A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict
I got some balloons for El Hub’s birthday last week, and they’re still flying high.
Tabs was terrified of them at first, then intrigued, and now he’s just totally uninterested.
I wonder what he thinks they are… When he looks up at them he gets a look on his face like, What kind of dark sorcery is this!?
I laid down on the carpet to take these shots.
Filed under “Weird Things Cat Ladies Think About.” 🙂
Winter is coming… Looking at the Lipglasses in MAC’s new A Novel Romance collection, I can almost feel the socks on my feet (toe oppression!), the leopard-print cat lady gloves on my hands, the chill in the air and the extra 10 pounds of holiday chocolate in my belly. These colors sure don’t seem like typical fall colors.
No wines, reds or berries here. Instead, they remind me of colors we’d see in an early winter collection released after the holidays.
Yeah, as in January.
Perhaps MAC is playing with the notion of novel and looking at it as something other than a book. Like something new, a new way to think about fall lip colors.
These five new limited edition Lipglasses ($15 U.S., $18 CDN each) have the same super sticky texture, vanilla flavor and scent, and 3-5 hour wear time I’ve come to expect from MAC Lipglasses.
Three of the five are different takes on pale lavender, but don’t be scared! Surprisingly, they’re very flattering and wearable. They almost function as nude neutrals, and all three should look great with any of the collection’s three quads, particularly when worn with intense smokey eye looks.
MAC loves purple quads.
No, not those purple quads. 🙂
I’m referring to purple quads like these…
They’ve been a recurring theme over the years (see: MAC Kelly Osborne Bloody Brilliant Quad, Archie’s Girls Eye Shadow X 4 in Spoiled Rich and the Private Viewing Quad from Make-Up Art Cosmetics, among many others), and with the new MAC A Passionate Quest Quad, their purple passion lives on. I think it’s one of their most interesting purple eyeshadow productions to date.
Those two shadows on the right side of the quad may look like pretty unassuming purples, but they each contain a surprising amount of blue.
Serenade, the lighter shade, is a mid-tone purplish pink with blue duochrome, while Stay Sultry is a dark navy violet.
The blue in both shadows advertises itself more clearly on my skin than it does in swatches, and it’s weird — layered on top of a black base, both shades look almost more like blue eyeshadows than purple.
A breakdown of the eyeshadows in this look: The Wrong Man (a light cool dusty pink) on my brow bones and in the inner corners), Serenade (a mid tone pinkish purple with blue duochrome pearl) on my lids and lower lash lines, Brazenly (a rich eggplant) in the crease and Stay Sultry (a deep violet navy) in the outer corners. Also, on my lash and water lines, I’m wearing MAC Fluidline Eye Pencil in Black Brilliance. Lashes are Ardell 105s.
It’s as if the quad has a split personality. If you were to split it right down the middle, you’d have a blue duo on the right, and a more traditional purplish pink duo on the left.
A Passionate Quest (limited edition) is one of three quads in the MAC A Novel Romance collection, and I’d say it’s probably the most dramatic — and that’s not just because of the blue surprise. MAC really swings for the fences with the darker shades in the bottom half of the palette.
You might be wondering, “So what in tarnation is this Monday Poll thing anyway!?”
Well, it isn’t exactly a poll. It’s more of a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past seven years. (It’s like a kickstart for your brain.) I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.
I’ve given up… Now I just let them have their way.
That would be rad.
Or I’d go with David Lee Roth, circa his mid-’80s, spandex-wearing, high-kicking era, just ’cause that would be SO weird.
When we moved into this condo a few years ago, the carpeting was a heavily stained Golden Girls ’80s mauve, so we got it re-carpeted. Shortly thereafter, Tabs decided that the carpeted stairs would be his personal scratching posts, and so now the bottom three stairs are practically threadbare.
I’ve never been able to get him to stop, and I swear that he does it when he knows he can’t get scolded, like when I’m upstairs in bed or out of the house.
Your turn. 🙂 Just copy and paste the following questions into a comment with your answers. I look forward to reading ’em!
1. Do you have a fussy cowlick, or is there another part of your hair that always misbehaves, no matter what?
2. Have you ever had your body painted?
3. If you could sing a duet with a famous singer (living or dead), whom would it be?
4. Have you ever worn one of those thick terry cloth bathrobes, like the kind they have in hotels?
5. If you have a pet, have they ever seriously destroyed/shredded the crap out of something that was deemed off limits?
Monday, babe. Aaand we’re back. 🙂
So, interesting articles this week. Here’s one I found yesterday that I thought you might like. It’s about visualization — in this case, specifically visualizing yourself at this moment, as if you’ve already accomplished whatever you’re working on.
They use a running analogy.
“When you first begin any endeavor, if you believe yourself to be behaving like someone who has already accomplished the task would behave, you set the challenge up as a simpler task. As Cain describes it: the task won’t be like running uphill, it will still involve running (in a sense) but it will feel like a downhill jaunt. To reach that point you simply need to visualize yourself behaving in the way that your ideal self would behave.”
Very cool idea. I’m gonna actively try it this week.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
You know how it goes, kitties. Cats have busy lives. We don’t always have time to go full-on with our makeup, but that doesn’t mean we can’t still look polished.
Next time you’re running late for a meeting with your assistant or have a nap scheduled, try this quick five-minute makeup look. It’s fresh-faced, gorgeous and incredibly easy. Not to mention, it’s appropriate for all fur patterns and experience levels. -Tabs
TOOLS:
I know, I know — water sucks! But dampening the sponge first will sheer down the product, ensuring that it looks as natural as possible.
STEPS:
If you try this look, tag me on Instagram! #tabstutorials 🙂 I would love to see it on you!
(NOTE: I know you probably already know this, but please don’t put makeup on your kitty cat. This is just for amusement purposes. No real life cats wore any makeup for this tutorial.)
This post is sponsored by Purina Pro Plan #proplancatpartner. For information about my posting policy, please see my Disclaimer.
Bravo! Every time you shared a pic of your feline friend being her awesome self this summer and included the hashtag #MyGreatCat, Purina Pro Plan pledged to donate one pound of cat food — up to 50,000 pounds — to hundreds of cat rescue groups nationwide through the Purina Pro Plan Rally to Rescue network.
Well, the goal was met a few days ago. 🙂
Thanks to you, we've reached our goal & will be donating 50k lbs. of food to cat rescues nationwide! #MyGreatCat pic.twitter.com/vMzSf2Oacj
— Pro Plan Cat (@ProPlanCat) July 30, 2014
And now, the next thrilling installment of A TABBY IN SEPHORA — one cat’s quest to find a fabulous fur brightener. (Scroll down to the P.S. to reread Part 1.)
Tabs checked the display for Urban Decay Fabulous Feline Fur Brightener one last time, peering behind the boxes of the Tortie and Orange Tabby shades in the front. His whiskers probed the back of the dark shelf.
“Mrow!” he barked. Nothing! This was totally unacceptable. It wasn’t so much about the fur brightener anymore. His fur was already striking and bright. He was more upset that Choupette was actively trying to sabotage him.
“Um, sir?” The sales associate gestured to him from behind the counter. Grumbling under his breath, Tabs walked over.
“So the order’s all set,” the associate said, peering down at Tabs through a pair of shiny black Warby Parker glasses. “It should be here Monday afternoon.”
Lovely, Tabs thought, his eyes narrowing. Monday. That would mean he wouldn’t have it for any of the kitty modeling parties this weekend.
“Oh!” the sales associate said, seeing something on her computer screen, “This is weird. There’s a note here that says to call someone named Choupette when we get more of the Tabby shade in stock.”
Tabs couldn’t believe his ears. Choupette had this whole thing planned out! She must have known that Tabs would hear about a new fur brightener from a big brand like Urban Decay and would visit the closest Sephora store to his house. She was cunning. Tabs had to give her that.
Suddenly, the spark of an idea. “Mrow?” Tabs asked, looking up at the associate. What about dogs?
“Dogs?” the associate replied. “What about them?”
“Meow-wow?” he said. Is there a version for dogs?
“Oh, of the fur brightener? Let me check.” She started typing on her keyboard. “Looks like, wait, yes, here! There is a version for dogs. Urban Decay Cute Canine Coat Brightener.”
Bingo! Tabs thought. If it comes in a version for black, gray and brown fur, it just might work. “Mrrrow?” he asked, keeping his paws crossed.
The associate’s eyes widened as she seemed to understand. “Ah,” she said, “let me check.”
Tabs could hardly contain his excitement. He started kacking uncontrollably like he did when he watched birds. If Tabs were to show up to Karl Lagerfeld’s party tonight with his fur even brighter than usual, Tabs would be the talk of the town tomorrow, and that would show Choupette who’s boss.
“Aha!” the sales associate said, looking victorious. “Yes, it does come in a shade for dogs with black, brown and gray fur.”
“Mrrrow,” Tabs said. Excellent.
Good morning, glory! Happy caturday! I hope you liked that little story. Stay tuned for part 3, where we find out what happens at Karl’s party… 🙂
How’s it going this morning? What did you do last night? We came this close to going to see Guardians of the Galaxy, but then I wussed out. The thought of chilling out in pajamas and watching TV on the couch was too hard to resist.
We started watching a BBC psychological crime drama on Netflix called Luther, starring Idris Elba and WOW! It’s great. Every episode is like Silence of the Lambs. I’m not kidding. It’s that good. And scary. And intense.
Other than that, not much new to report. The only thing on my agenda for today is going for a run on the treadmill and spending time with Tabs and El Hub.
Good luck in this weekend’s giveaway. Have a great one, and I’ll talk to you soon.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. Mrow! If you missed it the first time around, here is part 1 of A TABBY IN SEPHORA.
A TABBY IN SEPHORA: PART 1 “Hello,” the sales associate said as Tabs entered the store. “Can I help you find something?”
“Meow…” Tabs replied, a little unsure. The sales associate smiled expectantly. Tabs knew that he wanted something to brighten his fur, but these stores were always so overwhelming to him. So many rows and rows and aisles and stacks of products taller than him. He didn’t know where to start.
The associate nodded. Tabs, as if on auto-pilot, moved deeper into the store, pulled by an unseen force. Fur brighteners, fur brighteners, fur brighteners, he reminded himself, trying to stay focussed.
Around him were dozens of displays with sparkling glass vials, vibrant posters and trays filled with pigmented products. A mix of perfumes filled the air.
Cats and cat ladies walked up and down the aisles, exploring the many treasures. Many chatted with sales associates. “This one is great for soft paws,” he overheard one of the associates say. She was standing beside a husky Russian Blue Tabs recognized from his neighborhood.
Tabs stopped in front of a display placed at cat eye level. New Urban Decay Fabulous Feline Fur Brightener! it read. “Meow,” he purr-chirped. Yes!
The display showed that it was available in eight colors. He saw Orange Tabby, Siamese, Tortie, and yes! Tabby too!
He pawed at the small boxes, looking for the shade, but there were none to be found. Shoot, he thought, I think they’re out.
“Meow?” he asked the nearest sales associate.
“Let me check,” she said, heading behind the counter. “Yeah, those have been really popular lately. It’s weird, a seal-point Ragdoll came in yesterday and purchased all of the ones in the Tabby shade we had in stock.”
Choupette! Tabs immediately thought. That cat was always trying to sabotage him.
“I’m sorry,” the sales associate said, “it looks like we’re completely out, but I can order one for you if you’d like.”
“Meow-rrow,” Tabs said. Yes, please. That would be great. There had to be a reason Choupette didn’t want Tabs to get his paws on that shade. A good reason, indeed.
–TO BE CONTINUED–
Deep thoughts…by Tabs the cat.
“I could barf on the tiles this time to make it easier for the humans, but I think I’ll barf on the carpet.”
“One day I’m going to visit the factory where gravy comes from, and I am going to tell them to make much more gravy.”
“Why aren’t there more crazy cat men? I sense an emerging market.”
Anyone else love mechanical pencils?
My favorites are the ones with the super long twist-up erasers (I have an old teal one that I’ve had for a zillion years), and I’m partial to .5mm lead.
.5mm lead is small.
Like REALLY small.
But it’s not much smaller than the tip on these new 1.5MM Mechanical Gel Eye Liner by Hourglass ($45).
I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited to get between the roots of my lashes, LOL!
They come three to a pack, and you get from 17-20 uses each.
These were recently added to the permanent line for fall, and I’m taking them for a spin this weekend (cat eyes and cannonballs at the pool). I hope they’re just as waterproof and long-lasting as they claim.
New Hourglass 1.5MM Mechanical Gel Eye Liner
- The precision 1.5mm tip ensures effortless control, and allows for lining in between lashes.
- The unique formula, poured into a slim mechanical component, has the malleability, intensity and staying power of a traditional gel. No pot, no brush, no clean-up required.
- The waterproof, transfer-proof and long-lasting formula delivers extended wear.
- The supple, moisturizing formula glides on smoothly and dries quickly.
- Two clicks is all you need to line the eye. Each advanced mechanical pencil lasts for approximately 17 to 20 uses.
- Only dispense product as needed – mechanical pencil does not retract.
- Free of phthalates, sulfates, talc and gluten. No animal testing.
- Ophthalmologist tested.
You can find them now at Barneys New York, Bergdorf Goodman, Net-A-Porter.com, Space.NK, Sephora and online at hourglasscosmetics.com. Single liners are also available available at select retailers, including the Hourglass website, for $16.
P.S. In other news, Guardians of the Galaxy tonight? 🙂 I’m obsessed with Rocket Raccoon!