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Product Reviews

Fun Faces of the Day With Chanel Rouge Coco Lipstick in Edith, Jean, Vera and Misia | Ombre Premiere Laque in Desert Wind | Stylo Yeux in Black Wood

December 23rd, 2020 by Karen 13 Comments

chanel rouge coco jean edith swatches
A few fun Chanel lipsticks!

I may or may not have been wearing nude lips for the better part of nine months now, sooooo one could call this a “nude lip rut,” but I intend to break it with these fun Chanel lipsticks…because Chanel makes everything better. 😊 (Please allow me this fantasy.)

These are a few shades from the Rouge Coco Ultra Hydrating Lipcolour line. They’re $38 each, shiny, moisturizing and vary from medium coverage to opaque. Also, like most of Chanel’s lip products, they have a regal, rosy flavor and scent.

Edith is a fave! It’s an opaque neutral pink that goes extraordinarily well with shimmery taupe shadows like the one I’m wearing here (Chanel Ombre Premiere Laque in Desert Wind).

chanel edith
Rouge Coco in Edith

I’m also a fan of Jean, a hot pink with a purple hint. Like Edith, it goes well with shimmery taupe lids.

chanel jean
Rouge Coco in Jean

For this last lip look, a ’90s-style unblended lip, I layered sheer beige Vera with warm reddish brown Misia, then lined my lips with MAC Burgundy Lip Pencil.

chanel vera misia
Rouge Coco in Vera and Misia (sadly, both appear to be discontinued), along with MAC Burgundy Lip Pencil

The eye makeup

I’m always looking for new eye combos that excite me without exhausting my patience, and the shimmering taupe lid look here only relies on two things, both from Chanel. The shadow is Desert Wind, a cream shadow that comes in a tube with a wand. It’s long-wearing and sets fast, so you have to work quickly to buff out the edges.

I sure do like how wet and glossy it looks. 😍

chanel desert wind black wood swatch
Love me some taupe!

As for the liner, it’s called Black Wood, and it’s one of Chanel’s twist-up, long-wearing pencil liners from the Stylo Yeux line. It’s a rich, deep brownish black.

I’ve been looking for a borderline-black dark brown liner because my MAC Coffee pencil is almost finished (TEARS!). I was hoping I could replace it with this liner because I love the long-wearing formula (it also doesn’t irritate my eyes), but I think it leans a little too black to be a dupe.

Mind you, I still like it, and I’m definitely going to keep it in rotation!

But by far the most interesting makeup around these parts lately…

Is the makeup Connor did on this blank face chart…


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There are 13 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Chanel, Eyes, Lips, Makeup

Goin’ OTT in the Burbs! Green Lids and Glitter, and a New Favorite Nude Lip Combo

December 18th, 2020 by Karen 8 Comments

urban decay boogie braid
Going for green and glittery! Shirt is the Blush Is My Crush Tee in Ocean.

So, I was wearing this glittery green eye look yesterday when I went to pick up Connor from school, and with the foiled forrest green lids sparkling rainbow glitter in the corners, I felt full-on CRAZYPANTS!

I’ve got a rep to protect

Yesterday the kids went home early for Christmas break, and while the other adults at pickup were rocking tastefully understated tinted moisturizer and mascara, I rolled up to the classroom looking like I was going to da club, HAHAHA!

You know what? I’ve decided to lean into it. 🤷‍♀️ I’m OK being that mom.

urban decay boogie braid
Just a li’l glitter!

The inspo

I did this look because of this gorgeous green smokey eye tutorial by Hannah Martin, but instead of using the Urban Decay Born to Run Palette, I used the new UD Boogie mini palette.

It ended up a little more subdued than hers, and I think that was partly because I haven’t worn this much lewk in a while, so I held back a little because I’m just not used to seeing myself with so much color on my face. I think I’ll try it again, though, maybe with the false lashes and a lip with unblended liner to see if I can push it!

Makeup is physical

Yeah, this look was a good reminder that makeup is a perishable skill. It’s been a minute since I wore anything like this with lots of blending, and I felt rusty.

urban decay boogie braid
Smooth!

One last thing

But I really like how this nude lip turned out! I lined and filled my lips with MAC Oak lip liner, then topped it off with Chanel Amoureaux Rouge Allure Ink liquid lipstick, and I love how smooth my lips look. Definitely going to wear this combo again.

Makeup worn in this look

  • EYES: Urban Decay Boogie 70s Eyeshadow Palette, Chanel Eye Primer, Urban Decay Brow Beater, Urban Decay Cannonball Waterproof Mascara, MAC Smolder Eyeliner
  • LIPS: MAC Oak Lip Pencil, Chanel Amoureaux Rouge Allure Ink
  • CHEEKS: Hourglass Radiant Bronze Light Bronzer, MAC Gingerly blush
  • BASE: Chanel Ultra Le Teint Foundation in BD51, Chanel Vitalumiere Acqua in 50 Beige, Chanel Natural Finish Loose Powder and Chanel Longwear Concealer in 40 Beige

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There are 8 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Chanel, Face of the Day (FOTD), MAC Makeup, Makeup, Urban Decay

Product Spotlight: Wander Beauty Trip for Two Blush and Bronzer Brush

December 17th, 2020 by Karen 5 Comments

wander beauty trip for two blush bronzer brush
This brush is a makeup bag staple.

This $34 dual-ended blush and bronzer brush by Wander Beauty gets used daily! It’s a workhorse. It never sheds, and it beautifully blends all manner of formulas and products. It’s also cruelty-free (a big plus). A makeup bag must!

Calling all students, moms (cat and otherwise), and basically any and everyone who loves makeup but doesn’t care to fuss too much about it. Wander Beauty’s Trip for Two Blush and Bronzer Brush is your new BFF (best face friend).

If you’re unfamiliar with Wander Beauty, they’re a fairly small cruelty-free beauty brand all about fast, fresh, easy makeup, and that sums up this brush in a nutshell. It’s designed for use with bronzer and blush, but I lean on it for my entire face base, and no matter what I throw at it, it handles it with ease and grace.

wander beauty trip for two blush bronzer brush head
A closer look at the blush brush

It adeptly blends liquid and cream foundations and tinted moisturizers without leaving streaks behind. Cream blush, powder blush, gel blush, bronzer or highlighter — this brush fabulously feathers them all with gradients that transition seamlessly from light to dark. It makes it easy to do my entire base from start to finish. I just clean it gently between products by running the bristles across a paper towel.

The bristles, by the way, are synthetic…which I know some makeup lovers have a love/hate relationship with because, over time, synthetics can stiffen up. That said, this brush is just as soft today as it was the first time I used it, and I’ve been using it pretty much every time I put on makeup for a few months.

Did I mention that the bristles don’t shed?! Good stuff!

I really like the size of both brush heads too. They’re just right. They cover a good amount of space on my face, but they aren’t awkwardly big, so I don’t accidentally end up with bronzer or blush in places they don’t belong.
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There are 5 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Face, Makeup, Makeup Tools, Product Reviews, Wander Beauty

Can You Remember the Very First Thing You Bought From MAC?

December 16th, 2020 by Karen 19 Comments

mac lipsticks at union square store
First MAC lipstick love: Paramount!

My first tube of MAC Paramount happened circa 1995.

It was at the Arden Fair Mall in Sacramento, and the counter was just a tiny little stand right next to the entrance.

I remember the sales associate talking me into Mahogany Lip Pencil to go with Paramount Lipstick and me being, like, “SURE, GIRL, RING ME UP!” And I paid cash from money I’d saved working retail over the holidays that year… Little did I know that that small tube of Paramount would send me on a crazy, wild makeup ride that would someday take me to MAC headquarters in Toronto years later (craziness) and also lead to me make my very own MAC Lipglass.

I wish I had kept that first tube!

urban decay starfire
Wearing Paramount and Mahogany
mac powell street store sept 2015
I miss this place! Oh…Connor is in my belly in this pic!

How about you? Can you remember the first thing you ever bought from MAC?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

There are 19 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Just For Fun, Makeup

Urban Decay Decades Collection Swatches and Impressions

December 10th, 2020 by Karen 10 Comments

urban decay mini eyeshadow palettes
Takin’ a trip through the decades with Urban Decay’s latest

Watch out, Elon Musk! 🚀 Urban Decay just took the lead in the race to develop a time machine, but no, science fiction nerds, I’m not referring to a hot tub time machine (although I secretly wish I was). I’m talking about their $25 LE Decades eyeshadow palettes, which are up on the UD website now.

Each one is themed around a different decade from the ’70s through the early 2000s, and they’re cute! They fit in the palm of your hand with colors and finishes reminiscent of that decade’s style of makeup.

urban decay mini eyeshadow palettes
Of course 1993 would speak to me, haha!

No surprise here, but my favorite is 1993, and not just because of the great plaid packaging. The colors are also wearable. I was really surprised when I put them on the other day by how non-scary my eyes looked, because that did not line up with my first impression when I opened the palette and immediately thought, “Oh, boy…”

“Flattering” wasn’t the first word that came to mind, but then I put them on. 😁

urban decay 1993 boogie swatches

When I did my makeup the first time with these shadows, I did my eyes first, and I vividly remember that there wasn’t any fallout. I didn’t have to clean up any eyeshadow on my cheeks afterwards, which was great.

I think the standout’s gotta be Collect Call, a dark brown that looks intimidating in the pan but turns out to be a surprisingly wearable matte brownish purple on my skin. I blended it into my outer corner and was pleasantly surprised. It feathered out quite easily.

Grunge is another surprise. It looks like a baby threw up all over Oscar the Grouch’s fur in the pan, but no! — it’s actually a lovely satiny golden olive.

Overall, the colors in the 1993 palette are totally, and surprisingly, wearable. Who’d a thunk it?

I put the shadows on bare lids and wasn’t wearing any primer with them at all, because that’s how I roll these days, and even after five hours, I didn’t see any creasing. The shades looked just as vibrant as they did when I put them on in the morning.
[Continue reading…]

There are 10 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Palettes, Urban Decay

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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).

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