Tag Archives: blush

Dior Summer 2013 Birds of Paradise Collection Nude Tan Paradise Duo in Pink Glow

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Dior Bird of Paradise Nude Tan Paradise Duo Pink Glow (1) It was a disappointment to know that only one of the two Nude Tan Paradise Duos from Dior’s Bird of Paradise Summer Collection is available here in Hong Kong. I had my eyes set on 02 Coral Glow at first, but this left me with no choice. Nonetheless 01 Pink Glow is still a beautiful blush/bronzer duo.

Dior Bird of Paradise Nude Tan Paradise Duo Pink Glow PackagingAlong with the blush/bronzer duo is a small kabuki brush. It’s rather small but useful and the size is good enough to be used with the duo. The weighty compact is just gorgeous with quilted patten embossed on the lid.
Dior Bird of Paradise Nude Tan Paradise Duo Pink Glow BrushThe product is split into half, one as the bronzer, and the other as the blush. Even though there are two colors for each of the section, I find that each color is actually too small to be used individually, even with the included mini kabuki brush.
Dior Bird of Paradise Nude Tan Paradise Duo Pink Glow CloseupThe left side of the pan which is the bronzer is a light bronzy brown, and the right side which is the blush is a cool tone bright pink. By swirling the colors together you’ll get more of a blushed effect.Dior Bird of Paradise Nude Tan Paradise Duo Pink Glow Swatch From left to right: Bronzer, Blush and mixture of both.

The powders are smooth and silky, so they blend into the skin quite effortlessly. Even though there is a slight sheen on the blush from the pan, it’s not visible at all on the face. It just warms up the face nicely with a healthy look without the powdery look.

The duo stayed on my face nicely for more than at least 8 hours so for those with combination/oily skin like me won’t have to worry about wearing this in the summer (especially in humid places like Hong Kong). I enjoy Pink Glow a lot, but that only makes me want to try 02 Coral Glow even more!

This Nude Tan Paradise Duo in 01 Pink Glow is available at all Dior counters in Hong Kong at HKD 490 apiece.

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YSL Spring 2013 Arty Stone Creme de Blush #7 Rose Quartz

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IMG_9462Now here comes one of my two favorite products from YSL’s Spring 2013 Arty Stone Collection.

As some of you may have already known, I have combination/oily skin, so I tend to stay away from cream-texture products like foundations, shadows and blushes. But I’ve always liked the idea of cream blushes since I can easily reapply blush during the day without needing a brush.

That’s why I wanted to try the YSL Creme de Blush. YSL released 3 shades in their spring collection, and the one I picked up is #7 Rose Quartz, which is a bright pink. This is the pinkest blush I own and I love how it just brightens up my face in an instant!

IMG_9466 IMG_9468 Even though it is called a cream blush, which would remind me of something with a heavier texture, this blush actually is extremely lightweight  like a mousse. This helps to make the product easy to apply and blend. You can apply with your fingers or a blush brush with complete ease. It has a powdery finish, and can be applied before or after powder. And the color payoff is excellent, just a little product goes a long way.IMG_9661The best thing about this Creme de Blush is how amazingly long wearing it is. I have had this on a few times for over 12 hours of wear, and even on my oily skin it only faded ever so slightly.

And you really only need so little product at a time, it would take you a very very long time to finish this product, so even though the price tag is high, I still highly recommend this since it’s a wonderful blush with a beautiful color and has an outstanding performance on oily skin.

 

Chanel Eclat du Soir Holiday 2012 Star Dust Joues Contraste Powder Blush

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For this holiday season, the only blush I got is the Star Dust Joues Contraste Powder Blush from Chanel’s Eclat du Soir Holiday Collection. It is definitely one of the prettiest blushes I’ve seen in a long time. The micro glitters just make the blush sparkle, and I think the name Star Dust is the perfect name for this blush.IMG_7147 IMG_7149

Star Dust is a soft pink with loads of multi-colored glitters. I was really intimidated by the glitters at first. It’s a lot more sparkly in real person than in the photos. I have combination/oily skin so I try to stay away from anything shimmery or glittery on my face. But I decided to give this blush a try. I have never tried anything this glittery on my cheeks before, and this blush is simply too stunning.IMG_7556

 

Despite all the glitters, on the face the glitters are subtle, and they do not emphasize my pores. This finely-milled blush acts both as a blush and a highlighter, especially for someone with fairer skin. It lasted about eight hours on me.

The only complaint I have for this blush is the strong scent. I don’t like putting on any strongly-scented products on my face. I cannot be 100% sure, but the first time I used this blush, I had red itchy spots on my face which luckily eventually went away after a while. I didn’t have any problem using this blush since then, so I am not sure if the allergic reaction is due to the fragrance from this strong-scented blush. But for those who are allergic to fragrance may want to avoid this blush.

Nonetheless I still love this blush, and I think this is a beautiful blush to use this holiday season. You can never have enough sparkle for the Holidays!

 

YSL Fall 2012 Contemporary Amazon Highlighting Powder Palette Couture

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I’ve had this Highlighting Powder Palette Couture from YSL’s Fall 2012 Contemporary Amazon Collection for almost a month now, and I’ve been using this alternatively with Guerlain’s Rose aux Joues Peach Boy (reviewed here) and Armani’s Face and Eye Palette (reviewed here). I love them all and whichever I wear depends on the occasion and my moon since they are quite different.

This product is absolutely gorgeous with an exotic snake-skin pattern engraved on the signature gold YSL compact, and within is the embossed powder with a similar print.

Even though it’s named as a highlighting powder, I find this rather misleading since the product actually consists of 3 rosy peach, brown and rather matte blusher shades. I don’t see how it is a highlighting powder, it will give you a very subtle glow, but it’s more like a bronzer kind of glow. So I have been using this as a blush bronzer and I find this most effective.

It’s soft and blends very well and beautifully on the skin. It’s not powdery at all and certainly not chalky. Unlike the Armani Face and Eye Palette, I can easily pick up enough product with just a normal blush brush for a soft finish. You can apply with a heavy hand and you’ll get a much stronger result. It’s quite long wearing as well, I only see minor fading after 6 hours of wear.

I really like this Palette Couture and I’m glad that it’s not a highlighting powder. I don’t think I’ll like it as much, probably because I’m more of blusher kind of girl.

This is limited edition, and you can find this at any YSL counters all over Hong Kong such as in Lane Crawford. Or if you have the time, do visit the world’s first YSL Beauty Boutique at Pacific Place!

Giorgio Armani Fall 2012 Easy Chic Collection Face & Eye Palette in Neo Black

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Giorgio Armani’s Fall 2012 Easy Chic Collection is small with just 2 Face and Eye Palettes, 2 Eye pencils and 3 lipsticks, some may prefer a big collection, but I do appreciate how small this collection is. Quality over quantity right? I didn’t get the lipsticks but I have here today the Face and Eye Palette in Neo Black to show all of you!

The palette has two tiers of product, the top is a face powder and the second is a trio of eyeshadows.

 

Armani called this a feather light face powder. It’s sheer brown-beige powder for the face, and I was a bit worried that it’s too light as a blush and too dark as a setting powder on me. But actually it serves as a great soft blush. I used my NARS Yachiyo Kabuki Brush to apply, and even without applying heavily, I get a natural soft blush glow. When I used other blush brushes, I had to apply heavily to get the same effect.

I actually quite like the softness of this blush, it’s great when you want a modern subtle look, and it pairs brilliantly with the eyeshadows, especially when you wear a dramatic eye look.

Which takes me to the second tier of product where the trio of eyeshadows are. I used to have not-so-good experience with Armani’s powder eyeshadows, but Armani reformulated the eyeshadows and they are just excellent.

The first color is a light shimmery beige color, the second is a grayish taupe with subtle golden shimmers, and the last color is a matte black. These eyeshadows are so silky smooth and they are so easy to blend. I have oily lids and with a primer it will crease but only after 12 hours of wear, which is quite impressive.

The only thing I have to complain about the eyeshadows is the matte black. It is amazingly smooth during application but I did experience minor fall outs during the day which is a disappointment. I may have to find a much stronger primer for the shadow to adhere better.

Otherwise, I have nothing bad to say about this palette. The quality is amazing, and I love how you can get a subtle day look and dramatic night look with just one single palette, and matching these eye looks with the soft blush just makes it modern and chic. No wonder this collection is called Easy Chic Collection. I have fallen back in love with Giorgio Armani products, and I can’t wait for to try their new Maestro Foundation and the range of reformulated eyeshadow palettes!

Guerlain Fall 2012 Rose aux Joues Blush Duo in 01 Peach Boy

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Besides the Rouge G L’extrait (reviewed here), the Rose aux Joues Blush Duo is another brand new product introduced in the Fall 2012 Collection. I have a lot of blushes already, but these blushes look so gorgeous! I caved and purchased Peach Boy.

This blush duo of course offers a pair of colors, and you can use them separately or together, giving you more option in just one single palette!

The top shade is a coral peach that has an almost matte finish, slightly satin. It’s very pigmented and the powder is so finely milled. You get a lot of color just by applying it lightly.

The bottom shade is a shimmery rosy peach color, that can also serve as a highlighting shade. The highlighting effect is there but subtle, and I definitely like it this way.

Well, they’re not exactly unique shades, but they’re definitely pretty enough, especially when they’re such high quality! These are long wearing as they only fade slightly over 12 hours of wear.

I will probably go back and check out the other shades again, this blush duo is really just amazing!

Soleil Tan de Chanel Summer 2012 Luminous Bronzing Powder 917 Sable Rose

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I was never a big fan of bronzers, I own one or two, but I don’t find myself reaching for them often. But I recently tried the Guerlain by Emilio Pucci Blush Bronzer (review coming soon!), and I love it. I love how I can use it as a blush and of course also as a bronzer. This Soleil Tan de Chanel Luminous Bronzing Powder in Sable Rose from the Summer 2012 Collection is absolutely beautiful, and just like the Blush Bronzer, works as a blush and also a bronzer.

Beautiful packaging right? Instead of the silver logo, for the bronzers Chanel made it gold.

Just like the Guerlain’s Blush Bronzer, it consists of several colors instead of just one single color. In Chanel’s Sable Rose, you get 7 stripes of colors.

The second and fifth shade from the top looks pretty identical to me, but it doesn’t really matter because it’s so versatile and the quality is great. You can use the top half for a bronzing effect, and the bottom half for a blushing effect. Or, of course, you can do a single swipe of all the colors for a rosy-brown color.

The powder is very finely-milled and soft, it feels like a very moisturizing formula which I love so much. I have been using it every other day alternating with Guerlain’s Blush Bronzer.

The other bronzer Sable Beige that Chanel has in the collection is definitely lighter shade, I doubt it can be used as a blush as well, but I’m interested in giving it another look next time I see it. I definitely wouldn’t mind a light bronzer since my other bronzers are all on the darker side.

M.A.C. Tres Cheek Blush Collection: Modern Mandarin & Immortal Flower

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Having only a handful of MAC products, it’s not hard to guess that I’m not a big fan of MAC.  I can’t really pinpoint the reason why I’m not that fond of MAC but the fact that there are always new (and huge) collections coming out so often is definitely overwhelming enough to make me want to stay away from it.

Perhaps this is one of the reasons why I appreciate the Tres Cheek Blush Collection. There are only 6 products, and they’re all just blushes with gorgeous colors.

For me personally, I was more drawn to the orange shades, and so I got Modern Mandarin and Immortal Flower.

As many of you know, the hottest color this season is tangerine tango. And this color matches perfectly. It’s highly pigmented, so if you’re not careful enough and put on too much (very easy to make this mistake…), it will look simply too heavy. I suggest a light hand when applying this, you’ll find good color payoff, and probably won’t have to layer at all for color build-up.

Immortal Flower is a very unique color, as I’ve never seen a blush this light. It’s a light peachy-coral, and perfect for a natural look. Even though it’s pretty pigmented, unlike Modern Mandarin, you may find the need for a few more layers to get the desired look. I fin

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.