Trish McEvoy Beauty Booster Gloss

Trish McEvoy has been among my favorite brands for a long time. Trish does not release new products often, but her line consists of sophisticated, well-edited basics that really flatter. I've also found her artists to be some of the best at creating a polished look without going over the top.

The Beauty Booster Gloss ($25) is Trish's newest gloss edition. The product contains SPF 15 and is designed to provide color, treatment and protection in one tube. I have Rosette, which is a milky peachy rose. The product goes on thick but seems to almost meld with the lips creating a cushioney layer that is not overly sticky. The mint scent is refreshing and I appreciate the sunscreen, but my favorite feature is the color. There is something perfectly brightening and flattering about this shade. It's ideal for running errands on the weekends with little other makeup, but would be appropriate for work as well. Beauty Booster Gloss is available in 7 additional shades, and I think Sexy Peach will be the next one I pick up.

Dolce & Gabbana Cosmetics

The much-hyped Dolce & Gabbana Cosmetics lined debuted this year at New York's City Saks 5th Avenue, and then subsequently made its way the Saks Beverly Hills store. I ran to Saks when the line was initially unveiled, intent on snapping up a number of items. I was a bit shocked to discover that nothing really appealed to me. The lipsticks seemed somewhat average, as did the blushes, bronzers, and shadows. I thought the shadow duos and quads either odd combinations or ones that had been done before.

A few weeks later I decided to go back and take another look. Part of the problem is that the lighting created for the D&G area on the cosmetics floor is very, very dim and yellow, making it difficult to tell what a color truly looks like. On the second occasion I had a good amount of time to kill and decided to swatch items and then head outside to get a more accurate sense of the colors. This made a big difference in my take on the line! I decided to purchase items I found unique yet wearable, and went with a Lipstick in Naked ($30) and Eye Liner in Stromboli ($29).

Naked is part of the Shine line of lipsticks designed to be semi sheer with high shine. Naked is a shimmery pink with warm beige undertones. The color can be layered to intensify the pigment. It's too pink to be a true "naked" neutral, but it is a lovely versatile color. The lipstick does have a strong rose scent which fades in time.


From left to right, the colors in this swatch comparison are: Bobbi Brown Rosebud Shimmer, Lancome Beauty's Eve, Paul & Joe Pain D'Epice (#27), Dolce & Gabbana Naked, Clinique Gingerfrost, Shiseido SL13, Julie Hewett Nude Noir.

The Crayon Intense Eye Liner in Stromboli is a black with very subtle gold sparkles. I find black to be harsh with my fair skin, but this is a softer black shade and the gold shimmer helps to keep the liner from being overwhelming. The liner is smudgable, the the pencil has a sponge tip on one end. Unfortunately, the liner fades throughout the day, the gold shimmer barely shows up, and the product seems to get a coating on it that necessitates sharpening between uses. Not grave issues, but for a $29 eye liner I expect more. I would not use this one on the waterline due to the glitter particles. Despite my lack of affection for Stromboli, I've heard multile raves about this product in the Coffee shade and may try that one.

Lipstick Queen Oxymoron

I've tried a number of Lipstick Queen products before with mixed results. I love the concept behind many of the items, but the shades don't always work for me. Oxymoron ($20) is described as a "matte gloss for lips and cheeks." It is designed to have the smooth, sheer feel of a gloss but be matte on the lips. It comes in 4 shades and I purchased Honest Politician (get it? Supposedly an oxymoron), a pinky brown shade. The shade is pretty, and the product goes on nicely with your fingers or the itsy bitsy included brush. To me, the texture feels just like a potted lipstick. It's not particularly sheer but is not as densely pigmented as, say Lipstick Queen's Sinner Lipsticks. It has good lasting power and does not dry out my lips. I've found that this also works on cheeks just fine, but is drier and harder to blend than your average cream blush. In my opinion, buy Oxymoron if a particular shade stands out to you, but not because you're expecting a never-before-seen product or texture. Overall, this is perfectly lovely but not as revolutionary as it's made out to be.

Some Products I'm NOT Loving Right Now

With all of the products I buy, of course I come across a product now and then that turns out to be a dud. Often I'll return them, but sometimes I end up stuck with them, either because they were not returnable or I kept them in a desperate attempt to make them work for me. Here are a few products I'm current not liking:

• Chantecaille Luminous Eye Liner in Pianissimo- this liquid eye liner is a stunning blue gray shimmer with a hint of violet. I'm a huge liquid liner fan and this color is extraordinary, but the formula is so thing that you have to draw over the line repeatedly to make the color show up uniformly and opaque. It's thin and streaky looking otherwise, and the line never looks sharp and precise when you have to draw over it so many times.
• Paul and Joe Pain D'Epice 27 Lipstick- this one breaks my heart. I adore this color. It's the most perfect shimmery beige pink and just looks so lovely on the lips. The problem is the smell! It smells like old crayons! I initially assumed that I purchased an old tube so I returned it and went through all of the remaining stock, only to find that all of them smelled this way. I've never heard commentary about the scent of Paul and Joe lipsticks before, I can only surmise that either this color has the horrible scent, or I encountered a bad batch. I keep trying to wear the lipstick despite the smell because I love the color so much, but after a while I can't take it anymore!
• Alba Mango Vanilla Moistuizing Shave Cream- I picked this up at Whole Foods recently because my goodness does this smell heavenly! Tropical and fruity with a mango vanilla coconut scent. This shave cream feels thick and rich when you spread it on, but it clogs the razor terribly and is difficult to rinse off.
• John Masters Organics SPF 30 Natural Mineral Sunscreen- this is an all-physical block that claims to be very light. I found it to be just the opposite--it sat on top of my skin, made me greasy, and clogged my pores. This is definitely a product when the description makes the product sound much better than it is!
• Laura Mercier Evolution of Color Lip Palettes in Pink Suede and Brown Suede-I spotted these on display in Bergdorfs last year and thought they were so lovely, I couldn't decide which to get. So I ended up with both. I have no idea why I decided to buy two since I never use lip palettes, as evidenced by the fact that these are virtually untouched over a year later. Now I have two lovely, albeit expensive, objet d'art taking up precious space among my makeup that will probably never be used.

What duds have you tried lately?

Eyes and Lips of the Day!

I used two of my fvorite brands today--Rock & Republic and Hourglass. R&R makes some of the best eyeshadows I've tried and Hourglass makes my favorite lip glosses.

Eyes are Rock & Republic Exile last to crease and on the lower lash line, with Hourglass Calligraphy Liquid Eye Liner in Indigo ($32) to line on the top. The liner is a deep blue with a hint of green in it.

Lips are Hourglass Gloss in Ignite, a gorgeous pinky beige. Click to read more about my love affair with Hourglass glosses.

Lancome Exotique Kiss

It was so nice out today (almost 70) that I decided to give myself one last summery manicure before opting for fall's ubiquitous vampy shades. This nail polish, part of Lancome's Le Vernis line ($18), came out this summer with the Tropiques Muse collection. It's a stunning pinky coral heavily laden with gold shimmer and sparkle. It's a tad too sheer for my liking but is striking when the sun hits it. If you can still find this one, perhaps at the DF&CCO, snatch it up!

UPDATE: Rock and Republic Cosmetics now on SALE Online and In Stores.

The line is now on sale at neimanmarcus.com. Click here for their selection. Use the code NMOCT for free shipping with no minimum purchase.