Spring 2009

Lancome Pink Irreverence – Sassiness & Piha Black

By Michelle Mismas on January 27, 2009
in Black, Lancome, Pink, Spring 2009 with 17 Comments

For Spring 2009, Lancome’s Artistic Director for Makeup, Aaron De Mey, played with the idea of mixing safe and edgy by pairing girly pinks with gothic blacks. Bringing back the sellout black sparkly lipgloss from Fall, Piha Black, he added a matching nail lacquer for the Pink Irreverence collection; both shades inspired by his New Zealand homeland’s black Piha beach. I waited month’s on a list at Bloomie’s for my tube of Piha Black gloss and it’s definitely a beauty junkie collector’s items, very fun for layering.

Twisting the traditional codes of elegance, Aaron has created an impertinent color statement that pairs Spring pinks against rebellious blacks and potent shine against pure matte textures. The pinks are reminiscent of LancÃ´meâ€™s iconic rose, while the deep black shades are evocative of the Piha volcanic black beaches of Aaronâ€™s native homeland of New Zealand. Products are meant to be layered to create an array of stunning looks.

Of course in my world where all things revert back to Grease, I see pink and black and instantly think Pink Ladies. I mean, can you think of anyone who rocked the pink and black better than Rizzo? Don’t you DARE say Michelle Pfeiffer in Grease 2 or we just can’t be friends anymore. CAN’T. I love me some Grease 2 but it’s so NOT the same thing.

So getting back to the polish. The new Le Vernis lacquers in this collection play up on Aaron’s whole contradictory theme with a delicate sheer pink and inky black sparkler. When I say inky, I’m not kidding. When Piha Black was created, Lancome was not playing. Holy pigmentation, batman! That color is no joke. The formula is aces as well. For a milky sheer, Sassiness has the no streaks thing down. Oh and the flat brush is a winner as well.

Sassiness is meant to be worn sheer but you know me, I have to try and make anything as opaque as possible. With detached nail beds like mine, can you blame me? Unfortunately, even after three coats, we’re still at level sheerness. Perfect for you sheer lovers, not so much for moi.

Piha Black totally has that black sand glittering in the sun thing going on without all the grittiness. It’s glassy smooth with evenly dispersed silver speckles.
I put this one head to head against my fave black of 2008, Dior Black Sequins. As you can see, the micro-glitter in Black Sequins is more random and prominent while Piha Black’s shimmer is more even and subtle. Though the color intensity is pretty dead on even.
Lancome’s Pink Irreverence collection is available now at Lancome.com and your local Lancome counter. Le Vernis nail lacquers retail for $18/ea.

images: flickr.com, leavemethewhite.com, Lancome and All Lacquered Up

MAC Hello Kitty Nail Lacquers

By Michelle Mismas on January 26, 2009
in Big 3 Free, Gray, MAC, Pink, Spring 2009 with 18 Comments

Who’s ready for an early peek at the MAC Hello Kitty nail polishes? You know, I was pleasantly surprised to see that some of you were unaware of the MAC/Hello Kitty collaboration when I previewed it a couple weeks ago. The last thing I want is to inundate you with info you’ve seen a million times before. So I’m really excited to be able to give you an advanced look at the nail lacquers before they hit shelves on February 12th.

For this collection, MAC is debuting two new creme polishes and bringing back Vestral White (creme) from last holiday’s Antiquitease collection. Unfortunately, I gifted Vestral White away so I don’t have it to show you but it’s a true, opaque white. And how utterly cute are those bottles? I’m beyond happy that MAC FINALLY adorned the nail lacquer bottles to match a collection.

What impressed me most about the two new shades is their opacity. They’re both highly pigmented which is fantastic though that raised the viscosity. I ended up needing three coats only to even out the surface because the formula doesn’t do so on its own.

Note: I received sample bottles without the Hello Kitty logo.

On The Prowl has got to be the truest gray I’ve found. Not too cool, not too warm. There’s no blue or brown in its base. If you’re looking for the perfect gray creme, this is it. And before you ask, NO, I don’t think the gray trend is over. I’m still loving it and will be wearing On The Prowl in the coming months.
As you can see, On The Prowl falls somewhere between Rescue Beauty Lounge Concrete Jungle and China Glaze Recycle on the gray scale. Though the RBL’s base is more blue while Recycle’s is brown.

Something About Pink is the perfect complement to the Hello Kitty collection’s girlish side. It’s exactly what I would expect to counter the grittier feel of On The Prowl. Something About Pink is a cool toned hot pink that looks even more vibrant in person. The finish is uber-glossy and would make an excellent pedicure shade for summer.
Going through my stash, I discovered that I own way more hot pinks that I thought. That was unexpected. Though I don’t have anything that matches Something About Pink dead on but I did find some close calls. OPI I’m Indi-a Mood For Love and NARS Schiap are both a tinge darker but tonally very similar.

The MAC Hello Kitty collection will be available online at MACCosmetics.com on February 10th and hits MAC Counters on February 12th. I know I’ll be online to get a HK adorned On The Prowl and some other goodies. What will you be buying? In case you haven’t seen the rest of the collection, my buddy Jamie was at the preview last November and has additional product images on The Beauty Life.

images: iswii.net and All Lacquered Up

Tracy Reese for Sally Hansen Spring 2009

By Michelle Mismas on January 21, 2009
in Berry, Coral, Gold, NY Fashion Week S/S 09, Pink, Purple, Sally Hansen, Spring 2009, Yellow with 31 Comments

Are you kids ready to dive into Spring? I know I am. I’ve been sitting on the Tracy Reese for Sally Hansen Spring collection for way too long and I’ve been dying to gush. With a heavy floral inspiration these shades came straight from the runway to the bottle. I couldn’t be more excited about these polishes if I tried. Every one is a winner. Even the yellow!

You know, I’m not sure why but every time I use a creme from the SH Salon line, I am so impressed with the formula and how it applies. As if I didn’t already know how fantastic it is. It’s so weird. I’m sitting there, painting my nails thinking, “My word, this is outstanding! Why am I not wearing these more often?” Riddle me that and you win a prize (not really but you know what I mean).

Seriously, these polishes are all hyper pigmented, smooth and glossy. The hues are vibrant. The tones are true to bottle color. Shall I go on? I could just keep yammering away but seeing will make you a believer.

Tassel was the shade selected for the Tracy Reese runway show. This rich, warm gold was the perfect neutral complement to Tracy’s designs. You have no idea how happy I am to find a metallic that applies smoothly. No brushstroke city. No streaking or unevenness. I did need three coats to get it opaque and perfect but it was worth it.

I showed you Night Hydrangea in a NOTD post a few weeks back. For me, this is pretty much the perfect purple shimmer. It’s that elusive “purple in every light” we’re all looking for and it does so without hitting neon territory. I KNOW tons of you will be hunting this one down.

Nasturtium brings out my love of coral that has been hiding the past few years. You don’t even know I was such a coral fiend. One of my first bottles was Essie Carousel Coral and it set me off on a streak for pretty much an entire summer. Nasturtium is just so effortlessly spring and casual that I can’t help but love it.

Honeydew – THANK YOU Tracy Reese for throwing in something for us green lovers. It has this light, watery feel that isn’t full on green yet not blue either. Does that make it teal? Aqua? Blue-green? Green-blue? Does it matter? It’s stunning! Naturally, Honeydew is the shade I popped open first and all I could say was, “come to momma you gorgeous thing!” This is the only one whose shimmer does more than add depth. It’s clearly visible.

When I saw Forsythia, all I could think was, “Oh no! Pantone’s color of the year, Mimosa, has leaked into the polish world!” My polish fears had come true. But you know what? Forsythia is a lot less golden than Mimosa and much more flattering than I expected. Its muted tone differs from the day-glo yellows we’ve seen in years past. Is it the easiest shade to pull off? No but I’m oddly drawn to it.

Beet Stain is a kissing cousin to Fall’s Night Lily, only a tinge more red so, if you missed out on it last season, now is your chance. It seems the berry trend that was so prominent in makeup last season is carrying over to spring for nails. Zoya put one in their spring collection as did OPI.

Azalea is a bold red-pink creme. It’s a bit softer than what you’d think of as a “hot pink.” A perfect pedicure shade for when we finally get to break out our sandals.
The Tracy Reese for Sally Hansen Spring color collection is set to hit shelves in March but you know the drill. These babies aren’t easy to find and when they finally go on sale, they’re gone in a flash. So keep your peepers on your local drugstore displays and let us know when you find them. We all want to know!

images: Vogue UK, Janice from Specktra.net and All Lacquered Up

Chanel Spring 2009 – Vendetta & Django

By Michelle Mismas on January 14, 2009
in Chanel, Peach, Purple, Spring 2009 with 30 Comments

When I heard that Chanel was finally coming out with a purple polish, I was beyond thrilled. It’s like Peter Philips had read my mind. A vampy aubergine would be the perfect complement to Chanel’s wildly popular Satin colors (Blue, Black, Pink, White) and now it’s finally here. Of the two polishes in Chanel’s Bohemian Fantasy collection, Vendetta is the color everyone is buzzing about.

Releasing such a deep shade for spring used to seem so odd but for the past few years some very popular darks have come from spring collections. Blue Satin is a good example as is OPI Yoga-ta Get This Blue & Black Cherry Chutney. It’s blurring the lines and making it acceptable to wear vampies year round. Most of us fanatics do that anyway but it’s becoming more mainstream.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that Django is the red-headed step child (no offense to you lovely red-heads). It’s actually quite a refreshing color. As I look outside to see nothing but gray and snow, Django’s shimmery peach color totally brightened my day. It’s not something I would have expected to like but it has an airy feel that is so cheerful. And what I LOVE is that for such a light shade, it is opaque and streak free with just two coats.

Vendetta is exactly what I expected. An eggplant version of Blue Satin. The tonal shimmer is the same as the Satins in that it adds depth and only appears in bright light. The base color is definitely purple, not black, so one evenly applied coat will get you a much brighter look. Like Blue Satin, Vendetta is an “almost black” shade and I was hoping it would be lighter. It’s rich and velvety but more purple in the bottle than on the nail.
I looked for some comparison shades to help you replicate the look at home. What I found is that Vendetta falls between Essie Sexy Divide and China Glaze Midnight Ride in my stash’s color spectrum. If Midnight Ride’s base was purple instead of black, I bet they’d be twins.
The Chanel Spring collection, Bohemian Fantasy, is on sale now at Chanel counters and online at Chanel.com. Vendetta and Django retail for $23.

So what do you think kids? Who’s in? Who’s out? Who already caved?

MAC & Hello Kitty Preview

By Michelle Mismas on January 8, 2009
in MAC, Spring 2009 with 14 Comments

Unless you’re living under a beauty news rock, you’ve undoubtedly heard that MAC and Sanrio have teamed up to create one mega collection of Hello Kitty themed makeup and accessories for the little girl in all of us. As much as I went gaga over the Barbie collection a couple years ago, waiting in line at the crack of dawn for a doll and scooping up all the embossed shadows and blushes, I have a feeling that this one will be an even bigger hit.

I will admit, I was more of a Barbie girl than a Sanrio girl growing up but that doesn’t mean I’m not a complete sucker for great packaging and this collection looks to be delivering on that in a major way. And for the first time that I’ve seen, MAC has finally carried the decor onto the polish bottles. In a promo image I found on a foreign beauty blog, I got my first peek at the adorable Hello Kitty adorned lacquers.

Pictured from left to right:

Something About Pink – blue pink fuchsia

On the Prowl – light creamy grey

Vestral White – creamy white (repromote from Antiquitease)

The MAC Hello Kitty collection will launch in stores on February 12th. The nail lacquers retail for $11/ea. You can sign up for an email alert to know when the collection launches on MAC’s website.