Things I ♥ Now

I'm branching out today and writing about bits and pieces (as in not only makeup) of things that I have collected over the course of a month or so! Hope you enjoy it, I certainly enjoyed putting it together :)

I love...

 Sheer Lipsticks

I've been going back and forth between this gorgeous trio but this next sentence describes my current situation pretty well. "A girl can never have too many sheer lipsticks" Do share your favorite sheer lipsticks!

Top to Bottom: Dior Diorissime, Dior Singuliere, Chanel Evasion

Glittery Nail Polishes

I try to avoid painting each and every nail with glittery polishes at all costs. Because if you have ever used a glitter nail polish then you know what a hassle it is to take them off! So I limit my glitter nail polish consumption to just one nail, usually the ring finger one. My favorite of the three is definitely my newest discovery; Sally Hansen Hard as Nails in Ice Queen. It was only $1.99 at Walgreens and looks amazing over a matte white polish as base. The other two are my oldies but goodies from OPI's Burlesque collection, Extra-va-vaganza! and Sparkle-icious.

Sally Hansen Ice Queen, OPI Extra-va-vaganza!, OPI Sparkle-icious

 

Bath & Body Works Coconut Mango

New season, new scent. My favorite spring scent was Carried Away. I still do show it love every now and then but for now Coconut Mango takes the cake! If you're like me and have a weakness for anything coconut-y then check this out. Both the body wash and lotion have a wonderful and sweet scent which leans a bit more toward coconut in my opinion. Since getting the lotion, I've become a devoted moisturize-er :)

Bath & Body Works Wallflowers

While visiting BBW last weekend, these $2 wallflowers and oils caught my eye. I've been using Glade for as long as I can remember but they just don't smell as strong or last as long as the wallflowers. So I have made the switch and will be purchasing these on a regular basis. I've got the light pink to match the lilac walls of my office :)

Michael Kors White/Rose Gold Chronograph Resin Bracelet Watch 

This is my second Michael Kors watch, you can see my first one here. I can't get enough of MK watches. Without a doubt, they make some of the hottest watches around. I had been wanting a white watch and a rose gold watch so when I spotted this beauty on Nordstrom's website for 40% off (it's still on sale!) I thought why not get one that has a little bit of both? I'm absolutely in love with it, I don't even know where my other watch is :)

Dogeared Always Beautiful Moroccan Rose Gold Dipped Earrings

Groupon has become quite the enabler for me. Few weeks ago I've seen Dogeared Jewelry on Groupon and one click on their link I was in jewelry heaven! They sell some unique pieces and I'm happy that I bought the $25 for $50 Groupon. (Believe me it helped with the grand total!) They are a little on the pricier side but the quality of their work is clearly visible when you hold and wear their products. I love my Moroccan rose gold dipped earrings and wear them almost daily. Rose gold is just so versatile!

Payless Flats

I buy shoes from wherever as long as I love them. I haven't been to Payless for a long time. Recently I was at a strip mall and had to park far away from the store I intended to go to and guess which store happened to be right in front me? It was meant to be, I tell ya! To my surprise they had a BOGO 1/2 off sale! I instantly fell in love with these two pairs, so they came home with me. So happy my long search for nude flats is over, I've wanted a pair for so long!

What do you ♥ now?

Dior Addict Lipstick - 465 - Singulière

I blame Twitter for all my recent make-up buys. I have been absolutely in love with this amazing and stunning Dior lipstick thanks to the lovely Tina at All The Vanity! If she hadn't recently tweeted about her favorite Dior Addict lipstick shades the other day, I would have probably not thought about checking out Dior for lipsticks anytime soon as MAC is my first resort for lipsticks for some reason.

Let me start off by saying that this was a really touch choice! Dior currently has 50+ shades in their Addict lipstick collection. Of the 50+ possible colors, I'd say 75% are shades that I would love to own and that I'd actually wear! I chose Singuliere because I love me some pink lipstick. I feel like I usually buy corals, nudes and not enough pinks. When I swatched Singuliere I knew I had to have it and I'm soooo happy with my choice!

Needless to say the packaging is to absolutely die for! I don't think I will have the courage to throw away the empty container after I'm done with it, hoarder much? Yes! The box is silver cardboard, the container itself is clear, holographic plastic that looks gorgeous when moved around. It's definitely not your regular lipstick container as you have to pull out the actual lipstick portion where as with say a MAC lipstick you would just need to twist off the cap. It feels so luxurious in hands, and it is hence the $28 price tag.

Singuliere is a bright bubblegum pink and it looks brighter in the container. It is a sheer lipstick but can definitely be built up to the desired intensity. For being a sheer lipstick, I think it has good pigmentation. Super creamy consistency makes application a breeze. There is absolutely not shimmer or glitter in this lipstick. I think a bit of a prep may be necessary if you have dry lips as the creamy formula may get stuck in dry spots on lips. Nothing a little lip scrub can't fix. Because it has 25% less wax than regular lipsticks, it results in spectacular high shine, plumped lips without the need of lip gloss. There is also no stickiness involved though there is shine, a lot of it. The shine doesn't last as long as the color itself, I would say about an hour or so. The color, considering you don't eat or drink, lasts a bit longer. 465 is a great everyday shade for girly pink lips!

I think Dior chose the perfect name for these lipsticks....Addict! I am totally an addict after my first lipstick from this line. I cannot wait to get more colors, next one being Diorissime - divine!

What do you think of Dior Addict Lipsticks?

Diorskin Poudre Shimmer Amber Diamond

I can't even remember how long I withheld myself from purchasing this gorgeous highlighter, all I remember is that I first saw it on my dear friend Obsessed Makeup Addict's lovely blog back in the day and have been lusting over it since then! It's kind of hard to bring yourself to shell out dough ($48 eeek!) for a highlighter because it's just a highlighter for crying out loud! But if you are anything like me and love to highlight your face daily and you want a high quality product which will make you glow beautifully then this product is well worth the money...and the hype!

This is my first Dior beauty purchase ever! Last time I felt this luxurious about a beauty product was when I purchased my first YSL lipstick! I had the same experience with this Dior product. The packaging alone makes the whole experience grand. I know I sound cheesy but it's true! So, as you can see in the above pictures, this multi-purpose product comes in this navy blue glossy packaging with silver lettering which nests in a black felt pouch. I think the little pouch is a nice touch however I don't think it's that practical. It also collects dust like I've never seen before, so I won't be using it much.

The sleek, blackened navy blue compact has Dior embossed in silver in addition to holographic CD in a lighter blue shade right under it which looks amazing!

There are a total of five finely-milled shades that include (left-right) a thin stripe of cream, wider section of champagne, thin stripe of coppery-bronze, and wider sections of both peachy-champagne and light gold. The texture is very smooth and they apply on skin very smoothly. I swipe my brush through all of them for my cheekbones and I love using cream and champagne colors on inner corners of my eyes . Cream alone makes a really good brow bone highlighter! If you want to highlight more areas, another one is the cupid's bow (which I don't highlight necessarily) which was a tip from the Dior make-up artist who applied this all over my face! All of these shades can also be used as eye shadows.

One thing I don't like about highlighters in general that they are impossible to take decent photos of. These photos do not do this product justice! If you are searching for something shimmery for your cheekbones  definitely go and check out this beauty in person!

 Amber Diamond looks especially gorgeous on cheek bones in my opinion, it may be due to the fact that I don't have anything quite like it but I do have highlight colors for my brow bone already. It's nothing reminiscent of  MAC Mineralize Skin Finishes, which are usually on the chunkier side. I personally do not like that much shimmer/glitter on myself. Amber Diamond provides just the right and subtle amount of glow without empowering your entire face. The pigmentation of all five shades are amazing as you can see in my swatches. I'm happy to finally own this amazing product and will definitely be repurchasing it when the time comes. My 'guesstimate' is that, it won't be for another year or so. It looks like it will last a long time!

Do you own Amber Diamond? What is your favorite highlighter?

New Year, New Loves

I wanted my first post of 2011 to be sort of a sneak peek of products that I'll be reviewing in the upcoming days. I hope everyone's new year is off to a great start and it'll have the same effect throughout the year! :) My resolutions for 2011 don't really include anything that pertains to make-up/spending but I will try to control myself from buying products I don't really need any more of, such as highlighters!

Which brings me to my next point, I purchased a new highlighter which I've been lusting over for a long time. Goodbye Rose Ole & Too Chic! (both from new MAC collections which I'll happily return!) I'm sure a lot of you, if not all, have either seen/heard about or even own this beauty. It's none other than Dior's famous Amber Diamond. I used to only occasionally, or make that rarely, use highlighters on my face. This all changed after I began blogging and seeing all sorts of amazing products in fellow bloggers' blogs and Amber Diamond was only one of them.

Diorskin Poudre Shimmer Amber Diamond

My last tube of L'oreal Voluminous mascara just gave me hell...I bought it about 2 months ago and was happily using it until it started clumping like nobody's business huh!? It wound up becoming so clumpy, gooey and disgusting that I had to chuck it. Not sure if this particular one was old to begin with or what? I thought this was the perfect timing to give Makeup Forever's Smoky Lash a try! Tried it, loving it...Happy Lashes!

Make Up For Ever Smoky Lash

Very surprisingly my local supermarket seems to get new products way before Walgreens or CVS and I think faster than most other cities in the U.S.? I have already seen the new Wet n Wild goodies, new L'oreal foundation, and Maybelline's Fit Me! foundation prettily sitting on shelves last week! I am nearly finished with my beloved PhotoReady and while I know that I will definitely repurchase it, something inside me wanted to try this Fit Me! foundation so here it is! It feels amazing on my skin but it's no PhotoReady. First impression of Fit me!; I like!

Maybelline Fit me!

Vintage Selection is one of the four paint pots in MAC's Cham Pale collection which is currently in stores. I initially wanted all four of the paint pots but Vintage Selection was the only that truly captured my heart while swatching in store so it came home with me! It's a beautiful shimmery champagne color that I love using as a base under many different eye shadows!

Vintage Selection Paint Pot

 I had no idea Covergirl was even bringing out a new lipstick collection but I'm very happy to eventually have found out about them :) There is a pretty good selection of colors, Delish (top) and Fairytale were right up my alley so here they are! I love the effect these lipsticks have on my lips, they are super moisturizing!

CoverGirl Lip Perfection Lipsticks

Here is one of the Color Icon trios I mentioned above. I feel like this trio in it's entirety may be a good dupe of something, I'll let you know in my review for these trios if I find anything dupable in my collection. The quality is just amazing, I think even more amazing than previous trios. The texture seems to be much softer, and all three colors have great pigmentation!

Wet N Wild Color Icon Trio in Silent Treatment

Here is the entire collection! There are 5 new trios at $2.99 each, what a steal! There is a wider color range too, I wanted them all but wasn't sure about the color pay-off/pigmentation etc for that reason I picked up the "safest" trio! Please excuse the photo quality below as I took it with shaky hands (via my iPhone) due to too much excitement! :D

Wet n Wild Color Icon Trios

What are you guys loving in 2011 so far?