NARSissist Cheek Studio Palette

The NARSissist Cheek Studio Palette ($65; sephora.com) is new for spring, a Sephora exclusive cheek palette with a few exclusive & existing blush shades - Laguna Bronzing Powder, Paloma Contour Blush, Blush I in Icy Lilac,  Blush II in Sausalito Sunset, Blush III in Shimmering Rose Peach and Blush IV (Goule) in Fleshy Pink. The palette is packaged beautifully. It feels luxurious and weighty. The colors in there are gorgeous and pack on great pigmentation and blendability. Blush I was the only one that wouldn’t show up on my skintone and needed to be built up a little, but everything else was just fabulous and great quality as the singles from NARS. I like to use a floppy, less dense brush with these blushes for a wash of color. Something similar to NARS’ Yachiyo works great too! They aren’t patchy, the colors are pretty unique and a great addition to my blush stash. Its a fabulous palette to have and one of my favorite launches this spring, along with the NARSissist L’Amour Toujours L’Amour Palette!

*Press Sample

EmerginC Blue Poppy Enzyme Polish

EmerginC is a brand new to me and I recently tried out one of their physical face exfoliators, the Blue Poppy Enzyme Polish ($54; emerginc.com). Its a gentle physical scrub that polishes and refines skin texture, taking care of dry spots. To use, I just massage a little bit onto skin for a couple of minutes and rinse off. I have pretty dry and sensitive skin, so I’d recommend this not more than 2-3 times a week, even though it is quite gentle. The texture is quite scrubby with teeny tiny blue poppy seeds in a creamy base. The seeds don’t actually dissolve even with water, so they do tend to get left over after washing the scrub off. The creamy base is quite nice for drier skin types and won't dry skin too much and isn’t too harsh for a physical exfoliant. It did leave my skin feeling very soft and quite polished, though I did need to use a light layer of moisturizer afterwards. Overall, while not something heavy duty, for frequent use, this one is a good scrub that will take care of dead skin and flaky spots quite well.

*Press Sample

Dior Lip Glow Color Reviver Balm in Lilac | Dior Glowing Gardens Spring 2016 Collection

Dior’s new limited edition Lip Glow Color Reviver Lip Balm in Lilac ($33; sephora.com) is part of Dior’s Spring Glowing Gardens Collection. Its a sheer tinted balm that enhances natural lip color, while providing a little bit of moisture. The color changes depending on each one’s body chemistry. I found Dior’s Pink Lip Glow to be a tad too pink and bright on me, but Lilac was a barely there pink that hardly showed up. I expected the color to be a pink with a lilac tint, but was just a little disspointed. The texture is nice, not the most glossiest, but decently moisturizing. The packaging is very Dior and nice too. I love the concept of a lilac tint and Dior does lip products well, but this one is not something I’d call a must have from the collection. Nice to have, but not a must have at least for someone with pigmented lips like mine. 

Fekkai PrX Reparatives Shampoo and Conditioner

Fekkai PrX Reparatives Shampoo and Conditioner ($30 each; fekkai.com) have been on my haircare rotation the past couple of months. The duo is great for dry hair that needs extra nourishment. My hair has been quite dry and lackluster lately and this has been quite a nice treat. The Shampoo has a very rich lather, a little goes a really long way and keeps hair super nourished and soft. It does take care of tangles too, but the Conditioner leaves hair frizz free when followed up with. The Conditioner is more like a hydrating mask and does a fabulous job smoothening dry ends too. The scent is quite nice, a little strong and lingers on for a bit even after its washed off. Like most moisturizing, repairing shampoos, this one too needs a good clarifying shampoo to be used in conjunction with once a week to avoid product build up. That apart, its a great line for slightly dry hair that needs some shine and bounce without getting weighed down too much. 

*Press Sample

Dior Vernis Bleuette 301 | Dior Glowing Gardens Spring 2016 Collection

Dior Vernis Bleuette ($27; shop.nordstrom.com) is a limited edition nail polish, part of Dior’s Spring’16 Collection. Its a gorgeous blue creme with Dior’s beautiful gel like formula. The color is perfect for spring, without being too pastel-y with just the right the right consistency. It needs two coats for opacity, though three would be perfect. Bleuette lasted really well on me too, three days until I saw some chipping and tip wear. Its a beautiful, soft blue with a certain transparency to it that would flatter most skin tones. Plus, Dior’s gel formula and brush is fantastic to cover the nail in just one stroke. Overall, I think both Lilac and Bleuette are must haves from the Dior Spring’16 collection, especially if you love the Dior Gel Shine nail polish formula.

NARS Velvet Matte Skin Tint in St.Moritz

Velvet Matte Skin Tint ($44; narscosmetics.com) is NARS’ newest launch this Spring. It comes in 12 shades with an SPF of 30 and leaves a soft, satin matte finish with medium coverage. Its the perfect lightweight coverage for Spring and Summer. I wear St. Moritz in the regular Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer, and wear the same in Velvet Matte too. Its the perfect color match for me. The coverage is medium, yet buildable, needing a concealer for problem spots. The formula feels like a cream to powder, yet quite balancing without being too matte and blends in seamlessly. If you have very dry skin though, a good moisturizer underneath helps with better application. I din’t really need to powder over, but I just used a tad to set everything in place. Compared to Pure Radiant, I find this a little more long wearing and a tad more lightweight, though it is a little less dewy looking. Overall, its fantastic, just the right amount of coverage for a very natural look without the heavy feel. 

Wearing the NARS Velvet Matte Skin Tint in St.Moritz paired with YSL Touch Eclat in 5.5, Giorgio Armani Lumious Silk Compact in 5.5

Velvet Matte Skin Tint is available on NARSCosmetics.com and at NARS boutiques now and at Sephora and specialty stores on February 1st, 2016.

*Press Sample

Lavanila Vanilla Bean Creamy Body Scrub

Lavanila’s Vanilla Bean Creamy Body Scrub ($40; sephora.com) is a creamy body exfoliator with crushed vanilla beans in a creamy base. The scrub itself is very gentle and not too gritty. The scent is very warm and comforting, but just a tad strong. The creamy base is prefect for dry skin while the crushed vanilla granules help smoothen dry spots. I would recommend following up with a good body lotion though. It doubles up as a great hand/foot scrub too and washes off without any kind of residue. Overall, if you like gentle body scrubs, free of parabens, phthalates and artificial fragrances, do give the Lavanila Vanilla Bean Body Scrub a try!

*Press Sample

NARSissist L’Amour Toujours L’Amour Palette

The NARSissist L’Amour Toujours L’Amour Palette ($59; narscosmetics.com) is new for spring ’16. Its a limited edition palette with 12 eyeshadows ranging from everyday neutrals to rich jewel tones. The shade selection is fabulous and the packaging of the palette is weighty and luxurious. The colors are all very pigmented and blendable. There’s everything in here for everyday neutral looks to something more dramatic. A couple of the shades, especially the mattes (IV, I, VII and X) were a tad fallout prone, but otherwise, everything else was just great. I do think the mattes make for great transition shades.The shimmery shades are great as lid colors and look great as sheer washes too. Overall, a very gorgeous palette that’s definitely worth checking out. There’s a great range of colors that make for really nice neutral looks and something a little more dramatic. My absolute favorites from the palette that I have gravitated towards the most are III Amethyst Ash, VII Pistol Grey, XI Shimmering Taupe Cashmere and IX Industrial Steel! 

*Press Sample

Oscar de la Renta Something Blue Eau de Parfum and Body Lotion

Oscar de la Renta Something Blue ($85; macys.com) is a light floral fragrance, very crisp, yet feminine and perfect for the spring and summer seasons. Notes include neroli blossom, bergamot, mandarin, linden blossom with vanilla, musk, amberette seed, ambergris and warm cashmere wood at the base. The opening is light and fresh, lots of citrus and florals mix in to add that zestiness. The dry down according to me is mostly vanilla with just a touch of the musk - very soft and creamy without being too sweet. The bottle design is beautiful, a small rounded bottle with a blue cap that is rather nice and simple. I found the body lotion fast absorbing and light, great to be layered with the fragrance, which by itself is quite lasting on me. Overall, its a fragrance that would appeal to a lot of people, especially great for the warmer seasons and one that isn’t too strong or too light, yet quite playful and citrusy.

*Press Sample

Dior Vernis Lilac 491 | Dior Glowing Gardens Spring 2016 Collection

Dior Vernis Lilac ($27; shop.nordstrom.com) is a new, limited edition nail polish, part of Dior’s new Glowing Gardens Spring’16 Collection. Lilac is a gorgeous pink creme with a fantastic formula, much like most of Dior’s Gel Nail Polish line. Lilac is quite a cool toned color that looks mostly pink with just a hint of Lilac. The formula, consistency and texture was just perfect and the drying time was super quick too. Lilac isn't an extremely unique shade, but I still couldn’t find anything similar to or even close enough in my stash. Its definitely a must have color for spring that I’d wear all through summer!