Illamasqua Holiday 2013 Collection

We are right back at looking at the holiday collections today, we have two weeks until Thanksgiving and I am trying to really ramp up my gift shopping.  I don't think that I will find any gifts for others while looking at the holiday collection from Illasmasqua, I am the only one of my friends who uses and love this brand so I will only be shopping for myself while checking this collection out.  I love Illasmasqua lipsticks and blushes and I am excited to see what limited edition shades are available for this holiday season.

This collection contains mostly new shades to create all kinds of glamourous looks for the holiday season and very few gift ideas.  This is a company that is well known for dramatic makeup shades and creating glamourous combinations that will set the wearer apart from the crowd.  I am looking for a few beautiful eye makeup shades and a bright lipstick or two from this new collection.

The newest holiday collection from Illamasqua...

Fatale Palette - Expertly crafted, each new Illamasqua palette features a combination of shades to speak for every age, skin tone or personality, allowing you to create bespoke looks that ensure all eyes are on you.  Use the iridescent shimmers under the brow bone, in the inner corner of the eye, or centre of the eyelid to illuminate and widen your eyes. Combine with a smoky definition across the socket line, building at the outer corners, to create intrigue and mystery.
- bronze gold/berry shimmer/chestnut brown/medium violet shimmer

Sculpting Powder Duo - This formulation can provide up to four to five variations of the same shade depending on how lightly or intensely it is applied. Use wet for a bolder colour pay-off, and it can also double up as an eye shadow. Apply using Blusher Brush 1 for colour on the centre of the cheeks, or using the new Blush Up Brush for more definition and contouring.
- Heliopolis - soft brown matte
- Lumos - champagne gold shimmer

Intense Lip Gloss - Super glossy, with a sensual, sheer colour designed to enhance your lips. Use Illamasqua Sheer Lipgloss in Maiden on its own or with Illamasqua Lipstick for added pout. Add a little more sexiness to your smile.
- Maiden - warm peach

Nail Varnish - A spectrum of bold shades with a range of finishes including matt, rubber and high-gloss. Award-winning, extremely hardwearing and chip-resistant, there's an Illamasqua Nail Varnish for every shade of humanity.
- Blizzard - clear base with white sparkles suspended in it

I think the only piece of the collection that I must have is the Fatale Palette, I love the combination of the neutrals and the berry shade.  Berry is one of the few eye shadow shades that I do not own (unless I have a berry shade somewhere in an Urban Decay palette that I have never used) and I want to try adding it to my crease with neutral eye makeup looks.  I will be ordering this palette pretty soon and working this shade into my eye makeup collection.  The Nail Varnish is a pretty shade and I would like to own it but its not a must-have for me.  I can skip over the rest of the collection, I am a bit disappointed by these shade offerings as I was hoping for something more dramatic for the holiday season.

photo courtesy of Illamasqua

Dr. Brandt Microdermabrasion Age Defying Exfoliator

My past few skincare purchases have been from the Josie Maran Argan Oil collection and I have been loving the more natural ingredients in these products.  I still have two more products to review from my purchases but I can already state how much I love this brand and all of the products that I have tried so far from it.  One item that is not available from Josie Maran is any type of facial exfoliator.  During the cooler weather months, I only exfoliate my facial skin one every two weeks and it takes me a long time to use a product up so I prefer to go through the samples that I have been sent in my past few Glossyboxes and try all of these out.

I have used one of the best selling facial products from Dr. Brandt the past two times that I have exfoliated my face and I still have quite a few more uses from this sample that I received in a summer Glossybox.  The Microdermabrasion Age Defying Exfoliator has been around for quite a few years now, I have wanted to try it before and I jumped at the chance to when I received the sample earlier this year.  I am glad that I was able to try this without ordering the full size as this product is not one of the best choices for my skin in the winter, I found it very drying during the cold weather and I will be setting the rest of the sample aside until next spring.

"A skin exfoliating scrub.  Get a youthful glow with this microdermabrasion solution. This formula contains aluminum oxide crystals, lactic acid, and soothing botanicals to polish away dead skin cells, provide a radiant, healthy look, and smooth skin's texture. Watch as the appearance of fine lines, acne marks, and skin discolorations diminish for maximum results in minimal time.", states the Sephora website. 

The product contains the following active ingredients...

- Aluminum Oxide Crystals: Polishes and removes dead skin cells.
- Lactic Acid: Gently sweeps away dead skin cells and softens texture.
- Jojoba, Aloe Vera, and Chamomile: Blend of botanicals that soothe and refresh.

Sephora recommends that this product be used once or twice a week, leaving three days in between applications.  I cannot use this product correctly this time of the year as it dried my face out after one usage.  My face was tight and dry after getting out of the shower and this is not a product that I can use until the warmer warms up and my skin becomes less dry.  I will be putting this product to the side and then trying it again later on next year. 

I am not sure what ingredients in this product dried my face out so much, I have never used an exfoliator with Aluminum Oxide Crystals in it before so I tend to believe that this is the ingredient that affected my skin so much.  I will have more details on it when I try it again in the spring and I will relook at this product then.

photo courtesy of Sephora

Zoya Holiday/Winter 2013 Nail Polish Collection - Zenith

The nail polish collections for this holiday season have been some of my favorites so far.  The Butter London collection has produced a bunch of hits for me and I am very excited to look at the Zenith collection from Zoya and I continue to stalk the China Glaze website in hopes of the new holiday shades debuting slightly sooner than normal.  China Glaze is often one of the last collections to come out every season so I will have to keep waiting and check the Zoya collection out today.

The new collection from Zoya is named Zenith and contains six brand new shades.  I seem to remember that most Zoya collections have a whole range of shades in and six is much less than I am used to seeing.  Zenith contains two pale shades and four deeper shades, all of which contain copious amounts of shimmer and shine.  I am already looking forward to heading over to Ulta and shopping from this new collection.

Zoya's new holiday shades!

- Mosheen - Mosheen by Zoya can be best described as an astro ice blue topper, great for layering over other hues.
- Payton - Payton by Zoya can be best described as a full-coverage, galactic cranberry with holographic glitter.
- Belinda - Belinda by Zoya can be best described as a full-coverage, cosmic purple metallic. (Originally designed for designer Zang Toi / AW2013)
- Dream - Dream can best be described as a full-coverage, deep space blue with holographic glitter.
- Cassedy - Cassedy can best be described as a full-coverage, celestial pewter metallic.
- Seraphina - Seraphina can best be described as a full-coverage, Polaris silver metallic.

I love all six of these shades and I want each of them.  My favorite shade is the one that I have included a photo of with this post, Dream is a unique bright blue glitter and I have nothing like this shade in my collection.  My second favorite shade is the other full glitter in this collection, Payton is a deep cranberry glitter that is a bit less "Christmas" than China Glaze's Ruby Pumps.  Cassedy and Seraphina are my versions of neutrals, I love silver and pewter shades.  I have found that silver hues tend to look more attractive with my skintone and match the majority of my wardrobe choices.

Mosheen and Belinda are both very pretty shades and I would like to own them but I won't be heartbroken if they sell out before I can order them.  Mosheen is a shade that I would either get tons of use from or forget that I even have it.  There is something telling me that I have a pale blue topper shade from Chanel already and I almost never use it.

I love this collection from Zoya and I am heading to Ulta to pick these shades up then I will be right back to stalking the China Glaze website!

photo courtesy of Zoya

Laura Mercier Holiday 2013 Collection

I feel that I have stepped away from the holiday collections for the past few days and today I am jumping right back onto the party product and gifting track today.  Today's post is getting this blog back on the gifting track, the Laura Mercier holiday gift collection on the docket for today and I really need to begin thinking more seriously about my holiday shopping list.  I will admit that I haven't really given gifts for others much thought since last month and I must change that.  My goal today is to look at the Laura Mercier collection with the intentions of working on my gift list and not adding any more products from it to my personal collection...

The Laura Mercier gift collection!

