Showing posts with label lip and cheek cream. Show all posts
Showing posts with label lip and cheek cream. Show all posts

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Poppy Fever: The Body Shop Spring 2015 Collection

The Body Shop Spring 2015 Shimmer Cubes Palettes 31 Yellow Poppy (left), and 32 Pink Poppy

The Body Shop is kicking off 2015 with fun, Poppy-themed face and body collections from 5 Feb. The makeup products include:
  • 2 colorful Shimmer Cubes Palettes (SGD39.90) - 31 Yellow Poppy, and 32 Pink Poppy.
  • 4 coordinating nail polishes (SGD12.90) - Apricot Kiss, Cupid Pink, A Sunny Affair and Mad About Blue.
  • 6 chubby Lip & Cheek Velvet Sticks (SGD29.90) - there are 5 colors - nude, peach, red, pink and coral, as well as 1 Universal color-changing shade which is really interesting. 




I did quick swatches for the shimmer cubes without any base or water, so you can see the pigmentation levels. They're all quite smooth and pigmented, although I have to say it's unlikely that most of us would wear all these colors together on the eye at any given time.

The Body Shop Shimmer Cubes 31 Yellow Poppy swatches

The Yellow Poppy palette was not the one I grabbed for first when I saw both. I'll say up-front I like the Pink Poppy one more because the colors are so unique. But I do have to say that Yellow Poppy has 2 neutrals (dark brown and white) that help make the palette a little more "complete".

The Body Shop Shimmer Cubes 3 Pink Poppy swatches
If you were to get Pink Poppy on the other hand, you would probably need to add a darker neutral color to anchor the shades because they're all accent shades. There isn't really a "definer" shade unless you want to use the red around your lash line, and not many people are brave enough to do that!

I like this palette more but I would just use the colors individually or 2 at a time, and pair them with neutrals. 

I somehow can't look at Yellow Poppy without the Simpsons' theme song running through my head. 

The Body Shop Lip & Cheek Velvet Stick in 40 (left) and 50 Universal (right)
The Universal Velvet Stick is like a matte color-changing balm. The textures of these sticks are quite smooth and blendable, so I wouldn't hesitate to use them on the cheeks.

I do like the colored ones more than the color-changing black one, because depending on the pH level of your skin, if the color doesn't "bloom" completely, you end up with slightly grey-ish pink lips, which is an effect, but maybe not quite what you were going for. 

Still, most times I seem to end up with at least a nice berry color on the lips so it's not too bad. I just feel I'd rather know exactly what color is going on than play guessing games, even though color-change products are kinda fun.



And let's not forget the poppy-red brush. 

The Body Shop Spring 2015 Poppy Blush Brush
 Technically you can use this for mineral powder, regular powder, bronzer or blush. It's 100% synthetic and cruelty-free; plus it's very soft and good quality.

Aside from the face products, there's also a line of body products with the Forbidden Flower scent, which is centered around poppy (from which opium is made btw). I only have the shower gel to sample for a review so I can't speak about the perfume version, but if the gel is anything to gauge by, it's quite a powdery, musky, spicy floral that's not exactly very "flowery" or sweet. It's quite dark and soft and I think the lacquer black bottles with the red poppy visual are quite fitting.

The Body Shop Forbidden Flower Shower Gel
 The range includes the requisite 30ml eau de toilette (SGD24.90) shower gel (SGD14.90), lotion (SGD21.90) and the body butter (SGD32.90), but not a fragrance



Saturday, March 22, 2014

YSL “Kiss & Blush” Lips and Cheeks Soft Matte Colour (Swatches and Review)


Yves Saint Laurent Kiss & Blush Lip and Cheek Colours

There’s been much hype and anticipation among the beauty community over YSL’s soon-to-be-launched series of 12 lip and cheek creams in May 2014 (launch dates might vary among regions), not too dissimilar to Lancome’s Absolu Velours or NYX Soft Matte Lip Creams. 

These come in pretty glass bottles that look like nail varnishes, but are filled with fluffy velvety creams that can be used as a lip paint or cream blush.

YSL Kiss & Blush applicator

I was provided with 7 out of the 12 shades for reviewing purposes, and it’s kinda unprecedented that I’d like almost every single shade, but I do. They’re gorgeous, flattering, easy-to-wear colors, perhaps with the exception of shade No9, which might look chalky and grey on people with tan to dark skins.

YSL Kiss & Blush swatches

Colors: 
  • No1: rich blue-based fuchsia pink 
  • No2: soft pretty medium-blossom pink
  • No4: soft orange
  • No5: luminous pink/red-based coral
  • No7: creamsicle-orange nude
  • No8: blush-pink nude
  • No9: dusty pale lavender mauve
Texture and Coverage:
YSL Kiss & Blush No 1 Fuchsia Désinvolte lip swatch
Despite there being a “matte” in the name these are not matte when they just go on. Like the Lancome Absolu Velours, they have a beautiful creamy sheen that’s between Glossy Stains and they only become matte creams after a few hours. The texture is very light and mousse-like; comfortable to wear though I do feel a slight tingle on my lips when they just go on.

YSL Kiss & Blush No 2 Rose Frivole lip swatch
 The formula is semi-sheer, in part because of the applicator shape. The velvety doe-foot applicator comes with a v-shaped well to hold product and a protrusion in the center that makes it quite hard to get an opaque covering quickly. (The protrusion in the center will scrape off excess product easily.) But it’s still possible to build it up to 2 coats or so, for stronger color.
On the cheek, it’s not matte either. It blends out easily but sets with a dewy sheen, so if you have very oily skin or blemished cheeks this might emphasize them and not be suitable for you.


Lasting power: 
Some of the stronger shades (the fuchsia especially) will leave a slight stain on the skin but most don’t. I haven’t had time to test their staying power yet, but I’m doing that today and reporting on dayre.me/makeupbox if you’re interested!
My GUESS right now is that they will perform like Glossy Stains. They don’t set, and they will transfer when you’re eating or drinking, but there will be a fair amount of product left on your lips after that.

YSL Kiss & Blush No 4 Orange Fougueux lip swatch
I can’t pick a favorite. It’s too hard. 

No2 and No5: Easiest to wear and probably flattering on many skintones
No1 and No4: On-trend colors and gorgeous for Summer
No7 and No8: Gorgeous nude-lip alternatives; No7 is especially interesting and reminds me of an easier-to-wear version of Lime Crime’s Cosmopop

YSL Kiss & Blush No 5 Rouge Effrontée
YSL Kiss & Blush No 7 Corail Affranchi lip swatch
I have NC25/NW20 (N2) skintone, and pretty much all the shades looked pretty good on. I’ve yet to check out the other 5 shades since these aren’t out in stores yet, but I’m looking forward to that if they are as pretty as these 7.
Which shades are you particularly interested in and do you enjoy lip/cheek dual-use products?

YSL Kiss & Blush No 8 Pink Hédoniste lip swatch
YSL Kiss & Blush No 9 Rose Epicurien lip swatch