Beauty Lemming: NARS Blush/Bronzer Trio

Ever since I read about this from beauty blogs months back, I knew I wanted this: the blush/bronzer trio from NARS' Portrait of Paradise. It costs a pretty penny at $55, but it includes 3 iconic NARS products: Orgasm blush, Albatross highlighter and Laguna bronzer. I have Orgasm and it's one of my favorite blushes! I just hope that this will be available locally. Please oh please oh please!

NARS Blush in Gina

NARS Gina doesn't get as much attention as other NARS blushes like Orgasm or Deep Throat. However, if you're looking for a neutral-orangey blush, you might want to try this one.

Altough it looks more terracotta in the picture, it's actually a neutral orange with a hint of pink. It's very matte; absolutely no shimmer.

Here's an FOTD of me wearing NARS Gina. Not at all pink or peachy. Use with a light hand for gals who are fair-toned to medium-toned.

Do you own this blush? What do you think? Do share!

NARS Lipstick in Niagara

I've always eyed NARS lipstick in Niagara and now that I have it, I'm loving it! It might look different onl your screens, but it's actually a lovely pink-coral that brightens up the face, but doesn't really steal the spotlight. 

Here is a swatch on my hand:

 

I love NARS lipsticks! They're easy to apply and are long lasting! I only own two shades, though: this one and Schiap.

To give you an idea on how it looks, here's an FOTD:

Isn't it nice how it just brightens my face? What are your thoughts?

NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Dolce Vita

Ever since I tried Pammy's lip pencil, I got hooked! Lip pencils are so much easier to use because the application is very precise, cutting lipstick application time. From my previous post, I showed you that I recently bought my first NARS lip pencil in Dolce Vita.

 

I was really excited to use it. I used it for an event but I wasn't able to put on a full face of makeup due to time constraints. Here is Dolce Vita on my lips:

I like how it looks like, and it will also be a good MLBB shade for gals with darken skin tones.There's no hint of any gloss, it's definitely matte. Lasting power is okay. I wouldn't say it lasts really long. It lust lasts a little longer than lipstick.

I'm loving this purchase! Too bad NARS products are so expensive :( I'm also eyeing another lip pencil in Sex Machine plus one more from a different brand. Oh no! :P

Quick Post: Rustan's Mini Haul

Last saturday, I went to Shangri-La and really couldn't resist buying a few stuff from Rustan's. First I went to Stila to get the Eye for Color Palette, which I've been waiting for since the month began. I also got a Kitten smudgepot! I love the Kitten e/s so I wanted to try out the smudgepot version.

Then I went to the back of Stila, which was NARS! I got a blush in Amour, which is great because I'm really lacking in matte blushes. I can't wait to try it out! I also bought a lip pencil in Dolce Vita, which I'm loving! Reviews to follow shortly, starting with the Dolce Vita Lip Pencil.

Here's my small haul that still burned a hole in my pocket:

But I don't feel so bad because I get to use them on my gigs (nevertheless, I'm going on a makeup no-buy after this month hehe)! Yey for a fruitful December! Have a great day everyone!

New Favorite Blush: NARS Matahari

Everyone loves NARS blushes, and it's really not hard to see why. It has very good pigmentation, can last the whole day even in my oil-mine skin. At this rate, it will take forever for me to hit pan. It may be expensive, but at least you get your money's worth.

I purchased NARS Matahari recently. Since I love pink blushes, I've found that I've been reaching for this almost everyday lately. NARS Matahari is a matte, darker pink as opposed to NARS Desire which is a bright pink. If you plan to use this, please use a light hand, or else you might end up looking like a clown.

Here's me wearing NARS Matahari sparingly. And yes, even after 12 hours, I still had a trace of color.

Have you tried this? What do you think?

NARS blushes: Deep Throat vs. Orgasm

Everyone loves NARS blushes! I know I do. So let me show you two of my NARS blushes, Deep Throat and Orgasm. Why am I comparing these? Because they look so similar in the pan. When I bought this, I was really surprised! It's very hard to tell the difference from the pan. Can you?

Here's Deep Throat on the left and Orgasm on the right.

They're very close right? Let's see the swatches. Here they are without flash.

It's really hard to see but as you can slightly make out, Deep Throat is slightly darker and on the peach side compared to Orgasm.

Here they are again with flash:

Here, it's easier to see now. Can you see that Orgasm is more pinkish than Deep Throat? But in person, Orgasm is not as pink as it is on the picture. Both blushes are similar in texture and finish. They're both shimmery but not glittery.

Personally, I prefer Orgasm because I love pinks. What about you? What do you prefer?

Bright Pink Lipsticks: NARS and NYX

Hello everyone! It's the start of holy week, and in a few days a lot of Filipinos will be on vacation., but me, I'll be on vacation starting tomorrow already! Yey. Anyway, on to today's post.

As a makeup artist, it's important to have a hot pink lipstick in your stash. But since I normally gravitate towards MLBB shades, I don't have a bright pink lipstick except for NYX Louisiana. Lately, though, I've been reading a lot of raves about NARS Schiap. I've always wondered how NYX Louisiana compared to NARS Schiap. And now, thanks to Martha, I have my very own NARS Schiap. Bwahahaha!

Left: NARS Schiap

Right: NYX Louisiana

Here they are when swatched on my hand:

Here is NARS Schiap on my lips:

And here is NYX Louisiana on my lips:

In my opinion, NYX Louisiana is much more wearable than NARS Schiap but both are pretty colors. I find that NARS Schiap is a very unique color (hence it's a favorite of many celebrities), and if you're quite daring, definitely try this out. NARS Schiap is also more pigmented than NYX Louisiana. With NARS, one swipe and you've already got hot pink lips, while with NYX Louisiana, you have to go through your lips twice.

Where to buy?

NARS l/s is available in Rustan's counters for P1250

NYX l/s is available through online sellers for P150-P200

Lumiere Ditto "O": The Famous NARS Orgasm MMU Dupe

Hello lovelies! How are you doing? I know I haven't blogged the whole week. I've been really busy and really tired. I've been all around the place. 

So anyway, everyone knows that NARS Orgasm is one of the most famous blushes ever and there are so many dupes out there. For MMU lovers, the most famouse dupe is Lumiere Ditto "O". So here is a swatch of Ditto "O" on the left and NARS Orgasm to the right.

My camera is not that good, so I'll try to explain the differences and similarities. Both are actually very pigmented, but Lumiere doesn't always last the whole day with me. Sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn't. As we all know, NARS has awesome staying power. NARS is a tad more pinkish in person than Lumiere. Both are shimmery but NARS' shimmer is more golden than Lumiere. Dupe or no dupe, I find that Lumiere Ditto "O" is a great blush to have though. I even know some people who prefer Ditto "O" over Orgasm.

Other MMU dupes of NARS Orgasm:

Silk Naturals Climax - I actually have this but I can't find it. This is NARS Orgasm with a hint of plum. Still a pretty color though.

Lauress Uninhibited - I don't have this. They say it's slightly lighter than NARS Orgasm.

Anyway, I hope this post helped some people who are looking for an MMU alternative to NARS Orgasm. Have a nice night everyone!

Major Haul + Swatches

 I'd like to show you pictures of my haul last Sunday. This is seriously the most money I've ever spent on one day. Oh well, at least I'm happy :)

I went to Rustans to check out MAC's holiday collection. I got the Haute High Jinks, a Select Cover Up Concealer in NW20. I've never owned any MAC pigments before, so I bought the ones that I felt I could use the most. Then I went to NARS to buy my first ever NARS product, and what else could it be but my very own NARS Orgasm blush! I love this blush and I'm glad to finally have my own. I won't swatch it already since I'm sure many of you have this and there are many swatches around blogger.

Here's a picture of the pigment set when opened. Their packaging and bag is just lovely!

I also went to SM Megamall and bought some stuff there. A lipgloss from In2It, a lip liner from Elianto, and some stuff from Ellana. Ellana Minerals has some really lovely multipurpose minerals. Scroll down to see swatches.

And now for the swatches:

Taken with flash in artificial light:

MAC Haute High Jinks: Reflects Gold, Jardin Aires, Museum Bronze, Rushmetal, Copperized

Taken in natural light, with flash:

All except Reflects Gold, are pigments. Reflects Gold is actually glitter. I'm not impressed with it because the staying power is poor but all the rest are nice, earth colors that are very useful.

Moving on, I'd like to show you the swatches of the three multipurpose minerals I bought and the Yellow Submarine Super Sparkle Powder I bought. I discovered the multi-purpose minerals when I was in makeup school. I got the light colors to use as highlighters in the eyes as a sort-of substitute to MUFE star powders which are expensive.

For P130 (around $2.50) per jar, how can you go wrong?

For those who want to buy any of these products, I hope these swatches helped. I can't wait to use these!