dolce & gabbana

Wearing Dolce & Gabbana Classic Cream Lipstick in Cinnamon

For the first time in many moons, I felt a chill this morning when I stepped out of bed, and before making my way downstairs with Tabs, I bundled up with long pants a sweatshirt and robe.

Bluh…

It turned out to be sunny today, but the brisk kiss of crisp air that heralds fall never completely went away. Soon, the oak tree outside my window will lose its leaves, and the sun will set every afternoon before El Hub gets home from work.

Fall won’t wait just because we wish it would, but at least the springy new lip products in the Dolce & Gabbana Sweet Temptations collection aren’t all about fall.

We have tons of time to hang out with the darker, richer lip colors that usually characterize fall, but most of these shades (even the dark Berry liner) feel light, sweet and fresh to me — almost like spring.

I love it, and I love how great the nude lip colors here look when worn without additional liners or glosses. The pieces stand on their own, which is something I feel a lot of nude lip colors don’t do.

Dolce & Gabbana did stamp some of these — Classic Cream Lipstick in Cinnamon ($30), Shine Lipstick in Almond ($30) and Ultra Shine Lipgloss in Praline ($29) — with their signature rosy flavor, but the Precision Lipliner in Berry ($30) remains unscented and unflavored, as usual for that particular line.

I was a little surprised by how parched all of these products leave my lips, especially considering how moisturizing the other Dolce lip products I’ve tried have been. I’m not sure why — whether it’s me or has something to do with the formulas — but I’ve been applying a layer of moisturizing lip balm beforehand, and that really helps.

Classic Cream Lipstick in Cinnamon on the left and Shine Lipstick in Almond on the right

Ultra Shine Lipgloss in Praline

Precision Lipliner in Berry on the far right, shown with Crayon Intense Eyeliner in Candied (left) and Green Almond (center)
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Dolce & Gabbana’s epic eyeshadow quads are total limelight hogs that often steal the show in the brand’s seasonal makeup launches, but in this fall’s Sweet Temptations collection, the Smooth Eye Colour Duo in Cinnamon ($36) and Crayon Intense Eyeliners in Green Almond ($29) and Candied ($29) are giving the Smooth Eye Colour Quad in Cocoa ($59) a run for its money.

Nothing against Cocoa’s warm, cozy chocolate, cream and orange, but I’m liking the fresh, sweet glow I get from these pieces even more.

Smooth Eye Colour Duo in Cinnamon ($36)

For a bright-eyed look, I’ve been mixing this neutral, shimmery pink, and its partner, a sophisticated tan with a subtle sheen, together and applying them both to my lids from lash line to brow bone. If you’re the type of gal who likes brightening washes of easy, breezy color, you might like this duo a lot.
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: A

Crayon Intense Eyeliners in Green Almond and Candied ($29)

Both have that firm, stiff texture typical of Dolce & Gabbana pencils. Even though I usually prefer softer liners than these, I do love how refreshing Green Almond’s shimmery khaki and Candied’s shimmery gold look when worn with the Cinnamon Duo.
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B+

Clockwise from the eyeshadow duo: Smooth Eye Colour Duo in Cinnamon, Crayon Intense Eyeliner in Candied, Crayon Intense Eyeliner in Green Almond
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Power to the plebs! We’re on the cusp of the Labor Day weekend here in the US, which for El Hub, Tabs and I hopefully means an extra day to sleep in (YAY!). It also, unfortunately, means that summer’s almost done (BOO!), but not before I’ve feasted at least one more time on some of my favorite seasonal treats, like watermelon, peaches, tomatoes, corn, cocoa…

Yep, cocoa — as in the new Dolce & Gabbana Smooth Eye Colour Quad in Cocoa ($59).

Don’t the chocolate and cream colors in this fall quad look good enough to eat? And the orange shade…could it be a sherbert, perhaps?

I can see it now…

Fast forward to tonight. I’m sound asleep in bed and having a dream in which I’m pouring myself a bowl of Special K Chocolatey Delight, except that instead of cornflakes, the bowl is filled with these shadows! 🙂

This Cocoa — which, by the way, isn’t safe to eat (damn!) — is part of the new 11-piece Sweet Temptations collection that just launched on select Saks counters and online, and it shows what a good Dolce & Gabbana quad can be. The pigmented, easy-to-blend shadows don’t crease, fade or look as if they’re just sitting on top of my skin.

Impressive, but then it should be for $59. The colors in Cocoa also lean very, very warm, and that might be another big factor to consider in addition to the price.

A few notes on the shades…

• That matte beige in the upper left is the business! I love uber clean, minimalist eyes with winged liner along the upper lash line (think Angelina Jolie), and I think this bad boy would be great for looks like that. It is beige, but not a blah beige. It hides a hint of gold — just enough to keep it bright.
• As for the orange, well, it’s orange. Like really, really orange, and so pigmented that it can easily go off the rails if you don’t use a light touch. The first time I played with it, I went a little too far with it in my crease and ended up looking all sorts of wrong, like a Gaga backup dancer having a bad makeup day.
• Both of the brown shades, while quiet, do bring the goods. I’ve been using the reddish, bronzy brown in the lower left sparingly, because when I don’t it makes me look like I’ve been crying. The plummy brown in the lower right seems to be somewhat easier to use, but both have a lovely, understated shimmer that’s subtle, yet luxe.

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Gosh, I sure do love the color of Dolce & Gabbana’s two new limited edition Summer 2011 Crayon Intense Eyeliners…

They’re from the new Italian Summertime Collection (here are some of the lipsticks from the release). First, there’s Agave, a shimmery khaki green with a hint of gold, and also Bronzo, a bronzy taupe.

I think both look faboo along my lash line, with Agave seeming to emphasize my brown eyes while Bronzo has more of a brightening effect, sort of like Chanel’s Rose Platine.

Agave (left) and Bronzo (right)
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