OPI | Pink of Hearts 2014

OPI has just released it’s 8th annual Pink of Hearts 2014 limited edition duo in support of breast cancer awareness, which features Mod About You (a pale pink hue, part of the core lineup), and The Power of Pink, LE (a pink confetti glitter hue). The set also includes a pink glitter nail file with a pink-ribbon charm (not shown here) and will retail for CAN $21.50. There isn’t one of us who hasn’t been touched in some way by this disease, but thanks in part to initiatives like this, progress is being made daily to eradicate it once and for all.

This year, OPI will donate $25,000 to the Susan G. Komen® Foundation (US) and $5,000 to Rethink Breast Cancer (Canada), in proud support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October).

OPI | Pink of Hearts 2014

Mod About You | A cool-leaning opaque pale pink crème hue with a very distinctive ‘mod’ vibe (think: Twiggy or Andy Warhol’s Factory days). The formula is relatively streak-free even at the first coat – a surprise, considering the colour – and applies smoothly, dries relatively quick and leaves behind a glossy finish. There’s a brightness to Mod About You that almost has it bordering on neon – but only just. Coats applied: 2, no top coat

The Power of Pink | A pale milky base hue filled with white & metallic magenta hex glitter pieces in sizes ranging from tiny to medium-large. There’s an excellent amount of glitter per brush stroke for application – no ‘fishing’ needed (as in, fishing to get the glitter from the contents), and the surface becomes relatively smooth with the addition of a layer of top coat. Easiest when layered over another shade – as I’ve done here – because you’ll only need to apply just 1 coat, but The Power of Pink can also be worn alone, although you’ll probably need about 2-3 coats for a decent opacity; that gives a sort of diffused, soft effect to the nails. Coats applied: 1 (over a base of Mod About You)

For the last swatch (below), I added a coat of a translucent white on top (OPI’s Funny Bunny) to create a ‘glitter sandwich’ – I absolutely love the effect and how it seems to blur the entire look, as though seen under frosted glass (and for some reason, it makes me think of ice cream *shrugs*).

OPI | Pink of Hearts 2014 & Funny Bunny

Even if you don’t love glitter (or pink), tell me that this isn’t the most fun duo you’ve seen? Mod About You is one of those pale pinks that is so unlike traditional pastels, and will have people stopping you to ask what shade you’re wearing (it happened to me), while The Power of Pink has such a happy, lighthearted tone about it (and doesn’t seem to take itself too seriously either, if we assume that nail polish has personality. Or maybe that’s just me) that it’s made to have fun with – an ideology that’s just so perfectly in line with the inspiration behind The Pink of Hearts 2014 – embracing life.

Available September & October at professional salons and spas nation-wide. Find more information via:

*Disclosure: Press samples provided by the company/PR for my unbiased consideration

Guerlain | Christmas Colour Collection 2014 (Limited Edition)

September 23, 2014

This holiday season, Guerlain takes us back to the opulence of Imperial Russia with the Christmas Colour Collection 2014. These limited edition products with their gold packaging and luxurious ruby details throughout, echo the grandeur of that era: picture taking a ride in an ornately embellished horse-drawn gilt carriage with the snow swirling above, while you’re wrapped up snugly in [faux] fur pelts. Or sitting in a velvet-esconced box at the theatre, opera glasses held in satin-lined & elbow-length gloves, waiting to enjoy a performance of Swan Lake by the Bolchoï Ballet. Or indulging in the finest Belugan caviar.

My inner Russian princess is showing…

For the first time since its creation in 1937, Guerlain has reproduced Coque d’Or‘s original bottle and reinterpreted it in golden-lacquered glass adorned with a vibrant red bulb, but filling it with a light-as-air loose powder to add a shimmering veil to hair or skin. The Petrouchka Palette with its beautifully curated golden/bronze eye colours and assortment of blush shades is as wearable as it is lovely to behold, while the warm hues of the Météorites Perles d’Étoile in their gold-toned metal tin will not only enhance your complexion, but call to mind exquisitely-crafted Fabergé Eggs. Scarlet siren lips, luminous eye shadows and nails tipped in gold all add the finishing touches and voilà – the season is officially on.

The Christmas Colour Collection 2014 (Limited Edition) launches at Guerlain counters November 1st

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Coque D’Or Spray Powder (CAN $105.00)

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Petrouchka Eye & Blush Palette (CAN $95.00)

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Petrouchka Eye & Blush Palette

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Météorites Perles d’Étoile (CAN $67.00)

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Météorites Perles d’Étoile

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Rouge G Parade (CAN $56.00)

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Écrin 2 Couleurs #10 Cygne Noir (CAN $51.00)

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Écrin 2 Couleurs #11 Cygne Blanc (CAN $51.00)

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Gloss d’Enfer #920 Rouge Parade (CAN $33.00)

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | Gloss d’Enfer #901 L’Oiseau de Feu (CAN $33.00)

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | La Lacque Couleur Coque d’Or (CAN $27.00)

Guerlain Christmas Colour Collection 2014 | La Lacque Couleur Top Coat Oiseau de Feu (CAN $27.00)

Find more information via: website, twitter, Facebook, Instagram

*Images credit: PR for Guerlain

NUDESTIX | Angel Magnetic Eye Color Pencil, Love Cheek + Lip Pencil, & Shimmer Eye Pencil

September 23, 2014

Question: what do you get when you cross a chemical engineer mom with 2 impossibly gorgeous teen daughters? Answer: why, makeup, of course. Introducing NUDESTIX™, a line of beauty pencils to help you achieve the ‘no makeup makeup’ look, or as the brand’s tagline says “go nude, but better”. With her daughters Ally & Taylor as muses, Jenny Frankel – a woman with over 20 years experience in the beauty industry (she was the creator behind M.A.C’s Lipglass), decided to streamline the everyday woman’s beauty routine. Observing how her daughters preferred minimal, neutral shades and used fingers instead of brushes for tools, evolved into a luxury beauty range comprised of portable ‘crayon’ style pencils (with the exception of their mascara, which comes in a usual format with a brush).

The collections consists of 2 types of eye pencils: the Magnetic Eye Color Pencils which come in 4 shades (Angel, Moon, Twilight, Night) – long wearing with a deep shine factor, 8 shades of Eye Pencils (Cream, Shimmer*, Stardust*, Golden*, Bronze*, Burnish* Pewter*, Smoke) – with all-in-one shadow, liner & highlighter properties for most hues (shades marked with * are soft metallics), 1 Mascara (in black), 8 shades of Concealer Pencil (from light to deep), and 8 shades of Lip + Cheek Pencils (Whisper, Love, Blush, Mystic, Ripe, Soul, Sin & Flesh) – that can be used just as effortlessly on the face as on the lips (you can also check out a few other shades, reviewed by Sabrina of The Beauty Look Book).

Each pencil (and the mascara) comes housed in an eco-friendly and reusable black tin that supports a full-sized mirror on the inner lid, an insert with easy & helpful instructions, as well as a total genius touch: a sharpener that not only fits snugly on one end of the pencil, but comes complete with its own cap to keep shavings (and messes) at bay (with the exception of the mascara that doesn’t need a sharpener *doh*). No more fighting with dull pencils when you’re on the go plus each unit has its own sharpener, so no sharing means no colours bleeding in to each other. Like I said, genius.

All NUDESTIX™ products are preservative and fragrance-free.

Ally & Taylor, the brain[children] behind NUDESTIX™

NUDESTIX™

NUDESTIX™ | Shimmer Eye Pencil, Angel Magnetic Eye Color Pencil & Love Lip + Cheek Pencil

NUDESTIX™

NUDESTIX™ | Open tin with insert

NUDESTIX™ | Inner cap holds a full-size mirror

NUDESTIX™ | Angel Magnetic Eye Color Pencil

NUDESTIX™ | Angel Magnetic Eye Color Pencil (ingredients list)

NUDESTIX™ | Angel Magnetic Eye Color Pencil + sharpener (included)

Angel Magnetic Eye Color Pencil (CAN $28.00) | A nude shimmer eye shadow with a warm peachy tint, in a waterproof pencil format. The texture is incredibly creamy and glides effortlessly along the skin, leaving behind a rich shimmery veil of colour that can be sheered out – although you do have to work quickly to do so, or layered for more depth & intensity. Once applied, you have just a couple of minutes to blend this out because once it sets, it’s there for the duration; a swatch test on my inner arm even lasted through showering. On my eyelids (prone to oiliness), I was able to wear Angel without any primer and experienced no visible creasing at all – a highly impressive feature of the staying power of this pencil. NOTE: You will need a dual-phase eye makeup remover to take this off (I swear by the one from Neutrogena).

NUDESTIX™ | Angel Magnetic Eye Color Pencil

NUDESTIX™ | Love Lip + Cheek Pencil

NUDESTIX™ | Love Lip + Cheek Pencil (ingredients list)

Love Lip + Cheek Pencil (CAN $28.00) | A petal pink hue without shimmer, in a highly emollient formula that can be worn either on the lips or cheeks. I love how easily this goes on and I experience no tugging or pulling in application, and even though this shade is just a touch too pale for my colouring, I am still able to pull it off for an easy daytime look. As a blush, I found it to be too sheer and it never really ‘set’ – especially on bare skin, unless I added a powder blusher on top for added longevity (which then defeats the purpose of using Love as a blush), although it did give a nice glow while it lasted. I had better luck wearing this shade over foundation, but again, the colour slides a bit too much to be built up. On the lips, this is an amazing pencil – soft, gliding and leaving a hydrated feel behind, with an average staying power of about 2.5 hours.

NUDESTIX™ | Love Lip + Cheek Pencil

NUDESTIX™ | Shimmer Eye Pencil

NUDESTIX™ | Shimmer Eye Pencil (ingredients list)

Shimmer Eye Pencil (CAN $28.00) | An eye shadow pencil in a champagne hue that has an excellent mix of both cool & warm tones, making it wearable for basically all complexions. The smudger that is built in to one end, is of an excellent quality and soft enough to help you blend this shadow with ease. Not as long wearing as the Magnetic Eye Color Pencils, you may find you need to apply primer first for added staying power (especially for those with oily lids), although I didn’t see noticeable creasing until a few hours in – and that’s without primer. As an eye shadow applied to the mobile lid, Shimmer gives my eyes a nice ‘wide-awake’ shine that’s not overly blingy – just add a quick swipe of mascara and the look is done. This shade also works beautifully as an inner eye or brow bone highlighter, as well as to accentuate the cupid’s bow and even along the tops of cheekbones, although the latter means a bit more work to blend it out seamlessly there.

NUDESTIX™ | Shimmer Eye Pencil

NUDESTIX™ | Shimmer Eye Pencil (smudger end)

NUDESTIX™ | Shimmer Eye Pencil

What can be easier than using a pencil to apply all your makeup needs? There are enough shade variances in the eye, lip/cheek & skin (concealer) pencils available, to accommodate basically all skin tones and colour preferences, and the pencil-cap sharpener is an addition that makes you wonder why no one has thought of this before. The quality of the 3 pencils I tried is amazing and I’m also a fan of all the little details that went into this entire range – from the reusable tin (perfect to store several of your NUDESTIX™ pencils in), to the simple & clean concept, making these pencils a truly on-the-go product. For anyone who’s a fan of a more minimal makeup look while still appearing ‘done’, I find the NUDESTIX range to be definitely worth looking – and investing – in. Personally, I’ll be checking out some of the darker hues available … there’s something very addictive about scribbling on one’s face, and it actually looking good!

Available through select Sephora stores (Canada & US), as well as Space.NK – Find more information via:

*Disclosure: Press samples provided by the company/PR for my unbiased consideration

MFW Makeup Edition | Giorgio Armani SS/15

September 22, 2014

At the Giorgio Armani Womenswear SS/15 show for MFW (Milan Fashion Week) held this past September 20, Mr. Armani – the master of exquisite tailoring – presented a collection of dreamy, flowing creations with exceptional detailing in his signature neutral and earth-toned shades, down the runway. Accompanying the fashion, International Makeup Artist for Giorgio Armani, Linda Cantello, created a look on the models that was at once grounded and ethereal, to go with the collection which was inspired by the ‘indecipherable mystery of nature’.

“Dusty sand shades create mysterious shadows around the eyes, highlighted by broken flashes of silver, finished by a unique skin colour with light reflection”

For many seasons now, Giorgio Armani Beauty has created the Armani Runway Lab – a unique tool designed for use backstage at Giorgio Armani fashion shows. Composed of a range of pigments and bases, the Armani Runway Lab enables Linda Cantello to create colours live backstage (as in, on the spot and completely custom-made).

