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Archives for November 2010

Does the New NYX Eyebrow Marker Score High Marks?

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karen of makeup and beauty blog reviews the nyx eyebrow marker
Wearing NYX Eyebrow Marker in Deep

“NYX wants to mark their territory on your eyebrows…”

Wait, did I really just write that? 🙂

Ouch! Okay, let’s try that again. How about, “Does NYX deserve high marks for their new Eyebrow Marker ($9.75)”?

Available in two shades — Medium (a light brown) and Deep (a medium brown) — the new felt-tip pen lives to fill in sparse eyebrows with a liquid/ink that dries to a matte finish.

Since I have dark hair, I went with the Deep shade, but after the first time I brought it to my brows, I almost set it right back down. Why? Because it’s so sheer — like surprisingly sheer.

Thankfully, it layers well, getting progressively darker with each one. For me, four layers results in a shade that pretty closely matches the color of my hair.

NYX bills Eyebrow Marker as a long-wearing product, and I’ll go along with that, although I wouldn’t wear it to a spinning class. Overall, I think it holds up fairly well under normal conditions and very light sweating (NOTE: it turns slightly gray as it fades), especially if multiple layers are used.

Once it’s dry, it doesn’t smear at all, and I rubbed at it pretty well to test. When it comes time to remove, a little soap and water does the trick.

Now that Eyebrow Marker and I have gotten to know each other, we probably won’t hang out every day. Don’t laugh :), but for the life of me I can’t evenly fill in my left eyebrow with it. Doing my right brow is easy enough (maybe because I’m right handed), but the left is a different story — and it’s an awkward, uncomfortable tale. If you’re more coordinated than I am, and there’s a good chance you are, you’ll probably have better luck with it than I did. Or perhaps if you have better penmanship, LOL!

nyx eyebrow marker review pens
NYX Eyebrow Maker in Medium (top) and Deep (bottom)

nyx eyebrow marker review felt tip
Deep (left) and Medium (right)
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The MUD Cares Palette Is Making a Difference One Quad at a Time

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Would you like to give a gift this year that really makes a difference in someone’s life? How about one that also happens to look as pretty as the new limited-edition MUD Cares Palette ($25)?

Every last cent (that’s 100%) from the sale of the new powder eyeshadow quad goes to the NextAid organization, a nonprofit assisting children in Africa who have been orphaned by AIDS.

Make-up Designory (MUD) stocked the palette with four warm, summery shades from their permanent line — Spanish Gold (a rich golden bronze), Dulce de Leche (an iridescent beige), Cashmere (a sparkling rosy beige) and Moss (a shimmery khaki green with golden undertones). Individually, the pans usually retail for $10 each, making $25 a great deal for the quad.

The shadows themselves are all highly pigmented, soft and silky to the touch and apply with hardly any fallout.

MUD Cares Palette review swatches photos front of box

MUD Cares Palette review swatches photos open palette
Shades clockwise from lower right: Spanish Gold, Cashmere, Dulce de Leche and Moss
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The MUD Make-Up Designory All That Sparkles Holiday 2010 Collection

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The MUD Make-Up Designory All That Sparkles Holiday 2010 Collection, $55. Available soon online.

Clockwise from left: Lip Glaze in Cupid; 4-Hole Eye Color Palette with Eye Colors in Cashmere (a shimmery pink), Tinsel (a shimmery silver), Onyx (a jet black matte) and Voodoo (a shimmery violet); Cheek Color in Rose Beige and Eye Pencil in Vintage. The kit also includes a makeup bag (not shown).

What do you think of the colors? I like how wearable they are!

MAC Unsung Heroes: The Marvelous Multitasking MAC 217 Blending Brush

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I was having coffee with my makeup artist friend, Melissa, last week, and in between bites of pumpkin pie we got into brushes. She brought up the marvelous multitasking MAC 217 Blending Brush ($22.50), one of my go-to faves.

With a goat hair fiber brush head, it applies and blends powder and cream products with much aplomb. I use it for everything from powder and cream shadows, to loose pigments, to under-eye concealer.


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Ultraflesh Panthera Mascara Makes Lashes Roar Like a Jungle Cat!

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karen from makeup and beauty blog reviews panthera mascara before after

Take your seats, everyone, so we can call to order tonight’s meeting of the Feline Enthusiasts Club. 🙂

Okay, I won’t deny that the real reason I wanted to try the new Ultraflesh Panthera Mascara ($26) is because of tube. I don’t know if Ultraflesh designed it with cat ladies in mind, but it sure as heck worked on me.

panthera mascara review

The product is currently Ultraflesh’s (seriously, what’s up with that name?) one and only item, which I guess we could say recently “pounced” on the makeup scene, LOL! For now it’s available exclusively at Sephora.

Have you seen the company’s website? Pretty creative, huh? But what’s up with that lady in the leotard, and why is she stretching?

It doesn’t have anything to do with mascara, but neither do panthers, so whatever, right?

It’s must be a color thing (panthers = black, like the mascara). That, or maybe someone at Ultraflesh really liked Thundercats.

The company claims, although not in feline terms, that Panthera is a cat of all trades, addressing most of the major mascara desirables like length, volume, definition and…

ultra flesh panthera mascara review
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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Nov. 15

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  1. Mood:

    2. Wide awake and feeling great! Oh, I just made a rhyme… 🙂

  2. What was your best vacation ever?

    3. A couple years ago after my BFF’s wedding in Boca, El Hub and I drove down through the Florida Keys to Key West. The drive was epically beautiful along a highway that stretches more than 100 miles out into the sea, water on both sides of the car. We just took in the view and listened to music the whole time. And Key West was a lot like Hawaii, tropical, a little old fashioned, with a lot of lounging around by the pool, sightseeing and eating.

  3. Are you a chocoholic?

    4. I am for milk or semi-sweet, but I have to be in the right mood for dark or white chocolate.

  4. Do you have a nickname?

    5. Why have just one? Depending on the crowd I’m with, I’m known as babe, brats, bratasaurus rex, Abs, Karonie, Kate, Katie or KT.

  5. Coffee or tea?

    6. Most of the time, coffee, but I prefer darjeeling or green tea when my stomach’s feeling fussy.

  6. Do you do sequins?

    7. Only in moderation, and never, EVER on headbands, wristbands or socks.

  7. Your favorite hat?

    8. The gray fedora I got at Forever 21 for $12.

  8. Have you ever lied about your age?

    9. No, but I’m at the point where I actually forget it sometimes. Is it 34 or 35?? After a point everything sort of blurs together.

  9. What would you do today if you had one entirely free hour?

    10. I’d sit by the pool and take advantage of this freak warm spell we’re having (it was almost 80 degrees yesterday!).

  10. Weekly goals:

    11. Exercise restraint when it comes to Facebook (speaking of that, are we friends on facebook yet?), meet my deadlines, pay some extra attention to Tabs this week, and take care of everything that has to be done before I leave for Hawaii next week (visiting family for Thanksgiving).

Thanksgiving’s just a hop, skip and a jump away. Will you be traveling this year or staying local?

To complete the Monday Poll, just copy the following list, and paste it with your answers in the comments.



1. Mood:
2. What was your best vacation ever?
3. Are you a chocoholic?
4. Do you have a nickname?
5. Coffee or tea?
6. Do you do sequins?
7. Your favorite hat?
8. Have you ever lied about your age?
9. What would you do with one free hour?
10. Weekly goals:

We can SOOOO do this, babe. Are you ready?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. I just realized this video went up on swide.com.

Yeah, those earrings are totally MIA now.

I think they jumped ship when I was sprinting through the Frankfurt airport trying to make my connecting flight home.

New from Vera Wang: Anniversary Eau de Parfum

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If you like woody florals, you might want to give Vera Wang’s new Anniversary Eau de Parfum ($25-92) a sniff.

The official fragrance notes…

  • Top notes: Sicilian bergamot, red apple leaves, mandarin oil and cool dew drops (hmm…)
  • Middle notes: white gardenia, rose absolute and orange flowers
  • Base notes: musk, orris, amber crystals and warm cedarwood

I like how the darker purple panels on the bottle resemble flower petals, but what do you think? Do you like the bottle?

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