Tag Archives: Chanel

In My Kit: Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Powder

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When you’re a makeup artist, every now and then it’s time to give your kit a good clear-out and find room for some of the beautiful new products (and colours, and textures) that have been released recently. I say “clear-out” because if you just keep adding new collections to your standard “can’t do without it” kit, pretty soon you’re overloaded like a pack horse on a trip across the Andes – and that way lies certain injury and then many, many Pilates classes and physio to correct it.

So I’ve just been stockpiling my new goodies for the season until I had a day off and could sort everything out, weeding out the colours from last season and stuff I haven’t been using, and making room for some new lip palettes, some re-organised cream blush palettes, NEW eye colours (Tom Ford anyone?), and le piece de resistance, my new set of Chanel Les Beiges powder.

Let’s just preface that by saying I haven’t carried pressed powder since about 2007. I found it was extra weight in my kit when translucent loose powder would do just as well, and in addition I find most coloured pressed powders tend to cling to the skin and provide an extra layer of coverage that you don’t want. At worst the finish can look heavy and granny, at best they were extra pieces of glass and plastic and powder that I was carrying around in an overloaded kit. So when I got the chance to try the new Chanel Les Beiges Healthy powder, I was a bit dubious since every coloured pressed powder I had so far tried, I hadn’t much liked as they added colour throughout the day when you re-apply on set (there are probably others that don’t but I haven’t tried them).

Les Beiges is bloody fantastique – I like to call it ‘Complexion Perfection’. I have been using it on myself religiously for the last couple of months and it’s bumped every powder I own off the charts. I now have a full set to put in my kit so I will be able to powder, contour and provide VERY soft bronzing to pretty much any client I come across.

It’s hard to describe, as it’s just not like anything else I have ever tried. It provides a very soft focus finish to the skin yet eliminates any greasy finish or oily look to the skin with a very minimal application. Even if you grab the first brush you can find and really swipe it on, it doesn’t seem to overload and get powdery. You can EVEN (gasp) use the brush that Chanel have provided with it, and swipe it on with that and you get a perfect finish, every time. Also it seems to last hours and just make your skin look exactly the right level of radiance – not dewy or shiny, but perfectly healthy. You can re-apply during the day without the colour building and making you look like something out of Miami Vice, but most days I don’t find it necessary to re-apply.

You can use the deeper colours as a contour. It’s PERFECT as a soft and very natural bronzer for the very fair complected as it’s sort of peachy and not terracotta or orangey-bronze, and it’s not shimmery. I’ve been testing this for ages and ages (easily two months) as I just wanted to make sure that I was right, and it is actually that amazing. I’ve been telling all my clients about it and all I can say is it’s pretty much changed my powder life.

Now I just need to get it in my kit…

Australian readers will be happy to know that Chanel Les Beiges will be on-counter at David Jones, Myer and Chanel boutiques from today.

An Ode to Cream Blush

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cram blush

When the weather in the Northern hemisphere starts warming up, and the beach (or at least a patch of green grass in the park) starts beckoning, I know it’s time to start switching up my makeup routine. It’s almost instinctive – powders start feeling goopy and heavy, your skin wants lighter products (with sunscreen!) and you don’t feel like spending lots of time getting ready. In summer let’s face it, everyone generally looks better with a flush of healthy colour.

With that in mind, I love cream products as they are fast, portable, can be dabbed on with a finger and let your natural glow come through. For me in summer, it’s all about cream blushes and bronzers. Here are my picks of the season:

Stila Convertible Colour – these are the prettiest flush you will find in a compact. I carry about 8 in my kit on every makeup job, and pat them on to the apple of the cheek either with my fingers, or with a sponge. You can also blend in with a brush, and my favourite for this is the MAC 187 large duofibre blending brush.

Paul & Joe Creamy Cheek in 03 – this is it, this is the one that I’m personally wearing all summer long. Deceptively pale in its sweet Art-deco inspired pink packaging, it can be built to a gorgeous flush of colour with a subtle shimmer that makes you look uber-healthy.

Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge – These come in a gorgeous chunky pot and really can be used on lips and cheeks. I love Calypso Coral for a punchy flush of colour and Summer Tan for a monochromatic bronze effect.

