Eyes

Checking In: A Chanel Blush Brush Haunting, and a Jewel-Toned FOTD With Purple Lids!

October 20th, 2020 by Karen 19 Comments

I will totally get to these purple lids in a second (BECAUSE PURPLE), but first, can we pleeeeease talk about the latest mystery to unfold on this end of the keyboard — a mystery also known as “The Haunting of Casa MBB”?

Don’t worry, there’s nothing terribly sinister afoot (I’m not splashing buckets of holy water on things left and right, in case you’re wondering!).

I’ve been gently “haunted” for the past few weeks by my favorite Chanel blush brush, which has been disappearing and reappearing all over the house in the most random places. I’ve found it on my bed, in the hallway, on the middle of the stairs, on the kitchen floor.

Last week I found it smack dab in the middle of living room, just sitting there on the carpet right in front of the couch.

Hmm… 🤔

I just assumed that Connor had grabbed it and played with it and forgot to put it back, but when I asked her about it later she said, “No, mama, I have my own brushes.” (Hahaha! She totally does!)

Now, this brush just so happens to be one of my favorite blush brushes because it’s super soft, and the brush head fits perfectly on top of the apples of my cheeks and underneath the hollow of my cheekbones, so I can use it for blush and bronzer. The bristles are also perfectly floofy, so it blends like a dream.

I thought, if an otherworldly entity/spirit has been obsessing over it, I completely understand.

But it ended up not being due to a makeup brush-loving ghost. The disappearances were in fact due to a cat.

YUP! Look who I just found outside my office doing her “hunter’s mewl.” It’s this cute little growl/grumble Rosie Posie does whenever she stalks and hunts one of her soft toy balls and she wants to show off the riches of her spoils.

I went into the hallway to investigate and give her the usual attention she likes after she catches her prey (“Oh, good job, Rosie-Pose! You’re such a good mouser. Look how well you stalked your toy!”), and that’s when I caught her red-handed (red-pawed?) with my Chanel brush in her mouth.

Mystery solved!

I guess from this point forward, this brush will have a special hiding place…inside a drawer!

(QUICK UPDATE: Later in the day, I also caught her dragging my NARS blush brush around, so she appears to be expanding her hunting horizons.)

Jewel-toned purple lids

OK, so let’s talk purple lids. Now, this might look a little familiar to ya because I’ve been doing variations of this look using the same neutral colors in the crease, inner corner and lash lines, but with different jewel tones on the lids. First, green, and then blue, and now purple!

Find your core

This totally wearable look relies on finding a core group of matte brown and beige eyeshadows for your crease colors. Once you find ones you like, then you can just keep them on standby, and then quickly swap out the jewel tone on your lids with other colors to create different looks!

I’ve been using the same set of warm browns and beiges in this series…

Beige matte shadow base: NARS Tinted Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base in Light
Beige shadow: MAC Mylar
Light warm matte brown shadow: MAC Soft Brown
Mid-toned warm matte brown shadow: MAC Saddle
Dark mate brown shadow: MAC Brun
Bronze pencil: MAC Teddy

For the purples, I’m wearing a shimmery purple called Guilt Trip, a dark purple called Drift (both are from the Urban Decay Born to Run Palette) and a dark purple UD pencil called Empire.

The foundation, powder blush/bronzer and lipstick are the same products I recently used in a 10-minute makeup look in this It Cosmetics Foundation review (which I’m also wearing in this pic, by the way).

As you can see, I’m pretty stoked about this look, and I’m excited to wear makeup again! 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Easy, Elegant Fall Eye Makeup With Green Lids and Liner

October 8th, 2020 by Karen 15 Comments

urban decay loaded liner mildew eyeshadow 1 — Gotta wear green!

Is green eye makeup more of a fall or a spring look for you? ASKING FOR A FRIEND.

I think if you’ve got a dark green up in the mix, like a jewel-toned green or an emerald green, then yeah, whatever’s happening on your lids is totally a fall look, especially if you add a matte nude or matte brown lippie to the mix.

That’s what I did the other day. I wore this green lid-and-liner combo using a shimmery light medium green shadow on my lids and a dark green opalescent pencil liner (with a touch of a darker grayish green on the outer corner) to get groceries and pick up Coywolf from preschool, and I got the nicest compliments from her teachers.

This little one isn’t so little anymore!

I think the matte browns in the crease and the beige base help to keep the greens wearable for daytime because the neutrals ground the brighter lid and lash line.

Of course, this same placement would also work with other jewel-toned shades, and hmm… Now that I think about it, I may have to try sapphire liner and lids next!

urban decay loaded liner mildew eyeshadow eyeshadow-layout 2 — What went where

For the eye makeup I used…

Beige matte shadow base: NARS Tinted Smudge Proof Eyeshadow Base in Light
Beige shadow: MAC Mylar
Light warm matte brown shadow: MAC Soft Brown
Mid-toned warm matte brown shadow: MAC Saddle
Dark mate brown shadow: MAC Brun
Dark green pencil: Urban Decay Loaded
Light green eyeshadow: Urban Decay Mildew
Dark grayish green shadow: MAC Club
Bronze pencil: MAC Teddy

urban decay loaded liner mildew eyeshadow 3 — I’m wearing MAC Date Maker Powder Kiss Liquid Lipcolour with MAC Spice Lip Liner.

urban decay loaded liner mildew eyeshadow 4 — Brows are Urban Decay Brow Beater in Neutral Brown, and lashes are Laura Mercier Caviar Mascara. Cheeks: MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Give Me Sun and NARS Blush in Lovejoy.

urban decay loaded liner mildew eyeshadow 6 — For base, I’m wearing a 50/50 mix of It Cosmetics Your Skin But Better Foundation in Tan Warm 41 and Tan Warm 42.5; under my eyes, I’m wearing a touch of Neutrogena Radiant Cream Concealer.

urban decay loaded liner mildew eyeshadow 5 — Here’s another closeup!

A few more quick winged tips, in case you decide to try this look!

1. Do your winged liner first.

This allows you to reference the end point of your wing and more easily determine how far out and up you can take your eyeshadow.

2. Sharpen that pencil tip.

The pointier and sharper the tip of your pencil, the easier it will be to control the weight of your lines.

3. If you have hooded lids like I do, opt for a thinner line.

The thicker the liner on your upper lash line, the more hooded your lids may appear. I suggest using the thinnest line you can.
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Product Spotlight: $10 Honest Beauty Liquid EyeLiner

October 1st, 2020 by Karen 9 Comments

Dude, this long-lasting black liquid liner is SO GOOD, and it’s only 10 bucks at honest.com!

How do I love thee, Honest Beauty Liquid Eyeliner? Let me count the ways…

1. Concentrated

Despite the fact that it only comes in a single matte black shade, it’s deep and dark like the most gorgeous black cat coat, and it doesn’t have any blue undertones at all.

2. Durable

It isn’t quite waterproof, but it’s very water resistant and long lasting (also doesn’t transfer). I’ve been wearing it all summer long.

3. Flawless

It comes in a tube with a wand that has a long, flexible felt tip that’s absolutely foolproof to use. The wand is just the right length to perfectly cradle in my paw, and the dainty felt tip draws crisp thick and thin lines equally well. Normally, I wouldn’t even think of drawing with liquid liner when I’m rushing through a fast face, but I can do it with this one.

honest beauty liquid eyeliner swatch — A matte deep black

4. Flexible

Thin lines, thick lines, dainty flicks, big ol’ bat wings — it can do it all.

And if you love diffused edges like I do (no harsh lines, baby!), the formula is easy to smudge, too. Just be sure to do your smudging before it sets, which takes about 30 seconds for skinny lines and a minute for thick ones.

INGREDIENTS:
Water (Aqua), Alcohol Denat., Glycerin, Pullulan, Disodium Coco-Glucoside Citrate, Hectorite, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid, Sodium Hydroxide, Sodium Dehydroacetate, Iron Oxides (CI 77499), Ferric Ammonium Ferrocyanide (CI 77510).

5. Swift

Also, as if it needed even more going for it, the fast-setting formula won’t creep up into your crease when you blink!

What a gem for only $10! I’m going to wish upon a star for Honest Beauty to add a few more colors, as I would LOVE a dark brown option (a liquid version of MAC Coffee would be my Disney princess dream come true) — ooh! — and a gray for everyday looks.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

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

Product Spotlight: MAC Powder Kiss Eye Shadow

September 15th, 2020 by Karen 11 Comments

mac powder kiss eye shadow swatches — These are fantastic!

MAC should just make these Powder Kiss Matte Eyeshadows permanent already. Come on, MAC! Dooo it! Make our lives a little easier. 😂

If you like ultra-blended, blurred and blown-out eyeshadow as much as I do, the Powder Kisses will get you there without drama. They’re highly pigmented, for one thing. Two, they apply in the thinnest, smoothest layers imaginable, so they look and feel featherweight on your lids. At the same time, they’re super saturated, which is kinda crazy!

Even though you don’t have to use very much, if you do, they still won’t look chunky. It’s FASCINATING. MAC must’ve assigned the “A” team to these when they cooked them up in the lab.

Many matte powder shadows look thick and cakey on my lids (got some fine line action!), especially when I build up layers, but not these. The Powder Kisses definitely don’t emphasize my fine lines.

There are some crazy colors, of course, because it’s MAC, after all, but as far as everyday workhorse colors, I’ve been loving What Clout, a matte mid-toned warm brown that looks like a cross between Soft Brown and Soba with maybe a hint of Kid. I also dig Warm beige Best of Me. I think it’s a lovely lid shade, or along the brow bone as a subtle highlight. Also, Dark chocolate brown Give A Glam is a little bit like Brun.

As for other notable shades, don’t be terrified of Devoted to Chili (I was!) because it looks so reddish and orangey brown. Keep an open mind about it because it’s surprisingly wearable on lids.

mac devoted to chili eyeshadow mask — I’m wearing Devoted to Chili!

MAC is selling them in packaging for $20 each, and as bare pans sans the packaging for nine bucks(!).

MAC doesn’t normally offer both options for every LE eyeshadow launch, so “Cosmetics Conspiracy Theory Karen” is thinking, “That’s gotta be a sign they’re coming to the permanent line!”

I hope so because the neutrals, in particular, are fan-frickin’-tastic, especially if you’re a fan of matte eyeshadows, which you know I am.

Fingers and toes crossed they go permanent. Hey, if it can happen to the Paint Pots (remember them from Fafi, OLD SCHOOL?!) and the In Extra Dimensions from Alluring Aquatic, I think it can happen for these bad gals.

Let us will it into being and manifest that right now! 🤗

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen