Have I ever mentioned my Ivy League pants?
One of the colleges I applied to back in high school was Harvard. My parents made me do it (even though I didn’t feel like Ivy League material), but I went through the motions, sending off my application (this was pre-Internet) and waiting patiently for a reply.
Weeks passed, and then a letter came in the mail. The school wanted me to interview with a Bay Area Harvard alumni.
Less than an hour before leaving the house on the day of the interview, the unthinkable happened: I spilled a glass of water on my pants.
Panicked, with time running out, I tossed them in the dryer for 10 minutes. Sadly, I put the dryer on high heat and forgot to check the tags on the pants.
They shrank, horribly, but I was so spaced out, running late and nervous that I didn’t realize until it was too late. A block from the interview, without enough time to go home and change, it hit me.
Something’s wrong with my pants…
Too late to back out, I parked the car and hurried to my appointment, taking shallow breaths every step of the way.
What followed were 60 mortifying, oxygen-deprived minutes of gibberish and the end of my Ivy League career. 🙂
Which leads me to Bobbi Brown’s upcoming Ivy League collection of six Lip Crayons ($22), a Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner ($21), two Eye Shadows ($20) and a new, improved line of Creamy Eye Pencils (nine of them, $20 each).
As usual, Bobbi’s colors are conservative and wearable for work (or a Harvard lecture), but a few of them pack some serious punch.
Here are some of my faves…
Metallic Shadow in Bash, $20
Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner in Forest Shimmer Ink, $21
Creamy Eye Pencil in Jet, $20
Lip Crayon in Posey, $22
Swatches from left to right: Posey, Jet, Bash, Forest Shimmer Ink
What do you think of Forest Shimmer Ink (the dark green with golden shimmer)? That one really caught my eye.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. I hope you had a good day today. I’m a little tired right now and looking forward to a nice cup of tea.
Aisha says
July 30th, 2009 at 10:40 pmThanks for the photos and swatches Karen! I have almost similar e/s from Giorgio Armani but haven’t used it much. The makeup artist used it on me when I asked for a daytime smokey eyes. I can definitely see myself wearing it a lot more after reading this 😀
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:18 amHi Aisha,
How are you liking your Armani eyeshadow? I haven’t tried the eyeshadows from that line but have heard good things about ’em.
mela says
July 30th, 2009 at 10:45 pmi think the forest shimmer ink could really be up my fall alley! my new number one product is the benefit craseless cream shadow in skinny jeans which is taupe with some green in it and i think this could be a great compliment.
how would you recommend using the gel? purely as a liner or possibly as a shadow/base?
xoxo
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:17 amHi Mela,
I *LOVE* Skinny Jeans. Do you have Birthday Suit? It pairs well with that color.
I use Bobbi’s gels both as liner and as an eyeshadow base. I can’t wait to layer this one beneath Bash.
bomi says
July 30th, 2009 at 11:13 pmbobbi brown gel liners are my holy grail.
lovveee them!
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:17 amHi Bomi,
I love ’em, too. What’s your favorite color?
Paris B says
July 30th, 2009 at 11:49 pmBash looks like my kind of green shadow! The shimmer ink isn’t looking too bad but it’s likely going to show up dark/black once I use it so I wouldn’t bother.
.-= Paris B’s last blog post… Ask & Answer : What is a good heat protection hair serum? =-.
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:17 amHi Paris B,
Bash is fantastic! 🙂
Emily says
July 31st, 2009 at 2:30 amI love the colour green and I absolutely adore eyeliner with gold flecks in it. I love love love MAC technakohl in “Uniform”. I actually have a really really important question to ask you, Karen… before applying concealer I feel that I should put on a eye cream. I feel like there are superfine lines under my eyes and concealer REVEALS them. An eyecream will definitely help smooth things out… is Bobbi Brown’s hydrating eye cream any good?
Emily says
July 31st, 2009 at 2:31 amOh and also, I would prefer an eye cream that actually DOES something other than hydrating my skin. Like.. getting rid of my awful dark circles…
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:15 amHi Emily,
Yes — a good eye cream or gel will make a huge diff! Truth be told, I have yet to find an eye cream that does everything. I’ve tried a few that were supposed to remove dark circles, but they didn’t really do anything for me.
One that I’ve been using underneath concealer is MAC’s Fast Response. It smooths, adds light hydration and brightens the under-eye area. It also absorbs really fast, too, so you don’t have to sit around waiting for it to sink in.
I haven’t tried Bobbi’s, though … can anybody weigh in on it?
Karen4 says
July 31st, 2009 at 3:43 amHi Karen!
The green is a refreshing change for BB! Love the Forest shimmer ink. I have a tip for Emily–Avon Anew Clinical Eye Lift. It really helps fade dark circles and reduce crepiness. It’s light, absorbs well, and is great before concealer. Let it sink in though, before applying. Have a wonderful day everyone!
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:08 amHi Karen4,
I know! I’m glad to see a little bit of color from our girl.
Thanks for the recommendation! The quest for a good eye cream seems to be a never ending one.
Tiffany says
July 31st, 2009 at 5:15 amHappy Friday!
I love fall collections! The lip pencil looks nice…
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:06 amHi Tiffany,
Happy Friday to you, too!
The lip pencils are awesome. They’re really creamy and feel like light lipstick. Have you tried ’em?
Ann says
July 31st, 2009 at 6:35 amout of every brand this year and every season I think I am most excited for this… I dunno something about “back to school” and ivy league.. even though I went to a big 10 haha. These colors look so wearable. I’ll definitely be searching for them at the counter! I’m already in love with their long wearing gel eyeliner…. swooon. thanks for sharing Karen!!
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:05 amHi Ann,
The gel liner made me swoon, too. This is one of Bobbi’s best ones in awhile!
What did you study while you were in school?
Kim says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:25 amHey Karen!
TGIF, girl. It’s finally here. School is fine on this side of the continent; I have my final on Monday (wish me luck!).
I love the way Posey looks. I’m not too keen on the shadow and gel liner (mostly because I have dupes XD) but they will be good for fall.
How’s house-hunting?
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:55 amHi Kim,
Good luck on your final! Will you be studying this weekend? What’s it on?
On the house front, we found a place. It’s a condo, but has most of the things we wanted. Right now I’m just waiting … we’ll find out hopefully in the next week or so if we get it. *crosses fingers*
Tiffany says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:25 amNo, I haven’t tried them, but that one looks really pretty! Now that I think about it, I think the only BB product I have is a shimmerbrick. I may need to explore the line more!
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:52 amHi Tiffany,
They’re pretty fabulous. They stay on forever and apply with dark, deep color. I wish the jars were bigger, though, for the price!
Vonvon says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:39 amOoohhhh……the Bash looks really pretty. I don’t really do green eyeshadow. I have Lancome’s Renaissance Printaniere but it’s still nicely wrapped in its box somewhere in one of my dresser drawers……*sheepish smile*
Speaking of Ivy League and all its seriousness…..the nerd in me kind of awaken… 😛
.-= Vonvon’s last blog post… Bobbi Brown Makeover – EOTD: Soft Smoky Look =-.
Karen says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:49 amHi Vonvon,
Aww, no love for green eyeshadow? What is it about it that you don’t like?
Michelle says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:46 amI am loving those shades of green — they look very wearable and classic. I haven’t tried Bobbi Brown, but I might have to head on over to their counter . . .
Moni says
July 31st, 2009 at 7:50 amIf it makes you feel any better, I completely forgot about my Yale interview and went on a date!
The lady called my house and spoke to my mom… boy, was she PISSED. Oops!
.-= Moni’s last blog post… Rest of Resort =-.
Haley says
July 31st, 2009 at 8:24 amIs anyone else digging the brows on the promo pic model? Awfully bold, and so amazing.
This is an exciting release. I haven’t dabbled with bobbi brown much, but I might just have to start.
ines, felix and kitten (the office kitties) says
July 31st, 2009 at 8:59 ami lurves me some bobbi… for school/work anyway.
i got the new nude palette… i just couldn’t help myself! not to mention that i already have a 6-pan palette with neutral e/s, and a 3-pan with two blushes and the foundation stick. i also love her cream pot rouge for lips and cheeks (replaced benetint forever!). all her eye & face product is high quality and pigmented. i love it.
my only gripe with this brand is i hate all their lip products. the brush on the lip gloss is terrible, and the lipsticks can be a bit drying. only thing i can’t live without is the pale pink lipliner, which i use as a nude base for most of my lip looks.
.-= ines, felix and kitten (the office kitties)’s last blog post… Random Musings – Cleaning Out My Stash =-.
Glosslizard says
July 31st, 2009 at 9:50 amHmmm, Bash might just end up being my first BB splurge! I loves me some greens, and having a more neutral option in the ol’ makeup kit just wouldn’t hurt my feelings at all!
Trude says
July 31st, 2009 at 10:13 amI think this collection plus the neutral shadow compact is going to get me back at the BB counter! So in love!
.-= Trude’s last blog post… Lately… =-.
ariana martuscello says
July 31st, 2009 at 11:45 ami love this picture. could you post a follow-up which shows how to achieve this look step by step?
Vonvon says
July 31st, 2009 at 11:52 amHi Karen,
No….may be I didn’t make myself clear. I read a lot on the beauty of green eyeshadows but I just did not use it much because….well, let’s put it this way, most of my wardrobe are pinks and purples, lilacs and their like colors with an occasional yellow or blue. So I just don’t know if using green eyeshadows would go with the colors of my clothing.
I am fickle, Karen. You get my point, don’t ya?? *scratching my head* *red-faced*
.-= Vonvon’s last blog post… Review: Kiehl’s Grapefruit Liquid Body Cleanser And Exfoliating Body Scrub =-.
Kate & Zena says
July 31st, 2009 at 12:13 pmTGIF!
Oh, Bash and Posey me likey. I need a ribbon in Bash’s color for Zena. She looks good in green!
I just enrolled for fall semester at my community college and holy smokes, tuition went down! I was doing a happy dance at the computer. It’s about $800 less than what I paid last year! Woo hoo! If only book prices went down. Why are textbooks so darned expensive?
Amanda says
July 31st, 2009 at 2:54 pmBash is a re-launch from the holiday collection. I have it and lurve it! Can’t wait to see what you do with it. That gel liner does look pretty.
Redhead says
July 31st, 2009 at 3:09 pmHow longwearing are the pencils? I’d imagine that a pencil with ‘creamy’ in the name might travel in the summer heat.
cloudburst says
August 1st, 2009 at 9:41 amAwwww! I had my own ivy league interview experience – I didn’t get the gig either, but there was no pants shrinkage in mine, LOL!
Anyways, Bash & Forest Ink look nice.
Marisol says
August 1st, 2009 at 10:07 amThat gel liner is calling me name! hhhmmm do I need another gel liner? Oh yes I do!
.-= Marisol’s last blog post… Daily Affirmation =-.
Rachel says
August 1st, 2009 at 10:32 amLove Bash, very pretty!
Karen B says
August 1st, 2009 at 2:13 pmForrest Shimmer Ink is really down my alley. *drools*
Alexandra says
August 4th, 2009 at 4:38 amThe forest shimmer ink is so pretty 🙂