Makeup

Stila Perfecting Concealer Makes Dark Circles See the Light

September 4th, 2008 by Karen 34 Comments

Stila Perfecting Concealer is pretty much the mother truckin’ jam. I’ve been under the weather and not sleeping well, so my dark circles have taken on a scary, Marc Anthony-esque purple hue.

The cold I caught the other day made me want to stay home from the office, tucked under blankets on the couch, but a big project at work meant I had to tough it out, so, what was I going to do about the scary dark purple circles under my eyes?

The answer to my dark circles was Stila’s Perfecting Concealer in Shade F. I’ve been applying it with my Sonia Kashuk Concealer Brush and then smoothing out the edges with a fingertip.

Perfecting Concealer covers up my circles really well — almost too well, in fact. I think my boss started doubting whether or not I was really sick because I looked almost like my normal self.

I love the pigmentation Stila crammed into this stuff. I barely need to use any at all — just two tiny dots per eye (diminishing returns beyond that). At this rate, I figure this one lil’ tube should last a long while.

The formula comes in a bit on the thick side, but it’s still a cinch to apply and blend. As far as longevity, it easily lasts all day long without even beginning to fade.

I love natural looking cosmetics. Being made up without looking made up is always a challenge, but Perfecting Concealer is up to the task. The coverage almost couldn’t be more natural. The product doesn’t settle into my fine lines and doesn’t appear too obvious or like it’s sitting on top of my skin.

Scary circles before Stila Perfecting Concealer — picture taken without the camera flash

After one layer of Stila Perfecting Concealer — also without the flash

Before, with the flash

After, with the flash

Stila Perfecting Concealer

Price: $22
Use: To conceal dark circles and skin discolorations
Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A+

For me, Perfecting Concealer is a hidden gem in the Stila line. I dunno how I’ve made it so long without it! Now, of course, I’m stoked to try the other face products in the line. Stila seems to have a great shade selection. Here’s to good luck finding a matching foundation and powder, too!

Do you have experience with Stila foundations, concealers or powders? How do you feel about the line?

Feeling almost back to normal… 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

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Diorshow Iconic Mascara Lengthens, Curls and Defines Lashes with Ease

September 2nd, 2008 by Karen 50 Comments

Some products are so good in certain ways that their strengths totally outweigh their weaknesses. For me, Diorshow Iconic Mascara ($27) is one of those products.

The newest member of Dior’s lash arsenal doesn’t produce the thickest lashes I’ve ever seen. It doesn’t thicken as well as, say, Chanel Exceptionnel does, but it lengthens, curls and defines lashes so amazingly well that I don’t mind at all.

It’s even easy to apply, never clumping or flaking. Together, its strengths make Iconic one of the overall best mascaras I’ve tried in years.

With its long, skinny teeth, the plastic comb brush morphs my lashes into a natural-looking feathered fringe. The brush grabs even the smallest and stubbiest individual lashes, thoroughly coating and defining each one with mascara. The result is long, dark lashes of equal length.

This is what two coats of Iconic looks like. I think it’s a natural lash look (yet still a little sexy) with added oomph. This stuff is totally like the hot girl-next-door of mascaras.
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Have You Tried Stila Perfecting Concealer?

August 31st, 2008 by Karen 37 Comments

Sephora kinda let me down yesterday. The only item in stock from the new Too Faced Smoke & Mirrors Fall 2008 collection was the Smoky Eye Palette. Bummer, but I didn’t leave the store unsatisfied or empty handed.

In the Stila section I found Perfecting Concealer in Shade F ($22).

It’s a highly pigmented formula and looked great in the store. I’m looking forward to trying it out. Anything able to conceal my dark circles gets a special place both on my makeup shelf and in my heart.

I hope it has good staying power. I’ll let you know!

Anywho, today should be interesting. El Hub volunteered to drive one of the floats for the local Labor Day parade, and I get to ride shot gun, ha! We haven’t seen the float yet, but I’ll take some pictures to share.

What are your plans for today?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Too Faced Cosmetics Smoke and Mirrors Fall 2008 Collection Looks Lovely

August 30th, 2008 by Karen 25 Comments

G’morning, girls! How’s your Saturday going so far? I slept in a lil’ bit and then spent some time catching up on my beauty reading; check out these really cute vintage perfume bottles on Bella Sugar and Beauty Addict’s favorite fall nail polish. I also spotted the Too Faced Cosmetics Smoke and Mirrors Fall 2008 makeup collection. A few of the items look super cute, especially the lipsticks, smokey eye palette and the glitter liner. Right now I’m getting ready to run some errands (Target and Costco, fun!), and since my closest Sephora sits next door to House of Tar-ghay, I figure it won’t hurt for me to pop in and take a look. 😉

I don’t have much experience at all with the Too Faced brand, but earlier this year I tested Too Faced Shadow Insurance Anti-Crease Eyeshadow Primer, using it for one week beneath Clinique, Dior and MAC eye shadows and had much better luck with it than I had with Urban Decay Potion Primer. I had no problem blending shadows layered on top of Shadow Insurance.
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Does Benefit Powderflage Powder Concealer Report for Duty?

August 27th, 2008 by Karen 61 Comments

Trapped behind enemy lines, miles from base and cut off from reinforcements, I crawled the distance to the freestanding Benefit store under cover of darkness…

Not really, but I did stop by the Benefit store after work this afternoon to conduct recon on their new Powderflage powder concealer ($28).

It didn’t take night vision goggles to appreciate the cute outer packaging.

What can I say? I got a thing for camo and pink. 🙂

Each cutie pie camo can contains a wee lil’ jar of highlighting powder and a small fan brush.

Benefit claims Powderflage’s pink, shimmery powder (it contains mica) disguises dark circles and fine lines under the eyes. Well, I got some real deal Holyfield dark circles, so Powderflage had its work cut out for it.

First, in the store, I removed all of the makeup under my eyes (trying hard not to scare the store patrons in the process).
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All Aboard the Cherry Train with Laura Mercier Cherries Noir

August 24th, 2008 by Karen 15 Comments

It’s cherries, cherries everywhere as Laura Mercier boards the cherry train with her Cherries Noir fall makeup collection of colors inspired by 1940s Hollywood glam.

Due on counters nationwide September 1, the collection includes six matte and shimmer Eye Colour eye shadows ($22 each), one Illuminating Powder quad for cheeks ($35) and five Lip Velvet ($22) lipsticks.

Like last week’s MAC Cult of Cherry, Cherries Noir features some really striking lip products I think they’ll be the stars of the show.

A friend of mine who works for Laura Mercier said the new Lip Velvets aren’t exactly lipsticks but rather lip stains packaged like lip glosses, with textures similar to LM’s Glace lip gloss.

With a demi-matte finish (semi-matte, halfway between a matte lipstick and a shiny gloss), the wine, berry and plum shades look easy to wear. If you’ve been looking for a lip that leans toward dark without going full-on vampire, look out for Cherries Noir.

Cherries Noir Lips

Cassis: deep mulberry
Cherry Blossom: earthy berry
Mocha Rouge: tawny brick red
Naked Rose: neutral peachy pink
Royal Plum: muted wine

I’m looking forward to these and will stalk Nordstrom until I get my hands on ’em!

What do you think about Laura Mercier’s Cherries Noir? Cherry overkill or can’t wait?

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Do You Like Pink Lips?

August 23rd, 2008 by Karen 22 Comments

If there’s a cure for pink lipstick and lipgloss mania I don’t want it. Other color trends come and go, but for me pink lips will always stand the test of time. Here are some of my recent pink lip obsessions.

MAC Pro Longwear Lustre in Pink Air, $20
Chanel Aqualumiere Formentera, $27
Bobbi Brown Metallic in Pretty Pink, $22
Chanel Aqualumiere Papeete, $27
Clarins Summer Fever Sun Lip Balm in Bikini Pink, $19
MAC Hollywood Nights, $14
Chanel Equinoxe Glossimer, $25
Chanel Candy Glow Aqualumiere, $25
Clinique Bamboo Pink, $14

Happy Saturday! How’s it going today? After straightening out the living room, putting everything in its proper place and thinking about pink lipsticks for a long, long time, I’m officially ready to begin the rest of my day. Better late than never, yo!

Oh, yeah, if you’re ever in my part of California and craving reasonably priced, authentic Japanese food (never mind the giant bronze eagle statue in the dining room), I highly recommend Sushi Boat in San Rafael. I only just found the place a couple weeks ago, but it has already become one of my favorite restaurants in Marin.

I hope you’re having a great weekend.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Shu Uemura Fall 2008 Limited Edition Instinct Collection

August 21st, 2008 by Karen 47 Comments

True confession: when I was nine years old, all I wanted out of life was to star in a Duran Duran video. My fourth grade brain believed it was my destiny to be that glamorous Patrick Nagel girl on the cover of the Rio album, and I thought that looking like her would lead to me being cast as John Taylor’s love interest in a video involving pirates and perhaps a very fast boat.

Illustration by Patrick Nagel

Sadly, I never fulfilled my Duran Duran music video dreams, but a part of me still yearns to be that glam album cover girl.

Enter Shu Uemura’s Fall 2008 collection. The minimalist shapes and lines used for the packaging feel oh-so-80s, as if Nagel’s Duran Duran cover exploded in my makeup bag.

The design echoes throughout the entire color collection of three blushes, three eye shadow duos, two lipsticks and a face powder, but the packaging isn’t the only thing that distinguishes this release from others this season.

Yes, the reds, browns and purples so popular this fall are also present here, but this collection is more about shine, gloss and textured layers. It’s a clean break from the matte eyes and lips we’ve seen so far.

Instinct marks the first collection for Kakuyasu Uchiide, Shu Uemura’s new international artistic director.

The Eye Shadow Duos

Mystifier Eye Shadow Duo

With a cream shadow on one side and a powder on the other, each Duo Eye Shadow ($36) provides plenty of flexibility. I can see myself wearing the cream shadows alone or layered beneath the powders. For an easy eye look (’cause, girl, you know I like easy!), I applied the cream shade on the lid and the powder in the crease.

The cream shadows feel thinner and drier than MAC Paint Pots do. One layer delivers a sheer wash of shimmery color (much like Laura Mercier’s Cream Eye Duos from the Dreamy collection); two layers create a bolder pop. If you have super oily lids, you might want to prime them first before applying these cream shadows to prevent color from settling into the creases of your eye.

The powdered shadows in these duos are classic Shu Uemura — finely milled, highly blendable and highly pigmented (aka eyelid heaven).

Mystifier, pictured above, houses a black and green duochrome cream shadow (SOO PRETTY) and a brownish bronze powder shadow.

Mesmerizer, below, holds a light purple cream shadow and gold powder shadow. I wore this to work a few days ago with a look similar to this gold and purple eye I did with MAC shadows.

I haven’t used Tantilizer, the third of the three fall collection eye shadow duos (a green cream shadow and a goldish bronze powder), but I love both of the other two. They’re easy to use and deliver just the right amount of color without going over the top.

Mesmerizer Eye Shadow Duo
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