Makeup

A Makeup Math Formula: Taupe Eyeshadow + Matte Red Lips + Bronzer = Easy Elegance

June 27th, 2017 by Karen 15 Comments

From the left: Chanel Ombre Premiere Eyeshadow in Talpa, NARS Powermatte Lip Pigment in Light My Fire and Chanel Les Beiges Healthy Sheer Colour in N40

There’s this great blog I’ve been reading for the past couple years for…let’s just call them “vertically challenged ladies” like myself, called Extra Petite, and Jean, the gal who runs it, is a big fan of something she calls “outfit formulas” — particularly kick-@ss, easily repeatable combinations of colors or articles of clothing, like a white tee and dark jeans, that always go well together.

Hmm… Could this work with makeup??

I mean, I wouldn’t want to follow a formula all the time, because sometimes I like to meander through my makeup and feel my way through whatever I’m doing (particularly when I have time), but there are moments when I don’t want to think, don’t feel very creative, and just want some easy routine of items that I know work well together.

Basically, a formula.

I do them all the time with certain colors and combos, like the combo I’m wearing here, which is comprised of three things — a shimmery golden taupe eyeshadow, a warm red matte lip and a sheer bronzer, but I don’t always think of them as “formulas.”

One of the main reasons I love the one above is because I can get a good amount of color on my face with it (’cause you know I love wearing color!) without doing too much work.

Here I’m wearing an incredibly user-friendly, gorgeous golden taupe taste of perfection called Chanel Talpa that I talked about a while back when it launched. Basically, it’s super creamy and easy to buff out, so you don’t need a lot of blending skills to pull it off. Plus, it’s long-wearing too.

Anyway, oops! I’m getting off topic. My bad!

I’m combining the shimmery golden taupe on my lids with the matte red statement lip to create two focal points that don’t require a lot of blending or other heavy makeup lifting (especially, if you use a liquid matte lipstick like I do here).

[Continue reading…]

A 4-Step Cute Lip Combo That Goes With Almost Everything: Layer MAC Soar Lip Pencil With MAC Patisserie Lipstick

June 26th, 2017 by Karen 6 Comments

mac patisserie soar prep prime lip — You can’t go wrong with MAC Lipstick in Patisserie ($17), Lip Pencil in Soar ($17.50) and Prep + Prime Lip ($17.50)

Here’s a neutral pink lip combo recipe I love because 1) it’s comprised of three products from the MAC permanent line, so the ingredients aren’t going anywhere, and 2) it goes with almost any and every eye look.

Here’s what you do…

1. Prep your pout with a layer of MAC Prep + Prime Lip.

2. Line and fill in your lips with MAC Lip Pencil in Soar.

mac soar lip pencil — Mid-toned pinkish brown MAC Soar

[Continue reading…]

MAC Coral Lipsticks: 5 MORE Essential Summer Staples

June 23rd, 2017 by Karen 9 Comments

mac corals part — MOAR CORALS! From the left, MAC Lipsticks in Nippon, Koi Coral, Shy Girl, Ravishing and Hot Tahiti

Did you really think I could stop at five?? GIRL, YOU SO CRAZY!

It’s totally normal for a MAC coral enthusiast to have at least 10 lipstick options in rotation at any given moment…

Right…?

UGH, keep telling yourself that, Karen. Seriously, I’m only one or two tubes away from an intervention.

YES! These corals (like these from earlier today) are in the MAC permanent line. One of them, Ravishing, is an old fave I’ve been wearing for years, but the other four are pretty new to my personal coral kingdom, like Koi Coral, a creamy, marvelously moisturizing peachy nude coral Cremesheen that happens to share part of its name (albeit with a different spelling) with one of Connor Claire’s nicknames (“Coywolf,” which sometimes gets shortened to “Coy”).

I think of her whenever I wear it.

Mmm, I’m tasting that signature MAC vanilla flavor on my lips right now. It tastes like coming home, and it feels like everything is right again with the world…

Anyway! Diversion much, Karen?

Also in this batch — Shy Girl, and oh, my gosh! So nice. It’s a creamy, dreamy peachy beige coral I just recently found through MAC Fruity Juicy.

I mean, it’s been around a while, but I forgot it was in the permanent collection. It almost functions as a nude.

Nippon is another peachy coral, but it’s less beige than Shy Girl. Like Koi Coral, it’s also a Cremesheen, so it’s creamy and mega moisturizing. It’s like a drink of water for dry lips.

1. Ravishing

2. Koi Coral

[Continue reading…]

MAC Coral Lipsticks: 5 Essential Summer Staples

June 23rd, 2017 by Karen 9 Comments

I’m low-key crazy for coral all year long, but now that it’s summer, I let my freak flag fly and my full-on coral craziness is unleashed!

If it were socially acceptable…I might even wear all five of my favorite MAC coral lipsticks on my face AT THE SAME TIME.

Flamingo, Costa Chic, Coral Bliss, Vegas Volt and Pretty Boy are all found in the MAC permanent line, so they’re always there whenever you need them, which is comforting to me…like a makeup security blanket.

I rotate among them during summer.

If you see a couple you like, jump on them now, because MAC is having a special lipstick promotion where you get a free lipstick if you buy any two lip products. The free lipstick has to be one of six specific shades (Breathing Fire, Lust, Lured In, Pressed & Ready, Barbeque and Invite Intrigue), though, so you can’t go picking any old free lipsticks willy-nilly. But the selections are lovely.

The promo lasts through June 25th, both at MAC stores and the website.

