I Love NY.....I Love NY....lalalalala

If you happen to follow me on Twitter you know that I spent Thanksgiving in my favorite city New York!  This tradition started last year when we made our way down to see the parade for the first time.  Now it is a tradition that I see happening for many years to come.  My sister lives in Bayside which, by train is only about 20 minutes to Penn Station.  We wake up early and go to the parade, and then have dinner at her house.  Of course for me no trip to NY would be complete without some shopping.  I ended up purchasing my birthday present which was something that I have been wanting for such a long time.  I will save that until the end. 

Not far from our hotel is a shopping mecca in Long Island called Americana Manhasset.  This is a dream come true even though I usually end up window shopping.  I always go into Chanel, unfortunately not to purchase a handbag, but to check out the cosmetics.  They have a wonderful woman working in cosmetics.  You know I love Heather for all my Chanel needs but I cannot pass up a live counter, and especially a Chanel Boutique.  I only ended up getting two items.  My birthday present was quite extravagant so I didn't want to press my luck!  I purchased a nail polish which the woman suggested called Rose Cache.  This is quite light for my taste but she was right, it is very pretty.  The other item was a Rouge Coco Shine in #41 Canoter.  This is a gorgeous shimmery pale gold.  I love going into the Chanel Boutique to catch a glimpse of all the gorgeous bags and jewelry.  It is nice that I am only spending money on cosmetics, and get treated like someone who is purchasing a $4000.00 bag!  OK now on to Sephora.  I ended up only getting two lipsticks that I have been wanting forever.  I purchased Fable by Illamasqua, and Agatha by Kat Von D.  These were recommendations by Vanessa, The Bombshell Suite on YouTube.  I also ended up getting a blush from Illamasqua called Ambition.  This is a gorgeous shimmery pink.

When I was in Times Square I ended up going to Inglot, which I also love.  I purchased one of their Freedom System Palette's for my sister.  I chose some gorgeous colors for her.  One blush, two shadows, and a pressed powder.  I always tell her how much I love mine.  I got myself a gloss which is a frosty pink.  It is similar to Brilliance by Chanel.  Here is a picture below -

OK so now on to my birthday present.  This actually speaks for itself -

YAY YAY YAY She is the Louis Vuitton Speedy 35 in Damier Ebene! If you look close you will see my initials Hot Stamped on the handle in gold.  This is actually the first bag that I was able to go into a store and purchase.  My first Louis, I ordered from Eluxury.com, which is no longer open.  My second, I ordered over the phone.  My Niece Sammie came with me to help me pick out the perfect bag (you can see Sammie in all her cuteness if you go to my Newspaper nail polish post).  We had a lot of fun, and Mr. Fung was
ah-mazing.  He made me feel special which made waiting to go to the store even better. 

WOW this was an ah-mazing 4 days!  I will leave you with a few pictures from the parade, and also a few of my favorites from the Bergdorf Goodman window displays.  These were breath taking in person.  Oh and my favorite Louis Vuitton window, of course.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  xoxoxox

In the case of having a lot to be thankful for this year  - This case is SOLVED!

Detective Kathy

So many items ... So little money!

I received a call from my sister in law the other day telling me that a Rite Aid was closing its doors.  What that meant was 75% off everything in the store.  She told me how she got some great cosmetic deals when she was there!  This was a few days ago, and unfortunately I haven't had time to go take a look until today.  When I walked in the store was practically empty.  I was about to walk out and then I saw 3 stands full of cosmetics.  As I approached the sale racks I saw my holy grail Revlon Foundations in a plethora of dark colors!  These are right up my self tanned alley!  I ended up picking up 3 bottles of Revlon foundation.  I got a variety of colors since I like to mix them to get a custom color.  If I self tan, I am obviously darker than when I don't.  I bought one of the Photo Ready in #007 Cool Beige, and 2 of the ColorStay in #380 Rich Ginger, and #370 Toast.  I also decided to pick up some lip liners.  I got two Revlon ColorStay liners, one in Rose and the other in Natural.  I also picked up a Cover Girl Lip Perfection Liner in #210, and a Prestige Liner in Natural.  A few more goodies that I could not pass up were Revlon Color Burst Gloss in #014 Rose Pearl, Revlon Gloss in #200 Lilac Pastelle, Maybelline Color Sensation Lipstick in #300 Warm Latte, and the square lipgloss palette from the Revlon Gucci Westman Collection. 

Ok so now I am going to break it down for ya - That is 4 Lip Liners, 2 Lipglosses, 1 Lipstick, 1 Lipgloss palette, and 3 Foundations.  The total without the discount came to $97.05.  The total WITH the discount came to.......drum roll please.......$ $26.41!! YAY Can I get a - YOU GO GIRL!!! Can't beat that with a big fat bat!  Just call me bargain shopper.  All in all I am happy with my purchases.  I especially LOVE the Maybelline Lipstick.  It is so shimmery and pretty!  I am going to wear it tonight with a smoky bronze eye. 

Here is a picture of my treasures, I was so excited I didn't even take the ugly price tags off! - Let me just remind you one more time that you are looking at $97.05 worth of products below for a obscene low price of $26.41!!!

In the case of saving a lot of money on some drug store treasures - This case is SOLVED!

Detective Kathy

Excuse Me Smashbox Cosmetics .. Why Haven't We Met Before?

Since my milestone bday a few weeks ago I have been obsessed with looking younger.  I tanned both in a tanning bed and in the sun since I was about 15 years old.  I feel that I am actually lucky that my skin doesn't look like a piece of alligator skin because of all the damage, or at least I hope it doesn't!  One plus is that I learned about good skincare at an early age.  I used to have acne in my 20's and realized that good products and cosmetics were a must.  I blogged about my skincare routine a while ago and honestly nothing has changed.  I still LOVE my Chanel Ultra Correction Line Repair.  It is my holy grail of skincare items.  It is expensive but I totally believe worth every single penny!  As for foundation and other face products I have used Chanel powder foundations and bronzer for years now. 

As the years go by I finally realized that it is time to stop tanning!  Anyone who knows me probably won't even believe that one.  I was obsessed with being tan for as long as I can remember.  I now try to maintain a healthy SELF TAN and stay out of the beds.  For now at least!  Its like a 12 step program for me.  I really want to try and save the skin I have and not make it any worse! Um like the pac man shaped sun spot on my left cheek - um ya not so pretty!

So on to the topic at hand - Smashbox Cosmetics.  I really never had the opportunity to see Smashbox products up close and personal since Utla rolled into town about a year ago.  I always watched Holly on QVC doing her thing and was curious but never ended up purchasing.  I found myself with a bunch of Ulta gift certificates in my paws after my birthday and wanted to try something new.  I also wanted to be able to try the colors on to see if they were right for me, thanks Detective Lynn!

Here is what I ended up with  - Smashbox Studio Skin Foundation, Photo Set Pressed Powder, Soft Lights Shimmer, Bronze Lights Suntan Matte, Camera Ready Concealer, and Double Take Lip Color in Gossamer.  I realized that all of the other face products were way too dark for my newly lightened skin.  I wanted something that made my skin look more soft focus and glowing and  not so matte from all of the powder.  I also wanted something that photographs well.  Um because you never know where that paparazzi is hiding : P  Here is a photo of the products I bought along with some free gifts when I ordered the lip liner stick on the website -

I have to say that I am so happy with all these products.  The foundation is super long wear and gives a great coverage.  Its not too cakey and doesn't get in my lines (soft focus)!  To be honest I haven't tried the concealer as of yet.  I have been sick since I got it and haven't had a chance to wear it.   I will be using this tomorrow and will report back.  The shimmer powder is so pretty.  It gives my face a soft highlight and doesn't make me look like a shiny little disco ball!  The pressed powder is great to set my makeup and for touch ups throughout the day.  I got the color Medium in the pressed powder.  Usually I would go for the darkest of the bunch but I decided to look more natural these days.  The bronzer is matte, so again no disco ball.  It adds a healthy pop of color and doesn't make me look orange or like I am trying too hard.  I will be trying the highlighter in the little round pot tomorrow as well.  That was a free gift on the website, along with the little bag and lip colors.  Those were my bday gift from the website.  Most of my products were purchased at Ulta but the website offers fabu deals.  I have 2 more of the lip pencil/color coming tomorrow and I got a free full size gloss, along with a free mini gloss.  There was also a free Halo sample in the little pot (I can't wait to try this).  I would strongly suggest checking out Smashbox's website.  I have never received so many fun free gifts before.  This is a great way to try the products.  Oh and if you like double ended lip pencil and lip color sticks, run to the website because they are on Last Call Sale!!! 

If you have any questions about any of the products, please comment below or email me.  All in all I am so happy that I discovered Smashbox.  Don't worry I am still completely in love with Chanel, just thought I would try something new. Oh and believe me those dark colors will come in handy in about 5 more months when the sun shines down on Upstate NY again!

In the case of turning 40 and trying to look fabulous - This case is SOLVED! 

Detective Kathy

Nude/Pink Lip Trio - Featuring YSL Rouge Volupte Perle

As I sit here sipping down cough medicine like it's my morning coffee, I decided to write about a new lip trio I am loving.  Well I haven't been able to love it in days accept for in the Emergency Room!  Bronchitis is NOT my friend!  Anyhew, here is a new lipstick that Detective Lynn picked up for me on her recent romp through NYC! 

This is the YSL Rouge Volupte Perle lipstick in #107 Beige Impetueux.  YSL came out with the Perle line of Rouge Volupte sometime last year.  I have one which I like but it is a little bit gritty.  I read about the new ones being less gritty and more wearable than the original YSL RV's that are very matte.  If you have any sort of dryness on your lips these are not for you.  They also need to be dabbed on and not put on straight from the tube.  I have 2 of these and wear them only sometimes, even though the colors are gorgeous. 

The new Perle is very creamy and can be applied straight out of the tube.  The color that I got is a ... SURPRISE SURPRISE, a light nude pink.  I will swatch it below so you can see just how pretty it is.  I wear this color with Whirl lip liner from MAC and it is just gorgeous.  I have also worn this with Chanel's Sweet Beige Glossimer over the top.  This glossimer is the only item I ended up getting from the Holiday Collection.  I thought I would give my Nordstrom's card a break this holiday season! 

Here are the colors -

For thew swatches, the lipstick is in the middle, Sweet Beige Glossimer is on top, and the bottom is Whirl liner.  This trio is gorgeous together.  This is a high end nude/pink lip!  I am sure that there are a ton of less expensive products that would look the same.  I have to be honest and say that for me, there really is nothing like a gorgeous YSL lipstick and Chanel Glossimer to make me happy when skies are grey! 

In the case of finding yet another, Nude/Pink lip trio to grace my pout - This case is SOLVED!

Detective Kathy

B-day Haul Featuring - Tokyo Milk, Jo Malone, Nars, Deborah Lippman, & Hello Kitty

Well my Birthday was last Thursday and I had a fabulous day and weekend spending it with my wonderful friends and family.  I have also been sick and unable to spell my name, let alone write interesting words on my blog!  I thought that this was a perfect time to show you what I have accumulated over the past week. See what happens when you are home sick - you prowl the Internet like a hungry tiger!  I will write brief descriptions of everything so if you have any questions, please ask in the comment section! 

Here is a  picture of some items that I received for my birthday -

The first on the far left is the candle with the skull and crossbones.  This is from one of my favorite perfume lines Tokyo Milk.  I have written about one of their perfumes before called Dead Sexy.  This is a gorgeous fragrance which includes Deep Vanilla, Exotic Wood, White Orchid, and Ebony.  The gorgeous smelling candle is in the round tin, and a new bottle of perfume is next to it.  The perfume was actually a gift from my son who went all the way to my favorite store and bought it for me! Next up is fragrance by Jo Malone called Blue Agava & Cacoa Cologne.  I had heard of Jo Malone fragrances before but was never able to get my greedy perfume lovin hands on one until now.  This smell is exquisite!  Very sexy and fresh.  This also came with a TON of samples of Jo Malone's other amazing fragrances.  They are meant to mix and match, which I love to do.  Next up is an amazing eyeshadow palette from Nars called Arabian Nights.  If a shimmery, dark smoky eye is what you crave, this bad boy is a must!  I have a ton of black shadows that I always get compliments on.  Everyone says that they like the BLUE on my eyes.  This palette is true BLACK in every since of the word.  Since I am not tan anymore this is gorgeous and really makes that smoky "Glam Fairy" eye that I love.  Next is a polish from Deborah Lippman, my first and definitely not my last.  It is in the color Bad Romance.  This color is to die for!  Dark, rich, and mysterious.  LOVE IT!  Next are two other products form Tokyo Milk.  These are from their Dark Collection.  I received the  hand cream in Bulletproof.  This  features notes of Smoked Tea, Coconut Milk, Crushed Cedar, and Ebony Woods.  I also received the Lip Elixer in Salted Caramel.  It smells Divine and tastes so good you want to eat it!  Last but not least is my Hello Kitty Roller Ball Bling perfume in Grapefruit.  This cutie little roller ball makes me smile every time I pull it out of my handbag.  The smell works wonderful with my Jo Malone and compliments it perfectly.  WOW I went from dark and mysterious to Hello Kitty in a matter of seconds! 

I want to put a close up of the Nars palette so you can really see the colors -

I received a lot of gift certificates from Ulta which I couldn't wait to use up!  I actually decided to try a new line for me - Smashbox.  Detective Lynn and I spent countless hours, well maybe just one hour, finding just the right products for me!  I only had a few random Smashbox items and thought, since I am another year older, I should get some soft focus, HD products for my skin.  I will do a separate post on all of those products.  I used them all last week and they seem to work wonderful.  If you follow me on Twitter, you see that I received a new package from them yesterday.  So many perks ordering from the Smashbox web site.  I will tell you more in my next post. I also started using a new line for my curls called Quidad.  I am loving that as well.  So much more to share but one post at a time!

I hope that you enjoyed my haul.  I LOVE everything and cant wait to get better so I can wear all my new favs!

In the case of having a wonderful birthday this year - This case is SOLVED

Detective Kathy