The underrated Chanel blushes

My, my, you say you're a blush fanatic? Well, sorry (I'm not sorry), you don't know blushes until you've tried Chanel Joues Contraste Powder Blushes. As much as I love cheek products, there's not much hype over the ones by Chanel, but mostly what I've heard is that they're quite underrated; most people preferring to pick up the (slightly) less expensive NARS or Tarte. But I've owned both NARS and Tarte blushes, and while I do quite enjoy Tarte with a light hand, I've never quite been able to pull off any of my NARS blushes properly. In fact, dare I might say that I find them to be overrated. Either way, a few weeks ago, feeling in need of a pick-me-up, I thought I would listen to that ebbing of try out the Chanel blushes, you'll be pleasantly surprised, and off I went to Myer to pick up two from the Chanel counter, a pretty pink shade in Rose Initiale (72) and a more everyday, nude shade in Espiegle (65). 

rose initiale

espiegle

Rose Initiale (72)

A lovely slightly blue-tone pink, I can see this shade working on a number of skintones. On the cheeks, it's a lot more subtle than it looks in the pan, but these blushes are easily buildable or you can have a gentle flush. It's the type of shade that looks like you're actually blushing, rather than having, well, blush on your face. I'm not the type to wear this pink blush everyday, but the season is right for it, so I've been a bit more rosy than usual. I haven't tried the included brush, instead prefering to use a soft stippling brush to apply it; these blushes do kick up a bit of dust, so a firmer brush would be a bit harsh. Oh, and it smells like roses! I wasn't expecting that, but it's not too overpowering, only when you actually go in for a little sniff of the product.

Espiegle (65)

This blush I've been wearing a lot more often, as it is quite the nude/neutral everyday shade. It looks a bit frosty, a light orange-y shade, but don't let that alarm you. When applied, it adds a nice touch of subtle colour to your face, with a gentle, overall glow. No frosty, orange cheeks in sight. You would think that this blush would be harder to pull off than the Rose Initiale, but I absolutely love it, and it looks wonderful on my slowly tanning skin (approximately an NC30). This is a really good shade for Summer coming up (well, considering the weather, it might as well already be), perhaps I might use it more as an illuminator when my skin deepens further. This blush also smells like roses, but, and this may just be me, maybe not quite as strong as Rose Initiale. 

left to right, without flash: rose initiale heavy swatch, rose initiale blended, espiegle heavy swatch, espiegle blended

With Flash

Sunlight

God, don't those colours look so pretty? I know arm swatches can prove quite different on the face, but these are so easy to apply and blend out, there's no way that you can look clownish with these. I think my favourite thing about Chanel blushes is that, somehow, they just have a very flattering way of making your skin glow. As the weather is warming up, I'm finding that I'm starting to get a bit more shiny, not oily, but a little more than I would like, yet these blushes look wonderful with a slight dewy finish. From what I've heard, there are two formulations of this blush (one in the circle pan like I've got, and a square pan in Europe, though correct me if I'm wrong), with one being softer and the other, obviously harder. I'm not entirely sure which one I got, but these are smooth and lovely, they may kick up a bit of dust, but not too much, either way, they apply beautifully.

I can see myself getting good use out of these blushes, considering the use I'm getting out of them currently. They are just so easy to apply, and, oh, do they add that nice healthy glow to your face. I'm slowly delving into Chanel products, but I have not been disappointed so far, truly what a luxury brand should be, I think. 

I purchased these Chanel Joues Contraste powder blushes from Myer for AU$71 each. 

The Lush Life

Now it's quite well known that I am a fan of MAC lipsticks considering my ever-growing collection. It's strange that I've never really looked into the Mineralize Rich Lipsticks, possibly due to the range of colours? But I asked my mum to pick me up one from the states, landing on Lush Life for my dip into the Mineralize Rich Lipsticks. 

The shape of the tube flares out at the base and the top too, it has a metallic closing rather than a click like the regular lipsticks. You also get 4.04g in comparison to the 3g of the regular. The bullet itself is also differently shaped, it's not quite so rounded at the tip and a bit more angular; I personally prefer the regular shape because I've gotten so used to it and I think the shape helps application but the new one is a bit tricky. The scent is the same usual vanilla scent.

left to right, without flash: heavy swatch, blended swatch

With Flash

I'm not sure whether this was limited to the one Mineralize lipstick I got, but dang, dare I say that this is the perfect formula? It's so creamy, but doesn't bleed, it's super pigmented but not too heavy or sticky either, and it's definitely not drying. Just perfect. The shade I got, Lush Life, is an amazing cool toned plummy-red colour, which would be good for the Christmas season. It gives a bit of a stain on the lips too, but I'm guessing it has something to do with how deep this shade is, rather than a characteristic of the Mineralize Rich lipsticks, but I haven't tried any of shades from this range. The only complaint I have is the shape of the bullet, but if you're careful, then it shouldn't be too hard to apply cleanly, a lipbrush would definitely help. 

I think this lipstick formulation could be holy grail for me. So perfect, pigmented, creamy and light on the lips. The bullet could be better formed, I mean, even the packaging itself could probably be better, considering the odd shape (it doesn't quite fit in my lipstick holder either). But it is quite worth the price, considering the amount of product you get as well as the quality. 

This product can be purchased from the MAC Australia website for AU$46, and in the US for US$22.

Back to Basics

Ah, I think I finally get the hype of Urban Decay products. Probably not the full extent, but I'm definitely beginning to form an affinity, the Naked Basics palette is fast becoming my favourite eyeshadow palette. Ever since my mum brought it back from her trips to the Americas, I've been using it every single day. I mean, I knew I liked using neutrals, but jeez, this brings it to a whole new level.

I love the packaging, always a fan of that rubberised casing that's reminiscent of NARS packaging and MAC, on occasion. The size of the palette is also really nifty for travelling, and the mirror is actually quite good; the hinge helps it to stay put too, so it's a palette with an actually useful mirror. The only thing that annoyed me was, for some silly reason, I had trouble opening this palette, as you can see, my nail punctured the lovely Venus shade. But I suppose that's an example of how soft and buttery these shadows are. Either way, I've managed to master the clasp, it is easier without thinking about ruining my fake nails.

left to right, without flash: venus, foxy, walk of shame, naked 2, faint, crave

With Flash

Sunlight

These shades seem pretty light, one might think that they're more for lighter skintones. But even for my medium/medium-light skin (NC25-30). Five matte shades and one shimmery highlight shade; I love ALL of these. My favourite combinations include walk of shame as an allover wash, and then naked 2 as more colour on the lid; or naked 2 as an allover, contouring with faint and then any of the lighter shadows as a brow highlight. Crave makes a fantastic liner too, it looks great on the lower lash line too, it's not too black, but more of a brown-black so it doesn't look too harsh. The two lighter matte shades foxy and walk of shame work well as neutralizing shades on the lid, with foxy being yellow toned and walk of shame more pink. The payoff for foxy is not as good as the other shades in the palette, though, and crave wouldn't work as well as a base shadow I don't think. But definitely naked 2 is my favourite shade out of the palette, looks fantastic on the eyes to add a bit of depth, it's a nice light taupe-y colour, perfect for the "nude" look.

Really, this was the best palette that I could have received, considering how much I've been using it now, I can easily see myself using this a lot more in the future, especially taking this with me when travelling time comes around. Feels very sleek and luxurious, so I'm quite lucky to have gotten my hands on this baby.

This was purchased for me (by my mother) from Sephora for US$27, available here.

MAC Prep + Prime Beauty Balm Compact SPF30 Review

Ah the craze of BB creams. To be honest, I was quite excited when the Korean (well, originally German) BB cream trend started making it's way to our shores of the west. The unfortunate thing, is that while there are a number of western BB creams available, most are more like tinted moisturisers, usually with a little extra something (really, a very little extra something), so they fail to hit the mark of what a "real" BB cream is meant to be like. MAC released their own BB cream under their Prep + Prime line, and I decided I might as well check it out, considering the combination of both BB creams (which I very much used to have a fondness for) and of course, the ever-lovable MAC, well, how could I not?

I went for the compact over the tube form, as I have professed my love for compact foundations previously, and, having had a BB cream in a compact form before, I did like the way that it sat on my skin more than the tube formulations. It doesn't have too much of a scent at all, and, while I appreciate the sponge being included, it's pretty much just an average sponge, with no barrier between the mirror and the sponge, and thus results in a smudgey mirror. The outside of the compact is quite cute, however. It's reflective of green and purple on the black base which looks like galaxy designs, which I thought was pretty nifty. According to the back of the secondary packaging, one would assume that the "BB" factor in this is mainly just the addition of sun protection, so perhaps less of a BB and more of a tinted sunscreen. 

left to right, without flash: heavy swatch, blended swatch

With Flash

Sunlight

It applies quite creamily on the skin, but it really isn't heavy and all and blends absolutely marvelously. On the downside, it is quite sheer, I would say it gives a light coverage, and, like most cream formulas, it isn't too buildable. I would probably layer this over a tinted moisturizer or maybe a light liquid foundation to help add a bit more to it, and, of course, for the benefit of the sun protection too. It doesn't last too long on the skin, even after I've powdered it, maybe about half a day before it completely disappears, so the lasting power is not too great at all. On the upside, the fact that it is a compact with included mirror and sponge will help with touchups during the day.

Frazzle me before

After

I got this in the shade "light plus" which is the more yellow-toned version of light. This does come off a tad bit too pale for my skin, but it does really blend very well. I think the medium shade would be too dark for me, however, perhaps bordering a tad bit orange, so if MAC came out with a "light medium" shade, as what I usually am when it comes to the named rather than numbered shades, then that would probably work well for me. 

I feel like this would be a good product for summer as it is so light, and has the SPF 30 in it, but it would have to be for those who don't mind touching up through the day. It's also good that it's breathable, though, and I don't really see this product caking up much just because it really does blend easily. Not the best product I've tried from MAC, unfortunately. It's nothing bad or anything, just not one of my favourites, considering how much stuff I love from MAC. But it'll be nice to use this up and send it in for a Back-to-MAC!