Archives for 2014

Meet theBalm’s Cindy-Lou Manizer

January 8th, 2014 by Karen 30 Comments

DUDE! That is so balm…

Get it? theBalm…?

LOL! Sorry. I never get tired of doing that. 🙂

What can I say? I love ’90s slang.

I also love highlighters, like this new one here, Cindy-Lou Manizer ($24), a beautiful opalescent peachy pink with a soft sheen finish.

You can wear it as a highlighter with your favorite corals, peaches or warmish pink blushes, or use it as an eyeshadow.

Today I wore it on the tops of my cheekbones and down the bridge of my nose. I like that it’s shiny, but not so shiny that my skin looks oily when I wear it.

Gonna try it in my inner corners next.

It’s available online now and coming this spring at theBalm counters.

theBalm Cindy-Lou Manizer swatch — A swatch of Cindy-Lou Manizer

Like Tabs, Milani Eye Tech Perfection Liquid Liner Has Curve Appeal

January 8th, 2014 by Karen 9 Comments

This liner, like Tabs in his groundbreaking spread for Playcat magazine, celebrates curves!

The shape of Milani’s new felt-tipped liquid liner looks really cool — kind of futuristic, like what I imagine liquid liner pens would look like in Bladerunner.

Instead of being shaped like a run-of-the-mill pencil, it’s curved, which they say makes it more ergonomic and easier to use, and by holding the pen at different angles, you’re able to create different liner looks.

Sooooo, does it work?

Well, it’s easy enough to use, and it feels pretty good in my hands, but truth be told, I’m not seeing much difference between using it and a regular liquid liner.

The liner itself? It’s a’ight. I like that it’s dark. It’s a true black shade, but I wish it was a little deeper and glossier.

As for the water-resistant formula, it doesn’t transfer into my creases, which is a big plus, but whatever you do, keep your hands off it! The formula flakes when I rub my eyes.

I know, I know… Gotta break that habit.

I am able to draw fairly sharp lines with the flexible felt tip, but only if I go slowly (things get a little jagged if I’m rushing).

Eye Tech arrives online and at CVS, Walgreens and Wal Mart stores next month. It comes in a single shade, 01 Black.

The New Milani Lip Intense Liquid Colors Are More Intense Than Daniel Craig’s Eyes and Prettier Than a Posy

January 8th, 2014 by Karen 19 Comments

Makeup Math Word Problem No. 1

QUESTION: At noon a train leaves St. Louis for Chicago. On that train sits a cat lady obsessed with her tubby tabby. Quantify the intensity of her obsession, which, as you know, is quite intense, and double it. Now, multiply that by 20, and add 10. What do you get?

ANSWER: LOL! I have no idea. 🙂 But whatever the answer is, it approximates the intensity of the pigments in these new Milani Lip Intense Liquid Colors.

Milani Spring 2014 — The fantastic foursome of Milani Lip Intense Liquid Colors, new for spring 2014

These pigments are insane! To quote Joey Lawrence from Blossom, “WHOA!”

Milani Lip Intense Liquid Color swatches from the left: 01 Red Extreme, 02 Pink Rave, 03 Fiery Coral and 04 Violet Addict — From the left: 01 Red Extreme, 02 Pink Rave, 03 Fiery Coral and 04 Violet Addict

I’m having a hard time believing these are less than $7 each ($6.49 to be exact). If these four full-coverage liquid lipsticks played dress-up in fancier packaging, I think they could hang with Chanel.

Milani Lip Intense Liquid Color wands from the left: 01 Red Extreme, 02 Pink Rave, 03 Fiery Coral and 04 Violet Addict — Wands from the left: 01 Red Extreme, 02 Pink Rave, 03 Fiery Coral and 04 Violet Addict

They feel so good on my lips — like thin, non-sticky glosses — and last a good, long while (I get about 6 hours), almost like they’re long-wearing liquid lipsticks.

YES!

I do, however, have to watch out for that white line that appears on my bottom lip… You know the one I’m talking about. With these I see it after about three hours of wear. No biggie. When it shows up, I just wipe it off with a makeup wipe or Q-Tip.

As for flavors and scents, well, I’d probably love this one if I wasn’t trying to get back in shape (uh…someone had a A LOT of chocolate over the holidays). These taste and smell like butterscotch.

Mmm…butterscotch.

Milani Lip Intense Liquid Color in 04 Violet Addict — 04 Violet Addict

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Is There a Story Behind Your Interest in Makeup?

January 8th, 2014 by Karen 66 Comments

Too Faced Candy Bar Pop-Out Makeup Palette and iPhone Case — Talk to me!

Did a friend introduce you to it? Or was it your sister or your mom? Did it happen quickly or take a long time? Or was it something that cropped up spontaneously — pure makeup happenstance — where you were totally oblivious to makeup until the one random day you spotted a particular tube of lipstick and BAM! — fell in love? What’s the story behind your interest in makeup? Here’s mine…

First, I was always fascinated by makeup, but my mom, not really being a girly kind of girl, didn’t keep a lot of it around our house, so I didn’t have many opportunities to play with it until that one fateful day…

I think I was around six or seven at the time. Mom had bought a bunch of stuff (a nice haul!) at a Mary Kay party, but she never wore any of it. It all ended up in a bathroom at home that nobody ever used.

So, I would sneak into the bathroom and hold the eyeshadow palette in my hands, gazing at the untouched pans, and thinking that the palette was just about the coolest thing ever.

One morning, I tried to sneak it out of the bathroom, but it was a total fail. I had it under my Hello Kitty t-shirt, and as soon as I stepped into the hallway, it dropped, landing right in front of my mom, haha!

I didn’t get in trouble, but I’m pretty sure my mom thought the incident was weird…

Fast forward a few years to middle school, where I was surrounded by chicks who wore eyeliner. That was the thing at our school at the time — colorful pencil eyeliners in purple, blue and green.

I wasn’t allowed to wear makeup, and I didn’t dare bring it up with my parents because they were strict, so I just stared in envy at my classmates as they lined their eyes in the bathroom.

This was after everyone doused their hair with Aqua Net, of course. Hello! — it was the late ’80s, and we all had hair out to [ here ].

Then, one day, I found a purple Lancome liner in the band room.

Yes, I was a band geek. I know you can picture it, LOL!

I asked around to see if anyone had lost an eyeliner, but no one claimed it. In no time, I was sharpening the tip with my pencil sharpener and drawing a shaky line along my upper lash line in the girls’ bathroom.

Maaaaaaan, that was it. I was hooked. For the rest of seventh grade, I wore that pencil almost every day. Granted, I had no idea what I was doing with it and looked a hot mess — I wish there had been beauty blogs at the time — but I loved it. I’d put it on in the bathroom at school every morning, and take it off before going home every afternoon. It was my secret beauty ritual, and the unofficial start of my interest in makeup. 🙂

So, my friend. Is there a story behind your interest in makeup? Were you introduced to it by a friend? Did you start wearing it as a teen? Or as an adult? I would love to hear your makeup story in the comments (and please, it doesn’t have to be long or involved). I’d just like to know a little more about you.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Happy hump day!

A Quick Look at Milani Spring 2014

January 7th, 2014 by Karen 29 Comments

Pics of Milani’s massive spring 2014 collection! Lots of stuff for lips and nails.

Reviews coming soon. 🙂

P.S. Guess who’s still watching Breaking Bad. I’m on season five now (thank you, Netflix).

Oh, boy… Must. Not. Watch. Past. Midnight. Tonight. Ten more minutes, and I’m going upstairs. That’s my plan, and I’m sticking to it.

The Fab 5, Vol. 2: Eye Makeup Brushes

January 7th, 2014 by Karen 12 Comments

These five are my workhorse faves, and I use them almost every. Single. Day.

Do you have any of the same faves I do? Which are your five?

Products mentioned in the video

MAC 239 Eye Shader Brush ($25)
MAC 217 Blending Brush ($24)
MAC 224 Tapered Blending Brush ($32)
Burberry No. 10 Definition Liner ($32)
Too Faced Liner/Smudger Brush ($39; it’s one of three brushes in the Shadow Brushes Essential Set)

Reviews of the products on MBB

Thank you as always for watching, my friend. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. What’s for dinner, babe? I’m starved!

P.P.S. How was your day? Mine felt loooong.

New Favorite Necklace: Lucky Brand Turquoise Two-Collar Row Necklace

January 7th, 2014 by Karen 15 Comments

The Lucky Brand Turquoise Two-Collar Row Necklace

This was a Christmas present from my mom-in-law, and I absolutely love it! It’s a bold bib necklace that looks great with black or white tops.

In this pic below I’m wearing it with the black and gold Panthere dress from Anthropologie, but I think it also pairs well with a casual white tee shirt and skinny jeans.

You can find it now at Macy’s stores and macys.com. 🙂

MAC Unsung Heroes: Shaping Powder in Lightsweep

January 7th, 2014 by Karen 16 Comments

Lightsweep.

No, it’s not the name of a Transformer or an evil supervillain (far as I know), but it is a very appropriate name for this highlighting face powder.

Whenever I wear Lightsweep (I don’t know why, but that name cracks me up!), I do kind of feel like I’m being illuminated by soft beams of light.

Really flattering light — not hard or harsh streaks of noonday desert sun.

MAC Shaping Powder in Lightsweep — Shaping Powder in Lightsweep (MAC Pro)

I’ve been wearing it as a highlighter and an under-eye concealer a lot over the past month, all thanks to Mr. White…which is to say that I’ve been marathoning Breaking Bad lately, and Lightsweep has saved me after quite a few late nights (seriously, Mr. White could REALLY use a life coach!).

After waking up bleary-eyed, I’d put on my face paint and use Lightsweep to set my concealer. Then it’s, “Hello, bright eyes!” Just like a Jetoy Choo Choo Cat (my latest obsession).

Lightsweep, like the fictitious supervillain I just invented, is one of those secret squirrel MAC products that can be tough to find, but it’s SO worth tracking down.

Like the other Shaping Powders ($16.50 each), it’s a MAC Pro product, so it isn’t carried at regular MAC counters. It lives at MAC Pro Stores and online.

So what is it exactly?

This: a warm-toned, finely-milled face powder with a whisper of barely-there shimmer. It highlights skin with a delicate sheen — none of that greasy or oily-looking business you get with some highlighting powders. You can also use to set under-eye concealer, and brighten the under-eye area without going over the top.

At first glance in its pan, you might be like, “Wha? Really now, Karen? I don’t get it,” and your heart may not be thumping like it does when RyGos wears a striped tank top.

I feel ya…but wait! Pat it under your eyes, on top of your regular concealer (I usually pair it with MAC Pro Longwear), and I think you’ll understand.

I like to take into the “triangle” area…

No, not the one by Bermuda. 🙂 I’m referring to the triangle area under my lashes that runs along the side of my nose, from the tip of one nostril out to the outer corner of the eye on the same side.

Give that a try, and then step back from the mirror. Take a good look, and you should see a soft, diffused, natural-looking highlight under your eyes. Oh, so glowy.

As if that wasn’t enough, Lightsweep doesn’t settle into my fine lines or appear heavy or caked-on (the grains are very fine), and it doesn’t dry out my combination skin. Once applied, it stays put, too. No need to touch up for the rest the day.

If you have dark under-eye circles or more mature skin and are looking for brightening products that don’t emphasize pores or fine lines, Lightsweep is a fantastic product to have in your makeup bag.

By the way, the Shaping Powders come in other shades, too, if you’re interested. If your skin is lighter than NC42, check out Emphasize and Accentuate, and if you’re a darker diva, peep Warm Light and Soft Focus.

MAC Shaping Powders in Lightsweep (left) and Accentuate (right) — Shaping Powders in Lightsweep (left) and Accentuate (right)

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