Loreal

Ulta Adventures! One Girl’s Ongoing Quest to Find Bad$ss Beauty Bargains

January 15th, 2015 by Karen 34 Comments

Because, obviously, the most logical thing to do with that new Real Techniques Contour Brush you just picked up on sale on Ulta is use it to pretend you’re contouring your cat’s cheekbones.

Tabs contouring with his new Real Techniques Contour Brush…

Obviously!

Yeah, um, my brush stash is looking a little more robust these days — robust like my tabby! — because I went to Ulta last weekend and the Real Techniques brushes and brush kits were on sale.

They still are, too (buy one get the second one 50% off), and you know me and the word, “sale.”

I’m definitely my mother’s daughter. 🙂

[Continue reading…]

These $8.99 L’Oreal Infallible Silkissime Eyeliners Are Like Getting Two of UD’s 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils for the Price of One

October 1st, 2014 by Karen 13 Comments

“YOU DON’T NEED ANY MORE EYELINER,” yelled my friend Cindy over email yesterday as we discussed what to do on our next meetup (this was right after I proposed lunch and a trip to Ulta).

Oh, really, Cindy? L’Oreal’s new Infallible Silkissime Eyeliners ($8.99) would beg to differ. 🙂

L'Oreal Infallible Silkissime Eyeliner shades from the purple to the silver: Pure Purple, Cobalt Blue, True Teal, Gold and Silver — Left to right, from the purple pencil to the silver one, those are Pure Purple, Cobalt Blue, True Teal, Gold and Silver

When I hold one of these pigmented, long-lasting, silky smooth liners up to my ear, I hear one of my favorite sounds in the world… The sound of spare change jingling into my Hello Kitty coin bank. 🙂 Because they’re less than 10 bucks! And they’re more or less the same as Urban Decay’s $20 24/7 Glide-On Pencils, which means they’re pretty awesome.

Don’t dawdle after you apply them, because once they set (it takes about a minute), they don’t budge. I like using them, especially Pure Purple and Cobalt Blue, for pops of bold color along my lower lash lines and inner corners.

L'Oreal Infallible Silkissime Eyeliner swatches from the left: Pure Purple, Cobalt Blue, True Teal, Gold and Silver — Swatches from the left: Pure Purple, Cobalt Blue, True Teal, Gold and Silver

The only thing I’m not crazy about is their reluctance to hang out on my water lines. On my lash lines? Not a problem. They’ll stick around for eight hours between touchups, but on my water lines, they’re gone within two.

L'Oreal Infallible Silkissime Eyeliner in Pure Purple — Pure Purple (lipstick is Lipstick Queen Play It)

[Continue reading…]

L’Oreal Visible Lift Blur Blush Is a Tad Too Short-Lived to Be a Minor Makeup Miracle

September 30th, 2014 by Karen 12 Comments

L'Oreal Visible Lift Blur Blush Review — The new L’Oreal Visible Lift Blur Blushes, $12.99 each

One day you may find yourself half-jokingly agreeing to run a half marathon.

Then, later, as the illustrious day approaches, you may find yourself hoping that the people who invited you to run the race with them, forget (oh please, oh please, oh please!).

Chances are, they won’t.

So you start training.

During your first 10-mile training run on the treadmill, maybe you develop a wicked case of chafing, and maybe it’s directly under the middle strap of your sports bra, right there on your solar plexus.

Maybe it hurts (it does, a lot).

And maybe the only painkillers that seem to work at all are happy thoughts.

Happy thoughts about happy things, like blush. 🙂 Like the new L’Oreal Visible Lift Blur Blushes ($12.99 each, and available in three shades).

L'Oreal Visible Lift Blur Blushes from the left: Soft Pink, Soft Berry and Soft Peach — From the left: Soft Pink, Soft Berry and Soft Peach

Hello, genius! That’s what these new blurring blushes are, especially if you’re a dame of a certain age (if you catch my drift).

