Cover Look Week 02.13.2012

Laura Mercier's Lingerie Collection immediately caught my attention among all spring collections this year. The promo picture of this year wonders quite far from the soft feminine that dominated Laura Mercier seasonal makeup in a few years past. It's just different from Laura Mercier I got so used to with, in a good way. Sultry dreamy eye coupled with glossy peach lips screams summer rather than spring to me. Still, the peach and pink bring the springy feelings to the look.

Focus. Violet tinted chocolate brown eye shadow. Glossy peach lips.

My take

Base. Giorgio Armani Luminous Silk Foundation 5.75 and Giorgio Armani Micro-Fil Setting Powder No. 2 (both are not pictured here).

Eye.

Option 1
Plum and peal white in Dior Stylish Move and the rich chocolate brown in Dior Rosy Tan.

Option 2
Edward Bess Berry Chic.

Option 3
A more shimmery/chrome version of the look can be achieved using Chanel Vanites.

Comparing the three options

Cheek. Paul and Joe Cheek color 12

Lips.

Option 1
Bobbi Brown Rich Lipcolor Sweet Nectar SPF 12
Guerlain Rouge G Orange Euphorique (LE)

Option 2
Paul and Joe Moon Shadow Lipstick topped by Paul and Joe Sailor's Delight.

Did you get Laura Mercier Lingerie Collection? What will be your take on the promo look?

Review: Edward Bess Quad Royale South of France 01

Edward Bess Quad Royale South of France 01 ($45 for 0.25 oz) is a beautiful subtle highlighter that can also be worn as blush.

The below picture is my best effort to capture the color base of South of France. In clock-wise order is champagne (top left), cool pink (top right), pinky beige (bottom right), and pinky mauve (bottom left). All shades contain delicate golden and lavender shimmer all the through, which was muted out by the overcast lighting in this picture. 

The top two shades are very sheer, no matter how heavy I swatched. They cast a veil of soft shimmer over my skin. The bottom two shades have more color but still lie in the sheer side. They are, however, buildable without caking me up. I love to wear South of France alone as a blush with 4-5 layers. It creates a healthy glow, just enough to warm up my complexion. 

South of France looks cool in the pan, not on my skin (medium, warm undertone). When swirled together, it creates a beautiful soft pinky beige. The golden shimmer warms up my skin while the lavender shimmer brightens it up. Don't let the shimmer concerns you. It's obvious in a good way, soft and elegant, making South of France a very wearable highlighter.

South of France as well as the other Quad Royales have superb finely milled texture. It stays fresh for a typical working day. 

Quad Royale comes with a nice square blush and large mirror. The brush works perfectly to sculpt your face but if you want use all four shades together, I would recommend a MAC 109 type of brush. My only complain is the loosely closed case. Powder spills out of the palette, which isn't a deal breaker but a small improvement will complete the luxe for the product. 

Swatched all together

Closed up

Now, Edward Bess is a luxurious brand. Quad Royale is no exception, yet they're priced at the same level as Dior Shimmer Star (here and here) ($44 for 0.35 oz) . The two products are designed differently. Dior Shimmer Star is a highligher. Edward makes Quad Royales multi-tasking or highlighting-contouring palette. I think the price point is reasonable.

Bottom line. South of France would flatter all skin tone (warm, neural, cool) by creating a healthy looking skin. Lighter skin tone may double it as blush while deeper skin tone can use it as highlighter. Easy-to-use, conveniently packed, high quality and chic color, this particular quad is perfect for a dynamic woman whose sense of fashion can be described as exquisite.

Stay tuned for reviews on Monte Carlo and Summer in Capri. 

Preview: Edward Bess Quad Royale 01 South of France, 02 Monte Carlo, 03 Summer in Capri

To be continued ....

Review: Edward Bess Ultra Slick lipstick in Tender Love

Edward Bess Ultra Slick Lipstick Tender Love ($30 for 0.14 oz) is a lovely rosy brown that suits pretty much any occasions.

Compared to my other rosy staples, Tender Love is browner than both Chanel Rouge Coco Mademoiselle and Laura Mercier Audrey. The three share the same color depth and that wearable rosy undertone. Laura Mercier Audrey has more pink while Chanel Mademoiselle is more coral-tinted than Tender Love. This kind of coloring is the most frequently-reached in my makeup stash. It's my lips but better type of lipstick. I don't have to think. Whenever in doubt, I just grab a rosy brown like Tender Love. It matches lots of color theme. Since it leans neither too cool nor too warm, Tender Love would suit many skin undertones.

Tender Love goes on opaque with one layer. You can build it up quite a bit but I prefer a thin application. I think it can look a bit heavy with more than one layer if you're on lighter skin tone.

The texture of Edward Bess Lipsticks is phenomenal (I know I sounds like a broken record by using this work repetitively). They feel completely weightless like second skin or naked. Better yet, they are very creamy without being overly creamy and easy-to-crack, moisturizing, non-sticky and stay put. Edward Bess Lipsticks wears good 5 hours on me, and can proceed to hour 6 with deeper shade like Tender Love.

Edward Bess Lipsticks have fig scent, which may or may not be your thing. It works fine for my sensitive nose (I'm not a fan of scented makeup) since it's light and fades away through out the day.

Swatched indoors

Swatched outdoors

Bottom line. Lovely color, impressive texture. If you haven't found a universal lippie for frequent wearing, Tender Love is a great choice. 

Cover Look Week 02.06.2012

My most recent moving from California to Texas alarmed me (again) about two things: one, I need to keep my makeup stash under control; and two, I do have almost every type of makeup of my every favorite color. Although I've never accidentally purchased anything twice, I only finished one lipstick in my entire life. Mascaras don't count since we need to replace them regularly no matter what.

So, to get myself disciplined, I decided (unsurprisingly) to use more and buy less. Particularly challenging is the latter *sign*. And I really got many inspirational pictures as a result of endless hours collecting celeb pictures. So, starting this week, I will challenge myself to recreate one favorite look weekly, focusing on my personal take of the look to suit my personality and facial features. I hope to improve my makeup techniques and knowledge of the products used through this series. So here you go. 

My first week's inspiration is Chanel Spring 2012 promo picture. 

Focus. Soft peachy pink cheeks and lips. Soft eye makeup. 

My take

Base.

We are still in the transition between the winter and spring, I love a natural foundation. Sheer application of Dior Skin Nude foundation then set with Laura Mercier Translucent Setting Powder. 

Eye. 

It seems to me that the model had a pink/peachy eyeshadows on. However, I feel the peachy pink on eyes, cheeks and lips is a bit overwhelming. So I toned it down by neutral eyeshadows using the eyeshadows of Edward Bess Back to Basics palette. Then I lined my eyes with Chanel Espresso and finished off with Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill mascara. 

Cheeks. 

I'm obsessed with the lovely peachy pink cheeks in the ad. Blush de Horizon is a soft peachy pink that is quite easy to replicate. While browsing through Chanel Spring 2012 collection, I got many compliments about my blush color. The sale associates actually thought that I was wearing the star item of the collection, Blush de Horizon.  The actual products I used were 

Make Up Forever HD Blush No 6, an apricot pink that dries matte. 

Physicians Formula Shimmer Strip in Miami to add a touch of golden shimmer and pink base. 

If you have Guerlain Serie Noir Blush G, I think you can safely skip Chanel Blush de Hoizon. Use every shade except the orange strip. 

 

Lips.

Chanel Rouge Coco Mademoiselle was mixed with Chanel Rouge Coco Chintz. To achieve that glossy look, I added a touch of Paul and Joe Lip Lacquer 05

Have you played with this look? What did you use?