Friday, September 28, 2012

Burberry Lip Velvet Lipsticks Now Available at Nordstrom

Burberry's new Lip Velvet (the matte-but-hydrating lipsticks I mentioned in this post) are available at Nordstrom.com!



If you are interested in these but want more info before ordering, give Angie at the Burberry counter in Nordstrom Bellevue a call at 425-455-5800 x1043, or email Angie.Streeter@nordstrom.com.  She can help you choose a color, and send you samples of products you want to try.  Tell her you found her info here at Pretty Addicted.*

*I do not receive anything for referrals.


Image courtesy of nordstrom.com


Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Nordstrom Trend Show, Burberry New Lipsticks and GWP

This Saturday, September 15, is Nordstrom Bellevue's Fall Trend Show, and the Burberry Beauty counter will have three new lipsticks in a new matte formula.  They will also be offering two fabulous gifts with purchase!

The new formula is called Velvet, and offers a long-wearing matte finish that will still hydrate the lips.  There will be three shades available now, and 12 in total to follow. I am anxious to try these because I find Burberry's existing lipsticks quite hydrating ... while historically I have found matte lipsticks drying on my lips, I know that if anyone can make a hydrating matte, it's Burberry!

Here are the three shades available at the Trend Show - Military Red, Pink Apricot, and Pink Azalea:
Burberry Velvet lipstick - Military Red

Burberry Velvet lipstick - Pink Apricot

Burberry Velvet Lipstick - Pink Azalea

These shades look gorgeous, especially Military Red and Pink Azalea.  As I said, there will just be these three for now (in a limited quantity for the Trend Show - if you are interested, definitely pre-order), but more are coming soon.

Burberry will also have two gifts with purchase.  The first is available with a $150 purchase, and includes a full-size Pale Rose eye shadow:


The second is a 3-in-1 eye/lip/cheek cube, available with a $200 minimum purchase.  Unfortunately, the only available image is in black and white:

Add caption

Angie from Bellevue's Burberry counter says that the color is a little darker than Cameo Pink (you can see Cameo Pink lipstick along with a few others at The Beauty Look Book here and at Cafe Makeup here) and can be applied anywhere on the face, but she particularly recommends the cheeks and lips.

Also - those eye palettes I wrote about in this post will be available in November, and Angie is currently accepting pre-orders for them.   I can't wait to see these palettes!

If you would like to place an order, call Angie at 425-455-5800 x1043, or email Angie.Streeter@nordstrom.com.  She is always very helpful, and she will ship your order for free! Tell her you found her info here at Pretty Addicted.*

*I do not receive anything for referrals.

All images c/o Burberry Beauty  

Monday, September 10, 2012

PSA: Sephora Makeup Artist Belt Set - SALE

I would like to direct you to Sephora's website, where they are currently selling their Makeup Artist Belt Set for $99 with free 3-day shipping!  The set would normally sell for $275.  At $99, it amounts to under $7.00 per brush and a free pro brush belt (which Sephora sells separately for $42).  What a fantastic deal!

It looks like Sephora is discontinuing and re-vamping some of these brushes, so they are selling the set at a massive discount to make room for the new products.  Included is their Makeup Artist Belt and 15 brushes:


- Professional Natural Crease Brush #10
- Professional Natural Smudge Brush #11
- Professional Natural All Over Shadow Brush #12
- Professional Natural Medium Eyeshadow Brush #14
- Professional Lash & Eyebrow Comb #21
- Professional Angle Brush #22
- Professionnel Platinum Smokey Eye Brush #24
- Professionnel Platinum Natural Powder Brush #40
- Professionnel Platinum Natural Slant Brush #42
- Professionnel Platinum Natural Fan Brush #43
- Professionnel Platinum Stippling Brush #44
- Professionnel Platinum Concealer Brush #45
- Professionnel Platinum Foundation Brush #47
- Professionnel Platinum Bronzer Brush #48
- Professionnel Platinum Lip Brush #61

I have some of Sephora's Professional brushes, and I am pleased with the quality.  The Smokey Eye Brush #24 is one of my favorites, and Lisa Eldridge recommended it as well in this video of her favorite brushes.  I also like the Crease Brush #10 and the Natural Slant Brush #42.  Those are the ones from this set I have tried, and I recommend them.  Based on my experience, this is a fantastic value!  I have ordered one of these myself.

You can purchase this set by clicking here.  It is not an affiliate link, and I do not receive anything if you click through/purchase.

Image c/o Sephora.com

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Rouge Bunny Rouge Fall 2012 - Santa Ana

Rouge Bunny Rouge has launched a new look for Fall 2012, and it is stunning.  Read on for details, products, and a tutorial.  I love the suggestion of mattifying the lipstick by using the matte primer on top!

From Rouge Bunny Rouge:


Rouge Bunny Rouge Fall 2012 - Santa Ana


Rouge Bunny Rouge - Santa Ana

Alluding to the winds that herald Autumn, ‘Santa Ana’ is a statement for the new season.  This look of effortless sophistication is inspired by the allure of crimson on porcelain skin, underlining the feminine silhouette surrounded by shadows and light.

Bold, red lips with a velvet, satin finish are like your little black dress - to be constantly reinvented, appearing elegantly fresh. Colour Burst Lipstick ‘Raw Silence’ is offset with eyes subtly defined with the new colours of Long-lasting Eye Shadows and cheeks blooming with the warmth of Bronzing Glow Powder.

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

PSA: Kate Spade Celina Dress - SALE!

I know I don't normally post on clothes here, but I do every now and again when there is something I love.  I had tried the Kate Spade Celina Dress in store and fell in love with it, but there are a lot of things on my list for fall and at $398, the dress just wasn't in my budget.  I have been watching it though, hoping to catch it on sale, and it has paid off!

Today I found the Kate Spade Celina Dress on sale at Bloomingdale's, plus an extra 25% off!  The code TAKE25 is valid for today only (8/28/12).  If you sign up for Bloomie's emails, you can get an extra 10% code on top of that.  The price comes to about $208, and it's even less if you have the extra 10% code for new subscribers.

Kate Spade Celina Dress - image c/o bloomingdales.com

Bloomingdale's offers free shipping on orders over $150, so this dress will ship for free.

The drawback is that the Celina is backordered til October 1, but I have some weddings later that month and this dress will be perfect.  It will also serve me well over the holidays.  I'm excited about this find, and I hope it helps someone!

Click here to see the dress at bloomingdales.com!

FYI:  The link goes directly to Bloomingdale's (NOT an affiliate link) and I do not get anything if you click through or buy it.  This is just a great deal I wanted to share :)

EDIT:  TAKE25 has expired, but you can use BIGBAG20 to get 20% off through Monday Sept. 3.

Friday, August 3, 2012

Dior Les Violets Hypnotiques: Orchid, Shadow, Poison Vernis

Dior has released its Les Violets Hypnotiques nail polish collection (previously exclusive outside the U.S. and to select Dior boutiques in the U.S.) for the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale 2012.  Historically, I have not been into Dior nail polishes but when I saw these beauties as I was perusing the sale, I was stopped in my tracks!

Dior Les Violets Hypnotiques: (L to R) Orchid, Shadow, Poison
More details and swatches after the jump!

Monday, July 23, 2012

Why I Canceled my Glossybox Subscription

I don't usually do rant-y posts like this, but I feel it's necessary in this case.  I received terrible service from Glossybox, and I know I am not alone.  My experience with Glossybox has been awful, and I feel compelled to share it with others who might be considering the service.  This will be a long post.

Like many others, I was excited to hear that the Glossybox beauty sample subscription service was finally coming to the U.S.  Glossybox had received fantastic reviews from many European bloggers, and I recall that one time they included in their box a full-size Rouge Bunny Rouge lip gloss.  That was enough to pique my interest.  Priced at $21 per month, they charge more than other sample services (such services average $10-$15 here in the U.S.), but they promised to include larger travel-sized samples.  I thought it was definitely worth checking out.

I didn't make it in time to get the May box, which was a bummer because it was a fantastic box that included a mini Burberry lipstick (and if you have read my blog you know all about my love for Burberry), but I was able to sign up for June and was certain June's box would be just as fabulous.

I paid for my subscription on May 14.  It wasn't until 6 weeks later on June 28 that I received confirmation that my June box had shipped, which irked me but at least it was finally on its way.  I clicked the tracking information, and it said that my box had been received by their third party shipper in Kearny, NJ on June 22.  That was the last update the tracking information would receive.

Although I was annoyed, I waited patiently for my box.  I checked the tracking information daily, only to see that my box was still in Kearny, NJ.   I contacted Glossybox about the issue and was told that the boxes had shipped out late and that's why I still hadn't received mine (no kidding!  I figured that much out myself), but that the box was on its way and I would receive it soon.  Despite my repeated questions, no one addressed the issue of the tracking information saying my box had been in NJ since June 22.

