Tom Ford Spring Beauty: New Cream Color for Eyes

Photo from Tom Ford Beauty

Tom Ford just launched his first seasonal, limited edition collection for Spring 2012 and is largely inspired by metallics.  In addition to 4 new nail polish shades, there are four new cream eye shadows.  I saw the display at Sak's today, and had a look at the new offerings.


The cream eye shadows come in traditional pots, and the formula is very, very wet.  When picking up the product with my finger to swatch it was hard to pick up a small amount because the formula was so airy, almost like a very wet mousse. The shades are very metallic, and highly pigmented.  They were easy to blend before they set.  After about a half hour, I smudged the swatches on my hand to get a sense of the lasting power, and they did move and smudge considerably.  But no one is going to be smudging your eye lid so I'm not sure how useful my little test was!


The colors are gorgeous.  Ultra metallic and ultra reflective!  Tom Ford claims they are long wearing and crease free.  Starting from the left is Platinum, which is a must have for taupe lovers! Next is Guilt, which is a true gold and the most glittery of the shades.  It also applied the most sheer.  Next is Illicit, a burnished red brown and finally Spice, a shimmery bronze brown.  My favorites are Platinum and Spice!

L to R: Platinum, Guilt, Illicit, Spice

L to R: Platinum, Guilt, Illicit, Spice

I really wanted to pick one of these up, but I resisted (for the moment).  These are beautiful but they will cost you! Each retails for $40.00. They are limited edition, so if you want one snag it up now! They are available on the Sak's website. 

YSL Glossy Stain in No. 19: Beige Aquarelle

A gloss and a stain and long wearing? YSL makes a lot of striking claims with the release of its new Rouge Pur Couture Vernis A Levres Glossy Stains, and certainly has the beauty community buzzing! I took a good look at the shades, and most I find to be fairly dark, with the exception of 2.  Being a nude lip fanatic, I choose number 19, Beige Aquarelle.  Beige Aquarelle is a very pale pink, but with a neutral undertone.  This makes it very wearable for most complexions.


On application, the first coat feels very watery on the lips and so the color deposit with this initial coat is not even.  Within a few seconds, the coat sets slightly and thickens as well as becomes slightly tacky.  Once this occurs, I apply a second coat and achieve a nice even color distribution to my lips.  There is settling of the color into the lines of my lips. This layer also sets and thickens.  The finish is indeed very glossy!  


Now, from what I have read online and seen first hand, the lasting power of the dark shades (which are most of the shades) is really amazing! The YSL counter girls had some of the dark plummy shades on their lips and after 6 hours of wear had very glossy and richly colored lips! It was truly unbelievable! It looked as if it was a freshly applied coat of lipstick and gloss on top! I don't think the light shades fair as well, at least in my experience.  This is however, what I would expect from a light shade.  When I wore this, I found the pigment disappeared after 2-3 hours, but I could feel the gloss on my lips for much longer than that.  The tacky feeling definitely remained on my lips for several hours, even once the pigment was gone.  

Overall, I think if you want the most mileage out of this product I would select one of the darker shades.  I don't think the lighter shades deliver in terms of lasting color, but this is on par with what I would expect from a nude shade.  They definitely feel watery on initial application and then tacky throughout wear, so if stickiness bothers you in a gloss then I'm not sure you will like these.  On the other hand I think the stickiness is what keeps them lasting so long! I would also recommend trying these out in store if possible, since I found that several of the shades darkened considerably on my lips once applied. The YSL Glossy Stains are available now at counters, and Sephora.  Several of the shades were initially listed as Sephora exclusives, Beige Aquarelle being one of them, but I purchased this from the YSL counter at Bloomingdale's.  They retail for $32.00. 

Tom Ford Blush in Love Lust

Several weeks ago, in anticipation of Spring, I was on the search for the perfect coral blush to ring in the new season.  The fact that I most certainly have a coral blush in my collection was of new consequence.  I wanted the perfect coral blush.  Tom Ford Blush in Love Lust is it.  The perfect coral pink with a very fine golden shimmer that just adds the perfect glow to your skin.  It doesn't appear glittery or chunky.  The Tom Ford blushes are very fine and soft powders with the perfect amount of pigmentation.  It is enough so that you don't need to layer on tons of product and not too much so that you can't work with it and blend it out.  I even love the name of this color.  Love Lust.  It's a mouthful and I won't even get into all the meanings behind it!

Tom Ford cosmetics are indeed a luxury brand so the question of is it worth the price is probably not worth asking.  (The price tag is exorbitant!) It is more a question of do I want it?  I simply could not resist adding this to my collection.  The color is gorgeous, the texture sublime and the finish beautiful.  This is a classic piece which will last quite a while! The Tom Ford blushes retail for $55.00.  I think I need to steer clear from the counters when the new Spring/Summer collection launches!

