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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 682

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you are not stuck monday poll

So…what is the Monday Poll?

Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of five more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). I love reading your answers, and it helps me get my week off to a good start. 🌻

    1. Lip tint or lip balm?

    Lip balm, ideally something with SPF and a hint of color. I’ve got my eye on these by Colorscience because you can wear them on lips *and* cheeks, and they have SPF50.

    2. Matchy-matchy: yes or no?

    Yes, yes, yes!

    3. Your thoughts on biker shorts?

    I used to wear them back in the ’90s and liked them then. I probably wouldn’t wear them now though, because…why wear biker shorts when you can just as easily wear leggings? At least with leggings I get a little warmth and sun protection! LOL.

    4. Snakes: cool or scary?

    Um…scary cool? This is unlikely a shocker, but I’m not a big fan of snakes. We have a lot of them on the trails here in Marin County, so you have to be careful, and I’ve seen a few in real life. I get freaked out every single time. Once, I saw a MASSIVE snake. It was very long and as thick as my arm! I watched it slowly creep into the ground, and I was so stunned that I couldn’t move or talk.

    That said, I do find that snake designs, especially in jewelry, can look very cool, although I don’t like snakeskin ANYTHING.

    5. Something you wish you learned sooner?

    That emotional neglect is a thing, but so is re-parenting yourself.

    6. What’s your current go-to eyeliner style?

    A SUPER thin, crisp liquid line on the upper lash line, with the smallest kitten flick at the end. Oh, and in black. It’s classic and has been workin’ for me, especially since I haven’t been wearing a lot of eyeshadow. I feel like liquid liner gives a high payoff in relation to the effort.

    7. Something in your beauty arsenal that helps you get that glow?

    Hmm…does liquid exfoliator count? I’ve been using the Jan Marini Skin Care Management System I got for Mother’s Day (it has a liquid exfoliator with glycolic, salicylic and azelaic acids!) a few days a week, and I swear my skin glows!

    8. Do you own a CD player?

    I don’t have one in my house anymore, but I do in my car. I don’t spend a lot of time driving, though, so I kinda want one in the house again so I can play my old CDs!

    9. Last thing you drank?

    A big glass of water with Tangerine Emergen-C.

    Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

    Karen

    P.S. Here are the questions to copy/paste with your answers in a comment. Talk to ya soon.

    1. Lip tint or lip balm?
    2. Matchy-matchy: yes or no?
    3. Your thoughts on biker shorts?
    4. Snakes: cool or scary?
    5. Something you wish you learned sooner?
    6. What’s your current go-to eye liner style?
    7. Something in your beauty arsenal that helps you get that glow?
    8. Do you own a CD player?
    9. Last thing you drank?

    P.P.S. Happy Monday, sweet friend! 😊 I hope your morning so far has been filled with good things and perhaps even a little bit of unicorn magic (I know I could use some). 🦄 I have Connor with me this week because it’s the in-between time right after school ends and before camp begins, so maybe she’ll even grace me with her makeover skills.

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 663

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“The Caviar Caper: A Tabs the Cat Adventure”

PART III

(Click here to read Part I and here for Part II.)

Well I’ll be… It was Linus. Tabs lifted the sterling silver lid from the serving tray. Yup, there it was, the missing caviar. About fifty thousand dollars worth.

Down below on the lawn, Detective Kinard was talking to Linus, who had his back to the large tree and to Tabs. Tabs started waving his arms above his head to get the detective’s attention. The detective glanced up at him, and Tabs emphatically pointed down at Linus, then held up the shiny silver lid from the serving tray to show the detective. It was him!

Below, the detective was making small talk with Linus to keep him preoccupied. They were discussing their favorite seasons of Project Runway.

“So,” Linus said, “on balance, I would have to say that season one, since it’s the season that started it all, would have to be my overall favorite.”

The detective nodded. “Makes sense.” He removed a pair of small handcuffs from his belt behind his back. “Linus,” the detective started, “you’re under arrest for grand larceny…”

“Mrow!” Linus giggled. Ha! He appeared to believe the detective was joking.

“Put your paws behind your back,” the detective continued.

Looking confused, Linus obliged. “Meow?” I’m…sorry? What’s this about?

Tabs backed his way down the tree awkwardly.

“You’re under arrest for stealing the caviar,” the detective said as knelt and put Linus’s tiny paws into the handcuffs.

“Meow?” asked Linus. What?

Tabs walked up beside Linus and the detective. “Mrow?” Tabs asked, hurt in his voice. Why, Linus? How could you?

“Meow?” Linus answered. How could I what? Mr. Tabs, what’s this about?

“Mow-row?” Tabs said. Just tell me why you did it?

Just then, a blue Toyota Camry rolled up onto the circle and pulled over by the lawn. Little Archibald slung his overly large Luis Vuitton backpack across his shoulder and held out the diamond-encrusted iPhone Tabs loaned him to call his mommy cat. “Mwow,” he squeaked. Um, thank you, sir, for letting me borrow your phone.

“Meow,” Tabs replied, taking the phone from Archibald’s tiny paw. You’re welcome, Archibald. I’m so sorry you had to witness this. Tabs put the bejeweled phone into the sleek, black quilted leather Channel fanny pack he was wearing and returned his attention to Linus.

Detective Kinard was escorting Linus away toward two nearby uniformed police officers. “Book him on a 487, grand theft,” the detective said. Linus was staring down at the ground in front of him as the officers guided him to a nearby police car.

“Mwow!” Archibald called back to Tabs as he opened the back passenger door of the blue Toyota. It was still a great party! He hopped in the backseat and closed the door. The Toyota slowly pulled away from the curb. Tabs saw a man behind the wheel.

“Meow-wow?” Tabs heard Linus say as the officers pushed him into the back of a patrol car. What is going on here? I didn’t do anything!

The blue Toyota with Archibald in it rounded the circle. Tabs noticed the man driving was wearing a very smart black shirt with purple stripes down the shoulders. It was quite fashionable. Tabs knew he had seen the design before but couldn’t place it.

The Toyota took the last turn before leaving the circle, and Tabs got a good look at the driver and his shirt. Being a world-renowned kitty supermodel and award-winning feline fashion designer, Tabs couldn’t resist anything related to good fashion. He just wished he could remember where he’d seen this design before.

As the car pulled away, Tabs noticed a sticker on the bumper. Fedex.

Fedex, Tabs pondered. Holy! The driver was wearing a Fedex shirt!

Tabs finally knew what it meant. He heard Linus crying in the backseat of the patrol car. I didn’t do anything! Why is this happening?

Just then, Tabs lept into action, sprinting at full speed to intercept the Toyota before it left the circle. “Meowwww!” he roared. It wasn’t Linus! It was Archibald!

Detective Kinard watched as Tabs jumped straight through the driver’s side open window of the Toyota, smashing into the driver. The car swerved sharply, coming to an abrupt stop as it struck the curb.

Inside the car, Tabs quickly subdued the driver with tabby jiujitsu until the detective and one of the uniformed police officers arrived. They pulled the driver and Archibald from the vehicle and promptly handcuffed both of them.

“Damnit!” the driver yelled. “I knew we’d never get away with it!”

“Meow!” barked Archibald. Shut up, you idiot! Don’t tell them anything!

Back over at the other police car, Tabs opened the back door and helped Linus out. “Meow…” he said. I’m sorry, Linus… “Mrow-ow.” This was a terrible mistake. You have my sincerest apologies. Tabs unlocked the handcuffs Linus was wearing with a set of keys he was holding.

“Mrow,” Linus replied, sounding relieved. It’s okay, sir. I’m just glad everything worked out.

“Meow-row-wow,” Tabs said, patting Linus on the head. You’re a real class act, buddy. With that silky fur and that positive cattitude, I have no doubt you’ll be an incredible kitty supermodel.

“Meow!” Linus said. Thank you! That means a lot coming from you, sir.

— THE END —

Rosie and graduation

This was graduation week around the country, and Rosie was very excited about it because it reminded her of her graduation from MIT. She loved school, and that was a great time.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Saturday Surfing, June 12, 2021!

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colourpop volumizing mascara
Good morning!

I can’t believe I’m saying this (happy Saturday, by the way), but I don’t remember the last time I wore bright blue mascara. As a beauty lover, this is one of those details that I can usually recall with obnoxious clarity, but as you know…it’s been cray! I’m hoping, though, that this gloriously blue ColourPop Mascara will guide me to a similar (or perhaps even a better) place where I’m excited about wearing makeup again.

As they say, baby steps. Would you believe that last Thursday I actually left the house with filled in brows, cat eye liner *and* waterproof mascara? I know! The tinted sunscreen I’ve been wearing finally had some makeup friends to play with, LOL!

What do you have planned today? I’m gonna take it pretty easy on this end. I’m replanting the tomato plants, basil and the hot pink hibiscus I got last weekend, and oh! — my brother got me an air fryer for my birthday, so I’m going to experiment with it today. The one I have is by Innsky and it’s huge! It’s one my brother has and loves, so even though right now I can’t really tell if I’m using correctly, I’m hoping to become one of those people who says, “I LOOOOOVE MY AIR FRYER.”

Last night I made broccoli and salmon in it, and they weren’t terrible, so I’m looking forward to seeing what magic I can do…

Side note: it has a cake setting, which I’m both weirded out by and fascinated by.

If you have any good air fryer recipes, please feel free to share them! 🙂

This week’s reading


Yes, please.


Drop that knowledge.


When you can’t look away…


I still love this show.


Exfoliate me.


B-b-b-bennie and the jets


Need this in my tum ASAP.


Fun fact: Rosie is the most talkative cat I’ve ever lived with.


This looks fun.


That lip!


Oui!

Have a great rest of your day, and take extra good care of yourself, OK?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Birthday Beauty Haul

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birthday haul 2021
Well, hello there, Rosie-Pose!

When you live within 5 minutes of both an Ulta and a Sephora, and it’s your birthday, well…this happens.

I couldn’t resist grabbing some things from my beauty wishlist. 🙂 And, um, some other just-for-fun items may have accidentally fallen into my basket too, whoops!

  • Peter Thomas Roth Niacinamide Discoloration Treatment
  • Biossance Squalane + Omega Repair Cream
  • Curel Makeup Cleansing Oil
  • The Laneige Birthday Gift from Sephora (Lip Sleeping Mask, Water Sleeping Mask, Water Bank Moisture Cream)
  • Colorpop BFF Volumizing Mascara in Blue Ya Mind

I’ll probably also end up getting another bottle of Olive & June polish, which I LOVE, because I’m going to treat Connor to lunch, a new book and a sparkly nail polish today since she’s done with preschool. Yesterday was her last official day of preschool! *sniffs*

It’s a cliché for a reason, but dang, time sure flies… It really does seem like we were just practicing walking to her classroom for the first time, and then she was finishing her first year, then second year, and now… She’s heading to Kindergarten this fall. I mean that’s big league now!

Her “graduation” was held in the preschool parking lot, and yes, as anticipated, I got a little teary (OK, a lot). Waterproof mascara was definitely in the mix!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF! I hope you have a nice weekend lined up.

What’s Currently on Your Beauty Wish List?

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make a wish

Spill the beans! Let me hear it! Tell what I wanna know! So…what, pray tell, is currently on your beauty wish list?

Girl, what isn’t on my beauty wish list is more like it!

I’ve been deep-diving into the skin care world, scanning the interwebs for solutions to hyperpigmentation and melasma, and I owe my discover of these first items to Dr. Alexis Stephens on YouTube. She has a video on hyperpigmentation for darker skin tones where she basically “sciences the sh*t” 😂 out of the ingredients one should be looking for in their quest to even out their skin tone.

Today, I’m deeply enamored with the idea of tranexemic acid products and would like to add one to the mix, so I’m wish-listing (yes, I just made that up) three options.

Option one is affordable and accessible. It’s the $14.99 INKEY list Tranexamic Acid Night Treatment at Sephora. I like that it doesn’t break the bank, and I also like that it’s available at Sephora, so I wouldn’t have to drive 250 miles to find it.

Option two is pricier at $88 (oh, my!). It’s by Peter Thomas Roth, called the PRO Strength Niacinamide Discoloration Treatment.

So, this one’s much more expensive, but I like that it contains hyperpigmentation heavy-hitters niacinamide and kojic acid, as well as tranexemic acid. It’s also supposed to have a creamy texture, which my dry skin would probably like.

Option three is the most expensive 💸💰 one, so of course it’s the one I’m most intrigued by, ha ha ha. It’s called SkinMedica Lytera 2.0, and it clocks in at a whopping, ridiculous, staggering $154!

I’ve seen the brand in dermatology offices before, though, and it’s listed in that hyperpigmentation video from Dr. Alexis Stephens, so I’m deeply curious about it…

After much internal debate, which is still ongoing, I’m thinking about splurging on the Peter Thomas Roth item in the purple tube to kickstart things before perhaps eventually transitioning to the more affordable INKEY list product for maintenance, assuming my skin likes tranexemic acid.

Also on my list is a moisturizer with vitamin F, which technically isn’t a real vitamin, but rather two essential fatty acids — an omega-3 fatty acid called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), and an an omega-6 fatty acid called linoleic acid (LA). Vitamin F is another thing that is supposed to help with hyperpigmentation as well, and yes this is another thing I learned from Dr. Alexis!

As for moisturizers, both of these are on my list right meow: Biossance Squalane + Omega Repair Cream ($58) and Drunk Elephant F-Balm Masque ($54).

Incidentally, even though the Drunk Elephant F-Balm is billed as a “sleeping mask,” I think that’s just marketing-speak for “night moisturizer.” I can’t imagine you couldn’t just use it in the evening before bed, if the timing and convenience worked out better for you.

In other news…can we briefly chat about retinol for a minute? I’ve been using this one from Neutrogena for a few months, and I like it just fine (it’s moisturizing and doesn’t irritate my skin), but I’m getting the urge to try something new. I’ve been reading up on the different types of retinols in over-the-counter products, and now I want to try a treatment with retinaldehyde, which is supposed to work quicker than retinol…

The Avene RetrinAL 0.05 Cream ($62) gets mentioned often, and so I’ve got that one on my list!

Speaking of Avene, they have new mineral sunscreens, including a tinted one. Ugh. WANT! 🙃

That’s it for me…at least for now…from what I can think of at this very moment. Ha! What’s currently on your beauty wish list? Inquiring minds want to know.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. BTW, today is someone’s birthday. 😁 I’ll give you a hint. It’s somebody typing on a keyboard into this blog right now, and she likes cats and makeup and clothes and sunny weather and kindness and good conversation and is currently obsessed with skin care and sunscreen… 🎁🎂🎈🎉

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