too faced

A Summery Face of the Day with Too Faced Natural Eye Palette

August 28th, 2009 by Karen 58 Comments

too-faced-natural-eye-fotd-karen4
Can I have a fan blowing my hair back like this 24/7? Please?

Even though summer’s quickly slipping away, I’m not ready to let it go. It’s hella hot again today in Nor Cal, so I couldn’t resist busting out this summery look with shimmery golden brown eyes.

Remember the Too Faced Natural Eye Palette from a few days back? I followed the Fashion eye look instructions, adding Cargo’s awesome Plant Love Eyeliner in Black to the waterline for a little extra oomph.

too-faced-natural-eye-fashion-look

too-faced-natural-eye-face-of-the-day-eye1

The other stars in this summery show are NARS Blush in Torrid and our girl MAC Nymphette.

too-faced-natural-eye-face-of-the-day-karen2

Excuse the fan action, LOL! It’s sooo cheesy but I *love* it. 🙂

How’s it going out in your neck of the woods? Got any exciting Friday night plans? I’m not sure what I’m doing yet, but whateva it is I hope it involves air conditioning!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Too Faced Shadow Insurance: A Bald Eyebrow’s BFF

August 27th, 2009 by Karen 31 Comments

too-faced-shadow-insurance

Believe it or not, there are a few positives to accidentally hacking off your left eyebrow.

Besides discovering the psychological healing power of long bangs, Raul’s provided the opportunity to solve interesting new problems, like figuring out how to hide a partially bald brow while sweating like a pig (no offense, Miss P!).

Yesterday at hip-hop class, aka sweaty Karen central, I discovered a great trick to keeping filled-in brows put with the help of Too Faced Shadow Insurance ($17).

Normally, I use this invisible primer to lock eyeshadow down. Before heading to class last night, on a whim I patted some primer directly onto the sparse patch before filling it in with the Clarins Eyebrow Kit Pro Palette.

I figured the worst that could happen would be beads of black sweat streaming down my cheeks (ewww). Fingers crossed and hoping for the best, I went about getting my booty shake on.

You know what? It totally worked. As I Cabbaged Patched and Robo Copped my way through yet another old school routine, the filled-in spot miraculously refused to budge. And even though I was drenched at the end of the 90-minute class, Raul totally stayed on the ‘low. Yes!

While I lurves me some Too Faced Shadow Insurance, I’m guessing any invisible eyeshadow primer could work. A few to consider: Urban Decay Potion Primer ($17), Tarte Lifted Natural Eye Primer ($20) and Benefit F. Y. Eye ($22).

MAC attack!

In two shakes I’m heading over to MAC to check out the new Nail Trend F/W ’09 By Jin Soon collection.

I’ve been testing the polish for durability over the past week, and so far it’s held up really well. Here’s an updated photo of Dance All Night (a creamy brick red):
[Continue reading…]

Too Faced Natural Eye Kit: Practically Awesome

August 24th, 2009 by Karen 19 Comments

too faced natural eye kit swatches-2

As much as I love to marvel at complicated eye looks with crazy colors and lots o’ blending, I get more practical use out of looks that are simple and easy.

I adore all-in-one palettes like the Too Faced Natural Eye Kit ($34, part of the new Naturally Naughty fall collection) for everyday use.

too faced natural eye kit swatches-1

The colors it comes with are of the highly wearable variety, which means they’re on the conservative end of the spectrum, but that also makes the kit a good overall value.

The double-sided brush/sponge applicator may not rise to the level of most MAC eyeshadow brushes, but it gets the job done and qualifies the kit for unexpected travel. Toss it into a purse with peace of mind, secure in the knowledge that the nine neutral matte and shimmer shadows it comes with sweep effortlessly over lids. They range from cool to warm shades and build and blend with ease.

too faced natural eye kit swatches-5
Swatches from left to right: Heaven, Velvet Revolver, Sexpresso

too faced natural eye kit swatches-6
Silk Teddy, Push-Up, Erotica

too faced natural eye kit swatches-7
Nude Beach, Honey Pot, Cocoa Puff

Too Faced even threw in three cheat sheets/cards, each describing how to do a different look.

They totes make getting dolled-up more of a cinch. 🙂

too faced natural eye kit swatches-4

They’re small things, literally and figuratively, but lean one up against a bathroom mirror and you’re armed with enough knowledge to properly place shadows for three common kinds of eye looks: classic, daytime and fashion.

If you’ve got school this fall or want a few new looks for work, take a closer look at the Too Faced Natural Eye Kit. Too bad Too Faced couldn’t make room for eyeliner and mascara! 🙂 Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Lock Down Your Eye Makeup with Too Faced Lockdown

April 20th, 2009 by Karen 25 Comments

too faced lockdown shadow insurance primer

Guess who needs some makeup first aid? Yup, the weather here in Nor Cal is hot again, and EVERYTHING’s blooming. Not only have my eyes been a watery mess thanks to all the allergens in the air (ah-CHOO!), but I’m also sweating like a medieval beast.

My eye makeup hasn’t stood a chance for days. I’ve either been crying from allergies or melting from the heat.

Alas, must I sacrifice everything to the warm weather gods?

To survive the past few steamy, pollen-fueled days, I’ve graced my lids with Lockdown, a new line of cream shadows by Too Faced ($18.50).

The simple wash of shadow adds a little punch without going for the knockout. I think it’s a fab look for lazy days or hot days when the thought of heavy makeup is the last thing on my mind.

To create the Lockdown line, Too Faced injected their famous long-wearing eye makeup primer, Shadow Insurance (LOVE!), with colorful shimmer.

What’s the result? How ’bout six long-lasting shades that pack plenty of shimmer and pigment to spare.

Prisoner of Love: A soft, shimmery pink
Bedroom Eyes: A shimmery taupe
Bondage: A shimmery champagne
Dramarama: A shimmery milk chocolate
I’m Guilty: A shimmery teal
Jail Bait: A cool and shimmery pink

too faced lockdown jailbait im-guilty drama rama swatches
From left to right: Jailbait, I’m Guilty and Dramarama

So far I’ve tried Jail Bait, Dramarama and I’m Guilty…

Isn’t that shimmer crazy good?
[Continue reading…]

Too Faced Shadow Insurance Anti-Crease Eyeshadow Primer Blends Great, Lasts All Day Long

April 17th, 2008 by Karen 37 Comments

too-faced-shadow-insurance

Dear Too Faced Shadow Insurance ($17),

How I dig thee. Your priming powers imbue eyeshadows with hours of extra staying power, and you’re easy to apply, never settling into fine lines. I’m crushing on you hard…

Sincerely,

Primed to Party

If you’re new to makeup, you might be thinking, “Uh, what’s an eye primer?”

Fair enough. Eyeshadow primers create a smooth layer on top of your skin to which powder and cream shadows can better affix themselves. It translates into longer-lasting eyeshadow.

There are lots of different eye primers on the market. Urban Decay Potion Primer is one of the more (in)famous ones. Much loved by many, Urban Decay Potion Primer doesn’t really do it for me. Yes, it makes eyeshadow last longer, but I find it also makes colors more difficult to blend. I end up with (long-lasting) harsh lines at the edges of the colors on my lids. Note to file: this is not cute.

Too Faced says that Shadow Insurance’s silicone-based formula smooths lines while intensifying shadow colors, and it does so without making shadows more difficult to blend.

I put it to the test.

For one week I used Shadow Insurance beneath Clinique, Dior and MAC eyeshadows and had much better luck with it than I had with Urban Decay’s primer. I had no problem blending eyeshadows layered on top of Shadow Insurance.
[Continue reading…]