Chanel Nail Polish: Black Pearl

image from amazon.com


Price: $25 for 1.3ml (.4 fl oz)

What they say:
"Classic and trend-defining shades from the runways of Paris. State-of-the-art formula strengthens and moisturizes nails as it delivers long-wearing, high-shine, chip-resistant colour. Applies evenly without streaking."


What I say:
I know I'm going to get some hate for this, but this polish is not that great.  I love the color, but that is going to be duped soon because of how popular this shade is, but beyond that there really is no reason to get this polish.

The shade is like a really dark teal, almost black.  Think real black pearls, and that's what you are looking at.  There is a little sparkle in it, but not over the top, more like a highlighter affect.  Beauty Look Book has a really good review on this polish if you want to see good swatches (something that I can never get in this house's lighting) and comparisons with other polishes.  It really is a nice color, and I wish I liked it more.

Let's talk about the bottle, since that's the other thing that I liked about this polish.  The cap that comes off to show the brush part?  I like that.  It adds a little class, and doesn't just look like another run of the mill polish that you might have lying around your house.  The bottle itself is sturdy, and the shape is easy to hold when my nails are wet, since there's no chance it will slip with its square design.

Formula-wise, this polish sucks.  I have cheap drugstore polishes that work better than this one does.  It's easy to streak, it is unforgiving on mistakes, and it chips like nothing I have ever seen before.  I used the same base and top coat (and Seche Vite) that I always do, and this was chipping within a day and a half.  Now, that's normal for some polishes and with how rough I can be on my nails, and that's not the problem.  The problem is that a normal polish that chips that fast will have a little chip on the tip, maybe the side, and that's it.  It will still be usable, maybe even fixable, and I just go on.  This stuff chips by taking out an entire section of the nail, like a corner, half the nail in most cases, and this is as soon as the littlest chip even happens!  Appalling!

Something about the formula also is messing with my nails more than usual, making them more brittle and peeling more.  I don't know what it is, but whatever it is is really not good.

Scent is standard nail polish, so nothing really bad.  The brush on the bottle is standard... really, everything else is just standard.  Which leads to the next bad part, the price.  NARS charges less than Chanel for its polish, and yet they have a better formula, so this isn't just a high-end thing, Chanel charges too much for too little.  I will gladly pay for NARS, maybe even Dior polish because I know that besides the name you are getting a decent polish, and it is a nice treat.  Chanel is just not worth it to me when OPI and even Wet 'n Wild are superior in terms of formula, and will probably dupe the shades Chanel comes out with soon anyway, if the shade is popular enough.

Overall, I am disappointed in this polish.  I am going to keep it just because I like the color, and it would be a hassle to try and return it, but I'm going to have to try really hard to get this polish to work for me, and that's just not something I like doing.  If Chanel polishes work particularly well for you, you might want to check this out, otherwise skip.

P.S. - Just put the "What they say" on the page, and noticed that everything they say is the opposite of my experience.  That made me laugh.

2/5

Urban Decay Naked Palette on Sephora!

For those of you who don't have this palette yet (this also includes me), Sephora.com had it back in stock.

Happy Hunting!

Rosebud Perfume Co. Strawberry Lip Balm

image from sephora.com

Price: $7 for .8oz (22g)

What they say:
"Indulge your sweet tooth as you soothe dry, chapped lips with Rosebud's newest, strawberry-scented lip balm. Following in the Rosebud tradition of simple, easy to use products, this vintage-inspired tin contains a combination of rich emollients that lock-in moisture and banish dryness after only one application."

What I say:
I actually don't like fake strawberry flavored things, so keep that in mind when you read this review.

I originally got this is the "Three Lavish Layers of Lip Balm" set, which is a great deal, btw.  Anyway, since I hate strawberry the most, and I like to finish things from worst->best I decided to open this one first.

The smell is gross to me, but like I said I don't like fake strawberry.  Hindsight says that I should have just given this one away to my niece or someone else, but it's too late now, so I'll just use it up.  The smell thankfully does not linger, so it is tolerable for use on my lips.

The consistency is like Burt's Bees salve, or like a really hard lip balm.  To use I have to warm it up with my fingers, and then put it on my lips.  I think this won't melt that easily, so it would make a good summer lip balm for a handbag.  Once on my lips it is soft, but not too soft.  A thin layer spreads well, leaving a non-sticky coating behind.  It is not the most moisturizing lip balm I have ever used, but that is because vaseline-type products are not moisturizers, but instead moisture trappers.  If you really want moisturized lips, put on a moisturizer first, and then put something like this on top to trap the moisture where you placed it.  Anyway, it does a good job as a trapping layer, and it stays for a decent amount of time, so I would say it does its job well.

The price for what it is is okay, but not great.  This is basically just glorified Vaseline with flavor and scent added.  There is a little color in the tin, but nothing appears on my lips, so there really is no reason for the colorant being added to the batch in the first place.

The tin is a well made metal, not too hard or too easy to open, but the product along the sides looks like it would be hard to get out.  I personally don't like tins for lip balms myself, since the product gets all over your fingers when you try to get it out, but I know Rosebud makes a tube version of this product, so they have already addressed this problem.

Overall:
This makes a good gift if you like strawberries and like lip balm.  I can see why so many people rave about his product, but I personally don't think it is really that great for what it is.  The price for amount is pretty good but Vaseline, which this basically is, is cheaper and doesn't have unnessesary ingredients (like color) added to it.  Don't get me wrong, I think it is an okay product, I just don't understand the hype behind it, and think there are better products for better prices.
4/5 if another flavor, 3.5/5 because the strawberry was so fake.

Hype Theatre: Yves saint Laurent Touche Eclat

image from sephora.com

Initial thoughts:
The tube that I got from Sephora appears to maybe be used.  The brush is was mostly clean, but some of the product was squirted out.  I cleaned the brush off, and it took 7 more clicks for more product to come out, instead of the 30 that the product claims to take the first time it is used.  I am weary that I used the product that came out of the brush afterwards without doing a full clean of the brush, but since most of the brush head was pristine, and the product did take 7 more clicks, I am currently chalking this mystery up to elevation changes or the product banging around in the box.

The product itself is creamy, thicker than I imagined it would be, but still more liquid in texture.  I would say it feels a lot like a liquid foundation.  "One click" (read above) was enough for both of my undereyes, my nose bridge, and a little on my cupid's bow and my chin.  While on first glance it appeared to do nothing, stepping away from the mirror and looking again a little later showed that it did in fact help my undereyes a little.  The rest was of course not noticeable, but a good highlighter should not be.  I used the brush to apply, and my fingers to blend.

Try numbers two and three:
Still taking about 7 clicks per time to use.  Starting to think that I have a defective container, but other than that it is perfectly use able.  Kinda nice in a weird way, since I know that banging around in my bag is not going to cause it to just come out on its own.

Still getting the hang of the product, but not in a negative way.  The consistency of this is way better than any dupe that I have used.  It really does not creep into lines, instead seeming to just absorb into the skin that it is pressed into.  This makes me sad in a way, since that means that all that money I spent on drugstore dupes was useless, and would have been better served being put into this.

Try number 4:
So I still think this doesn't do a whole lot, but am still really liking the product as a whole.  This is indeed great for travel, and does well in "oh crap, I look like death right now, and have a minute to get ready" times.

Overall:
Product: 4/5 - As a highlighter it doesn't do too much, but the consistency and ease of use make up for that.  It looks natural on the skin as long as you don't use too much, no creeping around, and doesn't break me out.
Packaging: 3/5 - I both like and dislike the click pen.  It is great for travel, and for quick applications, but cleaning the brush is hard, and not being able to tell the amount that is left in the container is really not fun.
Price: 3/5 - I think this product is too expensive for what it is.  On sale it is not as bad, but the amount that you get does not warrant the price in my opinion.
Overall rating: 3.5 - If you can get this on sale, you might want to give it a try.  Just remember, this is a highlighter, not a concealer.  I wish the pen came with more product, and that there was a way to tell how much was left in a pen.

An update 2

The total is now 5 this year.

Seriously?

On another note, I got some Holiday gifts to review, and am working on a new post right now.

Happy Holidays!

An update.

So, I guess you might be wondering what has happened to me (if anyone is still even reading this site).  In the last few months I have lost 2 family members, and am losing another one right now.  For those keeping score, this will make 4 family members in the span of 5 months.

Blogging is fun for me, but unfortunately takes time away from what needs to be done right now.  I haven't even been reading other blogs (if you knew me, you would know that is insane.  I normally open-all tabs in my blog folder, and then just read them all throughout the day).

I have no idea when, or if, I will be coming back.  I hope I will, since like I stated before, blogging is fun for me.  I never started this to get readers, I started this because it was a hobby, something to look forward to doing, a place to write down thoughts on products I liked, or hated.

Thank you for reading this, those of you who are still out there.

--kaoru

Finally finally finally finally finally!

image from sephora.com

Finally Urban Decay is getting with the picture and offering their Primer Potion in a tube.  According to what i have seen, this is only the "professional size" of .85oz that will be available, and no word if they are going to just change over to this style exclusively, but at least it is something.  Personally, I think they should offer both styles, since the mascara like container that they have now does come in handy, and many people like it, but to actually offer a tube that you can squeeze it all out of... it was a long time in coming.

Thank you Urban Decay for finally listening to your fanbase and changing something that people have been crying out for for a long time.  Yes, I know you did that slanted doe-foot applicator thing, but seriously, you and I both know that was not enough.

Right now this is limited edition from Sephora, and I see no word on it from Urban Decay.  It says "online early access" in the email for beauty insiders too.  Hope this is testing the waters for the new packaging, and they decide to stick to it.

*Update 8/31*
Urban Decay's site just put up the Professional Size Eyeshadow Primer Potion.  I see nothing on their site that it is LE, so it looks like it is permanent!  Way to go UD!