Beauty News: Urban Decay Comes To Shoppers Drug Mart!

Calling all Urban Decay fans! Makeup Junkie got word that Urban Decay will now be available at Shoppers Drug Mart Beauty Boutiques - we're still waiting to hear in how many locations across Canada.

The grand opening will take place on January 22, 2010 and UD International Makeup Artist and Worldwide Sales Director, Eric Jimenez, will be there showcasing the line's newest spring products! The NEW Alice in Wonderland Book of Shadows will also be available there before anyone else gets it!

What: Shoppers Drug Mart Urban Decay Grand Opening: Spring Preview

When: January 22 - walk ins from 10-12

Appointments only from 12-6 (45 min each)

January 23 - 12-6 (by appointment only)

Where: Shoppers Drug Mart

3100 Garden Street, Whitby, ON  L1R 2G8

To Book: 905-430-6967

If you're in the Durham region or feel like taking a little trip out East you should definitely stop by to get your hands on the coveted Alice in Wonderland Book of Shadows!

www.urbandecay.com

Spring Preview Review: Zoya Reverie Reece Nail Polish

Zoya Reverie in Reece

These days, I don't mind doing my own polish job when I have fun colours to chose from. Right now, I am obsessed with Zoya's Reverie collection. Pretty hue of the day? Reverie in Reece!

I originally thought Lana was my next fave after Adina, but I was inspired by CARGO's new Spring blush Amalfi (review to come!) and fell in love with Reece, a gilded rose metallic. Again, my swatch does not do it justice - it's actually a lot deeper. It reminds me of Estee Lauder's Signature Hydra Lustre Lipstick in Rich Berry, which is a sheer but rich raspberry.

Reece is Spring in a bottle. Pretty on the tips and toes!

What do you think of Zoya Reece? Love it? Hate it? Makeup Junkie wants to know!

Zoya Spring 2010 Reverie collection is available January 2010. Sampler set retails for $36 USD and sold separately $7 USD.

Will be posting more swatches soon - stay tuned!

To read my previous review of the Reverie collection click here.  

www.artofbeauty.com

Beauty News: 50% Off Sale At Cargo Cosmetics!

This is huge news! One of my fave brands Canadian line, CARGO Cosmetics, is having a 50% off sale online at Sephora.com (prices online already reflect discount) and in North American Sephora locations!

A PR release states the following:

For 2010, CARGO has begun an evolution with its relationship with Sephora that will take several months. We are focusing our brand on Sephora Inside JC Penney and we will be a top feature brand for them. By the end of this year, over 200 Sephora Inside JC Penney stores are expected to carry the full range of CARGO products.

We will be removing CARGO from the other Sephora doors in North America. CARGO products will continue to be sold within Sephora's European markets: France, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Turkey and the Middle East. In addition, CARGO will continue to be available at Ulta, QVC, Beauty 360, Independent Beauty Boutiques, Murale (Canada) and Boots (UK).

Congrats to CARGO on an amazing new venture, although it is sad to be seeing the line discontinued from normal Sephora locations!

We've done a few reviews of our favourite products but there are definitely other items on the list to try!

Recommended:

CARGO blu_ray High Definition Mattifier

CARGO PlantLove Lipsticks

CARGO Shadows/Liners

CARGO blu_ray High Definition Line

Lust-factor:

CARGO Blushes/Bronzers

CARGO Lip Gloss Duo

What will you be stocking up on?

www.cargocosmetics.com

Spring Preview Review: Zoya Reverie Adina Nail Polish

My dark moody polish hues of fall and winter have been pushed aside to make room for my new fun spring colours! I'm always excited when Zoya announces a new collection - you'll be sure to fall in love with a new shade that you'll wear over and over. Zoya Reverie collection is my favourite Spring collection so far (thanks for sending!).

Reverie features 6 dreamy metallic shades: Laney (moonlit metallic silver), Adina (duochrome violet metallic), Reece (gilded rose metallic), Happi (pink blush metallic), Gwin (sunny melon metallic), and Lana (rich red metallic).

