Unsung Heroes

Unsung Makeup Heroes: NARS Yu Satin Lip Pencil

July 1st, 2015 by Karen 27 Comments

Hey, Yu!

Yeah, Yu, homie. Right there. No, not that dude behind you… I’m talking to Yu.

I have to tell you something and it’s…well, important? And awkward. But you see, this — you and I? Well, basically, I’m absolutely, positively madly in love with Yu.

YES, YU! I’m ride-or-die for life!

OK, enough of that, LOL! Let’s talk about Yu… 🙂

Yu. Oh, NARS Yu. It’s another one of my perennial summertime NARS Satin Lip Pencil jams. A bright hot pink lipstick with a satin finish, I love it for many of the same reasons I also love NARS Lodhi — the smooth, creamy formula, opaque coverage and 4-5 hour wear time. It’s another example of perfection in a pencil.

[Continue reading…]

Unsung Makeup Heroes: Rimmel London Natural Bronzer in Sun Bronze

June 26th, 2015 by Karen 17 Comments

I can’t vouch for the full-on waterproofness of Rimmel Natural Bronzer in Sun Bronze ($4.99), because I’m still waiting to find myself caught in a downpour with the original cast of Magic Mike, which to my mind is the ideal (and perfectly plausible) testing scenario.

But until said situation plays out — and it’s only a matter of time before it happens, obviously — I’ll just continue adoring this matte bronzer for other reasons, and there are SO, SO MANY OF THEM, starting with the wonderful price.

[Continue reading…]

Unsung Makeup Heroes: NARS Lodhi Satin Lip Pencil

June 25th, 2015 by Karen 26 Comments

Dang, it’s hot here today…

Like, fry-an-egg-on-the-sidewalk hot here today (incidentally, have you ever tried that?).

Or, sweat-until-you-have-a-major-life-revelation hot here today.

Basically, it’s sticky-back-of-the-knees, crook-of-the-elbows, middle-of-the-booty-cheeks hot here today (oh, and my air conditioner isn’t working).

The only things keeping me from melting into a puddle of sweat are 1) the fact that it’s a dry heat (it DOES make a difference), and 2) this tube of NARS Satin Lip Pencil in Lodhi ($26), because it’s cool. 🙂

[Continue reading…]

MAC Unsung Heroes: Mineralize Skinfinish Natural

June 3rd, 2015 by Karen 34 Comments

MAC has a looot of face powders, and I think many of them are rock solid performers (see: MAC Blot and Careblends Pressed), but if you and I were at a counter at this very moment, and you asked me, “What’s your favorite, best-of-the-best, most natural-looking, comfortable MAC face powder available now?” I’d say one thing: the MAC Mineralize Skin Finish Naturals.

I got this particular pan of MAC Mineralize Skin Finish Natural in Medium Tan shortly after MAC revamped the packaging last year, when they swapped out the old see-through lids for the new black compacts with the mirror, and since then I’ve brought it with me on every trip. It’s pretty much been the only powder I keep in my purse now for touchups.

Depending on which color you choose, you can use the MAC Mineralize Skin Finish Natural line of baked pressed mineral powders for a number of different things, like cutting down on shine, evening out your skin tone, blurring pores, bronzing, and setting your foundation and/or concealer.

They have a semi-matte finish and a moderate amount of pigment, but they can be sheered down. They’re available in the permanent line in 15 shades for $32 each.

In MAC parlance, I’m an NC42, and I have combination skin that ventures between oily and dry. I wear the color Medium Tan as my face setting powder daily, and I also use Give Me Sun sometimes as a bronzer.

mac mineralize skinfinish medium tan — MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Medium Tan on my NC42 skin

I love so many things about this powder! — but I’m going to try to keep this short (yeah right, Karen), because otherwise we’d be here ’til next Tuesday. 🙂

The gist of it is this: in powder-land, MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural is my current favorite powder across the board — not just from MAC — for casual, dewy, natural-looking skin.

