pink on the make-up blogette

FAQ & DISCLAIMER

About Me

My name is Sophia, and I am in my early 30s. I am from Singapore and I am the sole writer of this blog.

About this Blog

I started this blog in 2006, I like to use a wide range of brands though I seem to have a growing preference for higher-end brands in recent years. I also like to share interesting things I have come across about makeup and beauty.

Currently The Makeup Blogette receives 39,000 unique views monthly or 2,238,932 views and counting.

My Makeup Style

I like classic looks (neutral tones on eyes, anything goes for lips & cheeks), though occasionally I try out dramatic/ statement looks. I believe that a flawless base is the key to achieving great makeup looks. I also believe that if you don't have great skin to start with, fake it with a good foundation routine, and even greater skincare. I am currently loving Clarins & Lancome skincare products, and Vichy NormaDerm for tackling with breakouts.

What Cameras do I use?

Most of the pictures you see in post 2010 entries are taken with my Canon G-11. Previously I was using Canon Ixus 80. I do post some pictures which are taken with my iphone4 which I will state in that particular entry. I have stopped watermarking my pictures as of 2011, because I think watermarks are ugly in general, and does not prevent people from stealing my pictures if they wish to. I just take it as a compliment that my pictures are even worth stealing in the first place. I might look into getting a Canon EOS next year, not just for blogging purposes, but I also like photography in general.

My Favourite Makeup Brand(s)

It is hard to name just one, but I like NARS, Chanel, Illamasqua and the ocasional Guerlain, Dior & Urban Decay item. I own quite a stash of MAC items, but recently I have stopped catching up with their collections, and I much prefer to splurge on a few really outstanding items.

Where to find me

Twitter (link button above!) Email (stated above!) Instagram (makeup_blogette)

I have no official Facebook fan page, and currently have no intention to start one at all. The Makeup Blogette remains my personal hobby and property, so as such, I don't believe in having a Facebook fanpage for it.

Final Disclaimer

I bought/ paid for all of the products mentioned in this blog. I am not affliated to any company. If certain products are sent to me for review purposes, I will say so and express my honest opinions about them. In any case, I will only review and showcase the products which I have personally tried and tested, and enjoy using. I do not get paid to review anything.

No ads, no paid links etc please. I am in charge of all content and pictures here.

I am not a makeup artist, nor do I have any professional training in makeup.

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Essie Spring 2013: Madison Ave-Hue & Maximillian Strasse Her

I ordered 2 of the Essie Spring 2013 collection from my usual and only Essie supplier - Tammy (link here). It seems like a quiet collection, I have yet to come across blogs with full swatches, so it was a little hard to decide if I wanted everything from the collection or just pick my faves - in the end I went for two colors which I thought the names are quite cute, and also the color description seem unique. I just can't resist a good Essie, and I find that in recent couple of years, they are really bringing out small and beautiful collections - almost all with superb formula.

Collection information -

The Essie spring collection is inspired by some of the most fashionable cities in the world: New York, London, Paris, Munich, Tokyo and Rio. It’s full of soft milky hues with one eye popping orange red to brighten up the mix. Here’s the full shade breakdown:

Madison Ave-Hue – chic upper east side pink (with silver shimmer)
Go Ginza- soft cherry blossom pink
Avenue Maintain – lovely Parisian blue
Bond With Whomever – poshLondonlilac
Maximillian Strasse Her – cool grey green
Hip-Anema – poppy-bright red orange

Swatches -

Both colors I picked are perfectly opaque in two coats.

Madison Ave-Hue is a pretty cool toned medium pink with very fine and subtle silver shimmer - not very obvious when applied though. It is a flattering pink on my skintone. The finish is very glossy.

Maximillian Strasse Her - is a cool grey with a green/mint tinge. It is very unique, I don't have any close ebough dupes in my stash to even compare. It's that kind of grey toned shade which I cannot resist.

Hope this entry has been helpful, thank you for reading!

Posted on March 17, 2013 at 10:28AM | Permalink | 0 Comments

Filed in: grey, haul, PINK, nailpolish, swatch, Essie, essie spring 2013 | Tagged with: pink, nailpolish, grey, haul, essie, swatch, essie spring 2013

February 02, 2013

Nicole by OPI Do Good, Feel Good

Hi hi!

This is Nicole by OPI's Do Good, Feel Good - a soft baby pink, it's quite smooth and easy to apply. The first coat looks streaky but a second coat evens out the whole look. It is not as stark as OPI Mod about You (too much white pigment) and will work great as a base for pastel glitters and so on. I love this shade, to me, it is as wearable as a pink nude, and the soft delicate shade makes it extremely work appropriate.

For more information on Nicole by OPI click on this entry here.

If you want to check out some shades from the Nicole by OPI Kardashian collection, click here.

And if you are distractd by that pretty glittery shade in the background, I have an entry dedicated to it here.

Swatches:

Posted on February 02, 2013 at 2:52AM | Permalink | 0 Comments

Filed in: Nail Polish, OPI, Swatches, Nicole by OPI, Modern Family, modern family Nicole by OPI | Tagged with: pink, nail polish, OPI, swatches, nicole by opi, modern family, modern family Nicole by OPI

January 05, 2013

Dior Spring 2013: Nail Polishes in Gris Trianon, Rosy Bow & Tutu

Hi!

As you have read from my earlier entry, the only items I picked up from the Dior Cherie Bow spring collection are the nail polishes. I can't resist - the names and the cute pretty shades draw me in immediately when I first saw the collection. (collection information here)

Gris Trianon is described as a soft grey, Tutu is a delicate pink, and Rosy Bow is brighter pink with a hint of coral.

Honestly, all three shades are not unique, if you own enough OPIs and Essies, you would have some of these shades in your stash. Especially Gris Trianon (the Germany and Holland collection feature some grey-nude shades which are definitely in the same family, though not dupes). Tutu is a dead ringer for OPI Mod about You. Rosy Bow is a med-toned pink which if you are a pink lover, you would have some variants in your collection. But I sort of collect the pretty ones, and this trio is superbly pretty...so I must have them!

It is also interesting to note that Dior has know printed the names and numbers of the polishes on the front of the bottle instead of the bottom (just like Chanel does). I much prefer this way of labelling.

All swatches here are done with Nail Tek II base coat, and Seche Vite topcoat, and 2 coats of polish. I had a quick look at the Dior counter just to make sure that the polishes are not of the streaky kind - they look thick and creamy in the bottle, and I am glad to confirm that fact with my swatches here. All three are opaque in 2 coats - but do apply the two coats evenly, or else you might end up with some unevenness.

Gris Trianon - grey nude, neutral toned grey. I don't have something like this from Dior... and last year's nude releases are nowhere near. The nudes were truly skintone nudes, in various shades of beiges and tans. But this is a grey, yet not a black and white grey like Illamasqua DWS (that's my idea of the perfect shade of grey).

Tutu - baby pink!! Milky, white pastel pink. This applies smoothly, and makes my skin look tanner than it really is. If you have OPI Mod about You, you don't need this. Very opaque like a ballerina's leotard, I would imagine.

Rosy Bow - a bright warm-ish pink, totally reminds me of OPI's Pink Friday. Formula is great on this too, and I think this is a very flattering pink for light to medium skintones. I think I will start wearing this first.

A quick comparison of Gris Trianon - just by looking, you can tell which family of nude it falls into.

I found it to be very similar in the undertone to Chanel Frenzy & Deborah Lippmann Waking up in Vegas, so I am showing them side by side.

Not the same for sure. Frenzy is much lighter, and Waking up in Vegas is also slightly lighter but very similar.

I think I might even do a alternate manicure with all three shades this week.

What are you planning to get from Dior's Spring collection? Please share!

Hope these swatches have been helpful, and thanks for reading!

Posted on January 05, 2013 at 11:53PM | Permalink | 1 Comment

Filed in: makeup, Nail Polish, grey, PINK, Spring, tutu, vernis, Dior Spring 2013, Cherie Bow, Cherie Bow Collection, gris trianon, rosy bow | Tagged with: pink, nail polish, review, makeup, spring, grey, haul, swatches, tutu, vernis, Dior Spring 2013, Cherie Bow, Cherie Bow Collection, gris trianon, rosy bow

September 25, 2012

Nails Story: Essie We're In It Together [Photos & Swatches]

Hi hi

Essie recently launched a Breast Cancer Awareness collection of four shades of pink.. I was tempted to get all four.. but I am not a huge pink wearer and I had been hauling much polishes... so I thought.. I should just pick one which I think I would love. And I am very impressed by this pink.. it contains the ultra fine shimmer that some of the Essie polishes have.. and in my opinion, these fine shimmer is not really to add a certain texture to the look, the shade doesn't look shimmery, but instead it looks ultra creamy, but yet super glossy.

The color can tend to be a little patchy if you apply it unevenly, and I used 3 coats in this entry just to make the color pop. But I think 2 coats will be sufficient.

The shimmer are in purple and blue... and together they make the pink look quite cool toned, and adds a little dimension.

Again, pictures in this entry are taken with my brand new iphone5, and you can see how it captures the shimmer, and whether it is under natural or artificial lighting, the pictures turn out awesome!

Attempting a macro-shot.

in natural lighting

in artificial daylight lighting

Love this pink!

Thanks for looking!

Posted on September 25, 2012 at 7:26AM | Permalink | 3 Comments

Filed in: Review, haul, PINK, Swatches, Essie, BCA, iphone5 | Tagged with: pink, review, nailpolish, manicure, haul, essie, swatches, bca, iphone5

August 05, 2012

Chanel Fall 2012 Vernis: Frenzy, Vertigo & Suspicious [Photos & Swatches]

Hi!

This entry will feature all the Chanel Fall 2012 vernis, I bought all 3 of them - the colors were too yummy to pass up. There is Frenzy - nude grey, Suspicious - bright pop of deep reddish pink and Vertigo - dark sooty purpley brown. I won't be doing any comparison swatches in this entry, but I have paired each shade with the Chanel Mat Velvet topcoat for some variety.

Firstly, we have Frenzy - you are looking at 3 even coats for full creamy opaqcity.

This is natural glossiness, without any topcoat.

with matte topcoat

I love the muted matte look.

Vertigo, with topcoat

2 even coats for full color payoff.

The shimmer and sheen in this is very subtle, so it looks almost just like a purpley black brown shade.

I am thinking it looks like a darker version of Paradoxal (I should have painted Paradoxal next to Vertigo...but oh well).

without topcoat

Vertigo - matte

Suspicious is really a deep reddish fuschia, but it is looking a little warmer (more red) in my pictures

You can get away with one coat if you are in a hurry, but I painted 2 even coats.

I didn't use a topcoat, but after Seche Vite, it is very glossy and ultra smooth.

and with the matte topcoat - looks like of like marzipan.

My fave would be Frenzy, followed by Suspicious.

Which of these shades have you picked up?

Hope these swatches have been helpful. Thanks for looking!

Posted on August 05, 2012 at 12:43AM | Permalink | 1 Comment

Filed in: makeup, grey, PINK, Swatches, nude, frenzy, vernis, Chanel Fall 2012, vertigo, suspicious | Tagged with: pink, makeup, grey, Nude, Vertigo, swatches, vernis, frenzy, Suspicious, Chanel Fall 2012

July 09, 2012

Step by Step: The Chanel Couture Fall 2012/13 Manicure

When I saw the makeup products breakdown at Cafe Makeup for the Chanel Couture Fall/Winter 2012/13 collection, I was immediately drawn to the manicure on the models. And this time, instead of a new color, Chanel picked two shades from their past collections to create a fancy variation of the french manicure. Instead of just a french tip, this time you leave a border at the base and the sides of the nail. The centre part is painted a different color, as shown in my completed picture above. This type of manicure is not new, and I have done similar looks in the past before, using Illamasqua Baptise and Essie Topless & Barefoot.

The combination of colors in this manicure is crucial, and totally attracting me. In keeping with the collection's pink and silver themed wardrobe, the manicure consists of the same shades.

They used Chanel Silver which is a release from their 2007 Summer Collection (gosh, LOVE that collection, with the willy wonka shades, the metallic gold and silver eyeshadows...and Agyness Deyn sashaying down the runaway with her cropped hair...and Hilary Rhonda too..And the soundtrack Young Folks!!!) so well, anyway, I bought the polish from that collection when it came out, it was sold in a set of the polish itself and a special base coat. A topcoat isn't recommend for this exremely foiled silver shade, I tried once with a topcoat, it pretty much ruined the finish of the aluminium like silver finish. The pink that was use in the manicure is Chanel May, which is from this year's summer release, and which I totally skipped. It is a soft pink, which is easily duplicated with my existing pink nail polishes.

image taken from Cafe Makeup

I recreated this manicure the day I saw the feature at Cafe Makeup, and today I am recreating it again, with some step by step pictures. It really isn't difficult at all.

The trick to painting the pink portions, is to follow the shape of your nail base, it is just like painting a second coat of nail polish on your nails, except you don't go all the way to the base, and to the sides. And I don't think this needs to be perfect either. It is awesome, because the centre colored part hides all the imperfections on my nail bed that the foiled silver polish seem to enhance.

Without further ado, here we go:

Things you need - Silver Nail Polish, Pink Nail Polish, and a Topcoat. I didn't use any basecoat for this manicure.

Step ONE

Paint the Silver polish. Only one coat is needed. This is very opaque.

STEP TWO

Paint the Pink Portion. Follow the shape of the base of your nail.

I used OPI Pink Friday, because it is opaque enough to cover the silver. But it is a tad too bright and light.

I will be applying a softer muted pink over it to mimic Chanel May.

STEP THREE

Apply the second pink shade. This should be easy.

STEP FOUR

Apply topcoat over the pink portion only.

This is super easy, yet it looks chic and like you have done 'more'.

Makes the silver totally more wearable too.

Thinking of matching the silver with a sky blue next, maybe with Chanel Coco Blue. Hmmm...

The end results

Posted on July 09, 2012 at 6:12AM | Permalink | 10 Comments

Filed in: chanel, Nail Polish, tutorial, manicure, PINK, chanel couture fall/Winter 2012/13, chanel silver | Tagged with: pink, chanel, nail polish, manicure, Tutorial, chanel couture fall/Winter 2012/13, chanel silver

June 30, 2012

Thakoon for NARS: Koliary & Anardana [Photos & Swatches]

image credits

I purchased two shades from the NARS Thakoon collection. I didn't expect to come arcoss them when I was in TW, so when the BA brought out the collection for me, I was like wow, I want! I had vaguely remember the shades which are the most well reviewed, and I went with those. Besides the other shades aren't very much unique in my stash.

I chose Koliary, a brilliant shade of warm rich blue, and Anardana, a rich bright pink that reminds me a little like a OCC liptar (Anime, or Paegant).

Here are the two gorgeous shades.

They are one-coaters, in the case of Anardana, I used only one coat, and for Koliary, I used two coats to make the overall look more even.

Koliary is just brilliant. It POPS! I love love this blue, and it doesn't seem to stain, which is a bonus.

I love how rich this pink is.

It is quite a neutral toned pink, despite the brightness, and both shades make my skin look like it has a healthy tan going on.

some comparisons, no dupes though.

more comparisons with a couple of Dior pinks

Overall, I love both shades, and I am glad I had the chance to pick them up.

Hope these swatches have been helpful, and thanks for looking!

Posted on June 30, 2012 at 9:58PM | Permalink | 4 Comments

Filed in: Nail Polish, NARS, haul, PINK, Swatches, blue, Dior, thakoon for nars | Tagged with: pink, nail polish, blue, nars, dior, haul, swatches, thakoon for nars

May 14, 2012

Lancome Rouge in Love 243M Belle Aurore [Photos, Swatches & LOTD]

Hi! This entry will feature one of the 27 shades of Lancome's Rouge in Love. I picked this shade because it is a 'morning' shade, and being the morning person that I am, it seems quite appropriate.

243M Belle Aurore is a light neutral pink that is very wearable, and one of those shades that will go well with any eyelooks and outfits that you are wearing. The texture of the lipstick is creamy without being too heavy, and it contains just a tiny bit of shimmer. I have used it on several ocassions, and each time it lasted a good 3 hours on me. I don't think it is one of those all day wear long lasting lipstick, and you might need to touch up time to time. Though, I think it would probably last longer if you use a lip pencil, and apply with a lip brush and all that. But I am not one to go through with all that, I much prefer to slap on the lip color and go.

The packaging of the lipstick itself is super cute, and sleek. It is compact, and sturdy, seeing as how the packaging is all metal. No plasticky stuff there at all. The back of the lipstick tube has a french stocking stitching type of print, and the front bears the words "rouge in love".

very classy & elegant, yes?

and 2 LOTDs featuring the lipstick

I went with my usual neutral defined eyes to go with the lipstick.

I can't remember what I wore on both days, but in the first pic, I was wearing Dior's Aurora (2012 edition) on my cheeks, and my Suqqu palette on the eyes. In the second and third pic, I was wearing NARS Isolde duo on my eyes, and Guerlain bronzer & blush on my cheeks.

Hope this sharing is helpful, and thank you for reading!

p/s Lancome Rouge in Love lipstick was given to me for consideration. I am also aware that I left out the accent 'o' in Lancome - this is because somehow the new blog template doesn't show up the accented 'o' and omitted it instead which is a worse error. Sorry!

Posted on May 14, 2012 at 6:31AM | Permalink | 2 Comments

Filed in: Review, Lancome, PINK, Swatches, LOTD, Lancôme Rouge In Love, Rouge in Love | Tagged with: pink, Lancome, review, swatches, LOTD, Lancôme Rouge In Love, Rouge in Love

March 03, 2012

LOTD: Day Look with Laneige Love in Bloom Makeup Collection

Hi!

Decided to try out the Laneige Love in Bloom makeup collection (link for the full product and swatches entry here!) and I went for my fave shade in that palette, which looks like a pinky orangey golden shade, but well, it actually turned out a lot pinker than I had hoped for...and I think I decided to go in line with the pinky soft theme of the look. I also have on my fave among the five lipgloss pots in 03 Raspberry Pink.

On the cheeks, I lightly contoured and highlighted with the blush, but I used my own blusher for the blush part.

All products used will be listed at the end of this entry.

I found the eyeshadows really easy to work with, the colors are quite pigmented, they are a little powdery, but just use an eyeshadow primer and work a little slowly, you shouldn't get too much fall out. I also used the darkest blue black to line my eyes, and pulling it farther out than my own eyeshape, so there's a little shadow of a winged liner there. A a bonus, the tiny brushes that came in the eyeshadow palette --- the fluffy brush -- is amazing, it is very good as a blending brush, and for something tiny, it is quite practical and useful! The sponge-tip applicators come with a liner precise end which I used to pick up the liner shade and draw a precise eyeliner, and also smudge it out for a softer yet defined look.

I used my fingers to apply the lipgloss, it is so smooth and creamy. Really can't recommend this enough.

The cheek palette, was a tad too powdery for my liking though. I really like the bronzer/ contour shade, it is actually quite cool toned, and suitable as a contour shade -- I used it at the sides of my nose too. The highlight shade didn't really show up on my face, and I didn't quite feel like piling it on.

