Just For Fun

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 563

July 21st, 2019 by Karen 4 Comments

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any hotter… HA HA!

Tabs always knew how to heat things up on set, whether it be with a smoldering look, a cheeky turn of his bum, or a playful paw placement. His summer kitty modeling campaigns were some of his favorites, and during the peak of his career, we were traveling. A lot. Tuscany one week and NYC the next.

It was some of the most challenging and satisfying work of my pet assisting career.

I miss the private jet, especially…

Here’s a few more of the most iconic summer modeling campaigns from Tabs.

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Saturday Surfing, July 20th, 2019

July 20th, 2019 by Karen 8 Comments

OK, cat ladies, brace yourself…

It’s officially kitten season.

The pet adoption application at the top is from the Marin Humane Society, and it doesn’t mean there’s going to be another kitty all up in the mix here anytime soon. I’m merely filling it out “just in case.”

Am I emotionally ready for another cat? I’m not sure, to be honest…but one of the lessons I’ve learned as an adult is that you’re never really ready for much, and I figure that since the Humane Society keeps applications on file for six months, if I keep my heart open, and if I’m lucky enough, Tabs will send me his purr-mission to provide pet assisting services to a new feline friend. ?

We’ll see.

Knowing me, I’ll probably come home one day with three cats, a dog and a rabbit…

I’m going to stop by later today to drop off my application and perhaps play with a kitten or two (gotta get my fix!), but first, it’s Saturday surfing time. ?

Why is red lipstick so powerful?
I’m totally down for this summer beauty trend.
Protesters in Puerto Rico are making political statements with their makeup.
Dude, you can’t escape the Insane Clown Posse. ? Last week it was all about the juggalos fooling facial recognition, and this week it’s all about #ClownCheck makeup.
How to get your cat to stay quiet in the morning (Side note: Good luck with that!)
Why do some cats hate water?
Pray tell, does any one out there actually wanna wear lava lamp nails? Anyone…?
The 11 best Keanu Reeves films to re-watch RIGHT MEOW.
I want to try these new liquid lipsticks from Honest Beauty!
Speaking of lipstick, Revlon’s doing a collaboration with The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.
Why you (and I, note to self) need to add niacinamide to your skin care routine ASAP
Shout-out to my alma mater, UC Davis, and their Specialty Clinic for Multicultural Dermatology, which is run by Dr. Oma Agbai! (Side note: People, don’t skip sunscreen.)
I know a few of my friends here on MBB ride horses. This beauty line is made just for equestrians!

As if I needed another reason to love Sir John!

I would totally let Mariah do my makeup.

Because I love period pieces

How I look like when I’m buying cheese at Trader Joe’s

Three words: “digital fur technology”

This was weird and wonderful.

Have a great rest of your weekend! ?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Ode to Winged Liner

July 19th, 2019 by Karen 11 Comments

Two little lines.

At its core, that’s what winged liner is — just two little lines — but anyone who’s ever scored two fierce flicks knows that winged liner is so much more than double dashes angling from outer corners.

To non-makeup people, winged liner may seem trivial, but we know the truth… It’s totally transformative!

On any given day, all it takes is a small adjustment in the flick of a wrist, or a choice to use a different color or finish, and I can be whatever I want. ??️??

On most days, you’ll find me wearing some variation of kitten flicks, because there’s just something about those snazzy snaps that says, “MEOW, I’m not a regular mom. I’m a cool mom.” ?

golden kitten wings — Wings: Tarte Liquid Chrome Paint. Lips: MAC Lemonade Lipglass.

On other days, though, like when I need an emotional high-kick capable of shattering a ceiling, I’ll frame my lash lines in flicks so glittery and gleaming that you can see them waaaaaaay past the cheap seats in the back.

BAM! — watch out, world, because I’m coming for you in my bad-@ss diva wings!

kat von d white out — Wings: Kat Von D Cake Pencil in White Out. Lips: MAC Nymphette.

And, of course, there’s always what I call my “comfort wings,” which are basically my makeup equivalent of black stretchy pants — a thin black line with a slightly upturned, softened, diffused edge. It’s my go-to when I wanna look cute but I’m feeling lazy.

black wings bite beauty 070 — Wings are MAC Carbon eyeshadow, lip is Bite Beauty Lip Pencil in 070.

There are infinite ways to wear winged liner — sharp, crisp and classic; or diffused, hazy and blurry. You can go bright and bold one day, or basic black the next. Big bat wings or dainty, delicate flicks. You’ve got thin lines, thick lines, single wings, double wings… There’s no shortage of styles and ways to wear those wings.

For a few hours, your wings can transform you into a powerful pin-up or a visionary vixen. Or a cool mom, like yours truly, ha ha. ?

And the next day (or, perhaps even later the same day), after you wipe your wings off, you can start all over again with something different. (If only everything in life were that easy.)

Where will your wings take you next?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF. ?

Good Girls and Great Makeup

July 18th, 2019 by Karen 9 Comments

good girls makeup — When good girls go bad

When the three ladies in Good Girls aren’t robbing their local Fine and Frugal discount grocery store; stashing kidnapped, would-be assailants in backyard tree houses; or laundering counterfeit money, I suspect they’re reading beauty blogs, watching YouTube makeup tutorials and stalking the aisles at Sephora.

Why?

Because their makeup is always on point! Who knew suburban moms falling into lives of crime could pull off shimmery olive lids?!

I just started watching this dark comedy on Netflix (season one is available now) and am THOROUGHLY enjoying the story lines AND face paint.

Whoever’s doing the makeup (wish I knew who it was) for the three leading ladies is having lots of fun with bright red lipstick, molten metallic eyeshadows, gleaming glitter and flawless foundation. It’s dramatic, yet still totally wearable, so no Sharpie Instagram brows, because, ya know…suburban moms in Michigan who commit federal crimes are that much more interesting to watch in a getaway car when they’re wearing electric teal liner and coral lips!

Even though the makeup is one of my favorite parts of the show, the characters and their flaws are pretty interesting too.

The premise? Three suburban moms/BFFs fall upon dire economic circumstances, and thus stumble into a life of crime in order to keep their families afloat.

Beth, played by Christina Hendricks, is a housewife whose husband loses all of their money after an affair and a series of bad financial decisions. Her sister, Annie, is played by Mae Whitman (remember her from Parenthood?), an immature single mom fighting to keep custody of her daughter. Comedienne and actress Retta plays Ruby, their lifelong friend and unofficial member of the family, has two kids (one with a serious illness) and is married to a cop-in-training.
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Saving All My Kale for You…

July 17th, 2019 by Karen 10 Comments

Real talk: Does anyone actually sit at a pretty vanity table with a special lighted mirror, and scented candles burning in the background, and music playing, and perfect lighting hitting all the good angles while they apply their lipstick or other lip products for the day? — because my usual scenario involves me using the rearview mirror while sitting in my car as it warms up in my dark garage, and putting on whatever I’ve got in my purse in the 30 seconds I have before leaving to take Connor somewhere, and P.S., apparently, three-year-olds have many, many places to be, which is why I’m basically the family Uber driver now.

Anyway, that’s why I’m grabbing something moisturizing with a wash of color 99% of the time (#drylips #priorities), like a balm, a lip tint or a hydrating lip oil, which brings me to the latest love of my lip life by Wander Beauty…

Shine and moisture FTW

The Lip Retreat Lip Oils drench dry lips with moisturizing fruit oils and fatty acids, and they coat that kisser with a shiny finish that feels slightly sticky (but not obnoxiously so). There are four shades to choose from, each with a different degree of vivid intensity, and my favorites are juicy strawberry pink Spa Day, and clear shiny Oasis. Both of them smell and taste a little like vanilla, which I’m cool with.

wander beauty lip retreat 2 — Oasis (a clear shade) on the left and Spa Day (a strawberry pink) on the right

The angled doe-foot has a pointed tip, so drawing into tight corners with the brighter shades is just as easy to do as it is with the nude colors, and the squishy tube means that I can squeeze every last drop outta the 0.33-oz. $22 tubes.

No parabens, phthalates, synthetic fragrances or mineral oil, and they’re cruelty-free and gluten-free as well.

If you like your tints on the bougie side, a la the Hourglass tinted lip oils or the new NARS lip tints, you’re gonna love these!

I love lip oils…but I do not love kale.

I have no problem eating my veggies, but kale? Eww! I’ve tried all sorts of ways to get myself to like kale over the past few years, but it always tastes like gummy, chewy grass to me, and is therefore my equivalent of low-key punishment. (Give me spinach any old day.)

I don’t mind kale in my beauty products, though, especially when they work as well as the Yes to Carrots & Kale Wipes ($5.99).

yes to carrots makeup wipes — The only kale I don’t mind…

yes to carrots makeup wipes ingredients — What’s inside?!

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Crazy Clips for the Win!

July 16th, 2019 by Karen 10 Comments

Question for ya: Have you arrived at that point in life when you don’t care if the world sees the weird things you do to bend your hair to your will? Although I’m not quite the lady at the supermarket with the giant pink curlers in her hair yet (because she don’t give an eff what people say when she’s buying frozen breakfast burritos!), I’m almost there. I’ve taken to wearing these long hair clips when I’m chillin’ at home, or driving in my car, or taking a walk around the neighborhood. I use ’em on wet hair, along with half a pound of flexible hairspray to smooth and flatten out my roots (which are getting progressively more wiry and untamed with each and every new gray hair) as they air dry. El Hub says I look a little crazy, but I’m like, “Hey, man, you gotta do what you’ve gotta do.”

Trader Joe’s alert!

Speaking of the shameless things we do in the name of beauty, I was waiting in line at TJ’s last week when I noticed the woman in front of me had four bottles of this lotion in her cart — and absolutely nothing else. No food, no Joe-Joe’s cookies, NOTHING. Of course, then I asked her to watch my wagon so I could run to the beauty section and grab a bottle of my own.

They’re only $3.99! For a big 16-oz. bottle! I may or may not have done a victory dance in the middle of aisle. 🙂

trader joes midsummer nights cream — A dreamy cream for $3.99

I have lizard lady skin, but a few pumps of this lotion makes my legs look and feel smooth and moisturized without making my skin feel slick or greasy. Even my heels are happy!

trader joes midsummer nights cream ingredients — It’s cruelty-free, too.

Heads up: Even though the label says it’s unscented, I think it smells a little like a kale, spinach and apple green smoothie…which I don’t mind at all.

This is IT

And that wasn’t the only new thing I tried last weekend. I also took this It Cosmetics foundation for a spin.

it cosmetics color correcting full coverage cream tan — I wear the shade called “Tan,” which is the closest to MAC NC42.

The foundations in the It Cosmetics line are famous for doing a little bit of everything and then some, and their CC+ Color Correcting Full Coverage Cream lives up to that multitasking rep. The It crew packed seven products into one tube — a full-coverage foundation, a physical sunscreen with SPF 50, a brightening color corrector, a hydrating anti-aging serum, a pore-less finish primer, a dark-spot concealer and a moisturizing day cream. Plus, a tiny bit goes a long way.

it cosmetics color correcting full coverage cream tan before after — I applied about half a pump and sheered it out with the It Cosmetics No. 22 Brush, which I dampened with MAC Fix+.

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 583

July 15th, 2019 by Karen 33 Comments

amys drive through have a delicious monday — YUMMY!

So…what is the Monday Poll?

Excellent question! It isn’t, contrary to its name, an actual poll, like with little clicky buttons. It’s just a list of five more or less random questions I’ve been posting on this blog every Monday morning for the past quadrillion years (since 2007). I love reading your answers, and it helps me get my week off to a good start.

1. Statement bag, statement shoe or statement lip?

This like my Sophie’s choice of statement items because I love them all! But I guess I’d go with the shoes because they’d be lower maintenance. I’d have to reapply the statement lip throughout the day, and if I were carrying a statement bag, I’d just spend the whole day worrying about not losing it.

At least the shoes should just stay on my feet, LOL!

2. Orange blush or pink blush?

Neither! — an orange-pink blush. ?

3. Have you ever done a paint night?

Just once, and it was tons of fun. My friend and I went to one and painted a flying unicorn with a rainbow on its butt. ?

4. Should lipstick smell like food?

Hmm… I don’t mind a subtle vanilla fragrance, like MAC lipstick, but anything else I can do without. The sweet, sugary scents, in particular, make my tummy churn!

5. Have you ever been hypnotized?

Yes, in high school. It was for a psychology class. They had a hypnotist come in, and a few of us volunteered to be subjects…

We mostly just did silly stuff, or so I’m told — jumping up and down on one foot and acting like a hyena. Things like that.

New favorite food spot: Amy’s Drive-Thru

outside of amys drive through — What’s that on a the roof?

Hiya, friend. Happy Monday! ?

How was your weekend? Mine was delicious. We went to visit my parents in the East Bay on Friday night. El Hub and I had a movie date night and saw the new Spiderman, which I thought was great, BTW!

We stayed the night there, then left early on Saturday to run a few errands up in Cotati and Rohnert Park.

That’s where we found this gem: Amy’s Drive Thru!

Yes, the Amy’s, the same ones with the frozen foods and soups. Turns out they also have a small chain of fast food restaurants with lots of organic, non-GMO and gluten-free fare, which are all things I don’t usually attribute to fast food places with a drive through, but this place has it all…AND it has a living garden on the rooftop.

amys drive through roof — I wanna get up there!

amys drive through timeline — Evolution of Amy’s

Everything on the menu is vegetarian (with vegan options, too), and everything can be ordered gluten-free, which is why we ended up going there, since El Hub has Celiac.

They serve vegetarian hamburgers, fries, burritos, baked goods, pizza, mac and cheese, chili, soup, shakes, sodas and salads.

amys drive through menu — Everything on the menu can be made gluten-free

amys drive through food — Veggie burger, fries and a vanilla shake for me; a gluten-free burrito for El Hub; and mac and cheese with a strawberry shake for babylove

amys drive through drinks — Everything is organic, down to the sodas, candies and condiments

amys drive through inside — Lots of places to sit

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 562

July 14th, 2019 by Karen 7 Comments

Years before Choupette Lagerfeld’s reign at Chanel, Tabs was the fashion house’s most fabulous spokescat. His kitty modeling ad campaigns decorated subway tunnels, murals, cat condos and billboards across America and around the world.

Tabs dominated haute cat-ure catwalks for more than a decade and still holds the record for “Longest Feather Boa Worn by a Cat Model” at Milan, New York and Paris Fashion Week.

Here were some of his most iconic Chanel campaigns, many of which are studied by kittens in fashion schools to this day.

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