Archives for January 2012

At the End of the Day, Inspiration Will Find You

January 2nd, 2012 by Karen 1 Comment

The New Smashbox Be Legendary Lipsticks Answer the Question, “What Are Legends Made Of?”

January 2nd, 2012 by Karen 34 Comments

Wearing Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick in Chai

Ugh. Projectile sports. You know, the ones that involve airborne objects like baseballs? I’m just so bad at them. Whenever I see something flying at me at high speed my first instinct is to run away, but if there were a projectile sport involving lipsticks and perhaps cute uniforms, well, that I might play. 🙂

Especially if the lippies were as pigmented as the new Smashbox Be Legendary Lipsticks ($19 each).

The new line of 20 bold lipsticks in matte and creamy finishes recently launched at Sephora stores, on Smashbox counters and also online, and I’ve been wearing three of the creamy shades for about a week — Chai (a caramel nude), Fig (a red grape) and Vivid Violet (a bold berry).

So far, I am totally impressed; I think they’re great!

How great? — well, how about Oreo cookies dipped in milk? Yeah, that great.

smashbox be legendary lipsticks in fig, chai and vivid violet
From the left: Fig, Chai and Vivid Violet

smashbox be legendary lipstick (2)
Swatches from the left: Chai, Fig and Vivid Violet
[Continue reading…]

Dinner in 15 Minutes! Trader Joe’s Butternut Squash Triangolis with Spinach, Crimini Mushrooms and Parmesan Cheese

January 2nd, 2012 by Karen 9 Comments

You know I love me some Trader Joe’s. This 15-minute meal for two, which uses ingredients all found at TJ’s, is my new fave semi-homemade dinner.

Cook a package of Trader Joe’s Butternut Squash Triangolis according to directions. When the Triangolis are just about done, drain them in a colander, reserving some of the pasta water.

Chop sliced crimini mushrooms; saute in olive oil.

Add fresh spinach along with a little bit of the reserved pasta water.

When the spinach is just about wilted, add the Triangolis into the pan along with more pasta water; gently mix everything together. Place on plates and sprinkle parmesan cheese on top. Note: if there’s meat eaters in the mix, you can modify by adding cooked Italian sausage.

To round out the meal, I also like adding Trader Joe’s Country Italian Salad as a side, swapping out the dressing that comes with it (a little too oily and heavy for me) with TJ’s Fat Free Balsamic Vinaigrette.

Bon appetit!

Like Summer for Spring in the Middle of Winter, the EstÃ©e Lauder Pure Color Topaz Collection Is Ahead of Its Time

January 2nd, 2012 by Karen 19 Comments

It’s just a little out of whack, like wearing a turtleneck to the beach in summer or a bikini in a snowstorm. Ever since I started following seasonal beauty launches, my internal beauty clock has been months ahead of the actual present season.

You know that one cousin who always wears fall-ish matte red lips to the Fourth of July family picnic or spring pastels in December? That’s me now. Guilty as charged.

I’ve gotten so used to wearing colors targeted to seasons other than the current one that when a spring collection that looks like a summer launch comes along in the middle of winter, it doesn’t seem that bat sh*t cray-cray at all!

See, technically, EstÃ©e Lauder’s new Pure Color Topaz collection is a spring 2012 release, but the color palette of bronze, teal, taupe, sand and citron seems more like summer in Saint-Tropez to me than Easter Sunday brunch.

I wore the teal eyeliner, gold gloss and bronze blush from the launch last weekend and very felt poolside polished (very “Calgon, take me away…”). Granted, the whole summer siren thing doesn’t really work when you’re just parked in front of the computer in knee-high socks, uncombed hair and sweats, but as soon as I win the lottery and take my first vacation to the South of France, I’ll be able to conduct a more proper field test. 🙂

Pure Color Illuminating Powder GelÃ©e in Topaz Chameleon, $40

Estee Lauder calls this a “tribrid” compact with a liquid, powder and gel. Basically, it looks and behaves like a shimmery and pigmented rosy bronze powder blush. I think it might be too intense for many offices but would look right at home on a casual, ocean-view dinner date. Super pretty, but with its brief, two-hour wear time, it’ll probably fade by the time you’ve finished that last bite of mango sorbet.
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B-

Pure Color Gloss in Citron Kiss, $22.50

Yellowish in its tube, Citron Kiss applies more like a sheer gold with micro flecks of silver sparkle. Great if you like your lip looks on the quiet side, or if you’re on the market for a golden gloss to layer.
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B

Pure Color Intense Kajal Eye Crayon in Dramatic Teal, $22

I like this pencil’s smooth texture and intense color. I think it produces really pretty smudgy eyes, but the long tip terrifies me! I keep coming this close to poking out an eye (it comes with a sharpener).
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B

Estee Lauder Pure Color Topaz products from top to bottom: Pure Color Illuminating Powder GelÃ©e in Topaz Chameleon, Pure Color Intense Kajal Eye Crayon in Dramatic Teal and Pure Color Gloss in Citron Kiss
[Continue reading…]

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 201

January 2nd, 2012 by Karen 35 Comments

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. I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.

Mood:

Mellow.

Do you have any habits you’d like to break?

Perfectionism. I actually had to look up that word in my dictionary because I was only 99 percent sure of the spelling. See, why do I care about things like that? It’s exhausting, and I’m so over it…

What will you remember most about 2011?

Traveling. I did a little more of it than usual last year and got to discover some neat places like Toronto and Vancouver.

How do you feel about colorful jeans?

I feel good about them, but only if they’re skinny jeans, because for some reason colorful wide-leg or flared jeans make me feel extra short.

One of the most important lessons you learned last year?

That asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness. It’s a sign of wisdom, and it takes true grit (Ha! I’ve been dying to say that).

Are you craving anything at this very moment?

A big, steaming bowl of Vietnamese pho noodle soup and a piping hot Krispy Kreme doughnut for dessert.

What’s going to be different in 2012?

I’m gonna jump on that horse and take the reins! For years now I’ve felt like a passenger on a raft being swept down a river. I haven’t felt fully in control of my time, my finances or my house (after two years here, I still have an unfurnished dining room!), so that’s one of my big goals for 2012, to get control of the raft again.

Sunrise or sunset?

Sunset.

Three of your favorite eye liners?

Laura Mercier Stormy Grey, MAC Powersurge and LORAC Front of the Line Pro.

Weekly goals:

To be extra kind to myself, to attend two yoga classes, and to get to bed before midnight every day this week.

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

Our first official Monday Poll of 2012! Before you know it, we’ll be doing our last one of the year… LOL! I guess I’m getting a little ahead of myself, but time does fly when you’re having fun. 🙂

1. Mood:
2.Â Do you have any habits you’d like to break?
3.Â What will you remember most about 2011?
4.Â How do you feel about colorful jeans?
5.Â One of the most important lessons you learned last year?
6.Â Are you craving anything at this very moment?
7.Â What’s going to be different in 2012?
8. Sunrise or sunset?
9. Three of your favorite eye liners?
10. Weekly goals:

It’s back to the grind for many of us today. The first official work day of 2012. Even if you’re swamped, I hope you’re able to carve out a little time for yourself this week. I know it’s not easy to do when you’re busy, but it is important.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

A Fan Brush to Apply Liquid Foundation? Sure, and Here Are 62 Reasons Why It Works

January 1st, 2012 by Karen 20 Comments

Trish McEvoy 62 Fan Brush

What do you usually use to apply foundation? Sometimes I get the best results when I use my fingers, but I go through phases. One week I’ll use fingers, the next week a skunk brush, and then maybe even a kabuki brush the week after that.

I guess I’m a bit of a wild child when it comes to tools. It really just depends. 🙂

Lately I have been rather enamored with fan brushes, though, like the lovely Trish McEvoy 62 ($36), which I’ve been using to apply MAC Studio Sculpt Foundation.

That’s right — a fan brush to apply a liquid foundation.

Weird, I know, but hear me out. I actually got the idea from MAC Senior Artist Keri Blair, who uses it in this video to apply MAC Mineralize Foundation. Her results just looked so flawless and natural that I figured, heck, why not give it a try?

The first fan brush I thought to try it with was the Shu Uemura 7.5EX, a brush I’ve loved for years (as a side, I think it paints scary pigmented blushes like MAC Frankly Scarlet with aplomb).

With Studio Sculpt, I thought it was just a’ight. I liked the thin, light level of coverage, but I also got some streaks.

Hmm…

Not yet ready to give up on the idea, I tried a few other fan brushes, all of them with mediocre results until I came to Trish’s 62.

It was love!

The 62 was designed to deliver thin layers of powder products for faces and cheeks, but I think it does a bang up job with liquid foundations, too. The dense, wide brush head lays down just the right amount of product to cover what I’m trying to cover without leaving a bunch of annoying streaks behind.
[Continue reading…]

Sundays with Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 172

January 1st, 2012 by Karen 13 Comments

Tabs for the Chanel Resort Collection

Three seconds after the chrome clip at the end of the leash clacked against the tiled hallway floor, I heard the familiar thud of an 18-pound tabby cat jumping down from a counter upstairs. Tabs can recognize the sound of his leash dropping against the tiles by the front door from anywhere in the house, and as soon as he hears it, he’s knows that it’s time to go for a walk outside.

Walks are one of his favorite pastimes in the world. In fact, I think he enjoys them almost as much as modeling.

Today we explored the grassy hillside next to the house, which is to say that I watched Tabs and browsed the Web on my phone while he patted at wet leaves on the ground, rooted around for lizards and ate about two pounds of grass.

I’m glad he got some time to unwind today because the holidays were really tough on him… Poor kitty worked all through Christmas week doing modeling jobs for MAC, Chanel, Benefit, Dior and Sam Edelman.

Yep, life as a world-renowned kitty supermodel isn’t all parties and champagne. Sometimes it’s really hard work. 🙂

Tabs for the Sam Edelman Tabby Print Shoe