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Hourglass

Bond Girl Makeup Looks Inspired by the OPI Skyfall Collection: From Skyfall, Savarine

November 7th, 2012 by Karen 34 Comments

bond girls severine skyfall look
A Savarine Bond girl makeup look inspired by the OPI Skyfall collection nail polish in Skyfall

“Bond, I’m going to need you to be on your toes for this next assignment. This group is very dangerous.”

“Whatever you say, M.”

“I’m serious, Bond. Cat ladies are the real deal. They’ve been known to actually persuade spies to abandon their missions and join the cat crusade. They will not stop until the world goes full-on feline!”

“So…does that mean I have to keep my paws to myself?”

. . .

Yeah, so if the curmudgeonly cat lady thing doesn’t pan out for me over the next couple of years, I might just become a full-time, self-employed Bond girl. Seriously! I’d have no problem slinking around the house by myself all day long looking all mysterious and sultry like Savarine, the Bond girl from Skyfall, the latest installment in the series.

I’d be totally fine with that.

In the movie, which opens this Friday across North America, Savarine is played by French actress Bérénice Marlohe. I’ve forbidden myself from reading any spoilers, even though I desperately want to (just two more days!), but movie stills are okay, especially when the makeup, hair and nails are to die for, like they are in these pics of Savarine.

bond girls severine

Ooh, I love that gray eye look… It’s kinda smokey, and I dig the cat eye shape.

bond girls severine

See how the shadow slightly wings out at the ends? I feel like it elongates the eye. Oh, and peep the inner corners, and how her eyeshadow tracks her tear duct, ending in a slightly pointed tip. Makes it look even more feline, meow! 🙂

I was really inspired today by Savarine’s look, so I thought I’d give it a try this afternoon and wear it with OPI’s dark plummy red Skyfall nail polish.

The eyes: step by step

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There are 34 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Face of the Day (FOTD), Hourglass, MAC Makeup, Makeup, Makeup Tips/How To, Nails, NARS, OPI, Too Faced

A 60-Second Review: Hourglass Femme Rouge Velvet Creme Lipstick in Vintage

November 1st, 2012 by Karen 18 Comments

Hourglass Femme Rouge Velvet Creme Lipstick in Vintage
Wearing the new Hourglass Femme Rouge Velvet Creme Lipstick in Vintage

Haven’t we all rutted around in our makeup bags from time to time and wished for that one special lipstick? That one lipstick both professional enough to wear to the office (“Hey, new girl, have you filled out those TPS reports?”), and dynamic enough to dazzle a first date? A lipstick so resourceful, so transcendent, that it possessed the power to turn you into a one-lipstick girl?

If there ever were such a shade, it would be Vintage. The new $30 Hourglass Femme Rouge Velvet Creme Lipstick in Vintage.

One of four new winter neutrals in the long-wearing Femme Rouge Velvet Cream Lipstick line, creamy, rosy pink Vintage feels delightfully indulgent for such a lightweight lippie, like adding full-fat cream to your morning coffee (whatevs, you’ll just run it off later!). 🙂

hourglass icon and vintage
The new Hourglass Femme Rouge Lipsticks in Icon (left) and Vintage (right)

hourglass femme rouge velvet creme lipsticks in fawn, peach, mural and vintage
The four new Hourglass Femme Rouge shades: Fawn, Peace, Mural and Vintage

Hourglass Femme Rouge Velvet Creme Lipstick in Vintage
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There are 18 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Hourglass, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews

Even Brows Need Good Arch Support, and the Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil Delivers That

October 31st, 2012 by Karen 24 Comments

katy perry moment!

Did you hear the news?? TMZ is reporting that pop princess/cat lady Katy Perry attended the SF Giants victory parade in San Francisco today. 🙂

And that’s not all. Surrounded by throngs of rowdy revelers, she threw an impromptu concert!

LOL! Yeah, that’s me hammin’ it up…

Dude! I have to tell you about a great product I used today, but before that, you ever play Where’s Waldo?

Or how about Where’s Marmalade? Can you spot him in the top pic? I figured that since Katy’s a cat lady, I ought to have at least one kitteh with me on tour.

Please, I implore you, don’t tell Tabs…

So, that blue wig? I LOVE IT! But too bad it hid my brows today, because I think they looked pretty darned fierce thanks to the new $32 Hourglass Arch Sculpting Brow Pencil.

Surprise! — I was running late getting out of the house in Katy costume this morning and had a lot to do, but only 10 minutes to do it in, so I raced through everything. Quickly, I filled in my brows with Arch’s awesome twist-up triangle tip, using broad strokes with one of its longer edges to fatten the sparse spots.

After that, I sculpted the ends a little, sharpening them using the triangle’s tip. All told, it probably took about a minute.

Of course, the brows were concealed by my wig…but I knew they were there, looking all full and fabulous, as opposed to harsh, ala Cruella de Vil.

According to Hourglass, the Arch Sculpting Brow Pencil’s formula combines the benefits of a powder and a wax to create brows that look soft, natural and full. Not quite hard like a stiff eye liner, or soft like a creamy kohl, the consistency has a little give to it. It’s firm, but not too firm, and it feels almost powdery. Soft wax within the formula binds the powdery pigments to each individual hair, keeping the strays in line.

I’m sporting a pretty strong brow look in these before and after pics, but I could’ve toned it down by running the included brow brush, which is on the opposite end of the pencil, through my brows.

hourglass arch review before after
Before (left) and after (right)


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There are 24 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Hourglass, Makeup, Product Reviews

Peanut Butter and Jelly, Meet Black Liner and Red Lipstick (Another Power Couple): The New Hourglass Icon Collection and Film Noir Kohl Eye Pencil in Eclipse

October 30th, 2012 by Karen 35 Comments

hourglass icon and eclipse
Wearing the new Hourglass Extreme Sheen High Shine Lip Gloss in Icon and Film Nor Kohl Eye Pencil in Eclipse, and thinking about a PB&J sandwich…

The six or seven (no kidding) peanut butter and jelly sandwiches I ate last week got me thinking about other great pairings, like Bogie and Bacall, Hall and Oats, Nutella and anything, and red lips and black liner…

Red lips and black liner — a quick and easy, everyday combo that always hits the spot (much like, in my case, creamy peanut butter and raspberry jelly sandwiches on super soft, fresh bread).

But woman cannot live on sandwiches alone. No, this one also needs makeup! Like these pieces from the new Hourglass holiday collection — four long-wearing, blueish red lip products in a shade called Icon ($28-30 each), and a black pencil liner called Eclipse (the $28 Film Noir Kohl Eye Pencil in Eclipse, which is also available in a brown called Espresso).

Altogether, they’re like comfort food (but for your face). 🙂

Hourglass Extreme Sheen High-Shine Lip Gloss in Icon (new!), $28
Hourglass Extreme Sheen High-Shine Lip Gloss in Icon, $28, and Film Nor Kohl Eye Pencil in Eclipse, $28

Hourglass Panoramic Long Wear Lip Pencil (new!), $28
Hourglass Panoramic Long Wear Lip Pencil, $28

Hourglass Opaque Rouge Liquid Lipstick in Icon, $28
Hourglass Opaque Rouge Liquid Lipstick in Icon, $28

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There are 35 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Hourglass, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews

The New Hourglass Holiday 2012 Collection, Spaghetti Squash, and What I Do for Excitement on a Typical Thursday Night

October 25th, 2012 by Karen 23 Comments

hourglass holiday 2012

Tonight is all about experiments.

First, this spaghetti squash…

I’m thinking that after I cook and shred that bad boy, I’ll toss the “noodles” in olive oil, salt, pepper and so much damn parmesan cheese that I oughta be ashamed of myself. Say it with me — “More cheese, please.” 🙂

Second, some new noms from the Hourglass holiday 2012 collection: two luscious lippies that look creamy enough to put some meat on ya, a pitch black eye kohl, a brow pencil and a fire engine red lip liner and lipgloss (find the whole schebang now at sephora.com).


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There are 23 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Collections, Hourglass, Makeup

The Hourglass Foundation/Blush Brush No. 2: A Brush With Greatness (Too Bad It Also Brushes Budgets Aside)

August 30th, 2012 by Karen 20 Comments

hourglass foundation blush brush no 2 closeup

Before I left for Tahoe this morning, I triple-checked to make sure that my Hourglass Foundation/Blush Brush No. 2 was snug as a bug in a rug in my makeup bag.

I wasn’t taking any chances…not with a tool as terrific as this.

A medium-sized face brush with a round, domed head and synthetic fibers made of high-grade Takelon, this $58 beast is one of my top tools because of something it doesn’t do, instead of something it does.

So…I know, $58 is a lot of tacos, but this brush never, ever streaks. It delivers a smooth, even, flawless finish every single time. If you’re looking for that airbrushed look, the No. 2 is your gal.

I think I may have mentioned it a few times before…

Okay, more than a few, LOL!

hourglass foundation blush brush no 2 product shot

I love this brush so much that it’s one of the products on my “can’t leave home without it” list, both because of how useful it is, and because it’s the only foundation brush I’ve ever used (and I’ve used quite a few) that never, ever sheds.

Never sheds nor streaks? That’s not bad.

I used the No. 2 throughout the summer to apply my foundation and tinted moisturizer, and not once did I have to pick bristles off my face.
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There are 20 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Face, Hourglass, Makeup Tools, Product Reviews Keywords: hourglass, hourglass cosmetics

Lips Are in for a Rouge Awakening: The Magically Moisturizing Hourglass Opaque Rouge Liquid Lipsticks Feel Like Feathers and Last All Day Long

July 24th, 2012 by Karen 33 Comments

hourglass opaque rouge liquid lipstick in muse
Wearing Hourglass Opaque Rouge Liquid Lipstick in Muse on my lips

Well, geez — and you thought destroying those Horcruxes was hard. That was a cakewalk compared to this!

Have I ever told you about my quest to find a matte, long-wearing liquid lipstick that doesn’t dry out my lips? If you have a minute, it’s a pretty good story — a story filled with sorcery, science and more flakes than a big bowl of Special K cereal.

It all started with my poor, dry lips…

You see, they’ve always been insatiably thirsty. They crave moisture like a husky cat craves gravy, and almost every liquid matte lipstick I’ve ever tried has left them chapped and flaky.

It got so bad a few times that not even Tabs would kiss me. 🙁 And I came to assume that I’d need supernatural assistance.

What I wanted was a moisturizing liquid lipstick that I could just slip on after breakfast and not have to fuss with for the rest of the day, and then one day, out of the blue, I came across the Hourglass Opaque Rouge Liquid Lipsticks ($28 each, and new for fall 2012).

hourglass opaque rouge liquid lipstick
From top to bottom: Canvas, Raven, Ballet and Muse

These pricey pretties kinda rock, and they weren’t even at the end of a rainbow! 🙂 Unscented and unflavored, they last an impressive 10 hours for me (although Hourglass claims they can last up to 14). They come in nine profoundly pigmented shades with a lightweight liquid formula and a non-sticky texture, and best of all, they don’t leave my lips looking like they’ve been through a cheese grater, score!

So, does it take a degree in the dark arts to conjure up a matte, long-wearing liquid lipstick loaded with moisture? Nope. Hourglass turned to the wonders of science to create advanced polymers, long chains of molecules made up of many smaller molecules strung together.

Just apply Opaque Rouge to clean, bare lips (it’s best not to be wearing any oils or balms; otherwise, the lipstick won’t take). Then, wait about a minute for the product to set.

The polymers bind to create a pigmented elastic film that prevents moisture from escaping, as skin-conditioning emollients, fruit extracts and viamins A, C and E make the moisturizing more effective.

Moisturizing and beautiful? love

I also love the intense colors and velvety matte finish, which doesn’t look flat, harsh or stark to me.

hourglass opaque rouge swatches
Swatches from the left: Canvas, Ballet, Muse and Raven

hourglass opaque rouge liquid lipstick in ballet
Ballet
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There are 33 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Hourglass, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews Keywords: hourglass cosmetics

The Surf Was Up at Sephora This Week With Beachy Keen Products From NARS, Hourglass, Dolce & Gabbana and More

June 7th, 2012 by Karen 24 Comments

nars beach lover box

I wonder if the airlines have done studies on how much the temperature on the mainland affects demand for flights to the tropics, because it sure seems like there’s a relationship to me. The colder it gets, the more I long for the tropics.

And wouldn’t ya know it? We went from upper-80s here two weeks ago to a week of 60-something-degree days, with a very chilly breeze, and so, of course, I can’t stop thinking about warm beaches…

You know that old saying about missing the beach, right? — “A trip to Sephora heals all wounds.”

Okay, so maybe that’s not a real saying…but it should be! 🙂

Can’t you see it across the front of a Roxy rash guard? Or cross-stitched on a big beach towel hanging on the wall of a surf shop?

Because not even Tabs can change the weather (lord knows he’s tried), I headed to Sephora yesterday looking for beach-themed beauty…

And I started at NARS! — with the new $49 limited edition Beach Lover Set.

It comes with a Medium Laguna Illuminator, a Mini Orgasm Blush/Hungry Heart Highlighter Duo, a Skorpios Mini Soft Touch Shadow Pencil and a Medium Laguna Lip Gloss.

nars beach lover in hand
From the left: Laguna Illuminator, Skorpios Shadow Pencil, Laguna Lip Gloss and the Orgasm/Hungry Heart Highlighter Duo

I’ve been meaning to swatch Laguna Lip Gloss for a while (every time I hear the name, I think Laguna Beach and say “Stephen!”). It’s a bronzed brown with golden shimmer.

nars beach lover swatches
Swatches from the left: Hungry Heart Blush, Orgasm Blush, Skorpios Shadow Pencil, Laguna Lip Gloss, Laguna Illuminator unblended and blended

It’s pretty, isn’t it? Kind of a less disco version of MAC Oh Baby Lipglass?

I hope NARS releases a full-size tube…

On the topic of glosses, a couple others also caught my eye — the two new shades of the Larger Than Life Lip Glosses in Gold Digger (a sparkling peach shimmer) and Born This Way (a light lavender pink).

nars gold digger
Gold Digger (top) and Born This Way (bottom)

nars gold digger swatch
Gold Digger on the left and Born This Way on the right
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There are 24 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Dolce & Gabbana, Hourglass, Makeup, NARS Keywords: dolce & gabbana, hourglass cosmetics, nars

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