Archives for November 2008

Wearable Art in a Palette

Paris B 7 Comments

When I wrote about the new RMK holiday palette, it must have come across how much I detest all in one palettes. Actually, I don’t detest palettes nor all in one palettes. I actually like palettes that accommodate a variety of products because they make the best travel companions. Sometimes, no matter how much you love your Chanel blush, you aren’t going to take it holidaying with you for fear of it getting lost or broken. I don’t for this reason.

But above all, I enjoy palettes that are like little works of art. Take these YSL eye and face palettes as an example. They are mostly from 2007 or thereabout.

YSL Eyeshadow and face palettes

I am most taken in with the top 2 which are the YSL Mauresque Mosaic Eye Palette and Mauresque Mosaic face Palette. The colours of the eye palette are rather bold but if I know YSL enough, the texture will be on the sheerer side so they won’t come off as turquoise as it looks. Besides, turquoise on the eyes is one of my favourite shades. The cheek colour on the other hand looks like a lovely pinky bronze.

I know that the silver stripes on the Horizon palette (bottom left) don’t go all the way through which is a bother so I did not want to get it although the colours are pretty. Do I detect some similarity in that lovely turquoise shade in the 2 palettes? I prefer the Maureque ones because of the pretty inlaid pattern.

Above all, I think these palettes are lovely wearable art pieces. It might be that recently reading the Stories from the Arabian Nights may have something to do with my fascination with these Moroccan looking designs 🙂 Reviews online say the colours and patterns of both these items go all the way through which is great. The only thing would be steeling myself to despoil it!

At US$24 for the eye palette and US$28.50 for the face palette (discounted), I’m seriously tempted to get them after missing out the last round. Add the usual loyalty discounts and if I can find another item, the usual 5% off plus free shipping and eeks! It might actually be affordable! 😛

Lancome Christmas Holiday collection 2008 – C’est Magnifique!

Paris B 6 Comments

I realised that Lancome seems to have been quite quiet about their Christmas or Holiday collection. I’ve read all the various news from abroad but locally, I had not seen any. Well, wait no longer because here are the Holiday releases from the Lancome C’est Magnifique Holiday 2008 collection! Call me crazy but I’m really digging these and I’m not usually a Lancome fan!

lancome holiday 2008 c'est magnifique

The look is old Hollywood glam so red lips and defined eyes are the way to go. I’m particularly liking the deep blue that forms the backdrop the model is against and those red lips! This is a look I personally like. 🙂

New in this collection are:-

  • Color Focus Palette in Blue Enigma (RM135) I’ve only just discovered the Color Focus palettes not long ago and I’m itching to check these out. Colours are deep navy blue, deep violet, Smoky gray and pure white. From the picture I thought it was a brown at the bottom but its actually a smoky gray. I’m not sure if thre is any shimmer in this palette. I would love it if the white was a shimmery tone. I’m not sure about that violet but I’m game to check this one out.
  • Juicy Tubes in Sparkling Ava and Red Gilda (RM68) I’m not a fan of lip glosses but that red one is calling my name! I rather think the packaging looks classier than the usual juicy tubes packaging.
  • Diva Magic Powder in Platinum White (RM150) This is a tub of pure white shimmer to illuminate the face and décolleté area. I have personally seen this powder in action for my sister’s wedding reception makeup and it is an AMAZING product! The shimmer is fine so you don’t get chunks of glitter on your face, but yet when it catches the light, it gives off a gorgeous illuminating effect that is simply wow! One for the parties and special events – dust it all over and bask in the fairy lights!

It would appear that the Lancome C’est Magnifique collection we are getting here is a little different from the collection that has been released in the USA. I always find this rather strange but perhaps its to do with suiting the market and requirements of the people in the different parts of the world. We seem to be getting the Europe release of Lancome. Here’s an example of Lancome’s Color Focus quad for Holidays 2008 that has no bearing on the one we are seeing here – Link. Personally, I prefer ours 🙂

I believe the Lancome C’est Magnifique collection is released in stores this week so now might be a good time to traipse down to the counter and check things out for myself.

What is the Oil Cleansing Method?

Paris B 31 Comments

Most of us have heard of cleansing oils which are sold commercially under various skincare and makeup brands. These cleansing oils are oils combined with emulsifying chemicals to clean the skin of dirt and impurities. I myself am a loyal user of cleansing oils to remove my makeup at the end of the day.

Olive oil cleansing method

However, I’ve recently been made aware of something called the “Oil Cleansing Method” that has no bearing on the products I’ve been using. Many people who use the “Oil Cleansing Method” say that it helps their skin improve in texture and clarity keeps them blemish free.

I was intrigued – what is this “Oil Cleansing Method”?

Oil Cleansing Method

The “Oil Cleansing Method” uses oil to cleanse the skin. Not those commercial oils you find at the store, but actual oil which you can use to cook with or edible oils e.g. olive oil, sunflower seed oil, coconut oil, castor oil etc. The principle is thus: Oil is only broken down by oil. Sort of like fighting fire with fire. You use oil to breakdown the oils and dirt on the face and remove impurities from the pores.

The basic principle is thus as extracted from here:

  • Mix Olive Oil with Castor oil – mix olive oil into castor oil to make it easier to spread and castor oil has anti-inflammatory and healing properties while olive oil is touted to have anti-oxidant properties.
  • Pour the oil mix into the palm of your hand and spread on your face, massaging lightly to remove makeup and impurities from the skin. You can’t rush this because these oils take a longer time to work compared with commercial cleansing oils.
  • Once you have fully massaged in the oils into the skin, wet a facial washcloth with warm (not boiling hot but steaming) water and place it over your face, allowing the heat and steam to soften the oils. When it cools, gently wipe your face with the wash cloth and repeat twice.
  • You will find that the heat from the water will remove the traces of oil from the skin and the skin ends up feeling very soft and smooth.

I tested this method myself recently after reading about it. Initially, I was sceptical. I had a bad experience with using Olive Oil as a home made oil cleanser before and I did not want to have to repeat that experience. However, after reading the many articles online about the Oil Cleansing Method or OCM, I realised that I had been doing it wrongly all along, which possibly explains why it did not work for me.

I’d missed out the crucial hot water cleansing step which is the step that actually helps with the deep cleansing and oil removal from the skin. Be careful when using hot water as water that is too hot can cause broken blood vessels on the skin which can be unsightly.

Using Olive Oil to cleanse skin

I don’t have other oils on hand as I tend to cook with Extra Virgin Olive Oil or an oil blend and I did not relish going out to get a bottle of sunflower seed or almond oil or even jojoba oil which is lighter than Olive Oil just for the purposes of this experiment. So, I took the plunge with Extra Virgin Olive Oil used by itself without castor oil. Here’s my experience:-Continue Reading

Review: Makeup: Benefit Cosmetics Silky Finish Lipstick Nice Knickers

Paris B 12 Comments

When I made my first ever Benefit Cosmetics order online, I picked up a Silky Finish lipstick in Nice Knickers. This was purely due to its name, I will safely say. How often can I tell someone that I am wearing Nice Knickers and not have them say “Too much information?!” LOL… 😉

Benefit Silky Finish lipstick nice knickers

I had no idea how the colour looked in real life as I had no time to get to a Benefit Cosmetics counter, but when I received it, I was very happy because just one sight of it told me it was just the right colour for me.

Packaging

Benefit Silky Finish lipsticks are packaged in a metal case with a glossy black finish. There is a stylised loop design on it in white, which is the only embellishment on this otherwise serious looking product.
Continue Reading

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