Archives for May 2013

Dolce & Gabbana’s Three New Voluptuous Lipsticks Are Gentle, True and Nude

May 16th, 2013 by Karen 25 Comments

Dolce & Gabbana Gentle Monica Lipstick 70 — Wearing Dolce & Gabbana’s Voluptuous Lipstick in Gentle Monica 70, one of three new shades in the True Monica collection

My favorite thing about the three new Dolce & Gabbana Voluptuous Lipsticks in the True Monica collection? That even if you’re clad in frayed sweatpants and a t-shirt peppered with holes, and your hair passed the point when it probably should’ve been washed THREE DAYS AGO, and there are still sticky boogers all up in your eyes because you decided not to wash your face this morning…you’ll still feel like a seductive Italian screen siren wearing one of them, pouty lips and all.

Dolce & Gabbana True Monica Collection Lipsticks — Clockwise from the left: Nude Monica 20, True Monica 40 and Gentle Monica 70

The three $33 lipsticks, each of them inspired by Italian actress/model/all-around hot babe Monica Bellucci, whom you might remember from The Matrix Reloaded, or more recently from The Whistleblower with Rachel Weisz, and one of her signature makeup looks with smokey eyes and nude-toned, full lips.

Dolce Gabbana Monica Lipstick Swatches — From the left: Nude Monica 20, True Monica 40 and Gentle Monica 70

For the all important question: “Which of these warm, creamy lip colors would I wear to jury duty or the DMV?”

The answer: “Any of them.” 🙂 Creamy beige Nude Monica, pinkish beige True Monica or pale rose Gentle Monica.

But why stop at the courthouse? Slip one on anytime you want to stop traffic, perhaps with your hair down, a pair of femme fatale high heels and a body-con dress.

Dolce Gabbana Nude Monica Lipstick 20 — Nude Monica 20

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What Are Your Best Beauty Pick-Me-Ups?

May 16th, 2013 by Karen 20 Comments

MAC Impassioned Lipstick — Bright pink lipsticks like MAC’s Impassioned…

There’s nothin’ like a quick pick-me-up after a long day, ya know? A glass of lemonade, a couple dozen kitty hugs, a splash of perfume, a swipe of gloss, a brush of bronzer… 🙂

And when I want my pick-me-up to take the shape of something beautiful, I almost always go with a bright lip, like MAC’s hot pink Impassioned Lipstick, because it’s easy to use and packed with POW!

Other beauty-based pick-me-ups I frequently enjoy…

Nude Skincare Hydrating Water ($20) and MAC Fix+ ($21). I keep both refreshing bottles on my desk and spritz them on my face throughout the day to keep my skin hydrated and give my mood a quick lift.
Annick Goutal Neroli Les Colognes ($175). I like to dab a small amount on my wrists… First thing that comes to mind whenever I catch a whiff: summer vacation.
CND Solar Oil ($7.50). This one’s a little unusual, I know, but I get a thrill out of moisturizing my cuticles and nails with brush-on conditioners, perhaps because my mom’s always going on and on about how “you need to take care of your cuticles!”
MAC Plushglass in Nice Buzz ($20). The tingle tells me I’m alive! ALIVE! And the shimmery golden color looks great layered atop almost anything.

What about you? What are some of your best beauty pick-me-ups? Sock it to me in the comments.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

The Perforated Satchel Stylishly Answers the Question of What Shoes to Wear With Which Bag: The Perforated Satchel by Poverty Flats by Rian

May 16th, 2013 by Karen 18 Comments

An insatiable appetite for “just one more purse.” I HAZ IT!

And rather than reeling myself in, controlling my hunger and mining my closet for classics like the quilted Kate Spade bag that rarely left my side during the summer of 2010, I find new reasons to adopt new bags, like “If the universe were really against my getting another purse, it would not have filled DSW with so many cute ones.”

At least, that’s what I told myself when I spotted the Perforated Satchel, a product of Poverty Flats by Rian.

The first time I saw it was at nordstrom.com a while back, but it was $80 at the time and sold out.

Each time I checked back, it was sold out, so I figured it wasn’t meant to be…

Then, when I spotted it at DSW for $49.95 two weeks ago, I jumped! I couldn’t say no to the black, tan and cream blocked design, which I thought would go with almost everything.

Now I have all this extra time on my hands (okay, it’s only about 2 extra minutes) that I’m not spending wondering which bag to wear with what shoes, since this lightweight, faux-leather zip-top satchel easily dresses up or down.

I can slip it on if I’m going casual with my tan platform wedges on the weekend, or going dressier with black strappy sandals for a nice dinner.

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May 16th, 2013 by Karen 6 Comments

Nestled among the junk mail you don’t want about “Niice&SeexxyPiils” from taylorzmark69@yahoo.com, get something you actually do want delivered to your Inbox, like pics of the resplendent red lipsticks in Tom Ford’s Jasmine Rouge Collection or photos of a husky tabby cat in compromising positions…

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Automagically! (Note: that is not a real word.) 🙂

If you aren’t already subscribed to my once a day emails, do it!

[madmimi id=86272]

Thanks for visiting.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Arm Candy

May 16th, 2013 by Karen 18 Comments

The Creative Process

May 16th, 2013 by Karen 18 Comments

It involves a 20-pound tabby sleeping on my arm as I type.

The New Dolce & Gabbana Smoky Smooth Eye Colour Quad Puts My Inner Corvette in Neutral and Drives Me Wild

May 15th, 2013 by Karen 32 Comments

I love the new neutral Dolce & Gabbana Smoky Smooth Eye Colour Quad ($59) like…like Mariah loves wind machines. Like Iron Man loves tinkering. Like Portlandia loves bird motifs (“Put a bird on it!”). Like Ben Affleck loves beards. Like drag queens love contouring…

For me, good neutral quads are like tropical vacations. They just make everything better. 🙂

When I’m stumped for what to wear with crazy colors like that hot pink glitter over there (ooh!) or that matte red blush over there (ah!), I’ll go with one, two — or when I’m feeling more adventurous — three or four neutrals on my eyes.

Why?

Because they go with everything!

But…

…not all neutral quads get it right.

Sometimes, there are problems with the powders, and the shadows end up on my cheeks. Other times, they’re way too pigmented, or not pigmented enough, or they pull a David Copperfield and disappear right before my eyes, or they’re just annoyingly chalky.

But the matte black, pearly neutral gold, shimmery chocolate brown and shimmery golden beige in Dolce & Gabbana’s Smoky Quad do WERK!

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Curl, Interrupted: The Revlon Perfect Heat Tourmaline Ceramic 1 1/2” Styling Iron

May 15th, 2013 by Karen 33 Comments

The Revlon Perfect Heat Curling Iron 1 1/2″ Styling Iron working its magic…

I’ve been the beneficiary of a few hair compliments lately (thank you!), but I do feel obliged to point out that, left to its wild, unchecked state, my natural locks look a little something like this…

And this…

At one time I estimated that I’d spent approximately one quarter of my life growing out botched haircuts.

Why so much time?

Because my hair! — it’s so moody! It’s the frizzy, slightly-wavy-but-not-curly and hella heavy mop on top of my head, man, and it’s moody like Tabs on Monday morning.

It wasn’t until I was in my 30s that I figured out some reliable ways to regularly wrangle it into submission.

Finding a stylist who knew what to do with my mop, and could show me how to do it myself, made the biggest difference.

Her name was Alis Peralta, and she works over at A-Line Salon out here in Corte Madera, California. Getting some good styling tools, like the $17 Revlon Perfect Heat Tourmaline Ceramic 1 1/2″ Styling Iron, helped, too.

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