Karen, Author at Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup - Page 1648 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

Two Ways to Win Korres Face Primer

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The giveaway is now closed to new entries, and the winners are being contacted. 🙂 Good luck!

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What up, cuties?! My camera and I are en route to our local MAC counter to swatch the rest of the new Make-Up Art Cosmetics collection. If I happen upon any great palettes/blushes/lippies of can’t-live-without caliber, I’ll be sure to let you know. 😉

Before I bolt, how about another giveaway?

The prize

One lucky lady will take home one tube of Korres Silicone-Free Face Primer (a $28 value).

Korres created this light, lemon-scented primer for ladies with silicone-sensitive skin in mind. It preps skin for foundation and powder application and comes packed with vitamins and antioxidants (Korres claims 99% natural ingredients).

I’ve been singing the praises of this bad boy to my girlfriends all summer. With it my foundation and powder don’t settle into my fine lines, and I think it even makes my pores look smaller. LOVE!

How to enter…

Entering is easy. There are two different ways, and you can do both of them for two chances to win.

First, you can enter by leaving a comment at the bottom of this post. In it, tell me something you love about your look. 🙂

I love being expressive with my face. I think I’m easy to read — I wear my emotions on my sleeve face through my mouth and eyes.

Follow me
Second, enter by following me on Twitter and retweeting (RT) the following message:

RT @karenmbb: RT to Win Korres Face Primer http://bit.ly/5OsqM

Recap…

  1. Enter by leaving a comment at the bottom of this post, and don’t forget to use a valid email address so I can reach you if you win.
  2. Follow me on Twitter and retweet the following message:

    RT @karenmbb: RT to Win Korres Face Primer http://bit.ly/5OsqM

I’ll pick one winner at random from among the people who enter by 11:59 PM PST on Friday, August 21.

καλή τύχη!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Also, don’t forget about the Bath and Body Works Signature Scent giveaway. It runs through 11:59 PM tonight, so there’s still time to enter!

The giveaway is now closed to new entries, and the winners are being contacted. 🙂 Good luck!

Which Sunscreens Stand Up to Sweat?

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Hey, ladies. Did you catch this article in the New York Times the other day on women in the military?

“The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are the first in which tens of thousands of American military women have lived, worked and fought with men for prolonged periods. Wars without front lines, they have done more than just muddle the rules meant to keep women out of direct enemy contact.

They have changed the way the United States military goes to war. They have reshaped life on bases across Iraq and Afghanistan. They have cultivated a new generation of women with a warrior’s ethos — and combat experience — that for millennia was almost exclusively the preserve of men.”

-NYTimes.com

It got me thinking about reader Sandra. She heads overseas later this year.

Hi Karen,

I need some advice! I am getting deployed to the Middle East this winter for a year and want to know what heavy duty sweat-proof, high-SPF sunscreen you can recommend for everyday use on my face. I would like to have something that feels light, offers moisture, and stays put with a ton of sweating. I would be wearing my tinted moisturizer over this product.

Thanks!

Hi Sandra,

I REALLY love Shiseido 55+, aka better than sliced bread.

It’s sweat-proof, moisturizing, comes in a high SPF and feels light — neither greasy nor sticky — on the skin. On top of all that, it doesn’t have an overwhelmingly sunscreeny scent.

At $38, it’s more expensive than drugstore sunscreens, but I think it’s the best basic sunscreen I’ve ever used.

As for less costly drugstore alternatives, I love Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Dry Touch SPF 30 ($12). Like Shiseido 55, it’s sweat-proof, light and non-greasy/sticky, but I don’t think it’s quite as moisturizing. A layer of moisturizer worn beneath it should help.

Neutrogena makes versions of it in higher SPFs (70-100). I’ve tried them, too, but didn’t care for them as much; the higher SPFs were noticeably thicker and harder (took longer) to massage into my skin. Personally, I’ve never noticed a difference in sun protection between products containing SPF 30 and 70, but I haven’t skin tested with a control to see if that’s true.

Safe travels, Sandra! I hope this helps. Drop by the blog whenever you can while you’re over there to let us know how you’re doing. 🙂

Ladies, let’s give our girl Sandra a hand. Can you recommend any suncreens that stand up to sweat?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Bloggerati Spotlight

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The Beauty Bloggerati

Heya, ladies. Thanks for helping me with my mani/pedi earlier tonight. After a lovely dinner of Trader Joe’s Creamy Corn and Roasted Pepper Soup (yum), I ended up going with Midnight Cami (the shimmery dark blue) on my toes and Angora Cardi on my fingers. 🙂

Hope you’re having a nice night. Is it Friday yet?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Essie Fall 2009 Color Collection: What to Paint the Paws?

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Essie Fall 2009 Color Collection swatches

Chicas, can I borrow you for a second?

I’m suffering from a little bit of post-dental visit brain fart. No shots were involved (thank gawd!), but I was on edge the entire time and have yet to fully decompress from the experience.

Painting my nails always chills me out, so I’m gonna take it easy tonight and do an at-home mani/pedi.

Will you please help me pick a polish? I can’t seem to decide on a color, but I’d like it to be one from Essie’s fall collection ($8 each).

The six-piece collection comes in shades of gray, taupe, pink, blue and orange…

Essie Fall 2009 swatches Chincilly
Chinchilly

Essie Fall 2009 swatches Angora Cardi
Angora Cardi

Essie Fall 2009 swatches Mink Muffs
Mink Muffs

Essie Fall 2009 swatches Midnight Cami
Midnight Cami

Essie Fall 2009 swatches Bright Tights
Bright Tights

Essie Fall 2009 swatches Pink Park
Pink Parka

Please let me know which color you heart most in the poll or the comments. My paws thank you!

Which Essie Fall 2009 Nail Polish do you like best?

View Results

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What are you up to tonight? Will you be chilling at home too?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Givenchy Les Poetiques Fall Collection and a Quick Hello

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givenchy-les-poetiques

What’s up my around the way girls?

I’m leaving for the dentist in a few (boo!) and feeling a little bit frazzled, but I wanted to pop by to say a quick hello and share some goodies from Givenchy’s Les Poetiques fall collection.

These cuties involve three things near and dear to my makeup-lurving heart — sparkly deep blues, shimmery grays and rich purples.

The last few days have been rough (the condo ruckus, hella gray roots, Speidi, holes in my favorite stretchy pants, Mario Lopez’s abuse of “master mix” on ABDC, etc., etc.), so I’m kinda excited about this.

The cooks in Givenchy’s kitchen stirred some primo ingredients into this collection. A dollup of the deep blues from Lancome Declaring Indigo, a pinch o’ plum from Dior Jazz Club and a handful of grays from Chanel Venice equals BAM! (Emeril style!) — Les Poetiques.

A few quick notes…

  • Prismissime Eyes in Poetique Blues just might be the best Givenchy eye palette I’ve seen in a long time. The shimmery grays, purples and blues (with a touch of pink and taupe) blend together effortlessly. Light-skinned lovelies with cooler tones should rock this, Amadeus.
  • Les Poetiques Gloss in Poetique Rose is a glossy, rosy pink that seems to change colors as the day wears on, starting off as a light pink and turning into a deeper rose over the course of the day. It’s a pretty, natural lip look — so very Bella Swan!
  • Phenomen Eyes in Grey Lavender looks more like a dark blackish gray than a lavender to me and only when I pack on the layers and look really, REALLY closely. I have enough grays on the top of my head; I dunno if I need more on my eyelashes, LOL!
  • Parad’Eyes Liner in Poetique Lavender is like the liquid version of Lancome’s Declaring Indigo Gel liner. I’ll probably skip using the uber-stiff brush it comes with and opt for a pointed brush like the MAC 209 instead. Oily-skinned gals might love this liner, as it hangs onto my oily lids like a mo’ fo’.

tabs-hearts-givenchy

Prismissime Eyes in Poetique Blues, $53

Givenchy les poetiques Prismissime Eye poetique blues

Givenchy les poetiques Prismissime Eye poetique blues swatches-3

Givenchy les poetiques Prismissime Eye poetique blues swatches-2
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5 Reasons to Shop the New KorresUSA.com Online Store

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korres-promo-code-makeupbeauty

Good morning, ladies. It’s Wednesday, yea! We’re at the foot of the hump, working our way up to the crest. 🙂

To help us get over the hump day hump, Korres is offering MBB readers 30% off purchases with promo code MAKEUPBEAUTY entered at checkout (valid through Sept. 15).

Why Korres?

The Face Primer and Lip Butters are awesome

If you’re new to Korres, consider trying their Silicone-Free Face Primer (here’s my review from earlier this summer) or Lip Butters.

I have two of the seven Lip Butters — Jasmine (a light pink) and Plum (a bright berry). They add just a hint of color while moisturizing the lips and don’t have any funky flavor or scent to get in the way. The 30% off discount lowers the price of each one $9 to $7.30 — that’s a good price-quality ratio.

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Plum

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Plum

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Jasmine

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Jasmine
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