Product Reviews

Get Ashy: MAC Cosmetics Volcanic Ash Exfoliator

June 21st, 2008 by Karen 23 Comments

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All soaps, shower gels and exfoliating scrubs have one glorious thing in common: they make us feel clean and pretty. And most of the time, cleansers and scrubs — true to form — look and smell clean and pretty, too.

Oh, but not so with MAC’s Volcanic Ash Exfoliator ($19). To be blunt, it looks like dirt — magical dirt.

As you might expect, it’s the jet black volcanic ash in the product that makes it look the way that it does. The feeling I got looking at my arms and legs in the shower after I worked the fine, scrubbing grains onto my freshly rinsed skin was one of impressed confusion. I was impressed because the product felt effective (like a good, deep cleanser) and confused because my skin looked covered in soot. COOL!
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Dior Impression Cuir: Early Reviews and Swatches

June 20th, 2008 by Karen 21 Comments

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Bust out your alligator pumps, white cardigan sweater, pearls and pencil skirt, and let’s explore Dior’s upcoming Fall 2008 Impression Cuir collection. YES!

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I just received previews of two of the items from the upcoming collection (due out this August). Sometimes, I feel like brown can be a little boring, but when it’s done well, as I think it has been here, brown can be downright smokin’.

After playing with the Impression Cuir eyeshadow palette and Rouge Dior Fiction Brown lipstick this morning, I felt very much like a hot librarian in training. I almost wanted to don my glasses, put my hair in a bun and talk sweet, sweet dewey decimals. Fo’ reals!

Impression Cuir eyeshadows on the top; Fiction Brown lipstick on the bottom
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The Impression Cuir Palette ($55) contains a trio of bronze, brown and beige shimmer eyeshadows embossed with a pretty alligator-skin pattern on the pan. The tiny sparkles give the shades a lil’ extra kick, but the colors in this palette are still very work-friendly.

In the picture above I’m wearing the beige on the brow bone, bronze in the crease and beige on the lid. I like how the colors blend seamlessly into each other. With these shades, creating subtle, yet sexy eye looks is a breeze. I can even picture the colors mixing well with greens, browns, pinks and purples. If you’ve been wanting to try Dior eyeshadows, let this palette be your gateway makeup drug! Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A

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Chanel Fall 2008: Early Reviews and Swatches

June 18th, 2008 by Karen 42 Comments

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Ahhh… You know things are going well when 1) your coffee tastes better than usual, and 2) your day begins with new Chanel.

Even though it feels a little weird to talk about fall makeup in early summer, my Chanel homie just hooked me up a with few preview products from the fall 2008 collection. Autumn leaves, here I come!

The entire gold-themed collection lands at Chanel counters this July, but here are three members of the fall collection. I’ve yet to see the items I’m *really* lusting after — the Gold Fever Highlighter and the Gold Light Glossimer — in person, but these should tide me over for now.

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Rouge Hydrabase Lipstick in Great Copper ($26)

A semi-matte lipstick, Rouge Hydrabase in Great Copper feels nothing like those dry, cakey, heavy matte formulas of the 90s. I really like the formula Chanel used for Rouge Hydrabase. It’s light and incredibly moisturizing. Great Copper literally shimmers on my lips, and it almost couldn’t be easier to wear (That’s it in the picture above without a lipliner).

I can see myself wearing it to work every day. I know that wearing gloss on top of matte lipsticks sort of defeats the purpose, but I can’t wait to wear a thick layer of clear gloss on top of this. My makeup spider sense tells me it’s gonna look somethin’ fierce. Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A

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Jouse Contraste Powder Blush in Rose Dust ($40)

This beauty gives cheeks a matte, rosy plum glow. At first glance I was afraid this shade would be too cool and light for my tanned, post-vacation face, but after dusting two layers onto my cheeks I saw I was wrong to worry. Unlike light pink blushes with a tendency to look too obvious on tanned or dark skin (in a “Hey, look at me, I’m wearing blush!” kind of way), Rose Dust looks great on a tan. The shade reminds me of MAC’s Blushbaby! Still, because the pink is so light, I have a feeling it will look great on pale gals, too. Oh, and the texture? It’s soft like buttah, baby! Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A+
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Review: Bumble and Bumble Creme de Coco Masque

June 17th, 2008 by Karen 41 Comments

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Sorry for the late post, guys! I got home from the airport around midnight last night and woke up a little jet lagged. All morning I felt like I was slow-motion Karen, like my brain was moving at the speed of soup!

I took a nice, long shower to get my rear into gear and did much-needed post vacation beauty maintenance before heading to work. I used Volcanic Ash Exfoliator by MAC Cosmetics to exfoliate my feet and body (review to follow shortly!) and Bumble and Bumble’s new Creme de Coco Masque ($24) on my hair, a once-a-week moisturizing conditioner that’s supposed to make hair shiny, smooth and soft.

