Bobbi Brown Holiday 2008 Collection

I am almost done with writing about the Holiday makeup collections…but not quite! I still have a few more left and among them is Bobbi Brown. I have never used Bobbi Brown before, but every time that I passed her counter in Bloomingdales, my eyes grew to the size of saucers and I couldn’t help but gaze in wonder at everything that she offered. This collection is called “The Party Collection” (how original!) and here is the description from Bobbi Brown herself, “It’s about having fun with makeup, high color, high shimmer, and a bit of pizzazz”. Here’s Holiday…

Glitter Lip Gloss (LE) - Add a festive touch to your look this season with Bobbi’s new, limited-edition shades of glitter lip gloss, featured in the Party Collection. Infused with light-reflecting flecks of glitter, this gloss gives lips a high sine and high shimmer that’s perfect for any party or evening soiree.
- Ball
- Martini
- Soiree Pink
- Disco Pink
- Rave
- Velvet Rope

Everything & Lash Glamour Mascara Duo (LE) - A must-have for anyone who loves the look and drama of false lashes. This limited-edition, dual-ended mascara features best-selling Everything Mascara to lengthen, thicken, and define lashes and waterproof Lash Glamour Lengthening Mascara to super-lengthen, define, and curl lashes.
- Black
- Brown

Metallic Eye Shadow - Bobbi’s Metallic Eye Shadows are back by popular demand and are now a permanent part of the line. This collection features a broad shade range including rich bold colors and pastels. High-shimmer, high-pigment formula creates a sexy and sophisticated look. Color applies smoothly and evenly and stays crease-free, for all day wear.
- After Hours
- Bash
- Bonfire
- Bronze Pink
- Brown Stone
- Burnt Sugar
- Champagne Quartz
- Cognac
- Forest
- Glitz
- Gold Dust
- Golden Peach
- Iced Blue
- Indigo Nights
- Java
- Lavender
- Midnight
- Mint
- Navajo
- Peony
- Pink Chandelier
- Pink Pearl
- Rock star
- Sage
- Velvet Plum

Lip Gloss Trio (LE)- Bobbi’s Lip Gloss Trio returns this season - and is better than ever. Tucked inside a golden-copper faux leather case, you’ll find three beautiful shades of gloss; a medium golden pink, a pale glittering pink, and a pink beige with gold shimmer.

Long-Wear Eye Palette (LE)- This palette is tailor made for anyone who wants eye makeup that’s long-wearing and smudge resistant. Features new and popular shades of the best-selling Long-Wear Cream Eye Shadow, a soft velvety formula that doesn’t crease and Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner, a gel based formula that can be used to create subtle to dramatic looks.
- Moon Rock Palette - Gold Drop Long-Wear Cream Shadow, Mineral Dust Long-Wear Cream Shadow, Espresso Ink Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner, Black Topaz Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner
- Night Sky Palette - Rock Star Long-Wear Cream Shadow, Ocean Storm Long-Wear Cream Shadow, Black Ink Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner, Thunderstorm Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner

Sunset Gold Collection (Nordstrom Exclusive) - Add a little sparkle to your look this holiday season with this limited-edition collection featuring festive accents for eyes and lips. Includes new and exclusive high-shimmer Metallic Eye Shadow in Sunset Gold and Antique Gold, Glitter Lip Gloss in Bronze Pink, and a Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner in Mahogany Ink in a golden-copper faux leather mini organizer.

Lip & Eye Palette (LE)- This season, it’s all about adding a special touch to your look - and Bobbi’s making it easy with her Lip & Eye Palette. This limited-edition, double-decker palette includes new and exclusive shades of high-shimmer Metallic Eye Shadow and comfortable long-wearing Creamy Lip Color: Berry Mauve, Pink Sequin, Dusty Mauve (exclusive) and Ruby (new and exclusive) Creamy Lip Colors; Champagne Quartz, gold Dust, Golden Bronze (new and exclusive), Galaxy (new and exclusive) Metallic Eye Shadows.

Also, with this collection, Nordstrom suggests the brushes and compacts that could be purchased with these products to help create the look that Bobbi was going for when she created the collection. But really, when looking at pretty new makeup, who goes out and buys all the brushes that they recommend with it? I have my core supply of brushes from Laura Mercier, MAC, NARS, Urban Decay, and Origins and really don’t go out of my way to buy every brush that is used on. But I digress…I want the Metallic Eye Shadows and the Long-Wear Eye Palette really badly. I also will be obsessed with the Lip Gloss Trio until I can lay my hands on it. Time to head back to Bloomingdales and do more than just gaze…
photo courtesy of Nordstrom

YSL Holiday 2008 Collection

In many of the major runway shows this fall, the fashion world has been returning to the concept of menswear as womenswear. Vest and bow ties are huge so it only made sense that several months later, beauty companies would soon pick up on this trend. The first major one that has embraced this concept is Yves Saint Laurent. The Holiday 2008 Collection is men inspired beauty at its finest. The collection even features many of its products in bow tie looking containers. The model for this look is has both strong eye and lip color on, so this look may be a bit on the extreme side for the more timid among us but there will be many women ready to give it a go!

Onward into the collection…

- Holiday Set - This season, YSL offers their signature YSL black tuxedo pouch filled with Radiance Essentials; a Touche Éclat No. 1, Golden Gloss No.1, mini Luxurious Mascara No.1, and a mini YSL Elle EDP.

- Multi-Use Makeup Palette - An elegant black velvet pouch that can be used as a clutch bag, to carry one’s personal things, or as a luxurious makeup palette to take anywhere. The beautiful bow in black satin gives it fashion allure and sophistication. This multi-use palette contains two eye shadows in metallic blue and deep black, a pearly beige highlighter, a fuchsia pink matte lipstick, a transparent glittery lip gloss, and two applicators.

- Flash Radiance Skincare Brush - With a single brush stroke, signs of fatigue are erased and skin is left feeling velvety smooth and fresh with radiance! This high performance formula combines all the benefits of a skincare product with the precision and ease of a brush, the silky and comfortable texture glides over the skin, leaving it feeling incredibly fresh and invigorated. A blend of energizing active ingredients combine the Grain of Paradise extract with caffeine to erase signs of fatigue. On the skin’s surface, light reflecting micro-pigments are able to capture and diffuse light, to reduce skin imperfections and boost radiance. A seaweed derived sugar forms a veil that maintains moisture on the surface of the skin and protects it from external threats. Wheat proteins combined with sugar extracted from oats and a silicon elastomer allow for the formula to quickly smooth fine lines, leaving it soft and velvety. (WOW is that all?!)

- Touche D’Or - This frosted gold highlighter pen-brush delivers, in a single click, a fresh and evanescent texture with gold sparkles. Delicately blended on top of the cheekbones, the eyelids, the center of the lips, or the décolleté, it beautifies your face, highlighting it with soft touches of gold.

- 4 Colour Eye Shadow - An engraved bow adorns this palette of four eye shadows which reinvent the smoky eye in golden plum and rosy gray tones. Applied together, these four shades offer the most sensual and irresistible look.

- Pure Lipstick - Lip colour and care in one, Rouge Pur stays fresh for hours while ensuring hydration and protection to the lips. Honey Beige is the newest colour offered for this holiday season.

- Shimmering Lip Gloss - Dress your lips in a shimmering veil of Golden Gloss. The gloss forms mirror-effect on the lips with sparkles with mother of pearl. A complex of nourishing oils (Nigelle and Cameline oils) protect the lips while providing total comfort. This gloss contains 0.2 % of 24 carat gold to enhance the shimmer on the lips. Golden Burgundy is the newest offered for the holiday season.

- Duo Lip Colour Palette - This precious bow, inspired from the famous “Bow” bag, reveals two exquisite textures for irresistible lips; an intense raspberry lipstick and sparkling pink gloss infused with blue highlights to be worn alone or on top of the lipstick. Attached to the handbag, belt, or key ring, it becomes the perfect fashion accessory.

- Long Lasting Nail Lacquer - A nail lacquer that is both elegant and practical in its elongated glass bottle. Available in an incredible palette of shades, from the most natural to the brightest, it guarantees reinforced hold, wonderful shine, fast drying, and protected nails. Dark Blue and Moonlight White are the two newest shades for this holiday collection.

I have never tried any of the makeup from YSL but right now (if all claims that this product makes are true), I really want to try the Flash Radiance Skincare Brush. It almost seems too good to be true. I’m not really sure about the products that have gold infused in them, I don’t think that they would work with my cold toned complexion. I feel that they have the potential to be beautiful for other women but not for me.

photo courtesy of YSL

Guerlain Holiday 2008 Collection

Oh Parisian makeup lines, how I love you so! Your mysterious accent and elusive glamour that a lady in the United States can only hope to achieve. At least in this country, we do have access to some fantastic makeup lines that give us hope in order to achieve this ideal. The Holiday Collection this year from Guerlain reminds of a beautiful French women crossed with a wood nymph. Bright, elusive, ethereal. Dear readers, you are right in thinking that perhaps I have lost my mind over this collection, I have never waxed this poetic before, I feel like a magazine ad! But this collection is amazing and beautiful and a stand out among everything else that has been released so far this holiday. And yes, it stands out for me as much or more than NARS, so we know this one is very special.

The collection is called Midnight Butterfly. The official description from Guerlain is right here, “Radiant, the butterfly woman prepares herself for a night out. Her skin, transformed by iridescent powder, is sensual and velvety smooth like a Midnight Butterfly. What else would her elegant clutch bag contain but an essential KissKiss lipstick and Meteorites powder compact? The sun sets and the party begins.”

Here’s the collection…

KissKiss Lipstick
- 514 Delicate Butterfly - a delicate pearly white, perfect for adding the finishing touches to subtle makeup look
- 515 Dazzling Butterfly - sophisticated pink, produces an instantly healthy glow

KissKiss Gloss
- 802 Charming Butterfly - a stunning pink creating a multitude of effects. deceptively innocent
- 803 Intriguing Butterfly - a violet that shimmers mysteriously. Deceptively provocative.

Le 2 de Guerlain Mascara
- Butterfly Sparkle - blue lashes turn to violet in the blink of an eye. The large brushes accentuates the longest lashes with a deep black coat, whilst the mini-brush adds extra impact to create optical illusions. The colour transformation is very real thanks to the product’s sparkling pearl-gel formula, which creates variable effects.

Meteorites Butterfly Pearls - small, exquisite powder pearls that are meant to smoothed over the neck and decollate and are now available in a powder compact version. Available in soft pearly beige and pink shades, these new maxi pearls are twice as desirable. The lid of the box is adorned with the collection’s signature butterfly.
- Meteorites Voyage

Radiant Butterfly - compact powder for the face. When the pearls transform themselves, they metamorphose into beige and pink butterflies to fit inside bags, makeup bags, and pockets. They are pressed into a pearly pink travel compact wherever you are and at any time. A delicate powdery and subtle pearl glow illuminates the skin.
- Sublime Radiance Powder

Midnight Butterfly - the timeless refinement of this elegant powder spray into a perfume type bottle. The atomizer is decorated with a luxurious butterfly that can be clipped onto your handbag or the neckline of your dress. Delicate, soft, light, smooth, luscious, evanescent…There are scarcely enough adjectives to describe this innovative powder. Its secret lies in its silicon pearl that leaves the skin peachy soft, smooth, velvety and radiant. The ultimate aid to seduction, Midnight Butterfly can be sprayed onto the face, body (does not stain clothes), and hair. Let the fun begin. A powder delicately scented with violet reminding us of Guerlain’s signature powders. A fragrance trail that is unique, sophisticated, and instantly recognizable.

Ombre Eclat 4 Couleurs
- Mysterious Butterfly - creates enigmatic, sublime, and sensual eyes. Inspired by the powdery shades of the wings a rare butterfly, this new palette of eye shadows contains four, unique vibrant shades (white, mauve, soft pink, and violet) from the famous Guerlain Ombre Eclat 4 shades box. A lucky butterfly spreads it wings among the powders leaving its subtle silvery pearl stamp against the backdrop of color.

I had to copy the above descriptions right from the Guerlain website because I could find no more beautiful way to describe this collection than what they have provided for the public. AND WOWOW!!! This collection is both unique and amazing. Many times, I use the word “unique” to describe something that is not beautiful but I don’t really want to call it ugly. However this collection is one in a million. This is the only holiday collection that I have seen that doesn’t contain red lipstick or black eyeliner. I want it all!

photo courtesy of Guerlain

Shu Uemura Holiday 2008 Collection

After several days of deviations about nail polish and holiday scented lotions, I am now ready to get back to talking about the holiday makeup collections. This time I am going to hit on Shu Uemura, a line that I have a very hard time finding and therefore neither own nor have ever really seen any of it. I find this collection on the Nordstrom website and now I am beginning to wonder if the store closest to me has any of it and somehow I just missed the whole collection because I was blinded by the enormous Chanel and MAC counters and huge section of Philosophy products. I am feeling that a trip back to that store in coming up sometime soon…

Here is the description from the Nordstrom website. “Enjoy the world of Shu Uemura as designed through the eyes of acclaimed Japanese photographer Mika Ninagawa. Explosive vivid colors for the eyes, lips, and nails, combined with one-of-a-kind packaging bring distinctive looks and artistic beauty.” This collection is called Miki and unfortunately, I have no knowledge about the basis and inspiration for this line because I do not know anything about Mika Ninagawa. But the colors are still beautiful, so I’m not very upset about my lack of knowledge. Some of the pictures weren’t really doing it for me on the Nordstrom site, so I decided to head on over to the Shu Uemura site and see if they looked better.

Here are the products…

- Mika Holiday Collection Mini Gloss Trio in Delicious Rose - contains three juicy vivid lip gloss colors to create a dewy finish on the lips. Contains Candy Orange, Candy Pink, and Red. Housed in a soft vinyl case with one’s of Ninagawa’s photographs on.

- Rouge Unlimited Petal Brown Beige - Limited-edition shade in a beautiful beige, encased with the imagery of the enchanting peony flower

- Rouge Unlimited Petal Orange Beige - Limited-edition shade in a beautiful orange beige encased with the imagery of the enchanting peony flower

- Rouge Unlimited Petal Pink Beige - Limited-edition shade in a beautiful pinkish beige, encased with the imagery of the beautiful peony flower.

- Mika Portable Brush Set - Red on the outside with a special Mika red rose photograph lining on the inside. This case includes four limited-edition brushes that has been handmade in Japan to provide optimal application. This set includes Natural 27 Goat Brush for face, Natural 17 Pony and Squirrel Brush for cheeks, Natural 10 Sable and Kolinsky Brush for eyes and Natural 6M Sable Brush for lips.

- Mika Cosmetic Pouch - Limited-edition cosmetics pouch with Mika’s chrysanthemum photograph and the exterior and vivid pink on the inside.

- Drawing Pencil Mini Trio Set - Set of three limited-edition shades of mini sized drawing pencils in deep blue, burgundy brown, and full black shades

- Eye Color Palette in Secret Luscious Rose - The subtle combination of dusty rose shades expresses elegance and mystery. This palette includes seven pressed eye shadows and one easy to spread cream liner. A double ended applicator (sponge tip and eyeliner brush) is also included.
- Eye Color Palette in Midnight Winter Sakura - These deep, strong colors create a glamorous and feminine impression. This palette includes seven pressed eye shadows and one easy to spread cream liner. A double ended applicator (sponge tip and eyeliner brush) is also included.

- Eye Color Palette in Adorned Marguerite - These vivid colors create a sweet and innocent makeup look. This palette includes seven pressed eye shadows and one easy to spread cream liner. A double ended applicator (sponge tip and eyeliner brush) is also included.

- Mika Holiday Collection Slant Purple False Eyelashes - These limited-edition false lashes extend and flare outward with a chic black and purple gradation. Alternating lengths and delicate, wispy lashes adds a touch of subtlety for a voluminous and feminine finish.

- Mika Holiday Collection Mini Red False Eyelashes - These limited-edition lashes with alternating strips of red and black add a hint of flare to the outer corners of the eye. Lash line is extended for a flirty look.

- Mika Holiday Collection Smoky Layers False Eyelashes - Layers of thin black lashes add volume to your lash line, creating a sultry look reminiscent of old Hollywood glamour.

- Mika Holiday Collection Luxe Brown False Eyelashes - Inspired by the mink false eyelashes custom-ordered by celebrities, this synthetic version features criss-crossed design to provide the most voluminous lashes.

- Gloss Unlimited Mini Trio Set in Seductive Gerbera - Limited edition set of mini-sized Gloss Unlimited. The gloss set includes three classical and feminine colors of Gold, Pink, and Wine Red to dress up your lips. Complete with an exclusive portable soft cosmetic pouch decorated with Ninagawa photograph.

- Sparkling Garnet Aquarium Nail Enamel - An alluring red wine with subtle reflection.

- Tanzanite Aquarium Nail Enamel - A deep underwater shade with fine sliver glitter.

Three words - LOVE, WANT, MUST HAVE. I will be stalking my Nordstrom for that eye palette even if I only end up loving the rose packaging. Oh my love of roses…

photo courtesy of Shu Uemura

A Very Bath and Body Works Christmas

In case anyone reading this is not aware, I have more bath and body products than anyone else known to mankind. I worked at Bath and Body Works for several years in college and even though I have moved on from that job, I still sometimes get the itch to go back in there and buy more stuff that I won’t have a chance to use for the next year or two. Lately, I haven’t really been a fan of many of their new scents (with the exceptions of Enchanted Orchid and the already discontinued Blushing Cherry Blossom) so I have been pretty good about walking out of the store empty handed. But it is now that time of the year when they put up the twinkling lights, play the crappy Christmas music, and they bring back my favorite holiday scents and products and I get the irrational urge to stock up on all of them, lest they sell out within a day or two of hitting the shelves. Yes, I know this fear is silly but I have seen in more than one year of being there that the shower gels sell before Thanksgiving and usually the only things left after Black Friday are hand soaps and Vanilla Bean Noel body lotion. So, of course I had to go in early to get all of my products before the masses hit the mall.

This year, the scents were all returning favorites and ones that I already had in my collection (except Winter Candy Apple, I finished that one up a couple years ago). The scents are Vanilla Bean Noel, Twisted Peppermint, and Winter Candy Apple. My favorite by far in Vanilla Bean Noel because as we all know, I love anything that makes me smell like dessert. Vanilla Bean Noel is a scent that blends fresh vanilla bean, warm caramel, and rich, comforting cream to create a deliciously sweet holiday indulgence. Twisted Peppermint blends cool, refreshing mint with white sugar and just a hint of rich vanilla to create an invigorating indulgence. Winter Candy Apple blends crisp apple, sweet orange and pineapple with cinnamon spice to create a joyous holiday indulgence. All of these scents come in assorted bath and body products, sprays and roll-ons, and some forms of home fragrance. The only downfall is that the shower gels are filled with glitter but at least it doesn’t stick to the skin after being rinsed off.

So far this year I have collected (on top of what I already had)

- Twisted Peppermint shower gel and body cream

- Winter Candy Apple shower gel, body lotion, body cream, and filled candle (makes my house smell like a candy store!!)

- Vanilla Bean Noel - two shower gels, two body lotion, and two body creams

So based on my irrational stock piling of these scents, I might actually open them up by next Labor Day… Honestly though, I now can’t imagine a holiday season where I don’t buy a massive stock of these scents so I have a feeling this tradition will continue.

photo courtesy of Bath and Body Works

O.P.I. Holiday 2008 Collection

I have been talking about holiday makeup for the last few weeks here and now I need to break from it and cover something else that is holiday inspired. After seeing an ad for the new O.P.I. holiday nail polish colors, I knew that I had a new topic to write about. For nail polishes, I mostly use Lippmann Collection and Chanel. I also have a couple of old bottles of Essie, O.P.I., and Nicole but I haven’t really used them in ages and I may have thrown most of them away last time I cleaned out my traincase. So this collection is all new to me and I am ready to investigate some new colors from this company. This collection is called Holiday in Toyland and it is 12 new nail shades with 3 coordinating shades for lips.