NARS Multiples – yes, every one raves about these because they are amazing. The shimmery bronze-y shades are my favourite, and I mix and match St Barts, South Beach and Palm Beach depending on the models’ skin tone. You can also add Malibu or Riviera on the apples of the cheek (if you felt like taking a walk on the wild side.)

Chanel Bronze Universel – a big, chunky beautiful pot of caramel bronze goodness with a hint of shimmer – just enough to look like skin, that you buff in with a big brush. Such a perfect start to the day as well – dipping into a big pot with the double C’s on top.

Becca – juicy, sweet little pans of blush in punchy, unusual colours like Hyacinth, Turkish Rose and Amaryllis. I keep a good selection on hand at all times, and it is equally sweet on lips. This is a lovely range for the summer months as no-one does flattering, natural, juicy summer colours like an Aussie brand, and this one definitely fits the bill.

These are just a few of my favourite cream blushes – The other lovely thing about cream blushes is you can layer them under your powder blush or bronzer to create a new, more longer lasting blush colour. Because cream blush, like summer, will fade. But the memory of it lingers on.

Video – Chanel’s Glitter Blink

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Sorry for not posting much lately. I’ve been on a major deadline for the new magazine I’m now beauty writing for, and with makeup and beauty writing my dance card has been pretty full.

I did see this lovely video at the weekend though – another beauty stand out from the shows last season was Peter Phillips’ silver glitter eye at Chanel. Beautiful, big chunky glitter on the lash line and liberally sprinkled into lashes is fashion magic of the finest kind. Get your pixie dust on!

Sidenote – the new Chanel cream blushes out later this year look TO DIE FOR. As in, I may need to book my funeral and prepare my wake because those have just stilled my beating heart.
www.chanel.com

Video: Marilyn & Chanel no. 5

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I was blown away by this beautiful video of Marilyn Monroe and her relationship with Chanel No. 5. As far as I know it is one of the first genuine celebrity endorsements of a product, and certainly one of the most successful. That is quite extraordinary to think of in this age of Krass Kommercialisation, where every celebrity has a raft of brands that they get paid to promote on television, advertising and now also social media.

Not so Marilyn and Chanel No 5. She honestly loved it, and it was the perfume that was famously the only thing she wore in bed. Now on the 50th anniversary of her death, two icons together in an extraordinary piece of lost audio footage that explains why the most beautiful woman in the world loved the world’s best-selling perfume.

 

Right Now: Vogue’s Fashion’s Night Out with Chanel

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Twinsets Chanel

Every year Chanel do incredible events for Vogue’s Fashion’s Night Out, around the world. Here’s a lovely video from London a couple of years ago, with two of my favourite people, makeup artist Kay Montano and lovely British supermodel, Daisy Lowe, getting into the spirit of the evening:

 


 

Chanel is also renowned for launching special, liimited edition products for the occasion, and this year in Sydney is no exception. This Thursday, 6th September, will be the launch of Les Twinsets de Chanel, created exclusively by Peter Phillips, Creative Director at Chanel Makeup. Les Twinsets will be available exclusively at The Chanel Makeup Studio, Myer, Sydney City for Vogue’s Fashion’s Night Out.

There are three unique harmonies in the range, matching lips and eyes like a twinset – resolutely feminine.

ROUGE ALLURE VELVET and LE VERNIS:

  • LA PROVOCANTE & PROVOCATION: a unique Autumn plum shade.
  • L’INFIDÈLE & INFIDÈLE: an intense pink with a burst of energy.
  • LA DÉLICATE & DÉLICATESSE: a refined expression of beige to play on the
  • natural side of sophistication.

This is the perfect excuse to indulge in a bit of Chanel lipstick and nail polish action – like you ever need one of those.

Right Now: Fly the Friendly Skies with Chanel

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Blue Illusion de Chanel

Last week I had the distinct pleasure of using the brand new Spring/Summer Chanel collection on a beauty shoot. Chanel products are always a dream to play with, and this collection even more so than usual as it’s all blues! Mr Lagerfeld must have been reading my recent post about my lust for blue eyeshadow as he has released a whole collection just for me (I like to think so, anyway). Mr Lagerfeld has us taking to the friendly skies with his fabulous new collection – and it made me dream of air travel in the 60’s. Here’s a vintage Pan Am video to get you in the mood:

The collection itself was inspired by air and travel, so it’s a medley of beautiful blue hues that reflect the sky and inky nights (and made me think of Pan Am uniforms). It made its debut at the extraordinary Chanel Couture Spring/Summer 2012 show, where Karl Lagerfeld designed the whole runway and its surrounds as an aeroplane – genius, non? Check out the video:

Pretty much all of this gorgeous collection is a stand-out. For starters, there are two new Ombre d’Illusions, and we all know how I feel about those. There is one pale, sky blue one called Destination which is divine either on its own or as a base for a smoky eye, and another deeper inkier blue called Apparition. It’s beautiful as a solid sweep of colour (as the sparkles give it depth), or combined with Mirifique, up until now my favourite dark Chanel Ombre d’Illusion.

The Ombre d’Illusions range of eyeshadows have to be some of my most favourite, favourite products in the world. Put it this way, if there was a fire and I could only save some of my makeup, these guys would be some of the first rescued! I love these for a smoky eye with a twist.

Then there’s the two new eyeliners (two I tell you! Mr Lagerfeld, you do spoil us) – Marine Intense Eye pencil, which is a deep blackened blue, and Blue Aerien Precision Eye Definer which is a lovely, rich cobalt.

Rouge Coco Shine lipstick in Chic is the lip colour to go with it, which is a, well, chic little nothing of a lip. It is on the pale brown side which channels perfectly with the current shift back to the 90’s with its love of brown lipstick. But as this is sheer its easy to wear and very a la mode.

The nailpolish in Skyline continues Chanel’s straight run of stand out polish shades. It’s an incredible, vivid sky blue and such a nice change from the usual bronze/peach/gold summer collections. It makes me think of tropical water, clear blue skies and sunshine and it’s the first thing I’m packing for my current trip to Bali (far more important than say, sunscreen or clothes). If I could float way on this little jewel of a polish colour right now I would.

Also makeup maestro Peter Phillips used all the colours of the new collection IN the Chanel Spring/Summer Couture show. So if you’d like to look like Lindsey Wixon, just head to your local Chanel counter *

 * Gap in teeth and jewel-encrusted Chanel accessories not included.

Video – Peter Philips for Chanel, ‘Miroir Miroir’

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I always think that Peter Philips and Chanel Beauty couldn’t possibly impress me more, and then they come up with something new like this extraordinary film to showcase the new Rouge Allure lipstick range. Peter Philips’s crystal makeup is incredible and I love the Surrealist take on lipstick – Man Ray would have loved this! A round of applause for my favourite beauty brand. Well played Chanel, well played.

 

Video: Peter Phillips on Chanel’s new Perfection Lumiere foundation

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 Seeing as I’m in France (and unable to indulge in any of the unbelievably delicious forms of gluten that this country is famous for – which as you can imagine is seriously depressing), I thought I should focus on one of it’s other famous exports – Chanel. Here is Chanel Beauty’s Creative Director, master makeup artist, Peter Phillips, talking about their new foundation, Perfection Lumiere. As I have loved pretty much every foundation Chanel have released in the last ten years, I see no reason why this one would be an exception. I’m also thrilled it comes in a lot of new, deeper shades – Chanel is now more global than ever!

 

In My Makeup Kit: Itching to Use…

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Happy New Year Everyone! I hope you all had a lovely and relaxing festive season and start to 2012. It has been harder than anticipated to prise myself away from the pool (or the beach, just to mix it up a bit). The lure of sunshine, sand, swimming and that feeling at the end of the day when you know you’ve had just enough sun has proven too difficult to resist. However the beauty of relaxing is it makes the mind unwind, and of late my thoughts have been turning to getting back to work. Yesterday my kit got a total overhaul and I was able to think about upcoming jobs. There’s also some new products that I am itching to get a lot more use out of in the next couple of months – Here’s a rundown of the products I can’t wait to get back into:

Bobbi Brown Beach Bronze Cream EyeshadowBobbi Brown Beach Bronze Cream Eyeshadow

I do love Bobbi’s cream eyeshadows, they are some of the best on the market. This has to be my Numero Uno favourite one. It’s a gorgeous gilded bronze-y colour which is magnifique on its own, or thrown into the mix with other browns and coppers for the ultimate, summer-y smoky eye.

