Bobbi Brown

For the Undercover Makeup Lovers: The New $38 Bobbi Brown Mini Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick Trio

November 12th, 2014 by Karen 21 Comments

For the record, I do not recommend living a secret sneaky makeup double life.

Bolting out the door to school without so much as a stitch of lipgloss on your lips, only to covertly cosmeticize yourself from start to finish before the first bell rings, is initially a thrill, but it gets old fast…

Trust me on this. Half the time I’d be in algebra class with one sloppy purple-rimmed eye and little else. I did this for three years until, at age 14, I was given the official “OK” by my mom to wear makeup to school.

I did learn a few things, though, during those secret squirrel makeup days, like how to appreciate makeup that’s easy to sneak in and out of the house. It’s one of the reasons I was interested in the eyeshadow sticks from Bobbi Brown’s new $38 Mini Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick Trio.

Bobbi Brown Mini Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick Trio from the left: Smookey Topaz, Pink Sparkle and Espresso Bean — From the left: Smokey Topaz, Pink Sparkle and Espresso Bean

Each of the little minis fits nicely in the palm of my paw.

Perfect for covert makeup application. 🙂

There’s a shimmery pastel rose called Pink Sparkle, a shimmery heather mauve called Smokey Topaz and a shimmery blackened charcoal that goes by the name, Espresso Bean.

Bobbi Brown Mini Long-Wear Cream Shadow Stick Trio — Wearing Smokey Topaz on my lids

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Bobbi Brown’s New $45 High Light Powders in Pink Glow and Bronze Glow Work Like a Portable Fireplace in Powder Form

November 11th, 2014 by Karen 14 Comments

Bobbi Brown High Light Powder in Pink Glow — Wearing Bobbi Brown’s High Light Powder in Pink Glow ($45) on my upper cheeks

What’s that? A new highlighter? Yeah…sometimes when it comes to highlighters, I feel like I’ve seen and worn ’em all, from your subtle sheens to your full-blown glitter-fests, so when a new one comes along (you must whip it!) that successfully combines some of my favorite things about highlighters, I sit up, tie my hair into a high pony and get down to business.

Ms. Bobbi Brown, friend to women who like to wear makeup while still looking like themselves, recently revealed two of the snazziest highlighters I’ve seen in a while, her High Light Powders in Pink Glow and Bronze Glow ($45 each), which combine some of my favorite things about MAC’s Mineralize Skin Finishes and Chanel’s Highlighting Powders.

Bobbi Brown High Light Powder in Pink Glow and Bronze Glow — Bobbi Brown High Light Powder in Pink Glow (left) and Bronze Glow (right)

Almost creamy, like a MAC Mineralize Skin Finish powder (which makes them a breeze to blend), Bobbi’s High Light Powders do not, however, have the same glazed high-shine finish. Instead, they exude an ethereal, dreamy luster with a finespun finish that totally reminds me of Chanel.

Bobbi wanted to recreate the look of skin illuminated by a cozy fire (ahh…), with the same warm, buttery colors, and that’s what I see when I wear these highlighters.

Bobbi Brown High Light Powder in Pink Glow (left) and Bronze Glow (right) — Pink Glow (left) and Bronze Glow (right)

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Delicate Deluxe: The New $80 Bobbi Brown Deluxe Lip & Eye Palette Is a Double-Decker of Delicate Glamour

November 10th, 2014 by Karen 36 Comments

A couple weeks ago my friend Jen and I were chatting about makeup when one of us brought up Bobbi Brown.

Now, Jen’s a recent convert to the cult o’ Bobbi, so I asked her what she liked about the brand, and she said, “When I wear it, I still feel like I look like me, and not like I’m trying to be someone else,” which I totally get. I think it’s why Bobbi’s makeup strikes a chord with so many women, myself included.

I know that when I don’t want to fuss with five different colors blended into my crease, there’s always Bobbi Brown.

For her latest foray into holiday makeup, Bobbi created a double-decker palette designed to flatter all skin tones. The new limited edition Deluxe Lip & Eye Palette ($80) contains two tiers of makeup in lovely tortoiseshell attire, with one tier filled with neutral brown, gold, pink and beige shades for eyes, and another tier with pink, mauve and rose lipsticks for lips.

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Public Nakedness Epidemic Continues With the New $65 Bobbi Brown Nude on Nude Palette

September 23rd, 2014 by Karen 21 Comments

NOVATO, California — Police, weary after years of higher than normal public nakedness, are bracing for another surge. Tabs the cat, kitty supermodel and current Makeup and Beauty Blog mascot, feels that it’s Urban Decay’s fault.

“Meow!” says Tabs.

Whatever the cause, all signs point to even more public nudity, and the trend shows no sign of stopping. In fact, a new palette by Bobbi Brown could make things worse.

“Mrow!” says Tabs of the new Nude on Nude Palette.

The $65 palette comes with 12 powder eyeshadows in a mix of neutral mattes, shimmers (metallics) and glitters (sparkles).

The palette contains…

5 x 0.05 oz. matte eyeshadows in Ivory, Naked, Birch, Truffle and Espresso

4 x 0.05 oz. metallic eyeshadows in Golden Pink, Bare, Smoky Topaz and Golden Bronze

3 x 0.06 oz. sparkle eyeshadows in Chiffon, Graphite and Gold

While many makeup lovers still appear hungry for more neutral eye makeup palettes, some are ready for a change. “I love me some practical browns and beiges,” says one woman, speaking on condition of anonymity, “but I wouldn’t mind if something fresh and new came along to blow my high ponytail back, ya know?”

“Meow!” says Tabs, and police agree.
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Howdy, Highlights! It’s the New Bobbi Brown Sandstone Shimmer Brick

August 15th, 2014 by Karen 11 Comments

Give me bold highlighters…or give me cats!

Or both! Give me both, preferably!

I’m on a bold highlighter kick right now — bold as in high-shine, borderline disco diva shimmer.

It’s because I’ve been wearing a new foundation by Laura Mercier, which is super matte, and when I wear it, unless I’m rockin’ a strong highlight, I feel like my skin looks flat.

I’m really into this limited edition one by Bobbi Brown called Sandstone Shimmer Brick ($45, from the new Smokey Nudes collection coming September to Bobbi Brown counters and neimanmarcus.com). It’s like a slightly peachier version of BECCA Opal.

Sandstone’s shiny finish is probably visible from low Earth orbit, but that’s what I like about it. 🙂 You have to be careful not to go overboard with it, though, because it’s very easy to go there, especially if you’re in a hurry…or if you have Hulk hands.

I try to be very careful and use a small tapered eyeshadow blending brush (Laura Mercier’s Ponytail Eye Crease Brush) to precisely place the highlighter on my upper cheekbones, down the bridge of my nose and on my Cupid’s bow, and then I buff out the edges, just slightly, with the same brush. That way, I get the impact from the shimmer, but I don’t get it all over the place.

Bobbi Brown Sandstone Shimmer Brick Swatch — Sandstone is like a slightly peachier version of BECCA Opal

Defeat Dark Days With Bobbi Brown’s Brightening Blushes in Pink and Bronze

July 10th, 2014 by Karen 9 Comments

With the two new Bobbi Brown Brightening Blushes from the new Surf & Sand summer collection — With the two new Bobbi Brown Brightening Blushes ($45 each) from the new Surf & Sand summer collection

Order! Order! People, please, settle down. I know we’re all upset, but let’s approach this like adults.

OK…I call this meeting of the I Heart Ryan Gosling Support Group to order.

As most of you probably know, my name is Karen, and I’m the current president of the Northern California chapter. I called this emergency meeting in response to the tragic news yesterday about Ryan.

We’ve received more calls to the counseling line over the past 24 hours than we have in the prior two years. Clearly, many of us are upset.

There’s no two ways about it — this is a catastrophe, so we’re officially in disaster recovery mode.

But as bad as things seem, we have to get it together, people. Come on! If I have to listen to another person cry on the phone for 45 minutes about she-who-will-not-be-named, I will lose my sh*t.

Focus. Quit listening to Adele, get your butt off the couch, and change out of your pajamas. Pull yourselves together! Ryan needs us now more than ever.

In situations like this, I can’t recommend makeup enough. It always makes me feel a little better. In fact, blush is a personal favorite of mine.

Bobbi Brown Brightening Blush in Pink 2 — Brightening Blush in Pink 2

Bobbi Brown Brightening Blush in Bronze 1 — Brightening Blush in Bronze 1

Why, before I applied these new Bobbi Brown Brightening Blushes this afternoon, I felt like this…

Bobbi Brown Brightening Blush Pink — Bummer, dude

But now I feel like this…

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The New Bobbi Brown Surf & Sand Sheer Lip Colors, and Other Current Summer Obsessions…

July 8th, 2014 by Karen 12 Comments

Bobbi Brown 21 Pink Taffy — The new limited edition Bobbi Brown Sheer Lip Color in 21 Pink Taffy (one of my current summer obsessions), from the Surf & Sand summer collection

Just a few of the things I’m currently obsessing over/lusting after…

1. This straw fedora

Even though I firmly believe that Justin Timberlake should be the only person wearing a fedora, I can’t quit this hat. I got it at Target a couple years ago for a trip to Kauai, but since then it has become one of my summer staples.

2. Three Twins ice cream

I will happily blow my daily calories on this ice cream.

It’s just so flavorful and rich and dense… I could seriously eat this stuff every day.

Mmm…lemon cookie.

3. Bobbi Brown’s new Sheer Lip Colors from the Surf & Sand collection

Bobbi Brown Bobbi Brown Sheer Lip Color in 18 Sunlit Pink, a mid-toned bronze

Sometimes you feel like opaque lips, and sometimes you don’t. For those latter days, there are the four new limited edition Sheer Lip Color ($26 each) shades in the Bobbi Brown Surf & Sand collection — Sunlit Pink, Summer Nude, Peach Sorbet and Pink Taffy.

I like these, because even though they’re technically (“air quotes”) sheer, they’re still pigmented enough to show up on my lips. That, and they’re smooth, slick and moisturizing.

They remind me a lot of the Chanel Rouge Allure Coco Shines.

All four are available now at Bobbi Brown counters and online.

Bobbi Brown Sheer Lip Color in 19 Summer Nude, a light beige

Sheer Lip Color in 20 Peach Sorbet — 20 Peach Sorbet, a nude peach

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Local Surfer Girl Gang Now Seeking Applicants: Must Be Willing To Rock the Bobbi Brown Surf Eye Palette

July 8th, 2014 by Karen 14 Comments

Wearing the new Bobbi Brown Surf Palette ($65) on my eyes

Hey, surfer girl, hey.

Sure, have a seat next to me on the towel. You can put your board over there by the Surf Palette — yeah, that one with the linen packaging and the four glittery shadows, three shimmer shadows and beige matte shadow inside.

It’s cute, yeah? All of us in the group have one… You should totally get one, too!

Cat lady surfer says what meow?[/caption]

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