Makeup

The Urban Decay Little Sins Eyeshadow Primer Potion Set: I Gladly Confess to These Four Sins

September 21st, 2010 by Karen 49 Comments

urban decay little sins eyeshadow primer potion set in hand

Er, I’m not talking sins of the “seven deadly” variety, one of which, lust, I have for Ryan Reynolds.

These kinder, gentler sins live in the Urban Decay Little Sins Eyeshadow Primer Potion Set ($29), a brand spankin’ new Sephora exclusive with four travel-sized bottles of Urban Decay’s famous Primer Potion in four different shades.

Stop unsightly shadow creasing and fading with the three classic shades in Original, Sin and Eden, or get a little selfish with the newest shade, shimmery golden Greed.

urban decay little sins eyeshadow primer potion set in hand
Urban Decay Primer Potions from left: Original, Greed, Eden and Sin
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Unsung Makeup Heroes: Have a Cookie, Sugar, with Benefit Sugar Cookie Lipstick

September 21st, 2010 by Karen 31 Comments

benefit sugar cookie review swatches photos
Did I mention it’s fat free?

Do me a quick favor and check your blush stash, boo. If you find enough peaches to bake a cobbler, then I’d like you to meet my new go-to girl, Benefit Silky Finish Lipstick in Sugar Cookie ($18).

The color — a warm, shiny peach with flecks of gorgeous gold — has been around for a while as a permanent member of Benefit’s Silky Finish Lipstick line. Like the other Silky Finish gals, she’s got a thin, creamy texture (very hydrating, to boot) that glides on slick and smooth, and I think she looks GREAT paired with peach blushes like Benefit Georgia, NARS Orgasm, MAC Sunbasque, MAC Margin and MAC Peaches.

benefit sugar cookie and nars orgasm blush equal fabulous

Do you remember the sparkly glitter from last week’s look with MAC Lipgelee in Resort Life (part of the Venomous Villains release)? — how it ended up all over the place? Well, Sugar Cookie isn’t messy like that at all. Her golden glitter stays put, but all is not peaches in the garden of golden glitter.

Sadly, this Sugar Cookie disappears faster than…sugar cookies, or the box of toffee macadamia nut chocolates I opened last night right before bed.

My thighs keep telling me “No,” but my taste buds keep telling me “YES!”

I have to reapply Sugar Cookie often — about every two hours or so — unless I layer it atop a nude lip liner, which almost doubles her wear time.
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Today I Got Malled, and I Liked It: A Mini Monday Swatchfest

September 20th, 2010 by Karen 48 Comments

Mall much?

She’s alive! ALIVE!

Barely.

What I anticipated would be a quick trip into the city today to renew my passport turned into an all-day affair. There I was, stuck in San Francisco without a laptop or a good camera (the horror!). That’s why I’ve been MIA, but I’m back now, holding my brand-spankin’ new passport above my head triumphantly.

Victory is mine!

While the gubment worked on my passport, I killed a couple hours at the mall.

Trish McEvoy The Power of Beauty Fall Collection

trish mcevoy the power of beauty collection beauty emergency card for eyes side

Do you know Trish (McEvoy)? I’m pretty new to her line, but I hear the vibe’s a lot like Bobbi Brown.
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Supersize Your Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion with New PROFESSIONAL Size

September 18th, 2010 by Karen 30 Comments

urban decay eyeshadow primer potion professional size review

I pictured card-carrying members of the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion cult dancing around the ceremonial bonfire when I heard about the new Eyeshadow Primer Potion Professional Size ($29).

For an extra $11 dollars, you get more than twice as much product as the regular size. Yes, the new 0.85 oz tube works out to about $34/ounce, versus the original 0.34 oz bottle at $53/ounce. Both still sound like a lot, but the larger bottle is clearly a better deal, especially if you wear the product daily (as many women do).

If you’re new to the stuff, Primer Potion’s a nude eyeshadow primer praised for its ability to increase the wear time of other eye products worn on top, and it’s been one of the most talked about eyeshadow primers of the past few years. Gals also use it to prevent/delay shadows from creasing and colors from fading, and it consistently receives high marks from devoted makeup fans.

I’d call myself a fan, but I wouldn’t say I’m a member of the cult.

When it comes to simple eye looks, I like Primer Potion. I use it to lock shadows down and for simple washes of color over the entire lid, but when it comes to more complicated eyeshadow looks with multiple colors and extensive blending, I actually think it makes it tougher to blend away harsh lines.

Instead, for more complex eye looks, I’ll reach for Urban Decay’s Eden Primer Potion, a newer formulation released earlier this year that I find makes shadows easier to blend.

urban decay eyeshadow primer potion professional size review with eden
.34 oz bottle of Urban Decay Eden (left), .85 oz tube of Eyeshadow Primer Potion Professional Size (right)
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Who Wouldn’t Want to Hit This Jackpot? The Urban Decay 24/7 Jackpot Kit

September 15th, 2010 by Karen 58 Comments

urban decay 24 7 jackpot swatches review top

NEWPORT BEACH (MBB Newswire) — After a break-in Wednesday at Urban Decay headquarters in Newport Beach, California, unknown individuals made off with a tray of the company’s “special brownies.”

When asked to describe the missing brownies to police, a company spokesperson said they were “uh…chocolate, and stuff.”

——

But seriously (in a matter of speaking), don’t most of UD’s holiday releases include a couple of shout-outs to stoners (ala their Smoke Out Kits)?

Unless I’m overlooking something obvs, Mary Jane’s MIA this time around. Well, there is the kit… 24/7 Jackpot ($39) — heh, I said pot.

Either way, Jackpot brings beautifully rich, blinged-out liners to the holiday makeup table, and if you’re new to Urban Decay, I think you’re in for a treat. 🙂

These 24/7 pencils are some of the best liners around, with awesome, creamy textures, vibrant colors and all-day wear time.

Jet black Zero has been a crowd fave, but shimmery golden brown Bourbon has been my No. 1 crush.

urban decay 24 7 jackpot swatches review photo 2
From left: Gunmetal (the gunmetal gray with silver glitter), Rockstar (the dark eggplant), Binge (the navy blue), Ransom (the bright, iridescent purple), Electric (the bright aquamarine), Mildew (the dark green), Stash (the greenish gold), Whiskey (the dark brown) Eldorado (the gold) and Zero (the inky black)
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Rimmel Volume Flash Max Bold Curves Mascara Is Such a Tease

September 14th, 2010 by Karen 55 Comments

rimmel volume flash max bold curves review

When I heard that Rimmel designed Volume Flash Max Bold Curves mascara ($7) to boost lash volume by 1,400% (OOH!) and lift by 70% (ahh…), it was like teasing a dog with a piece of bacon.

Shauna the Wonderdog!

Released earlier this summer in a single shade called Black, Volume Flash Max Bold Curves sports a fancy-shmancy brush built with something called “Perfect Fit technology.”

LOL! It seems like every week there’s a new phrase being coined. Perfect Fit’s flexible bristles were shaped to fit lashes perfectly and coat them for maximum lift and volume, and the mascara’s formula, enriched with keratin and collagen, strengthens lashes, getting them ready for serious volume-boosting action.

I gave the waterproof version of Max Volume Flash a try last week, and while it didn’t pump up the volume of my lashes as much as I’d hoped it would, I kept my fingers crossed for Bold Curves. “Please,” I prayed to the makeup gods, “deliver me the tranny lashes I desire so very much.”

Come on, what do ya say?

Well, my prayers went partially answered. I mean, I detect a difference in length and thickness as well as above-average lash lift, and the formula does hold up nicely throughout day, resisting smudges and flaking…

rimmel volume flash max bold curves review
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Behold the Benefits of This Magic Ink: Benefit Magic Ink Liquid Liner

September 14th, 2010 by Karen 40 Comments

Just in case you were wondering, the answer is yes, you may replace the words to the Lil’ Kim/50 Cent joint, Magic Stick, with the name of Benefit’s new liquid liner, Magic Ink ($20).

Magic Ink: The Magic Stick Remix

I got the Magic Ink
I know if I can hit once, I can hit twice
I hit the baddest chicks
Shorty don’t believe me, then come with me tonight
And I’ll show you maaagic
(What? What?)
Maaagic
(Uh huh, uh huh)
I got the Magic Ink!

For reasons unknown even to me, I’ve taken to singing this while I line my lids with Benefit’s new jet-black liner, and I’m pretty sure it’s driving my cat cray-cray. 🙂

For the record, it’s kinda hard to apply liquid eyeliner, even a smudge-proof one like this, while singing (try it sometime!), but in this case, I think the applicator has something to do with it.

Magic Ink comes with a thin, flexible brush a lot like the brush that comes with NYX Studio Effect Liquid Liner but less firm.
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Should You Go on the Hunt for Benefit Prrrowl?

September 13th, 2010 by Karen 55 Comments

Benefit Prrrowl ($28) sure is sneaky.

(How sneaky is it?)

It’s SO sneaky that it had me expecting something entirely different before we met.

New for fall, it’s a duo with a peacock blue iridescent mascara on one end and a sheer, shimmery pink gloss with blue glitter on the other. The iridescent blue mascara’s designed to work as a glittery topcoat for regular mascaras (or applied to bare lashes), and the gloss end’s designed to either be layered atop lipsticks or worn alone. The two are an unusual pairing, if nothing else, so I gotta give props to Benefit for originality.