Spring/Sakura Inspired FOTD w/Product Review

Spring is slowly coming around and brings with it all of those pretty pastel colors. I tend to gravitate towards spring eye makeup collections because of the pretty colors but have to keep reminding myself that I can't use them because they are too pale for me.

Sakura has come early this year in Japan and from last week Tokyo was already in full bloom. I love sakura and it was either last year or the year before that I did sakura inspired look. I have decided to do a new sakura inspired spring look.

When you thnk of sakura, one normally thinks of white, pink and brown colors. If you look carefully at a sakura tree in bloom, you will notice that there aren't any leaves. The leaves come out after the flowers fall off.

Products used (some are not shown):

Urban Decay Primer Potion--Original**
MAC Eyeshadows--Vanilla* and Samoa Silk**
Addiction Eyeshadow--Mystic Mirage (Gift from Justine)
Sephora Prisma Chrome Eyeshadow--Gold Reflection
Quo All About Eyes Eyeshadow Palette--Bronze (I think that's the color. Gift from Winnie)
Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Eyeshadow--23
Urban Decay Eyeshadow--Kush (from BOS III)
K-Palette Real Lasting Eyeliner--Deep Brown

Covergirl Lashlast Clump Crusher Mascara--Black
Canmake Shading Powder--01**
Chanel Sculpting Veil Powder--Notorious** (Gift from Vicky)
Lise Watier Blush--Pink Power (gift from Justine)
Urban Decay Super Saturated High Gloss Lip Color--Love Child

I also used Boujois 123 Perfect Foundation, Sue Devitt Bermuda Triangle Concealer, Make Up For Ever Full Cover Extreme Camouflage Cream in #8, NARS Orgasm blush and Sephora Eyeshadow in Sun Kissed, which has been discontinued--so sad! I use these all to finish my face and if you haven't yet, you can read my concealing method here.

This may seem like a lot of products but it really isn't. The items with a pink asterisk are items that I use on a daily basis. For the eyeshadows in palettes, I marked the ones that I used for this look with a red asterisk.

As is standard preparation for my eyes, I prime my eyelids with primer potion. I then use Samoa Silk in the socket of my eyelid and bring it out to on top of the outer half of the brow/socket bone. My bone is very prominent and it makes my eyes look sunken in, plus with age, it seems to have sunken in even more. Using the orange-toned color helps to lighten the darker area on the inner eye socket. (This is the same concept with concealing.) Because the brow/socket bone is so prominent, I like to use matte eyeshadow to very thinly highlight just under the eyebrows. I usually use Vanilla.

I then applied Mystic Mirage from inner corner of eyelid to just about 3/4 of the way towards the outer eyelid, and bringing it gently upwards towards where Samoa Silk is applied. The outer 1/4 of the eyelid is where Bronze is applied sweeping it inward to blend into Mystic Mirage. I also pull it upward into Samoa Silk and going on top of the outer brow bone. Gold Reflection is lightly applied where Bronze and Mystic Mirage meet to blend the two colors in. Sometimes you do see a hint of yellow in the center of a flower, depending on the variety. I'm not sure if this applies to sakura too. Although this look is sakura inspired, it is also a spring look so I wanted to incorporate a little bit of additional color. I then lightly applied GA ETK #23 very lightly over the entire eyeld. This softens everything a bit but the main reason why I used it is because it is an iridescent eyeshadow with very fine iridescent flecks. Sakura season is a very special time of the year and its beauty and glory are quite magical. I wanted to have the wash of iridescent specks to create that magical feel. K--Palette eyeliner is applied to entire upper lash line and flicked up at the end a bit. The outer half of the lower lash line is lined also. I then apply Bronze over the eyeliner of the lower lash line and deepen the outer "V"  with Bronze, softening the flicked up line. Kush is applied to the lower lash line at mid eye, just to give it a slight pop of color. Again, green isn't part of sakura but it is a color associated with spring and new growth of plant life. Clump Crusher mascara is applied to my lashes.

My cheeks are contoured using Canmake Shading Powder 01 and I also bring the color up to the temples and forehead. Notorious is applied in in darkened hollow of my cheek, close by the ear. I also very lightly apply it from my jaw bone down towards the chin. I think that I have a sharp jaw bone so this helps to soften it as well as give the illusion of narrowing my face. Pink Power had to be used in this FOTD because of the sakura theme that the design has. Thank you Justine for this beautiful blush and for Mystic Mirage!

Lips were colored using Love Child, which gives it just the right hint of color. I think it's a perfect spring color.

As most readers are aware, I am not a brown eyeshadow person. Browns tend to wash me out or make me look tired. I am also not a big fan of wearing neutral or pale looks. Again, it's because I look washed out. Warm tones are definitely not good on me, although I love how others can make warm tones and neutrals work for them. It took me a long while to use the Quo palette because it was a beige and brown color palette. Also, there is a very pretty embossed design on it and it was just too pretty to use. After looking at the palette more and more, I began to think that it looked more cool toned than warm toned, which is why I decided to give it a go. I was very surprised that I liked the way the two shadows looked on me. The shadows themselves are very nice, not overly pigmented but are nice and soft. They are not chalky at all. With Bronze, the darker color, you can't over do apply the color, which is nice. I even liked that it was a more muted look that worked on me. I still prefer to have the outer corners of my eyes darker but feel that I can comfortably use this for a day time look without looking washed out or like I'm not wearing any makeup. Thank you Winnie!

Chanel Notorious was something that looked so interesting to me when it came out. I was curious to try it but hesitated purchasing it. I joined the Blogger Secret Santa exchange again this year and put this out onto my wish list. Vicky was my Secret Santa and she sent it to me! I was excited to try it and yet was a bit hesitant to see how a gray-colored powder could work as a contouring powder. Normally we use browns so gray seemed to be a bit harsh. If applied correctly, it works great! You really need a light hand. When you think about it, the recessed parts of your face actually look more gray/black than brown--at least on me it is. Thank you Vicky!

Mascara is one thing that I have trouble finding that will work well for me. I have poker straight lashes that are difficult to keep curled, unless I use waterproof mascara. Clump Crusher is water resistant so it comes off easily with a gentle makeup remover and washing with warm water. The formulation is on the drier side, which works better for me. The amazing thing is that this mascara WILL curl my lashes without using an eyelash curler first. I used a light application here and it gave my eyelashes a natural curl look. If I apply more mascara and really press the wand into my lashes, it will curl it even more and giving me a more dramatic look, which I don't care for much anyway. The other great thing about this mascara, it doesn't flake! I can wear it for 12 hours or longer and not have it flake. Definitely my favorite mascara!

I decided to (12 hours later) darken the eye up a bit to make it more "evening out" appropriate. I decided to pull out Urban Decay Smoked Palette, which I have had for a while but not used.

I decided to use Barlust, which is a medium brown color. I applied it to the outer corners of the eye to deepen the color a bit and added it to the outer 1/4 of lower lashline.

I'm not sure if it's the right brown for me yet. I have to play with it more. I've read varying reviews on what people think the color is--Temptalia calls it a reddish brown while others have said it's a golden brown, neutral brown, etc. If it comes out more reddish brown on me, then it'll definitely not work. It was already late when I did this and only artificial lighting so I will have to test it out again during the day time.

This was a long post. Thanks for reading through it all!

*Kat*

P.S. Happy Easter!

P.P.S. There are still items available in the blog sale

Purchase Review: Chanel Perfection Lumiere Foundation

Good morning and Happy Thanksgiving to all of you, especially those living the U.S. and anywhere else in the world who celebrate it. I would like to start off this post with a big THANK YOU! We've been so blessed to have started this blog and see it grow into what it is today. Mai and I only had the intnetion of starting this blog as another way of keeping in touch with each other, especially with the makeup and skincare items that I either get a sample from at the store or purchase. Although we see each other often enough, sometimes I want to tell her about something that I've tried right away but doing it in a text message or trying to catch each other on the phone is difficult with our schedules. We have (especially me) have met so many wonderful people through beauty blogging whom I am proud to call my friends. Thank you to each and every one of you who takes the time out to read our posts.

Now on to the review...

Along with mascaras, finding the perfection foundation is my nemesis. Shade match is always difficult and then finding the finish and coverage that I like--it's so frustrating! Along this journey, I've learned several things about adjusting and adapting to shade matching and knowing what I like. Also along this journey, I've tried many brands, both drugstore and high-end hoping to find the one that I liked. Of course, I was hoping that I'd find it in the drugstore or lower priced brands.

One of the major frustrations with shade matching is that SA's will look at me and automatically categorize me as being yellow toned and needing foundation with yellow coloring, all because I'm asian. I always get a skeptical look when I tell then that I need something way less yellow based and more pink based and that I'm more cool toned than warm toned. Scary, naked face picture coming up but here you can see that my skin tone is cool with pink tones in it.

I finally found a SA/MUA that agreed with me and in all places at Neiman Marcus. A couple of week prior to going to Neiman Marcus, I happened to be in Macy's getting a sample of a Clinique foundation and ended up at the Chanel counter for something else. The SA there gave me sample packettes of the new Perfection Lumiere foundation in a couple of shades. One of the shades was 42 Beige Rose and when I tried it, I thought that the color was a good match for me. When I went back, another SA there insisted that I needed the Beige line and not the Beige Rose line so I left. At Neiman Marcus, the SA that helped me is very good at color matching individuals and she agreed that I belong in the Beige Rose line. At the time I thought that 42 was a bit too light so she gave me a sample of 52. It was way too dark! I ended up purchasing 42 Beige Rose.

Chanel Perfection Lumiere Foundation is a long-wearing, flawless fluid makeup that also contains SPF 10. It is an everyday foundation suitable for all skin types. It is oil-free and noncosmedogenic and is available in a range of 20 shades. It dries to a matte finish. It contains 30 ml/1 fl oz of product.

Click on the above ingredient list picture to get a larger image for easier reading.

I had read some reviews online and was a bit worried since it was getting mixed reviews. Another thing that worried me was the fact that it is a matte finish because I prefer a more dewy finish. I also prefer not to have SPF in my foundations but that is getting to be harder and harder to find.

I love the fact that it comes in a pump dispenser. It is also really easy to control the pump so you can just as easily get a full pump or pump out just a dot of foundation. As I read on some of the reviews, it is a foundation that it not easily blendable if you are using a brush. I usually use a Sonia Kashuk flat top brush to stipple on my foundation but I have found that it doesn't evenly distribute on the brush. This brush is a little narrow and stiff. I discovered that ELF Powder brush, which is a flat top, works quite nicely. It is much wider and softer.

The foundation does dry to a matte finish but there is a slight luminosity or sheen to it but it doesn't make one look oily. I've had some that make me look too shimmery. While it does dry matte, I find that as long as I moisturize well, it won't settle into or bring out fine lines.

There is a slight scent to it, which is a kind of flowery or fruity scent, but it isn't unpleasant and it dissipates quite quickly.

Coverage is light to medium, depending on how much you use. I get decent coverage and don't use much foundation at all. That is good because the price of the foundation is on the higher side. I believe that it is the highest priced in Chanel's line.

The longevity of the wear of the foundation is great! I've worn this foundation for over 8 hours and didn't do any touching up. In this picture, I took it after 8 hours of wear with no touching up. It also doesn't oxidize very much at all.

Overall, I think that this foundation is a good match for me. I had tried another Chanel foundation a few months ago and debated whether or not to purchase it. I decided not to because I didn't like the feel of the foundation on me after wearing it for several hours. It was one of those that felt heavy and felt like you were wearing foundation. As a result, I kept on touching my face throughout the day as it would feel a bit uncomfortable. The only con for me is the price. It is a pricey foundation at $55.00.

As you could see in my before and after pictures, I have a lot of imperfections that need covering up and this foundation does a good job of it, along with my pre foundation and foundation application routine. Would you like to see a post on what that is? It would be long a rather picture heavy. Please let me know in the comments.

*Kat*

P.S. I thought that I wouldn't be doing a post again until after Thanksgiving but I was up at 4:00 this morning getting the turkey into the oven. I tried to go back to sleep but couldn't so I wrote this post instead.

Chanel Ombres Perlees Eyeshadow Palette

This eyeshadow palette by Chanel was a limited edition from the Spring 2011 collection. I missed on getting the palette initially but then Vicky from Vanity-Fashionista found it available again from Boots.com. Vicky and I happily worked out a trade (both for Chanel items) and I received the palette a few weeks ago.

I have a really sad tale to tell with horrifying pictures. I took the palette home and had it on the dresser along with a couple of other cosmetic items. I was getting ready to take pictures of the palette when the unthinkable happened. My cat was up on the window ledge above the dresser when she lost her footing. To try to regain her balance, she stepped on the lampshade of a big lamp thinking that it was sturdy enough. Unfortunately it wasn't and the whole thing came crashing down with her on top. The lamp fell on top of all of the cosmetic items that were on the dresser. Sadly, the Chanel palette got crushed along with my Canmake Blush container and another drugstore eyeshadow palette. The lamp also shattered.

Here is the end result of Ombres Perlees de Chanel and Canmake Blush:

As you can see, even the mirror of the palette cracked. The cover of the blush container is also cracked. Fortunately, it is a loose powder blush so it didn't make any difference to the contents. Surprisingly, the eyeshadows didn't crumble into a powdery mess. It's cracked but is staying intact so it's quite usable as it is, despite it's ugly appearance.

I've been using the palette and love all of the colors in it. I finally was able to take pictures for an EOTD.

Products Used:

Urban Decay Primer Potion in Sin
Ombres Perlees de Chanel Palette, all 5 colors
K-Palette Real Lasting Eyeliner

For my EOTD, I basically used the colors working my way from left to right. The cream color is applied over entire eyelid. The pink color is applied to outer brow bone area. The middle shade is applied from lash line to crease line and blended upward. The 4th color is applied to middle 1/3 of the eyelid from lashline to crease line and blended upward. The last color is applied to outer corner of eyelid as well as outer "V" and blended inward. I also used the pink color on the lower lashline and the 5th color on the outer 1/4 of lower lashlline. Lined my upper lashline and outer 1/4 of lower lashline with K-Palette.

I really love the colors of this palette. The shadows themselves are really smooth and glide on nicely. Although they look quite dark in the palette, they apply as a more muted shade, which is really nice for Spring, which is the season it was released for. I personally usually go for a darker eye look but a more muted look is nice for a change.

My friends who follow me on Twitter know that there was a bit of an emergency a week or so ago. As a result, I've had to give up my room where I normally take my blog pictures and do other things. This is the reason there hasn't been consistent blog posts from me. You may have also noticed that in my previous post, the picture style has gone back to before I started using my DIY light box. Hopefully I can get my room back from my son soon.

Also, next week I will not be online because I'll be off in Sin City! Yes, I'm going to Las Vegas and will only have my iPhone with me. I may have a scheduled post or two but not too sure.

*Kat*

Sample Review: Chanel Vitalumiere Moisture-Rich Radiance Fluid Makeup SPF 15

I've been enjoying using Hada Labo BB Moisture Cream as my foundation for several months now. While I do use it as my every day foundation, I thought that I'd test out some regular foundations, especially as summer will be ending and the cooler winter months is upcoming with drier environmental conditions.

While I was in Nordstroms picking up a CP order, I decided to take a look around. I've tried many different brands of foundations and haven't found one that I really liked. One brand that I hadn't tried is Chanel. After chatting with the Chanel SA letting her know my preferences and what I think is my color tone, I got color-matched and was told that 035 Soft Bisque in Vitalumiere Moisture-Rich Radiance Fluid Makeup seemed like the best match for me. She gave me  a generous sample container of this foundation and I've been playing with it for the last few days.

Color 035 Soft Bisque. The color in the picture is almost accurate although I think that in person it shows up a bit lighter and pink. The color definitely doesn't show up accurately on any of the websites I checked (Nordstrom, Neiman Marcus or Chanel). 


According to Nordstrom's website, this foundation is the best-selling Chanel foundation which instantly revitalizes your complexion upon application and throughout the day. It contains ingredients which specifically targets dry, dull and uneven skin and moisturizing agents to provide hydration and comfort. Marine extract helps to boost cell energy to enhance radiance and light-reflecting pigments smooth away imperfections, creating a soft-focus effect.


I first applied my current HG primer, Lioele Dollish Veil Vita BB Cream in Natural Green. I also concealed using Canmake Cover and Stretch Concealer under my eyes and Dermablend Cover Cream on dark spots.

Here I've applied the foundation to half of my face.

It is applied to <=this half of my face

It appears that the color matches my current skin tone quite well. There is barely any visible line showing where the foundation isn't applied.


I lightly set it using Cle de Peau loose translucent powder.

I then finish the rest of my makeup by applying blush.

This is after 8 hours of wear with absolutely no touchup.

My thoughts:

This foundation is very moisturizing. It is probably the first foundation in many years that seems to be a great color match for me. It is also one of the first foundations that I have found that really does not settle into or bring out fine lines. I'm actually quite impressed by that fact. It is definitely luminous and dewy, which I really like. I had actually used Guerlain Meteorite Pearls to set the foundation the first two times I used it and realized that I it was too luminous and bordering on making me look oily, although I wasn't. That's when I switched to Cle de Peau translucent loose powder. It doesn't make my face look matte but lets the luminosity show through without appearing oily.

