Musings of a Muse

You know how I’m always bitching about my eyes lately?

Well I have the solution right here, just for you! If you’re a bit of a frugal person you may not want to continue reading however if you want the best of the best this may be the solution you seek to fixing your eye area up and making yourself look fresh, awake, younger, and beautiful!

This year I turned 30 and with that came a slew of problems that presented themselves to my under eye area. I’ve tried just about everything as you may know from my previous post on eye creams.

One of my main solutions for looking fresh and awake while concealing my under eye woes are one of two fantastic concealers!

Yves Saint Laurent Radiant Touch and Dior Radiance Booster Pen.

That’s it.

That’s my solution for fresher, beautiful eyes.

I’ve been using Dior’s Radiance Booster Pen for close to a year now and it’s slowing replacing my YSL Radiant Touch Pen.

Both pens are brilliant, wonderful pieces of cosmetic that, no matter your age, you should have in your beauty arsenal.

I highly recommend going out and purchasing one of each as they come with my highest rating of approval.

First of all I probably shouldn’t call these concealers because technically that isn’t what they are however I feel like they are pigmented enough to do a very good job of concealing tired eyes, medium dark circles, and fine lines. The general idea is to not conceal but to illuminate and highlight your skin and subdue any dullness.

You can use these all over your face not just under your eye. I normally use them under my eyes and throughout the day, as a touch up, I dab some on the corners of my nose and blend outwards for a fresh look.

Both pens are truly brilliant at making my eyes look 100% better!

What’s the difference anyway?

Well.

I feel like the Dior version is a bit more moisturizing and offers a bit more coverage. It’s very thick and it feels like cool lotion when you apply. Coverage is very, very good and the it lasts much longer than the YSL Radiant Touch Pen!

This is a bit of a Dior Radiance Booster Pen versus YSL Radiant Touch Pen post and the winner is…..

Dior’s Radiance Booster Pen in Candle Light 02

Dior Radiance Booster Pen knocks YSL out of the water. Shocked? It’s true the Dior wins hands down!

• Conceals way better than the YSL Touch Eclat Radiant.
• Blends much easier as the formula is highly moisturizing.
• Excellent packaging and presentation (comes in a gorgeous blue velvet pouch, pretty silver tube, etc…)
• Does not crease, fade, or settle into fine lines.
• Lasts for hours longer than YSL’s version.
• Cheaper at $31 USD compared to YSL’s $40 USD price tag!
• Larger size for the price!
• Lasts for ages and ages as a little goes a long way!

YSL does a mighty good job with it’s Touche Eclat Radiant and I’ve always been a very, very big fan but the Dior pen does a much better job!

YSL Touche Eclat Radiant Pen in Luminous Ivory 02

Touche Eclat isn’t nearly as moisturizing and you have to do a bit of smoothing around to blend it in correctly. It comes in a larger variety of colors than Dior’s version but I actually felt like Dior’s limited colors suited my skin tone much better than the YSL colors.

The price tag is $40 USD and it’s considerably smaller for the cost compared the Dior at $31 USD. I’ve always found the gold casing slightly gaudy where as the Dior’s slick silver case is quite elegant!

Sadly, Touch Eclat Radiant has a tendency to settle into my fine lines and it does fade very quickly so I am touching up through out the day where as that doesn’t happen with the Dior Radiance Booster Pen as it lasts quite a good deal longer without creasing or fading!

All in all I think I’ve found a replacement for Yves Saint Laurent’s Touch Eclat Radiant and that would definately be the Dior SkinFlash Radiance Booster Pen!

Both pens are well worth getting your hands on as they create the illusion of beautiful, flawless skin however the Dior version does a much better job of it and with a nicer price tag!

Toss your Yves Saint Laurent Touch Eclalt Radiant pens like I did and go and grab yourself a few Dior SkinFlash Radiance Booster Pens! You won’t be sorry! I sincerely have at least two on hand at all times!

Needless to say I do occasionally reach back into the bin and snatch up my YSL which means both the Dior Skinflash Radiance Booster Pen and Yves Saint Laurent Touche Eclat Radiant are Muse Approved for purchase!

Tried both?

Which do you like more?

Refuse to try the Dior version because you’re so attached to your YSL pen?

Tell the Muse!

Read more about my great love for Dior by visiting past posts!

See my review on Dior’s Summer Addict Glosses by clicking here!

Prepare to drool by reading my review and seeing my haul of Dior Spring Collection goodies!

Click here to read about how the “I Love Dior” Deluxe palette compares to the Dior D’Trick Palette!

As per my original sneak peek post at Bobbi Brown’s Bronzed Pink Collection today I am bringing you my complete review of the items I snagged from the collection.

The collection consists of a variety of beautiful bronze powders, shadows, and lip colors. I think this collection would be appealing to those of you that enjoy a sun kissed look for the Summer. I’m not particularly a big fan of bronzers myself but I’ve been experimenting a bit which is shocking! I’m brave enough to go out of the house wearing bright pink eyeshadow but when it comes to natural, neutral shades or in this case bronzers I find that I’m not so courageous.

I was lucky enough to get a chance to test out the metallic eyeshadows and tinted lip balm. I’ve been yearning to try out the tinted lip balm for a while now!

The tinted lip balms are a moisture rich lip treatment with a tiny touch of metallic shimmer. Three new colors were released with the Bronzed Pink Collection and I tested out two in the shades Golden Pink and Bronzed Pink.

Golden Pink is a rosy pink color with touches of gold while Bronzed Pink is a chocolate metallic shade. Both shades will look smashing with your Summer tan. I enjoyed the formula of these as they slick on wonderfully and leave beautiful, glossy color on the lips without being heavy, sticky, or tacky.

Although the swatches are bit sheer I am happy to report on my lips they were quite pigmented. If you desire a lighter look simply swipe the balm across your lips once. If you prefer a darker look just layer the color on for a heavier pop of color!

I got so happy and hyper about the Metallic eye shadows that I completely forgot to look closely at them to see if I could pop them out and use them in the Bobbi Brown Custom Palettes. Well duh!

Anyway.

I got two shade selections to review for you. Bronzed Pink which is a dusty nude rose and Penny which is a light chocolate copper shade.

Both shades have a satiny metallic finish. Don’t confuse the look of metallic with shimmer as these have no heavy shimmer or glitter. They blend beautifully and pigmentation is excellent. You can go really heavy with these if you please or do a light color wash. I haven’t tried them wet and it doesn’t mention wetting them but I’m curious how they’d look if I attempted that!

Again my swatches came out very sheer but when you see my FOTD you’ll notice how pigmented these are considering what a heavy hand I used during application.

I decided to contrast the shades when I did my looks. I paired up Penny eye shadow with Golden Pink lip tint and Bronzed Pink eye shadow with Bronzed Pink lip tint. Instead of pairing up the bronze colors together and the pink colors together I mixed it up a bit. I also tried my hand at creating a bronzy look on my cheeks instead of my normal “blushing” pink cheeks I’m known for.

Below I am wearing Bobbi Brown Metallic Eye Shadow in Penny on my eyes and Bobbi Brown Tinted Lip Balm in Bronzed Pink on my lips.

Below I am wearing Bobbi Brown Metallic Eye Shadow in Bronzed Pink on my eyes and Bobbi Brown Tinted Lip Balm in Bronzed Pink on my lips!

All in all a very nice collection of goodies from Bobbi this Summer! I’m still dying to get my hands on the Pink Metallic eye shadow palette! I’m sure a review for it is coming soonish from the Muse!

Check out more of the Bobbi Brown Summer Collection including bronzing powders by clicking here!

Loving this collection?

Wanting it for your Summer look?

Tell the Muse!

Click here to step back into Spring and listen to me rave about the Bobbi Brown Pink Raspberry Collection!

Click here to see my FOTD using the Bobbi Brown Metallics eye shadow palette in Forest!

Click here to see why I heart the Bobbi Brown Moisturizing Cream Foundation compact!

Here me rave on and on about Bobbi Brown Gel Eyeliner by clicking here!

Click here to read why I’m wishing, wanting, and drooling over the Bobbi Brown Pink Satin Collection!

Guess what I got my hands on?

Some of Bobbi Brown’s brand new Summer Collection entitled Bronzed Pink! Excited? I know I am.

My love affair with Bobbi Brown continues from the Spring into the Summer with this hot new collection!

I know, I know I’ve said I hate bronzers but I couldn’t help but get curious about Bobbi’s Bronzed Pink Collection. Seriously, just think about it, bronze and pink…a contradiction most gorgeous don’t you agree?

Anytime I’ve ventured into the scary world of bronzers I’ve always had the yearning to spice up my bronzing experience with a dash of pink and lucky for me Bobbi thought the same exact thing when she created this collection!

I admit I wasn’t brave enough to venture into actually purchasing the scary bronzing powders I seen with the collection but I did get the best of the lot of items introduced with two of the Metallic Eyeshadows and two of the Tinted Lip Balms and I’ll be testing them out for you shortly!

I’m thinking these shadows and the lip balms are going to rock out really well with the new love of my life, Urban Decay Baked Bronzer.

The promo images are simply divine and the model is glowing with health and such a natural look that I’m dying to dupe!

Sneak Peek of the review to come……………Yummie Bobbi goodies!

If you’re loving it now is a time to grab some and snatch up some cool freebies too!

Get a mini Bobbi Brown Beach Tote with your $60 Order!

Also recieve a Pot Rouge Lip & Cheek Sample with your order! You know the Muse loves these dontcha?

I just wanted to give you guys a sneak peek of my upcoming review for this interesting collection!

Loving this collection?

Wanting it?

Tell the Muse!

Shop Bobbi’s Bronzed Pink Collection by clicking on over here!

Shimmer, Glimmer, and Shine your way through Summer with Vincent Longo’s newest collection entitled Beautiful Dreamer!

It looks very promising! Since my addiction to cream eyeshadows has escalated recently I’m jumping around in excitement at the prospect of the eyeshadows being released with the Vincent Longo Summer Collection!

I heart Vincent Longo Eyeshadows in a major way so I’m all over these new liquid eyeshadows! Sadly, the color selection is pretty small with only four colors but I have hopes if they sell well maybe they’ll extend the color line up! These promise shimmer and if the promo image is anything to go by I’d say they look superb! They don’t come cheap at $24 USD but I’ve never purchased a Longo product I didn’t love so cheers to the Muse purchasing these and reviewing them for you shortly!

Also included in the line up are three colors of Gelli Gloss. Each gloss is $15 USD and provides a sheer, delicate color for your lips! They look interesting enough but I think I can safely skip.

And finally Hydro Stick Blush in 4 colors for $25 USD each. These remind me of NARS Multiplies and heck they are nearly $12 USD cheaper so you might want to head to Sephora and swatch yourself silly trying to find that perfect Orgasm dupe for the price!

I’m looking forward to this collection and I am very tempted to order it online but I think I’ll head into Sephora to have a quick peek and swatch prior to purchasing!

Loving it?

Wanting it badly?

Tell the Muse!

If you have $30 I can show you the perfect way to spend it!

Behold:

Meet the best duo I’ve seen around since Batman and Robin (that’s saying alot considering these guys wore tights and fought off crazy criminals! Hey, I’m just saying it has to be hard work wearing tights and saving the world!).

NARS has decided to pair up it’s popular Orgasm Lipgloss with a brand new nail polish in Orgasm! My life is almost complete now….I’m just waiting patiently for the NARS Eyeshadow in Orgasm and I should be good to go!

In all seriousness NARS Orgasm Blush is probably one of my most favorite colors around. It’s peachy, it’s pink, it has a tiny bit of shimmer that reflects so beautifully off my cheeks…in other words, it’s perfect.

NARS Lipgloss in Orgasm is equally perfect and now….nail polish too! Oh my!

I’m super excited about this kit. What’s not to love? The color is pure perfection, the price is awesome, and I get not only hot nails from it but hot lips! Yes, indeed, the Muse is liking it alot.

I’m not very good at taking care of my nails sadly but I’m definately going to be sporting NARS Orgasm Nail Polish all Summer long! I’ve truly fell deeply in love with this and I say you needs it now so hurry to Sephora and purchase it for your very own!

Sometimes brands create items and work the angle so many times it’s enough to make a person yawn or scream (depending on your personality) but in the case of Orgasm I don’t think they can extend the line any further without making me roll around on the floor in excitement! Who doesn’t love the awesome line of blushes that NARS has available, hell I have practically all of ‘em! Extending the line to include matching glosses and nail varnishes is an absolutely brilliant idea to me and I seriously can’t grow tire of the beautiful peachy pink concoction that is Orgasm. They definately picked the perfect combo for this kit!

So….

If you have $30 bucks to spare, I highly recommend heading to your nearest Sephora and grabbing yourself this little kit! You won’t be sorry!

Multiple Orgasms

Here’s a little Face of the Day for you but please be gentle as I am foundation-less! I only used NARS Blush in Orgasm and NARS Lipgloss in Orgasm for the FOTD and I’m otherwise cosmetic free. I’m having a bad skin day too so give a girl a break

NARS Orgasm gets a hearty Muse Approval for purchase be it kit, gloss, or blush!

