Happy 2013!!! – Emerald: Panetone’s Color of the Year

Happy New Year Everyone!

I am super-excited that Panetone has announced for it’s color of the year…emerald!

Emerald: Panetone’s 2013 Color Of the Year!

As a brown-eyed girl with a cinnamon mocha latte complexion, I live for emerald green. It’s a color that looks so regal on its own or even used to create a unique and sultry smokey eye. Green is a color of the Sky-Earth-Grass trinity I consider to be as work-safe as it is versatile. Keep checking my blog for some upcoming looks to keep your makeup wardrobe on the bleeding edge of fashion. For sure Sephora will put a line of products out but in the meantime, here is a look from my emerald stash:

My tribute to Emerald being Panetone’s 2013 color of the year–> Wearing MAC eyeshadow in Bottle Green and Kelly Green (Pro) over Sephora’s Eye Shadow crayon in Green.[Cheeks] NARS Angelika blush.
[Lips] Urban Decay’s Lip Junkie lip gloss in ‘Naked’
[Mascara] L’ancome’s Hypnose Star

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Preview: Guerlain Fall 2012 Rouge G L’Extrait and Blush aux Joues

Yay! It’s Guerlain Fall 2012!

Guerlain is my favorite luxury cosmetics vendor and their Rouge G lipsticks have hooked me for life. While a new crop of Rouge G lipsticks are slated to debut for Fall 2012, the real stars of this collection are the new Rose Aux Joues blush duos and the Rouge G L’Extrait liquid-to-matte lipstick. For a quick rundown of all the items contained in the Guerlain Fall 2012 collection, please see my article up on TheStyleAndBeautyDoctor.com (yep, I’m contributing over there as well).

Guerlain’s new Blush Duos for Fall 2012 – my fave is Red Hot!

New for Fall 2012 are these gorgeous blush duos from Guerlain. Each shade is paired with a complimentary highlight shade comes with a slanted applicator blush for precision shading, and is packaged in Guerlain’s trademark brass mirrored compact. As with all Guerlain products it has that wonderful violet smell I’ve come to associate with this brand. The shade I purchased, Red Hot, is very complimentary on dark skin and looks like a pairing of NARS Sin with NARS Orgasm.

Slightly elongated applicator for Rouge G L’Extrait

Also new for Fall 2012 and what I have been eagerly awaiting ever since Chanel discontinued their Rouge Allure Lacque, is Guerlain’s Rouge G L’Extrait. This is the celebrated Rouge G in liquid lipstick form that dries down to a flexible matte finish that looks amazing and is beyond comfortable to wear. The packaging is elongated slightly but still carries a hefty weight. That is a small matter compared the color impact and the ability to precisely put this where you want it to go. I picked up M69 (Orgueil) which is a dark plum wine color that screams fall.

Guerlain Rouge G L’Extrait from left: (M69) Orgueil, (M25) Colere, (M27) Luxure, (M71) Gourmandise, (M06) Avarice

More Guerlain Rouge G L’Extrait swatches

Testers of Guerlain Rouge G L’Extrait at Neiman Marcus

Guerlain Fall 2012 Red Hot blush duo and Rouge G L’Extrait in Orgueil

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Preview: NARS Fall 2012

For those new to my blog, I have an almost obsessive-compulsion to do a happy dance when NARS releases a new collection. For those who have been reading my blog for quite some time, you’re probably wondering what’s taken me so danged long to post about the NARS Fall 2012 collection. For a quick rundown of all the items, please see my article up on TheStyleAndBeautyDoctor.com (yep, I’m contributing over there as well).

Clockwise from top: NARS Rouge Tribal Larger Than Life lipgloss, Outlaw blush, High Society Eye Shadow Trio

I purchased the items I was most interested in once when were available after me ~~stalking~~ appearing on the site. Rouge Tribal Larger Than Life Lipgloss, High Society eye shadow trip and Outlaw blush were purchased by me and are a most welcome addition to my Fall makeup wardrobe.

NARS Fall 2012 Swatches from bottom: Outlaw Blush, Rouge Tribal, High Society Eye Shadow Trio (w/ flash)

Rouge Tribal Larger Than Life Lipgloss

I was quite disappointed that for Fall 2012 Francois Nars did not include one of the lovely matte lip pencils I’ve become addicted to. However, the color of this lipgloss is so gorgeous, so flattering to deep skin tones that I couldn’t help but fall in love with Rouge Tribal. With a vampy burgundy tone with metallic shimmer, it shows up very easily on the lips though there will be some settling in lip lines. Personally I can’t wait to wear this lipgloss with Mekong and Night Star eye shadow singles.

NARS Rouge Tribal Larger Than Life Lipgloss for Fall 2012

High Society Eye Shadow Trio

Color me so pleased at this cool-toned trio of shades. NARS’ High Society eye shadow trio consists of three shades: a light frosty lavender, a matte midtone green (a bit lighter than NARS Fuji eye shadow single) and a deep violet purple shimmer shade. I picked up this trio mainly because as I own the Marie Galante eye shadow duo from the NARS Spring 2012 collection, the two should go together quite well.