All products used:

base - Laneige BB Cushion, Giorgio Armani Lasting UV Silk foundation, Shu Uemura pro gel cealer

eyes - MUFE eyeshadow primer (LOVES), Laneige love in bloom palette, Shu Uemuera smokey layers false lashes (I cut and it look kind of wonky today. ARGH)

lips - Laneige love in bloom lipgloss 03 Raspberry

cheeks - Laneige love in bloom Sculpting Blusher, Illamasqua Panic powder blush

Hope this is helpful, and thanks for looking!

Posted on March 03, 2012 at 5:13PM | Permalink | 2 Comments

Filed in: PINK, LOTD, Spring, Laneige, laneige love in bloom makeup collection | Tagged with: pink, spring, LOTD, Laneige, laneige love in bloom makeup collection

April 08, 2010

Nails Story: Pink & Lilac Dupes (OPI, Essie, China Glaze)

Hi!

Just a quick entry on nail colors and dupes. I found a pair of really identical colors in my stash yesterday, I almost forgot that I have the China Glaze colors shown here! (Prolly too preoccupied with my greens lately.)

The colors are just perfect dupes in my opinion, so I guess I don't need to go into details of how diffferent or similar they are.

I will say though, there is a difference in HOW they apply.

Here, we have OPI Mod about You (one of my very all time fave). It applies very creamy and opaque, and less skilled hands would find this a very streaky thick color to apply, and I think manicurists would also find this a pain to apply. Think Saint Germaine lipstick which is an Amplified Cream lipstick from MAC.

The dupe color is China Glaze Something Sweet (from the Up collection). You need 3 even coats to get the true opaque color, whereas Mod about You is just 2 very thin coats. Think of it as Color Crafted lipstick(a Lustre?) from MAC.

The next pair of dupes, we have Essie's Lilacism, and China Glaze Light as Air. Again, the difference is in the application.

Light as Air applies thick and opaque like Mod about You. And the Essie Lilacism needs 3 thick coats to get a true opaque true color.

I just want to say that not all colors within the same brand of nail polish applies the same way. Some colors are just thicker, even when you just bought them, and some colors are rather 'diluted' in nature. So, it is not as though you got a 'bad' batch when things don't turn out to your expectations. It is just different. And over time, you should have your preferences, and you can tell by the bottle (hold it against the light) to see the consistency of the color. Usually I steer very clear of the sheer ones, I would much prefer the Mod about You types, which are super thick and opaque, and the color is just POW after 2 thin coats.

I might have a series of foundation/ NARS entries coming up today, if not over the weekend. Keep posted. :)

Posted on April 08, 2010 at 9:04PM | Permalink | 9 Comments

Filed in: Beauty, Nail Polish, OPI, manicure, PINK, china glaze, Essie, dupes, lilac | Tagged with: pink, nail polish, beauty, manicure, OPI, essie, China Glaze, lilac, Dupes

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Essie Spring 2013: Madison Ave-Hue & Maximillian Strasse Her

Nicole by OPI Do Good, Feel Good

Dior Spring 2013: Nail Polishes in Gris Trianon, Rosy Bow & Tutu

Nails Story: Essie We're In It Together [Photos & Swatches]

Chanel Fall 2012 Vernis: Frenzy, Vertigo & Suspicious [Photos & Swatches]

Step by Step: The Chanel Couture Fall 2012/13 Manicure

Thakoon for NARS: Koliary & Anardana [Photos & Swatches]

Lancome Rouge in Love 243M Belle Aurore [Photos, Swatches & LOTD]

LOTD: Day Look with Laneige Love in Bloom Makeup Collection

Nails Story: Pink & Lilac Dupes (OPI, Essie, China Glaze)

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e-mail

BLOGLOVIN

Follow @makeup_blogette on Instagram

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Hot Links: Basic Makeup!

Reviews: Foundations

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