Imagine the slick, slippery, silicone-like feel of a Smashbox primer, but in more natural-looking colors, like light peach, medium pink and medium berry.

Introducing the L’Oreal Visible Lift Blur Blushes.

L'Oreal Visible Lift Blur Blushes with a MAC Lipglass for scale — With a MAC Lipglass for scale

They feel kind of like a mousse…and I think they definitely make the skin tone and texture of my cheeks look more even and smoother.

L'Oreal Visible Lift Blur in Soft Peach — Soft Peach

These are really great disciplinarians when it comes to those pores that are constantly trying to out-diva each other. I have some on the apples of my cheeks that are like Christina, Mariah, Beyonce and Celine, and these blushes make everyone play nice. 🙂

Whenever I wear one of them, my pores look mellower and smaller (but aren’t completely gone, of course), and I swear my skin looks smoother.

L'Oreal Visible Lift Blur in Soft Pink — Soft Pink

[Continue reading…]

Bring the Brow Bar With You: Get a Pencil, Wax and Comb for $9 With the L’Oreal Brow Stylist Sculptor

September 25th, 2014 by Karen 21 Comments

As far as successful rebellion campaigns go, the long-running one being waged by my brows has been quite successful…from their point of view. If I had a fat tabby for every sparse spot or stray brow, I’d be living the cat lady high life, I tell ya.

L'Oreal Brow Stylist Sculptors in Blonde and Deep Brunette — Two of the three L’Oreal Brow Stylist Sculptors in Blonde and Deep Brunette

Lately my forces have been attempting to squash the rebellion with L’Oreal’s new Brow Stylist Sculptor ($8.99, and available in Blonde, Brunette and Dark Brunette), a dual-ended product that comes with a pencil for brow filling on one end and a clear, matte setting wax on the other.

But that’s not all. You also get a stiff brush for combing through those unruly brow hairs, which is quite handy. It’s built right into one of the caps.

Just fill in any sparse spots using the brow filling pencil, comb through with the brush, and set the hairs in place with the wax.

I won’t go so far as to say that I’ve squashed the rebellion with these, but we’ve made progress…

I wear Deep Brunette, the darkest shade. It’s a dark neutral brown with a slight gray undertone. The brow pencil end feels waxy and soft, much like Benefit’s Brow Pencils. When I use it, I think my brows look great for five or six hours, but the formula breaks up slowly as the day wears on. On top of that, the wax only offers light control, and the bushiest parts of my brows could use something with stiffer hold.

L'Oreal Brow Stylist Sculptor in Deep Brunette Before (left) and After (right) — Wearing Deep Brunette, before (left) and after (right)

[Continue reading…]

When Lips Are Thirsty, Pop Hits the Spot: L’Oreal Balm Pop Lip Balm

September 24th, 2014 by Karen 11 Comments

L'Oreal Balm Pops — The new Balm Pop line by L’Oreal

L’Oreal’s been dropping balms, baby!

They recently unleashed three new lines of lip balms, each offering a different level of coverage. There are the Balm Nudes for sheer color, the high coverage Glossy Balm Crayons — your tickets to full-on pigment paradise — and the Balm Pops (four of the six available shades shown here) for medium coverage.

Four of the six L'Oreal Balms Pops, $7.99 each — Four of the six L’Oreal Balm Pop lip balms, $7.99 each

First, that’s a lot of lip balm…

Unless you spice them up with lip liner, lipstick or gloss, at some point, some of the shades start to look the same.

At least they do on my pigmented lips, but since my frequently dry, flaky pout can use all the moisture it can get, I can’t help but make crazy Jan Brady eyes whenever I spot a new lip balm on a store shelf.

L’Oreal’s new Balm Pops ($7.99) are pretty cool… Smooth and non-sticky, with a faint brown sugar flavor and scent, they feel a lot like Benefit’s $18 Tinted Lip Balms.

L'Oreal Balms Pop from the left to the right: Wild Lily, Bold Blush, Fiery Red and Electric Pink — From left to right: Wild Lily, Bold Blush, Fiery Red and Electric Pink

L'Oreal Balm Pop in 410 Wild Lily — Wild Lily

[Continue reading…]

These L’Oreal Glossy Balms Are Ideal for Lazy Sunday Afternoons Filled With French Fries and Vanilla Shakes

September 18th, 2014 by Karen 21 Comments

Dear Karl Lagerfeld,

Look, I get it. I do. I totally understand why you feel so strongly about sweatpants. I feel the same way about wearing pajamas in public.

When I grew up, pajamas were strictly for use at home, and I still hold on to that belief. No one should have to see a grown man wearing red plaid pajamas on a Tuesday afternoon at the mall. I mean, really? You couldn’t spare 10 seconds to put on jeans? Please…

Sweatpants, however, I don’t know… I really love some of mine, and they’re not all bad, Karl. I have a killer pair by Zella that does great things for my bum. Makes me look like I spend all day doing squats with J. Lo and cutting carbs.

Plus, I wouldn’t know what else I’d wear with my L’Oreal Colour Riche Glossy Balms.

Loreal Gloss Balm from the left: Pink Me Up, My Babydoll, Lovely Mocha and Petite Plum — From the left: Pink Me Up, My Babydoll, Lovely Mocha and Petite Plum

Come on, Karl, don’t act like you’re too good for the drugstore. *Snaps in a Z formation.* I’m telling you, I really think you’d like these balms. They have as much pigment as any of the other lippies in my makeup bag and an elegant, soft shine worthy of the House of Chanel.

Loreal Gloss Balm packaging — Cute type!

[Continue reading…]

I’m a Girl Without Curl When I Wear L’Oreal’s Miss Manga Mascara

September 3rd, 2014 by Karen 19 Comments

Based on the cuteness factor of the packaging, at the very least, I expected L’Oreal’s Miss Manga Mascara ($7.99) to grant me lashes that Jem and the Holograms would envy.

The pink and black tube? The bendy brush? The very name itself? — Miss Manga Mascara?

It would have been silly of me to have expected anything other than cartoony doe-eyed drama.

Loreal Miss Manga Mascara brush — See the joint on the wand just below the brush head? That’s where the wand flexes and bends (like one of those flexible straws)

L’Oreal’s latest mascara, Miss Manga is available now in three shades for $7.99 each. The one I’m wearing in the pics below is called 374 Blackest Black.

Now, this stuff is designed to create a very distinct lash look — thick, clumpy, kind of wet and glossy.

Not everyone’s cup of tea, and I can see why, as it’s a little costume-ish and not very natural.

L'Oreal Miss Manga Mascara before and after — L’Oreal Miss Manga Mascara, before and after

[Continue reading…]

An Easy 5-Minute Hairstyle To Try: The Textured, Braided Bun

February 3rd, 2014 by Karen 22 Comments

You know when your hair reaches that maddening length — that hellacious hair point of no return — when trying to wrangle it into place becomes about as easy as trying to ride a bucking bronco?

I’m at that point.

I probably should’ve gotten a haircut about a month ago, but eh. You know how it goes…

The side braid has been totally saving my butt lately. It’s cute and easy (and I feel like Katniss Everdeen when I rock it), but I still like to switch things up.

Enter the messy braided bun! 🙂 It’s just as easy and only takes five minutes.

I got the idea from L’Oreal Consulting Celebrity Hairstylist Mara Roszak, who works her hair magic on glam red carpet gals like Emma Stone, Olivia Wilde and Mila Kunis, in an online webinar. I asked Mara for an easy, trendy hairstyle I could do in five minutes, and she suggested a textured bun.

Importantly, it’s easy. Just start by putting your hair into a ponytail. Then, braid the pony (haha, I just wanted to write, “braid the pony”), and secure the ends with an elastic.

That’s the Unicorn Sliver Amethyst Necklace by Crystal Cactus…

[Continue reading…]