There’s a lot to love about these Tarte Tarteist Glossy Lip Paints ($20), and the best way I can describe them is “trend-in-a-good-way.” The nine shades are hydrating, vegan-friendly, and so pigmented that they’re really just upgraded lipglosses. Every shade rocks. The color palette inspired me to create one of my most colorful illustrations yet!

A beauty illustration inspired by the Tarteist Glossy Lip Paints

As a range, they’re neutral…with an edge. Among the shades are plenty of rosy nudes, plus a few really, really fun shades. I love how Tarte totally went there with the one called Poison. It’s a black plum that stains my lips a deep purple.

The deep shades look incredible on the lips and also work when patted down to a stain, which helps them last much longer (and there’s also less to worry about when they’re applied that way, for anyone wondering).

Here are pics and thoughts on the colors.

Tarte Tarteist Glossy Lip Paint: swatches

Tarteist Glossy Lip Paint in Hella

Hella, a “white nude,” is the only color that’s a little too pale for me. It will settle into my fine lines if I don’t layer it, so I recommend using this one with a nude lip liner.

Tarteist Glossy Lip Paint in Obvi

Obvi, a “warm nude,” is the only Lip Paint with shimmer. It’s a nice flattering color that isn’t too bright or pink.

Tarteist Glossy Lip Paint in Goals

Goals! Love that name. This one is a “rosy nude,” and I think it brightens up the face more than the others.

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Time for a game of What If!

What if…you found a palette that satisfied both your appetite for stylish accessories and your appetite for makeup?

And what if said palette were available now, at this very moment (depending on your time zone), and the powder eyeshadows and blushes within it not only helped you get your pretty on, but they also improved your skin?

Blarney! you say? Nope, ’tis not science fiction. Tarte believes that such a thing exists, and it was last seen escaping from the Amazon!

Wait — that’s not right. It’s just called Amazon Escape, as in the Tarte Amazon Escape Amazonian Clay Eye & Cheek Palette, and for $44 it pledges to beautify your eyes and cheeks while improving your skin.

The secret sauce in this palette parolee? A skin-loving trifecta of Amazonian clay (to nourish skin, reduce oil and improve texture), vitamin E (which acts as an anti-inflammatory emollient and protects against damage by free radicals), and soothing mineral pigments shown to soften skin.

Just as important as all that…it’s cute! 🙂

And it’s on shelves now.

I have to admit, the packaging is what first caught my attention, but the colors and claimed skin benefits also make a compelling case, not that I can detect any results after testing it for a week.

Based on the colors, at least, I think it definitely deserves more time. The six powder shadows and two blushes in the kit are downright gorgeous!

Swatches from the left: Blushes in Free and Exposed; Eyeshadows in Tame, Rare, Rope, Camo, Canopy and Tribal
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Things I encountered this afternoon…

1. A piece of chocolate cake.

Portion control is lame

2. A pinkish coral blush that smells like a mixed berry smoothie (more on this in a minute!).

3. Jeremy Renner doing push-ups in my living room… He texted this morning to ask if he could come over on my lunch break (“Hey, girl, I’m in Novato!”).

Alright, so maybe that third thing didn’t happen. Truth is, Jeremy and I went makeup shopping at Sephora this afternoon…

Okay, okay, I’ll stop! 🙂

But seriously, I can’t wait to see Jeremy in the new Bourne movie. Maybe I’ll wear Tarte’s new Cheek Stain in Loving ($30) to the show.

If I do, one thing’s for sure — I know my cheeks will smell good, LOL!
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Rrrrow! Tarte hopes we’ll heed the call of the wild, jungle cats and kittens, and prance over to Sephora and Ulta stores to peruse the new fall 2012 collection (available now in stores and online).

Here’s a quick look at the eye palettes and some of the other pieces from the collection…

Amazon Escape: Amazonian Clay Eye and Cheek Palette ($44)

Available exclusively at Sephora

Call of the Wild Amazonian Clay 8-Shadow Collector’s Palette ($36)

Available exclusively at Ulta

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This morning, while Janet rocked, “What have you done for me lately?” I sang something similar while applying the products in Tarte’s latest makeup kit.

What Has Your Makeup Done For You Lately? — that’s a good question, and it’s also the name of the $49 six-piece kit (a QVC exclusive).

Listening to Janet, I came this close to teasing my hair and slipping into something with shoulder pads, but then I came to my senses, thankfully, because real life ’80’s fashion wasn’t always as cool as a John Hughes film… 🙂

For this look, I’m wearing all of the products in the kit except for the Maracuja Oil, and I’m also wearing Tarte’s Amazonian Clay 12-Hour Blush in Peaceful on my cheeks, because the kit doesn’t come with a blush.

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