A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict
Tabs knows it isn’t technically fall yet, but he’s a trendsetter, not a trend follower, as you know, so he busted out the newest addition to his award-winning fall feline fashion line, the Fall 2018 Autumnal Awesomeness Cat Collar Corsage.
His assistant gave him the idea for it the other night while they studied the colors on the hill at sunset.
He quickly created a mock-up and wore it this morning on his walk.
Um…how many fall wreathes does one home need? — because even though I just put up this Pier 1 fall leaf wreath (say that five times fast), I kindasorta also want this one I saw at Trader Joe’s…
Don’t ask me why I have a soft spot for circular autumnal decor. There’s no rhyme or reason. I’m just into it!
I also saw pumpkins at TJ’s when I was there and wanted to get one, but I’m afraid it’ll be rotten by the time Halloween rolls around. But seeing as how so many people start decorating for Christmas right after the last trick-or-treaters go home, I dunno… Maybe it makes sense to get a starter pumpkin now.
Have you started putting up any fall decorations?
Wait — before you answer that, your reading for the weekend…
I’m finally going to see the Crazy Rich Asians movie today! Gonna drive out to my parents’ house in the East Bay to see it with my high school friends, Jen and Cindy, while Connor hangs out with her Lola and Lolo (those are the Tagalog words for “grandma” and “grandpa”).
What’s your plan for this beautiful Caturday?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
If you’ve ever donned a smoky eye to go get Baked Cheetos at 10 in the morning, or if you’ve ever “needed” to bust out three tubes of mascara to simply continue living your life, you already know that whatever makeup goes on, must come off, and that’s when micellar cleansers like these two new ones from Neutrogena are handy.
For the uninitiated, micellar cleansers are a type of liquid makeup remover comprised of tiny balls of cleansing oil molecules suspended in soft water, and they’re designed to remove makeup, grit, grime — basically everything, even the hard-to-remove stuff like waterproof mascara. Also key: they work without heavy scrubbing, so they’re gentle.
Neutrogena’s micellar cleansers work quickly and well. I can completely remove a full face of makeup with one swipe, and I’m talking about a look with all teh things — multiple layers of mascara, highlighter, bronzer, foundation, concealer — and they don’t irritate my skin or my eyes.
They’re so much better than the last drugstore micellar wipes I tried (*ahem* Garnier).
“Neutrogena Deep Clean Purifying Micellar Cleansing Towelettes effectively remove makeup while gently cleansing and purifying skin. These gentle, ultra-soft face wipes provide a deep clean by targeting 100% of impurities, leaving skin feeling soft and refreshed. The pre-moistened cleansing towelettes purify and revitalize skin. The formula is powered by Triple Micellar Technology which combines three gentle cleansers that work together to help remove even the toughest makeup, effectively cleanse, and purify skin without being harsh. Neutrogena Deep Clean Purifying Micellar Cleansing Towelettes require no rinsing and are non-comedogenic and oil- and alcohol-free.”
Although…I’d still exercise caution if you’re thinking about removing the eyeliner on your water line with one of the wipes because IMO they’re kinda scratchy for such a delicate area. Instead, I soak a soft cotton pad (I highly recommend the ones from Shiseido) with the Micellar Water, which removes my eye makeup just as well (even waterproof mascara, liquid and gel liners, and other long-lasting stuff).
Cat ladies, it’s really starting to cool off here, and last night, for the first time in months, I had to turn on the heater before bed.
After a summer that the backs of my knees can attest to being one of the stickiest in recent memory, I can’t even begin to tell you what a relief it is to wear long sleeves and socks again! — and I’m more than a little excited about the prospect of putting on makeup without it completely slipping off my sweaty face. ?
Which brings me to this total gem: MAC Mineralize Skinfinish in Global Glow, a $34 neutral golden tan highlighter. If you want the most delicately divine sheen, look no further.
I wore it yesterday when my parents came over to visit me Connor (Who am I fooling? They’re all about the baby!), and my mom, a self-professed non-makeup person, was like, “Mi hija. I need to have whatever is glowing on your face!”
That’s how much pull Global Glow has, man. It turns a woman who previously thought that highlighters are only those neon markers they sell at Office Depot into a maquillage believer.
Global Glow is one of my all-time favorite highlighters to wear year round, but it’s especially FIYAH ? as the summer winds down and fall kicks in because, if you’re anything like me, this is the time of year when you’re still carrying a little bit of summer color on your face, and Global Glow’s golden tan really complements skin tones from NC20 and up.
It was in my family when I was growing up, but it wasn’t directly addressed out loud like makeup was. Lipstick, eyeliner and blush were definite hard “NOs,” but it was kinda implied that hair dye was too.
Not that I really wanted to dye my hair when I was a kid. The curiosity kicked in later when I was in college, and that’s when I started experimenting with box dyes and at-home highlighting kits… Mind you, I wasn’t good at any of it, and I’m 100% sure my hair color looked terrible because I’d always leave the color in too long, or the hair color in the back would be applied hella patchy.
Girl, I was a mess!
I see kids in elementary school and middle school now with vibrant hair colors like blue, purple or pink and think, “Wow, your mom must be a cool mom!” — ’cause that wouldn’t have flown in our conservative house.
My brother was actually the one who was more curious about it than I was! He’s always been a rock ‘n’ roller, and when he was in sixth grade he managed to scrape together enough to buy some Jolene cream bleach. (Ya know, the one used for upper lip hair? I used it and rocked an orange mustache pretty hard back in the day, LOL!) He used it on his head for some terrible DIY orange streaks. Funny thing is, my parents didn’t notice for months. I’m talking at least half the school year. I was in college at the time, and when they finally figured it out, my brother left a cryptic four-word message on our shared landline voicemail (!) — “The jig is up.”
I immediately knew he was talking about the hair dye.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Let me begin this by saying that I’ve been skipping eyeshadow primer for months.
I just haven’t been using it.
It was just another step, ya know? And I felt like I could forgo it because it was incompatible with my quest for extreme makeup minimalism (as defined by a person who carries at least five nude lipsticks in her purse at all times).
Basically, it wasn’t like I needed my eye makeup to impress anyone for hella hours anyway. It’s not like Tabs and Connor point out when my crease color is fading into oblivion (thankfully), but with the Coywolf in preschool now, I want to start doing different things with my makeup again.
Mostly, I wanna wear brown smoky eyes and red lips again. 🙂 But I refuse to subject you to patchy lids, so I’d like an eye primer, but I want one that has all the bells and whistles.
Like this one from Chanel.
This untinted eyeshadow primer swept me off my feet cat Vans!
Granted, it’s not like applying eye primer is difficult, but it’s definitely easier than usual with this one because of its smooth consistency.
La Base is “wetter” than primers from NARS and Urban Decay, but it lasts just as long. Using it is like applying an eye cream, and I think it’s just easier and faster for me to use than other primers from the big dawgs.
What’s the longest you’ve ever had the same hair style?
Hmm… I’d have to say four or five years. I had basically the same long, dark brown layers from 2014 until just recently. Now it’s a little shorter, and I’m trying a center part, which is a new thing for me, and demi-permanent chocolate color, which is also new for me.
I also went about five years between the ages of 16-21, also that time with long hair with layers well past my shoulders.
I just realized something… Both of those long stretches when I had long layers were periods of massive change in my life, and whenever there’s a lot uncertainty in my life, I tend to stick to the familiar…at least when it comes to my hair.
How about you?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Ooh! This video!? I just learned a really handy trick for using nude flats to look taller:
If you’re petite like moi, or if you just want to add a couple of virtual inches without wearing heels, wear a pair of nude flats — ideally, with a slightly pointy toe — in a shade close to your skin tone. It’ll make your legs look longer.
Also, for the full effect, pair the flats with pants that hit above your ankle, and tuck in your shirt.
Well I’ll be a crazy cat lady… It really works! I got iPhone pic proof yesterday when I went to DSW looking for a pair of nude flats (I had a coupon burning a hole in my pocket. WOO HOO!).
Much to my chagrin, I didn’t hit a home run on the flats, though. I came pretty close with this tan and gold number by Vionic…
They’re one of those shoes that look cuter on your feet than they look sitting on the shelf, but I really wanted something with pointier toe, so I left without them.
At first I thought the cork-like material was kind of odd-looking (like, am I gonna be walking around with wine corks on my feet??), but with the gold flecks, the material looks almost like Chanel tweed.
MONEY SAVING TIP!
If you’re shopping in a DSW store and see a pair of shoes you like, check the website before buying, because sometimes their shoes are less on the website than they are in the stores, and vice versa. For example, the Vionic Minna Ballet Flats shown here are $119 in the store and $89.99 online. That’s a big difference!
The flats also felt like they were already “broken in” (so, not stiff), and the insoles had a fairly high cushioned arch, which I was living for because flats usually have zero arch support.
I came this close to bringing them home, but alas… Gonna keep looking around. If I can’t find anything else, I’ll go back for them.