NARS High Society Eye Shadow Trio for Fall 2012

Outlaw Blush

Color me devastated when I tried to find this color last fall and found out it had been discontinued! Thankfully NARS had pity on blush addicts like me and re-released this gorgeous rose gold shade. It is lighter than Taos with more of a cool undertone. Like with all NARS blushes the translucent pigments made the color easily buildable on dark skin and does not turn ashy.

NARS Outlaw Blush has returned for Fall 2012!

I plan to start testing these items for wear beginning this week and should have a review up within the next few weeks or so. What I can tell you is that while the eye shadow trio is nice, for me the stars of this release are the Rouge Tribal lipgloss and the Outlaw blush. Budget still crunched? NARS blushes are THE thing to have and considering they also make great eye shadow bases, go for it.

The Fall 2012 collection is now available at NARSCosmetics.com and should be appearing on Sephora.com, Nordstrom.com within the next few weeks.

NARS Fall 2012 — Are you feeling it?

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Preview: Chanel Summer 2012 Haul

I know I said I wasn’t going to pick anything up from this collection but when I saw the pieces in person, I just had to have the lipgloss and nail polish.

Chanel Summer 2012: Calypso Glossimer and Les Vernis in Delight

Glossimer in Calypso

In general I’m not a big fan of Chanel’s glossimers because while it is big on shine, most of them are bland in color.
Calypso (and also Jalousie if you can find it) is VERY pigmented which make it a must-have for me. Caylpso is a tangerine orange with shimmer and will give your lips a nice tropical kiss of peachy orange with or without lipiner.

Swatch of Chanel’s Calypso Glossimer–a beautiful Tangerine shimmer lipgloss (w/ flash)

Les Vernis in Delight

It reminds me of SpaRitual’s Laughing In Pink. A beautiful warm beachy color that reminds me of the sun reflecting off of the hot sand on Miami Beach. Gorgeous next to tanned, deep and especially dark skintones. While it is paque in one coat, I can’t speak to the longevity of the wear until I’ve worn it for more than 1 day. The finish is slightly gritty but I like how it reminds me of beach sand.

Chanel Summer 2012 Nail Vernis in Delight–shimmering sand for your nail

Retailing for $29.50 and $26 respectively, the Calypso Glossimer and the Les Vernis in Delight are limited edition products.

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Birchbox of the Month: March 2012

Have you heard of Birchbox? If not, go get yourself acquainted with it here.

If you have (and don’t feel like going to the site just yet) check out my unboxing of this month’s Birchbox filled with beauty booty for a monthly fee of $10. Last month I got my first box and while it wasn’t all that exciting, it wasn’t dissapointing and for $10 you can’t beat it with a stick. Then again, you could but why would you?

Special delivery from Birchbox for March 2012!!

For March I opted to get the Teen Vogue Birchbox which contained items hand-picked by the Teen Vogue staff. Granted I’m no longer a teenager but I love hip products so I went for it. Please note this wasn’t my ‘regular’ box but Birchbox sent me a ‘do you want this’ email and I gladly accepted. So let’s get to the goodies that arrived this month!

From left: Kate Spade's 'Twirl', Tarte lip tint in 'Lucky', Keratase hair oil serum, Essie Luxeffects nail polish, Twistband snag-proof hair tie.

‘Twirl‘ fragrance by Kate Spade

Classified as a fruity-floral, I received a standard ‘sample size’ atomizer on a card. This smelled absolutely delightful when sprayed but my body chemistry immediately turned it into sewage. Very disappointing as I love the complexity and sophistication of this fragrance. This is definitely not a personal favorite for me but I wouldn’t hesitate to give it as an upscale fragrance gift.

Tarte Cosmetics Lipsurgence Lip Tint in ‘Lucky’

For me this was the star of this month’s Birchbox. I’ve heard a lot about Tarte Cosmetics and while I’m in total love with their blush, I haven’t tried their lip tint before. Lucky is a light pink with brown and if overdone can look chalky on dark skin (use a light hand). Even so, this is a very pretty spring pink universal shade that should flatter cool as well as warm undertones. I’m personally very happy with how the color looks on my NW43 skin and look forward to trying more of these from Tarte.

Keratase Hair Beautifying Oil

I’ve never personally used Keratase products but I have heard of their excellent reputation for hair care. A small sample of ‘beautifying oil’ included in the box is going straight into my carry on for my upcoming trip. As a woman of color with textured hair, hair oil is always a welcome thing.

Essie Luxeffects Nail Polish

Regular readers of my blog know I’ve previously reviewed my pics from the Essie Luxeffects line. While fate saw fit to send me something I already own, I was very glad t see the silver glitter Set in Stones in my box.

Twistband Hair Tie

How handy is this little sweet thing? I’d never heard of this brand until it arrived in this months’ box. BIlled as a snag-free elastic tie that is gentle to hair, I received a pretty spring blue hair tie that will also go in my trip carry on. I’m always looking for great hair ties to keep my hair in place during sweaty workouts but won’t damage my hair when taking them out. I can definitely see myself ordering a few of these in the future.

Handy 'rundown' card of all Birchbox items and purchase information

Overall I am extremely pleased with this month’s Birchbox delivery. If you haven’t tried the service yet, it is a great way to try a variety of beauty products each month without paying a lot of money. For those of you who have tried the service, how do you like it so far? Have you tried it and decided it wasn’t for you?

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