When the lovely Xiao at Messy Wands posted a giveaway featuring the extremely coveted Lancôme Ombre Absolue in Erika F. I entered but honestly didn't get my hopes up. I fell in love with Erika F. when I first saw it on Messy Wands in a post aptly titled, "Makeup You Want But Cannot Have" and immediately began looking for dupes. Luckily, the stars aligned and I won this gorgeous shadow!
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| Lancôme Ombre Absolue, Erika F. |
Erika F. is one of those amazing shadows that looks completely different from every angle. In the photo above it looks like a gorgeous champagne shimmer, but as you'll see below, that's simply one angle. It's a gorgeous combination of green, gray, and champagne with the most amazing shimmer. The way it sparkles reminds me of the Chanel Illusion d'Ombre shadows, and if you're looking for a dupe for this shade, Café Makeup has a swatch that compares Erika F. to Epatant. They're pretty darn close, so I suggest checking out Epatant to satisfy your Erika F. lemmings.
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| Lancôme Ombre Absolue, Erika F. |
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| Lancôme Ombre Absolue, Erika F. |
Not only is Erika F. incredible in the pan, it wears like a dream. It blends beautifully and even though there's quite a lot of sparkle in this one I didn't experience any fallout with or without a primer. In the photos above I applied a base of MAC Paint Pot in Painterly and then swept Erika F. across the lid and applied it darker in the crease. I love shadows that allow you to deepen the color like this. Makes mornings much easier!
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| Guerlain Kiss Kiss Essence de Gloss, Violine |
As if winning this jaw-droppingly beautiful and rare eyeshadow wasn't enough, Xiao also sent me a cute little Guerlain Kiss Kiss Essence de Gloss. This shade is 462 Violine. It's a gorgeous semi-opaque raspberry color with very subtle microglitter and OH MY GOSH I am obsesssssssed with the formula. This is the first Guerlain gloss I've tried and I don't think I can ever put another sticky MAC lipgloss near my lips again. It glides on and seems to smooth out and moisturize my lips, which has been a lifesaver as they've been dry and chapped lately. It wears pretty darn well too and I had a little color left after a cup of coffee. It's really versatile too and can be built up for more opaque color or sheered out. It pulls a little redder in photos, but there's a definite touch of berry in real life.
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| Guerlain Kiss Kiss Essence de Gloss, Violine |
Did I mention it looks totally gorgeous when worn with Erika F? I could not be more in love with my winnings! I wish I had been able to take a full FOTD photo, but I've developed a blemish overnight and my vanity won't allow photographic evidence. You'll have to take my word for it that when I wear Erika F. and Violine together I feel like a Disney Princess. They're both such natural and beautiful shades that I felt as if I could go prance through the woods and sing with woodland creatures. Hopefully once my face is once again up to my standards I will post a FOTD of these together.
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| Lancôme Ombre Absolue, Erika F. and Guerlain Kiss Kiss Essence de Gloss, Violine |
I highly recommend you check out Xiao's blog, Messy Wands, and follow her on Twitter (@xiaoo) and I'm not just saying that because of this awesome giveaway I won. She has gorgeous photos, honest and well-written reviews, and she's absolutely stunning! She's inspired many of my experiments with color and always has me lemming something new. Messy Wands is the kind of blog that I hope Beauty Charade can one day be.
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I adore her blog as well, and how lucky were you to win such an amazing shadow! And the gloss looks lovely as well, will have to check out Guerlain for that
ReplyDeleteSo very lucky! I jumped around like a madwoman after getting the email! And yes, the gloss is amazing. One of my favorite formulas. I'll definitely be trying out more shades.
DeleteOooo! Really loving that lip color! Have fun playing with the new goodies!
ReplyDeleteIt's been so much fun playing around with them, and Violine hasn't left my bag since I got it. =)
DeleteErika F. is STUNNING! I love your new blog layout, too :)
ReplyDeleteI knowwwwww. I almost felt bad posting about it because it's not available here. But seriously, Epatant looks like a wonderful dupe. And thank you! I like it much better than all the crazy pink I had before. This feels a little more grown up. =D
DeleteAh this is even more amazing looking than I'd ever imagined! (By the way awesome lighting/camera set up ... I'm going to need to discuss these changes with you over drinks!)
ReplyDelete♥ Jessica
Oh my gosh we have SO MANY drinks to get! <3
DeleteLove both of these on you! Erika F is just...! After her post and after the giveaway ended I had to take the plunge and order it myself. I had it on my list for months and this just solidifies why I had to buy it!
ReplyDeleteI probably would have tried to track it down if I hadn't won too. There aren't a whole lot of products I'd go through the trouble for, but Erika F. is a must have. =)
DeleteI like the eye shadow. It is very pretty on you.
ReplyDeletehttp://happychinadoll.blogspot.com/