Givenchy Acoustic Colors Collection Fall 2012

I did not realize that Givenchy was such a hard to find brand (as we get it where I live), though collections come in extremely limited quantities (something like 2 items of each product per concession). I see that Sephora carries it and still has their 2012 Fall collection in stock. I keep on overlooking my Givenchy quads, and I'm not sure why - they have a good colour selection with wonderful textures. The quad I bought was no exception - Le Prisme Yeus - Accoustic Quatour Colour and Shine for Metallic Eyes in Acoustic Harmony (80). This was apparently inspired by the connection between music, emotion, sound and colour. These colour seem a random collection but can be layered and played with to create counless look. They are high in shine and interspersed with divine chunky glitter that makes your eyes twinkle. Watch out for fallout - I did not mind as my makeup looked lived in. This is my eyes little black dress for a night on the town.  I hate to say it I did wear this in the day, but I guess it would not be appropriate for office use unless in the creative industry, What I love about this quad is that not only did it have sparkle but a big punch of well pigmented colour as well. This compact quad has hidden brushed that are below the quad - good for travel.

The next item I bought from the collection was the Rouge Interdit Shine Acoustic Wild Rose (29) lipstick. Swatched on the hand it comes on quite metallic, but on the lips it is sheer, softly metallic, my lips but better colour. It is described as a 'shimmering plum'. The bullet is firmer than most lipstick, but it is really comfortable to wear. It does have that classic (old- fashioned?) scent which I don't really care for, but it dissipates after a while. The lipstick being sheer does not have staying power.

Acoustic Wild Rose Lipstick

To really make this collection rock I had to get the lipgloss- Gelée D'Interdit Smoothing Gloss Balm Crystal Shine Acoustic Wild Rose (18). Non-sticky and moist is how I would describe it. Beautiful ruby  and pink micro-glitter supended in clear gloss, with no grittiness. This gloss has a cocktail of ingredients good for plumping, smoothing and hydrating. I can definitely vouch for its hydrating properties but have not used it long enough to ascertain if it has any smoothing effect. Plumping- not that I have seen. The scent is a lot stronger than the lipstick, so those scent adverse would have a hardtime with this, though it is really nice. I wear this over the Accoustic Wild Rose lipstick for added sparkle. With this in mind I think this would have made an awesome christmas collection - jewel tones and sparkle!

                                                                                                                                                          

Out of focus to show sparkle

L-R Lipstick, Gloss, Gloss over Lipstick

Please keep in mind these swatches are coming up muddy and are actually more rose in reality.

Overall, this is a well-edited concise collection. There were other item, but they were not as exciting as these- their was a colour changing clear gloss but sadly, we did not get it here. So if you can find these limited edition items - get them as they are unique!

Givenchy really offers such beautiful makeup, and I will definitely make a point of using them more often.

Which brands do you love but keep on forgetting to use?

Chanel Ombre Contraste in Notorious - contour of the future

When think about this post, I was not sure if this new limited product by Chanel was a case of "the emperor and his clothes". There has been such a 'halabaloo' about this hard to get contouring product, that I was unsure whether we were all nodding our head in unison, while all looking like some deathly monsters from the bog! Well, after hunting and securing this baby when it launched in Hong Kong about 2 weeks ago (many thanks to Kai from kaiobsessions for going out of her way and making a few phone calls and reserving one for my travelling husband to pick up), I can without a doubt say that this is a collector's item as so far as their is no other product like this on the market , albeit a high-end one. Chanel has touted this as a 'sculpting veils for eyes and cheek'- it really delivers a  'haute' look with exquisitely hollowed out cheeks ( -enter the mummy left) and hauntingly beautifully shaped eyes.

This really is a breathe of fresh air. All of my contouring products contour add warmth to my skin. The Chanel Ombre Contraste plays more with light and shadow in the true sense adding depth and darkness to your face. Less is more with this powder as a strong hand will render you a ghoul in the making with a strange lavender gray cast. I worked it gently, more to the back of the hollow of my cheek (with the enclosed brush) and like a whisper pulled it forward along my hollow, then buff with a bigger powder brush. When I felt it was still a bit too strong I blended over with my foundation buffing (or stippling) brush with my left overs from my foundation application. Try this a few times as it does take practice. The powder has a delicate luminosity to stop this being a very flat mistake.

This dual purpose product can also be used on the crease or depending on your eye shape, just above your crease to  give dimension and shape to your eye for a chic bare makeup look. I am loving my Chanel Ombre Contraste in Notorious! So Happy Halloween- let the only monster be those knocking on your door for a trick or treat!

Applause for homemade pumpkin........

What is your best trick for contouring?

Chantecaille Protection Naturelle - Perfect Portable Powder

Chantecaille is an exquisite skincare and makeup brand from France. I'm sure it needs no introduction, as their products are very popular and found worldwide. Chantecaille is a family affair and their love for their brand is evident from their attention to detail as seen in their beautiful packaging and really outstanding technologically advanced products. I needed a powder for oil control and setting my makeup. I came across Chantecaille Protection Naturelle and fell in love with this unique powder, that I use through the day as needed. It is unique as it is in a container that has it's own built in brush and it contains a SPF 46 PA+++ (which is full spectrum sun protection). The brush can be cleaned and a refill attached when it runs out - I have had mine since April and it is just under half way with daily use. Pretty good I think. The brush is protected by a retractable plastic sheath. The container is very well made and it just pops into my bag for all day shine free sun protection. The powder itself comes in 2 colour variations, and it comes up through the base of the brush. The only other product similar to this is the Peter Thomas Roth, but I have not tried it. I use it for a dual purpose - to help keep my skin matte and sun protection. I think it is marketed primarily as on-the-go sun protection, but the sales consultant recommended it to me as I wanted a product I could touch up with on the move. I wear it over all my different foundations, including Chantecaille Just Skin tinted moisturizer for a fresh, no makeup makeup look. It can also be wore alone after moisturizer. I am waiting for the new HD perfecting powder also by Chantecaille which is enroute to me,  and I cannot wait to test it out.

Protection Naturelle in Light

Safe and Sound

Addiction By Ayako Kohl Eyeliner in Night Dive

Addiction by Ayako is an amazing brand out of Japan and owned by beauty powerhouse Kose. Do not read further if you value your hard earned cash. Addiction is described on the website as "the sense of wanting"- this brand will drive that sense to its limit! The creative mind behind Addiction is Ayako. She was International make-up director for Nars - another of my favourite brands. Addiction has the interesting and surprising colour range of Nars together with the superb texture and quality found in many of the high-end Japanese brands. This makes for a stunning combination.
I bought the Kohl Eyeliner in Night Dive from their Fall 2012 collection, though I think it might become permanent (my japanese is non-existant). Cake Liner like these seem to be a mini trend as Bobbi Brown with be releasing one in an upcoming range. This pan is nice, because it come with two shades -Deep coal black and dark shimmering meridian blue.

This liner reminds me of the makeup of the geisha and how artfully the eye makeup was applied. You can created the same ink black eye with this kohl liner. It works well with an angled eyeliner brush or a thin pointed brush. A pressing motion with the angled brush - MAC 266 - is need to ensure less fallout. But, crisp lines are definitely achievable. A smudged effect can also be obtained. After laying down your line you could use a pencil brush like MAC 219 to soften the edges. It is buildable and an intense sooty line looks amazing.This wore until I took it off and it still looked fresh and precise.

Applied dry

The Kohl liners come in four variants. Addiction by Ayako single pans can be taken out and put in a compact case with other shadows or blushers. Quite creative in that it is one system- you as the customer do not have to have half your makeup in normal packaging and half in refill pans as they all snap out easily- this make it much better in my opinion.  I also bought two eyeshadows in Flash Back and Midnight Drive which will be reviewed soon. I bought my Addiction By Ayako product from Ichibankao.com

I really am enjoying using it and creating new looks with it......... the little devil on my shoulder is bidding me to buy MORE.

Which Japanese brands do you love?

Hourglass Opaque Rouge in Edition

Hourglass is a quirky brand out of Venice, C.A. This brand is aimed at the high-end customer and is proud to boast its products are:- paraben free, cruelty free and has minimal fragrance in them.
I has seen their cute concession at Liberty in London, but as mentioned before I had other beauty items on my must-have list. They have a few hero products such as their Veil Mineral Primer and No'28 Primer Serm. These are on my list for another time. Today I will be reviewing their new Opaque Rouge. As we know matte, long wearing products are right on trend with all major brands throwing their hat into the ring. Most brands have made their matte lip in a lipstick form. Hourglass has done their matte lip as a liquid in a traditional gloss packaging. Both YSL (Pur Couture  Vernis A' Le'vres Glossy stain)  and Guerlain (Rouge G'L Extrait) have also gone this route.

The packing is different from your run of the mill offering. It is shorter than your typical gloss, but perfect to pop into you handbag. It has a victorian feel to it, with an antiqued rose gold trim. The doe foot applicator feel a tad flimsy to me, so a delicate hand is needed when applying it. These matte products tend to be trickier to use, and more high maintenance their a glossy sheer lipstick.

Freshly applied

The formula is pleasant to apply with no scent. It never really dries down and a tackiness remains. It wore better on slightly moisturized lips, but still made my lips look dry and lines accentuated. I tried to layer this product, but this only caused flaking overtime. The colour I love- Edition is a bright coral pink with micro gold reflects and goes well on my skin tone and would suit many. The reflects are only apparent once the product dries down. This wore longer on my arm as a swatch than on my lips.  After a meal it wore off quite a bit.

I am keen try try more Hourglass poducts. I think I will try other brands before purchasing another Opaque Rouge. I bought Opaque Rouge in Edition from Zuneta and the whole range is available.

