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Urban Decay

The Urban Decay Troublemaker Palette: This Fabulously Flexible Palette Is on Sale Now

February 26th, 2018 by Karen 14 Comments

urban decay troublemaker palette
You’re a Troublemaker, Urban Decay!

I liked the Urban Decay Troublemaker Palette when it came out for $39 last fall, but it’s on sale for $19 now! Are you kidding me?! I love it at that price, which is how much it is now on sale (as we speak at Sephora and the UD website). I think it’s a great “going out” palette, and you get hella serious bang for your buck at that price.

When you open it up, it looks like there are nine shades, because there are nine pans, but there are actually 10, because two shades share Clash, the center pan. It’s split between black and white, and I don’t quite understand the rationale behind that because the black gets into the white, and the white gets into the black, but both of them are useful, so I can live with it, especially at $19.

The palette also comes with a miniature Troublemaker Mascara, which excels at thickening, but is just OK at lengthening and curl hold (I usually end up layering it underneath a separate lengthening waterproof mascara).

urban decay troublemaker palette

Now, the three warm-toned brown mattes in this palette are what bump this bad boy up to bad-@ss level. None of them are overly orange-y or reddish, which are big trends right now, and all three are eminently useful day/night colors. The lightest one actually reminds me of MAC Bamboo, while the mid-toned one looks like MAC Soft Brown, and the dark brown could almost pass for MAC Brown Down dupe.

They’re colors that I know I can wear in the daytime and at night. Even at 2 o’clock in the morning…not that I have much cause to wear eyeshadow at 2 in the morning (anymore).

There are also four metallic jewel tones that double as sparkly, shiny eyeliners. They feel a bit chunkier than the browns and exhibit a bit of fallout — more than the browns (which don’t have any fallout) — but at the sale price, I’m OK with that.

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There are 14 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Palettes, Product Reviews, Urban Decay

The Urban Decay Petite Naked Heat Palette

February 23rd, 2018 by Karen 16 Comments

urban decay naked petite heat swatches
Just a little heat…

Hey, girl. 🙂 Yeah, what am I wearing on my lids? I’m wearing new Urban Decay Naked Petite Heat, which I keep wanting to call “Peh-TEE Heat.”

It’s just a little bit of heat… Get it? Petite? Like adding one or two drops of Tabasco or Sriracha, as opposed to submerging your burrito? LOL.

Urban Decay is famous for their O.G. Naked Eyeshadow Palette and the different incarnations of it, like Naked2, Naked Smoky, Naked Ultimate Basics…lots of nakedness, as you know. There’s also the one they launched last fall, Naked Heat, with its beautiful bevvy of warm orange and reddish browns, which are super trendy colors in eye makeup right now and for the past couple of years.

Chances are, if you’re a UD collector, or even if you aren’t, you may already have something like Petite Naked Heat in your stash now.

In fact, as I think about it…the Kristen Leanne Daydream Palette UD released in January has similar tones…

My point is just that orange-y browns are (still) having a moment, and you’ve very likely seen many of these colors in other palettes and pans before.

Just off the top of my head, Vibrate looks like MAC Soft Brown, Hot Spell like MAC Saddle, Wild Thing’s a little like MAC Texture, and Strike looks like MAC Swiss Chocolate.

The MAC Mischief Minx Palette and NARS Wanted aren’t exactly completely different either.

urban decay naked petite heat
Wearing Petite Heat on my lids with MAC Style Blush on my cheeks, and MAC Velvet Teddy and Fenty Gloss Bomb on my lips.

For $29 you get six new matte powder eyeshadow shades based in some form or fashion on the colors in the original Naked Heat palette, and the pans, by the way, are the same size as the pans in the larger Naked palettes.

urban decay naked petite heat swatches
Inhale, Vibrate, Hot Spell, Wild Thing, Heist and Strike

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There are 16 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Palettes, Product Reviews, Urban Decay

A Rainy Day Minimalist Makeup Tutorial: Cheerful Pink Cheeks, Rosy Lips and Doe Eyes

January 25th, 2018 by Karen 18 Comments

rainy day makeup tutorial
Y tho?!

For the record, it’s hard to look cute in a raincoat. (In case you were wondering.)

It’s rainy and gloomy here in NorCal today, but I’m not complaining, because the rain makes me feel alive! The world around me is thirsty, and it’s taking a much-needed shower and a big gulp of refreshing H2O. And when it’s done, the oak trees and the grass on the hill and the sidewalks and my car (haha) are all going to look fresh and new. 🙂

Or…maybe that’s just California Karen romanticizing the rain, since we haven’t had much of it this winter. I’m sure that if I lived someplace where it’s been pouring 24/7, I’d be like FRICKIN’ RAIN RUINING EVERY MINUTE AND EVERY SECOND OF MAH LIFE!!!

Weather like this calls for a dose of cheerful pink cheeks and bright rosy lips (it couldn’t hurt). Thanks to an illuminating primer, the skin is ever-so-dewy, and the dark blue liner plays off the pink. It’s strategically placed on the middle of the lower lash line for a doe-eyed effect, so you can give strangers a come-hither stare while you sashay by them in your raincoat.

Side note: #teamraincoat ALL THE WAY. Raincoats are the way to go (even if they are hard to look cute in), because they let you keep your hands free, and if there’s a kitten huddling in an rainy alley and you need to save her, you can carry her and comfort her with both hands.

See? Always looking ahead. ?????

When it’s raining, I like to keep my makeup on the minimal side, because you never know if you and your raincoat will get caught in a downpour, and I figure that if my face gets drenched in the rain, better for it to happen while I’m wearing minimal makeup than a full face of war paint… You know, less to clean up when I get wherever I need to go. *shrugs shoulders*

Here’s a breakdown of this look…

rainy day makeup tutorial 2

rainy day makeup tutorial 1

TOOLS (products I used are in italic):

  • Whatever you like to blend your foundation and cream with — a blending brush, BeautyBlender or your fingers
  • Q-tips
  • A brow gel (I used Hourglass Arch Brow Gel in Warm Brunette)
  • A waterproof Mascara (L’Oreal Voluminous Lash Paradise Waterproof)
  • A long-wearing dark blue pencil liner (Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencil in Sabbath)
  • An under-eye concealer (I used MAC Studio Waterweight Concealer in a mix of NC20 and NW45)
  • A liquid foundation (Physicians Formula The Healthy Foundation in DW2)
  • An illuminating liquid primer (I like Physicians Formula Spotlight Illuminating Primer)
  • A creamy pink blush (Kosas Cosmetics Creme Blush in 8th Muse)
  • A matte rosy pink liquid lipstick (Physicians Formula The Healthy Lip Velvet Finish in Dose of Rose) — I chose a liquid matte lipstick because I didn’t want to wear anything that would stick to my hair

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There are 18 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Hourglass, Kosas Cosmetics, Loreal, Makeup, Makeup Tips/How To, Physicians Formula, Top Posts, Urban Decay

Fast and Flirty Valentine’s Day Makeup Tutorial: A Romantic Monochromatic Soft Peach Look for All Skill Levels

January 24th, 2018 by Karen 29 Comments

romantic makeup tutorial mac lunar new year 2

In the interest of fairness, seeing as how we have Valentine’s Day to celebrate lurve, and Galentine’s Day for your gal pals, shouldn’t there also be a holiday to commemorate V-Day for cat lovers and our cats? Like Feline-en-tine’s Day? Or Cat-en-tine’s Day?

Ooh! — I’ve got it. Meow-entine’s Day! ? ? Happy Meow-entine’s Day, fellow cat ladies, LOL!

Valentine’s Day is a few weeks away, a fact that occurred to me at 7:55 p.m. the other night at See’s Candy (5 minutes before closing), where I went on an emergency last-minute chocolate run.

They had their heart-shaped candy boxes on full display, and it was like a sudden cocoa-infused wake-up call that this is a perfect time for romantic, soft makeup looks. I think this monochromatic peach one would be great for a daytime date, or an evening date, or a date that goes from day to night, ooh-la-la!

Why I ? monochromatic makeup

Because it takes the aspect of color coordinating, and figuring out if this purple goes with that bronze, or if this pink goes with that teal, out of the picture and makes it easy to use multiple (but related) colors together (i.e., so you don’t have to think too hard).

But I really ? monochromatic makeup with a twist!

Instead of just being a peach-on-peach-on-peach party on the eyes, cheeks and lips, this look also relies on subtle transitions and different cream and powder textures, matte and satin finishes, and varying levels of coverage and intensity.

On the eyes, matte and satin powder eyeshadows are layered on top of a cream shadow, and the cheeks and lips are both sporting the same peach color and cream finish, except that the cheeks are sheer, and the lips are opaque. And the creaminess of the blush and lipstick also plays off the matte areas of the skin.

Sheer skin for balance

My foundation is purposefully sheer in this look because, with all of the drama happening on my eyes and the opaque lip, I feel like the face, cheeks and lips need to dial it back a bit to keep everything looking balanced.

A 15-minute look from start to finish

The choice to do sheer skin is also a timing thing, because I’m still really into makeup looks that I can finish in 15 minutes or less, and doing sheer skin saves lots of time and lets me spend most of it on my eyes.

What you’ll need

Here are the products I used…

FACE PRODUCTS

  • Face primer (Urban Decay Urban Defense Complexion Primer)
  • Sheer face tint, or a CC or BB cream (Neutrogena Hydro Boost Hydrating Tint in Honey)
  • Makeup setting spray (MAC Fix+)
  • Powder foundation (Sweat Cosmetics Mineral Foundation in 200)
  • Concealer for your under eye area, if you want (MAC Matchmaster Concealer in 4)
  • Cream peach lipstick (MAC Lunar New Year Lipstick in Good Health, an LE shade available now online and at select MAC counters)

EYE MAKEUP

  • Brow gel, either clear or a color that matches your brows (Hourglass Arch Brow Volumizing Gel in Warm Brown)
  • Cream stick shadow similar to your skin tone (MAC Pro Longwear Waterproof Colour Stick in Sand Bar)
  • Three powder eyeshadows: a matte peach eyeshadow, a matte taupe and satiny bronzy brown (MAC Lunar New Year Eye Shadow X9 in Luck and Fortune, an LE palette available now at select MAC counters)
  • Two pencil eyeliners: a black and a bronzy brown (Chanel 88 Noir Intense and MAC Costa Riche)
  • Mascara (Tarte Lights Camera Lashes)

mac lunar new year flat lay

Let’s get started

First, you’ll be bouncing back and forth between working on your face and working on your eyes, because when every minute/second counts, you gotta multitask. But it won’t be stressful or scary, I promise. 🙂

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There are 29 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Chanel, Hourglass, MAC Makeup, Makeup, Makeup Tips/How To, Neutrogena, Sweat Cosmetics, Urban Decay

The Urban Decay X Kristen Leanne Collection Vice Lipsticks in Bun Bun, Cloud9 and Spellbound

January 19th, 2018 by Karen 11 Comments

urban decay kristen leanne vice lipstick
From the left: Bun Bun, Cloud9 and Spellbound

One of the three Vice Lipsticks in the UD X Kristen Leanne collection is called Bun Bun (it’s the neutral one), named after Kristen’s bunny. ?

Isn’t that cute? Anyone who names a lipstick after their beloved fur-baby is A-OK in my book.

Kristen loves color, cruelty-free makeup and tattoos — all fab fits for UD — and there are three $17 matte lippies in her new UD collaboration (available meow). Bun Bun is the neutral, Cloud9 is the beautiful bright purple, and Spellbound is the deep burgundy.

urban decay cloud9
Cloud9
urban decay spellbound
Spellbound

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There are 11 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Collections, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews, Urban Decay

The Urban Decay X Kristen Leanne Collection Beauty Beam Palette

January 18th, 2018 by Karen 7 Comments

urban decay kristen leanne beauty beam
Stay gold

Every time I open the $34 UD X Kristen Leanne Beauty Beam Highlight Palette and see the words “STAY GOLD” there in the corner, I think back to a phase I went through in high school when I would sign all of my letters — this was back before email and text, when we actually had to write things down on paper like animals — with the phrase, “Stay gold, Ponyboy,” hearkening to the book, The Outsiders…

I’m sure a lot of other people also did that… Right? LOL!

From what I understand, one of Kristen’s catchphrases is “Stay Gold,” and now those words are here, immortalized forever in this trio of face highlighters from her new LE UD collection.

All three of these powder highlighters are different shades of shimmery gold. There’s a rose gold on the left, which looks a little like BECCA Rose Gold highlighter from the Chrissy Teigan palette — a palette which, to this day, makes me clutch my pearls. I still love it so much.

And then there’s the highlighter in the middle, a white golden pearl with a BECCA Opal vibe, and the one on the right, a warm golden pearl similar to Now’s the Time highlighter from the UD Jean-Michel Basquiat collection.

urban decay kristen leanne beauty beam swatches
Urban Decay X Kristen Leanne Collection Beauty Beam Palette

Assuming you like to wear gold (I do!), caution is still advised with these colors because they seem to apply, at least on my skin, much lighter than they look in the pans.

urban decay kristen leanne beauty beam
I applied the middle shade down the center of my nose, then mixed the shades on the far left and right together and applied them to my upper cheekbones. I’m also wearing the Daydream Palette and Bun Bun Lipstick from the Kristen Leanne collection.

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There are 7 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Face, Makeup, Palettes, Product Reviews, Urban Decay

The Urban Decay X Kristen Leanne Collection Daydream Palette

January 17th, 2018 by Karen 12 Comments

urban decay kristen leanne daydream 3
I vote cake frosting.

So what do you think that is there on the front of the $26 Urban Decay X Kristen Leanne Daydream Palette?

Is it…

A. Cake frosting (*nods enthusiastically*)
B. Body lotion
C. Shaving cream

Because it looks like all three to me.

But if I can only choose one (Monday Poll flashbacks), I’ll go with cake frosting because — hi! — I’ve been watching The Great British Baking Show for five days straight.

Incidentally, that show is like chicken soup (with baked homemade crackers) for the soul. It’s almost a cure for the common cold, but I digress…

urban decay kristen leanne daydream
Got a Daydream on my lids and lash lines…

Isn’t this palette cute? When you open it up, there are five warm neutral powder eyeshadows inside.

Daydream is part of the new Urban Decay X Kristen Leanne collection, which is available now. It’s a collab between UD and spunky, cruelty-free makeup-loving YouTuber Kristen Leanne. In a nutshell, she has colorful hair, she loves rainbow looks, she’s got tattoos, and she owns a hair color company called Arctic Fox that’s all about mermaid and unicorn colors…so she’s all about color.

There are two eye palettes in the collection — a colorful one and a neutral one. The latter, of course, is the one I wanted to try first.

urban decay kristen leanne daydream 3
Warm neutral prettiness

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There are 12 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Palettes, Product Reviews, Urban Decay

I’m Diggin’ Distortion: The Urban Decay Distortion Eyeshadow Palette

November 24th, 2017 by Karen 20 Comments

urban decay distortion eyeshadow palette
Feeling kinda shifty in the new Urban Decay Distortion Eyeshadow Palette

Most of the time when people say that something is shifty…it’s not usually a good thing, but when you’re talking about the new Urban Decay Distortion Eyeshadow Palette ($49), being shifty is great.

Five “shifty” duo chrome shadows

New limited edition Distortion just landed at Urban Decay, and the kicker is that top row of pale pastel-looking eyeshadows — one, two, three, four, five.

They look pale pastel in the pans, but they’re actually duo chromes that change color in the light. They’re designed to be layered on top of the other 10 eyeshadows in the palette, the ones in the middle and bottom rows.

urban decay distortion eyeshadow palette
It’s all about that top row.

You can definitely also wear them on top of any other eyeshadows in your collection, too, because there’s no exclusive high-tech stuff happening here, LOL! (But wouldn’t it be kinda cool and sci-fi if there were, though?)

If you’re an artsy-fartsy type who likes to get all mad scientist on your eyeshadows, like, by whipping up your own color concoctions on a Tuesday morning just ’cause, this palette should be a lot of fun.

urban decay distortion eyeshadow palette swatches 2
The shifty shades — Bleach, Shifty, Space, Mind Game and Blur — by themselves, and then layered on top of Territorial, one of the other eyeshadows in the palette.

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There are 20 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Palettes, Product Reviews, Urban Decay

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