Click here to read my recent babblings about NARS Spring Collection!

Click here to read my first post about the NARS Orgasm Lipgloss and Nail Polish Set!

I’m in heaven.

How gorgeous is this duo of NARS goodness?

We have the blush, we have the lipgloss, and now we have the sweet peachy pink perfection of a nail polish! Life is good.

The Muse wants this set!

Retails for $30 USD at Sephora!

I’m all over it! Review Coming Soon…..As soon as tomorrow maybe Check back!

Want it?

I got my hands on NARS Eyeshadow in Abyssinia finally. This color was released with the Spring Collection and I’ve been meaning to purchase it for ages. It’s not as bright and loud as my normal colors go but I adore it. I also got a few other NARS goodies that I’ll be discussing later on in this post!

Abyssinia is a very delicate pearl color which gives a faint creamy look to your eye. Using such a light color on your eye area will brighten it up and make you appear more awake! I love the simplicity of this color because it allows me to take advantage of using heavier liners on my eye. I normally avoid lining my eyes when I’m using brighter, bolder shades as I think it’s a bit too much but when I’m using a lighter color I love going to town with my liner and making it pop! Such is the case with NARS Eyeshadow in Abyssinia! It’s a beautifully, refreshing color for using as an all over color wash, a high brown highlighter, or as a prep for a bolder shade! Yesterday morning I used Abyssinia with MAC Dual Eye Pencil in Nighthawk and Front Row and the look came out rather awesome. I was able to take full advantage of darking my eyes up with MAC’s pencil while keeping my eyeshadow simple and natural! I was trying to recreate the look of NARS Spring and Summer Collection with my bold lips and natural eyes!

NARS Exotic Summer Collection Look and NARS Shanghai Lily Spring Collection Look

Here’s what I came up with:

Face
Aromaleigh Rocks! Mineral Blush Powder in FemmeFatale

Eyes
NARS Eyeshadow in Abyssinia
MAC Dual End Pencil in Nighthawk and Front Row
Majorca Majolica Mascara

Lips
Cynthia Rowley for Avon Lipstick in Plum Orchid
Cynthia Rowley for Avon Lipgloss in Plum Orchid

Since I’m discussing NARS might I mention the dual ended Lipgloss/Lipstain Duos! I’m feeling neutrals lately and NARS Dual End Lipgloss/Lipstain Duo in Stolen Kisses/Pamp is the perfect nude neutral combo! Pampa is a beautiful chocolate with touches of gold and Stolen Kisses is a Dusky Rose that compliments Pampa beautifully! I always stain my lips prior to applying gloss so this little guy is a god sent for me! The idea of having my stain and gloss in one easy tube is simplicity at it’s best! The stain is beautifully pigmented and the gloss is wonderfully emollient without being sticky or tacky! The shades go wonderfully together! Each Duo is $28 USD and available for purchase at NARS or Sephora.

Last on my list is the NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil. Since falling in love with Bobbi Brown’s lip crayons I really adore the idea of a lip pencil that you can use for not only lining but filling! NARS version of the lip pencil is a moisturizing, pigmented pencil of color that’s simple to use and great to have around for on the go touch ups! The color I got was Belle de Jour which is a sheer beige! Toting around a small pencil that works like a lipstick makes my life simple plus the color selection is awesome!

I’m looking forward to snagging some of NARS Summer Collection to review for you shortly!

Love NARS?

Favorite Products?

Loving the Summer Collection?

Tell the Muse!

Read about NARS Exotic Summer Collection by clicking here!

Click here to read my raves for the NARS Dolce Vita Set!

Click here to read my review and first impressions of the NARS Night Series Palette!

After much consideration I gave into temptation and ordered the Pink Clarisonic Skin Care Brush. I’ve been using the brush for over a month now and I think I’m about ready to review it so finally in all it’s glory (with minor snarky remarks here and there) here are my babblings and review of the Clarisonic Skin Care Brush.

Honestly, shelling out $195 USD for a cleaning brush totally made me groan in agonizing pain. I have absolutely no problem shelling out $30 for a single eyeshadow but ask me about my indecision when purchasing this brush and I’ll tell you that the sale’s girl that sold it to me had to pry the money from my hands.

I haven’t seen an official review on this brush so I feel all special and stuff that I’m writing a long, babbling post about this brush because it deserves at least that for the price!

I’m not going to say it sucks. That would be too harsh of me. I am going to be very good about this and point out it’s flaws and point out it’s good features and all that jazz.

What is it and what’s it promise?

It promises to reduce dry skin patches, oily areas, blemishes, and get six times more makeup off your face! Take that! It also minimizes pore size, fine lines, and wrinkles appear smaller too! I’m generally curious about how wrinkles can appear smaller but hey that’s what it says on the Sephora description and who the hell am I to argue right? Although I think they maybe mean fade wrinkles?

I don’t have fine liners or wrinkles and my pores aren’t huge so I can’t really say whether this actually helped any!

Dry patches? No, those are still there.

Oily areas? It’s getting warm out and my oily areas are definately still there!

Blemishes? Don’t have much of a problem with any acne or blemishes so unsure if this works well at clearing those up!

Ok, so far we are off to a smashing start aren’t we? Everything it’s promised isn’t working for me!

After getting this home the first day I purchased it I was tempted to rip open the box with my teeth in excitement but I settled for setting it down and pushing it away while I washed my face as I do normally or you can call it manually if you so please, with my own two hands. I decided this would be an effective test to see how well the brush would be cleaning my skin!

After washing my face with Philosophy Purity and doing what I call a spot check with Witch Hazel it turns out my face was whistling it was so clean. I simply washed my face as normal and after drying off with a towel I soaked a cotton square in Witch Hazel, smoothed it on my face, and looked at the cotton square. No makeup remained. I decided to do so again with Lancome Bi-Facil and again the cotton square came back clean!

My bright idea to compare the brush cleaning to my hand cleaning had failed. It appears my cleanser was already doing a mighty good job by itself! But I wasn’t swayed! I just knew that the brush would work at making my moisturizer and other face products “sink” in better! My skin would be smoother and more polished once I used this daily! Yes, indeed it would!

Nope.

No, it wouldn’t.

Hello? Am I using it wrong?

I think it’s basically goof proof that you obviously know you can’t do full makeup removal with the brush. I normally remove everything on my face with my normal cleanser prior to using the brush as an EXTRA step. So now I’m actually adding time to my skincare regime (as if it wasn’t long enough).

The cycle:

Remove Eye Makeup with oil based remover.
Cleanse with Purity.
Rinse.
Squirt a bit of Purity onto brush and go to town for two minutes.

The time I spend doing all this boggles my little brain. I decided, after two weeks of use, that maybe I’d do the brush twice a day! If I used it in the shower in the morning plus in the evening it was sure to produce some dramatic effects.

Yea. Sure it did.

Not.

Maybe I need to use it a bit longer to see the ultra dramatic results it promises? It’s been almost two months since I got it and I am not noticing any difference in my skin at all. My products (moisturizer, foundation, etc…) do not work better or “sink” in better. My oily and dry areas are still very much there. I don’t feel polished or smoother thanks to this.

Honestly, the only thing I feel like is I’m wasting two minutes (4 minutes if you could the fact I use the bloody thing twice a day!) a day and I’m $200 broker!

Ok, so I guess this is where I’m supposed to say good things about the brush right? This is the hard part.

Well….mmmm…you get two brush heads with your purchase….that’s good right?

Did I mention that this thing is huge? It takes up some serious room on my bathroom vanity! I hate the clunky feeling of the recharging base as well! I wish they’d give an option to use either the recharger or batteries.

Fact is I’m seriously just a hater at this point. I don’t see the point of this. It’s expensive and it makes ridiculous claims. My skin doesn’t feel any better than when I originally began using it. I’m so sorry to the lovers…I can’t love it. I’m trying really hard though! Honest! My relationship with the brush is still a work in progress and I hope I’ll come back one day and post a brand new review where I am raving about the benefits of giving $200 to Clarisonic!

Fact is…if I were you…I’d stick to my hands and a good cleanser! Works just the same, if not better!

Clarisonic should stick to making toothbrushes.

If all else fails and you really want it maybe write a fan mail to Oprah begging her to send you one! It’s one of her “favorite things” after all!

Dior’s Summer Collection has been available at Nordies, Lord & Taylor, Macy’s, and a few other select locations for a month or more now (not officially). Sephora is finally updating it’s catalog with the Summer Collection as well. Dior’s Summer Collection is officially being launched in Japan as of April the 25th so I thought to coincide with that I’d post my review of the collection today!

The Dior Japan site has been updated to reflect the new collection for a few weeks now however, as always, the US site is still displaying the Spring Collection and being bloody slow about getting the update live (we probably won’t see an update until June or more).

As you already know from reading my constant rantings and ravings I am not a sun seeker which means of course this collection holds little appeal for me. The Collection consists of two new colors of High Shine Lipstick, two new colors of the single eyeshadows, two new palettes, and various other bits and bobs.

And of course the Pièce de Résistance of the Collection being the Golden Dior Pendant which houses a bronze gold highlighter cream to use on cheeks, face, and lips. Europe and Asia have two color selections for the pendant which are a gold and pink color while here within the US we are only getting the gold color.

Unlike the Spring Collection which I over indulged in, the Summer Collection held little appeal and I only ended up getting the three Dior Addict Ultra Glosses from the entire lot of items released.

The colors released ended up being very Muse friendly and I am loving the corals, golds, and beiges found in each of the newest glosses. I think these will not only work great in the Summer but well into the Fall!

Three colors were released of the Dior Addict Ultra Gloss Reflect so I ended up with all three colors. I’ve always collected the Limited Editions of Addict Gloss but I haven’t done so in a while however with the Spring release I found myself using my LE glosses more and more thus that was part of the reason I picked these up!

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The gloss formula is very good. Not too sticky, not to tacky but just right. It’s long wearing, holds nice shimmer and shine, and the price isn’t too bad at $24.50 USD per a gloss.

I took a few swatches for you so you can compare the various colors. Beige Moire is obviously very clear and sheer but it has a beautiful touch of gold shimmer which looks brilliant over peaches and corals. Beige Lurex is a beautiful bronze chocolate with hints of orange and gold shimmer. And finally Corail Lame is a gorgeous coral that borders an orange with touches of gold shimmer!

All three glosses are gorgeous but Beige Lurex and Corail Lame are my two favorites and worth picking up if you want something to pair up with a bronzed look this Summer or in my case a fresh peachy look!

Dior Addict Ultra Gloss Reflect is Muse Approved for purchase! I’m enjoying these latest releases and look forward to using them this Summer!

Click here to find out why I’m NOT a Sun Seeker!

Click here to catch up on my review and first impressions of Dior’s Spring Collection 2008!

Click here to enjoy my review on Dior’s newest lipstick!

Click here to find out why you should be purchasing your Dior abroad!

Click here to see my FOTD using Dior Addict Ultra Gloss Reflect in Beige Lurex!

PS I failed to mention that I’ve added a secret little sale page to my blog! I’ll be updating this with tons of stuff soon as I am doing Spring Cleaning this weekend!

If you follow me around Cozy you might have noticed I posted about these on the Bobbi Brown thread!

If not you got me babbling about them here on my blog!

These are an interesting concept and since my obsession with Bobbi Brown lately you know that I want to try these out but the price makes me cringe slightly!

First of all these are completely well thought out as the color selection is vast so it’s not a flash in the pan money making scheme. They actually considered this a while prior to releasing them. I love that they have a nice good array of color.

What are they?

Basically you’ll be purchasing an empty quad or trio which you can fill with any combination of blushes or eyeshadows of your own personal choice!

Items available are shimmer eyeshadows, shimmer blushes, and standard blushes and eyeshadows.

The shimmer shadows and blushes are of course something I am highly interested in trying out for myself!

At the moment there are at least 30 shades of shadow available. That number is without the shimmer shadows so the choices and variety are fantastic!

Price wise is where I am slightly raising my eyebrows. An empty quad or trio is $10 USD…mmm not too bad but nearly twice the amount of a standard MAC quad. Blushes are $22 USD each and Eyeshadows are $20 USD.

Break that down with a quad and you’re looking at say over $90 USD for one blush and three eyeshadows.

Bobbi I love you, I really love you but I don’t love a $90 palette!

Holy cow!

If you went the cheaper route and decided on a trio one blush and two eyeshadows would run you over $70 USD!

Wow.

As much as I am wanting these the price tag is just a tiny bit too high for the Muse!

Love ‘em, yes. Price Tag, not feeling it at all!

Want these?

Good deal?

Bad deal?

Tell the Muse!

I was visiting with the beautiful Toya from Life of a Ladybug last week and happened upon her review of Laura Mercier Secret Brightening Powder. After reading her review I knew that this was something I absolutely had to try!

Away I went to Sephora to nab some for myself!

What is it?

Secret Brightening Powder is exactly that. It’s a translucent powder with a tiny touch of shimmer that you use under your eyes to brighten and refresh eyes!

Mmmmm…..

It brightens.

It refreshes.

But…

It kinda sorta settles into my fine lines which I’m not loving.

It’s an interesting concept but I’m not sure it works so well. The powder is pretty shimmery so the potential and danger of overdoing it is a serious reality. I overdo everything so I have to be super careful with this and just apply a tiny touch under my eyes. It does brighten up my eye area and give it a very nice light, look but it also settles into my fine lines which makes me age a few years. I don’t use powder under my eyes anymore for this reason and this, is in fact, glorified finishing powder.

Fact of the matter is this might very well be a wonderful product but lately my eye area is so very dry (Sahara desert dry!) that I can’t take full advantage of this without seeing some strange side effects such as the fact that it is brightening but it’s also making me look older, settling into my fine lines, and drying my eye area out further.

If you boast a beautifully smooth, moist eye area free of dryness this could be a product you might want to invest $22 USD in however for me it’s just a glorified finishing powder with a bit of shimmer thrown in.

It does a fine job of setting your concealer and it does brighten up the eye area as I mentioned but it’s just not doing that good a job to justify me recommending it for purchase!

The cost is quite good as the jar is huge and you could get a year if not more out of it but really this doesn’t do anything that your normal run of the mill loose powder does!

Sigh. I so wanted to love it!

You can safely skip it!

Already own it?

Love it?

Hate it?

Wanting to try it?

Tell the Muse!

NARS has updated it’s website with the new Summer Collection for 2008 entitled Exotica. It looks like an interesting collection! I’m loving the lipgloss in Misbehave!

Click on over to have a look at the new Summer Collection!

Dior has introduced a new edition to the family with it’s High Shine Lipstick. Dior makes a fine bit of cosmetic that the Muse both uses and collects however their lipstick line hasn’t been something I can say I’ve indulged in much.

However, upon hearing about the Addict High Shine Lipstick I thought yes indeed this was very me! Visions of T’estimo lipstick and MAC Slimshines danced through my head and I was thinking how Dior probably created a beautifully moisturizing lipstick in an array of colors! I couldn’t wait to try it!

Meh. They could have done a better job with this.

I’m relieved I didn’t get crazy and purchase one of every color because it turns out it’s not all that great. The formula needs a bit of work as it advertises a high shine and gloss but I got neither from it. There isn’t much to say really it just feels like a regular old lipstick.

I’m not going to lie and say I’m not shocked as I expect far better quality from Dior but this definately disappoints. Most of my disappointment stems from the promise of a beautiful glossy feel and lovely shine. I didn’t get either from this and I can’t help but feel ripped off. It just feels like the regular Dior lipstick.

The color selection is vast and the packaging is simple yet pretty but sadly it’s a total bust for me. The Muse suggests saving your money and buying two MAC Slimshines instead as the price of one Dior Addict High Shine Lipstick is $25 USD which isn’t bad if it actually worked but sadly it’s a no go!

Boo Dior! The Muse is saddened and disappointed!

I know some folks have been awaiting me to do a post and review on Givenchy’s Spring Collection for this year and I honestly haven’t really been up for it. It failed to excite me this year and I guess that’s why it’s sorta been laying in boxes on my vanity for about 2 months or more now. I just can’t get excited about it as it was sadly such a disappointment. Am I the only one feeling like this could have been so much better? Don’t get me started on the Summer Collection which I’m equally hating by the very way!

I apologize for failing to review it but I’ll get on it sooner or later.

The good news is today I bring you a review on Givenchy’s Perfect Again! Corrector Palette! This review is a long time coming and I should have done it ages and ages and ages ago when I originally purchased the Spring Collection as this happened to be one of the items that I purchased with it!

The was introduced this year with the Spring Collection and is a Limited Edition Palette sadly. I believe the retail cost was $38 USD? and well worth every penny might I add.

I love it.

When I want to go light for coverage this is what I reach for. If you have heavy duty dark circles or you’re concealing some major baggage this is not something you want to even bother with. However, if you skin behaves well and you like a very natural coverage without feeling heavily made up this is definately something you’ll need and want to have around.

Givenchy would have you believe that this thing can cover everything and make you look like amazing. Not the case, sorry. It also happens to advertise it as a blemish, eye, and everything concealer. Again, not the case, or at least not for me.

I happen to use this kit exclusively for my eyes and it works perfectly under that area thanks very much. I haven’t tried to remake my face over into perfection with this kit nor will I try because it seriously can’t do that in my humblest opinion however it does a super job of making my eyes happy.

The palette contains two concealers. One light concealer and one darker shade which can be mixed or used separately. It also includes a smoother and a highlighter.

The smoother is awesome. Sincerely super duper awesome. Givenchy says you can use this to cover up enlarged pores but I use it for smoothing under my eyes and filling in fine lines prior to mixing up the two concealers and applying under my eyes.

This my friends gives me a beautiful very natural concealed coverage for my eyes. Perfect for days I’m going without heavy duty eye makeup and just making the rounds around town. Simply beautiful coverage. Truly.

The smoother is awesome and if they made this in a single palette I’d buy a few to stock up because it’s just great. It’s white and has the feeling of a primer such as Clarin’s Instant Smooth Perfecting Touch but much lighter. I smooth it carefully under my eyes and it preps my eye area wonderfully for my concealer! My concealer ends up lasting longer and doesn’t cake or crease thanks to this little gem! Please Givenchy might we have a larger size of this amazing stuff?!!

The concealers in the palette aren’t anything too exciting and some people might be turned off by the hard texture. They need a bit of warming up prior to use which I’m always a hater on but I will say that they work pretty nicely for when I want a very natural, light coverage. This is equally wonderful for someone who doesn’t have much to conceal or maybe doesn’t even use concealer to begin with! They go on feel almost powdery instead of creamy.

Finally the highlighter which is a pinkish lilac color with a tiny bit of shimmer can be used for highlighting your highbrow or cheekbones. I must admit this color was used the least out of the four correctors in the palette.

The palette is the typical Givenchy affair that has a tier flip which includes the cream correctors on one level and three brushes on the second level. Mmm….the applicators are somewhat useless to me. They included two sponge applicators with this which seem perfectly silly for using with the palette in my opinion. The third brush is a black sponge with a slanted tip. Ask me what the frack (can you tell I’ve been overdosing on BattleStar lately?) it is and I couldn’t tell you. I’m taking a guess and saying it’s to be used with the smoother cream? Hmmmm mystery unsolved.

All in all the palette definately gets the Muse Seal of Approval for purchase however I strongly suggest not purchasing it you have lots to conceal. This will not help in anyway if you have terribly dark circles or baggage going on.

I love it and say it’s definately worth checking out for yourself! I haven’t been this excited about a concealer in a long time and this is HG (Holy Grail) material for me!

Have it?

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Tell me!

Don’t you love Shu’s Rouge Unlimited Lipsticks? Pigmented, Amazing Formula, and Beautiful Packaging.

I sincerely adore them.

Shu’s taken the original Rouge Unlimited and amped it up a bit for the Spring/Summer. We now have Shu Rouge Unlimited Crystal Shine which is simply amazing!

I tested out two of these and I’m dying to get my hands on a few more colors as they are truly great!

It’s like having a lipstick and a gloss all in one stick. This is a glossy, slick, emollient formula that simply glides onto your lips leaving behind beautiful color and shine!

I’m loving the simplicity of a single stick of gloss and lipcolor in one tube. The color is pigmented enough to act as a lipstick while also offering your lips a moisturizing glossy, shimmering effect that’s absolutely stunning.

These are perfect for days you want a natural, glossy feel without feeling heavily made up with lipstick.

WN254S and BG 950S

The two colors I got are BG 950S which is a pretty shimmering beige and the second color was WN 254S which is a shimmering purple wine color but it looks very pink on!

WN 254S

BG 950S

WN 254S

BG 950S (Hey, L@@K I’m wearing Visee’s Aqua Shining Eyes! Pretty Right? Click to read my review on Aqua Shining Eyes!)

The only thing I can rant about is they only come in 17 Shades. We wants more please! And secondly can we please, please, please have names we can remember? B45644578ST is too difficult to remember!

Each Rouge Unlimited Crystal Shine is $23 USD and well worth it as the quality is near perfection for me.

I have at least 5 other colors on my wish list at the moment!

Shu Uemura Rouge Unlimited Crystal Shine Collection is available now at Shu Uemura’s website!

These are most definately Muse Approved! I love the texture, the shine, the glossy feel, and the beautiful color and effect of these! They are well worth purchasing at least one (although you’ll want more once you’ve tried ‘em!).

Perfection!

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Tell the Muse!

Click here to travel into the past and read my Shu Uemura Summer Prism Collection Review!

Click here to read my ravings and review for Shu Uemura’s New Mini Lash Curler!

Click here to read about the exclusive Fact Chart Shu Uemura created exclusively for readers of Musings of a Muse!