Beauty Reporter.(Hourglass Cosmetics makeup palette case)(white pencil eyeliner)(new nail polish from Nailtini)

PALETTE OF THE MONTH

Bright of Passage

"Hourglass Cosmetics is doing for makeup what Manolo Blahnik did for shoes," brags the company's press release. Those are big stilettos to fill, but we have to admit that our first glimpse of the line's Passage makeup-palette case did make our heart flutter. Certainly the two have wonderful excess in common: The mirrored leather compact, etched with a forest of art nouveau trees, is a platinum card-taxing $65 -- and that's without the makeup. Be prepared to slap down an additional $50 for one of the five shadow-and-blush inserts. Our favorite color collection, Garden, contains a shell eye shadow with just enough pearl to fake a few much-needed hours of REM, and a rosy blush that makes cheeks look pink with excitement -- perhaps from the rush of overspending.

Color of the Moment

White Eyeliner

Good news for those who are too clumsy to master the smoky look: There's an easier alternative to accentuate eyes. "White pencil makes eyes look clearer, brighter, and larger," says makeup artist Val Garland, who lightened up models' eyes at the Emanuel Ungaro show. Women with fair skin should choose a true white, such as Shiseido The Makeup Eyeliner Pencil in White; those with medium or dark skin may find an ivory liner, such as M.A.C. Powerpoint Eye Pencil in Gilded White (left), more subtle. For butterfingered types who are afraid to put a pencil so near their eyes, Garland suggests dotting white liner on the ...