Karen

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 625

September 21st, 2020 by Karen 12 Comments

Once upon a time, our Rosie pose was sweet as pie. Then came that fateful day when I took her for a walk outside…

Now I live with a beast!

I’m not surprised. Back when Tabs was my main squeeze, and he was the most refined and elegant of all the kitties I’ve known, the act of taking him outside also unleashed something primitive in him.

His tail would whip a little faster; his tum would sway a little more aggressively; and, was it just me, or did his teeth look a little bit sharper too?

Something about going outside fires up the felines, and Rosie isn’t immune to it…

Rosie: Birth of a Monster

Ever since I started taking her outside for walks in the morning, she’s been feistier, more demanding and, dare I say it, diva-esque?

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Saturday Surfing, Sep. 19, 2020

September 19th, 2020 by Karen 12 Comments

Rise and shine, morning glory. Good morning. If there’s one huge lesson I’ve learned from 2020 so far, it’s to not take the little things for granted, because those little things — like stepping outside your door and taking a few deep breaths of clean, fresh air — those are the big things, which is why you’re going to have to put up with me posting pictures of the sky for a bit…

It’s been three weeks since I’ve been able to enjoy simply going outside, taking a walk and breathing. Finally, the smoke has cleared over the Bay Area. The sky is no longer Martian orange, and we’ve had healthy air quality for three days in a row (!).

A couple days ago we even woke up to fog.

FOG! Wonderful, wet, glorious fog!

I’m loving the gray tones in this pic, by the way. I feel like somewhere in there is a nail polish shade we all need in our lives ASAP.

Overall, this has been that kind of year, hasn’t it? Challenging, and we have to take the good things wherever we can find them.

On that note, more gardening in the front yard today. We’re planting our Muskogee Crape Myrtle tree, and to quote Ri-Ri, I need to “work, work, work, work, work, work.”

While I go put some weed mesh down, here’s your Saturday reading…

RIP, RBG. ❤️ Thank you for everything you did for us. 👩‍⚖️
This is what it’s like to take a theater makeup class for college drama students right now.
Vera Steimberg, a makeup artist in Hollywood who’s been working in the industry for two decades, talks about diversity, representation, and the things she’s been doing to encourage women who want to get into the business.
This makeup artist transforms herself into celebs, and the transformation is shockingly accurate.
Fragrances are everywhere, including remote places like mountaintop glaciers!
In case you’ve got an extra $$$$ sitting around for perfume, Avon is releasing a new scent that costs $1,200.
And in this week’s edition of “nothing really shocks me anymore,” TikTokers are now using nail files to shave their teeth.
What happens when dudes add cats to their dating profile pic?

I’ve been craving boba for months.

Who’s going to make this for me?!

I’m down for easy glam.

Love this look

Talk to you soon, my friend.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

FOTD: An Eye Look With a Single Product! (Hint: It’s a MAC Classic)

September 18th, 2020 by Karen 9 Comments

mac teddy eyeliner look — Before you scroll down, try to guess which MAC classic eye makeup item I used on my lids!

The only thing that would be easier than this eye look I did here with just one MAC product would be putting on a pair of pajama pants and falling asleep on my couch right now, hahaha! This look is so simple, and I don’t even know why I don’t wear it more often (note to self: WEAR IT MORE OFTEN). And if you haven’t guessed what I used already, I’ll give you one more try…

OK, ya got it?

It’s MAC Teddy eyeliner. Yup. Just eyeliner. On my waterlines, on my lash lines and on my lids. That’s it! I mean, of course, I have stuff in my brows — I didn’t use Teddy in my brows (although I have heard of somebody using Powersurge in their brows before). I’m wearing Brow Blade by Urban Decay in my brows and Laura Mercier mascara on my lashes, of course, but everything else on my eyes is just Teddy.

I put some on my water and lash lines, then sloppily sketched out a shape on my lids with the pencil, a half moon shape on my mobile lid (the part of the lid that moves when you blink), and then on the outer corners I sort of drew a soft winged shape because I like a bit of lift there because the outer corners of my eyes slope downward.

Then I used a brush, a MAC 725S, which is an angled fluffy brush, and I used that to diffuse the edges, blur out any sort of harsh lines, and I layered more Teddy wherever I wanted more depth, like the outer corners, then blended a little bit more.

I briefly thought about using MAC Coffee eyeliner to draw a thin line along my upper lash line, but I only have a smudge of it left, and it’s so precious right now because I seriously can’t seem to find Coffee anywhere! So I decided to just nix that idea and keep it simple.

Yeah. Just Teddy liner. All over! And it was lovely and fast.

Teddy isn’t the only thing from the “MAC greatest hits” list I’m wearing in this look. I’m also wearing Face and Body in C5 (which is O.G. MBB right there!) and MAC Velvet Teddy on my lips.