Petite Baked Eye Colour Bon Bons - Trios of mini Baked Eye Colours that will delight gift recipients.  An innovative wet/dry Eye Colour formula featuring Baked technology in beautiful shades that last all day. This smudge resistant, lightweight eye colour gently smoothes onto the lid for an even application.
- Amethyst Trio - three shades of purple
- Bronze Trio - three shades of neutrals
- Emerald Trio - three shades of green

Luxe Colour Wardrobe Dual Decker Colour for Eye and Cheeks - Laura Mercier’s ultimate holiday accessory features a range of products that will leave your eyes and cheeks flawlessly glowing. Palette includes:
- Eight eyeshadows in Morning Dew matte, Coffee Ground matte, African Violet luster, Ballerina Pink sateen, Deep Night matte, Dusk luster, Sable sateen and Crystal Beige luster.
- Three Tightline Cake eyeliners in Black Ebony, Ground Espresso and Bleu Marine.

- Two Second Skin cheek colors in Barely Pink and Heather Pink.

- Face highlighter in Golden Shimmer.

- Longwear Crème eye pencil in Espresso.

- Double-Ended Crease/Smudge brush.

- Travel Pony Tail brush.

- Travel Flat eyeliner brush.

- Instructional insert

Artist Palette - Enclosed in a luxurious textured, chocolate brown case, this complete compact includes a large mirror and 12 eye colors hand selected by Laura Mercier. Mix and match for endless eye looks. 0.03 oz x 12 in Eye Colour in Sparkling Dew, Guava, African Violet, Plum Smoke, Kir Royal, Violet Ink, Vanilla Nuts, Primrose, Fresco, Bamboo, Truffle, Espresso Bean.

Luxe Travel Brush Collection - The Laura Mercier travel brush collection features a chic clutch filled with nine go-to brushes for perfect makeup application while you’re on the go. Full-size cheek color brush. Secret Camouflage/Camouflage powder brush. Allover Eye Color/Pony Tail brush. Eye Crease/Smudge brush. Flat Eyeline/Angled eyeliner brush.

Line and Define Mini Longwear Crème Eye Pencil Collection - Cover your eyes in luminous color with a sampler pack of Longer Crème eye pencils by Laura Mercier.  Line, define, and create customizable, all-day eye definition.

- Violet - bright purple

- Espresso - deep warm brown

- Noir - pure black

- Sage - deep olive green

- Cobalt - deep navy blue

Mini Lip Glace Collection - Apply perfectly pigmented, long-lasting colour and brilliant shine.

- Bare Nudes - shades of sheer neutral hues

- Bold Brights - shades of bright pigmented hues

Souffle Body Crème Sampler - A silky, smooth crème that luxuriously nourishes the skin with the lightly whipped feel.

- Ambre Vanille - vanilla, tangerine, and brown sugar

- Fresh Fig - fresh fig and sweet apricot nectar

- Almond Coconut Milk - milk, coconut, almond, and vanilla

- Fresh Pistachio - pistachio and sugar.

Bath and Body Duet - Indulge in the ultimate luxury of a warm, fragranced bath. These softly scented bath salts work to melt away the stresses of the day, while the Soufflé Body Crème exfoliates, softens and soothes skin. Available in Almond Coconut Milk or Creme Brulee.

- Almond Coconut Milk - milk, coconut, almond, and vanilla

- Crème Brulee - warm caramel, spun sugar, and French vanilla bean

Hand Crème Sampler Collection - Give hands a luxurious taste of ultra-rich and velvety hydration.

- Fresh Fig - fresh fig and sweet apricot nectar

- Crème Brulee - warm caramel, spun sugar, and French vanilla bean

- Almond Coconut Milk - milk, coconut, almond, and vanilla

- Crème de Pistachio - pistachio and sugar

Bath and Body Luxe Quartet - Indulge and escape with Laura’s luxe quartet in three delectable gourmande scents, which contains Honey Bath, Body Scrub, Souffle Body Crème and a candle.

- Almond Coconut Milk - milk, coconut, almond, and vanilla

- Crème Brulee - warm caramel, spun sugar, and French vanilla bean

- Ambre Vanille - vanilla, tangerine, and brown sugar

I like the body product gifts in this collection however I have given so many Bath and Body Works gifts to people over the years that I don't know that any of my friends or family would really want anything like these.  I am most interested in picking up a few of the Baked Eye Colour trios, I could many of my friends liking the bronze or the purple shades and this is will be a great gift idea for me.  The other item that I am really interested in is the Lip Glace sets, some of my lip gloss obsessed friends would be more than happy to receive a great gift to feed their obsession.

photo courtesy of Laura Mercier

Elizabeth and James Nirvana Black

I feel like I haven't tried or reviewed any new fragrances in the past few weeks and today I am going to change that trend.  When I was picking up the Smashbox eye palette during my last Sephora visit, I received a free rollerball sample of a brand new fragrance and I have been playing with it the past two days.  A small rollerball of a new fragrance is one of the best Sephora VIB samples that I have ever received and I hope to see more rewards like this one.  Elizabeth and James is a new brand that has just released two new fragrances in time for the holiday season and we will be looking at one of them today.