I’ve worn it for everyday makeup looks, big events, pictures, HD video, daytime work meetings, dinner dates and taking Tabs out for his walks, and I think it looks just as good on camera as it does in real life. Unlike many pressed powder formulas, the Mineralize Skinfinish Naturals look more like loose powders than pressed powders when they’re sitting on the skin.

After having taken a zillion pictures over the years, I think that loose powders generally look better than pressed powders in person and in pics — softer, I guess. Less like makeup and more like real skin. But MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural bucks that trend. When I wear it, my skin looks even toned, smooth, and it doesn’t look shiny (nor does it look severely matte). The powder also doesn’t look super obvious.

The effect reminds me of Chanel’s Loose Powder, which is absolutely beautiful, but Chanel’s powder is also 1) much more expensive ($52 vs. $32 for this), 2) available in fewer shades.

[Continue reading…]

MAC Unsung Heroes: Persistence Matte Lipstick

June 1st, 2015 by Karen 18 Comments

mac persistence lipstick — MAC Matte Lipstick in Persistence ($16)

With lipstick, life and cats, persistence pays off. If you’ve struggled to find your perfect cat soulmate, just keep feeding your next-door neighbor’s awesome kitty. Give her a can of something gravy-ful every day until she decides that you’re much cooler than her current people (j/k only; don’t do this), and that she’s welcome to make your house her new home.

Persistence, y’all! It’s all about persistence. 😉

On the lipstick front, I’ve been searching high and low for the right ’90s-style warm matte brown (so trendy right meow), and it feels like I’ve been searching forever…

I figure that I could revert back to wearing my ’90s jam, MAC Paramount, but I’d rather find something newer, fresher and updated.

Plus, it’s almost summer, and the last thing I want to be wearing in summer with my ~~booty shorts~~ short shorts is dark brown vampire lips. I dunno… That combo just doesn’t sound right.

MAC Matte Lipstick in Persistence ($16) sounds much better.

mac persistence — Wearing MAC Persistence Matte Lipstick

[Continue reading…]

MAC Unsung Heroes: Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadow in Brownluxe

May 29th, 2015 by Karen 16 Comments

mac brownluxe palette — MAC Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadow in Brownluxe ($40, available now in the MAC permanent collection)

One of the downsides of deep-cleaning one’s office (yes, Operation Get My Sh*t Together is still ongoing) is finding a huge mound of stale cat treats behind a box of eye palettes and realizing, “Holy freaking crap! I’m the woman who had a pile of stale cat treats in her office and has no idea how long they were there!”

It could have been days, weeks or even years, and frankly I’m surprised that Tabs didn’t find them, because I’m sure he would have “removed” them for me.

T-Money insists on being hand fed when it's snack time — Hey girl, haaaay!

Before you click away thinking, “This woman is crazy,” I do have a point, and it is this: one of the upsides of deep-cleaning one’s office is rediscovering long-loved and lost gems like MAC Brownluxe Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadow.

If you like wearing eyeshadow but feel like your blending skills are lacking, and/or you’re often in a hurry to get out the door, and/or you can’t bear the thought of buffing out three layers of Soft Brown with your 217, YOU NEED THIS IN YOUR LIFE.

“Five complementary shades that glide on and blend beautifully for infinite day-to-night looks: egg shell, frosty orange gold, light yellow chocolate, deep bronze, blackened plum with pearl. Matte to highly pearlized finish.”

— maccosmetics.com

MAC Brownluxe belongs to the Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadow family, a group of powder shadow palettes in the MAC permanent line. It’s one of eight Veluxe Pearlfusion palettes available now for $40 each.

A few of the MAC Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadows…

The MAC Veluxe Pearlfusions have a different formula than the regular MAC powder shadows that come in the round pans. Softer and silkier, they feel almost creamy to the touch.

Each Veluxe Pearlfusion palette (Plumluxe, Copperluxe, Peachluxe, etc.) has its own distinct color theme, and within each palette, you get five Veluxe Pearlfusion Shadows hand-selected to work together in that particular theme.

Browluxe, one of my favorites in the Veluxe Pearlfusion fam, has a soft, shimmery eggshell beige; a satiny, medium golden tan; a glittery, orangey gold; a shimmery chocolate; and a shimmery, deep plummy brown — all colors that I could happily wear daily for the rest of my life based on how I’ve been feeling lately, ’cause I’ve been all about #datneutrallife.

But it’s not just the Brownluxe colors that I like. The Veluxe Pearlfusion formula is also just plain fab. It’s really, really easy to blend. Even if you’re completely new to eyeshadow, I think you could do a look incorporating two or three (or maybe even all five!) of these colors, and have it turn out looking like you know exactly what you’re doing.

I don’t know what kind of cosmetic witchery is at work, but it’s probably related to the creamy formula. Erasing edges between the colors and creating diffused gradients that seamlessly transition from light to dark, which are telltale signs of someone who’s been blending for a while, is easy with these shadows.

Brownluxe is the best if you’re always running late (story of my life). I wore it yesterday to a meeting in the city with some beauty folks, and I only had 20 minutes to do a full face of makeup from start to finish. Brownluxe helped me quickly do a neutral cat eye, which I paired with a bright hot pink lip (MAC Pink Pigeon), and I think it turned out looking like I spent 45 minutes instead of 20.

[Continue reading…]

MAC Unsung Heroes: Costa Riche Eye Kohl

May 27th, 2015 by Karen 28 Comments

mac costa riche — Wearing $16 MAC Costa Riche Eye Kohl on my lower lash lines

I’ll be paying a visit to the MAC Pro Store this week as part of a super-secret spy girl mission tomorrow (stay tuned!), which means that poor El Hub will be left to play outside on his phone while I clear out the store’s inventory of MAC Costa Riche.

How many times have I talked about this Eye Kohl…? Five? Six? Two dozen?

It is well past time for me to give it the Unsung Heroes treatment. 🙂

A warm golden brown Eye Kohl in the MAC permanent line, Costa Riche has been my brown eyeliner bae since late 2013.

Seeing as how I fall in love with new products every other week (sorry, it’s true), you might think that my obsession with it would have waned, but nooo. I still reach for Costa Riche at least three or four times a week because 1) it goes well with so many different eyeshadows, and 2) it feels good on my lash and water lines (when my eyes are irritated and/or watering due to allergies or something else, Costa Riche is one of the few things I can still wear that won’t make things worse).

And it does so much for different eye colors. Brown eyes look more chocolatey, and blue, green, hazel and gray eyes rock it, too. I think it brings out more beauty in all of them and makes your natural eye color stand out.

I’ve never met a person who hates how they look in Costa Riche. It’s the people’s liner!
[Continue reading…]

Unsung Makeup Heroes: BECCA Damselfly Mineral Blush

May 26th, 2015 by Karen 31 Comments

becca damselfly blush — Wearing BECCA Mineral Blush in Damselfly ($32)

2011.

Ah, my Halcyon Days…

No, really. Those were my Halcyon days. That’s when I started wearing BECCA Mineral Blush in Damselfly ($32), with the BECCA Halcyon Days Collection.

And I still get the same thrill from it whenever I see it on my cheeks, which is really something else when you think about it. I mean, if after four years, you’re still excited by a shimmery golden coral powder blush — one among countless other shimmery golden coral blushes on the market — you know it has to be a gem.

Damselfly’s lovely luminous finish still looks natural, and it takes it from casual Facebook friend to “in a relationship” status. Before the Hourglass Ambient Lighting Blushes, there was Damselfly, and its appearance was a straight-up revelation.

Its understated sheen makes cheeks glow without glistening, and it’s unmistakeable in pics and in person. I don’t know how Damselfly does what it does, but it usually steals the show whenever I wear it. Even in posts about — oh, I dunno — bright coral glosses or matte reds or out-of-this world nude lipsticks (all of which look amazing with Damselfly, by the way), I get different versions of the same question: “What are you wearing on your cheeks?”

It’s BECCA Damselfly, my friend. BECCA Damselfly. 🙂
[Continue reading…]