Stila at Sephora Singapore

After a few rounds of retail musical chairs in Singapore, Stila has finally found a home at Sephora.

Previously available at Tangs Orchard and Metro Paragon, then Tangs again and the Escentials boutique at Paragon, the brand now has a gondola of its own at Sephora at Ion Orchard, offering a somewhat comprehensive display of its popular products.

Created by celebrity makeup artist Jeanine Lobell, the brand has a special place in my heart for its incredibly blendable eyeshadows (so, so soft and smooth), its earthy recycled cardboard packaging (not as cheap-looking as it sounds), its budge-proof eye glazes (now discontinued but was I ever surprised that the eye glaze I’d use while I laboured with my second baby stayed on the entire time) and of course, the whimsical Stila Girl illustrations that are synonymous with the brand.

The brand has seen changes of ownership from Lobell herself to Estée Lauder to Sun Capital Partners to Patriarch Partners/Lynn Tilton. The last is Stila’s current parent company which also has water-filter and helicopter brands in its portfolio. (Yay for diversification?)

However, the Stila principle remains the same: the brand believes that ‘every woman’s makeup is as individual as your own signature’, alluding to its etymological origins – its name is apparently derived from the Italian word stilare which means ‘to pen’.

Stila Master Level Pro Artist Dominick Briguglio was in town recently to introduce the brand to our sunny island. He conducted several makeovers last weekend and I was privvy to one such demo.

Focusing on the Stila In the Garden Eye Shadow Palette for Spring 2012, he created a lovely look for my friend Chantana.

He used the following products on her:

  • Stila Illuminating Liquid Foundation – a foundation with micronised pearl
  • Stila One Step Correct – a primer with 3 colour-correcting brighteners (green, lavender, peach) entwined; the brand’s best-seller
  • Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Brow Color – a natural-looking brow marker

After concealer (I think it was Stila Perfecting Concealer), he used the shadows from In the Garden:

  • Nectar, from lash to brow
  • Sage, wet and dry on lid
  • Juniper, wet on lid corner
  • Rosette, gently daubing on inner crease
  • Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eye Liner in Starfish (exclusive to the palette) to line for a slightly smokey eye

Next, he applied:

  • Stila Illuminating Powder Foundation – a powder version of the liquid foundie
  • Stila Custom Color Blush in Coral – a gorgeous visage-flattering blush from a pH-adjusting range that promises to react with your skin tone to create a customised glow (“Stila’s about creating makeup that’s made special by your body chemistry,” Dominick said.)

After buffing in some powder over the cheeks for a natural blush flush, he applied:

  • Stila Lip & Cheek Stain in Yumberry – a tenacious lip/cheek stain in a light pink (like the Custom Color Blush, it also apparently reacts to your skin’s personal pH level)
  • Stila Lip Glaze in Grapefruit – a sheer pale citrus lipgloss specially created for Cameron Diaz in the movie Charlie’s Angels. The stained-glass effect of these click-pen glosses is a hit with many women – at one point, Stila was defined by them. :)
  • Stila Major Major Lash Mascara – I haven’t examined this closely but I’m guessing it’s a voluminising mascara, going by the name.

Here’s the completed look.

And here’s Dominick with his pretty model. :)

Dominick also created a smokey eye with the neutral shades from the palette.

He used:

  • Starfish smudged, layered with Bark
  • Honey on the inner corner
  • Freesia on the outer corner and lash line
  • Stila Jewel Eye Shadow in Opal patted on the lid
  • Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Liquid Eye Liner for a wet/patent look

You can view more photos from Chantana and Sara on their blogs.

I couldn’t leave Sephora without a Stila haul!


I purchased:

  • Stila Jewel Eye Shadow in Amethyst
  • Stila Lip & Cheek Stain in Pomegranate Crush
  • Stila Smudge Stick Waterproof Eyeliner in Peacock

Amethyst is a sparkly grape taupe shot through with multi-dimensional glitter.

The texture of the Jewel Eye Shadows, newly launched for Spring 2012, is sheeny-smooth and gel-like, allowing the shadow to adhere well to the skin. Yet the shadow is clearly made of powder, especially when I push my brush bristles into the pan, dislodging powder particles. I suppose it’s one of those cool hybrid shadows! ;) I love how the sparkles twinkle in the almost-translucent shadow base.

Pomegranate is a cool-toned berry with a brush-tip applicator that dispenses the product.

It looks intense at first but spreads out for sheerer effect. It has a silicone-y gel texture that might be tricky to work with but I love the colour enough to give it a go.

Peacock is an incredibly intense teal that’s packaged just like MAC Technakohl Liners.

Its rich hue and buttery texture which lends it even smudgeability made me grab it at once!

Here’s my incomplete Stila stash (some products are still scattered about in my makeup drawers) – all fond makeup memories. When I was first introduced to Stila in the early 2000s, I was struck by how wearable the brand’s products were. A decade or so down the eventful beauty road, I’m glad I’m still discovering gems from Stila. ♥

The true Stila fan is Iris, though. I’m tagging her in this post because I want to see her epic Stila stash! ;)

PS: I just stumbled upon Stila Collectors, a repository of some cool Stila memories. :)

Image source: Stila Cosmetics

15 Comments

  • Jyoan says:

    Nice! I never knew Stila had such a long history. I only knew about it in late 2000s, and it pulled out soon after. Such a pity. haha.

    Funny thing is I mentioned Stila is not in Singapore, linked my readers all the way to international website, and the next moment I went to Sephora and saw Stila!! Didn’t get news that it would come together with Laura Mercier.

    I did a Stila haul too. Awesome. Loving the lip and cheek stain now.

  • Mei says:

    I have the same makeup pouch that you have! The waxed fabric for mine is slightly yellowish from age though. I remember there was also a brush pouch in this print, and always regretted not getting it :) I still have my Legally Blonde palette from the same year too. It’s been so long, really glad that Stila has a more permanent presence in SG.

  • Robin says:

    Stila In the Garden palette is one of my favorites this Spring! I loved seeing the fun Barbie palette and vintage makeup bag from your stash. :)

  • makeupmag says:

    Hi Jyoan,

    Yes, I have fond memories of how the crowds descended upon the first ever counter at Tangs Orchard! And the lovely vinyl tote gwp with the Stila Girls (I still have it), as well as the popular Stila cans that were only available as gwps. :)

    Yay for a Stila haul! What did you get? ;)

  • makeupmag says:

    Hi Mei,

    I LOVE the pouch – the product illustrations are so cute. I didn’t know it had a brush pouch counterpart, aww!

    I echo your sentiments (so beautifully expressed!). I’m so glad it’s back. Hopefully, it will be here for a long time to come. :)

  • makeupmag says:

    Hi Robin,

    It’s a wearable palette and has some lovely shades in it. I’m looking forward to using Starfish – such a pretty colour!

    Marcia actually CPed the Barbie palette for me. It’s one of my favourite buys from the brand. (Barbie keeps winking at me! ;))

  • Mei says:

    Hi Mag,

    There were 3 pouches I remember, one was like a train case and the other was a brush pouch. Didn’t get them, which was a great regret! :(

    Your post made me remember my good old days of using makeupalley, where i first discovered stila. I actually dug up my old pic of my stila stash from 2003. I’ve finished up all the products here, but I still have all the pouches and brush set. Thanks for bringing back the good memories with this post! :)

    • makeupmag says:

      Hi Mei,

      A train case, you say?! Aww! That would be nice to own. :) Thank you so much for sharing your Stila pic – I remember almost everything there. The palettes, the gwps… Such a treasured memory you have. I love makeup memories. ♥

  • Angela says:

    I remember the madness at Tangs when Stila was first launched too! I met you there, Mag, I’m not sure if you remember. The makeup artist that Stila brought in whispered to me at some point that they were almost completely sold out…at the launch! I got the vinyl tote bag too, although I can’t remember what I bought already.

    I agree with you, that the Stila eyeshadows are the ultimate in silky blendability. I reach for them on a daily basis because of the wearable colours. And I still lament the loss of Tutu blusher – I never understood why they discontinued it, as it was such a lovely shade of peach-pink that would be flattering on any fair-ish skin tones. One of my favourite blushers ever.

    I love the Grapefruit lip glaze, and am still using it, but honestly…like everyone else, I lament the click-pen packaging. I like the brush, but the way the glaze oozes out is so unpredictable.

    I think one of Stila’s real strengths comes from the fact that their colours are so wearable, and more than that – they’re sweet. You wear Stila when you want to feel pretty. There’s always a place for MAC, but Stila is my staple for neutral-yet-sweet colours.

    • makeupmag says:

      Hello Angela!

      Thank you for your lovely comment – I do remember meeting you at the counter. Was it for the launch or Angel Light, though? :)

      I can still remember my first Stila shadows – Salsa, from a US swap, as well as Charm and Grace, from my aunt who visited the States and purchased them for me.

      I still have Tutu – I *just* saw it two days back when I was clearing my kit drawers, ha! I loved Salsa. It has a pink counterpart whose name escapes me now (ah, Tango!). I couldn’t quite get into the Lip Glazes, though I went through a few Eye Glazes.

      Thank you for walking down this beauty path with me. :)

  • Lin says:

    I love stila~ the products are very cute

  • Michelle says:

    Hi Mag,

    May I know the price of the Stila lip stain please?

  • anant says:

    hi
    i just want know from where i can shop stila in singapore

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