Archives for 2014

10 Reasons to Rock Smokey Purple Eyes (and Pics of the New Purple MAC Mineralize Eye Shadow in Leap From the MAC Lightness of Being Collection)

December 19th, 2014 by Karen 24 Comments

10 reasons to rock smokey purple eyes…

Because you’re on day three of “third day hair,” and your roots feel hella janky, and you really need to feel glamorous despite this.
Any excuse to bust out MAC Sketch. Any. Excuse.
Because purple smokey eyes are a temporary distraction from the chaos that is happening around your eyebrows. Note to self: schedule time for some TLC with those fussy, fuzzy little caterpillars.
Purple is the color of royalty, and what better way to stake your claim as Queen of the Crazy Cat Ladies?
Because, hello! — rainy days and Prince songs. *Cues Purple Rain*
Because it’s long past time to pay homage to one of the greatest MAC trifectas of purple power — Bamboo, Saddle and Shroom.
Because it’s been a minute since you’ve done black cat liner, which is a perishable skill. Use it or lose it, yo!
Because scientific studies prove that the best eye makeup to wear while gorging on Trader Joe’s Dark Chocolate Stars is smokey purple eyes… OK, not really, but in my mind this is true.
Because heaven forbid you go to HomeGoods for the fourth time this week without at least a little makeup on.
Because you never know when the urge to go dancing will hit! Preparedness is key! 🙂

A Friday Face of the Day With the MAC Lightness of Being Collection: Brown Eyes, Peach Cheeks and Peach Lips

December 19th, 2014 by Karen 11 Comments

A million thank yous, MAC Lightness of Being, for lightening my metaphorical makeup load and reminding me that I don’t actually need six separate pans of eyeshadow up in the mix to have fun.

Look for the 29-piece MAC Lightness of Being collection online at maccosmetics.com starting Dec. 23, 2014, and in stores Dec. 26, 2014, through Feb. 6, 2015.

GIRL, you know how it goes. Sometimes I just get so caught up in the process (Why, yes! That third transition shade in the crease is a perfectly sane idea!) that I forget that uncomplicated makeup can be just as much fun.

The more I play with this collection (also got some swatches here), the more I see the point of these pastel shades.

Since the values don’t vary that much from each other, I find that I’m not having to spend forever and a day blending them together.

And to quote the great Tony the Tiger, that’s grrrrrreat!

The shimmery finishes have also been pretty agreeable. The frosts and pearls haven’t needed as much blending and babying as mattes often do.

For this look here, I’m only using two shadows, one of them, shimmery brown Mineralize Eye Shadow in Force of Nature, from the collection, and the other a permanent collection fave.

MAC Mineralize Eye Shadow in Force of Nature — Mineralize Eye Shadow in Force of Nature, a shimmery brown with a half pearl/half frost finish ($22)

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How Was Your Last Haircut?

December 19th, 2014 by Karen 30 Comments

Delicious!

I mean it went really well. My friend Alis who cuts my hair took off about four inches and gave me choppy layers.

When she was done I felt like I’d lost 15 pounds, LOL!

Sigh… If it were only that easy (she said, reaching across her desk for another dark chocolate star cookie from Trader Joe’s…).

So my hair hasn’t been this short in three or four years. I’m happy with it for now, but you know how it goes… I’m already thinking about growing it out again to give myself something to do.

Hair goals.

Now that I think about it, I haven’t had a terrible haircut experience in a while (knocks on wood), thanks to Alis at Fox + Stone Salon. I used to bounce around between stylists all the time, because it was tough finding someone who knew how to discipline and control my wavy hair. Every time I went to a new stylist I’d get stressed out. I never knew if I’d leave the place with something passably decent or full-on wonktacular.

It only took, oh, 30 or so years to find someone who really understood my hair, and now we’re at the point where I know I can just sit in the chair and trust Alis to do whatever she wants, and I’ll be good to go.
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A Face of the Day With MAC Lightness of Being

December 18th, 2014 by Karen 36 Comments

Knit, purl, knit, purl, knit, purl…

Once upon a time, I was a mediocre knitter. Then I knitted and knitted and knitted until I’d created a scarf! — and after all that knitting, and all that yarn…I was still a mediocre knitter. 🙂

I haven’t quite figured out what the knitted pattern on the new Mineralize Eye Shadows and Skinfinishes in the MAC Lightness of Being collection has to do with the overall theme of the release, but I dig it.

The names of some of the pieces have a dance motif, like Beautiful Moves, and Leap and Modern Movement, but then there’s that knitted pattern on the pans… And all the pastels? I haven’t figured out what they’re doing here either.

Perhaps the collection was designed for a troupe of dancing knitters, or maybe it was inspired by the pastel pink leg warmers I so desperately wanted back in second grade.

Or maybe I’m just reading entirely too much into it, which is probably the case.

The new MAC Lightness of Being collection metaphysically materializes on the MAC website Dec. 23, and then arrives on MAC counters a few days later on Dec. 26, the day after Christmas.

With shimmery lemon, peach, blue, gray, lavender, mint and brown colors, it’s a fresh break from more serious and weighty winter mattes.

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Unsung Makeup Heroes: Chanel Joues Contraste Powder Blush in Pink Explosion

December 18th, 2014 by Karen 22 Comments

10 reasons why Chanel Joues Contraste Powder Blush in Pink Explosion will blow your mind…

It’s an explosion! Of Pink! Seriously — Pink Explosion — how could you not love that name?
Looks so lovely with Hourglass Fever lipstick. (I’m just saying…)
Also goes great with NARS Angelika Lip Gloss, which is what I’m wearing in these pics.
Actually…now that I think about it, it goes great with errrthing. I’ve been wearing it regularly for the past month in a bunch of different eye/lip combos, and I can’t remember ever thinking that it didn’t work well with a look.
The secret squirrel micro-glitter (you can only see it if you get up really close) will make you feel like you’re getting an extra large scoop of Chanel special sauce.
If you’re feeling extra crabby with a side of cranky, Pink Explosion will make you look like you don’t have a care in the world, so maybe then somebody nice and cute will walk up to you and start a conversation about something light and fun, and then you’ll temporarily forget your crabbiness. 🙂
It smells like roses! — so you’ll be reminded of the last time someone surprised you with a huge bouquet of flowers (hopefully it wasn’t too long ago).
It’s so powerfully pretty that it can even cancel out the memory of needing the Jaws of Life to get into your skinny jeans this morning.
And not having to spend a ton of time carefully blending out any edges means you’ll have time left over to look for a purr-fect faux leopard-print Christmas coat.
Did I mention it’s Chanel?

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What Are You Wearing on Your Nails?

December 18th, 2014 by Karen 34 Comments

Creamy, pale lavender MAC Modern Movement. Two coats.

It’s quite a break from the dark, moody colors I started this season wearing, but who le cares, right? 🙂

It’s from the new MAC Lightness of Being collection, which is filled with pastel shades and shimmery Mineralize Skinfinishes.

Kind of uncharacteristic for winter, but maybe that’s why I like it.

That name — Modern Movement — makes me think of the dance classes I used to take.

Not modern dance, but hip-hop. There was a place I went to down in Mill Valley a couple times a week, and I miss it terribly.

I actually did also try taking a few modern dance classes, but my mind and body had a hard time processing the concept of flexed feet, LOL!

Anyways! Modern Movement is one of two Studio Nail Lacquers in the 29-piece Lightness of Being collection arriving online December 23, 2014, and coming to stores and counters December 26 (through February 6, 2015).

Hakuna frittata!

Have you ever made frittata? They’re SO GOOD!

They’re kind of like a crustless quiche that you can fill with whatever you have/want — vegetables, cheese, etc.

(NOTE: Great way to feed a lot of people and/or use up extra veggies in your fridge.)

I was craving one last night, so I riffed on the recipe in this how-to article on thekitchn.com.

It looks like it would be hard, but it’s not at all. I only used a single pan, and with frittatas, you can totally tweak them along the way.

Yeah, frittatas are the sh*t. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

I’m Over the Moon About the Roomy Europa Shoulder Bag by Kipling

December 17th, 2014 by Karen 20 Comments

Like my husky tabby, my beloved Kipling Europa Shoulder Bag is large and in charge.

With multiple pockets and a roomy interior, it comes in very handy if you, like me, often find yourself compelled to carry around everything and the kitchen sink.

Sometimes that includes five nude lipsticks and glosses that are all more or less the same shade…

Right now the bag holds two wallets, a large makeup bag, an umbrella, a knit yarn hat, my phone, keys and a pouch of cat treats. And it still has room to spare!

I could probably free up even more space in it if I emptied some of the pockets, but it has so many that sometimes I forget what’s in where.

Like, I opened one of the pockets this afternoon and found a secret stash of vitamins and hair pins…

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A Quick Makeup Tip: For Fiery Red Lips, Set Boundaries

December 17th, 2014 by Karen 30 Comments

Red lips, like fire, are hard to contain. They’re also hard to resist. Every gal I’ve ever known has wanted to wear red lips at one time or another. Even my staunchly anti-makeup BFF Cindy, who will get in her car and drive 50 miles away from me if I approach her with a lip brush, craves crimson sometimes.

One trick to controlling the fiery power that is red is containing it within a boundary, like by lining the edges of your lips with lip liner. For a defined, distinct boundary around your red, use a liner shade slightly darker than the red lipstick you plan to apply, then fill your lips with the same liner, except for the middle of your top and bottom lips (to create subtle variations between the color in that middle area and the other parts of your lips for extra dimension).

Now, soften any harsh edges with a lip brush, while keeping that open area in the middle of your lips clear for the next step: your lipstick.
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