Makeup

New Urban Decay Hi-Fi Shine Ultra Cushion Lip Gloss

March 27th, 2018 by Karen 5 Comments

urban decay hi fi shine lip gloss — Urban Decay Hi-Fi Shine Lip Glosses ($20 each)

Where are all the naked dudes?!

It’s a completely legitimate question to ask when you’re talking about new Urban Decay Hi-Fi Shine Ultra Cushion Lip Gloss, because, as you might remember…

Of course you remember, and don’t play like you don’t! 🙂

UD did that line of lipglosses back in the day with holographic pictures of half-naked dudes on the caps (THEY WERE CALLED POCKET ROCKET. There. *snaps* Sorry, took me a moment to remember.), and when you turned the caps, they’d go from smiling and posing like catalog models, to looking over their shoulder in tight purple boxer briefs.

It was so cheeky, crazy and fun, and quite a different style for UD at the time — not their usual tattoos and piercings cool girl vibe. It’s hard to imagine they did something like that, but I guess if people can change and evolve, so can makeup brands.

Urban Decay glosses through the years…

I used to really ? Honey-Infused Lip Love Therapy.

Remember the mega MINTY Urban Decay Lip Junkie Lip Glosses?

Of course, we can’t forget these dudes!

The Revolution glosses had the coolest packaging.

An amalgam of two classic lipgloss lines

These new $20 plumping lipglosses do NOT have any Magic Mike action happening on their caps (sorry to disappoint you, ya pervert), but they still got it goin’ on.

Until recently, UD had two separate gloss lines — Revolution and Naked — but they phased them out and replaced them with this line, Hi-Fi Shine.

These are basically the old Naked gloss formula with an additional plumping element, new packaging and new colors. UD carried over some of the Revolution shades (Revolution was their brighter line) and Naked shades (Naked was their nudes line), and added some others. Then they divided them all among four finishes — Cream, Sheer Cream, Holographic and Metallic.

Old flames and new loves

I’m glad they kept the colors I wear all the time, like Beso (a creamy, deep pinkish mauve), Fireball, Naked and Snitch (OMG, this coral!), they also added some new potential stars, like bright purple Jawbreaker and creamy mauve pinkish nude Backtalk.

urban decay hi fi shine lip gloss in beso — Beso, a deep pink-mauve cream (Cream)

urban decay hi fi shine lip gloss in fireball — Fireball, a holographic peach with pink sparkle (Holographic)

[Continue reading…]

MAC Is Taking Us Waaaay Back With the MAC Throwback Lipsticks

March 23rd, 2018 by Karen 15 Comments

mac throwback collection lipsticks — From the new MAC Throwback collection: Shrimpton (Satin), Bronx (Matte), Icon (Frost), Skew (Frost), Marrakesh (Matte), Spanish Fly (Frost) and Rocker (Matte) Lipsticks

AHHHH! Allow me to fly my MAC freak flag for a second, because I can remember with shocking clarity the night I wore MAC Skew Lipstick, one of the seven lipsticks in the MAC Throwback collection, to my friend Cindy’s birthday party in 2002.

I can’t remember what I had for lunch yesterday, but I remember wearing Skew 16 years ago with a blackened gray smoky eye (complete with glitter). I also remember touching it up beneath blue lights in a Castro dance club (and I may or may not have been a little tipsy) and thinking, “This is the best lipstick ever! This is the best night ever! I’m gonna dance like this forever!”

LOL. Ah, the good times I had with Skew. 🙂

I love this pink duochrome coral so much, and I went through several tubes. I can’t believe I didn’t realize it had been discontinued.

That’s MAC for ya. So many colors, so little time…

Like the other six lipsticks in MAC Throwback, Skew was cast aside!

OK, maybe that’s a little dramatic. It was “quietly retired.”

Well, now they’re back, at least temporarily.

mac throwback lipstick swatches — MAC Shrimpton (Satin), Bronx (Matte), Icon (Frost), Skew (Frost), Marrakesh (Matte), Spanish Fly (Frost) and Rocker (Matte)

[Continue reading…]

The MAC Liquidlast Liners Are Back (Remember These?)

March 22nd, 2018 by Karen 11 Comments

Pretty sure I mentioned this the other day, but yeah, my lids are getting progressively more hooded every day. I think it’s just a getting older thing, but now I appreciate long-lasting liners like the MAC Liquidlasts THAT MUCH MORE, because if you’ve got a hooded lid situation, finding a liner that doesn’t transfer up into your crease can be harder than finding a chupacabra unicorn.

Enter the MAC Liquidlast Liners. They’re long-lasting and water-resistant.

mac liquidlast swatches — MAC Naked Bond, Late Night, Coco Bar, Keep It Currant, Rich & Robust, Blue Me Over, Wet Road, and Misty Me

A bunch of them that just landed on MAC counters and the MAC website ($21 each), but you might remember them from back in the day. The Liquidlast Liners used to be part of the permanent collection. Then they went away, but now they’re back in nine shades, most of which are permanent.

The only LE colors are matte purple Rich & Robust, which I friggin’ love (GAH!) and shiny teal Blue Me Over.

mac rich robust liquidlast liner lash lines — Rich & Robust

To someone just passing by a MAC counter, they look a little like lip glosses, at least until you open them up and see the skinny, fine-tipped brush.

That brush, though? T-r-i-c-k-y to use.

mac rich robust liquidlast liner brush — It helps to unload almost all of the liner from the brush first.

The first time I used these years and years ago, I wan’t crazy about ’em because of the brush, but now I think I just didn’t know how to use it. I think I might know how now.

What I wasn’t doing then was unloading the brush enough before bringing it to my lids. Now I run the brush against the inside of the lip of the tube a bunch of times to get rid of the excess.

mac rich robust liquidlast liner — Rich & Robust on my upper lash lines. I’m also wearing MAC Kid and Uninterrupted Eye Shadows on my lids, and Powersurge liner on my lower lash line. The blush is Melon Pink from the MAC Padma collection, and my lipstick is Mittai Pink (worn as a stain), also from MAC Padma.

[Continue reading…]

The MAC Throwback Eye Shadows in Kid, Uninterrupted, Tete-A-Tint and Goldbit Are Available Meow

March 21st, 2018 by Karen 8 Comments

There are four pans of MAC Kid Eye Shadow sitting in my shopping cart, and I would normally consider this to be an excessive number of backups, buuuuut…lemme tell you why I think it’s a good idea in this case.

This shade… It’s one of the four shadows in the MAC Throwback collection. See, MAC released a collection of formerly discontinued eyeshadows and lipsticks that they brought out of retirement, and it’s available on counters now.

Kid is GREAT.

Actually, all four of these shadows are so good that it leads me to wonder why the heck MAC ever nixed them?

My friend Fern told me about this one a while ago. She was pretty crabby when it got discontinued, and I can see why. It’s a light matte golden tan, and it’s and one of those browns that you can carve out the crease with and not be left with something that looks heavy or gray or weird. It’s the perfect transition shade. You can just sloosh it on your lids with a MAC 224 and end up with the perfect amount of definition.

mac kid eyeshadow — I’m wearing Kid and Tete-A-Tint in my crease, and Goldbit on my lids. The lipstick is a mix of Skew and Shrimpton (two of the lippies from the #Throwback collection; review coming soon). And the blush is Melon Pink from the MAC Padma collection.

Unfortunately, the Throwback shadows (Kid, Uninterrupted, Tete-A-Tint and Goldbit) are all LE, so this is like their big comeback tour. It’s also why there are currently four pans of Kid in my cart…

The three matte shades — Kid (technically, it’s a Veluxe Pearl, but it looks matte on my skin), Tete-a-Tint and Uninterrupted — blend like it’s what they were put on this earth to do. They’re pigmented, smooth, soft, and don’t even know the meaning of the word “skipping.” Any of them could easily become your go-to transition crease color.

Goldbit, the solitary shimmer shade, is also a beaut. She’s a golden beam of light on your lids. All you have to do is lightly press your finger into the pan to pick up so much gorgeous shine that you’ll practically glow in the dark (but not really). It’s like pure pigment pressed into a pan, but it isn’t messy or obnoxiously glittery.

mac goldbit tete a tint kid uniterrupted eyeshadow swatches — Goldbit, Tete-a-Tint, Kid and Uninterrupted

[Continue reading…]

The MAC Hint of Colour Lip Oils

March 20th, 2018 by Karen 6 Comments

Ya know, I revel in being the quirky neighbor who smiles like a maniac while taking pictures of the MAC Hint of Colour Lip Oils by some freesia on the side of the road.

freesia in the rain spring 2018 — Spring is (at least officially) here!

I don’t even care if people look at me weird. I just smile ? and wave ? like I’m supposed to be there… And, I mean, I’m not not supposed to be there. After all, who wouldn’t want to stop and admire lovely freesia? They’re beautiful, and when the freesia appear, winter is saying “Peace out!” Warmer days are comin’.

Like freesia, the MAC Hint of Colour Lip Oils, which are LE and available now for $17, are also cool. They look like they should be intensely pigmented, right? Like liquid nirvana? But they aren’t. They’re shockingly sheer, just like the name goes. They leave a hint of color, and I think that’s a good thing for lip moisturizers, because when my lips need moisture, I don’t want to deal with a mirror. I just want something easy, and an extra hint of color is also nice.

mac hint of colour lip oil swatches — Pale Princess, Dole to Diva, La La Love You, Candy Drop

These are basically super sheer, lightly tinted vanilla-scented glossy lip balms that feel exactly like the MAC Cremesheen Glasses to me. They aren’t sticky, and they only last an hour or two at the most, but they’re lip oils (more accurately, a mélange of five moisturizing oils with a gel formula), so I can’t spite them for that.

They aren’t complicated to use either. It’s not rocket ? science. Just slick ’em on when your lips are thirsty, then let them do their shiny, moisturizing thing. They’ll fade away to a matte tint, and the intensity of the tint slightly varies among the colors.

[Continue reading…]

The MAC Girls Qween Supreme Palette

March 19th, 2018 by Karen 11 Comments

mac qween supreme palette — I’m wearing the new MAC Girls Qween Supreme Palette on my lids. It’s $39.50, and in the permanent collection.

You know what? I like my job. The last thing I want to do is disappoint my boss (you may have heard of him — Tabs the cat, world-renowned kitty supermodel), but he’s going to be woefully disappointed when he finds out that, if I were given the chance to be a queen supreme, as in the name of the new MAC Girls Palette, Qween Supreme (yes, it’s spelled that way), but the job required me to wear a crown, I would not be able to rock that thing 24/7.

Sorry, Tabs!

I mean, I’d wear it to take pics for the ‘gram, especially if I had a collection of bejeweled sparkly crowns at my disposal, but I wouldn’t wear it if I were just chillin’ in the palace and wanted to Netflix and chill at home.

Sorry, buddy! I know that you like to think of your assistant as more fabulous than that, but, sadly, I’m not. 🙁

tabs qween supreme — Tabs is not having it.

Qween Supreme is still quite new, and if you ask about it at nearby MAC counter, they might not even have it in yet (for sure, it’s online).

mac qween supreme palette open — Mega metallics

It’s one of nine eye palettes in the MAC Girls collection. Some are more adventurous than others (some are mostly neutrals). Qween Supreme just happens to be the metallic palette, and it’s also one of the newest ones!

mac qween supreme palette swatches — Living that NC42 life, purr usual

[Continue reading…]

The MAC Girls Risk Taker Palette

March 16th, 2018 by Karen 5 Comments

mac risk taker palette open — Should you take a chance?

Hocus-pocus ?‍♀️ Powersurge! Presto change-o ?? Honeylust! Alakazam Satin Taupe and Woodwinked, too!

By the Power of Grayskull, I HAVE THE POWER. ?

If you know this incantation (and I do!), you’re probably a MAC gal or guy, and if you are, then it’s OK to freak out a little (go ahead, I’ll wait), because MAC just dropped three new MAC Girls Palettes into the permanent line. They also brought back the six they launched last year.

So yeah, now you can get them whenever you want. They’re $39.50 each and available online and at “select” MAC stores, which is MAC code for “better call your local counter to check first.”

This one is Risk Taker, and it riffs on some MAC permanent colors I’ve loved for years. Like, Bossing It looks a little like Woodwinked, Outfitted looks kinda like Honeylust, and Risky Business is like the more sparkly version of Satin Taupe. The whole thing spoke to my soul when I opened it for the first time, so of course I automatically assumed I’d have a good time with it.

And I did… Mostly.

https://www.makeupandbeautyblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/mac-risk-taker-palette-open-closeup.jpg — AHHH!

mac risk taker palette on lids — MAC Risk Taker on my lids, Urban Decay Fuel Lipgloss on my lips, and NARS Kingpin and Buzzed blush on my cheeks.

mac risk taker palette swatches — Yup, still a MAC NC42.

[Continue reading…]

The New NARS NARSissist Wanted Cheek Palette II

March 15th, 2018 by Karen 8 Comments

nars narsissist wanted cheek palette 2 — The new NARS NARSissist Wanted Cheek Palette II ($59)

Hark! Dost thou hearest the ? trumpets? ’tis the clarion call of the makeup goddesses! Have they answered my call? Because the blushes in the new NARS NARSissist Wanted Cheek Palettes are JUST AS GOOD as the blushes in the permanent collection. If you’ve been into makeup for a while, you’ve probably seen some pretty dicey LE products before, but everything in this palette is permanent collection caliber. Same quality as the NARS blush singles.

Six powder blushes live in the $59 NARS NARSissist Wanted Cheek Palette II — three mattes and three shimmers — and the only re-promoted shade is Taos. The other five are limited edition.

nars narsissist wanted 2 cheek arm swatches — PYT, Ambition, Taos, Explosed, Penthouse and Queen

Wanted II is the Wanted option designed for darker divas, whereas Wanted I caters to lighter lovelies.

As you may already know, because I’ve been saying it for, oh, 11 years (!), I’m a MAC NC42, and I feel like I can wear these blushes, but it definitely takes more effort than Wanted I. I have to bust out my fan brush AND an additional blending brush, because the Wanted II colors look dark on my skin (so they’re more effort to buff and blend), but because they’re so finely milled, they’re still easy to work with. The petite powder particles practically prance across the skin.

It’s just that the colors require some moderately serious buffing to get them looking natural on the apples of your cheeks.

nars exposed blush cheek swatch — Exposed

[Continue reading…]