Archives for April 2012

Becca Vintage Jewel Lip, Cheek & Eye Palette

April 4th, 2012 by Karen 6 Comments

The new Becca Limited Edition Anniversary Palette in Vintage Jewel ($36), a multi-use palette for lips, cheeks and eyes.

Cat Lady Calendar, April 2012

April 3rd, 2012 by Karen 9 Comments

Calico kittehs for April!

Calvin Klein’s Fashionable New CK One Color Makeup Line Is Purely Cosmetic

April 3rd, 2012 by Karen 41 Comments

CK One Color

You know what’s better than eating an entire bag of Trader Joe’s Roasted Seaweed Snacks in one sitting?

So salty and delicious…

Eating an entire bag of Trader Joe’s Roasted Seaweed Snacks in one sitting while playing with Calvin Klein’s new CK One Color makeup line. 🙂

That’s right! Calvin has a new makeup line (not his first, but his first in a while), and it’s available now exclusively at Ulta. Officially, “the ck one color vision of beauty begins with revealing your authentic, real beauty and never hiding it.” The company says it’s about self-exploration, and not dramatic transformations. Their mantra: “look real, define yourself, add intensity.”

They call it a simplified approach to beauty that embraces individualism with boundary-pushing edginess, and the line, they say, is designed for all ages, cultures and genders.

That last bit sounds a lot like MAC, no? And the packaging looks a little sci-fi to me, like Apple Computer meets NASA at the International Space Station.

Of course, I like.

CK One Color all

I started out really jazzed about the eyeshadows, but now I’m not so sure. I had to build up the swatches with some of them to reach a level of pigment I liked, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed that things go better when I try them on my lids.

As for the lipglosses and nail polishes? YUM! I see a lot of promise there.

CK One Color Heat Eyeshadow Quad
Powder Eyeshadow Quad in Heat, $28
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The MAC Reel Sexy Lipsticks: Bright, Saturated and Undeniably MAC

April 3rd, 2012 by Karen 34 Comments

mac reel sexy
Wearing MAC Lipstick in Reel Sexy

MAC lovers must be finding Reel Sexy real hard to resist. The four lipsticks from the upcoming release don’t arrive on counters until Thursday, April 5, but they had been available for purchase online. Not now, though, at least not directly from MAC. All four are currently sold out, and it’s probably safe to assume they’ll be hot commodities when they arrive in stores this week (at the time of this writing, they were still available on nordstrom.com).

I can’t say I’m surprised that MAC lovers have been snatching ’em up with a quickness. They’re bright, saturated, and undeniably MAC.

mac reel sexy lipsticks
Lipsticks from the left: Pink Popcorn (Lustre), Reel Sexy (Amplified), Watch Me Simmer (Amplified) and Heroine (matte), $14.50 US; $17.50 CDN each

One of these days, I’d love to round up a bunch of us and go to the movies. Maybe — and I’m just throwing out a suggestion here — the movie could be The Hunger Games 🙂 (yes, I’m actually thinking about watching it AGAIN), and we could all wear the Reel Sexy lipsticks, because I like the idea of looking around the theater and seeing all of our faces in the dark, with the light from the screen reflecting off our lips, all lit up and magical…

These colors would be great for something like that.

Here are a few notes on the individual shades…

Watch Me Simmer: Love this shade! So smooth, so bold, so bright… It’s easy to dress up or down, and I only need one layer for complete coverage. The Amplified finish also lasts all day long on my lips.
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: A+

Reel Sexy: Another win! To me, this one’s all floppy hats, colorful beach coverups and white sandy beaches. I think it can take a little bit of babying to look good, like, I have to pat the lipstick down with a finger to even out the pigment, but a second layer makes it perfect.
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: A-

Pink Popcorn: A lavender with a Lustre finish, Pink Popcorn is the quiet one. I used a couple of layers to build it up for these pics, but when its worn as a single layer, I think it actually looks very natural, like a purpler version of Syrup. It may not have the staying power of Watch Me Simmer or Reel Sexy, but I really like color and its flexibility.
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B+

Heroine: She might be a little too much for me, but I bet this intense violet could look really beautiful on darker damsels. If you love All My Purple Life Lipglass, don’t miss this Heroine.
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B+

mac watch me simmer lip closeup
Watch Me Simmer

mac heroine lip swatch
Heroine
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What Part of Your Morning Beauty Routine Takes the Most Time?

April 3rd, 2012 by Karen 45 Comments

Your morning makeup routine?

I’m a poky little puppy in the morning, but in my defense, I can barely walk or talk when I first get up.

Every morning, I stumble from the bed to the bathroom and stare at myself bleary-eyed in the mirror. Then, I try to focus on (what should be) a single simple thought: “Must wash face.”

I usually wash with a cleanser, use a toner, a serum, apply a moisturizer if I’m extra dry, and then finish with sunscreen. The routine should take me less than 5 minutes, but when my brain’s still in morning molasses mode, it can take up to six times that long!

I don’t know why… It just does.

It’s funny, but when I was younger, I spent more time in the mornings fussing with my hair than I did with my makeup or anything else, sometimes up to an hour. Now, I usually just let it do whatever it wants, but when I do curl or straighten, neither process takes more than 10 minutes tops.