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Bobbi Brown Springs Into Action with a New Tinted Eye Brightener

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Bobbi Brown, Queen of Neutrals, wants to help us look a little less tired with her new spring collection. Called Makeup Face Lift (Hey, BB! My sleep-deprived self is totally down for that!), the eight-piece collection’s mix of new and re-promoted products from the permanent line are supposed to be able to help create a fresh face in five minutes or less.

First, what do you think of the Tinted Eye Brightener ($38, comes in eight shades)? It’s basically Bobbi’s famous potted Tinted Eye Brightener repackaged as a convenient click pen.

I’d heard about it before but hadn’t given it a try until today. Now I see why so many women like it! 🙂

Talk about creeeeamy. Like hot butter — hot butter that doesn’t settle into little lines and creases, so it’s like *magic* hot butter if you’re 30-something (like me).


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Saturday Surfing

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What’s up, weekenders? I hope your Saturday’s rolling, rolling, rolling right along. Today’s been an errands/chores day for me — grocery shopping, post office, laundry and cleaning. But all work and no play makes Karen a dull girl, so I managed to sneak in some e-surfing too.

Random bright spots

New in beauty

Time lapse Paris…

A year in 120 seconds…

Some beautiful camera work in this short film

I’m off to Trader Joe’s! What have you been up to today? 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. This weekend I’m workin’ with my web hosting company to move Makeup and Beauty Blog to better digs. Well, they’re doing the work. My involvement’s limited to crossing fingers. 🙂 Apologies in advance for the loss of any recent comments or other goofiness that may occur this afternoon and early tomorrow. It should all be over soon, and once it is the blog should load a little faster.

Caveman Cosmetics? Neanderthal Makeup Discovered

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Pretty prehistoric girl

Cleopatra may have rocked a mean cat eye, but she wasn’t history’s first style icon. Scientists say that title may belong to a 50,000-year-old Neanderthal.

Professor Joao Zilhao, an archaeologist from Bristol University in the UK, and his team say that shells found at two sites once inhabited by Neanderthals in the Murcia province of southern Spain were actually containers used to mix and store “body paint.”

Along with the ancient pigment-coated shells, the team uncovered black sticks of manganese, lumps of a yellow pigment possibly used as a foundation, and a red powder mixed with flecks of a reflective brilliant black mineral (used as eyeshadow, perhaps?).

Our ancient girl was quite the trendsetter, at the forefront of natural cosmetics. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

50% off LORAC Front of the Line Liquid Eyeliner

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Lorac Front of the Line

Hi, gals. 🙂 Happy Friday!

Ahh, do you smell that? It’s the scent of you snagging LORAC’s Front of the Line eyeliner on d e e p discount.

I got an email from the company this morning announcing the sale. These water-resistant, felt-tip liners normally sell for $20 apiece, but you can get ’em now for $10 at Lorac.com (while supplies last).

Front of the Line comes in three shades — Black, Brown and Green. I haven’t used these exact ones before, but I am a big fan of LORAC’s Front of the Line Pro (which I love more than flip-flops, stinky cheeses AND Jersey Shore). I’m hoping the non-pro version, which looks and sounds very similar from the pictures and reviews I’ve found online, wears just as long and goes on just as smoove.

reef-flip-flops
Guess who just shaved her toes?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Bobbi Brown fans! Mark your calendars. Tuesday, January 12 at 12:30 p.m. EST, Ms. Brown (if ya nasty!) will host a live Twitter Q&A. For two hours, she’ll answer questions and provide personalized advice, FUN! I’ll definitely be there. 🙂

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Tarina Tarantino Beauty: New Makeup Line Launching Soon!

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Good morning, ladies! How’d you sleep? 🙂

Here’s a little something to tickle your brain a bit this morning… Quirky jewelry designer Tarina Tarantino (remember those chunky beaded Hello Kitty necklaces celebs were rocking a few years back?) is launching a new makeup line called Tarina Tarantino Beauty later this month.

The makeup product shots I’ve found online are teeny tiny (here and here). From this image and video, it looks like the line will have a range of vibrant, sparkly lipsticks, glosses, eyeshadows, blushes and brushes (three words: HOT PINK HANDLES!) in Tarina’s signature style — a blending of skull-and-crossbones toughness, bright colors and feminine floral arrangements.

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Expect to find the new line at US Sephora stores beginning January 30.

What do you think about a Tarina Tarantino makeup line?

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Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Are you looking forward to any other upcoming makeup lines? What should I have on my radar screen? 🙂

Act Now for Your Chance to Win TWO of Ten Clarisonic Brushes

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Morning, girls. 🙂 Thanks for all of your wonderful words of encouragement yesterday. I’m still reading through the comments, and I can see I’m not alone.

While I try to put my head on straight and figure out my plan for the day (which mustn’t involve any sort of freaking out), just a reminder about the ongoing Clarisonic giveaway (one for you and a friend). You still have time to enter before it closes on Friday. If you haven’t already entered, click here. It only takes a quick comment on the original post, and you’ll be done in 30 seconds flat.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Coming Soon: The Biggest Giveaway in MBB History!

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clarisonic-giveaway

I know it’s late (you should be in bed, young lady!), but I wanted to give you a quick heads up about something VERY cool.

Be sure to check back on Monday for a chance to win an amazing prize. I’m talking about the biggest giveaway in Makeup and Beauty Blog history! 🙂

You know the Clarisonic, right? The oscillating skincare brush beloved by beauty mags, bloggers and dermatologists for its ability to deep clean pores?

Well, the company is sponsoring a massive Christmas giveaway for us here on the blog. The rules are simple, and there will be multiple winners (total prizes worth more than $2,000!).

That’s all I can say for now (full deets to come), but if you’re interested in one of the Clarisonic Sonic Skin Cleansing Systems, don’t forget about…

MONDAY!

The Clarisonic brush uses ultrasonic technology (the same tech that makes Sonicare toothbrushes so effective) to treat skin trubs like blemishes, dry patches and the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. NOTE: Lawd knows I could use less of each of the aforementioned issues, ha!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Are Cosmetics Regulated by the FDA?

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Are Cosmetics Regulated by the FDA?

There are misconceptions galore out there about what the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has to do with cosmetics. Do they or don’t they regulate makeup and beauty products the same way they regulate drugs? Inquiring minds want to know! The answer, so it seems, is both yes and no. I’m not an attorney, but I think it breaks down a little something like this:

Drugs and premarket approval

The FDA treats drugs and cosmetics differently, except when they’re one and the same (more on that in a minute). For public safety, the distinction matters because the FDA subjects drugs to premarket approval, taking a closer look at their safety before they ever go on sale.

What about cosmetics?

Cosmetics, however, aren’t really examined by the FDA before they end up at Sephora, Nordstrom or MAC. The FDA still requires that beauty products list their ingredients, and they can shut down companies for making misleading claims (although we still see these claims made all the time) or for putting the public at risk, but when you get right down to it, makeup isn’t approved by the government before it winds up at the store.

BOTTOM LINE: With drugs, the FDA takes responsibility for ensuring their safety before they hit the market; with cosmetics, this responsibility falls to the manufacturer, who can be penalized for breaking the rules, but it’s mostly after the fact. 😉

When it’s both a cosmetic AND a drug

Now, there’s one big “but,” and it has to do with products the FDA says are both a cosmetic AND a drug.
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