Smashbox

A New Shocking Development: Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick in Shock Me Pink

May 12th, 2015 by Karen 14 Comments

Because a girl can never have too many hot pink lipsticks!

Well, she probably could, but…naw. I don’t think so. 🙂

This is another one of the new shades recently added to the Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick line. Shock Me Pink is a bright blue-based neon pink with a creamy finish. Like the other Be Legendaries, it’s unflavored, unscented and smooove, with a 4-hour wear time.

I like to wear this one with shiny black liquid liner when I’m feeling feisty and want to stomp-walk into rooms.

It’s available now online and at Smashbox counters, Nordstrom stores and Ulta for $20.

[Continue reading…]

For Textured-Lipped Ladies, Smashbox Be Legendary Matte Lipstick in Paris Pink Is a Little Easier to Wear Than Your Average Pale Pastel Pink

May 12th, 2015 by Karen 21 Comments

smashbox be legendary matte lipsticks — I’m wearing Smashbox Be Legendary Matte Lipstick in Paris Pink ($20), one of eight new Be Legendary Matte Lipsticks available now at Smashbox counters and online

I think from now on I’m going to refer to my lips as “textured…” It’ll be code for “So dang flaky that it looks like I made out with a cheese grater.” Then I won’t have to say “I’ve got dry lips” about every 15 minutes of every single day.

[Continue reading…]

Curb Cakey Concealer With Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Under Eye Primer

March 4th, 2015 by Karen 25 Comments

Sometimes when I hold this tube in my hand, I feel the need to pinch myself.

Is it real? I wonder, giddy with excitement, or is it a makeup mirage?

Perhaps that’s being overdramatic (what, me overdramatic??), but seriously, dude, it feels like I’ve been searching for this little pink tube FOREVER.

Or, you know, like two months.

It’s just that every single time I’ve looked for it at Ulta or Sephora, it’s never been in stock. The shelf where neat little boxes of Photo Finish Hydrating Under Eye Primer should have been, has always been as empty as a ghost town.

[Cue tumbleweeds rolling by]

I know I could’ve tried to order it online, but tracking it down in a store actually became a weird personal mission of mine. I wanted the instant gratification…even if it took me a year to get.

LOL! 🙂

I’ve also been wondering, though…who are these ladies (or gents) that are hoarding this sh*t so hard that I can’t ever find a tube? Is the love for this under-eye primer so intense that people have literally cleared it off every makeup store shelf within a 20-mile radius?

Well, last week my luck turned. Miracle of all makeup miracles, I finally found one lonely box when I went to Sephora, and I grabbed that last box with a quickness usually reserved for chocolate, doughnuts, and chocolate doughnuts.

I’ve been a user now for about a week, and my, oh my — I’m on the fast-track to becoming one of those ladies who are probably responsible for this stuff never being in stock. I already want to get a backup.

Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Under Eye Primer hoarding is a legit thing!

So, what is this stuff, and why is it (almost) better than a bag of Baked Cheetos?

Basically, it’s a brightening, moisturizing under-eye primer that you apply before concealer. Anything you layer on top of it — concealer, powder, whatever — ends up looking smoother, more natural and more like real skin.

And I think the difference when I use it is night and day, especially when you see it in person. Whenever I take the time to apply this first, I think my concealer looks much less obvious.

I also still get the full coverage that I like, but without my under-eye area looking cakey like cake batter (which happens sometimes with opaque concealers).

[Continue reading…]

Springy and Smokey! Smokey Brown and Purple Cat Eyes and a Bright Coral Lip With New Makeup From Benefit, Dior and Smashbox

March 3rd, 2015 by Karen 27 Comments

The sun’s out, I’m not wearing socks (FOOT FREEDOM!), I am wearing coral lipstick, and the eye look I tried this morning did not result in a complete disaster…

Yeah, it’s been a terrific Tuesday so far. 🙂

Today I felt springy and, I dunno, kinda smokey, so this purply brown smokey eye with soft cat eye liner happened.

Note to self: do this liner more often! It’s fairly easy — just black eye pencil with a dark shimmery purple shadow blended on top with a pencil brush — and it takes about half the time as a super crisp black cat liner, otherwise known as “the time-suck of my makeup existence.”

As a side, am I the only person who regularly attempts black cat liner when there’s, like, absolutely no time to get ready, and then inevitably ends up with their two tiny kitten flicks morphing into huge, unsymmetrical bat wings that don’t match?

Yargh.

Siri, remind me to wear soft cat eyeliner like this the next time I need to be saved from myself.

Oh! — this look was also an excuse to try a few new products from Benefit, Dior and Smashbox.

Some quick notes…

Benefit’s new Roller Lash curling mascara — This stuff is black, and glossy, and it lifts and curls lashes, but you absolutely, positively must comb out your lashes while they’re wet; otherwise, they’ll stick together like mean girls in the cafeteria.
Dior’s Nude Air Serum Foundation — This lightweight, medium-coverage hybrid skin care serum/foundation looks amazing on the skin. My homegirl at Sephora hooked me up (‘sup Nini!) with a fatty-bo-batty sample in shade 040, and when I finish it…I’m probably gonna throw down 53 large ($53) for a full-size replacement.
Yeah, that good.
Smashbox Double Exposure Palette — Yep, these gorgeous, mostly cool-toned shades are a dream to blend.

[Continue reading…]

Diamond in the Rough or Hidden Gem? The New Smashbox on the Rocks Photo Op Eye Shadow Luxe Palette Is Both!

October 31st, 2014 by Karen 20 Comments

Basically, if a beauty burglar raided a fortified diamond emporium that also stocked jewel-toned eyeshadows and then crammed her beauty booty into a single palette, that palette might look like the new 28-pan Smashbox On the Rocks Photo Op Eye Shadow Luxe.

Clearly designed to entice with endless eyeshadow possibilities and pics of holographic cushion- and emerald-cut bling, this limited edition palette is filled with a nice selection of surprisingly complex jewel-toned shades that are almost as dazzling as a diamond-encrusted tiara.