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Beauty Snacks: Sites of the Day, August 3

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Design You Trust
Eye candy — straight up — but who doesn’t love eye candy? Design You Trust collects some of the best in cutting edge, urban graphic design. If you need help thinking outside the box, Design You Trust doesn’t even know where the box is or what it looks like. They cut the box up into little pieces and used them to make a collage.

StyleITOnline.com
A former Bay Area girl now living in New York, Sarah Conley brings a fresh, fun take to her fashion and beauty coverage on Style It Online.

UT LOOP!
This site breaks the online apparel store paradigm that says shoppers want to see models and close-ups of the designs. The idea here is all about user-generated video and music. You make your own short films (as a looped sequence) with snippets of web video. It’s fast, fun and very engaging. Oh, and there are some T-shirt designs in there somewhere, lol!

Afrobella
A pinch of beauty advice here, a splash of social commentary there, and an occasional dash of musical musings make Afrobella one hell of a good read.

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Lancome’s Greatest Hits

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Did you take advantage of the one-day product preview sale last Thursday to snag a tube of Lancome’s Oscillation mascara? I passed for now, opting instead to hear from women brave enough to apply mascara with a power tool.

I’m willing to wait until Oscillation’s full-scale release this November, but the hype surrounding the product still got me thinking about some of Lancome’s greatest hits, like their Waterproof Eyeliner (RUN to your nearest Lancome counter to get this liner, ladies) and lipsticks.

  • Lancome Le Stylo Waterproof Long Lasting Eyeliner
    “Le Stylo Waterproof reminds me a lot of my beloved MAC Technakohl liner. Like Technakohl, it has a twist-up tip and a creamy formula that glides on without tugging or pulling. Le Stylo outlasts Technakohl, though, when applied to the waterline, which is why I’m using it today. It also sports a sponge smudger on one end — handy for diffusing harsh edges and lines.”
  • Lancome High Definicils Mascara
    “High Definicils, Lancome’s new release of their legendary glossy black Definicils mascara, features an improved soft rubber brush that makes Definicils much easier to apply.”
  • Lancome Star Bronzer
    “Lancome obviously had fun with this compact. Within the image in the pan are three different bronzing colors. I love the golden brown matte from the cherub’s bum.”

  • Lancome Pixel Pink
    “Lancome’s got a video on Youtube celebrating Pixel Pink Color Fever Shine lipstick, the limited edition shade created for fashion designer Thankoon Panichgul’s Spring 2008 runway show. While the entire video is an interesting insight into the inspiration behind the lipstick and the backstage goings-on at NY Fashion Week, my favorite parts are the animated sequences of ‘moving paintings’ by experimental filmmaker Jeff Scher.”
  • Lancome Color Fever Lipstick
    “Pink Fever, a new malady afflicting makeup junkies worldwide, has beauty enthusiasts worried. Seasonally, the spread of Pink Fever coincides with pink lipstick lust and causes one to obsess over pink, cherry-blossom-esque lip colors like the three below from Lancome’s Color Fever Lipstick ($25 each) collection.”
  • Lancome Stylish Neutrals Eyeshadow Palette
    “If I were forced to pick just one eyeshadow palette to bring with me on, say, a three-day trip to Las Vegas, that palette would have to be the new Lancome Stylish Neutrals Color Design Artist Palette.”
  • Lancome Colour Focus Palette in Black Tie Affair
    “If you’ve followed this blog for a while you know I sometimes feel too purple to function when working the shades o’ eggplant. But, alas, all four colors in Black Tie Affair are so creamy and buildable that even the clumsy (ahem, like yours truly) can easily use them to do a purple smoky eye.”
  • Lancome Bi-Facil Eye Makeup Remover
    “I’m not one who usually falls for product hype but damn, Lancome Bi-Facil is good. I’m talking fresh brownies, extra sleep and Christian Bale in a tuxedo good. So good that peasants gotta bow down and shake before the mighty baby blue bottle! So good that … okay, okay. You get the picture.”
  • Lancome Miracle Forever Eau De Parfum Spray
    “Miracle Forever is one of those universal scents every woman will love, with notes of black currant, star anis (a fruit grown in Southern China, who knew?) and almond cream. It’s definitely not stuffy, too ‘old lady’ or too in your face and will appeal to lots of different fragrance personalities.”
  • Makeup Tutorial: A Peach, Brown and Green Eye for Summer
    “Lancome knocked it out of the park with Couture Warms, ladies!”

What are your favorite Lancome products?
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Beauty Horror Stories: A Breaking Dawn Book Giveaway

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Breaking Dawn, the fourth book in the bestselling Stephenie Meyer Twilight series, goes on sale today, and I couldn’t resist picking up a few extra copies for my friends.

True, these books aren’t exactly high literature … but I think they’re a lot of fun. I’m a sucker for vampires (ha!) and ill-fated love stories.

From the Amazon.com review of Twilight, the first book in the series…

“As Shakespeare knew, love burns high when thwarted by obstacles. In Twilight, an exquisite fantasy by Stephenie Meyer, readers discover a pair of lovers who are supremely star-crossed. Bella adores beautiful Edward, and he returns her love. But Edward is having a hard time controlling the blood lust she arouses in him, because–he’s a vampire. At any moment, the intensity of their passion could drive him to kill her, and he agonizes over the danger. But, Bella would rather be dead than part from Edward, so she risks her life to stay near him, and the novel burns with the erotic tension of their dangerous and necessarily chaste relationship.”

Last night/early this morning I attended a midnight book release party at the Border’s bookstore down the street. Borders stores all across the country were jam packed with young girls (and a smattering of 20- and 30-somethings like moi), eager to get their hands on a copy of the new book. I snagged mine and got three extras.

Share your worst beauty horror stories in the comments here. I figure we can all learn from each other’s beauty mishaps. Lawd knows I’ve had mine. 🙂 On Monday after work I’ll choose three comments at random and send the writers a copy of the book!
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You Must Choose: The TGIF Edition

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I don’t know about you, but I’m so glad it’s Friday. Work wore me out!

Speaking of Friday…

  • Would you rather give up concealer or give up blush? YOU MUST CHOOSE!

  • Doomsday approaches… Aliens have landed, and they’re toying with us all. To save the world, you’re told to either make out with Ben Affleck or Matt Damon. YOU MUST CHOOSE!

  • Would you rather be missing every other tooth (jack o’ lantern style) or have hands that are totally covered in fur (palms included)? And, no, you can’t wear dentures or shave/wax your hands. YOU MUST CHOOSE!

  • You’re forced to spend 72 hours alone in a dark closet with either Heidi Montag or Spencer Pratt. YOU MUST CHOOSE!

  • The supernatural world beckons; you must answer the call. Would you rather be a werewolf or a vampire? YOU MUST CHOOSE!

  • Whom would you most want to have a cup of coffee with (living or deceased)? YOU MUST CHOOSE!

  • You *finally* land your dream job as an (insert dream job here)! Turns out, though, that a new company policy requires you to wear a uniform to work. You’re given two choices:

1. The black spandex unitard (complete with red boots, leather jacket and thick gold chain) featured in Salt n’ Pepa’s Push It video:

2. Hammer pants:

YOU MUST CHOOSE!

Your turn. Just copy the list below and paste it with your answers in the comments. 🙂

YMC 1: Concealer or blush?

YMC 2: Ben or Matt?

YMC 3: Jack o’ lantern teeth or hairy hands?

YMC 4: Heidi or Spencer?

YMC 5: Werewolf or vampire?

YMC 6: Cup of coffee with?

YMC 7: (insert dream job here); Unitard or Hammer Pants?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Who Wears Short Shorts?

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Looks like the UPS guy won’t be the only dude at the office sporting shorts. The New York Times reports that more and more men are wearing shorts to work.

“FIRST came Casual Fridays, that dread episode in the history of fashion, with their invitation for men to trade in suits for Dockers and to swap a proper shirt and tie for an open neck and a daring flash of masculine décolletage.

Then the bare ankle migrated from country-club Saturdays to meeting-room Mondays and suddenly men, whether shod in wingtips or loafers, were widely seen without socks. Now it appears that, after some stops and starts in recent seasons, the men of the white collar work force are marching into the office in shorts.

It was no more than a moment ago, in the sartorial long view, that a guy who came to work wearing short pants would have been shown the door — or anyway, given the address for human resources at U.P.S. All that appears to be changing.”

I’m usually a supporter of workplace fashion freedom (wear what chu want, fool!), but I have only three words to say about this trend: OH. HELL. NO.

Some men have questionable taste when it comes to attire, and I don’t think I want to see my coworker’s hairy legs as he drones on and on about team-building and streamlined best practices. The kinds of guys who can get away with shorts at work are usually basketball stars, Abercrombie and Fitch models or guitarists for AC/DC.

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Tuesday Beauty Tips: Be Good to Yourself

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Be Good to Yourself

Grab your drink of choice (mine is coffee), sit beneath a shady tree and listen to the leaves move in the wind.

Take a picture of yourself after a really fantastic workout. Limit your prepping — comb your hair and wipe away the perspiration from your face. Capture a shot that conveys how strong and proud you feel at that moment.

Later, on days when you don’t feel like exercising, look at the photo you took of yourself and try to remember how good you felt at the time it was taken.

Write with a cat on your lap.

Keep a Quote Journal

Keep a lined journal at hand for quotes. When you hear or read something that moves you, write it down or cut it out and paste it in your book — journal sentences, song lyrics, poems, speeches from people you admire, lines from movies and things you hear in everyday life from friends and strangers.

  • Oprah Winfrey: “God has bigger plans for you than you could ever imagine for yourself.”
  • 15-year old cashier at Target whose cash register broke while 10 people stood waiting in his checkout line: “Ahhh, uhhh. Ohhhhh…” (Yup, I’ve been there, kid.)
  • NY Times article on female spiders that eat their mates: “Cannibalize. Copulate. Whatever.”

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, July 28

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  1. Mood: Contemplative…

  2. Lips: MAC High Tea lipstick (still trying to decide what gloss to pair it with)

  3. Fragrance: Bath and Body Works Rainkissed Leaves Lotion and Body Splash

  4. Breakfast: Frozen blueberry Eggo waffles and coffee

  5. First song I heard today: Like a Boy by Ciara

  6. Latest makeup find you’re telling all your homies about: Chanel Nude Lip Liner

  7. Outfit: Kinda bummy today — dark Joe’s Jeans, a white tank top, grey hoodie, Adidas shell toe shoes and big grey and purple chandelier earrings

  8. Lovin’ it: Sleep, coffee, a clean desk and Ciara’s music

  9. Something you don’t know about me: I hate the smell of Tabasco sauce.

  10. Goals for the week: Take Tabs to the vet, do some ab exercises and try not to stress out at work

Now it’s your turn. Just copy and paste this list, insert your answers and leave ’em for me in the comments. 🙂

Le list

Mood:
Lips:
Fragrance:
Breakfast:
First song I heard today:
Latest makeup find you’re telling all your homies about:
Outfit:
Lovin’ it:
Something you don’t know about me:
Goals for the week:

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Smokey Eyes and Expert Assassins

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Have you seen the movie Wanted starring Angelina Jolie? It’s a cheesy action flick with several cool Matrix-inspired scenes. Angie looks great in it, and hawt day-am! — girlfriend sure works the smokey eye. I counted her wearing at least four stunning variations of it in brown-beige-black. Seriously, where do full-time, expert assassins find time to blend in the outer V? I always assumed they spent their free time cleaning guns and practicing jiujitsu rolls and whatnot. Who knew?

The movie itself didn’t exactly inspire me (two words: exploding rats), but I was inspired by Angie’s makeup in the film. I see some smokey eye looks in my future, for sure.

Speaking of smokey eyes, here are a few posts that featured them. How do you feel about smokey eyes? Have you ever worn one before?

  • Runway Smokey Eyes 101
    “Despite my proclamations of klutziness, Gordon Epsinet, Vice President of Makeup Artistry for MAC Cosmetics, insists that just about anyone (even me) can do a hot smokey eye.”

  • Mally City Chick Smokey Eye Kit in Nolita Navy: Makes Blue Eyes Easy
    “Nature’s rarest color isn’t always easy to work with, and even the simplest of blue eye looks can quickly devolve into hot blue messes if you don’t know which products to use and where to put them. Enter Mally Beauty’s Nolita Navy smokey eye kit (pictured up top), a palette of blue and peach shadows with a handy black pencil liner.”

  • Simple Smokey Eye with Chanel Winter Nights Quad
    “As far as complete looks are concerned, this one is quick and easy to do. I used shades from the Chanel Winter Nights Quad, a versatile set with four basic, but pretty shades of pink, peachy gold, green and light brown. The look works well for the office or for things like family functions or semi-formals.”

  • MAC Smokey Brown and Purple Eye
    “I was inspecting the purplish nether regions under my eyes this morning and feeling pretty crappy because of the whole no sleep thing, so I decided to run with it and try a purplish-brown smokey eye. The result improved my sour mood and put a lil’ spring in my step, for sure!”

  • A Smokey Eye with MAC Club
    “I had a lot of fun with MAC Club eyeshadow today. Its versatility makes it great for creating quick, daytime smokey eyes. I had about three seconds to put on my makeup this morning, and I owe this look to MAC Club. Paired with a few new products from Fafi and the N Collections, MAC Club helped me finish this look in 10 minutes.”

  • A Black and Gold Smokey Eye
    “I finally got my paws on MAC Fafi yesterday, and all I have to say is MEOW! Love it. This morning I busted out a few things from the collection — Fafi Eyes 1 Quad, Nice Vice Paint Pot and the Not So Innocent Lipstick — and created this subtle gold and black smokey eye for work.”

  • A Smokey Eye with MAC Pigment in Purple
    “So, I’m trying to figure out what makeup look to wear to the midnight Sex and the City show tonight. Purple + smokey eye = a lil’ bit out of my comfort zone, but I thought I’d give it a whirl.”

Tabby Cat Update

I found out that the pet store across the street offers low-cost veterinary services every so often and that the next time is this coming week, so I’m taking Tabs there for a full check up. 🙂 Worms be gone (ewww)!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. On Sundays a bunch of fellow beauty bloggers submit what they felt were some of their best posts of the week for a weekly roundup, and here they are. Here are last week’s best posts by the gals of the Beauty Blog Network.
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