Smashbox

5 Best Highlighters

September 9th, 2015 by Karen 40 Comments

The Tragedy of Tabby, Prince of Novato
Act III, Scene I

Enter Prince Tabby, Queen Karen, Left Turn the Black Cat, Thug the Russian Blue and Lords.

TABS: To highlight or not to highlight — that is the question.

Whether ’tis nobler in the condo to suffer the humiliating pets and chin scratches of outrageous fortune, or to raise paws against a sea of troubles, and by opposing, end them. To eat, to nap — perchance to dream; ay, there’s the tummy rub.

Wait, what the heck is Prince Tabby talking about!? I don’t know about him, but speaking for myself, there is absolutely NO question about it. I am always, ALWAYS down for highlighting, and here are my five top picks for “Best Highlighter.” These are the ones I wear the most. 🙂

Best Everyday Highlighter: Hourglass Ambient Powder in Luminous Light ($45)

It’s amazing to me how this champagne pearl pressed powder barely looks like I’ve made a dent in it, when I’ve been wearing it pretty consistently — sometimes for weeks on end — for the past few years.

That’s a pretty good thing to know, that a single pan of anything could last until forever, or until Skynet eventually takes over (whichever comes first).

What I love about Luminous Light — I mean, other than the name, because don’t most gals like the idea of being bathed in luminous light? — is the finish. On the skin it looks like expensive, plush velvet bathed in the light of a buttery late summer afternoon.

Ah…

The sheen is unlike anything else I’ve seen before. Soft and subtle, yet still noticeable, and it’s oh, so forgiving of large pores and fine lines (hallelujah!).

All told, this one’s my favorite everyday, all-occasion highlighter in the world!

$45; available now at Hourglass counters and online.

Best Highlighter for a Dewy Finish: MAC Cream Colour Base in Hush ($22)

Hush!

No, you can talk. I was referring to MAC Hush, which I love for its flexibility. It’s a soft peach with subtle shimmer, and I like it just about any which way/any how — on bare skin, on top of tinted moisturizer, foundation, even on top of powder. Whenever I’m aiming for more of a dewy, wet look, out comes Hush.

All I do is use my fingers to apply and blend it, usually on my upper cheekbones, down the bridge of my nose and on my Cupid’s bow, and it takes all but a minute to use.

I also think it looks amazer-ing in pics.

Oh! — and you can also use it as an eyeshadow base. Score! 🙂

$22; available now at MAC counters and online.

Best Highlighter for Dramatic Looks: BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed in Opal ($38)

Good ol’ Opal. How many pans of it have I gone through over the years?

Three? Four…? I’ve lost count.

BECCA has many marvelous Shimmering Skin Perfector Pressed options, but Opal is the one I wear most, by far. It’s a super shiny golden opal pearl, and for dramatic highlights, it’s unbeatable. Unlike standard-issue high-shine highlighters, of which there are many, it’s the very definition of luminous, and the complete antithesis of harsh and metallic, so skin glows seemingly from within with magical eldritch power without appearing oily.

It’s so friggin’ good that when I had to pick a single highlighter to wear on the red carpet to the Emmy’s last year, I went with Opal. There was no question about it.

Fun tip: to open up the eyes and make them look as big, bright and wide as possible, lightly apply Opal in the inner corners of the eyes, and just above and below the highest point in the arch of your brows.

$38; available now at Ulta, BECCA counters and online.
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7 Things You Should Know About the $54 Nicky Hilton + Smashbox Cosmetics NY Classic Cat Eye Kit

June 15th, 2015 by Karen 13 Comments

nicky hilton smashbox cosmetics-2 — Wearing the new Nicky Hilton + Smashbox NY Classic Cat Eye Kit ($54), available now exclusively online at smashbox.com

7 Things You Should Know About the $54 Nicky Hilton + Smashbox Cosmetics NY Classic Cat Eye Kit

You don’t have to be a cat lady to appreciate it (although you may appreciate it more if you like the look of classic black cat eyeliner)
Wearing all of your cat lady accoutrements (your shirts, jewelry, cat ears, etc.) with the kit’s eyeshadow, liner and mascara qualifies as a strong “do”
When you open the bag that comes with the kit, you may catch a whiff of something that smells like fish-flavored cat treats (I do with mine, which is weird!).
I, myself, am unsure if this is a good thing, but Tabs seems perfectly OK with it.
Cat eyes aren’t the only thing you can do with the kit’s eyeshadow trio, gel pen liner and mascara (although they are the obvious choice, right?). You could also use ’em for smokey eyes.
Be prepared. Due to this kit, your cat may experience severe jealousy when he sees you rocking thick, fatty-bo-batty cat eye liner, meow!
While wearing these pieces, you may find yourself spontaneously purring.
While carrying this kit, you may also start carrying cat treats in your purse. (Oh, wait. I already do that.)

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Smashbox Fusion Soft Lights in Baked Starblush: Mmm… Doesn’t a Baked Starblush Sound Delicious Right Now?

May 28th, 2015 by Karen 3 Comments

smashbox fusion soft lights baked starblush — Smashbox Fusion Soft Lights in Baked Starblush ($32)

Smashbox Fusion Soft Lights in Baked Starblush

“Uh, yes, I’ll take a Baked Starblush and a tall Caramel Macchiato, please…”

I really like this product’s name: Baked Starblush. It sounds both astronomical and tasty. 🙂 This here is the Smashbox Fusion Soft Lights in Baked Starblush, one of two new $32 shimmery baked highlighters (the other one is called Starburst) containing five individual shades (there are two of each color) — in this one’s case a soft white, a soft pink, a rosy pink, a dusty rose and a bright rose. Both are available now online and at Smashbox counters, Nordstrom, Ulta and Sephora.

Starblush, which you can wear on your cheeks, eyes, face and body, creates a subtle veil of light pink shimmer, and it’s one of those considerate subtle veils that doesn’t emphasize pores. With a finish about halfway between a super shiny BECCA Shimmering Skin Perfector and a less intense Hourglass Ambient Lighting Powder, it’s probably better for lasses with light and medium skin tones, because it might look ashy on deeper damsels.

As for wear time, on my combination oily/dry skin, it lasts between six and seven hours.

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Ulta Adventures: Smashbox Photo Angle Pure Pigment Gel Liner

May 22nd, 2015 by Karen 19 Comments

smashbox photo angle gel — Smashbox Photo Angle Pure Pigment Gel Liner ($24 each)

Totes getting a Benefit vibe from these new Smashbox Photo Angle Pure Pigment Gel Liners ($24). They’re a new line of gel liners in twisty pens. The gel comes out of the flexible angled tip, just like Benefit’s They’re Real Push-Up Liner.

I was stoked to play with these when I spotted them at Ulta, but I got a little freaked out by the display… All of the liners had crusty bits of gel at the tips, which I cleaned off before taking these pics because they looked like a hot mess, and I couldn’t take it.

I dunno about the 36-hour wear time…. I don’t actually need my liner to last that long, LOL! Have you tried these yet? If so what do you think?

I’ve used Benefit’s gel liner before, and it looks a lot like these. With those there’s definitely a learning curve. They aren’t the easiest product to work with because it’s hard to get the gel to go where you want it to. Stuff has a mind of its own, but once you get it down, you can do some neat things with it.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Smashbox L.A. Lights Blendable Lip & Cheek Color in Venice Beach Bronze Borrows a Thing or Two From the NARS Multiples

May 13th, 2015 by Karen 9 Comments

Cream products.

Have you ever noticed how popular they get around this time of year? Especially cream highlighters and blushes? The one pictured here is the new $29 Smashbox L.A. Lights Blendable Lip & Cheek Colors in Venice Beach Bronze.

It’s gotta have something to do with summer…because with summer makeup, trends always come and go, but one trend that never completely disappears is the whole minimalist makeup angle. Cream blushes and highlighter sort of evoke that idea of casual, minimal makeup. Just swipe a little on bare skin, or in this case, maybe even on top of tinted moisturizer, and bam! — you’re ready to go hunting for surfer dudes on the boardwalk.

Smashbox L.A. Lights Blendable Lip & Cheek Colors: What are they, exactly?

These $29 cream blushes from Smashbox — technically, they’re combination cheek colors/lip products — are multitaskers in the vein of the NARS Multiples. This one, shimmery bronze Venice Beach Bronze, is one of five, and it’s made to cast a warm sunset-like glow on skin like it’s “The Magic Hour” (the brief windows of time just before sunrise and sunset).

The other shades are Hollywood & Highlight (a sheer pinkish pearl), Beverly Hills Blush (a peachy pink with golden shimmer), Silver Lake Sunset (a warm coral) and Malibu Berry (a rich berry).

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A New Shocking Development: Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick in Shock Me Pink

May 12th, 2015 by Karen 14 Comments

Because a girl can never have too many hot pink lipsticks!

Well, she probably could, but…naw. I don’t think so. 🙂

This is another one of the new shades recently added to the Smashbox Be Legendary Lipstick line. Shock Me Pink is a bright blue-based neon pink with a creamy finish. Like the other Be Legendaries, it’s unflavored, unscented and smooove, with a 4-hour wear time.

I like to wear this one with shiny black liquid liner when I’m feeling feisty and want to stomp-walk into rooms.

It’s available now online and at Smashbox counters, Nordstrom stores and Ulta for $20.

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For Textured-Lipped Ladies, Smashbox Be Legendary Matte Lipstick in Paris Pink Is a Little Easier to Wear Than Your Average Pale Pastel Pink

May 12th, 2015 by Karen 21 Comments

smashbox be legendary matte lipsticks — I’m wearing Smashbox Be Legendary Matte Lipstick in Paris Pink ($20), one of eight new Be Legendary Matte Lipsticks available now at Smashbox counters and online

I think from now on I’m going to refer to my lips as “textured…” It’ll be code for “So dang flaky that it looks like I made out with a cheese grater.” Then I won’t have to say “I’ve got dry lips” about every 15 minutes of every single day.

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Curb Cakey Concealer With Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Under Eye Primer

March 4th, 2015 by Karen 25 Comments

Sometimes when I hold this tube in my hand, I feel the need to pinch myself.

Is it real? I wonder, giddy with excitement, or is it a makeup mirage?

Perhaps that’s being overdramatic (what, me overdramatic??), but seriously, dude, it feels like I’ve been searching for this little pink tube FOREVER.

Or, you know, like two months.

It’s just that every single time I’ve looked for it at Ulta or Sephora, it’s never been in stock. The shelf where neat little boxes of Photo Finish Hydrating Under Eye Primer should have been, has always been as empty as a ghost town.

[Cue tumbleweeds rolling by]

I know I could’ve tried to order it online, but tracking it down in a store actually became a weird personal mission of mine. I wanted the instant gratification…even if it took me a year to get.

LOL! 🙂

I’ve also been wondering, though…who are these ladies (or gents) that are hoarding this sh*t so hard that I can’t ever find a tube? Is the love for this under-eye primer so intense that people have literally cleared it off every makeup store shelf within a 20-mile radius?

Well, last week my luck turned. Miracle of all makeup miracles, I finally found one lonely box when I went to Sephora, and I grabbed that last box with a quickness usually reserved for chocolate, doughnuts, and chocolate doughnuts.

I’ve been a user now for about a week, and my, oh my — I’m on the fast-track to becoming one of those ladies who are probably responsible for this stuff never being in stock. I already want to get a backup.

Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Under Eye Primer hoarding is a legit thing!

So, what is this stuff, and why is it (almost) better than a bag of Baked Cheetos?

Basically, it’s a brightening, moisturizing under-eye primer that you apply before concealer. Anything you layer on top of it — concealer, powder, whatever — ends up looking smoother, more natural and more like real skin.

And I think the difference when I use it is night and day, especially when you see it in person. Whenever I take the time to apply this first, I think my concealer looks much less obvious.

I also still get the full coverage that I like, but without my under-eye area looking cakey like cake batter (which happens sometimes with opaque concealers).

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