Unii cosmetics has come up with something to completely change the way you palette. Their palette does not have predetermined slots. Instead, the Unii palette is completely empty, allowing you to fit in whatever size makeup pans your heart desires. Even square pans, or the elusive rectangular pan, fit in Unii with ease.

The creators of Unii have literally thought of everything to make this product one of the most innovative I have ever seen.

UniiCosmetics.com

By “pinking up” the plums, it takes the color out of a smoky winter look and into something fresher. An eyeshadow quad with a blackened plum, a soft pink, and shades in between. An ombre blush that seamlessly hits a whole variety of shades without you ever noticing. Lipsticks that go on slightly sheer and warm up the lips. Purple lip glass that goes on nearly clear – just a kiss of color and a touch of shimmer.

Huge Lips Skinny Hips Lipgloss – From Purple Labs NYC, HLSH has everything you could want in a lip gloss – plus some stuff you never realized you missed! The “huge lips” come from vitamin B3 to plump your lips without the sting or burn, and the “skinny hips” comes from Hoodia extract, a natural appetite suppressant. The formula is light, creamy, and non-tacky – perfect for smooching away. Our favorite shade: Kitty Poledancer, a wonderfully neutral pink with just a hint of shimmer.

Sexy Smile – If your lips don’t need any more plumping, try Sexy Smile. This double duty gloss contains a long lasting blue-based gloss on one side (to avoid making teeth look unnaturally yellow). The other side contains a breath-freshening mild tooth whitener. Drink that red wine with confidence!

Maison Francis Kurkdjian Perfume – If you can’t get away to France, smell like it, with APOM fragrance from Maison Francis Kurkdjian. At once sensuous and light, this Oriental whiff combines orange flower, cedar wood, and ylang ylang flower. It will have him going “oh la la!”

Scandle – Finish the evening off with a Scandle. These wonderfully fragrant soy candles double as body oil. The wax burns two degrees higher than normal body temp, and is formulated with soy, shea, jojoba, and vitamin E. Pour a little bit for a moisturizing and fragrant massage – just remember to extinguish the flame first!

Dr. Perricone High Potency Eye Lift – Perfect for the morning after a night full of champagne and chocolates, High Potency Eye Lift has Perricone’s patented DMAE as well as phospholipids and pycnogenol to increase collagen, reduce dark circles, hydrate, reduce the appearance of wrinkles, and fights the loss of skin elasticity.

1C Foundation: The lightest cool-tone loose foundation (other than the gothic pallor shade), I really love this product. I almost never wear foundation because even the lightest mineral powder feels heavy and unnatural on my skin. This one did not. I did not feel like I was wearing any makeup at all. It didn’t look like I was wearing makeup either. It did a very good job fighting shine, too. I am very, very impressed by this product.

Sheer Perfection Concealer: On the other side of the spectrum, I hated this product. It is basically a translucent powder. I found it to be dry on my skin, a bit chalky, and it offered no coverage at all. Definitely a miss for me.

Youth Dew Luminizer: This pale pink shimmery highlighter is a fun product – lightweight, virtually colorless, lots of shimmer. It is somewhere between a soft glow and stripper glitter.

Larenim is available for purchase at Larenim.com and Amazon.com

Young Punk – this baked mineral eye shadow has a black base and tons of purple shimmer and glitter. The black goes on very sheer, and the shimmer is quite pigmented. It offers an instant smoky eye without being too goth or Halloweeny. Unlike NARS’s similar Night eye shadows, the black never overpowers the shimmer.

Volcanic Ash Exfoliator – this gentle foaming exfoliator is certainly black. It doesn’t stain the skin though. It has a strange smell that I can’t quite place. The sugar crystals dissolve as you massage it in, and it rinses clean without drying. I like it enough to finish off the bottle, but it is not my favorite cleanser. I just don’t feel as clean as I could be.

Glimmerglass in Blackfire- This sheer black gloss with tons of purple micro glitter. It is surprisingly flattering, a sheer plum shade, but watch out, as the gloss can gather around the edges of your lips, which darken and make it look like you are wearing liner 3 shades darker than you should.

I was less impressed with the Dsquared collection. The blue sparkly Greasepaint Stick is too thick to easily use as a liner; too hard to use as a shadow. The Fuchsia Fix lip conditioner – while a little bright for my pale complexion, was a lot nicer than I remember the lip conditioners being. Not my favorite balm, but it doesn’t dry out my lips like the old formula did. And the “Blood Red” lipstick from the collection was far more fuchsia than red.

Organic, high-quality, eco-aware products that cost less than typical drugstore products – yup, it’s a reality, and it is called EOS. Evolution of Smooth.

Currently the EOS line consists of only two products, but they have obviously put a lot of attention into each. The Ultra-Rich Shave Cream is loaded with aloe, shea butter, and vitamins to offer a moisturizing shave. The product applies more like a lotion than a typical shave cream, so don’t expect a thick coat of suds. But you get a close, easy shave. The company also promises that the shave cream can be used on dry skin as well as wet. Best of all, the shave cream comes in a recyclable, soft-touch plastic bottle with a one-touch pump top. It is easy to use and won’t rust out in the shower – the most important feature for me.

The 95% organic, 100% natural lip balm is loaded with vitamin E and shea butter, and gives long-lasting moisture and feels light on the lips. Don’t let the boy in your life use it: it’s non-colored, non-glossy coverage means you may never get it back. EOS comes in a half-dozen flavors, and two shapes: a traditional stick, and a bulbous sphere. I love the sphere because it is so different and applies easily. I also love that EOS balms don’t come in pots, so you don’t have to stick your grubby little fingers in. Both balm styles come in the same soft-touch packaging.

Shave cream retails for $4.99. Lip balms retail for $3.99. To purchase, visit the EOS store at Drugstore.com or Amazon.com

Buy Now!

This is a cool concept. Lip ID Color Adapt Gloss from Jemma Kidd’s cosmetic line for Target is a gloss that goes on clear, then adjusts to your lips’ pH to get the perfect shade for your personal chemistry. I do not understand the science behind this; nor do I pretend to. I do wonder if pH levels affect skin tones – any chemists/biologists out there?

Anyway, the gloss does as promised: in less than a minute, I had a flattering pink gloss on my lips. It had a hint of a “fruit punch smile” feel to it – in that it created the look of a stain without the lasting power. That was the biggest downside – the gloss lasts about a half-hour. It is surprisingly hydrating, non-sticky, and generally a very comfortable gloss.

Lip ID is available at Target for $20. $20 is a bit steep for a lip gloss, even at Sephora, but it is gimmicky enough to be worth it. But I do have problems paying $20 for a Target lipgloss. Does that make me a snob? Is it a psychological thing? Would YOU pay $20 for a Target lipgloss?

Truly the standout feature is the packaging. Nestled inside a black box subtly embossed with the iconic R&R logo in purple, is a small, flat compact, about the size of three silver dollars stacked together. The compact, made of metal, is cool, sleek, chic, with a satisfying heft. Rather than fumbling with a classic snap case, a tiny magnet holds the lid closed. I worry that it will open in my purse. So far it hasn’t, but I only carried it for a day. The compact doesn’t seal like a traditional compact, so the potential for leakage in warm climes exists. The compact comes with a retractable lip brush that opens and closes with one quick movement, and seals the tip in, making it purse-safe.

Sadly, the gloss couldn’t live up to its exterior. Confession, the shade we checked out, was a beautiful, flattering, shimmering neutral pink. The gloss is very creamy, not sticky at all, which feels nice on, but doesn’t make for a lasting gloss. I applied some as I was leaving the house; it was gone by the time I arrived at dinner, a mere 20 minutes later. My lips were left bare and a touch on the dry side.

I definitely want to try a couple other products from R&R Cosmetics, in hopes of finding a product where the insides match the outsides.

My new go-to eyeshadow of the summer? Givenchy’s limited edition Prisme Again eyeshadow quartet in Sun Reflection. The four powder shadows are so rich velvety that they almost go on like cream. The shimmery colors – steely gold, icy silver, blue-silver, and warm bronzy gold – pack a punch of pigment, but can also be sheered out for an ethereal glow. The shadow lasts through sun and sweat, without needed a primer.

Regardless of what people say about books and their covers, let’s face it: packaging on beauty products is nearly as important as what is inside. I love Givenchy’s summer packaging: a square, dense compact with shadows nestled safely inside like gemstones on black velvet. It seems sturdier than many other compacts (*ahem* Stila *ahem*). A seperate bottom compartment keeps applicators clean. And the golden holographic Givenchy logo on top is icing.

For eyes, Jouer presents two new powder shadows: Peach, a shimmer neutral pinky-peach, and Chestnut, a matte honey brown. The texture is heavenly – light, silky, and creaseless. The color is soft, so if you are looking for a strong pop of color, this is not the way to go. It is easily buildable, without getting cakey.

For lips, there new shades of their gloss, lipstick, and lip definer. Blush is a perfect pink gloss. Kiki is a nude pink shimmer lipstick, loaded with Cupuau butter from Brazil for incredible hydration. Rose Pale lip definer matches Kiki wonderfully, and the jojoba oil, shea butter, and vitamins A & E make it creamy enough to wear on its own.

Bonus fun: all Jouer eyeshadows, blushes, powders, and lip glosses are grooved so they can be linked together to create your own custom palette.

Jouer cosmetics are only available online at JouerCosmetics.com or at Henri Bendel department stores. From May 10th through May 16th, buy any three Jouer products from Henri Bendel, and get the fourth free!