Karen, Author at Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup - Page 1320 of 1879

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

A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict

Karen

Suave Says Their $3 Dry Shampoo Works As Well As $24 Rene Furterer

by 69 Comments


Hair model Tabs the Cat…

I’ve been wearing my normally wavy hair straight lately and waiting a few days between washes to extend the life of my blowouts. To prevent my scalp from getting too funky with excess oil, I’ve been reaching for Rene Furterer Naturia Dry Shampoo, my fave dry shampoo, which also gives my roots a nice lift.

The problem: Naturia costs $24.

Ouch! Time to find a less expensive alternative…

And maybe I have. Suave Professional Dry Shampoo refreshes hair “as well as Rene Furterer” — at least that’s what it says on the side of the bottle. 🙂

Not even considering the fact that it only costs $3 (compared to $24?), the stuff is pretty good. Then when you DO consider the price, it’s downright amazing! First, there’s how fast it works. Some dry shampoos leave a white cast on my dark hair, particularly around the roots, and take forever to work in and brush out. Suave Pro deposits what looks like a bit of white powder on my roots when it’s applied, but after a few swipes with my brush the white powder disappears. Because it works so fast, the product has been saving me a a few minutes every time I use it instead of Naturia.

Suave says mineral clay helps the product absorb oil AND odor. Now, I wouldn’t want to wait so long between washes that I could smell my hair, but I guess it’s nice to know that Suave’s got my back.


[Continue reading…]

The Glitter in Make Up For Ever’s New Highlighters Makes Me Want to Stay Uplight

by 29 Comments

make up for ever uplight review

Rarely does my bizarre memory for cheesy pop music lyrics come in as handy as it did today. While marveling at the explosion of pigment and glitter on my cheeks from two of the eight new Make Up For Ever Uplight ($28) highlighters, I sang along to a MUFE version of Billy Joel’s Uptown Girl.

“Uplight girl! She’s been living in her uplight world!”

Okay, so I’m way too easily amused. 🙂 But I do think these multitasking, oil-free illuminators are well worth singing about.


Make Up For Ever Uplight in #12 Dewy Golden Warm (left) and #32 Sparkling Golden Pink (right)

Maybe because they’re mostly water (70%), these gel highlighters feel almost weightless, and it’s like they melt right into my skin (I previously talked about them here).

How do they compare to the NARS Illuminators?

NARS released a similar product earlier this spring called the Illuminators. While I think both those and these are great, MUFE gave the Uplights a fluffier, airier texture that I find easier to blend. And from the colors I’ve seen so far, the Uplights also appear to pack much more pigment. For a subtle tint, I might opt for a NARS Illuminator, but I’d reach for an Uplight if I wanted bolder colors with intense glitter and shine.

The eight Uplights span a range of warm and cool shades. I tried #12 Dewy Golden Warm (a pearly, warm gold) and #32 Sparkling Golden Pink (a shimmery, peachy pink with golden glitter).

#32 Sparkling Golden Pink

What a fun shade! This bold baddie has HELLA golden glitter. With it on, I feel like 1,000 angels just left sweet, sparkly kisses on my cheeks.

Um, did I mention this has a lot of glitter?? Seriously, it packs enough to build two discos. I love it! — although I’m afraid I might be a little too old experienced 🙂 to wear it during the day. I think I may actually like it more on my lips and lids, but if you’re a little younger than I am or work in a creative environment, I bet you could rock this blush at noon. I have no qualms, however, about wearing it at night, and I’m definitely wearing it the next time I go clubbing or hit the Vegas strip.
[Continue reading…]

The Smashbox Sultry/Sweet Glambox Takes the Guesswork Out of Looking Good

by 43 Comments

smashbox sultry sweet glambox

By the time I finished folding my laundry last weekend, there was a stack of 10 surf tees sitting on the bed. I don’t know when or how it happened, but it’s official — I have the wardrobe of a tween surfer boy.

It’s not that I wouldn’t like to wear other things. I just don’t like to spend the time and energy (read: I’m too lazy) it takes to put together comprehensive, fashion-forward looks. What I need is a wardrobe correction kit, a single set of pieces designed to create comprehensive looks, like a wardrobe version of the Smashbox Sultry/Sweet Glambox ($68).

smashbox sultry sweet glambox box
Here it is next to an iPhone for scale

New for spring, the eight-piece set comes with seven full-size makeup essentials, and one smaller item, in new shades of berry, pink and plum. Put them together for either a Sweet daytime look or a Sultry one for nights. Just add a little elbow grease and your favorite foundation and powder (and maybe also a brow filler if it’s part of your regular routine), and you’re good to go, day or night.

Smashbox equipped the kit with a full-size powder eyeshadow quad in medium pigmentation, a pencil liner, a sheer powder blush, a lengthening mascara, two lip glosses and an under-eye brightener. They also included a generous travel-size tube of their Photo Finish Luminizing Foundation Primer (available in one shade, a golden peachy pink) and a simple step-by-step tutorial sheet which I followed to create the day (Sweet) and night looks (Sultry) here. 🙂

smashbox sultry sweet glambox box side
[Continue reading…]

What’s Your 5-Minute Makeup Routine?

by 105 Comments

Sometimes you barely have enough minutes in the day to Google shirtless pictures of Ben McKenzie let alone put on a full face of makeup. When time’s of the essence, I stick to a bare minimum of basics and products that 1) I can apply fast, and 2) don’t require a lot of blending and precision…

5-minute-makeup-routine

  1. A brightening moisturizer — First, to brighten my overall appearance and give some extra dimension to my skin, I apply MAC Strobe Cream, an opalescent moisturizer, all over my face.
  2. Foundation — Next, I reach for Chanel Mat Lumiere Foundation, the synthetic fiber Sonia Kashuk Flat Top Brush (or similar skunk brush) lightly moistened with a bit of MAC Fix+, and dab and blend around my nose, chin and cheeks. It may be mad pricey at $54, but matte Lumiere is the most natural-looking everyday wear foundation I’ve found so far, and it doesn’t give me breakouts.
  3. Concealer — When worn together, Smashbox Photo Op Under Eye Brightener and MAC Pro Longwear Concealer, a pearly pink brightening lotion and a full-coverage liquid concealer, disguise even the darkest of my dark circles.
  4. Powder — I use translucent MAC Blot Powder to set my makeup and increase wear time. It absorbs shiny oil for hours.
  5. Brows — I started using Benefit Instant Brow a few months ago to quickly fill in my brows, and now it’s a full-blown addiction. It’s an easy-to-blend wax brow pencil with a handy brow comb attached.
  6. Lashes — The Shu Uemura Lash Curler is the only curler I’ve ever used that refuses to pinch my lashes, and that’s awesome. It creates lovely, natural-looking lash curls, too.
  7. You’re making me blush! — Creamy Urban Decay After Glow Glide-On Cheek Tints are a snap to apply and blend. I just use my fingers. I end by using these cream blushes to give a little color to both my cheeks and my lips (they double as lipsticks).

[Continue reading…]

A Quick Swatch Break with the Benefit Boxed Face Powders and Blushes

by 44 Comments

Today after lunch I swung by Sephora to stock up on a few essentials, namely Laura Mercier Oil-Free Foundation and Benefit Instant Brow (what I’ve been using to fill in my brows), and since I was already there, I figured I’d get some long overdue swatches, too.

Benefit’s boxed blushes ($28 each) come in eight colors. Actually, some are referred to as face powders, and others as blushes. Here are swatches of seven of them (for reference, I’m an NC 35). Thrrob, a flushed light pink, is the one that’s missing. One of the sales associates at Sephora today had said that she thought it was discontinued. Hmm… I’ll check with Benefit and will let you know what I find out.

Benefit Boxed Face Powders and Blushes

benefit blush swatches
From left: Sugarbomb, 10, Hoola and Dallas

benefit blush swatches
Also from the left: Dandelion, Bella Bamba and Coralista

benefit blush swatches all with flash
Swatches with the flash
[Continue reading…]

Like Snickers, Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set Really Satisfies

by 61 Comments

Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set
Bite Beauty High Pigment Pencil in Pomegranate

Sometimes you just need a quick snack to quiet the rumbling in your tummy, ya know? Not a full-on meal. Just a quick snack, like when Vampire Bill takes a sip from Sookie (Ha! I almost typed “Snookie”) while they’re “having relations.”

In a way, Bite Beauty’s new Define & Refine Lip Set ($36) is like a quick snack. You get to taste three full-size Bite lip products without having to pay full price. Purchased separately, they’d cost $68, or almost twice the price of the set.

The trio of treats includes…

  • Lip Shine in Prosecco — Interesting! This sheer nude gloss smells to me like a mix of Play-Doh and Sweet Tarts. Thankfully, the scent and sugary flavor fade fast. The medium-weight formula doesn’t feel sticky on my lips, and it lasts about two and a half hours. I’m glad Bite included a doe-foot applicator because it makes application a snap.
  • High Pigment Pencil in Pomegranate — The pigment in this blue-based red? To die for. It’s almost too good to be true. Despite its light and creamy texture (both unscented and unflavored), this pencil still manages to retain a long-lasting true matte finish. What we have here is one elegant lippie, young lady, and probably the best thing I’ve tried from the Bite line so far.
  • Luminous Creme Lipstick in Rose — One layer of this dark pink lipstick delivers full coverage color that may not make it through a meal, but it should resist fading for a solid four hours between them. Like the pencil, this pigmented beauty is unscented and unflavored, and it’s wonderfully moisturizing, too.

Like other products in the Bite Beauty line, these are made with food-grade goodies like resveratrol, a potent antioxidant and Bite’s signature ingredient. If you’d like to hear more about what puts the bite in Bite Beauty, check out Resveratrol, and Not Vampires, Puts the Bite in Bite Beauty Lip Products.

Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set

Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set
[Continue reading…]

Copyright © 2025 Makeup and Beauty Blog. Get in touch.