Sneak Preview Fall 2012: Addiction by Ayako Desert Rose and Paul & Joe Love Birds

Hey all! I've been missing for a little bit! We went to get a dog from a shelter and so my spare time has been preparing for his arrival. Now after a weekend of training and lots of cuddles I will return to normal and post about all the nice goodies I recently got. I'm already due the RMK Deep Iridescence blushers and lipsticks and I went and added these to the list **sigh** anyway, here's the sneak peak on the Addiction by Ayako Desert Rose and the Paul & Joe Love Birds fall collections!

Addiction Powder eyeshadows (clockwise from the top right): Sheltering Sky, White Pepper, La Mamounia, Moroccan Rose.

Addiction Kohl Eyeliners (clockwise from the right): Midnight Sun, Arabian Nights, Secret Nights, Night Dive.

Paul & Joe Color Powder CS (left to right): True Love, Les Tourtereaux, Inseparable.

Hope you enjoy the photos

RMK Deep Iridescence eye shadows: Iridescent Deep Red, Iridescent Navy, Iridescent Deep Gray

For me visiting the new Selfridges Beauty Workshop is a bit like a kind in a candy store. So much to look at! So many brands all together! Bright, clean counters with friendly people! I have to say Selfridges reputation increased a lot in my eyes (granted, only been there once) but I used to hate going to their Beauty Hall. The new RMK counter is quite central in this new location and much nicer and bigger than the previous. Settled next to Stila and Ellis Faas it's easy to get distracted with other purposes than my initial one. Which was to go and see the RMK Autumn collection: Deep Iridescence. 

I've been in love with the promotional look since the first time I saw it; smoky shimmery eyes are always so pretty! Here I'll show you the eye shadow duos. I adore everything I bought!

The Deep Iridescent Eyes are a combination of a blackened base and a shimmer bright complementary colour in the centre of the pan. You can use the blackened base to smoke the eye, and go as subtle or heavy as you want and then you can use the shimmery bright colour all over it or just highlight the lid, inner corner and brow bone which will bring out the colourful shades of the smoky eyes. The base is smooth and the highlight is a bit grittier with some fallout, but nothing that can't be easily tidied up.

I have these in three combinations (swatches after the descriptions): red, navy and grey. There's also brown, purple and green combinations available which albeit pretty are less impressive.

Addiction by Ayako Eye Lacquers WP En Plein Air, Swimming Pool, Rumble Fish, Black Swan

Finally I took the plunge and made my first choices from Kosé's Addiction by Ayako offerings. After seeing so many wonderful reviews and swatches on my favourite blogs and swooning over all the beautiful products and promo pictures, I knew it was only a question of time until I tried this brand. Well, I'm glad I finally tried it, all I can say is why did it take me so long? :-)

The Eye Lacquers WP were released in the Lady of the Lake collection, a nicely edited waterproof collection which included new shades of the eyeliner pencils and these liquid eyeshadows. I purchased four of the nine available colours, three of them because I thought they were unique and one for everyday use. They are packaged in a black lacquered square tube with doe foot applicator.

I really like how they apply, they are very liquid and feel slightly cool but dry well. Not instantaneously, still take a few seconds to dry which may make it tricky to layer but once dried they won't budge. I'd definitely recommend you allow it to fully dry before layering otherwise the finish will be patchy and will start to fall off during the day (I wasn't a happy bunny on the day I tried that look hahaha). But as I said they have an amazing lasting power when set and applied in thin layers. The advantage of taking some time to dry is that you can blend with a brush, this will bring out the sparkles very nicely.

By Terry Fall 2012 Luxuriant collection - the ombre blackstar cream eyeshadows

And today we have the new ombre blackstar cream eyeshadows from the fall 2012 collection! If you've read my post about these eyeshadows here you'll know that I love this formula for its longevity and finish. So whenever there's new shades out I feel excited. What I like about these collection is that the colours are a bit different. Most of the other blackstars are bright ot light(er) colours, with teh exception of #01 black pearl. These are strong, darker shades stepping out of the traditional capsule range. You can see how By Terry is building up to a wider amplitude with the ombre blackstar and I hope they keep investing in them.

So onto the new shades:

• 11 Beyond Gold is a warm, antique gold. This is very similar to NARS Etrusque single eyeshadow, which is a staple in my gold + black eyeliner looks.
• 10 Midnight Forest is a deep forest green. A very pretty shade but not really outstanding.
• 09 Velvet Orchid is dark, velvety plum. Absolutely gorgeous and perfect for smoky eyes. It will pair beautifully with the Carnal Attraction lipstick.

By Terry Fall 2012 Ombre Blackstar Crem Eyeshadows

So, am I buying any of these? I am really not sure. I'm trying to stay away from buying duplicates and it will quite a while until I hit pan on my Etrusque. The plum shade is stunning, and will contrast nicely with my green eyes - but I bought a medium plum from the Shu Uemura eyeshadow revamp that is so similar to this. So i might give it a pass. If I ever go back in my decision it will be for velvet orchid for sure!

Thank you for reading :-)

By Terry Fall 2012 Luxuriant collection: the rouge terrybly lipsticks

By Terry's Fall 2012 collection inspiration are dark velvety colours with rich textures and a complete disregard by the "rule" that you should tone down your lips if you play up the eyes. So far, so good since I don't enjoy rules that much and I like my purples. The looks are all very compelling (check them here) so I was looking forward to looking at the items in person. 

The collection include new nail lacquers, new rouge terrybly lipsticks, new ombre blackstar eyeshadows and a new terrybly mascara. Today I'll show you the lipsticks. They are probably the only items in the collection that are really suitable for a transition between summer and autumn. Well, maybe the mascara as well.

These rouge terrybly lipsticks are the matte version but most of them have a satin-like finish with very subtle sheen:  

• 400 21 Véro-Dodat - bright coral with a sheen, this is perfect for summer.
• 401 Guilty Nude - matte nude with a coral undertone, very flattering.
• 402 Red Ceremony - true red with a sheen, I think this would easily suit most skin tones.
• 403 Bare Instinct - rosy nude, this is the mattest of all the shades, with enough rose to keep it wearable and enough brown to still be classified as a nude.
• 404 Carnal Attraction - sheeny wine-purple, perfect for vampy lips without going too black - this is my favourite of the lot!

Rouge Terrybly lipsticks for Fall 2012

All in all, I really liked the colours but maybe trying them out on such a hot day as yesterday was not ideal. It was very hard for me to feel excited about autumn, dark makeup. Maybe later in the year I'll go back for #404. 

Are you already excited with the A/W makeup?

Thank you for reading :-)

NARS Eyeliner Stylo - a quick review and swatches of all the new shades

The new NARS eyeliner stylos arrived! You can see the excitement in the blogosphere, and after trying them on my last trip to SpaceNK I feel I also need to jump on this bandwagon. They are really amazing. Personally I love felt-tip eyeliners, I find them easier to apply and control the thickness of the line. 

I wasn't too happy with the previous incarnation of the NARS stylos, I found it difficult to get a smooth line without patches. There's no such problems on this generation, the colours are rich and deep; the tip dispenses enough liquid to achieve a line in one swipe and they dry reasonably fast. They are perfect. I did a quick cat eye with them at the shop and it was impressive how easy it was to use them.

NARS eyeliner stylos

As you can see in the swatches, Nuku Hiva is the odd one. The colour isn't as deep as the others and it looks like it bleeds slightly. I'm not sure if I tried a bad batch or if there's something wrong with this shade - if you've tried it I'd love to hear your thoughts. I was also disappointed because from the initial press release I thought it was going to be a reddish brown and it's clearly not. Atlantic is a perfect navy blue.

Koala is grey and Carpates is dark black. They are not matte, flat colours, there's a certain sheen to them. In the swatch above I applied two layers of each and you can see how Koala darkened, transforming into an almost soft black. It's great for versatility and what I wanted the London eyeliner pencil to be. I did another swatch of them side by side, with just one layer so you can see the differences.

NARS eyeliner stylo Carpates vs. Koala

I haven't bought one yet, I have a couple of liquid eyeliners I want to finish before they dry out. No need to hurry since these are not limited edition but I keep thinking of how much I like Atlantic and Koala, so if this carries on for another week I might use the rest of my gift card to get them.

Have you tried them? Do you love them?

Thank you for reading :-)