EYESHADOW

YSL 5 Color Couture Palette 02 Fauves and 04 Saharienne Review and Swatches

July 16, 2014

There are some great new collections of eye shadows being released this year – including the highly anticipated YSL 5 color Couture Palette. I bought them in 02 FAUVES and 04 SAHARIENNE recently and they look even more beautiful in real life than all the preview pictures I have seen online!

The packaging of the Couture Palette is picture-worthy – the sleek gold case is ultra luxurious and glamorous. My only gripe is that they tend to show finger marks easily.

The quality of these new eye shadows are divine and much better than their past collections. They are extremely finely milled and very firmly pressed so they feel quite solid and velvety to the touch. If you look closely there is an intricate woven print design on the eye shadows which I thought was very unique. The pigmentation of every single shade is highly rich, and you get the true color and intensity with only 1 gentle swipe needed. They are smooth and easy to blend. Contrary to the new Chanel Les 4 Ombres Quads (reviewed here and they are now available on Nordstrom!) which are best to be applied with brushes that tend to pick up more pigments (such as the Tom Ford or Hakohodo J series) , I like to apply the YSLs with very soft brushes such as the Suqqu eye brushes or the Chikuhodo z-series and GSN series (to be reviewed soon).

The YSL 5 Color Couture Palette in 02 Fauves is a saturated warm neutral quads that is perfect for creating smouldering soft smoky eyes.

Color description:

Top Right -shimmering vanilla with an icy pink undertone

Top Left – shimmering rosy copper color

Bottom Right -shimmering medium brown (leans warm)

Bottom Left -shimmering dark brown (leans warm)

Middle – charcoal

The YSL 5 Color Couture Palette in 04 Saharienne is a cool neutral quad. They colors are very versatile with mix of soft and intense colored shades which makes this palette more day time friendly, and the highlight for me is the stunning shimmery taupe shade.

Color description:

Top Right – shimmering pale golden champagne color

Top Left – shimmering pale pink beige (like a flesh color)

Bottom Right – shimmering true taupe color with an eggplant undertone

Bottom Left – shimmering medium neutral brown

Middle – shimmering intense dark brown (leans cool)

Overall the YSL Couture Palettes are one of the best new eye shadows to own. The fact that it has 5 colors in the pan gives you more choices and options to wear them in different combinations. I almost forgot how fun and delightful it is to play with rich and saturated eye shadows, and the YSLs brought it back. They are available online here or here.

{ 7 comments }

Labels: EYESHADOW • YSL

Chanel Les 4 Ombres Quadra Eye Shadow Tisse Mademoiselle 214 Review, Tutorial and FOTD

June 26, 2014

This is a more detailed review for the new reformulated Chanel Les 4 Ombres Quadra Eye Shadow in Tisse Mademoiselle 214 (see this post for general review). I have been playing with this quad for several days, and I absolutely love it. It is such a unique and subtle neutral quad with complex undertones. I’d like to emphasize again that the reformulated eye shadows are extremely creamy – certainly the creamiest powder eye shadows I have ever owned and you can almost apply them with your fingers for a wash of color. For precise application it is best to use brushes that tend to pick up more pigments. All shades go on very smooth and they adhere nicely to the skin without aging the eyes, and that’s what differs a good quality high-end eye shadow to the drugstore brands.

Except for the darkest shade in the quad, the rest of the shades are very neutral and quite light so you might not like this if you are into bold colors. The shades might only serve you as a wash of color if you have medium to dark skin tone. As for me they work really well together for illuminating as well as adding some depth. As you can see from the below swatch, the colors show up differently depending on the angles. They can pull slightly muddy on yellow toned skin because of the tinge of olive undertone, so I like to prep my eye lids with foundation first.

In the below tutorial, I also included the new Chanel Stylo Yeux in Marron Glace 906 , which is a lovely shimmery dark brown color. Other products used include the Chanel Cream Blush Intonation, and Bobbi Brown High Shimmer Lip Gloss in Nectar (absolutely love this one!).

EYES

CHEEKS & LIPS

{ 10 comments }

Labels: CHANEL • EYESHADOW • FOTD • TUTORIAL

Initial thoughts on the new Chanel Reformulated Les 4 Ombres Quadra Eye Shadows – 226 Tisse Rivoli and 214 Tisse Mademoiselle Reviews and Swatches

June 20, 2014

Chanel has released 8 new reformulated Les 4 Ombres Quadra Eye Shadows (available at Nordstrom online now!), with some old ones being discontinued. I picked up 226 Tisse Rivoli and 214 Tisse Mademoiselle yesterday at the Chanel Makeup Studio. As usual I gravitated towards the neutral palettes, and I thought I’d do a comparison review on these new quads.

QUALITY

The texture of the reformulated eye shadows are pretty phenomenal – they are the creamiest powder eye shadows I have ever seen from Chanel. Trust me I have a fair share of them in my makeup stash – ranging from the US formula, to the exclusive seasonal limited edition palettes. The texture of these feel like ‘creamy jelly’ – they are so buttery soft with a slight cushiony touch, and smooth like velvet. The pigmentation is also richer than the old formula, and easier to glide on to the skin. I find it much easier to swatch these new palettes (with only 1 -2 swipes to get full intensity), whereas for some old mediocre quads I had to swept several times. In terms of finish, they still retain the soft and subtle sheen that Chanel eye shadows are known for.

In short, my conclusion from comparison in terms of texture is as follows:

Softness of reformulated quads > US version > Limited Edition palettes such as Topaki and Harmonie de Soir > Euro/Asia baked version

Pigmentation of reformulated quads are identical to US version/LE palettes

COLORS

I pulled out some Chanel quads that I think are similar for comparison.

Close up of Tisse Rivoli

Close up of Tisse Mademoiselle

226 Tisse Rivoli is very similar to Raffinement but more warm.

214 Tisse Mademoiselle is the closest to Dune but more warm with a hint of very light olive tinge.

On a side note, according to the Chanel SA, Lagoon, Eclosion, Raffinement, will be discontinued along with several others which I can’t remember.

All colors are swatched in the order of top row from left to right, then bottom row from left to right.

I bought the Chanel eye shadow quads in Australia for AUD$90 each. Also available at Nordstrom online (link here).

{ 10 comments }

Labels: CHANEL • EYESHADOW

Bobbi Brown Nectar and Nude Eye Palette Review, Swatch and Eye Makeup Tutorial

June 18, 2014

Bobbi Brown is the queen of neutrals, and I love her eye shadow palette if the colors are done right for me. My last palette from BB was from 2 years ago, and finally she released this Nectar and Nude Eye Palette from her recent Nudes in Bloom Collection that captured my heart again. It retails for $95 in Australia (I bought here) which is double the price than in the States, and I made sure I absolutely wanted it so I dropped by the counter 3 times to swatch the colors!

The palette contains 4 matte and 2 shimmery/sparkly eye shadows, with the latter two being the standout for me. They are very smooth to apply and blend, and complement any matte neutral shades for a multi-dimensional look. They bring the matte shades to life, and in my opinion without these two this would be quite a boring palette!
Pale Cream (new shade and matte) – exactly the same color as my skin so it doesn’t show on my skin in the swatch below. It’s excellent for using it as a base color.
Soft Buff (new shade and matte) – matte taupe with mauve undertone. It’s relatively smooth for a matte shade and easy to blend.
Golden Bronze (new shade and metalic) – shimmery pale golden bronze. It’s the most buttery soft and smooth shade out of the palette. Stunning!
Pink Bellini (new shade and sparkly) – very smooth with pink micro glitter for a fine sparkle
Earth (new shade and matte) – a true medium brown shade which would be the most used color out of this palette for me.
Rich Cavair (new shade and matte) – goes on dark chocolate brown. Not as pigmented as the other shade, and it is dry and not easy for blending.

Here is a tutorial of how I would use this palette for a natural eye makeup.

Brushes used in this tutorial include CHIKUHODO Z5; Edward Bess Luxury Eye Brush; Suqqu brush Medium, Suqqu brush F, Laura Mercier Smoky Eye Liner Brush , Laura Mercier Smudge Brush

Overall this is a classic neutral and very versatile eye palette and will be a staple in my makeup rotation. My next Bobbi Brown will definitely be this new stunning palette!

