Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup
A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict
Hey, friends! Please join me in congratulating the winners of the Sassy September connorclaire.com giveaway — Mimi and her cat Sherlock!
Mimi, if Sherlock asks you to carry his cat treats in your tote, well, it’s probably a good idea. Don’t worry, you’ll still have plenty of room for all your other stuff!
Enjoy your bag and your gift card. 🙂
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
CONGRATULATIONS, MIMI & SHERLOCK!!! You’re the lucky duo. YOU WON! I hope you love the Palette Kitty Tote and your new Connor Claire gear as much as I do.
Win a Connor Claire Palette Kitty Tote and a $50 Connor Claire gift card to fill it with goodies. ???
Giveaway ends Monday, Sep. 12, 2016. Open U.S. and international. One entry per person.
Good luck! 🙂
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Huzzah! Today is a big day! 🙂 The secret squirrel project I’ve been talking about is finally open.
If you like makeup, kitties and playful patterns as much as I do, have a look around.
I put my heart and soul into this project, and I hope you like it. Follow us (us = me, Tabs and the original Connor Claire) on Instagram @msconnorclaire, and tag #msconnorclaire to be featured.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Because I’m a voyeur like that and love to see what’s in OPP (Other People’s Purses), here’s what’s currently in my main bag, and here’s also the next connorclaire.com clue…
Of course my trusty Kate Spade Grand Street Layton Wristlet is in there.
Of course.
Because I could stuff the whole Internet into it, and there would STILL be room for Tabs’ business cards.
And I never leave home without my iPhone and a pair of sunnies (these are LE from Quay Australia that were made for Too Faced).
As for beauty goodies…
(Can’t forget the beauty goodies.)
I’m rollin’ with an Elizabeth and James Nirvana Bourbon Rollerball, two tubes of lipstick (the NARS Audacious Lipsticks in Apoline and Stefania), a tube of MAC Viva Glam Ariana Grande 2 Lipglass, MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium Golden and an LE face brush from Guerlain.
Lips without lipstick are like Bell without Biv. Or Devoe. Or like Tony without the other two Tonies. Or DJ Jazzy Jeff without the Fresh Prince. Or Lisa Lisa without Cult Jam and Full Force…
You get the picture. 🙂
I love lipstick, and here are my three favorite lipsticks right now, along with clue #3 for connorclaire.com.
Yes, the secret will be out any. Day. Now!
Truth is, I haven’t been going ham with my eye makeup lately because I’m still working my way through this “little bit o’ liner” phase.
But I’m sure it’ll pass… PLEASE, MAKEUP GODS, LET THIS PHASE PASS!
Until it does, and I work my way back up to wearing all of the cats and kittens on my lids again, I cheat the system by wearing a really bright lipstick.
It draws attention to my lips and creates a focal point for my look that still makes it seem like I actually came to play, ya know?
My first favorite lipstick of the moment is Urban Decay Vice Lipstick in Menace ($17). It’s a creamy, ultra smooth, ultra pigmented matte medium fuchsia SO bright that you can see it on someone doing the running man across the room.
(The old-school one; not the new one.)
Plus, it’s comfy and isn’t drying, so it doesn’t worsen the dry lip flake situation, and I can swipe it directly from the tube and skip the liner.
I had creamy rose NARS Apoline in my pocket yesterday.
And the day before that.
And the day before that.
And possibly even the day before that!
Yeah, I wear it a lot…
It’s a gorgeous full-coverage nude, and it’s completely opaque.
BONUS #1: For a silky, creamy lippie, it has incredible staying power. I put it on in the morning and can forget about it for at least four hours.
BONUS #2: Every time I say the name out loud — “Apoline” — I think of Apollonia, and then I think of Prince and start singing Raspberry Beret.
Oh, winged liner… If this had been 1988, I would have put you on the mix tape I made by recording songs off the radio.
I love you. ???
You’re so eternally chic, and you make me feel juuust rock ‘n’ roll enough to hang out with Stephanie Seymour during the height of her Guns N’ Roses phase.
But because womankind cannot subsist on black winged liner alone, sometimes I like to remix that ish by layering a glittery eyeshadow on top of a super shiny liquid liner to reach the next level of winged liner realness.
This time I started by drawing an exaggerated wing with Urban Decay Razor Sharp Liquid Liner in Deep End, a deep, iridescent green chorus of long-haired headbangers belting a power ballad, upon which I layered a mix of two of the Urban Decay Moondust shades from the new Moondust Eyeshadow Palette on top.
First, I dabbed my angled brush into the pan of bright green Lightyear, then took it over to teal green Galaxy. Then I spritzed the loaded brush head with Urban Decay All Nighter Setting Spray to crank up the glitter EVEN MOAR. Then I just layered that on top of the liner.
After that, I tightlined both my upper and lower water lines with an old-school (and, sadly, limited edition) dark greenish black called Mars, one of UD’s 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils.
So you know that super secret squirrel project I’ve been talking about and working on and hinting at for a while?
Well, this is the first official clue! — and it may or may not have something to do with pineapples…
Stay tuned this week for more hints and clues. I’ve been working very hard on this project for months, and I really think you’ll like it. It all takes place at www.connorclaire.com, where you can sign up, and I hope you do.
Now, let’s talk nails. 🙂
Hell, yeah, I do my own nails at home, although I do like to make it rain on occasion at the nail salon, because I don’t like to deal with my toes.
You don’t want to deal with my toes; I don’t want to deal with my toes; so sometimes I will go to a nail salon to have somebody else deal with my toes.
But seriously, nails. Come on, do them at home! It’s fun and easy, and here’s my nail-prep-at-home process. This is how I get my paws ready to paint.
I start by taking a shower (or soaking my nails), which moisturizes everything and loosens things up, including whatever nail polish I might be wearing.
It makes my nails soft and supple and less likely to split when I clip/file them.
Right after my shower I remove my old polish using Essie Naturally Clean Purifying Polish Remover ($6 for a 4-oz. bottle), which I love because it werks (even with glitters), and it doesn’t dry out my nails or smell bad (kind of important).
I thoroughly soak a makeup remover pad, then press and hold it on the nail for about 30 seconds before pushing and pulling it down, and the nail polish slides right off.
Next I clip my nails with these Tweezerman Clippers ($11 for two in a set) because they cut cleanly and never split my nails.
