Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup
A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict
Since returning from his vacation last week, Tabs has been a terror around the house. He stays up all night long partying and picking fights with the neighborhood cat thugs. He even has another scar on his nose! I can’t bear to see that gorgeous face get scratched up…
“All awkward name issues aside, I have to give Super Orgasm props. It begets cheeks with a perfect, just-pinched, shimmery peach color. Super Orgasm Blush would totally be the stuff of legend if it weren’t for one flaw — massive, meteoric chunks of golden glitter.”
“For once Tabs wasn’t the sexiest thing in the house. Today the honor went to Givenchy Pop Gloss Crystal in Plum By Night ($23.50), one of two limited edition glosses from the Givenchy Holiday 2008 collection. A dark, shimmery berry shade with multi-colored glitter that’s oh-so-very fine, this cream gloss not only looks pretty, but also feels fabulous on the lips.”
“When it comes to makeup, Paris loves lipgloss. This time last year she was all about Chanel Glossimer in Astral. Before that, it was MAC Lipglass in Prrr, but lately she’s been lovin’ on Laura Mercier Liquid Crystal Lipgloss in Citrine, a bright golden coral.”
“Hey, ladies! On Halloween some of you asked for a tutorial describing the MAC Smokey Eyes look I wore to dinner. I was in the mood for MAC today, so I thought I’d give it a try. It’s heavy on MAC products, but you could definitely use similar products from other brands.”
“We were just about ready to leave the store when I turned a corner and there, before my starstruck eyes, was a sight of such profound beauty that I almost dropped the shower caddy and slipcover I was cradling in my arms. What I saw was the biggest makeup and beauty department I’ve seen outside a MAC or Sephora in quite some time…”
“I played hooky earlier this week and drove into San Francisco to visit the de Young museum in Golden Gate Park. The museum has on display a new exhibit featuring a career retrospective of clothing designer Yves Saint Laurent, who passed away on June 1 of this year.”
“If there’s a season to go crazy for shimmery glitter-full makeup, then this has got to be it. Even reserved, conservative lines like Bobbi Brown get in on the action. This month Bobbi debuts two glitzy new collections — Copper Diamond and Party, and both are high on shimmer, glitter and metallic finishes.”
“There are those rare times, though, when a truly dynamic glitter gloss takes my breath away. That magical feeling swept over me when I first marveled at Dior Sparkle Shine Glitter Top Coat for Lips ($24.50), a limited edition lipgloss from the Dior Night Diamond holiday collection.”
“I scribbled these down in my notebook on the plane ride back from Florida last night. It was a rough ride. There was heavy turbulence flying over the Gulf of Mexico, and every time the plane would knock my head against the back of my seat, I’d get another idea for the list.”
“…Aussie Opposites Attract Shampoo worked great! Caked on concealer, dried gel liner, crusty cream shadow (eww) — it removed even the most stubborn makeup, breaking up the product within seconds. And the suds rinsed out quickly, too.”
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Well, cover me in jewels, and bring my royal scepter because the regal shades of rich purple, deep ruby and gold make the Essie Winter 2008 collection ($8 each) a royal tour de force!
The colors remind me of His Royal Purpleness, Prince, from the height of Purple Rain fame.
Bold and Beautiful: creamy ruby red
Damsel in a Dress: creamy deep berry
It’s Genius: shimmery purple with gold flecks
Rock Star Skinny: creamy blood red
Sexy Divide: shimmery violet
Shift Power: metallic gold
In five short years the Garnier Fructis hair care brand from L’Oreal has become a giant in the $5 billion US shampoo, conditioning and styling category, ranking as the number two brand overall. Next month, the company launches seven new products and, according to Garnier Assistant Vice President Mario Aragon, becomes the first mass range (read: $budget$) to target wavy hair.
The new Wonder Waves shampoo and conditioner are supposed to strengthen and promote wave retention throughout the day. The styling products — a mousse and a spray — will provide lightweight control and definition. Priced at $3.99 SRP each (daaAAaamn!), the shampoo and conditioner weigh in at 13 oz., while the mousse will come in a 6.8 oz. can. Expect the hair spray in an 8.5 oz. pump.
I can’t wait to give these a try, even though I don’t expect them to set the world on fire. I’m just glad to see they’re priced accordingly and take the economy into consideration.
And in January Garnier releases some new volumizing products. The company says the new Fructis Body Boost Fortifying Shampoo and Body Boost Fortifying Conditioner will pack lightweight formulations to add volume with a relaxed effect. Like the new Wonder Waves products, they’ll be priced at $3.99 SRP each (big 13 oz. bottles), and a companion product, Fructis Style Full Control Mousse, will complement the volumizing shampoo and conditioner with lightweight control formulated for all hair types. It, too, will cost just $3.99 (for 6.8 oz.).
