds of gorgeous – but does pull dark and warm on me. It’s very pretty on but I prefer Disco Dust.

Have you checked out the new items from Tom Ford yet? Some pieces have sold out on different sites so if you’re shopping online you may have to order from multiple places.

Eyeshadow Quads can be found at all Tom Ford retailers such as Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus.

The Soleil Blanc Eau de Parfum appears to be exclusive to Neiman Marcus at the moment.

SS16 Shade and Illuminate + Lip Color Shine can be found at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and Net-A-Porter.

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On My Radar

On My Radar / New in Beauty

January 13, 2016

1  /  2  /  3  /  4  /  5  /  6  /
7  /  8 (launches on the 15th) /  9  /  10  /  11  /  12
There are so many gorgeous new items launching this spring. It seems to be the season focused on glowing complexions with new foundation formulas, blushes and highlighters. I’m still smitten with the NARS Hot Sand/Laguna Duo (I’ve finally found my holy grail highlight/contour powder duo). I’ve been testing the new NARS Velvet Skin Tint which is slated to launch this Friday on January 15th online at NARS and NARS Boutiques (elsewhere February 1st). First impressions are very good, I’ll have a review posted this Friday with swatches.

Also on the NARS front (they’ve been killing it this spring!) are two palettes. There is an eyeshadow palette called L’Amour Toujours Palette which I’ve been testing. It’s incredible – if you visit the NARS website they’ve done eye swatches of all shades on three skintone which is so helpful. Second, there is a new cheek compact called the NARSissist Cheek Palette which is a Sephora Exclusive. I’m working on swatches right now, I hope to publish by the end of the week.

Diptyque has launched their Valentine’s Day collection early with the new Rosaviola Collection in a collaboration with fashion designer Olympia Le-Tan. The packaging is beyond adorable I can’t wait to see these in person.
For cheeks Hourglass launched their Ambient Lighting Strobe Powders and I’m saying yes to all even before testing or swatching them in person. I hope to check them out at the Hourglass Boutique sometime this weekend as I’ll be in Los Angeles for IMATS. Kat Von D Beauty fans will be thrilled to know she’s launched seven blush duos called Shade + Light Two Tone Blush.

For the glowing complexion, Beautylish just launched some items from Natasha Denona. Her line is new to me, but so far you can customize your own glow kit with items such as primer, foundation, cream highlighter, powder highlighter and body shimmer. I just started testing the Face Glow Foundation in Shade 30 Light Medium which is an amazing cream formula. The color seems to be just slightly too light – I’ll have to do more testing before I can review.
I just posted a roundup on winter skincare focusing on face masks. I’ll be sharing more of my current winter skincare routine in the next couple of weeks including some thoughts on new cleansers – the Kate Somerville Exfolikate Cleanser is really good.
Last but not least, Edward Bess just launched a new lipliner shade called Barely which is my new holy grail nude lipliner. It’s the best nude pink ever made.
I’ll have a foundation review post up soon and some swatches of spring glossy tints from YSL. What’s on your radar right now? Any new discoveries you’d like to share? Spring beauty collections are still trickling in – what do you have your eye on?
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What's In My Bag

What’s Inside My Makeup Bag

January 5, 2016
Inside my makeup bag truffle clarity pouch

It’s only the first week of the year and even though I’ve tried to clean out some of my purses and reorganize, I’ve already accumulated way too much in my makeup bag. I just emptied it this morning and counted 12 lip items … wait no, 13 eek! Everytime I go out with my husband, he’s always asking what it is that I’m lugging around and if I really need to carry all this stuff. Of course I don’t, but I still do. Here’s a peek at what’s inside my makeup bag which is the Truffle Clarity Clutch Small in Nude. Some will be reviewed on the blog very soon.
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Lips

Featured from left to right:
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All the other stuff

