Collective Haul- MAC Lipsticks in Hot Chocolate, Absolute Power and Ronnie Red (Archie's Girls)

I recently purchased some highly rated MAC lipsticks sight unseen from Nordstrom, and I have a few pictures and swatches for you today. 

Hot chocolate  is a satin lipstick. The name is spot on for this colour, its a milky chocolate brown. It has medium pigmentation and very smooth and buttery to apply to the lips.

Absolute Power (matte) looks like a dark red in the bullet, but it actually lacks pigmentation, and applies to a much brighter warm red than what I expected. It is actually a really nice formula to apply, its somewhere in between a matte and a satin formula, but I would actually hesitate to class this formula as a matte.

Ronnie Red (matte) is a bright red in the tube, and that is how it applies on the lips. The colour is very close to Absolute Power, its almost not worth having them both. Ronnie Red is very pigmented, with a buttery, smooth formula. This is my favourite from my purchases. Again, I don't think this is a MAC matte. Both Absolute Power and Ronnie Red have significantly less scent than Hot Chocolate, which is very vanilla-y (classic MAC scent).

 

As you can see from the swatches below, Ronnie Red and Absolute Power are so close in colour, they really could be identical. Absolute Power is a smidgen warmer, but not to a noticable extent. 

Also, Ruby Woo is so much more matte than Absolute Power and Ronnie Red. Ruby Woo really pulls on the lips, and its a really dry formula. For that reason, I might get more use out of these new reds in my collection.

From top: Ruby Woo (Matte), Ronnie Red (Matte), Absolute Power (Matte), and Hot Chocolate (Satin)

Have a good night!

Cindy

Currently Loving: Guerlain Cruel Gardenia EDP and Becca Gypsy

Just a post to update you on the things I am absolutely obsessed with this month. Guerlain Cruel Gardenia EDP is the inspiration behind the infamous Guerlain highlighter of the same name released last year. I found this gem in Neiman Marcus San Fransisco, which had an almost complete collection of Guerlain's perfumes. It was stocked to mirror the collection of perfumes available in the Paris headquarter. In short, it was heavenly.

The sales assistant gave me a kit to make my own samples of the perfume to take in my bag. I never knew that they can give pipettes and these small sample tubes!! :) How cool...

This luxurious perfume cost a cool 250 USD (plus tax). I love the beautiful packaging, and the name stamp on the side. I was told that the design is inspired by perfumes (and their special bottles) that Guerlain created especially for their royalty customers - can you tell that I am a sucker for a nice story? Haha...

One of the things I love about this perfume is that its not very "Guerlain". Its very soft and feminine to me, and not too overpowering. Most of all, it does not at all smell like a gardenia, and I can most definitely tell you that I hate gardenia scents with a passion. Cruel Gardenia has notes of gardenia, damask rose, peach, neroli, violet, ylang ylang, white musks, tonka bean, vanilla and sandalwood.

I have also been exploring more Becca highlighters lately, and my newest purchase is Becca Gypsy. Its a gorgeous warm pink with gold shimmer throughout. The powder is sheer by design and for that reason, I love it. Lisa Eldridge loves her Becca Pearl Highlighter (cream) because she says that it blends with the synergy of your skin to create the most belivable, gorgeous sheen for that fresh faced look. I must say I agree wholeheartedly with that comment. The shimmer in Becca Gypsy is so fine and melts into the skin.

Have a good night everyone, hope you enjoyed this review/rambling :)

xx Cindy

Tom Ford Burnished Amber (06) and Cognac Sable (02) - Review and Swatches

Following on from my previous review of Tom Ford's Shade and Illuminate, I will now talk about the two eye quads that I bought.

Tom Ford Burnished Amber is a beautifully coordinated palette of pale gold, shimmery pinked plum, bronze and shimmery bordeaux tones. I know that some of you may find that it sounds a little "bruisey" but I promise you it is not :)

Tom Ford Cognac Sable consists of a golden shimmery beige (slight orange undertone), orange bronze glitter, earth shimmery brown, and a plummy dark brown.

The eye quads are presented in the same packaging as the Shade and Illuminate cheek product. In short, the packaging is love for me. The velvet pouch actually feels velvety and does a fantastic job cleaning my finger prints off the perfectly shiny packaging.

The eyeshadows have medium pigmentation, but they are buildable. Burnished Amber really reminds me of Le Metier de Beaute's Silk Road palette (which I never got around to reviewing, apologies!) with an even softer texture. LMdB Silk Road is much much more pigmented though. I can't think of immediate dupes to the Cognac Sable eyeshadows. I think the glitter shade is pretty unique, not to mention super pretty layered over the golden beige. The shadows are quite powdery and will produce some fallout if you get too much on the brush at one time. Its not a problem if you tap off any excess powders prior to eye makeup application.

I don't know if I will willingly pay so much for an eye quad again from Tom Ford, just because I like my eyeshadows to be pigmented but I do think this luxury brand is worth checking out. I picked up these two because the colour combinations are quite unique but wearable and I am glad I did!

Cindy

Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate Intensity 2 - Pictures and Initial Thoughts

I purchased the Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate in Intensity 2 a couple of months back in New York. I have only just started playing with this product and can finally give you my initial thoughts on this 75 dollar baby.

Lets start with the packaging. I won't lie, I like it. I like it a lot. Out of all the velvet pouches provided by high end brands, this one is the best. The compact has a nice weight to it (not heavy like Guerlain, but not light like Chanel), and looks so luxurious. Bonus point for the giant mirror too :).

