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Musings of a Muse | Makeup Reviews, Beauty Blog, and Swatches
October 1, 2007

MuseTV Presents: Spotlight on Jill Stuart Cosmetics

Work is swamped this week and I’ve been staying late! But I didn’t forget about you lovely ladies so here, as promised, the kick off of the first day of Japanese Cosmetics Week!

I’m quite a girly girl in all aspects which means if it’s pretty I am all over it!

As women, we are lucky enough to have an array of brands to choose from. Brands that run from practical and conventional, to cute and girlish, to plain and simple, and finally some brands can boast elegance and style.

Jill Stuart is one brand that can most definately lay claim to elegance, style, and so much more. The sheer gorgeous packaging on a Jill Stuart product guarantees it’s bringing you the pretty as well as a high quality make-up item!

I’m a great lover of many brands but I can’t honestly say I’ve run into any brands that are more beautiful and feminine than this line of cosmetics. I love being able to have a gorgeous product to use AND display on my vanity! You’re not only getting a beautiful make-up item to wear on your face but also an item that is presented in such a way that it’s outwardly beautiful to behold as well as use!

I can honestly admit if the product happened to be of a shabby quality, which it is not, I would still want the items for the cute compacts and jars they come in. Possibly a waste of money but I must say the packaging most definately sells the product in this case. Their is no question that the product is a good one but I imagine a good portion of the sales are generated by fancy, lovely presentation!

MuseTV Presents: A Spotlight On Jill Stuart Cosmetics


Jill Stuart Blushes

Jill Stuart has an array of loose powder blush to choose from, at the moment the general catalog contains 9 colors that are, to me, flattering on most skin types!

The blushes overall are good quality items. The texture is like nothing I’m run across stateside. It’s a very chalky, thin powder. It goes on quite flawlessly if you get the correct color. If you happen to choose an unflattering shade chances are the flawless finish to the blush will actually look chalky and flaky. I have five of the nine colors and have only run across one that didn’t particularly work well for me which was orange plush but it’s a small problem that can easily be redeemed by applying a blusher over orange plush during application.

These blushes come as I said loose and in a fancy plastic jar with their own brush. The jar itself can easily be mistaken for glass if you display it on your vanity but of course, upon picking it up, it’s only plastic. Don’t let the plastic put you off, it takes nothing away from the lovely packaging!

Glowing Red, Cherry Frost and Aurora Rose

Pink Passion and Orange Plush

Each brush that comes with the blushes is quite good quality with no shedding problems. They are soft, solid brushes that work well with this style of powder blush! Application is as easy as applying your BareMineral foundation, swirl, dap, brush on! I’ve heard mixed reviews about application problems with the blush, I’ve experienced no such problems!

Each jar of loose powder blush runs about $26 USD. Once your blush is gone you can purchase a replacement bag of the blush but I’m sadly unsure what the cost is for that!

Overall I love the blush and highly recommend it with glowing cheeks 😉

Jill Stuart Loose Powder

The Jill Stuart Loose Powder comes in a similar jar as the blushes but a bit on the larger side. The powder comes in four different formulas which are shine, sparkle, natural and glow. I’ve only tried one of the four and that would be sparkle. The powder comes with a cute powder puff applicator and I personally use this as a finishing powder after I’ve completely my look. It creates a sheer sparkle effect much like Bare Escentuals gossamer face powders. If you’re not a lover of sparkle and shimmer this is perfectly fine to use because it’s very sheer minus the disco ball effect! The powder runs about $38 USD. It’s a perfectly great powder and gets my high rating!

Loose Powder Blush in Sparkle

Jill Stuart Eye Shadow Palettes

At the moment Jill Stuart has released seven eyeshadow palettes which contain four shimmering shadows in each compact. The textures of the shadows are on par with T’estimo palettes.

The texture is silky smooth and application is a breeze as the powder smooths on easily. Color intensity depends on many layers of the shadow you apply. One layer will give you a nice, gentle wash of color while two to three layers will give you a more dramatic, intense eye look. The colors are sparkley and full of shimmer.

I think, like other brands, the compacts sometimes come across with a strange combination of colors that give the appearance they won’t work together very well. Finding looks to come up with using some of these may prove difficult but with a little imagination you can create a fantastic eye look!

The compacts are extremely beautiful but unconventional to use outside of your home. If you’re looking for a compact to throw in your bag for touch-ups I strongly suggest looking elsewhere. The palettes are easy to scratch up if you stow them away in a purse or a make-up bag. The price per a palette is around $43 USD.

I adore these and can’t give them a big enough thumbs up!

Jill Stuart Pressed Powder

Jill Stuart has a line of pressed powders for every skin type. These are not foundation powders but just a pressed finishing powder or a powder you can use for quick touch ups. This formula, like the loose powder, comes in natural, shine, and sparkle. I only own one of the three and that would be…you guessed it..sparkle.

The sparkle powder doesn’t have much in the way of sparkle however I find it works fantastic when touching up under your eyes or powdering an oily forehead or a shiny nose!

It comes in, of course, an elegant compact with sponge applicator. Cost wise this carries a high price tag of $45 USD but is well worth it!

The powder isn’t an absolute must have but it is a nice conversation piece. You can probably skip it if you’re low on cash but if you happen to have the extra money I strongly suggest nabbing one or two!

Jill Stuart Pressed Powder Blush

Finally, last but not least I give you the Jill Stuart Pressed Powder Blushes! There was much excitement and fanfare when these were introduced and many people were eager to get their hands on them. You can see why they were so eagerly anticipated. The compact is a gorgeous silver affair with a detachable silver jeweled brush!

Our first views of these had many people worried about the practicality of having a brush that hung from a compact. How would we apply a blush with a brush hanging from the side? How would we store it? So many questions and a bit of disappointment for all! However, after further pictures were released in magazines and on blogs, much to our relief, we learned the brush was in fact detachable. The brush clips right off of the compact making for easy application and simple storage! The brush’s first reviews were poor ones. It was reviewed as being stiff and hard in texture but to my relief, upon getting my compacts, I found the brush was not so bad and quite soft without any shedding of any kind much like the loose powder brush but a little stiffer!

I can’t review the blush as it’s just been too pretty to touch as of yet but I can tell you that I’ve heard various review in poor favor of this! It was awaited patiently and eagerly and when it finally got to shops and was purchased a majority of the purchasers were disappointed and cried out their dismay at the fact that the blushes were so sheer with very minimal pigment! I’ve come across more bad reviews than I have good but again, I can’t speak for myself as I’m still in the phase of stroking it lovely and telling it how gorgeous it is and quickly putting it back in my beauty vault! Blushes run about $38 USD.

I’d recommend nabbing one just for the packaging alone if you have some extra cash! If not wait for the Muse to use hers and of course she’ll give you her honest opinion of it!

Jill Stuart carries a full range of cosmetics which includes glosses, lipsticks, single eyeshadows, face care, and more…

Check out the website by clicking here.

I know of two online shops that carry the line but the prices are not what you’ll be paying retail sadly.

Those shops are:

Bobodave

and

Ichibankao

Prices increases go from anywhere from $5-$25 on top of retail cost.

You can find certain items on E-bay but again prices are jacked up!

Most all my Jill Stuart was purchased by friends and shipped to me via airmail so if you happen to have a friend living in Japan that makes life easier and cheaper!

Well…

That’s it 🙂

I hope you enjoyed exploring Jill Stuart cosmetics! Check back tomorrow for a new Japanese Brand Spotlight!

Stay Tuned tomorrow for an FOTD using Jill Stuart Cosmetics!

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October 1, 2007

theBalm: Balm Shell Lipgloss

Remember those moving pens from yesteryear?

I live in New York thus I am overexposed to crazy sovereigns of all kinds. Statue of Liberty keychains, I Love New York T-Shirts, Empire State Building figures, and of course the moving pen.

Now if you’ve never seen a moving pen let me elaborate further. Basically it’s a regular everyday pen but the upper part would have some sort of scene. In my case it’d be a scene of New York and a taxi. The taxi part of the scene would move up and down the pen as you flipped the pen upside down to right side up!

Brilliant right?

A moving screwdriver pen with a truck that moves back and fourth:

Fascinating isn’t it?

Oh you wanted to know what the hell this has to do with cosmetics didn’t you?

Sorry about that 😉

theBalm has decided to nick the idea of the moving pen and use it on their new lipglosses called Balm Shell.

Each gloss has a different girly fun scene such as a day at the beach, a day shopping, etc..etc.. The moving illustration is unique to each shade and story line within the glosses little handle!

When the lip-gloss is finished, the handle can be unattached and used as a keychain!

Fun Fun!

The Muse wants some of these just for the cute factor alone!

Each gloss is $22 each and comes with the keyring.

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October 1, 2007

Bare Escentuals Classic Rock Flawless Diamond Color Collection

My Jill Stuart video and blog are a bit late coming today! But until I can post it I bring you the new Bare Escentuals Classic Rock Flawless Diamond Color Collection!

Diamonds are most definitely a girl’s best friend this year! I see a trend developing here.

Givenchy is delighting us with it’s Diamantisimme collection and now Bare Escentuals is bringing the bling with it’s newest set!

If you remember prior to all this Victoria’s Secret had released it’s Sparkling Diamond collection this past summer.

The Classic Rock collection has a similar promise as the Victoria’s Secret Sparkling Diamond collection which would be…drum roll please…..genuine diamond powder that is crushed into the minerals.

I can really get excited about this.

So I want it. Like now.

The collection is $59 and includes Diamond Gossamer powder, Classic Rock Eyeshadow (white silver), Nice Rock Glimmer (chocolate), Diamond Laughter Blush (peach), Diamond Beautifully Luminous Lashes (black mascara and white Luminous Lashes to add a silver sparkle to lashes), Diamond Lip Polish, Full Flawless Face Brush, and a Diamond faux leather bag!

Oh my all the bling is making me hyper!

I deem this a must have for the holiday season!

Wish List anyone?

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September 30, 2007

Next Week: MuseTV Presents A Week of Video Blogging

Next week I’ll be doing a spotlight on Japanese Brand cosmetics for the week you’ll see a new video each day starting Monday and ending on Friday.

I get many questions in regards to Japanese Brands and I thought I’d spotlight some different brands for you to view close up. I’ll be doing impressions of the products, reviews, pictures, and of course the video that goes along with it.

In preparation for the week in video I made this one in explanation of why MuseTV has been out of commission for a month or more!

Note: The video on Jill Stuart will be on display for your viewing pleasure on Monday! Check back!

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September 30, 2007

Latest Japanese Haul

The Muse went a little crazy and ordered a few new Japanese goodies!

Here’s her latest haul from the west end of the world:

T’estimo Gift Set

I’ve no idea how old this gift set is but it could be Christmas last year! After hearing the tale of T’estimo demise I went into mourning and soon after decided to make it my business to collect what remaining T’estimo I don’t already own and stash it away in my collection before it was gone for good!

This nifty little kit contained two mini lipsticks and two cream eyeshadows in pink and gold colors! Overall it was quite a cute gift set and I’m thrilled to own it!

Shiseido as we know it here, in the US, is not a cheap brand of cosmetic. It’s a high end of make-up that is purchased in posh shops. Shiseido is on a different sphere in Japan and how the Japanese know the brand. Shiseido is well known for not only expensive designer cosmetics in Japan but also cheaper drugstore brands such as Majorca Majolica, Maquillage, Etc… Shiseido has some amazingly inexpensive and fabulous branch offs in Japan that are not available in the states or Europe. Some of these brands are my truest love. The following are a new line, for me, that I came across. It’s a very inexpensive brand of cosmetic that Shiseido has out and quite nice for such a low end brand of make-up!

Update: With a little help from your friends you can find just what you need! The website for this cheesy little brand can be found here: http://www.kesho-wakusei.com/lineup/makeup/index.htm Thanks so much to Flecks for the information!

Trio Palette

These palettes slide open to reveal two shadows and a glittering lipgloss. Not the best palette in the world but quite cute for a casual, minimal make-up look!

Loose Powder Blushes

I got two of these loose powder blushes. The pink is ultra sheer but does give a bit of a wash of color! The white is gorgeous and pretty pigmented, I probably won’t use it much on my cheeks but it will make a great base for shadows! Plenty of shimmer in the white too! The Muse likes shimmer!

Dual Contouring Blushes/Highlighters

Interesting blushes. One in glittering white and one in gold. Ok in the pigment department but does hold a nice glitter content, good for contouring or highlighting your face. One side holds a shimmering side and the other a matte side. Overall I’m pretty happy with these and I’m eager to try them out for size!

Pinkolors Palette

I’ve never seen this brand before and it’s brand new to my eyes. I’ve searched but I haven’t found a word about Pinkolors on the internet aside from some auctions selling it! This was a last minute purchase due to the cute packaging design! The colors in the palette are pretty nice but sheer. Good for a casual make-up day or using them as a base for a more vibrant shade!

All in all some interesting little tidbits in this haul!

Enjoy the pics and first impressions!

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