Makeup

Should You R.S.V.P. for Tarte’s Amazonian Clay Waterproof Cream Shadow in Seashell Pink?

June 15th, 2011 by Karen 45 Comments

Tarte Seashell Pink

It appears that Tarte RSVP’d for Benefit’s popular Creaseless Cream in R.S.V.P, and, while at the release party, stole the idea for the color, and ran with it all the way to the beach — or the Seashore, to be more precise.

Just how close is Tarte’s new Amazonian Clay Waterproof Cream Eyeshadow in Seashell Pink to Benefit Creaseless Cream in R.S.V.P.? The short answer: close.

Both shimmery pink cream eyeshadows look darn near like sisters in their pots and swatches, but I think if you look closely at both of them, you’ll see richer peach pigments in Seashell Pink.

Full size jar of Tarte Seashell Pink (left) and sample size Benefit R.S.V.P. (right)

[Continue reading…]

Topshop Cheeks in Luminescence Is Sticking It to MAC Nymphette

June 14th, 2011 by Karen 51 Comments

Topshop Cheeks in Luminescence on cheeks

If you’ve spent sleepless nights (LOL! I almost typed “knights.” Yeah, someone’s been obsessed with Game of Thrones lately.) tossing and turning over the need to find a cream blush version of MAC Nymphette Lipglass, as bizarre as that might sound, you wouldn’t be the only one.

I’m right there with ya, babe! 🙂 But get this: Topshop might finally have a cure for what ails us.

The line recently introduced three new creamy, multi-purpose sticks called Cheeks, $20 blush/highlighters designed to add shimmery color to faces, lips, bodies and — you guessed it — cheeks.

If they look familiar, you’ve got a good eye. Luminescence, a peachy pink with golden pearl, must have a girl crush on MAC Nymphette Lipglass because it’s totally biting her style. It’s a pretty close reproduction of the color in stick blush form, and it glows on lips and cheeks. It and the other Cheeks are like thicker, creamier NARS Multiples that feel wetter to the touch and cost about half as much as their counterparts at NARS ($20 vs. $39 for a Multiple).

[Continue reading…]

My Lips and Eyes Glaze Over Topshop’s Sheer Glaze Lipgloss

June 14th, 2011 by Karen 32 Comments

“Mmmmmm. Glaze.”

I mumbled that out loud while standing in line at Starbucks the other day, and with a slightly sleazy enthusiasm that would have made Homer Simpson proud. I was just staring off into space, thinking about Topshop’s three new Glaze lipgloss colors ($12 each).

I’m usually pretty good about keeping my inner voice, well, inside, but Glaze’s creamy finish, non-sticky texture and NOM-worthy vanilla flavor and scent (both fade after about 5 minutes) got the better of me. The gentleman standing in front of me turned around in line, raised an eyebrow and said, “Excuse me?”

I had no reply, except to smile nervously until he looked away. 🙂

Topshop, a British clothing retailer, also has a line of makeup, available exclusively at their stores and online, and along with their permanent collection products for eyes, face, lips and nails, they have some seasonal releases, too.

The Glazes live in Topshop’s permanent line, and these three new shades bring the color selection to five. I hope the company decides to add more, because from what I’ve seen so far, I think these are kinda great.

Laid Back (top) and Bubblegum (bottom)
[Continue reading…]

Inglot Matte Collection AMC Eyeliner Gel Is Taking My Makeup World By Storm

June 10th, 2011 by Karen 26 Comments

Written by Sam

This sentence, does it need a comma or an inglot? The subject of today’s great guest post from Sam may sound like punctuation, but it’s so much more than that.

Inglot AMC Eyeliner Gel

After mascara and lipstick, eye liner is one of those things a lot of women turn to when they’re pressed for time. A quick dash on the upper lids can add a pop of color and takes just seconds to do — far less time than an elaborate eye using multiple shadows — and a nude on the waterline can illuminate and open sleepy, drooping peepers.

And why keep a separate black, or blue, or brown liner for each and every occasion if one great product could cover ’em all? Five minutes to get ready? Check. Thunder storms a’coming? Check. Great possibility of crying (hopefully for a good reason, like at a wedding)? Check. No worries — today’s liner has your back!

Inglot, a Polish makeup company, has quietly become a cult favorite among makeup artists, in part because they’ve done the unthinkable. They managed to create a gel liner that in my opinion beats out the famously fabulous MAC Fluidline. The Matte Collection AMC Eyeliner Gel (long name for such a simple product) is without question the best liner, of any formula, I have ever used.

So how is it better than those gorgeous glass tubs of creamy Fluidline, with their soft, rubberized twist-off tops? Let me count the ways…

Matte Collection AMC Eyeliner Gel

Starting with value, the Matte Collection AMC Eyeliner Gel (I promise that’s the last time I’ll use the full name) comes with a HUGE amount of product for $12. Housed inside the convenient and cute plastic tub lives a whopping 5.5 grams of product (Fluidline comes with 3 grams, about the average for gel liners). Inglot’s liner works out to $2.18 per gram, versus $5 per gram for the $15 Fluidline. That’s more than twice as much product for the price!

But value only matters if a product performs, right? I’d much rather shell out a few extra dollars for a fantastic liner than a few less dollars for one that flakes, runs, or fades. Fortunately, none of those are bothers here.

