Chanel Les Essentiels de Chanel Fall Collection 2012 - Review and Recommendations

I went to the Chanel counter in Myer a few days ago when I was researching cream eyeshadows and found an unexpected surprise! The testers of the upcoming Chanel Fall 2012 Collection has arrived and the sales assistant allowed me to play with and advance buy any items I wanted on the spot! Can you imagine my excitement right at that moment? My sanity and common sense walked right out the door and I walked away with a few items I think I'd totally love.

First up is the Lumiere D'Artifices Beiges Illuminating Powder with Shimmer. This is one beautiful highlighting powder. There is a strong glitter overlay but it goes away within a few swipes with a powder brush.

With glitter overspray

Without glitter overspray

Top to Bottom: Peachy Dark Beige/Sable, Beige, Both Shades Mixed

The powder underneath is a beautiful beige with a slight peachiness to it. The darker stripes might push this into blush category for me when its winter (in fact, it would make a beautiful nude blush!) but this would be a great highlighter for darker skins. Since this is the star product of the fall collection, I have included plenty of pictures to give it the coverage it deserves! :D This is my favourite product from the fall line-up. The powder is soft and luminous and lays down on the skin in the most natural and flattering way.

Next up is Chanel Le Vernis in Frenzy. This is a beautiful taupey grey in a cream finish. The formula is fabulous, very easy to spread, not too thin and not too thick. You need two to three coats to achieve opacity. The colour is tres chic! Love.

The first photo of the polish is the most colour accurate representation of Chanel Frenzy. I have no idea why the colour looks different in the second the third photo, and I didn't notice it at all when I took these photos.

Top- Bottom: Delight, Frenzy

If you think that I've finished, then you would be wrong. I purchased all four of the new Ombre Essentielle Soft Touch Eyeshadows in 93 Complice (Irridescent Soft Pink), 94 Eclair (Sheer Gold), 95 Furtiv (Silvery Blue Grey) and 96 Infini (Glittery Platinum). I swatched the shadows in the following order 94, 93, 95, 96. I don't know why I did that, I must have thought that the yellow was #93.

All of these new shadows are super soft like the permanent singles. However, the new colours are really exciting to me. I've rediscovered softer colours of late (and pastels!) and I do not have a single eyeshadow like any of these in my stash at all.

I also purchased the two Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss in 68 Troublant and 67 Caprice. Caprice is a baby pink gloss and Troublant is a rosy brown gloss. Both are more pigmented than the glossimers and have a soft scent. Troublant really makes my heart race, its such a beautiful fall shade. The lasting power of these glosses are not exceptional - my experience is that its good for about 3 hours before reapplying. But then if you eat less than me, it might last longer! Haha...

Aaaaaand that's it for the reviews. My recommendations from this collection are the Lumiere D'Artifices Beiges highlighting powder, Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss in 68 Troublant, Le Vernis Nail Colour in Frenzy, and Ombre Essentielle Soft Touch Eyeshadows in Eclair (gold) and Furtif (silvery blue).

The rest are definitely nice to have, and I do like them a lot, but if you were on a budget, you should get the above first. There are a few more items in the collection (two other nail polishes, a blush, and a quad), but I didn't think they were worth purchasing to be honest.

Cindy

More Lunchtime Swatches - Laura Mercier & Chanel Cream Shadows

Before I really got into makeup, I always dismissed cream eyeshadows are a waste of money. I thought that they would crease on me like no one's business (and I abhor creasy eyeshadows!). I have recently fallen in love with Laura Mercier creme eye shadows and I made a decision today to go down to my local Myer and investigate. 

I was so shocked at the number of available cream eyeshadows on display. I don't know if these have been discontinued, but I hope not. While I reviewed the Metallic Creme Eye Shadow in Gold a while back (here), I did not mention that this shadow does not crease on me. At all. It has been on my eyes for 6 hours today and counting and there is no sign of migration. 

I also wandered over to the Chanel counter and spotted a couple of new additions to their Chanel Illusion d'Ombre range. The two new shades are called Vision (gold glitter) and Abstraction (sheer pink with pink and gold reflects).

The following swatches are of Abstraction (top), and Laura Mercier Satinee Creme Eye Colours in Peach Organza (bottom left) and Rum Satin (bottom right). Out of the two Laura Mercier creme eye shadows, I prefer Peach Organza, but I am scared that it won't look good on my lids because its quite a light colour and very opaque. We'll see. Abstraction came home with me though. I tested it on my lids and it looks really beautiful and natural. I hope to do a FOTD soon with this IdO! I did not get swatches of Vision because the Chanel SA tried it on my eyes and it looked horrible on me. Sorry if you wanted to see it :P i'm sure there are other blogs who will rave about it. But not me.

In other news, Chanel will be launching the latest fall collection on August 5th. And what a beautiful collection it will be. I managed to purchase some items in advance, and I'll get some reviews for you as soon as humanly possible. 

Cindy

Dior St Tropez - Review & Swatches

Dior is my favourite major beauty house for nail polishes. The Croisette collection sees the release of two new nail polishes named St Tropez and Bikini. St. Tropez is a beautiful pastel blue. I can see a bit of green in there too. The formulation is consistent with the newer releases (beautifully opaque and not too thick). I did two coats to achieve the result below. The brush is angled, which takes some getting used to but even a nail polish novice can get a reasonable result after about two uses :)

I don't have many pastel blues (or any blues, really), but this colour is so refreshing and on trend! Well done, Dior! I do also have Bikini and will be reviewing that one shortly.

St. Tropez has not replaced my favourite Dior varnish of recent releases (Waterlily) but its not bad. St. Tropez has a longer drying time, so that knocks a few points off for me because I'm really impatient when it comes to doing my nails.

Cindy

Le Metier de Beaute Giveaway!!!

I've been dying to host a giveaway for a while now, but I had to bide my time and accumulate enough awesome goodies to give my followers (old and new!)

Let's not waste anytime shall we?

Here are the prizes up for grabs:

1 x LMdB Daily Renew Cleanser (100 ml) BNIB

1 x LMdB Eye Makeup Remover sample

1 x LMdB Red Velvet Lip Creme BN (didn't come with a box)

1 x LMdB Chauvet Pont d'Arc Summer Kaleidoscope (BNIB) - Reviewed here

The prizes will be shipped to the winner using Airmail. Depending on where you are - this could take between 3 to 10 days. Please note that shipping from Australia is hideously expensive so I may have to split the prizes into two parcels if it means spending less money on my part.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Love

Cindy

New Haircut and Favourite Lipgloss

Good morning all!

I went for a lunchtime haircut yesterday and when I arrived back in the office, people commented on how different I looked and my new nickname is now "New Cindy".

I thought I'd share some phone photos with you of my new hairdo, and because this is a makeup blog, I will provide detailed makeup breakdowns for each look. 

The first one I took yesterday, I was wearing Peau Vierge (Shade 2), Laura Mercier Silk Creme in Sand Beige as spot foundation/concealer, Becca Anniversary Palette in Dusty Rose (all shades used except for the gloss), Maybelline Falsies Mascara, and Chanel Rouge Coco Baume.

The second lot of photos were taken this morning. I am using the same base foundations as above, but this time I set my foundation with Laura Mercier's Universal Setting Powder. I also used Bobbi Brown Everything Mascara, LMdB Blush Kaleidoscope (1st, 2nd, and 3rd tier), and Chanel Calypso lipgloss.

I've been rocking Calypso everyday for the past two weeks as someone who does not wear much lipgloss, this is a new record. I love the colour and the really subtle shimmer. As you all know, my favourite beauty brand for lipglosses is LMdB, mainly because they are very pigmented and very comfortable to wear. The only downside is that they are very glittery and can finish quite frosty if you use too much product. Chanel is slightly more sticky, and less pigmented, but the shimmer is very understated. 

As you can see from these photos, Calypso leaves just a hint of coral on my lips. Its so wearable and pretty. I think its one of those glosses that can go with any outfit and any makeup really! But then again, my lips are quite pigmented, so that could be the reason why this colour is very sheer on me.

What do you think about my haircut? And more importantly, what do you think about Calypso?

Cindy

Dustin Lujan Exclusive Kaleidoscope Eye Kit : Pallid Incandescents - Review & Swatches

Ooooh! Ahhhh! OMG! 

Those were the words I said (read: screamed) when I opened a parcel from my dear friend Linda, who so very kindly purchased this palette on my behalf. I had not seen this in person but I trust her eyes and Dustin's extraordinary talent for making beautiful kaleidoscopes. I still yearn for Smoldering Embarkment. *sigh* I wish!

LMdB Kaleidoscope - First Look!

The shades from top to bottom are:

Flush, a matte pink

Lambent, a shimmery turquoise

Refulgent, satin coral

Ultraviolet, a sparkly lilac

L-R: Flush, Lambent, Refulgent, Ultraviolet

I love the neon pastels in this kit! LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!! I layered the kit top to bottom and bottom to top in the following swatch picture (top two swatches). They don't look much different, if anything, the second Couches de Couleur (CdC) method (bottom to top) gives a more matte finish. This is because Flush is so pigmented that it overwhelms the bottom three tiers. If you were doing the bottom to top CdC, I strongly recommend using Flush only to highlight the brownbone or inner eyes.

I experimented with using some bases to bring out the colour further. I have LMdB's eye pencil in Champagne. In the next swatch, I smudged champagne all over my "lid" and layered the four shades top to bottom. The layered result is still quite light and subtle.

Next, I wanted to try the bottom to top CdC technique using a dark base. Bobbi Brown's Jet Creamy Eye Pencil seemed like the perfect colour. 

The layered result with a black smudged base brings out the purple most. Its more edgy but the only downside is that the coral tones are not noticable at all.

The following swatches are probably my favourite by far. I have used the Jet liner once again. Followed by the purple all over, the turquoise in the inner corner and the coral on the outer corner and on the crease. Flush can be used on the browbone to complete the look. With such a bright eye, what could be more appropriate than using Refulgent (coral) as your blush! I have yet to try this combination but I think it would go together very well.

Photos of each tier, from top to bottom are shown below.

Flush

Lambent

Refulgent

Ultraviolet

I have only done two eye looks with this palette so far, but I'm so excited to try out more. Please let me know your thoughts. (And, yes, I know something must be done about my eyebrows. Yikes...)

Top to Bottom, no base (taken with a camera phone so the colours are really washed out)

Shu Uemura P Beige cream shadow, Purple All Over, Coral in the crease, Turquoise on outer lid, Pink to highlight browbone

TheBalm Shady Lady Palette Volume 1 - Review and Swatches

This is the last post on TheBalm's Shady Lady Palettes. Volume 1 was the last palette that I swatched, mainly because online reviews has said that this was the best of the three palettes. I have to disagree. After swatching individual shades, a couple of the shades left me feeling a little disappointed.

Swatches are provided below. Now, don't get me wrong, most of the shadows are exceptional. Soft, smooth, buttery, and true-to-pan pigmentation. However, the top left shade (Caught In The Act Courtney) was just sheer, harder in texture and refused to build up in colour even after three to four swipes. You can even tell the difference straight away between the colour in the palette, and the swatch on my hand.

Indoor, Artificial Lighting

Outdoor, Natural Light

Indoor close-ups of top two rows

Indoor close-up of bottom row

My favourite shades in this palette are Jet Setting Jennifer, All About Alex and Easy Wheezie (all bottom row), and Shameless Shana (top row, middle shade). 

The colour selection in this palette is more muted, more work friendly with a good variation of liner shades. I do love the emerald green as a liner especially. I'm surprised to say that this palette would be my second favourite after Vol. 2. I had really high expectations for Volume 2 (I have high expectations when it comes to TheBalm eyeshadows fullstop) but I was slightly let down by the one dud in the palette. Additionally, Curvy Cami (second row, third from left) is not an appealing colour on the eyes at all. I don't know. When I swatched it, I thought, fugly. Oh, well. Such is life.

Cindy

TheBalm Shady Lady Palette Vol. 2 - Review and Swatches

Shady Lady Palette Volume 2 has been in my stash for over a year now. I don't quite know why it has taken me so long to review this, considering this is one of my favourite mid-end brands and definitely my favourite mid-end palette to date. 

Volume 2 offers a more varied colour selection in my opinion. More brights and more contrast between the lightest and darkest shade. I did not find a single dud in this palette. I love the texture, finish, wearability and lasting power of all the shades. However, please keep in mind that I always wear an eyeshadow base which tends to prolong the lasting power and accentuate the true colour of these shadows on my lids.

I have two swatches below in two lighting conditions. The first is taken indoors with artificial lighting, and the second is taken outside on an overcast day.

Indoors, Artificial Lighting

Outdoors, Natural Light

Out of the bunch, the best performing shades would have to be Insane Jane (top row, third from left), Just This Once Jamie (second row, third from left), and Mischievous Marissa (bottom row, first from left). Honestly, I love every single colour but those three get the most use from me.

The packaging this time is a giraffe print which is totally adorable. The names are racy, just like Volumes 1 and 3. There are bound to be a one or two dupes if you own more than one palette. I purchased mine during the buy 3 pay for 1 deal from TheBalm's online site.

What about you? Do you own a Shady Lady Palette? What do you think?

Cindy

Le Metier de Beaute Current Favourites, Hits and Misses

This would be a very short post to review some of the new items I purchased or received as a GWP from Le Metier de Beaute. The Lip Creme on the left is called Red Velvet. Boy, I was so excited to receive this because 1.) Lip Cremes are my favourite liquid lipstick/lipgloss 2.) These babies run at 36 dollars per tube (expensive, no?), and 3.) Le Metier de Beaute makes my perfect red, the red lip I was sporting in this FOTN remains my one true red lipstick match.

Next up is another GWP, a liquid liner called Artemis. This is the only liquid liner that stays and stays. I literally have to use the strongest eye makeup remover at the end of the night.

Lastly, I just recently purchased an LMdB True Colour Eyeshadow in Water Sapphire. It arrived to me totally shattered and I took a photo of it before it was re-pressed.

Swatches are shown below. 

- Red Velvet is a tomato red. Its so glossy and richly pigmented. I haven't played with it long enough to make a decision whether or not this is a keeper. For now, I remain ambivalent. I feel a little like Bozo the Clown when I wear this. It should have come with a set of instructions LOL

- Artemis is a dark navy brown and its just so perfect. Long lasting, pigmented, everything I could ever want from a liquid liner. The brush takes a bit of getting used to, but its easy enough to use, even for me. I am a liquid liner novice, this was my first!

- Water Sapphire is a browned burgundy with hints of blue shimmer. This colour is gorgeous and quite unusual in my collection. When applied lightly on the lids, it is mostly the brown/burgundy that shines through.I quite like this colour as an everyday sheer wash.

Below is a simple look with Water Sapphire and Artemis Liquid Liner. I'm loving it. So easy and simple to do. I am using Chanel's Sable Rose lightly dusted on my cheeks.

Cindy