Reviews and Other Stuff

NARS Audacious Lipstick Review

April 6, 2017 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Hola Everyone! If you’re looking for a new lipstick to try, here’s a few from Nars Cosmetics that I discovered lately. Well, actually, it all started with Emma Stone’s lip color at the Oscars. I love the La La Land film and I’ve been a fan of Emma ever since Easy A and Zombieland. So of course, when I saw her makeup at the Academy, I thought she looked really good on it, not to mention her beautiful vintage-inspired dress. But what struck me the most was the shade of her lipstick. I don’t know why, but whenever I meet people, I always tend to look at their makeup, and I’m always fascinated by the color of their lipsticks. The same thing is true when I saw Emma Stone’s lipstick on TV. And obviously, I searched online and discovered that she was wearing the Nars Audacious Lipstick in Mona shade.

I’ve had a couple of Nars Lipsticks in the past and I really love them. I think I may have had the satin finishes like; Niagara, Roman Holiday and Dolce Vita. They were relatively easy to wear, non-drying and quite long lasting. I’ve also tried the Nars Velvet Lip Glide (reviewed HERE), the Nars Lip Gloss, and the Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil, but I’ve never tried the Nars Audacious Lipsticks before. So, off I went to Sephora and decided on 4 shades that I really love, and one of them is Mona of course.

Jane – Terracotta Rose. A true blend of orange and brown, just like the terracotta stoneware. It’s a very versatile shade that adapts to the lighting and skin tone and can be worn day or night. Though the color tends to be on the muted and warm side, this shade is very unique and versatile enough for everyone.

Anita – Antique Rose. A muted light mauve-pink that is just simply pretty. It’s so great as an ideal everyday lipstick and it works really well for light to medium skin tone. Could even be the best pink-nude shade if your skin tone is on the warm side. This shade gives the right amount of flush on my lip’s natural color.

Barbara – Tan Rose. I really love this shade when I swatched it in Sephora, but when I started wearing it, it just seems a bit too nude for me, like a little washed-out or a little “walking dead”, LOL, jokes. I think this would look really great for lighter skin tones, but if your skin tone is on the warm side, might as well try another shade. This shade is the kind of shade I would reach for when I want to rock a heavy drama eye makeup, or for a casual yet edgy chic look.

Mona – Mahogany. Absolutely the best shade among the Nars Audacious Lipsticks in my opinion. No wonder it’s still sold out in Sephora. It’s vampy but different. The blend of red, brown and berry makes this shade very interesting and very versatile. It works on all skin tones, just like the way it looks really good on Emma Stone. It also looks good on my medium skin tone and my friend who has a darker tone than mine looks really good on it as well. I love dark shades of lipsticks, and most that I have are either red-browns or red-berries, but it’s rare to find one that seems to have it all, like Mona. So smile like Mona, from now on. Ohs?

The Nars Audacious Lipsticks are all satin finishes and they are audaciously pigmented. The colors last about 6 hours on me, give or take, and there are no discerning scents. Just a standard lipstick scent that smells slightly waxy and nothing else. It’s buttery smooth upon application and is non-drying throughout. This Allure Best of Beauty winner lipstick also feels weightless and comes in bold array of colors. Each costing $34 for 0.14 oz tube.

Happy Thursday Everybody!

X.O.X.O

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Hermès Garden Collection Coffret Set Review (Un Jardin en Mediterranée, Un Jardin sur le Nil, Un Jardin sur le Toit, Le Jardin de Monsieur Li)

April 5, 2017 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Good day guys! Ready for some fragrance review? I’ve got just the perfect spring scents to feature in this review and they’re the Hermès Garden Collection Eau de Toilettes. I love this collection of scents so much, in fact, I’ve been alternating two of the four scents since last Spring and Summer. I usually go for lighter and brighter scents during warm seasons because I find some Eau de Parfums to be too much around these times. Sometimes, I even opt for some colognes. Speaking of colognes, I’m currently testing some Atelier Colognes and a review will be coming up pretty soon.

The Hermes Garden Collection with 4 unisex scents will suit anybody with a thing for unique fragrances that spark an atmosphere of curiosity. Just like that unforgettable stroll into a magical garden. The scents are mysterious and irresistible, so don’t be surprised if people will stop you one day, asking about what scent you’re wearing.

There are only 2 standard sizes available for these scents; The smaller 1.6 oz for $99 and the 3.3 oz for $137. They’re pricey compared to most Eau de Toilettes, but they’re so worth it. I can only wish that Hermès will someday soon sell a designated travel size bottles for these.

Un Jardin sur le Nil – Ever wonder what it smells like strolling around the Nile River? This particular scent is inspired by it. This scent is fresh, clean, crisp, refreshing and sparkling. Probably the most loved scent of all the Hermès Garden Collection, this fragrance is citrusy with a blend of tangerine and some other lemon-ish scent. It’s an interesting blend of allureness and freshness. Very distinctive and long-lasting. This is my second favorite scent of all the Garden Collection.

Un Jardin sur le Toit – Inspired by the garden of feasting and joyfulness. This scent smells like unripe apples and pear and something else. A little too strong at first, almost slightly alcohol-like while being very green and grassy at the same time. It also has a slight magnolia scent and is definitely not fruity, but quite spicy. I’d say it’s more of a manly scent at first spray, but it fades softly and becomes quite feminine later on. It doesn’t stay very long, but two sprays are enough to make it last for a couple of hours.

Un Jardin en Mediterranée – Just like the Mediterranean garden, this is an earthy-woody scent that is long-lasting with a musky tone. The blend of fig and cedarwood is very bold and clean. It smells fresh and slightly masculine. A very sexy scent that can be worn even in winter or fall.

Le Jardin de Monsieur Li – Reminiscent of a Chinese garden that inspires meditation and fantasy. What can I say to the scent that brings back a lot of memories and countless imaginations? Well, a lot, but I’ll try to narrow it down. This scent just blends well on my skin’s chemistry and it’s the one that strikes my olfactory senses very well. Though I didn’t really like it at first, but the more I use it, the more I love it. It’s the one I keep reaching at as my go-to scent. The blend of Kumquat, Jasmine and Grass notes is just elegant and divine. It’s slightly fruity, slightly citrusy, slightly musky, but mostly green but never sharp and never heavy. It’s the perfect blend of whatever you want in an Eau de Toilette or Cologne. That might be why it’s an Allure Best of Beauty award winner. There’s just something different and sophisticated about this scent.

Overall, I love all 4 of the Hermès Garden Collections Scents, but if I have to rank each of them, I’d say, the 4^th place would go to Un Jardin sur le Toit, 3^rd place – Un Jardin en Mediterranée, 2^nd place – Un Jardin sur le Nil and the 1^st place goes to Le Jardin de Monsieur Li.

The Hermes Garden Collection Coffret Set is a limited edition at Sephora. Each small bottle is 7.5 ml. The set costs $50, which is a very good deal.

Have you tried any of there? What’s your fave?

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Chanel Mules Slides Review

March 31, 2017 / FASHION & BEAUTY / 0 comments

Hello There! It’s almost weekend, right? Let’s end this week with an exciting review dedicated to all shoe lovers, shoe-aholics and fashionistas out there. I know we all love shoes, if it’s not bags, not jewelries, it’s definitely the shoes! Who doesn’t get crazy when it comes to shoes or footwear? I know I do, and I can’t help it. Like the famous quote in the movie “In Her Shoes” Rose (Toni Collette) told her sister Maggie (Cameron Diaz) these lines “When I feel bad, I like to treat myself. Clothes never look any good. Food just makes me fatter. Shoes always fit”. Yes, the shoes always fit, no matter what. Even coming from the mouth of the world’s most famous shoe collector and the wife of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos, Mrs. Imelda Marcos once said “They went to into my closets looking for skeletons, but thank God, all they found were shoes, beautiful shoes!” Oh! Isn’t that something? I wish I could say the same for my closet, hahaha! But most likely, it’s probably filled with some boring shoes and lots of dusts, and who knows, there might even be a skeleton in there, LOL! Just kidding… Anyway, without further ado, this review is all about the Chanel Mules, or commonly known as the Chanel Slides. I have searched far and wide for this pair of slides, in fact, I’ve crossed countries for it, and finally got it. Oh, excited much? Keep reading….

Almost exactly a year ago, I was having lunch and I saw this email from Chanel that linked to a video about their Cruise 2016/2017 collection that was held in Cuba. I was so excited that I immediately watched the whole show online and was mesmerized at the whole ambience and beauty of the place and the entire collection. The clothes were so colorful, the bags were vibrant and the entire Cuban vibe looked very muy caliente! Yet I was transfixed to a specific accessory. Those slides! They’re beautiful, they’re different, and they’re so me. Oh my, here we go again. Whenever I say those words, I get into trouble, LOL! So, the models kept coming back, waking back and forth with those beautiful and colorful slides. Their skinny feet looking casual chic into these chain-adorned sandals. I knew I wanted those Slides right then and there.

