My beauty Bag

YSL Golden Gloss for Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2008.

(image from YSL)

YSL’s Golden Gloss range is among my favorite lip gloss ranges (along with Lunasol’s Full Glamour Gloss). Supporting the Breast Cancer Awareness Month in 2008, YSL has released a limited-edition Golden Gloss in 27. Just like the rest of the Golden Gloss range, this wearable shimmery peach-pink shade contains 24-carat gold.

30% of the purchase of this product will be donated to the National Breast Cancer Coalition Fund.

From: http://atouchofblusher.blogspot.com

Black Diamonds Dior Holiday 2008.Of all the collections we’ve seen thus far, we’re certain this Dior Black Diamond Diamond-Effect Powder for Face and Décolleté will be THE item to have on your holiday list. Sweep the face and décolleté with this beigey, shimmering powder for a luxurious holiday glow.

The other star product in this collection is the Holiday Face Palette, an all-over, luminizing face powder. Throw it in your party clutch for on-the-spot luminosity and pray your ex will see you there.

Also in this collection:

5-Colour Eyeshadow in Twilight #029
Crème de Gloss in Honey Delight #291
Rouge Dior in Eternal Beige #394
Sparkle Shine Lip Gloss #002
Styleliner in Silver Light #334 (Sephora.com only)
Dior Vernis in Pure Diamonds (Specialty Only)
Dior Vernis in Black Sequins (Sephora Only)
Dior Vernis in Poison Blue (Dept. Stores only)

We are surely getting our hands on the Dior Vernis in Black Sequins and Poison Blue.

Dior Holiday 2008 Black Diamonds is available beginning November 2008 at Dior locations nationwide.

From: http://www.makeupbag.net/

Mika 2008 Holiday Shu Uemura Collection.

We already showed you the Mika Portable Brush Set that we love so much from this collection, but wait ’til you see these palettes:

Designed by Japanese photographer and director Mika Ninagawa, these palette cases are just as gorgeous as the shadows they contain.

midnight winter sakura (top)
Mika Ninagawa’s breathtaking night view of the snow-white Japanese flower decorates this case. This set’s magnificent hues, like smoky blue and pink beige, will create eyes as intense as the name implies.

adorned marguerite (middle)
The marguerite-adorned case features an inner palette that is a playful mixture of Mika Ninagawa’s dreamy colors. Vivid combination of pink and blue shade brush on to add a velvety sensation to the eyes.

secret luscious rose (bottom)
A photograph of roses by Mika Ninagawa beautifully decorates the case that opens to reveal a contrasting range of colors. Lightly frosted white and rich moss green will accent eyes in shades that make the most classical flower new again.

And while you’re here, we might as well show you the lip glosses:

delicious rose and seductive gerbena are little makeup pouches containing shimmery lip gloss trios to make you smile.

Shu Uemura Holiday 2008 Mika Ninagawa is available beginning November 2008 at Neiman Marcus and Nordstrom counters nationwide and online at shuuemura-usa.com

From: http://www.makeupbag.net

Stila Holiday 2008. As always, Stila has a great assortment of holiday items this season. Some are Sephora exclusives, but all are worth taking a look at— especially the Surprise & Shine Record a Message Palette. How fun!

Surprise & Shine Record a Message Palette
Personalize your gift in a way that has never been possible before by sending a holiday greeting that literally speaks for itself. Utilizing Stila’s patent pending Talking Palette technology, this palette of must-haves allows you to record a completely customized message.  Just because you can’t always primp with your best friends, they can still hear your words of reassurance anytime, anywhere.  Wrapped with an aubergine ribbon, the palette includes universally flattering Nude, Wheat and Espresso Eye Shadows and Convertible Color in Peony.
Price: $40

Step Out & Shine Color Collection & Handbag
Combining two of a Stila girl’s favorite things – makeup and accessories – this sparkling silver clutch is stocked with essentials for any occasion. The bag of best sellers even includes a sneak preview of Stila’s next big star, NEW Pomegranate Crush Lip and Cheek Stain. Tucked inside, discover deluxe travel sizes of Multi-Effect Mascara, All Over Shimmer a full size limited edition Convertible Color in Orchid and an Eye Shadow Quad in Montmartre.  (Sephora exclusive)
Price: $50

Shine On Gift of Glaze
Gloss on the lips is like tinsel on the tree – without it, something is missing.  This set
of six minis features two NEW Lip Glaze shades, Raisin and Gumdrop, as well as
all-time favorites Vanilla, Apricot, Grapefruit and Brown Sugar.  Perfect for pocket-
sized purses, the assortment guarantees a good glazing is never more than a click
away.   (Sephora exclusive)
Price: $28

Eyes & Shine Smudge Pot Trio
Encourage her to bring out a sultry side in the sexy Stila way with this trio of mini
Smudge Pots.  These clever little gels have an inky intensity that will outlast even the
most packed social schedule. Featuring black, gray and bronze shades and
complete with a mini brush, the tiny treats can make any look just a little naughty,
which sometimes is nice.
Price: $32

Stila is available at a variety of locations including  Sephora, sephora.com and stilacosmetics.com.

From: http://www.makeupbag.net/

Hard Candy Saying Adios?

Review of Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask by Bliss.

Yay for bubbles!

Bliss’ Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask is one of the most entertaining skin care products that I have tested to date. I was a huge fan of bubbles as a kid (still am, actually!) and this mask made me feel really happy.

The folks at Bliss are convinced that our skin needs extra oxygen since the levels naturally
present in the skin decrease with age.

Soooo…if you use this product (which is actually a sort of at-home version of their famed Triple Oxygen Treatment facials) you’ll be giving your cells the energy they need to perform their “youth-inducing” tasks at optimal levels…

Err…well…it feels really good!

Bliss’ Triple Oxygen Instant Energizing Mask dispenses as a gel that’s a clear grapefruit-y color. Once you apply it to your damp face, the magic begins as a fluffy foam starts bubbling up. 5 minutes of effervescence later and voila…sort of.

I’ll admit, my face felt fresh, clean, and pretty supple but, it also feels that way after I wash my face like normal. Needless to say, I surely wasn’t shouting from the rooftops.

So, do you need this stuff? If you have $52 to spare, sure give it a shot. It’s a fun product. But otherwise, continue caring for your skin as usual!

Stay Beautiful

$52
Available at Blissworld.com

From: http://beauty365.blogspot.com/

Celebrity Beauties: Rihanna Pt. II. She’s so pretty! We can’t take it!

And her makeup is to die for, as usual! Not to mention the hair, the accessories, the clothes…

Loves it

Photo courtesy of Essence.com

Stay Beautiful

From: http://beauty365.blogspot.com/

Rimmel Light Beam After Hours Lip Gloss Review. Sometime over the summer I was sent three tubes of Rimmel Light Beam lip gloss for review. I’ve been so busy using them and trying to pry them out of my daughter’s hands that I sort of … er, forgot to review them. Heh. Sorry about that! It was a weird summer, y’all.

Anyhoodle, you’ve probably seen this stuff in stores by now, and if so you know that the selling point is the packaging. The tube is squat and rectangular with a mirror along one side — big whoop, we’ve all seen that before. The unique part is the cap — there’s a little push-button operated light in it. Yes, a teeny, tiny flashlight. Open the product, depress the button in the top of the cap/handle, and a tiny spotlight shines down the length of the wand and thus onto your lips as you apply the product. Kind of like in this dramatic photo provided to me for purposes of illustration:

So with the light and the mirror, you can apply this stuff in the dark! Cool, huh? The light also works while the cap is on, so you can dazzle everyone around you with your mysteriously glowing tube o’ gloss, like in this picture I took myself in a dark (bath)room:

Yes, I AM easily amused, thanks for asking!

