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Archives for June 2008

Unwind with Tela Beauty Organics Hair Care Products

June 23rd, 2008 by Karen 18 Comments

tela-beauty-organics-healer-encore

Tela Beauty Organics, where have you been all my wavy-haired life? Both your Healer product (leave-in conditioner) and Encore (styling creme) work wonders. Gisele Bundchen and Jennifer Anniston — step aside, girls (lol)! Here comes Karen’s hair!

If you have naturally curly or wavy hair and, like me, can’t or won’t use hair products that contain silicone, you probably struggle to find silicone-free leave-in conditioners and de-frizzing products in which dimethicone or amodimethicone aren’t listed near the top of the list of ingredients. In the hair care industry, it seems like silicone is everywhere you turn.

What’s so bad about silicone? Well, nothing according to the cosmetics industry, but theirs isn’t the only opinion. Silicone coats hair, protecting it from heat damage, and makes hair shiny and smooth.

But others warn that overuse of silicone-containing hair products forces the hair cuticle out of position, potentially killing it and leading to hair thinning and loss.

Most experts agree that occasional use of quality brands shouldn’t lead to long term problems with hair.

With Healer and Encore, Tela Beauty Organics has solved the silicone dilemma in a novel way. They don’t use it. Neither Healer nor Encore contain silicones, and both products create smooth, silky hair. The catch (there’s always one)? Price. Available exclusively at Barneys New York, Healer costs a whopping $48 for a 1.6-oz. bottle, and Encore will set you back $45 for a 1-oz jar. All together now: “OUCH!”

Both products are expensive, but they also work very well.

Healer is a leave-in treatment that repairs hair and damaged ends. I have really thick hair and found that I had to use about a silver dollar-sized amount, massaging it throughout my hair after getting out of the shower. Then, using my fingertips and a wide-toothed comb, I worked a pea-sized amount of Encore’s styling paste in, particularly at the ends to reduce frizz, and air dried.
[Continue reading…]

There are 18 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Hair, Product Reviews

Review: Shu Uemura Fleur de Rose Eau de Toilette

June 22nd, 2008 by Karen 17 Comments

shu-uemura-fleur-de-rose

Shu Uemura’s Pricey Rose Fragrance Smells Pretty But Fades Fast

Each June, Shu Uemura releases a limited edition collection of various beauty products to commemorate the opening of their first beauty boutique in June of 1983. This year’s collection, called Hana-Bi, includes, among other things, three pricey eau de toilette fragrances. How pricey?

Are you sitting down?

Each of the scents will set you back a whopping $85 for a 1.6-oz. bottle. The company sent me one of the three, Fleur de Rose, to review for the blog. I was really looking forward to trying it out, knowing full well that it had better be good for $85.

Eau de toilettes are usually less concentrated and less expensive than regular perfumes (sometimes referred to as eau de parfums). I could see myself shelling out $85 for a truly breathtaking eau de parfum, but paying almost $100 for an eau de toilette is a lot to ask of anyone.

I’ve been wearing Fleur de Rose off and on now for a few days. It’s a very light, simple, rosy scent that reminds me of crushed rose petals and wild licorice on a crisp spring morning.

I like Fleur de Rose, but I don’t love it. The fragrance simply is what it is and doesn’t evolve or change over time. And it fades quickly, too. When I dab it on my wrists in the morning, the scent is gone by lunchtime.

Shu Uemura Fleur de Rose Eau de Toilette

Price: $85 for a 1.6-oz. bottle
Use: A light, rosy fragrance
Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: C

I have a special place in my heart for Shu Uemura products, especially their eyeshadows, but Fleur de Rose is simply too expensive. I haven’t tried the other two scents in the collection — Fleur de Terre, a fresh woody floral; and Fleur de Source, a spicy floral — but they’d really have to smell amazing and last far longer than Fleur de Rose does to justify the price.
[Continue reading…]

There are 17 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Fragrance, Product Reviews

Most Popular Posts of the Week: June 16-22

June 22nd, 2008 by Karen 3 Comments

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Happy Sunday, girls! I hope your day is going well. I’m on my way to a quick brunch (Mmm… French toast).

Brunch.

What is it about that word? — brunch? I love it. Not quite breakfast; not quite lunch.

