Armani Midnight Lip Shimmer

I admit that I really love lip gloss, but I am getting pickier about it as time goes on and I get a bit older. When I was a younger gal the only real requirment for a good gloss was high wattage shine. I could care less if the stuff was as sticky as fly paper and the color was alright as long as it was wearable. Like I said, shine ruled.

But I am older now and color has really stepped up as one of my key considerations with a close second and third being shine and stickiness. Basically I require more from gloss than it being a one trick shine pony.

My issue with most gloss revolves around the lack of good color payoff and most colors not really showing up and being too transparent. After I have worn them for a few minutes they look like my lip color but shiny. Boring! In my search for pigmented gloss I have tried many and most have failed.

Armani Midnight Gloss is just about perfect and I am here to tell you why. First this gloss comes in 6 vibrant and pigmented shades. Midnight Gloss is shiny and has some pearl particles in it for added sparkle. Also MG is not sticky and does not have any fragrance as far as I can tell which is a real plus in my book!

The only reason I haven't built an altar to it and started worship services is that there are only 6 shades! I know, I know, I can't have everything and shouldn't be such a demanding brat but when I find a good thing I want variety so I can have a whole bouquet of colors to choose from.

Midnight Gloss is $26 and worth every penny!

MAC - Double Dazzle

Oh man! Double Dazzle has come to town with 18 shades to choose from. My understanding is that most of the shades are joining the permanent line except for 2 but none of my local MAC ladies knew which 2 weren't.

For the uninitiated Double Dazzle is all about Dazzleglass which is basically MAC's answer to lipgloss nirvana. I have written before about my love of Dazzleglass and so I will try and keep my enthusing to a minimum. Dazzleglass is a gloss that is thicker than most and contains large particle shimmer. Between the actual gloss formula and the shimmer this gloss is uber shiny and utterly gorgeous.

The color payoff on these varies from barely there to near neon shades with just about everything in between. The thicker consistency allows Dazzleglass to be a bit hardier and stay in place and really dang shiny when other glosses would have wimped out and gone home. The original collection came out in 2008 and I bought nearly all of the shades. The 6 new shades to choose from in Double Dazzle give me the opportunity to refill on favorites and to fall in love with some new beauties.

Dazzleglass is $18 and worth every shimmery penny!

Shu Uemura - Pink Collection

I am a daily reader of Annie's blog, Blogdorf Goodman. I read this blog religiously when I will skip all others. She is currently doing her 40 days of all things lippie related and I eat it up with a spoon!

A few days ago she posted about Shu Uemura's Pink collection that features 9 new lipsticks and 5 new shades of gloss in various shades of, you guessed it, PINK.

Now I love pink lippies and there is hardly a pink I won't consider. I like bright fuchsia pink, soft brown pinks that are about my lip color, sparkly baby pinks, and everything in between. I will even try warm pinks and I generally avoid warm lip colors most of the time.

The Pink Collection is all about a new pink hybrid pigment that is supposed to bring unprecedented pink pureness to these lippies. Well I don't know about you but the looks of the gloss pictured here is darn magnificent to me and if it is achieved through some new fangled pigment science I say yipee! Bring on the pink!

The gloss can be had for $22 and the lipstick for $23. If you are a pink lover this collection should not be missed.

Lipstick Queen - Big Bang Theory Lip Gloss

Poppy King the creator of Lipstick Queen just never fails to delight me. To date there is only one product she has ever released that I just couldn't recommend wholeheartedly. (Shine gloss with the yucky plasticy smell I am looking at you)

Her latest offering is Big Bang Theory Lip Gloss for $20 that comes in all the lovely shades pictured and in that cute little test tube package. These glosses were designed to give the look of plump lips with fine particle shimmer instead of the lip searing effects of some plumpers out there.

I tested all the colors at Barneys and my fav's are Creation, Energy, Cosmos, and Black Hole. Energy is just this amazing deep shimmery red that looks like a nail polish on the lips....and yes that is a good thing. Thankfully these do not have any fragrance and are just dang good shiny and shimmery gloss fun.

These can be found at Barneys or Lipstick Queen.