The blush, by the way, is Hourglass Brilliant Nude, and if you haven’t tried it yet, give it a go if you can. First time I saw it in the pan I thought, “Eh, what’s that going to do for me?” but then I got it on my cheeks, and I loved how glowing and natural it looked. So. Good.
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Product Spotlight: MAC More the Mehr-ier Powder Kiss Liquid Lipcolour

September 17th, 2020 by Karen 14 Comments

In a current beauty world where color is seemingly dominated by warm reddish and orangey brown tones, it’s refreshing to see a cool-toned lippie every once in a while, don’t you think?

Enter More the Mehr-ier, from the new MAC Powder Kiss Liquid Lipcolour collection!

MAC was very cheeky with the name — Mehr-ier, for “merrier.” It’s a reference to one of their most iconic nude lipsticks, Mehr, which, fun fact, first appeared in the 2010 MAC Mickey Contractor collection. It’s since become a member of MAC’s permanent lipstick collection, and is now here in the new Powder Kiss Liquid Lipstick formula.

The color is very similar to the original Mehr, just a tinge darker. It’s a nude mauve, and this is going to sound weird, but it’s the same color as my gums (LOL!). For that reason, it reads like a nude lipstick on my NC42 skin, which is why I love it. I’ve also seen the original Mehr lipstick on lighter and darker skin tones (fast forward to 2:11 in the video), and it’s a bestseller because it really does work well on everyone.

mac more the mehrier swatch mirror — More the Mehr-ier!

The original Mehr comes in the MAC Matte lipstick formula, which some people find challenging to wear, especially if they have lip lines and/or flakes. I think the Powder Kiss Liquid Lipstick formula is a little easier to wear because the fluffy liquid formula kinda floats on top of your lips, so it doesn’t have that same tightly gripping feeling, and it’s less drying and more forgiving than the Matte.
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FOTD: Elegant Rose Quartz Gemstone Lids With a Smokey Bronze Lower Lash Line

September 16th, 2020 by Karen 22 Comments

I wore this look to drop Connor off at her dance class (she’s taking outdoor classes two days a week now, and yay for seeing other kids her age!), and then to go to Trader Joe’s, because doing that kind of regular everyday stuff is the adult equivalent of going to your high school senior prom now. (Dance studio drop-off IS AN EVENT. Ya gotta do it up!)

I took the new Urban Decay Stoned Vibes Palette for a spin for the first time in this look. It’s a new palette with 12 powder eyeshadows, the majority of them with this chonky-looking glitter formula that has a bit of squish to it. They look like they could potentially look like you’re wearing big flakes of glitter on your skin, but there was hardly any floof, fallout or flakes when I got Tiger’s Eye on my lids. The formula applies smoother than I expected it to, but you get WHOA, WHOA, WHOOOOOA levels of shimmer.

So…Urban Decay isn’t shy about their 420 references, but in this case I think “Stoned Vibes” actually refers to, ya know…gemstones, although Tiger’s Eye looks nothing like a stone on my eyelids. It’s a lovely pinkish bronze (heavy on the pink!), which is why I paired it with rose cheeks and lips.

OH! — I gotta point out the lower lash line. I’m wearing MAC Teddy, yet again, because apparently this fall is going to be my greatest hits tour of Teddy smoked along the lower lash line. I just kinda forgot how great it is when worn that way?! It’s fantastic.

I think I’m going to do a look with the purples in this palette (it’s $54, BTW) next because they remind me of my birth month gemstone, Alexandrite…which leads me to a question for you!

What’s your birth month gem? Drop it in the comments, along with any Qs you might have about the palette or this look, if you have ’em. As usual, the full breakdown of products is down below.

urban decay stoned palette wander beauty — Hey, that arm’s an NC42!

Makeup worn in this look

EYES

NARS Tinted Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base in Medium — all over the lids as a base
Urban Decay Stoned Palette Eyeshadows — Good Karma (brow bone), Antidote (crease), Hexed (outer crease), Third eye (outer v), Tiger’s Eye (lids, applied with finger)
MAC Whisper of Gilt — inner corner highlight
Urban Decay Brow Blade in Dark Drapes and MAC Clear Brow Set — brows
MAC Teddy — lower lash line
Honest Beauty Liquid Liner — winged liner
Laura Mercier Caviar Mascara — lashes

CHEEKS

Laura Mercier Soleil 1 — bronzer
Laura Mercier Rose — blush

LIPS

Wander Beauty B.B. and Riviera Dual Lipstick — mixed together

BASE

Wander Beauty Glow Ahead Face Oil — prep
Laura Mercier Foundation primer — prep
Charlotte Tilbury Flawless Filter in Tan — foundation, all over face
Kevyn Aucoin Supernatural Concealer in Medium 05 and 06 — under eyes, cheeks and around mouth
Laura Mercier Translucent Honey Loose Powder — forehead, down the sides of nose, around mouth and along the jawline

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen