Front Row Beauty

Chanel Le Vernis Rose Fusion 757 Review and Swatch – Rouge Noir Absolument Holiday 2015 Collection

October 21, 2015

The holiday makeup collections have started emerging from the shops , with Chanel Rouge Noir Absolument Holiday 2015 Collection (also called Vamp Attitude) being the first release hitting the Australian shore. This year, Chanel pays tribute to its iconic nail polish – the Rouge Noir, hence you will find that this collection features a lot of products that are inspired by this unconventional yet timeless shade. The stunning Chanel Le Vernis Rose Fusion 757 Nail Polish is my first purchase from the collection (others are on the way!).

I have had this color on my nails for several hours now and I have yet to conclude how to describe it – it’s possibly the most complex and interesting nail color I have ever seen from Chanel. The color changes under different lighting as well as from different angles. From the bottle it looks like a metallic taupe color with an olive undertone with an iridescent sheen. It has a lot of micro multi-colored glitters, and unlike other Chanel nail colors with shimmer, these glitters in Rose Fusion appear more visible on the nails. It applies smooth and streak free with 2 coats, and sets into a foil finish. I have put together some swatch pictures to show you how the color varies under different lighting – sometimes it looks like a silvery charcoal, or a rosey taupe color, and sometimes it appears more golden olive.

a macro-shot- more olive with a golden hue

The entire new Chanel Holiday 2015 collection is now available here online in Australia.

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Labels: CHANEL • NAIL POLISH

Tom Ford Flawless Powder Foundation Review and Swatch

October 19, 2015

Compact foundation is one makeup item to splurge on as the high end brands are far more superior than the drugstores. Whether you wear it as a full foundation or simply for makeup retouching, the new Tom Ford Flawless Powder Foundation ticks all the criteria for probably the best you can get in the market now.

It comes in Tom Ford’s signature ultra luxury case. The enclosed sponge has two different textures – the smooth side for a sheer application, and the velvety side for a fuller coverage application.

Texture and Finish

I was blown away the first moment I felt the product at the counter – it has the silkiest, most finely milled powder texture. The powder foundation blends in to the skin seamlessly, and applies evenly with no creasing nor patches. The coverage is equivalent to a sheer-medium foundation. If you apply the powder foundation with the enclosed sponge, or a fluffy powder brush, it sets even more natural than a normal liquid foundation. The finish is a clean and poreless version of ‘your-skin-but-better’ and semi matte that lets your own skin’s radiance through. For a fuller coverage, I prefer to apply it with a kabuki brush (or a flat top brush) that would cover most of the mild imperfections. The finish is flawless and porcelain-like in a natural way but not cakey and heavy.

Shade Cream

Lasting Power

As the weather is getting hotter in Australia now, I particularly love wearing this foundation as it is more mattifying than my other foundations. Lasting power is about 6-8 hours on me with very little oil coming through at the end of the day for my dry skin. It also doesn’t oxidize, crease nor settle into the pores throughout the day. For makeup retouching, the powder foundation also applies well on top of your existing makeup. If you have cream based products underneath, I would wait till it dries then apply the powder foundation on top. Otherwise they will not blend well.

Shade Reference

I am between NC15-NC20, and I bought the Tom Ford Powder foundation in shade Cream which matches me perfectly. I pulled out some other powder foundations including the YSL Touche Eclat Powder Foundation B10 (reviewed here), Cle de Peau Beaute Radiant Powder Foundation B10, Tom Ford finish powder in Ivory Fawn (reviewed here) for comparisons.

Comparison Swatches:

Brush recommendations include (clockwise): THREE Powder Brush (more info here), Tom Ford Bronzer Brush; Suqqu Face Brush (reviewed here); MAC Blending Brush (similar here); CHIKUHODO Powder Brush

The Tom Ford Flawless Powder Foundation is available online here in Australia.

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Labels: BRUSHES • CHIKUHODO • foundation • MAC • POWER FOUNDATION • THREE • Tom Ford

Shopping News – Shopbop’s Family and Friend’s Sale and new shoes additions

October 13, 2015

I am a regular shopper at Shopbop so there is nothing more exciting than the popular Shopbop’s Family and Friend’s Sale (25% off with code INTHEFAM25 – some brand exclusions apply) that is happening now! It is the best time to snatch up some bargains so I thought I’d introduce a really affordable and well-made shoe brand that I’ve been liking lately.

It is quite obvious that I love investing in beautiful designer shoes, and lately I was on the lookout for a pair of nude strappy sandals. I had my eyes set on the Stuart Weitzman Nudist but they looked very average on me after trying them on. So I decided to skimp on a pair of Schutz Cadey Lee Sandals in flesh colored suede (a very popular style from the brand), and I was very impressed with the way they look and the quality of their shoes (all leather and made in Brazil) at such a reasonable price. They look far better than the SW’s on me – more delicate and slimming on my feet which is exactly what I was after! My second pair is the Schutz Yoko Suede Sandals/Booties. It is really hard to come by a pair of olive suede boots and the style reminds me of my all time favorite booties by Alexander Wang that I wore literally everyday. The only flaw about the Yoko is that the opening is quite big for my skinny ankles, so they only look great if I wear them with skinny leggings/jeans.

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Labels: Fashion • SHOES • SHOP

CHANEL CHANCE Eau Vive Review

October 6, 2015

Today’s review is for my current favorite fragrance – The CHANEL CHANCE Eau VIVE . I have never been a big fan of Chanel’s classic fragrances such as the No5, No19, Coco Chanel etc as I feel they smell a bit ‘too old fashioned’ on me. However their recent additions including the BEIGE (reviewed here) and MISIA from the Les Exclusive line, and Coco Noir have thoroughly impressed me. They are alluring and seductive with a modern take that would appeal to the younger women. On a side note, the CHANEL BLEU is my DH’s favorite perfume at the moment!

CHANCE Eau VIVE caught my attention after I was randomly sampling a lot of fragrances at the counter. This one stood out and connected with me, and I knew this would be a lovely choice. For days I could not forget about it so I had to get one for myself.

This perfume was designed by Olivier Polge, which was his second creation after he took the helm from his famous perfumer father Jacques Polge. A true perfumer is regarded as an artist in France and is also referred to as ‘The Nose’. Jacques Polge is a legendary name in the perfumery industry. He has created an array of timeless fragrances for Chanel throughout his career since 1978. This year he had retired and his son Olivier Polge became the newly appointed Chanel Fragrance creator to succeed his father. His first creation for Chanel is MISIA (another gorgeous scent), and the Eau VIVE is his latest release that is exactly what I would expect from a second generation of perfumer. It is elegant and posh with a playful and modern twist. VIVE has notes of grapefruit, blood orange, jasmine, cedar and iris notes. On me it smells floral (not sugary), fresh with dominant zesty notes as a top note. Once it starts to dry down, it becomes more clean and slightly woody and still floral. I adore both – it works well with my body temperature and goes well with my day-to-day style. It is a warm and fresh scent that can be worn all year round, and 4-5 spritz last about 5-6 hours on me.

I bought mine here online in Australia.

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Labels: CHANEL • FRAGRANCE • PERFUME

MAC Rosy Rim Lip Pencil, Good Timing and In Anticipation Pro Longwewar Lip Liners Review and Swatch

October 1, 2015

I am very late to lip liners – I mean after wearing makeup for 10 years I have finally started wearing lip liners. So I was on a mission to acquire as many lip liners as I could! I looked around and unfortunately I could not find any that I liked from my usual favorite brands such as Chanel. My last resort was MAC which undeniably offered the biggest selection of colors – there were so many of them I liked but I limited myself to 3 colors for now! I picked up Rosy Rim Lip Pencil, and Good Timing and In Anticipation from the Pro Longwear Lip Pencil Range.

In terms of texture, the pro longwear lip pencils are much more superior. They feel like a gel lip pencil so they are more pigmented and glide on more fluidly. They feel silky smooth and buttery to apply, so if you have dry lips this range is definitely more suitable. The normal Lip Pencil retails slightly cheaper, and the texture leans towards more crayon-like so they are a little on the dry side. They do not apply as smooth as the pro longwear pencils. If you like to fill out your entire lips with a lip pencil, this would dry out your lips. For just lining the lips, it still does a decent job.

Good Timing is my favorite color! It is a muted cool milky rosy pink (but not lavender) that goes perfect with any cool-toned pink lip colors you have. My other favorite use is that if I want to make any warm pink lipstick color appear more cool, then I would wear Good Timing over my entire lips underneath it.

In Anticipation is another beautiful dusty rosy pink that is more warm and brighter than Good Timing. It may look quite rosy on the hand swatch, but once its applied on the lips it shows up as more nude rosy pink.