The one thing that is a minus is that even with the primer, the foundation doesn't last as long as I'd like it too. After only 8 hours of wear, it has faded and will need to be touched up for longer wear. I've been able to wear Hada Labo BB Moist Cream for much longer without experiencing any fading or needing to touch up.

I'm sitting on the fence as to whether or not to purchase this foundation. It is definitely a higher priced foundation, but will not be the most expensive foundation that I have ever purchased. What are your thoughts?

*Kat*

Wedding Day Makeup

It was a very exhausting day but everything went very well. It was a beautiful ceremony and a small, intimate reception. We couldn't have asked for more, except for perhaps less wind at the ceremony. My son's in-laws are so down-to-earth and sweet and our new daughter-in-law looked gorgeous.

I thought that I had most of my makeup planned for yesterday but ended up changing it around quite a bit. I was originally going to use my Temptu for my base makeup but after using it in a trial run the day before, I decided to change and use the Hada Labo BB Moist Cream instead. I think that it gave a nicer, more dewy look whereas the Temptu ended up being quite matte.

So here's my makeup lineup:

Base Makeup

Dermablend Professional Cover Cream Concealer
MAC Motif Eyeshadow to set concealer
Hada Labo BB Moist Cream
Cle de Peau Translucent Loose Powder
Coffret D'or Powder Foundation (on nose)
Maquillage Powder Foundation (on spots)
Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion in Greed

Eye Makeup

Visee Blossom Eyes BR-5 (peach shadow in middle)
Visee Brilliance Forming Eyes A-1 (Pink shadow upper right corner)
Stila Artist's Inspiration Palette (golightly--taupe brown shadow lower left corner and ebony--upper middle)
K-Palette Real Lasting Liner
Koji Eyelash Curler
Shiseido Mascara Base
Fairydrops Scandal Queen Mascara and Gokubuto Mascara (on upper eyelashes)
Gokunobi Mascara (on lower lashes)

Cheeks and Lips

NARS Laguna
Lunasol Contrasting Cheeks N 11 Coral Pink
Chanel Rouge Coco Shine 57 Aventure

I wore a light pink outfit and it was a morning wedding with a lunch reception which is why I decided to go with a more neutral smokey eye. I really thought that I was going to use NARS Orgasm for my cheek color but I'm really liking my Lunsol blush right now. I had a selection of lip colors to choose from but in the end, decided on Aventure since I really like the color.

I will be spending the rest of the week and weekend taking the new in-laws around. At least we now can really relax and not worry about wedding plans.

Have a wonderful week everyone!

*Kat*

Lipstick Aventures Part 2 Purchase Review: Chanel Rouge Coco Shine

Before I start my review, I wanted to say that there is an issue going on with Blogger in that people are having difficulty commenting on their own posts and especially other people's posts. I was even having problems posting a post. It is a known issue with Blogger that you can kind of follow up on here. I have always used Internet Explorer but when I tried switching to using Firefox, it helped to resolve this problem for now. Others have told me that Google Chrome works as well. Okay, on to my review...

I got caught up in the Chanel Rouge Coco Shine hype when I was looking around for a new lipstick. I finally broke down and bought it in 57 Aventure.
 

It is a lush pink color with a hint of gold. According to the Chanel website, Rouge Coco Shines are LE hydrating sheer lipshines. It is supposed to "provide a lasting moisturizing shine in a water-light texture. The formula glides on for easy application, and a unique HYDRATENDRE complex hydrates and softens lips, giving them a healthier and fuller appearance. Available in a complete range of shades, from delicate beiges to dazzling berries, with a hint of shimmer to enhance a glossy finish."

 Naked lips

 Aventure applied to half of my lips

 Aventure fully applied

I love how it does apply sheerly with a wash of color. As Chanel said, it does glide on really nicely and has a watery finish to it, which I love. It does feel nice and hydrating. I love the color Aventure. The downside to it is that the hydrating, watery feel doesn't last. After wearing it for about an hour or so, my lips do not feel like it's being hydrated. The color doesn't fade but the hydration does so I feel like I have to reapply it. I'm sure that if I used a lip balm before applying Aventure, it would help but I wanted to test it without using a lip balm. Using a lip balm kind of defeats the purpose of purchasing a hydrating lipstick. Considering the price, I would be a bit hesitant to purchase this again, although I do love the color.


*Kat*