Bobbi Brown Rich Lip Color & Mad Men Style

Over the weekend I picked up a couple of Bobbi Brown's new Rich Lip Colors. These are highly pigmented, creamy and opaque lipsticks with a lightweight texture. The finish is somewhere between satin and matte, and reminds me a bit of the feel of lip pencils such as Nars' Velvet Matte. The initial collection includes twelve shades ranging from nude beige and pale pink to deep rose, bright corals and intense reds (none of which are metallic or shimmery). The price is $22, which seems relatively reasonable when compared to Guerlain's Rouge G, for example, which is more than double the price, at $46.

I think there may just be a shade to suit everyone in this collection: Heather Pink is a nice mid-tone neutral, a "safe" shade for those who steer clear of overly bright or dark colors. There is also a pale beige, Bare Pink, which looks like it might be a flattering nude. I look forward to trying out more of these and may go back for the pretty coral Sweet Nectar, which was the only shade that had not yet arrived at any of the stores I visited. I recommend trying these on before purchasing, if possible, because I found that the shade applied on the lips is somewhat brighter than it appears in the tube, at least for the two I purchased. (Visit Temptalia for information on the other shades offered, along with more helpful photos and swatches than mine!)

Recently, a coworker loaned me the first three seasons of Mad Men and I've been on a Mad Men viewing marathon for the last few weeks (although this show has been around since 2007 I hadn't really paid much attention to it, but now I'm hooked!)  These new Bobbi Brown lipsticks definitely call to mind the type of shades women like the characters Betty Draper or Joan Holloway may have worn back in the early 60's. (In fact, there is even a bright red shade named, appropriately, "Old Hollywood.") I love the attention to detail in the show, from the historically accurate home decor and fashion, to makeup and hair--even the actresses' nails are of the longer, tapered oval nail shape which was popular at the time. The timeless elegance and clean simplicity of the makeup of the 50's and early 60's make these styles very appealing, and still relevant and wearable today. 

Grace Kelly (Photo by Sharland/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)

Audrey Hepburn (Photo by Allan Grant/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images)

If you have the time, visit Beauty Blogging Junkie for an interesting 2009 interview with Lana Horochowski, Head Makeup Artist for Mad Men. And read makeup artist Pat McGrath's tips on how to achieve Mad Men makeup style in a Jan. 2010 article in the Times (UK).

On to the lipsticks!

Plum Rose is a vibrant deep rose that is actually more rosey than plummy. Bikini Pink is a pale, but fairly bright, milky pink.

Thanks for visiting ~ and enjoy the rest of your week!

Chantecaille: Sea Turtle Palette

Here is a look at Chantecaille's Spring 2011 Sea Turtle palette (currently available at Chantecaille.com). It contains three shadows: a "base"/highlight eye shade in a pale champagne/gold, a satin mid-toned soft brown, and a blackened teal shimmer; and one cheek color: a sheer, shimmery golden-peach. Five percent of the sales proceeds will be contributed to WIDECAST (the Wider Caribbean Sea Turtle Conservation Network).

(Click to make it larger to read ingredients)

Below: Turtle palette cheek color compared to Les Macarons palette cheek color:

As you can see below the cheek color from the Macarons palette is more of a cool rosey pink vs. the peachy-gold shade of the Turtle palette.

Below compared with Nars Orgasm:

Here you can see how the "turtle" looks without its metallic overspray

It's in the same family as Orgasm, but lighter with slightly more gold shimmer

Below is a quick comparison to Chanel's Regard Perle palette:

On the left are the Chanel shades next to their Chantecaille counterparts to the right:

And a final photo below, pictured in low sunlight (no flash):

~Thanks for visiting!~

Mani of the day: Sephora by OPI Let's Plie

Today's manicure is Let's Plie from Sephora by OPI's Urban Ballerina collection. This is one of two full sizes I purchased as they were not included in the mini-set (the other is Shiny Dancer, a gorgeous metallic gunmetal/blue). Let's Plie is an opaque, pale peachy-nude with very subtle shimmer, which is not really noticeable on the nail. There isn't a whole lot of contrast between this shade and my skin color and I think it would perhaps be more flattering on someone with a darker skintone, unless you are going for the mannequin-hands look. It required three coats to achieve opacity and was a little streaky going on. (It appears to be similar to Rescue Beauty Lounge's "Plie" but may have a touch more apricot/peach tones rather than pink, although I'm going based on web swatches since I don't have that one.) If you are a fan of pale nudes you may like Let's Plie, but I wouldn't say it's a must have.

You can see the subtle shimmer above in the bottle, but it's not very apparent once applied

Leather purse with brass accents, Banana Republic, circa 2008

Below are a few recent photos of flowers in my backyard. Actually, these are my neighbor's roses that are dangling over the fence into my yard :) A nice treat at this time of year!

Angel's Trumpet (Brugmansia): Pretty to look at--but highly toxic. According to Wikipedia it is native to subtropical regions of South America and southeastern Brazil and is sometimes used in shamanic practices of people indigenous to the Amazon.