Rosy Rim is very similar to In Anticipation, but slightly peachier and lighter. Just another perfect your-lips-but-better shade that goes really well with any lipstick color in the pinks, corals and nude color ranges.

Swatch

I bought the MAC Lip Pencils here in Australia.

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Labels: LIP PENCIL • MAC

Clé de Peau Beauté cleansing foam review

September 28, 2015

The Clé de Peau Beauté cleansing foam is one of the best foaming cleansers I have ever used which deserves a proper review post. This is the cleanser that would testify ‘good skin begins with good cleansing’. I have been using this on and off for the past 10 years, and every time I go back to it , I always feel my skin’s condition is improved.

I would call this a deep cleansing cleanser for every day use as it does the most thorough cleaning job – it takes off every single trace of impurities and makeup, and it purifies to the bottom of the pores so it makes the them look very clean. Your complexion appears exceptionally clear, brightened and full of radiance after washing with this compared to the other cleansers. It comes in 2 variations – Gentle Cleansing foam that is designed for normal to dry skin, and the Refreshing Cleansing Foam for normal to oily skin. I am using the gentle version which works really well for my dry and sensitive skin. It makes the skin feel squeaky clean and refreshed without stripping off the moisture. It has a clean and delicate flora soapy scent, and has a creamy white paste texture that lathers up to the creamiest and most dense and emollient foam. The resilient lather feels uber luxurious and velvety against the skin. It is on the expensive side, but a little product goes a long way and this tube will last you a very long time.

The ingredient list

Bottom Line: If you are still on the look out for a perfect foaming cleanser, give this one a try! The Clé de Peau Beauté cleanser is available at Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus and SAKS in the US.

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Labels: CLE DE PEAU • CLEANSER • SKINCARE

Tom Ford Lipstick Flash of Pink Lip Color Review, Swatch and FOTD

September 27, 2015

Tom Ford recently added new colors to his permanent lip color collection. I tested all of them out at the counter, and in the end I just brought back Flash of Pink which was a gorgeous and unique pink color that looked very flattering on me. There was no tester for something wild which was the other shade I planned to purchase, so I’ll probably go back for another visit soon! The new colors are now available here online in Australia.

The reign of the world’s most expensive lipstick has recently been taken over by Louboutin Beaute from Tom Ford (albeit I think the packaging of the former is a little OTT..). Splurging AUD$70 on a tube of lipstick does make me feel better, as I think the packaging of Tom Ford still tops every other brand, and the formulation is also flawless. Flash of Pink is a rosy fuchsia pink with a hint of metallic sheen. It contains micro magenta shimmer and it still has the same luxurious creamy texture as with all the other colors from the range – it goes on silky smooth in a satin finish, and I don’t feel any glitter on my sensitive lips when I wear it.

The Tom Ford SA described Flash of Pink as an expensive pink lip color with an edge. I wasn’t so sure when I saw the color from the tube, but on the lips it didn’t look as metallic as I thought . As you can see from my swatch below, it looks shimmery with frost on hand, but on the lips there was just a hint of metallic sheen at certain angles that actually makes the color pop and unique. It is intensely pigmented and has a lasting power of 4-5 hours.

Close up swatch

Flash of Pink Lip Swatch

I have finally managed to take some FOTD for today’s post – it’s been so long I almost forgot how to do it lol!

Other makeup used in the FOTD include

Face

Shu Uemura Brightening Base

Sulwhasoo Cushion Foundation (reviewed here)

Tom Ford Flawless Powder Foundation (new, review coming soon)

Tom Ford Illuminating Powder for highlight (reviewed here)

Marc by Marc Jacobs Contouring Powder (reviewed here)

Eyes

Chanel Entrelaces Eyeshadow Palette (reviewed here)

Dior Addict It Liquid Eyeliner (reviewed here)

Lancome Mascara

Visee Eyebrow Pencil & Powder

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Labels: FOTD • LIPSTICK • Tom Ford

NEW IN – Fendi Monster

September 16, 2015

Bought this little Fendi monster a while ago and finally had the chance to take some pictures. It’s cute (but not the usual girly cute) in its own unique way, and I think that’s what makes it appealing to me. Since I love investing in classic bags, this is a perfect accessory for adding a playful and whimsical spin to them. I bought mine at the Fendi boutique in the DFS Gallery in Australia (they have very limited stocks), and you can find them online here and here. There are also many affordable options such as this and this in the market now.