Search Results for: chanel

3 Summery, Bold and Bright Red Lipsticks From the Chanel Permanent Collection

June 24th, 2021 by Karen 10 Comments

chanel brights top — Bold, bright summer lips by Chanel

I’ve been affectionately calling summery shades like these my “popsicle lipsticks” because they’re juicy, shiny and absolutely delicious…in the figurative sense, of course! You ~~probably~~ won’t find me nibbling these tubes when I’m feeling peckish, haha!

Side note: I think I may have just invented something!

Are you ready for it? Here goes: ice cream that looks like lipstick. ?? Boom. Wouldn’t that be cool? I’d be all over it. MAKE IT HAPPEN, TRADER JOE’S.

Anywho, I’m revisiting my Chanel lipsticks, and these three are in Chanel’s permanent collection. I think they’re all perfect brights for summer.

Rouge Allure Velvet in 43 La Favorite ($40), a reddish coral with a matte finish that has a touch of luminosity, represents something I think Chanel does extremely well: finish. This lippie has je ne sais quoi, and you can build it up or sheer it out. Of course, both ways are super pretty.

Rouge Coco in 472 Experimental ($40) is a warm red with a touch of orange, and it reminds me that I’m a big fan of the Rouge Coco line because of how moisturizing the lippies are. My dry lips greatly appreciate that.

Rouge Allure in 172 Rouge Rebelle ($40) is a bright neutral red with a satin finish, and it works particularly well with warm brown eyeshadow!

chanel summery bold bright lipsticks — I’m on a Chanel kick, as you can see.

chanel brights swatches — Hello, swatches!

chanel rouge coco experimental — Rouge Coco in 472 Experimental

chanel rouge allure rebelle — Rouge Allure in 172 Rouge Rebelle

chanel rouge allure velvet la favorite — Rouge Allure Velvet in 43 La Favorite

Additional makeup worn in this look

BASE: Avene Solaire UV Mineral Multi-Defense Tinted Sunscreen SPF 50+, Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua in 50 Dore, Chanel Le Corrector de Chanel Concealer in 40 Beige, Hourglass Veil Retouching Fluid in Sand
CHEEKS: Chanel Fleurs de Printemps Blush and Highlighter Duo, Chanel Le Blanc Rosy Light Drops
EYES: Chanel Healthy Glow Natural Palette in Medium, Chanel Stylo Ombre et Contour Eyeshadow-Liner-Kohl in Electric Brown, Chanel Hyperblack Liner, Chanel Boy Brow Pencil in Black

It’s a Cruel Summer.

No, I’m not talking about the Bananarama song… ?

Is it just me, or can these girls only barely sing?

I just started watching this young adult-ish mystery show called Cruel Summer, and I blame it for my lack of sleep last night!

It’s about two girls whose lives become intertwined after one gets kidnapped.

The episodes bounce back and forth between 1993, 1994 and 1995, and I’m having all sorts of nostalgia for my ’90s-era wardrobe. I wish I hung on to my oversized overalls, striped knit shirts, baggy Levis and floral dresses, le sigh!

Also, the suspense is keeping me up at night. Note to self: GO TO SLEEP EARLY THIS EVENING. Don’t say I didn’t warn you if you start marathoning it on Hulu (that’s where I found it).

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

3 Playfully Pink Chanel Rouge Allures From the Permanent Collection

June 23rd, 2021 by Karen 7 Comments

chanel rouge allure ink 170 euphorie — Fun with some Chanel lippies!

Chanel. Pink. Permanent!

Thou speaketh magic words to mine ears! Or, should I say “magic words to my lips”? Hmm!

I’ve been wearing lipstick very infrequently over the past few months (sunscreen, however, is a totally different story!), so when I started downsizing my collection in May, I promised myself that the only legacy lipsticks I would keep going forward are ones I absolutely adore.

I’ve gotten rid of most of the dead weight by now and am finally at the point where I actually have to try stuff on to determine if I want to keep keeping it, and these three Chanel lippies are the next ones on deck.

chanel rouge allure 170 91 24 swatches — So pink!

Raspberry reddish pink Rouge Allure Ink in 170 Euphorie ($40) is a lightweight matte liquid lipstick that, for some reason, looks more red in these pics! — but less so in person.

Rouge Allure Velvet in 42 Eclatante ($40) is a bright and summery coral pink with a soft matte finish and like Euphorie it feels light on my lips. It also looks fantastic with black cat eye liner!

Rouge Allure in 91 Seduisante ($40) is a warm pink with a creamy finish, and I can see it being a lovely everyday color.

chanel rouge allure 91 seduisante — Rouge Allure in 91 Seduisante

chanel rouge allure velvet 42 eclatante — Rouge Allure Velvet in 42 Eclatante

chanel rouge allure ink 170 euphorie swatch — Rouge Allure Ink in 170 Euphorie

The rest of the makeup in this look

Lately, I’ve been trying to find ways to wear makeup that work for me… By that I mean that I don’t want to feel overwhelmed by the thought of blending, or, like I’m wearing a sh*t-ton of stuff on my skin. I just want to feel pretty in makeup again, ya know?

I think I’ve finally found a philosophy that works for me (at least for now). I just wear a little bit of eye makeup, coupled with keeping my skin as simple as possible. Then, I incorporate a fun lipstick in a joyful color.

In this look, I’m wearing a lot of Chanel!

For the skin, I started by applying a new tinted mineral sunscreen by Avene called Solaire UV Mineral Multi-Defense Tinted Sunscreen Fluid. It’s fragrance- and oil-free, and the tan tint actually works on my NC42 skin tone. I’ve yet to test it out on a very sunny day, but so far, I’m into it!

Then, I blended a few drops of Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua Sunscreen Makeup on my cheeks, my nose and my upper lip; added a few drops of Hourglass Veil Retouching Fluid in Sand under my eyes; and dabbed a golden tan cream blush (Chanel Les Beiges in No 20) on my cheeks.

For my eyes, I started by lining my upper lash line with Hyperblack, Chanel’s long-wearing cream liner in a pot. Next, I swept the golden brown from the Chanel Road Movie quad to give some depth to my lids, and smudged the edges of the liner with the matte navy shade from Road Movie. To finish, I filled in my brows with Chanel Boy Brow in Black and coated my lashes with Laura Mercier Caviar Mascara.

Done! ?

What makeup looks have you been into lately?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Happy hump day! ?

Citrusy, Springy Chanel Paris-Riviera (and Easter Egg Hunts and Noms)

March 26th, 2021 by Karen 9 Comments

Spring is here, and despite the fact that I don’t have the spring skirt situation worked out…I do have my spring fragrance situation worked out, because, HELLO! — a change of weather means change of scent, am I right? 🙂

Side note: the black midi skirt I ordered from Gap arrived yesterday, and it 100% made me look like I was part of a cult. Honestly, I think I was blinded by the thought of having pockets… Pockets will do that to ya!

I’m returning it ASAP.

Back to the perfume… It’s called Chanel Paris Riviera Eau du Toilette, and OOOH! — it smells so good. If you’re a fiend for fresh citrus scents, I think you’d love it. It starts off bright and borderline sharp with bold, orange notes. Like, if you were walking through a sun-dappled grove of orange trees and picked one off a branch and peeled it right then and there, that’s what a spritz first smells like.

Then, it transforms into a floral with orange blossom and jasmine notes before drying down into warm, sandalwood and vanilla notes. It’s light, fresh and clean, which I wanted because in the spring I don’t really like to wear anything too heavy, you know what I mean?

I love it and have been wearing it nonstop.

In other news…is it just me, or did Easter sneak up on us?! I usually like to plan my Easter menu way in advance, but this year I think I’m going to keep it simple with a premade honey ham, biscuits (I might just buy the premade kind) and roasted vegetables (asparagus, broccoli and baby potatoes). Or, I may just buy a couple of Whole Foods Frozen Cheese Pizzas and call it a day, ha ha ha! We’ll see.

I’m prepping some Easter eggs for the egg hunt at Connor’s preschool, and this got me thinking about Easter egg hunts when I was a kid. El Hub and I were chatting a while back and he was absolutely shocked when I told him that, when my brother and I were young, we always had Easter egg hunts inside our tiny little house. You could also pretty much guarantee that the eggs would always be hidden in the same places year after year, like, there were always some tucked away in the piano and behind my mom’s knick-knacks in the living room.

Because of this, I always just assumed that every family held their egg hunts the same way. I had NO IDEA some families went outside on Easter morning to hunt for eggs.

I don’t know… Did anybody else’s family do the indoor egg hunt?!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Warm Tones With Chanel Cream Eyeshadow Sticks and Rouge Coco Lipsticks, and a Happy St. Patrick’s Day! ?

March 17th, 2021 by Karen 15 Comments

chanel warm tones coco lipstick — Swatches!

Wouldn’t it be just grand if every decision were only as complex as what lipstick to wear for the day!? Adulting is hard, man! Oh, well…

This week I’ve been working on the flooring project I talked about, which means trying to figure out when to start it, what material to use, whom to hire, how to test our existing tiles for asbestos since the home was built in the 1970s, figuring out how to remove the old carpet, whether we can coordinate the project to coincide with some repairs we have to do, which may or may not require us all to temporarily live someplace else with our cat while the work is done, which has been…challenging, but at least I figured out what lipstick to wear for the day! 🙂 That was easy, peasy, lemon squeezy compared to asbestos testing (OMG).

chanel rouge coco lipstick coco adrienne — I couldn’t decide between these two, so I tried both!

Yesterday I had the best time trying to figure out which of these Chanel Rouge Coco Lipsticks to wear… I mean, the orangey red shade is obviously fun and fierce and shiny. It sings “Spring is here!” Unsurprisingly, I also love the nude beige pink, which looks so elegant and sophisticated! They both have their own cool vibe.

chanel warm tones coco lipstick smile — Chanel Rouge Coco Lipstick in 416 Coco

chanel rouge coco adrienne — Chanel Rouge Coco Lipstick in 402 Adrienne

Ultimately, I went with the orangey red because I needed some “lipstick armor” to get through the day, but which one do you prefer?

Oh! — I’m wearing cream shadow in this look because these ones from Chanel are awesome. I’ve also been on a cream shadow kick. These double as shadows and liners, and, in case you’re wondering, yes, they’re comfortable on the waterline. Not drying at all! I’m wearing a matte light brown called Contour Clair on my lids and matte dark brown Rouge Noir on my lash and water lines.

chanel warm tones eyes down — I’m wearing Chanel Blush No. 20 cream blush on my cheeks with Chanel Malice powder blush on top.

chanel ombre et contour — From the left: Chanel Stylo Ombre Et Contour Eyeshadow-Liner-Khol in 12 Contour Clair, 04 Electric Brown, 08 Rouge Noir

I blended out the edges of the lighter brown with what I *thought* was a clean blending brush, so I was surprised when — whoops! — orangey brown appeared in my crease. Turns out I forgot I had used this particular brush with the UD Naked Wild West Palette, and it had some leftover matte brown in the bristles. I actually ended up liking how it turned out though!

Don’t ya just love fortuitous makeup accidents?

By the way, happy St. Patrick’s Day! ☘️? Connor Claire and I painted our nails green this morning to celebrate. She’s part Irish on El Hub’s side.

expressie express to impress swatch — Two layers of Expressive Express to Impress

I was going to make corned beef and cabbage in the Instant Pot, but eh…I might just make a Whole Food’s Frozen Cheese Pizza with some green broccoli on it instead! ?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

A Little Chanel Les 4 Ombres Tissé Vendôme Eyeshadow Quad Love

January 7th, 2021 by Karen 17 Comments

chanel tisse vendome — Chanel Les 4 Ombres Multi-Effect Quadra Eyeshadow in Tissé Vendôme ($62)

Quick shout-out to a quad I’ve been loving lately! — Chanel Les 4 Ombres Tissé Vendôme.

I wear the two browns and the beige the most, and the lighter golden taupe-brown has a sheen finish. It’s fantastic for simple, elegant washes of color on the lids.

You can buff the darker brown (which also has a sheen finish) into the corners for depth, but I usually like to keep it simple and wear it as a liner, applied with either a wet or dry angled brush.

The satiny beige comes in handy for soft, subtle highlights on the brow bone and inner corner.

That coral shade is actually pretty handy too! Pair it with coral or peach blush or lipstick. I like to blend it onto the mobile part of my lid (the area that moves when you blink) to highlight that area and bring it out a bit more (helps my eyes look less hooded).

chanel tisse vendome swatch — For reference, I’m an NC4.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Chanel Eclosion Rouge Allure Velvet Extreme Lipstick and Boy de Chanel Brows: Bright Lips and a Beret

January 6th, 2021 by Karen 10 Comments

chanel Eclosion swatch jan 2021 — Bonne année!

I was going for a little French girl flair today, hence the beret. Admittedly, I’m also wearing it because I didn’t feel like dealing with all the stray, crazy baby hairs sticking out of my head at every angle this morning…so I just covered them up, hahaha!

I need more berets in my life.

chanel ecolsion swatch jan 2021 — I love this type of makeup look!

What, exactly, is French girl chic? To me, it’s easygoing yet elegant — makeup that isn’t heavy-handed or harsh, so no severe contouring or bladed brows or big spiderweb falsies.

I’m here for it!

Actually, I’m here for any makeup at all, LOL! I didn’t wear much over the holidays, and it feels good to get back into it.

Here I’m wearing bold but basic lips with just a single lipstick, softly defined eyes, a light cheek flush and a sheer base.

Most of the products I’m wearing are Chanel (French girl vibe and all), with a couple of the pieces from the new Chanel Spring-Summer 2021 collection.

chanel ecolosion primtemps — Today’s color palette

First is a bright, velvety matte reddish coral lipstick called Eclosion. It’s a lightweight, pigmented lipstick that feels so smooth and soft on my lips; however, despite being full coverage and matte, it does transfer a little, so if you’re going around kissing things, including humans, dogs and cats, you’ll leave lipstick marks all over the place.

The highlighter I’m wearing on my upper cheekbones is the lighter peach shade from the Fleur de Pritemps highlighter/blush duo. It has a lovely subtle, satin shine and works well with peach and coral blushes, which leads me to Malice blush… Good ol’ Chanel Malice! If you wear warm peachy coral blushes like MAC Melba well, you will LOVE this satiny blush. It’s part of the Chanel permanent collection and looks fantastic with most lip colors. I’ve been wearing and loving it for years.

Last, but certainly not least, the brows! I’m wearing a bolder brown than usual, thanks to Boy de Chanel in Deep Brown, my new favorite brow pencil. It’s from the Boy de Chanel sub-collection, which is marketed as makeup for dudes, but ya know…you won’t turn into a pumpkin or anything if you’re a lady and use it, LOL! I like it because the pencil isn’t too soft and creamy and therefore has a good wear time, and I also like how pigmented it is. Good stuff!

Makeup worn in this look

Eyes: Chanel Tisse Vendome Quad (light brown shade on lids, dark brown shades on lash lines), Chanel Espresso Waterproof Eyeliner, Bite Beauty Upswing Mascara, Chanel Boy de Chanel Eyebrow Pencil in Deep Brown
Cheeks: Chanel Malice (blush), Chanel Les Beiges in No. 50 (bronzer) and Chanel Fleurs de Printemps (highlighter)
Lips: Chanel Eclosion Rouge Allure Velvet Extreme Lipstick
Base: Charlotte Tilbury Flawless Filter in Tan set with Chanel Loose Powder in Translucent 3 (foundation and powder), Estee Lauder 24Hr Hydra Prep Concealer in Medium Deep Warm and Kevyn Aucoin Supernatural Concealer in EC06

Speaking of berets…

I’m still hoping to find a dark reddish purple beret in a secondhand store one of these days!

One of my favorite Prince songs

Dare to dream!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Hanging With the Chanel Les Fleurs de Chanel Spring-Summer 2021 Collection

December 30th, 2020 by Karen 8 Comments

Maaan, I gotta hand it to Chanel. They have a knack for releasing righteous reds that are preternaturally easy to apply.

How do they do it?!

I didn’t even need a lip liner or lip brush for Pivoine Noire, the matte berry red I’m wearing in this look. It’s an LE shade in the new Les Fleurs de Chanel Spring-Summer 2021 collection, and yes, I can’t get over the fact that we’re talking about a spring/summer release.

I applied it freehand without much thought, straight from the tube.

chanel pivoine noire — Rouge Allure Velvet Extreme in 136 Pivoine Noire, a dusty berry red

Now I’m wondering if I could apply it while driving a car like Jessica Chastaine’s character does in Ava in the opening scene. She’s a soldier-turned-assassin, and with one hand she opens a tube of what I’m pretty sure is a Chanel lipstick and proceeds to flawlessly apply a layer of dark burgundy while racing down the freeway.

It’s impressive!

chanel movie lipstick — A novel way of opening a Chanel lipstick while prepping for a nefarious deed…

I wonder if I could do that… Survey says, “probably not!” LOL!

This new collection is inspired by spring blooms and warm pink, red, rose and coppery brown hues, and it lands on counters and the Chanel website next month (which starts this week!). There are lots of finishes — matte, metallic and satin — in various levels of coverage.

Here are some notes on the items I’m wearing…

The powder blush/highlighter duo

The coral-pink blush lays down a sheer flush of luminous color, so if you like blushes that don’t scream “Look at me! I’m obvious!” you might like it. I also love the finish on the peach highlighter. It’s a soft eggshell shine similar to the Hourglass Ambients. No bling-bling highlighter here.

The matte red lipstick

On the opposite end of the coverage spectrum is this gorgeously opaque matte berry red. Chanel’s Velvet Extreme formula applies flawlessly and glides along the skin without tugging, but it’s not too slick to easily control. Basically, it’s suuuper smooth, and it smells and tastes like rose hard candy.

