NARS

5 Awesome Face Makeup Brushes I Use Every Day

October 15th, 2015 by Karen 7 Comments

Survey says that I WILL use most, if not all, of these five face brushes every. Single. Day. They’re my brushes with destiny! — my makeup main squeezes, and my main workhorse tools.

1. NARS Mie Kabuki Brush ($55)

LBD, baby! Little black dress. The NARS Mie Kabuki is the little black dress of my face brush collection because of all the many things it can do. Sometimes I’ll use it to apply face powder, other times I’ll use it as a bronzing brush, and sometimes I’ll use it to highlight or apply blush.

Unfortunately, the price. It’s $55… Buuuut, it can do so much, and above all, it blends like a mofo! I can really see a difference between when I use Mie to blend bronzer or blush, and when I use something else, and I think it’s because of that point in the tip (see the pic below) and how the tip slopes. It makes it easy to buff out edges and get smooth gradients. If you like the sound of that, Mie is available now at NARS counters, boutiques and online.

2. MAC 138 Tapered Face Brush ($53)

Another pointy tip! I mostly use the MAC 138 to apply face powder to specific spots, like the center of my forehead, on and around my nose and mouth, just below my cheeks and on my chin, and while big, fluffy face brushes are fun to use with face powder (and feel great on my skin), I still prefer this smaller brush.

Why?

Well, because when I apply too much powder, my face makeup looks heavy and très obvious, and with the 138, I can really target where I’m placing my powder, which means that I can generally get away with using less. It’s available now at MAC counters, stores and online.

3. MAC 109 Small Contour Brush ($35)

The MAC 109 face brush has a small, rounded head that fits just perfectly in the hollows of my cheeks; that makes it a bronzing/contouring champ.

I’m a big bronzer gal, so I rarely use this one for contouring, but I think it’s an absolutely awesome bronzing brush.

I always have to resist the urge to go heavy with bronzer, and I’m tempted put it everywhere (NO, SERIOUSLY), but this brush basically saves me from myself, LOL! It’s available now at MAC counters, stores and online.
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5 Lavish, Lovely Berry Lipsticks to Fall for This Fall

October 15th, 2015 by Karen 27 Comments

Fall.

They say it’s fall, and it did feel like fall here about a week ago. It was cloudy and chilly, and there were leaves falling everywhere outside, but then summer struck back and said, “CUT! Hold your horses! I’m not ready to go…” We had another string of 80- and 90-degree days.

Sooner or later, though, it’ll get cooler and stay that way. It’s a guarantee. 🙁 And when it happens, I’ll be ready for it with these five fall-friendly berry lipsticks.

1. NARS Satin Lip Pencil in Hyde Park ($26)

nars hyde park — NARS Satin Lip Pencil in Hyde Park

I really like Reddish berry Hyde Park with bronze, burgundy and brown looks. And even cranberry smoky eyes (Ooh! — give it try sometime with a warm and shimmery cranberry on your lids and a matte orangey brown in the crease). The pencil shape makes it easy to line and fill in my lips without needing a lip liner, so yay for skipping steps! Hyde Park is available now at NARS counters, stores and online.

2. Tom Ford Lip Color Matte in Plum Lush ($52)

tom ford plum lush — Tom Ford Lip Color Matte in Plum Lush

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Try This Nifty NARS Neutral Combo With NARS Abyssinia, Sophia and Bengali

October 8th, 2015 by Karen 21 Comments

nars abyssinia sophia bengali — NARS Pro-Palette Single Eyeshadow Refill pans from the left in Abyssinia, Sophia and Bengali ($18 each)

I’ve been lovin’ this NARS brown-based neutral combo lately with Abyssnia all over my lids from lash line to brow bone, Sophia in the crease and Bengali in the outer corners.

It’s been giving my mainstay brown MAC combos a break…

It’s a good one! You should totes give it a try.

nars abyssinia sophia bengali swatches — Swatches from the left of NARS Abyssinia, Sophia and Bengali

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NARS Steven Klein in Action

October 5th, 2015 by Karen 20 Comments

Just a few quick pics of the makeup I wore today, and fall was in full effect! This was a NARS Steven Klein kinda Monday for me, and glitter also made an appearance.

The NARS Steven Klein holiday 2015 collection is available now online and at NARS boutiques, BTW.

NARS Steven Klein products I’m wearing…

Killer Shine Lipstick in No Shame Lipstick — lips

Killer Shine Lip Gloss in Fast Life — lips

Single Eyeshadow in Never Too Late — lids

Single Eyeshadow in Mortal — inner corner

Single Eyeshadow in Stud — pressed into center of my lids

Dual-Intensity Blush in Vengeful — cheeks

What about you? Did you wear anything colorful today?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

NARS Steven Klein Holiday 2015, Part 2: The Color Collection

October 5th, 2015 by Karen 20 Comments

Gray does not grandstand in the new NARS Steven Klein holiday 2015 color collection, but if it did, and there were more gray in the release, [THIS] would be right about where I’d insert a 50 Shades of Grey joke about my cat’s never-ending need to dominate my life.

Um, yeah! You know how NARS is with their holiday collections — they like to take the road less traveled, which in this case means nothing too candy cane-covered or outwardly holiday-ish. This year’s color collection, a collaboration with fashion photographer Steven Klein, has an artsy edge to it, and by “artsy edge,” I mean that if a billionaire playboy were ever to invite you to the secret playroom in the back of his mansion, this collection would suit your favorite pair of shiny dominatrix boots quite nicely.

As NARS puts it, imagine “Fantasy. Roles. Rules.”

nars steven klein holiday 2015 lipsticks — NARS Steven Klein Killer Shine Lipsticks in Redemption, Besame Mucho and No Shame ($29 each)

nars steven klein killer shine — NARS Steven Klein Killer Shine Lip Glosses in Special Force, Fast Life and Provoke ($28 each)

Shiny vinyl-like finishes play a big part in this 15-piece limited edition launch of pieces for eyes, cheeks, lips and nails. As they are with the Steven Klein holiday gifting sets we looked at last week, lip products are again the stars of the show. There are three lipsticks and three glosses in a completely new formula called Killer Shine, and they’re so glossy and bright that your dominatrix boots be totes jelly.

NARS also carries that same concept of lovely lusters over to the products for eyes, cheeks and nails.

And now that I think about it…there’s very little, if any, matte here, so if you’re drawn to glitter and shimmer like a moth to a flame, then holla! — you’ll probably find something to like in this release.

nars steven klein holiday 2015 vengeful — NARS Steven Klein Dual-Intensity Blush in Vengeful ($45)

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NARS Steven Klein Holiday 2015, Part 1: The Gift Sets

October 2nd, 2015 by Karen 20 Comments

It wouldn’t be the holidays at NARS without a gift set with some man junk…

nars steven klein full service — NARS Steven Klein Full Service Mini Kabuki Brush Set ($95)

And a lady in a Jason Voorhees mask…

So, yeah. It’s pretty much business as usual over at NARS! 🙂

The brand likes to scoot along the razor’s edge with their holiday collections, often doing collaborations with cutting edge artists, and their holiday releases are anything but boring and traditional. Instead of reindeers and candy canes, we get ladies in lingerie wearing sexy aliens masks.

This year’s collab is with fashion photographer Steven Klein, and it’s a big one. I’ve split it into two parts, with this first video covering the gift sets, which arrive on the NARS website and at NARS boutiques October 5, and then in stores November 1.

Here are some swatches and pictures, and there’s a lot more info in the video at the top. I hope you see something you like.

nars steven klein dispair cheek palette — NARS Steven Klein Despair Cheek Palette ($65)

nars steven klein dispair cheek palette 2 — NARS Steven Klein Despair Cheek Palette Blushes in Nico, Savage, Esoteric and Ferocious

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NARS Isolde Eye Duo in Action

October 1st, 2015 by Karen 25 Comments

I wasn’t playing the other day when I said I’ve been all about NARS Isolde lately. Both it and NARS Cordura (LOVE YOU, C!!!) have been two of my full-time eye makeup BFFs for weeks, and even though I’ve mostly gotten over this cold of mine and want to wear more makeup again, I still don’t have the patience to sit still for 45 minutes and blend six different teals till my fingers fall off, ya know?

This week I’ve been using the timer on my iPhone in the morning to rein myself in. I set it for 25 minutes, and whatever I’m able to do in that time, that’s what I end up wearing for the day.

Before I even start, though, I keep all the basics, like foundation, mascara and concealer, etc., in a little box next to my desk so I don’t waste any time hunting stuff down. Then I also put whatever eye and lip products I plan to wear in the same box.

I like to spend the lion’s share of the 25 minutes on my eye makeup, so I’ll cut back on some things and spend less time on my skin, which is why more of my freckles are peeking through in these pics than usual.

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Neat and New to Me: NARS Cordura Duo Eyeshadow

September 30th, 2015 by Karen 12 Comments

Neat and New to Me

Unlike my Unsung Heroes series, which features permanent collection products I’ve known and loved a long time, the Neat and New to Me series showcases permanent collection products that slipped under my radar for a while, but then I discovered them! — and now I think they’re neat and new to me.

Aaaaaand in tonight’s startling new episode of “NARS Neutrals I Never Realized I Needed Until Right Now,” Cordura Eyeshadow Duo… It, along with Isolde, have been my top two neutral eye loves lately.

I don’t even know where to start, because I think there’s so much to like about this duo. How about the colors? On one side, a warm, mid-toned golden brown with a light luster; on the other, a neutral-toned deep coffee brown that, on most people, will probably come across as a deep golden coffee brown, but on my warm skin tone, with my yellow undertones, it reads almost like a plummy chocolate.

I lurves it.

Yesterday when we were chatting about Isolde, I think I mentioned how much I’ve always liked the way NARS toys around with finishes, and they’ve done it again here with Cordura. Both of its shades have the subtlest of shimmers — so subtle that my fine lines are like, “Hey, girl! That’s what’s up.” 🙂

Most of the time I’ll start at my lash line with the lighter shade, then take that up to the crease, fading as I get closer to my brows. Then I’ll smudge the darker brown at the outer corner of my lower lash line, do a messy black or dark plummy liner on my water lines, smudge whatever ends up on my lash lines, then mix the two and also blend them on my lower lash line.

Then mascara, of course!

Seriously, it takes all of five minutes to do a daytime smoky eye with this that looks like it took a lot more time to do.

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