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Chanel Ecriture De Chanel Eyeliner Pen in Noir Is All-Caps FABULOUS!

June 25th, 2014 by Karen 12 Comments

Chanel Ecriture De Chanel Eyeliner Pen in Noir
Wearing Chanel Ecriture De Chanel Eyeliner Pen in Noir from the Chanel États Poétiques fall 2014 collection

Lots of bad-@ssery happening around this li’l pen. 🙂

Picture Jeremy Renner doing one-armed pushups, Ryan Gosling petting kittens, and James Bond, aka Daniel Craig, in a tuxedo feeding you Oreos dipped in real milk.

BAM!

Yeah, as much as I like almond milk, it’s total bullsh*t with Oreos, but I digress…

Back to the bad-@ssery I mentioned, I guess it shouldn’t come as a big surprise considering the cost of this particular pen, the Chanel Ecriture De Chanel liquid eyeliner pen in Noir. It’s $35 (!). But in this case, I think you get what you pay for.

One of two liquid pen liners in Chanel’s new fall collection (there’s also one called Brun, a brown, and a gray called Anthracite, which is part of the permanent collection), Noir has some good things going for it.

Pigment, dry time and longevity

Chanel Ecriture De Chanel Eyeliner Pen in Noir
Noir, one of two shades in the Chanel États Poétiques fall 2014 collection, is available now at Chanel counters and online at chanel.com

Like midnight in the middle of the earth, Noir is dark! The color is true black, deep and intense, without any blue or green undertones, and you won’t be spending hella years waiting for it to dry. One pass leaves a full, solid line of dark color.

It’s also super shiny — almost as shiny as the MAC Superslicks — and lasts 8-12 hours, during which time it does not move, even on unprimed, naked lids.

Yeah, that’s sturdy.

Only thing, it’s not waterproof, so don’t go jumping on the treadmill when you wear it. If you perspire half as much as I do, you’ll end up with two panda eyes.

I’m just sayin’.

Also, with some liquid liners, I have to let them dry for a while with my eyes closed so they don’t transfer up into the crease, but not with Noir. It dries that fast.

The felt tip!

Chanel Ecriture De Chanel Eyeliner Pen in Noir
Chanel Ecriture De Chanel Eyeliner Pen in Noir, $35

OK, now, I know we’re not talking about reinventing the wheel here. It’s just a black liner — a pretty basic staple — but I sure love this one’s felt tip.

For me, felt tips usually fall into one of two categories.

  1. They’re either super skinny and flexible, like Dior’s and LORAC’s, which I like because I find them pretty easy to use. I can get those really sharp edges with them and control the thickness of the line.
  2. Or, they’re thick and kind of stiff, like the MAC Penultimate and Superslick liners.

    Not a lot of bend…

Chanel Ecriture’s tip is a hybrid of the two. It’s a little stiff, but still has some flex.

You still get that sort of wiggly glide you get from thin, uber-flexible liners, but at the same time the tip is stiff enough to really get between the roots of your lashes, especially those teeny, tiny hairs (I usually have to switch to a pencil liner to reach, but I can reach them with this liner).

An application tip…

Chanel Ecriture De Chanel Eyeliner Pen in Noir
Additional eye makeup worn: Dolce & Gabbana Smoky Quad, MAC Smolder Eye Kohl, Ardell Glamour Lashes in 105 and Tom Ford Brow Sculptor in 04 Espresso

Weirdly, the first time I touched this tip, I was like, “Yeah, no dice. There’s no frickin’ way.” Because it felt a little stiff, and I usually have a hard time with that, but this one I can actually use.

Mind you, there is a learning curve (well there was for me). I like to look down into a mirror, and holding the tip parallel to my lash line (along the edge, not the tippy-tip), press once in the inner corner, then again in the center, and then again in the outer corner to complete the line across.

One, two, three — Tabs, stop meowing! Tabs is meowing in the background right now. He’s driving me a little crazy. I think it’s because I’m talking about black liner and he’s like, “Haha! I have built-in liner, and mine is always perfect!”

[Continue reading…]

There are 12 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Chanel, Eyes, Makeup, Product Reviews

Got a Beauty Hangover? The New Too Faced Hangover Face Primer Could Be the Cure

June 24th, 2014 by Karen 19 Comments

Too Faced Hangover Primer Review
Wearing the new Too Faced Hangover Primer ($32) underneath BECCA Matte Skin Shine Proof Foundation and loving life

Ooh, gurl, have you heard the chismis?

(Chismis is Tagalog for “gossip.”)

Apparently, and you didn’t hear this from me, but Too Faced Hangover Primer is making MAC Prep + Prime Natural Radiance totally jealous with a capital J-E-L.

See, MAC Prep + Prime Natural Radiance and I — we roll deep. I’ve been using it almost daily for years.

The stuff works great, and I also love how it feels like a lotion going on. Plus, it doesn’t give me breakouts, for which it gets extra credit from me because almost everything gives my combo skin fits.

I can’t stand it when face primers feel heavy, you know, like they’re sitting in lounge chairs on my face.

Ugh! It gives me the willies just thinking about it…

Thankfully, MAC Prep + Prime doesn’t do that. It feels light and wonderful to me, and my skin looks like real skin when I wear it!

Well, like real skin…only more radiant and smoother. 🙂

Like I said, Prep + Prime and I have been buds for years, but lately I’ve been hanging out with this new Too Faced primer called Hangover, and after only two weeks, we’re already like this (you can’t see me, but I’m crossing my fingers here).

I’ve actually been reaching for Hangover’s silicone-free formula more than my bottle of Prep + Prime.

JEALOUSY!

So what is it supposed to do?

Too Faced Hangover Primer Review
A 1.35-oz pump tube is $32

[Continue reading…]

There are 19 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Face, Makeup, Product Reviews, Skin Care, Too Faced

The Rock N Roll Palette by Too Faced Cosmetics: These Tough and Tender Jewel Tones Rock

June 24th, 2014 by Karen 19 Comments

Too Faced Rock N Roll Palette
Wearing the new Too Faced Rock N Roll Palette while doing my best impression of a vixen in an ’80s Billy Idol video

I’m about as rock ‘n’ roll as a porcelain cat figurine sitting on a lace doily, but I’m not gonna let that stop me from releasing my inner headbanger!

Rock, rock, rock, ROCK!

No, really. ’80s Billy Idol would totally hate me. He’d, like, sneer at me because I’d want to go home early because “I have to be in bed by 10.”

Actually 9:30. OK, 9.

But maybe he’d hate me less if I were wearing the new Too Faced Rock N Roll Palette ($36)…

Rock N Roll: what’s it all about?

Too Faced Rock N Roll Palette
The new Too Faced Rock N Roll Palette, $36

One of three palettes in the Too Faced Smitten Kitten collection for fall 2014 (the others are Country and Cat Eyes), Rock N Roll has a couple things in common with its siblings. Like the others, it houses nine eyeshadows in three rows, with each of the rows corresponding to a different makeup look — day, classic and fashion.

With a focus on jewel tones, Rock N Roll’s shadows are richer and more intense than the others, so if you like the way you look in jewels, and particularly if you have a medium or darker skin tone and don’t want to spend eternity packing on shadows to get them to show up on you, this one is definitely swatch worthy.

Someone’s been channeling Urban Decay

I’m thinking it. You’re thinking it. We’re all thinking it. So let’s just come out and say it. 🙂

These are some very UD-like colors — a deep green, a dark blue, an intense purple, and glitter for days.

That said, there are far worse things in life than channeling Urban Decay.

So, does it rock?

Rock N Roll’s colors have a harder edge to ’em, but at the same time, I think they’re still very girly. It’s glam meets pretty — something I think Too Faced does exceptionally well. Perfect for a Too Faced Cosmetics girl going to a Metallica concert with her metalhead boyfriend, ya feel me?

[INSERT SIGN OF THE BEAST HERE, AND TRY NOT TO CONFUSE IT WITH “I LOVE YOU” WHEN YOU’RE IN HEAD-BANGING MODE.]

Too Faced Rock N Roll Palette
Rock on!

Think tough with a little tenderness to it. Even with the more intense shades, the darkest you get is navy blue Heavy Metal, deep green Punk and dark brown Ska, which, by the way, is like a shimmery version of MAC Brun (LOVE!). I’m wearing it in the crease in these pics.

Even then, the colors aren’t too harsh or dark.

What about wear time?

Let me put it this way: these shadows easily last through the encore. Same goes for the other fall palettes. With Rock N Roll, I get 8-10 hours with just a bit of fading starting around hour 8.

The right tools for the job

Too Faced Rock N Roll Palette
That’s Rockabilly along my brow bones, Ska in the crease, New Romantic on the inner half of my lids, Punk on my upper lash lines, Heavy Metal on my lower lash lines, and Rap in the inner corners

[Continue reading…]

There are 19 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Palettes, Product Reviews, Too Faced

Incite Lipstick Envy This Fall With the New Smitten Kitten Collection La Creme and Melted Lipstick Shades

June 23rd, 2014 by Karen 14 Comments

Too Faced La Creme Lipstick in Country Star
Wearing the new La Creme Lipstick in Country Star by Too Faced

I love me some sheer lip balm (lazy girl says haaaay!), but I’ll be the first to admit that when a girl walks by me wearing a snazzy lip that catches my eye and I’m wearing one of those nondescript barely-there shades I’m apt to do on any given day, my insides start metaphorically pounding the air with bratty baby fists, WAH!

I call it lipstick envy, and I’m totally guilty of having it.

Like, if you walked by me wearing one of the new shades from the Too Faced Smitten Kitten collection for fall 2014, I’d be going ape-sh*t inside.

This time around, Jerrod and crew added fun new shades of peach, pink, berry and purple to the La Creme Lipstick and Melted Lipstick lines.

Too Faced Smitten Kitten Collection Swatches from the left: La Creme Lipstick in Country Star; Melted Long Wear Lipsticks in Melted Marshmallow, Melted Fig and Melted Berry
Swatches from the left: La Creme Lipstick in Country Star; Melted Long Wear Lipsticks in Melted Marshmallow, Melted Fig and Melted Berry

All of the shades are eminently wearable, ’cause hello! — this is Too Faced, and they have the glam/girly/pretty corner of the makeup market down pat.

Too Faced La Creme Lip Balms
The brand new line of Too Faced La Creme Lip Balms ($22, in the pink tubes) and a new La Creme Lipstick shade, Country Star ($22, in the gold tube)

Peachy pinkish nude Country Star ($22), the new La Creme Lipstick shade in the release, is so creamy and smooth that it could almost pass for a gloss.

I have trouble with some nude lip colors washing me out (Or otherwise looking strange… You know how it is with some funky nude shades.), but this one doesn’t do that.

Unfortunately, it’s limited edition, so when it’s gone, you’ll find me in the corner with an embroidered lace hanky, daintily dabbing at glittery tears as they pool in the corners of my cat eyes. 🙁

The new Too Faced Smitten Kitten fall 2014 collection
The new Too Faced Smitten Kitten fall 2014 collection, with the Melted Lipsticks in the lower left ($21 each)

Then there are the four new $21 Melted Long Wear Lipsticks in the launch, which are like intense liquid lipsticks with a glossy finish and a smooth texture. They join the permanent line.

Too Faced Melted Lipstick in Melted Fig
Melted Fig

[Continue reading…]

There are 14 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews, Too Faced

The $36 Too Faced Country Nashville Nudes Eye Shadow Collection Palette Has Such a Cool Swagger

June 23rd, 2014 by Karen 19 Comments

Too Faced Country Palette
That, little darlin’, is the new Country Nashville Nudes Eye Shadow Palette by Too Faced Cosmetics on my eyes, yee-haw!

Giddyup, girl! Let’s get a move on! Go grab your cutest dress, and I’ll get your boots, because we’re double-dating in Music City tonight!

Well, I mean, figuratively… Not in the literal sense, although I wish, right?! I’m referring to the new Country Nashville Nudes Eye Shadow Collection ($36) of nine powder shadows by Too Faced Cosmetics, the brand’s latest palette for fall.

This one’s all about country charm and the glamour of Nashville.

Too Faced Country Palette
A little bit country…

Versatile, like a country song that crosses over into the pop genre

It’s a versatile mix of beige, gold and pinky nudes peppered with deeper blues, purples, brown and gray — mostly in neutral and cooler color temps — but not so cool that warmer-toned vixens won’t also be able to wear it.

Too Faced Country Palette swatches from the left: Cowboy Take Me Away (a matte neutral peach), Y'All (a neutral gold) and Dolly (a cool satin plummy brown)
Swatches from the left: Cowboy Take Me Away (a matte neutral peach), Y’All (a neutral gold) and Dolly (a cool satin plummy brown)

Eight of the nine shadows contain varying levels of shimmer and glitter, while the other shade, a sheer, cool-toned peachy matte, adds a touch of contrast.

Too Faced Country Palette swatches: Famous in a Small Town (a frosty white beige), Paper roses (a shimmery golden peachy coral) and Rhinestone (a dark purple with glitter)
Famous in a Small Town (a frosty white beige), Paper roses (a shimmery golden peachy coral) and Rhinestone (a dark purple with glitter)

Compared to Rock ‘n’ Roll, its counterpart palette also released this fall, Country seems sweeter and more delicate to me — perfect for everyday glam (see: wearing wedding makeup on a random Wednesday).

Too Faced Country Palette swatches: All American Girl (a cool frosty silver), Nashville (a shimmery cool purplish taupe) and Bluebird (a shimmery navy blue with glitter)
All American Girl (a cool frosty silver), Nashville (a shimmery cool purplish taupe) and Bluebird (a shimmery navy blue with glitter)

Like a soft country song

Too Faced Country Palette
Wearing Chanel Joues Constraste in Rose Dust (limited edition, discontinued; it’s basically a cool rosy matte pink) on my cheeks and Too Faced Perfect Lips Lip Liner in Perfect Pink topped with Dolce & Gabbana Lipstick in Petal on my lips

The nude shades here have a subtlety about them, and even with the darker blues, purples and brown, there’s nothing too hard-edged about this palette. The colors shouldn’t appear overly harsh, not even on the lightest lasses. That said, I think Country will rock hard on cooler toned cowgirls with light and medium skin tones.

Too cool for school, but not too cool

Perfect Pink
That’s purply taupe Nashville on my lids, matte peach Cowboy Take Me Away on my brow bones and inner corners, Bluebird on my upper lash lines and Dolly on my lower lash lines

[Continue reading…]

There are 19 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Collections, Eyes, Makeup, Palettes, Product Reviews, Too Faced

The New Too Faced La Creme Lip Balms Make Perpetually Parched Pouts Go Ahh!

June 20th, 2014 by Karen 15 Comments

Too Faced La Creme Lip Gloss in Plum Crazy
Someone’s going Plum Crazy. Wait — I mean, someone’s wearing Plum Crazy, one of six shades in the new Too Faced La Creme Lip Gloss line ($22 each)

Yabba-dabba-doo and zip-a-dee-doo-dah! I’m wearing Plum Crazy from the new Too Faced La Creme Lip Gloss line, and it is the bomb!

LOL!

Sorry, the bomb? Lame ’90s reference. What can I say? It’s Friday afternoon, and all I want to do is sneak out of the office early and go watch a movie (I still haven’t seen Edge of Tomorrow).

Yeah, right. As if Tabs would ever allow me to peace out early (dare to dream). If he did, I’d definitely take one of the brand Too Faced La Creme Lip Balms with me. With their shiny finish and sheer tints, they’re super chill, and the ultra moisturizing formula feels goooood on my lips.

Too Faced La Creme Lip Balms
The brand new Too Faced La Creme Lip Balm line ($22, in the pink tubes), and one new La Creme Lipstick shade called Country Star ($22, in the gold tube)

There are currently six shades in the new line, and they more or less look the same on my perpetually parched and pigmented pout, but that’s OK. It means I only need one.

Or two.

OK, three. You know it is. #lipbalmhoarders 🙂

They feel rich and buttery on my lips and have a light citrus flavor and scent.

“This ultra-nourishing formula is saturated with antioxidant-rich White Lotus Flower Extract, Black Currant Seed Oil and Hyaluronic Filling Spheres, leaving your lips plump and irresistibly kissable.”

— Too Faced Cosmetics

I’d compare them to the $18 Tinted Lip Balms Benefit recently launched, but I wouldn’t exactly call them dupes. The La Creme Lip Balms cost a little more at $22, but you also get more pigment and moisture for that.

The La Cremes also feel slightly thicker to me and last longer on my lips. I’ve been applying Like Buttah, the clear shade, before bed, and I can still feel it there the next morning.

Too Faced La Creme Lip Balms Swatches from the left: Like Buttah (clear), Honey Bunny (a sheer nude), Peachy Keen (a sheer peach), Pink Slip (a sheer pink), Just Kissed (a sheer rose) and Plum Craze (a sheer plum)
Swatches from the left: Like Buttah (clear), Honey Bunny (a sheer nude), Peachy Keen (a sheer peach), Pink Slip (a sheer pink), Just Kissed (a sheer rose) and Plum Craze (a sheer plum)
Too Faced La Creme Lip Gloss in Peachy Keen
Peachy Keen
Too Faced La Creme Lip Gloss in Pink Slip
Pink Slip

[Continue reading…]

There are 15 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews, Too Faced

For Fabulous Feline Eyes, There’s the New Too Faced Cat Eyes Palette

June 20th, 2014 by Karen 14 Comments

Too Faced Cat Eyes Palette
Wearing the new Too Faced Cat Eyes Palette (ring by Betsey Johnson, Sunglasses by Tory Burch, earrings and dress by Kate Spade)

Ragdoll, Siamese, American shorthair, tortie — whether you’re a sassy alley cat or a purebred princess, there’s something in Too Faced’s new Cat Eyes Palette for you.

