Karen

Eye Shadow x 9: MAC Amber Times Nine Eye Shadow Palette

May 19th, 2015 by Karen 14 Comments

Mac Amber Times Nine Palette — The $40 Eye Shadow x 9: MAC Amber Times Nine palette (center)

Gah!

Why?

Why, makeup gods, WHY?!

I don’t understand… The Eye Shadow x 9: MAC Amber Times Nine eyeshadow palette, one of four $40 MAC Times Nine palettes available now in the permanent collection and released with the Eyes on MAC collection, is soooooo my style. On paper, it has everything I usually want in a neutral eyeshadow palette. It has some matte brown transition shades; it has a sprinkling of sparkle and shimmer, thanks to the inclusion of a few shadows with Frost and Lustre finishes; and it has not one, but two of my favorite MAC eyeshadows of all time in Cork and Ricepaper.

Plus…IT HAS A SHADE CALLED KITTIES!

All this for $40, which I considered a steal based on all of the looks I saw myself doing with it.

Then I delved in…

Wearing the Mac Amber Times Nine Palette — Here I’m wearing Ricepaper, Don’t Tell, Cork, Aromatic and Pepper Please on my lids

When the four $40 MAC Eye Shadow x 9: Times Nine palettes launched a while back, it was with the more expensive $85 MAC Cool Neutral and Warm Neutral 15-pan palettes.

In addition to Amber Times Nine, there’s also a Purple Times Nine palette, Navy Times Nine and a Burgundy Times Nine, but yesterday I played with Amber.

The pans in these Times Nine palettes are smaller than regular full-size MAC eyeshadow pans (they’re about the size of my thumb, LOL!) and hold 0.02 ounces of powder, compared to 0.05 ounces in a standard $10 Pro Palette refill pan.

Eye Shadow x 9: MAC Amber Times Nine gave me trouble…

This was my first time using one of MAC’s Times Nines, and while I was hoping to achieve neutral shadow nirvana with Amber, I didn’t. Seriously, what a letdown… I had so much trouble working with this palette.

The hard-packed shadows feel like concrete in their pans, and I have a tough time picking them up with either a brush or my fingers. Even the darker shades, which I expected to be more pigmented, apply disappointingly sheer. I have to layer and layer and layer some more to see them on my lids.

And the colors I know so well and love, like Cork and Ricepaper, are unlike the Cork and Ricepaper I’ve grown to love. I swear they’re sheerer here, and harder, and require more passes with my 217 to blend.

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Nails of the Day: Good Vibes and Great Karma With Salon Perfect Purple Pop

May 19th, 2015 by Karen 11 Comments

A purple mani by Salon Perfect Purple Pop to go with the purple shades on my new favorite workout shirt.

The only thing that would make me love this shirt more is if there was another line underneath “Good Vibes Make Great Karma” that said #truth.

Not to get too hippy-dippy…but I do think that’s true. Kind of. When you put out positive energy, a lot of the time that’s what you get back. So right now I’m sending you megawatts of extra super good vibes! 🙂

The tank, by the way, is from Old Navy. It’s $16 on the Old Navy website, but I got it on sale at the store by my house for $10 a few weeks back. Sometimes the stores have better deals, and sometimes the website, so you just have to check.

Oh! — and if you do end up grabbing one, treat it gently, and by gently I mean wash it on delicate and hang it to dry, because when I run my Old Navy shirts through the regular wash cycle and dryer afterwards, if I do that too much, they always end up with holes.

As for my nails…Purple Pop! Isn’t she a beauty? It’s from Salon Perfect’s Neon Pop collection, available now at Walmart stores and online for $4.

Pros include amazing price, potent pigment, smooth application, relatively quick drying time (seriously, like less than 5 minutes).

Cons include — and it’s a doozy — chips within one or two days (!).

At least they aren’t a huge investment, but still. What’s up with that?

Meow time at the salon…

I’m on my way to the salon this morning so my friend Alis can work her magic with my hurr. I’ve been neglecting it lately, and it needs some TLC.

I’m also craving a change… I’m kind of over having super dark hair (at least for now), and lately I’ve been on a ’90s supermodel kick (Linda! Christy! Kate!).

I’m inspired by Helena Christensen’s hair. We have a similar wavy texture, so I think that one of her cuts in the above pic might work…

I hope you have a wonderful Tuesday, whatever you’re up to, and may your hair be on point. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Ulta Adventures: Trina Sun Daze Makeup Bags

May 18th, 2015 by Karen 15 Comments

trina sun daze train case — The $30 Trina Sun Daze Double Zip Train Case, toot-toot!

I need to go on vacay so I have a really good reason to stuff these juicy makeup bags to the brim.

These fruity cuties are by Trina, and I spotted ’em the other day at Ulta.

They are…

The Trina Sun Daze Floral Wristlet ($20)
Trina Sun Daze Floral Pencil Case ($12)
Trina Sun Daze Valet ($25)
Trina Sun Daze Double Zip Train Case ($30)

trina sun daze wristlet — Trina Sun Daze Floral Wristlet ($20)

trina sun daze pencil case — Trina Sun Daze Floral Pencil Case ($12)

trina sun daze valet — Trina Sun Daze Valet ($25)

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MAC The Matte Lip Collection: Many of These Lipsticks Are Stars, But They Don’t Shine Like Them

May 18th, 2015 by Karen 48 Comments

Many of the matte lipsticks in the new MAC The Matte Lip collection are new, but daaaaaang! — some of the shades sure do look like they jumped out of my hot tub time machine circa 1994.

Like dark brown Antique Velvet? I’m pretty sure I wore something just like it…to every Friday night house party I ever went to.

And just in case you’re wondering…yes, I was that person at the party who was standing uncomfortably in the corner and nursing the same bottle of Zima the entire evening. #datingmyself

All of the $16 lipsticks in the new 22-piece MAC The Matte Lip collection are matte (obvs), with about half of them having MAC’s Matte finish, and the other half their Retro Matte finish, but they aren’t all new. A handful of them are currently available in the permanent line and are being re-promoted here with the launch (like Ruby Woo, All Fired Up, Flat Out Fabulous, Velvet Teddy, Kinda Sexy, Please Me, Heroine and Pink Pigeon).

But most of the 22 shades are new, which is very exciting! Also, technically, this isn’t a MAC collection in the traditional limited edition sense, as all of the colors are either in the permanent line now, or being added to it.

You may still see some familiar names among the batch of new colors as well, though, like Whirl and Stone. Both are currently in MAC’s Lip Pencil line, so if you’re a fan of either one, voila! Now there are matching matte lipstick shades.

Matchy-matchy!

The MAC Mattes vs. the Retro Mattes

Both of the matte finishes represented in the collection are flat, meaning that they shine very little, or not at all, on the lips, but the finishes aren’t the same. The Retro Mattes are more intensely matte than their regular Matte counterparts — extremely flat — and they’re almost like wearing a matte lip pencil.

I think the Retro Mattes also feels drier and thinner than the regular Mattes do, which feel a little “wet” and dense/thick to me.

Oh! — and when I wear the Retro Mattes, I feel like my vertical lip lines are front and center, more so than when I wear the regular Mattes.

As for the colors themselves, what if you refuse to embrace your inner ’90s brown lipstick-loving babe? Does that mean you absolutely won’t like this collection?

No, not necessarily… You don’t have to look like you lived and loved in the era that gave birth to floral spaghetti-strap dresses and baby tees to find something to like in MAC The Matte Lip. 🙂 In addition to the old-school shades, the release also includes some very fashion-forward colors, like deep royal blue Matte Royal, as well as some sweet pinks like Please Me, and several bold, brash brights like purple Heroine and bluish red Ruby Woo.

Here are pics and swatches of 14 of the 22 shades…

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With The Blushed Nudes Palette by Maybelline, Imitation Naked 3 Is the Sincerest Form of Flattery

May 18th, 2015 by Karen 15 Comments

maybelline blushed nudes — Maybelline’s $10 The Blushed Nudes Palette

On the drive to the NKOTB/TLC/Nelly concert in San Jose last week, my friend and fellow makeup lover Marisol asked if I would mind us making a pit stop at a Walmart down there to see if they had Maybelline’s new $10 The Blushed Nudes Palette.

She said that she’d looked all over for it up in the North Bay where we live to no avail, and that the closest place she could track it down was the Walmart right next to the concert venue.

A $10 dupe for Urban Decay Naked 3?

“Do you mind if we swing by?” she asked.

Uh…do I mind stopping by a store with a huge beauty section to look at makeup?

I said I didn’t.

Marisol said that she heard the palette was a $10 drugstore dupe for the Urban Decay Naked 3 palette.

“Of all the people I know,” she told me, “I thought you would understand.”

I did. 🙂

With a $10 dupe for Naked 3 on the line, shirtless Jordan Knight would just have to wait, LOL!

When we got to the Walmart, we made a beeline for the beauty department, where we found two Blushed Nude palettes in stock. I took it as a sign from the makeup gods that I needed to bring one of them home, and Marisol did too. She snagged the other one.

Forget about buying an overpriced New Kids t-shirt at the concert. This would be my souvenir instead. 🙂

The Blushed Nudes Palette by Maybelline: 12 eyeshadows in rose gold shades

With the rose gold packaging and 12 eyeshadows in rose gold shades, The Blushed Nudes looks a lot like UD’s $54 Naked 3 palette… Right? The resemblance is uncanny! For this one, it’s pretty easy to see where Maybelline got their inspiration.

Eyeshadow Trickery 101

But while very similar, there are some pretty big differences between the two.

Like first, the price. One is $10 and the other is $54.

That’s huge.

Second and third, the levels of pigment and shimmer. The Urban Decay Naked 3 shadows contain much more pigment and pearl. With them I think you definitely get more intense color and shine on your lids, but you can get there with the Maybelline Blushed Nudes eyeshadows. You just need to resort to a little makeup trickery.

Like you could…

Basically, use more. You can build up the Blushed Nudes shadows in layers, but you’re probably looking at using two or three times as many as you’d need with the Naked3s. Maybe five or six total layers with the lighter shades.
Intensify the colors by applying them with a wet brush.
Use your fingers instead of a brush, so you can really apply some pressure directly on your lids.

Of course, none of this is necessary if you actually want a softer, hazier eye look. Most of The Blushed Nudes shades are fairly sheer, so if that’s your agenda, your regular brushes would do you just fine.

Where are my mattes!?

And then there’s the whole matte situation… You get three matte shades — matte beige Strange, light matte pinkish taupe Limit and matte purplish taupe Nooner — in Urban Decay Naked 3, which are very handy as transition shades.

The Maybelline Blushed Nudes palette, on the other hand, has only one matte, a sheer pinkish taupe that looks like UD’s limit (only sheerer). I tried using it as a crease color…but I wasn’t too crazy about it. I had to use hella layers (I’m talking five or six) to have it really register on my medium skin tone, and even then I still couldn’t see it very well.

It may not be an issue for paler princesses, or if mattes just aren’t your thing, but if you’re around my shade (I’m a MAC NC42) or darker, or if you’re just all about that matte crease life, it’s something to consider.

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 373

May 18th, 2015 by Karen 33 Comments

The Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll for May 18, 2015

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.

How comfortable are you when it comes to negotiating discounts?
Um…not very. I’m actually slightly uncomfortable about it, although I can do it when it’s kind of expected, like at garage sales and flea markets, but I don’t really go to those very often (I think I’ve watched one too many horror movies about people buying haunted furniture).

I guess I’m just the type of person who likes to walk into a store, and if something’s a certain price, then alright! Done deal.

What’s one memory you have of summer vacation?
I remember eating a lot of frozen pizza…

Actually, I remember them being really quite boring, to be honest, because both of my parents worked out of the house all day long, so when summers rolled around, my little brother and I had to stay in the house, and we weren’t allowed to really go out because we didn’t have any parental supervision.

We did a lot of (boring sh*t) sitting around, reading and watching TV. Oh — and those frozen pizzas.

During the time when my friend Karrie lived next door, I was allowed to go over there…but we had to stay inside the house.

Have you ever changed a car tire?
I have not. That’s what AAA and Geico are for. 🙂

Sorry to sound like a wuss…but I really don’t want to get dirty.

What’s the best thing your best friend ever taught you?
To ask myself whether the little things that bother me will still bother me in a year. I think that both Jen and Cindy are more patient than I am when it comes to just, like, life’s little aggravations.

I’m a bit more high strung, so when something bugs me, and it bugs me straight off, I’ll ask myself, “Is this really gonna bother me in a year?” and most of the time the answer is no.

Mostly.

Are you the type to use a different purse with every outfit, or do you tend to use the same purse all the time?
Phases. Sometimes I’ll carry the same purse all the time, especially if it’s big and practical and fits my big camera, and my phone, and all my junk, so I’ll go through phases where I’ll get stuck on using that one purse.

