Butter London Fall 2012: Dodgy Barnett

Butter London Dodgy Barnett is part of their Fall 2012 collection, and while I may be a little late to the party (the holiday collection is already on their website), it's still well worth a look-see.

I wouldn't have done this polish post justice without a close-up of the holographic goodness in the bottle. Dodgy Barnett is a holographic confection of gray and silver suspended in a clear base. The shimmer is very packed, so two coats will cover most of the nail. 

Lips: Becca Ultimate Colour Gloss in Berry Twist

Truth be told, Dodgy Barnett feels more like a holiday shade to me, but that's a tiny detail that doesn't really matter as long as it's available for purchase! It was easy to apply and the end result is smooth. In the pictures above, I am wearing two coats, which if you hold your hands against the light and squint, you'll be able to catch a glimpse of barely visible nail line. Why you'd want to do that instead of admiring the holographic rainbow, I will never know.

So far, I'm happy to report impressive wear – four days in and nary a chip, and the bonus of indescribable, irrational happiness from staring at my fingers.

Butter London Dodgy Barnett retails for $14 and is available at butterlondon.com and Nordstrom.

This post features product(s) sent by the company for editorial consideration

In Which I Get 'Editorial': Lush Emotional Brilliance

Let me preface this by saying it's entirely unintentional that for both my Lush looks I had a wind machine (or an AC unit blowing in my face) and a glossy eye on (which promptly smudged my mascara like crazy in thirty seconds). I don't quite remember what was going on, but it sounds like I had fun.

L-R: Lush Focus, Wise, Strong

L-R: Strong, Focus, Wise

Some time ago, I was sent three random products from the Lush Emotional Brilliance line to review (so, no. This is not a product of the "pick a color" game). I was glad a lip product was included because to be honest, I have never been sold on a liquid eye product. Even Ellis Faas, whose eyeshadow formula I absolutely adore, gets the back-of-the-drawer treatment in my book. Just because liquid eyeshadows are so tricky.

That said, I'll try anything.

L-R: Wise applied with fingers, Wise applied with brush

The foremost question on my mind when using liquid products is how to blend so they look natural. On my right eye, I tried applying the shadow with the doe foot wand, then finger-blending it. On the left eye, I applied with the Shu Uemura #10 synthetic fiber brush. Perhaps it's my lack of expertise, but the result is as you see in the picture above. To its credit, after the eyeshadow dried it didn't crease or budge at all.

"Wind machine" aside, lips: Cle de Peau Enriched Lip Luminizer #1

On the other hand, I definitely get along with liquid lip products. In fact, I was just searching for an orange-red that was orange enough without actually being orange (think about that a minute) when I received Strong. The formula is lightweight and slick, as in when you first press your lips together it slips around. I had no trouble applying it with the included wand, and in my tests it stays on until you have a giant oily meal. My applicator was a little loose at the base, but it could be that my sample was just defective. The only thing that bothered me was there's a sort of plastic taste and smell to the formula. By no means off-putting since I don't intend to eat my lipstick, but good to note.

Glossy eye courtesy of Le Métier de Beauté Magic Lustre Cream

I'm perhaps one of the last bloggers to be writing about this, but I would like to say that we might all be a little hard on the brand. After all, it is their first cosmetics collection, and as much as I won't be purchasing the eye products, I do believe the liquid lipsticks stand a fighting chance in the current market. It's at a relatively affordable price point and boasts a much wider range compared to its more conservative counterparts (I mean, they have one that's straight up purple), so I definitely think Lush is on to something. 

Lush Emotional Brilliance products retail for $22.95 and can be found at Lush stores or lush.com.

The products in this post was sent by the PR of the company for editorial consideration.

One Woman's Freckles Is Another Woman's...

... skin condition. I kid, I kid!

On a whim – I blame that taupe eyebrow pencil I had lying around – I decided to dot on some freckles to see how I'd look. 

image via

While the model above is cute as a button (and potentially leopard-sexy), I on the other hand look like I need to put on sunblock. Maybe the trick is more concentrated dots?

If you're interested in replicating the look, here are the products I used:

Clockwise: Serge Lutens makeup base, Suqqu Keshizumi, By Terry 100, By Terry 200, LMdB Fawn*, Guerlain Rouge Automatique #100

L-R: bT 200, bT 100, LMdB Fawn, Suqqu Keshizumi

To dot on the freckles, warm the pencil on the back of the hand, then put the pencil on your cheek and roll it a little without altering position. Taupe shades replicate freckles in the most natural way.

As an aside, that Serge Lutens makeup base costs $80, and unless I'm using it wrong (I sweep it onto the eye, how else am I supposed to use it?), it's absolutely horrible. Creases within application. What's wrong with this picture?

The product(s) marked with * is provided by the company as a gift during a press event.

NARS Fall 2012: Vent Glacé Eyeshadow Duo and More Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil

L-R: Vent Glacé swatched right to left

L-R: More Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil, Amsterdam Pure Matte Lipstick

More Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil

Surprisingly (considering how much more colorful High Society and Amsterdam are), the Vent Glacé Eyeshadow Duo and More Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil are the more interesting aspects of NARS fall for me. They seem made to be paired together, and when done so, produces an ice queen-ish vibe that I'm oddly giddy about. 

Vent Glacé consists of a frosty silver white and a beige/brown/gray shade (even after playing with it for a week, I still cannot pinpoint the exact color). For some reason, when I first applied it to my lid over NARS eyeshadow base, the silver was patchy and refused to blend. On my second try, it was fine. I guess it was an eyelid fluke? The More pencil is an auburn that is decidedly unique to my stash. It was a pleasure to apply and wear, as is expected from the Velvet Gloss formula.

Vent Glacé Eyeshadow Duo retails for $34, while More Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil goes for $24. Both are available at narscosmetics.com, which currently offers free shipping on all orders.

Sneak Peek: Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill Intense Eyeshadows, Acqua Collection

While a few beauty brands are in the midst of rolling out fall collections (I know we're all tired of hearing this, but seriously, in July?!?), Giorgio Armani Beauty decided instead to release a capsule collection of just six Eyes To Kill Intense Eyeshadows and two eyeliners to tide us over before the big show. The eyeliners are run-of-the-mill black and brown, so I didn't swatch them, though I did purchase them.

L-R: 29 Rose Titanium, 28 Red Platine, 27 Oxidized Silver, 26 Carat Gold, 25 Rusted Gold, 24 Smokey Copper

These colors are true to the eye, though Rose Titanium is pinker and Rusted Gold has more multi-dimensional sparkle.

I don't remember if we already had the ETK Intense conversation on Messy Wands. My take is: great, unique formula, long lasting, amazing color choices, but by virtue of it being in a pot I just don't reach for it as much, and because of that I am now very wary of being drawn to any of them because of the seven I own that I have rarely, if ever, touched. That said (and this comes as a surprise), I find myself curiously attracted to Carat Gold. 

Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill Intense Eyeshadows retail for $32 and can be found on giorgioarmanibeauty-usa.com and nordstrom.com.

China Glaze Fall 2012: On Safari

By now you might have noticed a coherent theme emerging from fall collections: jungles/safaris/places you might wear khaki pants to. China Glaze is no exception to the rule, with On Safari as the title of its fall collection, you can just imagine what kind of colors they proffer.

On Safari consists of ten cremes and two glitters, including:

• Kalahari Kiss: Light sand brown
• I’m Not Lion: Glistening gold and multi-color glitter
• Call of the Wild: Beautiful chocolate brown-dark cherry blend
• Adventure Red-y: Vivid red
• Desert Sun: Delicious caramel
• I Herd That: Brilliant copper glitter 
• Man Hunt: Bold cobalt blue
• Exotic Encounters: Lush green crème with blue undertones
• Elephant Walk: Cool graphite grey
• Jungle Queen: Smoky violet
• Purr-fect Plum: Bold burgundy 
• Prey Tell: Daringly dark red 

On Safari is also available in two 6-piece sets:

• The "Native" Collection: Man Hunt, Exotic Encounters, Elephant Walk, Jungle Queen, Purr-Fect, and Prey Tell
• The "Tourist" Collection: Kalahari Kiss, I'm not Lion, Call of the Wild, Adventure Red-y, Desert Sun, and I Herd That

I received four random pieces from the collection to swatch, so without further ado...

Desert Sun

Desert Sun was a surprise in that I was so sure I couldn't pull it off, but having it on my fingers changed my mind. Who knew a pumpkin shade wouldn't make my fingers look more yellow? 

Purr-Fect Plum

Purr-fect Plum is the quintessential fall shade (I know I said there's a jungle trend, and I don't care what they tell me. I know wine shades will be "in"), which I thought I should own by now – surprisingly, no. The closest I have are varying hues of rose that are not at all close.

L-R: Butter London Toff, China Glaze Purr-Fect Plum, Rescue Beauty Lounge Bruised

Call of the Wild

Call of the Wild looks like the plummer version of Chanel Vertigo.

I'm Not Lion

I was super excited because I received one of the glitters! I'm Not Lion is (I think? Not super sure about nail definitions) a holographic white/silver/pink/green glitter and of course it's my favorite of the bunch.

Everything is a one-coater and I applied it as such to show you it's possible (though if I were doing a real manicure I would still do two). Application was brilliantly easy and even I'm Not Lion was a breeze to remove.

Based on the press release, individual polishes retail for $7, while the 6-piece set retails for $42. However, I recall previous China Glaze polish purchases at a much lower rate, so remember to compare different sites like 8tybeauty, Amazon etc. before you hit the checkout button.

The products in this post were sent by PR for editorial consideration.

Giorgio Armani Summer 2012: Écailles Collection Swatches

Apparently, this is my new thing – I go to counters and swatch the entire collection, for both your benefit and mine. I realized that by doing this I effectively eliminate half the things I want to buy, though on the downside (or upside?) I become enamored by things I previously didn't even think of getting. Case in point: before I went to the Giorgio Armani counter, I thought I was only interested in the Eyes To Kill Intense eye shadows, but after my impromptu swatch session, I was completely willing to forsake them for the lip glosses. 

Below, my guerrilla swatches of the Giorgio Armani Summer Écailles Collection: 

L-R: Eyes To Kill Intense Eyeshadow 23 Madre Perla, 22 Ecailles, 21 Obsidian Grey, 20 Obsidian Black

L-R: Face Palette, Gloss d'Armani (I'm sorry, but I mixed up the numbers so I'm not sure which is which!)

Top-Bottom: Eye Palette 1, Eye Palette 2

I couldn't capture the duochrome shimmer of the ETK Intense Madre Perla. While the photograph above shows a simple white shimmer shade, in real life it actually reflects green/violet! I also didn't do Obsidian Black justice - the seaweed green shimmer is much more pronounced in real life.

The pigmentation from both eye palettes is disappointing, but this seems to be case whenever a company tackles International Klein Blue. The rest of the colors fares better, but they're still not the best Giorgio Armani has ever released. 

The face palette was a surprise hit for me. It's a beautiful soft coral pink and a very noticeable white highlighter. I love that the colors don't look flat even though the palette does not contain shimmer. 

In my opinion, the glosses are the quiet stars of the collection. It's difficult to make me feel excited over pink glosses, but those are swoon-worthy shades. I'm especially partial to the pink swatch on the most bottom. I really need to find out what color that is.

Giorgio Armani Summer Écailles Collection is already available on Giorgioarmanibeauty-usa.com and Nordstrom.com! 

NARS Summer 2012: Ramatuelle Eyeshadow Trio

Yesterday, I was yelled at on Twitter for delaying my coverage of NARS Ramatuelle Eyeshadow Trio, and I understand. I would be anxious too if I was waiting to see this palette. In fact, it was the first thing I knew I wanted from the entire collection. 

Ramatuelle consists of two shimmery shades of silver and light peach and one matte apricot orange. All three of them are light but not sheer.

In the pictures below, the NARS associate applied the light peach all over my eyes and under my brow bone. She concentrated the application of the silver in the inner half of my lids, and the orange on the outer half, as well as the crease. She also applied the silver on my bottom lash line to brighten up my eyes. She finished the look with a simple black line at the base of my lashes and a good coat of mascara.

One thing to note: the eyeshadow creases if you don't apply it over a base (as you can see in the photo above). I've tried it again over the NARS eyeshadow base and it lasted all night. 

Cheeks: Liberté Blush; Lips: Moscow Pure Matte Lipstick

Lips: Dior Orange Pareo

Since the eyeshadows are so light, I think Ramatuelle is a great option for those afraid to plunge head on into color. So far a lot of comments I've heard regarding Ramatuelle is that it might be too warm, which I disagree. I think the silver balances out the orange in the trio and make for a wearable combination. If you have a Sephora or NARS counter near you, do give this trio a try before writing it off. Like Grand Palais from last year's collection, I think many would be pleasantly surprised at how well they can pull this off.

NARS Ramatuelle Eyeshadow Trio retails for $45 and is exclusively available at the NARS 413 Bleecker St Store and narscosmetics.com till May 1.

Le Métier de Beauté Holiday 2011: Antiquité Poupée

What's nice about friends who visit? Friends who visit with the most anticipated Holiday makeup item  in their travel bags. Listen closely and you'll hear a really faint but persistent high-pitched "eeee" in your ears, that's the sound I made when he laid this out before me.

Le Métier de Beauté Antiquité Poupée consists of a light champagne pink, a silver taupe with hints of khaki, a terracotta red, and a midnight blue silver.  I can already envision hordes of people going crazy over the taupe and the blue.

Clockwise: Antiquité Poupée from top to bottom

L-R: Swatched from bottom to top

This monolid shot is for you, Isla!

Utilizing this kaleidoscope with the couches de couleurs (if that term doesn't make sense to you, let me direct you to my Penelope tutorial!) method delivers a soft sterling pink on the lids. Dustin was extensive in his application but I had my eyes closed and wasn't allowed a mirror till it was done, so I can't really say what went on. I know he used the Dualistic Pencil in Champagne as a base. From the pictures, I'm guessing he layered the pink, taupe, and terracotta red over each other, and used the blue-silver shade a little closer to the lashline (already lined with Noir liquid liner) to smoke out the eye. He dipped a liner brush into all four shades to shade the lower lash line, and used the pink shade to highlight the inner corners. For lashes, he used a coat of Anamorphic Mascara in Aubergine.

For lips, he specifically mentioned he wanted a sort of stained look, as if one just finished eating a popsicle, and delivered this vision through a touch of Colour Core Moisture Stain Lipstick in Bali in the center of the lips with a layer of Clearly Brilliant Lip Gloss. My lips are naturally pigmented so he had to apply concealer to the outer edges to tone down the color. Lastly, he used Rumor blush and some intense dabbing specifically on the apples of the cheeks. The result is a very doll-like countenance, which makes perfect sense considering antiquité poupée means "ancient doll" in English.

We took half a dozen of photos where I looked like a fail ninja geisha person until I was told not to smile and the photo finally turned out decent. I was completely overshadowed, of course. 

The pictures below were taken after I got home. The lip he created for the look had already faded and in my attempt to recreate it I realized in total dismay that I did not own a clear lip gloss. Some appropriate adjectives to describe this situation: appalled, incredulous, uh... (the writer has short-circuited).

Anyway, concentrate on the eyes!

Le Métier de Beauté Antiquité Poupée is the stuff of dreams. The shadows are not only quadruple-milled but also pearl-based, so imagine Le Métier shadows but even softer. When he applied them on me it felt like he was sweeping clouds on my eyes (perhaps important to note: he used the brand's eye shadow brush). I'm sure all this sounds like hyperbole and the skeptic in you have your (perfectly tweezed/threaded/waxed) eyebrows raised. But only a hundred of these will be produced, so do you really want to take the chance?

Antiquité Poupée will retail for $95 and will be exclusively available at Bergdorf Goodman on December 1. I bet half of you already know Dustin's number by heart, but in case you don't, call 212-872-8612 to pre-order yours now. Historically speaking, clichés like "flying off the shelves" and "selling like hot cakes" apply to every single one of Dustin's creations. How I ever got my hands on them (before I knew him) is a complete mystery to me. 

Don't say I didn't warn you!

For more coverage on Antiquité Poupée, visit The Black Panties and Product Doctor.