Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Foundation Swatches, Including new Giorgio Armani Maestro Foundation!

Hello again!  I am making up for lost time and posting twice in one day. 

Here is my very first swatch post!  While this may not be exciting to most people, I have never officially swatched any of my products and I am already learning so much about them.  It is very helpful to see the color and texture of the foundations sitting next to each other.  Very eye-opening!

Foundation bottles:


These are my NYC foundation swatches.  I have more than this, but these are just the products I have on hand at the moment.  I will definitely share more when I am next in LA.

For reference, I am of asian/caucasian descent and have yellow/golden undertones.  I have been matched to MAC NC35 in the past.  For those who have used the Sephora Pantone Color IQ system, my match from about 6 weeks ago was 2Y08.  I tan very easily (despite religiously wearing sunscreen!) and always get at least one shade darker in the summer.  Therefore, I frequently purchase two shades of the same foundation and mix them depending on the season. 

The foundations are swatched on the inside of my forearm in cloudy, indirect sunlight.  The skin here is definitely lighter than my face.  I am guessing that it is about an NC25?  Also, the skin is lighter towards my wrist (right side of photo). 

And here are the swatches!:


From Left to Right:
1) Shiseido Perfect Refining Foundation, Color: O40
2) Trish McEvoy Even Skin Foundation, Color: 4
3) Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua, Color: B50
4) Kevyn Aucoin The Solid Foundation, Color: Christy 04
5) Tom Ford Traceless Foundation, Color: 06 Sable
6) Cle de Peau, Refining Fluid Foundation, Color: O30
7) Giorgio Armani Face Fabric, Color: #7
8) Giorgio Armani Maestro Fusion Makeup SPF 15, Color: 7
9) Giorgio Armani Maestro Fusion Makeup SPF 15, Color: 6.5

Thoughts:
I never realized how golden yellow the Tom Ford Traceless Foundation is compared to my others.  It is almost a little too yellow for my liking at the moment.  With my summer tan still around, I am probably best matched to the Chanel and Giorgio Armani Maestro #7.  The Maestro foundations blend so well that I can easily use 6.5 as well.  After seeing these swatches, I am convinced that the Shiseido in O40 is too light for me right now.  Unfortunately, O60 was very yellow, so I didn't really like that one.  Even though I have yellow undertones, I like to counteract my undertones with peachy based foundations.

For further reference, here is a link to my past post about my foundation swatches.

Thanks for reading and I hope this can be helpful

~MBA (Makeup & Beauty Apprentice)

What's Inside My Travel Makeup Bag?

Good Morning!  I can't believe it's been over a week since my last post - Sorry!

I was travelling for work last week and am now back in NYC.  The cooler and less humid weather is so enjoyable.

I am sharing my travel makeup for this post.  As I mentioned previously in my first foundation swatches post (here), I have makeup stashes in LA and NYC.  This means that my travel makeup doesn't have to be all inclusive and I can keep it minimal (that is my goal at least!).  A lot of these contents are pulled from my latest Giorgio Armani and Le Metier de Beaute haul (post here).

To house my travel makeup, I use the Trish McEvoy Large Makeup Planner.  I became a Trish convert back in 2008 when a dear friend of mine took me to the Nordstrom Trish counter for some wedding makeup.  That is when I purchased this large makeup planner too!  Since then, I have acquired a few of the smaller makeup planners, but I still go back to the large size most often. 

Here is a picture of the planner all zipped up.  It fits in my luggage (check in or carry on) very nicely.

Approximate size is 8.5" x 6"
And here are pictures of the right-side contents in the planner.  Brushes on the right side.  A middle zip mesh pocket for lippies, MUFE Aqua Brows, and my Shu eyelash curler.
 
 
And now the left side.  Foundations, concealers, bronzer, blush, eyeshadows in the clear zip case.  Eye pencils and mascara in the tubular black zip case.
 
 
Now, I will outline the contents that I use for my polished work makeup.  Nothing extreme here, just trying to have a nice complexion, defined eyes, and a natural (yet sexy!) lip.
 
