Carolina Braina

The Best in Beauty From the Boot: The GIVEAWAY Edition! ($148 Value)

July 18th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 51 Comments

*** Thank you for entering, everyone!***
The giveaway is now closed. Congratulations, Becky! (@beekeyperuk). You’re the lucky makeup lover. 🙂 Enjoy your prize.

If you thought that Italians were only good at making cars that cost more than houses, drool-inducing food, shoes, colosseums, towers, and thousand-year-old churches…

Well, I hope my Best in Beauty From the Boot series here on Makeup and Beauty Blog during Karen’s maternity leave showed you that we may also know a thing or two about makeup.

It’s forming neat and tidy queues (there are literally no queues in Italy; just messy groups of people ruled by “survival of the fittest,” LOL), yielding the right-of-way to vehicles or pedestrians, and parking within the lines that we struggle with, and I guess you can blame that on our national artistic soul. I mean, artists do have a reputation for not conforming to rules, right? No one’s perfect. 🙂

But let’s focus on the good things that my country has to offer (always focus on the good!).

You know, I was taught to share the best things in life with friends and family, and I wish I could share some of the things that Italy is known for with you, like homemade lasagna, Valentino pumps, shiny Lamborghinis, or magnificent colosseums…but for shipping and budgetary reasons, it looks like I’m not going to be able to do that.

SORRAY!

How about a whole lot of UH-MAZING Italian makeup instead?!

IT’S GIVEAWAY TIME!

I’ve partnered with Karen to give away this handpicked prize package of some of my favorite Italian makeup (a $148/€134 value) to one lucky reader. I really think you’ll love these products.

PRIZE

I’ve talked about most of these items in my Best in Beauty From the Boot series over the past few months since Connor Claire was born.

Here’s everything you’ll get in the prize:

NABLA Eyeshadow Pan in Caramel
NABLA Eyeshadow Pan in Rust
NABLA Eyeshadow Pan in Desire
NABLA Eyeshadow Pan in Sandy
NABLA Eyeshadow Pan in Glitz
NABLA Eyeshadow Pan in Water Dream
NABLA Liberty Magnetic Palette
NABLA Diva Crime Lipstick in Alter Ego
NEVE Cosmetics Blush Garden in Tuesday Rose
Collistar TWIST Ultra-Shiny Eyeshadow in 106 Bronze
MADINA Exact Color Lipstick
MADINA Prisma Blush in 03
MADINA Prisma Allover Highlighter in 01
Deborah 24ORE Color Mat Eyeliner in 10 Bamboo
PUPA I’M Lipstick in 301 Poppy
WYCON Long-Lasting Liquid Lipstick in 20 Sweet Strawberry

If you’d like to sample some of the best makeup that Italy has to offer, enter this Instagram giveaway now!

TO ENTER

Follow me, @carol_in_a_page, on Instagram
Post a picture of one of your favorite pieces of makeup in the whole, wide universe, and include #winbeautyfromtheboot
When you’re done, come back here and leave a comment on this blog post to let me know. The deadline to enter is midnight (PST) on Sunday, July 31st.

The giveaway is open to readers worldwide, but the prize will ship from me here in Italy, so if you win and you live outside the EU, you’ll be responsible for paying taxes and duties when the prize arrives.

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How Important Is Makeup Packaging to You?

July 15th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 23 Comments

Expensive vs Cheap Makeup Packaging — Despite these Rimmel Lasting Finish Lipsticks By Kate Moss being pretty good quality, I feel like when I use them, I don’t get the same makeup experience as when I use, say, a YSL lipstick.

Well, to me, makeup packaging is very important.

Because makeup isn’t just about the way I look after I’ve made up my face. For me, more importantly, it’s about the overall experience and how much I enjoy putting it on.

I mean, it’s like when I go to a restaurant where the food is presented in a creatively appealing way. To begin with, the food they serve has to be good, but the way it’s presented definitely adds to the culinary experience.

(Speaking of which, if you ever come to Bologna, make sure you go to Casa Monica and La Taverna del Farneto, my favorite restaurants in the area. Amazing food, outstanding service and a relaxed atmosphere — a perfect combination, if you ask me!)

Same goes for makeup. The products have to be good, but if they also come in beautiful packaging, it makes the experience more enjoyable.

Beautiful Makeup Packaging — I have a soft spot for pretty packaging… Can you tell?

That being said, some pretty packaging costs a lot, so I think it’s great that there are also good quality products that come in plain, inexpensive packaging and retail for less than the cost of a kale smoothie. It’s good to have options, right?

Now that I think about it, when I said that makeup packaging is very important to me, I should’ve actually said that it’s very important for certain product categories.

Like, if they’re in my budget, I’ll usually buy beautifully packaged lipsticks, eyeshadows, bronzers, blushes and palettes, while, most of the time, I’m happy with drugstore mascaras and eyeliners (provided the quality is good, obviously).

With the latter, even when they’re high end, I don’t really get that luxe feeling that I get from those other products (especially lipsticks). Do you know what I mean?

Carolina Braina

Hey, ladies (and gents), it’s Carolina here, reporting live from Bologna, Italy, to bring you the latest and greatest in beauty from the good ol’ continent! For an extra dose of that timeless Italian glam with a touch of humor and self-irony (because, you know, laughter is the best makeup), come say hi at carolinapage.eu and Instagram.

An Ode to NARS

July 13th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 29 Comments

NARS Best Makeup Products — Wearing NARS Duo Eyeshadow in Corder on top of NARS Pro-Prime Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base on my eyes, NARS Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Dragon Girl on my lips, and NARS Radiant Creamy Concealer in Custard, NARS Bronzing Powder in Laguna, and NARS Blush in Amour on my complexion

Yesterday I played the lottery for the first time in my life.

And just like I think everyone does when playing the lottery, I started fantasizing about what I would buy if I won €100,000,000…

You know what the first thing that popped into my head was?

Nope, it wasn’t a big house in the hills or a round-the-world getaway (although those would be nice).

It was the entire NARS makeup collection!

Can you imagine that? Hundreds and hundreds of those sleek, rubberized cases and tubes (side note: you can easily clean them up with duo-phase makeup remover).

AHHHH!

But anyways, I didn’t win…

And since they say that to be happy in life you should focus on the good things you have rather than the things you don’t have, today I decided to focus on the products in my NARS stash that bring me happiness on a daily basis!

Wanna see what they are?

NARS Duo Eyeshadow in Isolde ($35)

In the event of a fire, you’re supposed to leave all of your belongings where they are and get to the nearest exit.

Well, I really hope we never, ever have a fire in our building, because I’d have a really, really hard time leaving the NARS Duo Eyeshadow in Isolde behind (should I grab it or not?).

I know I might sound like I need to re-evaluate my priorities, but if you’ve ever tried Isolde, I think you’ll understand.

I can’t imagine my life without it.

The shadows have the most gorgeous metallic finish (no chunky glitters in sight!), and they’re so pigmented, creamy, and smooth that I can’t think of many other shadows that compare (I’m thinking of the Giorgio Armani Eyes To Kill Intense in 5 Gold Blitz and Pure Ganache from the Zoeva Cocoa Blend Eyeshadow Palette).

And if that’s not enough, they practically blend themselves and last longer than probably anyone could need.

NARS Bronzing Powder in Laguna ($39)

NARS Bronzing Powder Laguna — If you look at a pan of NARS Bronzing Powder in Laguna or swatch it with your finger, you can see teeny, tiny sparkles running through it, but I’ve never really noticed them once applied…

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7 of My Favorite Affordable European Makeup Products

June 29th, 2016 by Carolina Braina 24 Comments

Best Affordable European Makeup — Some of my favorite (affordable) European makeup

Europe definitely has a lot to offer the international traveler. I mean, so many different countries and cultures concentrated in a relatively small area…

But visiting a dozen countries in a month can get extremely expensive, so what’s a beauty lover to do? Pass on the makeup shopping??

Of course not!

On the good ol’ continent, you can find lots of top quality products that cost less than a latte.

Here are my top recommendations!

1. Catrice Defining Blush in 040 Think Pink (€3.99)

If someone made me try the Catrice Defining Blush in 040 Think Pink after having depotted it, I’d for sure think it was a high-end blush.

I swear, I’d bet my entire makeup collection on it! It’s that good.

Creamy and not in the least bit powdery, nicely pigmented but easy to blend, and long-lasting, too.

Oh, and here’s the best part: it’s only €3.99!

2. Catrice Camouflage Cream in 010 Ivory & 020 Light Beige (€3.49)

If you’re blessed with oily skin and occasional hormonal spots like this mama, then you’ll know that liquid concealers just don’t last.

To cover up those angry red zits and the marks they usually leave behind, I think it’s much better to use a dry-texture concealer.

In my opinion, the Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage ($35) is the best in this category, but Catrice’s Camouflage Cream comes in a close second, and it’s just a fraction of the price.

Should you ever spot a Catrice stand during your European adventures, make sure you put your paws on this fantastic concealer.

3. Essence Long-Lasting Eye Pencils in 01 Black Fever & 02 Hot Chocolate ($2.49/€1.99)

Ok, I know that you can get Essence at Ulta these days, but wouldn’t it be cooler to pick up something from this affordable German brand after admiring the majestic Cologne Cathedral or visiting the breathtaking Neuschwanstein Castle?

My first recommendation would be the Long-Lasting Eye Pencils in 01 Black Fever and 02 Hot Chocolate, because I mean, who doesn’t need black or brown eyeliner?

These glide on super easily and last amazingly well both on the waterlines and lashlines.

4. Essence Sun Club Matte Bronzing Powder in 01 Natural – Blondes/Lighter Skin ($4.99/€4.99)

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My Favorite Products From Sephora Collection

June 23rd, 2016 by Carolina Braina 31 Comments

Sephora Collection Best Products — Wearing the Sephora Wonderful Cushion Matte Lip Cream in 04 Wonderful Fuchsia on my lips and the Sephora Retractable Brow Pencil in 06 Soft Charcoal through my brows

Poor Sephora Collection!

I feel like it’s the Cinderella of all the brands you can find at Sephora.

I mean, I don’t know about you, but 99% of the times I go to Sephora, I don’t even look at their own brand.

1% of a bajillion times is still quite a few times, though, so over the years I’ve actually managed to find some real gems.

So get ready, Sephora Collection. Polish your glass slippers because today’s your day to shine!

Sephora Cream Lip Stain in 01 Always Red & 03 Strawberry Kissed ($14 each)

Sephora Cream Lip Stain 01 Always Red Swatch — The Sephora Cream Lip Stain in 01 Always Red is my go-to for holiday dinner parties as it remains pretty much intact even if I end up eating my own body weight in one meal

Sephora Cream Lip Stain 03 Strawberry Kissed — 03 Strawberry Kissed is a shade I prefer using in the summer months, and I included it among my five bright pink lipsticks to try this summer

Sephora definitely knows how to make liquid lipsticks, that’s for sure! I’ve tried three different types, and they all rock.

I’ll start with the one I think is the most popular, which is the Sephora Cream Lip Stain.

I have it in two shades, 01 Always Red and 03 Strawberry Kissed, and they’re both equally good.

Even though they’re completely matte and transfer-proof, they’re not overly drying or uncomfortable.

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