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Archives for June 2009

Les Naturels De Chanel Glossimers: A New Formula?

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chanel-les-naturels-glossimers

This afternoon, around the time I started feeling like I’d kicked my cold, I paid a visit to my dentist for my next round of deep cleaning, KAPOW!

That’s where I spent most of this afternoon, daydreaming about the new Les Naturels De Chanel Glossimers ($27 each).

I needed something to kill the pain…

From what I’ve seen so far, the three Glossimers are my favorite items from the 10-piece collection of neutral eye, lip and cheek shades.

Testing the colors tonight, I temporarily forgot that the left side of my face felt like Naomi Campbell’s punching bag, and I even eked out half a smile. 🙂

les naturels de chanel bel air glossimer
Bel Air

les naturels de chanel unity glossimer
Unity

les-naturels-de-chanel-waterlily-glossimer1
Waterlily

Like other Chanel Glossimers, the three Les Naturels De Chanel shades are taste- and fragrance-free, but I wonder if Chanel changed the Glossimer formula.

All three shades feel less sticky than the Glossimers I’ve tried in the past, despite having the same medium-weight consistency, and they feel more hydrating on my lips.

Either the differences are all in my imagination, or Chanel chose to mix things up. No complaints from me, though. I like the end result.

  • Bel Air: Bel Air didn’t catch my eye in the tube, but once I tried it on my half-numb lips I had a “Come to mama!” moment. It’s a creamy, surprisingly pigmented peachy pink, and it’s the most opaque of the three shades. It delivers a warmth that avoids the dreaded undead look I tend to get with most other creamy pink lipglosses, and the color looks natural. I bet it would look great with brown, black or bronze smokey eyes. Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A
  • Unity: Unity’s a shimmery, soft brownish pink with a hint of bronzed pearl. Like Bel Air, it applies with rich pigmentation but still looks natural on my lips. I can see myself wearing it with neutral, gold or pink eyeshadow. Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A
  • Waterlily: I loved this shade in the tube but not so much on my lips. It’s a shimmery pink with golden pearl, and it’s the sheerest of the three colors; I felt like I had to really pack it on to get it to show. MAC makes a similar shade called Nymphette, which packs a little more pigmentation and costs half the price. Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: B-

Many Chanel junkies weren’t wowed by this collection’s neutral colors, but I think the Glossimers deserve some love, especially if you wear a lot of bolder smokey eyes, or if you just want something elegant and neutral to wear to work.

Hope your Monday went well. I’m just chillin’ at home now, petting Tabs and watching The Closer on TNT.

Tabs says hi!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, June 8

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nars-loves-sf-francois-nars-picture

  1. Mood:

    2. A lil’ stuffed up and woozy (caught a cold last weekend), but outside of that I feel cheerful and optimistic.

  2. What’s one thing from your wardrobe that you absolutely love?

    3. My black, tropical wool BCBG suit. It has a classic cut that even after about 10 years hasn’t really gone out of style. I’ve worn it to so many different functions, and it always makes me feel chic, put together… and tall.

  3. What do you do when you’re stuck in a funk?

    4. I blast upbeat music (right now I’m lovin’ on Estelle’s album, Shine) and bust out my cheesy dance moves!

  4. Eyes/lips/cheeks:

    5. I’m wearing uber-minimal makeup today: Stila Lash Visor on my eyes, MAC Strobe Kiss Tinted Lip Conditioner on my lips and Stila Mango Crush on my cheeks.

  5. Favorite blush o’ the moment?

    6. Benefit Posie Tint has been rockin’ my world as of late.

  6. Favorite mascara o’ the moment?

    7. I can’t stop reaching for Urban Decay’s Skyscraper Multi-Benefit mascara.

  7. Outfit:

    8. Ugh, pretty scrubby today — a white t-shirt, jeans and flip flops. I did accessorize, though, with some bright blue earrings, so I haven’t totally given up, LOL!

  8. What’s something that’s always able to bring a smile to your face?

    9. The sound of my mom’s laugh. 🙂

  9. Who’s cooler — old school Michael Jackson (circa the PYT years) or old school Brett Michaels?

    10. MJ all the way!

  10. Weekly goals:

    11. To not let this cold get the better of me, to enjoy my birthday, to get to bed at a decent hour each night this week and to find some new music.

Okay, homies, you know how we roll! Just copy the list below, and paste it with your answers to the Monday Poll in the comments. 🙂

Le list

1. Mood:
2. Something from your wardrobe that you absolutely love?
3. How do you pull yourself out of a funk?
4. Eyes/lips/cheeks:
5. Favorite blush o’ the moment?
6. Favorite mascara o’ the moment?
7. Outfit:
8. Something that always makes you smile?
9. Who’s cooler — old school Michael Jackson or old school Brett Michaels?
10. Weekly goals:

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Are You More Lipstick or Gloss?

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Lipstick or gloss?

Do you prefer the wet look of a lip gloss or the full coverage of a lipstick?

Summer influences the decision for a lot of women, with many opting for lighter glosses, tints, stains and glazes when it’s hot outside, and the thought of full-coverage lipstick feels like wearing a sweatshirt in a sauna.

But if you were able to control everything from the weather to the dress code at work, which would you wear more often on your lips?

Are you more lipstick or gloss?

View Results

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Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

NARS Vintage 2009 Nail Polishes, Makeup Tips and Francois Nars Himself

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nars vintage 2009 nail polishes all

Sometimes it’s GOOD to be bad, or wrong in this case. 🙂

I’d first thought the recently released limited edition NARS Vintage 2009 Nail Polishes ($16 each) were only available through the NARS website, but it turns out Nordstrom has them as well (check your local store for availability).

I got a look at the collection yesterday at the NARS event I attended in the city (more on that in a few).

One of the shades that I’d really wanted to see in person was Tallulah, the deep purple.

It sure looks different up close and personal than it did in the promotional pics…

nars vintage 2009 nail polishes zizi
Zizi

nars vintage 2009 nail polishes cha cha cha
Cha cha cha

nars vintage 2009 nail polish hunger
Hunger

nars vintange 2009 nail polish blue lagoon
Blue Lagoon

nars vintage 2009 nail polishes tallulah
Tallulah

A few quick notes on the shades…

  • Zizi: I’m not a major glitter gal, but I like how the blue, green, gold and purple glitter in this sheer peach apply without looking too blinged out. I’d totally wear Zizi, either by itself or layered on top of something else.
  • Cha Cha Cha: This shimmery, golden orange looks intriguing in the bottle but not so much on my nails. It applies thick and streaky, with lots of bubbles.
  • Hunger: On the Nordstrom site, Hunger looks like a deep red, but in person it’s more like a creamy orange/reddish coral. It applies with consistent rich, non-streaky color, though, and of these shades it’s my favorite!
  • Blue Lagoon: A shimmery cool blue, this polish was a little too sheer for my taste, but if you like sheer colors, it could be a real winner.
  • Tallulah: I couldn’t wait to see Tallulah in person. It looked like a creamy purple in the promotional pictures, but on my nails it looked more like a creamy wine, and the streaks — THE STREAKS! Way more than I expected.

After the nail polishes, I took a closer look at the limited edition NARS Loves San Francisco Makeup Set ($75).

If these four eye, cheek and nail shades aren’t like others in your collection now, it’s a pretty great deal for the price.

One huge reason why I was so excited about the NARS event was that I’d heard that Francois Nars HIMSELF was going to be there.

With a copy of his fantastic book, Makeup Your Mind ($26.37), under my arm, I’d hoped to meet the man behind the makeup.
[Continue reading…]

Sundays with Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, June 7

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Freestyle Tabs

Tabs came home this morning covered in sand and smelling of beer and sunscreen. While he slept it off in the corner, I looked through the browsing history on his iPhone. 🙂

Here are some of the links he bookmarked this week…

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Comment to Win MAC Style Warrior Brave New Bronze Lipstick

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This giveaway is closed! Thank you for entering. I’ll be contacting the winner by e-mail soon.

mac style warrior brave new bronze

Good morning, glories. 🙂

How’d you sleep?

I’ve only been awake for a few minutes, which means I’m nowhere near awake yet, LOL!

The coffee is brewing, and I’m sitting here at my computer desk, catching up on the news…

The New York Times has a fascinating article about beauty schools and how the curriculum has changed over the past 20 years.

Tabs is stretched out on the floor under my chair and purring loudly. He’s getting a massage from my toes.

I just remembered — I have a birthday coming up this week, whoa! Yup, I’m heading full speed towards my mid-30s.

Age is a funny thing, ladies…

I have a better understanding of myself and the world around me than I had in my 20s, but I’m becoming more resistant to change, more set in my ways. I used to be more willing to take risks! — with my career, my hobbies, travel, you name it.

I think that adventurous girl’s still in there somewhere, but she is getting harder to find.

I hope I’m brave enough to take some chances this year…

Brave like the name of the prize in today’s MAC Style Warrior giveaway!

The prize

One lucky lady will win a tube of creamy MAC Style Warrior Brave New Bronze Lipstick (a $14 value).

How to enter

To enter, please leave a comment below describing the bravest thing you’ve ever done or plan to do soon.

Tell me about your biggest leap of faith or greatest act of courage, a choice that changed your life or took a lot of guts for you to do.

I went skydiving about 10 years ago.

Sometimes I can’t believe I went through with it. They had me sign a waiver where the words “death and dismemberment” came up repeatedly, LOL! But I did it.

Now, whenever something scares or intimidates me, I tell myself, “Karen, you jumped out of a plane. This isn’t half as scary as that.”

I’ll pick the winner at random from among the people who enter by 11:59PM PST Monday night.

Good luck, my brave friends! 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. I had a blast at yesterday’s NARS event in the city. I’m prepping some pictures and tips and will post them very soon.

This giveaway is closed! Thank you for entering. I’ll be contacting the winner by e-mail soon.

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