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Lips

Milk Makeup Lip Color Loves the Lived-In Look

June 21st, 2017 by Karen 11 Comments

milk makeup gnarly lip color
Feeling Gnarly, dude, ’cause I’m wearing Milk Makeup Lip Color in Gnarly ($22, one of 10 shades)

Special shout-out to MBB reader Tatiana for reminding me in the comments yesterday that sometimes all you need is mascara, a bright lipstick and a smile.

So right, Tatiana. 🙂

Bright lips are a good idea any time of year, but I think they’re a great idea in summer, especially if you’re into the makeup minimalist thing. You can throw on a bold, bright lip and skip the extra steps, because the lips can carry the whole look and make anything else you happen to include — mascara, brows, BB cream, highlighter, what have you — gravy.

milk makeup lip color swatches
From the top: C.R.E.A.M, Name Drop, Freshhh and Gnarly

These long-wearing matte Milk Makeup Lip Colors (I know I’ve been on the Milk Makeup train lately, but I hope you can bear with me. I love ’em!) are all in the permanent line and $22 each. And they totally work for this type of look because, dude…they’re intense! I can picture someone on the Milk Product Development Team saying, “Man, let’s load these up with as much pigment as humanly possible. I don’t want to layer!”

And that’s just what they did. One layer is all ya need.

I’ve tried four of them — hot pink Freshhh, orange-red Name Drop, fuchsia Gnarly and peachy nude C.R.E.A.M. The unscented, unflavored formula lasts about four hours, depending on what you’re doing with your lips (like whether you’re eating, drinking, smooching or just chillin’).

The matte lipstick category is SO crowded right now, but these look instantly “worn in,” and I think it makes them stand out. They almost look like matte stains, and it’s super cool and kind of unusual for a lipstick.

milk makeup cream lip color
C.R.E.A.M.

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There are 11 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Lips, Makeup, Milk Makeup, Product Reviews

MAC Relentlessly Red Retro Matte Lipstick Is a Shout-Out to the Jungle

June 20th, 2017 by Karen 22 Comments

It’s a jungle out there…

SRLSY, shout-out to the jungle for having The. Best. Plants. Ever.

I spotted this pretty plant at a place called Haiku Gardens on Oahu last week, and it’s been haunting my dreams ever since!

I think it might be a flower…? Wow, how striking is that red? It’s so intense, and the finish! I don’t even know where to start… Matte, and I love the way it contrasts with the green leaves behind it. I mean, Mother Nature? *Mwah!* Best painter ever.

Anyway, I was wanting to wear the exact same color on my lips, and someone on Instagram mentioned that the red in this pic looked like MAC Relentlessly Red ($17 and available in the permanent line), so when I was getting ready today (by the way, this is probably the most makeup I’ve worn in two weeks), I dug through my MAC drawer…

And I found it! Yay! It’s a perfect match.

mac relentlessly red lipstick 2
I’m wearing a mish-mash of things today, not gonna lie (I just kept piling stuff on and hoped for the best!). I’m wearing Chanel Mirage Illusion D’Ombre Cream Shadow, MAC Hushed Tone Blush and Urban Decay Diamond Dog Eyeshadow on my lids; MAC Relentlessly Red Lipstick on my cheeks; Milk Makeup Lit Highlighter on my upper cheekbones; and MAC Matchmaster Concealer

One of the Retro Matte Lipsticks in the MAC permanent line, Relentlessly Red is a bright coral-red with a fuchsia spirit that sets it apart from many other MAC reds, like Lady Danger, which is more orange, and MAC Ruby Woo, which is cooler- and bluer-toned.

The MAC Retro Matte Lipsticks vary in terms of how dry the formula feels. Some are smoother, slightly more “moisturizing” (air quotes, because none of them are exactly moisturizing) and consequently easier to wear than others.

Relentlessly Red is one of the drier ones (but that’s not to say that it’s super dry) and benefits from a little babying and prep work if you have any flake action on your lips. In that case, exfoliate first; then prep your pout with a layer of lip balm, and I used Urban Decay Lip Love today. Then blot and apply Relentlessly Red.

Because I’ve been *mucho lazy* lately, I had been applying lipstick straight from the bullet, but I recently started using a lip brush to apply lipstick, usually a layer or two, and then I pat everything down with my finger.

It’s more work than going straight from the tube, but I like the look. It looks like my lipstick is merging with my lips, as opposed to sitting on top of them.

It’s all part of that ongoing phase I’m in where I want my makeup to look like I’m not trying too hard (even when I am), and that’s the effect I get with a lip brush.

mac relentlessly red lipstick 1
Take me back to the jungle

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There are 22 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Lips, MAC Makeup, Makeup

The Urban Decay Naked Heat Palette, 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils and Vice Lipsticks: Burn, Baby, Burn!

June 7th, 2017 by Karen 31 Comments

urban decay naked heat heat k
I’m feeling the heat! That’s the new Urban Decay Naked Heat palette on my eyes, the UD Alkaline 24/7 Glide-On Pencil on my lash lines, and UD Vice Lipstick in Heat.

I don’t know if there’s an official term to describe the fear of Bunsen burners…like “Bunsenburn-a-phobia,” but if there isn’t one, there totally should be, because whenever I was in the lab back in college and had to stand near a Bunsen burner, I’d always quiver a little…and not in a cute booty shaking way.

OPEN FLAMES —–> SO SCARY!

You’ll be happy to know that there are no intense open flames in/around the new Urban Decay Naked Heat collection. *Whew!*

urban decay naked heat open
Sooo many mattes, YES!

The new $54 Urban Decay Naked Heat palette arrives June 12th, but that’s only for UD Beauty Junkies, members of UD’s online rewards program (which you can sign up to join here). Beauty Junkie members will get exclusive early access to an extremely limited supply of Naked Heat palettes that day. For everyone else, Naked Heat lights up later this month, and it’ll continue to smolder in perpetuity, though, as it and the two eye pencils launching with it are being added to the permanent line.

There are also three lipsticks in the collection, but those are limited edition.

urban decay naked heat swatches final
From the top, the Urban Decay Naked Heat Palette, the 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils and the Vice Lipsticks

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There are 31 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Eyes, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews, Urban Decay

Unsung Makeup Heroes: Hourglass Girl Lip Stylo in Explorer

June 6th, 2017 by Karen 10 Comments

hourglass explorer girl lip stylo
Praise be to coral lipstick! Hourglass Girl Lip Stylo in Explorer is errrrrrthang

The long-running Unsung Heroes series here on Makeup and Beauty Blog features some of our all-time favorite permanent collection products.

You know when you’re standing in the middle of Sephora, carrying as much as you can possibly carry in your paws, but you see one more coral lipstick that makes your eyes light up, and you think, “Oh, boy, I dunno… I’ve already got too much. Do I really need another coral lipstick??”

GIRL. The answer is yes. The answer is always yes. 🙂

I keep finding myself reaching for Hourglass Girl Lip Stylo in Explorer on my lady dates lately. It’s a soft pinkish coral. It’s not a super bright orange-y coral, so it doesn’t go into costume/vintage territory…which can be a totally kick-@ss look, for sure, but I have to be in the mood for it.

I think it’s an awesome everyday neutral.

The Girl Lip Stylos are $32 each, so they’re definitely on the expensive side, but if you have dry lips (which I do!), or, if you can’t stand it when your lipstick breaks up or gets patchy or latches on to your flakes, or if you just like easy-to-apply, low-maintenance lipsticks that you can throw on anywhere, even while you’re crossing Market Street in SF, which I totally did last weekend, they’re beyond great!

Creamy and oh, so hydrating, they feel fantastic on my lips (they’re unflavored and unscented, by the way), and they last about three hours.

Oh, and get this: even though I’ve owned Explorer for months and have worn it dozens of times, the pencil tip hasn’t flattened. It’s still pointy! I don’t know what kind of makeup voodoo is at work, but whatever Hourglass did, something is keeping the tip pointy.

hourglass girl lip stylo
Hourglass Girl Lip Stylos from the top: Believer, Creator, Explorer, Seeker and Peacemaker

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There are 10 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Hourglass, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews, Unsung Heroes

More MAC Metallic Lips Coming June 22nd

May 30th, 2017 by Karen 20 Comments

mac metallic lipstick summer 2017
The MAC Metallic Lipsticks are back in another LE release coming June 22nd for $17 each.

Dry lips, be gone! I will not have ye! — ’cause, honestly, I don’t want any flakes up in my mix when I’m wearing these new MAC Metallic Lipsticks, because flakes + metallic finishes equal nooo!

Metallic lips are back. In the event that you’ve been taking the longest cat nap ever (in which case, I’m so jelly because: naps!), they’re back in style and 100% Rosie-the-Robot chic.

If these are tickling your memory chips, you might be recalling the Metallic Lipstick launch from earlier this spring (remember the cray-cray green?). That was an LE collection, and so is this one, which will be available at all MAC locations and online from June 22nd to August 3rd.

mac forbidden romance lipstick
Forbidden Romance…

Of the 17 shades, 10 are re-promotes from that earlier launch — deep royal purple Royal Hour, bright bluish pink Foiled Rose, cool reddish burgundy Hades Fire, cool neutral pink Pale Rose, silvery Silver Spoon, warm neutral In Lust, bronzy Jupiter, white frosty Pearly One, deep burgundy red wine Disobedient and blackened blue Anything Once. For swatches of those cuties, click here.

mac ionized iris lipstick
Ionized Iris

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There are 20 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Lips, MAC Makeup, Makeup, Product Reviews

Drugstore Needs and Nopes, Vol. 2

May 26th, 2017 by Karen 16 Comments

drugstore needs and nopes may 26

I like kickin’ it at the drugstore because I can “ooh” and “ah” over eye palettes and shampoo without my wallet raising hell.

Here are some drugstore gems that caught my fancy this week, along with a few misses.

1. Revlon Kiss Balm Lip Balms ($4.99 each)

revlon kiss balm
Revlon Kiss Balm Lip Balm ($4.99, available in six shades)

If I were eight years old and spotted these Revlon Kiss Balms at CVS, I would BEG my mom to get me one or two or three. (“Pretty please, Mommy!”)

They’re so cute! These moderately moisturizing twist-up balms contain fab fruit oils and SPF 20, but they’re super sheer, so I can’t really tell the difference between them. Juicy Peach and Fresh Strawberry look pretty much the same, but that’s OK, because they’re just TOO CUTE.

They’re just basic balms, but oh, yeah — they taste and smell like gummy ? bears, too.

BOOM. 🙂

VERDICT: Need!

Revlon Kiss Balm Lip Balms ingredients
Avobenzone 2.0%, Octinoxate 7.5%, Oxybenzone 3.0%. Other Ingredients: Polybutene, Diisostearyl Malate, Isononyl Isononanoate, Bis-Diglyceryl Polyacyladipate-2, Octyldodecyl Neopentanoate, Polyethylene, Ozokerite, Diisopropyl Dimer Dilinoleate, Cera Alba ((Beeswax) Cire D Abeille), Parfum (Fragrance), Flavor, Punica Granatum Seed Oil, Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Seed Oil, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Seed Oil, Calcium Aluminum Borosilicate, Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax, Cetyl Palmitate, Benzoic Acid, Oxidized Polyethylene, BHT, Silica, Sodium Saccharin, Benzyl Benzoate, Limonene, Benzyl Alcohol, Citral, Amyl Cinnamal, Hexyl Cinnamal, Hydroxycitronellal, Alpha-Isomethyl Ionone, Linalool

2. Herbal Essences Bio:Renew Volume Arabica Coffee Fruit Shampoo and Conditioner ($5.99 each)

herbal essences volume arabica coffee fruit
Herbal Essences Bio:Renew Volume Arabica Coffee Fruit Shampoo and Conditioner ($5.99 each)

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There are 16 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Drugstore Beauty Finds, Eyes, Herbal Essences, Lips, Makeup, Physicians Formula, Product Reviews, Revlon, Wet N Wild

Funky Bullets! A Quick Look at a Few Shades From the Estée Lauder Pure Color Love Lipstick Line

May 25th, 2017 by Karen 7 Comments

estee lauder pure color love lipstick
From the left: four of 30 Estée Lauder Pure Love Lipsticks ($22 each) in Shock & Awe, Blase Buff, Radical Chic and Raw Sugar

I can’t be the only person out there whose first thought when they saw these funky angled bullets was to use them as a whistle…

estee lauder pure color love lipstick k
Wearing and holding Radical Chic

I just can’t be!

For the record, you can apply the Estée Lauder Pure Love Lipsticks ($22 each) straight from the bullets, then rub your lips together to move the lipstick around, but the color concentrates in the middle and feathers out unevenly to where it ends up looking like you were trying to recreate something editorial, chic and Vogue-like but didn’t quite get there…

The angled tip does work well, especially for getting into the corners and around the edges of your lips, but it’s a tad awkward to wield at first.

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There are 7 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Estee Lauder, Lips, Makeup, Product Reviews

The NARS Orgasm Collection: A New Three-Piece Release Arriving May 15th

May 11th, 2017 by Karen 23 Comments

nars orgasm collection may 2017
The new three-piece NARS Orgasm Collection, arriving May 15th at NARS boutiques and the NARS website

Question: Is it possible to have multiple orgasms when you’re putting on your makeup in the morning?

Answer: Um…yeah?! It’s too easy to go there and do prepubescent boy jokes with NARS Orgasm. I’m sorry! Color me adolescent.

nars orgasm collection blush lipstick
NARS Collection products from the left: Orgasm Liquid Blush ($30), Orgasm Lipstick ($28) and Limited Edition Orgasm Blush ($30)

NARS has a new Orgasm collection. Shocker. But this one’s actually pretty exciting because there are two new versions of Orgasm — a liquid blush and a lipstick — neither of which I think I’ve ever seen from NARS before.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a respectable re-issue of Orgasm if the original Orgasm powder blush wasn’t up in the mix, and this one has new LE packaging.

When/where

The collection comes out on May 15th, and it’ll be at NARS boutiques and the NARS website. I know for sure that the powder blush is LE, but I’m not sure about the liquid blush and the lipstick. Will have to get back to you on that.

NARS Orgasm Liquid Blush ($30)

Obviously, one of the exciting things here is Orgasm Liquid Blush, and girl…FRAK, it’s good!

For comparison, it’s thicker than Benefit Benetint. Actually, have you ever worn the Veil Primer by Hourglass? I think it feels a lot like that. Almost like a runny lotion, and it’s slippery and kinda silicone-y.

nars orgasm collection swatches
From the top: Orgasm Blush, Orgasm Liquid Blush and Orgasm Lipstick

You know the gold shimmer in the original Orgasm? I dunno…but it borders on obnoxious for me sometimes because I’ve got this whole pore situation happening. There’s still gold shimmer in Liquid Orgasm, too, but it’s waaay toned down. It looks like a satiny peach pink with micro flecks of gold in it that peek out here and there.

You can use it on top of or underneath powder products, and it does well in both situations.

Yeah, it’s $30, and the glass bottle is pretty tiny, but the pump is easy to control, and if you pump one drop and spread it around with a brush or your finger, that drop will just keep spreading and spreading and spreading… It’s so concentrated!

nars orgasm liquid blush
I’m wearing NARS Orgasm Liquid Blush on my cheeks and Orgasm Lipstick on my lips

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There are 23 comments on this post. Leave yours.

Categories: Collections, Face, Lips, Makeup, NARS, Product Reviews

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