From left to right:
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I’ll say now that the Dior Lip Glow in Lilac is way better than the Pink one (which turns fuchsia on my lips sometimes). I ordered all the Too Faced Melted Lipsticks from the chocolate launch because how can one resist anything chocolate? There are hits and misses with the colors – I’ll be editing swatches to upload later this week (my husband said one of the colors looked absolutely hideous on me). I pulled out my Tisse Rivoli eyeshadow quad recently – it is one of my favorite neutrals in quad form but I misplaced it and couldn’t find it for months (I had put the compact in my blush drawer which is why I couldn’t find it with all the other eyeshadow compacts). My goal for the new year is to find some more makeup organization solutions. I’ve been using Muji Acrylic organizers and drawers, but I need something bigger with taller drawers – any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. There are a number of options out there I’ve been researching – I’ve been making notes on dimensions and picing, it’s kinda overwhelming to sort out! 

What’s in your makeup bag this week? If you keep your makeup contents to a minimum, how do you edit/organize what you carry? 

Press samples featured above indicated by a *. 

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Uncategorized

Best in Beauty 2015: The Beauty Look Book Favorites for Hands and Nails

December 31, 2015

Hands and nails get their own favorites category this year. There were a lot of really good colors launched this year – unfortunately quite a few were limited-edition. My top picks for hand creams, treatments, polishes and other basics. Previous reviews linked for reference:
  1. Marc Jacobs Hi-Shine Enamored Nail Lacquer in Daisy – this is one I’ve owned for a couple years but everytime I wear it I always get asked “what’s on your nails?” it’s the prettiest soft pearly color that makes the hands look polished
  2. Chanel Le Vernis in Beige Rose – best baby pink cream nail color
  3. Dior Vernis in Lady – so sad this was limited-edition, the prettiest powder pink, I wish I bought a backup bottle
  4. Dior Vernis in Sunkissed – also limited-edition but still available at Macy’s and Saks Fifth Avenue, the best nude peach cream
  5. Tom Ford Sugar Dune – this was a limited-edition color from spring 2014 but made a comeback this year and was added to the permanent lineup, it’s the closest one to Dior Lady and such a polished beauty
  6. Louboutin Scarabée Nail Polish Collection – the three had to be the prettiest nail colors launched this past year, I was happy to get them before they sold out, looking forward to what they will release this upcoming year
  7. Rescue Beauty Lounge everything, in particular the R29 Collection – RIP RBL, you were one of my favorite nail polish lines, I was very sad to see the line go, but their polishes will always have a very special place in my heart
  8. L’Occitane x Pierre Hermé Hand Creams – L’Occitane launched such an amazing with their holiday collection this year, I fell in love with everything in the Pierre Hermé line and am embarrassed to admit how many shower gels and hand creams I stocked up on because they are limited-edition, right now you can still find Miel Mandarine and Pamplemousse Rhubarbe online but I don’t suspect they will be available for long
  9. Deborah Lippmann Cuticle Remover and Cuticle Oil – both of these remain at the top of my list for DIY nail essentials, I use them weekly and had to replace both because I use them so often
  10. Molton Brown Hand Cream in Pink Pepperpod – the most unique refreshing scent I’ve tried
  11. Tweezerman Pushy Cuticle Pusher – still the best one I’ve tried, although if you have any good ones to recommend I’m all ears
  12. Chanel Chataigne – from the fall collection earlier this year, initially I thought it was so similar to other vamps but it grew on me, best vampy shade launched this year
  13. Chanel Top Coat Lamé Rouge Noir – prettiest gold glitter top coat launched this year, I hope you were able to get one! It’s limited-edition
  14. Marc Jacobs Hi Shine Enamored Nail Lacquer in Wine Not – best metallic wine color released this year, it sold out almost instantly but was restocked online at Marc Jacobs Beauty, if you haven’t tried it you need to
  15. Nails Inc. 45 Second Top Coat – I don’t think I reviewed this in detail although I did mention it in this post here, one of the best top coats I tried this year and doesn’t cause shrinkage with other nail polish brands
  16. Formula X Nail Cleaner and Base Coat – I’ve found the Nail Cleaner to be a game changer, having a completely clean nail surface makes all the difference in helping polish adhere to the nails, the Base Coat has been a staple all year long, it’s what I’ve used the most and I can’t recommend it enough
Nail polish and hand cream fanatics – what were your favorites this year?

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Roundup

Best in Beauty 2015: The Beauty Look Book Makeup Favorites

December 30, 2015

I look back on the last twelve months and can’t believe an entire year has gone by. This has been one of the most challenging yet rewarding years I’ve had yet and I have lots to look forward to for 2016. I took a quick look at my blog posts for the past year along with an inventory of my favorite beauty products. I started with a massive list – there were so many good launches this past year, especially for lipsticks. Brands have really upped their beauty game with better formulas. I’ve edited my list as much as I could to what I considered game changers this year.

I have four categories of best in beauty this year. The first up is makeup favorites. I have 20 of my top makeup picks for lips, eyes and face – nails have their own category (up next).

  1. NARS Chelsea Girls Lip Gloss is this year’s best creamy nude (review here)
  2. Charlotte Tilbury Penelope Pink, Iconic Nude + Seduction make for the best nude lip combo ever, I used up an entire tube of Penelope Pink this year! (swatched here and here)
  3. Marc Jacobs Hi-Shine Enamored Lip Glosses = the best lip gloss launch (swatches here)
  4. Rouge Louboutin Silky Satin = most luxurious lipstick formula created and the best red lipstick I’ve ever swatched (3 formulas swatched here) 
  5. MAC x Ellie Goulding Lipsticks were the best pinks launched (swatches here)
  6. Burberry Kisses Lipstick = the best lipstick formula launch this year huge plus that they are unscented and also non-drying on the lips (my picks swatched here) 
  7. Tom Ford Lip Color Sheers in Skinnydip and Rose Soleil (swatches here) were the best new colors launched for the entire year (so good I have backups even though they are permanent)
  8. Hourglass Lip Treatment Oil in Icon is best new tinted lip treatment formula (swatched here)
  9. Urban Decay Naked3 was my most-used eyeshadow palette of the year (swatches here)
  10. Burberry Wet & Dry Glow Eyeshadow in Shell = best all over eyeshadow shimmer color for the lids ever made (review here)
  11. Clio Kill Bill Liquid Liner was the best liquid eyeliner discovery (review here)
  12. NARS Yeux Irresistible Palette wins for the best smoky eye palette of the year (swatches here)
  13. Charlotte Tilbury Eyes to Mesmerise colors are the best cream shadow launched this year for formula and color selection (swatched here)
  14. Hourglass Ambient Lighting Bronzer wins for most luminous bronzer + highlighter combination (swatches + review here)
  15. Tom Ford Moodlight is the best highlighter launch of 2015 (look + review here)
  16. Charlotte Tilbury Filmstar Bronze and Glow in Medium Dark = the best bronzing duo launched and also the one I used the most this past year (look shown on face here)
  17. Charlotte Tilbury Airbrush Flawless Finish Powder in #2 is best setting powder of the year, if it ever gets discontinued I will literally want to die (thoughts + review here)
  18. Sephora Pro Full Coverage Airbrush Foundation Brush #53 best foundation brush discovery for flawless streak-free coverage (review here)
  19. Wayne Goss Anniversary Set = the best brush set launch of the year (review here)
  20. Edward Bess All Over Seduction = most-used cream highlighters of the year (swatches here)
What were your favorite makeup picks this past year?

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Lips Tom Ford Beauty

Tom Ford Lips and Boys Preview Event + Beauty Look Book Picks

December 28, 2015

Tom Ford Beauty launched 25 new shades of Lips and Boys Lip Colors ($35 each) alongside 25 re-promoted colors from last year. I was fortunate to attend a preview event with my friend Rae from the RaeViewer last month at the boutique in Beverly Hills. If you haven’t visited the store before and are ever in the area I recommend stopping by – it’s beautiful inside! At the event there were small displays of lipstick testers scattered throughout the store. Rae and I had the best time searching the store for the new shades. At the event I picked out 6 colors (3 were gifted) – it was hard not to buy the remaining colors because they were all stunning! I did a bit of research over the next week and ordered 6 more. In total I’ve ended up with 12 of the new shades and am beyond thrilled with them.

First a few thoughts, impressions and more preview pictures of the store event. The 25 new shades launched this year all seem more shimmery compared to last year’s launch. Most have a smooth shimmer, a few had sparkly chunks (some of the deeper brights). Out of all the ones that caught my eye, only one is a cream (Austin). The finish of the shimmers is smooth and creamy. Smooth like the Lip Sheers but with more pigment and color payoff. The good news is all the colors are permanent!

Repromoted shades include (swatches of my last year’s picks here):

Addison, Alejandro, Beau, Cary, Collin, Flynn, Giacomo, Guillermo, Henry, Holden, Ian, James, Julian, Justin, Leonardo, Liam, Luciano, Michael, Pablo, Patrick, Rafael, Richard, Starvos, Wes, Xavier

Newly launched colors are:

Alex, Ansel, Austin, Daniel, David, Demsey, Derek, Drake, Eddie, Egon, Eric, Hiro, Jake, Jay, Joaquin, Jude, Kingston, Louis, Malik, Roberto, Rocco, Roman, Theo, Tony, Vladimir

A few more snapshots of the beautiful store, could an evening of playing with lipstick, champagne and small bites be more fun?

My picks, mostly neutrals of course with a couple brighter shades. Left to right below is Ansel, Austin, Daniel, Demsey, Drake, Eddie, Egon, Eric, Jake, Jude, Malik and Vladimir.

Descriptions of each of the colors and then a few close ups:

  • Ansel is a shimmering bright but neutral pink
  • Austin is a creamy nude pink (lighter than Addison/Pink Dusk)
  • Daniel is a mauve neutral shimmer
  • Demsey is a warm peachy shimmer (less frost and more peach compared to William/Sweet Mystery)
  • Drake is a shimmering cool mauve plum with silver shimmer
  • Eddie is a neutral beige shimmer
  • Egon is a cool beige shimmer
  • Eric is a medium warm rose, on me it pulls very warm
  • Jake is a medium rosy shimmer pink
  • Jude is a cool-toned light baby pink
  • Malik is a complex mauve pink with gold shimmer
  • Vladimir is a cool taupe nude shimmer
A few more close ups and swatches:

For skintone reference, I’m wear Tom Ford Traceless Perfecting Foundation in Bisque 4 (swatches of all colors here, review + comparisons of shade 4 here):

In case you’re wondering how the new neutrals compare to other colors, I pulled some other Tom Ford shades to compare by color grouping. There are a couple repeats in some sets. Many of these I’ve swatched before. I’ll link the previous reviews where applicable for reference. Below are six sets of comparison swatches.

My desktop clutter:

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Lips and Boys in Peter was discontinued but replaced with Lip Color in Sweet Mystery
Lips and Boys in Orlando was discontinued

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As a huge fan of Tom Ford lip colors in general, I’m smitten with the new colors. I think for the neutrals there’s a lot to love. I like that there are new neutrals that aren’t repeats of other existing colors. I didn’t pay too much attention to the deeper shades or brights but from what I remember swatching in the store – there is a lot that looks different from last year’s launch. From this year’s new batch of colors, my top picks:

Jake
Ansel
Demsey
Daniel
Eddie

The Lips and Boys launched this year are permanent so the good news is there’s no rush to run out and purchase a color for fear it will sell out. They retail for $35 each, or you can find some colors in the 10 Piece Set for $350 or all 50 Shades in a set for $1,950. Available at Tom Ford Boutiques and counters. Online at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman and Bloomingdale’s.

Did you pick up any of the new shades this year?

Three of the Lips and Boys shades featured were gifted, the remaining purchased by me.

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