Product Reviews

Both the Lune + Aster Sunrise Bronzer & Blush Palette, and the Moonrise Glow & Contour Bronzing Palette, Love Minimal Base Makeup on Skin

July 27th, 2017 by Karen 4 Comments

lune aster sunrise moonrise palettes — The Lune + Aster Sunrise Bronzer & Blush Palette, and the Moonrise Glow & Contour Bronzing Palette ($46 each and available meow)

I think it’s so weird that some powder face products, like blush, bronzer and highlighter, seem to look better to me when I wear them with very minimal base products, like maybe just a sheer BB or CC cream, or even just bare skin.

Because the long-term makeup-addicted part of my brain expects them to look better layered on top of a full-coverage foundation or a medium-coverage tinted moisturizer.

First time I wore these Lune + Aster face duos (one is the Moonrise Glow + Contour Bronzing Palette, and the other is the Sunrise Bronze & Blush Duo), I wore them on top of a full face of makeup — primer, medium-coverage foundation, concealer and powder, and I thought the powder grains looked a little heavy. In the case of the highlighter, it looked frosty and obvious.

Not flattering.

Then I tried the same products on top of the Lune + Aster CC Cream, and it was a bold nude squirrel! The highlighter looked dainty and delicate, and the blush gave me a natural-looking flush. Even the bronzer, which I was a little iffy about at first. It thought it would be a little too cool-toned and sparkly for me, but it looked downright good on a that light base.

What’s up with that?

Lune + Aster makeup is made for looks that can be done in mere minutes, and apparently the powders are formulated to flatter skin wearing minimal base makeup.

lune aster sunrise moonrise k — I’m wearing a mix of the blush and bronzer from the Sunrise Bronzer & Blush Palette on the apples of my cheeks, and the lighter shade from the Glow & Contour Bronzing Palette on my upper cheek bones, down the bridge of my nose and on my Cupid’s bow.

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Countdown to National Lipstick Day on July 29th! Hourglass Confession Ultra Slim High Intensity Refillable Lipstick

July 27th, 2017 by Karen 14 Comments

hourglass confession lipstick review — I love these new Hourglass lipsticks to bits.

Two more days ’til National Lipstick Day!

I must confess… Sometimes when I drink too much coffee, which I did today, I get so hyper that 1) I annoy myself, and 2) my hands get really sweaty, and when my hands get sweaty, I have a hard time opening the Hourglass Confession Lipsticks.

They look so cool, but man! — they’re slick.

hourglass confession lipstick packaging — A bullet you don’t want to dodge…

Shout-out to the person (or peeps) who decided to put these in bullet-shaped packaging, though. Very clever. 🙂 A bullet-shaped case with a lipstick bullet inside? Oh, the symbolism. The layers within layers. That kind of thing gets me every time (it’s the former English major in me).

hourglass confession lipstick refill — Oh, hai!

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Boots No. 7 Beautiful Skin Quick Thinking Wipes

July 26th, 2017 by Karen 7 Comments

boots beautiful quick thinking wipes — These are fab!

? These Boots were made for walking…right into your makeup bag! ?

I found the best makeup wipes! — and better still, they’re totes affordable and available right down the street at the drugstore. They’re the Boots No. 7 Beautiful Skin Quick Thinking Wipes for All Skin Types, and I randomly picked up a pack one day on a whim at Target because I ran out of the Pixi wipes I’ve been using since last month.

I also wanted to try something new (story of every beauty junkie’s life, am I right?). As luck would have it, they’re amaze-balls! They’re quite possibly the best makeup wipes I’ve ever used.

First, the important stuff: they’re fragrance-free and remove everything, even long-wearing and waterproof stuff. They also do it in the blink of an eye and don’t leave a greasy film behind (like so many heavy-duty wipes do, like the ones from MAC, which had been my makeup wipe standard bearer for years).

The thing I love most about these is that I don’t have to tug or rub at my skin at all. It’s all about light swipes, and that removes all of my makeup. I’m talking ALL OF IT. I’ve even used these on my water lines in a pinch and didn’t experience any irritation.

OK, so, you know how most wipes feel almost dry? They’re just slightly wet? They feel like they don’t have a lot of makeup remover in them? Well, Boots isn’t chintzy like that because these feel wet.

I was gonna type “moist,” but then I remembered how much I hate that word… Moist, moist, moist. The more you say it, the weirder it sounds. Blech!

Anyway, I never expected to ever get this excited about makeup wipes, but I’ve tried my share, and these are straight-up exceptional. They’re also a pretty good price, but you gotta get them in a two-pack to get the best value. Both Ulta and Target charge $10.99 for a two-pack of 30 wipes each (60 wipes total), which works out to 18 cents per wipe.

Not bad, right? If you get them in a single pack of 30 wipes for $6.99, you pay a little more.

For comparison, my previous holy grail wipes from MAC, which I used to buy in bulk (and which are still great, but I think the Boots ones are better at removing waterproof mascara), are 29 cents per wipe.

Who gets excited about affordable makeup wipes? THIS GIRL RIGHT HURR. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Shower Tales, and Current Caudalie Body Favorites

July 26th, 2017 by Karen 29 Comments

caudalie body products — Some of the best body products from Caudalie

For the longest time — for MONTHS after Connor was born — and this may or may not sound weird, but whenever I’d take a shower, I’d cry.

Like, bawl my eyes out. My hormones were redonk for months after Connor’s debut. Also, every time I touched or glanced down at my emergency c-section scar, I broke down. I would start thinking about that night and the nurses and the fear and the doctors coming into the room to quietly discuss serious options… It was too much.

Most of the time, I was able to focus on the fact that Connor was born healthy, and that would calm me down, but standing there under the water when you’re looking at your naked body with nothing between you and a huge scar, and wishing that things had turned out differently… I felt let down by my body. It’s hard to explain. Anyway, I couldn’t even talk about it for a really long time.

Like they say, though, time heals all wounds. I’m no longer crying in the shower anymore, yay! It’s back to being the fun, safe, happy place it used to be. 🙂

Now, let’s talk about some bad-@ss body products from Caudalie.

caudalie vine body butter — If I could dive right into a gigantic bucket of Caudalie Vine Body Butter, I totally would.

Caudalie is a French skin care line (available at Sephora) known for adding antioxidants from the grapes in their vineyards in France. They make some of the best moisturizers and body products out there, like my old-school faves, their Vine Body Butter ($34) and Hand and Nail Cream ($15). Both are righteously rich and thick — so rich that you can pretty much kiss those scales on your shins buh-bye.

When you step out of the shower after a day at the pool and your dry skin desperately needs moisture, or if you just need some heavy-duty hydration, they’re great.

caudalie hand and nail cream — Moisturizing mania continues…

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Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Colour Sticks: Your Makeup Bag Needs One Right Meow!

July 25th, 2017 by Karen 5 Comments

Every day after Connor and I have lunch, we go outside to play on the grassy knoll in the front yard common area here in our little condo complex, and almost every day we go out there, I’ve got some degree of craziness on my face — mismatched eyeshadow, false lashes with the wingspan of a bird of prey, bright green Hulk gloss, etc. — so I usually look a little nuts and get some sidelong glances.

Do I really care? Nope!

It is nice, though, when I’m not testing some new makeup and actually, ya know, look kinda normal and someone gives me a compliment, which happened last week while I was wearing the Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Glow Sheer Colour stick No. 24.

Actually, come to think about it, whenever I wear one of these cream blushes, somebody asks about it. I’d probably do the same if I saw a gal wearing one, because they’re bomb!

chanel les beiges healthy glow sheer colour stick swatches — I wish I could wear all of these on my cheeks at the same time and not look completely cray-cray. From the top, that’s No. 21, No. 22, No. 23 and No. 24. There’s also a tan shade called No. 20 that I haven’t tried.

They’re twist-up cream blush sticks sort of like the NARS Multiples, and there are five of them, all available on Chanel counters now in the new Les Beiges collection. Also, yay! — I’ve been told that they’re permanent.

They feel similar to the Multiples but aren’t quite as dry. They’re wetter and creamier, so they’re also 1) easier to blend and 2) don’t push around whatever you have on your cheeks, like foundation, tinted moisturizer, concealer, etc.

chanel les beiges healthy glow sheer colour stick no 22 — No. 22

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The Lune + Aster Midnight Sun Eyeshadow Palette: Bobbi and Trish Fans, You’re Gonna Love This

July 25th, 2017 by Karen 4 Comments

lune aster midnight sun eyeshadow palette final — Bobbi and/or Trish fans, you’re gonna love this!

Time: the great equalizer. More precious than tiny tabbies, Tom Ford, platinum and diamonds. I went to high tea a few weeks ago with my college crew, and we got to talking about time and how it seems like there’s less and less of it every year. Life, love, school, work, hobbies, kids and cats (of course!) happen, and then all of a sudden you realize how little time you have left for yourself at the end of the day.

Time is precious and valuable, and saving more of it is the name of the game for this cool little brand called Lune + Aster. It’s a vegan, paraben-free makeup line exclusively available at Bluemercury stores, and it was started by CEO Marla Beck in 2016. Everything in the line is focused on getting you made up and out the door in five minutes or less.

It’s not a huge line, but they do have a range of products, including a CC cream, an eyeshadow palette, a few cheek palettes, bronzers, brushes and lip glosses in prices from $18 (for a gloss) to $56 for the eyeshadow palette I’m wearing here called Midnight Sun.

lune aster midnight sun swatches — Midnight Sun swatch-a-rooni

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#FragranceFriday: Delina, by Parfums de Marly Paris, Otherwise Known as “The Best Kept Secret in the Fragrance World Right Now”

July 21st, 2017 by Karen 7 Comments

Observe — a lovely pale pink perfume bottle.

Notice the lack of a label on the front… Can you guess the brand?

I know I couldn’t! It’s Parfums de Marly Paris, and I had no idea the brand even existed until about a month ago.

They’re still on the DL right meow and one of the best kept secrets in the perfume world. This scent is called Delina, and if I were a smarter person, I’d keep it to myself and make it my signature scent. But, ya know, sharing things you love with your friends is the right thing to do. 🙂

Now, let’s get this out of the way first because it’s a BIG thing: this bottle is $290.

Feel free to insert a HOLY SH*T, KAREN right here, because that’s craziness, I know. But if you can rattle off every single Frederic Malle perfume ever made in chronological order — I’m talking to the hardcore scent hounds — this line is for you.

Paying homage to Louis XV

Delina is an eau de parfum, and Paris-based Parfums de Marly is a small luxury niche brand that’s been around since 2009.

They draw their inspiration from the opulence of Louis XV’s court, and his love for perfume and horses (yup, both). If you look closely at the box and the cap, you can see the silhouette of two horses with shampoo commercial-caliber manes.

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New Face Products From Too Faced: Hangover 3-in-1 Replenishing Primer & Setting Spray, and Born This Way Ethereal Setting Powder

July 20th, 2017 by Karen 11 Comments

too faced hangover primer spray born this way powder — Two new Too Faced face products: Hangover 3-in-1 Replenishing Primer & Setting Spray, and Born This Way Ethereal Setting Powder ($32 each and available now)

Why you gotta be so cute, Too Faced? Between the pink ombre action on the Hangover 3-in-1 Replenishing Primer & Setting Spray and the heart sifter in the Born This Way Ethereal Setting Powder, your cuteness level is off the charts.

These two face products are new to the Too Faced fam and available now in the permanent line for $32 each.

Too Faced Hangover 3-in-1 Replenishing Primer & Setting Spray ($32)

Does Hangover ring any bells?

Wait — that didn’t come out right.

I’m referring to the original Too Faced Hangover primer (the one in the tube), which inspired the new multitasking Hangover 3-in-1 Replenishing Primer & Setting Spray. The latter can work as a primer, moisturizing mist and/or setting spray.

It’s packed with beauty buzz-worthy ingredients like hydrating coconut, and probiotic lactobacillus, which, by the way, is pretty darned cutting edge. Probiotics are trendy in skin care right now, with the idea being that “good” bacteria helps to keep skin in balance and regulate skin issues (Too Faced founder Jerrod Blandino loves all things skin care, so this totally makes sense). The spray is also silicone-, alcohol- and oil-free.

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