(image from Elizabeth Arden)
Known for his bridal wear, Alfred Sung was inspired to create Always by Grace Kelly’s biography and its depiction of her iconic wedding. The creation aims to capture the love, joy and passion of a beautiful wedding day as well as to radiate a timeless sophistication.
The fragrance was created in collaboration with perfumer Clement Gavarry, who is, along with Laurent Le Guernec, behind the popular and critically acclaimed Lovely by Sarah Jessica Parker.
Top notes: waterlily, kumquat, neroli
Middle notes: pink peony, honeysuckle petals, orris
Base notes: sandalwood, patchouli, ambrette seeds
The scent opens with a floral and citrusy effervescence, which feels light, fresh and bright. Then it takes on a warm, smooth and almost milky dimension, but the warmth is never overpowering and the scent manages to remain lilting and uplifting.
To me, this is a very pleasant floral scent with subtle and welcoming warmth and a touch of sweetness, and it successfully captures the imageries of a joyous and romantic wedding. Feminine, elegant and graceful, it is tactfully crafted to suit both daytime and nighttime as well as various seasons (which seems to somewhat echo the name of the fragrance). It is a very wearable scent but it is by no means generic.
Always Alfred Sung is available in 50ml and 100ml Eau de Parfum Sprays and a 7ml Eau de Parfum Rollerball. The range also includes a 200ml Luminous Body Lotion.
Related posts:
The Lovely Collection by Sarah Jessica Parker
(Twilight, one of the three scents in the collection, was also created by Clement Gavarry and Laurent Le Guernec.)
Bond No. 9 Astor Place
Sheer Stella 2009 by Stella McCartney
(image from Prescriptives)
Prescriptives‘ summer 2009 makeup collection, Exhilarating, is inspired by the brand’s Calyx fragrance. The colors are fresh and vibrant, and the ad image conveys a carefree and sensuous feel. Today I am reviewing the three new eyeshadows as well as one of the three new lip glosses from the collection.
(U-Pick Eye Colors in Teal, Calyx Green, and Lemondrop)
– U-Pick Eye Colors
Lemondrop (right) is a cream white with a pale champagne undertone and a softly metallic finish, Calyx Green (middle) is a predominantly matte vibrant warm yellow-green, and the softly metallic Teal goes on warmer than it looks in the pan with its yellow-green undertone.
Teal is among the most wearable teals that I have come across in terms of creating a soft daytime look. It works well with Lemondrop, which has a similar warm pale yellow undertone and the same soft metallic finish.
Calyx Green can be a strong accent color when the three shades are used together. It can look quite bold and funky for those with a fair complexion, while I think it can work even better and look really gorgeous for those with a dark complexion.
All the shades go on easily, layer well, and have a good staying power.
– Calyx Exhilarating Lip Gloss in Pink Grapefruit
Pink Grapefruit is one of the three lip gloss shades in the collection, along with Mango and Guava. It is a sheer warm pink-red with nicely sparse shimmery particles, which are mostly red and gold. (I personally prefer lip glosses with sparse shimmery particles to those with intense shimmer.)
It has a pleasantly light watery-gel and non-sticky texture. It goes on smoothly and imparts a wet glossy finish that lasts well. I like the juicy and translucent look that it creates.
It has a very light fruity scent that is not overpowering.
Prescriptives’ summer 2009 collection also includes four shades of Exhilarating Lip Color and Calyx Sheer Exhilarating fragrance (50ml). All items in the collection are limited editions.
Related posts on Prescriptives:
Spring 2008 Makeup Collection
Creamy Eye Color, Plush Blush & Magic Liquid Powder
Flawless Skin & AnyWear Foundations
(image from beauty.dior.com/fra)
(image/info from www.nikkei.co.jp)
Shiseido’s Maquillage will release its fall 2009 collection in Japan on July 21st. The lineup includes:
– Eyes Creator 3D: 5 new variations (2 limited editions, see information below)
– Eye Color N (Powder): 6 new shades
– Eye Color N (Cream): 3 new shades
– Perfect Gloss: 8 shades
– Moisture Rouge (Color-on type): 6 new shades
– Moisture Rouge (Sheer type): 6 new shades (limited editions)
– Face Creator 3D: 2 new variations
– Powder Touch Eyebrow: 3 shades
Maquillage’s fall 2008 collection featured collaborations with fashion designer Christopher Kane, This year, the fall collection will feature collaborations with Chinese-American fashion designer
Alexander Wang. The collaboration items include:
– Eyes Creator 3D: BR364, BR365 (limited editions, with cases designed by Wang)
– Perfect Gloss in OR264, PK445, RD536, and RS587
– Moisture Rouge (Sheer type): all 6 shades (limited edition)
Related posts on Maquillage:
Forming Shiny Eyes in 52
Clean Contrast Eyes 2 in SV844
Lasting Climax Rouge in RS310
(Scarlett Johansson, brand ambassador)
(images from www.dolcegabbanamakeup.com)
Some of you might already know about the new makeup line from Dolce & Gabbana. According to the line’s official website, it is currently only available in Milan’s la Rinascente Duomo, New York’s Saks Fifth Avenue, and London’s Selfridges. Last week, I stopped by the counter in Selfridges and spent some time playing with the colors.
As soon as I came across the first photos of the line some time ago, I was drawn to the luxurious gold cases. However, I wasn’t sure how they would come across in person. (Some gold packaging photographs well but looks much less opulent in person.) At the counter, it was nice to see that the packaging looked as good as it appeared on the website. Compared with YSL’s gold packaging, Dolce & Gabbana’s has no hard edges and conveys a more sensuous feel but it looks equally glamorous.
The launch lineup features essential makeup items, including eyeshadow palettes (quads and duos), mascara, eyeliner, lipsticks, lipliner, lip gloss, powder foundation, bronzer, and nail color.
I was impressed with the soft texture of the eyeshadows. Most colors are either moderately or well pigmented, and they glide (on the back of my hand) very easily. (I never use counter testers on my face.) At the moment, none of the duos or quads took my fancy, but I will definitely keep an eye on future releases.
(Smooth Eye Colour Quad in Stromboli)
Another item that left a fairly positive impression is Perfect Finish Powder Foundation. Available in 12 shades, it has a soft and smooth texture. It seems to impart a subtly luminous finish, and I think it will probably suit those with a drier skin type better. Shade-wise, I think Caramel and Cinnamon are relatively good yellow-toned shades for light-to-medium complexions.
Four of the five Luminous Cheek Color shades are on the warm side, with Provocative being the only cool shade. Hopefully there will be other cool or neutral-to-cool shades in the future.
Both Classic Cream Lipstick and Shine Lipstick have a rich and creamy texture. Shine Lipstick is slightly sheerer and glossier than Classic Cream Lipstick, which has a satiny and subtly glossy finish.
Price-wise (in the UK), Dolce & Gabbana Makeup is in the same category as other designer beauty brands such as Chanel, Dior and YSL. Here are the prices of some of the items:
Smooth Eye Colour Quad: £35
Smooth Eye Colour Duo: £22
Lipsticks (Classic Cream & Shine): £20
Perfect Finish Powder Foundation: £33
(Classic Cream Lipstick)
Overall, this is a promising makeup line and the standard of the current products appears to be good. Dolce & Gabbana obviously wanted the launch to be exclusive, but, with popular Hollywood actress Scarlett Johansson chosen to front the ad campaign and Pat McGrath (one of the world’s best-known makeup artists) sharing application tips on the line’s website, it seems that the line is aiming at a broader appeal. It would also be interesting to see if the line will try to enter the East Asian market, which is not the easiest market to crack due to its sheer competitiveness.
Related posts:
Makeup Review: Illamasqua
(also available in Selfridges)
Viktor & Rolf at Barbican Centre
Beauty City Guide: London
(image from www.joseishi.net/voce)
(images/info from www.nikkei.co.jp)
Chicca (owned by Kanebo) will release its fall 2009 collection in Japan on August 19th. The seasonal theme is “Secret Story”, and new items aim to create a balanced look for eyebrows, eyes, and cheeks to achieve a face-shaping effect.
The lineup includes:
– Enthralling Eyebrow Pencil W (1 shade)
– Enthralling Eyebrow Gel (1 shade)
– Enthralling Eyebrow Cake (eyebrow powder with two shades)
– Enthralling Powder Eyeshadow duos (5 new variation)
– Enthralling Soft Pencil Eyeliner (2 new shades)
– Flush Blush cream blusher (1 new shade)
– Enticing Lipstick (4 new shades)
– Enticing Lip Gloss (3 new shades)
– Perfect Readiness Tweezer
The Enthralling Eyebrow Pencil W features a round shaped tip and a naginata (Japanese halberd) shaped tip. The latter helps create softer edges for the eyebrow outline.
Related posts:
Chicca Summer 2009 Collection
Chicca Spring 2009 Collection
New Brand Profile – Kanebo Chicca
