current obsession: Estée Lauder BB Cream!

i've heard some good things about the recently released BB Cream by Estée Lauder - the Cyber White Brilliant Cells Extra Intensive BB Creme Multi Action Formula - and bought some 5ml-samples of it on ebay to try.
it has an spf of 35 and a beautiful fresh scent that lingers around for a few minutes until it fades. the texture is creamy and fine, it only comes in one shade which is a relatively light beige with pink undertones. i'd say it would match and NC/NW 15-20, which is great for everybody who can't use the Estée Lauder DayWear Sheer Tint Release or the Origins VitaZing (review) because they are too dark for them.
i apply it with my fingers, it blends out really easily and non-streaky. it gives just a very sheer coverage (comparable to MAC Face and Body Foundation or Make Up For Ever Face&Body Foundation) but brightens and evens out the complexion. it's perfect for people who already have a good skin but struggle with slight uneven pigmentation or redness, since this product won't cover up blemishes and dark marks. with a mineral powder or compact foundation dusted over it, the coverage is comparable to a normal foundation.
it has a satiny and very radiant finish without too much sheen or any shimmer/pearl. it makes my skin look soft and fresh and really beautiful, but without looking as if i wear a foundation. it feels very moisturising and lightweight. i only need some under eye concealer and this and i'm good to go, it's such an effortless product.
it also lasts well on me (about 6-7 hours) without becoming greasy, oxidising or loosing coverage although i have quite an oily skin.
i'm loving it so much that i have already bought the full size of it. the full size tube of 30ml costs about 55$ so it's much more expensive than the regular BB Creams you can get off ebay, but it's also far better than the ones i've tried so far so it's worth it for me.
from germany, you can buy it on ebay or sasa.com, for example.

one drop of: Estée Lauder BB Cream - MAC Pro Longwear Foundation in NC20

Estée Lauder BB Cream right after application

Estée Lauder BB Cream 10 minutes after application

tihilw

ingredients

(click to enlarge)

FOTD variations with RBR Delicate Hummingbird.

time to give the name giving product for this blog some more attention! so last weekend i was playing with it a little bit again and now i want to show you how different this shadow can appear depending on what colour you combine it with...
but to be true i foremost intended to work with my new Hakuhodo brushes a bit more ;P



first what i used for the face:

foundation: Vichy Aera Teint Pure in 23 Clair/Ivory (#1 - review) applied with Hakuhodo G5557 2mm Powder & Liquid Brush round/angled (#2 - this is a new one and will be reviewed soon).

cream blush: Illamasqua Rude (#3 - review) applied with Hakuhodo G5552 4mm Powder & Liquid Brush round/angled (#4 - also will be reviewed soon)

powder: Chanel White Essentiel Brightening & Smoothing Loose Powder (#5 - review) applied with Lunasol Powder Brush N (#6 - review)

powder blush: Estée Lauder Bronze Goddess Sea Star Bronzing Blush (#7 - review) applied with Hakuhodo G5519BkSL Blush Brush (#8 - will be reviewed soon)


for the rest of the make up:

brows: MAC Copperplate eyeshadow (#1) applied with Louise Young LY30 Brow Brush (#2)

lips: on the lips i only had lip balm (Crazy Rumours Fresh Grapefruit Juice Lip Balm, #13)

the eyeshadow variations:

it's interesting how Delicate Hummingbird looks like a plummy taupe when combined with a bronze eyeshadow and its purple tinge is much stronger when i wear it with a purple shade.
it almost looks like two different eyeshadows!

#1 - combined with bronze 

for the "bronze" eyeshadow variation i used: Rouge Bunny Rouge eyeshadow in Delicate Hummingbird (#3 - review) on the lid and along the lower lashline, Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill Silk Eyeshadow in #6 (#4 - review) in the crease and outer part of lower lashline, MAC Retrospeck (#5) in the tearduct area.
everything applied with the MAC 242 brush (#8) and blended out with Edward Bess Luxury Eye Brush (sorry, not on picture - review here).
then i added black liquid liner (L'Oreal Super Liner, #9), curled lashes (Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler, #10) and applied mascara (Maybelline False Lashes Waterproof, #11 and sample of Shiseido The Perfect Mascara as top layer, #12)

with flash:

full face:

#2 - combined with purple

for the "purple" eyeshadow variation i used: Rouge Bunny Rouge eyeshadow in Delicate Hummingbird (#3 - review) on the lid and along the lower lashline. L'Oreal Color Indefectible eyeshadow in Purple Obsession (#6 - review) in the outer corner. MAC Vex (#7) in the tearduct area.
everything applied with the MAC 242 brush (#8) and blended out with Edward Bess Luxury Eye Brush (sorry, not on picture - review here).
then i added black liquid liner (L'Oreal Super Liner, #9), curled lashes (Shu Uemura Eyelash Curler, #10) and applied mascara (Maybelline False Lashes Waterproof, #11 and sample of Shiseido The Perfect Mascara as top layer, #12)

with flash:

full face:

