Sephora

Heads Up! Get Chanel Style for $7 With the Sephora Collection Gold Chain Headband

September 21st, 2012 by Karen 10 Comments

When I strolled into Sephora last Saturday allegedly to just “look around,” I thought I might succumb to one or two of my usual impulse buys — maybe an eyeliner, makeup remover or a bottle of nail polish.

What happened, instead, was the last thing I expected…

I had a hair epiphany.

I’ve been going about my days happy as a long-haired lark with Goody’s Headwraps for a few months, blissfully slicking my bangs back with them almost every day. I like not having to fuss with my hair, and headbands are great for that, but lately I’ve had the urge to try something new. Maybe something more chic and sophisticated that I could wear with a cute dress and high heels.

Thing is, I have the hardest time finding good headbands, and by good I mean headbands that stay put and don’t squeeze my head like a vice.

I don’t know what it is… Maybe something happened that time I fell off the monkey bars and landed on my head. 😮

So at Sephora last week, as I rifled through the sale bin, I didn’t expect what I found. I saw gold, black and leather, and snatched it lightning fast. “OOH!” I thought, hypnotized. “Looks kinda like a Chanel bag…”

It was just $7, so I decided to get it. I figured, heck, if it gives me a headache, I’ll wear it as a bracelet instead (or let Tabs have it for his accessories drawer).
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Hey, What’s the Big Idea? Oh, It’s the Sephora Collection 12HR Wear Waterpoof Jumbo Liners

June 14th, 2012 by Karen 44 Comments

sephora collection waterproof jumbo eyeliner swatches
Sephora Collection Jumbo Liner swatches from the left: Taupe, Brown, Purple, Khaki, Violet, Turquoise, Green and Black

I wish we were all rewarded more often for the little, everyday things we accomplish, like when we make it through a difficult day, or hit the gym after work (even though we really didn’t want to), or manage to drive all the way home through rush-hour traffic without flipping anyone off (I never experienced road rage until I moved here to Marin), or for being just plain awesome on an average day.

Last night I felt like treating myself to a little something for making it through Wednesday (yes, I’m setting the bar quite low). It came down to a choice between froyo and a trip to Sephora, and this time Sephora won. 🙂

I was just cruising around the store when something HUGE blocked my way — actually, they were jumbo. They were these bright $12 Sephora Collection Jumbo Liner 12HR Wear Waterproof Pencils.

These fatty-bo-batty pencils double as eyeliners and eyeshadows for quickly adding bold, shimmery color to lids and lash lines.

Gotta love the waterproof action this time of year. It’s been hella hot up in my ‘hood lately, well into the 80s and 90s, and that has meant perspiration, glamorously referred to as “glistening.” And lots of it.

On one particularly scorching day last week, I “glistened” all over town, and by the time I got home after running my errands, the teal eyeshadow I’d applied earlier that morning had all but disappeared. (NOTE: I do not recommend standing in the middle of a Trader Joe’s frozen food aisle with rivulets of blue pigment streaming down the sides of your face. It’s not a great look.)

I don’t imagine glistening would be a big problem for these Sephora 12HR Waterproof Pencils; they seem pretty resilient to me. The swatches I did on the back of my hand resisted three vigorous hand washings, which is pretty impressive considering the price.

And I suppressed a squee! when I noticed the Pantone numbers on the display beneath each of the colors…

sephora collection waterproof jumbo eyeliner taupe
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Well, Hello Kitty. I’ll Go to Paris With You and the Soft, Pigmented Powders in the Hello Kitty Mon Amour Palette

June 10th, 2012 by Karen 9 Comments

hello kitty mon amour palette

What if Sanrio and Sephora merged, like a Mighty Morphin’ Power Ranger, to form a new superstore called Sephrio? And what if the new store carried a much larger selection of Hello Kitty-themed accessories and makeup?

Yeah…that would be cool.

As a 30-something beauty fanatic who still remembers making mix tapes from songs on the radio and blowing all of her birthday money at the Sanrio store at the mall (OMG! The pens with the dangling charms on the end!), I almost dropped my phone when I bumped into the limited edition Hello Kitty Mon Amour Palette ($21) at Sephora the other day.

hello kitty mon amour

Paris? Kitty…? Cute!

The little drawings and the balloons filled with pans of powder shadow (eight) and blush (two)? Nope. No way. That’s just too cute.

Not gonna lie, though, I expected these to be annoyingly sheer and chalky — just not up to snuff compared to brands like MAC and NARS — but wow. That wasn’t the case at all. They felt surprisingly smooth and looked beautiful, I thought, in the swatches.
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