The reason why I didn't pick up anything at Esprique Precious was because I was actually more interested in checking out the Coffret D'Or summer collection which has also just been launched at the Kanebo counter in Takashimaya. I have not been enamored with Coffret D'Or since it replaced my beloved T'estimo, but I fell in love with the new Color Mixing Eyes quads (S$54) which have a lovely shimmer in a colorful array of shades that are very easy to wear. I ended up getting #4 Lavender Purple mix, although I was also very tempted to get the blue/green quad.
The Full Keep Gel Liner DB-04 (S$38) looks like a standard dark navy in the pot but when applied, the lovely flash of midnight blue with sparkles is an absolute beauty. It also comes with its own brush.
The kind SA also gave me a soft cloth handbag as a gift :-)
I've been mulling over the Body Shop Hot Brights collection for the past week and finally decided to take the plunge today when I saw that there was a promotion whereby you receive a $10 voucher if you spend $40. (This voucher promo is on from now until 15 July.) The best part was I could enjoy this promo together with my Star Loyalty member discount of 15%.
So I got the two Hot Brights Blush (S$32.90 each) at 15% off and used the $10 voucher on the Lip Shine & Cheek Stain #2 Bronze (S$24.90). It was the shimmery nude lipgloss in the latter that sold me on it. This would be perfect on top of any lipstick, like MAC Oyster Girl (which is the only MAC Lipglass I ever used up entirely).
I didn't think the blushes were that outstanding when I first saw them online but when I got to play with them at the store, I was impressed by their silky smooth texture with a lovely pearl shimmer. The pink shade is your typical baby pink blush. What I liked was that you can play around with the mixture of the two shades to vary how pink it shows up on your skin. The bronzey shade also looks very natural and melds into the skin giving it a healthy glow, without any fake orangey tones.
Total damage was S$70.83. As my purchase was over S$60, I also received the GWP worth S$41.60 comprising a gold pouch, Mango Shower Gel 250ml (smells very sweet and luscious!), Vitamin E Lip Care and a shower lily.
Do check out all the promotions going on at Body Shop here!
The Guerlain Summer Splash collection is currently on sale exclusively at Takashimaya until 25 June. The star item is the eyeshadow quad (S$87), which is gorgeous with a lovely silky texture and metallic pearl shimmer without any chunky glitter. The shades show up beautifully when used over Guerlain's cream eyeshadow primer.
The GWP for purchase of S$160 includes the usual assortment of skincare samples, an eyeshadow trio and pouch. Top up to S$200 and you can also receive a bag. Takashimaya cardmembers also get an additional scarf.
If that doesn't tempt you, the Takashimaya Guerlain counter is currently also selling the limited edition Pearly White Meteorites at the heavily discounted price of S$47, down from the original price of S$87! I would have gotten a back-up but it takes forever to use up one box of these. I highly recommend this as a daily all-over finishing powder which gives a lovely illuminating glow. This promotion is on until stocks run out so don't wait too long to snap it up!
The Sonia Rykiel Lagoon collection is out now at BHG department store in Bugis Junction. (I believe this is the only SR counter in Singapore.) While the collection looks very attractive in person, the price points are frightfully high with the Sparkling Face Powders retailing at S$85, the eyeshadow quad is S$79 and the lipglosses are S$49 (if I recall correctly).
The Sparkling Face Powders are quite silky, finely milled and apply as a shimmery highlighting shade without adding much color. I couldn't really see any difference between the blue/green powder and the beige/brown powder when applied. The SA said that these can also be used as eyeshadows. The shades in the eyeshadow quad felt smooth and were pigmented, requiring only one swatch to show up on the back of my hand. The quad is reportedly sold out in Japan but while it's nice, I didn't think it was particularly outstanding. The lipglosses were pretty but just too expensive for me.
Susie NY's summer '09 collection, High Contrast World, is up on the official website. The collection includes a Face Modelling Powder (1680yen), 2 Shiny Eye Glosses (1050yen) and 3 nail polishes.
I chanced across this promotional booth for the Dior Lilas collection at Takashimaya department store today so I snapped some pics!
The Dior Iridescent quints retail for much cheaper at Changi Airport's dutyfree where they cost S$74.50 each, versus S$89 in the city.
The lipglosses in this collection are all shimmery glossy wonders that will flatter most skintones. But at a hefty S$38, I'll have to think about it some more!
The new Miss Dior Cherie L'Eau which has notes of orange essence, gardenia accord and white musks. I received a sample vial with my purchase at the Tangs Orchard counter. I found it to be much more refreshing, lighter and not as cloyingly sweet as Miss Dior Cherie.
The two tv commercials for Coffret D'Or's summer collection can now be viewed on the official website. Below is the CM for the Color Mixing Eyes palettes from Youtube.
Maquillage has updated its website with the new summer collection with Anna Tsuchiya fronting the ad campaign. I think this is the most stylish and glamorous ad campaign that Maquillage has done to date, and Anna gives it an edgy vibe while looking very feminine and pretty at the same time.
The five looks done on Anna all look elegant and classy without being boring.
The collection is already out at the Shiseido counters in Singapore with the Eyes Creator 3D palettes retailing for S$69 and the Full Vision Mascara & Liner retailing for S$49. The price is higher compared to Japan, where the eyeshadow palettes are 3990yen (S$60) and the mascara/liner duo are 2625yen (S$39). The mascara/liner duo did not impress me much as the liner brush comes out of the tube covered in quite a lot of product and can't really draw a precise fine line as the tip is not tapered enough. The shades also require a bit of layering to get a nice intense line.
Of the two limited edition Eye Creator palettes, I liked GD831 much better than SV832 as the shades in SV832 almost all show up as just silver shimmer which is not very interesting. Unlike the regular Eye Creator palettes which have 3 powder shades, 1 cream base and 1 gel liner shade, the shades in the summer palettes all have a cream texture. The extreme right shade in the top row has a very dry, hard glittery texture so it applies as just small glitter bits without any color payoff. This is meant to be used in the middle of the lid to add extra shine. The extreme left and middle shade are much smoother and emollient, so they are much easier to apply and blend. They dry to a lovely metallic finish with good color payoff. The cream base and liner shades are fairly standard and not that unique.
The Aube Couture summer collection can now be viewed on the official website. The collection will introduce a new line of lipsticks, Designing Stay Rouge in 16 shades (3360yen) that are "harmonious colors", designed to flatter Japanese skintones. The collection also includes a couple of new eyeshadow palettes and eyebrow palettes.
Aube Couture is just too boring for my tastes. I miss the old Aube!
Here's another close-up pic of Visee's new Brilliance Forming Eyes palette (1680yen, 5 palettes) which will be released on 16 June in Japan. The bottom left shade is actually a shimmery cream liner shade while the other three are powder shades. I'm usually not a big fan of eyeshadow palettes that include cream shades as they are just messy and often don't have good lasting power.
The Jill Stuartwebsite has been updated with the summer '09 makeup collection, Aquatic Nymph.
The ten shades of the new Jelly Eye Color N (2310yen) look similar to the previous line-up but the more interesting complex green and blue shades have been eliminated. Nevertheless, the pink and purple shades do look pretty.
I'll be visiting Kyoto from 3-6 June, just in time to check out the release of this collection on 5 June. Can't wait!
The early summer issue of Kose's Precious Beauty magalog has an in-depth feature on Esprique Precious' new single eyeshadows and nail polish line-up. The official release date is 16 May in Japan.
The single eyeshadows now come in four textures: three Cream Bases, three Highlight Colors, nine Accent Colors and three Deep Colors. The color range features mostly the usual soft pastel shades that are typical of Japanese brands. Not particularly exciting but easy to wear and use for most ladies, even makeup rookies.
Picture #1 shows the placement of the Deep Color and #2 shows the placement of the Accent Color.
Picture #3 shows the placement of the Highlight/Cream Color and #4 shows the placement of the Accent Color.
"Sparkle On" look: Eye Color Selection N GR710, BR313, BR311 & BE310, Matte Lasting Cream Eyeliner BR300, True Black Mascara WP (Volume Separate) BK001, Soft Eyebrow Pencil BR301, Face Styling Powder 00, Cheek Color BR300, Rouge Stylish (Liquid Type) BR323.
"Active On" look: Dress On Moist Rouge BE812, Eye Color Selection N OR210, BL911, SV014, PK810, Matte Lasting Cream Eyeliner BL900, True Black Mascara WP (Volume Separate) BK001, Soft Eyebrow Pencil GY002, Face Styling Powder 00, Cheek Color OR200
"Gem On" look: Rouge Stylish (Liquid Type) PK826, Eye Color Selection N GD015, BR312, PK812, WT013, Matte Lasting Cream Eyeliner BK001, True Black Mascara WP (Volume Separate) BK01, Soft Eyebrow Pencil BR300, Face Styling Powder 00, Cheek Color RD400
