In a perfect world, I’d always have at least 45 minutes to do my makeup. Not because it always takes that long, but because I like being able to take my time and relax.

Unfortunately, the clock doesn’t always cooperate, especially with the holidays approaching fast.

That’s why ’tis the season for makeup shortcuts! I’m always looking for makeup time-savers, and one of my new favorites is Sonia Kashuk’s Twist & Shout Kabuki Blush Brush ($13).

Remember Sonia’s Twist of Fate brush set last week? Well, her new kabuki brush models the same twisted faux silver handle, which, like its sisters, broadcasts every smudgy fingerprint (aargh!), a flaw I can easily forgive.

Why?

Baby, you’re much too fast!

Twist & Shout screams! With it I’m able to apply and blend blush in half the time it takes me with a regular blush brush. Fantastic when I don’t have minutes to spare.

Like a wand, this brush exudes magic. When I rest Twist & Shout’s wide and slightly flattened brush head against my cheek, it covers the entire apple — a large swath of cheek! It’s able to blanket almost my entire cheek with a light-to-medium layer of color in just a couple quick swipes.

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Today I came *this close* to chomping down on the cheek stains in Tarte’s Three Carats Set ($25) because they reminded me of Push-Ups pops. Nom, nom, nom!

One of three new limited-edition makeup gift sets from Tarte, Three Carats comes with three mini-gel blushes decorated in festive silver and rhinestones.

Don’t be fooled by how dark they look in their blingy outfits; they apply super-sheer and natural, despite appearances.

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Greetings, gals. I just came across a gift set that might save some butts this holiday season the NARS Drop Dead Gorgeous Mini Nail Kit ($30).

It’s a four-piece mini nail polish kit, one of five for the holidays from NARS. This one comes with four classic colors that I’m guessing even the most finicky nail polish divas will dig.

• Arabesque: A peachy rose with glitter in a sheer pink base
• Chinatown: A creamy dark red
• Candy Darling: A sheer, creamy beige
• Saratoga: A shimmery golden burgundy

Arabesque

Chinatown

Candy Darling

Saratoga

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Do you also have those dreams where you look in the mirror and see yourself with Terminator eyes?

Thanks to Lashlight ($25), the newest mascara from Too Faced, “futuristic cyborg” can now be your face of the day.

My right eye looks like it’s about to shoot lasers… Spooky!

Something tells me Too Faced didn’t have flesh-covered robots bent on the destruction of womankind when they designed Lashlight, but they still outfitted it with hella upgrades!

I think it should be noted that the LED lights in the base of the wand also make this mascara the *world’s best* for finding your house keys in the dark.

The way Too Faced creative director and founder Jerrod Blandino explains it, he got the idea for the LEDs from the times he struggled to apply mascara to clients in dimly lit (but oh so glam!) locations.

NOTE: I’ve never had to apply mascara in the dark — trapped, say, with a shirtless Ryan Reynolds — but, thanks to Lashlight, I find it comforting to know that I could.

Picture taken in my darkened bathroom… How Blair Witchy is this?

Too Faced also claims that “liquid crystalline particles” in the Lashlight formula act like microscopic mirrors, brightening up the eyes by reflecting light off and around the lashes.

Hmm…

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If you’re a budget-lovin’ babe who wears cool-toned shadows well, Sonia Kashuk’s got your back. Her new Starry Eyes Palette ($15) for holiday 2009 comes with six cool-toned powder eyeshadows in a mix of glitters and matte.

Exactly what’s inside?

• A shimmery brown with glitter
• Shimmery beige with glitter
• Shimmery taupe with glitter (fans of MAC Satin Taupe eyeshadow, this shade looks like Satin Taupe’s glittery cousin)
• A matte brown
• Matte white
• Matte taupe

I’ve been going through a glitter renaissance of late, and the glitter shadows in this palette are hitting all my right notes. You know how some glittery shadows are just too sheer? How all you can see sometimes is the glitter (but no color)? Well, these aren’t like that at all. All three deliver respectable pigmentation — a nice surprise for gals on Team Glitter.

Speaking of the glitter, I expected it to feel gritty here based on how chunky the bits look in their pans.

But that wasn’t the case. In fact, the particles appear fine — just right, in fact — once they’re applied.

It adds up to a very refined glitter look, if there is such a thing.

Swatches with flash

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