Fall 2009
CND Green Scene Colour and Gold Sparkle Effect
 Today I bring you two more colors from the upcoming CND Colour & Effects line. To recap, CND is revamping their brand by introducing 50 Colours and 15 Effects that can be layered to create over 800 different nail shades.
The Colours include a range of cremes from white to black, vivid primary and secondary hues and three chrome metallics. The Effects include pearls, shimmers and sparkles in various shades like violet, copper and emerald. I’ve been playing with some of the Colours and Effects I brought home with me from Cosmoprof and today I’m sharing my latest combo Green Scene and Gold Sparkle. Take a peek after the jump! |
A green lover like me couldn’t resist the lure of Green Scene. I swear it was calling me from across the room at the CND launch party. It’s like I could hear it saying, “You know you want me. Get over here and play!” And play I did. When it came time to swatch the new colors, I had a ball testing different Effects over Green Scene and my fave of them all is Gold Sparkle.
Green Scene is very vibrant with a slight bluish undertone. The formula is smooth and well pigmented only requiring two coats. As I mentioned in my last CND post, the brush is flat but not too wide with triangular bristles that make application a breeze.
Adding a layer of Gold Sparkle totally blinged out the look. Gold Sparkle is a clear base filled with multiple sizes of gold glitter. There are some large flecks dispersed among the micro-glitter giving a gilded finish.
The CND Colour & Effects line will launch in the Fall at salons and spas in the US. Colours will retail for $9, Effects for $11. CND is carried in over 90 countries and you can find a salon or spa near you using the Salon Locator on the CND website.
Also, I wanted to address your comments and tweets regarding the pricing. We all have our own points of view regarding price and what is expensive to one person may be justifiably affordable to another. With that in mind, I try to review polishes without regard to cost but so many of you have been vocal about the price jump with CND. While the Colour price is not that much higher, the bottle is smaller. And if you want to recreate the look I’ve shown you, it will cost $20. Then again a bottle of Chanel is $23 and it’s just one look. It’s all in the eye of the shopper.
Now I’m not going to comment personally on the pricing but I will throw out my theory regarding the increase. The concept behind this line is that you’re compiling a nail wardrobe. That these are the only colors you need to create 800+ nail colors. In essence, once you buy their entire line, you’re done. So perhaps they feel this price is appropriate for the amount of color combinations you’re getting. That’s up to you to decide. Again, this is just my explanation and not coming from CND.
So with all that out of the way… what do you think of Green Scene? Don’t you just love how well Gold Sparkle compliments it?
Chanel Intermezzo and Gondola Le Vernis for Fall 2009
As a city built on water, Venice was a source of great intrigue for Gabrielle Chanel. She saw it as simultaneously dramatic and fragile – qualities she herself possessed. With the imagination of the CHANEL Makeup Studio, Venice comes to life in a palette reflective of the city’s shimmering facades and mosaics, and the sparkling aquatic colours of its lagoons.
As seen in the runway looks created by Peter Philips, Global Creative Director of CHANEL Makeup, at the 2009/10 Cruise Collection show, held on the beaches of Venice, Italy, rich sienna and deep rose tones, and dusky greys and greens combine for a modern look that can be softened for day or emboldened come evening.
Ahh Venice. How I long to go back. I spent three amazing days there with the Boyfriend back in 2002. We stayed in a gorgeous guest house, Palazzo Bembo, right on the canal near the Rialto Bridge. We spent our days wandering the maze of streets shopping, sightseeing and discovering the amazing food and wine of the region. This season Chanel aims to transport us to Venice with their fall colleciton inspired by the colors of this magical city. For nails they introduce Intermezzo, a white pearl, and Gondola, a stunning maroon shimmer. Let’s take a look.
Gondola is a rich burgundy sparkler. It is packed with gold and red micro-shimmer that catch the light adding a bit of jazz to what could be just another berry red. In typical Chanel fashion it’s a chic shimmer not a blingy glitter polish. It applied in two even coats and dried to a glossy, smooth finish.
Intermezzo is an icy white with an opalescent shimmer that gives off a pinkish sheen in the light. I’m not gonna lie, I’m not really a fan of the formula. It applies pretty streaky, requiring three coats and even then my smile line shows through.
The Chanel Fall collection Le Vernis lacquers retail for $23/ea and are available now on Chanel.com and at Chanel counters nationwide.
What do we think Fanatics? Are we loving these or what? Anyone planning to indulge?
The All Lacquered Up Collection from Barielle – Part 2
 Who’s ready to see the second half of the Shades by Barielle All Lacquered Up Collection? If you’re looking for more color than the neutral palette I showed in Part 1 (Falling Star being the exception) then these colors are for you!
With these polishes we’re getting into richer, more opulent tones filled with glitters, shimmers and pearls (oh my!). Check out what Elle and I came up with, after the jump! |
I commented briefly on the formula in the shade descriptions yesterday as each polish applies a bit differently. With these darker hues, all the polishes are perfectly pigmented two-coaters. There is no unevenness in the consistency, they are all smooth like buttah!
Pin Up was inspired by the gorgeous tomato red lip MAC’s Gregory Arlt created for the Twinkle presentation using Lady Danger lipstick. He gave the models an updated retro look, reminiscent of the classic Pin Up girl (hence the name) or modern day Dita Von Teese. It’s a lip shade that’s just CRYING for a matching nail. We added a hint of gold fleck to add warmth and character.
Lava Rock is a semi-sheer black with red pearl that looks like a blackened plum in natural light and burns deep dark ember-y red in the sun.
You know I’m a girl that loves a good brown. One that isn’t too red or too “special dark” and Make It A Latte is just that. It’s a mid-tone cocoa with a glint of golden reflect.
What do you get when you combine the best parts of Chanel Nuit de Russie and China Glaze Blk-Bila-Bong? Blackened Bleu! It’s got all the bling of BBB with the uber-pigmentation of NdR. Packed within its semi-sheer black base is a massive amount sapphire glitter to create a polish that’s smooth, glossy and high on glam.
Since the collection spans the Fall and Winter months, it wouldn’t be complete without a fab holiday red. Enter Glammed Out Garnet, a deep wine sparkler that packs the same glitzy punch as Blackened Bleu.
I told you there would be a green and this one is a gem. Polished Princess is vivid mossy green shimmer. We wanted to go to the golden side of green with a vibrant, bold hue and I’m just so in love, love, love with it. Now I can see you reaching for your keyboard, ready to ask and no, this is NOT a Zoya Irene dupe. This is much brighter and more yellow based.
The Shades by Barielle All Lacquered Up collection goes on sale in August on Barielle.com. For those of you that have asked, I don’t have international release info yet but I will post anything I hear.
The polishes retail for $8/ea but take advantage of their Buy Two Get One Free deal to stock up on your favorite Shades. Oh and if you sign up for email updates, you’ll get a discount code for your order.
So now that you’ll seen the entire ALU collection, what do you think? Which ones are must haves? If you missed the first half view it HERE!
The All Lacquered Up Collection from Barielle – Part 1
 The wait is over Fanatics. I can finally show you the All Lacquered Up collection from Barielle. In case you missed the original announcement, this collection is a collaboration between myself and Celebrity Manicurist Elle, Creative Director for the Shades by Barielle line.
We pooled our color inspirations straight from the runway and came up with a palette of shades that are fashion forward yet accessible. They are all very chic and wearable. Check out the first half of the collection after the jump! |
Collaborating with a nail trendsetter like Elle was such a thrill. With her years of experience working in editorial and alongside more celebrities than you can count, she really has her finger on the pulse of the beauty and fashion world. One trend we noticed was lot of muted, neutral tones with random pops of color, like Falling Star (below). Based on many phone convos about shades and perusing runway images, Elle custom mixed samples of our collection for the chemists to reproduce.
Now I know some of you commented that you were expecting all kinds of craziness from me and though this is the All Lacquered Up collection it’s not like I had license to do whatever I wanted. Shades by Barielle is about bringing fashionable shades to the masses so while there is a lot of me in this collection, it’s as much about being on trend and incorporating Elle’s color concepts. It’s a collection I am proud to attach the ALU name to and I hope you’ll love it as much as I do.
Slate of Affairs – when I was backstage at Reem Acra with Jamie from The Beauty of Life, I just about drooled at the site of her luxe designs. I wanted to dive in to the rack of dresses head first. It was her sandwashed steel blue gown that inspired this shade. A stunning slate blue grey, the polish has a subtle hint of pearl that adds a bit of light blue flash depending on the light. The formula on this one is somewhat jellyish and thick so I used three coats to get it perfect.
Get Mauve-ing is based on another Reem Acra dress. While I’m not typically one for mauve hues, I was so drawn to the gown’s shade that I felt it just needed to be in this collection. This one is a richly pigmented creme and applies evenly in two coats.
Grey tones like U-Concrete-Me were popping up on just about every runway. Undoubtedly a sign of our somber economic times, grey is still very much “in” for nails come fall. U-Concrete-Me is a two-coat, dolphin grey creme.
Putt-E On Me fits in with the neutral/grey concept only this warmer, muddier shade will please those of you that feel that grey washes them out. This mid-tone mushroom-y hue is another two-coat creme.
Out-Grey-Geous is the answer to what comes between $OPI Run With It and OPI Brand New Skates. A grey with gold fleck is just what I’ve been looking for but the $OPI was too putty-ish and BNS was too charcoal. Out-Grey-Geous is just perfect; a medium grey shimmer with gold micro-glitter.
They say you save the best for last and Falling Star definitely fits the bill. Remember that bright pop of color I mentioned? It’s like the primary colored dresses at Chris Benz but with a twist. I had thought of adding gold micro-glitter but it was Elle who felt copper particles would make it truly unique and she was dead on. They look like fiery stars falling from the sky. Application with this one is a bit tricky. The thick jelly like consistency makes this one a three coater for me.
The All Lacquered Up collection from Shades by Barielle will launch in August on Barielle.com. The polishes retail for $8/ea and, as always, Buy Two get One Free.
So what do you think Fanatics? How’d we do? Make sure you check out Part 2 where you’ll get to see, can you guess, a GREEN!
butter London Fall/Winter 2009 Fashionista’s Favourites Sneak Peek
 OK so you remember that ah-mazing green from butter London that I spotted backstage at the Vena Cava show during New York Fashion Week? At the time, it seemed like forever until we’d get the chance to wear it. Well, the launch date is getting closer and closer and I have a preview of British Racing Green and the rest of the Fall 2009 butter London collection.
Nonie Creme, butter London Creative Director: Nails will be a huge part of your F/W wardrobe this year. Interesting nail colours with specific “personalities” will give you an opportunity to reinvent the many black, grey, and neutral outfits on offer. I designed a broad spectrum of colours for the Fall/Winter 2009 Fashionista’s Favourites. |
British Racing Green – The international motor racing colour of Great Britain. This green used to be the standard paint colour on all Formula One racecars in the days before sponsorship.
Dark, “hunter green” that was the backstage darling when used at the F/W 2009 shows.
Minger – British street slang for an ugly person. “Did you see that face? What a minger!”
An edgy burnt orange like the one featured on the Philip Lim and Prada catwalks. This shade “ups” the fashion factor of any outfit.
Scoundrel – An unprincipled, dishonorable person, villain, or scamp. Your ex-boyfriend, your builder, and your boss rolled into one.
A medium tone purplish-mauve that can appear darker or lighter depending on what clothing you are wearing.
Pearly Queen – A Pearly Queen is a woman dressed in a traditional Cockney costume covered in mother-of-pearl buttons.
A winter white with an added pearl sheen for softness and depth, making it beautifully wearable.
Rosie Lee – Cockney Rhyming slang for a cup of tea. “Put the kettle on Love, I fancy a Rosie Lee.”
A parade of pale pink glitter that will lift your spirits AND your outfit.
I won’t have actual samples to show you for a bit but according to Nonie, we should expect new packaging with this collection. Hmm, I wonder what it will look like. The bottle of Thames I have from over two years ago was square with a thin rounded cap, then came the flat wide bottles & caps.
Any predictions on how the shape will change? Which colors tickle your fancy? Share!
Lisa N.
Ms Meatballhead
Birdie
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