Category Archives: Spring 2012

Laura Mercier Spring 2012 Tres Chic Collection Nail Polishes

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I knew I had to check out the Laura Mercier Tres Chic Nail Polishes when I saw the pictures on the internet. Ever since then whenever I walk past a Lane Crawford, I just had to go in and check if the collection has arrived.

After waiting for more than half a month, they finally arrived! I was particularly interested in the Cabana shade beforehand, but after seeing the whole set in person, I knew I had to take a closer look at the other shades. And after swatching them, I find myself reaching for the wallet straight away at HKD160 apiece, and rushing home to play with them! Yes, they’re so beautiful that I bought the whole set!

From left to right: Luscious, Flamingo, Cabana, Oh La La, Sizzle

Luscious is the deepest shade in the collection, a deep but bright fuchsia purple.

Flamingo is a vivid hot pink.

Cabana is a soft coral peach.

Oh La La is the lightest and sheerest shade, a pale baby pink.

And Sizzle is a warm hot coral-red.




Beautiful, right?

The polish goes on smoothly with the wide brush provided. I had such an easy time painting my nails with it, and even though I don’t have a steady hand, no cleaning-up necessary!

Usually high quality polishes only require 2 even coats for an opaque finish, but I do need 3 coats for the shades Flamingo, Cabana and especially Oh La La. Oh La La is the sheerest and lightest shade, so since I wanted an opaque finish, it makes sense that I would need 3 coats. As for Flamingo and Cabana, they may look a little bit streaky without the third coat.

From thumb to pinkie: Sizzle, Oh La La, Cabana, Flamingo and Luscious.

The only thing that bothers me is the cap. The brush is attached to this large square cap, which makes it awkward to handle. I had to turn the cap almost every time just to get a better angle for the brush to work its magic. The Chanel polishes have a slightly smaller square cap, but you can remove the cap and find a smaller round top for a much easier handle for the brush.

For these beautiful colors and the lovely jelly finish, I don’t mind the inconvenience from the cap. I just love these so so much, and I’m so happy that I got them before they’re all sold out since they are limited edition!

You can buy these polishes from Laura Mercier at USD 18 apiece.

GET THEM BEFORE THEY’RE ALL GONE!

YSL Spring 2012 La Laque Manucure Couture Duo

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YSL Spring 2012 La Laque Manucure Couture Duo - Mint Green

Today I’ll be reviewing the mint green polish from one of the YSL Spring 2012 limited edition La Laque Manucure Couture Duo Set.

For their 2012 Spring Collection, YSL released 2 sets of La Laque Manucure Couture Duos. They are both limited editions, and unfortunately sold out on their YSL website!

Below are the photos of the sets from their website:


I purchased the set with the brown and mint green polishes only, and the reason why I chose to skip the other set is because they look similar to the Chanel Spring Polishes May and June which I already own.

And I’m glad I did.

Don’t get me wrong, the colors are very beautiful, especially the mint green which I’m reviewing. It’s just the brush that makes the whole painting process a hassle.

As you can see, they provide an angled brush for application, and I am guessing the reason for that would be to enable users to easily paint themselves french tips. (Since on the inside of the package, it shows you pictured instructions on painting french tips with the brush.) I’m certainly not used to this angled brush, so I find the painting process a very hard time.

The texture of the polish does not help as well. Compared to polishes from Deborah Lippmann or Chanel, it has a rather thick texture. Although it is opaque enough with just one coat, if you’re not so skilled with the angled brush, you’ll find the need to put on an extra coat just to smooth over the patchy finish. And then a good top coat just to make sure everything stays put and give it a much more polished look. Speaking of a good top coat, I highly recommend Sech Vite Dry Fast Top Coat. If you’re like me who’s new to YSL polishes, you will need this.

Once again I may only be experiencing this because I’m very new to this brush.

The shimmer shown from the bottle does not show on your nails after application, so don’t be fooled by just looking at the bottle!

So after struggling with the application, and messing up quite a lot on my right hand… Here’s the finished look (of my left hand)! The color looks absolutely beautiful, just expect to do some cleaning up afterwards!

I’ll definitely purchase more YSL polishes, but that would only depend on the colors. If they are something I can find dupes for, like the Chanel May and June ones, I’ll definitely skip the YSL ones. But who knows, maybe with a bit more practice, I may get the hang of it, and find no problem using the brush, and start loving these polishes!

Giorgio Armani Spring 2012 Luce Collection Luce d’Oro Eye Palette #2

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Giorgio Armani Spring 2012 Luce Collection Luce d'Oro Eye Palette #2

Giorgio Armani Spring 2012 Luce Collection Eye Palette #2

This is the eye palette in #2 from Giorgio Armani’s Spring 2012 Luce Collection. As mentioned in the previous Giorgio Armani Review post, I haven’t been excited about their collection releases, and when I finally saw the Spring 2012 products in stores, I wasn’t completely wow-ed by them. The reason behind this is rather simple, it’s the colors. Once again, they are lovely but not unique.

Giorgio Armani Spring 2012 Luce Collection Luce d'Oro Eye Palette #2

I did a few swatches of this Luce d’Oro Eye Palette, and even though I don’t love the colors, I do love the texture. It’s so soft that it’s almost like butter. Highly pigmented and with a hint of shimmer. All the colors perform consistently, and although I did not love the colors, I went back another day and got it.

From left to right: Grey, Metal Fiber, Copper Pigment and Crystal Brown.

They look nice and feel perfect when swatched on the back of my hand. But when applied to my eyes? Not so much. Colors especially the lighter ones comes out too sheer. Though the shimmery part of it will act as a good highlighter.

And the so-called “Grey” color which is the one at the very top of the palette, is not grey at all, it has a lot of yellow in it that I consider it as more of a pastel gold. The other colors are named: Metal Fiber (cool silver), Copper Pigment (Golden copper) and Crystal Brown (golden brown).

I would recommend using a primer to apply these shadows for your eye look. And although personally they are not the colors that I would normally wear, I am glad that I have this palette, as I do appreciate the colors Crystal Brown and Copper Pigment. They can create a much softer bronze look for me, as I usually think I look ridiculous with bronze eyeshadows. It would be perfect for a day look, and since the texture is so soft and buttery, they are easily blendable, and thus you’ll have a neat and tidy makeup look for the whole day. So if you want a palette of eyeshadows that would just give you a hint of color, and would appreciate easily blendable shadows for convenient uses, this is for you!

You can purchase this palette at Giorgio Armani Beauty website at USD 59.

Giorgio Armani Spring 2012 Luce Collection – Tourmaline Pink Blush

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Giorgio Armani Spring 2012 Collection Haul


Hi all!

So this would be my first review ever! yay!

Giorgio Armani used to be my favorite makeup brand, but their recent collections failed to impress me. In fact, I haven’t purchased any of their collection items since their Spring Collection 2011. (I still am a fan of their mascaras and foundations though).

There really is only one reason why I didn’t purchase anything from their recent collections, and that’s their colors. Don’t get me wrong, the colors are lovely, but they’re not strikingly beautiful or unique that scream “WOW”. But they definitely are not colors that I would normally wear back then, I am more of a girl who liked to play safe on my face in terms of color (probably because of my wardrobe. I would probably give them a go now since I want to try something new.)

Looking at the Spring collection 2012, once again I don’t find the colors strikingly beautiful. In fact, I feel like the eye palettes are more or less the same as the Holiday collection 2011. (I don’t own the eye palette from this collection, so I can’t do a direct comparison, I made this comment based on my memory. But more on the eye palette on my next post.)

I wanted a pink blush, and when I saw the blush from this Spring collection, I was a bit skeptical, as it looks too shimmery for my taste. Undoubtedly it is a very lovely color with white and pink shimmer particles (that almost looks at purple), but I have oily skin and I was afraid that the shimmer would bring simply too much shine on my already shiny face. But looking at the sales associate who was wearing this blush, I did not find the blush too shimmery, and Armani blushes have always been of good quality, so I decided to give it a shot.

And I’m glad I did. It is a very sheer blush, and although when swatched, would look too shimmery, the soft shimmer particles don’t accent my oily skin at all. In fact it gives a natural, soft glow to my face, and you won’t relate that to my “natural” shine. Even in bright daylight, the shimmer is subtle. However, I must say that I applied it lightly, and even with a heavier application, the color is still very subtle and soft but more sparkly.

I have been using this blush ever since the purchase because of its natural finish, and I LOVE IT!

You can purchase this or any other items from the Luce collection online at Giorgio Armani Beauty.