Dior Vernis Garden Party Nail Lacquer in Waterlilly 504

Spring is in the air in NYC! What a treat to hit 70 degrees in early March! I snatched up this opportunity to break out my my selection of Spring nail shades which I have been eagerly awaiting to try! I immediately picked up Dior Waterlilly.  An absolutely stunning pastel green with faint microshimmers.  In direct sunlight, as pictured above it has a minty tint and in other lighting it appears more of a leafy, limey green.  The shimmer is barely apparent on the nail, but in sunlight you see the pearlescent quality.  Whatever the lighting, the color is perfect for Spring, work appropriate be damned! 


This is my second Dior polish and both have completely delivered.  The brush is slightly rounded which makes it so easy to apply to the nail bed.  With slight pressure the brush fans out in the perfect arc shape to cover my entire nail bed without mess on my cuticles or ragged edges!  The polish was perfect in 2 coats with no streaking.  Supposedly the polish is scented and made to smell like roses on drying.  I did not notice this effect much, and quite frankly I am pleased about that.  I don't like the idea of my fingers constantly smelling like roses! 

Love.  I searched the web to see if this was available anywhere, and I could not find it.  If you have one already, you are lucky.  If you spot one at the counter or at Sephora, grab it! I did find it on Amazon at double the price if you are desperate, and it is listed on the Dior website as "momentarily unavailable" with a link to be notified when it returns, so perhaps that means it will be back in at some point. 


What are some of your favorite nail shades this spring?

Chanel Illusion D'Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eye Shadow in Emerveille (82)

I know I am very late to the party on this one, but after my recent post on the Chanel Illusion D'Ombre shadows, a few wonderful readers convinced me that I needed to pick up the shade Emerveille.  Emerveille is a beautiful peachy shade, with very fine shimmer.  It is significantly less glittery than Epatant, and so the shade is perfect for everyday (even daytime!) wear.  In warm sunlight, the peachy tones are much more apparent than in artificial lights.  I usually wear this on top of my Mac Paint Pot in Indianwood to help bring out the peachy tones.


These shadows definitely have an amazing creamy, light weight texture that makes them easy to apply with fingers or a brush.  They blend out so easily and look great with little fuss! I find they do last all day on my lids, until I am ready to take it off.

Ah, the joys of beauty blogging! You learn about all these new products that you all of a sudden can not live without! After trying 2 of these, I am completely sure that everyone needs at least 1 of these in their collection! The Chanel Illusion D'Ombre shadows retail for $36.00.

February Favorites! Chantecaille, Tom Ford, Edward Bess, Burberry, Chanel, Nars, Armani, and Shiseido

I had a lot of favorites for such a short month! In fact I had more things I wanted to include but had to edit out or this would have been the longest post ever!  I have bought a lot of new makeup lately, and what usually happens following such indulgence is that the inevitable guilt sets in.  So I then shop my stash and rediscover old favorites which I vow to use up before opening my new goodies.  Does this ever happen to you?


My favorite base of the month is Chantecaille's Future Skin Foundation which I have raved about before.  I keep meaning to do a proper full review on this, but let me just say for now that this foundation is amazing!  It leaves the skin with the most natural, glowing finish and the ingredients are so luxurious.  I apply this with my Shiseido Foundation Brush which is a miniature godsend.  Next to fingers, it gives the most flawless finish.  


For eyes this month, I have been loving Burberry Sheer Eyeshadow in Pale Barley, Chanel Taupe Grise and Edward Bess Ultraluminous Eyeshadow in Mystery. On most days, I have been wearing Pale Barley all over the lid, and Mystery in the crease.  When I want more drama, I wear Taupe Grise either own its own or in the outer corner for a smokey effect.  To help conceal my tires eyes, I have been loving the Giorgio Armani Master Corrector in number 2.  This counteracts the darkness under my eyes like nothing else!


On my cheeks all month has been Nars blush in Douceur.  This is the most natural barely there flush!


I have been loving 2 lip combinations all month.  Both worn over my Edward Bess Defining Lip Liner in Natural. For day, it has been Edward Bess Ultra Slick Lipstick in Pure Impulse topped with Edward Bess Ultra Shine Lip Gloss in French Lace.  At night, I have been wearing Tom Ford Private Blend Lipcolor in Vanilla Suede topped with Nars Turkish Delight.  Clearly, I am channeling my inner Kim Kardashian.  

What have been your favorites for the month of February?  What are you looking forward to trying next month?