• Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

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

A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict

  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • Contact
    • FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
    • Advertising & Media
  • Categories
    • Product Reviews
    • Makeup
    • Skincare & Fragrance
    • Style & Fashion
    • Hair
    • Nails
    • Tips & Tutorials
    • Just for Fun
  • Brands
  • Store

Eyes

MAC Unsung Heroes: Humid Eyeshadow

May 5th, 2011 by Karen 37 Comments

MAC Humid

“If you’re going to San Francisco,” the song goes, “be sure to wear some flowers in your hair.” Flowers like the ones that bloom 365 days a year inside the gigantic 19th century greenhouse that is the San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park. It’s the oldest municipal wooden conservatory remaining in the United States and one of my favorite places in the city to visit with a camera.

From the steamy, lush jungles of the Lowland Tropics Room to the giant Victoria amazonica water lilies of the Aquatic Room, the structure must contain every conceivable shade of green (they practically drip from the walls!). Not only is it a very peaceful, beautiful place filled with exotic plants, but by virtue of it basically being a gargantuan greenhouse, it also reminds me of one of my favorite MAC shadows, the appropriately named Humid ($14.50).

A MAC artist introduced me to Humid a few years ago. I told her I was looking for one green to rule them all! “This is the only green you’ll ever need,” she said, as she handed me the pan.

Homegirl was NOT kidding. You know the whole “desert island” scenario? Where you can only bring one thing? Well, assuming of course the island had air conditioning, running water, a Trader Joe’s (gotta get my Mango & Cream Bars, yo!) and Channing Tatum, I’d bring Humid Eyeshadow. 🙂
[Continue reading…]

There are 37 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, MAC Makeup, Unsung Heroes Keywords: mac, unsungheroes

Hold That Curl (Temporarily, at Least)! New Stila Forever Your Curl Mascara

May 3rd, 2011 by Karen 12 Comments

“Hey, baby! You’ve got to remember (got to remember)… I’m forever your curl!” It sounds like someone over at Stila HQ rocked out to this song back in the day because the name of their new lash lengthening and curling mascara is practically a titular dupe.


Forever Your Girl, Paula Abdul, 1988

I LOVED that song. Nevermind Paula’s sometimes questionable singing in it or how the song sounded auto-tuned (I don’t know if it was). Gotta give the gal credit for turning lemons into lemonade.

I remember a trip back in eighth grade with my friend to Great America, one of the Six Flags amusement parks, and they had this thing that was kinda like a karaoke booth, where you could sing along to a song that they’d turn into a taped recording for you. My friend and I sang Forever Your Girl. And it was awful. It was absolutely terrible.

Thankfully, I have no idea where that tape is now. 🙂 If I did, I’d probably be tempted to share it on the blog (NOOOOO!).

New for summer, Forever Your Curl joins the Stila permanent line, and I wanted to meet her mostly because of a claim Stila makes. They say it curls lashes immediately AND over time.

“Forever Your Curl Mascara contains an encapsulated raw ingredient that enhances lash-curl memory and a proprietary styling resin that dries down and holds the curl of the lashes. A film forming polymer also wraps lashes and lengthens without fibers. Plus, a patent-pending brush coats and extends each lash, from base to tip, dramatically lengthening and curling…”

–StilaCosmetics.com

Interesting concept, right? Since my lashes are naturally so dang straight that I sometimes think they have anti-curling powers, I couldn’t wait to give it a try.

But after wearing it daily for one full week, all I can say is…

Eh.

For regular, temporary lash curling, yep, I think it delivers, but it seems no more potent than that. It’s just a straight-up curling and lengthening mascara, as far as I can tell, fine for cute doe-eyed looks.

And that would have been good enough if it wasn’t for the claim: that it also curls “over time.” I suppose I haven’t used it long enough to realize long-term benefits yet (I’m impatient), but still. My lashes look just as straight as they did before.

Even as a regular mascara, it has its flaws. The brush tends to deposit more product than it should (even when I dilute/attempt to remove the visible excess), and I see smudges along my lower lash line after just a few hours.


Before


After two coats
[Continue reading…]

There are 12 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Product Reviews Keywords: stila

MAC Unsung Heroes: Naked Lunch Eyeshadow

April 27th, 2011 by Karen 65 Comments

What I wouldn’t give to learn the story behind the name of today’s MAC Unsung Hero, Naked Lunch ($14.50).

Was there really a lunch in which the attendees were naked (eww!)? If so, I wonder what was on the menu… I assume that soups and other hot foods were absent, as well as beans and cheeses that encourage, um, bloat.

I’m all for culinary adventures, but when it comes to my lunches, I think I’ll stick to wearing clothes and this powder shadow from MAC’s permanent line. 🙂

When I need something foolproof to wear with my favorite browns, I often reach for Naked Lunch. It casts a candlelit glow on my skin that ignores my fine lines, and it blends like a makeup dream.

On me, it’s a champagne peachy pink with a subtle sheen — a demure, slightly warmer, less glittery version of Stila Kitten, perhaps, and its flexibility could rival Olympic gymnasts! I wear it as a lid color (fab for a wide-eyed look), as a highlighter along my brow bone, at the inner corners, and sometimes even as a face highlighter.


