My Holiday Beauty Gifts to You - NARS, YSL, Shu Uemura, Laura Mercier, Bath & Body Works

It's giveaway month on my YouTube channel and this video is dedicated to some of my favorite high-end products this holiday season. I took a mini-break from videos last week and went shopping instead for gifts to give away to my awesome subscribers. Make sure you follow directions at the end of the giveaway to enter :) Merry Christmas!
P.S. I'll also be holding Chanel nail polish giveaways here on my blog and on my facebook soon!



Grand Prize, $90+ Retail Value:
NARS Danmari Palette, a Sephora Exclusive
Shu Uemura Lash Curler, available only at shuuemura-usa.com

Second Prize, $70+ Retail Value:
YSL Golden Glosses in 2 & 10
Bath & Body Works Japanese Cherry Blossom Body Lotion

Third Prize, $40 Retail Value:
Laura Mercier Petite Trio Smokey Taupe
Bath & Body Works Paris Amour Body Lotion

Make-up Worn:
Le Metier de Beaute Peau Vierge Tinted Treatment in 2
Dolce & Gabbana Powder Foundation in Tan
Shu Uemura Brow Pencil in Stone Grey
Laura Mercier Luxe Eye Portfolio for Holiday - Mica and Ground Coffee
Lancome Artliner in Noir with Kiss False Lashes in 03
Dolce & Gabbana Blush in Tan and Benefit Hervana Blush
Edward Bess Rose Demure Lipstick and French Lace Gloss

Lenses:
Geo Tri Color Green from PinkyParadise.com

Nails:
Chanel Black Velvet, LE

Chanel Holiday 2011 Les Scintillances de Chanel Tutorial Details

This is such a classic look that can be worn all year round, on any day or occasion. It's not too made up and very easy to achieve. I love that Chanel leaned back to its retro roots but gave it a modern twist with the lovely textures of the eyeshadow and lipgloss! Enjoy :)



Products Used in the Video:
Chanel Perfection Lumiere in 40
Chanel Poudre Douce in Peche Tendre
Shiseido Natural Brow Pencil in Natural Black
NARS Pro-Prime Eyeshadow Primer
Chanel Ombre Essentielle in Beige Lame
Chanel Eyeshadow and Cake Liner Duo in Jet-Gold [LE, no longer available]
MUFE Aqua Eyes Pencil in Gold
Velour Lashes in T Dot Oooh
Chanel Tweed Blush in Brun Rose
Chanel Lumiere Sculptee de Chanel Highlighting Powder 
Chanel Extrait de Gloss in Triomphal
*I forgot to show the red nail polish, Rouge Carat, from this collection! You can see a preview photo at the link below but I'll be applying to my nails and reviewing it here this week.


For a complete review of the collection with most of the lip swatches, please see my review!
http://www.theraeviewer.com/2011/10/chanel-holiday-2011-les-scintillances.html


Nails:
Butter London HRH

Lenses:

Geo Tri-Color Grey from Pinky Paradise

*Use the code -- RAEVIEWONLINE --

for a free animal lens case & mystery gifts :)

Please note: I do not make any commission whatsoever from the use of this code!

Chanel Holiday 2011 Les Scintillances de Chanel Review, Photos, Swatches

This is a general review of the entire collection. Recommendations can be found at the end of the post!

Let's start with the star of the show, shall we?
The Lumiere Sculptee de Chanel Highlighting Powder ($72) is a beauty. According to the Chanel press release, the highlighter is inspired by one of Coco Chanel's most treasured belt buckles. It must have been a lovely buckle, as this illuminating powder has the most intricate embossment I've ever laid eyes on. When swatched on the back of my hand, the product is disappointingly chalky and fades easily [hence, no swatch photo]. It is also very pale and the mother-of-pearls pink tones are not apparent. Only once applied to the face does the pink pearlescence appear. The effect is subtle and elegant but like Sabrina of the Beauty Look Book, I also prefer my Chanel Pearl Glow highlighter. I'll be writing a full review soon but I must admit I don't believe many will find that this product is worth $72. I urge you to try it on in store before deciding. A collector's item? Positively.

The Rouge Allure Laque Luminous Satin Lip Colours ($32) are the most coveted full coverage liquid lipsticks on the market. I own two, Ming and Dragon. Dragon was re-promoted with the collection but the limited edition this holiday is Empire, a shimmering pink rose. The gold shimmers are very pronounced in this Laque and the base color is a much more pigmented pink than Ming. If you find Ming too cool for your coloring, Empire will suit your taste. I was watching a few make-over sessions while waiting for my SA and I personally found that it brightened up the complexion of those with fairer skins best. Some bloggers think this rosy pink is back-up worthy. I passed because it didn't have the same "wow" factor against my coloring but keep in mind that's just my opinion.

The Rouge Allure Luminous Satin Lip Colours ($32) from this holiday are full of shimmer. Usually, RAs are creams but Enviree and Famous have taken it up a notch. Note: If you have very dry lips that are prone to peeling, you may want to stick to the glosses from this collection instead. The shimmers seemed to emphasize the dryness of my lips. Enviree, however, is more pigmented than reported. This is why I discourage basing your judgment solely off swatches that were placed on the back of your hand. Enviree is very similar to the way Empire looks on my medium-pigmented mauve lips, albeit less glossy and a touch less pigmented. Also, Enviree is a slightly cooler pink than Empire and the shimmers are silver and pink as opposed to Empire's gold. I would purchase Enviree over Empire. Now for Famous, which I did not try on but it is lust-worthy. The base of the lipstick is a bright pink-toned red with fuchsia and red shimmers. I passed because I fell in love with Triomphal, a richly pigmented gloss version of Famous.

Nordstrom Lighting, With Flash

Famous

The Rouge Allure Extrait de Gloss Pure Shine Intense Colour Long Wear Lip Glosses ($32) have the most luxurious black glass packaging. I own Genie and Imaginaire and purchased Triomphal yesterday. I wanted to resist but the color was so beautiful, I couldn't. And as most of you know, I won't buy a red unless it's phenomenal. Just like Famous, it is a pink-toned red with fuchsia and red shimmers. It applies smoothly and evenly. Totally worth the $32, even though I wouldn't wear it regularly. I couldn't swatch Discretion [a luminous beige] because it was being used in a make-over, my apologies. Full review coming soon!

Chanel Vanity Mirror Lighting

The Levres Scintillantes Glossimers ($28.50) are my favorite glosses. They aren't sticky in the slightest and there is no scent or taste. Sparkle d'Or has a clear base but is chock-full of gold shimmer. I prefer YSL's Golden Glosses for the gold factor, though. If you want a more subdued effect of a Golden Gloss, Sparkle d'Or may be for you! I was hesitant about purchasing Sweet Beige but the pigmentation is better [4/5] than the usual Glossimer, which is sheer [1/5]. It coats my medium pigmented mauve lips evenly and provides a shimmery nude effect without 'erasing' my lips. Sweet Beige not a must-have but it is a very flattering pink beige, and in my opinion, the best Glossimer Chanel has released this year.

Full Sunlight. Sparkle D'Or smeared so please refer the store lighting swatch.

The Ombre Essentielle Soft Touch Eyeshadow ($28.50) are both limited editions this season. Gold lovers will appreciate Blazing Gold, a very warm eyeshadow. I passed because I just purchased the D&G Gold Eyeshadow Duo so I couldn't justify it. Beige Lame, on the other hand, came home with me as a consolation prize for resisting Burberry's Midnight Brown. The shimmer of Beige Lame is lovely and my camera can't quite capture it. The shimmers aren't your usual gold fare. Chanel decided to mix it up with pearlescent shimmers, which is much appreciated. I will be more in-depth in my full review, which I will post soon. I generally avoid warm browns but I can't wait to pair this with my Burberry Almond shadow!

Sneak Peek

The Les Tissages de Chanel Blush Duo Tweed Effect ($45) in Brun Rose did not appeal to me initially. I think it could be duped but I love the texture of the Tissages blushes so I purchased it. They are not as shimmery as the Joues Contrastes and though I don't find the quality is as consistent as compared to the JCs, the limited edition Tissages offerings always appeal to me. I've tried on the permanent pink Tissages and it pulls far too red, automatic pass. I do love the one Tissages I purchased previously to Brun Rose, the Fuchsia, which I hope they make permanent one day. It's one of my favorite Chanel blushes. I will review Brun Rose in depth but this is definitely one cheek product you should try on before you buy. On me, it appears to be a peach-tinged, rose-based brown. Complex, I know, but you'll understand once I film the tutorial for it :)

Last but not least - The Le Vernis Nail Colour ($25) in Rouge Carat. The only other shimmery red nail polish I own is Chanel Coromandel, which has been discontinued. Coromandel is a warm red, however, whilst Rouge Carat is far more neutral. Some say it pulls warmer depending on the lighting but from what I have seen, it looks neutral. I'll try it on tomorrow and post a picture on my Twitter and Facebook accounts.

ETC: The Ligne Extreme Liquid Eye Liner ($32) was lovely but I don't need another. The Poudre Universelle Libre Natural Finish Loose Powder ($52) was an automatic pass because I chose the illuminating powder, which can also be used all over the face. The Ombres Contraste Duo Eyeshadow Duo ($42) was very tempting and anyone without a classic, wearable smoky eye duo would definitely get plenty of mileage from it but I passed because for me, it would be an indulgence.

Must-have: Triomphal, Rouge Carat
Nice-to-have: Lumiere Sculptee, Sweet Beige, Brun Rose
*Beige Lame falls somewhere in the middle for me. I couldn't decide!

Happy shopping!!

Photos: Chanel PR & Rae of TheRAEviewer.com