Estée Lauder Micheal Kors Very Hollywood Shimmering Loose Powder.

today i want to show you a Shimmering Loose Powder by Estée Lauder from their Michael Kors Very Hollywood collection spring 2010. i wasn't really interested back then, but some months ago i found this on allcosmeticswholesale.com for only 12.99$ (it was 32$ originally) and bought it to try.
it contains 4.5g and comes in a small solid plastic sifter jar in a vintage blush beige colour.
the powder is very finely milled and of a mauve beige colour with very fine white pearl and chunky multicolour glitter particles. it has a light scent of sweet green tea. the shimmer is very fine and adds a silky sheen on my skin without looking greasy or emphasizing on enlarged pores. the colour is very sheer. the annoying glitter bits are easily brushed away, so i can even use this powder all over the face to get an illuminated look. otherwise it's a subtle highlighter for everyday use, but because it's more mauve i would like it in winter/spring better than in the warm season that needs more gold and bronze.  i also like to use it as a blush topping on matte orange blushes like NARS Gina or Cargo Cannes when i want a muted pink shine as a twist.

tihilw

no highlighter - Estée Lauder Shimmering Loose Powder on top of cheekbones

here i'm wearing it more obviously :)

Estée Lauder Pure Color Blue Dahlia palette

this palette was initially released with the Blue Dahlia collection by Estée Lauder last summer/autumn. there were two different palettes, a purple one and this blue one and some other products of which i bought my all time favourite nail polish, Estée Lauder Surreal Violet. i haven't really been looking at the palettes back then, they were too bright and colourful for me to be purchased at the retail price (which was about 45-50€). but at 19.99$ it's a completely other story, isn't it? ;)
last time when i repeatedly went on the hunt for some Estée Lauder Double Wear Cream Shadows (which are not sold in germany -.-) i found these palettes being offered at this unbeatable price on allcosmeticswholesale.com and of course i couldn't say no to that bargain so i went for the Blue Dahlia palette (also because of this nice taupe shade hehe). shipping costs were reasonable and delivery was quick as always (within 1 week). i ordered one more product from Estée Lauder on there that i will show you another time.
the palettes are brand new no box, so the compact casing already had some scratches. but since the content was new and untouched, it doesn't bother me at all. it's a flat shiny gold and partly clear acrylic compact with elegantly engraved brand initials on the lid. only it's very nail-unfriendly to open.
inside it has a nice big mirror and two (useless) applicators next to the eyeshadows.

there are 5 eyeshadows, four larger pans arranged around a dark liner shade in the center, the design is reminiscent of the Guerlain Ecrin 6 Couleurs palettes but without the dark liner shade at the side.
the colours in this palette are:

1. a very sheer white with lots and lots of sparkling teal microglitter, it looks like a refined version of MAC's Reflects Glitters in a pressed form. this shade is great to use as a topper shade to add some sparklelicious to your looks since it's so sheer. nothing to highlight the tearduct area or the browbone, though.
2. a rich teal blue satin base colour with lots of blue and clear sparkle. it's a bit drier and not so smooth in texture, also requires slightly more work to blend out evenly because the base shade is almost matte and so intense but it's a fantastic "adult" bright shade. great to make dark blues even more blue and also beautiful used wet as a bright eyeliner.
3. a shimmery pearly medium taupe which leans more silvery on the lid than in the pan. smooth and soft texture, good pigmentation but sadly not as complex as i hoped it would be to hold against the other shades.
4. a shimmery dark midnight blue with lots of blue and clear sparkles. it feels silky smooth but has a similar finish as the lighter blue. i find it to be somewhat powdery or loose in texture, hard to describe. like it's really intense when swatched but is so powdery that you would blend it away when you go over the edges with a fluffy brush and then it's almost too sheer. 
5. in the center is a matte black to use as a eyeliner (wet or dry) or to really darken your eye make up. it has an intense pigmentation and a good texture. it's not as great as MAC's Matte² or the liner shades in the Guerlain palettes. 

the shades blend out and into each other nicely although i wished for more definition, especially with the two darkest shades. the colours lasted all day on me without any problems.

i must say that i'm not that impressed with Estée Lauder shadows, but this is a nice colourful palette for me. definitely great for parties. i'm glad that i haven't bought it full price, though.

here is a look i've done with it:

#3 on the inner half of upper&lower lid, #4 on the outer V, #2 layered over it to intensify and a tiny bit on the outer parts of lower lash line, #5 used dry as a liner.

what about you? do you have Estée Lauder palettes? do you like them? are they always "like this" (this is my first Lauder palette and i'm not so sure about the eyeshadow quality...)?

which bronzer for this summer?

this summer i'm really on a bronzer trip! i think this year i bought almost all bronzers out there - you know i never do it half ;)
but still, i find my little selection very varied. today i want to give you a short overview of this year's summer powders from the most common brands plus some permanent products for everybody who don't want to buy several products.
click on each title to get to its separate post.

Chanel bronzer in Bronze Rosé

i think this bronzer would be the most suitable for fair cool skin tones of this year's bronzers since it's sheerly pigmented and its colour is quite mauvey brown. it has that additional pink stripe so i can also use it as a rosey brown blusher. it can make me look a bit muddy so i have to be careful with application. it is limited edition.

Benefit Hoola

is a higher pigmented powder, it's a neutral brown with yellow/ochre undertones that can be easily used as contour powder since it's matte and doesn't have too much red or pink undertones. i don't really like it as a bronzing product since it lacks the fresh kick.
i could be used also on darker skin tones to maybe MAC NC/NW 45 (?). this is a permanent product.

Edward Bess Ultra Luminous Bronzer in Daydream

is a lovely golden bronze with fine shimmer that warms up my complexion and let's me look sunkissed. a great texture to apply, always looks soft and even. in combination with Hoola as contour i like to use this so soften up and bring everything together. it's not too orange but has a peachy undertone. i think it's great on fair-medium warm skin tones. it's a permanent product.

Guerlain Terra Inca

is very shimmery, so nothing to use all over or on bigger areas for me! it reminds me of MAC's MSFs, but is a lot softer and finer. it's like a golden bronze highlighting product that i like to apply very very sheerly on the top of my cheekbones. this can emphasize enlarged pores and unevenness on your skin. it would look great on the body, it emphasizes your tan. i also use it as a shimmery bronze eyeshadow. it has a divine jasmine scent. definitely only for shimmer-fans or for Guerlain-lovers (the packaging is a treasure itself!). otherwise i find it too expensive for occasional usage.

Estée Lauder Sea Star Bronzing Blush

in my opinion the most beautifully pressed powder this year (although the compact is not as brilliant). a lovely subtle shimmering pinky peach shade that i exclusively use as a blush on my cheeks although it also warms up my complexion. some girls complained about it to be too powdery, but i don't have any of these issues using a soft squirrel hair brush and not swirling too much inside the pan but tapping the brush into both coloured parts (i generally don't like to swirl in my pressed powder products because they will mess up that way). it's beautiful - definitely try it if you still meet one left!

Dior bronzer in Aurora

the most beautiful packaging of this year is by Dior. i love it! the powder itself is also very good, it's soft and finely milled. it's a really peachy (fortunately not orange) tan on me and freshens up my complexion. it gives me a warm luminous look, no obvious shimmer. i can use it as bronzer but also as a blush.
i think this is a great product for fair-medium warm skin tones. this is a limited product.

i swatched all of them together:

Chanel Bronze Rosé - Benefit Hoola - Edward Bess Daydream - Guerlain Terra Inca - Estée Lauder Sea Star - Dior Aurora

Chanel Bronze Rosé - Benefit Hoola - Edward Bess Daydream - Guerlain Terra Inca - Estée Lauder Sea Star - Dior Aurora

Chanel Bronze Rosé - Benefit Hoola - Edward Bess Daydream - Guerlain Terra Inca - Estée Lauder Sea Star - Dior Aurora

out of the six my top rates are:

1. Dior Aurora

2. Edward Bess Daydream

3. Estée Lauder Sea Star

(while Edward Bess combined with the Sea Star or any other peachy pink blush would be my top pick)

my tools of choice to apply bronzer:

• the Edward Bess Luxury Face Brush is great for sheer bronzers (this will get a proper review soon).
• the Paula Dorf Powder Brush is soo soft and fluffy and has the perfect thin paddle shape for bronzer, you can apply with the thin side on the hollows of your cheeks and with the wide side on the sides of the face. it will give a sheer wash to your face.
• the Trish McEvoy Bronzer Brush #37 is round and tapered and also perfectly sized and shaped for bronzer, it's soft but has a lot more resistance than the Paula Dorf so it buffs out your bronzer better and is great for a more apparent bronzed look.
• for a contour with the Benefit Hoola, you know i always use my MAC 138 or Hakuhodo S103 (not on the pic)

there are some bronzers left that i really want to try since i started to discover the perfect placement and dose for my skin tone: the Giorgio Armani Sheer Bronzer in #1, the cream bronzer by Chanel, a Terracotta Bronzer by Guerlain and a Matte Bronzer from Dior.

what about you? do you have some of these or can you recommend any else? do you use bronzer on a regular basis? for my part i usually skip it in a work make up, but if i have more time, i always like to add some dimension to my face ;)