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Karen

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 645

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good vibes only mug
Yes, please!

So…what is the Monday Poll?

Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of five more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). I love reading your answers, and it helps me get my week off to a good start. 🌻

    1. Dark chocolate, milk chocolate or white chocolate?

    Dark chocolate tastes like punishment to me…and white chocolate doesn’t really taste like much at all, so I’ll take some really good milk chocolate for the win, please! See’s preferably! 🍫😁

    2. Would you like winged liner with a matte finish, or a shiny finish today?

    I’ll go for shiny today. ✨

    3. Something you’re putting off at the moment?

    Cleaning my bathroom… I’ve got to do it soon (hopefully this week) because it’s on the brink of true grossness! Not quite full-on disgusting yet, but it’s getting there.

    4. A weird beauty-related pet peeve of yours?

    I absolutely cannot stand when my hair smells like barbecue. YUCK! Also, when my toenails or fingernails are even just a tad too long, I’m basically non-functional. I can’t think about anything other than cutting my nails when they get like that, and I’ll obsess over it until it’s done.

    5. Who’s your dream travel partner?

    Besides Keanu Reeves? El Hub, I guess. LOL! He’s very detail oriented, so I know that even if I’m completely out of it (like if it’s 3 a.m.
    and I’m delirious from lack of sleep), and there’s a train or a connecting flight we absolutely cannot miss, I know we’ll get to where we need to go with all the paperwork and everything ready to go.

    Plus, homeboy’s pretty funny. He’s always available for a hug if I need one and is always up for an adventure… And I’m also going to have to include my childhood friends Jen and Cindy, who I still hang out with. I’ve traveled extensively with them over the years, and we haven’t killed each other yet, haha! They’re both super easygoing, which is yin to my yang.

    6. Who’s always on your playlist?

    Honestly, these days it’s always one of the Disney princesses, hahaha! Connor loves Disney movies and music, so I like to have Disney princess tunes available to play at a moment’s notice in case she feels the need to bust out into song.

    7. What’s something you learned about makeup in the last few years that really surprised you?

    That brown eyeliner is your BFF!

    8. What does your afternoon look like today?

    Got a few errands to run and a couple things to write, but otherwise not terribly busy if I’m mindful of the time and stay on task.

    9. What’s the name you put on your Starbucks order?

    I use ‘Karen’ most of the time, but there are those rare days when I can’t deal with someone writing ‘Kelvin’ or ‘Kerran’ or ‘Kiera,’ so I end up giving my nickname, which is Kate.

    Nobody seems to mess up Kate for some reason!

    Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

    Karen

    P.S. Here are the questions to copy/paste with your answers in a comment. Talk to ya soon.

    1. Dark chocolate, milk chocolate, or white chocolate?
    2. Would you like winged liner with a matte or shiny finish today?
    3. Something you’re putting off at the moment?
    4. A weird beauty-related pet peeve of yours?
    5. Who’s your dream travel partner?
    6. Who’s always on your playlist?
    7. What’s something you learned about makeup in the last few years that really surprised you?
    8. What does your afternoon look like today?
    9. What’s the name you put on your Starbucks order?

    P.P.S. You’re going to have a great day, my friend. I just know it! 🤗

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 626

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Tabs got along with almost everyone.

Almost, with the exception of a few people and cats, including his corporate nemesis Harris, who staged a hostile takeover attempt of Tabs the Cat Industries, LLC a few years ago.

It failed, of course. Tabs adeptly defended his ownership of the company by purchasing all of the outstanding shares from the other members of the board of cat directors (didn’t hurt that he also sent them care packages of canned tuna in gravy).

Even though he’d been defeated, Harris never let up. He continued to torment Tabs for years, often attempting to sneak onto company property. Luckily, Tabs was always here to protect it.

When Tabs passed away last year, we thought Harris would give up and set his sights on a new corporate conquest.

But apparently that was wishful thinking…

Rosie to Harris, “Get off our property!”

Rosie and I have been going for walks on Sunday mornings now, like Tabs and I used to.

She doesn’t take corporate security quite as seriously as Tabs did. She’s more into exploring and getting the lay of the land, nibbling on grass shoots and keeping an eye on the local turkeys.

But guess who showed up this morning?

Yup, Harris.

And Rosie wasn’t having any of it. She made it clear right away that Tabs the Cat Industries, LLC was still off limits, and he would have to move along.

I don’t know if he got the message, but I hope so. She made it loud and clear.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Saturday Surfing, Sep. 26, 2020

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Rise and shine, morning glory! Good morning! I may or may not have just ingested what may, technically, be described as a dessert for breakfast, and while part of me feels like I shouldn’t tell you about this cake from Trader Joe’s because its health benefits are…beyond questionable, another part of me does because it’s SO DANG DELICIOUS.

I don’t know what’s going on with this brownie pumpkin blondie confection, but it’s crazy addictive. It’s so good that you have to close your eyes when you take a bite. It’s that serious!

If a pumpkin cake met a carrot cake that met a white chocolate/slash pecan fantasy, this would be their progeny. Like…I’m not normally into white chocolate chips, but I’m all over them in this. Normally, I’m not a fan of chocolate and pumpkin together, but they are WORKIN’ here.

Mmm… The crumb is so light it just melts in your mouth. Perfect with a cup of hot coffee.

So, yeah! You’ll either love me or hate me because I told you about this. 😁 Or, maybe you’ll love AND hate me, hahaha! Now I realize why this was the last box on the shelf when I saw it at TJ’s. People are addicted!

Anyhow…I hope you’re eating cake for breakfast this morning, even if it isn’t this one. Here are your beauty stories for the week. 🙂


Why cats love boxes, according to science!


What sorcery is this?


😍😍😍


So soothing…


Note to self…


I’m ready for you, baby Yoda,


Just in case your cat needs to chill-the-eff out


Gorgeous

So I’m working on my yard yet again this weekend. It’s the neverending story of my life right now, but it’s almost done. We put down the white marble chips last week, so this is the home stretch. Now I have to track down a big blue ceramic pot for a lemon tree and look at pavers… #adulting!

What you got going on today? Besides eating cake for breakfast?!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Brand Spotlight: Bossy Cosmetics

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bossy cosmetics sexy
Feeling Bossy! I’m wearing Bossy Cosmetics Liquid Matte Lipstick in Sexy

Bossy Cosmetics is a new cruelty-free Black-owned indie makeup line of lip products that caters to all skin tones. I’m a fan, especially of the lipgloss!

Do you know the Kelis tune, “I’m Bossy?” It’s practically my theme song, ha ha ha!

If you’ve ever been called bossy by your friends and family, you’ll probably get a kick out of this.

Hues for bossy gals of all shades

Bossy Cosmetics cruelty-free, vegan line of lip products launched in 2019, so they’re pretty new. The founder, Aisha, is a mom of three and a self-proclaimed “lipstick junkie” who worked in investment banking before starting the brand with the intent to 1) help women feel beautiful, and 2) pay it forward, as part of the proceeds go toward charities that support women and girls.

Inclusivity is one of their main pillars, so you’ll find colors for all skin tones and ethnicities.

Prices range from $16.99 for a liquid lipstick, to $13.99 for a lip liner, to $14.99 for a gloss and $18.99 for a lip/eye/cheek glitter, so they’re pricier than Revlon or Neutrogena, but slightly less than MAC.

bossy cosmetics
Sexy Liquid Lipstick, Shiraz Gloss and Rush Lip Pencil

Take me back to the ’90s, please

I’ve tried a few of their items, including a lipgloss, liquid lipstick and a lip pencil, and I’m impressed! IMO the makeup is on par with MAC.

  • Liquid Matte Lipstick in Sexy: This O.G. ’90s-style flat matte brown takes me back to my college days! It’s warm with a slight hint of red (but the red isn’t as present as MAC Paramount or Revlon Rum Raisin). The texture’s a light-as-air mousse, so you can lead it to the corners of your Cupid’s bow exactly where you want it to go… Smells a little like cocoa butter at first, and I kind of want to eat it, LOL! (Don’t do that, though.) Very faint sugar cookie flavor. A little goes a long way, and the product completely coats my lips without settling into horizontal lip lines.
  • Hydra Gloss in Shiraz: This semi-sheer pearly mauve-pink feels like one of the revamped MAC Lipglasses. It’s thick, so it’s THERE and you know it. It’s not sticky, though, and it’s pretty moisturizing too. I get a faint sugar cookie flavor, but it’s not all up in your grill. If you’re like me and nude, glossy and lips are your thing, Shiraz is a color you’ll reach for all the time.
  • Lip Pencil in Rush: A high-pigment matte rosy pink that glides across lips without tugging. Contains shea butter for moisture!

[Continue reading…]

FOTD: Another Single-Product Eye Look With a MAC Classic

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mac powersurge swatch

If you want to be truly terrified, don’t fire up a horror movie on Netflix. Instead, put on your makeup in full sunlight. HAHAHA! Dude. It’s kinda scary seeing a lot of product on your skin in such unforgiving light. Or maybe that’s just me because I haven’t been doing a lot of full-on makeup over the past few months (#pandemiclife).

So, I did this look yesterday morning because I made a promise to myself to put on some makeup. (I realize that my mask covers almost everything, but still, sometimes putting on makeup still makes me feel better.)

Connor had an outdoor playdate with a friend, and we were going to be outside for most of the afternoon, so in the morning I decided to use the natural sunlight streaming in through my window to help guide me through this one-product eye look with MAC Powersurge pencil.

I used it as an eyeshadow and a liner all on my lids!

mac powersurge swatch

Connor’s playdate was for outdoor “cake painting,” an idea I got from Busy Toddler on Instagram.

I taped a bunch of big boxes together to look like an oversized cake, and Connor and her buddy painted the layers with washable tempura paint.

I guess the most frightening thing about doing your makeup in the unforgiving light of the full sun is seeing just exactly how products behave according to the texture of your skin. GOODNESS GRACIOUS. It really forced me to blend my base and buff down all of the excess areas where there was a little too much lying there. I’m making this sound frightening, I know, but I think you gotta do it once just for fun because it really is eye opening!

I might do it again today because I guess I’m a masochist like that, LOL!

Like my makeup the other day, there’s also a bunch of O.G. MAC faves up in this makeup mix, like Powersurge on my lids, Blushbaby on my cheeks, and Whirl lipstick mixed with a little bit of Honeylove on my lips. (I wanted it to look like fall makeup, but I didn’t want it to go too brown.)

mac powersurge swatch

Initially, I went with a rosy brown matte lip because I was going for a fall look, but I also tried it with a brighter pinkish rose matte lippie…

I had an inkling that the eye/cheek combo would go really well a brighter pinkish rose lipstick…

This is Model Off Duty, one of the new MAC Powder Kiss Liquid Lipcolours. I think it looks really beautiful with this eye/cheek combo, and the next time I wear it I think I might do this lip color instead.

mac powersurge fotd

One more thing about Powersurge before I go — when you do these one-and-done looks with liner, the beauty of them is that they don’t have to be super perfect on your lids, because if you’re just wearing one color, if there are areas on your lids that are more elegantly blended than others, then don’t worry about it because as long as you have a relatively smooth transition of color that fades up toward your brows, you’re going to be fine.

As with any lid action, for instance darkness on the outer third, or when you deepen the outer v, you can do that for more dimension here too, but if you try and it doesn’t get where you want it to go, buff it a little more, don’t mess with it, and move on with your day.

mac powersurge swatch

I think these are great because they really don’t emphasize mistakes too much, and that’s a wonderful thing!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

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