The First Blush of Spring:  Chanel In Love Blush

Chanel In Love Blush ($42.00 for 0.12 oz.) is a dirty coral-peach with soft, golden shimmer. It can be applied softly or built up in intensity for a bolder cheek.  I’ve found Chanel blushes to be extremely smooth and silky and have a tendency to blend very well into skin to look natural. In Love had this same texture and feel when I used it. (I wore In Love in this smoky look earlier this week.) It worked best when lightly patted onto skin with a blush brush (I like MAC’s 116) and then a gentle sweeping motion at the end to blend together.

I like pairing it with gold and copper eyeshadows as well as smokier looks. It’s versatile and definitely a shade I’m often drawn to. The shimmer in this is very fine and smooth, so it looks more like a shimmer-sheen than glittery shimmer. I just wish you got more for your buck; Chanel blushes are some of the smallest (by weight) blushes on the market, which then makes them one of the most expensive blushes by the ounce ($300/oz., whereas Dior blushes are $190/oz.).

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• Product: 28/30
• Value: 6/10
• Ease of Use: 4/5
• Packaging: 4/5

Recommendation: For silky soft blush, Chanel always makes for a good choice–when you’re feeling a little indulgent.

Availability: Nordstrom

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Chanel In Love Joues Contraste Blush

Smoky Eyes: Tarnished Gold

A tarnished gold, smoky eye… for school? Sure, why not! Let’s go with that. Wanted to post this before I ran off to class in a few…  that is, if I don’t fall asleep before it’s time to go!  Must. Press. On!

By the way, anyone else going to the Spring Colour Forecast unveiling party at MAC @ Valley Fair (in California) on February 2nd?  I’ll be there at 7pm, so if you see me, say hi

You will need the following…

• Eyes: Urban Decay Primer Potion (eyeshadow base), Urban Decay Wonderland (Maui Wowie) Eyeshadow (tarnished gold), Urban Decay Mushroom Eyeshadow (brown-gray), Urban Decay Mad Hatter (Twice Baked) Eyeshadow (dark brown), Urban Decay Jabberwocky (Oil Slick) Eyeshadow (sparkly black), MAC Femme-fi Eyeshadow (neutral highlighter), Urban Decay Stash 24/7 Liner (antique gold), Urban Decay Honey 24/7 Liner (gold), MAC Plushlash Mascara (black)
• Face: Kiehl’s Tinted Moisturizer (Medium)
• Cheeks: Chanel In Love Blush (soft warm pink), Guerlain Beige Lumineux Meteorite Powder (fleshy beige highlighter)
• Lips: Guerlain Beige Mousseline (#340) KissKiss Strass Lipstick (sparkling beige), Guerlain Champagne Pearl (#847) KissKiss Gloss (sheer beige)
• Brushes: 226 (fluffy crease brush), 219 (pointed crease brush), 249 (flat, firm brush), 239 (fluffy shadow brush), 116 (dense blush brush)
• Substitutes: N/A

For eyes, start by applying Primer Potion as your eyeshadow base all over the eye area with the 249. Using the 239, apply Wonderland eyeshadow on the inner half of the eyelid. Next, apply Mushroom eyeshadow on the middle third of the eyelid and lightly blend with the inner corner. Darken the outer third of the lid with Mushroom eyeshadow with the 239, gently brushing it into the lower crease. Lightly blend Mad Hatter eyeshadow, with the 239, on the outer corner and lid. To deepen the crease, apply Jabberwocky eyeshadow with the 226 into the crease. To finish the eyeshadow look, sweep Femme-fi eyeshadow as a highlighter on the brow bone. Bring everything together by applying Stash eyeliner on the lower lash line and Honey liner on the lower water line. Finish by sweeping lashes with Plushlash mascara.

For cheeks, apply In Love blush to the apples of the cheeks and sweep upwards towards the temple with the 116. Highlight cheeks with a light dusting of Beige Lumineux Meteorite Powder with the 165.

For lips, apply Beige Mousseline lipstick first, and then layer Champagne Pearl lipgloss for a complementing lip.

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This was my attempt to make Chanel’s summer quad work for me, and to be honest, while it came out fine in the end… it was far too much work. I also feel there wasn’t nearly enough color variation to merit keeping the quad, so I’ll be returning it on my next trip to the mall (Thursday, for Colour Ready!). I really wanted to be in love with this quad, but it just didn’t happen.

You will need the following…

• Eyes: MAC Lemon Chiffon shadestick (shimmery white-gold base), Chanel Cote d’Azur Summer Quad, MAC Goldmine eyeshadow (gold), Eve Pearl Liquid Liner Pen (black), MAC Glamourpuss glitter liner (copper-gold), Plushlash mascara (black)
• Cheeks: Chanel In Love blush (dirty pink-coral), MAC Refined mineralize skinfinish (peach-nude)
• Lips: Chanel Monte Carlo lipstick (sheer peach-gold), Chanel Tangerine Dream gloss (coral)
• Brushes: 266 (firm, angled brush), 226 (fluffy crease brush), 214 (smudge brush), 249 (flat, firm brush), 239 (fluffy shadow brush), 129 (dense blush brush)
• Substitutes: Lemon Chiffon = Baselight; Chanel Quad = Motif, Amber Lights, Coppering, Antiqued; In Love = Merrily; Refined = Soft & Gentle; Monte Carlo = Sandy B; Tangerine Dream = Lychee Luxe

Directions: Define brows using a coordinating powder shadow applied with the 266 brush. Apply Soft Ochre paint pot all over the lid as the base. Apply the lightest shade of the quad on the inner third of the lid using the 239. Apply medium shade eyeshadow to the middle-to-outer lid with the 226. Darken crease with the deepest brown shadow with the 239. Sweep Shroom eyeshadow underneath the brow bone to highlight. Finish with Goldmine eyeshadow on lower lash line. Line upper lash line with Eve Pearl Liquid Liner Pen to form a cat-eye. Overlay it with MAC Glamourpuss glitter liner for shimmer. Brush Plushlash mascara on lashes. Sweep apples of cheeks with In Love blush with the 129, and highlight with Refined mineralize skinfinish using the 188. Apply Monte Carlo lipstick to lips, and then top with Tangerine Dream lipgloss for color and shine.

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Another Sugarsweet look! Getting tired of them yet? I wore this look yesterday, when my boyfriend and I met my parents and sister for dim sum. Hope your Monday is off to a good start!

You will need the following…

• Eyes: Lemon Chiffon shadestick (pale white-yellow), Sugarshot eyeshadow (frosty white), Aquavert eyeshadow (pale green-teal), Club eyeshadow (dark green-brown-gray), Shroom eyeshadow (soft neutral highlighter), Eve Pearl Liquid Liner (black), Urban Decay Underground 24/7 Stash Liner (dark gold/brown), Plushlash mascara (black)
• Cheeks: Chanel In Love blush (dirty pink), Refined mineralize skinfinish (peach)
• Lips: Touch lipstick (light brown with red), Palatial lustreglass (sheer hot pink)
• Brushes: 266 (firm, angled brush), 226 (fluffy crease brush), 214 (smudge brush), 249 (flat, firm brush), 239 (fluffy shadow brush), 129 (dense blush brush)
• Substitutes: Lemon Chiffon = Baselight; Sugarshot = Phloof!; Aquavert = Juxt+Shimmermoss; Refined = Soft & Gentle; Touch = Brew

Directions: Define brows using a coordinating powder shadow applied with the 266 brush. Apply Lemon Chiffon shadestick all over the lid as the base. On the inner lid, apply Sugarshot eyeshadow using the 239. Apply Aquavert eyeshadow to the middle and outer portion of the lid. Darken crease with Club eyeshadow using the 226, lightly blending towards the outer lid. Sweep Shroom eyeshadow underneath the brow bone to highlight. Finish with Urban Decay Stash Liner on lower lash line, Eve Pearl Liquid Liner on upper lash line, and Plushlash mascara on lashes. Sweep apples of cheeks with Chanel In Love blush using the 129, then highlight with Refined mineralize skinfinish with the 188. Apply Touch lipstick to lips, and then top with Palatial lustreglass for color and shine.

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