OCC

Say Auf Wiedersehen to Boring With the Six 1920s Berlin-Inspired Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Moderncraft Collection Lip Tars

September 27th, 2013 by Karen 26 Comments

OCC Sebastian Lip Tar — Uh…that’s Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar in Sebastian ($18)

Should you ever get the sudden urge to wear a plummy mauve matte lip on a Friday night, don’t over-think it. Just GO WITH IT!

Aw, come on! Why not? It’s only makeup. If it doesn’t work out, you can always wipe it off.

Heck, and you never know what’ll work out. Sometimes it’s the products you least expect that end up being holy grail. Maybe Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar in Sebastian ($18) will be a perfect fit for you.

I didn’t know what to expect, but I liked the swatch, so trying it on my lips seemed like the next logical step.

Granted, the reason I liked the swatch was because it reminded me of a rug I want to get for my office, but still… Details, details.

As soon as I tried it on, I was like, “Sweet! Not nearly as cray as I thought it would be.”

Well…it looks a little cray, but I actually expected it to look even more cray (crayer?).

It’ll be perfect for scaring my neighbors! 🙂

Sebastian is one of six intriguing Lip Tars in the Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Moderncraft collection for fall, the inspiration for which was 1920s Berlin.

Sounds a little like something Illamasqua might do, yeah? In fact, some of the colors even remind me of Illamasqua, which might be why I like them so much.

Four of the shades are in the regular Lip Tar formulation (so pigmented, and they last all day long), and two are Lip Tar Stained Glosses (sheer and lightweight, with a three-hour wear time). All of them have a lovely, light minty flavor and fragrance that fades fast.

Popping any one of these on your lips with cat eyes is a surefire way to kick your look into fall.

OCC Moderncraft Collection — From the left: Anita, Black Metal Dahlia, Dekadent, Mein Herr, Role Play and Sebastian

OCC Moderncraft Swatches — From the left; Mein Herr Stained Gloss, Dekadent Stained Gloss, Sebastian lip Tar, Anita Lip Tar, Black Metal Dahlia Lip Tar and Role Play Lip Tar

OCC Role Play Lip Tar — Role Play Lip Tar, a deep, metallic maroon with red pearl

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Unsung Makeup Heroes: OCC (Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics) Lip Tars

September 3rd, 2013 by Karen 8 Comments

Guest blogger Celia San Miguel wearing OCC Lip Tar in Anime

About the Author
The following guest post was written by Celia San Miguel of sickathanaverage.com. You can also find Celia on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.

The word “tar” might not conjure up beautiful imagery, but don’t let that dissuade you from checking out Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics’ range of oh-so-sexy Lip Tar shades ($18 each). Introduced in Fall 2008, OCC Makeup’s Lip Tar coats lips with super-saturated, astoundingly opaque pigments with a satin-y finish. The formula, meanwhile, incorporates several beneficial botanical ingredients — chiefly hemp oil, which is rife with nourishing and softening omega fatty acids; peppermint oil, which has a cooling effect and also boasts antimicrobial properties; and antioxidant-rich vitamin E, which protects lips from free radical damage and prevents premature skin aging.

Swatches of some of my favorite Lip Tars: Anime, Lovecraft and Electric Grandma

Each 100% vegan lip color is packaged inside a tiny, pocket-sized tube that, although small, will last surprisingly long given that you’ll only need a bead-sized amount for each application. Ideally, you should use a lip brush when applying the Lip Tar shade of your choice since the color saturation is almost mind-blowingly high, and you’ll want to be precise when smoothing the color onto your pout (and that goes double if you choose an ultra-bright shade like Beta, Anime, or Demure).

There is literally no product on the market that compares to OCC’s Lip Tars in terms of consistency, texture, color payoff, or longevity. Each Lip Tar shade packs a mighty punch in the opacity department, balking at the notion of wimpy sheer hues and instead embracing a bold, flamboyant, adventurous and bodacious approach to color. Pigment saturation aside, I find the Lip Tars to have a delightful texture — they’re not sticky or tacky like some glosses nor do they have the clump-prone creaminess of a lipstick; instead, they have an almost oil-like feel, though their consistency is by no means runny or watery.

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Just in Time for the Hottest Days of Summer, Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Cranks Out Six New Shades of Their Multitasking Creme Colour Concentrate Line

July 11th, 2013 by Karen 10 Comments

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Creme Colour Concentrate — The new $20 Creme Colour Concentrates from Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics

G’morning, friend. I hope you had a nice night. Things are just OK on my end…but I’m hangin’ in.

Yesterday Tabs let me bail early because I was bummed and little use to him in the afternoon, so I sat on the couch, cried, ate ice cream and watched chick flicks on TV — What to Expect When You’re Expecting (not great, but better than I expected) and Playing for Keeps (sooo unbearable that I couldn’t even finish it).

It was a very Liz Lemon-y afternoon. Muy therapeutic.

Despite his reputation as the Naomi Campbell of the plus-size kitty modeling world, Tabs can actually be pretty understanding sometimes. Your nephew took good care of his heartbroken human. He even slept next to me the entire night, which he never does.

Thanks again for the hugs yesterday. I really needed ’em.

SO! Today is a new day, and if I suddenly burst into tears and go off on tangents in my posts, I apologize. I’ll do my best to stay positive and focus on happy thoughts, like all of the good memories I have of my pretty puppy girl, but no guarantees. I think that’s how these things work.

Now, makeup, because like good medicine, it usually helps me feel better. 🙂

I’ll be doing some traveling over the next few months, and these six new multipurpose creams from Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics couldn’t have come at a better time.

These new shades in OCC’s 100% vegan and cruelty-free Creme Colour Concentrate line, a collection of long-wearing, satiny creams for eyes, lips, cheeks and basically wherever you want long-lasting, intense color (I just put a little on my ankle for fun, woo-hoo!), have a thin, lightweight formula and a smooth texture that reminds me a lot of Make Up For Ever’s Aqua Creams.

OCC loaded them with moisturizing vitamin E, aloe leaf and cocoa extracts, something my dry lips enthusiastically support.

Choose from opalescent pink Pleasure Model, pale peachy Newt, golden Icarius, silver Mercury, teal Beholder and dark greenish gray Dark Matter.

OCC Mercury Swatch — Mercury, a true silver

OCC Pleasure Model Swatch — Pleasure Model, a pearlescent pink

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Sci-Fi Lullabies Lip Tars by Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics

April 4th, 2013 by Karen 13 Comments

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Sci-Fi Lullabies Lip Tars big

The six Lip Tars from the spring 2013 Sci-Fi Lullabies collection by Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics, $18 each. Find ’em now at Sephora stores and online.

Follow the Electric Sheep

April 3rd, 2013 by Karen 8 Comments

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Sci-Fi Lullabies Nail Lacquers in Pond, Videodrome and Electric Sheep big

All of the sudden I feel the need to re-watch Bladerunner!

I blame it on the Nail Lacquers in Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetic’s Sci-Fi Lullabies collection, available now at Sephora and online.

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Sci-Fi Lullabies Nail Lacquers in Pond, Videodrome and Electric Sheep, $10 each

Sing Me Some Sci-Fi Lullabies

April 2nd, 2013 by Karen 12 Comments

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Sci-Fi Lullabies nail polish in Leelo, Ripley and Batty big

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.

Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Sci-Fi Lullabies nail polish in Leelo, Ripley and Batty — Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Sci-Fi Lullabies Nail Lacquers in Leelo, Ripley and Batty, $10 each

It’s a Giant Halloween! Here’s My Hodgepodge Mani Mix of Glittery Copper, Black and Orange Shades With Zoya, OCC, Deborah Lippmann and Sonia Kashuk

October 31st, 2012 by Karen 29 Comments

I did a couple of different things last night. One, I painted my nails orange and black, both for Halloween and to cheer the Giants winning the World Series, and two, I (kinda) watched The Last Exorcism on Netflix.

On that last one…good grief! What was I thinking firing up a movie about a teenager possessed by a demon 30 minutes before bed?!

Come on, Karen, wake up!

I actually didn’t make it through the whole thing on account of a terrible scene involving a little barn kitty…

I couldn’t take it! But thankfully my nails were dry by then, so I just ran away from the TV screaming “No! No! No!” and went upstairs to bed.

For my nails, I knew I wanted something more complicated than a single color but easier than a fancy work of nail art, so after digging through my drawer of polishes, I settled on a hodgepodge mani mix of glittery copper, black and orange shades…

paint-job-halloween-polish — Clockwise from the black polish in the lower left: Sonia Kashuk Starry Night, Deborah Lippmann I Love the Nightlife, Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Copperhead and Zoya Penny

There’s a big rally/parade down in San Francisco today for the Giants, and I’m heading down, but please don’t tell Tabs. I know he’d want to go, but he’s such a cat diva. With the time it takes him to get ready, we’d never make it on time.

My plan is to distract him by mixing a handful of Greenies in with his gravy. Then I’ll quietly sneak out the door. 🙂

In candy news, do you ever crave chocolate in the morning?

I don’t know if it’s hormonal (probably), or just because there’s a big bag of Fun Size Snickers on the kitchen counter, but every day lately I wake up ravenous for chocolate.

What’s up with that?

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Wander Into the Garden of Long-Wearing Liquid Lipsticks With Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics and the Garden Collection Lip Tars

April 24th, 2012 by Karen 33 Comments

Wearing Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics Lip Tar in Belladonna

Gardening. I’m obsessed with gardening. But not the botanical kind, at least not today. Today, I’m obsessed with Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics, and the new Lip Tars from their Garden collection.

It’s easy to get lost in this garden because it’s filled with psychotropic plants, dude (like Kava Kava). And poisonous ones (like Belladonna).

obsessive compulsive cosmetics the garden lip tars
Lip Tars from the left: Pennyroyal, Kava Kava, Ophelia, Digitalis, Belladonna and Chlorophyll

For their spring and summer 2012 Garden collection/harvest, Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics (OCC) is growing six new Lip Tar shades for the company’s permanent line, and all of them are named after plants.

No, not roses and daisies. 🙂 Not this time. You won’t find any ruffles and bows here. This Garden is wicked! — as you can tell by the color names, but most of the shades themselves, which range from pinks, browns and corals to a smattering of edgier purples and greens, are actually pretty wearable.

OCC has a full range of 100-percent vegan and cruelty-free makeup made without parabens and preservatives, but the Lip Tars are probably their most popular product.

Sticking with the botany metaphor, if you crossed a long-wearing, full-coverage liquid lipstick with a gloss, and then squeezed it into a tiny tube, you’d get a Lip Tar, tada! Opaque coverage and out-of-this-world wear time makes them special.

Just squeeze out a tiny bead, and spread it over your lips with a lip brush or finger (yea!). They start out glossy but dry down to a satin finish.

SO pretty!

Of this bunch, I think I like brown Pennyroyal and coral Kava Kava the most. I think they look the most natural/wearable, but some of the others also look fun.

obsessive compulsive cosmetics pennyroyal
Pennyroyal

obsessive compulsive cosmetics kava kava
Kava Kava

So how long do they really last?

We’re talkin’ hours and hours. They’re total long-wearing rock stars. On my lips, they start looking sketchy after about six hours, when a visible line of product begins to build up along the inner part of my lower lip. No biggie — I just scrape it off.

It’s only after about six hours when they start to fade, slowly and evenly, until they eventually disappear between hours 8-10.

They even last through meals, beverages and repeated kitty kisses (“Give mama a kiss, mwah!“) without migrating or fading at all.

More details…

Texture: So lightweight and comfortable! Sometimes I forget I’m wearing anything on my lips at all.
Packaging: On the one hand, the tubes are great. They make it easy to precisely control how much product I use, cutting down on waste, but they aren’t the most elegant products in terms of presentation… Still, I think it fits their personality.
Flavor and scent: It’s faint in both cases. A combination of peppermint…and wax. I don’t mind the peppermint part so much, but the wax? I could do without. Thankfully, both are very faint and fade in under a minute.
Hydration: I wouldn’t call them exceptionally moisturizing, but at least they don’t make my lips drier and worse, which is good for a such long-wearing product.

Now, if you’re looking for something funkier than Pennyroyal and Kava Kava and don’t mind a bit more work, Belladonna (a bright grape), Digitalis (a pinkish violet), Ophelia (a pink) and Chlorophyll (a bright green) might be more your speed. I find that I get better results when I use a brush to apply all four of these.

NOTE: The lighter pastel colors appear to slightly emphasize the vertical wrinkles in my lips, and the green shade, Chlorophyll, applies a little patchy.

obsessive compulsive cosmetics ophelia
Ophelia
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