MASSIVE DETAILS #1
Glitter, gloss, and other party supplies inside.
If you were an early subscriber to my newsletter, this is probably the kind of stuff you came for. Lock in, because you are currently experiencing the freshest, finest, purest, good ol’fashioned beauty content. The MASSIVE DETAILS letters will be inclusive of, but not limited to:
Product critiques.
Clever techniques.
Niche boutiques.
Trend reports.
Links to things you can buy.*
To be clear, MASSIVE DETAILS is the first sub-brand in the All Of My Opinions Are Your Own** universe. It’s the Cliff Bar to what is sure to be the nauseatingly extensive omakase of my product design series. Perfectly digestible and nutritious.
If you’re one of the few who thought I wouldn’t gleefully discuss things like the slight difference in texture between a fresh slurry shimmer formula and the one I’ve had since 2015, DON’T LEAVE. I’m going to try to write these emails in a way which is interesting to those who identify as “not into that sort of thing.” Just promise me you’ll send me a note saying you hate it so I can stop before you ruin me beyond repair (unsubscribe).
Without further delay…
TODAY’S MASSIVE DETAILS
TÓOR TÓOR by Régime des Fleurs. Fragrance is a beauty category for which I lack the proper vocabulary to commiserate with true connoisseurs. I’ll often check my own descriptors against a brand’s website copy and be humbled for calling thinking a “creamy” scent is “juicy” or fail to pick the hero ingredient that’s present in the top, middle and base notes. For TÓOR TÓOR, it’s vetiver, which to me at least, smells like spicy grass. I’d tried for years to make my way though a bottle of the decidedly one-dimensional Grey Vetiver by Tom Ford, interested in the scent, but not enjoying it. TÓOR TÓOR is different—it opens with bright, and I’ll say it, juicy grapefruit, which does dry into a creamy tuberose, kept from going too girly with with a woody, leathery base, with a hint of that green vetiver throughout. It’s truly a massive detail in that the scent stays close to its wearer, so only your most intimate interactions get to enjoy it, too. $240 retail, but Régime des Fleurs has a 20% off promo for first purchasers as of publication time.
Face Trace Contour Stick in shade Biscuit by Westman Atelier. This is a misnomer because I am firmly of the belief that contour shades must be grey, and find that Biscuit is too warm to be used as contour (I use a grey-brown eyebrow pencil for those wondering). It is, however, the perfect shade to mimic a sun-toasted glow on my olive skin: not orange in the slightest, and without a spec of shimmer. I trace it across my forehead, just below my hairline, and blend downward with my fingers. Then I tap my ring finger on the stick itself to pick up some product, which then gets gingerly tapped across the high points of my mid-face, right across my nose, a bit on the fleshy outer parts of my eyes, above my lid crease, and at the lowest point of my chin. The blendability is unmatched; this is what they call in the business an “elegant formula.” $48.
Velvet Touch Cream Stick Blush in shade 04 by Kiko Milano. I’ll be sure that once I die, this stick is given to the mortician because it’s in that cherubic hot pink shade that instantly brightens an otherwise dead face, and the portion size is so generous that I’ll not even have used half of this stick before I kick it. I use my ring finger to tap at the high point of my forehead, across my cheeks, just at the upper bridge of my nose, and on my chin. Think of creating spots of radial glow on your face between this and the bronzer. $14.
Moisture Molecules Dewy Hydrating Drops by Mary Allan. This water-weight serum gets me every time. The quickness with which my skin drinks it up makes it feel almost silly to apply—like **poof** it’s gone, along with my $120. But I’ll be damned if it doesn’t make my moisturizer perform better (so I can use much less of it, and am less shiny as a result), my makeup glowier, and my skin in perfect balance. I had been experiencing some summertime flakiness for weeks before I realized I had an extra bottle tucked away in my fridge, and I swear to you that this fixed it in a single application. (I have to buy Mary Allan products in multiples because they are always sold out, so good luck on finding yours!)
Lid Lustre Shimmering Eyeshadow Pot by Victoria Beckham. I have a few pots of a discontinued Armani Eyes To Kill Silk Eye Shadow, and have a particular affinity for shade 11. The formula is called a “slurry” powder vs. a traditional pressed powder eyeshadow. What I find to be the biggest difference between the two types of formulas is that the pigments in a slurry formula are much larger—literally flakes of color—which are held together by creamier, wetter binders, while a pressed powder eyeshadow is made from more uniform, finely ground pigments which are held together by virtue of being pressed very hard and lack wet binders. I find pressed powders easier to control (and you can use brushes to apply), but slurries can give you that super shiny, metallic look (but are harder to apply with specificity and use with brushes, the best way to apply is with your finger). Armani’s shade 11 has a mix of shell pink and beige white pigments, which when applied with a light touch, look like wet gloss. It’s magic. Victoria’s Lid Lustre is much, much creamier than the Armani, and more pigmented. The shade Chiffon is the closest to our #11, though I went home with Mirror and Mink for variety’s sake. $36.
Glasting Water Tint in Brick River by Rom&nd. If there’s one thing I love more than Korean cosmetic formulas, it’s Korean cosmetic brands’ ingenuity with the English language. “Glasting” is the perfect made-up word for this glossy lip stain. The formula is a lightweight pigmented gel, which I like to dab in the center of my lips and then tap to fill in the rest with a fingertip. The glass-like finish fades rather quickly, but leaves a comfortable, non-sticky film, keeping the leftover stain from settling into creases or looking too harsh. I love it as a summer product because it travels well as a multiuse—it’s great for blush and eyelids too, just be sure to blend immediately so it doesn’t leave little stains where you dot it on. It also smells exactly like Haribo Peaches. $17.90, but all lip tints are 30% off at time of publication on Rom&nd’s US site with code MYLIPTINT.
OK, great I hope you enjoyed this first installment of MASSIVE DETAILS. If you haven’t already, please check out my last article, “Thanks, It’s Custom.” which is just chock-full of advice I wish someone told me on making physical products. Sorry for originally sending it out late on a Friday when, let’s face it, nobody wants to read from a screen, but if you’re a fan of anything I made at Glossier or Soft Services, I think you’ll enjoy.
*Regarding the links to things you can buy: I have never been paid to promote a beauty product. All products mentioned on Massive Details are things I have enjoyed using enough times to confidently recommend, or links to things for learning purposes. Recommending shitty products would be incredibly detrimental to my personal brand, so I take this rather seriously. If the product happens to exist on a site which has an affiliate program (if you buy through the link I provide, I get a small cut), I may use a link which will do that. I can track the performance of these links, too, so it helps me understand what you like and don’t. Just letting you know!
**I’ve been exploring the idea of an abbreviation for All Of My Opinions Are Your Own. What a dumb name I chose. Even shortening to initials, it’s impossible: “AOMOAYO” (accidental cultural appropriation). Please advise.
***Invasive Species play currently happening in NYC. Go see it!
Dont hate this as well! Also, glad you finally gave VB beauty a try : )
Love the beauty recs! I’m also a fan of your work at previous compagnies (and your writing) so keep it all coming :)