First we need a bit of background on the Elizabeth and James brand.  This is brand that is exclusive to Sephora and was created by Mary Kate and Ashley Olson.  I will admit that I groaned when I first saw their pictures on the display as I tend to really display celebrity fragrances (on principle).  I am so glad that I received a sample of Nirvana Black as I would never have tried either of these fragrances on my own...

The Sephora website provides background on the brand and we will start here before looking at one of the first fragrance releases from it.  "Global style icons and successful entrepreneurs Ashley Olson and Mary Kate Olson have established themselves as the fashion industry's most influential young designers.  Elizabeth and James reflects their innate personal style and attention to detail.  Ashley and Mary Kate's modern sensibility and thoughtful designs have been acknowledged by the Council of Fashion Designers of America, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal.  Ashley and Mary Kate Olson wanted the signature fragrance for Elizabeth and James to embody the same sense of duality to their partnership and brand.  The Elizabeth and James Nirvana fragrance collection represents the ultimate state of happiness - an idyllic memory, feeling, moment, or experience."

The two fragrances that represent the duality are Nirvana Black and Nirvana White.  We are looking Nirvana Black today and will be saving the White for the spring season. 

"Elizabeth and James Nirvana Black is an addictive blend of alluring violet, sensual sandalwood, and rich vanilla that strike the perfect balance between masculine and feminine.  Launched in 2007, Elizabeth and James embodies the duality of sophistication and feminine detail balanced with downtown edge and masculine tailoring. The fashion brand's contemporary-yet-timeless aesthetic offers the modern girl clothing and accessories that make stylish everyday dressing effortless.  Ashley and Mary-Kate wanted the signature fragrance for Elizabeth and James to embody the same sense of duality inherent to their partnership and the brand. The result was not one, but two blends—distinctly different, but undeniably connected.", states the Sephora website.

The fragrance notes are: Violet, Sandalwood, Vanilla.

Nirvana Black is very similar to Tom Ford Black Orchid, if you love that fragrance then you will love this one.  I tried wearing one fragrance on one wrist and then one on the other and I noticed little to no difference once they both developed on my skin.  I have a full bottle of Black Orchid already (plus of half a bottle of Bath and Body Works Black Amethyst) so I don't think that I will need to buy a full bottle of Nirvana Black until I use through that bottle.  I do love Nirvana Black for the exact same reasons that I have loved Black Orchid for years, I love the violet and sandalwood notes and I love how dark and lush the fragrance is.

This fragrance develops fully in about an hour and then lasts for a good six hours on my skin.  Black Orchid does last longer on my skin but not enough for me to insist that Black Orchid is a better fragrance.  I would wear either of the fragrances but I certainly don't need both at the moment.  I will pick up a bottle of this fragrance once my bottle of Black Orchid gets low but I absolutely recommend this as a lovely cold weather fragrance to anyone that likes strong base note fragrances or lush florals.

photo courtesy of Sephora

Smashbox Full Exposure Eye Shadow Palette

I have been hearing rumors of a third Urban Decay Naked palette and I have been playing around with my first two Naked palettes in the anticipation of adding more to my collection.  The expected release will be in early December so I still have a few weeks to wait until I can add more palettes to my eye shadow collection.  I am not the most patient person when it comes to waiting for new makeup releases so I decided that I wanted to pick up a new eye shadow palette full of great neutral hues while I was waiting.  Smashbox just released their "version" of the Urban Decay Naked palettes and Full Exposure contains a full variety of pretty neutral hues.  My last visit to Sephora was supposed to be for gift shopping but I ended up walking out only with gifts for myself...

