Sunday 21 April 2013

Nail of the Week - Chanel May (eventhough it is April)


Chanel May is the perfect neutral milky pink, with an unbelievably glossy finish. I wore three thin layers of this polish with Le Metier de Beaute 2 in 1 Top and Base Coat. After the first coat, I wondered whether I should just leave my nails as it was, because I really liked the nice sheer pink effect that the polish gave me. In the end, I decided I wanted to see the full potential of this polish and I am glad I did :)


Chanel May has a great consistency. Not too runny and not too thick. I could apply nice even layers quite easily and even if I didn't, the polish was great at leveling itself out to give you that salon finish.


What do you think about Chanel May? It is still available in some Chanel counters. If you are looking for a new neutral, bright (but not Barbie) pink, this might just be the polish for you!

xx Cindy

Wednesday 10 April 2013

OB For Shu Uemura Spring Collection 2013 - Some swatches and my initial thoughts

I wandered into David Jones today to see the newly released OB for Shu Uemura collection. I was *almost* swayed to buy the new matte eyeshadows but there were no testers (they haven't been provided with any for this collection, how strange!!) so I decided to pass. The items I did pick up were either collector's items or items I knew I was going to use frequently. 

Here are the items I bought...

OB For Shu Uemura False Lashes - $25


Look at how beautiful these are. I really love Shu Uemura eyeshadows, they are of the highest quality and never feel heavy on the lids. I think both of them are going to look super cute, but not the most natural looking false lashes. Best to save this for the special occasions, I think!

OB For Shu Uemura Rouge Unlimited Supreme Shine in Princess Coral - $39

Princess coral was released with two other lipsticks in Orange Dream (true orange) and Sakura Pink (super bright bubblegum pink). This colour was the most flattering for someone as dark as me, and the orange shade was just to close to the matte orange lipstick I bought during Shu Uemura's Spring Collection release!




OB for Shu Uemura UV Underbase Mousse in Beige (POREraser) and BB Beige - $48

I never realised till I bought these two products that the under base mousse have different weights, depending on the type that you buy. The original version is simply called uv under base mousse. The ones I purchased are the POREraser version in Beige (light blue/yellow can, moon princess) and the BB version in BB Beige (green/blue can, forest princess). The POREraser version is much lighter and more aerated than the original mousse (reviewed here). It has SPF 35 PA+++ and has 50 g of product.  The BB version is much denser, but close to the original version. It has SPF 30+++ and has 65 g of product. 
 

I have to give you guys my honest review. I LOOOOVEEEEEE both of these products. They really give the perfect foundation finish every single time, not too matte and not too dewy. I feel that the POREraser is excellent at diffusing the look of pores, and it has just enough coverage to wear on the weekends when you need coverage from the sun and not wear a full face of makeup. The BB Beige is much heavier in coverage and a little more matte in finish, and it doesn't feel as weightless as the POREraser. However, I think that if you use this as a base, then you wouldn't need to wear as much foundation or wear concealer. 


The POREraser Beige mousse is slightly lighter in colour than the BB Beige. It doesn't make a difference to me because the colour difference is barely perceptible after foundation.

I know some people don't like to wear SPF in foundation due to the flash back effect in photos, but I truly don't care if my skin can look as flawless as they do when I wear my Beloved Shu Uemura Under Base Mousses :)

Bottom Line: I think I may need to hoard these.

Swatches

The foam on the left is the POREraser Beige. See how soft and runny it is? The BB Beige is so dense and it can truly hold its shape. 


L-R: POREraser Beige, BB Beige

L-R: POREraser Beige blended out, BB Beige blended out
The photo above is a pretty good colour representation for these two products. I think what is also evident is the coverage that you can get with the BB line of the UV Under Base Mousses. Both of these swatches are done with the lightest touch on the pump. If you have never used this product before, the pump will take a while to get used to. You need to pump out LESS than what you think you need because it is so easily blendable and spreadable. I think even that BB Beige blob I managed to get out of the can is too much... it definitely looks like I applied way too much of this product!!



The rouge unlimited in Princess Coral is a perfect juicy coral that is semi opaque with a beautiful (and I mean, beautiful!) high shine finish. Its very easy to wear and it makes the lips look very hydrated and healthy. I am not aware of any lasting hydration properties when the lipstick wears off but that's ok. We have lip balms for that :P It looks slightly patchy there in my swatch but I might have just put on too much. Honestly, it looks so amazing on the lips, I definitely recomment the Rouge Unlimited Supreme Shine lipsticks from Shu Uemura :)

Hope you found this post helpful. Happy shopping!

x Cindy

Saturday 6 April 2013

OB for Shu Uemura Spring 2013 Collection - New Release!


"On a constant quest for innovation and beauty, shu uemura invites you to a magical world for spring 2013. Inspired by Japanese artist ob and the young creators of her generation comes a limited-edition collection that celebrates the rise of a new era in art. in-between reality and a dream beckons you into ob’s creative universe, a world that appears normal at first sight but is filled with fantasy and delight; a world that showcases the emerging vision of a generation of creators who came of age in a radical new digital world. Discover this magical landscape and create a new you – someone you’ve never imagined yourself to be – with a line-up of gorgeous shu uemura products intricately wrapped in the beauty of spring and the sensitivity of a new generation."

I have been seeing some press release blog posts lately for my beloved Shu Uemura. This time, Shu has collaborated with young artist OB to decorate the packaging with the theme of this collection. I'll let the pictures below do the talking.

fresh pore clarifying gentle cleansing oilhigh performance balancing cleansing oil advanced formulawhitefficient clear brightening gentle cleansing oil 

- Pink (Cherry Blossom Princess): Fresh Pore Clarifying Gentle Cleansing Oil
- Yellow (Moon Princess): High Performance Balancing Cleansing Oil
- Blue (Forest Princess): Whitefficient Clear Brightening Gentle Cleansing Oil
rouge unlimited supreme shine
Duo Custom Case
sakura flower mini false eyelashesocean beads mini false eyelashes
The pictures above are just some of the items in the collection courtesy of shuuemura-usa.com.
I will definitely be picking up the UV Under Base Mousses and the two LE false lashes as I love to collect them. Side note, I have really been enjoying this primer/sunscreen under my foundation because it gives me the perfect result every time.

Sadly, there isn't a limited edition packaging for the Ultime8 Sublime Beauty Cleansing Oil. It is currently my favourite out of Shu Uemura's cleansing oil selection and I would have love to hoard at least one :)

This collection will be released in David Jones counters around Australia next week. Prices of all LE items should be consistent with the prices of their permanent counterparts :). I will confirm this for you when I know as I have only been told verbally by the sales assistant.

Update: Here is the price list for Australia ... 

Cleansing Oils 150 ml and 450 ml - $88 and $98 (the Whitefficient line is more expensive, forgot to ask. Oops!) 
Under Base Mousses - $48
Rouge Unlimited Supreme Shine Lipsticks -$39
OB for Shu Uemura False Lashes - $25
OB for Shu Uemura Eyeshadow Duo Case - $10
OB For Shu Uemura Foundation Compact - $15

All these prices are cheaper than their permanent counterparts.

xx Cindy