A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict
Check this out: from The Container Store for $25. It’s double sided with 80 clear vinyl slots that perfectly fit round AND square blushes (and probably a whole bunch of other things too).
Yay! No more rifling through the bottom of a drawer… The only thing is, it gets heavy when you load it up, so you gotta make sure the hook or coat hanger can handle the weight (yes, I broke one).
Got any good makeup storage ideas?
The “crazy” in Guerlain’s latest limited edition expedition, Crazy Paris, really seems to come through in the lipsticks and nail polishes, and to that I say, HAWT DAMN, PEOPLE! Bring on the crazy!
With its crazy long name, Crazy 68 Rouge G de Guerlain in 863 Provocative is 50 cents shy of 50 bucks, and that hurts, but if you’ve fallen in love with the idea of this creamy opaque hot pink but aren’t ready to throw down $49.50 for it, perhaps MAC Impassioned could (at least temporarily) quell that urge.
Buuuuut if you are ready to trade in that Camry for a BMW, Guerlain’s Rouge Gs are like the luxury cars of the lipstick world…and if that makes any sense at all (it doesn’t), 863 is the model that makes your boy toy jealous. We’re talking moonroof, heated leather seats and satellite navigation.
Black cat liner goes with everrrrrything. 🙂 I love it for that.
So classic… So timeless…
But, uh, sometimes I just feel like switching things up. After all, woman (and makeup-loving dudes) cannot live on black liner alone.
That’s when NARS Eye Paint in Tartar ($25) comes in handy.
I love wearing this shimmery dark purple (it’s almost black) when I do cat eyes and feel like using something beyond basic black.
Oh, and get this: it has these tiny flecks of multi-colored micro-glitter that BAM! — suddenly appear of of nowhere when you buff it with a brush.
I like to apply one layer on my lids with a flat eyeshadow brush, then buff it out with a domed blending brush like the MAC 217.
It’s a quick, easy route to a pretty, purple smokey eye, and that extra micro-glitter gives it a little kick.
Normally, I’d worry about this much glitter, peach and pink turning completely loco (together, in quantities this large, they could easily go the children’s playtime makeup territory route, ya know?!), but with Guerlain, I feel like I’m in good hands.
The elegant way they handle the finishes and textures of their face and body products always just werks, and this year, with their new limited edition Crazy Paris holiday collection, they even manage to make body glitter luxurious (yup, body glitter).
Buckle up, babe, ’cause we’re headed to Crazy Paris… 🙂
These colorful, shimmery highlighting powdered pearls look like little candies (note: but they’re not). To use ’em, just take your brush (I usually use a skunk or blush brush), poke it in the jar, and swirl (like highlighter jambalaya), picking up a mixture of the colors.
Guerlain usually releases a different limited edition version of these pearls with their seasonal collections, tweaking them slightly to suite each release.
This time around the pearls come in a combination of beige, purplish white, gold, light pink and hot pink that when mixed together create a pinkish golden sheen with flecks of silver glitter.
Pretty! The color plays well with the lip and eye colors in the Crazy Paris collection.
You may love these if you like highlighters that don’t shout from the rooftops, because the overall effect is very sheer. I’d say it’s more like a subtle brightening effect — one that casual passers by may not even notice — than a five-alarm fire.
A makeup artist/enthusiast pal, however, would surely catch the flecks of glitter shining on the high points of your cheeks, and how the soft sheen looks like powder puff lighting.
It’s a gentle, luminous effect that should look absolutely lovely on light and medium skin tones.
Might get a little lost on darker divas, though…
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B+
It may be a few years old, but Urban Decay’s Naked Palette and I still roll deep.
I feel like it’s just one of those palettes, you know? — the great ones, where you can pretty much take any two of its colors, wear ’em together, and not go wrong.
And the look possibilities are practically limitless!
Sometimes from across a crowded room, it’s easy to miss Naked’s neutral colors, but for real life wear, it’s tough to beat, whether you’re a responsible cubicle cutie or a video vixen.
What’s your “one” — the eyeshadow palette that never lets you down? Is it a Chanel quad, a drugstore mega-palette, a build-your-own? Which one do you reach for most?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. Happy hump day. 🙂
That pink shadow trying to steal the spotlight in Guerlain’s new Crazy Paris Eye Palette? — yep, I’m a believer. It’s surprisingly wearable.
That’s one of the things I think Guerlain does really well — make eye-catching colors wearable. They can take kinda kooky, crazy eye colors and transform them into colors I actually feel comfortable wearing around town.
It’s a rare form of makeup magic.
The re-opening of Guerlain’s flagship boutique at 68 Champs-Élysées in the dazzling City of Lights inspired the $86 Crazy Paris Eye Palette and the rest of the 10-piece Crazy Paris Holiday collection.
I won’t claim to understand how they do it (because it’s obviously magic), but in the case of the pink shadow here, one of four shimmery shadows in the palette, they dialed down the opacity a bit, leaving just enough pigment to maintain its power, but not so much that it overwhelms.
And then there’s the bodacious, buttery blending. I barely have to flick my wrist, and the pink practically melts into the other eyeshadows — a shimmery copper, shimmery golden beige, and shimmery white gold.
One word: wow.
Be sure to tap off your brush first, though, as I’ve observed some minor fallout (a little annoying, considering the price)…
In addition to the shadows, the kit contains two wet/dry powder eyeliners in matte black and matte grayish taupe and, yup, they’re just as buttery.
Garçon! Bring me my gravy, room temperature, no ice!
Chop-chop!
Question: When does one part lipstick plus one part lip liner equal 100% pure awesome (or close to it)? Answer: When we’re talking about one of L’Oreal’s new Colour Riche La Laque and Le Matte Lipsticks.
To me, the La Laque and Le Mattes are among the most exciting drugstore lippie launches this fall, mainly because of how much crazypants pigment they pack.
That and — holy cannoli! — they’re only $8 a pop.
I snagged two of them at Rite Aid last weekend on BOGO sale (buy one, get one 50% off) and now wish I’d gotten more.
They actually remind me of Tom Ford lipsticks…which is freaky, considering the difference in price. Similar texture, smooth formula and uber-high levels of pigment.
Sure, you might not get the same thrill holding one of these that you get from holding one of Tom’s lipsticks in your paw, but then there’s the savings.
WOW!
L’Oreal divides the line into two different finishes — the shiny La Laques and the matte Le Mattes — and bills them as all-in-one lipsticks and liners.
They’re opaque enough to completely cover my lips in a single, intensely colorful layer, and apply without caking or feathering.
Just so, so smooth…
The texture’s on the thicker side, which I like, because it seems to lock the color to my lips for a good 4-5 hours, and as far as flavors and scents, they have both. It’s a faint light rose that fades over about 10 minutes.
