Friday, July 29, 2011

Review: Chanel Bzyance Topkapi Eyeshadow Quad

No amount of Oohings and Ahhings can express my admiration for this .......eye palette.....adequately.
Why do i say so?

Well, this is really THE eye palatte that neutral eyeshadows palette will die to lay their hands on ..okie, i am exaggerating things here.

BUT, really... have a look below and swatch it out for yourself in real at the selected Chanel counters and you will get what i mean.
Okie, no more chatting. I present THE Chanel Bzyance Topkapi Eyeshadow Quad......

This Collection is inspired by the Bzyantium empire and so there its luxurious in terms of colour payoff (very intense) and texture which glides on so smoothly when i was swatching my own palette (it just pains me to touch the palette so soon... i am simply not fully done admiring it.)



The Topkapi Eyeshadow Quad.




List of ingredients.

The Iconic double interlocking Cs.

Plastic cover protecting the quad.

There you go.... in all glory. Once more......



Swatches : Left to right, top to bottom.

Swatches in better lighting: Left to right, top to bottom. Swatches again.



It is a Chanel, so i don't expect it to be cheap (darn!) but then, i don't expect it to be THAT expensive...

It costs S$95.00 compared to S$91.00 (remember the previous 5 Ombre Perlees eyeshadow palette i acquired not too long ago?).

These beauties just cost more and more... sigh..

When regret almost sets in after i made the payment, it was forgotten immediately when i touched my own palette for the very first time.

Texture wise, there is absolutely nothing to complain at all, nothing. Really. It glides on like a dream, with perhaps the exception of the gold which glides not as smoothly as the rest of the 3 colours but that doesn't affect it one bit.I would say its texture surpassed the 5 ombre eyeshadow palette that i bought previously and could very well be the best among all Chanel palettes. The touch of it simply screams quality and yes, i heart it.

In terms of colour payoff, if the eyeshadows has a texture that glides like a dream, then the colour payoff itself must have been a wetdream to me (excuse me for the analogy, i am unable to think of a better one as i am looking at it AGAIN. : ) ).

It's just brilliant.

I think, you guys must have seen the swatches a zillion times on the internet but... i just had to do it, i kid you not. Forgive me for that.

Now the question.....

Walk towards the counter or walk away from the counter?

Of course, walk towards it and snag one if you still can. Especially if you are a neutral palette fan or if you were never a neutral palette fan, either way you gotta have it (just my 2cents....)

Yes, yes... it is a limited edition.

I am starting to regret not getting a backup now as i am writing....



Price S$95.00 for 4.00g (compared to S$91.00 for 5.00g for Ombres Perlees eyeshadow palette).

Available at selected Chanel counters - Metro Paragon, Isetan Scotts and Marina Bay Sands.











Wednesday, July 27, 2011

Ramblings: Cozycot Kanebo Markdown sale sightings and gripe

Okie, i am on a self imposed makeup ban... yet i made my way down to the Cozycot Kanebo markdown sale this afternoon.

The sale was held in a small room which is approximately the size of a small 3 room flat and it was crowded with ladies and gentlemen who came with their girlfriends and wives.

Sightings:

1.Kate- the eyeshadow and eyebrown powder palette at S$8.00

- eyeliners (didn't managed to squeeze to the front to have a closer look)

2.Cofret D'ór - several eye palettes at S$17.00 each.

- eyeliners at S$17.00 each (i think as i was trying to maintain my balance)

- lipsticks (quite a nice selection of colours)

- single eyeshadow

- blushers


3.Lunasol - limited edition eye palettes (i saw one which is blue and black, it looks like one of the Christmas limited edition a few years back) at S$35.00

- the permanent line eye palette (i saw #5 , which is a brown palette) at S$35. 00

- limited edition eyeshadow singles (the pastel colour range which comes in light green, light pink and light yellow)

4.Impress skincare range (but only the whitening one and there is another range that is in red)

5.Blanchir haircare range (if i am not mistaken)

All in all, it was quite a decent selection if you are solely into eyeshadows and if you do not own any Lunasol or Cofret Dór eye palettes plus you are really into neutrals and colours with a shiny sheen to them. The low price point is an attraction as the palettes are at 50% off.

My damage?

Nah... None at all.

Surprise? Not really.

Just a few gripes here.....
I have been to a few Shiseido sales, Prestige warehouse sales and Luxasia sales. I am no stranger to sales.


So, the first thing that i am fully mentally prepared was the crowd... let's face it, if there is no crowd, the sale ain't got any good stuffs...


Besides that, never expect the participants of the sale (yes, mostly ladies) to know something about manners and yes, "civlised" is something that is beyond their comprehension that day. Well, jungle rules rule here "Survival of the fittest", if you are weak, you are another's meat.


Having said all that, there are some sales whereby i am happy to go despite the crowd and everything.


I was rather impress with how Luxasia organised its sale site from the point of entry to items according to brand and categories as well as down to the queuing system, everything was done in order despite the mad crowd and snaking paying queue.


Shiseido sales are notorious for having snaking queues outside the Shiseido office half an hour before the Shiseido staffs open the glass doors, yet order was maintained and the good Shiseido people even provide bag deposit service to safe keep our bags (maybe also for security reasons) for us bargain hunters to shop to our heart contents. The cashiers are efficient too, good good.


Prestige warehouse sales are notorious too... partly due to the long queue to pay and the waiting time for the staffs to retrieve the items for each paying lady. Kudos for using the plastic strip to tie plastic bag that holds your bag before you enter the sale site (security reason here, no way to put anything in your bag when its tied up in a plastic bag, so no messy conflicts here).


How i feel about this markdown sale?


First of all, there isn't anything personnel maintaining the queue of ladies going into the small room (they were all inside the room by the door).


Secondly, the system of queuing is messy in the small room (whereby the paying queue was mixing with the crowd choosing stuffs). Plus the cashiers were painfully slow as the queue was not moving at all.


Thirdly, yes, manners. The behaviours of some ladies that i have seen today are horrendous.... hostile and yes... no amount of makeup or skincare will make you beautiful if you are ugly inside, especially since you are using a foundation that doesn't not make you nicely..... heh...


Things that left me confounded today, I simply do not understand why they don't adopt some method that is friendlier like using a simple plastic strip to tied up the plastic bag that holds your belonging (i mean it totally save time and effort, isn't it?).


Is it too much of a hassle to do that? Not really. But apparently, Cozycot prefers to get their staffs to peep into each and every bag very carefully and shove their hands inside the bags to feel for anything that remotely resembles their makeup items.


I mean, really! This is so uncalled for, whatever gave them the rights to shove their hands into our bags and feel for things ....... bargain hunters or sales enthusiats are not thieves and it doesn't mean you possess the rights to see us as one. Tsk.. tsk.....


The sale is still on till 29th July (10.30 am to 7.00pm) at Shaw Centre 26th floor. Go to the sale if you have always been the survivor among the fittest and if you can bear the thought of some stranger's hand shoving into your bag during your way out, or if you simply can't resist it.











Monday, July 25, 2011

Haul: Finally a Home for the Precious......

Well, its about time isn't it?

I mean to get a proper home to house all my Precious and let them live with their own kind.....

TOday, i made up my mind to visit Muji to purchase this 6 tier drawers that i have been contemplating for the longest time....

And so, yes... finally.....


The "home"to the Precious.
The side view.

The top drawer-hair accessories.

2nd drawer-Brushes, sponges and eyelash curlers (tools).

3rd drawer-all things lippy, and eyeliners, mascaras and eye primers.



4th drawer-where the eye colours lurk......

5th drawer- where the bases and highlighters hangout.

6th drawer (bottom)-Limited editions and blushing beauties only.



I would have thought that there will be spaces left for future hauls and such...... BUT i was so so so wrong.....

My currently collection occupied all the 6 tiers! Okie, the 1st tier where hair accessories are housed doesn't count- i have it that way just in case and the 2nd tier probably doesn't count too as its for the tools...

Not too bad i say. I have spaces for hauls but small and carefully edited ones i suppose.






Monday, July 18, 2011

Haul: When the going gets tough......

Yes, yes... when you are feeling depressed and feels that the going gets way tough for you to handle and you are a certified makeup addict... so what do you do?

What else?

A Haul!

These are my haul for the past 2 weeks......


The newbies in the family.


A must since i don't really like to use shampoo or soap on my brushes.


Chanel? What could it be? : )



Woo... another Nars...


Maquillage casing.. love the pretty design on the sides.


RMK Loose Powder.


Something from The Bodyshop... a review on it coming up.


My first bronzer.. believe it or not....


Another lippy to join the family.


My essential.




More lipbalms to protect my dry lips.



Ha....i feel so much better now... have been rotating between stress at work and getting sick...


Sigh... i am currently into my 6th month for coughing ...yes that LONG and the specialists all couldn't come up with an explanation for my super duper persistant long cough...


Reviews coming up as soon as i feel much better... i am keeping my fingers crossed that it will be soon. : )