Spring Flings: 10 things I’m obsessed with these past weeks

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Here’s a quick summary if you don’t want to read the full post!

1. Stila Color Balm Lipsticks in Betsey and Elle
2. 1920s scents: Shalimar and Bois des Iles
3. Light coverage: MAC Face & Body, Ginvera Green Tea Nude Cover BB Cream
4. Make Up For Ever Super Matte Loose Powder #12 (flash-back)
5. The Body Shop Colour Crush matte eyeshadows
6. Strong bright blushes
7. NYX Yellow pencil
8. LUSH Rockstar soap
9. Revlon Colorstay Concealer in 03 Light Medium
10. The art store

More details below!

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Holiday Gift Ideas: D.I.Y. “Shimmer Body Products” Edition!

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[Side-note: I know many of you sent in questions and I’m compiling a list of the latest so I can post answers to them tomorrow! In the meantime, hope you guys enjoy this post!]

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Sometimes it’s fun to create your own beauty stocking stuffers. It’s personalized, shows care and effort, AND is a great way to get around a small budget during the holiday season. 

Here are a couple of quick ideas for shimmering lotions/creams, and shimmer body sprays, for those who are still looking for last-minute gift ideas!

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GLITTER aka SHIMMER aka FAIRYDUST

Most of the shimmery micas you use in highlighters and shadows are safe for use in sprays and lotions, but anything too fine will end up giving an overall pearly glow rather than a sprinkling of fairydust. 

If you prefer the fairydust effect, then you need to watch out for 2 things when it comes to glitter or shimmers in body products. Particle size and whether the glitter is solvent-resistant. 

1. Super-finer glitters that can be dispensed via spray nozzles are usually about 0.004 hex/particle size or lower (sites like Coastal Scents will list the sizes in the Additional Information tab). If you’re not sure, don’t buy it, or only use it for lotions and creams, not sprays. Larger glitters can clog up spray nozzles easily. 
2. If you’re not sure, get a sparkly mica instead of a glitter. They aren’t as dramatic but they will certainly not smell weird or bleed. Check out Coastalscent.com’s range of “Mirage” or “Sparkling” micas for the best balance between cost and drama.
3. Not all glitters are solvent resistant. Some have a tendency to bleed (meaning if you buy a red glitter and drop it in alcohol or lotion, you might end up with weird-looking pink/red juice and bleached silver sparkles). It always helps if a site lists if the glitter is solvent-resistant. Tkbtrading.com has a range of solvent resistant glitters. If you are not sure, add a little bit of glitter into a thimble-full of alcohol and see if the color starts to come off overnight. Also make sure it does not have any noticeable smell.

Tip: One of the BEST ingredients are “reflects” glitters. These are very fine mineral flakes that sparkle like glitter, but don’t bleed. They ARE significantly more expensive than regular micas and glitters, but if you’d rather not have to choose between quality/safety versus drama/sparkle, then Reflects/Refleck pigments are the way to go.

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1. Shimmering Body Cream (1 oz)

You’ll need: 

• 0.5 - 1 ml Fragrance oil or essential oil (optional, depending on your budget and preference)
• 1 oz aqueous BP (any mild, unscented lotion without strong-smelling active ingredients)
• 1 tsp of mica/shimmer powder for a subtle sheen, 1 heaped tbsp if your middle-name is Tinkerbell. (If you want a bronzing sheen for applying on the arms and legs, get a nice deep bronze-brown caramel shade!)

Steps:

1. The simplest way is to dump the lotion/cream and shimmer into a clean ziploc bag and smoosh everything around until you no longer see clumps and lumps of shimmer anywhere.
2. If you are adding your own fragrance oils, add that last, and always add a lot less than you THINK you need. You can’t reverse it if you add too much.
3. Then when you’re done, snip one corner with scissors and pipe the contents out into your container of choice. 

Tip: If you have a favorite scented lotion, you only need to add the shimmer to it and mix everything up evenly!

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2. Shimmering Body Spray (approx 100ml 3.3oz)

You need:

• 2ml fragrance oil
• 50ml denatured or grain alcohol
• 20ml distilled water
• 30ml jojoba oil or cyclomethicone
• 1 tbsp shimmer or micro-glitter; a bit more if you’re Tinkerbell. (I don’t recommend using very fine-grained pearly powders because they won’t show up as nicely as more dramatic particles when sprayed in a mist.)

Instructions:

1. Always mix the alcohol and fragrance oils first. That’s the only way the fragrance is going to disperse properly. 
2. If you are adding any distilled water to the mixture, add it very slowly and in small quantities. Anytime you see the solution clouding up, add more alcohol until it clears up again. The simplest thing is to skip the water and use only oil and alcohol as base.
3. When you are done with this base, add your mica/glitter. 
4. Add your oil.
5. Make sure you label your bottle with “shake before using”! This is going to be like those moisturizing body sprays where the oil and liquids are separate.

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A note on fragrance: SKIP TO THE CHEATS SECTION AT THE BOTTOM IF YOU’RE NOT SCENTING YOUR PRODUCT!

Fragrance is an optional thing for many, and it really depends on your own preference and whether the recipient/s are sensitive to smells and fragrances. If  you aren’t sure, it’s always better to just skip the fragrance altogether.

If they happen to love scents and scented products, then just take note of a few things.

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Essential Oils

Essential oils are extracted from natural materials. Patchouli oil from the patchouli plant, rose from rose petals, etc. Some essential oils (e.g. citrus and some spices) can be sensitizing in high concentrations, and while many of them do not cause reactions in the majority of people, it’s advisable to play it safe and use the lowest concentration possible.

Always remember that most of the aromatherapy and skin therapy oils made for topical application and massages ARE already diluted to about 3% concentration or less because 100% essential oils are extremely expensive, AND can cause sensitivities if applied directly to skin. The other 97% is usually made up of non-reactive carrier oils like sweet almond, grapeseed, or jojoba.

When you are purchasing an essential oil, it’s always important to find out if what you are looking at is diluted or concentrated. The first indication is usually the price, since uncut (concentrated) essential oils tend to be VERY costly. Usually, 3-10% concentration oils do still smell quite strong, although you’d need to use more in your products than with uncut oils, of which you’d need only a few drops.

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Fragrance Oils

Fragrance oils are not essential oils. They are created in laboratories, sometimes from a mixture of natural and synthetic compounds. Before you go screaming about synthetics being a bad thing, just remember that a lot of common notes like lily, musk, fruits, and candy smells in the products we use daily cannot be extracted from nature. You can’t extract any cotton candy essential oil, so chemists simply isolate and identify the aromatic molecules in it and create stable versions for use in bath and body products.

Just like essential oils, some fragrance oils can be sensitizing in high-doses, but  that doesn’t mean they are any more harmful than natural ones. (In fact, some natural oils are far more reactive and potentially harmful.)

Aside from being able to capture scents that you can’t extract from nature, the other benefit of fragrance oils are that you can recreate the scents of rare and expensive plants for much cheaper (real mysore sandalwood can cost over a hundred dollars for a tiny bottle while a large bottle of the synthetic version often costs less than $10). They won’t all smell as good or complex as the real thing, but most of the time they come pretty close.

Note: All fragrance oils usually come in 100% concentration. 

Where to buy:

• Most aromatherapy stores would have good essential oil blends.
• For fragrance oils, these are usually sold only by online distributors who supply soap/tart/candle makers. Try naturesgardencandles.com and newdirectionsaromatics.com.

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Scent Ideas:

• Vanilla Cream (New Directions Aromatics) - Smells like vanilla ice cream or vanilla frosting!
• Pink Sugar (Natures Garden Candles) - Candy, candy, candy. And more candy.
• Absinthe (Natures Garden Candles) - for a spicy-sweet, more grown-up deliciousness
• Midnight Jasmine (New Directions Aromatics) - The most GORGEOUS synthetic jasmine for floral lovers.
• Sandalwood Extra (New Directions Aromatics) - A rather good sandalwood for sandalwood lovers; many smell stale and unlike the real thing.
• Peppermint Patty (Natures Garden Candles) - O-M-G. VERY good dark chocolate and mint. Don’t drink this.
• Mountain Hazelnut Cafe (Natures Garden Candles) - Incredibly delicious smell. Use this in a room spray or add a few drops in your oil burner and your room will smell like a real cafe.

Tip:

If you are creating a customized blend using a few different oils, always remember to mix it in a separate container first rather than adding them haphazardly into your body product, because it might take a few tries and a lot of tweaking before you get a blend you really like, and by that time, you’d either have ruined your body product or added way too high a concentration of aromatic oils. 

Sugar and Spice: Fun Holiday Perfumes Part 1 - Sugar

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Nope this is not a post about food! Sorry!

If you’re like me, and the influence of your sweet tooth extends to more than just your taste in food, you might also enjoy candy-colored makeup, clothes, accessories AND scents.

With the creation of more and more aromachemicals, perfumers have been able to capture an expanding range of smells and experiences that previous generations wouldn’t have ever been able to. Brands like Demeter have turned it into a huge business, and increasingly, modern fragrances have started to incorporate food-like accords, from the caramel popcorn in Miss Dior Cherie to Turkish Delight in niche brands like Keiko Mecheri and Serge Lutens. 

Here are a list of the more unmistakably food-like and a little more accessible options for the girly-girls among us who love teasing the boys by smelling like a piece of walking confectionary.

P.S. If you’re testing in the shops, remember sweet scents smell sweeter on paper, so always test on your skin and let it settle for a bit before buying!

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For Beginners

Prada Candy

This very simple and linear scent is centered around one main thing. Caramel. But it’s not a super-sugary version. The musk and benzoin pull it away from outright edible territory, and it’s really more refined than anything else.

L’occitane Delice des Fleurs

I mentioned this in a previous post, and those of you who enjoy the slightly more exotic and old-school European treats would recognize the powdery-sweet crystallized violets and roses from French confectionaries. This scent is feminine and delicious but not too sugary, so if you happen to like florals this is a good starter scent for getting into the gourmand game.

Fresh Brown Sugar

This citrus scent starts off bright as a glass of sweet, ice-cold lemonade and then warms up into lemon candy as caramel and brown sugar tones start coming in. If you love lemon-tarts or just sparkling citruses, this is a PERFECT scent for getting into the sweeter side of things. The added bonus is that it lasts longer than the typical aquatic fresh citrus fragrance.

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Intermediate 

Katy Perry Meow

Sweet, warm, creamy, Meow is like a pear cobbler that’s still slightly warm. Heavy on the vanilla and creamy to the point of smelling almost like coconut, I once had a colleague exclaim “OMG something smells REALLY good” when I walked past.

If you’re used to celeb fragrances, this isn’t going to be a big change because a lot of them fall right into this category and share the same level of sweetness.

Britney Spears Fantasy

How can we list foody fragrances and not name this magenta gem? This is white chocolate buttercream frosting with a spritz of fruit juice over the top and a single fresh-cut orchid by the plate. I don’t actually find it all that sweet once the fruits at the top fade off. Just buttery and smooth, with a strong orchid tone so it’s not 100% food-like.

Britney Spears In Control Curious

Do NOT like the name and I prefer a bottle that’s easier to hold and use, BUT this is a soft, dark creme brulee scent that’s really pretty and surprisingly soft. The kind of creme brulee that’s not sickly sweet, but made with real fresh vanilla bean scraped from the pod. 

Sweet, but it won’t be likely to make your teeth ache.

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Sugar-rush Level

Britney Spears Midnight Fantasy

I think I’m getting tired of listing Britney scents, but this is a fragrance that my MOM, of all people, raved about when I wore it. It’s intensely berry-like and creamy-sweet. EXTREMELY fun to smell.

If you’re from Asia, you will know what I mean when I say “Grape Hi-Chew Candy” and “Grape Yakult”. Take a sniff next time you get a chance. This doesn’t contain any grape; OR blueberries as so many people like to imagine.

It’s actually made of black cherries and framboise (Belgian raspberry beer), but the combination of musky sweet notes at the base turn the whole thing into a darker, more blueberry-like scent.

Parfums de Coeur Cotton Candy Fantasy

Image by Asher Socrate

This is what this body splash makes me think of. Floating in cotton candy land. Cotton Candy splash is VERY affordable (you can get it from Fragrancex.com at around $6+ for a whopping 8oz and DOUSE yourself in it), and accessible if you’re in the US.

Totally a cheap-thrill.

Tip for body splashes: They don’t last as long as perfume on the skin, but spray on your clothes, and you’ll smell it well into the next day.

L de Lolita Lempicka

This is an interesting one. This blue oceanic gem is a very rich, very sweet, very natural vanilla, tinged with a little bitter orange zest, a hint of cinnamony spice, a buttery almost-saltiness, and an underlying vein of woody-muskiness that keeps it “adult”. Think of an orange cupcake from an expensive French patisserie. It’s not just sugar and flour and fats. It’s flavorful, exotic, slightly spicy.

Created by (AND resembling) the very niche, very expensive Musc Ravageur by Frederic Malle because it was created by the same legendary perfumer, Maurice Roucel, L is a much more affordable way to enjoy this bitter-sweet treat.

It can border on too sweet for many people or too musky, though I know guys who collect niche gourmand scents wear it too.

Jessica Simpson Fancy

Apricot-almond tart all the way. This is one of my favorites because the apricot is strong and almost smells juicy. It’s not completely caramelized and mushy yet. 

Unlike Comptoir Sud Pacifique Vanille Abricot, this is also a lot more complex, with some soft florals, woods and musks to keep it from being too flat and syrupy. I especially love the rich toasted almond note.

VERY delicious, even for someone like me who doesn’t usually like fruity-sweet scents. (I can’t stand most Escadas for some odd reason.)

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INSANELY SWEET

Only one scent takes the crown for this.

Pink Sugar by Aquolina.

Sure, they market themselves as cotton candy, and you DEFINITELY smell that. But that’s on top of the caramel fudge, the rainbow sprinkles, the toasted marshmallows, strawberry pancake syrup, graham crackers AND the layer-cake. (At least that’s what it smells like to me.)

It’s also insanely popular in the US. Very much an acquired taste for anyone who doesn’t have a well-honed sweet tooth, and a potential bio-weapon in the heat. I felt like I would put on 10 pounds just smelling it the other day. BUT - I’m up for the challenge as soon as my bottle arrives.

Plus, it’s so sweet and so strong it pretty much kills any sugar craving I might have, so who knows if that might turn out to be a good thing in the end?

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Note: I did not list other gourmands like Thierry Mugler Angel, Paco Rabanne Black XS etc because they contain strong notes of woods, florals, or herbs that add up to something that isn’t straight-up edible smelling (to me).

Definitely let me know what YOUR favorites are!

November Favorites (What I’ve been wearing, carrying, reading, and more!)

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My music’s mellow, my cheeks are dewy, and my scent is cozy, but other than this, my tastes have been running towards the wild and the bright, despite it being deep into the Fall season.

Eye makeup - MAC Tilt shadow

Tilt by MAC is like Superman. (Is it blue? Is it teal? Is it lime?)

This metallic shade has a fabulous texture, goes on like a dream, and gives your lids INSTANT drama, whether you’re pale or dark.

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Face product - MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Blonde

I wish this wasn’t a limited edition product. I love the soft dewy pink. It’s too shiny looking to apply over your entire cheek (your pores would look like lunar craters), but run right along the peaks of your cheek bones, it’s gorgeous and more flattering than a yellow-toned highlighter. 

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Lip product - Barry M Lip Paint #146 Dolly Pink

Who says you need to match the tree in your backyard just because it’s Fall??! After a few months of “natural-looking” lip colors, I’m falling back in love with intense electro-pinks. Just ditch the shimmer and use a dark/black matte shadow to create messy, winged, bad-girl eyes, and you’ll be looking SMOKIN’…

For the darker-skinned lovelies, I always recommend MAC Pink Nouveau for something that will not go on chalky-looking, but if you’re paler, put Barry M’s Lip Paint in Dolly Pink on your Xmas wishlist NOW. This old favorite is deeper than Saint Germain and paler than Pink Nouveau. (And cheaper than both.)

While you’re at it, drop in the Lip Liner Pencil #12 because it’s a PURRFECT match.

Barry M ships internationally via barrym.com.

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Skin product - Vichy Normaderm Tri-active Hydrating Lotion

This is a daily lotion for sensitive skin that’s also oily or combination. Using harsh products to strip the oils, or loading your face up with more products just to try to control oil output can sometimes backfire, so I prefer products that don’t aggravate it any further.

This lightweight lotion feels and smells fresh. It’s not going to suddenly dry up your face and stop oil production (that never happens) but it does soothe and work to minimize issues. Just don’t forget sunscreen over it.

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Nail color - China Glaze Dance Baby

Who can resist the over-the-top tackiness of electro-pop pink nails with electro-pink lips? I just couldn’t bring myself to wear Fall colors. I wore this shade for 2 weeks in the last month. (That seldom EVER happens because I rotate my shades every week.)

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Body care - Eucerin Intensive Repair Extra-Enriched Foot Creme 

This foot creme has buffered alpha hydroxy acid to smooth and slough off dry and flaky skin on heels, and it’s so buttery and non-sticky that I use it as a hand cream instead. 

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Scent - Katy Perry’s Meow

SURELY that’s not a cat, but a chunky pink alien? Surely???

Anyway, tacky-cute cat alien aside (I did grow kinda fond of it in all its kitschy, childish glory), this is a very thick creamy scent, like warm vanilla creme with a soft fruity (pear). Some people smell coconut or cotton candy in there. I don’t really get that except on the rare occasion, and it’s mostly due to the combination of notes. 

Great comfort scent for chilly days and cool nights IF you enjoy smelling like dessert.

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Accessory - Coach ultraviolet “Molly” satchel

What is it about Coach that gets the stereotypical Asian tourist going berserk? I was at the Woodbury outlets and there was a Korean gentleman with 2 arms DRAPED with what must have been close to 20 bags. He had a look of focused obsession on his face, and was pacing the aisles looking for more items to grab. 

I’ve never been a fan, but the DH had been given a shopping list by the family, so I accompanied him to the Coach boutique that afternoon. Picture the very odd scene where the man is busy examining Coach bags and talking about models and colors with the sales attendants, while the woman stands to the side tapping her foot and trying not to look too bored.

That was until I caught sight of the most glorious violet leather in the entire universe (ok I exaggerate, but not by much). Not any ol’ purple, but P-U-R-P-L-E. Deep, and bright at the same time. It wasn’t just the color either. I don’t know why I never really noticed the Molly before, but I had a Goldilocks moment. The bag was not too big, not too small, not to structured, not too slouchy, with leather that was neither too thick and heavy, nor too delicate. 

I haven’t stopped carrying it since.

[For the reader who sent me a message yesterday to ask about pricing and colors, the retail price in the US is just under $350. If you’re elsewhere in the world, it’s going to cost quite a bit more. Colors include a caramel and a bright, GORGEOUS neon-pink. They also have a color-blocked version but I personally think it’s just too “noisy” for a bag this size and isn’t heart-stoppingly bright like the single-shade version.]

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Entertainment - Horror/Apocalypse/Survival theme

It’s been a sort of horror month, with the morbid central attraction being post-apocalyptic scenes. 

Book - The Twelve (Justin Cronin)

TV - The Walking Dead Season 3

Music - Kate Bush “50 Words for Snow”

I first stumbled onto Kate after hearing a remixed version of “Experiment IV” by Hybrid. This amazing writer/producer/singer has been at it since the late 70s, and she’s still got it today.

50 Words for Snow is ethereal and atmospheric, and something to listen to on melancholic, quiet days. Preferably when you’re feeling a little chilly. If you enjoy Tori Amos or Cinematic Orchestra, you will probably like this album.

And isn’t that album campaign image (AND her eye makeup) just beautiful?

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Let me know what some of your favorites this past month have been!

An Unlikely Love: Hilary Duff “With Love” Perfume

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The idea of combining mangosteen (no relation with the mango) with spices, flowers and sweet amber in a single perfume sounded like it might go into “Escada” territory (sugared, fruity mess). I didn’t have high hopes for this fragrance at all but decided to just spritz it at a perfume discount store for the heck of it.

Hilary Duff’s debut fragrance “With Love”, named after one of her songs (note to Marketers: please don’t name something you can sell for at least 10 years after something that becomes –at best – passé in a few months), is a surprisingly sophisticated and exotic little gem that is not at all teenybopper fragrance. 

Created by: 2 perfumers whose scents you are VERY likely to have already smelt…

• Rodrigo Flores-Roux (Clinique Happy, Donna Karan Black Cashmere, Peace Love & Juicy Couture)
• Stephen Nilsen (Madonna Truth or Dare, Vera Wang Lovestruck, Sarah Jessica Parker Dawn)

Top notes: Spices, Mangosteen

Heart notes: Cocobolo Wood, Mangosteen flower

Base notes: Amber milk, Amber musk (wut?)

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Despite the notes, this is not a sugar-bomb, fruit-bomb or spice-bomb of a fragrance.

I’d say the opening is quite translucent, despite the presence of spices and mangosteen (no relation to the mango). This is more how the velvety, white flesh smells sitting in its leathery shell after you tear it open – delicately sweet and slightly exotic – than how it tastes (intensely tart and sweet). You also get a soft, generic “allspice” type of note adding some complexity and depth without being too in-your-face. Then again, if you’re not used to spices this might smell more obvious to you.

Soon, it blooms into a honeyed floral heart (mangosteen flower), accompanied by a contrastingly dry, almost-mossy cocobolo note which adds a dash of fresh masculinity, and reminds me somewhat of sandalwood. (Cocobolo wood comes from Central America, and is used often for musical instruments, chess pieces, and expensive flooring). This is the point where my liking turns into outright love, as it’s complex and warm without going into Opium territory or Shalimar territory.

As it develops, everything warms up and gets milkier and cozier. I’m not sure what “amber milk” and “amber musk” are. Just imagine a glass of milk with a dash of smoky vanilla and a pinch of spices, sitting on a cocobolo wood table in the sun. It’s tasty but tasteful, and would work for dates, class, and the office.

 This is not a girly-girl scent and a lot of people find it quite unisex.

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One gripe? The bottle cap is a little finicky. Other than this, I do kinda like the retro feel.