Lips

These Laura Mercier Paint Wash Liquid Lip Colours Are NOT Quick-Drying…Which in This Case Is Good!

February 24th, 2015 by Karen 26 Comments

Laura Mercier Paint Wash Liquid Lip Colour, $28 each — The Laura Mercier Paint Wash Liquid Lip Colours, $28 each

Um…but of course I couldn’t leave Sephora last night without grabbing at least some swatches. You know me all too well. 🙂

As I was making my usual rounds at the store down the street (I always start in the left corner by the front door and then meander counter-clockwise), Laura Mercier’s Painted Wash Liquid Lip Colours ($28 each) stopped me in my ASPCA Vans.

Bonjour, Laura! J’adore bright lipsticks.

Laura Mercier Paint Wash Liquid Lip Colour swatches from the left: Petal Pink, Red Brick, Coral Reef, Vermillion Red, Golden Peach, Fuchsia Mauve, Nude Rose and Orchid Pink — From the left: Petal Pink, Red Brick, Coral Reef, Vermillion Red, Golden Peach, Fuchsia Mauve, Nude Rose and Orchid Pink

Laura’s new line of lightweight liquid lipsticks is available now in nine vivid, deme-matte shades — Rosewood (a rosy brown), Petal Pink (a warm pink), Red Brick (reddish brown), Coral Reef (a pinkish coral), Vermillion Red (an orangey red), Golden Peach (a pale peachy pink), Fuchsia Mauve (a plum), Nude Rose (a pinkish brown) and Orchid Pink (a reddish pink).

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Let Dolce & Gabbana Bouganville Lipgloss Lure Your Lips to the Pink Party

February 19th, 2015 by Karen 14 Comments

Now I know what to wear when I finally bite the bullet on that pair of hot pink skinny jeans — Dolce & Gabbana’s new Lipgloss in Bouganville ($30.50).

Pink, pink, pink, PINK!

From the new spring collection, it ticks off all the little checkboxes on my list (no, I don’t really have a list) of Things a Smokin’ Hot Pink Lipgloss Absolutely Needs, like wicked pigment, eye-catching shine and vibrant, bodacious color.

It gives my eyeballs kisses every time I see it on my lips. 🙂

Bouganville also seems to have both warm and cool undertones, or some other such magic. I bet just about everyone will be able to pull it off.
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5 Springy New Reasons to Stop by Make Up For Ever

February 18th, 2015 by Karen 15 Comments

Make Up For Ever Spring 2015 — Wearing new spring 2015 makeup from Make Up For Ever

Rouge Artist Intense 53, $20

Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense 53, a pearly pinky copper — Rouge Artist Intense lipstick in 53, a pearly, pinkish copper

I’m picking up Chanel vibes from this warm pearlescent pink lipstick. The long-lasting, highly pigmented formula feels a little thick and reminds me of Coco’s Rouge Allures.

The pearlescent copper sprinkled through the pink base? That could easily pass for something Chanel might do for spring.

Super pretty!

If your lips happen to be chapped or otherwise textured, try layering a pink gloss on top to tone down the pearl, lest it emphasize any flakes or lip lines.

Coming March 2015 to Make Up For Ever Boutiques, counters and Sephora.

Rouge Artist Intense 54, $20

Make Up For Ever Rouge Artist Intense 54, a pearly golden pink — Rouge Artist Intense lipstick in 54, a pearly golden pink

Like Rouge Artist Intense 53, warm pearly golden pink 54 has very little patience for imperfect lips.

Oh, but the color… Breathtaking. It’s almost like a lipstick version of MAC Nymphette Lipglass.

I like to layer a gloss like shimmery beige MUFE’s Lab Shine Lip Gloss in D16 on top of this one to slightly downplay and soften the impact of the pink and pearl and create a pretty pinkish nude.

Coming March 2015 to Make Up For Ever Boutiques, counters, and Sephora.