Clinique Black Honey Almost Lipstick

I have had this in my kit FOREVER, and it used to be one of my favourite lipsticks back in the day (let’s just say that TLC’s Creep was featuring heavily on my mixed tapes when I used to use this particular number). But it is the strangest thing – it’s a deep wine colour that really does look good on every skin tone! Now due to its iconic status, Clinique have expanded the Black Honey range to include a new Black Honey powder blush. And I think it’s time for Black Honey to come out and play again. (Maybe not the mid-90’s RnB, but you never know).

Tom Ford Illuminating Face Powder

This is a fantastic pressed face powder for those with oilier skin (such as my good self). It is heavy enough to blot down what it needs to take down but without dulling the skin. I’m actually using it in place of foundation most days, as without powder my forehead looks like it’s been laminated (such a good look!) It also has a yellow tone to it, which I”ve always liked to carry in my kit, and I’ve found it’s like a better version of T Le Clerc’s powder in Banane. T Le Clerc might be needing to find a new place to live this month.

Blistex Lip Balm Ultra Protection SPF 30+

This high protection sunscreen lip balm really comes into its own on beach shoots when it’s 30 degrees and keeping the model from frying like a lobster (and her makeup looking pristine) is of paramount importance. This is my favourite lip balm with sunscreen that I’ve found recently, and I’m hoping I’ll get to use it on a few more beach shoots before the end of the season.

Estee Lauder Verite Calming Fluid

This is my current go-to moisturiser as it’s a very light fluid that hydrates the skin beautifully, leaves a gorgeous sheen on the skin and is the perfect base for sunscreen – which is just mandatory at this time of the year. This is from Estee Lauder’s fantastic Verite range for skins with rosacea and a tendency to redness (such as mine), so it helps subtly correct your skintone at a skin care level before you even get to foundation.

Chanel Blazing Gold Single Eyeshadow and Liquid Liner in Or

I’m totally keeping these for a beauty story as I’m really feeling gold at the moment (and shimmery stuff in general). The liner is an opulent liquid gold liner which is perfect for adding a festive sparkle to the inner eye corners or for a more dramatic statement liner, and the gold shadow is a pressed powder eyeshadow and just right for layering over cream gold eyeshadow for statement eyes. Apres-beach or après-ski, tres sexy!

NARS Joyous Red lipstick

This colour didn’t actually grab me when I first tried it, but it’s been growing on me over the holidays. It’s a bright red with an amber tone to it – normally a colour that I don’t gravitate towards (depending on your skin tone) as it can be difficult to wear. But there’s an oddness to this colour that has been haunting me, and I’m desperate to do some editorial that I can bust it out on. One of the things that I love about NARS colours is they do all the standard “beauty” colours – great reds, beiges, peaches etc – but also incredible shades that are outside the mainstream and just not like anything else. Bravo NARS for consistently pushing the beauty boundaries and including so many lovely different types of colours in your range.

Ooooh now I’m all excited and raring to get back to work and get deep back into the makeup mines. There’s more than just gold to discover!

PS I’m on holidays again next week, but just for a week (such a lady of leisure!) So MM will be back on the 24th of January.

Trend: Pretty in Pink

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Arizona Muse

Arizona Muse

I am so into pink at the moment. Pink eyeshadow, cheeks, and definitely lips. Don’t ask me why – I didn’t get it from the recent show season but perhaps a spot of pink is in the air, as October’s Paris Vogue features this divine pic of Arizona Muse looking, well, Pretty in Pink to say the least.