Zoya Reverie in Adina

The metallic finish is edgier than its cream finish sister. The spring collections I've seen so far are a bore compared to Reverie. Zoya has taken a simple red or pink and added a metallic finish that kicks it up a notch creating a really unique shade.

I love the whole collection but my favourite (possibly of all time!) has to be Adina. Making it a duo-chrome shade was brilliant because it is a really unique colour - one I've never seen or tried at least. My swatch really doesn't do Adina justice but you can see the different layers of violet, blue, green and sometimes gold in there. This is one shade I'll probably be wearing out in the months to come!

On a side note - my Zoya Armour Top Coat was getting a little thick and hard to apply. I forgot I had my Zoya Renew Polish Rejuvenator stashed away and unopened. I added a few drops of this baby and my top coat was golden! You can add this to any old polish and make them new again. How sweet is that?

Zoya Spring 2010 Reverie collection is available January 2010. Sampler set retails for $36 USD and sold separately $7 USD.

Will be posting more swatches soon - stay tuned!

www.artofbeauty.com

Spring Preview: NARS Spring 2010

Baby, it's cold outside! Spring weather may not be for another 3 months (please be kind Mother Nature!), but Spring collections will be available soon. Forget about the frigid cold for just a moment and let your eyes gaze over the pretty little things from NARS coming out this Spring!

Inspired by Catherine Deneuve’s role as Lucille in La Chamade, the NARS Spring 2010 Collection features soft, sexy shades that are as elegant as they are versatile.

NARS Camargue Duo Cream Eyeshadow, $32 USD

Named for the deep, dancing, sun-cast hues found in the French river delta, this pairing of golden moss and sienna, with multi-colored reflections comes in a soft-blending, glistening cream eyeshadow formula.

NARS Kuala Lumpur Duo Eyeshadow, $32 USD

Like its Malaysian city namesake, this perfectly harmonized gold infused rose and boysenberry pairing is influenced by contrasts—rich and subtle, traditional yet modern.

NARS D. Gorgeous Single Eyeshadow, $23 USD

This dusty lilac powder eyeshadow yields just a hint of flirtation, but never misses its mark.

NARS Glitter Pencil, $24 USD

This bright sky blue, silver glitter-infused hue delivers powerful, vibrant color that slides on smooth and remains creamy for blending.

NARS Lip Gloss, $24 USD

Easy Lover- Serious luster meets sexy color in this ultra-sheer hot pink lip gloss.

 

NARS Lip Gloss, $24 USD

Ophelia- This high-shine strawberry nectar lip gloss is deliciously sweet and seductive.

NARS Cruising Lipstick, $24 USD

This subtle, sexy pink lipstick hue provides a sheer natural long-lasting color.

NARS Purple Rain Nail Polish, $16 USD

This intensely gothic purple is a bright and audacious shade destined to become a modern classic.

What do you think of NARS' Spring 2010 collection?

I LOVE NARS shadows and will be checking out Duo Shadow in Kuala Lumpur - such pretty shades. I used to adore NARS lippies but noticed after a few months they started to smell waxy, but I am so crushing on that Easy Lover gloss! And the Purple Rain polish is just fabulous!

The Spring 2010 collection will be available on January 15, 2010 at narscosmetics.com.

Beauty Feature: Winterlicious Skin Products Put To the Test

The last week before Christmas I had come down with strep - pain killers and cold medicine were my best friend. Silly me forgot that cold medicine contains ibuprofen already but the pain was so excruciating I ended up taking Motrin - religiously every 4 hours.

Within 2 days, my face had swelled to a balloon and my skin had broken out into an itchy red rash! I had a severe reaction to the overdose of ibuprofen. I was beyond horrified and all this just before Christmas. I got on antibiotics and ditched the pain killers.

You can imagine my dilemma. Severely dehydrated, flaky and itchy skin. Thankfully I had a few moisturizers to choose from! Which one ended up on top? Read on!

1. Embryolisse Lait Creme Concentre 24 Hr Miracle Cream: This is a makeup artist staple so obviously this was the first moisturizer I turned to. The formula is rich and creamy but for really dehydrated irritated skin it just didn't cut it. My skin still felt extremely tight and I was reapplying every half hour. The upside is that it did not irritate my skin further. If your skin is normally dry, it works just fine but not when your skin is in a crisis!

2. La Mer Creme de la Mer: I was ecstatic when I had found a travel size of this "miracle" cream in one of my bins. If you don't know the history, La Mer was created by aerospace physicist, Dr. Max Hubert, to help heal his chemical burns. The result was dramatically improved and smoothed skin.

If it could work on chemical burns, it had to work on my scarred flaky skin. Well, it was definitely more moisturizing than Embryolisse. It help rid of the flaky skin and improved the texture - even the scarring was starting to disappear. Yet, it did not completely get rid of the flakiness or tightness. I had to reapply every 2 hours.

3. Elizabeth Arden Eight Hour Cream: This multi-purpose balm is a cult classic for a reason - it just works! This is the only cream that relieved my skin in all areas. I rarely ever use this because of the rich heavy texture, but my skin just drank it up. It feels a little heavy but once it sinks into the skin you don't even feel it.

Once I started applying day and night my skin quickly improved. After applying in the morning I didn't have to reapply until I washed my face at night. I didn't have to worry about embarrassing flaking skin when I was out - bonus! I also use this on my dry cracked hands and lips. I got over the flowery-medicinal smell - it's just worth it. A definite winter essential!

Have you tried these creams? What is your go-to winter essentials for chapped skin? Makeup Junkie wants to know!

Beauty Feature: Lancome Goes For Gold

What's all the fascination with gold? To celebrate this winning colour, Lancome has partnered with Canadian artist, Raphael Mazzucco, and his wife and makeup artist, Lisa-Marie, to create the limited edition Winter collection, Gold Fascination. Also former athletes, the line and package design was inspired by Canada's best female athletes and their quest for gold at this winter's Olympic 2010 games.

When I opened my package of samples, I fell hard for these beautiful little boxes of art! It's incredible how much these photographs look like paintings. I adore them so much that I want a blown up version to hang on my walls!

Lancome La Base Pro ($42 CDN): Lancome's primer has made a little home in my makeup bag. Because of the oil-free formula, I was afraid it would only enhance my dry winter skin. It actually hydrates my complexion, leaving it soft and silky to the touch. Fine lines and large pores are smoothed out and my makeup lasts all day without any touch-ups! The price is also comparable to Smashbox's Photo Finish Oil-Free Primer.

Lancome Color Design Quad in Showstopper Style ($48 CDN): Looking for a daily staple? Showstopper Style will take you from day to night. The neutral colours and mix of pearly and matte shades allow for versatility. These shadows are also highly pigmented and didn't crease or fade at the end of the day.

Lancome Color Design Blush in Pret A Plum Sheer ($38 CDN): Plum is such a pretty colour and looks fabulous on every skin tone. I really like the texture of these cream blushes because they set to a powder finish yet still give you a flushed glow. This blush won't leave a sticky or tacky feeling on your skin. A little goes a long way - just start with a small dab on the apples of your cheek and layer until your desired shade. These blushes are also long lasting - I didn't have to retouch once!

Lancome L'Absolu Rouge in Absolute Rouge ($35 CDN): If your lips are in need of some major definition and fullness then L'Absolu Rouge will do the trick. As you age, your lips loose density and shape, but thankfully I don't have to worry about that yet. While the Pro-Xylane ingredient in the lipstick defined and plumped my lips, I didn't care much for the flowery scent. Absolute Rouge is a classic true red perfect for that Old Hollywood look - although with my medium-dark skin tone I fancy deeper reds.

What do you think Lancome Gold Fascination collection? Love it? Hate it? Makeup Junkie wants to know!

www.lancome.ca