NARS Beverly Hills Multiple Tint
Archives for June 2010
Nyx Purple Smokey Look Kit
Do any of you gals like Nyx?
I’m digging the colors in their Purple Smokey Look Kit, which includes nine eyeshadows and two lip colors to create a purple smokey eye look ($11).
Review/swatches coming soon!
Alexander Skarsgard: His Best Hair?
I almost didn’t become a True Blood fan, but 6’4″ Alexander Skarsgard, aka Vampire Eric, put the glamour on me with his eyes!
How do you feel about the show? The next season premieres this Sunday, and I know a few gals who wouldn’t mind taking their own bite out of Eric (me first!).
Born Alexander Johan Hjalmar SkarsgÃ¥rd in Stockholm, Sweden, on August 25, 1976, Alex was a big star back home long before Bon Temps ever entered the picture, having starred in several Swedish TV series and movies. He’d even served as a member of the Swedish Marines, which might be where he learned his fancy fighting moves!
Loading ...Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
T3 Twirl 1.25-Inch Curling Iron: Curl and Twirl in Record Time, Girl!
Big, bouncy curls aren’t Victoria’s Secret anymore. Word got out, and now it’s easy to get runway ready hair at home with the T3 Twirl 1.25-Inch Curling Iron ($119).
Those V.S. chicks get help from a dedicated team of stylists who tease their locks into perfectly tousled submission; the T3 Twirl gets help from its 1.25-inch diameter barrel.
The unit joined T3’s stable of styling tools earlier this year. To improve upon the design of old school curling irons that delivered inconsistent heat, the company implemented some very scientific-sounding technology. Straight up, they make it sound like the Kublai Khan of curling irons!
2007 FLASHBACK: See how the T3 Featherweight hair dryer changed my world.
T3’s Single Pass digital heating insures that the iron gets hot f a s t. It also helps it maintain consistent heat through the length of the barrel.
T3’s Tourmaline technology (tourmaline is classified as a semi-precious stone/gem) is even hotter than that! The tourmaline in the barrel emits negative ions that cancel out static electricity and close the hair cuticle for sleek and springy, frizz-free curls.
As Flava Flav so often said, “Yeah, boyeeeee!”
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Random Acts of Beauty: One Girl. 24 Hours.
June 9, 11:32 a.m. — El Hub is taking me to lunch in the city. Before we leave the house, I water the houseplants and check the cat grass seeds I planted last week.
I find signs of life. There are tiny sprouts breaking the surface, and I pause to marvel at how Mother Nature does her thang.
Tabs will have his salad soon
June 9, 12:40 p.m. — At the Rotunda, the restaurant on the top floor at Neiman Marcus in San Francisco, I order white bean soup and a scallop salad for lunch (El Hub’s birthday gift to me).
The waiter leaves a popover on the table…
…that resembles a Thanksgiving turkey.
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NARS Sephora Limited Edition Lip Gloss Collection
New from NARS — the NARS Sephora Limited Edition Lip Glosses ($24 each).
Each of the five shades takes inspiration from an iconic NARS blush. From left: Angelika (a cotton candy pink with silver and gold sparkle), Super Orgasm (a peachy pink with golden glitter), Oasis (a sparkling pink champagne), Luster (a sheer golden apricot) and Albatross (a clear with shimmer).
Available July 29 exclusively at Sephora and Sephora.com.
What do you think? I’m all over Angelika!
Swatches from left: Angelika, Super Orgasm, Oasis, Luster and Albatross
Got Any Trips Planned? Try These Travel Beauty Tips and Brainstormers on for Size
Rise and shine, morning glory. 🙂 This morning I’ve got travel on the brain. Specifically, what was your best trip? Was it special because of where you went or what happened while you were there? Or maybe a little bit of both? If you’re hitting the road again this summer, it helps to be prepared in the beauty department. I hope these few posts can help.
Hmm… I use trip planning as an excuse to shop, and I bet I’m not the only one!
ECOTOOLS RETRACTABLE
KABUKI BRUSH
Doesn’t the Ecotools Recycled Retractable Kabuki Brush ($10) look like a secret spy weapon?
LOL! Or is that just me?
Okay, so it’s not a flame thrower or a pocket super computer, but the Retractable Kabuki exudes awesomeness in other ways. It’s built for travel, fitting snugly into my makeup bag.
I like the fat and fluffy brush head, too. It feels kinda like velvet against my skin and applies the perfect amount of powder (not too sheer or heavy!) for touch-ups.
It excels at applying powders or blush, but I bet it would also work as a foundation or creme blush brush. Read more…
3 SIMPLE TRAVEL
BEAUTY TIPS
As I rifled through the bag I’ve been living out of for the past week, I realized I learned quite a few things on this trip, some of them beauty-related. Most were born out of my bad habit of waiting until the last minute to pack.
What have I learned about summer vacations? No. 1 — Wet Ones Travel Packs to clean makeup brushes.
These are convenient no matter what kind of vacation you’re planning. In humid locales, brush heads used with moist products like concealers never completely dry out and become breeding grounds for mold and bacteria. I’m so glad I remembered to toss a few of these travel-sized anti-bacterial wipes into my makeup bag for the trip. The packaging didn’t take up lots of space, and I can clean all of my brushes with a single wipe. Read more…
PACK YOUR MAKEUP
FOR TRAVEL
If I’m checking in bags, the liquids in breakable bottles and small jars (like foundation) go into a large, clear plastic bag nestled securely (and cushioned by clothes) in the center of my check-in luggage. Sometimes I’ll even protect the bag in bubble wrap secured with extra large rubber bands. My powder products come with me in my carry-on bag.
I *always* carry my powder products — compacts and palettes — on the plane, storing them in a slim, rectangular-shaped makeup bag like this silver Trina Turk bag from a Clinique GWP. The shape works well for travel and even fits into a standard school backpack. Read more…
YOUR FAVORITE
TRAVEL BEAUTY TOOL
I never go anywhere without my MAC 266. It keeps me from venturing into The Land of Funky Brows. And then there’s my beloved Shu Uemura lash curler, but you probably know all about that, ha ha!
You guys left some great suggestions and idea starters in the comments on this post, like Jane’s idea about using Starbucks napkins as blotting papers: “brown napkins — like the ones from starbucks. absorbs the oil off my face better than those facial sheets. and their free and always plentiful!” Read more…
BURT’S BEES
COCONUT FOOT CREME
To all my ladies with naturally smooth, gorgeous feet, this post is NOT for you. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve still got mad love (and envy) for your photogenic tootsies, but the rest of us living in cracked heel hell, well, we’re the ones who need help.
After spending the winter ignoring everything around my ankles, I’ve ended up with two very cracked heels and a few square feet of scaly skin. My feet, as my eighth-grade self might describe them, look “hella gross,” and it’s time for action. I’ve started testing Burt’s Bees Coconut Foot Creme ($9 for a 4.34 oz. tube). I sure hope it helps me turn my tootsies around in time for sandal season. Read more…
YOU MUST CHOOSE
THE TRAVEL EDITION
You win a completely free vacation to the tropical location of your choice. Airfare, hotel, food, even souvenir spending money is covered (sweet!). There’s just one catch. When you travel to and from your destination, you have to wear a “special outfit” on the plane ride.
Your choices are…
Las Vegas show girl (complete with large feathered headdress), or full Scuba gear (with mask and flippers). YOU MUST CHOOSE! Read more…
MAC TRIP
AVAILABLE ONLINE
Hey, MAC-aholics. Remember MAC Trip from last year, and how frickin’ hard it was to track down? MAC released the collection of palettes, lip sets and brush kits as travel exclusives, and you could only find them at various airports and travel hubs around the world, not at MAC counters or stores.
It was pretty hit-or-miss, too, and I’m guessing more than a handful of MAC fiends nearly missed flights trying to hunt these babies down!
If you’ve been wanting to get your paws on MAC Trip, grab your credit card and do a little happy dance because MAC just launched the collection online. Read more…
Thursday already?
WOW! It’s like this week’s been on fast forward. The first half went by in a 
What’s on your plate today? I’m heading into the city for an hour or so this morning (on my way out the door right now) to a NARS preview event, where I hope to hear about their upcoming products and collections. I’m bringing my notepad and camera, of course, but you never know about pictures at these things. Sometimes they won’t allow photography, so if you see my next post is from jail, you’ll know I tried to take pictures somewhere I shouldn’t have, ha!
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Essie Summer 2010 Makes This Booty Want to Dance
Not all summer nail polishes inspire spontaneous boogie down sessions, but the moment I peeped the creamy colors in the Essie Summer 2010 collection, my booty wanted to hit the dance floor!
Essie founder and head honcho (honchette?) Essie Weingarten said she based the six-piece collection — bright with splashes of summery greens, pinks, corals and reds — on the floral prints she’d seen on the runways at New York Fashion Week. If you like what she came up with, you can find the six shades for $48 at beauty stores, salons and also online.
- Pretty Edgy: a creamy kelly green
- Knockout Pout: a creamy bright pink
- Vermillionaire: a creamy (you get the idea here) reddish orange
- Miss Matched: a sheer (surprise!) and creamy (ha!) purplish pink
- Haute as Hello: a creamy coral
- Demure Vixen: a creamy light purple
I used two coats for these swatches, and every color applied smoothly, with the exception of Miss Matched, which was a tad streaky. All of them exhibit that classic Essie texture (very creamy) and shine.
Pretty Edgy
Knockout Pout
Vermillionaire
Miss Matched
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