{ 4 comments }

Labels: BOBBI BROWN • BRUSHES • CHIKUHODO • EYESHADOW • Laura Mercier • SUQQU • TUTORIAL

Chanel Summer 2014 – Illusion D’ombre Mirage and Stylo Yuex Ambre Dore Review and Swatches

June 5, 2014

I couldn’t get my hands off the Chanel Illusion D’ombre Mirage (95) and the Stylo Yeux Ambre Dore (911) from the Chanel Summer 2014 Collection . They are the most perfect flattering medium brown shades that go so well with my usual color palette of makeup that I wear.

I am an avid lover of cream eye shadows, as they are just so much more convenient to use and it is easier to control the intensity. My favorite cream eye shadows have always been the Giorgio Armani’s Eyes to Kill and the Chanel Illusion D’ombre. As a makeup item the GA is more superior in terms of opacity and color complexity. However, for practicality I found that I always reach for the Chanel more as the finish is more “day time friendly” (if that makes sense!). The finish is less frosty/metallic, and it doesn’t look heavy and dry on the eyes. This is one makeup item that would always look flattering on people of all ages if the shade is right. And Illusion D’ombre in Mirage is the most beautiful medium brown in shimmer I have – it’s neither too cool nor too warm on my skin when it’s sheered out. It just looks perfect as it makes my eyes appear more deeper set as what a brown eyeshadow shade should do, as well as making the eyes glistening with a soft sparkle. The texture is velvety smooth and goes on even and blendable as usual.

The color of Stylo Yeux Ambre Dore is also equally beautiful. It’s a shimmery golden coppery shade that would make blue/green eyes pop. For my dark brown eyes, it’s a perfect shade for defining the lash lines without making the eyes look too harsh. The quality is consistent with the other stylos – soft, smooth, non-tugging and long lasting.

Swatches – Note that the heavy swatch of Mirage leans more warm (left), whereas the sheer swatch of Mirage is closer to neutral sandy brown (middle)

My quick 10 minutes makeup in the morning – wearing these two products on my eyes today. These are the quick snapshots I took with my phone this morning. Not the best FOTD quality but hope you get an idea of what they look like!

The Chanel Summer 2014 Collection is available online at Nordstrom and Neiman Marcus. Right now NM is offering a Free Tote and samples with $100 beauty purchase!

{ 11 comments }

Labels: CHANEL • EYELINER • EYESHADOW

Holiday Look with Suqqu Holiday 2013 Makeup Kit B

December 21, 2013

I finally have the time to play around with all the new holiday makeups I bought! I have lots of gatherings and dinners to go in the next couple of weeks and this look created with the Suqqu Makeup Kit B from its 2013 Holiday Collection will make a debut! It’s a very bold and sultry makeup look that’s out of my character but it fits right into the holiday festive season.

I’ll just give a brief review of the Suqqu Holiday Kit B as there are plenty of reviews online. It contains Blend Color EyeShadow Quad Ex19, Mascara Volume Long N, Reset Cleansing Cream, Refining Foam and a grey pouch (not in the picture – quite hideous looking) and mirror.

The star of the set is the Blend Color Eye Shadow Quad EX19. The packaging is absolutely to die for, so as an avid Suqqu fan I bought this set in a heartbeat just for collecting. The colors are very earthy and neutral with a holiday twist. You can never go wrong with a soft shimmering peach and sandy taupe as your basic colors, whilst the midnight khaki green with silver glitters adds a punch of glamor to the quad. Some reviews said that this particular shade is dry, and I don’t have this issue. Compared to the other glitter eye shadows of other brands such as BB, MAC and Nars, I think this is one of the best I own – it’s pigmented, smooth and has no fall out.

Swatches with 1 swipe

The Eye Makeup:

Applied the creamy white shade as a base all over the lid, then the shimmery peach over the eye socket and the taupe on the outer v. I then smudged the sparkly dark green along the upper lash line, and finished with falsies.

For the lower lash line, the dark green is applied to the outer third, and the shimmery peach on the tear duct. I then lined the lash line with a red shimmery eyeliner pencil by Holika Holika (reviewed here) for an edgier twist.

