It has been too long since my last update. I’m sorry. While my blogging muse has been uninspired lately, I have still been keeping busy with new products and exploring and researching others that I have not yet purchased.
Last weekend I had the privilege of visiting the Sephora store in Times Square. If you have the opportunity to go there when you’re next in New York, I advise that you do. The selection is huge, bigger than I’ve encountered anywhere before. What I was mostly giddy about was being able to look at Yves Saint Laurent’s makeup line in person – none of the makeup counters or stores around me carry it, and it’s just not that easy for me to truck all the way up to Neiman Marcus in Tenleytown or wherever the heck it is where it is carried.
I spent some money, though not as much as I anticipated (that’s a good thing). Here’s what I brought home with me:
- Bare Escentuals Mineral Veil in Feather Light – A fine, mineral-based finishing powder that gives skin a faintly shimmering, iridescent, soft-focus glow. Very pretty, but it’s just okay with absorbing oil.
- Bare Escentuals Full Flawless Face Brush – Intended for use with the above powder, this is a tightly-packed goat hair brush that evenly dusts loose powder makeup onto the face. No previous powder brush technique knowledge required with this.
- Clinique Colour Surge Butter Shine Lipstick in Fresh Watermelon – I asked the advice of one of the employees and he recommended this when I asked him what a good berry pink lipstick that wasn’t too shiny could be. The formula glides on and I love the color, it’s very appropriate for the trend that seems to be going on with fuchsia/raspberry-colored lips. Really good for the price, too. Clinique’s awesome all around, though.
- NARS Lipgloss in Striptease – Thick and on the sticky side, but I really like the color (nude beige) and pairing it with dark eye makeup. I wore this to the theater along with NARS eyeshadow in Night Fever, Diorshow mascara and the palest hint of NARS creme blush in Cactus Flower. It was a NARS night.
- Kat Von D Autograph Eyeliner in Puro Amor – Last week I wore black liquid liner at work and I thought it looked terrible (even though I got a few compliments on it). The liner I was using had a thick applicator wand and the formula just wasn’t that great, so I chucked it and got this instead. Much finer precision brush and rich, failsafe shades.
I also grabbed a marked-down miniature Sephora brand brush set for traveling and cashed in for a deluxe sample and got Sephora brand body butter in the coconut almond scent.
All that, and I’ve already got a list of things I want to check out when I go to Georgetown with the boyfriend tomorrow!
So I’ve been using lipstick on a regular basis for awhile now and have amassed a decent collection. Most recently I have been intrigued by Kat Von D’s lipsticks, which you can see at Sephora, the manufacturer and sole purveyor of her products.
Kat Von D Painted Love lipstick. Not sure whether this is Underage Red or Hellbent.. or neither?
All of them are a play on the color red. If you browse the reviews, their touted staying power really stands out. I also am drawn in by the matte finish; it seems like everything I own and a lot of what is marketed has a satin or shiny finish. Matte lipsticks dredge up images of bygone Hollywood starlets from the early 20th century and there is something achingly romantic and cool about that. These types of lipsticks are vintage in a non-hipster way and timeless in that they have endured to reclaim a cult status with younger women of today – typically rockerish girls like, well, Kat.
I’m disinclined to trust the color swatch given on the website, so tomorrow I’m going to find out which shade(s) would work for me. I’m most excited to try out Lolita (rose), Underage Red (crimson) and Misfit (brick red).
Finding the right red for you can be difficult as different skin undertones require a different undertone in a red. I have light skin with yellow undertones, so I look better with reds that lean toward brown and other warm, rich notes. There are also blue-reds, coral-reds, and so on.
Main thing to pull of that bold of a color, though, is to be savvy about keeping the color looking fresh and moreover, wear it with confidence (besides, red lips are hot!). Don’t be shy!
Tags: brushes, clinique, kat von d, lipgloss, lipstick, nars, powder, sephora