PSA: Sephora Flash Shipping

I just signed up for Amazon Prime last month because I, like many people these days, prefer to shop online. It allows me to make better use of my time. I’m not here to shill Prime to you. If you’re here (…on the internet?), reading, you know what it is, you’ve heard about it, and you know a lot of the benefits.

I had a completely different post scheduled for today (something else new, fun an intriguing), but this is too good, friends.

To my delight, I happened upon this glorious page on Sephora’s site – Sephora Flash Shipping.

Sephora Flash Shipping

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Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish

Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish FoundationWe went so long without comically long names, but Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation makes two this month.

This is foundation I mentioned in my New and Noteworthy at Sephora post last month – the one that I was super excited to try? I wanted it, and in fact almost ordered it when I ordered my Silk’n Flash & Go Freedom – but being unsure of my coloring, I decided not to (yes, I know I can return/exchange it – but if I can also make a little effort before buying to see if its the right color, I’d like to. I don’t want stores to have to trash products because I was lazy. Don’t be that guy, that guy sucks).

During my most-recent Sephora trip I mentioned, before they used ColorIQ to, “match,” me, I mentioned that I was interested in the new Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation and lamented its online-only status. One of the bubbly SA’s chimed in that they carried it.

What?! Are you sure?!

She was sure. Her friendly team-mates were sure.

Okay, they carry it. That is fantastic…and probablydefinitely meant I’d be making an unplanned (for that trip, anyway) purchase. ColorIQ matched me to 16 – Linen, which was comically inappropriate for my ghastly-for-me complexion. I had a friend with me and she was highly amused by the, “Oh, no – no no no,” face I made when I tried to blend it out. It probably matches the skin I’m in when I’m, you know, not in winter hibernation mode…but not now. I shook the tester for 12 – Ecru, and dispensed a single drop onto the back of my hand. Like all the other serum foundations out there (YSL Fusion Ink [costs 2.5x as much], Perricone No Foundation-Foundation Serum [more than 2x as much], bareMinerals BareSkin [$5 more, so-so reviews]), it has a very thin consistency. But don’t be dissuaded – one drop went so. damn. far. just on the back of my hand.

Insert whatever choir of angels audio springs to your mind by default. Yeah, I bought it. Is that a question?

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Sephora’s ColorIQ is Drunk, Sometimes

ColorIQColorIQ by Sephora & Pantone

‘Tis winter and hence I am pale. I’m not using my Million Dollar Tan because a faux-glow in February doesn’t mean much to me. Ponds Luminous Finish BB+ is the only thing that has matched me for a while, so on a recent trip to Sephora, I had them bust out the old (okay, it isn’t old at all) ColorIQ to match me.

I really love to see technology intermixing with makeup. In fact, I’ve probably talked about how much I love the idea of ColorIQ, and how innovative it is.

I was able to have the SA assisting me bypass my cheek area because I have non-rosacea redness on my cheeks sometimes that throws off the match by thinking I have pink undertones. Instead, he matched my forehead, jawline, and chin. We did get a yellow-toned match this time, but it assigned me 3Y04. Before even seeing the matches, I knew it would be too dark.

Even though it didn’t match me to an Urban Decay shade, the SA wanted to take a shot at it and grabbed 3.0 (which I’ve tried before and will in no universe match me), and 2.0 – which is actually rated for 3Y03 – which surprisingly turned out to match. But this was luck, not ColorIQ knocking it out of the park.

In what I was looking for, Sephora’s new serum foundation (I spotted it in the new and noteworthy stuff!), it matched me to shade 16 – Linen. Based on what I read online I figured I’d be that or 12 – Ecru. I swatched Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation in 16, based on my ColorIQ assignment and it was hilariously dark for me. I didn’t even put it on my face – just swatching it on the back of my hand I could tell it was too much. I tried again with 12 – Ecru, and found my match but this was my own guess.

