Product Reviews

Chanel SoHo de Chanel: Because It Never Hurts to Be Prepared…for Space Invaders!

September 23rd, 2010 by Karen 13 Comments

chanel soho de chanel review swatches photos

You know what they should give out during mass at the Church of Chanel? Coupon codes. Or maybe instead of a church raffle they could hold a friends & family sale (hint, hint, Karl!).

Wishful thinking, right? Yeah, I get the feeling we’ll be waiting a long time before we see a big sale at Chanel. I’d be less surprised to see one of the aliens from Mars Attacks win a gold medal in figure skating (“Ack! Ack!”).

But if you’re willing to throw down $65 (!) for the new limited edition SoHo de Chanel Highlighting Powder and Blush, maybe you won’t care how well the aliens do at some future Olympics because your cheeks will radiate an otherworldly glow.

Coupled with the package’s striking good looks (LOVE the design on the pan!), this is Chanel at the top of their game, and the only thing holding it back is the price.

chanel soho de chanel review swatches photos 2

Wear each of the pan’s three finely-milled powders separately — a light reddish plum, a pinkish ivory and a peachy pink — or swirl a brush over all three to mix them for a soft, shimmery glow (I prefer the latter).
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MAC Pro Longwear Concealer Is Catching Up to TimeBalm in the Polls

September 23rd, 2010 by Karen 49 Comments

MAC Pro Longwear Concealer Review final

So it’s election season again, and today I got one of those annoying robocalls that went a little something like this:

“Hello,” it began, “my name is MAC Pro Longwear Concealer, and I approve this message.”

“Uh… Hello?”

“The following is an automated poll with important questions about the upcoming election for mayor of your makeup bag.”

“What? Oh, I hate these things…”

“If you were to learn that my opponent, theBalm’s timeBalm concealer, was not the best thing to happen to womankind since men started waxing their butts and back, would you…

A. Immediately hang up.

B. Exclaim, “No way! I don’t believe it!” into the phone and run screaming naked out of the house.

C. Answer, “Really? Tell me more.”

D. None of the above.

“C.”

Truth is, I’ve been a big supporter of timeBalm concealer ($18), but MAC’s new line of medium-to-full coverage matte liquid concealers just might sway my vote. 🙂

MAC created them to conceal dark circles, spots and discolorations with a long-wearing, flawless, natural-looking finish.

The 16 available shades ($16.50 each), which come in a small glass bottle with a pump applicator top, dropped on counters last week with two other products, the Pro Longwear Lipcreme Lipsticks ($16) and Pro Longwear SPF10 Foundations ($29.50).

In a nutshell, this stuff works like a liquid version of timeBalm (I like it more than the actual liquid version of timeBalm). I’ve been wearing it in NW 30 lately (for reference, I’m an NC 35), to cover up my under-eye circles, and like timeBalm it thoroughly blocks out the dark areas without creasing, feathering, fading or settling into my fine lines.
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Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star: Star Glossimer from the Chanel SoHo Collection

September 23rd, 2010 by Karen 31 Comments

A glittery pinkish purple lipgloss? Yes, please!

And the fact that this one’s also a Chanel Glossimer doesn’t hurt — well, except for the $27 price. That part hurts, but overlooking the way in which that makes my tummy churn, yippee!

She’s called Star, and like her namesake she’s all about the sparkle (with a very light tint). We’re talking good glitter here, very fine, and it doesn’t migrate around my lips.

Star feels thick and slightly sticky to me with a wear time around 90 minutes (mediocre for a gloss), and I’m glad that Chanel kept her scent- and flavor-free.

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Urban Decay’s Urbanglow Cream Highlighters Deserve the Spotlight, Don’t Keep It for Long

September 22nd, 2010 by Karen 41 Comments

Urban Decay Urbanglow review swatch pictures photos

I suppose if I really wanted an authentic candlelit glow I could walk around with a candle up next to my face, but talk about a big pain in the @ss, right? 🙂 And dangerous too!

No problem. The new Urban Decay Urbanglow Cream Highlighters ($24 each) are safer than open flames but just as illuminating.

UD packed these four cute compacts in Wicked, Sin, Brown Sugar and Moonshine with pearly glows and pigment to spare.

They kinda work like spotlights for the skin. Just pat on cheeks, at your temples, down the bridge of your nose or at the inner corners of your eyes for an instantly brighter outlook and a luminescent glow. They apply smoothly to bare skin, or on top of liquid foundations or tinted moisturizer, but I don’t recommend them for use atop powder foundations. When I tried, they looked kinda cakey.

I’ve been wearing Wicked (the shimmery pink) and Sin (the shimmery champagne) on particularly rough days when I haven’t gotten enough sleep the night before because they’re pretty good at quickly faking wide-awake eyes.

Urban Decay Urbanglow review swatch pictures photos closed
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The Chanel SoHo Nail Polishes: Steel Yourself for These Strong Fall Shades

September 22nd, 2010 by Karen 33 Comments

chanel soho nail polish swatches review

Chanel says, “It’s fall. Time to go to work.”

Well, it’s official. Elvis and summer have left the building. They walked out the back door, the one by the loading dock, and met for brewskies down at the Harvest Moon, you know, that little pub where all the classic fall nail colors hang out after work.

Every fall I pack up my warm weather must-haves — my neon nail polishes, fuchsia glosses, booty shorts with “I heart the Jersey Shore” written across the back (kidding!) to make room for autumn’s awesome goodies. This year, I’m clearing space for a couple of real workin’ stiffs called Steel (a shimmery gunmetal gray) and Strong (a shimmery blackened plum), Chanel’s two new SoHo Le Vernis nail polishes for fall ($23 each).

Why do autumn leaves make me want to paint mah talons with darker colors? Is it a cavewoman thing? Who knows, but if you like the look of dark fall nails, feast your Bette Davis eyes on these.

chanel soho steel swatch
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Unsung Makeup Heroes: Have a Cookie, Sugar, with Benefit Sugar Cookie Lipstick

September 21st, 2010 by Karen 31 Comments

benefit sugar cookie review swatches photos
Did I mention it’s fat free?

Do me a quick favor and check your blush stash, boo. If you find enough peaches to bake a cobbler, then I’d like you to meet my new go-to girl, Benefit Silky Finish Lipstick in Sugar Cookie ($18).

The color — a warm, shiny peach with flecks of gorgeous gold — has been around for a while as a permanent member of Benefit’s Silky Finish Lipstick line. Like the other Silky Finish gals, she’s got a thin, creamy texture (very hydrating, to boot) that glides on slick and smooth, and I think she looks GREAT paired with peach blushes like Benefit Georgia, NARS Orgasm, MAC Sunbasque, MAC Margin and MAC Peaches.

benefit sugar cookie and nars orgasm blush equal fabulous

Do you remember the sparkly glitter from last week’s look with MAC Lipgelee in Resort Life (part of the Venomous Villains release)? — how it ended up all over the place? Well, Sugar Cookie isn’t messy like that at all. Her golden glitter stays put, but all is not peaches in the garden of golden glitter.

Sadly, this Sugar Cookie disappears faster than…sugar cookies, or the box of toffee macadamia nut chocolates I opened last night right before bed.

My thighs keep telling me “No,” but my taste buds keep telling me “YES!”

I have to reapply Sugar Cookie often — about every two hours or so — unless I layer it atop a nude lip liner, which almost doubles her wear time.
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Like It Rough? Try Zia Skin Basics Bamboo Exfoliant with Rice Bran

September 18th, 2010 by Karen 19 Comments

zia bamboo exfoliant review

Criminy, and I thought my awkward tween years were rough, but Zia’s Skin Basics Bamboo Exfoliant with Rice Bran ($25) = even rougher.

Zia designed their creamy, non-foaming face exfoliator to slough off dead skin, stimulate cell turnover and remove surface toxins, and although the product’s not new, it contains an interesting list of ingredients, among them plant extracts like grape seed, soybean, rice brain, lemon peel, yucca and ylang ylang flower (no paraben as far as the eye can see!).

New to Zia? The botanical-based skin care and makeup line can be found at natural food stores like Whole Foods. Their products are free of harsh chemicals and artificial colors. Tabs loves that they’re also cruelty free.

Bamboo Exfoliant is part of Zia’s Skin Basics family of cleansers, treatments and moisturizers created for skin beginning to show the first signs of aging.

Using it for the first time, one word kept coming to mind: invigorating!

zia bamboo exfoliant review
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Supersize Your Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion with New PROFESSIONAL Size

September 18th, 2010 by Karen 30 Comments

urban decay eyeshadow primer potion professional size review

I pictured card-carrying members of the Urban Decay Eyeshadow Primer Potion cult dancing around the ceremonial bonfire when I heard about the new Eyeshadow Primer Potion Professional Size ($29).

For an extra $11 dollars, you get more than twice as much product as the regular size. Yes, the new 0.85 oz tube works out to about $34/ounce, versus the original 0.34 oz bottle at $53/ounce. Both still sound like a lot, but the larger bottle is clearly a better deal, especially if you wear the product daily (as many women do).

If you’re new to the stuff, Primer Potion’s a nude eyeshadow primer praised for its ability to increase the wear time of other eye products worn on top, and it’s been one of the most talked about eyeshadow primers of the past few years. Gals also use it to prevent/delay shadows from creasing and colors from fading, and it consistently receives high marks from devoted makeup fans.

I’d call myself a fan, but I wouldn’t say I’m a member of the cult.

When it comes to simple eye looks, I like Primer Potion. I use it to lock shadows down and for simple washes of color over the entire lid, but when it comes to more complicated eyeshadow looks with multiple colors and extensive blending, I actually think it makes it tougher to blend away harsh lines.

Instead, for more complex eye looks, I’ll reach for Urban Decay’s Eden Primer Potion, a newer formulation released earlier this year that I find makes shadows easier to blend.

urban decay eyeshadow primer potion professional size review with eden
.34 oz bottle of Urban Decay Eden (left), .85 oz tube of Eyeshadow Primer Potion Professional Size (right)
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