I like what Garnier is doing as far as their pricing model… It’s easy to remember. Rather than fluctuating the prices of their different products, they alter the quantity while maintaining the same $3.99 price point, so the most costly products still cost $3.99 but come in a smaller container.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Artist and mother Lisa M. Dalton started The Travel Kitty Project to teach her son geography and to help people share travel stories.
Travel Kitties are small stuffed animals Lisa sews by hand (soo cute) and sells on Etsy. People bring their Travel Kitties along with them on trips and take pictures of them posing with landmarks, ha! I love it! You can follow their adventures on the Travel Kitty Blog.
I love the colors and composition of photographer Ruben Frosali’s work. He really makes Japan come alive in his shots. A few of my favorites: We’re Meant to Be Together, Donnie Darko Tokyo and Japanese Man Hairstyle.
Satellite 3‘s spacey makeup merges sci-fi packaging with makeup colors inspired by heavenly bodies like planets, stars and comets. Beam me UP, Scotty!
Even when the economy goes to sh*t, women will still find ways to get their facials, eyelash extensions and blow outs. Necessity is the mother of invention, after all. Former regulars to pricey salons and spas like Bliss have started migrating to budget-friendly beauty salons like Feet Island and Sai Kay 21 (great names!).
I haven’t worn a gray nail polish in years, but this I gotta try — check out these shades from Carolyn New York. I’m getting the itch to go gray!
Happy day after turkey day! Gobble, gobble…
Whew! Today was hectic. I had to pick up Tabs from the kitty hotel today because they were closed yesterday. He seems fine, a little needier than usual, but I think it’s kinda sweet. I like to think he misses me.
After getting Tabs I caught up on some blogging and resisted the urge to hit the stores for Black Friday. I did do some online window shopping, though, loading up shopping carts at Sephora, Old Navy and J. Crew, but I chickened out and closed my browser without pulling the trigger. 🙂
Hope you had a great day!
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Okay, I’ll fess up — the pewter clutch and silver necklace that come with the Smashbox Enchantress Beauty Kit ($45) were the real reasons why this limited edition set first caught my eye, but, as it turns out, they were just icing on the cake.
Enchantress, one of eight limited edition holiday makeup sets from Smashbox this year, also comes with some highly wearable makeup — Lip Enhancing Gloss in Protege, That’s a Wrap Mascara in Black, Cream Eye Liner Duo in Caviar/Midnight Brown and Soft Lights Quad in Aglow.
Each of the items in the set play well together, and I used them for the makeup I wore to my parents’ house for dinner last night.
The nude gloss is my favorite item the set. A shimmery warm pink with golden pearl, Protege looks good with smokey eyes, and the thin formula, which smells faintly of cinnamon, doesn’t feel overly sticky to the touch.
Like most glosses, Protege doesn’t last all day/night (about two hours per application), but by filling in my lips first with Chanel Nude Lip Liner, I managed to squeeze out an extra hour of wear time. Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A
[Continue reading…]
To put it mildly, there’s gold in them thar hills! You name the store, they’ve got a Black Friday sale. With the down economy, companies are desperate to separate us from our savings, but I have a feeling these aren’t necessarily the best deals we’ll see. I think the offers will get better over the next few weeks as Christmas nears…
They’re offering some limited edition gift sets, like the Luscious Color Kit. It comes with their tinted active moisturizer in Natural, triple cream eye definer shadow/liner/brow in Gossamer and pure cream stain lip/cheek in Vermilion for $100.
Or how ’bout the Deluxe Nourishing Travel Kit? You get their moisture rich cleansing lotion, concentrated nourishing toner, exfoliate foaming cleanser, intensive brightening cream, intensive brightening masque and pure facial moisturizer all housed in a sleek all natural bamboo tube case ($75).
Save 20% and get free shipping with Shu Uemura’s Friends & Family sale. Use promo code SHUFRIENDS at checkout; good through Dec. 1.
Get free US Standard Shipping with any $25 purchase at Benefit Cosmetics using code BLAKSHIP at checkout. They’ve also got some nice gift sets like this Benefit Peace, Love & Glossiness lip gloss set for $26, available online or at Sephora, Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s stores. You get six of their most popular colors for about $4.25 each!
Or, check out the Benefit Primpcess glamorous eye primping kit for $34. A limited edition jewelry box design housing their boi-ing 02 concealer; creaseless cream shadow/liner in r.s.v.p.; 3 powder shadows for contouring, accenting & lining; BADgal mini mascara; eye bright instant eye brightener and brushes galore.
Get free standard shipping on orders $50 and up, as well as their full-size Colorscope Lipcolor with any $35 purchase using promo code PXHOLIDAY3 at checkout.
The store’s a regular gold mine today, but it’s gonna be a madhouse, too. I’m just gonna shop online. They’re offering free shipping on select items using promo code GIFTY at checkout.
They’ve got an interesting $15 limited edition VIP Gift Bag ($100 value) with any $40 purchase.
Get a free Paint the Town bangle bracelet, a free juice gem in Juicy Fig and free standard shipping on orders of $20 or more using promo code GLAM8 at checkout.
First, they’re offering free shipping plus your choice of two fragrance samples. Second, they’re offering a free-ish signature travel case with their Grapefruit Cologne 9ml, Nectarine Blossom & Honey 15ml and a Grapefruit Deluxe Candle Sample with any $150 Jo Malone online purchase using code JMEVENT at checkout. Good through Nov. 30.
Huge markdowns on thousands of products and free shipping sitewide with a $99 purchase using code GOBBLE at checkout through Nov 30. Check out the Clinique Perfectly Happy Gift Set, $49.50 (regularly $69). It comes with Pure Fragrance, Body Cream and Perfume Rollerball/Long Last Glosswear SPF 15 in Whisper duo.
Are you on the lookout for Black Friday deals? Find anything good?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
It’s not always easy to remember the things I have to be thankful for because, like a lot of people, I get caught up sweating all the small stuff in life — the carpet needing to be vacuumed, the laundry piling up or how I’m running low on concealer, eek!
Earlier today I posted the 43 makeup-related things I’m thankful for. Well, here’s the non-makeup version of my list.
I scribbled these down in my notebook on the plane ride back from Florida last night. It was a rough ride. There was heavy turbulence flying over the Gulf of Mexico, and every time the plane would knock my head against the back of my seat, I’d get another idea for the list.
Here they are, the 43 (non-makeup) things I’m thankful for this year, in no particular order… 🙂
1. The good news that El Hub and I just got about my MIL’s health. She’s not out of the woods yet, but last week’s operation was a success.
2. Visiting new places.
3. Luggage with wheels… No kidding.
3. Teen vampire fiction.
4. Minty dental floss and modern orthodontia. When I was a kid I had a wayward fang that made me look like a vampire from the side. Thanks for the braces, Mom and Dad.
5. Those awesome little umbrellas and plastic stirrers that go in tropical bar drinks. I’m gonna start using them at home to liven up my milk, guava juice and coffee…
6. The people who still love me despite my numerous faults.
7. Tabs. I just adore that stupid cat…
8. OTC meds for indigestion. Seriously, thank gawd for Tums and Pepto (it blackens the poo!).
9. Good workouts.
10. Polydactyl cats, because weird is cool.
11. Kanye West’s Graduation CD. The track, Stronger, got me through many a tough time.
12. Heated swimming pools.
13. Modern women’s apparel. Could you imagine if we were still wearing corsets and gowns? Give me a wrap dress, stretchy pants or sweats, please.
14. Popcorn, Life Savers Gummy candies and Vitamin Water.
15. Sleeping in.
16. My health.
17. The wisdom that comes with having made so many mistakes in life.
18. Apple computers and the iPhone (they make my life easier).
19. Arch inserts and quality running shoes.
20. Heaters.
21. Down comforters.
22. Random acts of kindness.
23. Seeing my brother in love.
24. Stylish winter boots.
25. The Jamba Juice Orange Dream Machine … YUM!
26. For the chance to have been my BFF’s matron of honor. There was a moment in the Catholic ceremony when I held her hand during a prayer. Before letting go, I gave her hand a good squeeze, and she squeezed mine back. It was a small gesture but reminded me of all the good and bad times we’ve shared throughout our 20-year friendship.
27. Puzzle games like Tetris and Jumble.
28. Older women in Chanel tweed suits, with nicely coiffed hair and age appropriate makeup. It gives me something to work toward, LOL!
29. Washing machines.
30. The Golden Girls.
31. Dictionary.com… What can I say? I can’t spell.
32. Karaoke.
33. The Canon Digital Rebel XTi camera, EF 50 mm f/1.8 II lens and good lighting.
34. Kitty kennels.
35. Afternoon tea.
36. That I said yes to a second date.
37. Good hair days.
38. People who laugh at my jokes.
39. The first waves of the day at Waikiki beach (before the big crowds).
40. Days when I hit “random” on my iPod and the playlist turns out to be magic.
41. Singing in the car.
42. Toe socks.
43. All of you who read this blog! 🙂
What are you most thankful for this year?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
