Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup
A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict
Here are three of the six new Nail Lacquers from the Sci-Fi Lullabies spring collection by Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics, available now at Sephora and online.
Can I just say how much I LOVE that they named one of these polishes Ripley (the blackened antique gold one in the middle)!? FREAKIN’ AWESOME.
Okay, so I don’t quite get the alligator/reptilian pattern on the pans (gives me the heebie-jeebies and the urge to moisturize my shins!), but I do get a good bargain-hunting vibe from Sonia Kashuk’s new $12.99 Chic Luminosity Duos.
Each of the three Duos in petal pink Glow, warm coral Glisten and rosy nude Glimmer comes with a blush and bronzer; the formulas remind me of some of the powder/cream/gel products we’ve seen from Estée Lauder and Chanel over the past couple of years.
Glisten, the warm coral I’ve been wearing off and on since last weekend, looks just like one of Estée Lauder’s Ilumminating Powder Gelee Highlighters and Blushes, which usually cost between $40-50.
And like the Gelees, it illuminates cheeks with a refined, glimmering finish that softens the appearance of pores and fine lines, almost like a 1940s powderpuff lens.
Me? I dream in color. Sometimes the colors are so vibrant that they’re almost surreal, like this pic of NARS lipsticks and glosses…
Loading ...
Take heed, beauty lover! You’ve been warned…
Get too close to Chanel’s new $27 Taboo Le Vernis Nail Colour, and you run the risk of losing yourself in its galactic shimmer for all eternity.
Gazing too closely at the shimmery blue and bronze stars in Taboo’s deep, interstellar purple base is like crossing the event horizon of a black hole — the boundary in spacetime through which matter and light can only pass in one direction.
It will suck you in!
At least that’s what I told El Hub when he said, “You paid $27 for a bottle of nail polish!?”
Every few millennia (okay, years), a beauty brand Big Bang occurs. Chanel crafts a nail polish so striking that it warps the very fabric of space and time.
Taboo!
When I saw it for the first time, I knew that if I let it pass me by, I would regret my decision for — who knows how long? Maybe years (I have a friend who still regrets skipping Jade, and whenever I bring it up, she gets fussy).
Why do I like it so much?
Well, because opalescent copper nebulae streak through Taboo’s blackened purple like comet tails, while flecks of cosmic blue glitter wink and twinkle like distant stars, and because I only need to wear a single layer — A SINGLE LAYER, OMG! — for total opacity.
If you’ve ever wished (on a star, perhaps?) for a darker, sparklier, more intense version of Chanel Vendetta, the universe answered. It’s Taboo.
Years from now when we look back and pour over the beauty history books, I think spring 2013 could be remembered as the Era of the Cream Shadow Stick.
Seems like every time I pirouette or sashay around a corner in my teal Franco Sarto platform sandals, I trip over a display gleaming with twist-up shadows…
They’re everywhere!
The idea isn’t necessarily new, but with so many lines putting their own twist on it this season, there’s a good chance you’ve already been tempted by a stick or two.
Laura Mercier’s Caviar Stick Eye Colours in Seashell, Grey Pearl and Sand Glow
Jouer’s Crème Eyeshadow Crayons
A quick peek at the new Aqualillies for Tarte Amazonian Clay Waterproof Eye and Cheek Palette ($38).
What do you think of the colors?
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 four years. I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.
Ah, the trials and tribulations of barely being five feet tall/short…
Of course, this doesn’t always work, but it’s usually worth the try.
A good time was had by all, and I ate way too much fried food…
To complete the Monday Poll, just copy the following list, and paste it with your answers in the comments.
Le List
1. Mini or maxi dresses?
2. What’s one of the keys to happiness for you?
3. What’s your take on big jewelry?
4. How do you feel about wearing scarves in spring (and on cool days in summer)?
5. Has any one ever thrown you a surprise birthday party?
6. When was the last time you visited your childhood home?
7. Complete the following sentence: when in doubt, ______.
8. Have you ever gone through the 10-items-or-less line at the grocery store with more than 10 items??
9. Are you left- or right-handed?
10. A beauty product you recently discovered that you really like?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Exciting times, ladies! 🙂
Known for breaking hearts around the world, breaking up New York City brawls, inspiring memes and elevating shirtless-ness to an art form (a fact I’ve appreciated many, many times), actor Ryan Gosling has now set his sights (and sense of smell) on the fragrance world with a new perfume called Hey Girl, coming to department stores this spring.
Makeup and Beauty Blog caught up with Ryan at San Francisco’s Fairmont hotel this weekend to dish about his latest endeavor, his rippled abs and his weakness for chocolate doughnuts.
A transcript of my 5-minute interview follows, but here’s what you need to take away from this:
KAREN: So, Ryan, I hear you’re taking a break from acting.
RYAN: Yes.
KAREN: What are Ryan Gosling’s next plans? — not that you ever refer to yourself in the third person or anything… You know what I mean.
RYAN: [laughs] Well, Ryan Gosling does have a few things up his sleeve.
KAREN: I know! Like saving more pedestrians from traffic accidents?
RYAN: Has everyone seen that video??
KAREN: [laughs] Just about.
RYAN: I don’t know, it’s like the cameras appear out of nowhere. I buy Gatorade and it’s on Yahoo! the next day.
KAREN: Dude, like it or not, you’re an Internet sensation.
RYAN: I figure I’ll just roll with it, you know?
KAREN: Or turn it into a beauty empire. That’s an interesting twist for you — the world of celeb perfumes?
RYAN: Yeah, well, I’ve always liked scents, you know, and I’m just in tune with that kind of thing, like I have these vivid memories of different perfumes and fragrances from different times in my life. And I’ve always liked that moment when you walk by a woman on the street and you catch a whiff of her fragrance. That’s why I knew I wanted to create something that my mom and sister would love.
KAREN: Aw, that’s so sweet! Did your mom and sister help you with Hey Girl?
RYAN: They did. I’d overnight them samples of the different versions along the way, and they’d text or call me with feedback, like what they thought worked and didn’t work. My mom would call me in the middle of the night and say, “Too spicy. Needs more rose.”
KAREN: [laughs] That’s helpful alright. My mom would just say, “This stinks.”
[Continue reading…]