The metallic mascara

The coppery bronze color actually shows up on dark lashes, which is super cool (colorful mascaras rarely show up on my lashes), and the Le Volume de Chanel formula delivers the thick, dramatic lash look the line is famous for. If you’ve got lighter lashes, the effect will probably be more dramatic and flattering than it is on me. On me, I think the color tends to make my eyes look smaller and more hooded than a standard-issue black mascara…

chanel metal terracotta mascara — My black lashes actually look terra cotta!

The Chanel Les Fleurs de Chanel Spring-Summer 2021 collection includes…

FLEURS DE PRINTEMPS Blush and Highlighter Duo
An Exclusive Creation powder duo with a satiny peach highlighter and luminous pink coral blush. Embossed
with a floral motif. Use the included brush to sweep the blush onto cheeks and the highlighter onto center of
forehead, tops of cheekbones, brow bones and Cupid’s bow. Limited edition. $70.00

LE VOLUME DE CHANEL Mascara
Now in a limited-edition rose-copper shade, the innovative mascara adds a colourful touch to lashes. The
CHANEL-exclusive brush and volumizing formula help achieve greater length and thickness in a single stroke.
$32.00

ROUGE ALLURE VELVET EXTRÊME Intense Matte Lip Colour
Introducing limited-edition berry red and warm coral shades of the extreme matte lipstick. The intense
longwearing formula glides on smoothly and doesn’t dry out lips. $40.00

ROUGE ALLURE LAQUE Ultrawear Shine Liquid Lip Colour
The new ultra-intense, ultra-longwearing satin shine liquid lipstick in a limited-edition metallic aubergine shade.
The creamy, fluid texture applies easily and wears comfortably, while the special doe-foot applicator ensures precise,
even results. $40.00

LE VERNIS Longwear Nail Colour
The high-shine nail colour features carefully selected pigments for even application and lasting wear. Available in 3
new shades: a soft peach, a light raspberry red and a metallic red. $28.00

AVAILABLE ON CHANEL.COM AND AT CHANEL BOUTIQUES: JANUARY 2021

AVAILABLE AT DEPARTMENT AND SPECIALTY STORES: FEBRUARY 2021

Adventures in bread making

So, I made my first 1-1/2 pound loaf of French bread in my new Cuisinart bread maker yesterday!

Isn’t the loaf cute? It was a test loaf. It’s pretty small, enough for about four sandwiches.
[Continue reading…]

Fun Faces of the Day With Chanel Rouge Coco Lipstick in Edith, Jean, Vera and Misia | Ombre Premiere Laque in Desert Wind | Stylo Yeux in Black Wood

December 23rd, 2020 by Karen 13 Comments

chanel rouge coco jean edith swatches — A few fun Chanel lipsticks!

I may or may not have been wearing nude lips for the better part of nine months now, sooooo one could call this a “nude lip rut,” but I intend to break it with these fun Chanel lipsticks…because Chanel makes everything better. ? (Please allow me this fantasy.)

These are a few shades from the Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lipcolour line. They’re $38 each, shiny, moisturizing and vary from medium coverage to opaque. Also, like most of Chanel’s lip products, they have a regal, rosy flavor and scent.

Edith is a fave! It’s an opaque neutral pink that goes extraordinarily well with shimmery taupe shadows like the one I’m wearing here (Chanel Ombre Premiere Laque in Desert Wind).

I’m also a fan of Jean, a hot pink with a purple hint. Like Edith, it goes well with shimmery taupe lids.

For this last lip look, a ’90s-style unblended lip, I layered sheer beige Vera with warm reddish brown Misia, then lined my lips with MAC Burgundy Lip Pencil.

chanel vera misia — Rouge Coco in Vera and Misia (sadly, both appear to be discontinued), along with MAC Burgundy Lip Pencil

The eye makeup

I’m always looking for new eye combos that excite me without exhausting my patience, and the shimmering taupe lid look here only relies on two things, both from Chanel. The shadow is Desert Wind, a cream shadow that comes in a tube with a wand. It’s long-wearing and sets fast, so you have to work quickly to buff out the edges.

I sure do like how wet and glossy it looks. ?

chanel desert wind black wood swatch — Love me some taupe!

As for the liner, it’s called Black Wood, and it’s one of Chanel’s twist-up, long-wearing pencil liners from the Stylo Yeux line. It’s a rich, deep brownish black.

I’ve been looking for a borderline-black dark brown liner because my MAC Coffee pencil is almost finished (TEARS!). I was hoping I could replace it with this liner because I love the long-wearing formula (it also doesn’t irritate my eyes), but I think it leans a little too black to be a dupe.

Mind you, I still like it, and I’m definitely going to keep it in rotation!

But by far the most interesting makeup around these parts lately…

Is the makeup Connor did on this blank face chart…

[Continue reading…]