I want to love the device, I do – but it either needs further refinement, or there’s been enough user error every single time I’ve used it to not get a one-hit-one-kill match. I still think it is worth using because it gets you in the ballpark if you’re otherwise lost, but Sephora’s ColorIQ is drunk, sometimes. I’m looking forward to future versions of the device that can give us closer approximations to what we need, but I still applaud Sephora and Pantone for trying.

Noteworthy and New at Sephora

I was browsing, as I often do, and came across some noteworthy and new items on Sephora.com. I haven’t tried any of these products, but they’re interesting enough to talk about.

New at Sephora - Kat von D Shade + Light Contour Palette

Kat von D Shade + Light Contour Palette, $46

The KvD-branded makeup line has released a contour palette new at Sephora ostensibly as an Anastasia contender. It only comes in one set of shades (more similar to Anastasia’s lighter palette) and has spectacular reviews so far. Curiously, the darker pans (for carving out cheekbones and whatnot) contain more product than the highlighting/setting pans. KvD/Sephora also released this dual-ended HaC (that’s Highlight and Contour) brush to go with, priced at $36, though any you prefer, of course, will do.

New at Sephora - Hourglass Modernist Eyeshadow Palette

Hourglass Modernist Eyeshadow Palettes, $58

It is no secret that Hourglass repeatedly produces things of beauty. And I don’t mean beauty products; the products and packaging are beautiful, elegant, amazing. Their new eyeshadow palettes are features housing similar to their highlighter and blush trios, and the panless presentation of shades is a sight to behold. The collection, which is currently only available to VIB Rouge members, includes seven palettes with five shades each. I don’t think I could justify this purchase for myself, but they’re really fantastic to stare at.

New at Sephora - Benefit Puff Off!

Benefit Puff Off!, $29

I can’t shake the, “Oh look, another gimmicky item from Benefit!” feeling I get when I look at this. This eye gel has a cutesy clothes-iron-shaped applicator for, “ironing out,” any fine lines or puffiness. Personally, I’ll leave my skincare to the skincare companies, but this will be at home in the collections of Benefit fans. This isn’t only new at Sephora; Ulta has this, too.

New at Sephora - The Stunningly Ridiculous and Actually Kind of Offensive $675 of Christian Louboutin Nail Polish

Christian Louboutin Starlight (via the Wayback Machine), $675

OH LOOK, more nonsense from the shoe brand. How lucky that they have a few shoe models in such a low, low price-point! Aside from its mere (annoying) existence, this item’s ridiculosity (yes) is compounded by the fact that the polish is the very same that I wrote about a couple months ago…its just that the bottle is adorned in Strass crystals. Not diamonds or anything, just…swarovski. So not just nail polish, but tacky nail polish in a gift box. Yay! Seriously, seeing this stuff on sale at Sephora makes me roll my eyes. How many of these are they actually selling? It has to be the single most expensive item they carry (not talking about sets or kits).

New at Sephora - YSL Volupté Tint-In-Oil

YSL Volupté Tint-In-Oil, $32

A new twist on lipcolor, Yves Saint Laurent delivers color suspended in oil as an alternative to a more-traditional gloss. Surprisingly, a lot of the reviews report that it is actually drying. Not sure what to make of that – I’d certainly have expected it to be hydrating. I wonder if other brands will enter the fray?

New at Sephora - BITE Smashed Agave Lip Mask

BITE beauty Smashed Agave Lip Mask, $26

Bite’s highly-touted lip treatment now in a rosy-red hue. I’d probably go for the original because I’d wear it to bed (don’t want pinkish red on my pillowcases, after all) but it is really nice to see brands responding to what consumers have been asking for.
New at Sephora - Dior Cheek & Lip Glow

Dior Cheek & Lip Glow, $37

Look! Dior’s making Benetint! Just kidding. I’ve never tried Benetint, but I know if this product preforms as well as the Dior Addict Lip Glow appears to (at least according to sales), it’ll have a cult following in no time.

And, let’s end on a positive note, because that’s a nice thing to do…

New at Sephora - Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation

Sephora Teint Infusion Ethereal Natural Finish Foundation, $24

That’s a mouthful, but this is Sephora’s foray into the serum-foundation game (like bareMinerals bareSkin, Perricone No Foundation Foundation Serum, YSL Fusion Ink, etc). Sephora foundations, at least since I’ve been paying attention to prestige-level makeup, have gotten pretty good reviews and at only $24 the price is pretty damn nice (especially considering that some drugstore foundations are as high as $15 now). My main complaint is that currently this is online only – makes getting a color match pretty difficult. I’m not sure if this serum foundation’s shades are configured for ColorIQ matches, but I intend to find out because I really, really want to try it. It’s honestly my favorite (taking into account I haven’t tried any of this) of what I’ve found new at Sephora.

Have you seen anything new at Sephora – or anywhere else! Anything beauty-related – that was noteworthy?

Christian Louboutin Nail Polish

As you may imagine, as a beauty blogger I spend a lot of time on various beauty sites to check out what it new. On one of my recent trips down the makeup-on-the-internet rabbit hole, I came across this:

Louboutin Nail Polish – Rouge

This is nail polish. The bottle looks kind of neat (in fact, the cap reminds me of Julep’s Plie wand [that I have not tried]).

Christian Louboutin Nail Polish

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Worth It? Sephora Swarovski Pro Airbrush 55

Indulgent. Exquisite. Envy-Inducing. We’re presenting our most coveted gift sets of the season. No one deserves them more than you.

was how a recent email I received from Sephora started out. Eyebrow already cocked.

This brush (via the Wayback Machine), the limited edition Sephora Swarovski Pro Airbrush 55, was referenced said email. “Oh, a sparkly brush. That’s fun,” I thought. I didn’t see the price in the email.


Sephora Swarovski Pro Airbrush 55Sephora Swarovski Pro Airbrush 55

Later on, while browsing Sephora’s site, I came across it again.

The Sephora Swarovski Pro Airbrush 55 costs $275. One brush. Nothing special other than the fact that it is decked out in rhinestones. I could revamp my entire brush collection in Sigma and have money left over.

This is not even a specialty brush. Just a basic brush. The regular version (which has outstanding reviews!) costs only $34. See:

Classic/Regular version of the Sephora Pro Airbrush 55 as compared to Sephora Swarovski Pro Airbrush 55

On top of being ludicrously expensive, the, “luxurious,” Sephora Swarovski Pro Airbrush 55 is also wildly impractical – if you ever try to use it, good luck not getting makeup caked onto it. It will become a breeding ground for bacteria, the sparkle that you ostensibly purchased it for will dull. Cleaning in between the stones will be hellish at best. Even routine cleaning would be nerve-wracking – what if the adhesive holding the Swarovski crystals on weakens due to exposure to moisture?

For the love of cats, no, this Sephora Swarovski Pro Airbrush 55 brush is not worth it. Brushes are tools not decor; and while I can certainly appreciate an aesthetically pleasing brush, I don’t want or need my brush handles to resemble a cheap-quality, vastly-overpriced mall-kiosk cell phone case that a 12 year old would slap on her phone.

I’m all about investing in quality tools. I do believe that the right tool can make or break your experience (and not just with makeup, with anything. Ever needed to unscrew something but couldn’t find a screwdriver and had to use something like a butter knife? IT SUCKS) but there is also a point where it doesn’t make sense. Sephora’s Swarovski Pro Airbrush 55 crossed that point well over $200 ago.

Fortunately, the very few reviews this brush has point out that this is not a great buy. If you want to give someone a cosmetic-related gift, try something else (like a holiday palette or some Sigma brushes). At least it was good for a laugh!

I really enjoy Sephora and they come out with a lot of neat stuff, but unfortunately some things are just misses. What other hilariously-priced (and not possibly worth it) tools have you come across?