9 Responses to “best cosmetics…”
sneebliah
July 14, 2010 at 6:15 pm Edit #
brands: but beset of all are covergirl, CHANEL, dior, estee lauder, naked, and maybellene
AG Hair Cosmetics
Alford & Hoff
Anastasia
AVEDA
Aveeno
Avon
Barielle
Bath & Body Works
Becca Cosmetics
Benefit
Bliss
Bloom
Bobbi Brown
Bond No. 9
Burt’s Bees
Butter London
By Terry
C.O. Bigelow
Calvin Klein CK
Cargo
Carol’s Daughter
Chanel
Chantecaille
China Glaze
Clarins
Clarisonic
Cle de Peau
Clean
Clinique
CoverGirl
Darphin
DDF
Dior
Dolce & Gabbana
Drugstore Brands
Clean & Clear
Coastal Scents
Physicians Formula
Sally Hansen
Duri
DuWop
EcoTools
Elizabeth Arden
Essie
Estee Lauder
FHI Heat
Frederic Fekkai
Fresh
Fusion Beauty
ghd
Giorgio Armani
Givenchy
Guerlain
Hard Candy
Hourglass
Illamasqua
Inglot
IsaDora
Jo Malone
Jouer Cosmetics
Julie Hewett
Kat Von D
Kate Somerville
Kenzo
Kevyn Aucoin
Kiehl’s
Kings & Queens
Korres
Kryolan
L’Oreal
La Mer
La Prairie
Lancome
Laura Geller
Laura Mercier
Lavanila
Le Metier de Beaute
Lippmann
Liz Earle
LORAC
Lush
M LAB
MAC Cosmetics
Make Up Forever
Mario Badescu
Maybelline
Milani
Napoleon Perdis
NARS Cosmetics
Neutrogena
Nubar
NYX
Ojon
OPI
Origins
Orly
Other Brands
Belli
Borghese
Burberry
CeraVe
Cosmedicine
DHC Care
Dr. Brandt
Escada
Eve Pearl
Freeze 24/7
Green by Nature
Hugo Boss
Josie Maran
Kanebo
Lacoste
Lierac
Lipstick Queen
Pacifica
Parissa
Purple Lab NYC
Wei East
Xen Tan
Paul & Joe Beaute
Paul Mitchell
Philosophy
POP Beauty
Prescriptives
REN Skincare
Renee Rouleau
Rescue Beauty Lounge
Rimmel London
Rock & Republic
Sephora
shiseido
Shu Uemura
Sigma Makeup
Smashbox
Soap & Glory
Sonia Kashuk
SpaRitual
St. Tropez
Stila
Sue Devitt
Sugarpill Cosmetics
Tarina Tarantino
tarte
Temptu
theBalm
Thierry Mugler
Three Custom Color
tokidoki
Tom Ford
Too Faced
Topshop
Trish McEvoy
Urban Decay
Victoria’s Secret Beauty
Yes To Carrots
Yves Saint Laurent
Zoya
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sneebliah
July 14, 2010 at 6:16 pm Edit #
CARGO PlantLove Cherry Bliss Lipstick ($20.00 for 0.14 oz.) is an earth-friendly lipstick (tube is made out of corn) that also does good, too. For their celeb-designed lipsticks, $2 from the purchase price goes to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research. Even the box it comes with can be planted and you’ll see some nice flowers grow. Cherry Bliss was designed by celebrity Kim Raver, and it is a glossy, opaque cherry red. It’s a bright pop of red with a really glossy finish (but no real shimmer). The formula itself is creamy and moisturizing while it wears really well (about five to six hours).
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sneebliah
July 14, 2010 at 6:17 pm Edit #
New Bronzing Kit ($35 US): How do you make your summer glow last well into fall? With the brand new Bronzing Kit from CARGO! The gorgeous bronze tin houses CARGO’s cult-favorite Bronzing Powder in Medium, a brand new EyeBronzer which is exclusively available in this Bronzing Kit, PurseGloss in Baja and a matching mini kabuki Bronzing Brush. Eyes, lips and cheeks look naturally bronzed in a cinch with the new Bronzing Kit from CARGO.
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sneebliah
July 14, 2010 at 6:17 pm Edit #
Chanel Paradoxal Nail Lacquer ($23.00) is a stunning shade of grayed plum with red and violet microshimmer. It applied beautifully–one of the best Chanel lacquers in terms of formula I’ve tried–and only needed two coats for complete opaqueness. The nuances of this shade are best captured in direct sunlight, but it’s smoky and sultry in indirect/natural lighting, too. Very, very beautiful and sophisticated.
I’ve always had good luck with Chanel lacquers–no chipping issues for me. I always use mine with Zoya’s Color Lock System and that seems to keep everything on the up and up for about a week or so. I know that this is not an affordable nail lacquer, but it’s not supposed to be. Avid Chanel lacquer collectors won’t be disappointed by the latest shade release, though!
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sneebliah
July 14, 2010 at 6:18 pm Edit #
In addition to Vert Khaki, Chanel will launch Taupe Gris ($28.50 for 0.07 oz.) with their fall collection. The name is completely spot-on–it’s a grayed taupe brown with a soft sheen. It has the same silky smooth texture of Chanel’s single eyeshadows, and while the pigmentation is there, it’s not quite as rich as Vert Khaki’s. Fans of shades like MAC Smoke & Diamonds and Stila’s Lil’ Diamond may want to consider adding this smoky taupe shade to their collection.
I like Taupe Gris for a subtler smoky eye–when you don’t want to go silver and gray and black. It can work well with plums and burgundies, as it almost looks like it takes on a purple tone when paired with them. Similarly, it is just as nice to add darkness to the crease in a smoky brown eye, too.
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sneebliah
July 14, 2010 at 6:18 pm Edit #
For fall, Chanel released four new Glossimer shades ($27.00 for 0.19 oz.), but they’re oh-so-perfect for summer–so thank goodness they’re available come July! (Some readers are reporting their local counters have the collection in already, too.)
Petite Peche is a sheer, softened peach-pink with subtle gold shimmer. It looks a little milky and less peach, more rose on my lips. For those with pinker or redder lips, I think this shade will look very sheer and just a touch milky–the peachiness will be gobbled up by the natural lip pigment.
Coral Love is a sheer, soft coral-pink with golden shimmer. The golden shimmer in this really stands out in this shade.
Rose Dilemma is a sheer, blue-based rose pink with white shimmer. This shade is pinker on my lips than Petite Peche, but it has a look that’s part jelly and part milky.
Pink Teaser is a semi-opaque shade of fuchsia-pink with gold shimmer. This one was easily my favorite–not just because it’s pigmented, but because it’s such a well-done shade overall. It’s very flattering and wearable by anyone, and it doesn’t just look like any ol’ gloss on the lips.
Glossimers have this way of shimmering and glittering that’s subtle but flashy at the same time. I never understood the big deal about them until I wore one and saw my lips in my car mirror. They looked amazing! They were unreal. Now, I can appreciate the nuances of the shimmer to micro-shimmer these glosses contain. Sometimes they’re sheer, sometimes they’re not. The range really varies, though the majority are sheer to semi-sheer. They wear three to four hours and are a rather non-sticky gloss, which makes the length they wear even more impressive.
I’m totally digging the four new shades for fall, even if they feel and look rather summery (or even springy) to me. They do, of course, pair well with bolder eyes and cheeks, which were stars of Chanel’s fall collection!
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sneebliah
July 14, 2010 at 6:19 pm Edit #
With Chanel’s fall collection, we’ll see an introduction of three new and permanent additions to the Rouge Coco ($30.00) line-up: Chintz (peach rose), Rose Dentelle (rose pink), and Chalys (luminous coral). These three shades pair well with the darker, smokier Enigma eyeshadow quad, but they’re also ridiculously perfect for summer. Considering these launch in July (officially! word on the counter is it’s already popping up at some locations), that’s a very, very good thing.
Chintz is a peach nude with a subtle hint of rose. It has a barely there shimmer-frost finish with semi-opaque color. I can see this being a great shade to pair with dark smoky eyes or a stronger cheek.
Rose Dentelle is a soft neutral rose with a part glossy, part frosty finish. It has light shimmer of iridescent lilac and pink that flash when the light hits your lips just right. Like Chintz, it gives nearly opaque coverage but not quite. Chintz and Rose Dentelle look very, very similar when swatched on skin, but they look more distinct on lips.
Chalys is a darkened coral with a stronger orange tone. It has the same half-glossy, half-shimmery finish that most Rouge Cocos have. I found Chalys to be more opaque than the other two, which was nice.
Admittedly, I am a huge fan of summery shades–I’m always drawn to them. These shades feel very summer to me, though they’ll certainly pair well with fall’s more dramatic eyes and cheeks and be a nice reprieve from the darker, vampier lip trend we always see pop up in the season.
I like the Rouge Coco formula a lot–it feels incredibly lightweight on lips without being drying. They’re not the most moisturizing lipsticks, but they’ve never deprived my lips of their natural moisture, either. Each shade applied smoothly, evenly, and didn’t require a lot of product to get a good amount of color coverage. I also find these shades to be practical and wearable, but they’re not boring either.
Which of the new Rouge Cocos is your favorite?
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sneebliah
July 14, 2010 at 6:21 pm Edit #
For fall, Chanel Les Contrastes de Chanel Collection is all about sultry, smoky eyes. It’s dark, sophisticated, and drawn out in hues of gray, purple, and olive. Chanel describes Enigma as a quad of “shimmering peach, chocolate grey, violet grey, and deep plum.”
I found the description to be kind of close, but not quite: a shimmering petal pink with peach shimmer; olive-toned brown with flecks of silver; silver-shimmered gray with subtle mauve tones; and blackened plum with silver shimmer. The lightest shade is the petal pink, and it’s lovely as an all-over lid color or paired with any of the other three shades. I did find it a little too much for a highlighter on my skin tone, but I think those with cooler skin tones may find it works just right.
This is definitely all about the smoky eye–it’s hard to do anything but a smoky eye with these particular shades. I see several combinations itching to be tried, but I know they’ll all be on the smoky side–which seems to be exactly the direction Chanel was heading for fall, so it works. Whether you’re on the hunt for a smoky eye is another story! I think if this had a less shimmery shade (and perhaps more neutral toned) that could double as a lid color and highlighter, it would make an excellent travel palette.
As usual, the pigmentation was rich and dark, particularly when applied onto the eyes. Chanel shadows are ridiculously soft, silky, and smooth. They almost feel powdery, but it’s more the effect of having such an ultra soft texture. (Similarly, Stila is a brand that comes to mind with the same soft texture.) All the shades can be intensified a notch or two by using them wet, rather than dry, which is always a nice option to have.
It feels very fall to me, and when the temperature starts to drop down come September, I can see myself using this more often.
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sneebliah
July 14, 2010 at 6:22 pm Edit #
Out of Chanel’s ultra exclusive Noir et Or Collection, Ligne et Ombre de Chanel in Jet-Gold ($45.00) emerges. While not exactly groundbreaking in terms of color, it’s extremely fitting to the collection. It’s a matte black cake eyeliner paired with a golden peach flecked eyeshadow.
The black side is not meant to be used dry–it needs to be used wet so it can “activate.” I just gave the brush the tiniest bit of wetness, and I was already able to get a nice, intense black out of it. The gold, while it can be worn dry, also looks and wears better wet–and I like that with Chanel shadows, I can use them wet without leaving a wet spot behind. (Similarly, the gold would adhere and look more uniform used over a base rather than dry, since it is so shimmery.)
When used as an eyeliner, the black lasts for hours on me. I didn’t have any fading, smudging, or migration after eight hours of wear on my lower lash line (not my waterline, to be clear). If you really wanted, you could definitely use it with a brush to darken up the crease or any shadow you’re wearing, but it doesn’t excel at that (and again, it’s supposed to be used as an eyeliner).
It’s a fun product, but there’s nothing so standout about it that it’s necessarily worth hunting down and forking over $45 for. Chanel and luxury makeup collectors will likely enjoy it, but I think for others, it’s not going to knock your socks off–I’d say grab an eyeshadow duo, lipstick, or gloss instead (or even an eyeshadow quad, since this is just a little less than one!). I think if they made the gold a metallic cream finish, it could have gotten really interesting. It may not have been the most wearable, but it would have certainly played into the collection’s theme just a bit more.
