Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup

So…what is the Monday Poll?

Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of five more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). I love reading your answers, and it helps me get my week off to a good start. ?

1. Would you rather wear the same eye makeup every day for the rest of your life or the same lipstick?

Yeegh… I gotta change my eye makeup, so I’d go with same lipstick. Of course, neither choice seems particularly appetizing… It would definitely have to be a nude shade like MAC Velvet Teddy, and even though I wear nude lippies a lot, I’m pretty sure I’d be over it after about a month, HA HA HA!

2. Pick one for your brows: threading, waxing or tweezing?

Tweezing.

3. Messy bun or Chapstick?

Messy bun, please.

4. Fake lashes or contour?

Sigh… Neither? But if I HAD to pick one, then I’ll take the fake lashes, but they’d have to look natural.

5. Nail file, face mask or tweezers?

My pirate mustache and I will take the tweezers please!

6. I like to put on my makeup with…brushes, sponges or fingers?

Brushes and fingers, because brushes are easier to wash than sponges, and fingers are just straight-up convenient! I rarely use sponges these days.

7. Would you rather fill in your brows or do winged liner?

Tough choice, but I’ll go with winged liner. As long as my brows are plucked and trimmed, I can get away with not filling them in.

8. How often do you wash your hair?

Every day when I exercise, because I don’t like feeling like my scalp is greasy when I go to sleep. Also, I have pretty bad allergies, so I like to wash all of the pollen out of my hair before I hit the haaaaaay!

9. Are you good at braiding other people’s hair?

I’m acceptable if I’m just doing a simple three-strand braid or a fish tail, but anything more complicated than that, like french braids, dutch braids or braid crowns, then nope.

10. Have you been productive during the shelter-in-place?

I haven’t completed any big projects lately, and I’m in awe of people who’ve done things like learn another language, organize their garage, and Kon Mari their closets, because all I’ve been able to do is keep the ship from sinking. The day-to-day stuff has kept me busy, so in that way I think I’ve been productive… I juggle being Connor’s preschool teacher, with being our family’s full-time cook, part-time blogger, and I also provide janitorial services. I’m definitely not bored! It’s all I can do to keep the ship afloat.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Here are the questions to copy/paste with your answers in a comment. Talk to ya soon.

1. Would you rather wear the same eye makeup everyday for the rest of your life or the same lipstick?
2. Pick one for your brows: threading, waxing or tweezing?
3. Messy bun or Chapstick?
4. Fake lashes or contour?
5. Nail file, face mask or tweezers?
6. I like to put on my makeup with…brushes, sponges or fingers?
7. Would you rather fill in your brows or do winged liner?
8. How often do you wash your hair?
9. Are you good at braiding other people’s hair?
10.Have you been productive during the shelter-in-place?

P.P.S. Hope you’re having a nice day so far. ?

Please let it be known that if you choose to flaunt your oversized inflatable unicorn in your front yard, I will make it my mission in life to become your best friend.

I walked by this majestic rainbow-maned wonder the other day and thought, “Darn, I should’ve thought of that!” My second thought was, “THESE ARE MY PEOPLE.”

Drop a ? in the comments if they’re your people, too.

Onto today’s reading!

• If you’ve got monolids or hooded lids and are feeling adventurous with your eyeshadow, Teen Vogue has eight different ways to work your eye makeup, and yes, there’s glitter and gloss up in the mix!
• Sheer, breathable base products? YES, PLEASE!
• Makeup apps have evolved to the point where you can now virtually try on swatches.
• An inventor engineered a tool to protect your clothes from getting makeup on them, and now I kinda want one!
• I read a startling article this week about deepfake artificial intelligence, and all I can do is shake my head (and finalize my plan for living off the grid in a secluded cliff cave once Skynet finally wrestles control away from human beings). “In the months and years ahead, deepfakes threaten to grow from an Internet oddity to a widely destructive political and social force. Society needs to act now to prepare itself.”
• Speaking of AI, do robotic cats make purrfect pets for isolated seniors during the pandemic?
• Byredo unveiled a new scent called “Lil Fleur” with notes of cassis, tangerine, damascena rose, saffron, blonde woods, amber and vanilla.
• A peek inside the home (which is really more like a compound) of reclusive and eccentric genius Serge Lutens.
• This one’s for my cat ladies: 18 products that actually remove pet hair.
• Looking for a new hairstyle? How about tie-dye hair?
• Behind the psychology of cutting your own hair at home.

My childhood dream come true

Rosie could totally handle this.

Why some people are quitting social media

This looks fun!

What are you up to today? I have some cleaning to do around the house, which I’m not overly excited about…but I’m the weirdo who always feels better after the floors are vacuumed and things are tidied up. It’s also good for my general mood.

Have a wonderful weekend. ?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

So, remember the Nike’s I posted yesterday? I didn’t end up getting them because I used the Nordstrom gift card that had been burning a hole in my pocket to buy these silver and white Air Max Bellas instead.

They aren’t as sassy as the burgundy high-tops, but I figure they’d be handy to have around, since they’re neutral enough to wear with jeans and a white tee, or with any number of workout leggings I’m hoarding, as my body repels “real” pants now.

And perhaps maybe, JUST MAYBE, if I drop enough hints about my upcoming birthday, someone in my family will get the hint and order the Air Jordan 1 High Zips in a size women’s 7.5!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

This SUPER delicious oatmeal bake with peaches, blueberries and bananas has been my go-to breakfast as of late. I prep and bake it on Sunday, then have it for breakfast over the next few days.

It’s totally filling, and if I’m going to be working out in the a.m., it gives me a good boost of energy.

I use a combination of fresh bananas and frozen fruit because it’s easy (I don’t have to wash and cut), but sometimes I also use fresh berries (Costco FTW!).

This dish is also perfect for brinner (breakfast for dinner). Just add scrambled eggs and bacon on the side. BOOM! Delish! ?

Blueberry, Peach and Banana Oatmeal Bake

INGREDIENTS

• 2 medium ripe bananas (ideally, you want ones with lots of brown/black spots because they’re more flavorful), sliced into 1/2″ thick rounds
• 1 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 cup frozen peaches
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 tbsp honey (you can also substitute with maple syrup)
• 1 cup uncooked rolled oats
• 1/3 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup whole milk (you can substitute with whatever milk you have on hand)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat your oven to 350. Lightly grease a 9-by-9 glass or ceramic baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
2. Layer the banana slices on the bottom of the pan and sprinkle 3/4 cup of the blueberries on top, and then drizzle with the honey.
3. Cover with foil and bake for 15-20 minutes (you want the bananas to be soft).
4. While the bananas are baking, make the oatmeal mixture by combining the oats, walnuts, baking powder, cinnamon and the salt in a medium-sized bowl. Mix everything together with a fork or a whisk.
5. In a smaller bowl, make your milk mixture by whisking the milk, maple syrup, egg and vanilla extract.
6. When the bananas are soft, take them out of the oven and remove the foil (set it aside so you can use it to cover your pan before you put the leftovers in the fridge). Distribute the oat mixture evenly over the bananas.
7. Give the milk mixture a few whisks, and then pour it evenly over the oats to cover them completely.
8. Arrange the peach slices on top, then sprinkle the remaining blueberries between the slices.
9. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the oatmeal has set and the top is golden brown. Serve warm in slices as is, or place each slice in a bowl and add milk.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF! ?

1. Inflatable pools for adults

Cheers to the genius who dreamed up these adult-sized “kiddie pools,” although I don’t quite understand the point of sharing a tiny pool with someone. Three people in one inflatable pool? NO THANK YOU! That’s just too many limbs in my personal space.

I like this pool with the banana leaf print, but trust me…I’m not sharing. Each one is $42.99, and you can find them at Thunderdome Target.

2. Upload on Amazon Prime Video

Absolutely brilliant! I blazed through the entire season a few weekends ago. It’s set in the near future… 2033…and it’s about a 20-something programmer on the brink of a technology breakthrough when his life is unexpectedly cut short.

No problem though because his consciousness is uploaded to the cloud into a digital slice of virtual “heaven” that people are able to purchase as a service before their demise. Of course, this neatness comes with a price, both monetary and otherwise, and the virtual “afterlife” turns out to be far less than ideal.

I laughed, I screamed (“DID THAT REALLY JUST HAPPEN?”), I saw the afterlife through a lens I’d never seen before (big surprise! — capitalism decides to monetize heaven). All I have to say is that I know myself all too well, and if loading your consciousness into a server ever becomes a choice in the near future, I will give that a hard pass.

3. My strawberry plant

I’m growing a strawberry plant in the Lady Sanctuary, and it already has a few green berries, which I’m SUPER EXCITED ABOUT. It’s so cool to see a plant thriving and doing its thing. I just hope the neighborhood squirrels and birds don’t find it so I can actually eat the fruit.

4. Improv ramen with gluten-free noodles from Costco

I’ve been craving all teh carbs lately, especially ramen noodles, and have been making this gluten-free quickie version at home. From start to finish, it takes about 30 minutes, so it’s a fairly quick meal, and the noodles stay good in the cupboard forever (well, almost). Plus, you can customize it with whatever you have on hand.

Lemme walk ya through it…

1. Warm about a tablespoon of olive oil in a deep, heavy pot on medium heat. Add a handful of any aromatics you like — I used garlic, a bit of fresh ginger and the white parts of a green onion for mine — and cook till everything’s wilted and fragrant.
2. Add one box of beef broth and a box of chicken broth to the pot. (Then, into each empty box, add a little water and swish it around to get all that good flavoring out, and add that to the pot as well.) Add two teaspoons of fish sauce and two teaspoons of soy sauce, but if you don’t have either of those, I’m thinking you can substitute with any thin, salty sauce, like coconut aminos.

   Bring to a boil, and simmer on low until you’re ready to add noodles.

3. Next, cook your ramen noodles according to the directions on the package, and set them aside. I used Costco’s Lotus Foods Organic Millet & Brown Rice Ramen, which is gluten free and vegan, and it’s ready after about four minutes of cooking.
4. Cook or prep any other accouterments you want. Some ideas: eggs, bacon (which I used this time because I didn’t have pork belly), shrimp, fish cake, green onion slices, corn, peas, dried seaweed… So many options.
5. Ladle your broth into a big bowl, add your noodles, proteins and veggies, and enjoy right away! ?

5. The idea of a tennis shoe collection

Back in the day when I was semi-fabulous, I lived in high heels. These days, not so much. It’s just so much easier for me to sprint after Connor and Rosie when I’m *not* teetering above the ground in three-inch strappy sandals. Plus, my feet are happier now that I stick to comfy sneakers.

The thing is…I don’t feel like I should be doomed to a life of boring footwear!

Sooooo, I’ve been toying with the idea of collecting Nikes…. They’re always coming out with cute styles, and my feet have been happy with every pair of Nikes I’ve owned. Beyond that, my standard-issue uniform these days is black stretchy pants with a tee, or jeans with a tee, and both go well with sassy tennis shoes.

Clearly, I’ve already done the math in my head. LOL!

Anyway, my birthday’s next month, so I’m thinking about finally springing for a pair of Air Jordan 1 High Zip Premiums in this pretty wine color.
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