Bare Escentuals - Diamond Lips

Someone over at BE must be a MAC fan because these are the most blatant imitation of Dazzleglass that I have seen so far. To be fair that isn't necessarily a bad thing as imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but then again they need to live up to the loveliness that is Dazzleglass.

BE's Buxom Diamond Lips have all the great attributes that make me a fan of the Buxom glosses. The fragrance in these is pleasant, the cool minty feeling is refreshing unlike some plumpers that make you feel that your lips are being seared off. Buxom gloss has pretty good staying power as far as gloss goes and is not overly sticky.

For the most part Diamond Buxoms follow the Buxom formula but the glitter in these leaves something to be desired. Dazzleglass had me scared when I read the description on the MAC site and it referred to large particle pearl. I figured this had to mean chunk city but while MAC avoided that, BE does not.

Diamond Buxoms feel a bit gritty and when the actual gloss disappears it leaves the glitter behind and stuck to your lips. This is a shame because the gloss colors are nice and the Buxom formula in general is one I love.

This limited set is $28 and includes 4 mini tubes in pink, raspberry, peach and mauve.

Stila - Gift of Glaze Set

I love Stila's Lip Glaze in general and a set of them in particular. This is definitely one of those one for me, one for my pal, gift ideas.

This six pack for $28 includes:

Vanilla - pearly nude
Brown Sugar - shimmering golden nude
Raisin - golden plum
Grapefruit - frosted pink
Apricot - melon nectarine
Gumdrop - vibrant pink

Raisin and Gumdrop are new shades and I am praying that Raisin joins the permanent line. I love the delivery of these click pens as well since its like having a lip brush with you at all times.

These sets are available at Sephora.

MAC - Passions of Red

Here they are....MAC's annual holiday palettes. Between the packaging and the color choices this is a great collection and far better than they have been in the recent past. The most recent holiday sets in my memory were filled with hits and misses which left me passing on them altogether. These palettes are a vast improvement and are not only worth purchasing for your own collection but are very giftable.

There are 4 eye palettes and are pictured from left to right are classic, warm, smokey, and cool eyes. Warm and cool are especially lovely with cool having all exclusive eyeshadow colors. Smokey would be a great gift for someone who doesn't have a ton of MAC already.

The 3 lip palettes are coral, cool pink, and plum with plum being the clear winner and a favorite for me already.

All the palettes are $22.50 and come with a brush.

As I go to post this Obama is the projected new president of the USA. Whether you voted for him or not this is a historic and wonderful moment in our history. This is an election that you will tell your children and grandchildren about. After all this election proves that anybody can grow up and be our president which is a truly wonderful thing.

More Dolce Vita to love.....

Nars and the Dolce Vita color family has expanded to a few new products. For those who are not ardent fans of the Dolce Vita lipstick the blush might just be the exception.

For those who know nothing of the Dolce Vita craze let me explain. Dolce Vita started out as a sheer lipstick that is described as dusty rose but to my eye it is one of those great lipsticks that looks good on everyone and is just a shade better than your own lipcolor. It is on the sheer side and is a bit glossier than lipstick. My first encounter was reading an interview with Nicole Kidman and she talked about the shade changing her life....clearly her holy grail shade.

Well Nars is no dummy and recently came out with a gloss version which was a huge dissapointment to me. The color just wasn't the same and I do not enjoy Nars lipgloss. It is like flypaper for hair and it has an odd plasticy no smell, smell.

Anyway the latest products to join the ranks are a blush and Velvet Matte Lip Pencil. Finally some products that live up to the Dolce Vita rep!

The blush color is superb! No joke....it is a gorgeous dusty peach rose that is on the warmer side and is matte without being chalky in the slightest. The blush is the perfect compliment to fall's smokier eyes done in grey or brown.

Don't even get me started on the Velvet Matte Lip Pencil. I will say that it really delivers on Dolce Vita's promise where the lipgloss fell on it's face!

Blush is $25 and the Lip Pencil is $24 and both can be found at Sephora.

Chanel Glossimer

It occurred to me today that I could probably write an entire blog about lipgloss alone. I think this a common problem for a lot of makeup junkies...right?

I mean when I was a younger girl gloss was the furthest thing from my mind. Matte lipstick was all the rage and the deeper the color the better. I am thinking MAC's Verushka and Russian Red, which are deep eggplant and a true deep blue red respectively. This is serious matte lipstick that requires frequent checking in the mirror and you could never just apply them walking down the street.

Maybe that's were gloss came in and became so popular....it requires far less commitment than lipstick and even the colors are more forgiving since they are sheer. The wrong pink lipstick can look garish but in gloss form more people can pull off the same shade.

With that thought in mind you should know Chanel Glossimer is among my top 5 lipgloss choices, of any line, period.

Between the array of color choices and the wear time, this is good gloss. Glossimer is not some super watery gloss that is gone in two seconds. Instead Glossimer is a bit thicker in texture and has better color payoff than most gloss which I love.

I think everyone must already worship at the altar that is Chanel's Glossimer but for those out there who don't here are my top choices:

Spark (swatch pictured) is a sheer golden cherry that is beautiful and sexy on the lips without looking harsh.

Pagoda is my go to color for the morning rush and I haven't met a blond that doesn't look good wearing it. This shade is reminiscent of a peachy gold bellini and is very flattering.

Hibiscus is a great evening shade and sort of reminds me of Spark, but with the color pumped up. It is a more burgundy red with gold shimmer that looks great in low restaurant lighting. This color also straddles that line of cool and warm tones, so most skin tones look good wearing it.

While Chanel gloss may be on the pricey side it delivers where many glosses fall flat. The color range is huge and the wear time make it worth a few more dollars. Plus it does not have any fragrance!

Bare Escentuals - New Buxom Gloss

As I have mentioned before I LOVE BE's Buxom Lipgloss. The gloss is cool and minty on my lips, the fragrance is delightful and the sheer colors are lovely.

BE has added 6 new colors to the lineup and these glosses have all the same attributes as the original but are full color! Roxanne and Vanessa are my favorites of the bunch.

Carmen - raspberry plum
Chloe - copper bronze
Roxanne - pink raspberry
Sophia - metallic mauve
Stella - brown-berry wine
Vanessa - burgundy wine

All the colors are metallic to a certain degree. I love Roxanne layered over lipstick and Vanessa is just right for fall. All tubes are $18 and if you buy one with a BE lipstick in their boutiques it is $30 for the two.

Bare Escentuals - Big Lips, Big Lashes

Here is another BE set that just hit stores....Big Lips, Big Lashes for $28.

Big Lips, Big Lashes is all about chocolate shades and features Big Tease mascara in a rich chocolate brown and also sees the return of Buxom Lip Polish in Kitty a sheer milk chocolate shade.

While I am a devoted fan of the Buxom Lip Polishes, Kitty is not the shade for me. Big Tease mascara has a brush with long bristles on one side to build length and shorter bristles on the other for separation and volume. I have a tough time with the brush and always seem to get mascara on my lid but the formula is a winner.....so I persevere!

MAC Overload!

Okay I love MAC....in reality I worship at the altar of makeup that is MAC. But lately MAC has been giving my credit cards a workout that is leaving me poor! I mean the collections have been coming fast and furious and every single one has had at least one thing I just couldn't live without! I love them but my bank account does not. So no more whining and on with the makeup fun!

Above is Electro Flash! Holy Cow....is there any other word for it. For those who love the Mineralize eyeshadow your ship has come in. The new duos have a mix of 3 shades on one side with a solid shade on the other. The 4 new lip shades and 4 Tinted Lipglass shades have me in a tizzy! I mean of the 8 I want 4 and if you saw my current lip wardrobe that exceeds 200 shades you would agree that I have got to put the brakes on or learn to edit in a serious way!



















Next up is New View. The compact has a natural matte finish and the other a soft shimmer and comes in 5 shades and is the next generation Mineralize powder. I can tell you that the shimmer side is indeed soft and not disco ball and these light weight powders are perfect for the warm months when you don't want liquid makeup running down your face.




Last but certainly not least is Sonic Chic! Again these are Mineralize blushes in 9 shades that all have a degree of shimmer and apply more sheer than they appear. Again the colors are ridiculously beautiful and I just don't know how many blushes one girl can justify! The 181 buffer brush is a smaller version of the 182 and has the shape of a kabuki but is so much softer than any kabuki I have ever felt. The 181 is the perfect size to buff on cheek colors or luminizers along the cheek bone and is worth every penny!

So all this MAC fun hits counters July 10th (online now) and I will be spending the time in between carefully considering my picks and perfecting my justifying skills.

Nars - Miami Sun Set

Hubba hubba! Now that is some color!

Nars new Miami Sun Set for $65 is pure Miami hotness. This is a limited edition you can find at Sephora online only...at least so far!

The Sundance eye duo has warm golden and terracotta shades. Capucine Lip Lacquer is pure tangerine glossiness!

The nail color is a real lust object for me....just look at that tomato red! Dovima nail polish, I heart you!

No Makeup, Makeup

As noted in my previous post Sephora is joining the ranks of many companies that inevitably jump on the flesh toned makeup band wagon at some point during the summer. As I also said in the previous post, I just don't get it.

Maybe its just me but I am not a fan of this look. In the interests of full disclosure I am a pale skinned gal with blondish hair and flesh toned makeup is a one way ticket to looking like a corpse for me.

Besides, I like the look of makeup whether it is subtle or MAC girl glam! I love a baby pink lipgloss or a strong red cream lipstick. I am equally captivated by an eye shadow palette of neutrals or the turquoise eye that is the summer trend. The point is I like makeup in nearly all its forms with the exception of the flesh tones that could be mistaken for foundation in a lipstick tube.

Now there is the exception of foundation....the more a foundation looks like your flawless skin and not a face full of makeup the better.

Don't get me wrong, I like different makeup for different occasions and I never want my makeup to look like its wearing me and not the other way around. I am not saying Tammy Fay had it right.....what I am saying is I love the look of well done makeup that enhances you or if you choose to go for shimmery, smokey drama then so be it! Just no thank you on the lip gloss that looks like putty in the tube!

One of the worst offenders in my humble opinion was the Lancome Daria Werbowy collection. I loved that a portion went to charity and am all for that, but those lipstick colors and the gloss...oh lord above they were awful! Don't bother with the hate mail as I know from other blogs that some loved this stuff and couldn't get enough. Suffice it say I am not in that crowd. The eye palette was alright with 4 neutral colors. While the colors were fine they didn't wow me but at least they stayed away from the corpse chic of the gloss....sorry Lancome!

So I put the question to you dear readers....what do you think of this no makeup, makeup? Do you purchase flesh toned products or leave flesh matching colors to foundation?

Zoya - Hot Lips

Hot Lips Hoolihan was my very first thought and for anyone who has ever watched MASH I bet it was yours too!

I recently placed a nail polish order with Zoya and was cruising the sight when I stumbled on these chubby tubes. I was willing to take a risk on one, after all they are a mere $6.

I chose Datenite which looks like an opaque vinyl red in the tube but is a wash of fruit punch on the lips. Delicious! Datenite is a great color for anytime, a date night included. It makes my lips look like I have already had a lot of goodnight kissing!

Zoya says these are glossy lip balms and I figured the lip balm part was probably overrated....I was wrong. Hot Lips is not only really pretty color but also moisturizing and lasted a lot longer than I anticipated. The scent in Datenite is slightly sweet but subtle and didn't bother me.

The only drawback is that these must be applied with your finger as these are a tube and don't have an applicator. Even so these are great easy balms and are beach bag ready!

Hot Lips comes in 50 shades so there is bound to be one or twelve that will tickle your fancy. I admit that I have been cruising the web site noting my future picks!

MAC - Soft & Slow Lipglass

Normally I am a MAC die hard but this latest collection Neo Sci-Fi in bright orange packaging just isn't all that exciting to me. For the most part these are colors I have seen before but the noted exception is the return of Soft & Slow Lipglass.

Soft & Slow Lipglass was a limited gloss from almost a year ago that is a great everyday color that looks fresh and nice. It is just a bit deeper than your lip color and while it is tempting to think that you can find another gloss just like it, experience has taught me to buy in multiples!

MAC describes this as a midtone creamy plum shade. On me it makes my lips look polished but not made up.....you know that effortless color that makes you look naturally pretty rather than makeup pretty.

Now if I could only convince MAC to keep Dazzleglass around permanently......hmmm, maybe a petition is in order!

Beauty Rush by Victoria Secret

This is my guilty pleasure....I buy these by the dozen. I admit that my stash of them is ridiculous and probably more lipgloss than any 12 people could ever use. I can't help it though....look at them. They are like little shiny lipgloss soldiers and oh so sparkly in the tube....they smell good enough to eat too.

These little babies are 3 for $15 and I was suckered into my first purchase when going to Vicky's for my basic cotton underwear. Right next to the cashier they have a 5 tiered stand just bursting with tubes of this stuff.

The first purchase was innocent enough. I bought Pinked Lemonade, a neon pink shade that is delightfully sheer and gives your lips a bitten look. It also smells and tastes like fizzy lemonade and that's when the problem began.

As far as guilty pleasures go this may not be too bad....at least when a friend comes over and likes them I give her one. Okay maybe I then go out and get 3 more but who's counting!

Smashbox Desert Chic

I think I have gone a little gold crazy this season! Honestly, I just can't seem to get enough of all the beautiful gold eyeshadow and want to buy them all.



Smashbox's Desert Chic has joined the lineup of collections I really love for summer. The colors are all warm pinks, golds, and corals. You know this is good stuff because I normally can't stand coral!

Here is the line up:

• Body Bronzing Powder is huge and comes with a brush
  
• Eye & Cheek Color is pressed in a heatwave pattern with 3 shades of color.
  
• 3 Lip Enhancing Gloss colors with my pick being Cactus Flower. It is a true coral pink and will look good on a wide range of skin tones.
• Eyeshadow in 24K is a shimmery true yellow gold that made me shiver in a good way!
• Eyequad with contrasting bronze and turquoise shades with a cream liner. So on trend.
  

Smashbox has recently reformulated their single eyeshadows and the result is a cashmere soft texture that is a truly an improvement. I had tried their shadows before and was not very impressed but not so anymore!

Bare Escentuals - Buxom Lips

I need a 12 step program. I know the first step is admitting I have a problem....I'm working on that....but the tingle is so good!

Bare Escentuals Buxom Lips lipgloss has become a bit of an addiction for me. I have 3 colors and am currently eyeing the Buxom Babes set of 4 mini tubes ($28) at Sephora.

What has caused my problem you ask? It is the tingly goodness of this slick gloss when it is applied. Oh and the sheer color doesn't hurt either!

This gloss has become my staple for spring and I am never without it. Buxom Lips isn't sticky or goopy and gives a hint of color and slick shine.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention that it does plump too.....I never seem to see the plumping results that all plumpers claim, but this one is my favorite of the bunch.

I own:

Dolly is a sheer muted plum. Candi is a sheer shimmering berry. Kanani is a sheer vibrant pink.

Buxom Lips can be found at Sephora, Bare Escentuals, or Ulta and are $18. Don't bother emailing me when you find yourself compulsively applying....just know I am right there with you!

Chanel - Aqualumiere

I love lipgloss in all forms and when I received the mailer for Chanel's new Aqualumiere line I ran right down to Nordstrom to check it out.

The line consists of:

9 new Aqualumiere gloss shades which are very light in texture and offer a transparent wash of color. My choice was Ironic Tonic which looks like MAC's O in the tube but is a sheer wash of brandied berry with hints of gold.

5 new Aqualumiere Lipshine shades with the best of the bunch being Samoa! This is a fantastic summer shade that we first saw on Marion Cotillard at the Oscars. It is a coppery rose that looks great on just about anyone and warms up my complexion nicely.

4 shades of Le Crayon Gloss which is very different from a traditional lipliner. This pencil is really like a gloss in lipliner form offering very sheer color.

Almost all the products are $26 and between Ironic Tonic and Samoa I think I have found the colors that will get me through the summer!