Becca recently released three new Beach Tints. Being a fan of these cream tints for the lips and cheeks, I couldn't resist getting all three, Lychee, Dragonfruit and Papaya. I also picked up the new Ultimate Colour Gloss in Hummingbird.
I ordered these from Zuneta.com where they are normally £20 each, but if you are located outside the EU, they cost £16.67 each. Zuneta currently has free international shipping for orders over £40 with the code FREESHIPXMAS until 18 November.
The fine tapered tube opening makes it easy to control the amount dispensed. Each Beach Tint contains 7g/0.24 fl oz and is made in Germany. The tube looks tiny but it can last several months even with daily usage. The petite size also makes it very convenient for travel, plus there is no need to fiddle with brushes.
Here are swatches of my current collection of Beach Tints. Papaya is more pure orange-toned than Strawberry. Dragonfruit is more rosy pink than Watermelon, which is much more sheer. Lychee is a blue-toned baby pink. I did not encounter any separation or wateriness with the three new shades.
The three new shades have very good colour payoff while retaining their easy blendability. Only a very small pinhead amount is needed for one application. These have a light scent that match the shade name, which is not detectable when applied on the cheeks. Do also check out Drivel about Frivol and here for more swatches.
In the pic below, I am wearing Dragonfruit. It lasted about 4 hours on my cheeks and had completely disappeared by the evening. I think this was partly due to the Topshop Skin Tint that I was using, which made my skin a tad more oily than usual. The lasting power might not be that great but nevertheless, I'm still happy with the new Tints as they are so easy to use and help to liven up the complexion effortlessly. The only thing I wish Becca would do is print the shade names on the tube. The box comes with the shade name on a sticker, but once you peel it off, it does not adhere properly to anything else so I ended up having to slap some clear scotch tape on top of it to get it to stick to the tube. Not the most glamorous definitely!
Hummingbird lipgloss is a nice shade for every day wear. The gloss feels moisturising enough without being sticky or streaky. There is no shimmer or glitter, so the formula feels very smooth. It lasts about 3-4 hours on me. I do wish I had picked the darker Berry Twist instead though.
Paul & Joe released three Color Powder CS as part of their recent autumn collection. Decorated with their signature whimsical prints and featuring a pair of parakeets, these were simply too adorable to pass up.
I purchased these at Selfridges in London. They are also available on ASOS.com for £18 and Beauty Habit for US$30. These are pricey but they contain a fairly generous amount of product at 6g.
The blushes have a tiny amount of pearl particles and apply with a satin finish on the skin. Typical of Paul & Joe, the shades are classic feminine tones of pink, peach and coral, superbly easy to wear and blend.
The brush feels soft against the skin, although it's not as plush as the RMK and Suqqu blush brushes. It is a tad small but actually the size makes it perfect for picking up the shades individually, in particular the crescent-shaped shade.
I was surprised by the intensity of the blushes and actually ended up having to wipe some off. Just one or two strokes of the blush is enough to lay down the color. #79 Les Tourtereaux is the most pigmented of the three, and requires a very light hand. The blushes last about five hours on my skin, with some fading by the end of the day.
Here's the look that I did with #81 Inseparables, which looks ultra natural and livens up the complexion. Messy Wands also did a look with it here.
On the lips, I'm wearing Rimmel Lasting Finish by Kate Moss #104 from the matte line.
Ingredients list.
My treasured Collection Sparkles that I've collected over the years!
Back in September, I picked up Suqqu Blend Color Eyeshadow EX07 Tsukiakari, Gradation Cheeks EX02 Mizumomo and Chiffon Feel Loose Powder from the autumn collection. All three are limited edition and purchased at Selfriges in London.
The three Blend Color Eyeshadow palettes released for autumn feature three powder eyeshadows and a cream eyeshadow that can be used as eyeliner or creating a gradation effect. The eyeshadow powder particles are coated with silicone for an extra smooth finish.
The top left shade is the Light Color (Pearly) for an illuminating effect, top right is the Arrange Color (Pearly) for adding dimension, bottom left is the Deep Color (Creamy) and bottom right is the Pearl Color (Matte). The matte shade contains the most finely-milled powders in the quad, with a soft focus nylon-12 powder that diminishes the appearance of fine lines.
Tsukiakari features a smoky navy blue cream shade, which has some shimmer particles that can be seen in the swatches below but these aren't visible when applied on the lids. The powder shades are the usual white, pearl beige and taupe brown combination that Suqqu is extremely fond of, with infinite subtle variations across the seasonal collections.
My current collection of Suqqu quads: (from left to right): #11 Himesango (Spring 2012), EX07 Tsukiakari and EX02 Fuyubara (Holiday 2010).
Swatches on bare skin without any primer.
There are some tonal differences between Himesango and Tsukiakari but these are pretty subtle. The shades in Tsukiakari have better payoff than Fuyubara. The navy cream shade applies quite smoothly but it does require some layering. It doesn't set to a budgeproof finish though, as some product came off on my eyelash curler, necessitating a touch-up. Nevertheless, it actually lasted quite well over eight hours of wear without transferring.
I'm usually not a fan of cream shades in a palette, but Suqqu has done a pretty decent job with this one. The navy cream helps to add definition. Otherwise, the powder shades look rather lifeless and pedestrian on their own. It's a fail-safe combination suitable for everyday wear.
While I can see myself getting quite a lot of use out of Tsukiakari, I'll probably skip the upcoming holiday sets. The paler shades always look so pretty in the pan but on my skin, they tend to get washed out.
Below is the ingredients list.
Of the two blush duos in the autumn collection, I selected Mizumomo as it showed up much better on my skin than EX01 Mizudaidai, a beige/peach combination.
The two shades glisten softly when under a bright spotlight but on the skin, the finish does not look shimmery or frosty at all.
The pink shade gives the cheeks a lovely tint of color while the pinkish white shade can be layered on top to sheer it down with a subtle glowy effect.
Compared with Nuancing Cheeks EX03 Akanemizu (from the Spring 2012 collection), Akanemizu is the more versatile of the two as the pinkish white shade in Mizumomo doesn't really do much for me.
As usual, the exquisite quality of the brush with its sleek lacquered handle puts other luxury brands like Chanel truly to shame.
The brush in Mizumomo has a rounded shape, which is different from the brush included in Akanemizu. Both work well in depositing and blending the colours.
Below is the ingredients list.
The Chiffon Feel Loose Powder is a pale pink powder that is supposed to help brighten the skin while concealing pores and improving the skin's texture. This felt very silky and finely milled when I tested it at the counter, but I haven't started using it yet. The cotton puff is dreamily plush and soft. The amount of product is also generous at 19g.
The Essence Breaking Dawn collection arrived at my local Manor, well ahead of the official November release date. I'm not a fan of the movie series but I was still looking forward to this collection for the complex shades.
Many of the Essence displays in my area have been quite neglected with nary a sign of the latest seasonal collections, so I was quite excited to find a well-stocked new collection for once.
The collection includes four pigments (CHF3.95).
These are designed to be used with bases. A couple of these shades do not adhere well to the skin without a base. 03 A Piece of Forever is one example as it comprises basically diffuse fine gold glitter. 04 Edward's Love contains tiny multi-colored glitter bits that fly all over the place unless there is a base.
02 Alice Had A Vision Again (dark royal purple) and 01 Jacob's Protection (dark grey with silver shimmer) swatched the most smoothly and can probably be applied on top of a normal primer.
The blush 01 Renesmee Red (CHF4.50) is a soft matte orange-toned red with good colour payoff.
The Shimmer Powder 01 Bella's Secret (CHF4.75) is a very silky, finely milled highlighting powder with a pearlish pale gold tint.
It is very similar to the shimmer powder 01 Lil' Vampire from last November's Vampire Love collection, but boasts a more generous amount of product at 11g, versus 8.5g for the latter.
There is only one lipstick in this collection, 01 A Piece of Forever (CHF3.95) which applies as a light golden sheen. I think this works best layered over another lipstick to add luster.
The two glitter liners in 01 Alice Had A Vision Again and 02 Jacob's Protection (CHF3.75 each)look gorgeous in the tube but these actually have a clear base, so they can't produce an smooth opaque line.
Of the two lipglosses, I was only able to snag the 01 Alice Had A Vision Again (CHF3.50), a translucent murky purple with ultrafine silver shimmer.
Below are swatches of the glitter liners, lipgloss, lipstick, shimmer powder and blush.
The final piece that I picked up was the nail polish 04 Edward's Love (CHF3.50). There are three other shades available.
Aside from the Twilight collection, Essence has also just released a trio of hand balms with the theme "Hot Winter Drinks" with Caramel Hot Chocolate, Apple Cinnamon Punch and Gingerbread Chai Latte. None of the scents appealed to me so I skipped this.
