Sunday, December 22, 2013

November 2013 Beauty Favorites



Hello everyone!  It's been a while since I posted a video to my channel.  A lot has happened in life, but I am grateful to say that I am happier and healthier than ever.  I hope you guys are too!  I'm very happy to be back.  I'm trying to get on a regular filming, editing, and uploading schedule now that things in life are settling out.  I've got a few videos already filmed.  It's really been great getting back to sharing my beauty obsession.

Here is the list of products I talk about in the video.  Enjoy!

1.  Urban Decay NAKED Skin Beauty Balm
2.  Smashbox Photo Finish More Than Primer - Blemish Control
3.  Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer - Nude
4.  Tarte Cheek Stain - Tipsy
5.  e.l.f. Small Stipple Brush
6.  Hourglass Ambient Lighting Palette
7.  Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder - Luminous Light
8.  Chanel Ombres Matelassees de Chanel - Charming
9.  Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz - Brunette
10.  Anastasia Beverly Hills Tinted Brow Gel - Granite
11.  NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer - Medium1 Custard
12.  Real Techniques Expect Face Brush
13.  Murad Acne Complex 30-Day Kit

Friday, November 1, 2013

Chanel Charming Ombres Matelassee de Chanel Eyeshadow Palette - Preview, Photos, Swatches



The Chanel Ombres Matelassees de Chanel Eyeshadow Palette in Charming ($80.00) is a limited edition item that is part of the Chanel Holiday 2013 collection.  The holiday collection has been out for a few weeks now, but for some reason this palette was just recently released.  I swooped on it as soon I saw it pop up on Nordstrom's website as this was the only holiday item from Chanel I was interested in purchasing.  I did end up purchasing a polish from the collection, but that's for another post.







The packaging is the typical sleek, black Chanel compact complete with velvet pouch and two applicators.  There is the usual double ended sponge tip applicator and an applicator with a sponge tip on one end and natural hair brush on the other end.  I have not seen this type of applicator in a Chanel palette before.






I am loving the quilted embossed pattern of the shadows.  The detail is just such a nice touch and makes the palette look so put together.  However, it seems the pretty pattern won't stand a chance with regular use because the shadows are so soft.  

I haven't gotten a chance to play with this palette much as I have been super busy.  I wanted to just get the photos and swatches up first because I could see a nice, wearable palette like this selling out.  I will post an update with a full review as soon as I have a chance to form a solid opinion on this palette.  What I can tell you from just swatching these shadows is that they are super soft, smooth, and buttery to the touch.  The pigmentation is there too.  The swatches you see in the photos took about two swipes.  I wouldn't say they are very saturated but pigmented enough so that I could not foresee there being any problems in performance.  The middle bronze shade swatched the best, yielding the best color payoff and having the most buttery feel.  The two darker colors on the right in general swatched better than the two lighter colors on the left, but I would not say that the lighter colors are inferior just yet.

Warm indoor lighting

Warm indoor lighting

Cool indoor lighting

From left to right, the first shade is an ivory that leans pink.  The second shade is a light brown that is similar to Urban Decay Naked or Naked 2.  The third shade is a gorgeous bronze shade that leans more towards the warm side.  The fourth shade is a mostly neutral dark brown.  The 5th shade is a dark slate gray that appears a little bluish.

At first glance, all the shadows except for the middle shade appear to be matte.  However, on closer inspection, all the shadows actually have a slight satin sheen so that they are not completely matte.  I think this prevents them from being chalky or powdery.  I can't say how the shadows will look on the eyes just yet, but from the impression that I get from the swatches, the finish seems like it has the potential to be very natural, wearable, and sophisticated.

The Chanel Charming eyeshadow palette is available now.  I got mine online from Nordstroms.com.  Stay tuned for a complete review.

Have you picked up anything from the Chanel holiday collection?

Sunday, June 16, 2013

May 2013 Favorites



Hey everyone! My beauty favorites are now up.... and on time! I've been productive lately with filming videos. It's always the editing part that takes the longest. I have a few videos on the editing block, so hopefully those will be up soon. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this latest installment. Thanks for watching!

Products mentioned:
Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua foundation - B20: Beige Tendre
Chanel Nail Vernis - Bel-Argus and Azure
NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer - Medium1 - Custard
Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow - No.21 - Midnight Brown
Hourglass No. 28 Lip Treatment Oil
YSL Rouge Volupté Shine - 4, 6, 15
Bobbi Brown Shimmer Brick - Bronze

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Urban Decay Naked Basics Tutorial



Hi everyone!  Here is my latest tutorial using the Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette.  I used to absolutely hate matte eyeshadows.  Perhaps because I ran into bad formulas and they never worked out for me.  Or maybe because I just like shimmer and glitter so much I'd rather buy those kind of eye shadows over matte ones.  Whatever the reason, mattes weren't my thing.

Then comes the Naked and Naked 2 palettes where Urban Decay put a few matte shadows in with their shimmery shadows.  I definitely started to learn how to incorporate the matte shadows into my looks and really learned to appreciate what they can do.  With Urban Decay's pigmented and smooth formulation, the mattes were so much easier to use than the ones I've tried in the past.

The Naked Basics Palette is a palette of all but one matte eye shadows.  This palette is meant to accompany the Naked and Naked 2 palettes because a lot of people thought there should've been more matte shadows in those palettes, but you can definitely use it alone, which is what I did in this tutorial.

Here is what I used:

Revlon Nearly Naked foundation - Shell + Fresh Beige mixed
Physicians Formula Super BB concealer - Light/Medium
Make Up For Ever Full Cover Concealer - 7
Chanel Crayon Sourcils Sculpting Eyebrow Pencil - Brun Cendre
Urban Decay Naked Basics Palette - Venus, Naked, Foxy, Faint, Crave
Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Waterproof Mascara
Tarte Amazonian Clay Blush - Fantastic
Maybelline Color Whisper lipstick - Lust for Blush

Hope you enjoy and thanks for watching!

xxoo
Tina

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Late December Favorites



Hey everyone!  Here is my December 2012 favorites.  Again, I filmed this on time, but didn't get a chance to edit.  I am catching up with these favorites video.  I plan to film my January favorites this weekend.  Hopefully it will be up by next week... that's my goal anyway. 

Products mentioned:

Garnier Skin Renew BB Cream - light/medium
Covergirl Nature Luxe mascara
Urban Decay Naked Basics palette
Crown brush
EOS lipbalm
Revlon Hot Air Brush

Hope you enjoy the video and thank you for watching!

xxoo Tina

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Very Late November Favorites



I filmed my November favorites back at the end of November like I was supposed to, but with the holidays and the end of the year being so busy, I never got a chance to edit the video.  The footage is good, except maybe the lighting could be fixed, so I didn't want to waste it.  I thought about combining November and December favorites into an end of the year favorites thing, but I knew the video would end up being like a day long.  In the end, I decided just to edit the footage I had and just throw it up there.  Most of the products are permanent so that you could still get them if you were interested.  I think this is the first time I mention some hair products that I like.  I hope you enjoy the video!

Products mentioned:

Organix Shampoo and Conditioner
Organix Renewing Moroccan Argan Oil Weightless Healing Dry Oil
Clear Scalp Therapy Shampoo
Clear Scalp Therapy Conditioner (Miss)
Revlon Photoready Eyeshadow Palettes - Impressionist and Metropolitan
Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Eye Shadow - #9
NARS Sheer Glow Foundation - Fiji
Giorgio Armani Maestro Concealer - #3
Tarte Amazonian Clay Blushes - Fantastic and Stellar
Guerlain Meteorites Pressed Powder - 02

PS.  I have a December favorites too.  I will upload that as soon as I have time to edit it.

Saturday, January 19, 2013

Neutral Eye Series



A lot of people may think neutral looks are boring, but they are probably the looks that most people wear on a daily basis.  And though they might not be the most awe striking, a well executed neutral look can definitely still turn heads and be absolutely stunning.

I decided to do collection of neutral eye looks and put them together in a playlist on my channel.  This is the first look in the series.  It features two of my favorite neutral eye palettes - NARS Alhambra and NARS Kalahari.  These are rather pricey palettes, but the shadows are absolutely gorgeous.  No worries, I will include drugstore palettes and shadows in future tutorials.

I hope you enjoy the tutorial!

Products Used:

Giorgio Armani Maestro Foundation - #4.5
Makeup Forever Full Cover Concealer - #7
MAC Select Moisture Concealer - NC20
Too Faced Shadow Insurance
NARS Alhambra I (shade on the left)
NARS Kalahari I (shade on left)
L'Oreal Studio Secrets Quad - Neutrals
Bobbi Brown Eye Shadow - Bone
Giorgio Armani Waterproof Smooth Silk Eye Pencil - #2
Shiseido Nourishing Mascara Base
Laura Mercier Full Blown Volume Mascara - Black
Chanel Notorious Sculpting Veil for Eyes and Cheeks
Illamasqua Powder Blusher - Naked Rose
Revlon Lip Butter - Berry Smoothie