Upon this new fall palette, Too Faced bestowed nine new shades, each with a kitty-themed name (aww!). Inside the leopard-print packaging hide six powder eyeshadows and three powder eyeliners, which you can use wet or dry (you can also use the eyeliners as eyeshadows), to create a variety of cat eye looks.

There’s more than enough here to take you from pampered house kitty to prowling jungle cat — phht! phht! — in a few swipes of your paw.

Too Faced Cat Eyes Palette (1)
Meow!

The palette contains some warm and cool shades, with a mix of neutrals (beige, bronze, brown and black), and a catnip sprinkling of purple, pink and metallic blue gray.

Your cat nephew Tabs, also known as my boss, insisted that I wear the palette for a couple days before divulging my thoughts. I asked him this morning what he thought of the wearable daytime cat eye I did with the brown, bronze and black shades (Leopard, Tiger’s Eye and Panther), and he replied, “Mrrow. Meeee-ooow!”

Too Faced Cat Eyes Palette
Cat ring by Betsey Johnson

Sadly, I am not fluent in cat, but I ran the phrase through Google Translate and got: “You look less to’-up than usual. I approve.” 🙂

I like the variety colors in this palette, and in my eyeshadow experiments with it I’ve found that it really lights up my lids. Most of the shades have a metallic, frost or glitter finish, which makes for beautifully glowing eyes.

Too Faced Cat Eyes Palette (2)
Cat lady says what meow?
Too Faced Cat Eyes Palette Swatches from the left: Purr, Tiger's Eye and Leopard
Purr, Tiger’s Eye and Leopard
Too Faced Cat Eyes Palette Swatches from the left: Meow, Pussy Cat, Jungle Love
Meow, Pussy Cat and Jungle Love
Too Faced Cat Eyes Palette Swatches from the left: Kitten, Kitty Glitter, Panther
Kitten, Kitty Glitter and Panther

[Continue reading…]

There are 14 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Palettes, Too Faced

Try Urban Decay Perversion Mascara for Lascivious Lash Love With Major Thickness at the Base

June 20th, 2014 by Karen 9 Comments

Wearing the new Urban Decay Perversion Mascara on my upper lashes

It would have been oddly poetic had I been wearing Urban Decay Perversion Mascara ($22) on one of the times (yes, it happened more than once) I was flashed on the sidewalks of downtown San Francisco.

It happened, not once, but twice, walking to and from work. Naughty bits and all, and both times within a six-month period.

Ewww…

I’m just saying that I think I would have appreciated the irony, is all. Witnessing an act of perversion while actually wearing a mascara called Perversion.

Or maybe that’s just me and my strange sense of humor. 🙂

The latest lash-loving mascara from Urban Decay, Perversion is supposed to be blacker than black (wait — is that even possible?), with the deepest, darkest pigments imaginable.

Lash roots like WHOA!

Urban Decay Perversion Mascara Before and After
Before (left) and after (right) one coat of Urban Decay Perversion Mascara on my upper lashes

I’ve been using it for a couple weeks so far, and it’s weird — in a way, Perversion makes me feel like a gardener.

Wait — that didn’t come out right.

I mean, this stuff is like Miracle Grow for lash roots. It’s really great at building up thickness around the base.

But that’s not all. It also doesn’t flake or smudge, and it’s easy to remove.

One coat of Perversion, and my lashes look thick and lush, as long as I follow the right procedure…

First, I position the brush at the roots, and then really slowly (like s-l-o-w-l-y) wiggle the wand back and forth as I comb through to the ends, concentrating more of the product at the base.

Urban Decay Perversion Mascara Closeup
I’m also wearing Chanel’s new Ombre Essentielle Soft Touch Eyeshadows in Sensation and Hesitation on my eyes

[Continue reading…]

There are 9 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Makeup, Product Reviews, Urban Decay

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