So let’s talk about the product INSIDE the cool tube, huh? Light Beam is a thin, very sheer gloss that’s only a little bit sticky. I received three shades — In The Mix, a sheer pale pink; Spotlight, a shimmery raspberry pink; and After Hours, a sheer brownish-plum — and they all look the same (read: clear and shiny) on my lips except that Spotlight is shimmery and the others aren’t. They all taste fabulous, though. In The Mix is sort of fruity, Spotlight tastes like bubblegum, and After Hours has some nebulous sweetness (maybe a little vanilla?) going on.

The thin texture combined with the yummy flavor means these glosses don’t really have much in the way of lasting power. If you don’t eat them off your lips, they’re going to wear off pretty quickly anyway. And let’s face it — do you really NEED a light and a mirror to apply what is essentially, on lips, a clear gloss? Maybe it’s because I’m old and have been applying lip gloss to my own lips for 30+ years, but I really don’t. Now if this gloss were actually pigmented, and I were the type to spend a lot of time in dark movie theaters and night clubs and … basements? or something? then the swell packaging would be extremely helpful.

Now, as mentioned in the first paragraph of this review, I HAVE been using and enjoying this gloss all summer. No, it doesn’t really show up at all, but it’s yummy and I certainly don’t hate it. However, my local supermarket is charging nearly $10 per tube for this stuff, and I really don’t think I’d pay that much for this product. I guess if you think of it as a combination flashlight/mirror/gloss — sort of the Swiss Army knife of the lip gloss world — then it might be worth $10 to you. Or, as mentioned above, if the gloss were heavily pigmented then I can see the packaging being worth a couple of extra bucks for the convenience factor.

But for a delicious yet very sheer gloss with an admittedly cute gimmick? Eh. I don’t think so.

From: http://lipstickismycrack.blogspot.com/

Anastasia Brow Gel.

With all the lofty marketing claims attached to new products these days, it’s so refreshing to find something that wows you even though you have rather low expectations of it.

I recently came into possession of a tube of Anastasia Brow Gel in Clear, and my first reaction was “ehhhh. Repackaged clear mascara for several times the price. Pass!”

But when getting ready for a wedding last month, I wanted to make sure my brows — sparse as they are — stayed in place all night, so I decided to take the Anastasia gel out for a spin. I really wasn’t expecting anything more than the results I used to get with a tube of Cover Girl clear mascara.

Wrong! Wrong! I love being wrong in situations like these; it makes something mundane seem like a groundbreaking discovery.

The Brow Gel felt like absolutely nothing going on, but my brows did not even budge all night. Like I said, they’re pretty sparse, but they have a tendency to get out of place pretty easily — especially the right one. Three reasons: (1) the long, sideswept bangs that fall on the right side of my face are a brow disturbance hazard, (2) I end up pushing them out of my face pretty frequently, therefore touching the brow and disturbing it further, and (3) that right brow has an old scar running through it, which tends to act like a brow cowlick (browlick?).

So when I say they didn’t move all night, this is pretty impressive. In addition, they were SHINY. As in, healthy-looking. Healthy-looking brows. Who knew such a thing could be possible!

And finally, the formula didn’t flake, dry out or get sticky over the course of the evening. Winner! I can’t believe I’m actually saying this, but yes, it really is worth the $21. It’s really not that high a price to pay for peace-of-brow!

From: http://beautyaddict.blogspot.com/

Philosophy Pink Shower Gel for the Cause.

shower for the cure is philosophy’s pink ribbon shower gel - a creamy all-in-one formula that can be used as a shampoo, shower gel or bubble bath.

This long-time philosophy favorite contains a touch of milk proteins and fruit essences to provide a delightful experience for your senses. And coming from philosophy, you can trust that the fragrance is delicate and not overwhelming.

shower for the cure represents the spirit of every woman and 100% of the philosophy net proceeds from the shower for the cure is donated to the Women’s Cancer Research Fund.  This is one of the “pink” products that I look for and buy every year.  Love it!

If you know someone who’s life has been affected by breast cancer, philosophy’s shower for the cure would make a wonderful gift.

From: http://www.beauty411.typepad.com/