On July 2, I still had not received my box and the tracking information still had not updated, but I received an email from Glossybox confirming that I had been charged for a July box.  This upset me, because I had been counting on evaluating my June box before deciding whether I wanted to continue with July.  This was why I had selected the month-to-month option as opposed to a 6-month or 1-year membership.

Many others were upset as well at being charged for July's box before they received the June box.  Several people complained via Facebook about this, and Glossybox merely stated that it's their policy to charge in the beginning of the month and ship at the end; they were not at all apologetic and did not say anything about fixing the problem in the future.  Their Facebook page became inundated with unsatisfied customers who could not get an adequate response from customer service letting Glossybox know how they felt and asking to be refunded.  I was one of those people, and Glossybox deleted my comment.

I again contacted Glossybox via email and was told that it was their policy to charge in the beginning of the month and ship at the end, which was why I was charged for July before I had received my June box. I was finally able to get the July charge refunded after threatening to file a dispute with my credit card company.

In the beginning of July, reviews of the June boxes started to trickle out.  A lot of people were disappointed in their boxes.  Many reported that one of the samples, a small bottle of body wash, had leaked all over the inside of the box while it was in transit, coating everything on the inside of the box and ruining the box itself.  Glossybox was requesting that anyone who had this complaint send them photo evidence of the damaged box.  In several cases, people reported on Facebook that instead of replacing all the damaged contents of the box, Glossybox merely sent a replacement body wash sample.  I was very disappointed to hear all of this was going on, and I was growing more anxious to see in what condition my box would arrive.

On July 10, almost two months after I had paid and two weeks after it had shipped, I still had not received my June box.  I again contacted Glossybox.  I was told that they looked at my tracking info (FINALLY), and a replacement box would be shipped to me ASAP.

On July 18, I still had not received an update or tracking information for the replacement box, so I contacted them again regarding the replacement.  I  have not received a response.  It is now July 23, two weeks after I was assured that a replacement would be sent, and I have not received any update or tracking information for the replacement box.

I called customer service today to tell them to forget about sending the replacement and to just refund my payment.  I was told that my replacement box had in fact shipped on July 16 (a week after I was told it would go out ASAP) and they could not give me a refund for a box that has already shipped.  For some reason, no tracking number was ever sent to me even though Glossybox said that it should have been sent.  The replacement box is now somewhere in Indiana and is still making its way to Seattle.  I am fairly certain that if my June box ever arrives, it will not make it here until August.

I have been a Birchbox subscriber for about six months now, and have never once experienced a problem.  Some boxes have been better than others in terms of my personal taste, but I would say that in terms of quality, overall the boxes have gotten better over time.  I receive my boxes in the same month that I am billed, and the boxes always arrived nicely packaged with nothing leaking, missing, or otherwise.  From what I have heard from others who have experienced problems, Birchbox has addressed the issue immediately and to the customer's satisfaction.  All of this, and Birchbox is only $10 per month.  I haven't even been able to get a box from Glossybox.

Glossybox has stated that in response to overwhelming customer demand, they will start charging people closer to when the boxes will ship (they will charge second week and ship the third week, I believe).  On their Facebook page they said that everyone will have their tracking information this month by July 25.  The way I see it, with how extremely slow their shipping has been, most people are still likely to receive their boxes sometime in August.  It is also likely that many will again be charged for August boxes before they receive their July box.  Although I hope it does, I do not see how this new policy is going to change anything at Glossybox.

Glossybox has been all too eager to part people from their money, but very reluctant to provide the product or adequate service related to the product.  It has been 2.5 months since I paid for my June box, and I have yet to receive it.  The replacement that they told me they would send two weeks ago is still nowhere near arriving in Seattle.  Any response Glossybox has given to my requests has been after repeated attempts on my part to contact them, and their responses in general have not adequately addressed my concerns.  I have canceled my Glossybox subscription, and I am not likely to return.  It would take a major turn-around for me to consider purchasing a subscription in the future.  For the record, in case it isn't clear, it is not necessarily that I have had problems, but how poorly Glossybox has handled those problems, that made me decide to cancel and will keep me from going back.

If you are trying to decide whether to join Glossybox, I urge you to do research beforehand!  Check out their Facebook page, where many customers have posted their dissatisfaction with the service (although I know that Glossybox sometimes deletes these comments), and check out what bloggers have to say.  And finally, understand that while not everyone has had problems with the service, in the strong likelihood that you are one of the many who do encounter difficulties, Glossybox will probably not be of much help.