Starting with the face products:
 
 
From left to right:
1) Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua: B50 (Beige 50)
2) Giorgio Armani Maestro Fusion Makeup SPF 15, Color: 7 (Am still playing with this... review pending!)
3) Benefit Sun Beam highlighter, sample size
4) Shiseido Perfect Refining Foundation O40, sample size
5) Too Face Chocolate Soleil Matte Bronzing Powder, travel size
6) MUFE HD Primer #1 (Green color), small amount put in travel jar
7) Benefit Bella Bamba blush, sample size
8) Giorgio Armani Maestro Eraser Dark Circle Concealer, Color: 2.5
9) Clarins Stick Concealer: 03
 
With my face makeup here I basically have three foundations to select from.  Chanel is my tried and true product and I am still testing the GA Maestro and the Shiseido foundations.  I love having the small bronzer, blush, and highlighter so they don't take up too much room.  Same goes for the primer.  I use so little that there is no sense in taking the whole bottle!  And finally, the concealers are for my undereye (Giorgio Armani) and blemishes (Clarins).
 
Now onto the Eyes and Brows....
 
 

From top left to right:

1) Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Silk Eyeshadow, Color: 28
2) Le Metier de Beaute Eye Brightening and Setting Powder, Colore: Revive
3) Le Metier de Beaute True Colour Eye Shadow, Color: Corinthian

4) Urban Decay Primer Potion: Original color, OLD sample size!
5) Maybelline The Falsies Flared Waterproof Volume Express Mascara: Very Black
6) Giorgio Armani Waterproof Smooth Silk Eye Pencil in color 2 (Deep Brown)
7) Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz, Color: Medium Ash
8) Le Metier de Beaute Dualistic Eye Pencil, Color: Champagne
9) K-Palette Real Lasting Eyeliner 24h waterproof 1 day tattoo (Japanese liquid pen liner that is fantastic! I got mine from Amazon)
10) Yves Saint Laurent Eye Pencil Waterproof #1 (black)
11) Trish McEvoy Brightener: Shell
12) Kat von D Tattoo Liner, Maya (Deep Brown)
13) Shiseido The Makeup Corrector Pencil, #1 Light (used on inner rims of lower lids for brightening effect)
14) Trish McEvoy High Volume Mascara Jet Black
15) MUFE Aqua Brow #25
16) MUFE Aqua Brow #30
17) Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler

You can probably tell from this list that I love my eyeliners!  I only have a few eyeshadows (LMDB Corinthian and Armani ETK #28).  For work, I only need these basic, yet shimmery neutrals with a defined eye (hence the eyeliners!) and I am good to go.  Along with my Urban Decay primer potion and waterproof mascara, my eyes can easily last all day.

And the lips I kept pretty simple because I am so happy with my recent Le Metier de Beaute lippies!!:



From left to right:

1) Trish McEvoy Lip Liner, Barely There #12
2) Le Metier de Beaute Lip Creme, Color: Papaye Creme
3) Le Metier de Beaute Colour Core Moisture Stain Lipstick, Color: Bali
4)
Le Metier de Beaute Sheer Brilliance Lip Gloss, Color: Uma Paro
5) Le Metier de Beaute Colour Core Moisture Stain Lipstick, Color: Summerland


I couldn't be happier with these lip colors.  With these four items, I feel like I can achieve the whole spectrum of lip looks, from barely there nude, to dark and vampy.  I guess I can't do a true red lip.  However, I rarely do anything too pronounced for work anyway. 

And last, but not least.... my brushes/misc tools!



From left to right:

1) Trish McEvoy 62 Fan Brush
2) Kevin Aucoin Concealer Brush (holy grail status for pin point blemish concealing)
3) Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage Concealer Brush
4) Bare Escentuals Max Coverage Concealer Brush
5) Bare Escentuals small wet/dry eyeshadow brush
6) Trish McEvoy #45 Sheer Application eyeshadow brush
7) Urban Decay Optical Blurring Foundation Brush
8) Laura Mercier Camouflage Powder brush
9) MAC 188 Small Duofiber Face brush
10) Make Up For Ever Eyebrow Brush
11) Kevin Aucoin Contour Brush
12) Shiseido Foundation Brush
13) eyebrow spoolie
14) Trish McEvoy 29 Tapered Blending Brush
15) Trish McEvoy 48 Blending Brush (used for blush)
16) plastic petri dish half (used for mixing aqua brow)
17) Beauty Blender sponge (that needs cleaning!! how embarassing!)

And there you have it.  I can't believe how many items I fit into this single case!  In total, there are 48 makeup items that I travel with!  So much for being minimal!!!

Thanks so much for reading this post.  I am gearing up for some swatches posts.  Still trying to get the camera situation taken care of...

Have a great day!

~MBA (Makeup and Beauty Apprentice)

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Slightly Obnoxious Neiman Marcus Haul - Giorgio Armani and Le Metier de Beaute

Hello!

Yesterday I made a visit to the Newport Beach (CA) Neiman Marcus to visit the Giorgio Armani and Le Metier de Beaute counters.  I specifically wanted to try the new Armani Maestro "foundation" and some of the LMdB eyeshadows.  After loving these items, of course I couldn't stop there and got some extra goodies.  Here is a picture of my "haul" minus the gifts with purchase and a few items that are coming to me in the mail.



Here are the specific items that I purchased:

Giorgio Armani:
Maestro Fusion Makeup SPF 15, Color: 7 (An almost perfect color match for me)
Maestro Eraser Dark Circle Concealer, Color: 2.5
Eyes to Kill Silk Eyeshadow, Color: 28

Le Metier de Beaute:
Dualistic Eye Pencil, Color: Champagne
Lip Creme, Color: Papaye Creme
Sheer Brilliance Lip Gloss, Color: Uma Paro
Colour Core Moisture Stain Lipstick, Color: Bali
Colour Core Moisture Stain Lipstick, Color: Summerland
Eye Brightening and Setting Powder, Colore: Revive
True Colour Eye Shadow, Color: Corinthian

I have been meaning to pick up the Eyes to Kill #28 and Corinthian eyeshadows for a looong time.  So I'm happy to finally own them and they definitely have not dissapointed. 

Here are the gifts with purchase that I received:

 

I'm not going to list everything out.  The highlights are definitely the LMdB travel size Peau Vierge Tinted Luminzer (Color: 2).  This is a bit light for me, but I still feel like I will be able to use it.  The Giorgio Armani makeup bag is gorgeous in a dark black velvet.  Also, there is a full-sized Waterproof Smooth Silk Eye Pencil in color 2 (Deep Brown).
 
I will be swatching and trying these products in the coming days and will definitely be posting!  I am also trying to figure out a camera situation because my cell phone pictures just aren't cutting it. 
 
Thanks for reading!
 
MBA (Makeup & Beauty Apprentice)

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

My Foundation and Concealer Matches: Part I

Good Morning (California time)!

As I mentioned in my last post, I am always happy when I find bloggers with skin colors similar to mine because it is so helpful when determining my color matches.  Of course I appreciate all skin colors though!  Below is a list of my current foundation and concealer matches.  My skin is oily/combination and gets much darker during summer, so I have to change foundation colors throughout the year.  Not all of these are perfect matches, but they are definitely within range.  I should note that this bunch does not constitute my whole collection. I have makeup in New York, and then I also have some makeup in storage (long story!). So, this will be the first of a few posts to capture all of my matches.  In fact, I am a bit of a microsoft excel freak so I may make a table that has all of the info.

I'm also going to include the matches I received from Sephora when I did the Color IQ Pantone matching a few weeks ago in the Times Square Sephora (I travel frequently between NYC and LA so couldn't wait to try the Color IQ service). 

Please excuse the icky fingerprints!

Foundation matches (left to right):
1) Make Up For Ever HD Foundation: 123 (Sephora Color IQ match)
2) Dior Airflash Spray Foundation: 301 Sand
3) Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer SPF 30: St. Moritz Medium1
4) Urban Decay Naked Skin Foundation: Shade 6.0
5) Chanel Vitalumiere Aqua: B50 (Beige 50)
6) Koh Gen Do Moisture Foundation: 023 (I also match well to 123)
7) Tom Ford Traceless Foundation Stick: 06 Sable

Powder matches (left to right):
1) Cle de Peau Beaute Powder Foundation SPF21: O30
2) Tom Ford Translucent Finishing Powder: 02 Ivory Fawn
3) Koh Gen Do Triple Lighting Foundation SPF 22: OC-2

Concealer matches (starting with Senna compact below red Koh Gen Do compact, then left to right):
1) Senna HD Hydra Cover Hydrating Concealer Palette: Shade 2
2) Cle de Peau Concealer: Three colors! Beige, Ochre, Honey (This is so embarassing but I splurged on all three so I can create custom colors!)
3) Vichy Dermablend Skin Concealer: 30 Medium and 20 Nude (again, I love customizing concealer colors so I have two of them!)
4) Skinfood Salmon Darkcircle Concealer Cream: 02
5) Vichy Dermablend Ultra Corrective Foundation Cream Stick: Nude
6) Hourglass Stick Concealer: This is so old that the color name wore off from the tube.  I also just checked the Sephora website and they no longer have this version! It is probably similar to Sand or Tan
7) Clinique Airbrush Concealer: 02 Medium
8) Clarins Instant Light Brush On Perfector: 02
9) Clarins Stick Concealer: 03
NOTE* Here are a few more concealers that I have but are not in the picture:
- Koh Gen Do Concealer Palette
- Laura Mercier Secret Camoflauge: SC-5
- Laura Mercier Undercover Pot: UC-4
- Perricone MD No Concealer Concealer

Sephora Pantone Color IQ Matches (29 total):

Color IQ Skin Color: 2Y08  (this means that I am 2 "steps" on the yellow side of the spectrum and am on the 8th "level" of darkness.  That's how I interpret it at least!).  I haven't tried all of these so I can't attest to how well they actually match.  Overall I feel that the Color IQ matching was pretty accurate.  Since my skin will get lighter with the fall/winter, I will definitely go back to get re-matched.

1) MAKE UP FOR EVER HD Invisible Cover Foundation: 123
2) Josie Maran Argan Matchmaker Serum Foundation: Light/Medium
3) Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation: CASHEW BEIGE
4) Laura Mercier Silk Creme Foundation: HAZELNUT BEIGE
5) SEPHORA COLLECTION Matifying Compact Foundation: D33-33 Walnut/Med
6) Hourglass Immaculate Liquid Powder Foundation Mattifying Oil Free: Beige
7) Perricone MD No Foundation Foundation
8) Givenchy Photo'Perfexion Fluid Foundation SPF 20 PA+++: 106 Perfect Pecan
9) Dior Diorskin Nude Skin-Glowing Makeup SPF 15: 031 Sand
10) Smashbox High Definition Healthy FX Foundation SPF 15: LIGHT L3
11) Cover FX Cover FX Total Coverage Cream Foundation SPF 30: E50
12) Benefit Cosmetics 'Hello Flawless!' Oxygen Wow Liquid Foundation: Warm Me Up/Toasted Beige
13) Bobbi Brown Foundation Stick: Natural Tan 4.25
14) Bobbi Brown Foundation Stick: Warm Natural 4.5
15) Urban Decay Surreal Skin Cream-to-Powder Foundation: SUPERNOVA
16) Laura Mercier Moisture Supreme Foundation: TAWNY BEIGE
17) Laura Mercier Oil Free SuprĂŞme Foundation: GOLDEN BEIGE
18) Cover FX Natural FX Water Based Foundation SPF 15: M 70
19) NARS Sheer Matte Foundation: MEDIUM4 BARCELONA
20) Shiseido The Makeup Dual Balancing Foundation SPF 17: O60 NAT DEEP OCHRE
21) Urban Decay Surreal Skin Mineral Makeup: Vision
22) Too Faced Amazing Face Oil Free Close-Up Coverage Foundation: WARM HONEY
23) Bobbi Brown Extra Repair Foundation SPF 25: Natural 4
24) Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20: Bisque
25) Bobbi Brown Extra SPF 25 Tinted Moisturizing Balm: Light to Medium Tint
26) LORAC ProtecTINT™ SPF 30 - Oil-Free Tinted Moisturizer: TAHITIAN TAN
27) Stila Illuminating Tinted Moisturizer Oil-Free SPF 20: shade 02
28) Cover FX Skin Tint FX Moisturizing Treatment & Tint SPF 30: E LIGHT
29) Urban Decay Urban Defense Tinted Moisturizer SPF 20: BODYGUARD


Thanks for reading!

~MBA (Makeup and Beauty Apprentice)