HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY 2012

Memorial Day is a federal holiday observed annually in the United States on the last Monday of May. Typically Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Although others see this national holiday only as a day off from work to eat and drink to excess and the start of the summer vacation season.

Memorial Day was formerly known as Decoration Day. It originated after the American Civil War to commemorate the fallen Union soldiers of the Civil War. However, by the 20th century Memorial Day had been extended to honor all Americans who have died in all wars.

Many American families gather together during this time to visit cemeteries and memorials built to honor the fallen soldiers. While others have huge celebrations with all kinds of food and fun festivities. No matter how you celebrate this Federal holiday I would just like to extend my thanks to all those who have served our country. We should continue to honor and support our soldiers and their families not just during the holidays but throughout the whole year.

72 EFFRONTEE CHANEL ROUGE COCO SHINE HYDRATING SHEER LIPSHINE - SWATCHES AND REVIEW

CHANEL ROUGE COCO SHINE Hydrating Sheer LipShine: #72 EFFRONTEE ($32.50 USD) is described as a soft sensual rosewood pink lipstick. It does contain small flecks of sparkle that are visible in the tube and on the lips but its in such a way that it enhances the overall shine of the lipstick on the lips. This rouge coco shine is one of six new lipsticks to tentatively be added to Chanel's permanent line. You can read my earlier post about all of the new lip products here.

I really love the rouge coco shines because they go on smooth like a gloss, they don't taste icky like most lipsticks, and they deposit just enough color to my lips that it lasts a good portion of the day. I'm also still considering purchasing #70 Sourire rouge coco shine which is a vibrant intense pink but I haven't decided yet. I'm thinking it might be too bright for me but I'm going to check them all out again later today so I'll let you know what I decide. Anyway, even though I may or may not purchase the other rouge coco shines or any of the rouge coco lipsticks, I will try to post swatches of them all if I have the time.

ROUGE COCO SHINE makes an irresistible desire for lightness flit over your makeup. With its mischievous touch, it glides over lips with all the charm and freshness of a snapshot.

As melt-away as a balm, its lip-embracing texture becomes fluid on contact with the lips and provides a stunning wet effect with natural shine. Deliciously fresh and tender, it delivers an unforgettable sensation of well-being.

Lips are enveloped in the incomparable comfort of continuous 8-hour-long hydration thanks to the Hydratender complex, the secret of softness of the ROUGE COCO range.

Sparkling with vitality, your smile takes on sheer colour, from candid beige to tangy red.

ROUGE COCO SHINE comes in 18 shades infused with luminosity so that your smile adapts to every emotion and desire of each day.

From her first successes to magical encounters, their names tell the story of Coco Chanel at the dawn of her destiny.

Collect colours to your heart’s desire!

597 ISLAND CHANEL LE VERNIS NAIL COLOUR - SWATCHES AND REVIEW

CHANEL LE VERNIS NAIL COLOUR: 597 ISLAND NAIL POLISH ($26 USD)

Chanel Island nailpolish is part of the 2012 Chanel Summer collection and it is a light opalescent golden beige with a slightly pinkish shimmer. It is a beautiful color but I found it really hard to work with. (You can read more about the entire Summer collection here)

You will definitely need to use a base coat as this polish is rather unforgiving. It will show every imperfection on the nail bed and intensify it. When applying the polish it instantly left streaks no matter how many times I applied it to my nails. I even tried alternating with thin layers and thick layers of polish but it still left streaks. Maybe it is the type of finish this polish is supposed to have or maybe it was the brush that didn't allow for a smoother application. Either way, to me it looked rather sloppy and I wasn't really happy with the end results.

Final thoughts:
This is one of those polishes you can definitely skip. Not only because of the amount of time I spent trying to get an even application from this polish but also there are similar dupes available that will not require as much work and will not be as costly as this one.

I found two dupes: Sally Hansen Diamond Nail Strength in Nude Shimmer ($3.79 at Target) and China Glaze in Camisole ($5.99 at Sally Beauty Supply). Both are similar to Chanel Island but SH Nude Shimmer may have a touch more shimmer and CG may have a touch more peachy pink than Island but overall those two polishes are the closest dupes that I found.