Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup

5 Things I’ve Been Loving Lately

September 21st, 2018 by Karen 30 Comments

sally hansen color therapy fall 2018 — New shades of Sally Hansen Color Therapy polish from the left! — Falling Deep, Bronze Reflection, Dusty Plum, Pink and Harmony, Cashmere Calm ($7.99 each)

1. These gorgeous nude Sally Hansen Color Therapy nail colors

I can’t decide what to wear for the next installment of Desperately Seeking Persistent Polish! Too many choices… I’m leaning toward dark burgundy Falling Deep, since I wore a pastel cream last week. What do you think?

2. MAC Cosmo Lipstick

Busted this out for the first time in months and remembered why I love it so much. This neutral pink with a hint of brown is a lovely everyday lip color, and it looks amazeballs with brown and taupe eyeshadows!

3. Kim’s Convenience

I found the best show on Netflix! In every single episode, there’s at least one moment where I have to hit pause and scream to nobody in particular that “SERIOUSLY, THIS SHOW IS BASICALLY MY LIFE.”

I’m not Korean, and my parents never owned a grocery store (they’re both retired accountants)…and I’ve never lived in Toronto (Bay Area strong!), but the family stuff rings so true growing up Asian with immigrant parents — ESPECIALLY the miscommunication and how the family members express their love for each other. I’ve laughed and cried my way through both of the seasons on Netflix. It’s the most authentic show I’ve ever seen about growing up in an Asian immigrant family, but it’s also just good. Very witty, funny writing IMO.

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I’ve Got Nothing But Love for Skinny Jeans

September 20th, 2018 by Karen 37 Comments

High-waist skinny jeans by LOFT ($79.50)

So, my skinny jeans are currently on my mind, and as simultaneously confusing as it sounds, they’re on my to-buy list AND my Kon Mari list (I gotta buy a couple new pairs, and I also have to donate all of the too-tight ones that give me grief to Goodwill).

See, I haven’t worn any other style of jeans for the last few years. Even when I was pregnant with Connor, I still wore maternity skinnies.

While some people view skinny jeans as restrictive, to me there’s something comforting about wearing close-fitting denim with a touch of stretch. Whenever I slip into mine, a vacuuming suction sound happens — ZOOOOOOP!

But if I’ve learned anything during my skinny jeans adventure over the years, it’s that all skinny jeans are not created alike. It’s REALLY hard to find the perfect ratio of stretch to denim. Plus, there are all sorts of other things to consider, like the type of wash, the pocket placement, waist style (high-waisted all the way, the way baby!), where the hems hit, and most importantly (IMHO), distressing…

OH EM GEE. You know those jeans that are purposefully light and distressed in the butt? Yeah, I don’t need a spotlight saying, “HAAAAY, CHECK OUT THIS BOO-TAY.” No thank you! But, if the jeans are perfect in every other way (rise, hem, price, etc.), I’ll consider them anyway… It’s a very complicated formula!

Anyway, I’ve been getting by on two pairs of Universal Thread jeans from Target for the last couple months, and they’ve worked out alright, but I’m still kinda frustrated because I have to keep pulling them up after they stretch out. Plus, the lighter pair is already starting to get holes.

So now I’m thinking of splurging on the high-waisted pair from LOFT pictured at the top.

Cute, right? They’re selling out fast though. Wish I’d gotten them on sale a few weeks ago, le sigh!

Skinny jeans: Do you love them or loathe theme? Details please.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

To What Extent Do You Coordinate Your Makeup to Match Your Clothes?

September 19th, 2018 by Karen 20 Comments

Typical of what I wear on any given day. KIDDING! (This was the dress I wore to the Emmys a few years ago.)

Fall means fall color, which brings me to this question I ask every once in a while: To what extent do you coordinate your makeup to match your outfits? Like, do you ever plan what makeup you’re going to wear with an outfit the night before? Or, do you typically make your apparel choices on the fly, with a blatant disregard for lipstick and/or eyeshadow color?

Inquiring minds want to know.

Historically, I’ve been more of a “Let’s see how I’m feeling today” kinda girl, both with clothes and makeup. I’ve probably only coordinated my makeup/clothes a handful of times in all my years of face painting; however, I like the idea in theory. I like the idea of planning everything the day before, especially the day before something important.

Methinks I’ll give it a try sometime soon.

How about you? Do you coordinate your makeup to match your clothes? And if you do, how far do you go with it?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Happy humpday. 😊

Bootie Call! Falling for Ankle Boots and Booties at DSW

September 18th, 2018 by Karen 11 Comments

crown vintage tesla bare traps greta — BOOTIES!

Booties, booties, booties, booties rockin’ everywhere!

One could totally take the words “nude booties” in a myriad of directions, but for the purposes of this post we’re talking about shoes — specifically cutie-patootie tan, taupe, brown and beige ankle boots with totally comfy and walk-able heel heights, i.e. 2 inches or less, because I got no time to chase after a tabby in high heels.

I don’t know how I missed this nirvana of nudity when I was at DSW last week looking for flats, but this week DSW’s ankle boot situation is all kinds of lit. I’m talking boots with braids, buckles, buttons and steely studs.

No worries if you aren’t into trendy tassels or flirty fringe, either, because they had lots of low-key styles, too.

The Novato store had at least three rows dedicated to booties, and I tried on every single pair. (Not really, but almost.) Meanwhile, Connor kissed every mirror she passed and pretended to change her doll’s diaper on the every single bench.

I also spent a good chunk of time chasing her as part of her training for American Ninja Warrior: The Toddler Edition. Her training involves sprinting down the long aisles at DSW, which also affords me an opportunity to chase her, thereby conducting an impromptu bootie test.

These three passed with flying colors…

dsw toms bare traps crown vintage booties — Booties from the upper left: Crown Vintage, Toms and Bare Traps

Bare Traps Greta Bootie ($69.99)

Perforations (a.k.a punched out holes in the material, which is typically suede) are a big bootie trend right now.

At first I wasn’t sure about these Bare Traps booties. Are you supposed to wear them with bare feet like a hybrid bootie-sandal? If so, wouldn’t your feet be cold? Or is the suede supposed to keep your toes warm??

Such important questions, right? 🙂

Turns out you can go bare or wear them with socks… Yes, socks will still look cute, but I think you’d want solid color socks in a complementary shade because you’ll see them through the perforations.

I’m wearing black ankle socks with these, and I think they’re totally cute.

bare traps greta — Bare Traps Greta Bootie

SNEAKY SHOE PRO TIP #1: (Because I cannot be the only person who does this.) If you ever go to DSW and don’t see your size on the side of a box, turn the box around to check the back for a size label. 😉

bare traps greta box — Where’s the size label?

I wear a size seven, which is pretty common, so it usually sells out quickly. Shh… Don’t tell anyone, but when I’m on the fence about a shoe and only see one pair available, I’ll turn the box around and put the box back on the shelf so the label with the size isn’t immediately visible…

Yes, I do this to discourage other people from finding it… I don’t know if it actually works, but I do know that when I was looking for a size seven in these Bare Traps, it just so happened that someone had sneakily turned the box around! HMMMM.

Toms Leila Bootie ($79.99)

These tan suede booties have a cushioned footbed, so they feel like you’re walking on fluffy clouds.

They’re also slightly pointy in the toe, so the lengthening effect (which I want!) is more obvious than it is with the other styles. The only thing is, the heel is 2 1/4 inches high, which is still a relatively low heel…but if you prefer flats, it might be a smidgen too high.

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Do You Ever Use Makeup or Beauty Products That You Don’t Totally Love?

September 18th, 2018 by Karen 14 Comments

That face you make when you realize you’ve been using lotion for a month that you only feel so-so about.

Do you ever use stuff you only feel so-so about?

Me: Oh, gosh, yes. I do it all the time…and that answer feels somehow wrong because there’s so much good stuff out there, right? Why wear anything that doesn’t completely blow your mind when most places have a good return policy?

To that I say, “I dunno…” It usually happens because I bought something on a whim while doing non-beauty shopping at Trader Joe’s or Target or someplace else and subsequently lost the receipt, so later I figure that I might as well keep using the thing to get my money’s worth.

Other times, it happens because I like something enough to keep using it…even though I was never totally blown away by it. I just keep using it like a robot until the next big thing comes along (because there’s always another next big thing).

How about you?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen