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MAC Nutcracker Sweet Holiday 2016 Gift Sets: The Smoky Eye Compact Eye Shadow X 9

October 14th, 2016 by Karen 8 Comments

mac nutcracker sweet smoky eye compact — MAC Nutcracker Smoky Eye Compact Eye Shadows in Kid, Swiss Chocolate and Dance in the Dark on my eyes; NARS Make Believe and Albatross Blushes from the Sarah Moon Recurring Dare Palette on my cheeks and MAC Saucy Little Darling Lipstick on my lips

Band ten hut!

Yes, I was a band geek, and yes, I was also, to sound even more band geekier (?), a squad leader, so I knew all of the commands and stuff. 🙂

Ugh! I shouldn’t have admitted that in print, but hey, the packaging for this MAC Nutcracker Sweet Smoky Eye Compact Eye Shadow X 9 looks like a bad uniform (I spent a majority of my teenage years in one).

It’s one of three eye palettes in the Nutcracker Sweet holiday collection, and it’s the smoky one. There’s also a cool-toned one and a warm-toned one.

As usual for a MAC holiday collection, there are lots of kits and sets. MAC goes hawd during the holidays, and I’m just kind of marching my way (haha, band reference) through all of them.

M∙A∙C Nutcracker Sweet
Available online October 20, 2016
Available in stores on October 27, 2016 through December 8, 2016
#MACNutcrackerSweet

OK, first things first…but don’t these look a little like the Urban Decay Naked palettes? Especially this one with the neutral colors?

I don’t know… *shoulder shrug* I’m not saying that anybody did any copycatting, but I think there’s a resemblance.

The Smoky Eye Compact Eye Shadow X 9 ($39.50) — Too-dle-oo (Frost), Deception (Frost), Sweet Dreams (Matte), Kid (Veluxe), Dewdrop (Lustre), Cake & Biscuits (Matte), Swiss Chocolate (Matte), Dance in the Dark (Matte), Licorice Lane (Matte)

The set also comes with…

The 214/213 Dual-Ended Brush

mac nutcracker sweet eye compacts — All three of the MAC Nutcracker Sweet Eye Compacts with an iPhone 6S Plus for scale. This post is about one of them, the Smoky Eye Compact Eye Shadow X 9.

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Easy Halloween Look: Luna Punk Princess #GetHalloweenReady #Target #sponsored

October 14th, 2016 by Karen 23 Comments

As a participant in the #GetHalloweenReady with #Target campaign for Mirum Shopper, I received compensation for creating this post. Although it’s sponsored, all opinions are my own. @Target #GetHalloweenReady #Target #sponsored

Man, forget those little plastic Halloween jack-o’-lanterns. When I was a kid, I used pillowcases for trick-or-treating, and I filled them to the brim.

I’d walk around the neighborhood with ’em swung over my shoulder like I was a candy bandit. It was awesome…

Halloween is coming! It’s my favorite holiday, but I really haven’t gone big for a few years.

You know — life, getting older, not as many friends who live close by. I usually still do something at the last-minute, though.

A few years ago, El Hub and I went to a Halloween party on a WWII aircraft carrier and danced the night away listening to a live band in the old mess hall. The jets were even decorated, and you could sit in them if you wanted to. This adorable old veteran dude helped me into the cockpit and flirted with me a little bit. He must have been about 80.

There was a haunted house in the belly of the ship. You had to navigate down a flight of rickety metal stairs into a dark, cramped hallway to the actual surgical bay of the ship. Now THAT was creepy.

This will be Connor’s very first Halloween. I’m not sure what we’re gonna do yet, but I don’t think there will be any aircraft carriers involved…

Target is doing this thing where they’re featuring a couple of different doable makeup and hair looks. One’s a fairy look and the other’s a devil. I picked the fairy look because it reminded me of a moon child look from nocturn_elle on Instagram. I liked the silver crescent moon and her dark lips, and I thought I’d also be able to do something with my long hair.

It’s almost Halloween! If you haven’t figured out what you’re going to be yet and could use a little inspiration, this is the place to be. Below you’ll see a fun Halloween look that can be created with some of your favorite brands like Simple®, POND’S®, Q-tips®, TRESemmé® and Suave®, all available in the beauty and personal care aisles at Target. #GetHalloweenReady #Target

I needed a few things to complete my look, so I headed to Target for Q-tips®, hairspray and another bottle of makeup remover.

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MAKE THESE! —>Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Spice Scone Mix

October 13th, 2016 by Karen 10 Comments

I love these fracking scones. They taste like very dense, sweet and tasty pumpkin bread.

Pumpkin spice errrthing.

When I walked into Trader Joe’s (it was a Sunday evening), I smelled them from across the store. There was a crowd of people around the gal who was giving out the samples, and she was moving to meet the demand!

I got one box for $3.69 at the time, but I was a little skeptical (I’ve gotten a few more boxes since then). I didn’t think they’d be as good when I made them at home, but they were. Don’t laugh, but I made them for dinner last Friday night, and I didn’t even bother to make them cute. El Hub didn’t say anything about it, but he gave me a look, to which I said, “Yes, I made the ugliest scones ever known to man.”

I had them with a couple glasses of wine, and that was my dinner. I might even have them for dinner again tonight.

Whatever…it’s meatless Thursday. 🙂

So based on this very scientific study, these scones are the sh*t.

They’re so easy to make, too. You just add water.

Like, that’s all you do. You add water. That’s it. You add water, mix it up with a fork, and stick it on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper ’cause the dough is super sticky. Then you glaze them (they come with glaze), because without the glaze, they’d be really sad.

Your friendly neighborhood scone-loving beauty addict,

Karen

MAC Nutcracker Sweet Holiday 2016 Gift Sets: The Gold Pigments and Glitter Kit, and the Bronze Pigments and Glitter Kit

October 13th, 2016 by Karen 18 Comments

mac nutcracker sweet gold — Wearing Heritage Rouge Pigment and Reflects Gold Glitter from the MAC Nutcracker Sweet Gold Pigments and Glitter Set on my eyes; Magic Dust Powder in Sweet Vision on my cheeks and MAC Matte Lipstick in Leap of Delight on my lips, all from the MAC Nutcracker Sweet Collection

Baby love, the times, they are a-changin’, because for once I think I might actually be able to finish an entire jar of MAC Pigment. In my entire history of wearing MAC, I’ve never finished a jar.

You know that they’re big, right? They’re HUGE, but these minis are actually bite-sized and handleable.

There are two pigment and glitter sets in the new MAC Nutcracker Sweet holiday collection, along with a bunch of other sets. One of them has a bronze theme, and the other one gold, but both sets are super cute.

If you don’t know anything about the MAC Pigments, basically, in a nutshell, they’re loose, concentrated eyeshadows and glitters, which, on the one hand, are great if you want big, flashy “Oh, hey there, look at me!” eyes that practically beam from across the room, but on the other hand, they’re messy.

That’s the main reason I don’t use them often… The permanent collection jars have a wide mouth, and FOOF! — I’m always tipping them over and getting glitter in my brows, my ear, my bra. It’s a mess.

But these mini jars have a smaller mouth, which makes them easier to handle. I just tap a little on a paper towel and pick it up from the towel with my brush, and if there’s any left over, I kind of scoot it back into the jar.

So, in the process of doing the look I’m wearing in these pics (I’m wearing the Sweet Gold kit, BTW), I discovered that my new favorite thing in the whole wide world is inner corner glitter. It is basically the sh*t.

M∙A∙C Nutcracker Sweet
Available online October 20, 2016
Available in stores on October 27, 2016 through December 8, 2016
#MACNutcrackerSweet

As a glitter person, I usually like to just splash it all over my eyes, but if you take a little of the glitter (here I’m wearing Gold Reflects, the gold glitter from the gold kit), pick it up with a wet brush (something like MAC Fix +), and concentrate most of it in the inner corner and fade that out as you move toward the center of your lid, I think it looks really cool.

Maybe it’s just me, but I think it completely distracts from my dark circles while still being flashy and fun.

Between these two kits, I recognize several of the colors in the Gold kit, like Gold Reflects Glitter and Heritage Rouge, from the permanent line, but I don’t recognize anything in the Bronze kit, so if you’re looking for something more exclusive and unique, the Bronze kit might be the one to pick up.

MAC Nutcracker Sweet Gold Pigments and Glitter Kit ($35) — English Gilt Pigment (not perm), Reflects Gold Glitter (perm), Rust Glitter (perm) and Heritage Rouge Pigment (perm)

MAC Nutcracker Sweet Bronze Pigments and Glitter Kit ($35) — Sugar Rush Pigment (not perm; don’t think I’ve seen it before), Stardream Pigment (not perm), Handsome Prince Pigment (not perm) and Reigning Riches Glitter (not perm)

mac nutcracker sweet pigment glitter sets — The MAC Nutcracker Sweet Pigments and Glitter Kits next to an iPhone 6S Plus for scale

mac nutcracker sweet gold pigments and glitter — MAC Nutcracker Sweet Gold Pigments and Glitter Kit: English Gilt Pigment, Reflects Gold Glitter, Rust Glitter and Heritage Rouge Pigment

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ConnorClaire.com Product Spotlight: Lipstick All Night Throw Pillow

October 13th, 2016 by Karen 5 Comments

I daydream about lipstick all day, but apparently that wasn’t enough. I also needed to dream about it at night!

MAC Impassioned, NARS Yu, NARS Dolce Vita, MAC Paramount…

The Lipstick All Night Throw Pillow always makes me smile when I see it out of the corner of my eye (except when I see Tabs making biscuits on it with his claws).

Technically, you could throw this pillow at somebody because it is a "throw" pillow...but I wouldn't suggest doing that (not unless they insulted your cat and, in that case, it would be totally justified). I'd suggest hugging it instead, because 1) the world needs more hugs, and 2) the soft yet firm nature of this pillow makes it infinitely huggable.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

The MAC Nutcracker Sweet Holiday 2016 Collection

October 12th, 2016 by Karen 24 Comments

mac saucy little darling — From the MAC Nutcracker Sweet holiday 2016 collection, the Eye Kohls in Powersurge (as a base all over my lids), Feline (upper lash and water lines) and Prunella (lower lash and water lines), Magic Dust Eye Shadows in Dark Lullaby (lids), Mustache (upper lash line), Rabblerouser and Pretty Dainty (crease), Forward March (just underneath my inner brow bones) and Dance Flowers Dance (tear duct)! The lipstick is Saucy Little Darling.

M∙A∙C Nutcracker Sweet
Available online October 20, 2016
Available in stores on October 27, 2016 through December 8, 2016
#MACNutcrackerSweet

This is gonna sound pretty band-geeky of me (well, I was a band geek), but some of the best flute parts EVER are in the MAC…

Wait — the MAC?

I almost said “in the MAC Nutcracker Sweet,” what!

I meant to say, “in the [actual] Nutcracker Suite,” as in the piece of music from the ballet, and I know this because I played it in high school.

Nutcracker Sweet! In MAC’s case, it’s spelled S-W-E-E-T, and if that doesn’t get your attention, I don’t know what planet you’re from. 🙂 Because I love sweet things, and this collection is definitely sweet.

MAC always goes big for the holidays. This post is just about the color collection. There are also a bunch of kits and sets which I’ll be wearing and testing over the next week.

So what do you think of the limited edition packaging?

mac nutcracker sweet — MAC Nutcracker Sweet for Holiday 2016

I think it’s SO pretty — the bright pink, plum and those touches of gold. Right away, my eyes went BIG, and not just because I spotted three of my favorite liners of all time — Prunella, Powersurge (don’t even get me started about Powersurge) and Feline. Yes, they’re re-promotes, I know, but there are also some new things in this collection, like the Magic Dust Eye Shadows, which are indeed magically dusty, but not in a bad way. More like magic makeup fairy dust.

Seriously, why aren’t all MAC eyeshadows like these? They’re smooth, sensationally soft, and when I was swatching them, I kid you not, I just kept going ooh, ah, give it to me…

OK, that sounded kind of nasty…

Let’s just start with the lip products, shall we?

Lips…

Cremesheen Lipstick in Kingdom of Sweet ($18)

mac kingdom of sweets — Cremesheen Lipstick in Kingdom of Sweets

WHAT IS IT? I usually shy away from creamy, pale pastel pinks like Kingdom of Sweets because they’re infinitely difficult to wear, especially if you have dry lips. They settle into my fine lip lines, but Kingdom of Sweets doesn’t.

SHOULD YOU GET IT? Yes. Hell, yes. I hardly ever wear colors like this, but I want to wear this one right now. It’s smooth, comfortable and easy to use, which are all the things I want from a pale pastel pink lipstick.

Matte Lipstick in Flamboyish ($18)

mac flamboyish — Matte Lipstick in Flamboyish

WHAT IS IT? I wanna be Flamboyish! This hot pink is BRIGHT, and it reminds me a lot of Candy Yum Yum, which, I believe, is slightly lighter.

SHOULD YOU GET IT? I’m on the hot pink train, toot-toot! Destination Hot Pink Matte Lipstick-ville. So yes, I would hop on the Flamboyish train. It’s smooth for a matte, which, as you know, can be difficult to wear. It’s also opaque.

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ConnorClaire.com Product Spotlight: Lady Nerd Tee

October 12th, 2016 by Karen 6 Comments

Who’s a lady nerd?

This girl!

Who usually has had no idea what to do with her hands when she takes pictures of herself?

Again, THIS GIRL!

Please excuse the dorky jazz hands, but this was actually the best picture of the bunch.

As you can tell…I have absolutely no idea what to do with my hands. Do I put them in my pockets? Make shadow puppets? Give a thumbs-up sign? I don’t know.

Of course, being a lady nerd also means that I devote an inordinate amount of time to figuring this out.

What the hell do I do with my hands...?

*sigh*

This shirt, BTW, is super soft. It's a classic fit tee that skims your curves without clinging to them, and we have it in a nice range of sizes. For reference, I'm 5 feet 1 inches tall, and I'm wearing a small in these pics. And I still have room to breathe.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

“I’m Good at This Stuff”

October 11th, 2016 by Karen 25 Comments

Yes, this is a bootylicious unicorn flying through the night sky with hearts coming out of its butt.

And yes, it looks like he got that rainbow tattoo at a discount tattoo place…and the tattoo artist was drunk.

Here’s my latest work of art! I did it at a really fun painting event in San Francisco last night with my friend Marisol.

It’s called Paint Nite, and they hold it at different restaurants all the time. You sign up online, and I think Marisol had a Groupon sort of deal where it was $49 for the both of us.

Basically, it’s a painting class with food and wine and a bunch of people in a restaurant. Everyone starts off with a blank canvas, so it’s not paint by numbers. You do use a pre-selected painting, though, which you pick when you sign up, as your template.

There’s also an art teacher who walks you through the how-tos, but you’re free to interpret your painting however you want.

My template was also of a flying unicorn… I don’t know why I keep calling him a he, but he initially had stars trailing out of his butt, and the script said, “Believe in yourself,” but I decided to go rogue and do my own thing.

The stars just weren’t working for me.

Did I mention that you can order food and wine? — so you can get your drank on while you paint? The paint isn’t stinky, so it doesn’t interfere with your drinking and eating experience.

It was a lot of fun, and I’d totally do it again! 🙂

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