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Archives for March 2011

The Smashbox Sultry/Sweet Glambox Takes the Guesswork Out of Looking Good

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smashbox sultry sweet glambox

By the time I finished folding my laundry last weekend, there was a stack of 10 surf tees sitting on the bed. I don’t know when or how it happened, but it’s official — I have the wardrobe of a tween surfer boy.

It’s not that I wouldn’t like to wear other things. I just don’t like to spend the time and energy (read: I’m too lazy) it takes to put together comprehensive, fashion-forward looks. What I need is a wardrobe correction kit, a single set of pieces designed to create comprehensive looks, like a wardrobe version of the Smashbox Sultry/Sweet Glambox ($68).

smashbox sultry sweet glambox box
Here it is next to an iPhone for scale

New for spring, the eight-piece set comes with seven full-size makeup essentials, and one smaller item, in new shades of berry, pink and plum. Put them together for either a Sweet daytime look or a Sultry one for nights. Just add a little elbow grease and your favorite foundation and powder (and maybe also a brow filler if it’s part of your regular routine), and you’re good to go, day or night.

Smashbox equipped the kit with a full-size powder eyeshadow quad in medium pigmentation, a pencil liner, a sheer powder blush, a lengthening mascara, two lip glosses and an under-eye brightener. They also included a generous travel-size tube of their Photo Finish Luminizing Foundation Primer (available in one shade, a golden peachy pink) and a simple step-by-step tutorial sheet which I followed to create the day (Sweet) and night looks (Sultry) here. 🙂

smashbox sultry sweet glambox box side
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What’s Your 5-Minute Makeup Routine?

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Sometimes you barely have enough minutes in the day to Google shirtless pictures of Ben McKenzie let alone put on a full face of makeup. When time’s of the essence, I stick to a bare minimum of basics and products that 1) I can apply fast, and 2) don’t require a lot of blending and precision…

5-minute-makeup-routine

  1. A brightening moisturizer — First, to brighten my overall appearance and give some extra dimension to my skin, I apply MAC Strobe Cream, an opalescent moisturizer, all over my face.
  2. Foundation — Next, I reach for Chanel Mat Lumiere Foundation, the synthetic fiber Sonia Kashuk Flat Top Brush (or similar skunk brush) lightly moistened with a bit of MAC Fix+, and dab and blend around my nose, chin and cheeks. It may be mad pricey at $54, but matte Lumiere is the most natural-looking everyday wear foundation I’ve found so far, and it doesn’t give me breakouts.
  3. Concealer — When worn together, Smashbox Photo Op Under Eye Brightener and MAC Pro Longwear Concealer, a pearly pink brightening lotion and a full-coverage liquid concealer, disguise even the darkest of my dark circles.
  4. Powder — I use translucent MAC Blot Powder to set my makeup and increase wear time. It absorbs shiny oil for hours.
  5. Brows — I started using Benefit Instant Brow a few months ago to quickly fill in my brows, and now it’s a full-blown addiction. It’s an easy-to-blend wax brow pencil with a handy brow comb attached.
  6. Lashes — The Shu Uemura Lash Curler is the only curler I’ve ever used that refuses to pinch my lashes, and that’s awesome. It creates lovely, natural-looking lash curls, too.
  7. You’re making me blush! — Creamy Urban Decay After Glow Glide-On Cheek Tints are a snap to apply and blend. I just use my fingers. I end by using these cream blushes to give a little color to both my cheeks and my lips (they double as lipsticks).

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A Quick Swatch Break with the Benefit Boxed Face Powders and Blushes

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Today after lunch I swung by Sephora to stock up on a few essentials, namely Laura Mercier Oil-Free Foundation and Benefit Instant Brow (what I’ve been using to fill in my brows), and since I was already there, I figured I’d get some long overdue swatches, too.

Benefit’s boxed blushes ($28 each) come in eight colors. Actually, some are referred to as face powders, and others as blushes. Here are swatches of seven of them (for reference, I’m an NC 35). Thrrob, a flushed light pink, is the one that’s missing. One of the sales associates at Sephora today had said that she thought it was discontinued. Hmm… I’ll check with Benefit and will let you know what I find out.

Benefit Boxed Face Powders and Blushes

benefit blush swatches
From left: Sugarbomb, 10, Hoola and Dallas

benefit blush swatches
Also from the left: Dandelion, Bella Bamba and Coralista

benefit blush swatches all with flash
Swatches with the flash
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Like Snickers, Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set Really Satisfies

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Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set
Bite Beauty High Pigment Pencil in Pomegranate

Sometimes you just need a quick snack to quiet the rumbling in your tummy, ya know? Not a full-on meal. Just a quick snack, like when Vampire Bill takes a sip from Sookie (Ha! I almost typed “Snookie”) while they’re “having relations.”

In a way, Bite Beauty’s new Define & Refine Lip Set ($36) is like a quick snack. You get to taste three full-size Bite lip products without having to pay full price. Purchased separately, they’d cost $68, or almost twice the price of the set.

The trio of treats includes…

  • Lip Shine in Prosecco — Interesting! This sheer nude gloss smells to me like a mix of Play-Doh and Sweet Tarts. Thankfully, the scent and sugary flavor fade fast. The medium-weight formula doesn’t feel sticky on my lips, and it lasts about two and a half hours. I’m glad Bite included a doe-foot applicator because it makes application a snap.
  • High Pigment Pencil in Pomegranate — The pigment in this blue-based red? To die for. It’s almost too good to be true. Despite its light and creamy texture (both unscented and unflavored), this pencil still manages to retain a long-lasting true matte finish. What we have here is one elegant lippie, young lady, and probably the best thing I’ve tried from the Bite line so far.
  • Luminous Creme Lipstick in Rose — One layer of this dark pink lipstick delivers full coverage color that may not make it through a meal, but it should resist fading for a solid four hours between them. Like the pencil, this pigmented beauty is unscented and unflavored, and it’s wonderfully moisturizing, too.

Like other products in the Bite Beauty line, these are made with food-grade goodies like resveratrol, a potent antioxidant and Bite’s signature ingredient. If you’d like to hear more about what puts the bite in Bite Beauty, check out Resveratrol, and Not Vampires, Puts the Bite in Bite Beauty Lip Products.

Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set

Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set
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Spring’s Awakening with Sonia Kashuk’s Latest Limited Edition Makeup Palette

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sonia kashuk spring awakenings face palette

Yesterday marked the first official day of spring here in the northern hemisphere, a fact not lost on Tabs. He was up early this morning, perched up high on his cat tower by the windows, to watch the birds outside.

On our walk around the neighborhood today, we saw that the branches of one of our favorite trees, which sits at the bottom of our hill, are now dressed in coat of beautiful pink blooms.

My spring allergies are already kicking in (thank goodness for Zyrtec!), but I wouldn’t trade this time of year for anything. Early spring is like getting a post card from a friend who’s coming to visit. You know there’s something fun right around the corner, but you’re not quite there yet. You know that if if you can be patient a little longer, the fun will start soon enough. 🙂

Sonia Kashuk’s new limited edition Spring Awakenings Palette ($19.99) feels like early spring to me. The palette of neutrals for eyes, lips and cheeks doesn’t hit you over the head with obvious spring pastels. Instead, its brown, coral and rose colors whisper promises of warmer days ahead.

sonia kashuk spring awakenings face palette in box

The four powder eyeshadows — a cool-toned mix of browns in matte, shimmer and glittery finishes — and dark chocolate powder eyeliner are the stars of this show. With the exception of the glitter shadow, which is more like a translucent base with champagne flecks, all of the items apply with dense, rich color that looks like the color you get from products considerably more expensive than typical drugstore eyeshadows.
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Smashbox Softbox Collection for Summer 2011: The Sultry/Sweet Glambox Set

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Smashbox Softbox Collection for Summer 2011

The Softly Seductive Eye Shadow Quad from Smashbox’s eight-piece Sultry/Sweet Glambox Set ($68). Available now at select Sephora stores and online.

For more on the new Smashbox Softbox Collection for Summer 2011, check out Smashbox Softbox Collection for Summer 2011: Diffuse Me, Please.

Smashbox Softbox Collection for Summer 2011

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, March 21

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  • You might be wondering, “So what the heck is this Monday Poll thing anyway?”
    Well, it isn’t much of a poll. It’s more just a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past three years, which I guess makes this somewhere around Vol. 162. I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.
  1. Mood:

    2. A little sleepy, Zzzz… I was tossing and turning a lot last night, but otherwise I’m great. I feel really hopeful and organized today.

  2. What do you use to clean your makeup brushes?

    3. For years I used MAC Brush Cleanser ($12), which always worked well, breaking up product buildup while being easy to rinse. I’d go through about a bottle a month, though, and that was adding up fast, so to save a few bucks I switched to Aussie Opposites Attract Shampoo. Just the regular shampoo. It takes a little longer to rinse, but it works well and only costs about $3.

  3. Wide-legged jeans — yea or nay?

    4. Yea! Within reason, of course. When they’re too wide, I think they make me look even shorter than I am, as if that’s possible, ha!

  4. The last book that made you cry?

    5. Mockingjay, the third book in The Hunger Games trilogy. I finished it in bed early one morning, emotionally exhausted. I think it was about 2, and I didn’t want to wake El Hub, so I went into the bathroom to quietly sob for about 10 minutes.

  5. Do you wear bracelets?

    6. Yes, as long as they have some kind of elastic to keep them snug against my wrist or forearm. Cuffs are cool too. But bangles that tend to movie up and down my arm get on my nerves (and in my way when I’m typing).

  6. Have you ever cut your own bangs?

    7. Yup. Back in my high school hair bear days I’d cut them unevenly on purpose, so that when I pumped them up with hairspray they’d looked layered. Eek, I must have looked like a HOT MESS!

  7. Are you a procrastinator?

    8. I’ll answer this one later, LOL! 🙂 Well, it’s a habit I’m trying to break.

  8. Favorite cookie?

    9. Chewy semi-sweet chocolate chip, please.

  9. I always knew I’d…

    10. Have a job working with animals (or, in my case, working for one).

  10. Weekly goals:

    11. Track how much time I spend fooling around throughout the work day, reward myself for completing important tasks, run at least three times by Saturday, and prepare a real dinner four times this week (real meaning not something squeezed out of a package or a can).

Did that picture at the top of the post make you drool a little bit? If it did, may I introduce you to my delicious new obsession, the avena (aka oatmeal) shake. It’s made with oatmeal, milk, sugar and cinnamon, all blended together. I read that it’s popular in Latin American countries, and I can see why. YUM!

I got the recipe from skinnytaste.com. Gina, who runs the site, recommends adding ice before blending and drinking it cold for breakfast, but since it’s been chilly here in the morning, I skip the ice and drink it lukewarm.

I’ve been having it for/with breakfast for the past couple of days. SIDE NOTE: This is probably TMI, but if you’re trying to get more fiber in your diet, one glass of this stuff will clean your pipes (sorry)!

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



1. Mood:
2. What do you use to clean your makeup brushes?
3. Wide-legged jeans — yea or nay?
4. The last book that made you cry?
5. Do you wear bracelets?
6. Have you ever cut your own bangs?
7. Are you a procrastinator?
8. Favorite cookie?
9. I always knew I’d…
10. Weekly goals:

Have a great day today. 🙂 Let me know how you’re doing if you get a chance.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict

Karen

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