Product Reviews

Lips Like Marilyn’s Are One Swipe Away: Pigment Abounds in the New MAC Marilyn Monroe Lipsticks

October 1st, 2012 by Karen 22 Comments

mac marilyn monroe scarlet ibis lipstick — Wearing the new MAC Marilyn Monroe collection lipstick in Scarlet Ibis

Some say that diamonds are a girl’s best friend.

My chapped lips and I have to politely disagree. I mean, sure, diamonds have some cool things going for ’em. They’re all sparkly, and allegedly you can use them to cut mirrors and glass (I’ve always wanted to try that!), but what good are sparkly, shiny baubles when your lips are all flaky and you want to wear a bright orangey red lipstick like the new matte Scarlet Ibis or a frosty nude like Pure Zen ($16.50 each; both part of the MAC Marilyn Monroe collection)?

I’ve been so jazzed about these colors and their three siblings since I got wind of the MAC Marilyn Monroe collection earlier this year. I imagined re-creating MM’s signature sultry lips while happily stepping over a subway vent and having my skirt fly up for the whole world to see my Spanx…

Okay, maybe not. But I’d still love hot makeup like Marilyn’s, and it’s easier to get with these lipsticks. Both lay down loads of opaque, solid color, and a single swipe takes me from lowly pet assistant to polished screen siren.

Or thereabouts. 🙂

MAC Marilyn Monroe Pure Zen Lipstick Scarlet Ibis — Lipsticks in Pure Zen (left) and Scarlet Ibis (right)

mac marilyn monroe pure zen lipstick — Lipstick in Pure Zen

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How to Marry a Showgirl: The Many Faces of the New MAC Marilyn Monroe Eyeshadows

October 1st, 2012 by Karen 15 Comments

mac marilyn monroe showgirl eyeshadow — Wearing the new MAC Marilyn Monroe Eyeshadow in Showgirl

Being the right-hand human to an international plus-size kitty supermodel can be a real chore if you’re not, you know, in the mood to be your cat’s minion/punching bag.

To my feline employer, I’m merely a toady, a gopher, but there’s more to being a successful pet assistant than having opposable thumbs. It’s a multifaceted job requiring a diverse skill set, dagnabbit, and ideal candidates are people with layers — just like the new $21 Large Eye Shadows from the MAC Marilyn Monroe collection.

Blueish gray Showgirl and soft white How to Marry, two of the four shades in the limited edition launch that arrives on counters this Thursday, might look like standard issue shimmers in swatches, but wait until they get on your lids.

MAC Marilyn Monroe Showgirl How to marry Eye Shadow — Eyeshadows in Showgirl (left) and How to Marry (right)

Like Marilyn, these Large Eye Shadows are larger than life! Each of the $21 0.1-ounce pans contain twice as much product as MAC’s regular $15 eyeshadow pans, which contain 0.05 ounces each.

Thing is, these babies love buffing, so start by pressing either one on your lids with a firm, flat eyeshadow brush or finger (side note: this part’s kind of important, because I’ve noticed that if I skip the firm brush/finger part, these shadows exhibit significant fallout), and then swirl a domed, fluffy brush like the MAC 217 on top of the shadows to lift away some of the pigment.

What remains is a semi-opaque wash of shiny color and tiny glimmering flecks of shimmer. Although the effect’s kinda quiet in these pics, I think it’s much more obvious and super pretty in person, especially if you like your glitter on the understated side.

mac marilyn monroe how to marry eyeshadow — Eyeshadow in How to Marry

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Elegant and Easy Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Eyeshadow in Apparence Satisfies Demanding Inner Lazy Girls

September 27th, 2012 by Karen 21 Comments

chanel apparence illusion d'ombre — Wearing the new Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Eyeshadow in Apparence

It’s funny, but for a slacker, MILG is actually pretty demanding.

MILG — My Inner Lazy Girl — hasn’t been sleeping well lately, and so she has me coveting cream eyeshadows like Golem covets the One Ring in LOTR!

And the lack of shuteye only serves to make MILG more demanding… Most mornings, I find it easier to just give in than fight, so when she tells me to pat shimmery golden bronze Apparence, a new $36 limited edition Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow shade from Chanel’s upcoming holiday collection, on my lids with a finger and then buff out the edges with a MAC 217, I do a Kanye shrug and go with the flow.

Sometimes, I will fight for MILG to let me add some black liner on my water lines, because I love how it contrasts with the golden bronze (I’m wearing it in these pics).

Any which way I wear it, Apparence always lights up my lids. It’s no substitute for eight hours of sleep, but it’s sure better than nothing.

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Pricey But Pretty Darn Perfect: The New Chanel Harmonie Du Soir Quadra Eye Shadow

September 27th, 2012 by Karen 38 Comments

Hey, buddy! Another beautiful fall morning here in the Bay Area. I went to take the trash out this morning, and when I exhaled I actually saw my breath in the air. It’s only a matter of time before it gets really cold again (well, cold for this part of California, which I know is not really that cold compared to other parts of the country, but we’re weather wusses here).

Hopefully the new Chanel Harmonie Du Soir quad will keep me warm… Not so much physically warm, but its four colors (taupe, gold, pink and plum) have been firing me up. Lately they’re all I’ve been wanting to wear.

Harmonie’s formal name reads like a champion race horse: “Regard Signe De Chanel Quadra Eye Shadow in Harmonie Du Soir,” and at $65, it’s priced like a thoroughbred, too.

There’s really no way around the fact that this is one expensive piece of makeup, but as hard core Chanel-o-philes already know, the price premium is nothing new from the line. This palette does include a special quilted design on the pan, though, which makes it seem a little more exclusive.

Oh, and it would make such a wonderful gift! Imagine opening it up on Christmas morning… [SWOON!] I’d need a fainting couch.

chanel harmonie du soir quad closeup — Harmonie Du Soir eyeshadow in Bronze Gold

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I Spy a Vampy Lipstick That’s Easy to Apply! The New Chanel Rouge Allure Velvet in L’Impatiente

September 26th, 2012 by Karen 22 Comments

chanel l'impatiente rouge allure velvet — Wearing the new Chanel L’Impatiente Rouge Allure Velvet Lipstick

Every super spy gal needs a secret weapon. Sydney Bristow’s (loved me some Alias!) were arguably her crazy-@ss wigs — perfect for fooling bad guys into thinking she was someone other than the lethal agent she was.

But say Sydney had a thing for Chanel lipsticks. If she had, she would’ve fallen hard for Rouge Allure Velvet in L’Impatiente ($32.50), the sole lippie from the Eclats du Soir de Chanel makeup collection for holiday 2012. A deep reddish black with a matte finish, it’s drizzled with a semblance of shine.

A twist of the tube reveals a dark wine bullet the color of a rich cabernet sauvignon. Before I tried it on, I expected L’Impatiente to be a tough cookie, both in terms of getting it to look good on my lips, and in the sense that I wanted to wear it with black leather pants, studded bracelets and spikes.

Before it ever touched my lips, I made a mental note to look for my lip brush. I also sought out a matching lip liner and dusted off my pair of black platforms with chains (my “tough girl” shoes).

And then, when I applied my first layer, TWIST!

chanel l'impatiente rouge allure — Rouge Allure in L’Impatiente

chanel holiday 2012 eclats du soir de chanel swatches — Swatches from the left: Joues Contraste Powder Blush in Star Dust, Illusion D’Ombre Lonog Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in Apparence, Rouge Allure Velvet in L’Impatiente and Glossimer in Mystery

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Giving Cheeks a Constellation Prize: Chanel Joues Contrastes Powder Blush in Star Dust

September 26th, 2012 by Karen 13 Comments

chanel start dust joues contraste blush review — Wearing the new Chanel Joeues Contraste Powder Blush in Star Dust on my cheeks

Can we all agree that stars are awesome? — how they twinkle, sparkle and glimmer like glitter in the sky, inspiring poems, songs and sonnets as they hold back the darkness for zillions of years, billions upon billions of them light years away, and every one a giant, sometimes larger than our sun.

Chanel’s new soft pink Joues Contraste Powder Blush in Star Dust ($43) is a little like that… I mean, it has the twinkling part down.

The one and only blush in the new Eclats du Soir de Chanel collection for holiday 2012, Star Dust’s microscopic flecks of multicolored gold, pink, purple and green glitter glimmer on cheeks (more so in person than in pics) like diamonds in the sky.

But Star Dust isn’t any old sparkly blush. It has just enough glitter and pigment to catch the light without going astronomical. Now, I wouldn’t wear it to a disco diva dance-off, because I don’t think it’s glittery enough for that (GURL, you don’t want to battle me when I’m doing the hustle!), but that’s fine by me. Most of the time when I’m out on the dance floor with Tabs and his entourage, I try not to take the spotlight away from you-know-who. 🙂

chanel star dust blush — Joues Contraste in Star Dust ($43)

chanel start dust joues contraste blush — Closeup of Star Dust on my cheeks

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How Wearable Is New Chanel Glossimer in Mystery? There’s Only One Way to Find Out

September 25th, 2012 by Karen 14 Comments

chanel mystery glossimer — Chanel Glossimer in Mystery

Life is a mystery, and no matter what we learn about the world around us, it seems as if every answer leads to more questions.

Questions like…

Why is it physically impossible to eat just one spoonful of HÃ¤agen-Dazs ice cream?

Is Dillon Panther tailback Tim Riggins really a misunderstood genius?

What is Tabs thinking in his little kitty brain when he rushes into the loo to watch me, um, handle my business (swear to you, I don’t think I’ve had one minute of potty privacy since this cat came into my life)?

tabs-stare — What’s goin’ on over there, woman?

And then there are also makeup mysteries, like the new Chanel Glossimer in — yup, you guessed it! — Mystery ($29.50).

Yes, my fellow Chanel lovers, once again, Coco and Co. are doing nude, glossy lips in their latest limited edition launch, Eclats du Soir de Chanel.

Mystery, a medium pigmented creamy pinkish brown, guest stars as one of three Glossimers in the holiday release, and I can’t deny the chemistry it shares with the smokier, darker eyeshadows in the collection’s Nuit-Claire duo and Harmonie quad.

Nude lips and smokey eyes are like the peanut butter and jelly combo of my makeup world. I’ve been loving them for years because they’re just so blasted wearable (um…the look, not the sandwich), and Mystery has “wearable nude gloss” written all over it.

I guess the $64,000 question comes down to this: is Mystery a must-have?

chanel mystery 357 glossimer — Glossimer in Mystery

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Heads Up! Get Chanel Style for $7 With the Sephora Collection Gold Chain Headband

September 21st, 2012 by Karen 10 Comments

When I strolled into Sephora last Saturday allegedly to just “look around,” I thought I might succumb to one or two of my usual impulse buys — maybe an eyeliner, makeup remover or a bottle of nail polish.

What happened, instead, was the last thing I expected…

I had a hair epiphany.

I’ve been going about my days happy as a long-haired lark with Goody’s Headwraps for a few months, blissfully slicking my bangs back with them almost every day. I like not having to fuss with my hair, and headbands are great for that, but lately I’ve had the urge to try something new. Maybe something more chic and sophisticated that I could wear with a cute dress and high heels.

Thing is, I have the hardest time finding good headbands, and by good I mean headbands that stay put and don’t squeeze my head like a vice.

I don’t know what it is… Maybe something happened that time I fell off the monkey bars and landed on my head. 😮

So at Sephora last week, as I rifled through the sale bin, I didn’t expect what I found. I saw gold, black and leather, and snatched it lightning fast. “OOH!” I thought, hypnotized. “Looks kinda like a Chanel bag…”

It was just $7, so I decided to get it. I figured, heck, if it gives me a headache, I’ll wear it as a bracelet instead (or let Tabs have it for his accessories drawer).
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