Product Reviews

The Smashbox Sultry/Sweet Glambox Takes the Guesswork Out of Looking Good

March 22nd, 2011 by Karen 43 Comments

smashbox sultry sweet glambox

By the time I finished folding my laundry last weekend, there was a stack of 10 surf tees sitting on the bed. I don’t know when or how it happened, but it’s official — I have the wardrobe of a tween surfer boy.

It’s not that I wouldn’t like to wear other things. I just don’t like to spend the time and energy (read: I’m too lazy) it takes to put together comprehensive, fashion-forward looks. What I need is a wardrobe correction kit, a single set of pieces designed to create comprehensive looks, like a wardrobe version of the Smashbox Sultry/Sweet Glambox ($68).

smashbox sultry sweet glambox box
Here it is next to an iPhone for scale

New for spring, the eight-piece set comes with seven full-size makeup essentials, and one smaller item, in new shades of berry, pink and plum. Put them together for either a Sweet daytime look or a Sultry one for nights. Just add a little elbow grease and your favorite foundation and powder (and maybe also a brow filler if it’s part of your regular routine), and you’re good to go, day or night.

Smashbox equipped the kit with a full-size powder eyeshadow quad in medium pigmentation, a pencil liner, a sheer powder blush, a lengthening mascara, two lip glosses and an under-eye brightener. They also included a generous travel-size tube of their Photo Finish Luminizing Foundation Primer (available in one shade, a golden peachy pink) and a simple step-by-step tutorial sheet which I followed to create the day (Sweet) and night looks (Sultry) here. 🙂

smashbox sultry sweet glambox box side
[Continue reading…]

Like Snickers, Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set Really Satisfies

March 21st, 2011 by Karen 61 Comments

Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set
Bite Beauty High Pigment Pencil in Pomegranate

Sometimes you just need a quick snack to quiet the rumbling in your tummy, ya know? Not a full-on meal. Just a quick snack, like when Vampire Bill takes a sip from Sookie (Ha! I almost typed “Snookie”) while they’re “having relations.”

In a way, Bite Beauty’s new Define & Refine Lip Set ($36) is like a quick snack. You get to taste three full-size Bite lip products without having to pay full price. Purchased separately, they’d cost $68, or almost twice the price of the set.

The trio of treats includes…

Lip Shine in Prosecco — Interesting! This sheer nude gloss smells to me like a mix of Play-Doh and Sweet Tarts. Thankfully, the scent and sugary flavor fade fast. The medium-weight formula doesn’t feel sticky on my lips, and it lasts about two and a half hours. I’m glad Bite included a doe-foot applicator because it makes application a snap.
High Pigment Pencil in Pomegranate — The pigment in this blue-based red? To die for. It’s almost too good to be true. Despite its light and creamy texture (both unscented and unflavored), this pencil still manages to retain a long-lasting true matte finish. What we have here is one elegant lippie, young lady, and probably the best thing I’ve tried from the Bite line so far.
Luminous Creme Lipstick in Rose — One layer of this dark pink lipstick delivers full coverage color that may not make it through a meal, but it should resist fading for a solid four hours between them. Like the pencil, this pigmented beauty is unscented and unflavored, and it’s wonderfully moisturizing, too.

Like other products in the Bite Beauty line, these are made with food-grade goodies like resveratrol, a potent antioxidant and Bite’s signature ingredient. If you’d like to hear more about what puts the bite in Bite Beauty, check out Resveratrol, and Not Vampires, Puts the Bite in Bite Beauty Lip Products.

Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set

Bite Beauty Define & Refine Lip Set
[Continue reading…]

Spring’s Awakening with Sonia Kashuk’s Latest Limited Edition Makeup Palette

March 21st, 2011 by Karen 51 Comments

sonia kashuk spring awakenings face palette

Yesterday marked the first official day of spring here in the northern hemisphere, a fact not lost on Tabs. He was up early this morning, perched up high on his cat tower by the windows, to watch the birds outside.