From then on, I embarked into these whirlwind Chanel Slides hunting and had my series of ups and downs. Never knew looking for something as simple as slides or mules can be so tedious and frustrating at times. But it’s not like most mules you know. I first decided which color I like, and knew I had to get the dark ones, but the ones shown in the fashion show were all colorful. I remember seeing the previous year’s slides, which was the first time the Chanel slides were unveiled, I think sometime in 2015, and they were made of tweed upper, which I really really like, but I was sure I couldn’t get my hand on those anymore. Yet I wasn’t so sure about the Cuba Collection’s colors either. Since I was traveling at that time, I decided to drop by at a Chanel boutique in New York and asked if they have one. They said, they weren’t available in their store yet, but it’s coming soon, and they were kind enough to add me in their waiting list. Oh you have no idea how excited I was. Fast forward, a few months later, I received a call from them, the person I talked to in the phone had a very weird attitude. He was so in a hurry to sell without even showing me all the sample pictures and didn’t even care which color I like or wanted to buy. He told me there’s a navy shade, but was not willing to show me the pictures, so I thought, how could I buy something that I haven’t seen? So I just let it pass. What a bummer. I really wanted those Chanel Slides, I thought. Oh well, too bad.

Another fast forward, a few months later, I found myself strolling inside Neiman Marcus King of Prussia shoe salon and my heart skipped a beat, I thought I was gonna have an arrhythmia, and there it was, a pair of Chanel Slides in navy color shown on display. The slides of my dreams, the chain detail looks very luxurious and shiny against the rich dark navy footbed and upper satin fabric. I could buy it right now, but something was holding me back, I know, right? Crazy of me, but I thought about my upcoming trip to Europe, and I decided to buy it there since I’ll be able to get it tax-free. So I let it pass again.

Weeks later, I visited a Chanel boutique in Barcelona and immediately asked for a pair of Chanel Slides in Navy. Right away they said they’re gone and that they’re gone almost everywhere in Europe. My heart sank 6 feet below the ground. In fact, they only have one color in my size, and it’s pink. Oh what a cruel world. They never care to leave at least one navy shade in size 7 for me. I then had a flashback of all the chances where I almost got the slides and I wanted to go berserk! Hehehe, that serious, eh?

So, with empty hands, I tried calling the Chanel boutique in Tysons Galleria and was politely told that they don’t have it either. They’re basically sold out in all Chanel boutiques, and I was beginning to lose hope. But there’s only one more place to call, the place where I first saw the Chanel Slides in Navy. Yes, Neiman Marcus has it, yes! And it’s the only one they’ve got in size 7. I was like “are you sure it’s navy? In size 7? Like the Chanel slides in navy size 7 for real?” The answers were all YES.

Finally, I got my one and only available pair of Chanel slides in Navy size 7. It was as beautiful as I first laid my eyes on it. In fact, I think it’s more beautiful than the first slides released by Chanel that were made of tweed upper, and it’s definitely more beautiful than the Givenchy Slides, which I was also eyeing at first. I love the chain details of it that shines luxuriously when hit by the light, and the navy shade is almost black and looks very versatile. It’s a gorgeous take on a simple slide. It’s casual but elegant, it’s pretty and comfortable. It’s not too heavy and not too light, and it can elevate any outfit, be it formal or street-style. Though I wouldn’t wanna submerge it on the water, it’s still a great sandal for strolling along beach. Just be mindful that the upper is made of satin and not rubber. The slides come in different colors like; bright blue, pink, yellow and green. I advise that you call the boutique directly to see if they have one available right now or when the next batch of stocks will arrive. If not, try the high-end department stores. Chanel just released another version of these slides for their Spring-Summer 2017 Collection, and the upper is made of tweed with flower on it. Meanwhile, the Cruise 2016/2017 is still listed online for reference. Both are priced at $700.

I’m definitely editing my shoes and outfits for this coming summer, and I have a lot of plans for this pair of Chanel slides. I mean of course, who wouldn’t want to wear the shoes that almost got away?

Thanks for reading guys,

Enjoy the weekend.

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