Other Makeup Used:

Tony Moly Aqua Aura Moisturizing BB Cream

Dior Blush in Pink Happiness

MAC lipstick in MAC Red

Once again, I highly recommend this gorgeous Suqqu set if you can still get your hands on it as it has been sold out on Selfridges. Their makeup really is the eastern version of Chanel beauty – sophisticated and timeless in every aspect.

{ 9 comments }

Labels: EYESHADOW • FOTD • SUQQU

2013 Holiday Beauty Wishlist

November 2, 2013

Whilst most people realize that the end of another year is fast approaching by noticing that the shops are starting to sell xmas goodies, as a beauty enthusiast I am reminded because of the Holiday Makeup Collections trickling into the stores! After scouring the internet for previews I have finally put together my 2013 holiday beauty wishlist. Except for the Suqqu Makeup Kit B which I have already ordered on Selfridges (in case you don’t know that Selfridges now ship Suqqu internationally with VAT deduction available!), I’ll just have to wait patiently for the rest of them to arrive in Australia.

1. Dior Sparkling Nail Powders Set (Nordstrom exclusive) – love the over-the-top opulent finish for party nails

2. Dior 5-Couleurs Eyeshadow in Golden Flower – a perfect combination of warm neutrals

3. Chanel Nuit Infinie de Chanel Collection Holiday 2013 – particularly the eye shadow palette which is another alluring set of neutrals that can be worn all year round

4. La Mer Treatment Lotion – eager to try out this latest product from La Mer

5. Suqqu Makeupt Kit B – bought this droolwhorthy set with a heart beat!

{ 5 comments }

Labels: CHANEL • DIOR • EYESHADOW • LA MER • SUQQU

LUNASOL SUMMER 2013 Kit Review, Swatches and EOTD

August 10, 2013

I was drooling over the Limited Edition LUNASOL Summer 2013 Kit which was only exclusive to Japan as soon as it was released, so when my dear friend Elaine happened to be in Japan at that time, I jumped the gun and asked her to purchase this set for me (along with some other beautiful makeup items)! I just received all the goodies today and this set is truly taking my breath away – I love every single product included in the set and particularly the beautiful coral eye shadow quad.

The coral themed LE Summer 2013 kit contains the following items which retails for $8400 YEN + tax that is very good value for money!

* Summer Eyes 2013 EX01 Light Coral Beige (full size)
* W Gloss Lips EX03 Fresh Coral × Fresh Red (full size)
* Lucent Cheeks EX03 Light Coral (mini size)
* Nail Finish N EX16 BrightRed (mini size)
* a well-made canvas cosmetics bag

The Summer Eyes 2013 EX01 Quad is the main reason that got me to purchase the set. I love the fact that it contains a soft coral and a pink color that just add a different twist to a “tired” neutral palette. It is a very fresh and feminine palette to wear during spring and summer. Wearing a pop of pink or soft red shade on the eyes is trending in Asia lately as they make your eyes appear more innocent and youthful looking. Along with this quad, my other favorite pick is the Suqqu Blend Color eyeshadow EX16 from its Fall 2013 Collection which also contains a hot pink shade that is on the way!

The quality of this quad is of typical premium Japanese eye shadows (very similar to Addictions) – all of the eye shadows are velvety smooth and cushiony soft. All shades are moderately pigmented in pearly translucent finish, and they all have micro shimmer with a soft gleam.

Swatch of Lunasol Vivid Clear Eyes Summer 2013 EX01

Swatches of the rest of the items:

EOTD:

Wearing (A) all over the lid, (B) over the eye socket area and (D) along the upper lash line with (E) added on to the outer-v.

Wearing (B) along the lower lash line, then (C) is added to the tear duct and lined (E) to the outer one third.

Lip Gloss Swatch with both colors layered together:

Bottom Line: You should not miss out on this kit if you can get your hands on it! Please refer to this post on Rouge Deluxe for availability in Japan.

{ 6 comments }

Labels: EYESHADOW • LIPGLOSS • LUNASOL

← Previous Entries

Next Entries →