It’s the newest member of Bumble and Bumble’s Creme de Coco family and chock full of coconut oil, a common ingredient in beauty products for skin and hair. The folks at Bumble and Bumble say that Creme De Coco Masque takes coconut oil to the next level with “breakthrough Japanese technology.” I’m not exactly sure what they meant by that, but it sounds sufficiently awesome.

In a coconut and vegetable derived base, Creme de Coco also contains mango and shea butters, avocado oil, and botanical extracts of olive leaf, nettle, horsetail and mallow. I think it sounds like a yummy salad.

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I returned from Hawaii with a tan, macadamia nuts, kona coffee … and dry, crunchy, damaged hair. Go figure. There’s a certain poetry to using a product filled with tropical ingredients to repair the damage done to my hair by sun and salt water.

A few years ago I went through a bout of extra crispy hair and tried Bumble and Bumble’s Deeep (with three Eees) Conditioner, another weekly hair masque treatment. I liked it and remember that it worked back then, so I was eager to try out Bumble and Bumble’s Creme de Coco.

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Still in the shower after washing my hair, I massaged two silver dollar’s worth of Creme de Coco Masque into my hair, spending extra time to work the product into the dry ends. Directions on the bottle suggest leaving it on for at least seven minutes before rinsing, so, while I waited for the Masque to do its thang, I took the opportunity to exfoliate my body, because I’m all about multi-tasking. 🙂
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Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection 55 for Face and Body: Goodbye Zombie Tan

June 16th, 2008 by Karen 19 Comments

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I’m going to be in travel mode and midair much of the day but still wanted to check in and say hello.

Hello! 🙂

I’m sitting here in the living room of my in-law’s place listening to the neighborhood chickens go nuts (they must be sad to see me go) and hearing mangos regularly drop from tall trees with loud thuds in the backyard jungle.

Even though I won’t be hitting the beach today (or for a long time, for that matter), it’s still sunny outside, so I’ve slathered myself up with Shiseido Ultimate Sun Protection Lotion SPF 55 PA +++ ($37), the sunscreen I’ve reached for more than any other on this trip.

Containing two active sunblock ingredients — octinoxate (UVB protectant) and zinc oxide (UVA and UVB protectant) — Shiseido 55 blocks both kinds of damaging ultraviolet radiation. My ample “testing” over the past week also showed it to be highly water resistant — hello, a total must for my sweaty self. The product marketing claims Shiseido 55 remains active for up to 80 minutes in water. Based on my experience with it, that estimate seems about right to me.

I’m a sunscreen addict, and most of the other high SPF lotions I’ve tried either don’t absorb well — I’m talking five minutes of vigorous rubbing to sufficiently cover one arm — or they leave a whitish-grey film on my skin, aka zombie tan. Shiseido overcame both issues with this product. It absorbs quickly and doesn’t leave a white or grey cast.

BEAUTY ALERT: MAC Cosmetics Coupon Code

This morning a gal pal at MAC sent this much appreciated coupon for their online friends and family sale. Good today only. Type in MACFF8 at checkout to get free shipping and 15% off your purchase. Cool Heat, anyone?

Many sunscreens, especially high SPF ones, feel thick and greasy like Vaseline. Shiseido 55 doesn’t. It never feels sticky, greasy or uncomfortable at all, not even on my neck, and I totally dig the light, beachy fragrance.

Yes, $37 is a lot to pay for a 3.3 oz bottle of sunscreen when you can buy a bottle of BullFrog Sunblock for $8, but this is our skin we’re talking about. I put the bulk of my skin care budget toward sun protection because of how crucial it is to wrinkle prevention. This product is worth its weight in gold.
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Clinique Liquid Facial Soap, Mild: A Handy Travel Buddy

June 13th, 2008 by Karen 14 Comments

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Last week, while packing for my trip, I couldn’t find my precious little travel-sized bottle of Philosophy’s Purity Made Simple. What a bummer! I love that stuff. It’s my overall, all-time favorite facial cleanser, but it was nowhere to be found, so I tossed a tube of Clinique’s Liquid Facial Soap into my travel bag and hoped for the best.

Risky move? Maybe. Before this week, I’d never used the product before. It came into my life about a month ago as part of a gift with purchase.

I have sensitive skin, prone to breakouts, especially when I use new facial products. I certainly didn’t want to be wrestling with a new crop of zits while on vacation, but because my face generally tolerates Clinique products well, I decided to chance it.

The product comes in two versions, mild and oily (the stronger one). I have the mild version. A dime-sized amount of the clear, non-scented cleanser removes all of my makeup (even the waterproof Clarins Wonder Mint mascara I’ve been wearing every day) and leaves my skin feeling crisp and clean without a lot of tightening. After about a week of use it hasn’t yet broken me out.
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Neutrogena MoistureShine Lip Soother SPF 20 Lipgloss: A Budget Forget-Me-Not

June 9th, 2008 by Karen 48 Comments

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When I hit the beach I make it a rule to leave the expensive stuff at home because stuff has a tendency to disappear near large bodies of water — fancy sunglasses get forgotten on restroom counters, keys fall out of pockets in the surf and cars get broken into. I just bring the bare essentials of inexpensive beauty beach survival along with me and leave my beach bag in the car or on shore. That way, if (when) something does disappear, it’s not hard to replace.

If I were a rich heiress, I’d have an endless supply of Clinique’s Long Last Glosswear SPF 15 lipgloss and would absentmindedly forget tubes of it everywhere, but I’m not a rich heiress. At $14 bucks a pop, I’m not about to risk losing Glosswear, so on beach trips I’m bringing along my tube of Neutrogena MoistureShine Lip Soother SPF 20 in Sheen ($6). This lil’ tube of gloss works like a charm, costs half as much as Glosswear does and still provides great SPF protection.

Sheen looks bright red in the tube but applies sheer pink. It has a light, slick feel on my lips, a subtle taste (which I don’t mind… It actually tastes really good, like watermelon Jolly Ranchers!) and subtle cooling effect. Great stuff, but it does have one unfortunate drawback: it doesn’t last (gives up after about two hours).
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Estee Lauder Private Collection Tuberose Gardenia: A Floral Day Fragrance

June 8th, 2008 by Karen 28 Comments

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When we arrived in Hawaii the other day, my sweet mum-in-law greeted us at the airport with tuberose leis. Tuberose are small, fragrant, tube-shaped flowers with a light rosy fragrance I strongly associate with Hawaii.

But you don’t have to visit the islands to experience the fragrant tuberose. Just head to your nearby Nordstrom Estee Lauder counter and ask to test the Private Collection Tuberose Gardenia Eau de Parfum ($65-120), a white floral combining the scents of tuberose and gardenia.

There are subtle transitions between the top, middle and base notes.

Aerin Lauder, granddaughter of Estee Lauder, originally developed the fragrance for herself and for friends.

Fragrance notes

Top notes: tuberose
Middle notes: gardenia
Base notes: carnation

Estee Lauder used the following elements to create the fragrance: neroli (a plant oil similar to bergamot), lilac, rosewood, tuberose, gardenia, jasmine, white lilies, orange flowers, carnation, vanilla, bourbon

To closely match the scents of flowers in nature, Lauder used a fragrance technology they refer to as “Nature Intact,” and with it the perfumers really hit this one on the nose (pardon the pun). Wearing the scent makes me feel like I’m wearing a tuberose lei.

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I’ve been “visiting” this scent at the Nordie’s Estee Lauder counter near my house in Marin, practically dousing myself in it for the last month, but I’d been on the fence about purchasing it because of the price. The lesser expensive eau de parfum version (1 oz bottle) will set you back $65; a 2.5 oz bottle runs $120. A 1 oz bottle of the more concentrated perfume version, which I haven’t smelled, comes in a beautiful jeweled-top bottle and costs $300. Yes, you read that correctly: $300.

Since tomorrow is my birthday, and to commemorate this trip, I think I’m going to take the plunge and treat myself to the $65 eau de parfum. Hopefully, back at home in Marin, when I wear it I’ll think of Hawaii!

Estee Lauder Private Collection Tuberose Gardenia Eau de Parfum Spray

Price: $65, 1 oz bottle; $120, 2.5 oz bottle
Use: A light, white floral fragrance reminiscent of Hawaii
Makeup and Beauty Blog Rating: A

Try Private Collection Tuberose Gardenia at Nordstrom Estee Lauder counters or look for it online.

Yesterday, I spent the day in sunny Waikiki after watching the Kamehameha Day Floral Parade, the second oldest parade in America, and the only one to celebrate a king. I didn’t expect the parade to be as interactive as it was. Members of the audience would run out to meet, shake hands with and to hug and take photos with the parade participants as the floats passed by. I was told by people in the audience that Hawaii has a lot of parades. I guess there’s always something here to celebrate.

After the parade we headed to the Elks Club at the foot of Diamond Head mountain to hang out by the pool and to watch contestants come in from a kayak regatta. We finished the day with a trip to the Honolulu Aquarium. I wasn’t able to go surfing because the waves were just too big for me (eight footers!) and, hello! — I am way too wimpy to handle those bad boys.

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