Beauty

Tom Ford Lips and Boys Lip Colors Patrick, Michael and Rafael Review and Swatch

December 14, 2015

It has been a busy week for me with lots of social gatherings and functions so the delay in posting a review for the Tom Ford Lips and Boys Lip Color collection. Tom Ford has released the collection again for this holiday, and this is delightful news for anyone who missed out on the first release last year. Unfortunately the same goes for the second round, as most of the popular shades were snatched up within hours in Australia. I managed to get hold of some of the colors I had on my wishlist from Selfridges. This review I will be covering Patrick, Michael and Rafael as they are in the pink and red range. For the next review I will show the nude colors.

Left to Right: Patrick; Rafael; Michael

Tom Ford lipsticks are truly the cream de la cream of lipsticks, and the mini sized lip colors are just as good as the full size ones. I have done many detail reviews in the past, and in summary it is almost impossible for you not to like them!

Patrick is a bright milky peachy pink with no shimmer. It is a young and pretty shade, but slightly challenging for me to pull it off.

Lip Swatch for Patrick

FOTD

Michael is an extremely popular shade. It is a fool proof neutral pink shade in a semi-satin finish that would look lovely on most complexions. It has tiny shimmer in the tube, but they can’t be seen once applied. This is absolutely one of my favorite shades from the range which needs a backup!

Lip Swatch of Michael

FOTD – I was doing lots of lip swatches on the day, and the FOTD for Michael was taken last after other colors so the color is not as accurate as the above lip swatch as they were taken on different days!

Rafael is a fiery orange red shade in cream finish, and it looks more stunning on the lips than what it looks in the tube. On me it shows up more of a warm red that just instantly brightens up my complexion. Another favorite shade for me!

Lip Swatch of Rafael

FOTD

Other products used in the FOTD include

Base: Chanel Illuminating Makeup Base; MUFE Ultra HD foundation (reviewed here), 3CE Waterful Concealer (best drugstore concealer ever used – reviewed here)

Eyes: Suqqu Eye Shadow EX03 from the 2015 Christmas Kit A (reviewed here), Chanel Le Volume waterproof mascara; Inglot brow gel

Cheeks: Bobbi Brown blush in pale pink (swatched in this post) using Hakuhodo blush brush

You can find all the shades in the TOM FORD Lips&Boys on Nordstrom Online, as well as on NAP in the US. I bought mine from Selfridges which ship internationally, and all the colors were available at the time I was shopping. There are still some colors left on David Jones Online in Australia as of now.

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Labels: FOTD • LIPSTICK • Tom Ford

SUQQU 2015 Christmas Makeup Collection Kit A and B Review and Swatches

December 6, 2015

I have a weakness for the limited edition holiday makeup sets, particularly from Suqqu. Thanks to Selfridges who made access to Suqqu much easier world wide, I got hold of the two LE Suqqu Christmas Makeup Kit A & B 2015 as soon as they became available online. Each set contains a trio eye shadow palette, a deep blue gel eyeliner (Ex02) that applies almost black on me, an eye makeup remover and a well-made tweed makeup pouch. This review is for the two eye shadow palettes only.

Every time I tell myself I don’t need anymore eye shadows, here it comes another release of some irresistible new eye shadows that I may or may not have in my stash. This time around I totally fell in love with the unique design of these palettes – love the color combinations, and can’t get over how beautiful they look in the marbled tweed texture. The quality of these eye shadows are on the same premium level as the other Suqqu eye shadows. Buttery soft to the touch, smooth to apply with no fallout and the pigmentation is actually quite intense (more than Dior and Chanel quads) by Japanese standards.

Kit A contains the Suqqu Eye Color Palette in EX-03 Aosaori that is my favorite of the two. The shades lean more neutral, and the colors are versatile enough to use for either a daytime look or smokey eye makeup. Though this palette is designed for layering all 3 colors together, I personally find that they can look too warm and a little muddy on me when layering all 3 shades. My preferred way of application for a soft look is just to apply a wash of the bronze color over the lid, and gently tap the gold shade above the crease, or in the center, then line the eyes with the darkest shade.

Shade description

Top: sparkly gold with an extremely finely milled texture and feels creamy and silky to the touch.