Ink Liner, $23

Make Up For Ever Ink Liner — MUFE’s Ink Liner

Decidedly dark and marvelously matte, this pigmented liquid liner has high-fashion runway look written all over it.

Super stark and super cool, especially if you’re banging out a bold ’60s-style liner.

The firm tip stays stiff when I run it across my lash lines, which makes drawing crisp edges a bit of a challenge for (I’m more of a flexible felt tip gal), so I keep an angled brush and a pot of black gel liner close to smooth out any jagged areas.

Available now at Make Up For Ever Boutiques, counters and Sephora.

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Three Full-Size Lip Products for $32 Makes the Make Up For Ever Tease Me Lip Trios a Tempting Tease

February 13th, 2015 by Karen 24 Comments

Wearing the new $32 Make Up For Ever Tease Me Nude Lip Trio

Every time I see this guy’s face on the two Make Up For Ever Tease Me lip trios I want to tell him to FREAKING RELAX, MAN. Why you so stressed out?? Aren’t you, like, a billionaire playboy or something?

Or maybe that’s Bruce Wayne… OK, whatever.

This series though. Who knew it was so controversial? And here I was thinking it was just a frothy, pulpy schmexy-time romance novel.

However you feel about it, I bet there’s one thing we can all agree on: the makeup inspired by the movie is kind of rocking.

Like MUFE’s two new lip trios, one based on nudes and one built around berries. Each one comes with a lip liner, a waterproof liquid lipstick and a lip gloss, all of them full-size.

Maybe Mr. Grey likes to wear lipstick sometimes, and he’s stressed out about his lip situation. “Which lipstick should I wear, and how will I know what lip liner and gloss to wear with it!?”

Make Up For Ever Tease Me Berry Lip Trio — Tease Me Berry Lip Trio

No worries, Mr. Grey. Make Up For Ever has made it easy for ya. For each of the two trios, they picked a matching lip liner, liquid lipstick and gloss, freeing you up to make the tough decisions, like how many cats is too many cats? Do I appear intense enough in this photo? What should our safety word be? Is my hair too flat? And how’s the lighting in my secret back room?

The Innocent Nude Lip Trio is my favorite of the two because of its flexibility, which is to say that while I don’t intend to wear the trio with thigh-high leather boots and a naughty outfit, I suppose I could. The shades are neutral enough to work with a variety of looks and outfits. It comes with a nude beige lip liner, a soft rosy pink liquid lipstick and a sparkling beige gloss (thankfully, the glitter isn’t gritty).

I do also like the Passionate Berry Lip Trio, but with my lips being so dry and flaky right now, I’m a little reluctant to embrace the darker colors. The deep berry plum lip liner, raspberry liquid lipstick and sparkling deep fuchsia gloss are very wearable, though, and right in the middle of the road in terms of color temperature.

Make Up For Ever Tease Me Nude Lip Trio Swatches from the left: Aqua Lip Pencil in 3C, Aqua Rouge Waterproof Lip Color in 3, Aqua Rouge Clear, Lab Shine Diamond Collection Lip Gloss in D16 — Nude Lip Trio Swatches from the left: Aqua Lip Pencil in 3C, Aqua Rouge Waterproof Lip Color in 3, Aqua Rouge Clear, Lab Shine Diamond Collection Lip Gloss in D16

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Help for Dry Winter Lips

January 28th, 2015 by Karen 18 Comments

I saw a ChapStick ad this morning before a video on YouTube, and the girl in it said that our skin is thinnest on our lips.

I thought, yeah…maybe that’s why mine hurt so much every winter!

It’s always the same, too, every year. When winter rolls around, so much ouch. My lips get cracked and dry, and it hurts.

It gets worse for a few weeks after we visit my in-laws in Redding, which is a town near the Oregon border.

Weirdly, Oregon gets a ton of rain, but Redding, even though it’s close, does not. I swear, the air there gets drier than the inside of a hot oven.

But time has taught me a few things that help my perpetually parched pout. I hope they help yours too. 🙂

1. Scrub-a-dub-dub

Exfoliate. It’s easier when my lips are soft and damp, like right after I get out of the shower.

Every once in a while I’ll mix a spoonful of sugar with a little honey or olive oil, and gently scrub (more like rub) that on my lips with an old toothbrush after I shower.

The Nimbus Microfine Regulars are awesome for this, by the way. Softest toothbrushes I’ve ever used.

They’re kind of hard to track down in stores… I’m not sure why, but here’s a five-pack on Amazon for $14. Highly recommended.

Brush your teeth (and your lips), kids! (And don’t forget to floss.)

If DIY doesn’t sound good, then you can use a regular lip exfoliator instead. Fresh Sugar Lip Polish ($22.50) is an excellent choice, as is Lush Mint Julips Lip Scrub.

2. A balm before bed

And keep it right on your nightstand, where it’ll be easy to remember (and reach).

I apply a thick layer of balm after I kiss El Hub and Tabs goodnight. It’s become part of my regular bedtime routine — 1) kiss El Hub, 2) kiss Tabs, 3) insert mouth guard, and 4) smear a thick layer of lip balm on my lips. Zzzz…

Nuxe Reve De Miel Ultra-Nourishing Lip Balm ($19) is the one on my nightstand now. It’s almost as thick as a paste and tastes and smells like honey.

The big glass jar isn’t super convenient to carry around during the day, but it’s purrfect for bedtime at night.

3. Guzzle water

For real though! Drink a sh*t-ton throughout the day. I notice a HUGE difference when I fall out of the habit of drinking enough water, and it’s not just that my lips get drier. My skin gets worse and less, I dunno…plump?

The difference is crystal clear, especially in winter. When I don’t drink enough water, my lips get tow up.
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More of a Rebellion Than a Revolution, the New Urban Decay Sheer Revolution Lipsticks Still Pack Some Pigment Firepower

January 5th, 2015 by Karen 27 Comments

The brand new Urban Decay Sheer Revolution Lipsticks ($20 each), new for spring 2015

A lot of makeup lines have been doing the sheer lip thing for a while, so really, the idea is NOT that revolutionary anymore.

Like Clinique Black Honey? That’s one of the O.G. sheer lipsticks from the back in the day, so at this point, we can safely assume that a new line of sheer lipsticks will probably not leave you slack-jawed at your desk with drool dribbling from the left corner of your mouth and a mind so completely blown that you may cease to exist on this plane because you’ve been transported to a magical makeup alternate reality…

Let’s face it. The idea has been done before.

That said, Urban Decay’s new Sheer Revolution Lipsticks ($20 each, coming spring 2015) are different in one major way: they’re significantly more pigmented than many sheer lipsticks in the same price range (for instance, the $22 Too Faced La Cremes and $19 Benefit Tinted Tinted Lip Balms), particularly the brighter colors, like hot pink Sheer Anarchy and berry Sheer Shame.

Unfortunately, the nudes in the collection all start to look the same after a while on my pigmented lips…but that’s not unusual for me when it comes to sheer lipsticks and balms.

Urban Decay Sheer Revolution Lipsticks from the top to the bottom: Sheer Ladyflower, Sheer Streak, Sheer F-Bomb, Sheer Liar, Sheer Rapture, Sheer Anarchy, Sheer SHame, Sheer Slowburn, Sheer Obsessed and Sheer Walk of Shame — From top to bottom: Sheer Ladyflower, Sheer Streak, Sheer F-Bomb, Sheer Liar, Sheer Rapture, Sheer Anarchy, Sheer Shame, Sheer Slowburn, Sheer Obsessed and Sheer Walk of Shame

A completely new line of lipsticks en route to the permanent line, these are similar to UD’s current Revolution Lipsticks (same moderately thick, creamy texture), only they’re sheer, or sheerer — maybe about half as pigmented — but all 10 shades are still more pigmented than average for sheer lipsticks from other brands.

Because of the sheer-ish formula, though, if I had to pick just one, I’d choose one of the brighter shades, like fuchsia Sheer Anarchy or berry Sheer Walk of Shame.

I also dig red Sheer F-Bomb and orangey red Sheer Slowburn, but most of the time when I feel like wearing red on my lips, I want to go all out, like with opaque coverage, lip liner — the whole shebang.

These particular reds are like starter reds, and might be good for someone who wants to wear red on their lips, but isn’t ready for MAC Ruby Woo.

Urban Decay Sheer Revolution Lipstick Swatches from the left: Sheer Ladyflower, Sheer Streak, Sheer F-Bomb, Sheer Liar and Sheer Rapture — Swatches from the left: Sheer Ladyflower, Sheer Streak, Sheer F-Bomb, Sheer Liar and Sheer Rapture

From the left: Sheer Anarchy, Sheer Shame, Sheer Slowburn, Sheer Obsessed and Sheer Walk of Shame — Sheer Anarchy, Sheer Shame, Sheer Slowburn, Sheer Obsessed and Sheer Walk of Shame

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Introducing the Tom Ford Lips & Boys Limited Edition Lipstick Collection: Gentlemen, Start My Engine!

December 24th, 2014 by Karen 20 Comments

Ain’t nothing wrong with friendly male companionship! Don’t tell El Hub, but I’ve been spending a lot of time with some new worldly dudes. Meet six of the gentlemen from Tom Ford’s Lips & Boys limited edition lipstick collection. 🙂

Giacomo

Giacomo from Milan loves giving ladies late night tours of the city on his Vespa…

Cooper

Cooper from London enjoys long walks in the rain, reading literature aloud next to a cozy fire, and exchanging furtive kisses between the stacks at the bookstore…

Justin

Justin, the handsome honey from LA, acts like a party boy, but really, deep down inside, he just wants to get married and raise a family in The Valley.

He’ll invite you over to his midcentury modern mini-mansion nestled high in the hills above the city, and as you both sip wine and watch the sunset from the rooftop, he’ll woo you with his long lashes and hazel eyes…

Tom Ford Lips & Boys Justin Swatch — Justin, a pearly fuchsia

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Look Book: Save Time With Big Lashes and Bold Lips

December 23rd, 2014 by Karen 19 Comments

Too Faced Melted Liquified Long Wear Lipstick in Melted StrawberryToo Faced Melted Liquified Long Wear Lipstick in Melted Strawberry — When you’re trying to look cute but your hair is crazytown

Big lashes + bold lips = a purr-fect pairing! The combo is one of the fastest ways to get a dramatic makeup look without using a ton of different products.

There are times when “I’ll be done with my makeup in 20 minutes” really has to mean 20 minutes…and not 45, and in order to prevent El Hub from yelling things like, “You said you’d be done in 20 minutes an hour ago!” I’ll pop on the biggest, fluffiest, most dramatic pair of false lashes I can find (I keep a few pairs around because you just never know) and a bold lip color — usually a fiery red, hot pink or colorful coral (basically, if it’s a color that could stop traffic, it’s a contender).

I love doing this look because it’s so much quicker than looks with intense and complicated blending on the lids or dramatic winged liner, and I can play up both my lips and eyes with minimal effort.

Katy Perry Color Pop Lashes and Too Face Melted Liquified Lipstick in Strawberry — Katy Perry Color Pop Lashes ($10) and Too Face Melted Liquified Lipstick in Strawberry ($21)

Melted Liquified Lipstick in Melted Strawberry is one of several new Melted Lipstick shades available now at Too Faced counters and online for $21 each. Melted Strawberry’s a smooth, lightweight full-coverage creamy red. When I use it, I prep my lips first with a lip balm because these lipsticks can be kind of drying, and then I apply it with a lip brush to get a nice crisp edge.

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