Archives for 2014

Shorty Schwing My Way: theBalm’s Schwing Black Liquid Eyeliner Loves Ladies Who Pine for Precise Lines

November 21st, 2014 by Karen 15 Comments

theBalm Schwing Black Liquid Eyeliner (4) — Wearing theBalm Schwing Black Liquid Eyeliner ($17) on my upper lash lines

Winged eyeliner: making my life harder since the dawn of time.

Seriously, though, why does winged liner, particularly winged liquid liner, make me want to scream into a pillow?

The worst is that moment when the teeny wing you wanted — just a small kitten flick — suddenly morphs into a huge, oversized bat wing that reaches all the way up to your temples, and you have no control over the situation whatsoever.

It’s as if the universe invented winged liner primarily to mock us.

Well, universe, screw you and your plans for makeup mayhem, ’cause I just started using theBalm’s Schwing Black Liquid Eyeliner ($17), and I am no longer clutching my chair and rocking back and forth. 🙂

theBalm Schwing Black Liquid Eyeliner (3) — LOL, the box! This is kind of what it’s like to hang out with my friends Jen and Cindy.

You might think that a look with thin liquid liner and a tiny kitten flick would be easy, seeing as how you’re not using a ton of product, but oh! — those skinny lines and tiny wings are like the makeup equivalent of open heart surgery. They’re just hard, man.

But Schwing is all about control. The felt tip draws skinny matte black lines with the precision of a fine-tipped calligraphy pen. Hugging lash lines is easy.

theBalm Schwing Black Liquid Eyeliner (2) — theBalm Schwing Black Liquid Eyeliner ($17)

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Go Wild, Honey, ‘Cause I’m Candy Crushing on This Beach Babe: With i smell great, Mixing and Matching Makes Scents

November 21st, 2014 by Karen 43 Comments

The following post is sponsored by i smell great. From the creator of CLEAN perfume, the scents you love, extracted, encapsulated, bottled. Isn’t that great? Learn more at ismellgreat.com.

Just call me “wild candy beach babe!”

Not a bad nickname, right? Got a nice ring to it. Could be a good backup drag queen name, in case I ever get tired of Kitty McDiamond. 🙂

Wild candy beach babe is my very own personal scent concoction, a layered combination of three products from i smell great, a brand new fragrance/beauty line by the creator of CLEAN perfume, Randi Shinder, and perfume industry vet/blogger Jane Daly.

There are four fragrances — Beach Babe (my fave), Candy Crush, Angel Cake and Wild Honey — and five product families. I like all of them by themselves, but I REALLY like this combo: Candy Crush Soft Body Whip ($28), Wild Honey Eau de Parfum ($68) and Beach Babe Hair Fragrance ($32), all worn together.

The whole mixing/matching/layering thing is a big part of these, because they were designed to layer seamlessly together.

Still, I’m kind of surprised that I haven’t come up with a gross combo yet. No matter which products I’ve layered, the resulting aroma smells fresh and feminine, like “La-dee-da! I just stepped out of the shower and skipped through a spring meadow.” Nothing too spicy or fruitastically sweet. Just chill, relaxed fragrances that one can wear practically anywhere.

i smell great: the four fragrances

beach babe: Ah, take me away to a land of tropical breezes, coconut cream and golden suntan oil…

candy crush: Mouthwatering candied flower petals, rose syrup, icing sugar and candy hearts to tempt and tease you.

angel cake: A comfy, cozy scent with notes of pink icing, powdered sugar and candied almonds…with a touch of sweetness.

wild honey: A soothing synthesis of honey, brown sugar, Tahitian vanilla and sweet nectar make this intoxicating aroma irresistible.

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Eylure London Lengthening No. 080 Lashes: Take Highway 80 All the Way to London for Long, Lush Lashes That Still Look Natural

November 20th, 2014 by Karen 24 Comments

From this day forward, let the official makeup record show that “Never give up!” is my mantra when it comes to false lashes.

Eylure Lengthening 080 Lashes — Eylure London Lengthening Lashes No. 080 Triple Pack ($9.99)

Because today I almost gave up after 10 minutes, and if I had, I would have missed out on a great set of Eylure London No. 080 Lengthening Lashes.

It wasn’t because they were hard to apply or uncomfortable. Quite the opposite, actually.

The No. 080s weigh next to nothing and feel fab. Plus, they slip right on.

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Unsung Makeup Heroes: Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in Fantasme

November 20th, 2014 by Karen 18 Comments

Fantasme…

Why did I just picture Penelope Cruz saying that, like from one of those Nespresso commercials?

“Nespresso!”

Are we really almost at the end of November? I can’t believe Thanksgiving is only a week away, but it reminds me that now is the time for holiday makeup.

There’s Thanksgiving next week, and then a couple get-togethers around Christmas, so I’m trying to think of ways to look dressed up that don’t require a lot of effort, like by using products I can layer on top of whatever other makeup I may have started the day wearing.

Say “happy holidays!” to Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in Fantasme. This sheer, glittery white cream wunderkind ($36) makes getting party-ready looks as easy as three pats of a finger.

Well…three or four.

Chanel Illusion D'Ombre in Fantasme — Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in Fantasme ($36)

Wait — don’t walk away just because I said glitter! This is Chanel glitter, so it’s classy and refined (think: expensive chandelier), and it’s precisely the kind of glitter I imagine Choupette the cat leaves in her wake when she prances around her mansion. 🙂

Fantasme is one of those deceptively fantastic pieces… It pretends to be boring and nondescript in swatches, but it turns into a concert violinist on lids.

The long-running Unsung Heroes series features some of my favorite permanent collection products from a variety of bodacious beauty brands.

What I like to do is pat Fantasme in the inner corners of my lids with a finger.

Sure, you could use a brush, but I like using my fingers because it seems to cut down on the fallout…not that there’s very much of it anyway.

I just pat on top of whatever eye makeup I happen to be wearing. Doesn’t matter what colors or kind of look it is, either. Fantasme cranks it up.

Here I’m wearing it on top of teals and blues from the Urban Decay Vice 2 Palette…

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What Are You Wearing on Your Nails?

November 20th, 2014 by Karen 29 Comments

Smith & Cult Tenderoni — Smith & Cult Nail Lacquer in Tenderoni ($18)

I’m almost ashamed to admit this (but apparently not ashamed enough to keep it to myself): when I was 15, I was obsessed with Bobby Brown.

Not the makeup maven (Bobbi), but the R&B one (Bobby), as in the former member of New Edition/ex-husband of Whitney (RIP, Whit).

I knew all the choreography in the Every Little Step video, had a picture of him on the front of my geometry folder (he was wearing a shiny gold and purple suit, wha?!) and, on more than one occasion, slow danced to Roni, Bobby’s ode to cute girls looking for love in all the wrong places.

I also may or may not have thought of myself as a Tenderoni.

Um, barf!

I do have a point with all this, and here it is: when I saw that this creamy taupe nail lacquer by Smith & Cult was called Tenderoni, something in me clicked. I had to get it on my paws!

Smith & Cult is a new nail line by Dineh Mohajer, the founder of Hard Candy, and they get my vote for “Most Clever Nail Polish Names, Ever” (like Dirty Baby, Cut the Mullet, Bitter Buddhist, and Feed the Rich). Each of the 30 shades in the line is inspired by different key life moments…and apparently this one relates to when I was 15 and had designs on marrying Bobby Brown, LOL! Ew…

Well, at least I can look back at that clueless but lovable Karen and laugh my @ss off now. Yup, nothing but mad love for that girl. 🙂

Smith & Cult Check the Rhyme — Check the Rhyme ($18)

So, of course, with this mani I had to do an accent nail. The creamy purple is Check the Rhyme, also by Smith & Cult.

With both shades, I’m wearing two layers and a base coat.

Smith & Cult Nail Lacquers are $18 each, and if you’re curious (and how could you not be? That packaging is killer!), you can check out the full collection online now.

Let those fingers do the typing, and let me know what you’re currently wearing on your nails. Bonus points if you also happen to have an embarrassing story from your teenage years. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Just Add a Festive Ribbon or Bow to These Topshop 2014 Holiday Kits, and You Have a Perfect Gift

November 19th, 2014 by Karen 8 Comments

Topshop Holiday 2014 — It’s a Topshop holiday party, *haaay!*

OK, so maybe orange and black aren’t the first two colors that pop into my mind when I think of the holidays (with the exception of that scary one with all the candy)…

But so what? These new Topshop holiday kits are bringin’ the cute! 🙂

Slap a Christmassy ribbon on one of these bad boys, and boom! — hello, stylish present.

Topshop is one of those makeup lines that flies under my radar a lot of the time, but they have some very cute things, and some of those are in these kits.

The Blush and Lip Duo in Innocent and Illicit ($24)

Topshop Blush Lip Duo Set with Lipstick in Innocent and Blush in Illicit — The Topshop Blush Lip Duo Set with Lipstick in Innocent, and Blush in Illicit

Topshop’s blushes are DOPE. They last like Italian marble and look totally natural on cheeks. They’re also why this set caught my eye.

It comes with Illicit, a nude, cool-toned rose cream blush with a dash of micro shimmer. Coincidentally, it was the shade I was wearing today when I went looking for an illicit encounter with my side-cat, Elsa (but I didn’t see her, boo!).

The set also comes with a creamy cool-toned pink lipstick called Innocent, which is super pretty and looks great with black smokey eyes. Sadly, it also seems to like hanging out in my lip lines…

The Mascara and Kohl Kit ($24)

Topshop Mascara and Kohl Kit, $24 — Mascara and Kohl Kit ($24)

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The Sonia Kashuk Holiday 2014 Collection Proves It’s the Golden Age of Luxurious, Affordable Makeup

November 19th, 2014 by Karen 16 Comments

Sonia Kashuk’s Art Deco-inspired holiday 2014 collection might give you ideas…

…ideas like, “Whee! Look at me! I’m a flapper in The Great Gatsby, and I’m doing the Charleston!” Then you start dancing around your office, but you pull an inner thigh muscle when you kick a little higher than you should have, and from that day forward, you rue the day you danced the Charleston in your office without properly stretching beforehand.

The Sonia Kashuk Eye Palette in Deco Starlet ($19.99)

Just an FYI! 🙂

Sonia’s latest limited edition collection does make me want to kick up my heels, it’s true. The seven pieces look totally expensive, but all but one of them are less than $20 each.

Sonia Kashuk Nude Lip Palette in Jazzed Up Nudes — The Nude Lip Palette in Jazzed Up Nudes ($19.99)

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What Are Your 5 Favorite Face Makeup Products Right Now?

November 19th, 2014 by Karen 62 Comments

I really enjoyed seeing your favorite five in yesterday’s eye products post. I saw a ton of great products that have slipped off my radar screen (but need to go back on). Now let’s talk face products today.

For the formal transcript of the official makeup record, I have acne-prone (especially around my chin area, boo) combination dry/oily skin, and these are the top five face products currently rockin’ my boat…

Laura Mercier Flawless Fluide Foundation ($48) — I must sound like a broken record with the way I’m always singing Flawless Fluide’s praises, but dangit I love the stuff! I think it’s one of the best liquid foundations out there meow.
MAC Prep + Prime Natural Radiance Base Visage ($41) — Currently addicted to this primer: me. I’ve been using it daily.
Smashbox Photo Finish Pore Minimizing Primer ($39) — I like this so much that I bought a backup during the Sephora VIB sale…even though I’m not even halfway finished with my current bottle. 🙂
Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blush Palette ($58) — When I’m not testing other blushes and can use whatever my heart desires, I grab this palette.
Guerlain Perles d’Etoiles Illuminating Pearls ($60) — Super obsessed with this (said in a singsongy voice)! It gives me that magical holiday Guerlain glow.

Your turn, babe. What are your five favorite face makeup products right now?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Happy hump day.