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

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 341

April 5th, 2015 by Karen 10 Comments

Dear Tabby is written by Tabs the cat, widely considered “the world’s first plus-size kitty supermodel.” Founded in mid 2012, it has quickly become the most popular cat advice column on earth — known for its fresh, feline perspective on lifestyle, fashion and style issues affecting cats and humans.

Cat questions decision to pursue acting

DEAR TABBY: First things first: happy Easter. Thank you so much for reading my letter.

My question for you pertains to acting. Basically, I just experienced the most humiliating moment of my life, and it has left me questioning my decision to move out here to Hollywood.

Earlier this week I auditioned for a part as a character called “The Easter Bunny” in a production at the nearby mall. My agent said it would be a prestigious stepping stone in my career, but it turned out to be a humiliating disaster.

Like many cats, when I moved out here from the Midwest, I had stars in my eyes. I wanted to be the next Tabs or Morris, but “the biz” hasn’t been what I expected at all.

No one takes me seriously! The only roles I ever get are commercials, and I never get any speaking lines.

So that audition I mentioned? — they wouldn’t even let me into the mall. I was told, “Sorry, buddy. No cats allowed.”

Can you believe it? And I trained near Juilliard.

Anyway, now I’m questioning my decision to move out here. I’m six years old, and I’m not getting any younger. Do you think I should keep trying, or should I take this as a sign and give up acting?

Respectfully,
Thor

Did Morris the cat give up? — Did Morris give up?

DEAR THOR: Did Morris give up when they told him he was too orange for television? Of course not. In this business, you can’t take the rejection seriously. It happens to us all.

The Easter Bunny just wasn’t the right role for you. When you’re really ready to give up, you’ll know it. You won’t need to ask for my opinion or anyone else’s.

Stay strong, believe in your craft, and keep trying. Also, look for opportunities close to home.

Perhaps practice running lines with your assistant. I do that sometimes. Act calm, cool and collected one minute, and then completely shift gears and flip out. It’s a good exercise.

Kitty seeks big city fashion advice

DEAR TABBY: My assistant and I recently relocated the office from the West Coast to downtown New York, and I’m having a hard time adjusting to the fast-paced environment. I haven’t been sleeping well during the daytime at all, and now I’m nervously licking my fur.

Everything here is just different. More formal, I guess? I can’t quite put my paw on it, but I’m trying to make the best of the situation.

One thing I’ve noticed is the street style. The cats here like to dress up, but I’m not a kitty clothes horse. I don’t know the first thing about fashion. Do you have any simple tips to help me fit in better with these stylish locals?

Sincerely,
Tweety

DEAR TWEETY: I think you’re wise to step up your fashion game a little, especially if you want to break into the East Coast kitty modeling and feline fashion scenes (you didn’t say).

Since I work both coasts, I follow a formula: whenever I’m working in New York, I start with whatever I would have worn in California, but I wear it in black instead. For example, if I would have worn my favorite blue tie to an interview in California, in New York I’ll wear a black tie instead. This is to accommodate for the more fashionable East Coat lifestyle.
[Continue reading…]

Comment to Win a $50 eGift Card From Sephora! (Ends Monday)

April 4th, 2015 by Karen 420 Comments

** THE GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED **
This giveaway is closed, and the winner has been contacted (CONGRATULATIONS, AMANDA!!!), but check back next Saturday for another Sephora giveaway.

Tabs and I have diametrically opposed opinions of Saturday mornings. While I love them, because I usually sleep in an hour or two later than I do on M-F, he does not, because normally during the workweek, practically the first thing I do, which is usually around 6:45 a.m., is take him outside for a quick walk on his leash.

Buuut, on Saturdays, since I like to sleep in, I get up a little later than usual, and his little kitty brain knows it. By 6:48 or so he starts mewling, LOUDLY, and pacing the hallway by the front door downstairs (I can hear his tabby claws clicking on the tiles from my bed upstairs) when I don’t get up at the regular time.

Right now as I’m typing this, he’s anxiously doing circuits around the kitchen and meowing nonstop.

“TABBY GOTS TO GO OUTSIDE!!!”

So that’s what I’m about to do.

Happy pre-Easter morning, my friend! 🙂 I hope you have a great holiday. El Hub, Tabs and I are just taking it easy around here today, but tomorrow we’ll drive out to the East Bay for brunch with the fam.

Yes, I said brunch, and you know how much I love brunch.

Good luck to you in the giveaway, and have a wonderful, perfect Easter weekend.

One (1) Sephora eGift card containing $50 sent to the winner by email (international readers, you may opt to receive $50 sent by PayPal instead).

Enter by leaving a comment below.
Open to U.S. and international readers.
You must be 18 or older to enter (or otherwise an adult based on your local laws).
Your comment can be about anything at all, but here are some ideas if you’re stuck:
- __________ gives you wings.
- What makeup brand most closely resembles your vibe/style?
- Once upon a time there was a __________.
- Did you belong to any cliques in high school?
- Are you gullible?
- Do you ever recall something that happened, but then realize that you’re actually remembering a dream?
One entry per person.
You must use a valid email address to win.
The giveaway ends on Monday, April 6, 2015 at 11:59 PM (Pacific Time). 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

The Bkr Bottle Is Quite Possibly the Cutest Water Bottle in the History of the World

April 3rd, 2015 by Karen 23 Comments

I recently told my friend Marisol that I drink an obnoxious amount of water throughout the day. “No, really,” I said. “It’s almost obscene. You’d think I had some weird water obsession or something.”

This came up in conversation one day while we were at HomeGoods, where I was looking for an over-sized XXL cup to hold said water. Marisol mentioned that I should check out her fave water bottles because 1) they’re cute, 2) they come in a variety of fun colors, and 3) they hold an obnoxious amount of water (32 ounces!).

How cute is this?!

It’s a sturdy glass water bottle from bkr, a small company out of San Francisco.

Each bottle comes with a grippy silicone sleeve and a cap with a hand-holder thingamabobber, and their major selling points (besides the cuteness) are that they’re BPA- and phthalate-free. They’re also 100% made with FDA-approved materials.

I’m also told that the caps form a perfect seal.

Mine just arrived today, and it’s HUGE (32 ounces/1 liter)! I ordered the big 1-liter bottle ($42), which I plan to keep on my desk during the day.

I know that $42 is a lot for a water bottle…but I’ll drink from it all day, every day, and it’ll make my desk/office look prettier. 🙂

The shade I picked, “Sugar,” is a warm pinkish coral, and surprise! — it reminds me of flamingos.

The bottles are available in a bunch of other colors and designs on the company’s website, although I got mine from Amazon to get free shipping with Amazon Prime.

There’s also a smaller, travel-friendlier 500 ml/16-ounce bottle for $30 that would be great for throwing into a big purse to run errands.

Now those are SUPER cute!

Especially the ones with hearts.

Honestly, this is probably the most excited I’ve ever been about a water bottle, LOL! I like to just carry it around the house and hold it.

Summer Is Al Fresco Time at Tarte With the Poppy Picnic Amazonian Clay Eye & Cheek Palette

April 3rd, 2015 by Karen 15 Comments

tarte summer 2015 poppy picnic — Tarte Summer 2015 Poppy Picnic Amazonian Clay Eye & Cheek Palette ($38, available now)

I live for picnics…

The fun in the sun, the food, the friends, the family, the food…

Did I already mention the food? 🙂

I might actually love picnic fare more than I love brunch, and you know how much I love brunch.

(A lot.)

It’s because of the sides, man! I’m all about the sides. The potato salad, macaroni salad, fruit salad, that weird Jello salad that one of my aunties usually makes which looks totally gross but tastes hella delicious.

Oh! — and the corn on the freaking cob?

I wants it… I wants it all.

Speaking of picnics (how’s that for a lazy transition, ha!), there’s one happening now at Tarte, and it’s new for summer 2015.

Say “Please pass the potato chips!” to the Tarte Poppy Picnic Amazonian Clay Eye & Cheek Palette ($38)

The Tarte Poppy Picnic Amazonian Clay Eye & Cheek Palette: A Quick FAQ/Rundown

What is it?
A $38 limited edition eye & cheek palette (available now) containing six new powder eyeshadows and one re-promoted powder blush (it’s called Glisten) containing Tarte’s jam, otherwise known as Amazonian clay, which is supposed to soak up any oily bits while simultaneously balancing moisture levels in your skin.

Are there any limited edition shades?
Yes, ma’am, there are. The eyeshadows in Summer Breeze (a matte cream), Sweet Tea (a matte tan), Ice Cream Cone (a matte chocolate), Barefoot in the Grass (a matte light tan), Peach Poppy (a matte peach) and Picnic Basket (a matte deep brown) are all limited edition.

What size are the pans?
Shimmery golden pink Glisten Blush is a 0.20-ounce full-size pan, and the eyeshadows are smaller at 0.06 ounces each.

What can you tell me about the texture of the eyeshadows?
Well, I can tell ya that they kick up a lot of powder, so it helps to tap off your brush before applying them; otherwise, you get a little fallout.

Beyond that, though, they feel smooth to me, and they’re easy to blend.

Are the eyeshadows pigmented or sheer?
I’d say that the lighter tan and peach shades are sheer to medium, while the two darkest shades are medium (I built them up for the swatches to make ’em nice and dark), and none of them look heavy on the skin.

How about the texture of the blush?
Slightly grainy…which is probably because of the pretty big flecks of golden glitter in it.

How pigmented is the blush?
Moderately pigmented, but not crazy town/crazy clown pigmented. I only need a single layer.
[Continue reading…]

Open Thread: The Pink Power Smoothie Edition

April 3rd, 2015 by Karen 84 Comments

Hello and happy Friday, my friend! Here, have a Pink Power Smoothie. 🙂

It’s a good day — no, a GREAT day — for an open thread, where we’ll talk about anything — makeup, cats, skincare, food (although I don’t know how much help I’ll be in that department), blogging, photography, pineapples, what have you… It’s like coffee talk, except we’ll have smoothies.

Warm up those fingers, and I’ll meet you in the comments! The open thread starts right meow…

How to Make a Pink Power Smoothie

Adapted from Oh She Glows

Incidentally, I feel ready to take on the freakin’ world when I have one of these bad boys for breakfast, and it holds me over till lunch. My version leaves out the coconut oil…because that was just a little too rich for my tum, but even without it, it’s still filling.

Ingredients:

1 cup water or coconut water
1/2 medium avocado (pit removed)
2 celery stalks, diced
1/2 cup frozen strawberries
1/2 cup frozen raspberries
1 small/medium lightly steamed beet, ends trimmed and diced
1 lemon, juiced
1 tsp of honey (or to taste)

Directions:

Wash and lightly steam the beet (you could leave the beet raw, but my blender can’t handle that ish), then chop, chop, chop it!

Place in a blender and blend on high until smooooove.

Add more honey if you like.

Slurp it all up, YUM!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF!

Get Jouer Delivered Right to Your Door! Jouer Launches Le Matchbox, a New Subscription Box Service

April 2nd, 2015 by Karen 8 Comments

Chic SoCal casual makeup brand Jouer is jumping into the subscription box ring with a new quarterly service of their own, and the twist is a quiz.

Each selection (the boxes are $45 each, sent out four times/year) they send is determined by your answers to a list of questions. You take the online quiz (questions about eye color, things like that), and then based on your answers, they fill each box with a different set of products and colors to best suit you.

Each box comes with both full-sized and sample/mini items — all from the Jouer brand — and a mini magazine with product details and application tips.

Subscriptions are $45 per quarterly box, or you can also make a one-time purchase to try one for $65.

What do you think about beauty/makeup subscription box services? Do you subscribe to any of them?

I don’t at the moment, but I like the element of randomness and the surprise, depending on the price and the overall value, especially if I’m exploring a new line. In the case of this service, the $45 boxes are definitely less expensive than purchasing the products on their own would be.

For example, this Jouer Le Matchbox includes…

(1) full-size bottle of Daily Repair Treatment Oil
(1) full-size Creme Eyeshadow Crayon in Renaissance
(1) full-size Moisturizing Lip Gloss in Hamptons
(1) full-size Mineral Powder Blush in Blossom
(1) Eyelash Curler
(1) Flat Kabuki Brush
(1) tiny sample-size bottle of a nice perfume (smells like gardenia)

Just the full-size blush, the creme eyeshadow crayon and the gloss, for instance, would cost $74 (vs. $45 for the whole box).

As with some of these services, though, it also depends on whether you already own products from the brands (so you don’t get any dupes, unless you don’t mind).

On a completely unrelated topic…

Flamingos.

Yes, more flamingos.

This video makes me so happy. 🙂

Spring Wardrobe Update: I’m Lovin’ These LOFT Chambray Softened Shirts [VIDEO]

April 2nd, 2015 by Karen 16 Comments

Homegirl! I’m totally in love with these shirts. I’m not even usually a button-up collared shirt kind of gal, but these super soft shirts from LOFT have shown me the light!

I don’t know if you’ve been thinking about a spring wardrobe refresh, but if you are, throw one (or a couple) of these Chambray Softened Shirts up in the mix. You can wear them with jeans (denim head-to-toe? Yes you can!), white skinnies or shorts, and/or as layering piece on top of tanks, tees, or thin sweaters…

So many possibilities.

Products mentioned in this video…

LOFT Chambray Softened Shirt ($54.50)
LOFT Drapey Chambray Softened Shirt ($54.50)

As always, thank you for watching!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

What Are 5 of Your Favorite Errrthing Products Right Now (Not Necessarily Makeup)?

April 2nd, 2015 by Karen 28 Comments

5 Errrthing Products Right Now — What are your 5 favorite “errrthing” products right now?

er·rr·thing
/ˈerˌTHiNG/
pronoun

all things; all the things of a group or class.
“he taught me errrthing I know”
synonyms: each item, each thing, errr single thing, the lot, the whole lot
antonyms: nuh’in
the current situation; life in general.
“how’s errrthing?”

At any given moment, chances are something’s rocking my boat, like a giant life-sized Ryan Gosling body pillow, Charlie the rainbow pegasus, vegan thumbprint oatmeal cookies, etc., etc.

You know how it goes. 🙂

Here are five of my current favorite errrthing products right now.

1. Kerastase Spray À Porter ($36 for a 150ml bottle)

Kerastase Spray a Porter — Kerastase Spray À Porter

This week, in a shock to everyone (including myself), I’ve actually had the motivation to, ya know, do something with my hair other than throw it into a bun and fugghetaboutit. So, out came the Kerastase Spray À Porter.

I hadn’t used it in a while and didn’t realize how low I was until I was halfway through styling my mop yesterday and heard the nozzle go pffffft.

WHAT WAS THAT!?

Good thing Karen from the past was forward-thinking enough to realize that current timeline Karen would get into this situation, and therefore stored a backup bottle in the hair products drawer.

Yeah, this stuff is the ISH. I know I’ve probably been gushing about it for a year, but it’s basically a styling spray that does a little bit of everything, and it does it all so well that you might not even need/want anything else.

It texturizes, volumizes, gives light hold (not too crunchy), enhances waves and lifts roots. You can even use it as a dry shampoo to absorb oil in a pinch.

I don’t even know why I keep trying other hair products with Kerastase Spray À Porter around.

Oh, wait! — I do know. It’s called short-term beauty memory, haha!

2. Cuisinart Smart Stick 2-Speed Hand Blender ($59.95)

GURL, you know my cooking usually falls somewhere in the spectrum between “questionably edible” and “downright gross,” but I’ve been trying to be better lately and cut down on processed foods, and eat more of the bountiful fruit of the loins of the earth…

My mom got me this Cuisinart Hand Blender for Christmas last year, and I kid you not, I use it almost every freaking day.

I use it to make smoothies, beat eggs, purée soup, do my hair…

NO! Not that last one. 🙂

I also have a regular blender, but I don’t like lugging it out, and then having to clean it up and put it away again.

I know, First World Kitchen Problems.

This hand blender, though, is so easy to store and clean, and it just works. I used it to make this Pink Power Detox Smoothie this morning, by the way, and it was BOMB.

I would’ve taken a picture of it but, as usual, I inhaled it too quickly, haha! (the smoothie, not the blender)
[Continue reading…]