Your turn. 🙂 Just copy and paste the following questions into a comment with your answers. I look forward to reading ’em!

1. How comfortable are you when it comes to negotiating discounts?
2. What’s one memory you have of summer vacation?
3. Have you ever changed a car tire?
4. What’s the best thing your best friend ever taught you?
5. Are you the type to use a different purse with every outfit, or do you tend to use the same purse all the time?

Good morning and happy Monday! I hope you had a nice weekend, my friend, and hopefully your Monday has gotten off to a good start.

I have a couple of things on my mind this week… First, hair. Tomorrow I’m going to get my hair done, yay! — and I’ve been furiously googling Helena Christensen hair styles. Then on Wednesday my neighbor, who’s a high school senior, is coming over, and we’re gonna do a trial run for her prom makeup.

Yup, I’m gonna be doing her prom makeup this weekend. She wants Kylie Jenner lips (all the kids do) and a warm brown, kind of purply red smokey eye, which I’m totally on board with.

Have a great week, and I’ll talk to you soon. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 347

May 17th, 2015 by Karen 21 Comments

Kristin Perry Webbed in Turquoise Necklace

My darlings,

Ever since I won my first Oscar, Best Lead Feline in a Meow-tion Picture, for my performance in The Cat’s Speech, the tabloids have been saying that I’ve quit high fashion kitty modeling.

Well, I’m here to set the record straight. I am still, and always will be, first and foremost, a kitty supermodel.

As a matter of fact, just this weekend I shot several jewelry campaigns that will be running in the glossies. Here’s a sneak peek at what you’ll be seeing over the next few months in the pages of Feline Vogue.

Jewelry in this post…

Kristin Perry Webbed in Turquoise Necklace, $48

Kristin Perry Diana Necklace, $68

Forever 21 Mint Necklace(no longer available, but here’s something similar)

Kristin Perry Audrey Necklace, $58

Anthropologie Layering Necklace (here’s something similar)

Anthropologie Bib Necklace (something similar)

LOFT Necklace (something similar)

Banana Republic Long Layering Necklace (something similar)

Kristin Perry Jewel Saturation Necklace, $68

Kristin Perry Webbed in Turquoise Necklace

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Comment to Win a $50 eGift Card From MAC! (Ends Monday)

May 16th, 2015 by Karen 392 Comments

** THE GIVEAWAY IS CLOSED **
This giveaway is closed, and the winner has been contacted (CONGRATULATIONS, LIZZIE!!!), but check back next Saturday for another giveaway.

Rise and shine, pal o’ mine! Are you feeling Furiosa?

OK, so Mad Max: Fury Road was a riotously good action movie, and Charlize Theron’s Furiosa kicks so much butt, but now that I sit and think about the movie…a lot of it is blurring together. It’s such a visual spectacle of high-octane nonstop action, and everything’s so dusty and dirty and hot, but it’s almost more like listening to heavy metal music while looking at a beautiful painting of the desert than watching a regular movie….if that makes any sense.

In other news, I’m still making progress on Project Get My Sh*t Together, but I haven’t fully gotten it together yet. I did pick up three of these gray ombre milk crates from Target to use in the pink storage shelves in my office, but I haven’t filled them yet. So maybe I’ll work on that this weekend.

Other than that, I don’t know what’s on my agenda yet. Maybe a bicycle ride this afternoon in the Novato hills with El Hub if it warms up a little. It’s not exactly cold, but it has been very windy here. It gets Tabs fired up, I guess because he sees everything moving.

You know how cats are.

How was your week? What was the most surprising or interesting thing that happened?

One (1) MAC eGift card containing $50 sent to the winner by email (international readers, you may opt to receive $50 sent by PayPal instead).

Enter by leaving a comment below.
Open to U.S. and international readers.
You must be 18 or older to enter (or otherwise an adult based on your local laws).
Your comment can be about anything at all, but here are some ideas if you’re stuck:
- On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being grandmaster champion, how good are you at puzzle games?
- What’s one of your favorite non-musical sounds?
- Who has the most beautiful eyes of anyone you know?
- Best name for a city or town?
- How do you feel about wearing purple products (eye makeup, lips, nails, clothing, accessories)?
One entry per person.
You must use a valid email address to win.
The giveaway ends on Monday, May 18, 2015 at 11:59 PM (Pacific Time). 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen