Makeup

Clarins Colour Breeze Collection for Spring 2012 Pics and Swatches

January 13th, 2012 by Karen 20 Comments

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Oh, sweet Friday, how I love thee so…

Happy Friday, friend. 🙂 I hope you’re doing well. Me? I’m dealing with the aftereffects of an almost sleepless night (blasted insomnia!), but I’m beginning to feel better now. Colour Breeze, the new Clarins collection for spring 2012, has certainly helped.

The 12-piece release for eyes, lips, and cheeks can hardly wait for winter to end. Available now at Clarins counters and also online, it’s all about bright and fresh, with shades of pink, blue, coral, red and brown.

Reviews coming soon, but in the meantime, here’s a sneak peek at six of the upcoming pieces. Take a gander, and let me know what you think.

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Eye Quartet Mineral Palette in Blue Sky, $40

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NARS Notable Neutrals Club Meeting Minutes, Jan. 12, 2012: Should Lhasa Eyeshadow Be Granted Membership in the Club?

January 12th, 2012 by Karen 22 Comments

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The following is an un-redacted transcript of the NARS Notable Neutrals Club meeting held on Jan. 12, 2012, in Novato, Calif., as transcribed by Tabs the Cat.

Order, people! Order! Is this thing on…?

Good evening, everyone. Tonight’s meeting of the NARS Notable Neutrals Club is called in session. I know everybody’s excited about the spring collection, but let’s settle down. If we don’t start the meeting soon, you won’t get home in time to watch the Jersey Shore — no judgement! Seriously though, quiet down.

Okay, our first order of business. I’d like to nominate a new member to the club, NARS Lhasa Eyeshadow. She’s a single, $24, and I propose that we waive public comments and vote to make her membership official effective tomorrow, January 13, when she debuts along with the rest of the spring collection.

Now, I can hear some of you grumbling back there… I’ve heard the charges that the club has become too exclusive to newcomers — Cyprus, I’m talking to you — but may I remind you that we are not mean girls. All of us were at one time new neutrals ourselves, waiting to be discovered and loved. Lhasa deserves a chance.

A little bit about our prospective new member. She’s a shimmery lavender gray, a little smoky and sassier than usual for a spring shade, but she comes to us with a long list of references from fans who love wearable taupes. Of course, we performed the requisite background check per club rules. As you know, the guidelines specify that new members must have a soft texture, lots of pigment and a wear time like whoa! She passed on all counts with flying colors.

I suspect that some members may feel that Lhasa is too cool for warmer toned fans. While that may be true, I still think she would make a great addition to the club.

Alright, let’s put it to a vote. All in favor of granting Lhasa membership into the NARS Notable Neutrals Club, raise your hand — er, lids.

One, two, three, four…

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Thanks to NARS ValparaÃso Pure Matte Lipstick, Berries Are in Season This Spring

January 12th, 2012 by Karen 13 Comments

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Today I live in the burbs about 30 miles north of San Francisco, but back when I did live in the city, it was smack dab in the middle of the dot-com boom, and the place was hoppin’.

Rental rates were out of control! Dot-coms were shooting up everywhere you looked, and housing of any kind was hard to come by. I struggled to find a place to live and eventually ended up renting a room in a sketchy house out in SF’s Sunset District, living with a cavalcade of characters, like the DJ/herbal enthusiast (let’s just say she wasn’t growing rosemary, if you know what I mean), and the kleptomaniac.

Honestly, I have no idea what I was thinking when I signed that lease. It wasn’t one of my better life decisions, but the rent was cheap, and I was hell bent on moving out of my parents’ house.

Which brings me to the new NARS ValparaÃso Pure Matte Lipstick for Spring 2012…

Behind the sketchy house was a massive raspberry bush that had completely overtaken the yard, and in the middle of it, the branches parted to form a tunnel.

I never explored the tunnel because I was convinced it was filled with rats, but I always wondered… Where did it lead? Probably just to the back fence, but naturally my overactive imagination entertained the prospect of an entrance to Narnia on the other end.

Regardless, there was definitely something magical about that bush because it produced berries all year round — rich raspberries, like $25 NARS ValparaÃso.

For gals who feel that rich raspberry mattes belong in fall, you know FranÃ§ois. He’s not afraid to break the rules. 🙂

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With NARS Gaiety Blush on My Cheeks, Merriment Ensues

January 12th, 2012 by Karen 25 Comments

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Well, I’ll be darned… There’s shine in that thar blush!

After seeing the new NARS Gaiety Blush ($28) in its pan, and even after the first quick swatch on the back of my hand, I was sure this candy pink would apply as a straight up matte, but it turns out that this member of the new NARS Spring 2012 collection has a secret up its sleeve — it likes to shine. Coupled with its medium pigmentation, this sweet sheen transforms Gaiety from a pretty pink blush into a thing of beauty.

Imagine the light flush you get when your crush notices that you’re wearing your hair differently. For me, that’s Gaiety. 🙂

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The $34 Limited Edition NARS Paramaribo Eyeshadow Duo, and the Time I Was on Jeopardy

January 11th, 2012 by Karen 40 Comments

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Beauty Jeopardy

Karen: “Hmm… Since I’m on a roll, I’ll take Famous Crazy Cat Ladies for a thousand, Alex.”

Alex Trebek: “This pop star, crazy cat lady and ex-wife of Russell Brand has a perfume line with bottles shaped like cats… Karen?”

Karen: “Who is Katy Perry?”

Alex Trebek: “Correct! Well, you certainly know your cat ladies, Karen, and your Madonna lyrics and Ryan Gosling trivia. Two categories left — Projectile Sports, and the NARS Paramaribo Eyeshadow Duo.”

Karen: “I’ll take NARS Paramaribo for $200, Alex.”

Alex Trebek: “Paramaribo is named after the capital city in this tropical South American country… Oh, and there she goes.”

Karen: “What is Suriname, Alex? NARS Paramaribo for $400.”

Alex Trebek: “These five attributes distinguish NARS Paramaribo from your everyday, run-of-the-mill eyeshadow duo… Karen?”

Karen: “What are soft texture, high shine, punchy pigments, booyah blending, and color that resists creasing and fading? Let’s keep going with NARS Paramaribo for $600, Alex.”

Alex Trebek: “This duo from the NARS permanent collection is sometimes mistaken for Paramaribo due to its bronzy tones… Karen, first on the draw.”

Karen: “What is the NARS Star Sailor Duo?”

Alex Trebek: “Correct!”

Karen: “I’ll stick with NARS Paramaribo for $800, Alex…”

NARS Paramaribo on the left and Star Sailor on the right

Swatches of NARS Paramaribo on the left and Star Sailor on the right
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The NARS Mexican Rose Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil Diaries (Uncensored)

January 11th, 2012 by Karen 59 Comments

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Excerpted from the diary of a NARS Mexican Rose Velvet Gloss Lip Pencil…

Dear Diary,

Didn’t do much yesterday other than radiate awesomeness.

Yeah, that’s right. I make it rain! And if that makes me sound conceited, so be it.

My pink-haired roommate (we totally match!) tells me all the time, “you’re basically the sh*t.” She clearly sees that I’m the chupacabra of perfect pink lips.

Coral Vine, aka Mexican Rose I think she might be my new BFF, which is funny… Girls usually get so jealous of my dense pink pigment, high shine and easy-to-apply pencil tip.

But it’s not my fault that I’m so awesome and unique. I can’t help that I start off all super shiny like a gloss or that I morph into a hot pink lip stain with a subtle sheen.

Contrary to popular belief, it’s so not easy being flawless, and when I finally make my debut beside the rest of the NARS spring 2012 collection on January 13, not only will I have to shoulder the burden of perfection, but popularity, too.

Oh, well… Both of them are crosses I’m willing to bear.

Anywho, the pink-haired girl and I hung out for 12 full hours yesterday. She slipped me on shortly after brunch. Then, I watched her write a bunch of cheesy @ss puns — “Mexican Rose blooms with intense pigment,” “This pink is the hot house flower of NARS spring 2012,” and “Send me a dozen Mexican Roses for Valentine’s Day” — while we shared six cups of tea, a Honeycrisp apple (wow, those are good!) and spent time harassing her rotund tabby cat.

Next thing I knew, night had fallen, and we were off to yoga class (I would’ve preferred a swanky museum opening or a garden party).

I gotta say, I was the hottest pink lip in the room — well, the only pink lip in the room, but details, shmetails.

At one point in the class, between awkward downward dogs, the pink-haired girl checked herself out in the mirror and mouthed, “Holy crap! Mexican Rose is still going strong!”

Back at the house, we watched an episode of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills (is Brandi’s butt for real?!) and had a dinner of slightly burnt broccoli and pasta, with a few kisses from a dude who kindasorta looked like Detective Stabler for dessert.

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Glossy!
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If You Love Ultra Nude Eyes, the Bobbi Brown Ultra Nude Eye Palette Delivers Exactly That

January 11th, 2012 by Karen 35 Comments

Bobbi Brown Ultra Nude Eye Palette

Bobbi Brown Ultra Nude Eye Palette Two words: training wheels.

That’s what comes to mind when I wear the colors in Bobbi Brown’s new Ultra Nude Eye Palette, a $45 limited edition release of neutral eyeshadows from the spring Neons & Nudes collection.

These are shades that I think someone like my friend Jen might really like. She’s deathly afraid of wearing eyeshadow but still very curious nevertheless. This palette’s baby stepping beiges and browns could be a great place for her to start.

Bobbi plucked the six classic, neutral shades that occupy the limited edition packaging (super cute!) from her permanent line, choosing a mix of matte and shimmer finishes.

Like a staple piece in a well-rounded wardrobe, a pair of black heels perhaps, these neutrals are the kinds of colors many gals could wear regularly, either dressed up or down. On my skin, most of them apply moderately opaque, and they seem to walk the line pretty evenly between warm and cool.

A couple of the browns display some gray on my skin, and I often use grayish browns for contouring and creating sculpted looks. Lovelies with lighter hair may also find them handy for filling in blonde or very light brown brows.

Overall, I like the colors Bobbi picked for the palette, but I would have loved to also see a couple of warm orange-based browns…

I’m a total ho for orangey browns. 🙂

You know how much I lurves me some neutrals, but these shades leave me feeling almost naked. I’ll rock a “no makeup” makeup look any day of the week, but wearing these I feel like a cat with a fresh lion cut — exposed to the elements.
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OMG! It’s the FBI, and They’re Working With Urban Decay: The New Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer Pencils Are Just OK With Me

January 10th, 2012 by Karen 19 Comments

This year at Urban Decay HQ, spring is a season of covert concealers and secret government agencies — or so it seems, based on the cool code names given to these new 24/7 Concealer Pencils ($18 each).

Urban Decay 24/7 Concealer Pencils CIA, DEA, FBI, NSA, ATF, DOD, KGB and MI6? Those are some heavy hitting acronyms right there.

The first four — CIA, DEA, FBI and NSA — are repromotes of Urban Decay’s existing concealer pencils, with the same formula, but dressed in new packaging, while the other four — ATF, DOD, KGB AND MI6 — are new additions to the line designed for darker damsels/covert spies.

Last weekend I worked with the ATF, DOD and KGB on a very important case involving my dark under-eye circles and skin imperfections on my face. I directed ATF, a mid-toned dark golden beige, to take out my dark circles and dispatched DOD (a warm, dark tan) and KGB (a dark golden caramel) to work on my face.

Was the operation a success? Well, yes and no.

These guys are soft! — and creamy, but I mean that in a good way. 🙂 I like the way they feel and what a cinch they are to apply. The formula sinks right into my skin and doesn’t look like it’s just chilling on top.

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24/7 Concealer Pencils from the left: CIA (a light creamy ivory); DEA (a light peaches and cream); FBI (a light medium beige) and NSA (a medium beige); $18 each
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