Tag: Sephora

Posted on

we like: Bite Beauty Cashmere Lip Cream

The Bite Beauty Cashmere Lip Cream formula is so interesting. It’s a cream-to-powder matte lip product that reminds me of a more posh, more pigmented version of the NYX Soft Matte Lip Cream (which I also like a lot). Evidently it features unprecedented levels of pigment for this kind of texture, which I readily believe. This gives massive color impact in one swipe.

IMG_8970

Here is their blurb about how it works, which sounds so cool,

“The cream-to-powder delivery system is achieved with an advanced formulation of butters, waxes, and oils that all have different melting and absorption rates. The balanced combination of waxes and butters with the powder texture of silica develop a creamy and buttery application that quickly absorbs into lips while the powdered pigments remain on the surface to leave a matte finish.” (via Sephora)

Bite Beauty is a compelling (and relatively young) brand, all about nourishing ingredients, most notably high levels of the antioxidant reservatrol, also found in wine, presumably the reason behind naming so many of their colors after wines. They are one of a growing number of smart beauty brands out of Canada right now (Toronto). Their Luminous Créme lipstick, which I’ll talk about soon, is absolutely gorgeous, and their various lip pencils are excellent as well. Solid all around.

I picked up the color Sancerre, a bright raspberry pink. This is quite a dry cream upon application yet doesn’t dry immediately on the lips (is blottable for many (say, 15 or so) minutes, with increasingly faded results). The curious thing is that even if you keep blotting, though product comes off on the tissue, the effect on the lips doesn’t seem to change at all. That is, blotting truly removes only the excess, not part of the foundation of color you want to keep. It comes off on drinking glasses and whatnot as well, minimally, yet still without diminishing the effect of color on the lips, at least not for a good while. Pretty impressive for a formula that doesn’t promise to be long-wearing. It has an interesting flexi-fuzzy-tip applicator, a little longer and narrower than the standard doe-foot. More like a short mascara wand, and I think it works brilliantly.

We like.

Posted on

the Kat Von D Monarch palette

If you’ve been reading for a while you may remember that I’ve been looking for a sepia eyeshadow, and was for a while considering the Kat Von D Ladybird palette, though in the end I had too many reservations and didn’t go for it. I’m so glad I didn’t, as Kat Von D released two new palettes this month with new colors and formulas, one warm, one cool. Guess which one I liked more?

IMG_2737the warm one

I picked up the Monarch palette, which wasn’t even on the shelves yet in Sephora last week but they sold it to me anyway. The colors were, are, irresistible to me. This is what I wanted the Urban Decay Naked palette (which I don’t have (or want) in any incarnation) to be. Taupe, beige, bronze, gold, champagne, brown, russet…everything I like best, and with lovely, buttery textures.

IMG_2740

See that shade on the left?? Are you seeing??

This already has great reviews online, and it deserves them. I haven’t had much time to play around with it yet but I’ve been swatching and musing, and I am pleased. I have some reservations about the top right base shade, which has some oversized glitter, but this is the only negative to report so far. This should be on shelves officially in the next couple of weeks, so if you’re near a Sephora (this is a Sephora exclusive), I urge you to check it out. The other palette is nice, too, with blues and stuff, but, you know. This one is better.

I’ve been making a lot of decisions based primarily on color lately, and color seems to be playing an increasingly significant role in my vision generally (in all types of choices). Somehow color is jumping out at me more, seems more important, more powerful and more poignant than it has been in the past. It’s always hard to tell if I am imagining these things. Still, it does seem I am struck down (smitten, really) more often by some singing color these days. I am the same, perhaps, only more so.