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Archives for 2013

Bronzed Babes Who Love Bold, Brash Blushes, Illamasqua’s Beg and Bronzerella Powder Blusher Duo Demands Your Attention

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Illamasqua Beg Bronzerella Blusher Duo
Wearing the new Illamasqua Beg & Bronzerella Blusher Duo ($41), one of two new Blusher Duos released with the Imperfection spring 2013 collection

If acid-washed jeans can make a comeback (seriously?!), then it’s just a matter of time before bold, stripy ’80s-style blushes enjoy a renaissance.

And I can’t wait. 🙂

Oh, the number of falling stars my 8-year-old heart wished upon for cheeks like Joan Cusack’s in Working Girl…

Visions of those fabulously chiseled ’80s cheeks danced in my head when I opened Illamasqua’s new powerfully pigmented Powder Blusher Duo in Beg & Bronzerella today. “Ooh, yeah!” I thought, when I swatched matte dusty rose Beg and shimmery copper Bronzerella on the back of my hand. “I’m gonna Joan Cusack the CRAP outta these, woop-woop!”

But old habits die hard. After I swept stripes below my natural cheekbones using Beg and Illamasqua’s new $40 Blush Up Brush (review coming soon!), the urge to blend kicked in, and I ended up with my regular look — diffused blush on the apples of my cheeks — which I still like, but I couldn’t help feeling like I let Joan Cusack down…

Oh, well. I guess I just wasn’t ready for that jelly today.

Whether you like the look of strong, contoured cheeks or prefer softer, more natural looks, the new blushes in this duo are flexible enough to handle either extreme. Rich and indulgent like fine chocolate, these potent powder blushes are also as smooth as a tabby’s tum, and a little goes a long way.

Illamasqua Beg Bronzerella Blusher Duo Product Shot
Beg on the left and Bronzerella on the right

Illamasqua Beg Bronzerella Blusher Duo Swatches
One swipe! — that’s Beg on the left and Bronzerella on the right

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Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector Satisfies Caramel Cravings While Making Pouts Appear Plump

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Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in Candy Shimmer
Wearing the new $22 Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in Candy Shimmer, one of three new spring 2013 shades coming March to Clarins counters and clarinsusa.com

These are those kinds of lip glosses that a friend or your mom gushes over (“OMIGOSH, SO GREAT!), hands you a tube, and at first you think, “Hmm, if you say so,” before plopping it in your purse where you promptly forget about it for a day or two.

Only then, you give it a try, and find yourself reaching into your purse for it over and over again. Next thing you know, you’re addicted! — to the colors, and the gooey caramel flavor and scent, and the soft, smooth, non-sticky texture.

The next day you’re at the Clarins counter, making friends with a complete stranger, nodding emphatically, and trying to convince her that she needs all three of the new spring shades in her life. ASAP! 🙂

Pink Petal Shimmer, rosy pink Candy Shimmer and rosy brown Rosewood Shimmer are straight up swipe-and-go sheer purse glosses that have just been leveled up. They shine like pretty baubles, quench my dry lips like glossy Gatorade and just feel so soft and comfy that I could wear them nonstop (I would have to reapply every two hours or so, but such is life).

These three new shades join three existing colors in the permanent collection (Rose Shimmer, Apricot Shimmer and Nude Shimmer) at Clarins counters next month.

Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in Petal Shimmer, Candy Shimmer and Rosewood Shimmer
From the left: Petal Shimmer, Candy Shimmer and Rosewood Shimmer

Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in Petal Shimmer, Candy Shimmer and Rosewood Shimmer
Swatches from the left: Petal Shimmer, Candy Shimmer and Rosewood Shimmer

Clarins Instant Light Natural Lip Perfector in Petal Shimmer
Petal Shimmer

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Spotted on Nails This Spring: Illamasqua’s Speckled Nail Varnish in Scarce

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Illamasqua Scarce Swatch
Wearing two layers of the new Illamasqua Specked Nail Varnish in Scarce, one of five nail varnishes in the new Imperfection collection, available now at Illamasqua counters and illamasqua.com

When I was a kid, I really had no concept of time or seasons (seriously, some things never change). In fact, if it weren’t for candy, I wouldn’t have followed any calendars at all!

