A Touch of Blusher — Makeup, Skincare, Fragrance and a Bit of Fashion

Anna Sui Website Update

by PJ on Thursday, August 14, 2008

in -Anna Sui, 2008 Fall, all about Japanese cosmetics, makeup

(image from www.annasui-cosmetics.com)

Anna Sui’s website has been updated with information on the fall 2008 collection. The collection features the display-worthy Makeup Color Collection D, which marks the 10th anniversary of Anna Sui Cosmetics.

This set is officially out in Japan on August 21st. If you are considering buying this, do check the website for the photos. If, like me, you’ve decided not to splash out (it costs 18,900 JPY), you can still enjoy how Anna Sui presents their lovely products.

The website now also has new downloadable goodies, such as desktops and blogparts, for a limited period of time only. I have placed an Anna Sui clock at the end of the sidebar just for fun, probably for limited time as well…

If only I could have a life-size photo of this set as my computer desktop…that’s all I ask for…

Also, if you are an Anna Sui fan, do check out Citrine’s Blog and her beautiful collection of Anna Sui items.

Loving Japanese Brands – Anna Sui

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Fall 2008 Makeup Trend Report

by PJ on Wednesday, August 13, 2008

in -AQ, -Chanel, -Cosme Decorte, -Dior, -Est, -Kanebo, -Kao, -Kosé, -Lancôme, -Laura Mercier, -Lavshuca, -Lunasol, -Magie Deco, -Maquillage, -Shiseido, -SHISEIDO (Global Brand), -Shiseido The Makeup, -SUQQU, 2008 Fall, all about Japanese cosmetics, seasonal makeup trend reports

(image from www.chanel.com)

If there is one word that sums up the makeup trends for fall 2008, it is “warmth”. We had grey from fall 2007 and cool lilac and blue from spring 2008, and now we are greeted by opulent gold and red.

Fields of Gold

Chanel leads the pack with a collection with gold in the eye palette, lip gloss, face highlighter, and nail color. It is a decadent shade of gold, although it can be too warm for some complexions. If this is the case with you, items from Lavshuca (Grade Color Select in GD-1) and Shiseido The Makeup (Lip Gloss in G29 Mellow Gold) might suit you better.

(Lavshuca Grade Color Select in GD-1 (among swatches))
(image from www.kanebo-cosmetics.jp/lavshuca)

(Shiseido The Makeup Lip Gloss in G29 Mellow Gold)
(image from www.shiseido.co.jp/themakeup)

Gold is also seen in Vernis Crème de Nacres, two nail products in Lancôme‘s fall 2008 collection that are applied with a special applicator. (I am not entirely certain whether they are sold in North America, but they are already available in the UK.)

(Lancôme Vernis Crème de Nacres)
(image from www.lancome.jp)

Shades of Red

If you are fans of purples, there are still some nice shades from Givenchy, Clarins, Awake and Sonia Rykiel as these beautiful hues continue the trend in spring 2008. But many purples are taking on a much warmer tone for fall 2008 and turning into plum purples. We are also seeing shades of burgundy and red, which, just like gold, are the key shades for this fall.

For plum and burgundy, which still somewhat echo the spring trend, look into the palettes from Laura Mercier, EST, and Magie Deco:

(Laura Mercier Eye Color Trio in Mauve Sunset)
(image from www.lauramercier.com)

(EST Emotional Aura Eyes in 07)
(image from www.kao.co.jp/est)

(Magie Deco Shadow Brilliance in 021 Bordeaux Shadow)
(image from www.cosmedecorte.com/magiedeco)

Apart from gold, Chanel‘s fall 2008 collection also features delicious plums in Rouge Hydrabase in Fantastic Plum and Nail Colour in Fantastic.

While warmer reds are seen in major Japanese brands (like Lunasol and SUQQU below), Dior, always a trendsetter, features a muted warm red in 5-Colour Eyeshadow in #673 Earth Tones:

(image from www.kanebo-cosmetics.jp/lunasol)

(image from www.suqqu.com/japan.html)

(Dior 5-Color Eyeshadow in 673 Earth Tones)
(image from www.sephora.com)

Mix & Match

If you love experimenting with makeup trends, why not try wearing gold and warm purples/reds to sport both trends at the same time?

