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Guerlain

Sneaking Chic Into Your Day, Guerlain’s Spring 2013 Automatique Lipsticks in Flirt and Ballarde Unleash Your Inner Lipstick Ninja

February 11th, 2013 by Karen 22 Comments

Guerlain Rouge Automatique 600 Ballarde
Here I’m wearing Guerlain’s $35 Rouge Automatique in 600 Ballarde, one of four Automatique Lipsticks from Guerlain for spring 2013

Did I have to try very hard to feel fancy with shimmery pink Rouge Automatique in Ballarde and creamy berry Shine Automatique in Flirt, two of four $35 full-coverage Guerlain Automatique Lipsticks for spring 2013, in my makeup bag last weekend?

Nope, not at all. Actually, it was Automatique. 🙂

Good thing, too, because $35 is a lot for a single tube! Heck, for $35, these better be like little lipstick versions of extra tall, diamond-studded tiaras.

So, just how do these elevate your day (and your lipstick game) to make you feel fancy? Let me count the ways…

1. The Transformers-style gold tube

Whenever I slide the little “G” button on side of the tube, and the lipstick emerges from the trapdoor top like a rabbit from a magician’s hat, wow! — that’s makeup magic.

From top to bottom, these are dressed to the nines, and I also love the little details, like the scripty Guerlain font at the top of the cap and the base of the bullet.

2. The tea rose flavor and scent

Light and fresh, like fragrant petals strewn across a satin pillow, the fragrance and flavor are just little touches, but they enhance the whole, “You’re being pampered,” experience.

3. The moisturizing, long-lasting formula

I’m hesitant to use these in a sentence with “stretchy pants,” since Guerlain positions itself several steps above that, but dang if these don’t feel that comfortable to me. My dry winter lips love the moisturizing formula.

And I almost can’t believe that non-matte lipsticks as slick, smooth and lightweight as these can last as long as they do — from 3-5 hours. That’s kind of epic.

4. They make me feel like a straight-up lipstick ninja!

I’ve been sneaking around with two of these Automatiques for days, stealthily slicking my lips on the sly, and no one’s been the wiser.

You know how sometimes when you go out to dinner and want a touch-up after the meal but don’t want to make a big production out of it? I’ll pull one of these from my purse, flick the switch on the side with my thumb to engage the lipstick bullet, slide a single layer on my bottom lip, rub my lips together, and check my reflection in the reflection on the side of the golden tube. Ninja style. Takes all of about five seconds.

Guerlain Rouge Automatique 600 Ballarde Product Shot
Rouge Automatique in 600 Ballarde ($35)

Guerlain Shine Automatique 761 Flirt Product Shot
Shine Automatique in 761 Flirt ($35)

Guerlain Rouge Automatique 600 Ballarde Guerlain Rouge Automatique 600 Ballarde Swatches
Swatches of Rouge Automatique in 600 Ballarde on the left and Shine Automatique in 761 Flirt on the right

[Continue reading…]

There are 22 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Guerlain, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews

Guerlain’s New Cils d’Enfer Maxi Lash Mascara Gets Lashes One Step Closer to Zac Efron

January 16th, 2013 by Karen 30 Comments

Guerlain Cils d'Enfer Maxi Lash Mascara
Wearing the new $30 Guerlain Cils d’Enfer Maxi Lash Mascara…

How would I characterize my current mascara philosophy? Three words: Zac Efron’s lashes.

Allow me to explain… 🙂

Last weekend I watched a (SUPER cheesy) movie starring Zac that I thoroughly enjoyed called The Lucky One.

In it, Zac plays a marine who falls in love with a woman whose picture he finds one fateful day on the battlefield.

There it is, on the ground among the rubble.

He has no idea who she is or where she’s from, but he promises himself that day to find her if he survives.

Zac's lurvely lashesAnywho, I spent the entire movie dazzled by this boy’s long and luscious, curly lashes.

They are, simply put, perfection, and really, really glossy!

Homeboy hit the genetic jackpot in the lash department, and it’s so not fair.

Like, if Zac’s sad face was in a tight closeup shot on the screen, and a tear was slowly rolling down his left cheek, I wouldn’t even notice the tear because I’d be too busy staring at his long, wet, glossy lashes.

So to make a short story long…those are the kind of lashes I’m obsessed with at the moment, and I’ve been on a mission this week to find a mascara able to give me that Zac Efron lash look.

As luck would have it, I think I may have found it (or, I’m getting close to finding it) in Guerlain’s new Cils d’Enfer Maxi Lash Mascara.

It’s $30, new for spring and currently available on counters now (it launched earlier this month), and it’s designed to deliver full lash looks by doing a bit of everything — lengthening, thickening, holding the curl and separating each of your lovely lashes.

It comes in two shades, Violet and Black — whoops! I meant, Violet and Noir.

Noir…

That reminds me of high school French. My parents would always say, “Why are you taking French? You’re never going to need it!”

Oh yeah, Mom? Well, look at that! BAM! Now I can translate the French words used by beauty brands. 🙂

Sorry, where was I…?

Guerlain Cils d'Enfer Maxi Lash Mascara Brush

Ah, yes! — Guerlain’s new mascara. It’s designed to do a bit of everything, and it’s supposed to do it all quickly, without any clumps.

Perfect, because that’s what I want from a mascara. I haven’t been wanting to deal with any lash drama lately. I just want things to be easy.

So, does Cils d’Enfer Maxi Lash Mascara deliver?

You know what? I think it does. If nothing else, it gets me a lot closer to Zac’s lashes in a number of ways.

First, it really is easy to use, which I love. I find that I don’t have to follow it up with a lash comb, thanks to the smooth, non-clumping formula.

And I don’t have to pull off any trickery with the brush, either. The bristles just naturally deposit the right amount of product.

Occasionally, it will overload, which leaves me with some slight smudging along my lower lash line, but that’s pretty rare.

It lengthens like a champ, keeps the curl curly and separates well, too (especially at the roots).

Oh, and get this! When you pull out the wand, it smells like roses. 🙂

Nice touch.

Guerlain Cils d'Enfer Maxi Lash Mascara before and after
Before (left) and after one coat (after)

[Continue reading…]

There are 30 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Guerlain, Makeup, Product Reviews

I Spy a Sheer Finish and Plenty of Glitter in the New Lightweight and Moisturizing Guerlain Shine Automatique Lipsticks in Lou-Ling and Altoum

November 14th, 2012 by Karen 27 Comments

Guerlain Shine Automatique Lipstick in Lou-Ling
Wearing the new Guerlain Shine Automatique Hydrating Lip Shine Lipstick in Lou-Ling

Three things I realized this morning while shuffling on the treadmill…

1. You know you’re watching too much late-night television when most of the products on your Christmas list have a red label with the words, “As Seen on TV,” on the packaging.

Bo and Hope2. You know you’re a cat lady when you’re watching Days of Our Lives (remember when Marlena was possessed?!), and you swear that instead of Bo calling Hope by her nickname, “Fancy Face,” you hear him say, “Fancy Feast.”

“I love you, Fancy Feast…”

LOL!

3. You know you’ve seen too many spy films when the first thought you have after seeing the new $35 Guerlain Shine Automatique Hydrating Lip Shine Lipsticks in Lou-Ling and Altoum is, “Wow! These lipsticks could double as weapons…or remote controls for tricked-out cars that can fly.”

Yeah.

Both are from Guerlain’s new limited edition Liu holiday collection, and NOT the secret Q branch of MI6, despite appearances.

The Guerlain Shine Automatique Hydrating Lip Shines are some of the most espionage-appropriate lipsticks around. Caught behind enemy lines without your travel makeup kit? Surrounded by covert agents closing in on your location? No problem. Just slide the little button up on the side of the gilded tube with you thumb, and the lipstick bullet pops up from the top.

BAM! — instant beauty switchblade.

Take that, forces of evil. 🙂

And these don’t just have practical, good-looking tubes. I also love how they look and feel on my perennially parched lips — sheer and shiny, with glitter to spare, and a featherweight, moisturizing formula.

Guerlain Liu Shine Automatique Lipstick
Guerlain Shine Automatique Hydrating Lip Shine Lipsticks in Lou-Ling (top) and Altoum (bottom)

Guerlain Liu Shine Automatique Lipstick

Swatches of Guerlain Shine Automatique Lipsticks in Altoum on the left and Lou-Ling on the right
Swatches of the Guerlain Shine Automatique Hydrating Lip Shine Lipsticks in Altoum on the left and Lou-Ling on the right

Guerlain Shine Automatique Lipstick in Altoum
Guerlain Shine Automatique Hydrating Lip Shine Lipstick in Altoum

[Continue reading…]

There are 27 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Guerlain, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews

Bond Girl Makeup Looks Inspired by the OPI Skyfall Collection: From GoldenEye, Xenia Onatopp

November 8th, 2012 by Karen 32 Comments

bond girl looks xenia onatopp 1
A Xenia Onatopp Bond girl makeup look inspired by the OPI Skyfall collection nail polish in GoldenEye

“M, what on earth is this contraption?”

“That, Bond, is a Thighmaster. Google it.”

“My thighs need no mastering, M.”

“Famous last words, Bond. Famous last words.”

. . .

Can I just say how hard it is to find a frickin’ Thighmaster these days? Because really, if you’re gonna dress up as Bond girl Xenia Onatopp, you want your thighs to be like BAM! — straight-up killing machines!!

I’m not kidding either. In 1995’s GoldenEye, Xenia, played by the gorgeous Famke Janssen, is the Bond babe who famously kills by crushing people to death with her thighs (wha?!).

(Keep in mind, this was before MMA was popular, LOL!)

In fact, Xenia almost takes out Pierce Brosnan’s Bond in one of their encounters…

Hurts so good!

I sure love Xenia’s makeup in the movie. She smolders in a smokey eye and rich red lips while she seduces her prey.

Psycho on the inside, but she keeps it classy on the outside.

Nice. 🙂

Xenia

This afternoon I thought I’d pattern my makeup after hers — not literally copying it, but I tried to capture the same feel, with the biggest difference being that I used a rich gold eyeshadow to play off the OPI GoldenEye polish on my nails.

opi goldeneye
OPI GoldenEye, from the new Bond-themed Skyfall nail polish collection

bond girl looks xenia onatopp 3
Wearing three coats of OPI GoldenEye

[Continue reading…]

There are 32 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Face of the Day (FOTD), Guerlain, Makeup, Makeup Tips/How To, Nails, OPI

I See in Liu a Grand Opera of Rich Reds, Golds, Plums and Taupe: The Guerlain Liu Holiday Collection for 2012

November 7th, 2012 by Karen 19 Comments

guerlain liu holiday 2012 collection

The Tiffany EffectGuerlain’s new Liu holiday collection causes what I like to call, the “Tiffany Effect.”

You know when you’re flipping through the pages of a glossy magazine and come to a Tiffany advert, and suddenly the world gets very, very quiet, except for your heart pounding in your chest, and your pupils nearly triple in size? Beads of perspiration may or may not form on your upper lip (totally guilty of this), and you may or may not unconsciously drool or dribble?

If you’ve experienced the Tiffany Effect before, proceed with caution. Similar symptoms have been reported by subjects peeping the pics below… 🙂

Be warned! — the nine limited edition pieces in Guerlain’s new Liu collection are luxurious and addictive, and the recommended treatment is expensive.

FUN FACT: The new Guerlain Liu collection has roots dating back almost 100 years. It was named after a perfume first released in 1929. That perfume, in turn, was named after a character named Liu from an opera first performed in 1926 called Turandot.

The composer was an Italian named Giacomo Puccini… Yes, the same Puccini behind La Bohème.

Cool, yeah? That was like a fun fact wrapped in a fun fact! Dude, you’re gonna be so ready for Final Jeopardy now.

Liu looks like the stuff of champagne wishes and caviar dreams, and it’s priced like it, too, with pieces ranging from $23 for a bottle of nail polish to $170 for a pressed powder compact. The delicate Perfumed Shimmer Powder bottle (you can use the powder on your face, hair and body) and weighty Météorites Wulong compact would look right at home sitting on an empty seat beside you on your private jet, surrounded by matching Louis Vuitton luggage containing several pairs of Jimmy Choos (and a big box of See’s Candies…just because).

Tabs would also be there, of course, draped in diamonds and wearing a tiara.

This is a cat lady makeup fantasy, after all. 🙂

Here’s a closer look at the nine pieces in the collection…

Liu Eye & Lip Calligraphy Palette ($79)

Guerlain Liu Eye Lip Calligraphy Palette

Guerlain Liu Eye Lip Calligraphy Palette

Guerlain Liu Eye Lip Calligraphy Palette
[Continue reading…]

There are 19 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Collections, Guerlain, Makeup

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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).

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