Wearing Giorgio Armani Flash Lacquer in Rouge 400 ($29), one of 36 shades in the new Flash Lacquer line available now

If I’d realized back then as an undergrad slogging through chemistry classes that science could also be used for things like building a better lip gloss…I probably would’ve paid closer attention in class and said things like, “Cyclohexane chair and boat shapes? I’M ON THAT SH*T!”

Thank you, science, for taking us to the moon, creating super-sized movie popcorn kernels and for providing us with better living through advanced lip gloss chemistry, like the chemistry behind Giorgio Armani Beauty’s new line of Beauty Flash Lacquers ($29 each and available in 36 shades).

Flash Lacquer in Pink 526 on the left and Rouge 400 on the right

The brand new line of lip glosses flaunts scientific-sounding bells and whistles and a stratospherically shiny, smooth formula with characteristics like…

• An elastic shine formula that fills in lip lines for an extremely smooth surface
• A polymer weave that continuously reshapes itself while on your lips
• A low viscosity to keep the gloss surface perfectly smooth

All of this in the pursuit of one lofty goal: to fashion the highest reflection ever achieved in a lip gloss!

Groovy…

Well, it’s shiny — that’s for sure. And dramatic like a microphone drop.

Earlier today I was standing in front of a window, and I could see the color on my lips in the reflection as clearly as if I was standing in front of a mirror.

Boom.

And the formula remains super shiner as long as I don’t go rubbing or pressing my lips together. When I do, the shine quickly dulls down to a slight sheen.

I’ve been testing two of the shades this week, shimmery Pink 526 and creamy red Rouge 400.

Swatches in Rouge 400 (left) and Pink 526 (right)

“Aww, you’re not smiling in this pic. Get back there and take it again.”
– DMV Picture Lady

Nope, I wasn’t smiling. I was at the DMV this afternoon for what felt like ages, breathing in the scent of humanity — which, by the way, smelled like a mix of cigarettes, man funk, greasy roots and barbeque potato chips — and listening to teenagers fight with their mothers (was I ever that bratty? I’m pretty sure I was, sigh).

I was fussy because, you know, the DMV, and because I ended up not having enough time to put on false lashes before going (boo!).

Eyes: MAC Soft Ochre Paint Pot (lids), NARS Cyprus Eyeshadow (lids), NARS Galapagos Eyeshadow (outer third and lower lash line), MAC Bare Minimum Eye Shadow (brow bone), Dior Diorshow Artpen Liquid Liner (upper lash line), Bobbi Brown Jet Liner (waterlines), Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Mascara in Prune (upper and lower lashes)

Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Prune Mascara

I love summer makeup. Love it, love it, LOVE IT!

Dewy, bronzed skin; lids luxuriating with shimmery golds and other precious metals; slick, shiny corals on my lips…

I feel like Meg Ryan in that scene from When Harry Met Sally — “I’ll have what she’s having” — except that I’m, um, totally not faking it.

I really, really love summer makeup.

Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Prune Mascara

The beauty brands are laying down their beach towels on the warm, sandy beaches of Makeup Land right now with their summer makeup collections…

Chanel Le Volume de Chanel Prune Mascara

I recently added some new Chanel to my summer collection sandcastle, and I’m loving it so far. It’s Chanel’s new $30 Le Volume de Chanel Mascara in Prune, a do-it-all mascara in a blackish burgundy shade that lengthens, thickens and separates.

Basically, the whole shebang, and no flaking or smudging.

Look into my eye…

Starring in a reverie near you, Chanel’s $29.50 Daydream Glossimer…

“When in doubt, Chanel it out.”

Wouldn’t that look great on a t-shirt? Or a bumper sticker? Or maybe tattooed on a Chanel addicted beauty fanatic’s inner wrist (in sans serif font, of course)?

This, my friend, is my new makeup mantra: “When in doubt, Chanel it out.”

It occurred to me earlier this week — a revelation of sorts — as I was trying to figure out to wear to that work lunch I went in the city last Tuesday.

I was stumped and rutting around through my makeup drawer. Couldn’t figure out what I wanted to wear, and then I remembered the quad and blush from the spring 2013 collection and spotted one of the new Glossimers from the new Chanel Revelation collection.

“When in doubt, Chanel it out.”

Oh, babe! The spring collection’s glosses, and that Taboo nail polish, are fodder for daydreams. Think glossy, glittery lips and rich, interstellar indigo tips that twinkle like little stars.

For the season, Coco’s crew positioned the Glossimers as essentials for your makeup kit, like must-have purses and shoes — wearable, flexible, because they can go with so many different outfits and looks. The collection includes a mix of 10 new and re-promoted glosses, some of them on the sheer, subtle side, like sheens, and others sparkly metallics.

The new Chanel Collection Revelation collection of Glossimers ($29.50) and Taboo Nail Polish ($27)

Chanel Ocean Shimmer 171, Rose Sauvage 172 and Daydream 174

From the left: Ocean Shimmer 171, Rose Sauvage 172 and Daydream 174

Chanel Ocean Shimmer Glossimer

Chanel Rose Sauvage Glossimer

Chanel Taboo Le Vernis Nail Colour, $27

When the Bobbi Brown master class wrapped up yesterday, I zipped back down to the beauty department to look around…

And I have no doubt I could have remained there, happily playing and chatting with makeup artists. (Like Courtney, who’s awesome and works at the Laura Mercier counter. Go see her if you ever stop by.)

But alas, I only had enough time for a quick lap before heading home, so the first thing I did was pick up one of Bobbi Brown’s Foundation Sticks, which Marc really praised in that master class.

Bobbi Brown Foundation Stick in Honey, $42

Then I flitted over to the Chanel counter to sneak a peek at the new Revelation collection (10 Glossimers and a Le Vernis Nail Colour in Taboo).

The new Chanel Collection Revelation collection of Glossimers ($29.50) and Taboo Nail Polish ($27)

That was all it took for me to conclude that I needed to get Taboo in my life — like yesterday.

WOW, right!? It’s like Vendetta times a thousand!

Yup, now I know one of the things I’m doin’ this weekend (getting Taboo on my paws).

With a bottle of Taboo in my purse, I pranced over to the Molton Brown display. They had some bath and body products that looked neat, and I decided to treat myself to their Heavenly Gingerlily shower gel.

Molton Brown Heavenly Gingerlily Moisture Bath & Shower Gel ($30), TAKE ME AWAY!