Middle: shimmery warm bronze color with a gold undertone

Bottom: shimmery dark midnight blue with a hint of purple

Swatch

Kit B contains the Suqqu Eye Color Palette Ex-04 Shisouori which is a combination of shimmery pink and purples. The colors are obviously more feminine and girly and would look stand out on blue and green eyes. On me I need to make the color appear more smokey (almost like a dusty rosey plummy pink) to make it work. These are not my everyday go-to colors, but they are unique to my stash, and are fun to use as I need to be more creative, and experiment with new ways of applying these colors for different looks that are different to the neutrals.Shade description

Top: Sparkly icy pink

Middle: shimmery lavender pink

Bottom: shimmery dark plummy color

Swatch:

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Labels: EYESHADOW • Holiday 2015 Collection • SUQQU

A Round-up of the Best base face products for combination and oily skin

November 28, 2015

My previous post on my reader’s requests about how I clean my brushes was very well received, so I though I’d include a post that addresses some of the other most frequently asked questions. Today’s round-up is my picks for the base products for normal, combination to oily skin that have a great staying power in hot and humid weather and still look natural.

This is the list of my favorite products that are great for controlling the oil throughout the day, and most importantly they tick the criteria for not looking too matte, powdery and cakey on the face.

1. MAC Prep and Prime -I bought the full size bottle of this after using a sample as I loved it so much. I am not a big fan of MAC base products but thumbs up for this one. It smoothes out the skin, covers and fills up the pores and creases, and slightly mattifies the skin without feeling silicony and heavy. The foundation sets beautifully on top of this primer, and gives an airbrushed finish of a more even and refined skin texture. It also helps to keep the shine and oil away for a longer time.

2. Make Up For Ever Smoothing Primer – Similar concept to the MAC, but more mattifying and covers the pores better. It has a heavier silicone texture than the MAC, and takes away excess oil and shine completely. Highly recommend it to anyone who has oily skin with large pores.

3. Chanel Mat Lumiere Foundation – My go-to foundation for the hot weather. It has a milky fluidy texture, feels lightweight, and offers a great coverage. It sets slightly more matte and powdery than the other fluid foundations, but it still gives the signature Chanel radiant glow from their Lumiere range. It also photographs beautifully – natural with a soft glow but not shiny.

4. Chanel Perfection Lumiere Foundation (reviewed here) – I wasn’t very impressed with this foundation at first as I was in a ‘dewy foundation’ phase back then, and fell in love with it during the summer time, as it has an amazing stay power and keeps my face looking fresh and clean for the whole day. It gives a velvety finish that is a tad more matte than the Mat Lumiere upon application, and it becomes more natural and luminous over time. Would only recommend this to normal to oily skin types.

5. Chanel Natural Finish Loose Powder – A very mattifying powder, and a little goes a long way. I only dust a very sheer amount on to my t-zone on a normal day, and it keeps the shine away for the whole day. I brought this along with the Mat Lumiere foundation to my last tropical vacation, and they worked wonders keeping my makeup on without melting for the whole day in very humid weather. It can look slightly powdery if applied too much, and it is not the most finely milled powder (can slightly enhance the pores around the cheeks) compared to the other high end powders I have in my collection.

6. Cle De Peau Translucent Loose Powder – My absolute holy grail for so many years. The most luxurious, silkiest and finely milled loose powder you can find in the stores. It looks natural, non powdery, and gives a brightening and more refined finish as it helps to cover the pores and lift the dullness. It slightly mattifies the skin and guarantees to keep your makeup stay put all day.

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Labels: CHANEL • CLE DE PEAU • foundation • MAC • Makeup Base • MAKEUP FOREVER • My Favorites • POWDER • PRIMER

Sephora AU Black Friday Wish List!

November 26, 2015

To all the Aussie beauty lovers who have been shopping up a storm at Sephora every time you go overseas, you probably would know Sephora has already opened the first Australian store in Sydney, and just recently they have launched their Sephora AU online shopping website. Tomorrow we will be finally having our first Australian Sephora Black Friday Sale with 20% site-wide (use code BFAU310093 for the members) and 10% off for the general public!! The brands available in Australia are different to the US site, and the online site also has more brands than in the Sydney store such as Sigma and the highly popular Korean brand 3CE! I put together a list of products that I love, and are exclusive to Sephora that are worthy to check out.

1. Marc Jacobs Beauty – You will get hooked on this brand once you have tried their uber adorable Kiss Pop Lipsticks.

2. NUDESTIX – I have been eyeing this brand for a long time, and love their concept of delivering a wide range of beauty products in the form of pencils (think about lip balm in a pencil). All of their pencils have a creamy consistency and apply beautifully from what I have heard. I will be hauling a lot of them tomorrow! If you are in the US, you can find this range on SPACE NK which is offering gift card of $25 if spend $125 until 1st Dec.