What I mean is, I used to figure out what season it was by the kinds of candy I was eating, like “Oh! Cadbury Mini Eggs? It must be spring.”

Illamasqua’s new limited edition $16 Speckled Nail Varnishes remind me of the chocolate Easter bunnies, Peeps, Jordan almonds and, of course, speckled Cadbury Mini Eggs that always used to signal the arrival of spring.

Love these thingsThe Cadbury Mini Eggs were always my favorites…

I’d eat the pink ones first, which is probably why Scarce, a pastel pink with navy blue speckles, sings to me like the birds outside my office window, and makes me want to nibble at my nails (probably not a good idea).

I’m wearing two coats here, but I’ll have to get back to you about the wear time, as I’ve only been wearing it for a few days (so far, so good). Already, though, based on how smoothly it applied and the pigmented color, it gets a thumbs up from me.

I dig the combination of tiny micro-glitter and bigger hexagonal pieces. Really reminds me of Easter candies, or little bird eggshells.

Cool!

Here’s something my fellow nail nerds might appreciate: when you apply more than one layer, the glitter in the bottom layers shows through but looks like it’s further away, so you get a mix of shiny glitter in the top layer and dimmer glitter in the bottom layers that gives the effect extra dimension.

Illamasqua Scarce Swatch

Illamasqua Scarce Closeup

Illamasqua Scarce Swatch
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Shoot, Illamasqua’s Bright, Intensely Green Lipgloss Grows on You

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Illamasqua Shoot Lipgloss
Wearing Illamasqua Shoot Intense Lipgloss ($22) on my lips from the new Imperfection spring 2013 collection, available now at Illamasqua counters and illamasqua.com

I really couldn’t say if Illamsaqua’s new Intense Lipgloss in Shoot will find its way into the purses of pouty-lipped cougars stalking Thursday happy hours, or whether it’ll take the makeup world by storm! — like NARS Orgasm blush did, but I will say that based on my time with this pureed pea green gloss, it’s actually, well, pretty darned wearable!

All things considered…

Perhaps it’s due to the way this leafy green shade, with its waxy shine, contrasts against the skin?

Or maybe it’s because I feel like a kid again when I wear it, like I’m sitting on the lawn at recess with my friends, watching our tiny fingers thread through blades of grass as we look for ladybugs, four-leaf clovers and Smurfs.

Illamasqua Shoot Lipgloss Product Shot
Yup, it’s a gloss

Hmm…

Let’s face it, this color’s a little cray. Even El Hub, who’s infamous for never noticing these things (it took the man a week once to realize that I’d dyed my hair pink), blurted, “You’ve got Hulk lips,” when I came walking down the stairs.

Illamasqua Shoot Lipgloss

If you like to scoot under the radar, you might want to wear something else…but if you like to push the boundaries between beauty and botany and/or work in an environment where bright green glosses are the norm, why not? 🙂

Illamasqua Shoot Lipgloss Swatch
Sealed with a green kiss!

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Unlike Most Reptiles, MAC Year of the Snake Collection Shell Pearl Beauty Powder Absolutely Does Not Bite

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MAC Shell Pearl Beauty Powder from the Year of the Snake Collection
The MAC Shell Pearl Beauty Powder ($24), a pale peach with golden pearl from the new from the Year of the Snake Collection available exclusively online at maccosmetics.com

With this collection, I keep wanting to type, “MAC Snakes on a Plane!”

In this highly anticipated sequel to the 2006 smash hit, Snakes on a Plane, Samuel L. Jackson reprises his role as hot-tempered FBI agent Neville Flynn! — only this time, the reptiles he’s facing at 30,000 feet are more pigmented than poisonous.

That’s just such a catchy name, isn’t it? Snakes on a Plane. And I never even saw the movie.

I’ll tell you what, though — I sure would love to take the new Shell Pearl Beauty Powder on a trip…

MAC Shell Pearl Beauty Powder Year of the Snake Swatch
From the left, Shell Pearl Beauty Powder swatches on my NC42 skin: Year of the Snake, Archie’s Girls and Liberty of London

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