As of this season (Spring/Summer 2015), Giorgio Armani Beauty will be making the products formulated backstage at the Armani Runway Lab, available for the first time to its customers.

The Armani Runway Makeup Collection is a range of 3 products in exclusive shades: a couture face-and-eye palette, a lipstick, and a nail lacquer. All are born live backstage and will become available to the public only 6 months later. For the very first time, the makeup seen on the Armani runway will be available at selected stores at the same time as the matching collections, twice a year (as in Spring/Summer and again for Fall/Winter). Therefore, the Giorgio Armani Spring/Summer 2015 Runway Makeup Collection will be available for purchase as of February 2015.

Get the look: a step-by-step guide to the SS/15 makeup

SKIN: Prepare the skin with Crema Nera Extrema Supreme Reviving Light Cream. Apply the new Crema Nera Extrema Oil Elixir (coming February 2015) where extra care is needed.

FACE & EYES: Skin is pale, with a translucent matte sand glow. Eyes are the focal point with 3 custom-made eye shadows. Use the deep taupe shade to softly contour eye sockets and underneath. Smudge and blend. Reinforce shadow deepening on the shape of the eye, aiming for a sultry lid. Use the beige shade with a pink gold reflective quality on the eyelid. Finish by applying the silver shade in very thin strokes to create a straight broken line along the lash line. If needed, use the taupe shade to lengthen, strengthen and lengthen the brow.

LIPS: A unique skin colour, which reflects light, applied as a thin layer.

NAILS: Custom-made brown copper shade with a velvet finish for nails (looks very similar to Giorgio Armani Beauty #214 Woodstone (LE), previously reviewed here)

The finale – bejewelled and beaded & barefoot

*Images credit: Giorgio Armani, Vogue

Hand Chemistry | Intense Youth Complex

September 22, 2014

You can change the colour of your hair to hide your age. You can even use makeup to erase years from your face, but the turning back the clock on the skin of your hands, has been almost impossible to do … until now. Finally on our shores from across the pond where it’s been literally selling off the shelves, is Hand Chemistry Intense Youth Complex, a hand cream that ‘targets the eight signs of hand ageing simultaneously for visibly younger looking hands in just 10 days‘. Forget waiting for 10 days; I saw results from the first application.

EDIT: Please note that the exterior of Intense Youth Complex has had a slight ‘face-lift’ (new design), although everything else remains the same – my product photos are shown with the original version.

Hand Chemistry | Intense Youth Complex

Hand Chemistry | Intense Youth Complex (CAN $19.99) – I’m not a chemist, so I won’t try to explain exactly how all the ingredients in Hand Chemistry Intense Youth Complex work, but in a nutshell, the active components of this hand cream (such as the mushroom derivative Tremella Fuciformis, an algae ferment, Sacha Inchi oil and Maize Propanediol) work synergistically to supply longer-lasting and more moisture to the skin than Hyaluronic Acid, increase the moisture content (which translates to firmer and plumper looking skin) and finally form a protective barrier to keep this new-found moisture locked in.

The hand cream is white in colour with a medium consistency and smooth texture, bearing a pleasant and natural smelling citrus/herbal scent. Once applied, it takes a few minutes to become fully absorbed into the skin, but even at this stage, the change is clearly visible – lines become less pronounced and the the surface of the skin itself also seems magically smoother – nothing overt, but a noticeable change just the same. When applied to the palms, Intense Youth Complex leaves a slippery, silicone-like feel behind which takes several minutes to absorb on its own – something worth noting. The directions state to apply this cream morning and evening, but since I love the results so much, I find it very difficult sticking to that — I literally want to use it all day long. After about a week, I noticed a huge change in the skin of my hands as they appear significantly revived and well, refreshed-looking.

Hand Chemistry | Intense Youth Complex

Hand Chemistry | Intense Youth Complex (unretouched)

I moisturize my hands A LOT and even though there are several brands that I have always sworn by, none of them have ever shown results as rapidly as the Intense Youth Complex. The fact that this hand cream isn’t priced out of the stratosphere, makes things even sweeter and with Winter just around the corner and the ensuing dryness my skin goes through every year, I’ll be ready for it. Or, at least my hands will … now Hand Chemistry needs to come out with a full-body version of this cream, and I’ll be set.

Available through Shopper’s Drug Mart/Murale stores (Canada) – find more information via: