Just For Fun

Two Ways to Win a $50 eGift Card From Sephora! (The Birthday Edition)

June 8th, 2013 by Karen 396 Comments

WINNER: The giveaway is closed now, and the winner is Kat! Congratulations, Kat! If you entered but didn’t win this time around, keep trying, and click here to enter any ongoing giveaways before you jet. 🙂

The Birthday Edition. 🙂

Yes, at least two Marin County beauty bloggers (that we know of) are celebrating birthdays this weekend. One likes ’80s pop culture, surfing in Hawaii and young adult books (and MAC cosmetics, Nutella and big hair). The other enjoys long walks, bird feeders, high fashion and gravy.

Can you guess which one is which?

Ha! Yup, it’s birthday time around here. Since Tabs was a stray, we always celebrate his birthday with mine, but actually, we tried to figure out his real birthday once after a trip to the vet, and it’s probably right around this same time of year anyway. This year he turns seven.

And like all good birthdays, this one comes with gifts! — as in the potential to take home a $50 Sephora eCard.

It only takes a quick comment and/or tweet from you to enter. Full deets down below.

Good luck! Happy birthday, everyone!

What folks are saying…

“Hi Karen!!! Wow, that news definitely gets a hoo ray ray and an elephant!!! (I’ve maybe been watching too much Boardwalk Empire.) Thank you so much!!!”
-Shana

“What a lovely surprise it was to see your announcement (after completing one of many exams/papers/projects I have this crazy week)! The eCard will definitely ease expenses for this broke, beauty-obsessed college student. Thank you, Karen and Tabs!!”
-Katie

“Thanks so much, Karen. Just in case you were wondering what I got with it, I decided to go with the Clarisonic Mia–I’ve been wanting it for years now, but have never purchased it because of the price. Your eCard helped me finally buy it! I look forward to using it. Thanks again!”
-Jane

“Shut the front door! OMG Karen, you have made my day. 🙂 I’m sick in bed with the flu and this has just cheered me up immensely!!!!!!!! BTW, I’m the one that sent you that pic of my pug in a wig a few weeks back LOL! Thanks again, honestly, I’m beyond giddy right now.”
-Angel

“Thank you SO much Karen! OMG! Wishes really do come true! I can’t believe I won! You have no idea how much this will help me through the holidays. I’ve been an avid fan of your blog for the past two years. Your witty and creative entries, informative makeup information, and beautiful photos have kept me hooked. I look forward to more of it. Goodness, you’ve
seriously just made my week and it’s only Tuesday night!”
-Zharlynne

“Oh my goodness! Thank you so much Karen (and Tabs, of course)! I really appreciate this! I’d been eyeing the Anastasia brow pencil in Strawburn to match my red hair!”
-Chelsea (and Jiji the kitten and Quincy the bunny)

One (1) Sephora eGift card containing $50 sent to the winner by email (international readers, you may opt to receive $50 sent by PayPal instead).

There are two ways to enter, and you can do both of them for two chances to win. First, you can enter by leaving a comment at the bottom of this post, a comment about anything at all, like, what’s your favorite flavor of birthday cake? When was the last time you went to a birthday party (pet or otherwise, LOL!)? In one sentence, how would you describe your week? What have you been wearing on your lips lately? Have you gone swimming yet this year? What are your go-to, everyday products with sunscreen? — you get the idea.
Second, you can enter by following me on Twitter @karenmbb and retweeting (RT) the following message:
- Follow @karenmbb and RT to Win a $50 eGift Card from Sephora! http://bit.ly/18VDlbL

The deadline to enter is Sunday, June 9, 2013 at 11:59PM (PT).
Entrants must enter using a valid email address and/or Twitter account to win.
A maximum of two (2) entries per person — one within the comments at the bottom of this post, and a second entry via Twitter addressed to me @karenmbb.
Contest is open to individuals of any country who have reached the age of majority according to their local laws (18 in the United States with these exceptions: Alabama and Nebraska, 19; Mississippi, 21).
Sephora eGift Certificates can only be redeemed online and are not valid in stores or available for purchase or redemption in Canada. International winners may opt to substitute the Sephora eGift card prize for $50 sent directly to their email address by PayPal instead.
Tabs and I (heretofore referred to as “T-Money and K-Dawg”) will select one (1) winner at random from the entries either left in the comments at the bottom of this blog post or addressed to @karenmbb on Twitter.
The winner will be announced here within 48 hours of the deadline.
Void where prohibited by law.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

WINNER: The giveaway is closed now, and the winner is Kat! Congratulations, Kat! If you entered but didn’t win this time around, keep trying, and click here to enter any ongoing giveaways before you jet. 🙂

Have You Ever Lost a Beauty Product That Meant a Lot to You?

June 7th, 2013 by Karen 25 Comments

Yeah, totally. A few times, but the one that stung the most happened back when I was in college.

I think it was sophomore year, because I was working part time as an assistant at the language lab for foreign exchange students. My beauty budget was almost nonexistent, so I got most of my meager makeup purchases at drugstores. I’d buy one tube of MAC Paramount at the start of the school year, and that would be my one big beauty indulgence.

Shelley, my roommate at the time, swore up and down that Clinique Black Honey Almost Lipstick was EVERYTHING! — and I agreed. After hearing her gush about it for months, I scraped enough change together to buy a tube of my own.

Oh, I loved that tube… I wore it every day for two weeks straight (my tube of MAC Paramount started feeling neglected), but then, disaster!

I lost it. At the library, I think.

I’m pretty sure I set it on the counter in the restroom while touching up, and then forgot to put it back in my purse…

I didn’t realize it was gone until later that night when I looked through my book bag.

Heartbreak!

Have you ever lost a beauty product that meant a lot to you?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S.

Have You Ever Had an Eyebrow, Hair or Major Makeup Mishap?

June 6th, 2013 by Karen 51 Comments

Ooh, gurrrl.

You might want to grab another latte and pull up a chair, because we’re gonna be here a while.

I have made so many bad beauty calls over the years, I don’t even know where to start. My worst ones usually involve early mornings before I’ve been sufficiently caffeinated, and/or spur-of-the-moment decisions.

Eyebrows

If my left brow could talk…

Have I ever told you about Raul? Raul was a coping mechanism. It was the name I gave to a bad bald spot on my left eyebrow that happened after I decided to try waxing my own brows for the first time.

Yeah…Raul tells it better than I do, but needless to say, things did not turn out well.

Hair

The boy cut I got in sixth grade wasn’t one of my better moments. For the record, it was not my idea.

I developed boobs that year, suddenly, and for reasons unknown to me, my parents decided that I needed to hack off all of my long black hair.

It was awful. I was already a small and awkward child, and the boy cut just took it to another level…

Makeup

To save time, I’m just going to lump together all of my makeup looks from the ’90s into this category.

Boy, thank goodness this was before camera phones and digital photography; otherwise, there would be a hell of a lot more terrible pictures of me with razor thin brows, frosty lipstick and purple liner out there in Google Images, haha! 🙂

Your turn! Have you ever had an eyebrow, hair or major makeup mishap? Come on, don’t be shy.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Have You Ever Stopped Someone on the Street to Ask About Their Makeup or Hair?

June 4th, 2013 by Karen 23 Comments

Makeup, hair, clothes, bags, shoes, earrings — all. The. Time.

If someone’s workin’ something and it catches my eye, I have no qualms about walking up to them and asking (politely, of course) for the scoop, be it what color of lipstick they’re wearing or where they got their hair done.

And even guys are fair game. A few months ago at the movies with El Hub, the guy ringing up my popcorn had the most enviable, perfectly manscaped brows, so I complimented him and asked where he got them done (also said he should tip them extra next time because they do great work, LOL!).

What about you? Have you ever stopped someone on the street to ask about their makeup or hair (or any other aspect of their look)?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 274

June 3rd, 2013 by Karen 56 Comments

You might be wondering, “So what the heck is this Monday Poll thing anyway?”

Well, it isn’t much of a poll. It’s more just a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past four years. I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.

Something you never expected to love?
Um, Tabs?

He was just a neighborhood stray who’d watch me do laundry at my old apartment. I had no idea he’d go on to become the cat love of my life.

Yes, I realize how very CCL that sounds, but what else is new? 🙂

Do you recall the first makeup or beauty product you purchase with your own hard-earned money?
This is me guessing, but I’m pretty sure it was a drugstore lipstick from a Thrifty’s in Union City by my middle school. I can’t remember the exact color, but it was either Revlon Cherries in the Snow, or one of the Cover Girl Wetslicks.

Have you ever had a summer romance?
A few crushes here and there as a teenager, but no, not really.

They were all pretty lame. Nothing young adult novel-caliber or fit for a TV movie.

How are your beach volleyball skills?
In a word: nonexistent.

I just don’t do projectile activities. My first instinct when the ball is coming at me is to run away! — and volleyball was always my worst sport.

Let me put it this way: if we were picking teams and you didn’t pick me, I would completely understand. I’m like volleyball dead weight.

Something that always makes you laugh?
Old pictures of Justin Timberlake from the ’90s, when he had his curly, crunchy-looking hair. He was always smiling, but that hair!? It looked like Top Ramen.

Can you do a headstand or a handstand?
No on both counts. In fact, I have a thing about being upside down. I try to avoid it.

A recent makeup or beauty discovery that’s been rocking your world?
The men’s version of Dolce & Gabbana Light Blue. El Hub has a bottle in his bathroom cabinet, and I’ve been sneaking spritzes here and there. Give it a try next time you’re at the counter.

Mini or maxi dresses?
Minis! I like the idea of maxi dresses, too, but when I wear ’em I feel like I’m drowning in material, or playing dress-up in my mom’s clothes.

Are you wearing any jewelry today?
My wedding and engagement rings, two long layering necklaces from Anthropologie, and a pair of gold studs.

What were the best parts of your weekend?
Sleeping in on Saturday and Sunday and sprucing up my deck.

We got a few more planters and bird feeders (for the family of finches I’m always talking about). In the planters, I planted snap peas and spinach, because El Hub read in an article that they’re supposed to be very efficient plants, in that they’re easy and should grow to maturity in a couple months.

We’ll see…

Slowly but surely, that deck is becoming my favorite room in the condo. 🙂

To complete the Monday Poll, just copy the following list, and paste it with your answers in the comments.

Le List

1. Something you never expected to love?
2. Do you recall the first makeup or beauty product you purchase with your own hard-earned money?
3. Have you ever had a summer romance?
4. How are your beach volleyball skills?
5. Something that always makes you laugh?
6. Can you do a headstand or a handstand?
7. A recent makeup or beauty discovery that’s been rocking your world?
8. Mini or maxi dresses?
9. What jewelry are you wearing today?
10. What was the best part of your weekend?

Oh, boy. I already feel overwhelmed about the week. That’s not a good sign, but we can only do what we can do, right? I’ll try to keep my shizz together if you do. Good luck to us both!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 246

June 2nd, 2013 by Karen 9 Comments

What did Tabs, the single most powerful, influential kitty supermodel in Marin County, California, do this weekend?

He gardened. And planned for the apocalypse.

Allow me to explain.

Are you familiar with the old saying, “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day; show him how to catch fish, and you feed him for a lifetime.”

Today Tabs tried to apply that same logic here at the office by hanging four bird feeders.

In the event that something disastrous were to occur, and worldwide gravy supplies were to plummet, Tabs feels that the bird feeders could serve as a sustainable food source.

Whatever… He’s the boss, but I do think he’s been watching The Walking Dead too much.

In other news, Tabs shook his tail feathers for a bunch of big beauty brands this week, kitty modeling for MAC, Dolce & Gabbana, Too Faced, Maybelline and Pacifica, and he “turned in some pretty stellar work.” (His words.)

Here’s a look at the campaigns. Hope you enjoy. 🙂

[Continue reading…]

Two Ways to Win a $50 eGift Card From Sephora!

June 1st, 2013 by Karen 400 Comments

WINNER: The giveaway is closed now, and the winner is avargas21! Congratulations, avargas21! If you entered but didn’t win this time around, keep trying, and click here to enter any ongoing giveaways before you jet. 🙂

Hook or crook, I’m spending part of this weekend doing absolutely nothing other than walking around the Sephora store by my house.

That’s my pledge to Planet Earth right now!

I have to catch up on the housecleaning and run a few errands at some point, and El Hub has to work part of the day today, so I need something fun to look forward to…

Fun like 30 minutes to myself at Sephora — which happens to be right next door to a Petco up here, so it’ll be a win-win for Tabs. 🙂

Man, I feel like I’ve been behind this entire week. Like I’ve barely been treading water. You ever have weeks like those?

I think it was the trip to Southern California the other day. I had a blast, but it’s not easy flying and coming back on the same day. I’m still pooped.

I bet we could all use a pick-me-up this weekend… How about a giveaway for a $50 Sephora gift card that’s so easy to enter you could do it right now in 10 seconds flat?

LOL! See what I did there? Brought it back around…

Details to enter are down below. Just wiggle your little scroll finger.

Good luck! — and have a wonderful weekend.

What folks are saying…

“Hi Karen!!! Wow, that news definitely gets a hoo ray ray and an elephant!!! (I’ve maybe been watching too much Boardwalk Empire.) Thank you so much!!!”
-Shana

“What a lovely surprise it was to see your announcement (after completing one of many exams/papers/projects I have this crazy week)! The eCard will definitely ease expenses for this broke, beauty-obsessed college student. Thank you, Karen and Tabs!!”
-Katie

“Thanks so much, Karen. Just in case you were wondering what I got with it, I decided to go with the Clarisonic Mia–I’ve been wanting it for years now, but have never purchased it because of the price. Your eCard helped me finally buy it! I look forward to using it. Thanks again!”
-Jane

“Shut the front door! OMG Karen, you have made my day. 🙂 I’m sick in bed with the flu and this has just cheered me up immensely!!!!!!!! BTW, I’m the one that sent you that pic of my pug in a wig a few weeks back LOL! Thanks again, honestly, I’m beyond giddy right now.”
-Angel

“Thank you SO much Karen! OMG! Wishes really do come true! I can’t believe I won! You have no idea how much this will help me through the holidays. I’ve been an avid fan of your blog for the past two years. Your witty and creative entries, informative makeup information, and beautiful photos have kept me hooked. I look forward to more of it. Goodness, you’ve
seriously just made my week and it’s only Tuesday night!”
-Zharlynne

“Oh my goodness! Thank you so much Karen (and Tabs, of course)! I really appreciate this! I’d been eyeing the Anastasia brow pencil in Strawburn to match my red hair!”
-Chelsea (and Jiji the kitten and Quincy the bunny)

One (1) Sephora eGift card containing $50 sent to the winner by email (international readers, you may opt to receive $50 sent by PayPal instead).

There are two ways to enter, and you can do both of them for two chances to win. First, you can enter by leaving a comment at the bottom of this post, a comment about anything at all, like, have you ever worn tinted contact lenses? Who makes your favorite foundation? What’s your favorite two-product makeup combination? Did/do you like going to school? What’s one beauty tip or product you swear by that many people don’t like? Who makes the best chocolate? Have you ever sworn off caffeine? Do you have any bad beauty vices? — you get the idea.
Second, you can enter by following me on Twitter @karenmbb and retweeting (RT) the following message:
- Follow @karenmbb and RT to Win a $50 eGift Card from Sephora! http://bit.ly/11IKHyM

The deadline to enter is Sunday, June 2, 2013 at 11:59PM (PT).
Entrants must enter using a valid email address and/or Twitter account to win.
A maximum of two (2) entries per person — one within the comments at the bottom of this post, and a second entry via Twitter addressed to me @karenmbb.
Contest is open to individuals of any country who have reached the age of majority according to their local laws (18 in the United States with these exceptions: Alabama and Nebraska, 19; Mississippi, 21).
Sephora eGift Certificates can only be redeemed online and are not valid in stores or available for purchase or redemption in Canada. International winners may opt to substitute the Sephora eGift card prize for $50 sent directly to their email address by PayPal instead.
Tabs and I (heretofore referred to as “T-Money and K-Dawg”) will select one (1) winner at random from the entries either left in the comments at the bottom of this blog post or addressed to @karenmbb on Twitter.
The winner will be announced here within 48 hours of the deadline.
Void where prohibited by law.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

WINNER: The giveaway is closed now, and the winner is avargas21! Congratulations, avargas21! If you entered but didn’t win this time around, keep trying, and click here to enter any ongoing giveaways before you jet. 🙂

Hello From Southern California!

May 29th, 2013 by Karen 37 Comments

Landed in SoCal in one piece and just wanted to say a quick hello from the pool here at the resort. It’s warm here today… Maybe I’ll take a dip in the pool.

Hope you’re having a nice day so far. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen