Makeup

Fred Farrugia Makeup Is Driving Me Matte!

October 6th, 2010 by Karen 55 Comments

Wearing Fred Farrugia Semi Matte Lipstick/Matte Lip Powder Duo in 06 in lips and Pearlized Creme Eyeshadow/Twinkle Cream Eyeshadow Duo in 02 on eyes

Heya, princess of power. Who needs a He-Man when we’ve got Fred Farrugia? Here’s a closer look at a few of his products, including the modular makeup we talked about the other day.

Shout it with me now, “I HAVE THE POWER!!!”

SEMI MATTE LIPSTICK/MATTE LIP POWDER DUOS

The Semi Matte Lipstick/Matte Lip Powder Duos in 04 (a matte red) and 06 (a matte hot pink) are really rocking my world. This probably won’t come as a surprise, but each one comes with a creamy semi-matte lipstick and a pigmented lip powder. 🙂 Fred designed them to be used together. Using either fingers or a lip brush, apply a layer of the cream lipstick first, patting the matching lip powder directly on top. The result? A vibrant, highly pigmented, long-wearing matte lip look.

I can’t believe how easy these are to apply (I used my fingers in these pics). They’re non-drying and hang around all day long, even withstanding She-Ra sized meals! I just wish they weren’t so blasted tough to remove (not a big problem, though)… Good ol’ Kirkland wipes can’t take ’em down, but Clinique Take the Day Off Balm can.
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: A+

POWDER BLUSH IN 07

Another standout: Powder Blush in 07. It’s like a darker, more intense NARS Orgasm (a shimmery golden peach). The pigment in this peach does NOT mess around. The color leaps onto brushes that get anywhere near it, and even a small amount delivers a pretty flush. Skin also agrees with it, lapping it up like a sponge. But a word of caution: it’s so intense~~, SO VIVID,~~ that it can be a little tough to control. My mantra’s been dilute, dilute, dilute!
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B+/A-

PEARLIZED CREAM EYESHADOW/TWINKLE CREAM EYESHADOW DUO IN 02

If you like the way you look wearing glossy eye creams, you might really dig the Pearlized Creme Eyeshadow/Twinkle Cream Eyeshadow Duo in 02. It comes with a shimmery purple and a glittery gray, both of which deposit lots of pigment and shine. I must say, I love how easy they are to blend and apply, but neither one lasts very long on my skin. And they move around A LOT, making their way into creases almost as soon as they’re applied. I see them probably working better as bases for powder shadows than as standalone eyeshadows. I guess they just like having company. 🙂
MAKEUP AND BEAUTY BLOG RATING: B-

fred farrugia makeup review lip pink closeup
Semi Matte Lipstick/Matte Lip Powder Duo in 06
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I Can See Right Through the Too Faced Leopard Love Complexion Perfection Kit (And I Like What I See)

October 6th, 2010 by Karen 70 Comments

too faced leopard love palette review

I swear, this is just the coolest thing ever. As people, we get a lot of great makeup released specifically for us, so it’s refreshing to finally see a major cosmetics company like Too Faced release a palette designed specifically for cats! — BIG cats no less.

Okay, not really. To clarify, you do not have to be a leopard or even a cat lady who loves leopards to love the Too Faced Leopard Love Complexion Perfection Palette ($30). You do, however, probably have to be a girl who likes super sheer color.

Too Faced released it a while back with some other goodies for fall, but I only recently started wearing it out.

It comes with three different powder products — a bronzer, a blush and a brightener — and one of them’s already a star. The brightener, which goes by the name Pink Leopard, happens to be a big bestseller from the brand as a member of the permanent line, but the other two products are new — otherwise known as “previously undiscovered species of cats.”

Pink Leopard: a shimmery golden brown with the faintest hint of pink
Candy Leopard: a shimmery pink
Peach Leopard: a semi-matte peachy brown

The palette’s designed to be a one-stop color/contouring/highlighting shop for girl cats of all skin tones.

too faced leopard love palette review back

too faced leopard love palette review box
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These New Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liners Live Exclusively at Sephora

October 5th, 2010 by Karen 75 Comments

benefit creaseless cream shadow swatches review purple snap tidal wave silver spoon

I feel like I’ve been robbed of a Tuesday afternoon. Seriously, where’d it go? One minute I’m playing with a few of the new Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liners ($19 each; exclusive to Sephora), and the next minute it’s dark and I hear crickets outside!

benefit creaseless cream shadow swatches review purple snap tidal wave silver spoon back

Maybe I was just having so much fun finger painting my lids that time got away from me.

I know I’ve gushed over Benefit’s Creaseless Creams many times before. I’m like a broken record with them, “Benefit Creaseless Creams! Benefit Creaseless Creams!” Sorry. It’s just that I like ’em that much.

More on the Benefit Creaseless Creams…

The $38 Benefit Femme Metale Precious Metals Eye Makeup Kit: An Alchemist’s Delight

Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow: A Quick Look

And now with Purple Snap, Tidal Rave, Silver Spoon and Icy White showing up at Sephora, I better warn you — I’m going to do it again!
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The Breast Cancer Awareness Month Sign Project and Giveaway: Send in Your Sign Today!

October 5th, 2010 by Karen

Good luck!

Heya, honeybears! I just wanted to show a few of the wonderful entries in The Breast Cancer Awareness Month Sign Project and Giveaway.

Look at these lovely ladies standing up to raise awareness this month!

Kudos, Amber! [INSERT RAUCOUS APPLAUSE HERE]

Love your smile, Michelle 🙂

Kerry, you’re so creative!

The Breast Cancer Awareness Month Sign Project and Giveaway

Email or link to a picture of yourself holding your support sign (like the examples above), and leave a comment on the original post. Not only will you be showing your support for the cause, but you’ll also be entered to win a $400 prize package of makeup from MAC and Chanel.

To Enter…

Take a picture of yourself with a sign that reads, “October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.” Whether or not you show your face is up to you, but I think it would be great to see your lovely mug. 🙂
Send it to me. You can either email it to karen@makeupandbeautyblog.com, OR post it on your blog/facebook page and leave a link to the pic in the comments on the original post, OR upload it to Twitter and send a tweet to me @karenmbb.
The giveaway is open to US and international readers, but you must be the age of majority according to your country’s local laws (18 in the United States with these exceptions: Alabama and Nebraska, 19; Mississippi, 21).
One entry per person.
Deadline to enter is October 31, 2010 at 11:59PM PST.

You gotta comment on the original post to enter (and not on this post here).

Come on, ladies! Let’s raise awareness together, so send in your sign today.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Does your phone have a camera? You might be able to snap your pic and email your entry from there. 😉

Is Cargo Triple Action Mascara an Eyelash Triple Threat?

October 5th, 2010 by Karen 30 Comments

cargo triple action mascara review

Cargo doesn’t get enough love… That’s what I’ve always thought. They’re like an actress who you KNOW deserves top billing in big blockbusters but keeps getting saddled with bit parts in movies that go straight to DVD.

And I swear to Tabs they have my house bugged! It’s like they’re watching me rush in the mornings because so many of their products are designed to save time, like their new Triple Action Mascara ($20, available in a single shade called Black).

New for fall, it’s supposed to do it all, a regular triple threat, able to thicken, lengthen AND curl. Yes, actually curl, or so they claim, like a lash curler.

Is that even possible??

Cargo says it is, thanks to “advanced pigment and styling polymer technology!” — and a special brush.

I’m the type of gal who’ll use multiple mascaras to get a great lash look, but I’m not married to the idea. If a single mascara really could do it all, I’d definitely prefer that (hallelujah!).

cargo triple action mascara review
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The Boots No. 7 Opulence Eye Palette: When Russian Tsarinas and the ’80s Collide?

October 4th, 2010 by Karen 43 Comments

Does your Target have a produce section? Isn’t that the most convenient thing ever? I was at ours yesterday, allegedly there to buy grapes, when I ran into the Boots No. 7 limited edition Opulence Eye Palette ($10).

It comes with five powder eyeshadows (four shimmers and one matte) in shades of gold, brown, navy, beige and black. The colors, Boots says, were inspired by Russian Tsarinas and the 1980s, because, ya know, those two things totally go together so well. 🙂

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Lego My Fred Farrugia Makeup! These Fred Farrugia Makeup Modules Really Click

October 4th, 2010 by Karen 68 Comments

fred farrugia makeup final

Ooh, girl, we’ve all got our weaknesses, don’t we? Tabs? He’s a ho for turkey. Sliced, minced, diced, with gravy or without — he loves it all.

Me? I’m a sucker for products with clean, simple designs.

And Nutella.

I guess that’s why I went nuts over the Fred Farrugia makeup line.

All that gorgeous white space, those rounded edges, the simple shapes and solid colors… If Apple made makeup, this would be what it looked like (and then they’d sell a bunch of overpriced accessories for it, ha!).

The line’s not the easiest to find here in the U.S., but it is available at select Sephora stores in Europe. I found it at a store in Milan, but it’s also listed online at Sephora France and Italy, among other places I’m sure.

fred farrugia makeup at sephora

fred farrugia makeup at sephora
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Do You Know The Bobbi Brown Beauty Rules? This Palette Has Them Memorized

October 4th, 2010 by Karen 42 Comments

bobbi brown beauty rules palette

Last week a stranger, who was obviously one of the politest men in California and/or vision impaired, called me “a young girl” (I’m in my 30s, yo!), and I’m not gonna lie — it was awesome.

I remember being 14 and totally obsessed with makeup… My, how things change! 🙂 If I’d seen something like the Bobbi Brown Beauty Rules Palette ($45) back then, I would’ve been all over it in a hot second, assuming, of course, that I would’ve been able to talk my mom into buying it for me.

I mean, it’s sure not cheap, but talk about pretty starter palettes! The colors strike me as great ones for girls just getting into makeup (and for parents who don’t want to worry about their teenager looking like jail bait).

The palette itself looks like it was built for bookworms. Literally. It comes with 10 products for eyes, lips and cheeks, all wrapped up in a slim, trim ensemble that looks kinda like a book, and it was released to coincide with Bobbi’s new makeup book for teens, Beauty Rules, which I can’t wait to read.

Bobbi’s general approach to beauty is to subtly enhance one’s features (ala “the no makeup makeup look”), and the limited edition Beauty Rules palette fits her philosophy to a tee.

Still learning the ropes when it comes to blending? Try one of the four sheer, yet buildable powder shadows, or one of the two cream blushes; kiss your lips with one of the three included lippies, none of which go overboard on pigment.

I am a little surprised that Bobbi went with a black eyeliner here just based on the other products she selected. I love ’em, but I think they can make teens/tweens look a little older than their age… A brownish black, a gray or maybe even a dark plum might have been more appropriate, but maybe that’s just me acting like an overprotective crazy cat lady.

bobbi brown beauty rules palette review swatches

bobbi brown beauty rules palette review swatches
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