1. Flamingo

[Continue reading…]

BECCA Liquid Crystal Glow Gloss Officially Has Nothing to Do With “The Dark Crystal,” But I Feel Like It Should

June 23rd, 2017 by Karen 22 Comments

becca rose quartz seashell liquid crystal 3 — When you hold your lip gloss like a magic wand… I’m wearing BECCA Liquid Crystal Glow Gloss in Rose Quartz x Seashell ($22 and one of six shades), by the way!

So, I realize that the new BECCA Liquid Crystal Glow Glosses officially have nothing to do with the 1982 Jim Henson classic, The Dark Crystal, but I feel like they should, because the movie featured a cracked gem, and these glosses are inspired by gems that have been melted down to liquid form…

Um…leave it the the girl who named her kid after the heroine in the Terminator movies to find the sci-fi angle, LOL.

becca champagne dream liquid crystal 1 — This one is my favorite: Champagne Dream x Bellini

Anyway…I like these a lot. Some more than others. They’re a new line of sheer glosses with different levels of glitter, pearl and shimmer, and you can wear them as standalone lip glosses or layer them on top of lipstick.

“Buuuuut, Karen,” I can already hear you saying, “Can’t you layer any old gloss on top of lipstick?”

Why, yes, sweet thing! You certainly can.

becca amethyst geode liquid crystal 6 — Amethyst X Geode

[Continue reading…]

Milk Makeup Highlighter Is Lit

June 22nd, 2017 by Karen 9 Comments

milk makeup lit highlighter k1 — That glow, tho! It’s from Milk Makeup Highlighter in Lit ($24), which I’m wearing on my upper cheekbones, in the inner corners of my eyes and along my brow bones.

Once upon a time, super early in the morning, I almost took a stick of Milk Makeup Highlighter and put it under my arms. Like deodorant! I caught myself at the last minute, so I didn’t actually do it, but if it had, my underarms would’ve been the most perfectly highlighted underarms in armpit history.

This sounds less crazy when you see Milk Makeup Highlighter next to my favorite deodorant. Check it:

Right? That’s what I get for fumbling around in the dark…

Milk Makeup is constantly surprising me. Their vibe, the marketing and their packaging cater to teens, methinks, and being a crabby 40-something-year-old lady (Just kidding! I’m not crabby…except on Tuesdays!), I didn’t think the brand would appeal to me, but that’s been sooooo far from the truth. I’ve loved their Blush Oil and Sunshine Skin Tint and have now entered into a serious relationship with Lit, their stick highlighter.

And it truly is lit.

Lit is a sheer, shimmery, peachy champagne highlighter from the Milk Makeup permanent line that you can wear sheer for a natural look, or layer for a striking, visible highlight, and while cream highlighters aren’t particularly innovative, Milk has perfected this one’s shine.

Or, rather, its dewy glow. That’s a more apt description.

milk makeup lit highlighter — When subtle peachy champagne highlight dreams come true…

[Continue reading…]

Milk Makeup Lip Color Loves the Lived-In Look

June 21st, 2017 by Karen 11 Comments

milk makeup gnarly lip color — Feeling Gnarly, dude, ’cause I’m wearing Milk Makeup Lip Color in Gnarly ($22, one of 10 shades)

Special shout-out to MBB reader Tatiana for reminding me in the comments yesterday that sometimes all you need is mascara, a bright lipstick and a smile.

So right, Tatiana. 🙂

Bright lips are a good idea any time of year, but I think they’re a great idea in summer, especially if you’re into the makeup minimalist thing. You can throw on a bold, bright lip and skip the extra steps, because the lips can carry the whole look and make anything else you happen to include — mascara, brows, BB cream, highlighter, what have you — gravy.

milk makeup lip color swatches — From the top: C.R.E.A.M, Name Drop, Freshhh and Gnarly

These long-wearing matte Milk Makeup Lip Colors (I know I’ve been on the Milk Makeup train lately, but I hope you can bear with me. I love ’em!) are all in the permanent line and $22 each. And they totally work for this type of look because, dude…they’re intense! I can picture someone on the Milk Product Development Team saying, “Man, let’s load these up with as much pigment as humanly possible. I don’t want to layer!”

And that’s just what they did. One layer is all ya need.

I’ve tried four of them — hot pink Freshhh, orange-red Name Drop, fuchsia Gnarly and peachy nude C.R.E.A.M. The unscented, unflavored formula lasts about four hours, depending on what you’re doing with your lips (like whether you’re eating, drinking, smooching or just chillin’).

The matte lipstick category is SO crowded right now, but these look instantly “worn in,” and I think it makes them stand out. They almost look like matte stains, and it’s super cool and kind of unusual for a lipstick.

milk makeup cream lip color — C.R.E.A.M.

[Continue reading…]

Try Diorshow Pump’n’Volume Mascara for Lifted, Ladylike Lashes

June 21st, 2017 by Karen 6 Comments

diorshow pump n volume brush — Don’t poke your eye out, Karen

I mean…is this new Dior Diorshow Pump’N’Volume Mascara gimmicky?

Yeah, a little.

The tube is soft and squishy, like a really good pair of flip-flops! There’s an indentation toward the bottom of the tube to place your thumb and forefinger into. Then you give it a good squeeze.

BAM! — the brush loads with MOAR MASCARA for MOAR VOLUME.

I try not to squeeze too hard, though, because when I do, the brush gets overloaded and I apply way too much (and end up with smudgy mascara a few hours later).

My point here is to say that a little bit of this $29.50 mascara goes a long way. Resist the temptation to use that T-rex claw and go ham on that a$$!

I like the brush a lot. It has stubby, pointy nubs similar to those on the brush that comes with Chanel Le Volume de Chanel.

diorshow pump n volume tube — Squeeeeeeze it

[Continue reading…]