(Magie Deco Pure Color in GD076 and RD470)
(image from www.cosmedecorte.com/magiedeco)

(Cosme Decorte AQ Shadow Supreme in 015)
(image from www.cosmedecorte.com/aq)

(Maquillage Forming Shiny Eyes in 54)
(image from www.shiseido.co.jp/mq)

If reds around the eyes don’t suit you, try gold with deep cool violets. It is a beautiful and modern way to wear violets. I am thinking about trying the items below:

(Maquillage Forming Shiny Eyes in 52)
(image from www.shiseido.co.jp/mq)

(Lavshuca Dual Prism Eyes in PU-1 (among the swatches))
(image from www.kanebo-cosmetics.jp/lavshuca)

Last but not least, the two makeup looks for fall/holiday 2008 from Shiseido The Makeup epitomise the key trends for the coming seasons:

(Eyeshadow Quad Shimmer in Q11 (left) and Q12 (right))
(image from www.shiseido.co.jp/themakeup)

This season, I think I will be trying slightly deeper purples (than the ones I have been wearing) as well as platinum golds (not bronze golds). What about you? What shades are tempting you?

Related posts (more red, plum, and lilac):

Coffret D’Or Trance Deep Eyes in Grey Variation
(with a cool medium lilac)

NARS Fall 2008 Collection

ck Calvin Klein Fall 2008 Collection

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Beauty Duty for August 12, 2008

by PJ on Tuesday, August 12, 2008

in Weekly Beauty Duty

Enjoy!

All About the Pretty will have a pretty fall in the kitchen with Giada and Ina.

Beautiful Makeup Search wonders if the mascara madness will ever end.

Makeup Moxie reviews the new Powderflage concealer by Benefit.

Product Girl gets to know Poppy King’s Lipstick Queen line.

WE LOVE BEAUTY.com wants you to VOTE for Look of the Month JULY!

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The First Taste of Fall 2008 (with a Twist)

by PJ on Monday, August 11, 2008

in -Kesalan Patharan, -YSL, 2008 Fall, all about Japanese cosmetics

(YSL Ombres 5 Lumières)
(image from www.ysl.com)

I had a chance to do a quick dash around the shops a few days ago, and I saw the new palettes from YSL that I had been really looking forward to.

Lilac Sky (seen above) was what I was mainly waiting to see. I really wanted to love it, but unfortunately I didn’t.

The palette contains an off-white, a light lilac, a warm orchid purple, a cool medium-to-dark lilac, and a deep violet. (The latter two are matte.) The deciding factor for me was the medium-to-dark lilac. I swatched it on the back of my hand, and it was too dark and too greyish for me. The orchid shade was essentially matte but had sparse bronze-gold flecks, which somehow looked awkward against the bright orchid.

The softly shimmery light lilac is the only shade I like, but it is similar to the lilac in Coffret D’Or 3D Lighting Eyes’ Purple Variation and the Purple Variation lilac has a more pleasing and dimensional finish.

It is such a shame. It really is a stunning palette to behold, but most of the shades won’t suit me. I won’t be paying £35 for this.

Then, walking in the streets of London and on my way to meet up with a friend, I was flipping through the attached booklet (featuring fall 2008 makeup items, brand by brand) from the September issue of Biteki that I had picked up earlier in the day. After nearly walking into a lamppost (walking and obsessive makeup reading do *not* go hand in hand), I saw something that instantly put my lilac disappointment behind.

(image from www.kesalanpatharan.co.jp)

(Eye Color Palette in S007)
(image from www.kesalanpatharan.co.jp)

Kesalan Patharan‘s fall 2008 collection, titled Melty Color Magic, will be launched in Japan on August 22nd. The collection features three limited-edition Eye Color Palettes. All three look beautiful and wearable, but I think you know which is the one I was immediately drawn to. The website describes it as “plum, aqua blue, and purple”; I describe it as perfection. The lilac reminds me of the one in Lunasol’s Sheer Contrast Eyes in Lavender Coral, which has been my ultimate lilac and the standard against which all lilacs are judged.

