Chanel Illusion D'Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in shades Epatant and New Moon

Hello, Beautiful!

If there is one thing I can't get enough of when it comes to eye makeup, it's shimmer/glitter. I don't care if I'm 31 and still wear shimmer and glitter on my eyes; life is too short, sparkle is too pretty - I'm going to wear the sparkle! And one way to get that gorgeous sparkle, without the fallout, is with Chanel's Illusion D'Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadows.

After seeing a swatch of the shade New Moon, I immediately - and I mean IMMEDIATELY (I paused their video) went to the Nordstrom website and ordered New Moon. When it arrived in the mail it was everything I had hoped for, and I couldn't stop wearing it.

I wanted to get more shades, but without seeing them in person I couldn't be too sure. Since I was at a Chanel counter, I swatched them all and decided on just one, the shade Epatant (and I keep wanting to call it elephant). So you will see the shade Epatant in the pics as a brand new, un-touched product (still with its box), and then you'll see a comparison and swatches of New Moon next to Epatant, and New Moon has been used a bunch.

Chanel Illusion D'Ombre Info & Review

Cost: $36.00 (0.14 oz full size)
Availability: Available on the Chanel website, at Nordstrom, and everywhere else Chanel beauty is sold.

My Rating: 5 out of 5 Kisses!

Chanel - Illusion D'Ombre
Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow
Shade: 84 Epatant, 97 New Moon

 

They have a soft, squishy texture. It can be crumbly if you push too hard, or pick up too much product with your finger (or brush) and try to apply to your eyes.

Here are three swatch pics showing how the color shifts and the light it reflects.

New Moon compared next to Epatant....

New Moon is gorgeous. It is a brown with burgundy and multi-colored shimmer. Really eye-catching, and light-catching. Looks beautiful on its on, as a pop of shimmer on the center of the lid, or even as a liner.

Epatant is a gorgeous mix of gray, silver, taupe and green. I can't even describe it, but it's beautiful! Certainly in the photos of it unused it looks more green, but when swatched it pulls more of those gray tones out.

Both shades have gorgeous shine to them. Both can be sheered out or built up. And both are going to be worn out in my collection! I want more, but it's hard to justify spending $36 a pop, especially when I swatched some of them and they seemed easy to find a drugstore or lower cost dupe. There were even a few that I thought I could dupe right away with products I already had in my collection. Some weren't even very sparkly, which made them even less alluring for me. However, New Moon and Epatant are shades unique to my collection. I can't find any exact dupes, but I'm sure someone, somewhere, has dupes for them.

Here are three swatch pics, showing how the shades shift and the shine they reflect.

Now let me know what you think...

What do you think of these two shades? Have you tried them, or would you consider adding them to your beauty wish list? Discuss in the comments below!

xoxo with love & beauty,
Crystal Valentine

Chanel Glossimer lip gloss in 119 Wild Rose

Hello, Beautiful!

When I walked up to the Chanel counter, the very first product that caught my eye was the Chanel Glossimer in the shade Wild Rose. This gloss just screamed my name. It's the perfect shade for me... beautiful pink, subtle shimmer, loads of shine, and a very comfortable, non-sticky formula. I didn't even hesitate to purchase this... it needed to come home with me.

Chanel Glossimer Info & Review

Cost: $30.00 (0.19 oz full size)
Availability: Available on the Chanel website, at Nordstrom, and everywhere else Chanel beauty is sold.

My Rating: 5 out of 5 Kisses

As I mentioned in my blog post on the Chanel Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lip Colour, I picked up three Chanel items while I was at Nordstrom returning some clothing. The return of the clothing was basically an exchange for these Chanel items, plus a little bit more back on my credit card. I wasn't spending any additional money, so I felt a little less guilty about such a splurgy purchase. Maybe if I try to find some dupes in my collection I will feel less like I "need" the Chanel version.... although, I honestly have to say, the formulas of these lip products - both the lipstick and this lip gloss - are superior to those found at the drug store.

Chanel Glossimer
Shade: 119 Wild Rose

 

  

This shade, Wild Rose, may not seem that exciting but if you wear this kind of color all the time then you probably understand why I naturally reached for this one.

It's a gorgeous, everyday warm toned pink with some shimmer. 

You get a doe-foot applicator, which applies the product perfectly. 

This shade is pretty... although I feel as thought I could find dupes in my makeup collection (maybe I'll do a dupe post in the future, if you're interested). However, combine how pretty it is on the lips  -- either on its own, or over lipstick --  with the perfect gloss formula, then you've hit a home run. Money well spent, especially when I have been reaching for this non-stop.

It forms this layer of gorgeous shine over your lips. It has a plush finish to it, meaning it doesn't show every fine line and dry patch on your lips. While it may have a thicker, more plush texture, it's in NO way sticky or tacky. It's silky smooth and very comfortable on the lips.

And the shimmer that's in the gloss doesn't feel gritty at all, or cling to lips far past when the gloss part is gone. Instead, it all just kind of disappears together. For a gloss, it has fairly good wear. Of course this is dependent on what you're doing. The more you're drinking, eating, kissing, etc. means the less wear time. This is by no means a long-wear lip gloss but when I'm not fussing with things like food and water, this gloss sticks around beautifully.

I definitely love this formula, and I'm head over heels in love with this color. It looks gorgeous on its own and certainly when paired over other lipsticks. I wouldn't mind adding a few more shades to my collection at some point in the future!

Now let me know what you think...

What do you think of this lip gloss? Have you tried this, or would you consider adding this to your beauty wish list? Discuss in the comments below!

xoxo with love & beauty,
Crystal Valentine

Chanel Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lip Colour in 434 Mademoiselle

Hello, Beautiful!

It's not often that I get to a Chanel counter, but I recently had to make a trip to Nordstrom to make a return and strolled on over to the Chanel counter to "take a look" (yeah right, we all know how that goes). I figured if I was returning some clothing items and getting money back, then I wasn't dipping into more money... so I ended up buying three makeup items. One of them is the Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lip Colour in the shade Mademoiselle, and wow is she a beauty! I'll go into more detail on my review throughout the pics...

Chanel Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lip Colour Info & Review

Cost: $36.00 (0.12 oz full size)
Availability: Available on the Chanel website, at Nordstrom, and everywhere else Chanel beauty is sold.

My Rating: 5 out of 5 Kisses!

Chanel - Rouge Coco
Ultra Hydrating Lip Colour
Shade: 434 Mademoiselle

Here is what the box looks like. Don't mind the sticker residue from the back of the box. The Nordstrom sales associate put their Nordstrom bar code sticker right over top of the ingredients instead of on the blank side that had the regular Chanel bar code on it. 

  

Classic Chanel style packaging.... just the newer, updated, reformulated formula. 

And here she is... in all her gorgeous glory....

If I'm going to spend $36 on a lipstick, you better believe I want to be in love with the formula and shade. I want it to be a shade I'll reach for often, because I have so many lipsticks already in a wide range of shades, that there is no need to splurge on lipsticks I won't wear. I knew I wanted a "your lips but better" shade and Mademoiselle was the perfect fit. I also knew I needed a hydrating formula - which is why I went with this lipstick formula over some of of their others. 

I don't know what it is about lipsticks that have an embossing in it, but they are so beautiful to me.  

This swatch really isn't the best but it's a decent representation of what the shade looks like. It's a very wearable shade... it looks a bit darker in the tube than how it actually applies. It is a gorgeous pink. It's not a shimmer, but it's not a matte. It's a cream finish with a slight sheen to it. It looks beautiful on the lips!

And for whatever reason, I could NOT get good lip swatch pics of this shade. I guess I was having a bad photo day. I feel like these pics just don't do this shade any justice; it makes the shade look less than exciting. And sure, it's not some intense plum shade or something, but it is a really beautiful "your lips but better" rosey pink shade.

To me, it's perfect. It's an everyday shade, and that's exactly what I was looking to find.

I also want to mention how hydrating this lipstick is. I have dry lips year round; no amount of lip balm can keep them looking their best around the clock unless I am religiously applying it - and many days I go too many hours without applying anything to my lips (so really, it's my fault). This lipstick goes on so silky smooth and has a very comfortable feeling on the lips. A slight slip as it basically seals in a layer of moisture to your lips. It also has a pretty shine to the lips, which looks even more gorgeous with their Glossimer lip gloss in the shade Wild Rose (you'll see a post on that coming soon too). 

I would absolutely splurge on more of these lipsticks because this lipstick formula is so divine. It's very comfortable, and most importantly for me, it's very moisturizing. It's also fairly long wearing too! Great pigmentation as well, which I'm not sure how well you can really tell from the above lip swatch photos. 

Some of the shades on my wish list: Elise, Olga, Ina, Roussy.... but I can't remember for sure if these were the ones I swatched and loved, or if maybe I got the names mixed up. Regardless, there are a bunch of shades to swatch and check out. I recommend going to a Chanel counter if possible because the online pics do not represent these shades very true. For example, Mademoiselle looks very brown on the website. 

If you have been wanting to splurge on a Chanel lipstick, but weren't sure which shade to get, I can highly recommend the shade Mademoiselle - which I think would look great on 95% of people!

Now let me know what you think...

What do you think of this lipstick? Have you tried this, or would you consider adding this to your beauty wish list? Discuss in the comments below!

xoxo with love & beauty,
Crystal Valentine

VIDEO: Quick RAVE on the Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage Airbrush Foundation! (Powder Foundation)

Hello, Beautiful!

I just did a really quick video because I had to RAVE about a foundation I've been absolutely LOVING! For the past couple weeks I've been using the new Tarte Amazonian Clay Full Coverage Airbrush Foundation in the shade Light/Medium. It is good stuff -- especially for this hot summer heat!

Right now you can only purchase this through QVC. They offer 6 shades. Right now it is priced at $39.84 plus S&H and it includes the brush. You can also watch the on-air presentation through that link.

Here is my quick video review on it... let me know if you want to see a blog post with pics, swatches, before & after, - or even a video showing my foundation routine using the Tarte and Chanel foundations I mentioned in the video.

Now let me know what you think...

What do you think of this foundation? Have you tried this or is this on your wish list? Discuss in the comments below.

Chanel Mat Lumiere Long-Lasting Soft Matte Foundation - before & after pic, swatches, review

Hello, Beautiful!

I have yet to try a Chanel foundation, so a couple months ago on my way through Macy's I stopped at the Chanel makeup area and asked for a sample of the Mat Lumiere foundation. The sample wasn't labeled, and I've since forgotten what shade it was, but I'm almost positive she said 30 or 40.

Check out my pics, swatches, info, and review... click on pics to view them larger.

Chanel Mat Lumiere
Long-Lasting Soft Matte Foundation
Shade: ? Not 100% sure of shade, but I believe it's 30 or 40

 

Chanel Mat Lumiere Long-Lasting Soft Matte Foundation Info & Review:

Cost/Availability: $54.00 (for the full size bottle). Available on the Chanel website and everywhere else Chanel makeup is sold, like Macy's and Nordstrom.

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Kisses

Perfect for combination skin with a tendency to shine, this oil-free formula delivers a soft, natural matte finish with maximum staying power. Medium coverage looks impeccable and shine-free for up to 12 hours.

I was excited to try this out, mainly because I've wanted to try a Chanel foundation out for awhile and I've heard so many people love the Chanel Vitalumiere foundation. I figured the matte version would be a good choice for me.

The shade was a pretty good match. I know in the before & after pics it looks like it's too warm for my skintone but the lighting was slightly off. In person the shade match was near perfection.

The texture and application was nice. I did find it dried down really quickly, which is a good thing to me. It didn't offer enough coverage to warrant the price tag. I like full coverage, or at least medium buildable coverage. I do find you can build the layers but I don't think it ever really builds up to the full coverage I can get with other foundations. It also wasn't super long lasting, like I was hoping.

I'll have to give it another try before I give my final verdict as far as if I'd actually purchase it or not, but right now I'm saying I'd pass on this just because for the price it wasn't any more special than other foundations I've tried for way less cost.

Now let me know what you think...

What do you think of this foundation? Have you tried this or is this on your wish list? Discuss in the comments below.