Colour theme: Radiant Orchid

OMG I'm so late to the party with this colour themed post - we are now halfway through 2014! -  but I had to do it because Pantone's colour of the year Radiant Orchid is one of my favourites.  Do I love "...an enchanting harmony of fuchsia, purple and pink undertones"? Yes I do! It turns out I have quite a lot of it too so I'm opening up my makeup wardrobe.  I'm doing this post purely for fun as playing with colour always cheers me up and if you're a lover of purple-fuchsia-pinks hopefully you'll enjoy this little colour post as well.

When I say I have a lot of Radiant Orchid-esque makeup in my collection it makes perfect sense in the context of my tastes because I've loved purple and purple toned pink for a long time and my eye is always drawn to it when I'm out perusing makeup counters. Of course it doesn't hurt that these makeup shades are flattering to my complexion and eye colour so I have something in just about every category...


Lips

From top left of picture and swatched in the same order:

 

Maybelline Color Whisper (Mad For Magenta) - This sheer lip colour veers more to fuchsia but wears very easily for day because of its sheer sheen.  I bought this when the range was initially released and only wore it ONCE or maybe twice?! I have no particular reason why.  I think I'd better swipe some on this weekend!

 

MAC Amplified (Up The Amp) - I love this highly pigmented vibrant cool toned pink-purple.  It looks like it shouldn't work but somehow it just does. I always get compliments whenever I wear it because it's not your typical lipstick shade yet it's a flattering one.  I love MAC's Amplified formula too.

 

Revlon Super Lustrous (Berry Haute) - When I first bought this I thought I'd ended up with a dupe for Up The Amp!  As you can see above it does come reasonably close but it's just a little warmer and rosier in the pink undertones. If you want to try these kinds of lipstick shades but feel that Up The Amp is just a little too cool toned for you, this creamy lipstick from Revlon is a good (and more affordable) alternative to go for.

 

Maybelline Color Sensational Vivids (Hot Plum) - This striking fuchsia-purple is a killer lipstick! The formula is super-pigmented but lightweight and the colour is just impossible to ignore - if you want to make a big lipstick statement this is how you do it!  I save this shade for those kinds of days.  Damn I need more of those kinds of days because I honestly think this is one beautiful lipstick... 



Nails

Left to right and swatched in the same order:

 

China Glaze (Fly) - Shimmery blue toned magenta and beautiful coverage in two coats.  Click here for nail swatches.

 

Revlon (Plum Seduction) - The nail wheel swatch makes this look straight up hot pink but let the shade name Plum Seduction guide you as this is definitely a plummy fuchsia cream.  I'm putting this one high on my list of polishes to wear this winter.  Winter blues be gone!

 

Canmake Colorful Nails (41 Candy Berry) -  Pink-purple sprinkled with holographic micro-glitter.  Click here for nail swatches and a full review of this Japanese polish.

 

Ulta3 (Purple Passion) - I've had this polish sitting in my collection a long time and was a bit surprised at how sheer this polish is as it took three coats to get the rather patchy coverage on the nail wheel.  The colour's best described as a high shimmer purple with pink highlights.  

Eyes

A few of these colours are more on the paler, lilac end of the colour wheel but I decided to keep them in because they're still pink-purple hybrids and work well with the other shades!

Clockwise from top left:

 

Essence Shimmer Effect (56 Hyped Up) - As you can tell from the picture above I've not worn this eye shadow!  It got buried in the eye shadow drawer *cough* and only surfaced when I went on my Radiant Orchid hunt.  Of course it just so happens to be the truest Radiant Orchid eye shadow in my collection.  Right. Enough said about that.  Hyped Up is purple with strong pink undertones and reminds me of the colour combinations I used to wear when I was a teenager - still I think this could work well as a transition shade.
 

Inglot Pearl Mono (441) - This soft pearl, almost duochrome pink-purple is definitely in the Radiant Orchid family. I like to wear this buttery eyeshadow as a crease shade paired with...

Inglot Pearl Mono (440) - This is the palest pick of the bunch by far and more of a complimentary shade in the colour family.  You can still see it's not a pink nor a purple per se but sits the fence between them so I've included it as a purple-pink which I like to wear as an inner corner highlight or all over the lid.  As with all Inglot eye shadows in my teeny collection (I have one quad) this is very buttery and smooth - almost too buttery because these shadows are very fragile and prone to crumbling and gouging at the slightest touch.

MAC Satin (Parfait Amour) - I bought this a few years ago when I was looking for a purple with cool undertones because I just had to have it and then it pretty much sat around barely used.  Parfait Amour is very pretty with its slight pink duochrome although - potential deal-breaker - it can look like a bruise if not properly applied.  I'm going to have to get this out and do some serious experimenting to see how to make it work for me.

Essence Shimmer Effect (16 Go Glam) - I've worn this lovely buttery satin eye shadow a few times because it sets off the green in my eyes beautifully.  This pink-purple wears as lilac on the skin so it's a gorgeous pastel option washed over the lids or applied in the inner corners.
 

Swatched left to right on unprimed skin:
Inglot 441, Inglot 440, Essence Hyped Up, Essence Go Glam, MAC Parfait Amour



Cheeks

 

NYX Mosaic Powder (Plummy) - Not strictly Radiant Orchid but the closest I could find in my blush collection!  The five shades in this cheek palette swirl together to give a radiant, glowing flush as swatched below:

So now you can see I do love this colour just a little bit - regardless of whether it was going to be colour of the year or not!

Until next time

Layering with China Glaze Snow Globe

Layering is a much more fun way of correcting a manicure boo-boo than just taking all the polish off and starting all over again.  It opens up all the possibilities of enhancing and contrasting with the base polish beneath.  Of course I often layer just because...

 

In my last NOTD post I mentioned the problem with my thick old top coat rumpling the finish of my Natio Teal manicure but I wasn't in the mood to start from scratch - enter Snow Globe, that amazingly icy looking glitter polish, perfect for layering over practically anything.  Yes it really does remind me of a just shaken snow globe too - it's a pretty fairy tale mix of pearly, holographic glitter of varying sizes and shapes.  I applied two coats over my manicure and the dreaded rumples disappeared beneath the pretty layers of "snow".  My photos are just not going to do this one justice but here they are anyway!

Shade

Sun

It doesn't surprise me at all that Snow Globe was part of a holiday collection - so festive!

Until next time.

October's farewelled products (2013 edition)

October was a productive month for emptying as I had the satisfaction of finishing quite a few makeup items.  Heck I even tossed one!  Nothing like a good purge!

 



 Skin care

 

107) Milk Moisture Mask - This delicately scented sheet mask contains 110mg milk extract and did as it said, leaving my skin feeling "moist and soft" after wearing it.  The scent was particularly lovely and added to the enjoyment as I relaxed with the sheet mask on my face.  I'd love to buy more of these! Fingers crossed I can find them on the Sasa website.

108) Skinlite Anti-stress Chamomile Mask - This mask is meant to soothe and relax the skin.  I don't remember it being remarkable in any way but of course it's enjoyable taking the time out to relax nonetheless.

109) Rose Moisture Mask - With 30mg rose extract this mask is one for rose lovers as it was permeated with their fragrance.  As with all of these sheet masks my skin felt super soft afterwards - still I'd say the milk moisture mask was my favourite of the three masks I tried last month, even if it was all about the scent!

110) Sasatinnie Rose Makeup Remover Wipes for Sensitive Skin (10 wipes) - the last pack of these lovely gentle rose-scented wipes is now finished. Add these to my Sasa shopping list because I loved them.

111) Sasatinnie Cherry Blossom Makeup Remover Wipes For Normal Skin (10 wipes) - I was in love with these Cherry Blossom wipes the first time I tried them but the second time around I did notice these being a little more drying on the skin and I definitely needed a moisturiser afterwards.  Still nice but the rose wipes were the favourite as voted by my skin.

 

 

112) Cyber Colors Gentle Eye Makeup Remover (59ml/2oz.) - Yet another Sasa purchase gone! I bought two bottles because they were a travel-friendly size and now I've finished both.  For some more of my thoughts on this effective dual-phase remover click here.

 

113) Dior Capture Totale One Essential Skin Boosting Super Serum (3ml/0.10 fl.oz.) - Samples are never enough to give you optimal results but they can be enough to get you hooked! I think that's the case with this serum.  The formula is almost gel-like and absorbed instantly with a cooling, refreshing effect on my skin (I'm guessing this is due to the alcohol which is probably a no-no?).  At first impressions my skin was left feeling noticeably smoother and softer and I tolerated this rather strong serum very well.  I would consider this for a skincare splurge as to be honest I don't think there's a Dior skincare item that I've not liked.

 

Hand and body care

 

114) Crabtree & Evelyn Pomegranate Argan & Grapeseed Ultra-Moisturising Hand Therapy (100g/3.5 oz) - This hand cream is enriched with natural plant oils (macadamia nut, pomegranate, grapeseed and argan oil) so it's extremely moisturising.  The scent was lovely and fruity and the cream absorbed quickly. The only thing I can fault is the metal tube which split at the sides from continuous bending and squeezing, allowing some of the product to seep out.

 

115) The Body Shop Macadamia Body Butter Duo (200ml/6.75 oz) - I bought this split tub comprising two different strengths of body butter (half of the tub for normal skin/half for drier areas such as elbows) at half price and was disappointed to find this clever product had been discontinued.  True, I did end up with the drier skin formula left in the tub long after I'd plundered the normal skin butter but...the richer formula melted easily into my skin so I found myself liberally applying it all over because it absorbed so well! In my opinion TBS didn't need to discontinue this product but just rethink the repackaging - instead of a 50/50 split they could have relaunched this as, say, 70% normal body butter, 30% dry skin formula and there wouldn't be so many beauties out there with half-used tubs! Bring it back!!

 

116) OPI Original Polish Remover (120ml/4 fl.oz) - Just another bottle of my usual remover added to the yearly pile.

 

117) OPI Nail Lacquer Thinner (60ml/2 fl.oz) - I've used these drops to salvage many thickened old nail polishes.  Mostly I found the drops useful for thinning base and top coats to get maximum value out of them - I can get down to the bottom of the bottle using these!  I often found the recommended 2-3 drops of thinner insufficient, but nonetheless even when using 6 or 7 drops regularly this bottle lasted me a good couple of years.  I've repurchased already.

118) China Glaze Fast Forward Top Coat (14ml/.5 fl.oz.) - This is still one of my favourite quick dry top coats because it won't dissolve or disturb the fresh nail colour underneath.  However as I've said before it will shrink and wrinkle your manicure when it gets old and thick - usually right down the bottom of the bottle though when I don't mind tossing it.

 



Cosmetics

 

119) Revlon Colorburst Lipstick (Raspberry) - I wasn't happy about finishing this lipstick as it's been discontinued.  Revlon, why oh why did you get rid of this line? 

 

120) Maybelline Dream Lumi Touch highlighting concealer (02 Nude) - I still love this concealer.  I'm currently trying Maybelline's other best seller, their Age Rewind concealer but I have a strong feeling I'll be coming back to this one.

 

121) ModelCo Fibre LashExtend Mascara - It wasn't that long ago I told you what I thought of this mascara.  It's just not for me - see my thoughts here.

 

122) Revlon Wet/Dry Shadow (Not Quite White) - There's not much point in reviewing this long discontinued dinosaur.  I used it as my browbone highlight and there's a thousand matte ivory shadows out there to do the job.

 

123) Silkygirl Magic BB Powder Foundation SPF20/PA+ (01 Ivory) - I'm sure I'd still be using this pan if I hadn't dropped and crumbled it.  Luckily it happened when I was in Singapore so I was able to buy a backup then and there!  I really enjoyed using this bb powder because I prefer powder coverage on my face (why take two steps with foundation and powder when only one will do?) and the colour match was great for me too.  I'd either use it with the sponge for heavy coverage or sweep it over with a powder brush for a sheerer look as a finishing powder.  It's one of those little drugstore gems I enjoy finding - actually I didn't find it.  Thanks again Liz!

 



Fragrance

 

124) Versace Bright Crystal EDT (30ml) - Crisp, slightly green floral and my summertime, vacation scent.  Notes are Iced accord, yuzu, pomegranate, peony, magnolia, lotus flower, acajou, vegetal amber, musk.

 

Until next month!

 



China Glaze: Tree Hugger

Flying in the face of our cold winter weather down here in Melbourne I have another - ever so slightly out there - summer colour for this NOTD post.

 

China Glaze's Tree Hugger was one of my Great Singapore Sale buys and was such a fun (fun! FUN!!) shade to wear.  This yellow-based green reminds me of good old Granny Smith apples, right down to the golden shimmery undertones.  The formula was a little on the thick side but didn't cause any major application issues and the finish was ultra smooth in two coats.  My research tells me Tree Hugger was released way back in 2008 as part of an eco-themed collection so it wouldn't surprise me at all if the bottle I bought is pretty old, explaining the thickness of this polish.  

All pictures taken in the Singaporean sun!

 

 

 

This shade definitely has me craving warm weather again!

 

Until next time

 

The great Singapore vacation haul!

Spare time has been particularly scarce lately which explains why it's taken so long to get this post up.  Here I am apologising again *gulp*.

 

This picture post is another example of my tendency to shop til I drop when I'm overseas - and I didn't waste any opportunities in Singapore! As I said in my Hong Kong post, if I'd known better I probably would have bought some of these products over there rather than Singapore, particularly luxe brands such as Tom Ford and Chanel, but overall I think I fared pretty well  - helped along by the Great Singapore Sale bargains! As always you'll notice I bought a lot of nail polish so that's the logical place to start...

OPI

Left to Right:

A Butterfly Moment

A Definite Moust-Have
DS Magic
Tiffany Case

Three out of four bottles were bought on sale from the OPI Centre in Forum Shopping Mall and Tiffany Case was bought from a big Sasa sale occupying half the ground floor space of Plaza Singapura. Dare I say I might have my doubts about my Sasa buy because the labelling on the bottle base is missing the usual barcode and batch numbers.  We shall see...



 

China Glaze

Left to Right:

Fancy Pants

Glitter Goblin

Tree Hugger

 

These were all bought at the same big Sasa sale for 9.90SGD each.  I don't know if they're fake - I sincerely hope not!  I've worn Tree Hugger so far and while the formula was on the thick side it wore just as well as other China Glaze polishes I've tried.

 

Fuso

Left to Right (no names, just numbers):

75, 94, 56

 

Yes - from the same sale! Fuso polishes are super affordable at 3.30SGD and pretty good quality so these are like the Asian equivalent of Australian bargain brands like Ulta3.



Victoria's Secret

I've never tried anything from the VS fragrance and beauty range so I took advantage of the Great Singapore Sale bargains.  I got the makeup kit heavily reduced at around 22SGD.  Not bad for a blush, eye shadow duo, lip gloss, mascara and nail colour! In retrospect I should have taken more advantage and bought more products from the Amber Romance range as the store was running a 3 for 40SGD offer *sigh* - luggage space was a consideration.

 

Chanel

Left to Right:

Rouge Coco Shine - 467 Pygmalion

Nail Colour - 583 Taboo

Nail Colour - 667 Bel-Argus

 

The Chanel purchases were purely about me utterly spoiling myself! All choices were from the LE collections.  Initially I thought I'd already missed out on the highly sought out Taboo but was lucky enough to find it in stock at the ION Orchard Chanel boutique where I met up with Sophia, the Makeup Blogette.

 



Now for some bottle close ups because it makes me happy...

Tom Ford Lip Colors

Left to Right:

Spanish Pink
Forbidden Pink

I have such an obsession with Mr Ford's lipsticks!  I bought these two in the luxurious Tangs Beauty Hall before we flew to Hong Kong, not realising I'd find Tom Ford selling just that little bit cheaper over there. Oh well - I was happy to later find out Forbidden Pink is an Asian exclusive.  I now have a balanced little TF lipstick collection I think comprising bright fiery reds and softer pinks and corals. Knowing me I'm sure there'll be an occasion to treat myself again *winks*.

 

Sephora & Urban Decay

Clockwise from left:

UD - Naked Basics palette

UD - Naked Palette

Sephora - It's Time To Rock!

Sephora - Full Moon Party

Sephora - City Fog

 

 Feeling like one of the few in the beauty universe who doesn't own a Naked palette, the Urban Decay Naked (or preferably Naked 2) and Naked Basics palettes were always on my wish list.  I badly wanted to score Naked 2 but it was sold out EVERYWHERE(!) so the original Naked was my 'consolation' purchase. Seriously, I'm not complaining though!

The two Sephora brand polishes and mono eye shadow were the impulse buys I guess, after poring over all the shelves, and endless rows of stuff! I seem to be moving into a grey phase with eye shadow so City Fog seemed like a good choice for a matte grey to play with.


Penhaligon's

Sophia introduced me to the scented pleasures of Penhaligon's London boutique in ION Orchard during our brief but productive shopping session. Elizabethan Rose EDT was 50% off, and even though it's a rose scent at its core it doesn't surprise me at all to find the base notes include amber - the fragrance note I'm unconsciously, inevitably drawn to. On top of the discount I also received a sample vial of Peoneve EDP to be tempted by.

 

Drugstore buys (Watsons, Guardian & more Sasa)

Clockwise from top left:

ELF blush - Twinkle Pink

Silkygirl - Magic BB Cream (01 Natural)

Silkygirl - Magic BB Powder Foundation (01 Ivory)

Revlon - Lip Butter (027 Juicy Papaya)

Revlon - Lip Butter (063 Wild Watermelon)

Revlon - Super Lustrous Lipstick (415 Pink In The Afternoon)

Canmake - Cream Cheek (05)

NYX - Cream Blush (05 Glow)



These bits and pieces were accumulated throughout the 10 days we were in Singapore.  The Magic BB powder was actually a backup and I bought the BB cream to try as a cool weather alternative - I'm going to have to set up a supply network for these little drugstore stars!  I went a bit berserk with blush purchases but...they're only drugstore right? Besides I can only buy Canmake, NYX and ELF online in Melbourne (as far as I know).  I do love Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick and was forever searching for the Audrey Hepburn-pink shade Pink In The Afternoon so I pounced on that one - the Lip Butters were shades I'd long been tantalised by on US blogs but wasn't available in Australia. There! I think these are all accounted for!

 

 

Last minute duty free buys...

Left to Right:

Trio Dior Addict Gloss - Princess, Angelique, Diablotine

Chanel - Glossimer (149 Nakkar)

Chanel - Coco Noir EDP

Victoria's Secret - Secret Charm EDT

Victoria's Secret - Secret Charm Hand and Body Cream

 

A 50-50 split of planned and impulse buys on the way out of Singapore! The glosses were all impulse (Gah! I'm such a sucker for pretty...) but I'd always planned on buying a bottle of Coco Noir. I couldn't find any VS Amber Romance products in the store as I'd planned to make up the set so Secret Charm was my next best VS choice. 

 The glosses Left to Right:

Dior - 553 Princess

Dior - 223 Angelique

Dior - 643 Diablotine

Chanel - 149 Nakkar

 

That's enough for now!

 

China Glaze: Scarlet

Sometimes you just crave the classics, like a good old fashioned glossy red manicure.

Suddenly hit by a craving for red I sought out a true red cream polish and China Glaze's Scarlet was just the thing for it.  It's such a clear and bright slightly orange red. I just love how a colour like this really smacks the cold autumn/winter days in the face and it makes a classic statement too. China Glaze cream polishes always have that extra glossy, lacquer finish and the application was as smooth as glass in two coats.

Outdoors - partial sun

Indoors

How do you brighten up cold days?

April's farewelled products (2013 edition)

My empties posts are getting later and later each month.  Here's hoping I post my May empties before the end of June!  I'll try not to ramble too much this month because I have quite a few products that bit the dust as you'll see...

Skin care

30) Australis 3 in 1 wipes make-up remover (25 wipes) - So these are soap, alcohol and fragrance free and infused with aloe vera and chamomile but...they were dry! Someone tell me I bought a dud package (please!) because otherwise I'll tell you these are uselessly dry - except for the last 2 or 3 wipes at the bottom of the pack.  I resorted to wetting them to get some use out of them.  Repurchase? A resounding NO.

31) Maybelline Express Care Eye & Lip Makeup Remover (90ml) - Inexpensive, gentle and reliable at removing my makeup but this was the last bottle I'll use in this particular formula.  Maybelline have recently released a new reformulated and repackaged version which I'm using now.

32) Avene Cleanance Gel Soapless Cleanser (200ml/6.76 fl.oz) - This cleansing gel is targeted at cleansing oily, blemish-prone skin but I found it very gentle at cleansing my combination/occasionally dry skin during my morning shower.  As far as cleansing gels go this rinsed off very quickly and easily too.  Loved it. 

 

Hand and body care

33) Crabtree & Evelyn Rosewater Hand Therapy (25g/0.9 oz) - This hand cream smells literally of rose petals and feels richly moisturising without being greasy.  A gorgeously soothing product for winter-parched hands with my favourite magic ingredient included:  Shea butter! 

34) China Glaze Fast Forward Top Coat (14ml/.5 fl.oz) - Dries my nails in a few minutes without dissolving the colour beneath.  One gripe? You can tell when it's getting too thick and old because it can wrinkle your manicure.

35) OPI Original Polish Remover (120ml - 4 fl.oz) - I've been mixing it up a bit of late but this is my nail polish remover of choice.

36) Vaseline Total Moisture Aloe Fresh Daily Light Lotion SPF 15 (200ml) - Great concept with the built-in SPF but terrible formula! The thick white lotion took an eternity to rub in to my skin and I don't have the time or patience for spending minutes on body moisturising in the morning.  I have SPF 30 products which absorb in less than half the time so I won't be buying this any time soon.

37) The Body Shop Chocomania Body Scrub (200ml/7.75 oz) - This indulged my chocolate-loving senses in the shower! I love how it exfoliates and moisturises the skin at the same time and I have bought another tub already.  Be warned - you might have to clean the shower afterwards - but it will smell delicious!

 

Hair care

38) L'Oreal Volume Expand Volumising Root Lift Spray (125ml/4.2 fl. oz) - The only product I use for my fine hair is a root lift spray for volume without any crunch.  I use 4 quick sprays on my damp hair before I dry it, then blow-dry and - Voila!  I look like I have more hair!  I used this bottle daily and it lasted months and months.  Yes, I have bought another bottle.  

 

Cosmetics

39) theBalm Sexy Mama anti-shine, translucent powder (7.08g/0.25 oz) - I did a full review of this powder when I bought it last year (here). I was a little on the fence about it at that time but I love how natural and lightweight this powder was on my skin and considering I used it daily it lasted a very long time.  A good value mattifying powder and after finishing it I can now say I would buy it again.

40) MAC Powerpoint Eyeliner Pencil (Duck) - This was the perfect brown-grey hybrid pencil.  If I didn't have such a glut of eyeliner pencils I would definitely repurchase.

That's it for the latest empties!  

 

China Glaze: Swanky Silk

Hello :)

I hope you like the changes around here - my little self made blog was long overdue for a facelift and finally I have a blog layout I love thanks to the very talented Sharnee!  The colour scheme is completely opposite to what I had before but it reflects my taste a lot more closely and most importantly it's renewed my love for posting. So let that be the segue to this first post in my 'new' blog...

Swanky Silk is the sole shade I have from China Glaze's stunning duochrome New Bohemian collection released last year. It's a shade I find myself drawn to:  rose gold with the slightest green duochrome.  I did find the formula a tad streaky but I'll forgive it because I adored the colour. As it always is with duochromes the effect is more subtle on the nail than in the bottle - Still a very pretty rose gold though and a very versatile shade.

Shade

 

Sun

That's it for now!