Urban Decay Naked Ultra Nourishing Lipgloss - Photos, Swatches

Urban Decay Naked Ultra Nourishing Lipgloss ($20) 
Love the makeup on the model!

Urban Decay sure has a winning formula with its Naked series - the eyeshadow palettes, foundations, powders - and the latest in the range is the Urban Decay Naked Lipgloss.  Available in 9 soft, neutral shades, these lipglosses would fit in perfectly whether it's a soft neutral look you are going for or pairing with a dark smokey eye.  They also claim to contain moisturizing ingredients like vitamin E, avocado oil, and sheat butter to keep the lips hydrated.  Here's a look at the swatches on my darker Indian skin tone.

Clinique All About Shadow 8-Pan Palette - Limited Edition Nudes (Neutral Territory)

A deluxe-sized mirrored compact filled with eight beautifully neutral shades.  Mix, match, and layer to create a wardrobe of looks, from subtle and understated to dramatically contoured.  Crease and fade-resistant, these shadows are presented in a deluxe-sized mirrored compact with a dual-ended sponge/brush applicator. 

Clinique All About Shadow 8-Pan Palette
Limited Edition Nudes - Neutral Territory2

I have a small 2-shadow palette from Clinique that I got as part of a GWP ages back, but other than that, I haven't had much experience with Clinique eyeshadows.  I did swatch some of the newer Clinique All About Shadow Quads and wasn't too impressed with most of them.  I had similar expectations from the Clinique All About Shadow 8-Pan Palette too, but I had to give the colors a try since this is a neutral palette.  Turns out, this particular palette - Limited Edition Nudes - Neutral Territory2 (okay, I really cannot figure out which of these is the shade name) - is a really lovely neutral palette.  The packaging is the usual understated Clinique and the colors included are lovely browns and beiges with a healthy mix of mattes and shimmers.  Here's a look at the swatches on my darker Indian skin.

Clinique Cheek Pop Blushes - Photos, Swatches

UPDATE - CLINIQUE CHEEK POP BLUSHES (2015) - SWATCHES CLICK HERE.
Discover pure, natural cheek color that looks virtually powderless. This silky smooth, stay-true formula comes in a shade for every season for an effortless, natural blush of just-pinched pop. To use, swirl color onto brush and sweep onto apples of cheeks. Gently blend up towards the cheekbones and temples.

Clinique Cheek Pop Blushes ($21) 
L to R:  Plum Pop, Peach Pop, Ginger Pop, Berry Pop

I have always associated Clinique with pristine, white counters and SAs in long white coats...and skincare.  There's hardly anything I use from the Clinique makeup range, apart from the Chubby sticks, and I don't usually associate the brand with anything girly or cute (okay, the Chubby sticks are kinda cute).  A while back, though, I saw the Clinique Cheek Pops - adorable little pots of blushes with a cute flower design and cheeful bright colors - so of course, I had to go try these out at my local Sephora.  Here's a look at the blushes, photos and swatches on my darker Indian skin.

NARSissist Eyeshadow Palette - Swatches

NARS Cosmetics introduces the NARSissist Eye Palette, named for and inspired by the brand’s devoted fans and cult followers, this inaugural palette will set the stage for future NARSissist products to come.  The limited-edition palette features 15 of the NARSissist community’s most beloved and inspiring shades in one compact, ready-to-wear every day, every way. Wear one shade on its own for captivating color or play with the possibilities by layering different shades for an unlimited range of effects.

NARSissist Eye Palette ($79) 
Image source: narscosmetics.com/PR

I finally got a chance to check the much-awaited (at least by the NARS crazy lot...okay, meeeee) NARSissist eye palette at my local Sephora last weekend.  The 15 shades included in the palette cover a range of neutrals and dark shadows, and at $79, this definitely is a lot more wallet-friendly than picking up the colors as individual duos or singles (NARS single eyeshadows cost $25 each and duos $35).  Anywho, here's a look at the colors on my darker Indian skin tone.

Ole Henriksen African Red Tea Foaming Cleanser

This creamy, foaming, antioxidant-rich cleanser gently cleanses, nourishes, and hydrates.  It deeply purifies and pampers skin, infusing delicate nourishment with African red tea, a youth-restoring antioxidant to strengthen skin, vitamin C to brighten and firm, and borage seed oil to soothe and nourish.  Bright and energizing citrus extracts of grapefruit, orange, and tangerine purify and intoxicate the skin senses.  Formulated without parabens, sulfates, phthalates.

Ole Henriksen African Red Tea Foaming Cleanser ($30)

Ole Henriksen seems to be quite a favorite among a lot of bloggers (and also at least one skincare-obsessed friend of mine), so I just had to try out something from the brand.  A face wash always seems like a safe bet, plus I had seen this in a Lisa Eldridge video, so of course, I had to give it a try!  The cleanser claims to be packed with antioxidant and brightening ingredients such as vitamin C, borage seed oil, and African red tea with extracts of grapefruit and tangerine to give it a fresh citrus scent.

Crabtree & Evelyn Gardeners Hand Scrub with Pumice

Reward hardworking hands with an herbal treat, courtesy of our Gardeners Hand Scrub with Pumice.  Formulated with aloe, honey, and allantoin, this scrub features two types of ultra-fine pumice to buff away soil, dirt, and other impurities.  Skin is instantly softened and refreshed - the way you feel after wandering through a fragrant English garden.

Crabtree-Evelyn Gardeners Hand Scrub with Pumice ($22)

I have quite an obsession with hand care potions and lotions and am always trying out new creams and scrubs to help out my dry hands.  My favorites are the 60 Second Fix for Hands (scrubs and creams) from Crabtree & Evelyn.  A while back, though, I picked up another of their scrubs - Crabtree & Evelyn Gardeners Hand Scrub with Pumice.  This is a scrub meant extra grubby hands :P

L'Occitane Aromachologie Shampoo and Conditioner

Made with 5 essential oils - extracts from angelica, lavender, sweet orange, ylang-ylang, and geranium - L'Occitane's Aromachologie range of shampoos, conditioners, and protection masks capture the highest concentration of plant benefits, allowing the products to penetrate well, work fast, and have an excellent capacity to carry natural nutrients to the hair that are essential for its vitality.

L'Occitane Aromachologie Shampoo and Conditioner
(Samples as part of a L'Occitane US FB promotion)

I got to try the L'Occitane Aromachologie shampoo and conditioner for free thanks to a promo on the L'Occitane (US) Facebook page.  One of those "like us, print coupon, get sample" things that actually did end in me getting the samples as advertised!  Seriously, don't get me started on the number of email and FB promos that I have signed up for and never heard from again :-|  Anyway, back to the shampoo and conditioner, the L'Occitane Aromachologie haircare range claims to harness the power of 5 essential oils to help hair look and feel healthier.

Chanel Rouge Coco Lipstick Paradis (39)

Chanel Rouge Coco Hydrating Creme Lip Color - Paradis

I do have a few Chanel lipsticks, but I amn't a huge fan of the formula (except for the Rouge Coco Shines) because they just don't seem to work on my dryness-prone lips.  I have a few samplers, though, from ages back, and every once in a while I give one of them a try.  Today's pick - Chanel Rouge Coco lipstick in Paradis.  It's a lovely, soft, warm-toned pink with just a touch of coral and a subtle pearl mixed in.

Origins Drink Up 10 Minute Mask to Quench Skin's Thirst

When skin faces a marathon of dehydrating circumstances, fluid levels can run too low.  Smoothness evaporates.  Skin feels tight and flaky.  What it needs is a great big gulp.  This thirst-quenching mask contains algae extracts to deliver an extra helping of hydration while emollient-rich apricot kernel oil acts like a fountain of youth.  Feel skin drink in the softness, lap up the luxury.  For combination to dry skin.

Origins Drink Up 10 Minute Mask to Quench Skin's Thirst ($24)

Every once in a while, my oily-combination skin decides it needs a break from all it's acne and blackhead-forming work and does a complete U-turn by going all dry and flaky.  I pick up some heavy-duty moisturizer, and of course, skin goes back to its normal oily self plus an extra pimple or two to show for my efforts.  It was during one such dry skin spells that I picked up the Origins Drink Up 10 Minute Mask to Quench Skin's Thirst.  I have no idea why or how I stumbled on to this, but this is one impulse buy I am truly thankful for!