On the previous photo from Cosme.Net, it wasn’t easy to make out the actual colors of this palette. After seeing the photos in Biteki (and on the website later), this palette is now on top of my fall 2008 makeup shopping list…

YSL Fall 2008 Makeup Collection

Keep It Gold – YSL

A Splash of Color – More Lilting Lilac

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Splendid Weekend Reads for August 10, 2008

by PJ on Sunday, August 10, 2008

in Weekend Splendid Read

From the Splendicity community, comes this week best in beauty, fashion and shopping.

BEAUTY

Beautiful Makeup Search wonders if the mascara madness will ever end.

Aging Fabulous explores the possibilities of Botox.

The Fragrance Fanatic introduces us to the Twice As Clean gift set.

The Scented Life is helping you choose perfumes by the horoscope.

Beauty Banter reveals the Battle of the Body Lotions… See which lotion won!

Teen Style Lounge has tried the brand-new Cover Girl WetSlicks AmazeMint lip glosses and has fallen in love…have you?

Beauty Blogging Junkie is participating in synchronized beauty blogging with Spoiled Pretty to bring you Put on your Game Face: Summer 2008 Beauty Olympics!

Steeping Beauty lures you to bed with products that induce beauty sleep.

15 Minute Beauty Fanatic check’s out Tarte’s Eye Couture Palette for Fall!

SHOPPING

eye4style is giving away a gorgeous Tracy Matthews cuff bracelet. Click here to enter!

FASHION

The Well-Heeled Society launches Penny-wise, Poshly Frugal, their sister site of economically-stylish home decor.

STYLEnosh adds a youthful edge to a grown up wardrobe.

Snarkstress wonders if she’s the only one taking issue with Katie Holmes wearing leggings, or what!?!

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Weekend Beauty Reads for August 10, 2008

by PJ on Saturday, August 9, 2008

in Weekend Beauty Read

From The Beauty Blog Network:

Lilan from The Daily Cookie shows you how to use the TRIA At-Home Laser Hair Removal System and get rid of pesky hairs with an easy video tutorial!

Beauty Anonymous reviews Flower By Kenzo Summer Fragrance 2008!

The Makeup Divas reviews Mac’s Mineralize Skin Finish.

Got wimpy lashes? Head over to Beauty Junkie in SF to enter to win a Marini Lash Eyelash Conditioner and grow those babies into full, voluminous lashes!

Want perfect brows? Roselyn from Makeup Makes Me Happy is RAVING about the latest goodies from Anastasia Beverly Hills. Check out this fun video she has put together of all her favorite must-haves!

Beauty Banter reviews the amazing Thi Cosmetics color line from makeup artist Taylor Pham. If simple, basic and elegant is what you want, this is the makeup for YOU!

Makeup Moxie reviews the new Benefit Powderflage.

Want to know how to get Alicia Keys’s hairdo? StyleBell uncovers how to get the Alicia Keys’s hairstyle in a few simple steps!

Hands free hair drying? Cybelesays found a cool gadget that lets you use both hands to style your hair while blow drying.

Product Girl plays with Josie Maran’s line and takes a look at her Finger Paints.

Beauty Blogging Junkie is giving away ten bottles of Redken Full Frame 07 Protective Volumizing Mousse! Enter here to win.

Beauty411 shares her new secret weapon to phenomenal fluttering lashes!

The Beauty Bug video chats with the ladies of Lancome and they demonstrate how to use their new vibrating Ôscillation Mascara!

Want angelina jolie’s beautiful eye makeup? makeup loves me shows you how to get what you want!

Beauty in Real Life interviews Elke and gets the scoop on The Elke Brow Collection, her favorite beauty products, and the biggest mistake most women make when it comes to their brows.

Love Kim Kardashian’s makeup? Want to know how she does it? Visit Spoiled Pretty for Kim’s “Smokey Eye Look” how-to video in which she and her makeup artist, Stephen Moleski, show you how to achieve Kim’s signature look.