On our walk around the neighborhood today, we saw that the branches of one of our favorite trees, which sits at the bottom of our hill, are now dressed in coat of beautiful pink blooms.

My spring allergies are already kicking in (thank goodness for Zyrtec!), but I wouldn’t trade this time of year for anything. Early spring is like getting a post card from a friend who’s coming to visit. You know there’s something fun right around the corner, but you’re not quite there yet. You know that if if you can be patient a little longer, the fun will start soon enough. 🙂

Sonia Kashuk’s new limited edition Spring Awakenings Palette ($19.99) feels like early spring to me. The palette of neutrals for eyes, lips and cheeks doesn’t hit you over the head with obvious spring pastels. Instead, its brown, coral and rose colors whisper promises of warmer days ahead.

sonia kashuk spring awakenings face palette in box

The four powder eyeshadows — a cool-toned mix of browns in matte, shimmer and glittery finishes — and dark chocolate powder eyeliner are the stars of this show. With the exception of the glitter shadow, which is more like a translucent base with champagne flecks, all of the items apply with dense, rich color that looks like the color you get from products considerably more expensive than typical drugstore eyeshadows.
[Continue reading…]

Bite Beauty SPF 15 Sheer Balm Sheer Looks Pigmented to Me

March 20th, 2011 by Karen 16 Comments

bite beauty sheer balm violet

Before I tried on Bite Beauty’s new SPF 15 Sheer Balm in Violet ($19; available in eight shades), I was expecting something shiny and almost transparent like the Guerlain Rouge G Serie Noirs. After that first swipe, though, I was like WHOA! Hello, pigment!

tabs with bite beauty sheer balm

Violet sure doesn’t look semi-sheer, not that I’m complaining at all. My lips are rather pigmented, but Violet looks a lot like a full coverage lipstick with a semi-matte finish to me. If the other shades are this rich, maybe the line should be called something like “SPF 15 Super Pigmented Matte Balm!” instead.

Unscented, with a mild brown sugar flavor, medium-weight Violet does feel thick like a lip balm, and it doesn’t allow for a lot of slip. Since I like to rub my lips together, that’s not one of my favorite things about it, but I do still wear lip balms even (especially on the weekends, and while I sleep) even though they’re thick.

bite beauty sheer balm violet
[Continue reading…]

The Sonia Kashuk Brush Couture Limited Edition Flat Top Blush/Powder Brush Is Dressed for Success

March 18th, 2011 by Karen 26 Comments

Sonia Kashuk Brush Couture Flat Top Multipurpose Blush Powder Brush

Oh, just gazing at this brush makes me happy. 🙂 Isn’t the tile print on Sonia Kashuk’s new Sonia Kashuk Brush Couture Flat Top Multipurpose Blush/Powder Brush ($11) adorable? It’s going to look so cute sitting on my vanity.

But good looks aren’t the only thing this limited edition brush has going for it. It also flawlessly applies loose powders, bronzers, and cream and powder blushes, too, just like Sonia’s legendary Synthetic Flat Top Brush. The big difference between the two is just that these bristles are made of natural fibers (I’m not sure what kind).
[Continue reading…]

From Stonehenge to QVC: The Tarte 8th World Wonder Kit

March 18th, 2011 by Karen 24 Comments

tarte 8th world wonder

The Great Pyramid of Giza, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, the Statue of Zeus at Olympus and now Tarte. Someone wake up Herodotus. It’s time to add one more to his Seven Wonders of the World, and this one’s a QVC exclusive.

Tarte continues to sizzle this spring. Their recently released $53 limited edition 8th World Wonder Kit comes with some Tarte colors you can’t find anywhere else, like Amazonian Clay Blush in Glisten.

tarte 8th world wonder
Hi, Glisten… Pardon me while I wipe this drool off my chin!

In the kit, Glisten joins six other pieces for eyes, lips, face and cheeks, all in a cute purple clutch purse.

Tarte 8th World Wonder Kit ($53)

Amazonian Clay Blush in Glisten — I’m in love with the glow I get from this shimmery peachy pink. Like the other blushes in Tarte’s Amazonian Clay Blush line, Glisten is pigmented, easy to blend and lasts and lasts and lasts.
PureOptic Lipgloss in Golden — I think this shimmery golden peachy pink kinda sorta resembles MAC Nymphette, except that it’s lighter and doesn’t contain quite as much pigment. I find the minty scent and flavor refreshing, but I’m not crazy about the thick, sticky texture… It feels too heavy on my lips.
Amazonian Clay Waterproof Eyeliner — Something tells me this rich, shimmery bronze-plum eyeliner will look incredible on brown brown eyes and green eyes. I’ve worn it successfully along my lash line, but when I wore it along my waterlines, my eyes teared up.
Amazonian Clay Full Coverage Balancing Foundation — Medium, the shade I’ve been testing, seems too light for my skin tone, but I’m still wearing it around the house for fun. With the kit, you can choose the shade of foundation you want.

The feel of this lightweight, fluffy mousse reminds me of Laura Mercier’s Silk Creme Foundation. Like Laura’s creme, it’s pigmented and full coverage, yet it still feels darn near weightless on my skin.
Airbrush Finish Foundation Brush — Designed to apply liquid foundations, this soft, full brush head produces diffused looks with aplomb.
Lights, Camera, Lashes Mascara — This jet black mascara adds natural-looking length and thickness to lashes.
Eyeshadow Palette — I didn’t get to try this palette of brown, bronze, purple and pink powder shadows, but here’s what Stef thought about it at We Heart This.

tarte 8th world wonder
Here are six of the items shown next to my iPhone for scale (the missing product is the eyeshadow palette)
[Continue reading…]

Bite Beauty Vitamin Gel Tastes So Good I Had to Have Seconds

March 18th, 2011 by Karen 33 Comments

Three words: Botan Rice Candy.

If you know what I’m talking about, don’t you just love the edible rice paper wrapper? YUM! I ate tons of those chewy, lemon-orange flavored candies as a kid. My mom would always let me put one pack in the cart whenever we’d go grocery shopping.

I hadn’t thought about them in years until the other day when I slipped a layer of new Bite Beauty Vitamin Gel in Pink Grapefruit ($18) on my lips.

It’s one of five vitamin-enriched flavors in Bite’s new line of moisturizing, non-sticky lip treatments, and I think it tastes EXACTLY like Botan Rice Candy (but not like grapefruit), om nom nom!

Bite Beauty Vitamin Gel in Pink Grapefruit

The pretty color, a barely there pink tint, shines brightly with a high gloss finish, but this one’s flavor will keep me coming back for more, and more, and more. It’s that yummy!
[Continue reading…]

Glisten Closely, Because Jouer Has Something Shimmery to Say: The Jouer Glisten Up Collection for Spring 2011

March 17th, 2011 by Karen 37 Comments

jouer glisten up
Jouer Glisten Lip Gloss in Nude Glisten on lips and Glistening Brightening Powder on upper cheek bones

My brain perceives sparkly makeup and ice cream (BASKIN-ROBBINS!) in similar ways. When I see either of them behind their respective counters, I do a lot of ooh-ing and aah-ing with grabby fingers in the air. Most of the time I can barely speak at all, with the only sentence I’m able to utter consisting of the words, “I want!”

That’s what glitter can do to ya. It’s powerful stuff — especially good glitter, like the kind in Jouer’s new Glisten Up collection for spring.

jouer glisten up in hand
From left to right: Glisten Lip Gloss in Rose Glisten, Coral Glisten and Nude Gliste; Glisten Brightening Powder

Indie line Jouer takes a simple, straightforward approach to makeup that’s both feminine and sophisticated at the same time. The brand reminds me of Becca…if Becca left the beach early to hang out downtown.

Like good-looking, well-mannered men who also happen to be a little short, good glitter is small, fine and sophisticated (Ben McKenzie in a suit). It’s glitter for grownups. Picture the kind of glitter Snooki would wear, swing the pendulum in the opposite direction, and BAM! That’s good glitter (sorry, Snooks!).
[Continue reading…]