Here are the colors…

- Girls Just Want to Play - A playfully pretty coral-red

- Red Hot Gift - A merry, must-have bright red

- Little Red Wagon - A classic holiday red

- Rosy Mistletoes-sies - A cozy magenta shimmer

- A Ruby for Rudolph - A glimmering jewel red to light up the night

- Don’t Toy With Me! - A burgundy day that’s seriously gorgeous

- “Sheer” Your Toys - But keep this pale gray for yourself!

- You’re a Doll! - You’re tutu sweet in this delicate hint of pink!

- Glamour Game - Play it in style with this champagne gold

- Brand New Skates - A dark silver that’s cutting edge

- Baby, It’s “Coal” Outside - Warm up with this rich, charcoal shimmer

- Play Til’ Midnight - In this elegant midnight blue

The matching lip shades that are available are Little Red Wagon, Rosy Mistletoes-sies, and Don’t Toy With Me. From this collection, I can already find some new colors that give me a reason to get back into shopping for O.P.I. I definitely want “Sheer” Your Toys, You’re a Doll, and Play Til’ Midnight. I also want to check out A Ruby for Rudolph and see how it compares to other reds that I have. I really want to see Baby, It’s “Coal” Outside and see if I can pull this color off in real life.

photo courtesy of O.P.I.

Givenchy Holiday 2008 Collection

I haven’t owned many products from Givenchy but since I really did love many of the products from their Fall 2008 Collection, I was quite excited to look at what they were coming out with for this Holiday. I was not disappointed by this collection. I am beginning to think that going forward, I will begin to regard Givenchy up there with NARS and Urban Decay in my personal favorite brands. The official description as found on the Sephora website is as follows, “Designed for women who like a little “sparkle” for a sophisticated evening look. Givenchy’s newest holiday collection offers a stunning complexion sculpted by touches of glowing light, shades of pink and purple shimmer on the lips, and bewitching deep shades for the eyes.” I love this collection! I am so excited to see pinks and purples instead of the traditional blacks and reds that are offered every single holiday. According to the Sephora website, this entire collection is exclusive to Sephora (however, I have heard that many times before and it often is not totally accurate).

The latest collection…

Prisme Again! Blush Quartet - Glowing Rose

Prismissime Eyes 9-Colors Eye Shadow - Tempting Chocolate

Phenomen’Eyes Mascara - Phenomen’Black

Rouge Interdit Shine Lipstick
- 02 Nude Shine - shimmering beige pink
- 07 Rose Shine - shimmering raspberry

Pop Gloss Crystal
- Rose by Night - sheer light pink with micro glitter
- Plum by Night - berry plum with micro glitter

Vernis Please! Nail Lacquer - Purple by Night - deep violet

I am in love right now. I actually haven’t been this excited about a Holiday collection since I looked at NARS (that is saying something HUGE)! I want the 07 Rose Shine lip gloss and I will not be resting until I get this color. I am wondering how close this color is to the always out of stock MAC Dazzleglasses. I will admit that I have never used a lip gloss from Givenchy so I can’t comment on the texture and wear of the Givenchy gloss. This color is all the motivation that I need to try this line out. I also really love the new blush shades in this collection but I would need to see this product in real life to decided whether or not to purchase it because I can’t quite tell from the pictures exactly how shimmery this color is and I am not a fan of really shimmery blushes. I love the idea of pinks and violets for this Holiday and I can’t wait to head out to Sephora to see this shades.

photo courtesy of Sephora

Urban Decay Holiday Collection 2008 - Three Piece

Each season instead of creating a whole brand new limited edition collection, Urban Decay creates a couple new colors and products (usually adding them to their permanent line) and creates looks with these colors and products. But these looks aren’t just brand new colors, the company combines some of the older and better selling colors into the looks also. So instead of having to purchase a whole brand new set of makeup to match some of these looks, you might be able to get away with using the colors that you already have and buying only a couple new items. For myself who has a huge collection of Urban Decay, I do only have to buy one or two items in order to create each look but to be fair, someone who does not own a train case full of Urban Decay would most likely have to buy the whole look.

My favorite of the holiday looks is called Three Piece. However in this look, the makeup artists used blue and green eyeliners so I already know that I would have to try this same look with bronze and gold shades. The basis of this look is that it is a strong eye makeup based look, using 6 different eyeliners. Yes, you read that correct, 6 different eyeliners. The base liners are the 24/7 liners and liners on top are the Heavy Metal Glitter Eyeliners. It appears that in the inner part of the eye, the liners form a greenish blue color, then in the middle, they appear bright blue, then the corner of the eye has a purplish hue on top. Then under the eye, Zero (with nothing on top of it) is used to finish up the look. With the use of the multiple liners, each hue is sparkly and iridescent and would most likely change colors with the lighting. I love this for evening.

What they used…

24/7 Glide On Eye Pencil
- Dime (very metallic silver)
- Covet (peacock green)
- Lust (plush purple)
- Zero (zealous black)

Heavy Metal Glitter Eyeliner
- Glam Rock (silver)
- Stage Dive (not sold on its own, looks like an aqua color)
- Metalhead (bright purple)

Afterglow Blush
- Score (peachy gold with shimmer)

XXX Shine Lip Gloss
- Ozone (pure, clear shine)

Big Fatty Mascara

As stated above, these colors are not for me, but I really want to try this look. I am hoping that this look is not totally out of my skill range but I think the hardest part will be the Heavy Metal liners because I don’t have much experience with glitter or liquid liner. However, I think this look would be worth practicing.

photo courtesy of Urban Decay

Dior Holiday 2008 Collection

Oh Christian Dior and your beautiful navy blue compacts. I just love to look at the packaging of these products but I haven’t always had the greatest admiration for the product inside. I’ve never disliked a Dior eye shadow but I have felt that some of them are rather generic and the pigmentation is not always what I would except from something with the Dior logo on it. Mascara is another story, they are tops for that product. Keeping this in mind, I looked at the Holiday 2008 Collection expecting to love it on first sight then be somewhat disappointed with some of the choices. Let’s see how I fared…

So trying to write this article took me a bit longer than it normally does. The Sephora site only lists the Fall 2008 collection for Dior and nothing about the Holiday collection and the Dior site is not working with my computer today for some reason. I went onto the Nordstrom site and spent a decent amount of time trying to pick through what was listed in order to find the newest products and shades. So I am warning everyone right now, this may not be completely correct as to only having brand new shades in or I may have inadvertently left something out. I will try to get onto the Dior site again but it hasn’t worked twice already so I really don’t think it will work a third time.

That all being said, the collection that is up on the Nordstrom website is called “Black and White Ball”. That sounds like holiday to me!! The description from the Nordstrom site is as follows, “Dior’s new look is every woman’s top secret evening weapon for glamorous couture allure. Centered around dazzling intense eyes, delicate luminous face and lip colors offer a soft backdrop. Nails shine with jewel-like brilliance.”

The products…

- Dior Night Diamond Compact - Beige Diamond, described as an iridescent veil laced with shimmer to give an allover glow

- Dior Deluxe Travel Palette - contains a color powder blush, sun powder, six eye shadows, a deluxe travel size Diorshow mascara, and a Dior Addict Ultra Gloss Reflect

- Dior Holiday Eye Palette - a set of four shadows, comes in Cool or Warm

- Dior 5-Colour Eye Shadow- Night Dust

- Dior Waterproof Crayon Eyeliner - Trinidad Black

- Diorshow Blackout Mascara - Dior’s deepest kohl black mascara shade

- Dior Blush - English Rose, two colors in one palette that can be worn separately or mixed to create different looks

- Dior Holiday Lip Palette - a set of four lip colors, comes in Cool or Warm

- Dior Rouge Dior Lipstick - Eternal Beige (BORING!)

- Dior Crème de Gloss - Honey Delight (ALMOST AS BORING!)

The eye shadow colors are the best part of this collection. I know that the collection is focused around strong eyes but Dior could have offered a bit more of choice with the lip shades. Beige lip tones don’t work for everyone and a mauve or two work have been a workable choice for those with cooler skin tones. I love the Night Diamond Compact and of course, ALL THE PACKAGING!!!

photo courtesy of Nordstrom