9/15/2013

The Warmth Of Summer

I'm off for the next few days, so I'll be playing catch up and posting weeks worth of looks, swatches, and whatever else strikes my fancy.

From left to right: Fire lust Skin Illuminator, 02 Bronzed Amber & 01 Blush Guilt Illuminating Cheek Color.

From left to right: Cream Color For Eyes 06 Escapade & 05 Pink Haze, Plum Absolute For Eyes.

From left to right: Warm Sable Lip Color, 04 Pink Guilt Ultra Shine Lip Gloss.

Products used:

Face:

Dior Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Hydrating Makeup SPF 10 in 031 (my Summer color).
Tom Ford Skin Illuminator in Fire lust (mixed in with foundation and used to highlight).
Tom Ford Illuminating Cheek Color in 02 Bronzed Amber (in the hollow of the cheeks and blended upward).
Tom Ford Illuminating Cheek Color in 01 Blush Guilt (on the apples of the cheeks).
Eyes:

Shu Uemura Hard Formula brow Pencil in Seal Brown.

MAC Mineralize Concealer in NW25.

Tom Ford Cream Color For Eyes in 06 Escapade (on the inner half of the lid).
Tom Ford Cream Color For Eyes in 05 Pink Haze (on the outer half of the lid, blended into the crease and lower lashline).
Tom Ford Absolute For Eyes in Plum (used to line the upper lashline).
L'Oreal Hydrofuge Voluminous Carbon Black Mascara in Carbon Black.

Lips:

Tom Ford Lip Color in Warm Sable.
Tom Ford Ultra Shine Lip Gloss in 04 Pink Guilt .

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.

9/14/2013

The Lady Varnishes...Christian Dior Diorific 011 Lady Vernis

I don't sun bathe, do tanning salons, or self-tan. Whatever color I do get, it is from me running around to and from department stores :P A great way to enhance/extend a Summer tan is by wearing any form of white; I chose Diorific's Vernis in Lady.

This Summer, I passed on Tom Ford's Vapour Nail Lacquer, because it looks identical to Lady and it doesn't see the light of day that often, or at all. Released for the 2012 holiday season, Lady is a pearlescent, neutral white. I have mixed feeling about lady; I love it in the bottle, but on the nails, this semi-sheer polish is streaky, patchy, and requires five coats to get a somewhat opaque (but flawed) finish.

I'd appreciate any white nail polish recommendations.

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.

9/14/2013

A Jedi Craves Not These Things...Tasty Related, Not Beauty Related

The weekend has finally arrived! For the last five days, I've had a influx of work come in. I'd begin every day at 3:00 am, start work at 6:00 am, and come home around 11:00 pm. Needless to say, I have tons of brushes to clean, my fridge is empty, and I have loads of posts to upload (no change there). I'm a HUGE Star Wars fan, so I squealed when I found this at 7-11.

The Ichigo (that's strawberry in Japanese) Pocky, and lightsaber wrapper is adorable!

What Pocky flavors have you tried?

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.

9/08/2013

Let's Do Lunch! Addiction Soda Lunch Looks

I'm in love with the dinosaur casing! He wants to give you a Jurassic hug with those adorable, short arms ^^

With Summer winding down (thank goodness!), I'll be posting my favorite Looks from this season. First up, looks from Addiction's Ready To Wear Eye Palette in Soda Lunch.

Color description from left to right:

A turquoise-blue with a satin finish.

A silvered-white with a pearl finish.

A matte bright, canary yellow.

A metallic deep purple with a blue duochrome.

Products used:

Face:

Dior Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Hydrating Makeup SPF 10 in 031 (my Summer color).
Addiction Cheek Stick in Amazing.
Eyes:

Shu Uemura Hard Formula brow Pencil in Seal Brown.

MAC Mineralize Concealer in NW25.

Addiction Ready To Wear Eye Palette in Soda Lunch:
The pearlized silvered-white (all over the lid and blended up to the brows).
The canary yellow (in the inner corner).
The blue-purple duochrome (blended half way into the crease and the lower lashline).
The turquoise-blue (blended in the outer half of the lower lashline).
Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner in Black Ink.
Mac Eye Kohl in Fresh Cream (on the waterline).
Urban Decay Big Fatty Mascara in Black.
L'Oreal Hydrofuge Voluminous Carbon Black Mascara in Carbon Black.

Lips:

Addiction Lipcrayon in Rose Petal.

Products used:

Face:

Dior Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Hydrating Makeup SPF 10 in 031 (my Summer color).
Addiction Cheek Stick in Rose Bar.
Eyes:

Shu Uemura Hard Formula brow Pencil in Seal Brown.

MAC Mineralize Concealer in NW25.

Addiction Ready To Wear Eye Palette in Soda Lunch:
The turquoise-blue (all over the lid, blended into the inner crease and the outer half of the lower lashline).
The blue-purple duochrome (blend into the crease, outer V and the inner half of the lower lashline).
The pearlized silvered-white (in the inner corner and brow bone).
Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner in Black Ink.
Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Electric (on the waterline).
Urban Decay Big Fatty Mascara in Black.
L'Oreal Hydrofuge Voluminous Carbon Black Mascara in Carbon Black.

Lips:

Addiction Lipcrayon in Day Trip.

Products used:

Face:

Dior Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Hydrating Makeup SPF 10 in 031 (my Summer color).
Addiction Cheek Stick in Nocturne, Tea Rose and Damask Rose (mixed all three together).
Eyes:

Shu Uemura Hard Formula brow Pencil in Seal Brown.

MAC Mineralize Concealer in NW25.

Addiction Ready To Wear Eye Palette in Soda Lunch:
The blue-purple duochrome (all over the lid and lower lashline).
The canary-yellow (the brow bone and inner corner).
Bobbi Brown Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner in Black Ink.
Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Electric (on the waterline).
Urban Decay Big Fatty Mascara in Black.
L'Oreal Hydrofuge Voluminous Carbon Black Mascara in Carbon Black.

Lips:

Addiction Lip Gloss in Purple Rain .

Hope you enjoyed these looks as much as I did wearing them!

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.

9/05/2013

Bathing In The Purple Rain...Addiction By Ayako Nail Polish

For those of you living outside of Japan, I wish there was some way for you to get your hands on these AMAZING polishes. If you, or someone you know, are ever in Japan, you have to buy a few Addiction polishes!

Purple rain is a murky, deep bluish-purple with a blinding gloss finish that is synonymous with Addiction polishes. The gel formula does run thin, so the polish does require 4-5 coats for opacity. I love the color, glossy finish, and the 5-6 day wear time, so much so, that I don't mind putting in a little extra elbow grease for Purple Rain.

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.

9/04/2013

Gone, But Not Forgotten: Jemma Kidd Dewy Glow All Over Radiance Creme

This week's highlighter is Jemma Kidd's Dewy Glow All Over Radiance Creme in Iced Gold and Rose Gold. During Summer, I tend to reach for cream or liquid highlighters, ad Jemma Kidd is an old favorite.

From left to right: 01 Iced Gold, 02 Rose Gold.

The Dewy Glow All Over Radiance cremes brighten the complexion, giving it a pretty, luminous sheen. It's a shame these highlighters are no longer available. However, you may be able to find them on ebay, amazon.com or on a blog sale.

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.

9/03/2013

The Parati!

I've taken some time off work to take care of a few personal things (don't worry, it doesn't directly involve me or mine). Although I'm still busy, I do have some "down time" to upload several weeks worth of looks that have been accumulating.

One of my favorite Summer Collections was Dior's Bird of Paradise. This look features the Diorshow mono eyeshadow in 273 parati, and was inspired by one of the Bird of Paradise looks from the brand's website.

From left to right: Diorshow Mono Eye Shadow 273 Parati, Diorshow Waterproof Mascara 258 Azure Blue, Diorskin Nude Tan Paradise Duo 002 Coral Glow (the bronze side), Nude Rouge Lipstick 319 Trench.

273 Parati is a deep, electric blue with a matte finish. I'm going to cut to the chase here, and say that I was very disappointed with Parati! The Mono eye shadows can be worn either wet or dry. However, when applied dry, it's sheer and lacks vibrancy; and when used wet, it's more vibrant, but dries patchy. I prefer to use it dry with either a white or blue eye shadow base to maximize and get my blue's worth of color.

Products used:

Face:

Dior Diorskin Nude Natural Glow Hydrating Makeup SPF 10 in 031 (my Summer color).
Dior Diorskin Nude Tan Paradise Duo 002 Coral Glow (the bronze side on the cheeks and everywhere else you'd put bronzer).
Eyes:

Shu Uemura Hard Formula brow Pencil in Seal Brown.

MAC Mineralize Concealer in NW25.

Rimmel Soft Kohl Kajal Eye Pencil in 024 Cool Blue (used as an eyeshadow base and to tightline).

Dior Diorshow Mono Eye Shadow in 273 Parati ( patted on the lid, and slightly blended into the crease).
Dior Diorshow Waterproof Mascara in 258 Azure Blue (on the upper and lower lashes).

Lips:

Dior Nude Rouge Lipstick in 319 Trench.

Did you pick up Parati?

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.

9/02/2013

Memento Midori...Zoya Professional Lacquer in Midori

Houston, we have a problem! My camera lens has died on me and will no longer auto focus. This predicament makes photographing a challenge, especially when photographing arm swatches or my manicures. The lens costs a nice chunk of change, so I'll have to work with the manual focus until I purchase a new lens. Therefore, I apologize in advance for any slightly blurred or out of focus shots.

The photo above does Midori no justice! The day was overcast, so the shimmers were asleep :P

In person, Midori is a tad deeper and the gold shimmers are more prominent.

Midori (meaning green in Japanese) is a glorious, bright, yellow-toned grass green loaded with gold shimmer. The polish is opaque in two coats, however, I prefer the finished look after a third coat. I own a few Zoya polishes, and I really enjoy the ones I have. The formula has that "just right" consistency, and applies easily. Also, they wear very well, about five days before the first chip. I'm not sure why I don't have more Zoya polishes in my collection...I'll need to remedy that soon. If you love green polishes, then you need this gorgeous polish in your life!

What Zoya polishes do you recommend?

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.

9/01/2013

Searching For Beauty Products is Half the fun Week Four: So Lonely In Gorgeous Scavenger Hunt Giveaway!

Aki and I at the rock climbing center in Kinshicho, 2009.

Fourth week down, only seventeen more to go!

The Rules:

Must be a gorgeous member.

Create a board on pinterest and title it "So Lonely In Gorgeous Scavenger Hunt Giveaway"

Now, what you pin is totally up to you. It can be a collage of cosmetics (favorite looks, lipsticks, blushers, eye shadows, nail polishes, past, present and up coming cosmetic collection releases, products you can't live without, what you're loving right now, etc), hair care, skin care, home decor, art, music, food, vacation spots, your muses/inspirations, and so on...you get the gist.

Once you've completed your board, add the link to the comment section of this or one of the weekly giveaway reminder posts.

The final day to submit your board will be January 5th, 2014.

This giveaway is open Internationally!

You may be wondering, "how does this giveaway work?" Well, I'm glad you asked because it's all based on creativity, points, and a hat :D

You automatically get two entries for being a gorgeous member. So, Don't forget to click the 'join this site' button.

Blog or twitter (please include the link in the comment section) about the giveaway on a weekly basis and earn 2 points for every week.

If for some reason you can't do the pinterst thing, then write your answers to the same general topics in the comment section for two additional points.

By posting your Pinterest link, you earn an additional 10 entries.

An additional 5 entries for creativity and effort (i.e. posting your own photos/images).

Finally, and most importantly, the prizes:

2 Addiction Eye Shadows (your choice).

2 Addiction Cheek Sticks (your choice).

2 THREE Flash Performance Eyeliner Pencils (your choice).

2 Laduree Pressed Cheek Color (your choice).

All the prizes will be purchased by me :D

Feel free to ask any questions!

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.

9/01/2013

By that Lipstick, I Vow An Endless Bliss...Suqqu Creamy Glow Lipstick Moist swatches

The Creamy Glow Lipstick Moist range is one of my favorite lipstick formulas. The formula has a rich, balmy texture that feels very comfortable and hydrating. Also, they give the lips a lustrous wash of color, delivering a luscious, playful, sophistication to any look.

From left to right: 01 Haruoto, 02 Kurumiro, 04 Tsurukokemomo, 05 Usunadeshiko.

From left to right: EX-02 Himehagicha, EX-05 Hanabotan, EX-06 Maaka.

From left to right: EX-08 Sangodama, EX-09 Kohakudama, EX-10 Tsubomidama.

I'm missing only one color from the permanent range and that is 03 Fuyuzakura. The next time I'm at the Suqqu counter, I'll have to try it again to remind me why it's not in my stash.

My favorite shades are: 01 Haruoto, 02 Kurumiro, 04 Tsurukokemomo, 05 Usunadeshiko, EX-02 Himehagicha, EX-05 Hanabotan, EX-06 Maaka, and EX-09 Kohakudama.

Suqqu's Creamy Glow Lipstick Moist retail for 5,250 ($54.90), and contain 0.13oz/3.8g of product.

What are your favorite Creamy Glow Lipstick Moist shades?

Looking gorgeous one lipstick at a time.