Maybe because it makes you fresh and amazing, even when you roll out of bed looking half-dead. Maybe because it suits everybody and we associate it with the bloom of youth, and flowers. Or maybe because it’s an excuse to post this video of a film I watched MANY times back in the 80’s, when we all wanted red hair and a pink wardrobe like Molly Ringwald:

 

 

So my picks for Best in Show. First let’s be clear, in all my years of makeup I’ve not had a pink moment before. So my pink stocks are low. Dangerously low. Worryingly low. Which I’m in the process of rectifying at the moment, but it’s taking a while. For some reason I’ve always got by without an extensive collection of pink lipsticks – I have a few and I just kind of cook stuff up out of my cream makeup or my pencils. But now I want flirty pinks, 60’s pinks, lady like pinks – hell, even scary nanna pinks can be great if you rock them with the right attitude (and wardrobe). So without further ado, here’s what I have been experimenting with in the pink department:

Chanel Rouge Coco Lipshine in Boy – Boy oh boy is all I can say. This one is going in my kit AND in my handbag as it’s the perfect little nothing mouth – insouciante but done at the same time. That ladylike polish you want from a lipstick when you don’t want to commit to full on colour. Now I know what the fuss about the Chanel Rouge Coco Shines is about. Sheeny, moisturizing, not pearly but gives your mouth a lift. It’s a grey-ish pink as opposed to a full on one, but I happen to love that (so there).

Chantecaille Powder Blush in Laughter. Chantecaille blushes are awesome and I’ve been meaning to blog about them for ages. This one is gorgeous as it has a gold shimmer in it, so the cheek area gets a very subtle iridescence (indisputably flattering). This has been in my personal makeup bag for awhile.

NARS Baby Doll Lip Lacquer – No one understands baby doll pink like NARS – this gloss in a pot has been around for over a decade yet it’s still as fresh and fabulous as when it was launched. Do use if you want your lips to look like sweet, shiny petals.

Chanel Blush in Rose Ecrin – the latest addition to my Chanel wardrobe arsenal, and these make my job hard – as in hard to choose which ones to use. This is the perfect mauvey pink which is surprisingly flattering – and gorgeous for those with blue eyes. It’s quite a sophisticated pink so I think this might be my blush colour for Christmas parties (although I haven’t quite decided yet. I’ve penciled in some time to think about it over the weekend).

Chanel Poudre Tisee in Brompton Road, from the current Knightsbridge collection. Strawberry pink and shimmering pearl powder luminser, mm-hmm, oh no you DIDN’T. Oh yes Chanel did. Kay Montano sent me one from London but it’s too gorgeous to use. I can’t bear to ruin the sweet texture of it and those interlocking C’s. I may have to get drunk to do so. I don’t have to use it to know it’s divine. (Plus now with the magic of the internet I can see swatches from other bloggers and it is heaven in a compact).

Illamasqua Collide Nailpolish – One of the things I love most about Illamasqua is their hot nail colours, and a hot nail is a great look for the summer party season, which is just around the corner. This is an amazing shocking pink.

Bobbi Brown Creamy Lipcolour in Dry Rose – This is one of my favourite lip colours of all time for your lips but better – it looks like nothing special in the tube but when it’s on, well you know about it. I’m a huge fan of Your Lips But Better (wow, I may trademark that) lip colours. Laura Mercier’s Baby Lips is another nice one.

Revlon Mock Snob Top Speed nail colour – my favourite colour of the season! Speaking of crazy nanna colours, this is just the one. It looks like a polish colour from 1963, a shrimp cocktail peachy pink that would look perfect poolside in a Frank Lloyd Wright home overlooking LA. Imagine Betty Draper in Season 4 of Mad Men (her nails, not the brittle vindictive crazy).

NARS Schiap lipstick – the best fuchsia around. Exactly the colour of Schiaparelli’s Shocking Pink – she invented it, don’t you know. I love this lipstick quite matte without gloss and a simple, elegant eye for tout le soirees de Noel.

But I’m still on the look out for more pink divinity – if you guys have any pink favourites, please comment below!

chanel.com

illamasqua.com

revlon.com

bobbibrowncosmetics.com | bobbibrown.com.au

esteelauder.com | esteelauder.com.au

NARS and Chantecaille are available at Mecca Cosmetica in Australia and Space NK in the UK.