Now on to the product, its very VERY emollient. Blending is a breeze and it would be the perfect cream sculpting product if not for one thing: the product has a smell, like a plasticky, old lipstick scent... not a fan.

For fair/light skin tones, I think Intensity 1 is recommended. For medium/tan (NC/NW 30 onwards) skin tones, go for Intensity 2. The product sheers out a lot when blended so the darker shade would not be a problem at all.

I still prefer powder products for contouring but Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate provides a nice alternative. The fact that this is a cream and a very blendable one at that, application is super easy.

Here are some easy contouring tips for the Tom Ford Shade and Illuminate:
1. When you use the contour shade, use a small firm brush in light strokes under your cheekbone.
2. Do not go too far into the centre of your face. Stop directly under the end of your eyebrow.
3. Blend the contour shade in an upward motion- not downwards as this will drag your face down.
4. Apply the illuminating shade on top of your cheekbones.

Do you have a favourite contouring product? I am still looking for my holy grail and would love to hear your thoughts :)

Night!
Cindy

Dior Cherie Bow Twin Sets in Beige Ruban 530 and Rose Cache-Coeur 840

I got the chance to test my new Dior Twin Sets while I was away on a short vacation last weekend to beautiful coastal Albany and Denmark.

Rose Cache-Coeur  840

Rose Cache-Coeur is a brightening slightly coral pink that has gold pearl when the powder shadow is patted on top. Its the equivalent of Nars Orgasm on the eyes :) Eventhough such a bright shade can risk looking a little 80's, with restrained application this shadow twin set looks smashing for summer and spring.

Just cream eyeshadow

With sparkly pink loose powder shadow on top, edges blended out with Shu Uemura eyeshadow in P832

Beige Ruban 530 

Beige Ruban is a gold leaning neutral that perfects the eyelid and can be used as a powder eyeshadow shade with any colours (not just the sparkly gold it comes with :D)

When applied on its own, it does look a little plain, a little too natural. With the sparkly loose powder on top, the eyes are given a new texture, added dimension and they become simply amazing.

Just cream shadow

With sparkly gold powder shadow on top, taken up to the browbone

I'm happy to report that both Beige Ruban 530 and Rose Cache-Couer 840 were extremely pigmented and long lasting. They are the most long lasting cream eyeshadows I have ever tested, even surpassing my beloved Chanel Illusion d'Ombres. I expected that the shadow would not last at all on my lids and would experience fading and creasing after the 3-4 hour mark. Rose Cache-Couer being such a bright pop of colour, any fading and creasing of this shade would be especially noticable and to my great surprise, the shadow only started creasing at the 8th hour mark. Even then, it was minimal and barely noticable.

Both shadows were tested during a day full of exploring and being outdoors on the beach. How impressive is that??

I think I may get the graphite colour of the twin sets next. They are super easy to use and have great wear. One thing to note is that Beige Ruban is very nude. Just because you can't see much colour on your lids, its there. I made the mistake of trying to build up the colour and ended up excessively tugging my lid area with a marginal increase in saturation of pigment LOL

Happy Friday!

Cindy

Chanel Spring 2013 Collection Swatches - Printemps Precieux

Good evening all :D Today I have selected item swatches for you from the Chanel Spring 2013 collection. I dropped into Myer today just as they were closing and managed to get good swatches of a few selected items...

Clockwise from top: Chanel Joues Contraste in Frivole, Chanel Stylo Yeux Waterproof Eyeliners in Or Rose and Beryl (Both LE), Chanel Raffinement Quad, Chanel Extrait de Gloss in Attirance (LE) and Chanel Rouge Allure in La Favourite.

While I am not a huge fan of Chanel's baked quads, Raffinement seems to have a much more softer and refined texture. It is also well pigmented. Frivole is just amazing, melts into the skin creating a natural effect. La Favourite is a bright corally pink that is just gorgeous for spring. Attirance is a simple topper or natural gloss for days when you want a no fuss, no brainer look. The eyeliners are great quality, though not as soft as the Giorgio Armani ones.

Basically these are the things I am planning to get over the next few weeks. Lucky for me, only the eyeliners and gloss is LE so I can purchase those first and buy the remainder later...

I did a staying power test of the eyeliners by using a dry tissue to rub all products away and guess what, they held up amazingly well! Or Rose seemed to have flaked off a little bit there, but I overapplied the product there anyway and it wasn't a fair test. I think they both have superb lasting powers. Personally I think that Or Rose is a little too warm to wear on the lower waterline but Beryl can do that perfectly.

Hope you had a great day!

xxCindy

Dior Cherie Bow Spring Collection 2013 - My picks!!

Just a short post to share my picks from the newest Dior collection. I bought the new and exciting lip and nail glows, a polish in Plaza 579 (repromote?), and two of the new Dior Twin Sets in Beige Ruban (530) and Rose Cache-Couer (840). I passed on the new eyeshadow palettes and lip and eye palettes because I didnt like my swatches of them. It was also partly because I recently purchased the Shu Uemura- Unmask Pink palette which is way better in quality in my opinion.

I got some pretty sweet gifts from the boutique because I was apparently the first one to purchase from the new collection!! LOL the big white box is actually a Dior clutch with a mini Lip Maximiser and a mini Dior Addict in Lucky.