3. Becca – Becca’s shimmering skin perfector pressed powder is one of the best powder highlighters I have used. The must-have shades include the highly popular Becca X Jaclyn Hill Champagne Pop (back in stock!), and Moonstone for fair to fair/medium complexions.

4. Make Up For Ever – Raved about their Ultra HD foundation (reviewed here), and another fantastic product that I highly recommend from the line is the Smoky Waterproof Mascara (one of my HGs!)

5 Sigma brushes – Good brushes good price.

6. Sephora Collection – I love storing my makeup in train cases, and I absolutely love this clear train case. Must have for me!

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Labels: SHOP

Charlotte Tilbury Life Changing Lash Curler Review

November 22, 2015

A quick review on the Charlotte Tilbury Life Changing Lashes Curler this weekend. I managed to get it from Selfridges as it is a very popular product from the brand. Obviously I have a thing for gold packaging, so I’ve also bought the limited edition Shu Uemura X15 Curler in gold from the 2015 Maison Kitsune Holiday Collection which will be used as a comparison in this post.

Generally speaking, the packaging of Charlotte Tilbury products look better than how they feel. This eyelash curler looks stunning in the rose gold color, but it feels light and a little on the flimsy side. The spring does not feel as tight as the other high end lash curlers, and it doesn’t feel very sturdy when clamping compared to my holy grail Shu Uemura’s curler.

Apart from the flimsy aspect, this eye lash curler does work very well. The performance is pretty much on par with the Shu Uemura’s. I have quite flat eyes (not as curved), and my eye lids are slightly hooded, and my lashes are medium length (Asian standard!) and straight. This curler fits my eyes very well – it doesn’t pinch the skin and it catches all the lashes in one go which is important for me so I don’t need to curl the lashes at different angles multiple times. It is easy to curl the lashes from the roots with this tool, and it lifts the lashes up within a few seconds (2-3 clamps only).

Overall I recommend this eye lash curler if you like Shu’s or the Shiseido Curler. It is quite lightweight, perhaps that’s what makes this curler work! I have used some well made and highly raved curlers from Suqqu (reviewed here) and Le Metier De Beaute, but they didn’t work for me. As a general guide, you should replace the rubber band every 4-5 months, and replace the curler every 1-2 years as the spring tends to lose its pressure depending how much you use it.

I bought the Charlotte Tilbury lash curler here that ship internationally, and it comes with an extra rubber band. It is also available here and here but they are all on back-order for now.

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Labels: Beauty Tools • Charlotte Tilbury • Eyelash Curler

Guerlain Meteorites Perles des Neiges Review – Winter Fairy Tale Holiday 2015 Collection

November 19, 2015

It seems every beauty enthusiast is deeply infatuated with the Guerlain Winter Fairy Tale Holiday 2015 Collection, hence the sellout of many products from the collection within days of launching worldwide. The hit products are the whimsical Meteorites Perles des Neiges (limited edition) and the Rouge G Collector Lip Color. I have always been a fan of the original meteorites, so I made sure I got hold of the beautiful edition when it was released in Australia last week (yes I called up several stores!).

I don’t normally follow Guerlain makeup collections, and I had to admit that at first I bought it simply because of all the hype around it. As I have been using it till now, it is a really phenomenal product that’s worth the purchase that doesn’t just have the pretty design. If you like the original meteorites, you will love this even more. And if you don’t own any, this is possibly the best illuminating/setting powder to use for a soft glow.

The Meteorites Perles des Neiges contains 3 different colored balls of golden peach, pale pink beige and ivory beige in a soft shimmer finish. It also contains silvery white stars in sparkly finish. When applied together it gives a translucent finish with a brightening and soft illuminating effect but not sparkly on the face. It can be used for highlighting purposes for a subtle effect, but I prefer using this as loose powder all over the face. Particularly if you find that the traditional loose powder makes your complexion look too powdery and flat, then the meteorites is perfect for setting the makeup, taking away the unwanted shine but adding a touch of soft radiant glow to the face. Compared to the original Meteorites in Light, this edition is slightly more brighter and the undertone leans more ivory. On my NC15-20 complexion, it matches me well and it goes on clear like transparent loose powder.

