Product Reviews

MAC Makeup Ready Skin

January 9th, 2019 by Karen 8 Comments

Nope, I’m not mad about it! MAC’s latest launch of makeup primers is…unsurprisingly, all about primer, and yeah, it’s one of those releases comprised of re-promoted stuff (same products, new boxes).

Of course, there will be the usual hemming and hawing about this, but since almost all of the items in Makeup Ready Skin are things I’ve used and loved for years, I repeat: I’m not mad about it. There are things in this release that deserve the extra attention.

Also, I’m aware that there are peeps out there in Makeup Land who don’t see the point of primers. I can appreciate that… There are lots of makeup “must-haves” that I find totally unnecessary, but I don’t feel that way about primers. I love ’em. I think they make a huge difference in terms of wear time and how smooth my skin looks (especially in pics) when I use them.

And I’m a really big fan of face primers, because OH, HAI, PORES.

MAC Prep + Prime Fix+ ($27)

Q: How many bottles of this setting spray have I used over the years? A: So many. I even take a travel-sized one with me when I travel.

Fix+ is the first AND last thing I use whenever I apply makeup. As soon as I sit down, I spritz a few sprays all over my face — psst, psst! The light mist moisturizes my skin and dampens it, getting it ready for everything else I put on (lotion, primer, whatevs). It helps the next products I use absorb better than they do when my skin is dry.

Then, after all is said and done, I spray Fix+ again at the end of my rigmarole when I finish my last blend, usually right after the powder products. I do it to lock everything down and take the edge off any powdery-ness.

I ? Fix+! It’s ride-or-die for me.

Strobe Cream in Pinklite ($34)

Also a huge fan of Strobe Cream. I wear it on bare skin for no-makeup makeup days, or I mix it into MAC Studio Fix Foundation, which is nothing short of magical. If you want to set it with powder, I recommend Mineralize Skinfinish Natural Powder, which is THE BEST face powder in the MAC line IMO.

There are a few different Strobe Cream shades, but the only one I really use is Pinklite — the original Strobe Cream color. It’s a pearly pink that looks good on everyone.

Prep + Prime Natural Radiance ($42)

Another underrated primer I love. MAC has two versions of it — yellow and pink — and even though I’ve used both…I really can’t tell the difference between them on my skin from an arm’s length away.

I mean, if I really get up in there with a magnifying mirror, sure, I can see tiny pink bits of glitter in the pink one, but they’re both fab. One pump moisturizes my combo skin and smooths out my pores enough to be noticeable.

mac makeup ready skin 2 — Fancy packaging

FYI, Natural Radiance doesn’t minimize pores as aggressively as UD Optical Illusion or Make Up For Ever’s primer (the one in the gray tube). I think of it as more of an everyday look, so if you like natural-looking skin as much as I do, it could be a good fit for you.

Mineralize Timecheck Lotion ($32)

This lightweight primer smooths pores to a greater degree than Natural Radiance, and it also mattes down the skin to hide shine. I like to use it on areas that I don’t want to be super dewy, like the center of my forehead.

Fast Response Eye Cream ($32)

An oldie but goodie for smoothing your under-eye area before concealer. I also like to mix it into liquid concealers to sheer them out for a more natural look.

Prep + Prime Lip ($18.50)

This is the only item in the collection that I’m just “meh” about… It’s like a fancy clear lip balm.

On-The-Go Prep Set ($35)

By the way, there’s also a cute little limited edition trial kit in the collection for $35 with a bunch of MAC priming products, so if you’re new to the world of MAC primers, that would be a good way to go.

One last thing…

Ask me anything! If there’s anything else you’d like to know about any of these products, LET ME KNOW. After years of using them, I know them pretty well.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Happy hump day. ?

MAC Unsung Heroes: Coffee Eye Pencil

January 8th, 2019 by Karen 32 Comments

What’s an unsung makeup hero? For me, it’s an oftentimes underrated makeup morsel, a permanent collection product that scoots under the radar screen of many makeup lovers but regularly rocks my world. The long-running Unsung Heroes series features some of my favorites.

A picture of MAC Coffee Eye Pencil ($18) with a big-@ss cup of ☕ coffee? So meta, I know! Oh, and not just any big-@ss cup of coffee. This was my second cup of the morning.

Dude, I wake up at 5! An obnoxious level of caffeine is the only way I get through life these days.

I’ve mentioned MAC coffee a few times lately, but I’ve been hesitant to give it the “unsung heroes” treatment because, for reasons unknown, it vanished from the MAC website, which was sacrilegious craziness to me because it’s the best dark brown matte pencil I know.

It really is. I wear it more than all of my other MAC liner loves.

Yes, even more than Teddy, Costa Riche and — I can’t believe I’m about to type this — Powersurge.

Ever since I discovered the power of pencils that *aren’t* black, I’ve been all about brown liner (it’s the whole “black liner looks so harsh on me now that I’m older” thing).

mac coffee swatch — Livin’ that NC42 life, yo.

mac mineralize foundation loose medium dark — Wearing Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Natural Eyehadow Palette, MAC Coffee liner, MAC Gingerly blush, MAC Retro Matte Liquid Lipcolour in Burnt Spice and MAC Dazzleglass in Tangerine Tropica

This particular dark chocolate brown doesn’t have red undertones, and it does all the right things for me. It works on my water lines (both upper and lower), doesn’t irritate my eyes (and, GIRL, everything irritates my eyes these days), and it doesn’t smudge unless I want it to.

It’s not as soft as a gel or a soft kohl, so it doesn’t glide along like those formulas, but perhaps that’s why it sticks to skin so well. I can wear MAC Coffee all day long without any transferring onto my lower lash line or up into my crease.

(Don’t worry — you won’t be tugging to apply it. It’s hard, but it’s also very pigmented and not dry at all, so no skipping, if that makes sense.)

Be warned: Once you try MAC Coffee, you’ll become addicted…just like real coffee.

Speaking of coffee…

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Crazy About Creams! Honest Beauty Creme Cheek Blush

January 7th, 2019 by Karen 14 Comments

honest beauty creme cheek blush swatches final — Affordable and long-lasting!

This month I am CRAZY ABOUT CREAMS. Stay tuned for some of my favorite cream makeup products all throughout January.

BRRR! You guys…it’s so cold! ⛄

I know that that must sound mildly hilarious coming from a ☀️ Californian, but seriously, there’s a big difference between Northern California and Southern California. Here in NorCal, it gets almost freezing…

Hardy-har-har, yes, I know that 37 degrees isn’t arctic, but let me tell ya, it’s been so cold in the mornings that my butt bones, my teeth and even my eyebrows are cold!

Now, you’re probably thinking, “DUDE, why are we talking about the weather??” Well, because — gotcha! — cream makeup makeup, i.e. eyeshadow, cream blush, foundation, what have you. When the temperature drops, cream products come in extra handy because they tend to last longer when you aren’t sweating buckets.

Truth be told, though, I’m an all-year-round cream product junkie because I like how smooth they look on my skin (unlike powder), and I’ve been all about cream everything since I hit 40.

That said, the theme this month on MBB is “Crazy About Creams,” and I’ve been wearing today’s guests of honor off and on for more than a month. They’re the Honest Beauty Creme Cheek Blushes.

“Buildable and blendable color right at your fingertips, our cream blush is your go-to for an instant, dewy flush for cheeks. The lightweight formula melts onto skin seamlessly and comes in a stashable compact for easy on-the-go application.”

— honestbeauty.com

Directions:
Use your fingers or a sponge to lightly dab the cream blush onto the apples or your cheeks. Blend upward toward cheekbones in a circular motion.

Tips:
Smile to easily find the apples of your cheeks for spot-on application every time.

“Here at Honest Beauty, we pride ourselves on delivering clean beauty products that work. Our Crème Blush is formulated with naturally derived fruit extracts (like apple, raspberry and grape!) which means that, sometimes, natural separation can occur. You may or may not notice small droplets on the surface of the product, please rest assured that these droplets are completely normal and will naturally absorb back into the formula after use. This does not impact the quality of the product. We got you, babe. Keep on being beautiful.”

I’ve been using two of the four shades — a coral pink and a wine — and both are sheer-ish, so they’re natural looking. Plus, the satin finish goes well with any number of foundation finishes, including velvet, matte, satin and even dewy finishes. It’s all good.

The shades are also super affordable at $12.99, although you’d think you were working with a $32 Bobbi Brown Pot Rouge or a $29 Laura Mercier Cheek Cream), and beyond the awesome price, these have something else elevating them beyond the average cream blushes, and that’s longevity. They actually stay where they belong and don’t pull a disappearing act halfway through the day.

