Make Up For Ever

Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Invisible Cover Concealer

January 12th, 2016 by Karen 29 Comments

Let me tell you what happens when you’re addicted to sugar, and all of a sudden you can’t have it in the morning, and you’re hella pregnant.

You get fixated on things, like eating a plate of beignets and drinking a latte, and that becomes all you want in the world, and you can’t stop thinking about it.

And then there are the hallucinations, which are real and legit, I swear! Everywhere I look, I see sugary delights, even in the nifty tip on this new Make Up For Ever Ultra HD Invisible Cover Concealer ($27).

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Have You Seen the Make Up For Ever Lash Show?

November 6th, 2015 by Karen 16 Comments

Quick! — I need an excuse to wear a pair of these new false lashes by Make Up For Ever…

How about a drag queen-themed baby shower?

Is that even a thing?? If it isn’t, I think we need to make it one, because if I can do drag queen karaoke for my thirtieth birthday party, then a drag queen-themed baby shower is the next logical jump, obviously. 🙂

make up for ever lash show c 802 — Make Up For Ever C-802 Lashes ($18)

MUFE just launched these last month in a staggering 50 styles! They’re $18 each, made of synthetic fibers and come with a small bottle of latex-free lash glue.

The styles are divided into four categories — Natural Volume (for everyday enhancement), Dramatic Volume (slightly fuller lash styles for amped up day or night looks), Winged (for cat eye-style meow!) and Artistic (for show-stopping lashes).

make up for ever n 403 — Make Up For Ever N 403 Lashes ($18)

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Don’t Be Afraid to Use Multiple Primers to Address Different Issues Around Your Face

November 4th, 2015 by Karen 32 Comments

make up for ever primers — Mix and match your primers!

One of the beautiful (but sometimes frustrating when you can’t control yourself) truths about makeup is that you can make it as easy or as complicated as you want.

Case in point: primer. Most of the time, either because I’m inherently lazy or because I’m almost always running behind, I’ll use a single un-tinted pore-minimizing primer all over my face, except for on my lids, where I’ll use a separate eye primer, but sometimes I’ll feel like going the extra mile, so I’ll use a combination of multiple face primers, and sometimes I’ll even incorporate an additional color-correcting primer.

Make Up For Ever’s Step 1 Skin Equalizers are good for things like this.

When I feel like going that extra mile, before applying my main face primer, I’ll use a separate orange-tinted color-correcting primer first, and I like $36 Make Up For Ever Radiant Primer Peach for this, to neutralize any purple, blue and gray tones on my skin, which for me is usually under my eyes, around my mouth and along my jawline.

make up for ever redness correcting primer — Make Up For Ever Redness Correcting Primer ($36)

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Neat and New to Me: Tom Ford Metallic Mink Eye Defining Pencil

October 20th, 2015 by Karen 25 Comments

Neat and New to Me

Unlike my Unsung Heroes series, which features permanent collection products I’ve known and loved a long time, the Neat and New to Me series showcases permanent collection products that slipped under my radar for a while, but then I discovered them! — and now I think they’re neat and new to me.

The answer, my friend, would be yes. A thousand times yes!

If a roving band of performance artists stopped me one day on the sidewalk in downtown Novato and asked, “Excuse us, miss [yes, they’d say ‘miss’]? Would you mind if we poured this bucket of melted Tom Ford Metallic Mink eyeliner on you to cover your entire body from head to toe like a fabulous coat of golden purply bronze?” I’d say yes, even though it would be hard to clean up, ’cause it would look fabulous.

tom ford metallic mink swatch — Tom Ford Eye Defining Pencil in Metallic Mink

All I have to say about this eyeliner is “Get outta my dreams; get into my car! — and grab me a backup while you’re at it, yo!” Metallic Mink looks SO lovely smudged along lower lash lines, especially with reddish browns or purply brown eyeshadows on your lids.

It’s a shimmery golden bronzed brown eye pencil with a slight essence of purple that comes through every once in a while, and it’s the closest thing I’ve found to BECCA’s fabled Cabrera liner. Although it’s not an exact dupe, it’s close enough to warrant a ticker-tape parade and a pair of naked baby angels playing harps. 🙂

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Make Up For Ever Holiday 2015

October 6th, 2015 by Karen 13 Comments

Hold me close and kiss me deeply, MUFE, as we snuggle by the Christmas tree and the roaring fire…

Hello, holiday collections! MUFE, you had me at glitter and hot pink. 🙂

Make Up For Ever’s holiday 2015 collection is cutie-cute-cute, and as for the packaging, there’s no man junk visible within a three-mile radius.

The collection includes six limited edition sets, and here’s a look at three of them (not shown are the lash kit, the gloss duo and the mini brush kit). They’re some of the best deals I’ve seen so far this holiday makeup season.

make up for ever holiday 2015 15 artist shadow — Make Up For Ever Holiday 2015 15 Artist Shadow palette ($59, a $221 value)

make up for ever holiday 2015 artist shadow — The Make Up For Ever Holiday 2015 15 Artist Shadow palette

The colors themselves are all re-promotes from the permanent line, so these aren’t brand new products, but you may not mind, even if you already have a few of the colors…

And the reason for that? Price break!

make up for ever holiday 2015 artist plexi gloss collection — Make Up For Ever Holiday 2015 Artist Plexi-Gloss Collection ($150, a $228 value)

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MAKE UP FOR EVER Jamie Chung and Andreja Pejić Artist Shadow Palettes

August 5th, 2015 by Karen 22 Comments

Yeah, man! I’d immediately drop the sweater I’m knitting for my cat (I’m not actually doing this, but it is on my to-do list) for the two new Make Up For Ever Jamie Chung and Andreja Pejić Artist Shadow Palettes because they’re such a great-freakin’ deal.

Would you believe that the pans in these “Be Bold. Be Unexpected. Be You.” eyeshadow palettes are actually bigger than the regular full-size singles in MUFE’s permanent line? Like really — who does that…? These days, I feel like it’s usually the opposite. So many brands are giving less product and charging more for it, so it’s rare when a line doesn’t.

Here’s a review of MUFE’s Andreja Pejić and Jamie Chung “Be Bold. Be Unexpected. Be You.” palettes, both of which are $48 and available now exclusively at sephora.com.

Press play! 🙂 C’mon, I know you wanna.

Products mentioned…

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

7 Covetable Coral Lipsticks That’ll Make You Go Completely Crazy for Coral

June 29th, 2015 by Karen 24 Comments

Some people go cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs. I go crazy for coral…lips, which I will totally wear any time of year, but fiendishly in summer.

This time of year I wear coral lips. A lot. Practically every other day! I mean, coral as a color in summer? That never goes out of style.

And when it comes to coral lips and permanent colors, here are seven of my faves… 🙂

1. MAC Amplified Lipstick in Vegas Volt

Vegas Volt. Something must be powering all those slot machines and lights. Maybe it’s Vegas Volt. It’s the coral I wear when I feel like kicking doors down in my four-inch heels.

Intense, opaque and potent enough to send a lightning bolt of pigment straight to your soul. It’s $16 and available now at MAC counters, stores and online.

2. Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in Streak

Urban Decay Streak Revolution Lipstick 10 — Urban Decay Streak Revolution Lipstick in Streak

Flamingoes. Creamy coral pink Streak reminds me of flamingoes. 🙂 This fresh, summery coral kicks so much @ss when worn with dewy skin, teal or gold liner, and mountains of mascara. It’s $22 and available now online and at Urban Decay counters, Ulta, Sephora and select Macy’s stores.

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How to Keep Your Makeup Looking Fresh in Hot Weather

June 17th, 2015 by Karen 35 Comments

how to keep your makeup fresh in hot weather — Sweating like Keith on the banks of the Mississippi…

There was a moment last week on Magazine Street in New Orleans when El Hub and I were sitting at a booth in a cafe while sipping iced strawberry lemonades to cool down when I officially realized just how unfathomably hot and muggy summertime New Orleans is/was. I was leaning back in the booth and spacing out, just staring blankly at a ceiling fan and the artwork on the walls when I leaned forward, and I felt the back of my sticky, sweat-soaked dress literally peel away from the vinyl.

Yup, ’twas pretty gross.

I think I sweated through that entire trip, but I also got some extra sweaty hands-on experience getting my makeup to stay put in hot, humid weather.

Gotta love silver linings. 🙂

I could’ve just gone barefaced and not worn anything, but where’s the fun in that?

Things to help your warpaint last through hot and/or humid weather…

Primer
Powder
Setting spray
Blotting papers (which we’ll talk about in a minute)

For me, these are all hot-weather non-negotiables.

In cooler climates, when it comes to makeup improv and leaving things out of my routine, I usually have a more go-with-the-flow attitude, but when faced with extreme heat and humidity, I think it really helps to use these products if you don’t want your makeup to slide off your face.

Primer

Starting with primer, I used two last week (the Make Up For Ever Step 1 Skin Equalizer Smoothing Primer and NARS Pro Prime Smudge-Proof Eyeshadow Base pictured above), one for my face makeup and one for my eyes.

Really, there are dozens, if not hundreds, of different kinds of primers out there, but I look for ones that do these two things to really help my makeup last longer: 1) smooth out the surface of my skin, and 2) latch onto whatever I happen to layer on top of them, be it BB cream, foundation, concealer, powder, what have you.

To apply a face primer, I blot my skin first with a tissue to remove any excess oil or moisture. Then I massage the primer on my oiliest spots — my cheeks, nose, chin and forehead.

After that, I do the same thing with eye primer, blotting first, then applying it to my lids, into my brows (to help my brow products last longer), and under my eyes (to keep my concealer in place).

I give them about five minutes to absorb, then blot one more time with a tissue before applying my foundation, concealer, etc., on top.

Powder

mac mineralize skinfinish natural — MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium Tan and a Chanel travel-size face brush

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