15 Minute Beauty Fanatic has a look at Prescriptives’ Fall 2008 Daring Collection!

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Bodycare Review – Imperial Leather Skin Bliss Shower Lotion

by PJ on Saturday, August 9, 2008

in bodycare

(Skin Bliss Unique Shower Lotion in Glow)

Imperial Leather is a UK-based brand that mainly carries bath, shower and handwash products as well as soaps (with which the brand started out). Today I am reviewing a shower lotion from their new Skin Bliss range.

The three shower lotions in the Skin Bliss range claim to be mild and moisturizing. A quick look at the ingredient list shows that it can be a valid claim. With many standard shower gels/creams, the detergent (such as sodium laureth sulfate) is second on the ingredient list (after water). With the Glow one I am reviewing here, water, glycerine and urea come before surfactant/detergent like lauramidopropyl betaine and sodium laureth sulfate, making this body cleanser potentially milder and more moisturizing than many others. (The shea butter, on the other hand, is more than half way down the ingredient list.)

The product comes in a thick milky lotion that foams mildly into a creamy lather, and it rinses off easily. While, not surprisingly, it does not give the skin that squeaky-clean feel, it cleanses gently and does not leave the skin filmy or slippery.

This product is free from paradens.

If you are used to using body washes are that very foamy and effervescent, this can take some getting used to. Overall this is a nice non-stripping body cleanser that can be suitable for people with drier skin or those who need something milder in winter.

Magie Deco Fall 2008 Collection

by PJ on Thursday, August 7, 2008

in -Cosme Decorte, -Kosé, -Magie Deco, 2008 Fall, all about Japanese cosmetics, makeup

(All images are from
www.cosmedecorte.com/magiedeco)

Magie Deco has updated its website to feature its fall 2008 collection – Bordeaux Magic.

This is yet another interpretation of red by a Japanese brand for fall 2008, and the color figures in the eye palette, eyeshadow single, cream eyeshadow, lipstick, lip gloss, mascara and nail color. The collection therefore has a very coherent look.

(the two new Shadow Brilliance palettes)

Compared with SUQQU and Lunasol, the red used in Magie Deco’s collection is deeper and has a plum-purple tone, which fits the theme. #21 Bordeaux Shadow palette looks especially striking.

I think the wine-reds in this collection can be more wearable for some people than warmer reds, but I am only judging by the colors themselves, not finish or pigmentation level.

Again, Magie Deco has come up with interesting color combinations for the eye palettes to give itself an edge over wearable but somewhat safe palettes from Maquillage and Coffret D’Or, although I didn’t expect its seasonal theme to be so similar to those of Lunasol and SUQQU.

Personally, neither of the two palettes suits me enough to tempt me for a purchase. But Magie Deco is a brand that I really want to try and I hope there will be a good palette for me soon. (When it’s love at first sight, I’ll know it.)

Related posts – a quick look back at Magie Deco:

Summer 2008 Collection

Spring 2008 Collection

Christmas 2007 Collection

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Kosé Cosme Decorte AQ Website Update

by PJ on Thursday, August 7, 2008

in -AQ, -Cosme Decorte, -Kosé, 2008 Fall, all about Japanese cosmetics, makeup

(Cosme Decorte AQ Shadow Supreme)
(image from www.cosmedecorte.com/aq)

Cosme Decorte AQ has updated its website to feature the fall 2008 collection in the revamped packaging. (Please check my previous post for quick details of the lineup.)

Overall the palettes look good. Each of them combines a more vibrant color (blue, green, violet,…) and dark/light neutrals. I am happy that there is one palette with purple, but the shade, beautiful as it is, looks just a little bit too warm and dark for me. I should not be surprised, since we are entering fall. (AQ items are pricey, so I have to be picky.)

Please be aware that the price of the palette itself does not include the two sponge/brush applicators, which are sold separately for 525 JPY (about 4.8 USD) each. (This is not uncommon with Japanese cosmetics. For example, with Lunasol’s blushers, the refill, the case, and the brush are sold separately as well.)

The collection will be available in Japan on August 21st.

Related Posts:

Beauté de Kosé Fall 2008 Collection

Esprique Precious Fall 2008 Collection

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