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The NYX EyeBrow Kit Hopes You’ll Make Time to Stencil It In

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While it won’t be breaking any speed records for brow filling, the NYX Eyebrow Kit With Stencil ($13.50) gets mad props from me for looking like it belongs in an art store.

The kit comes in three color families — For Blondes, For Brunettes and For Everyone — and each one packs four brow powders, an angled brush, a brow comb and three plastic stencils cut to fit different brow shapes. Just hold one of the stencils up to your brow, and fill it in using the powders and brushes that come with the kit.

Tada! 🙂

Well, that’s the idea.

I usually fill in my brows “freehand” using something like Benefit Instant Brow because, especially in Instant Brow’s case, it’s quick as a bunny. And when I’m not pressed for time, I might reach for a pan of MAC Concrete and a MAC 266 Small Angle Brush instead.

But what could be quicker than using a stencil, right? If they’re good enough for art class, they’re good enough for me.

NYX Eyebrow Kit with Stencil


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The Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Tints Are Office AND Tabby Approved

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Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Tint hope
Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Tint in Hope

If these Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Tints ($24) had been around back when I spent my weekdays preparing pleadings as a legal secretary in the city, I would have kept a tube in my pocket for emotional support. It could have kept me company in the restroom stall where I frequently retreated to secretly cry away my frustrations at work (’twas NOT my all-time favorite job).

The line of six matte lip stains, basically matte-ish versions of Tarte’s LipSurgence Lip Stains, has been around for about a year. Like their shinier cousins they have a twist-top and utilize the same “High-Performance Natural LipSurgence Technology,” which, Tarte claims, is “clinically proven to increase moisture content by an astonishing 6,000% after 28 days.”

LOL! I feel like that sentence needed a bunch of exclamation marks at the end: “…6,000% after 28 days!!!”

I’m not sure how anyone would ever measure something like that, but I sure do love the work-friendly finish and barely-there, whispery sheen.

The barely perceptible shine loosens ’em up a little, giving them a slightly more casual vibe…but not casual like ripped jeans, tank tops and flip-flops. More like a white shirt over tan jodhpurs and knee-high riding boots.

They deposit a gentle nudge of color that encourages a quick glance, as opposed to shouting, “HEY, LOOK AT ME!” I think they’d be perfect for an office with a strict dress code.

Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Tint
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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, June 6

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  • You might be wondering, “So what the heck is this Monday Poll thing anyway?”
    Well, it isn’t much of a poll. It’s more just a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past three years, which I guess makes this somewhere around Vol. 172. I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.
  1. Mood:

    2. Pretty great. I just finished a run (I’m trying to turn myself into a morning exerciser), and the endorphins are doing their thang.

  2. Do you ever apply your makeup on the train/bus/boat to work?

    3. Totally! For years I took the BART train to work (short for Bay Area Rapid Transit), so whenever I was pressed for time (read: always) I’d do my makeup — just whatever I could get done on the 45-minute ride.

  3. List three of your best attributes.

    4. Hmm… Well, my friends think I have a good sense of humor, and I think I’m quite creative and sensitive.

  4. Do you ever apply bright eyeliners?

    5. Not daily, but sometimes, yes I do! Usually along either my upper or lower lash lines.

  5. What’s your take on clogs?

    6. I totally see the allure. I mean, they sure are comfortable, and I do think some gals look great in them, but they’re not really my thing. They make me feel like I have Smurf feet…and I always feel like they’re about to slip off.

  6. If you could have lunch with any celebrity alive today, whom would it be and why?

    7. Johnny Depp, fo’ sho’! I’ve heard he’s great around fans. They filmed the latest Pirates of the Caribbean very close to where my family lives on the eastern side of Oahu, and he was very well regarded by folks there — friendly, generous and always willing to give an autograph. And it doesn’t hurt that he’s easy on the eyes.

  7. Complete this sentence: Have you heard about _____?

    8. Game of Thrones? on HBO? I’m hooked! If Tony Soprano had teleported to Camelot, his life there might resemble Game of Thrones. I think it got off to a slow start with the first two episodes (lots of convoluted character building), but I think it really took off once the stage was set.

  8. If you were given one day this week to do anything you want, anywhere you want to do it, what would you do?

    9. Whoa, too many possibilities and too much pressure to think of something epic, LOL! I think I’d enjoy just spending the day surfing somewhere warm and tropical.

  9. What purse are you carrying today?

    10. The black quilted Kate Spade purse with chain straps I found on deep discount at the sample sale a couple of weeks ago.

  10. Weekly goals:

    11. My birthday’s this Thursday, so I’d like to enjoy every last minute of being 35. I’d also like to help myself to as much birthday cake as I can possibly eat, finish re-reading For Whom the Bell Tolls (my gawd, it’s taking me FOREVER to re-read this book), and find the joy in everything (or at least look for it).

Question for ya, babe: have you ever been to Vancouver? I’m heading there later this week for a combination birthday trip/fifth wedding anniversary getaway with El Hub (only be gone a few days), but I know almost nothing about the city. If you have any suggestions or insights into the area, I would really appreciate them.

Okay, time to fire up the teapot and get this party started! 🙂 How are things on your side of the keyboard? Can you take a moment to check in with the Monday Poll?

  • To complete the Monday Poll, just copy the following list, and paste it with your answers in the comments.



1. Mood:
2. Do you ever apply your makeup on the train/bus/boat to work?
3. List three of your best attributes.
4. Do you do bright eyeliner?
5. How do you feel about clogs?
6. If you could have lunch with any celebrity alive today, whom would it be and why?
7. Complete this sentence: Have you heard about _____?
8. If you were magically given a free day, how would you spend it?
9. What purse are you carrying today?
10. Weekly goals:

T-minus 5 seconds to greatness in 5…4…3…2…

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Sundays with Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 142

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Not only is Tabs a cat of many talents, but he’s also a cat of many names. I’ve always given my furry companions nicknames, but Tabs take the cake.

Honestly, it’s a miracle he even knows his name at all because half the time I’m calling him something other than Tabs. His many monikers include…

Gravy Crockett

Smokey Eyes

Coco Tabby

Grumble Bunny

Baby Cat


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Patience Is a Virtue MAC Cleanse Off Oil/Tranquil Makeup Remover/Cleanser Doesn’t Have

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I’ve been wanting to try MAC Cleanse Off Oil/Tranquil (a makeup remover/cleanser) for ages, but every time I came close to bringing a bottle home with me from a MAC counter, something eye-catching would always steal my attention away. More often than not, it was something sparkly, or pink, or sparkly AND pink.

But I bet I still would have pulled the trigger anyway if it hadn’t been for the price… Thirty dollars for a 5-oz. bottle? Fuggedaboutit.

The new $10 MAC Sized to Go version of Cleanse is harder to ignore. It packs 1-oz. of the same oil-based makeup remover/cleanser into a handy, TSA-approved bottle. Other than the smaller size and the fact that this bottle’s clear (the larger one is blue), the products are exactly the same. In terms of value, however, the larger bottle is a much better deal ($6/ounce instead of $10), but it’s also too large for carry-on air travel.

Designed for dry, “mature” and/or stressed-out skin, Cleanse is one of two cleansing oils in the MAC skincare line. If you’re sensitive to mineral oil, it doesn’t contain a drop. Instead, it contains a bunch of botanicals like sea grass extract, peach leaf and bisabolol (a colorless oil derived from chamomile; used for hundreds of years in cosmetics for its purported anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial properties).


The full-size 5-oz. bottle costs $30; the 1-oz. MAC Size to Go version costs $10
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