Makeup

Just Browsing: The Best Brow Kits for the “Eyebrow Challenged”

August 25th, 2009 by Karen 42 Comments

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What a difference 12 hairs makes

Ladies, I’m writing to you from a new and exotic place that I never thought I’d visit.

No, it’s not Costa Rica or Turks and Caicos — it’s the land of oh-my-gawd-my-left-eyebrow-has-effin’-disappeared!

This morning I had a very unfortunate incident with some at-home wax. I’m kind of Hairy and the Hendersons, so my weekly facial hair removal sesh is a *must*.

Normally I pluck my brows and wax my ‘stash, but this morning I felt too tired and lazy to bust out ye olde Tweezerman.

After successfully de-fuzzing the caterpillar from my top lip, the mad genius in me (who only got four hours of sleep, mind you) decided that trying to wax my brows for the very first time made perfect sense.

Let the official transcript of this blog read: trying a new at-home beauty procedure after very little sleep is a BAD CALL.

Long story short, now a big chunk of my left brow is missing. Thank goodness only 12 hairs went MIA (yes, I counted them), but apparently they were very important ones. Now the left side of my face looks permanently frozen in surprise, a la the Joker.

To temporarily dull the emotional pain, I flat ironed my bangs to strategically cover up the evil bald spot, whom I’ve named Raul.

Then, I went rifling through my stash of fall beauty goods for some bald brow solutions.

Benefit Brows A-Go-Go, $38

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This eight-piece kit comes with *almost* everything needed to whip MIA brows back into shape, including brow wax, brow powder, tweezers and a teeny, tiny dual-ended brush for application.

Raul vamoosed after I followed Brows A-Go-Go‘s clear step-by-step directions. Apparently, applying brow wax first and powder second is totally key — who knew?

With the bald patch gone, my left brow looked strong, defined and very early ’80s Brook Shields.

I love this kit to pieces, but it’s missing one major thing — Benefit really should’ve included a brow comb.

THE BOTTOM LINE: Despite the lack of a comb, Brows A-Go-Go is an excellent kit that kicks bald brows to the curb. Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A

Their brow powder applies very, VERY pigmented, and if too much gets accidentally packed on, brows can look severe. I ended up using my own brow comb to mellow out the overly dark parts, but including one with the kit would really come in handy for on-the-go touchups.

Clarins Eyebrow Kit Pro Palette, $35

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Raul was no match for this sleek palette, which comes with three brow powders, wax, a peachy pink shadow and three mini-tools — tweezers, a dual-ended brush and a brow comb (YES!).
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Too Faced Natural Eye Kit: Practically Awesome

August 24th, 2009 by Karen 19 Comments

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As much as I love to marvel at complicated eye looks with crazy colors and lots o’ blending, I get more practical use out of looks that are simple and easy.

I adore all-in-one palettes like the Too Faced Natural Eye Kit ($34, part of the new Naturally Naughty fall collection) for everyday use.

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The colors it comes with are of the highly wearable variety, which means they’re on the conservative end of the spectrum, but that also makes the kit a good overall value.

The double-sided brush/sponge applicator may not rise to the level of most MAC eyeshadow brushes, but it gets the job done and qualifies the kit for unexpected travel. Toss it into a purse with peace of mind, secure in the knowledge that the nine neutral matte and shimmer shadows it comes with sweep effortlessly over lids. They range from cool to warm shades and build and blend with ease.

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Swatches from left to right: Heaven, Velvet Revolver, Sexpresso

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Silk Teddy, Push-Up, Erotica

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Nude Beach, Honey Pot, Cocoa Puff

Too Faced even threw in three cheat sheets/cards, each describing how to do a different look.

They totes make getting dolled-up more of a cinch. 🙂

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They’re small things, literally and figuratively, but lean one up against a bathroom mirror and you’re armed with enough knowledge to properly place shadows for three common kinds of eye looks: classic, daytime and fashion.

If you’ve got school this fall or want a few new looks for work, take a closer look at the Too Faced Natural Eye Kit. Too bad Too Faced couldn’t make room for eyeliner and mascara! 🙂 Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Rockin’ Bad Mama Jama Eyelashes with Make Up For Ever Smoky Lash Mascara

August 21st, 2009 by Karen 28 Comments

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I’ve been lovin’ my naturally wimpy lashes lately thanks to Make Up For Ever Smoky Lash Mascara in Extra Black ($22). This waterproof delovely does everything a good mascara should, adding dramatic length and volume and holding a mad crazy good curl all day long (it has a densely bristled brush like the one that comes with Diorshow Plum mascara).

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Smoky Lash flat-out refuses to smudge, not even after a sweaty 90-minute hip hop class. Between my Cabbage Patch and Kid N’ Play the other night (it was an old-school theme), I couldn’t help but bat my eyelashes in the mirror; they just looked so BILLBOARD. Big, bad and bold, I tell ya, like Heavy D and Chubb Rock in their prime. 🙂 Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Givenchy Les Poetiques Fall Collection and a Quick Hello

August 19th, 2009 by Karen 25 Comments

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What’s up my around the way girls?

I’m leaving for the dentist in a few (boo!) and feeling a little bit frazzled, but I wanted to pop by to say a quick hello and share some goodies from Givenchy’s Les Poetiques fall collection.

These cuties involve three things near and dear to my makeup-lurving heart — sparkly deep blues, shimmery grays and rich purples.

The last few days have been rough (the condo ruckus, hella gray roots, Speidi, holes in my favorite stretchy pants, Mario Lopez’s abuse of “master mix” on ABDC, etc., etc.), so I’m kinda excited about this.

The cooks in Givenchy’s kitchen stirred some primo ingredients into this collection. A dollup of the deep blues from Lancome Declaring Indigo, a pinch o’ plum from Dior Jazz Club and a handful of grays from Chanel Venice equals BAM! (Emeril style!) — Les Poetiques.

A few quick notes…

Prismissime Eyes in Poetique Blues just might be the best Givenchy eye palette I’ve seen in a long time. The shimmery grays, purples and blues (with a touch of pink and taupe) blend together effortlessly. Light-skinned lovelies with cooler tones should rock this, Amadeus.
Les Poetiques Gloss in Poetique Rose is a glossy, rosy pink that seems to change colors as the day wears on, starting off as a light pink and turning into a deeper rose over the course of the day. It’s a pretty, natural lip look — so very Bella Swan!
Phenomen Eyes in Grey Lavender looks more like a dark blackish gray than a lavender to me and only when I pack on the layers and look really, REALLY closely. I have enough grays on the top of my head; I dunno if I need more on my eyelashes, LOL!
Parad’Eyes Liner in Poetique Lavender is like the liquid version of Lancome’s Declaring Indigo Gel liner. I’ll probably skip using the uber-stiff brush it comes with and opt for a pointed brush like the MAC 209 instead. Oily-skinned gals might love this liner, as it hangs onto my oily lids like a mo’ fo’.

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Prismissime Eyes in Poetique Blues, $53

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Givenchy les poetiques Prismissime Eye poetique blues swatches-3

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LORAC Red Carpet Reveal Collection Swatches, AKA Morning Makeup Therapy

August 18th, 2009 by Karen 44 Comments

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Rise and shine, morning glories! It’s just before the crack of dawn out here, but I couldn’t sleep. Not because of Tabs (this time), though. My eyes just opened early.

How was your Monday? Mine took a turn for the worse in the afternoon when we learned we may not get that condo. It’s being held up by the financing. Lenders don’t like the fact that there hasn’t been another sale in the same area within the past six months, so they don’t trust the value of the appraisal, blah, blah, blah…

Now I’m a little down, and every sentence I write feels like a pile of flaming dog poo.

Poor Tabs. He had his heart set on that condo (as if). I hope it still works out, but we may not know for another few weeks.

I think I need some cheering up, and I think I know how to do it: pics and swatches of fall’s Lorac Red Carpet Reveal. 🙂

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Red Carpet Reveal Palette, $35

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Breakthrough Performance Lipstick in SPF 15 in Vanity (left) and Premiere (right), $22 each

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Front of the Line Pro liquid liner in Black, $22

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Swatches from left to right: Front of the Line Pro in Black, Lipstick in Premiere, Lipstick in Vanity

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Red Carpet Palette from left to right: Eyeshadow in Debut, Eyeshadow in Pose, Eyeshadow in Interview, Blush in Main Attraction

These are just a few items from the entire collection, but now that I’ve played around with makeup for a few minutes, I do feel a little better.

Funny how that happens.

It reminds me of something my wise, makeup-addicted friend Joanie once said about makeup as retail therapy:
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Yes to Carrots Lip Tints Say YES to Affordable Lip Color

August 17th, 2009 by Karen 52 Comments

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Just a quick note to say hi, ladies. I fell behind this afternoon, but I still wanted to tell you about Yes to Carrots’ line of pigmented C Me Blush Lip Tints.

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Sunset Pink

They cost a mere $4.50 each (that’s my mid-morning latte, yo!) but have a super smooth, buttery texture that makes ’em feel a lot more expensive than that.

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Ready Red

Texture-wise they remind me of the $22 Guava lipsticks by Korres. That’s how slick and creamy they feel.

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Chocolate Kiss

My favorite thing about them? — how pigmented they are (for lip tints). These puppies pack *lots* of color, applying with semi-sheer to medium coverage.

The resulting lip’s a casual look that I can see myself wearing a lot on weekends or to the gym.
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Make Homemade Cream Blushes with Benefit That Gal Face Primer and Powder

August 13th, 2009 by Karen 31 Comments

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Summer stopped by this week, and my apartment’s been hotter than Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

jgl

It was so hot last night that I couldn’t even bear to cook a real meal for dinner, so I cooked with some Benefit makeup instead 🙂

Say hello to Benefit That Gal Brightening Face Primer ($28).

It’s a shimmery, light pink liquid face primer used to prep skin for foundation and to add a subtle glow.

But apparently that’s not all it does. A friend of mine at Benefit suggested using That Gal to turn powder blushes into creams.

Between bites of microwaved Lean Cuisine shrimp linguine, I gave it a try, mixing That Gal with Coralista and Dallas, two of my favorite Benefit boxed powder blushes.

It works!

That Gal + powder blush = pretty cream blush

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First, I dabbed a dollop of That Gal on the back of my hand.
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What’s Your Favorite Highlighter?

August 13th, 2009 by Karen 33 Comments

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G’morning, cuties!

The sunlight filling my apartment today got me thinking about face highlighters and this note in my email from Imelda:

Dear Karen,

I just wanted to ask you what your favorite face highlighter/luminizer is. Thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you!

Sincerely,

Imelda

Hi Imelda, 🙂

I tend to switch products/brands every so often, but right now I’m really loving Illamasqua Bronzing Duo in Glint & Burnish ($30), MAC Cheeky Bronze Mineralize Skinfinish ($27), Benefit High Beam ($24) and the NARS Multiple Duo in Orgasm/South Beach ($45).

Ladies, is there a highlighter you can’t live without? Please list your favorite along with a quick description of your skin tone (I’m a MAC NC35: medium brown with slightly warm but mostly neutral undertones). Let’s make this post a great recommendation resource for peeps of all skin colors!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen