Makeup

I Draw the Line at Soft Edges with Golden Chanel Ligne Extreme in Or

November 19th, 2011 by Karen 15 Comments

Chanel Or Ligne Extreme (2)

I felt a sudden gold rush the first time Chanel’s Ligne Extreme in Or touched my lids!

Team Coco developed this $32 liquid liner, part of Chanel’s holiday 2011 affair, to draw crisp, intensely golden lines with a single stroke, and they bestowed upon it a water-resistant formula to help it last through wintery downpours.

We’ve played together a couple of times over the past two weeks, but the last time things got a tad tense… Or, which means “gold” en franÃ§ais, has a tendency to over-apply.

It has a consistency on the thicker side for liquid liners, but patting or swiping away any excess from the brush before bringing it my eye definitely helps. As long as I remember to do that every time, I’m able to draw fairly smooth, even lines with it — albeit lines with softer edges than I’m used to from most liquid liners. It seems that the combination of a thick formula and a delicate brush make drawing super crisp lines with it a challenge, at least for me.

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Chanel Or Ligne Extreme (3)
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Bejeweled for Less with LORAC’s New Bejeweled Gloss Set of Six Glosses for $25

November 19th, 2011 by Karen 9 Comments

LORAC Holiday 2011 Bejeweled Gloss

LORAC Bejeweled Gloss for Holiday 2011 I must say, LORAC certainly knows how to get the attention of this lipgloss-lovin’ lass.

The six colorful, sparkly glosses in the $25 Bejeweled Lip Gloss Collection, the company’s latest limited edition lipgloss-palooza, don’t just look good; they feel great, too, with a non-sticky, slippery texture that’s just the right thickness for me.

These are the kinds of glosses I’ll reach for when I feel like wearing a bit of glitter on my lips but don’t necessarily want to shimmer in direct sunlight as brightly as Vampire Edward does.

New for the holidays, they deliver sheer-to-medium pigmentation in a long-wearing, hydrating lip formula with a faint brown sugar flavor and scent that I like.

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They remind me of another fab holiday lipgloss, that one also a good value — the Anastasia Kisses on My List kit — except with more pigment and sparkle, to boot.

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Dolce & Gabbana Ruby Collection Blush in Peach: The Pit in This Peach Is a Beautiful Jewel

November 18th, 2011 by Karen 14 Comments

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If it weren’t for Dolce & Gabbana’s new $55 Ruby Blush in Peach, I’d feel (and kinda look) like a long lost member of the Village People in this coat.

One of seven limited edition pieces in Dolce & Gabbana’s new holiday 2011 collection (coming soon), the matte peachy pink blush evokes a timeless elegance more fitting of shift dresses, structured pocketbooks and patent-leather high heels than faux furs, feathers and Y.M.C.A.

Can’t you just see it with a crisp cat eye and a rich red lip?

SWOON! 🙂

The Dolce & Gabbana Ruby collection for holiday 2011 includes…

(Full reviews and pretty pictures coming soon!)

Ruby Lipsticks in Devil 220, Scarlett 195, Ultra 190, Ruby 180 and Iconic 210 ($37 each)

Ruby Eyeshadow in Femme Fatale 100 ($75)

Ruby Blush in Peach 20 ($55)

Dolce fans might recognize the packaging; it’s the same bejeweled compact from last year’s lovely Lip Jewels. Sure, it tacks $11 on top of Dolce’s already hefty $44 blush price, but it sure is an unmistakeable design.

Gaudy? Maybe, yeah, a little, but I think it’s gorgeous. Like a piece of art resting on a makeup counter (and almost as spendy).

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With the Bobbi Brown Dual Ended Eye Liners, Eyes Have Options, One Neutral and One Fun

November 16th, 2011 by Karen 16 Comments

QUESTION: When are two widgets better than one?

ANSWER: Always, when you’re a gal who likes options, and the widgets are the liners at both ends of each new limited edition Bobbi Brown Dual Ended Eye Liner.

I’m one of those gals. I keep multiple pairs of shoes in the back seat of my car for emergencies — emergencies like when I change my mind about my footwear on the way to wherever I’m going — and I’m the same way with makeup, because you never know when the need to wear gold eyeliner will strike!

“With Bobbi’s Dual Ended Eye Liner, one side brightens, while the other side defines for long-wearing that doesn’t fade. A unique combination of soft waxes and oils, plus a high concentration of pigments, provides silky-smooth application and dense, even color.”

— bobbibrowncosmetics.com

This season, thanks to these three new $24 pencil duos, which are available now on Bobbi Brown counters and also online, I’ll be all set. Available in three combinations — Chocolate & Bronze, Jet & Chrome and Caviar & Gold — one side has a neutral shade to help you play it safe at the office, and the other side has a shimmery shade for parties after work…

…or for running away from zombies!

Because you never know, right?

Yep, I’m hooked on The Walking Dead

The two duos I’ve been wearing this week, Jet & Chrome and Chocolate & Bronze, feel like butter and look like ink. They’re super smooth and pigmented, gliding on like Urban Decay’s 24/7 Glide-On Eye Pencils, while depositing pigments so intense that they remind me of Make Up For Ever’s Aqua Eyes Liners.

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NARS Unsung Heroes: Lovejoy Blush

November 16th, 2011 by Karen 34 Comments

Combined, some words are even greater than the sum of their parts. Take Nutella and doughnuts, for instance. Both tasty treats by themselves, for sure, but stick them together and BOOM!

Magic (super high-calorie magic).

I think the same principle also applies to NARS Lovejoy, a $27 powder blush from the NARS permanent line.

NARS Lovejoy does more than combine two — wait, three great words. It also combines two of my favorite products, blush and bronzer.

And seriously, with a name like Lovejoy, how could it have been anything but good?

Around this time every year, with the last vestiges of my summer tan fading from view, I start reaching for bronzers more and more often to add some extra warmth to my face. Not as a replacement for blush, but in addition to it.

But on days when I’m too rushed (or too lazy) in the morning to deal with both, NARS Lovejoy’s mix of rosy plum and bronze pigments and golden glitter totally hits the spot. Its power comes from its ability to combine a rosy flush with a natural-looking bronzy glow, so it’s kinda like getting a two-for-one, with a bronzer and blush in a single pan. I think it really sings on olive skin tones, but I’ve also heard cool-toned gals gush over it, too.

Because NARS gave Lovejoy more than enough pigment, I think it’s easy to overdo. It pays to apply it with a feather light touch, and I like the results I get when I use it with a synthetic skunk brush (for a sheer, natural-looking veil of color).

One layer is usually enough to give my cheeks a flush like they’ve just been pinched, and because I don’t have to use much, the pan should last, oh, roughly three lifetimes. 🙂

Even if you fear sparkly stuff, don’t be scurred of Lovejoy’s golden glitter. It may look intimidating in the pan, but those flecks are super fine and don’t shine a spotlight on pores or fine lines. Just enough shimmer to keep skin looking glowy and fresh.

And to top everything off, Lovejoy lasts all day long on my combination skin.

Ahh, Lovejoy… I love that you bring me so much joy.

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Chanel’s Rouge Allure Velvet Luminous Matte Lip Colours Feel So Light That They Defy Gravity!

November 15th, 2011 by Karen 56 Comments

Wearing Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet Luminous Matte Lip Colour in 36 La Caline

I’ve only been snowboarding once, and it was a very long time ago. I don’t remember much about that day anymore, but I do recall the cold. I remember that much — the part about freezing my @ass off — and I also remember flying down the mountain and feeling lighter than air, with the wind whipping through my ponytail and my heart pounding in my chest.

I’d do it again if it wasn’t so cold, but what can I say? I was made in the tropics. 🙂

Snow wasn’t part of my original programming, but I think I was configured to appreciate featherweight lip products like the new Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet Luminous Matte Lip Colours ($32 each, available in eight shades).

They feel so light on my lips that I’d swear I wasn’t wearing anything at all. Light, just like I felt flying down that mountain all those years ago.

Chanel describes the finish of these Luminous Matte Lip Colours as “velvet matte,” which does have a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? I think they’re mostly matte, with a slight shine to keep lips from looking flat and fake, like the lips on a mannequin.

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From the left: 41 L’Exquise, 39 La Somptueuse, 36 La Caline (with a smooshed tip!) and another tube of 36 La Caline (with an unsmooshed tip)

Swatches from the left: 36 La Caline, 39 La Somptueuse and 41 L’Exquise

Wearing 36 La Caline
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It Takes One or Two to Tango with Bobbi Brown’s New Chocolate & Gold Eye Palette

November 15th, 2011 by Karen 38 Comments

bobbi brown chocolate & gold eye paint palette (5)

Y’all want this party started, right?
Y’all want this party started quickly, right?

— C+C Music Factory

Bobbi Brown sure knows how to throw a holiday party. Her latest soirÃ©e features four entertaining colors and two of my favorite things: chocolate and gold.

Today the limited edition $45 Chocolate & Gold Eye Paint Palette, one of two quads in Bobbi’s new Party Collection, took me on a stroll down memory lane that started with this classic house hit…

WARNING: It’s always a good idea to stretch before dancing to this song

Chocolate & Gold happens to be a great dance partner! The shadows, while fabulous on their own, get along great with others and flat-out love to be layered.

Which reminds me — do you remember the moment you realized that you could wear more than one eyeshadow on your lids at a time? Better yet, when you figured out that you could even layer those shades together?

GASP! That’s a moment that changed my makeup world forever. 🙂

Flash forward to today. I was just fooling around this morning when I applied the bronzy gold from the Chocolate & Gold Palette (at the top in the pic below) on top of the darker black and gold shadow on the right.

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Get a Tracy Reese for Clinique Gift with Purchase Now Through Nov. 20 at Nordstrom Stores and Online

November 15th, 2011 by Karen 32 Comments

Cool! Even Tracy Reese likes Clinique. 🙂

The chic designer hand picked eight of her favorite Clinique makeup and skin care products for the new Tracy Reese for Clinique Gift with Purchase, available now through November 20 online and at Nordstrom stores (while supplies last).

Now might be a good time to resupply. Just spend $25 or more on any of your favorites from Clinique, and receive the Colour Surge Eyeshadow Trio, Different Lipstick in Raspberry Glace, Quickliner for Eyes in Black/Brown, two makeup bags (designed by Tracy herself) and travel-size versions of Clinique’s Rinse-Off Foaming Cleanser, the Even Better Skin Tone Correcting Moisturizer in SPF 20, and one High Impact Mascara in Black (grand total: a $75 value).

Swatches from the left: Color Surge Eye Shadow Trio (first, second and third), Quickliner for Eyes in Black/Brown, High Impact Mascara, and Different Lipstick in Raspberry Glace
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