Ingredients:
Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Beeswax (Cera Alba), Euphorbia Cerifera (Candelilla) Wax, Ethylhexyl Palmitate, Polyglyceryl-6 Polyricinoleate, C10-18 Triglycerides, Copernicia Cerifera (Carnauba) Wax, Octyldodecyl Stearoyl Stearate, Glyceryl Caprylate, Triethyl Citrate, Alcohol, Pyrus Malus (Apple) Fruit Extract, Rubus Idaeus (Raspberry) Fruit Extract, Vanilla Planifolia Fruit Extract, Rubus Fruticosus (Blackberry) Fruit Extract, Vitis Vinifera (Grape) Fruit Extract. MAY CONTAIN: Mica (CI 77019), Titanium Dioxide (CI 77891), Iron Oxides (CI 77491, CI 77492, CI 77499), Red 7 Lake (CI 15850), Red 6 (CI 15850), Red 30 Lake (CI 73360), Ultramarines (CI 77007)

If the MAC Cream Colour Bases work well on your cheeks, you’ll probably also like these because they feel very similar. Just like you can with the CCBs, when you pick this up from a pan with a fingertip or a sponge, you can grab a good amount, even though they’re somewhat dry (as in not wet) for a cream. They apply creamy, even and smooth, even around dry spots.

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Fresh Friday: New Line of Organic Baby and Body Products Coming Soon to Target

January 4th, 2019 by Karen 12 Comments

MBB’s “Fresh Friday” series takes a look at new beauty brands (and venerable O.G. brands that are new to me). Let’s discover new makeup!

Toddlers really do say the darnedest things.

I asked Connor Claire what she thought about the new Hand Soap from Made Of, and instead of commenting on the foaminess of the bubbles or how soft her hands felt afterwards, she pointed at the bottle and said, “Mama, there’s a turtle! And she’s purple and smiling and wearing a necklace!”

Aw, babylove!

made of turtle final — Exhibit A: Turtle wearing jewelry

“Made Of” is a new line of organic baby, body and home care products coming this month to Target and Buy Buy Baby. They make shampoo and body wash, baby powder, diaper cream, nipple balm (oh, I remember those days), baby sunscreen, baby lotion, diapers, diaper rash cream, baby wipes (they also have a diaper subscription service), multi-surface cleanser, dish soap and hand soap, and everything’s reasonably priced between $4 and $13.

You’ll find them alongside Honest and Babyorganics and other brands with that familiar “natural” marketing — no dyes, fragrances, colors, GMOs, suflates, parabens, that kind of thing. And they seem more upfront than usual about the business of “clean” marketing. They’re completely transparent about where their ingredients comes from and where their products are manufactured, which is refreshing.

The line also has a bunch of well-known certifications, including Leaping Bunny and the Environmental Working Group, among others, and I dig that the ingredient lists on the labels show which ingredients are organic and which aren’t.

Connor and I have been testing a few things from the line, and the standouts have been the Foaming Hand Soap (rinses clean) and the Baby Shampoo (big bubbles).

I also like the Moisturizing Body Lotion, the main ingredient of which is aloe. It’s surprisingly hydrating for a thin, fairly runny lotion.

Everything is also unscented… And you know me — I like my body care to smell good, so I do wish that these had a little something-something scent-wise, but I understand the rationale.

Connor, of course, loves the animals represented on the packaging. #priorities

Look for the line on your next Target ~~blackout~~ run. If you don’t live near a Target or a Buy Buy Baby, though, they also sell samples of their products online for $2 a pop, so you can try before committing to an entire bottle (I wish more brands did this!).

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S.

Product Spotlight: Wander Beauty Dualist Matte and Illuminating Concealer

January 3rd, 2019 by Karen 22 Comments

wander beauty dualist concealer tan review — I wear it in Tan.

You guys, you gotta be able to laugh at yourself, because if you can’t laugh at yourself, you’re taking yourself way too seriously, and if you’re taking yourself way too seriously, you’re probably Kanye West, and if you’re Kanye West, you’re driving people (a.k.a. me) absolutely nuts.

Freakin’ Kanye!

Anyway, where was I…?

Oh, yeah, I’m laughing at myself SO HARD RIGHT NOW because I used to be a person who couldn’t go from point A to B without at least three different tubes of concealers on me.

NO MORE.

One of my themes for 2019 (’cause I don’t do resolutions) is to “embrace change” (and not just in my makeup life), and that’s definitely happening here with the Dualist Matte and Illuminating Concealer by Wander Beauty ($29).

Dualist has a full-coverage matte cream concealer stick on one end and a sheer illuminating liquid concealer on the other, so two products in one sleek, portable stick that’s quite the opposite of the small entourage of under-eye concealing products I used to tote around with me.

Best thing about ’em is that the products on both ends actually do what they’re supposed to do, and they do it well!

wander beauty dualist concealer tan — Tan rocks! I’m an NC42 in MAC, and a Tan in Wander Beauty’s Nude Illusion Liquid Foundation.

What it is:
Dualist Matte and Illuminating Concealer is an innovative double-sided concealer with a full-coverage matte stick on one end and a lightweight illuminating liquid on the other.

What it does:
The matte stick provides maximum coverage for discoloration, blemishes, dark circles, age spots and redness, while the moisturizing illuminating concealer can be used to awaken a dull complexion, brighten the under-eye area (and cheekbones) and diffuse fine lines with a soft and flattering glow.

The skin-loving formula is enriched with soothing, nourishing aloe vera extract, collagen to improve firmness/elasticity, and vitamin E to help block free radicals for healthier looking skin. This multitasking, globally-inspired crease-proof formula provides long-lasting, fool-proof coverage that blends effortlessly without feeling heavy. It helps you achieve the right coverage and color correction for great looking skin, and it’s ideal for quick touch-ups on the go. The matte stick and illuminating liquid can be used separately or together for ultimate complexion perfection.

What it is formulated WITHOUT:
– Parabens
– Sulfates
– Phthalates

What else you need to know:
Wander Beauty creates multitasking makeup essentials so you can look gorgeous on the go. The brand draws from global inspiration as each formula is enriched with skin-loving ingredients from around the world. “Wander Beauty is color to be carried.”

This product is free of mineral oil, fragrance and is gluten-free and cruelty-free.

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Product Spotlight: Wander Beauty Wanderess Chill Eyeshadow Palette

January 2nd, 2019 by Karen 9 Comments

Ya know, with a new eyeshadow palette coming out every five seconds, you’d think that finding an awesome cool-toned palette would be easy, but noooooooo. It’s not, and not just because warm-toned orange-y browns have basically ruled the school for the last few years. I’m a warm-toned gal who just so happens to love wearing cool shades, but the cool-toned palettes I come across usually look too gray and weird on me, like I just smeared mud all over my eyes with no rhyme or reason.

Enter the endlessly wearable six-pan Wander Beauty Wanderess Chill Palette ($25 at Sephora), which is just cool enough to work on warm or cool undertones (yay!), and it’s loaded with lovely pink, taupe, purple and brown shades.

So mo weird gray tones in sight.

wander beauty wanderess chill swatches — When cool-toned palette dreams come true…

From Sephora.com:

What it is: An eye palette with six intensely pigmented cool-toned shadows in complementary shades and finishes.

Highlighted Ingredients:
– Mango Seed Butter: Rich in vitamins C and A to revitalize skin and reduce the appearance of fine lines.
– Rose Extract: Helps minimize redness.
– Vitamin E: Supports skin healing, protects skin against free radicals, and supports skin’s natural moisture barrier.

Ingredient Callouts: Free of sulfates SLS and SLES, parabens, phthalates, mineral oil, and contains less than one percent synthetic fragrances. This product is also cruelty-free.

What Else You Need to Know: Get gorgeous on the go while keeping it chill. Wander Beauty’s intensely-saturated shadows are enriched with nourishing ingredients to give a buttery swipe of color that lasts all day. This cool mix of luxe metallic, silky satin, and velvety matte eyeshadows puts infinite looks in the palm of your hand. Each luxurious shade is enriched with mango seed butter and rose extract to hydrate and protect the delicate eye area. These shades are crease-proof, fade-proof, and deliver intense payoff.

This Palette Contains:
– 6 x 0.07 oz/ 2.2 g Eyeshadows in Snowbird (satin light pink), Flushed (foil pinky purple), Free Style (matte cool nude), Gondola (satin cool taupe), Après Ski (metallic deep plum), Cocoa (satin cool brown)

I wore it pretty much every time I wore makeup through the month of December because it’s one of those “just a few swipes of color” situations. I usually do the matte in the crease, then one of the mid-toned shimmers on my lids, and then a sheer smidgen of the lightest shade on my brow bone and in the inner corners.

The formula feels a lot like Urban Decay’s, so it’s soft and easy to blend, but the colors are generally a little less pigmented and/or shimmery.

Put another way, if UD is a punk rock princess who goes hawd, Wander Beauty just wants to chill.

FYI, like with Urban Decay shadows, wayward bits of powder will travel into adjacent pans, since the powder is on the fluffier side, but I don’t really mind because there’s almost zero fallout on my face. #priorities

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Product Spotlight: Honest Beauty Lip Crayon Lush Sheers

December 28th, 2018 by Karen 8 Comments

honest beauty lip crayon lush sheer swatches — Wear ’em, carry ’em, love ’em.

Like everything I’ve tried from the recently revamped Honest Beauty line, these twist-up sheer lip crayons bring it. There are eight shades in the Lip Crayon Lush Sheers line, each an affordable $12.99. They don’t have any funky flavors or scents, and they feel smooth, slick and moisturizing on my kisser. Best of all, they pack a preternatural amount of pigment — so much pigment that I can actually see the difference between the colors when I wear them (who’da thunk it?). They’re like the Neutrogena Color Sticks or the Clinique Chubby Sticks, but much more pigmented. Recommended!

I’m smitten with Sheer Raspberry and Sheer Chestnut…

honest beauty sheer raspberry — Sheer Raspberry

honest beauty sheer chestnut — Sheer Chestnut

Buuuuuut, as good as they are, if we look at them solely from an apocalyptic perspective (Why? ‘Cause I just watched Bird Box on Netflix.), they’d be lower on the “important things” totem pole than, say, antibiotics, peanut butter, tampons or weapons.

For instance, would I bother to grab one if I were on a scouting supply run in an abandoned Target? No. But if we were five years into the apocalypse, and I were miraculously still around and happened to stumble upon a stash of Lush Sheers on a cobweb-covered shelf, I’d indubitably contemplate the following:

“Geez, I hope one of these is Raspberry or Chestnut!”
“Remember how sheer lipsticks not showing up on pigmented lips was a big problem? DAMN, THOSE WERE GOOD TIMES.”
“Big surprise, my lips are hella dry right now.”

Then, I’d throw every last Lip Sheer into my cart, because I’d have to share them with the other survivors at base camp (OBVI). Hopefully I wouldn’t get eaten on the way back by the zombies/plague/evil whispering spirits that will have taken over.

YEAH. In Bird Box, the bad guys are evil whispering spirits, which, if you look directly at them, cause you to hallucinate and immediately kill yourself.

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Product Spotlight: Honest Beauty Luminizing Glow Powder

December 26th, 2018 by Karen 16 Comments

Three words: Hourglass. Ambient. Dupe.

Yeah, I went there. I totally did.

These Luminizing Glow Powders by Honest Beauty… I would bet my tabby’s stripes that the team behind them had the Hourglass Ambients firmly in mind, because they look and feel just like ’em. They have that same lovely low-key luminosity — same effect that you can kindasorta tell is there if you look really, really closely — and the powder grains are just fine, fine, fine.

Like Michael B. Jordan fine.

FOINE.

Even better, the pans are pretty big (0.35 ounces), and they’re only $19.99 each, but the bad news is that they aren’t available in as many colors as the Hourglass Ambients. These only come in two shades… The lighter one is Midnight Reflection, a pale peachy beige reminiscent of Hourglass Incandescent Light (you could say that it’s a touch less pigmented, but they’re still very similar). I use it as an inner corner highlight, a brow bone highlight, and, on the rare occasions when I wear powder under my eyes, as a setting powder for under-eye concealer. It’s b-o-m-b on all those fronts.

Oh, sure, you can also wear it as a cheekbone highlight, of course, and I’ve tried it, but I think it’s just a tad too light on my skin to do it often. But if you’re lighter than I am, you could totally rock it that way, no problem.

honest beauty luminizing glow powder 2 — Dusk Reflection and Midnight Reflection in action.

The darker shade, a.k.a “my jammy-jam-jam,” is Dusk Reflection. It’s a warm, peachy golden tan — like a slightly deeper version of Hourglass Radiant Light — and I like to work it by sweeping it onto my cheeks as a combo blush/bronzer, and then using it in my crease as a shadow.

honest beauty luminizing glow powder swatches — I use Dusk Reflection as a blush/bronzer on my cheeks and as a shadow in the crease, and Midnight Reflection as an inner corner and brow bone highlight.

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