Revlon

A Shimmery Green Pick Me Up

December 8th, 2021 by Karen 8 Comments

Have you ever, after the end of a long day, just put on makeup on top of the makeup you’ve been wearing all day just for the heck of it fun? No? Yes? Maybe?

(Please say yes.)

That’s what happened here with a bunch of things from Revlon!

Sometimes you’ve just gotta swipe on some shiny green eyeshadow, ya know? The one in the Revlon Fully Loaded palette is on the frostier side, so if you like a high beam gleam, you might just love it.

Speaking of shimmer, the Twilight Gleam Highlighter has glow for days. I like my beams o’ light on the subtle side, so it’s not something I’d wear regularly on my upper cheekbones, but as an inner corner highlight, yeah, I’m into it.

I really like the ’90s vibes I get from this lip liner (Nude) and lipstick (Bare It All) combo. Out of habit, I blended in the lip liner, but the next time I plan to leave it unblended to get that ’90s-style supermodel lip with very defined edges.

I’m also wearing Revlon Big Bad Lash Mascara, which has lots of curl and lift, but not a ton of volume, and the ColorStay Eyeliner in Brown, too.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. I hope you’re having a great Wednesday so far.

Best Day Ever Makeup (I Got My Second Shot!), Plus Mini-Reviews of Revlon ColorStay Light Cover Foundation, Clinique Even Better All-Over Concealer + Eraser and More

April 22nd, 2021 by Karen 27 Comments

I got my second vaccine shot yesterday and, FYI, this Band-Aid is officially the best Band-Aid that ever was or ever will be. After it falls off, I may tuck it away in an envelope so that years from now, when everything is back to “normal” (“air quotes”) and we’re doing things like going to the Catalina Wine Mixer again without feeling creeped out about crowds, I’ll find this Band-Aid and think, “Eww, you’re super gross, Karen,” and “Gosh, I sure was happy that day.”

You know this is one of my favorite movies, right?

This is the most hopeful I’ve felt in a long, long time.

Because I didn’t want to forget how happy I feel, I put on some fun temporary tattoos by Tattly and some makeup to commemorate the day. I’m wearing a mish-mosh of classic NARS eyeshadows (the Cordura and Isolde duos, and Blondie, Biarritz and Abysinnia) and a few new-to-me products for everything else.

I’m wearing a mix of classic NARS and a few new-to-me base, cheek and lip products

Some first impressions

Revlon Colorstay Light Cover Foundation: I (incorrectly) assumed that because this has “Light Cover” in the name, it was a shot-out to sheer coverage, but nope! — it’s a reference to how light this full-coverage matte liquid foundation feels on skin. It’s light as a feather! The coverage of one layer is just shy of full, which is enough to hide red areas, freckles and uneven pigmentation. Then, you can add more layers, which is easy to do because it blends so well, if you want to bump up the coverage to full. For reference, my skin is dry on my cheeks and oily on my forehead, and this foundation handles both areas like a champ. Available in 12 shades, $13.99 each.

Clinque Even Better All-Over Concealer + Eraser: Normally, full-coverage concealers look thick, dry and cakey when I wear them in my under-eye area, so I kind of avoid them, but this demi-matte liquid concealer completely steers clear of fine lines. Even after it dries down, it remains smooth and flexible, which is very cool! I plan to use this as a foundation, actually, because I think it’ll be great for that too. Available in a whopping 42 shades, $26 each.

L’Oreal Shiny Lip Stain in Be Outstanding: This is neato. It’s a long lasting, lightweight, non-sticky liquid lipstick with an ultra-shiny finish. Sort of like an amalgam of every lip product under the sun! This particular one, Be Outstanding, is a rosy brown, but there are lots of other colors to choose from in the line, which, FYI, is BOGO right now at Ulta. Available in 12 shades, $11.99 each.

Laura Mercier Blush in Chai: I love LM’s blushes for their pigment and smooth finish, and this matte rose is one of her prettiest and most natural-looking ones, IMHO. Available in 10 shades, $32 each.

second shot closeup — Temporary tattoos by Tattly

The pandemic and the lockdowns have transformed me into something of a hermit, and I’m still freaked out a little (OK, a lot) about the thought of being among large groups of people, and like…doing things. LOL! I keep reminding myself that this too shall pass, and we’ll be able to do more things very soon. Like, I texted an old friend I used to work with at the bakery and asked her if she wanted to go on a hike in a couple weeks. I’m also starting to mentally psych myself up to go to an outdoor small-group HIIT class at the gym sometime in May!

Part of me still worries that we could backslide if the virus takes a different course, so I keep telling myself not to get too excited about returning to normal life right away…but another part of me also wants to be hopeful.

This past year has changed me so much, and I’m betting it’s changed you too.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

A Warm Neutral Drugstore Makeup Look for Zoom Calls

May 7th, 2020 by Karen 16 Comments

drugstore neutrals — All the makeup I’m wearing in this look is from the drugstore.

I seriously thought about wearing this makeup look for a Zoom call I had with my bakery coworkers a few days ago (we still keep in touch) but decided to wear it with warm neutrals instead.

All drugstore today because I’m on a budget beauty kick! I’m wearing a mix of old faves (a nude Revlon cream eyeshadow palette and Fig eye kajal, Almay eyeshadow and Covergirl Trublend foundation) and some new things I recently found.

Latest drugstore loves

Honest Beauty Tinted Balm in Dragon Fruit: THIS IS SO GOOD! It’s a bright, moisturizing sheer fuchsia balm that doesn’t settle into lip lines (so smooth!). Two-hour wear time, and it’s unflavored and unscented. It’s similar to the very sheer Clinique lipsticks, but at a fraction the price. $8.99 each and comes in bunch of colors.

Covergirl Trulbend Base Business Illuminating: This is a pearly golden pink skin primer you can wear on its own underneath foundation/concealer, or mixed into other base products to sheer them out and give them an opalescent finish, which is what I do. It’s like a more sparkly version of BECCA Backlight. You *will* see the tiniest flecks of golden glitter reflecting off your skin when you wear it, so be prepared for disco fabulousness while you frolic in full sunlight. If you’re indoors, however, it isn’t visible at all from more than a few feet away. $11.49 for a 1-oz. tube.

Covergirl Easy Breezy Brow: I used Clear on the inner part of my brow (which has a good amount of hair) and Medium on the outer part (not so much hair). Both are on the stiffer side of brow gels so your brow hairs won’t move. Medium, a gray brown, is *very* pigmented and not the easiest to control, so use it sparingly. I loooove the Clear, though. It’s comparable to Benefit’s clear brow gel. $9.49 for a 0.16-oz. tube.

Makeup worn in this look

Base: Covergirl Trublend Base Business Skin Primer Illuminated mixed wtih Covergirl Trulend Matte Made in M50 and Covergirl Trublend Undercover Concealer in Golden Honey

Eyes: Covergirl Easy Breezy Brow in Clear (inner part of brow) and Medium (outer part of Brow), Revlon Illuminance Cream Shadow in Not Just Nudes, Almay Eyeshadow in Pure Gold Baby, Revlon 2 in 1 Angled Kajal in Fig, Maybelline the Falsies Mascara

Cheeks: Covergirl Clean Fresh Cream Blush in Butterflies, Maybelline City Bronzer in 300

Lips: Honest Beauty Tinted Balm in Dragon Fruit

What are your drugstore go-to’s at the moment? I’m playing “put all the makeup in my cart” on the Ulta site right now. 🙂

Nail “painting” is easy and fun.

One of Connor’s preschool teachers sent this fun art idea for painting nails! Grab some nail polish (I used quick-drying ones by Sally Hansen), a black marker and a piece of cardboard. Draw hands with nails on cardboard, and then have your “coworker” help you paint them. Or do it yourself. This kept me and CoyCoy entertained a long time.

Some of my hand drawings ended up looking like weird lizard fingers…but she didn’t seem to mind.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Glittery Green Gradient Wings: A Quick and Easy Holiday Makeup Look

December 11th, 2019 by Karen 16 Comments

Current dilemmas du jour?

What to do with the five pounds of lemons Rosie’s former foster mom gave me (she has a tree in her yard that produces a RIDICULOUS amount of lemons).
What’s some festive and colorful holiday makeup that won’t take me till Valentine’s Day to finish? (I’m only half-kidding.)

As of yet, I still have no clue what to do with the lemons (ugh, lemon bars and lemonade? Maybe some kind of lemon marinade?), I figured out a trick to flying through different colorful looks.

And here it is…

Play with your winged liner. THERE ARE SO MANY WAYS!

Like with this look here with glittery green gradient wings. It was surprisingly quick and easy to do.

The step-by-step

Start by drawing your winged liner with a dark green matte liner as the base (I used Urban Decay Mainline). Be as subtle or dramatic as you like.
Then, for a bright shimmer POP, layer a bright green glitter in the center (I’m wearing Urban Decay Stage Dive) on your lash line.
Lastly, to create a color gradient, dip an angled brush into a black eyeshadow (MAC Carbon for life!), and pat that on top of the outer portion of your wing.

Green goes well with warm browns and peaches, which is what I’m wearing on my lids, lips on these cheeks in this look. If you want to be more adventurous, however, pink would be a playful complementary color… I’m just sayin’. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Keanu Reeves Is My Boyfriend, Vol. 2: Revlon So Fierce! Vinyl Eyeliner

July 29th, 2019 by Karen 5 Comments

revlon so fierce liner — So fierce, babe!

This is a series featuring stellar drugstore gems in which my (very much pretend) boyfriend Keanu Reeves helps me test makeup… He’s gallant like that, you know? ?

Last night, Keanu and I laughed and cried our way through The Notebook (he’s so sensitive!), and even through all the tears, my new Revlon So Fierce Vinyl Eyeliner stayed put. I know this because at the end of the move, Keanu ever-so-tenderly cradled my chin and said, “Babe, even when you’re crying like a baby, you and your winged liner are absolutely perfect.” Later he added: “Your liner looks almost as good as mine.”

Revlon So Fierce Vinyl Eyeliner ($8.99)

A waterproof long-wearing gel pencil liner with a glossy — but not shimmery — finish that dries in less than a minute
Available in three shades
Completely budge-proof through tears, sweat and splashes with water
Highly pigmented
Applies smoothly
Doesn’t transfer up into my crease; however, when I aggressively rub it with my fingers, it smudges, so if you rub your eyes you’re probably better off with something long-wearing and liquid like MAC Liquidlast instead.
Stays put on lash lines and water lines, but I wouldn’t use it on water lines if yours are very dry.

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Crazy About Creams! Revlon Illuminance Creme Shadow in Not Just Nudes

January 22nd, 2019 by Karen 19 Comments

revlon not just nudes 1 — Revlon Not Just Nudes

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

First of all, I’m shocked I haven’t already tried this Revelon palette, since I’m such a fan of their individual cream shadows in the pots (Chocolate or Espresso, anyone?!). I have to thank the trauma of my last visit to the dentist for this spur-of-the-moment retail therapy purchase!

Illuminance Creme Shadow in Not Just Nudes ($7.99) comes in a slim, trim plastic package with a mirror on one side and four neutral cream shadows on the other. It’s a lineup of coordinating colors with a glossy finish to illuminate yo’ lids.

revlon not just nudes k — Revlon Not Just Nudes

You know that high fashion/editorial glossy lid look? This does that, but without the thickness, heaviness or major creasing (I do see some minor creasing after a few hours, but not a lot).

revlon not just nudes swatches — Revlon Not Just Nudes

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Unsung Makeup Heroes: Revlon Colorstay Crème Eyeshadow in 715 Chocolate

December 13th, 2018 by Karen 11 Comments

revlon colorstay creme shadow 715 espresso — Crazy for Chocolate

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.

What’s that Christmas carol that goes, “‘Tis the season for creams, fa la la la laaaa, la la la laaaa!”? Creams are a “go-to” for gaggles of makeup lovers when it’s cold outside, but Revlon Chocolate is an “all-year” obsession for me.

Formally known as Colorstay 175 Crème Eyeshadow in Chocolate, it’s a drugstore secret treasure at just $6.99, and if you don’t have excess time to spend on your makeup but still like to wear a little somethin’, it will be your ? jam.

I’ve been wearing it a lot since I started growing out my grays, because the way my grays are growing out now, they don’t look purposeful yet because they don’t go from root to tip. It just looks like I missed my last two coloring appointments and can’t get my life together, so if I don’t wear at least a little eye makeup, I look disheveled. So Chocolate has been coming to my rescue.

Chocolate’s from Revlon’s long-wearing Crème Eyeshadow line, and if you haven’t tried these potted shadows before, you gotta get on that. They’re like the MAC Paint Pots, but cheaper, and slightly creamier.

Granted, they’re less pigmented than the Paint Pots, but I think that’s one of their selling points because that sheerness makes it easier to blend out the edges.

Perfect for “I’m already late! Gotta get this makeup on LIKE NOW!” looks.

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Unsung (Hair) Heroes: Revlon Essentials Maximum Hold Extra-Thick Elastics

July 10th, 2018 by Karen 16 Comments

revlon maximum hold extra thick elastics — If you have thick, heavy or otherwise wild, unruly hair, these will make you believe in unicorns (again).

My stylist buddy Alis likes to joke that I have enough hair on my head for three people (although, for the #officialmakeuprecord, I don’t have as much hair as I did pre-baby), but it’s not all kittens and rainbows, because having a decent amount of hair comes with its own challenges, like destroying every single hair elastic within striking distance.

When I’m putting my hair up in a ponytail, most elastics either break, or get stretched out so far that they look like the granny panties you should’ve thrown out THREE YEARS AGO (but still continue to wear when you’re on your period), and are thus rendered utterly and completely useless.

There’s also the whole “ponytail falling out while I’m merely existing” thing, which is a pain.

At HIIT class last week, I decided that enough was enough. I. Am. Done. Pulling up my ponytail every third burpee or switch lunge.

DUUUUUDE…Revlon has this little packet of miracles called the Maximum Hold Extra-Thick Elastics, which just changed everything in one fell swoop. It’s the strongest, thickest, sturdiest and most bass-@ass hair elastic I’ve ever worn.

Normally, I have to double-up elastics to keep my hair from falling all over the place, but in last night’s HIIT class, I used just one — ONE! — and my ponytail stayed perfectly in place through 60 minutes of intense jumps and sprints. Not once did I have to readjust.

When I took off the elastic before showering, I noticed two things. First, that my ponytail was in the exact same place it was when I first put it up. Second, that the elastic wasn’t stretched out at all. Not one teeny, tiny bit.

I also can’t get over how affordable they are. Three bucks for 15 of ’em!

So, so, good, you guys!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen