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

The New NARS Modern Future Set Has a Cinematic Past

October 16th, 2014 by Karen 31 Comments

It seemed like the right thing to do.

Yesterday afternoon I watched Roman Holiday (for, oh, I dunno, the ninth or tenth time) while painting my nails with NARS Roman Holiday Nail Polish from the new $49 Modern Future set.

I was also wearing Roman Holiday Blush and Roman Holiday Lipstick (also from the same set) on my cheeks and lips.

It just made sense. I mean, I could have watched Breakfast at Tiffany’s or Sabrina instead, but that would have been totally weird… Watching Roman Holiday seemed like the right thing to do. 🙂

Which reminds me, please, PLEASE tell me you’ve seen this movie. Breakfast at Tiffany’s seems to get more love, but Roman Holiday gets my vote for best Audrey Hepburn movie, ever. She even earned a Best Actress Academy Award for it.

If you haven’t seen it, do it! Audrey plays a princess who goes rogue by taking an unsanctioned, impromptu vacation from her life as a royal public figure. During her adventure she hangs out with an American newspaper reporter, played by Gregory Peck. The sets, the clothes, the dialogue, the ending — SO GOOD. Just watch it already!

And if you can, watch it while you’re wearing NARS Roman Holiday Blush, Lipstick and Nail Polish. It’s, like, extra poetic that way.

NARS Roman Holiday Lipstick — Roman Holiday Lipstick

NARS Roman Holiday Nail Polish — Roman Holiday Nail Polish

Roman Holiday is a cool pastel pink with slight purple undertones…but don’t let that description scare you! — because it’s actually really pretty and wearable.

Originally, the color only came as a lipstick, but NARS turned it into a blush and a nail polish for this LE holiday set.

Roman Holiday Lipstick

When I’m in the mood for a smooth, easy-to-wear cool-toned pink that doesn’t shimmer and isn’t too shiny, Roman Holiday Lipstick’s sheer pink wash rules. I can literally (well…) throw it on without having to use a mirror. I also like that it’s a build-able sheer, so you can intensify it by adding another layer. I also think it looks super pretty with NARS Angelika or Easy Lover Lipgloss on top.

The set includes a full-size 0.12-oz. tube.

NARS Roman Holiday Lipstick and Blush — Wearing Roman Holiday Lipstick and Blush

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What’s Something You Do With Your Makeup When You Want It to Look Like You Put Serious Effort Into It?

October 15th, 2014 by Karen 51 Comments

Just add lashes! (BTW, that’s the Dolce & Gabbana Desert Quad on my eyes)

False lashes, definitely.

A pair of falsies turns everything else up a notch. In the time it takes to stick a pair of false lashes on your eyes, you can turn the most ho-hum makeup into faux fancy.

In my case, I think because I have naturally really uninspired lashes that are thin and not very long, when I wear falsies, the difference is pretty dramatic. It’s like, “Oh! At least she tried.”

But, you know, sometimes I’m just not in the mood to deal with all the glue and the lashes and the trimming them down to size, so I’ll bust out my tube of Cle de Peau Perfect Lash Mascara, which creates crazy good length. Unfortunately, it’s also crazy expensive. $50.

I swear, though, it makes my lashes look about nine miles long. The only problem is that it takes forever and a day to remove. The formula is freakishly waterproof, which might actually be a good thing for me today because it just started raining. 🙁

What’s something you do with your makeup when you want it to look like you put serious effort into it?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Fall Is Here…

October 14th, 2014 by Karen 26 Comments

Wow. Overnight, we went from 80-something degrees, t-shirts and shorts to me noticing the leaves changing colors on the oak trees outside. How’d that happen?

I miss summer already. When it’s over, I always feel like I didn’t do enough outside while it was hot, like I didn’t take enough advantage of it, but I did… I’m just sad to see it go.

At least we have boots…fall boots and fall makeup and fall sweaters and fall snacks. I’m definitely gonna be going to DSW more often.

Tabs is none too pleased about the changing seasons either. His little deck garden is on its last legs. There’s just not enough sun to keep the plants happy. The cat grass and zinnia, which are probably his two favorite things to snack on whenever he goes outside, are withering and starting to yellow, and now he nibbles on them disdainfully, as if he’s forcing down a bad salad because he thinks it’s healthy, but it’s all he has.

It’s so weird, but two days ago, this is how it looked in San Francisco. El Hub and I took the ferry in from Larkspur to watch the Blue Angels, and it was hot! I was walking around holding a bottle of water, and now it’s 20 degrees cooler, cloudy and smells like rain. Go figure.

Time to shift gears to Halloween and Thanksgiving. To get myself in the right mindset, I like to look back through my folder of kitty modeling ad campaigns that Tabs worked on in previous falls… 🙂

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New AERIN Waterlily Sun and Iris Meadow Eau de Parfum: File These Two Fragrances Under “BFF Holiday Gift Ideas”

October 14th, 2014 by Karen 9 Comments

I like both of these new Eau De Parfums by AERIN because neither one smells like it should have sparkly hot pink glitter floating around inside the bottle or like it would be part of a three-piece set that includes a My Little Pony and a sheet of rainbow stickers.

Iris Meadow and Waterlily Sun do not smell like something Britney Spears might’ve sprayed on the backs of her knees while running around barefoot at a gas station in 2007. (Still lovin’ ya Brit-Brit! Keep on keepin’ on, girl.)

Basically, if you like scents that smell like something someone who totally has her sh*t together and always remembers to change the cat litter would wear (scents that don’t evoke notes of cupcakes or unicorns), give these two new scents a sniff. Both have “best friend holiday gift potential” written all over ’em.

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For Your Viewing Pleasure, the New MAC Keepsakes Nude Lip Bag and Kristin Perry Jewel Saturation Necklace

October 14th, 2014 by Karen 18 Comments

First, for your viewing pleasure, Tabs in a rhinestone necklace…

“Day. Officially. Made.” says the woman who lives for chunky kitties in statement jewelry. 🙂

The bling, by the way, is the $68 Jewel Saturation Necklace by Kristin Perry, which Tabs likes because the Art Deco-ness of it makes him feel like he’s in The Great Gatsby.

Next, also for your viewing pleasure, there’s the new limited edition Keepsakes Nude Lip Bag from the MAC Keepsakes holiday collection ($39.50 US, $47.50 CAD).

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Nothing Says “I Love Shimmer!” Like the New MAC Objects of Affection Pink and Rose Pigments and Glitter Set

October 14th, 2014 by Karen 8 Comments

MAC Objects of Affection Pink + Rose Pigments + Glitter — The $35 MAC Objects of Affection Pink and Rose Pigments and Glitter Set

Should I dab a little on my lids or in the inner corners? How about above or below my brow bone? On top of my upper cheekbones? My Cupid’s bow? Maybe I should mix a little in with my body lotion to sparkle-fy my shoulders and legs. Or, should I just pour the entire jar over myself like I’m a bad girl in a Billy Idol video? (Note to self: Do not stick out your tongue if you do this, because that would be a bad idea.)

Ah…just think of all the shimmery, sparkly things you could do with the new MAC Objects of Affection Pink and Rose Pigments and Glitter Set. Great for girls who like choices. 🙂

The $35 set ($42 CAD), one of four MAC Pigments and Glitter sets coming October 27 to maccosmetics.com and November 6 to stores, includes five little bottles (0.09 ounces each), four of them loose MAC Pigments and the other a MAC Glitter.

Two of the Pigments — pinkish brown Tan (which looks great on lids with Saddle and Soft Brown in the crease) and plummy brown Heritage Rouge — are favorites of mine, but I like the entire selection. Good choices for colors to wear with fall’s rich burgundies, purples and coppers.
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What Foundation Have You Been Wearing, and Are You Happy With It?

October 14th, 2014 by Karen 73 Comments

GURL, if someone took away my bottle of Laura Mercier’s Flawless Fluide Foundation, I would go full-on Walking Dead Ricksanity on that @ss, improv shiv and ALL. It is the business. It’s been my can’t-live-without-it foundation for months.

It’s my go-to foundation for pics because it covers everything and mellows out my pores (cue blessed makeup angels harmoniously singing). I also grab it whenever I’m in the mood for a matte finish (can even skip powder).

Lightweight? Yup. Comfortable? Uh-huh. Doesn’t break me out? Yes, yes, YES! And it comes in a ton of shades. I wear the one called Chai, as in “Oh, CHAI!” or, “I’ll have a venti pumpkin soy chai latte please, hold the foam.”

I’m still a MAC Face & Body fan/fiend 4-Life, but I like having another holy grail foundation I can turn to. Sometimes I’ll even layer both of them, applying MAC Face & Body all over my face with my fingers, then blending Flawless Fluide on my cheeks, nose and around my chin (where I like to have more coverage) with a Beauty Blender — which totally helps with Flawless Fluide, by the way, which can look super matte. The BB makes it look really natural.

What foundation have you been wearing, and are you happy with it? Tell me all about it!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Marc Jacobs Beauty O!Mega Lash Volumizing Mascara Is More Dramatic Than a Soap Opera Cliffhanger Before a Commercial Break

October 13th, 2014 by Karen 18 Comments

Do I want a mousy mascara, a timid one that keeps its eyes glued to the floor, too nervous to embrace the music and attack the dance floor with verve!

No.

How about a mascara that shushes me when I laugh a little too loudly in public, then says, “Be quiet! You’re making a scene and attracting to much attention”?

Not a chance.

Or a mascara that never wants to go out? It just wants to stay at home and watch Law and Order and fall asleep by 8:30?

ABSOLUTELY EFFING NOT.

I want a mascara that hits the gas and takes my hand while looking straight into my eyes and yelling, “We’re about to Thelma and Louise this ish, boo!” as our convertible dives off the cliff! 🙂

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