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Notes from the Editors of The Lipstick Page Forums: A Dedication to the Art of Beauty and Fashion.
· Blog Home · Profile · FAQ/TOS On This Page · Beauty Notes: What I've been into, lately #2 · NARS: The Consummate Stocking Stuffer · Make Up For Ever: Diamonds For Ever Holiday Set · Eye makeup for x eyes · Beauty Notes: What I've been into, lately · Angelina Jolie, Keira Knightley · Beauty Notes: Chanel Moiré lipstick part 2 · Summer makeup video from Canada · Another smoky eye tutorial... · Eye makeup for green eyes: then and now · Nars duo eyeshadow ponderings... · Smoky eyes, past and present Comments · January 18, 2008 4:31 PM by Dain · January 18, 2008 4:57 PM by Colleen Shirazi · January 18, 2008 8:54 PM by Dain · January 19, 2008 3:28 PM by Dain · January 20, 2008 1:53 PM by Colleen Shirazi · November 10, 2007 11:01 PM by Anne · November 12, 2007 11:47 PM by Colleen Shirazi · October 25, 2007 3:35 PM by Dain · August 10, 2007 8:18 PM by Dain · August 10, 2007 8:35 PM by cmm · August 10, 2007 8:47 PM by Colleen Shirazi · August 11, 2007 7:46 AM by cmm · August 11, 2007 8:25 PM by Colleen Shirazi · June 20, 2007 6:44 AM by Dain · June 20, 2007 6:45 AM by Dain · June 20, 2007 1:06 PM by Colleen Shirazi Archives · Beauty Blog (2003-2004) · Fashion Blog (archive) · New Releases Blog (archive) · Beauty Articles (archive) · April 2005 · May 2005 · June 2005 · July 2005 · August 2005 · September 2005 · October 2005 · November 2005 · December 2005 · January 2006 · February 2006 · March 2006 · April 2006 · May 2006 · June 2006 · July 2006 · August 2006 · September 2006 · October 2006 · November 2006 · December 2006 · January 2007 · February 2007 · March 2007 · April 2007 · May 2007 · June 2007 · July 2007 · August 2007 · September 2007 · October 2007 · November 2007 · December 2007 · January 2008 · February 2008 · March 2008 · April 2008 · May 2008 · June 2008 · July 2008 · August 2008
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Beauty Notes: What I've been into, lately #2 Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Friday, January 18, 2008 3:14 PM (Eastern) I think we need a label for this, somehow...a blend of favorite things and Jack Bauer and Tony Almeida at a Drive-Thru. Anyhow. Shall we commence? Ava Luxe Voyage earrings ![]() I'm not affiliated with Ava Luxe, I should mention. I just like her stuff. Here I thought this was beautiful, a binary combination of kyanite and labradorite, strung on karat gold. Sometime I will do something similarly binary...I can't wear 14KT gold earrings, but I'm hoping someone will come up with a wearable golden leverback cheaper than 18KT gold. mumbles... ![]() Here is my own stuff. Less spectacular for sure, but keep in mind, there can be a difference between making something to wear, and making something to sell. With the emphasis on "can be." It's been on my mind lately, because I tend to acquire less for the sake of owning something beautiful, and more for that of owning something useful. Sometimes the twain meet, oh, take this for example: ![]() I've gotten the most mileage from Island Fever (far right). In the pan: a gorgeous shimmery sea blue shade, plus a medium shimmery iridescent grey. It should be pretty, but useless; something you bought on a whim because it looked nice. But it isn't useless by far. The blue shade, applied very lightly, is the most natural, unobtrusive shadow I own. It shouldn't work but it does. Hence, the Ava Luxe earrings could well correspond to this concept. Bright and pretty, but potentially utile as well. My little hoops (these are the most conservative earrings I've made thus far) would be more like this: ![]() Nars Mambo, the unsung eyepencil. I paid $19 for you at Sephora, and momentarily felt a complete idiot; you can buy a perfectly decent deep brown eyepencil at Longs Drugs for four bucks. Then I started using you. Mambo is deep brown, yet possesses hints of purple and red--making it subtly ideal for green or blue eyes, and making it go with everything. Thereby replacing brown, purple, and bronze pencils for me. No, you don't swatch particularly well, but on, you are a minor genius. ![]() The Scented Salamander follows up on the Bond No. 9/Liz Zorn Perfumes story: Trademark Questions Over The Use Of The Word "Peace" / Q & A with Laurice Rahme of Bond No.9, Liz Zorn of Liz Zorn Perfumes, & Sarah Horowitz -Thran of Creative Scentualization Dwelling in lawyer-infested California, I suspect the entire thing was less of a shock to me. And I found some people seemed to turn it into a girl-on-girl fight--not good for business, for either party. Oh well. I see Zorn has some samples on