I would love to hear about your favourite Hourglass products?

Suqqu Blend Colour Eyeshadow in Tsukiakari EX-07

Suqqu is another reason why my love affair with Japanese makeup has reached fever pitch. I decided to invest in my first Suqqu quad and chose the limited Tsukiakari from the Suqqu Fall /Winter 2012 collection. This palette is a lesson in restraint. Highly pigmented, refined, modern, versatile are the words that come to mind when trying to describe this eyeshadow quad. Let's let the picture do the talking.

*Sigh*

Ok, back to business. The Suqqu quad is housed in a sleek black case with Suqqu lasercut into it. Full size mirror for on the go application and 2 mini, double ended applicators - one with sponge tips, the other with brushes. These have varying lengths and shapes for lining and blending. Suqqu brushes are world renown for excellence and these are a little slice of heaven.

The top left shade is an iridescent pastel salmon pink. The top right is a deep taupe that can be blended out to be quite soft. These two colours layer beautifully together creating a new mauve-toned shade. The addition of the cream shadow is new for this palette. The lower bottom left shade is navy with micro glitter in a slightly lighter blue. The bottom right colur is winter white. The white be used on it's own, just with the navy as a liner. All the shades are buttery in texture and as easy as 1-2-3 to blend.

I have done comparison's of the taupe colour below. You can tell in the swatches that the Suqqu colour is more of a deeper, golden taupe with sparse micro glitter. The Burberry is lighter,  matte and has less mauve. Flash back has more of a grey undertone and has the most metallic quality and gorgeous micro glitter. RBR is most similar to Rosewood but with more iridescence.

L-R Suqqu Taupe, Burberry Rosewood, Addiction Flash back,
Rouge Bunny Rouge Solstice Halcyon

Suqqu Blend Colour eyeshades are silicone and amino-acid coated. These ingrediants are meant to increase wear time and help keep your lids healthy. The Suqqu ethos is to enhance you eye and bring out their natural beauty. This quad does this and more. The navy cream shadow gives this particular suqqu palette a moody edginess.

The Navy cream shadow can be used to line your eye or as an all over base to create a super cool lived- in look with the other shades blended over it. I did a daytime winged eyeshadow look, with the navy on the outer corners winged out slightly. The taupe I pressed into the outer corners as well and pulled it back into the centre of the lid. The pink I patted over the centre on the lid and then blended. You can then go back over the navy with a soft touch to add a bit of intensity. I dragged the navy softly under the lower lashline to bring it all together. Suqqu looked great by the end of the day and I detected no fading.

I bought my suqqu quad from Ichibanko.com. The lovely Kelly was very helpful and the shipping was super fast (I added expedited shipping). You do pay more for the palette, but since many high-end brands where I live have hyped up prices, I felt relatively comfortable doing so. Suqqu is sold through limited vendors throughout the world, and only hope that it becomes more accessible. This is a deluxe, beautifully made product and will be in heavy rotation through the coming months. Now onto pick out my next Suqqu quad.............

Which Suqqu quad is your favourite?

RMK Creamy Sheer Powder Cheeks in Pink Beige

I have a new found love for Japanese makeup brands. I have been slowly collecting some beautiful products from RMK, Suqqu and Addiction by Ayako. I purchased the RMK cheek duo as my first RMK product as many makeup lovers rave about RMK cheek products, so I thought it was a good place to start. These duo's form part of RMK's Deep Iridescence Collection for Autumn/Winter 2012. Four duo's are available and they all seem neutral with the exception of Rose, which while still sheer looks deeper in comparison to the other three. I bought Pink Beige (02).

I would describe this blush as an illuminating blush that can be worn alone for a soft glow or over a stronger matte blush to add luminosity. The pink colour on the left is a sheer ballet pink with multi pink and beige sparkle that is not chunky at all. This multi dimensional shade is meant to correct the tone of your skin - used alone this is a subtle highlighter. The beige colour on the right is a light pastel apricot shade with slight self coloured iridescence to add colour to your cheek - used alone it creates a light bronzed look. Mixed together it creates a warm rosy glow. I describe it as a glow because on my light to medium complexion these colour come up light. If you are darker the Rose (01) duo might be better. These duo's were created to "enhance the radiant glow of natural skin" and I think they do just that. . The are very sheer, so if you want a strong cheek I suggest you choose their Ingenious powder cheeks, which I have yet to try but look stronger in the pan. Japanese makeup leans towards sheer, subtle products.

The RMK packaging is very nice. The duo is housed in a well made silver mirrored casing with RMK discreetly written on the top lid. I have used the brush, but suggest an angled blush brush for seamless blending, though this cheek colour would be hard to mess up as it blends really well. So far I am loving my RMK cheek duo and am definitely plotting my next purchase. I bought mine from BeautyBay.

Have you tried RMK products?