Bottom Line: Get it if you can still find it!

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Labels: GUERLAIN • Holiday 2015 Collection • POWDER

MAKE UP FOR EVER ULTRA HD Invisible Cover Foundation Review and Swatch

November 16, 2015

Over the years I have used tons of foundations, and the MAKE UP FOR EVER HD was one of the few foundations that I used up completely and was in love with it at all time. So when I saw the latest release – the MUFE ULTRA HD Invisible Cover Foundation (also available at the Sephora AU), I had to have it!

Overall I am very pleased with my purchase, as this foundation impressed me considering the mass amount of foundations I own. It is a great foundation in all aspects, and it stands out in its signature ‘HD invisible finish’ that applies simply undetected on the skin with decent coverage.

Texture

It has a fluid milky texture and feels very lightweight on the skin. Compared to the original formula, this newer version is much more moisturizing and works better on dryer skin. It melds into your skin effortlessly without the need of any primer (even for very dry skin and the under-eye areas), and it doesn’t enhance any lines nor dry patches.

Coverage

Coverage is about sheer to medium that is on par with most of the liquid foundations on the market. It covers redness, mild imperfections and evens up the skin tones, but you will need a concealer for covering dark circles, breakouts, and dark acne marks/pigmentation. Does an average job for covering the visible pores, so if you want to achieve a complete poreless complexion I would recommend using a pore smoothing primer over the troubled areas.

Finish

This foundation is absolutely amazing for its invisible finish. I always prefer using natural looking foundations, but this is the first foundation I have used that applies without blending required! I have tried many tools, and the best tool for application would be a flat top kabuki synthetic brush. My favorites are the Dior Brush or the Marc Jacobs Beauty brush (review). With this type of brush, it feels like applying an eraser to the complexion as you are done with foundation application with only one stroke – it leaves with absolutely no streaks and looks traceless in a semi matte finish with a hint of satiny glow. It is also buildable to a higher coverage whilst still looking invisible on the skin.

Lasting power

Without setting this foundation with loose powder, it lasts about 6-7 hours indoor and the skin becomes more dewy as the natural oil starts to come through. And you will notice the foundation creases a little around the t-zone and mouth areas. I normally dust a sheer layer of loose powder which helps this foundation to last a whole day without creasing nor oxidation.

Shade

My shade is between NC15-20, and I bought the shade Y205 Albaster (comparable to Nc15) which is the lightest shade of the selection.

Swatch comparison

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Labels: foundation • MAKEUP FOREVER

Holiday Wishlist – Beauty

November 11, 2015

I always get really excited during the months leading to the Holidays, as there are so many beautiful makeup releases and gift packs during this time of the year. I have been devouring online as well as hauling here and there at the stores over the past weeks, and here is the wishlist I came up that will put a big smile on every girl’s face!

1. Suqqu LE Christmas Kits – This holiday season Suqqu has released two limited edition kits – each kit includes an eye shadow palette, a gel eyeliner pencil and a 50ml makeup remover in a lovely tweed pouch. As usual they are selling out extremely fast, and I have purchased both sets (this and this) as I love the design this year. Along with the Christmas Kits, Suqqu also released the Murasaki Dahlia set (sold out within minutes), and a glamorous Kimono set.

2. Giorgio Armani has just released a set of new premium makeup brushes that are hand-crafted in Japan – now available in the US and UK. It is interesting to see how these brushes are made by the Japanese artisan in this video. I absolutely can’t wait to try them out once they become available in Australia! Another palette that I am highly anticipating is the Giorgio Armani Luxe is More Palette.

3. Guerlian Winter Fairy Tale Holiday 2015 Collection – needless for me to say how crazy this collection is. The must-have products are the LE Meteorites Pearls and the Rouge G Collector Lip Color which have probably been all sold out worldwide. If you are interested in Australia, the Meteorites Pearls are on back order for a limited number at the David Jones Sydney store.

4. The iconic Burberry Military Red lip color now comes in a limited edition gold packaging. Also loving the new Eye Color Cream in festive gold.

5. The highly coveted Charlotte Tilbury Life Changing Lash Curler can now be purchased individually! On Nordstrom in the US.

6. Head over heels with this new Bobbi Brown Luxe Lip Color range (available here in Australia) – love the colors and the highly intense and moisturizing formula of this new range

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Labels: BRUSHES • Giorgio Armani • Holiday 2015 Collection • SHOP • SUQQU

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