her site; you might want to check them out. ![]() And finally, for your perusal--Michelle Phan, aka RiceBunny, demos the aspirin mask (here with honey): RiceBunny's Xanga Site - Aspirin = Beautiful Skin No, I'm not into this myself. I'm far too lazy. But the idea of using aspirin and honey as a mask makes perfect logical sense. You are exfoliating. Exfoliating is good. Have a great weekend! Labels: alchemist's apprentice, ava luxe, bond no. 9, eyes, indie, internet, jewelry, nars, natural beauty, perfume, skin NARS: The Consummate Stocking Stuffer Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Thursday, December 06, 2007 3:02 PM (Eastern) So you want to snag a lil' something for your best girl's stocking this year. And you're thinking: "I have no idea what to get. What if she hates it?" Enter the makeup palette, which performs for cosmetics what perfume samples do for fragrance. You give your gal a whole bunch of options, the opportunity to try various shades of this or that, at her leisure. The key is to choose a good brand, a universal brand even, so that some of the shades are bound to work. ![]() Here is the whompin' Nars Artist Palette. $60 at Sephora.com Palette includes eye shadows in India Song (soft butter yellow with a hint of shimmer), Night Star (sheer peach with gold pearls), Night Clubbing (black with gold pearls), Ondine (plum with gold shimmer); The Multiple in Copacabana (glistening pearl) and Malibu (pinkish brown); and lipstick in Honolulu Honey (satin flesh toned beige), Dolce Vita (sheer dusty rose), Gipsy (sheer warm berry), and Trans Siberian (semi matte ruby rose). On a personal note, this palette contains several shades I've been meaning to try since forever, plus one shade that is my holy grail blush (the Malibu). ![]() The Fame lipstick palette $65 at narscosmetics.com (scroll down some) contains a full dozen shades of lipstick in a range of hues. For a more compact, red-oriented lip palette, consider the Nars Hot Sauce palette $30 at Sephora.com: ![]() Palette includes lip colors in Tobago (sheer warm taupe-grape with soft shimmer), Dolce Vita (sheer dusty rose), Gipsy (sheer, warm berry), Catfight (semi matte nude-rose), Flair (sheer burnished berry), and Captiva (sheer currant). If all of these seem a bit too practical to you, you might go for something more luxe and sensual (not a bad idea this time of year), such as the Nars Body Glow set $98 at Sephora.com (also available on the narscosmetics.com site): ![]() "In the tradition of French Polynesia, Monoï de Tahiti oil is the result of macerating the native Tiare flower (Tahitian gardenia) in refined coconut extract for at least ten days, a process that slowly infuses the oil with Tiare's delicate, natural fragrance." The set includes a bronzed version of the oil, to rekindle the heat of summer (sighs), and an untinted oil containing an authentic tiare flower. (You'll note either bottle may be purchased individually as well.) Finally, if she's already pretty Nars-savvy, you'll want to skip the palettes, and maybe even the body oils, and get straight to the Nars e-Gift Certificate (available in denominations of $50, $100 and $200): ![]() Labels: bath and body, eyes, face, gift guide, lips, nars Make Up For Ever: Diamonds For Ever Holiday Set Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Wednesday, December 05, 2007 6:43 PM (Eastern) ![]() ![]() Fishing around for gifts to give this holiday season? How about this sparkling Make Up For Ever Eye & Lip kit? $49 at Sephora.com (a $110 value) Within a shimmering gift box is a tote-able, black Vanity Pouch with a built-in mirror, containing:
Labels: eyes, gift guide, lips, make up for ever Eye makeup for x eyes Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Friday, November 09, 2007 7:36 PM (Eastern) Eye makeup for brown eyes...eye makeup for hazel eyes...eye makeup for green eyes...eye makeup for blue eyes. This comes up a lot, on various boards. One of my stock pieces of advice is to find an actress or model with your eye color, and something close to your overall coloring (it doesn't have to be exact; it can be as simple as "coolish" or "warmish," "fair" or "deep"), and observe what she's doing with her eyes. It's much easier to do this now than before, with Google Image Search. Television serials work well too, since you get to see the same character over and over again (hopefully with close-ups). Here are a few examples: ![]() Salma Hayek demos one of the many looks brown eyes can wear, a version of Dain's silvered beige concept, with matte black lashes and defined brows. ![]() Okay you can't see much eye makeup here; this is a purely gratuitous Salma Hayek/Dogma pic, but I highly recommend the movie, and was thrilled to see someone had uploaded the entire thing to Youtube (the above shot is from my favorite scene). ![]() My girl Rachel Weisz shows a look for hazel eyes. I love this picture anyway, for its generally un-Photoshopped appearance; you see flaws, sure, but tiny flaws only throw big virtues into high relief. Observe a slight reddish/orange tone to the shadow, which enhances the olive green in many hazel eyes. (Use lavender to "pop" gold.) And speaking of green... ![]() It was somehow much easier to find pics of Lisa Edelstein wearing classic purples, than the deep apricots she often uses on House. This is the closest I could find: ![]() ...but the rendition on House is usually quite a bit heavier and more dimensional. ![]() Blue eyes...many role models here...Brooke Shields, Jasmine Bleeth, Joely Richardson (above, with Portia de Rossi). On Nip/Tuck, Richardson usually sports taupe shadows, or versions of cool purples. Warm-toned blue-eyed ladies can go for bronze, copper, peach, even orange. images courtesy www.taillightsfade.com, redrob2.co.uk, www.scifidesktop.org.uk, www.ilxor.com, www.postimees.ee, lesbicanarias.es Labels: eyes
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Beauty Notes: What I've been into, lately Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Thursday, October 25, 2007 3:07 PM (Eastern) ![]() Nars Mambo eyepencil. I haven't felt like wearing eyeshadow, much, so eyeliner is key (and faster to put on, anyway). I had three liners back in August of this year, and found I reached for this liner more and more, to the point I tossed the other two (which were getting old) without needing to replace them. ![]() Dr. Hauschka lip products. I wouldn't have guessed these would be so good (no offense, but I always thought of Dr. Hauschka as the skincare guys, not the color cosmetics guys). It makes logical sense though, if you think of lip products as (tinted) skincare for lips. ![]() Nars The Multiple in Malibu. This is really useless as a multiple-purpose product, at least this shade is. It's too dry to use as lipstick, and mediocre as eyeshadow. But it's my ideal shade of warm-toned bronzed-rose blush, wearable year-round. ![]() Montale perfumes. These are so strong, I spray some in the palm of my hand and apply it that way. Perhaps the perfect cure for ephemeral scents, and the ordinary. 24 - Jack Bauer and Tony Almeida at a Drive-Thru 24. If you've watched this show even once (or eaten at an In 'n' Out), you'll immediately recognize the references in this parody. If you haven't, I would highly recommend both! Labels: beauty notes, dr. hauschka, eyes, face, lips, montale, nars, perfume, tv
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Angelina Jolie, Keira Knightley Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Thursday, September 13, 2007 1:22 PM (Eastern) Angelina Jolie ad for Shiseido Again with the utterly colorless background and dress, making her sublime blue-green eyes jump out at you. You'll note how simple her makeup is here. Just a little eyeliner and neutral shadows, nude lipstick, and mascara. Pub coco mademoiselle I'm less crazy about the Keira Knightley ad for Chanel's Coco Mademoiselle perfume. I actually like Keira Knightley, thought she made a bold and brilliant debut in her films. What I find disturbing, is this trend toward 1970's-style anorexic thinness. It didn't work in the 70's. What's up with bringing it back? Beauty Notes: Chanel Moiré lipstick part 2 Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Friday, August 10, 2007 5:45 PM (Eastern) ![]() Okay, I give up. It's not that plummy. To my eye it seems plummy, but it's more rose than plum. I also have Nars Jezebel, Mambo and Malibu on in this pic, and my hair is completely wet. Happy Friday! Labels: beauty notes, chanel, eyes, lips, nars
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Summer makeup video from Canada Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Thursday, August 09, 2007 9:22 PM (Eastern) Like the previous video, this originates in Canada, and features some swank tips, including a demo of Kiss Me mascara (using a top-of-the-lashes technique to curl the lashes); how I like to match foundation myself (place it on the jawline; if it's off, it'll hit you in the eye), and sundry advice on ingredients. Another smoky eye tutorial... Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Tuesday, August 07, 2007 7:42 PM (Eastern) It's a nice one...although he doesn't list the products used, the procedure is shown in a straightforward manner. Eye makeup for green eyes: then and now Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Friday, August 03, 2007 1:48 PM (Eastern) Eye Makeup for Green Eyes #1 Eye Makeup for Green Eyes #2 Eye Makeup for Green Eyes #3 I was going back on some older posts to index them (you can now pull up posts by clicking the Features, Categories and Tags labels to the right ->), and came across this series of posts I made two years ago. Some of the images are missing--likely linked to images in the reviews section, which we've also recently overhauled--is it worth restoring the images, or even indexing the posts? The short answer is no. I no longer have even the same philosophy regarding eye makeup as I had back then. Things have changed...I'm no longer willing to buy products I know will last less than a year, either quality- or interest-wise. To me it's not worth it; my time is worth something, and has to be figured into the cost of the item. There is also the classical Cost Per Wear factor, which I first encountered in Caterine Milinaire's Cheap Chic (1975). I don't remember how that book got into my hands...it was a library book...but I found it fascinating. Ms. Milinaire went through an exercise calculating the cost per wear of a dress...I want to say it was an $80 dress, extravagant back then...and how, if the dress were of good quality, in a style that lasted some years, its cost per wear was less than that of a $20 dress that didn't wear as well.I've come to have a similar philosophy regarding makeup, although I do believe it's important to draw a line. Higher cost in cosmetics does not necessarily translate to higher quality. Sometimes it does; sometimes it simply means you pay more. It's been well pointed out that women are new to the concept of having their own money, and like any other nouveau riche, we are surrounded by an infinite number of people with their hands out, trying to grab a chunk. So! what has ended up in my green eyed makeup stash these days? Nars Jezebel duo eyeshadow: ![]() This is to die for. Although, to my eye, it is a teeny bit warm, and may not suit you if your overall coloring is cool. The darker shade is purple-tinged, coppery brown; the lighter shade is matte lilac with a hint of pink. When I put this on, I don't get anything screaming "brown eyeshadow!", I think largely because of the shot of purple in the coppery shade. (I have not seen this exact color anywhere else, in nine years of avid makeup junkie-dom.) The lilac shade is the perfect foil for it. Prior Nars duos, left to right: Babylon, Ireland and Island Fever: ![]() These are still going strong. They haven't turned hard, the way most of my other shadows have (knock wood). Nars duos currently retail for $31, meaning I buy them very slowly; however it's well to mention the cost is comparable to that of two single shadows from any number of "less expensive" brands. Eyepencils: Nars Mambo; MAC Bordeauxline and Grey Utility: ![]() The Mambo is new to me. It's described on the Nars site as "chocolate brown," but when I swatched it, I detected a definite hint of red (perhaps plum as well) that I knew would look good with green eyes. The MAC's I've had for two and a half, and two years, respectively. Quality is still good. Um...that's it. I've tossed my cheaper shadows in the main, and put aside some others. I'm seldom in a hurry to throw out expensive shadows, but I do see the solution as simply buying less to begin with, or buying more slowly. Cheap Chic image courtesy www.enokiworld.com Labels: eyes, mac cosmetics, nars Nars duo eyeshadow ponderings... Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Tuesday, June 19, 2007 5:59 PM (Eastern) Okay. So we're finally getting a Sephora. By that I mean half an hour's drive, not driving into the City (where parking is atrocious-to-nonexistent), and so forth. Meaning, I'll likely wait until the Sephora opens to buy anything new, because I have a couple of Urban Decay 24/7 eyepencils, a Nars lipstick (which I want to see before buying) and maybe a Nars duo eyeshadow on my wish list. Why Nars? I have tried Dior and Lancome eyeshadows. They're both wonderful, Dior in particular, no doubt about it. But they tend more toward conventional colors, at least compared to Nars. I need more unconventional (however subtly so) shades. ![]() swatches courtesy beauty.com Beauty.com has reasonably accurate color swatches, better imo than the Nars site itself, but not the full array: ![]() swatches courtesy www.narscosmetics.com I have seen some of them "on," so at least have some idea which ones not to buy. But right now, it's an open book. I own Babylon, Ireland and Island Fever (and still love them all...interestingly, the quality of them has not changed over three years). So, any thoughts? Bueller?... Bueller?... Bueller?
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Smoky eyes, past and present Posted by Colleen Shirazi, Wednesday, April 04, 2007 5:36 PM (Eastern) I promise, I'll be over my Youtube phase eventually. Right now it's the world's biggest, most fantastic video jukebox...filled with stuff I'd already accepted I'd never see nor hear again. Stuff I'd long forgotten about, usually. It is not 100% the same as today's smoky eye...the modern smoky eye is layered, blended, and comprised of multiple products. See Asian Smoky Eye Makeup Tutorial from Youtube (which is better than the following imo largely because she names the specific products/shades used) or this one (which demonstrates "tightlining" and seems to have better brush info): The late 1970's/1980's smoky eye, as I recall it, was not called anything...it was just "eyeliner," and usually black eyeliner. In fact there is a reference to the technique in the following article (and yes, I read it when it was published in 1980): The Pretenders' Leather Love Songs ![]() image courtesy www.rollingstone.com "You've got those black lines under your eyes," [Dave] Hill says solicitously. Chrissie's forehead -- what can be seen of it through her long, raven bangs -- crinkles in mock dismay. "It took me five minutes to put 'em there," she protests with a wounded whine. "I don't feel quite like a woman until I've got my eyes drawn on," she tells me, turning to assess her reflection in a full-length mirror. "I've got a technique that doesn't take any time, and you can do it when you're drunk." Heh, heh! I actually remembered that quote. Was thrilled to find the article online. |
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January 18, 2008 4:31 PM,
I've been trying "just notes" for random things, but I'm not sure how it might work.
I like labradorite; from a design perspective, it would go with so many things. Pearls, watery green amethysts, mm... it's just pretty to look at.
I think the reason why the blue might work is the fact that it may be a perfect contrast. A perfect contrast works better than a near match. Someone with brown hair, for example, might do well with green.
Hm, it's interesting that she was able to get an interview with Laurice Rahme. I don't really buy it, though, it is insincere. But I'm tired of the issue, and I still think Bond is a silly brand, just from a purely aesthetic standpoint. It is really the sort of thing that could go back and forth forever, and I think it was very wise for Liz Zorn to drop it.
January 18, 2008 4:57 PM,
Yeah...I just didn't want to leave it hanging. There was a big splash about it, then nothing. From the article, it would appear this sort of thing happens fairly regularly...and from what I've seen of lawyers, I wouldn't be too surprised.
Every few months in California, you get something in the mail informing you there is a class-action lawsuit you might be able to participate in. At first I thought hey, great...then I read the thing. Usually it boils down to, you sign a form and mail it back. By signing, you agree the settlement is final, yadda yadda...and if the suit is successful, you are entitled to a $15 voucher toward, say, renewing your contract with your wireless phone company for another year...or $50 toward the purchase of a new stove.
It's a joke! The settlement "terms" are invariably next to worthless. It's clear to me that lawyers simply file these "class-action lawsuits" against major corporations...the corporations probably settle (cheaper than taking it to court)...whoever bothered to sign the form gets their $15 gift certificate. And the lawyers collect a fat percentage of the settlement. If I were cynical, I'd say they split the take with the lawyers for the major corporation, but I'd like to think they're far too honest for that. lol
January 18, 2008 8:54 PM,
It seemed absurd to me at the time because in cosmetics, people copy each other all the time, and it's not something trifling like names, it's like, NARS makes a gold-pink-peach blush with a clever title, and everyone from Chanel to Milani has something like a year later. It seems like copycatting in this business is a given.
Oddly enough, it has come up in fashion, too. I was just reading an article on Marc Jacobs' derivativeness in W today. Apparently, it caused quite the furor, and all things considered, it must have been far nastier. Fashion is bitcher than even Hollywood.
January 19, 2008 3:28 PM,
I think that gold-and-sapphire earring is especially rich. The colors kind of resonate with each other in a way that the silver doesn't. If it doesn't get too heavy, some vivid green drops at the bottom would add some extra intensity.
January 20, 2008 1:53 PM,
Mmmm...the gold ones did come out prettier. I got some 14KT gold beads to try out...as usual, the cost per bead is relatively low, but they go so fast. Suddenly every piece "could use some of those." rolls eyes
I've found it's entirely different buying jewelry, and making it. If you're buying, then I can see jewelry minimalism. That's when you would want to get the most impact out of your pieces, because you have to pay the markup.
If you're making it, there's no point to minimalism. That's when you want to experiment and develop your own designs--which tend to be specific to you. When I'm making anything, I don't tend to lay it out, I tend to put it on. I'll try it on as I'm making it.
Now if you're selling it...that's when the design itself would take precedence. Because you have no idea who's going to wear it.
I have some tiny emeralds actually, I got them at the same time as the sapphires. It's amazing how tiny these things are. Imagine cutting and drilling them.
I was going to make something similar to these hoops using emeralds...but also thinking of combining the stones somehow.