Inglot’s AMC Eyeliners are extremely emollient. I’m actually a bit surprised they’re labeled as gels and not creams. Their extremely thick, smooth texture glides across the skin. Whereas many gel liners skip, scoot, tug, and pull at lids when I apply them with any sort of brush, these AMC Eyeliners are incredibly smooth and silky, almost to a fault.
[Continue reading…]

Color Me Intrigued by the New Elizabeth Arden Bronze in Bloom Eyeshadow Quads

June 8th, 2011 by Karen 25 Comments

Oh, fudge! Where’d I put my white gloves? They’re the only things that go with my Chanel tweed suit. What’s that, you say? They’re on the bureau by my Elizabeth Arden makeup? If I show up to lunch at the country club without my white gloves, Bunny MacDougal will throw a fit!

I don’t know, but I’ve always kind of thought of Elizabeth Arden as a line for mature ladies who lunch. I never would have expected some of the edgier products and colors I’ve been seeing in their new Bronze in Bloom Collection. First the Smokey Eyes Powder Pencil in Black Violet, and now this? With the Color Intrigue Eyeshadow Quads in Golden Lilac and Bronze in Bloom ($30 each), it’s almost like EA is trying to channel her inner MAC or NARS.

Inside each of the palettes live four coordinating colors in shades I typically expect to see in fall, not summer. And a couple of the shadows have a bit of an edge, which I like.

Take the yellowish beige pan in the Golden Lilac Quad. Looks like just another boring beige, right? Not even. It’s actually a duochrome with tiny bits of golden glitter, and it flashes from pink to purple. Then there’s the shimmery navy blue in the Blue Breeze Quad. It has a hint of sultry, smokey black.
[Continue reading…]

Dior Harmonie de Blush in Coral Riviera Is Ringing My Belle

June 7th, 2011 by Karen 51 Comments

“May I be excused?” Karen asked, trying to hide the fact that her coral blush fetish was spiraling out of control. Gingerly, she set her silverware and cotton napkin down and coyly tilted her head. “I won’t be but a minute.”

“Why, sure, dear,” said a woman in a tall chair at the head of the table. The words dripped from her tongue like honey, and the other girls grew silent as she spoke. She was older than the others but, like the younger girls, impeccably dressed. She wore a creamy, satin two-piece gown and a bolero jacket with 3/4 sleeves (rhinestone accents, of course) over an A-line skirt. Not a single hair fell out of place on her almost sculpted, dark strawberry blonde crown. She sat bolt upright with darn near perfect posture, much as someone accustomed to formal gatherings of this kind regularly would.

“You take your time,” the woman said, seeming to understand Karen’s reasons. It was as if the woman had read her blush-crazed mind.

Karen fluttered (as best she could) out into the hallway and pulled Dior’s Harmonie de Blush in Coral Riviera 002 from her clutch. At $44 it was pricey, but damn if it didn’t make her feel like her cheeks had been kissed by the sun.

Under the dim lights in the hall, Karen marveled, as she had many times before, at the different shades in the pan. “So pretty…” she whispered to the pan as much as to herself. Dior designed the colors to be worn separately to highlight different parts of the face, or swirled together and worn as a blush or bronzer.

[Continue reading…]

The NYX EyeBrow Kit Hopes You’ll Make Time to Stencil It In

June 6th, 2011 by Karen 41 Comments

While it won’t be breaking any speed records for brow filling, the NYX Eyebrow Kit With Stencil ($13.50) gets mad props from me for looking like it belongs in an art store.

The kit comes in three color families — For Blondes, For Brunettes and For Everyone — and each one packs four brow powders, an angled brush, a brow comb and three plastic stencils cut to fit different brow shapes. Just hold one of the stencils up to your brow, and fill it in using the powders and brushes that come with the kit.

Tada! 🙂

Well, that’s the idea.

I usually fill in my brows “freehand” using something like Benefit Instant Brow because, especially in Instant Brow’s case, it’s quick as a bunny. And when I’m not pressed for time, I might reach for a pan of MAC Concrete and a MAC 266 Small Angle Brush instead.

But what could be quicker than using a stencil, right? If they’re good enough for art class, they’re good enough for me.

NYX Eyebrow Kit with Stencil

[Continue reading…]

The Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Tints Are Office AND Tabby Approved

June 6th, 2011 by Karen 45 Comments

Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Tint in Hope

If these Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Tints ($24) had been around back when I spent my weekdays preparing pleadings as a legal secretary in the city, I would have kept a tube in my pocket for emotional support. It could have kept me company in the restroom stall where I frequently retreated to secretly cry away my frustrations at work (’twas NOT my all-time favorite job).

The line of six matte lip stains, basically matte-ish versions of Tarte’s LipSurgence Lip Stains, has been around for about a year. Like their shinier cousins they have a twist-top and utilize the same “High-Performance Natural LipSurgence Technology,” which, Tarte claims, is “clinically proven to increase moisture content by an astonishing 6,000% after 28 days.”

LOL! I feel like that sentence needed a bunch of exclamation marks at the end: “…6,000% after 28 days!!!”

I’m not sure how anyone would ever measure something like that, but I sure do love the work-friendly finish and barely-there, whispery sheen.

The barely perceptible shine loosens ’em up a little, giving them a slightly more casual vibe…but not casual like ripped jeans, tank tops and flip-flops. More like a white shirt over tan jodhpurs and knee-high riding boots.

They deposit a gentle nudge of color that encourages a quick glance, as opposed to shouting, “HEY, LOOK AT ME!” I think they’d be perfect for an office with a strict dress code.

Tarte LipSurgence Natural Matte Lip Tint
[Continue reading…]