Archives for April 2012

Two Ways to Win a $50 eGift Card from Sephora!

April 7th, 2012 by Karen 494 Comments

WINNER: The giveaway is closed now, and the winner is Katrina! Congratulations, Katrina! If you entered but didn’t win this time around, keep trying, and click here to enter any ongoing giveaways before you jet. 🙂

A Makeup and Beauty Blog giveaway

I’m really hoping to go to brunch this morning because I’m craving banana pancakes like crazy!

Mmm, pancakes…

Happy Easter weekend! 🙂 You know what I don’t understand? Oatmeal at brunch. Maybe it’s because I have oatmeal for breakfast every other day during the week (I call it gruel). But I figure, if I’m going out to breakfast or brunch, I like to have something a little special, ya know?

Don’t get me wrong — I love oatmeal, but I can’t remember the last time I heard someone say, “We should totally go to this place I heard about for brunch because they have AMAZING oatmeal.”

LOL!

Another of my favorite breakfast/brunch foods: hash browns. I’ve yet to perfect the art of making hash brown at home. Mine are usually overdone.

As much as I love breakfast, I’m not the greatest breakfast cook. I think it takes my brain a lot longer to wake up than it takes my tummy.

What folks are saying…

“Oh my goodness! Thank you so much Karen (and Tabs, of course)! I really appreciate this! I’d been eyeing the Anastasia brow pencil in Strawburn to match my red hair!”
-Chelsea (and Jiji the kitten and Quincy the bunny)

“Hi Karen and Tabs. Wow! Thanks so much for this! It’s hard to believe I actually won something. I can’t wait to shop my little heart out! Thanks again. Love to Tabs! And I love your blog with the Tabs stories. ;+)”
-Sophie, St Petersburg, FL

“Never before have I been so pleased to check my email right before bed!!! Thank you so, so much! I truly enjoy your blog and check it almost daily! Thanks again! This made my night!”
-Melissa, Edmond, OK

“Hi Karen. Oh my goodness! I can’t believe I won! :O Thank you so much! You, Tabs, and your blog are amazing! Thank you for keeping me updated on all things beauty and more importantly, for keeping me entertained! Keep doing your thing! 🙂 Thank you again.”
-Jacqueline

“Hi Karen. Thank you so much, I’m so excited, I’ve never won anything before. My name is Hana … I just turned 25 (today is my birthday!) Yay! Thank you.”
-Hana

One (1) Sephora eGift card containing $50 sent to the winner by email (international readers, you may opt to receive $50 sent by PayPal instead).

There are two ways to enter, and you can do both of them for two chances to win. First, you can enter by leaving a comment at the bottom of this post, a comment about anything at all, like, when was the last time you went out to breakfast/brunch? Do you apply your makeup before or after breakfast? Are you reading any good books? Are your brows filled in right now? What are you up to this weekend (happy Easter!)? — you get the idea.
Second, you can enter by following me on Twitter @karenmbb and retweeting (RT) the following message:
- Follow @karenmbb and RT to Win a $50 eGift Card from Sephora! http://bit.ly/HoAEFX

The deadline to enter is Sunday, April 8, 2012 at 11:59PM (PT).
Entrants must enter using a valid email address and/or Twitter account to win.
A maximum of two (2) entries per person — one within the comments at the bottom of this post, and a second entry via Twitter addressed to me @karenmbb.
Contest is open to individuals of any country who have reached the age of majority according to their local laws (18 in the United States with these exceptions: Alabama and Nebraska, 19; Mississippi, 21).
Sephora eGift Certificates can only be redeemed online and are not valid in stores or available for purchase or redemption in Canada. International winners may opt to substitute the Sephora eGift card prize for $50 sent directly to their email address by PayPal instead.
Tabs and I (heretofore referred to as “T-Money and K-Dawg”) will select one (1) winner at random from the entries either left in the comments at the bottom of this blog post or addressed to @karenmbb on Twitter.
The winner will be announced here within 48 hours of the deadline.
Void where prohibited by law.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

WINNER: The giveaway is closed now, and the winner is Katrina! Congratulations, Katrina! If you entered but didn’t win this time around, keep trying, and click here to enter any ongoing giveaways before you jet. 🙂

Hourglass No. 28 Primer Serum

April 7th, 2012 by Karen 3 Comments

I can’t wait to take the new Hourglass No. 28 Primer Serum ($65) out on a test run this weekend! I love the original Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer and hope this is just as great.

Hourglass No. 28 Primer Serum

Spring Flowers: Red, Cream and Yellow

April 6th, 2012 by Karen 3 Comments

I saw this tulip during my walk this afternoon. 🙂

You’re the Fairest in This Tale With the Benefit Rare Beauty Kit

April 6th, 2012 by Karen 22 Comments

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Mirror, mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest of them all?

Benefit has an answer for that, and the answer, my dear, is you. 🙂

It’s movie magic time! — and this fairy tale is all about value. The new Benefit Rare Beauty Kit ($45), a limited edition set released to celebrate the launch of the upcoming movie, Snow White & the Huntsman, comes with products to re-create Snow White’s makeup look from the film, and to keep everything safe from the evil queen, a cute and convenient makeup bag.

The $45 Rare Beauty Kit includes…

A full-size bottle of Benefit POREfessional Primer (regularly $29)
One full-size tube of BADgal Lash Mascara (regularly $19)
A sample size of Benetint liquid blush
A sample size of High Beam highlighter
The makeup bag!
A booklet with a number of tips and tutorials
A card with QR codes to access behind-the-scenes footage of the makeup artists working on the set of Snow White & the Huntsman

The movie hits theaters June 1, but the kit arrives online at benefitcosmetics.com April 17 and to stores and counters in May.

benefit rare beauty

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I’ve been really looking forward to the movie since seeing the trailer a couple weeks ago. It looks intense and frightfully medieval, like a tale told to mischievous children hundreds of years ago to keep them out of the big, bad woods. 🙂

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Matchmaker, Matchmaker, Make Me a … Physicians Formula Match! The pH Matchmaker pH Powered Lip Gloss

April 6th, 2012 by Karen 20 Comments

physicians formula ph matchmaker gloss

Got a date, can’t be late, hay! The girlie’s gonna do me.

As much as I wish I could re-allocate the part of my brain currently storing the lyrics to Bell Biv Devoe’s Do Me! to something more … practical, like, I dunno, how to fix a running toilet or perform an emergency tooth extraction without anesthetics in the least painful way possible (could come in handy in the zombie apocalypse), I can’t. Those lyrics are tattooed on my brain.

And every time one of my friends tells me that she’s going on a date, I say the same thing every time…

“Got a date, can’t be late, hay!”

LOL! I’ve been doin’ it for years, but it feels like time for a change. The next time someone texts/calls/emails to share their date plans, instead of quoting BBD, I’m gonna say, “Physicians Formula pH Matchmaker pH Powered Lip Gloss, hay!”

Okay, so maybe that doesn’t roll off the tongue, but whatev. It’s still a great date gloss. 🙂

Released for spring, pH Matchmaker gloss ($9.95; available in two shades, Light Pink and Pink) is moody, and by that I mean it works like a mood ring, except in this case the product reacts to light and your natural pH level to create a color customized for you.

Now, that by itself isn’t revolutionary. Mood ring-like glosses have been around forever, but I can’t remember the last time I saw one as kissable and totally date-worthy as this.

It starts out clear on my lips but transforms within a minute or two into a vibrant fuchsia.

Cool! It even has cute bits of silver glitter, but not so much that it feels gritty in the least. Just enough for a little sparkle.

Physicians Formula pH Matchmaker pH Powered Lip Gloss 1
pH Matchmaker pH Powered Lip Gloss in Light Pink, $9.95; also available in Pink

physicians formula ph matchmaker gloss
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The MAC Extra Dimension Mineralize Skinfinishes: MAC Found an Extra Dimension Where Hybrid Cream/Liquid/Powder Highlighters Live

April 6th, 2012 by Karen 32 Comments

mac extra dimension skinfinish in superb
Wearing MAC Extra Dimension Mineralize Skinfinish in Superb

The new MAC Extra Dimension Mineralize Skinfinishes ($28 each) start with an almost blinding shine! — almost like looking directly at the sun (which I know you’re not supposed to do but…).

These three shimmery highlighters have more in common with the new Extra Dimension eyeshadows than mere quantum mechanics. They also have that same easy-to-blend cream, liquid and powder hybrid formula, and offer a glazed, shiny finish similar to the finish I get when I apply MAC’s regular powder Mineralize Skinfinishes with a wet brush.

With the Extra Dimension Skinfishes, I can get that same super intense, glazed shine in fewer steps. Instead of trying to find my brush, spraying the brush with MAC Fix+, swiping it across the pan, and then blending on my skin, all I have to do is open a pan of Extra Dimension, pat a small amount on my upper cheekbones, my temples and down the bridge of my nose, and … that’s it. All done. Blending out the edges is a snap, and because they’re so pigmented, a little goes a long way.

Of the three Extra Dimensional shades in the launch, Superb, the soft peachy nude, is my pick for Best in Show. I think it’ll look great on most skin tones.

The lightest shade, white gold Whisper of Gilt, may look a little chalky on darker damsels, while lighter lasses may feel like the darkest shade, coppery gold Glorify, appears a little too bold/dark.

Oh! Random lipgloss moment… I think all three of these look fantastic with bronzy Oh Baby Lipglass.

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Extra Dimension Skinfinish in Superb ($28 US; $33.50 CDN)