Swatch of Naked Lunch with the flash
[Continue reading…]

There are 65 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, MAC Makeup, Unsung Heroes Keywords: mac, unsungheroes

MAC Unsung Heroes: Vex Eyeshadow

April 13th, 2011 by Karen 37 Comments

mac vex

Wow. I just realized that my love affair with MAC Vex Eyeshadow ($14.50) has spanned almost 10 years… And you know what? I love it as much today as I did the first day we met — the first time I swiped this duo-chrome powder shadow on the back of my hand.

Vex can be vexing hiding in its pan like a boring blah gray, but it comes to life when it touches skin, gracing it with a really pretty glow. A beige with greenish pink pearl and a frosty finish, it flashes pink from some angles and green from others — almost like crushed pearls under a bright light. I think of it as the MAC Strobe Cream of the eyeshadow world.

When I first got Vex(ed), it was to wear it with smokey eyes, and I can’t even begin to count the number of times I’ve used it for that (usually with MAC Soft Brown, Print and Brule).

But smokey eyes aren’t the only ways I’ve worn Vex. I also love it dressed down…

  • Clean, classic cat eye: When I want to do a clean, classic cat eye with a little twist, I’ll apply Vex from the lash line to just below the brown bone, pop a matte brown shadow into the crease for definition (a few to try: Soft Brown, Saddle and Folie) and then line my upper lash line with MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack.
  • Glowy eyes: When I’m short on shuteye and lookin’ beat, I pat Vex on the lid and into the crease with either a MAC 217 (or my fingers if I’m in hurry), curl my lashes and add a few coats of mascara. It’s quick, easy, and I swear it’s looks like getting an extra three hours of sleep.
  • Glowy Eyes 2.0: After applying MAC Cream Colour Base in Hush to my lids, I apply Vex to the inner corners of my eyes with a MAC 219 Pencil Brush. A quick lash curl and a few coats of mascara later, I’m glowing. 🙂

mac vex


[Continue reading…]

There are 37 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, MAC Makeup, Unsung Heroes Keywords: mac, unsungheroes

Dolce & Gabbana Perfect Finish Concealer Draws Dark Circles Away

February 11th, 2011 by Karen 37 Comments

dolce gabbana perfect finish concealer review
Dolce & Gabbana Perfect Finish Concealer in shades 3 (the lighter shade) and 4 (the darker shade)

I’ve been looking forward to trying the new Dolce & Gabbana Perfect Finish Concealer ($35) since last fall, when I heard makeup artist Pat McGrath gush about how well it handles dark circles.

Available in four shades, the new line of liquid concealers features a twist-up pen kinda like the one from YSL’s Touche Eclat. Billed as three products in one, Perfect Finish is supposed to conceal imperfections on the skin while brightening and conditioning the skin with vitamin E.

So how does it do?

Not too shabby, tabby. I mainly use concealer to cover my purplish dark circles (damn you, insomnia!). In Perfect Finish, I’ve been using shade 3, applying the product with the attached brush under my eyes and blending out the edges with a finger.

It behaves like my go-to concealer of the moment, MAC Pro Longwear. Like Pro Longwear, it’s highly pigmented, offers full coverage and has a satin finish that doesn’t appear heavy on cakey on the skin, even applied in multiple layers. I also like the subtle brightening effect.

dolce gabbana perfect finish concealer review boxes

dolce gabbana perfect finish concealer ingredients

dolce gabbana perfect finish concealer packaging
[Continue reading…]

There are 37 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Product Reviews Keywords: dolce & gabbana

  • « Previous Page
  • Page 1
  • …
  • Page 202
  • Page 203
  • Page 204
  • Page 205
  • Page 206
  • Page 207
  • Next Page »

Primary Sidebar

About Makeup and Beauty Blog

Welcome to Makeup and Beauty Blog
Hi there! I’m Karen, your friendly neighborhood beauty addict, and I’m a Bay Area girl who hoards brown eyeshadow and covets coral lipstick. Every morning, I wake up and say, “I’m going to do something other than a smoky eye today.” Then…I end up doing a smoky eye anyway (most days). When I’m not putting on makeup, taking pictures of makeup or writing about makeup, which I’ve been doing daily since 2007 (!), you’ll find me hanging out with my hubby (“El Hub”), my four-year-old daughter (Connor Claire) and my torbie girl cat (Pretty Girl Rosie, a.k.a. PGR).

SHOP THE STORE


Long Live Lipstick Tee 💄



Blush Is My Crush Tee



Mascara & Kitties Tee



Thank You For Being a Friend Tee



You Hair Me Tee


Recent Posts

sumo citrus in hand

Saturday Surfing, April 17, 2021

honest beauty happiness lipstick glam on the go coral lips 5

This or That: The High/Low-End Beauty Edition, Part II

disney house of sillage

Disney X House of Sillage

skinfix hand repair cream

Checking In: SkinFix Favorites | A Possible Solution to Crazy Baby Hairs | The Dinner Rage Chronicles, Continued

loreal root cover up costco

Checking In: Beauty Deals at Costco, a Truly Game-Changing Tip to Make Life Less Gross, and Missing My Girl

Social

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Featured Posts

Lady Unicorn

Weird Things I Like to Do

brows fill out beforehand

Before You Pluck or Wax Your Brows, You Must Do This

current bare skin status

What’s One Thing That Drastically Changed Your Skin for the Better?

red brown smokey eyes tutorial top pic 2

A Glamorously Grungy Makeup Tutorial: Smoky Reddish Brown Eyes and Vampy Matte Lips [MODERATE SKILL LEVEL]

Copyright © 2021 Makeup and Beauty Blog. Get in touch.