DHC Premium Lipstick in OR112

Age-defying lipsticks.  Hydrating, satin-finished DHC Premium Lipstick GE helps your lips look younger with revitalizing ingredients and Pure Color Technology—micronized pigments that deflect light for a fuller, plumper appearance.  In six wearable shades perfect for any occasion.  Helps fight vertical fine lines with olive oil, vitamin A and skin-conditioning germanium.

DHC Lipstick in OR112 - $19 
Product provided for review.

I got to a couple of newly launched makeup products from DHC recently, and the product I am reviewing today is DHC Premium lipstick in OR112.  Creamy and made with lip-friendly ingredients, these lipsticks claim to not only provide creamier application and plumper looking lips, they also claim to, over time, provide antiaging benefits to the lips.

DHC Scalp Massage Pack

DHC Scalp Massage Pack ($22) - available HERE
Product provided for review.

For something I have known and lived with for greater than 30 years now, I still know next to nothing about my hair.  Sure, I know I have wavy frizzy hair that's oh-so-dry, but I have no clue on what will work and what won't on my hair.  For a while, I thought the best thing in the world for it would be some heavy conditioner and treatment that would just beat down control the frizz.  Nope.  In fact, quite to the contrary, my hair just gets worse with any residue buildup, and every now and then I have to use a clarifying shampoo to get it squeaky clean again.  Just doesn't make sense since most clarifying shampoos are drying!  Turns out, I amn't all that unique with my problem/crazy hair because I found a product to sort out just this issue - clarifying as well as moisturizing in one product.  The DHC Scalp Massage Pack is like a conditioner - you massage it into hair after shampoo - leave it on for about 2 minutes and wash it off like any regular conditioner.  So is this the simple solution to my hair woes?

Chanel Levres Scintillantes Glossimer Wild Rose (119)

Chanel  Levres Scintillantes Glossimer - Wild Rose (119)

I am a bit of an impulsive shopper, and the fact that I do most of my shopping online and at odd hours of the night just adds to the problem.  I always find ways to justify the purchases too, and my most abused explanation is "I won't find this in India!"  It's like I have to build a stockpile for when my makeup world ends and I have to go back to India - okay, just to clarify, we do get makeup in India, but we don't have much in terms of sales, and GWPs are almost nonexistent.  I would never, for instance, have got this cute little tube of Chanel Levres Scintillantes Glossimer in Wild Rose that I scored from the Chanel website :D

MAC Eyeshadow: Swiss Chocolate

MAC Swiss Chocolate 
(US $10.00 - 1.5 g / 0.05 oz)

I have been a bit of a late entrant to the MAC makeup world, and even now, I hardly own anything much from the brand.  I just find the range of colors, products, and formulations so overwhelming, and it doesn't help that most MAC counters I have gone to have these perfect-looking SAs like they just stepped out of some YouTube makeup video - it's all a little too intimidating!  I do have a few MAC eyeshadows, though, that I really, really like and have been using a lot of ever since I bought them.  Mostly mattes and neutrals, and MAC Swiss Chocolate is just that.  MAC describes this as a muted reddish brown, and this is a matte shade.

On my Nails Today: Burberry Nail Polish in Pale Grape

When Burberry added nail polishes to the makeup range, I was quite enthusiastic and even picked up an early-release set online.  Of course, as is usually the story with a lot of my purchases, once the newness wore off a bit, the polishes just sat there and I never did get around to reviews.  Anywho, the color I have on today is from the Burberry Runway Nail Collection set - Pale Grape 410 - but it's also available to buy on its own now.  The color is a cooler toned bluish purple that, in typical Burberry fashion, is subtle and neutral while still staying a little on the brighter side.

Today's Makeup: Neutral with a Pop of Pink

I have never been very regular with my blog posts, but of late, it's been really difficult for me to stick to annny kind of a schedule.  Time management is never going to be on my strengths list :P  This weekend, though, I have been at home for the most part thanks to "the game," and I got a bit of time to click some photos and share this makeup look that I have been sporting for a few days now.  I was checking through my blushes and rediscovered the Burberry Coral Pink - a bright pink that's been wallowing unused for a while now, but as it happens with old makeup rediscovered, this is my new love now :D  I have been pairing it with a soft wash of purple-grey on the eyes, and here's an easy breakdown on the look.