"A set with increased-pigment and universal, neutral eye shades, a highly-rated mascara, and a get-the-look chart for six different eye shapes.  This versatile palette includes 14 must-have neutral shades—from nudes to blacks—in long-wearing shimmers and velvety smooth mattes. The clearly organized palette—shimmers on top and mattes on the bottom—makes them easy to work with, and the kit also includes a breakthrough eye shape chart to achieve your most gorgeous look, along with a dual-ended brush to use with both formulas, and a bonus Full Exposure Mascara sample.", states the Sephora website.

This eye palette contains fourteen shades, seven of them are matte and seven are shimmer hues.  The palette contains seven actual shades and then expands those shades by offering them each in a matte and shimmer finish. 

The shades contains in this palette are...

- chocolate brown with gold pearl (Shimmer)
- deep gold brown with gold pearl (Shimmer)
- soft gold with gold and silver pearl (Shimmer)
- light tan with gold and silver pearl (Shimmer)
- golden wheat with gold pearl (Shimmer)
- midtone slate with silver pearl (Shimmer)
- rich gray with multicolor and silver pearl (Shimmer)
- warm chocolate brown (Matte)
- midtone brown (Matte)
- soft midtone tan (Matte)
- creamy beige (Matte)
- soft light taupe (Matte)
- ashy dark brown (Matte)
- suede black (Matte)

The shimmer shades are the better quality of the two formulas, the matte shades have a good amount of formula and pigmentation variation.  The easiest way to use this palette to start with the one shade and apply the matte hue all over the lid and up to the browbone.  I then follow it with the matching shimmer shade right on the lid.  The brush that is provided with this palette is really the best way to apply these shades, one side is designed for the matte hues and the other for the shimmer hues.  I ignored this part of the directions when I first opened the palette and used the eye brushes that I normally use.  My favorite NARS and MAC brushes didn't hurt the product or the application but I found that using the recommended brushes from Smashbox made application easier and the pigment payoff much better from each shade.  The only other way that I recommend applying the shimmer shades is with a finger pad method.

I have moved onto the using multiple shades of the mattes together and then multiple shades of the shimmers together.  I prefer the shimmer hues, the majority of them apply nicer and have a better pigment payoff than the matte shades.  My favorite shades are the soft gold, light tan, and golden wheat shimmer shades.  I had the most issues with the application on the deeper matte shades so I would be more likely to use these wet as a liner instead of all over my lid. 

Overall, I like and recommend this palette if you like neutral hues and want a combination of matte and shimmer shades to play with.  I have been getting a lot of use from this palette and I will continue to work with it a lot even when the newest Urban Decay Naked palette releases.

photo courtesy of Sephora

Fitness Friday - Kind Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew Bars

One of my favorite store-bought healthy snacks come from the Kind Bar company, I first started buying these bars in the summer of 2011 when I did my first big weight loss using the Weight Watchers program.  I needed some type of healthy snack to eat in between meals and needed to completely change my eating habits.  I did very well that summer with changing my habits and I haven't stopped buying Kind Bars ever since.  I know throw a few of these bars into my gym bag and use them for both fuel before and after a tough workout.

The first type of bar that I tried from Kind is still my absolute favorite bar, the Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew Bars are a group of the Plus line of bars and have additional health value added to them.  I first started with this bar because I love to eat cherries in the summer months and I began buying these at the end of the summer of 2011 when cherry season was coming to an end.  I purchase these bars all throughout the fall and winter and still keep buying them during cherry season.

The Kind website describes the bars as following, "KIND Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew + Antioxidants* combines rich dark chocolate with tangy cranberries and cherries and crunchy cashews and almonds. Whether you’re at the gym, at the office, or on-the-go, Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew bars satisfy from the first bite till the very last."

I love the combination of the dark chocolate and dark cherry flavors in this bar, the nut content of the bar helps to fill me and give me energy for the rest of the day.  This is one of the few healthy snacks that I actually can look forward to eating and can kill my chocolate cravings.  I also love the amount of proteins and anti-oxidants that I get from every single bar.  In fact, one bar contains 50% of the daily amount of recommended anti-oxidants and Vitamins A, C, and E.  This Kind bar might easily be my favorite snack of the moment and I always keep one or two in my school bag to eat throughout the day.

photo courtesy of Wal Mart