Most Popular Posts of the Week: June 16-22

  • Chanel Fall 2008: Early Reviews and Swatches
    “The entire gold-themed collection lands at Chanel counters this July, but here are three members of the fall collection. I’ve yet to see the items I’m *really* lusting after — the Gold Fever Highlighter and the Gold Light Glossimer — in person, but these should tide me over for now.”
  • Review: Bumble and Bumble Creme de Coco Masque
    “The texture of Creme de Coco Masque is just slightly thicker than Bumble and Bumble’s Deeep [with three Eees] Conditioner, which is quite thick, but it was still easy to apply from roots to ends. Coconut is either a love it or hate it scent, so be warned: this smells like coconut.”
  • Dior Fall 2008: Impression Cuir Fall Pics and Full Product List
    “Due for release this August, the collection features rich, romantic colors like burgundy, plum and copper and embossed animal-inspired textures — think crocodile and python. The makeup gods say dark lipstick will be big this fall, and I’m looking forward to Fantastic Plum Rouge Dior. I think it’ll look great with my warm winter coat and knee-high boots.”
  • MAC Makeup Fafi Tutorial: A Black and Gold Smokey Eye
    “Begin by blending an even layer of Dior concealer onto the entire surface of your eyelid. This gives the eye products we’re about to use something to latch onto and intensifies the color of the eyeshadows.”
  • MAC Cosmetics Neo Sci Fi Face of the Day
    “I’ve had sun on my mind lately and felt inspired this morning to reach for a few brighter-than-bright items from MAC’s Neo Sci Fi collection. I didn’t really feel like going buck wild with a lot of blending or a wide variety of products with my look today, and I limited myself to just two (!) eyeshadows.”

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

There are 3 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Just For Fun

Victoria’s Secret Semi-Annual Sale on Now, Island Infusion Body Mists $3.50

June 21st, 2008 by Karen 18 Comments

victorias-secret-island-infusion-body-mists

I’m taking advantage of the air conditioning at the mall right now and stumbled upon a semi-annual sale at Victoria’s Secret. Lots of VS beauty products are marked down in-store from 50-75% (also good online, but only on bras and panties). I’m not sure how long the sale lasts, but check out these really cute Island Infusion body mists, a mere $3.50 each after the sale discount, wowza! They come in four scents: Moorea Passion Fruit, Tahitian Vanilla Flower, Bali Orchid and Capri Peach Blossom. I think I’m going to get Bali Orchid, a light, white floral that smells like soap and clean skin. [Continue reading…]

There are 18 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Fragrance, News

Get Ashy: MAC Cosmetics Volcanic Ash Exfoliator

June 21st, 2008 by Karen 23 Comments

mac-cosmetics-volcanic-ash-exfoliator-final

All soaps, shower gels and exfoliating scrubs have one glorious thing in common: they make us feel clean and pretty. And most of the time, cleansers and scrubs — true to form — look and smell clean and pretty, too.

Oh, but not so with MAC’s Volcanic Ash Exfoliator ($19). To be blunt, it looks like dirt — magical dirt.

As you might expect, it’s the jet black volcanic ash in the product that makes it look the way that it does. The feeling I got looking at my arms and legs in the shower after I worked the fine, scrubbing grains onto my freshly rinsed skin was one of impressed confusion. I was impressed because the product felt effective (like a good, deep cleanser) and confused because my skin looked covered in soot. COOL!
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There are 23 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: MAC Makeup, Product Reviews, Skin Care

9 Things: Makeup and Beauty Blog Friday Fun

June 20th, 2008 by Karen 6 Comments

9-things

You know I love lists, and it was only a matter of time before I made a list of my favorite, well, lists. 🙂 It’s Friday afternoon, and you may be sitting there at work or in school, achin’ for the bell to ring. While you wait, grab a snack and browse through some of my favorite lists.

  • 9 Things I’m Glad I Know
    “How good it feels to be useful. Shoot, I can’t do calculus or play basketball (or any sport involving projectiles), but at least I’m not a bump on a pickle.”
  • Beauty in Time: 9 Things I Would Say to My Younger Self
    “Savor eating fried zucchini sticks at three in morning and staying a size 2 because that high metabolism will be GONE FOREVER in four years (sigh…).”
  • 9 Things: My Makeup Lust List
    “MAC PowerPoint Eye Pencil in Tealo and Forever Green ($13.50) — Wee! I love green eye pencils. I can’t get enough of green eye pencils, and I want to try these because they’re supposedly waterproof, too. I hope they’re nice and blendable like the Technakohls. Both of the greens that I want are out of stock on the MAC Web site (boo), but the Nordstrom site has ’em in stock (yay).”
  • 9 Things: Toot Thy Horn
    “When I’m feeling a little sad or down, one thing I do to cheer myself up is make lists. Yesterday, I had a craptacularly rough afternoon and cried, oh, about six times. There are just some days when you feel like you can’t get anything right, ya know? After the sixth round of tears, I made a list to remind myself of the things I’m pretty darn good at.”
  • 43 Things I’m Thankful For — The Non-Makeup Edition
    “Modern medicine and dentistry. It’s kind of a weird thing to be thankful for, I know. But last night I watched an episode of the HBO TV show, Rome, and one scene showed an ancient Roman guy getting operated on. The process included straps, a saw and a filthy kitchen table. I have only three words to convey how I feel about ancient medicinal practices: SO NOT COOL.”
  • 9 Things I Wish I Didn’t Know
    “Driving home from the gym tonight I heard the song Baby Got Back on the radio, the 1992 smash hit by celebrated lyricist Sir Mix-a-Lot (LOL). I cannot stand that song, but for reasons unknown I am able to recite every single word of it. As soon as that intro starts I am compelled to sing: ‘I like big butts and I cannot lie! Those other brothers can’t deny!'”
  • 9 Random Things: The Getting-to-Know-You Stage
    “Last week, during dinner at one of my favorite Thai restaurants, there was a couple sitting next to me who were clearly on a first date. My nosy ass couldn’t help but eavesdrop on their conversation between bites of yellow chicken curry (what can I say? I multi-task) and spring rolls. The boy hailed from Texas and liked indie rock; the girl liked to meditate and go hiking. They looked cute together, but there were several awkward moments of silence during which both of them sat there, obviously nervous, nibbling away at the Pad Thai for way too long.”
  • Just for fun: Random Acts of Beauty
    “Random Act of Beauty: October 24, 2007, 5:35 p.m. — I finally find sunblock that doesn’t leave my neck feeling sticky, Shiseido’s Ultimate Sun Protection SPF 55 for Face & Body, at my local Macy’s Shiseido counter.”
  • Just for Fun – Seven Things You Didn’t Know About Makeup and Beauty Blog
    “I believe everyone should have a theme song! Your theme song can change depending on where you are in life or what you need at the moment. Currently, mine is Jay-Z’s ‘Dirt Off Your Shoulder.'”

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

There are 6 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Just For Fun

Dior Impression Cuir: Early Reviews and Swatches

June 20th, 2008 by Karen 21 Comments

dior-impression-cuir-eyeshadow-palette1

Bust out your alligator pumps, white cardigan sweater, pearls and pencil skirt, and let’s explore Dior’s upcoming Fall 2008 Impression Cuir collection. YES!

rouge-dior-fiction-brown

I just received previews of two of the items from the upcoming collection (due out this August). Sometimes, I feel like brown can be a little boring, but when it’s done well, as I think it has been here, brown can be downright smokin’.

After playing with the Impression Cuir eyeshadow palette and Rouge Dior Fiction Brown lipstick this morning, I felt very much like a hot librarian in training. I almost wanted to don my glasses, put my hair in a bun and talk sweet, sweet dewey decimals. Fo’ reals!

Impression Cuir eyeshadows on the top; Fiction Brown lipstick on the bottom
dior-impression-cuir-fiction-brown-swatches

dior-impression-cuir-eye-1

The Impression Cuir Palette ($55) contains a trio of bronze, brown and beige shimmer eyeshadows embossed with a pretty alligator-skin pattern on the pan. The tiny sparkles give the shades a lil’ extra kick, but the colors in this palette are still very work-friendly.

In the picture above I’m wearing the beige on the brow bone, bronze in the crease and beige on the lid. I like how the colors blend seamlessly into each other. With these shades, creating subtle, yet sexy eye looks is a breeze. I can even picture the colors mixing well with greens, browns, pinks and purples. If you’ve been wanting to try Dior eyeshadows, let this palette be your gateway makeup drug! Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A

rouge-dior-fiction-brown-lips
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There are 21 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Makeup, Product Reviews

MAC Cosmetics Neo Sci Fi Face of the Day

June 19th, 2008 by Karen 38 Comments

mac-cosmetics-neo-sci-fi-fotd-4

I’ve had sun on my mind lately and felt inspired this morning to reach for a few brighter-than-bright items from MAC’s Neo Sci Fi collection. I didn’t really feel like going buck wild with a lot of blending or a wide variety of products with my look today, and I limited myself to just two (!) eyeshadows. Oh, and because I woke up a little late this morning (surprise!), I only had 15 minutes to get ready for work. 🙂

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There are 38 comments on this post. Leave yours.

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

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