Friday, March 11, 2011

My First Makeup Review: Christian Dior 5-Color Eyeshadow in Tropical Light #409


This beautiful palette is perfect for the summer! The colors remind me of the Caribbean islands with light pink, moss green, purplish gray, pale teal, and light green. I guess that’s why people at Dior named it “Tropical Light”J
The colors are highly pigmented and have a frosty shimmer. I like how the shimmer brightens up my face. I also like how pigmented it is, so a little goes a long way. However, it is possible to apply a small amount for a sheer-subtle look that is appropriate for the daytime, even the office and it is more than likely to achieve a dramatic going-out look by layering on a bit more color. In my pictures, I applied very small amounts of the teal and green on my lids and used the gray to line my eyes.
Moreover, because bright blue, teal, or green are very obvious and unnatural colors on skin, applying many thou-shall-not-name brands of light teal, blue and green eyeshadows runs a high risk of looking clownish or cheap. Unless that's the look you are going for, I think it's actually quite rare to find a sophisticated looking bright teal/green/blue eyeshadow.
This eyeshadow sells for $57 at most major department stores like Macys, Nordstroms, Neiman Marcus, and Lord & Taylor. There's no question that it's on the pricey side but it's Dior quality, which means fine powders and a substantial amount of product that will probably last two summers even if you put it on every single day.
[Without flash]

[With flash, the shimmer shows up more]

In conclusion, I definitely recommend this eyeshadow.  If I were to assign it a grade, it would be A- just because it's hard to find teal/green/blue eyeshadow without it looking garishly unnatrual. And the only reason preventing it from a perfect grade is the ridiculous price.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Hollywood Triplets: Katie Perry, Emily Blunt, and Zooey Deschanel

Random musing of the day:
[From left to right: Katie Perry, Zooey Deschanel, and Emily Blunt]

Wow~Katie Perry, Zooey Deschanel, and Emily Blunt’s resemblance to each other is uncanny! Dark hair, light eyes, and fair skin. They can definitely play sisters in their next acting gig and if they adorn the same makeup and style... then they might as well be triplets because no one will be able to tell them apart.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Beauty Inspirations 2011

Everyone has people who inspire them, whether it be real or fictional characters. In terms of physical beauty, I find the following five people the most attractive:

I have a soft spot for French actresses. I absolutely love, Love, LOVE Marrion Collitard, Audrey Tautou, Sophie Marceau, and Eva Green. I think they all have the right mix of sophistication and sex appeal. However, out of this group I would crown Eva Green who is best known for her role in Casino Royal.



[Eva Green in 007 Casino Royal is classy, edgy, and feminine all rolled into one]



[More of the sultry Eva Green, who looks phenomenal in dark intense colors]

I also love Chinese actresses. They are talented and beautiful, often speaking more than 3 dialects. I think Tang Wei/湯唯, best known for her role in Lust Caution, is my number one choice in this category. Although I don't consider her conventionally beautiful, Tang Wei is effortlessly graceful and she has a cerebral air about her.


[Tang Wei in Lust Caution captures the traditional understated beauty]


[Tang Wei at a red carpet appearance looks effortlessly glamorous]

Out of all the cute Taiwanese actresses, it was a close contest between Vivian Hsu/徐若瑄 and Lun-Mei Kwai/桂綸鎂 with Lun-Mei coming out on top. Lun-Mei Kwai, probably best known for her role in Secret directed by Jay Chou/周杰倫, is an ethereal beauty. Lun-Mei has natural-looking delicate features and she looks best with minimal makeup and simple hair styles.


[Kwai Lun-Mei in Secret looks hauntingly beautiful]


[Kwai Lun-Mei in another movie still]

Finally, I find Freida Pinto , best known for her role in Slumdog Millionaire, to be absolutely gorgeous. Her eyes literally sparkle and her wide smile lights up the room. Also, her wardrobe does not hurt. Freida always looks flawless in her public apperances.


[Freida Pinto in Slumdog Millionaire]


[Freida Pinto and her signature alluring eyes and bright smile]

Although these beauties present very different looks, the common thread is that they're classy looking and seem to pick things that work for them. By "classy," I mean they enhance their natural beauty by being very well polished, poised, and showing substance, which is very inspiring. This list applies to 2011 and may change in the future. Thanks for reading~~~

Thursday, February 3, 2011

新年快樂!兔年吉祥!

Years of the Rabbit: 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999 and...


Happy Chinese New Year! May the year of the Bunny bring you good fortune!

According to the Chinese Zodiac: "The Rabbit is the happiest sign of the Zodiac-gifted, nice to be with, discreet, refined, reserved, ambitious but not too much so, and virtuous in the bargain. Nobody ignores Rabbits, for they are good company and know how to make the best of themselves. Unfortunately, however, Rabbits are superficial and their good qualities are superficial also."

Fun fact: Napoleon, Michelangelo, Walt Whitman, and Albert Einstein were born in the year of the Rabbit

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Say WHAT?! Measuring Attractiveness???!!

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, it's subjective. Right?! Not really, scientist have tried to quantify beauty and attractiveness. The latest to do that is Anaface.com, which comes up with quantifiable measurements to determine facial attractiveness. It uses the golden ratio, which measures attractiveness by proportion. Anyways , for fun I decided to give it a try.




Conclusion: I don't buy it. To me, beauty is still subjective. I don't think one has to have the ideal symmetry to be beautiful, it's about how one plays up his/her assets and how one carries oneself.  

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Hello 2011! Hello Blogspot.com!

After reading countless beauty and fashion blogs (and learning so much from them), I thought it may be a fun experience to try the other side and be a blogger instead of a reader. Besides, I always enjoy exploring new creative outlets. I enjoy sharing my thoughts on beauty, makeup, and fashion but I also like to rant about random things in my life, like my love life and many non-girly hobbies, such as current events and football (gasp!!!). So here we go, it's a new year so here's to my new blogging experience!