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

Hello and happy Caturday!

So, kind of a funny story… I used to really love doing my nails, but within the last few years, I’ve been enjoying it less and less because every time I’d sit down to paint, they’d end up looking kinda wonky wonks. I thought I was just going through some sort of beauty evolution, which was a little weird to me because I’ve been doing my own nails since I was 13, buuuuuuuut I just leaned into it and figured it would probably eventually pass.

Turns out it wasn’t some sort of big beauty shift. I just couldn’t see a damn thing, HA HA HA!

I got new glasses about a month ago and for the first time in ages, I can actually see up close. Side note: when I put the glasses on at the optometrist’s office, I looked and my nails and was like, “Whoa, Doc! What’s going on with my cuticles? Holy crap.”

Anyway, I’m stoked about painting my paws again and have been scouring colors to collect and covet. I want this yellow, this green and this blue from Chanel.

Oh, and I filled my cart to the brim with a bunch of things from a vegan polish line called Mooncat. Got my eye on: Mercury in Retrograde, Queen of Chaos, Sand Viper and Poison Ivy.

Part of the reason why I’m spending today inside painting my nails is because my allergies have been awful lately. I don’t know what’s blooming outside, but apparently the only way I can make it through the day without any sniffling and sneezing is if I’m encapsulated in some hermetically sealed bubble. I know that soon enough all the plants will chill out, but it’s taking FOREVER.

Before I head out, because I’ve been thinking of nails so much, here’s some nail-related reading for the week. 🙂

This week’s reading

• Allegedly you can use toothpaste to remove nail polish!
• Fun summer pedicure colors to inspire your next trip.
• Celeb manicurists say these are the best neutral nude shades for every skin tone.
• Butter yellow nails are having a moment.
• Oh, and so are milky nails.

I hope that you’re able to enjoy some time outside today, though. Is it comfortable enough to take a walk? Get out there, friend!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Oh my gosh, the funniest thing happened at work yesterday afternoon. It’s been super busy for the past few weeks, and I’ve been pretty much glued to my computer screen from the time I walk in until the time I head out. Anywho, when I have to keep track of a lot of things, I have a system where I use a bunch of different pens and pencils, and I low-key started freaking out when I couldn’t find my mechanical pencil yesterday afternoon. I knew that I had just used it to write a few notes down, and then all of the sudden I couldn’t find it.

After looking all over and giving up, I just went about my business and tried to finish up my work without it. Before I left for the day, I went to the bathroom and that’s when I realized that I had the pencil up in my hair the whole time, HA HA HA! I was so caught up in trying to figure out some things that I forgot that I put my hair up in a bun and used the pencil to secure it. MYSTERY SOLVED!

OK, so I ordered a handful of dresses from Nordstrom Rack (which we call “The Rack” at work) because I’m on a mission to find a new summer work uniform. I wore one of them, a navy blue one with a floral print by Vince Camuto, and I have to say, 1) I may never take a normal picture again for the rest of my life now that I live with three feisty ladies (Connor, Rosie and Marnie), and 2) I quite like this dress.

I like the drape, how the material doesn’t get wrinkly (it’s polyester, which isn’t my favorite, but at least isn’t scratchy), the slight puff in sleeves (puffy but not too puffy), the pockets and the print. Side note, I’m into prints these days because they seem to do better at hiding the pet hair and random bits of food and sauce that I drop on myself. SIGH.

The only thing that I’m not crazy about is that the material itself is a little heavy for very hot days. I don’t see myself grabbing this dress if I know I have to walk around in 90-plus degree heat.

Oh, as you can see in the top pic, I styled it with a pair pink Nikes and a denim jacket, but I’m sure one could just as easily dress it up with some cute heels and a blazer.

One last thing, I stumbled onto these tomatoes at Trader Joe’s and right now they’re my favorite thing. I bought them initially because I thought they were cute. LOL! But they turned out to be absolutely delicious. So flavorful!

I can’t stand it when you bite into a tomato and it tastes like you’re eating air. I could easily smash the entire package in one sitting, and now every time I hit up TJ’s, I look for them. Grab a package if you see one!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

You wouldn’t think that a twist-up eyeliner would be that much different from a regular pencil liner that you sharpen. They’re both eyeliners, right? And technically both do the same thing, aka lining one’s eyes.

Buuuuuuut ever since I joined the ranks of beauty lovers who only apply makeup under extreme circumstances, aka the five minutes or less that I get on most days, I’ve discovered that I no longer have the patience for sharpening a pencil liner.

Twist-up eyeliners are just so much easier to deal with when you’re applying your liner in the car (like I do most mornings) or in your office or in the secret “best bathroom” on campus which location shall never, ever be revealed, ever. 🙂

With twist-up liner in my life, I no longer have to deal with the extra step of digging for the sharpener in my bag, then sharpening the pencil, and then cleaning out the sharpener so no goo gets stuck… There’s so many extra steps. Oh, have you ever had your pencil sharpener explode in your makeup bag? SO NOT FUN.

I dunno, it’s just too much for me. Give me the easy boop-boop-boop of turning a twist-up liner any day.

My favorite twist-up liners are the ones by Rare Beauty. They don’t have a ton of colors, but they have all the basics, and the ones I have (black and brown), are silky, long wearing and stay on my lash lines. Love, love, love!

Do you have any strong feelings about your liner? From this point onward, I don’t think I could ever go back to a traditional pencil ever again. Twist-up eyeliner all the way, baby!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

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 more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007).

1. Outdoor concert or outdoor movie?

Um, neither right now because of allergies! If the pollen wasn’t so cray, then outdoor movie.

2. Hat or sunglasses?

Both please.

3. Lemonade or iced tea?

Iced tea with crushed ice!

4. Shorts or a maxi dress?

Shorts with pockets and an oversized tee.

5. Ice cream or popsicle?

Ice cream!

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. Outdoor concert or outdoor movie?
2. Hat or sunglasses?
3. Lemonade or iced tea?
4. Shorts or a maxi dress?
5. Ice cream or popsicle?

Hiya! Connor has the last of her dance performances for the school year this weekend, so chances are I’m doing dance mom things as you read this. 🙂

I’ve probably mentioned this before, but where I live in the Bay Area, you’ll often see lots of wildlife roaming about. Case in point, I was coming back from lunch the other day and saw this very pretty deer on campus having a snack near a cluster of classrooms. I’ve seen her a couple times and have named her Jasmine because apparently what I do is name all the animals I happen to stumble onto.

Oh, and another thing that I do is get endless amusement from hyphens. This post from Merriam-Webster made me laugh so hard!

Anywho, I have to now attend to Connor’s high pony and red matte lipstick. Sometimes I wonder if spending the bulk of my young adult life beauty blogging specifically prepared me for getting this little lady ready for dance performances. 🙂

Enjoy the rest of your Saturday, and take it easy, lemon squeez-y.

This week’s reading

• “The first time someone did my makeup for me, I was in seventh grade. My best friend at the time had started experimenting with makeup, and I thought she looked beautiful. I thought I would too. But when she added her finishing touches to me, and I looked in the mirror, I didn’t love what I saw.” <----I quite enjoyed this piece.
• I’m not surprised the Curel Cleansing Oil is at the top of this list of best cleansing oils. It’s a beast! I just wish it was easier to find in stores, sigh.
• “Sometimes I think a good scent is like receiving an invitation to a party—the more enticing the smell, the more flamboyant the promise, and the more excited I am to go wherever that journey will take me. And nowhere was that more true than in Mexico City.”
• Kate Moss is launching a beauty line.
• Nissan made a perfume that smells like tires and cherry blossoms.
• “Close your eyes and imagine a silk veil moving and flowing around you. It’s cocooning rather than suffocating, gently caressing your skin, the feeling comforting your mind and body. That epitomises skin scents – intimate, barely there, elusive and the latest wave in perfumery that we can’t get enough of.”

So much YES

Remember Fashion Fair? It’s still around!

Love this

Black and gold

Note to self

The rise of same face culture

Ahem, again, note to self

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Happy Fri-yay! I just got back from walking Marnie, and ooh boy! If you’ve ever walked an Aussie, you know, it’s an EXPERIENCE. LOL! They’re high energy and a lot of dog. She had a standoff with a gang of turkeys; it’s the time of year when they’re roaming the neighborhood in packs and looking for love, and because she’s a herding dog, all she wants to do is herd them into place. With lots of treats and lots of positive reinforcement, though, we were able to get through it.

Anywho, I was finally able to grab a few moments to find some potential summer dresses for my new warm weather work uniform. I ordered these from Nordstrom Rack!

Oh, I realize that most of these look pretty short, but because I’m on the petite side (just a little over 5 feet 2 on a good day), I figure these will hit about knee length or slightly below the knee on me.

The one up top is the one I’m most looking forward to, the Printed Pebble Crepe High Neck Ruffle Dress by Vince Camuto. I love the colors and the print.

I also like the print and the sleeves on this floral dress by Donna Morgan. Right meow it’s just $22.

This sleeveless tiered dress comes in a bunch of colors! I picked black because I figured it would hide the pet hair best, ha ha ha!

Oh, and here’s another Vince Camuto dress with a pretty print. The colors feel so summery.

I have a feeling this Marine Layer maxi dress might be a little too long on me, but I ordered it anyway just to see if it will work. I love the rainbow colors, and it looks comfy to wear on very hot days.

I’m going to hit up Old Navy next to see if I can find any cute, good deals!

Oh, and if you’ve found any summer dresses around that you want to share with me, please do.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Good morning and welcome to the hump! Side note: how is it already Wednesday?

I bought a couple new-to-me beauty things last weekend. I’m especially stoked about this tinted sunscreen by Supergoop called Protec(tint) Daily SPF 50.

It’s lightweight and has a good amount of coverage, and when I reapply it throughout the day (at lunch and in the late afternoon), it layers well and doesn’t look heavy or cakey. I’m wearing it in these pics without a setting powder; I love how the finish looks so natural.

While I still love me some Bliss Block Star, it only comes in one tinted shade, and I can see it potentially looking a little funky as the weather gets warmer and my face picks up a little color.

Protec(tint) comes in a bunch of shades, which is very cool! I wear 30W, by the way.

I also grabbed this hand cream by La Roche Posay because my paws have been unusually dry lately.

It’s unscented, lightweight and not greasy. Love!

On a fashion-related note, now that it appears that the rains are over for the spring season, it’s heating up again here. I haven’t had to wear any professional outfits in warm weather in ages, and so I’m trying to find a work uniform to get me through the next few months. I think I stumbled onto a formula that’ll get me through it: a printed dress, a belt, a lightweight jacket and some sandals!

I’m now on a mission to find some cute dresses. 🙂 If I stumble onto any, I’ll let ya know.

Have a great rest of your day, and I hope something good happens to you!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen