Unsung Heroes

MAC Unsung Heroes: Nice Buzz Plushglass

November 9th, 2012 by Karen 26 Comments

I wonder if MAC was referring to a short haircut when they gave this shimmery, light golden pearl member of Club Plushglass its name.

Hmm… Probably not!

While gorgeous all by itself, I think this $19.50 workhorse purse gloss really looks fetching with smokey eyes.

It’s yet another great member of the always dependable Plushglass family. I love that I can just plop ’em on without a mirror, on account of how sheer they are. No muss, no fuss. And they fade over time without leaving one of those funky white lip lines behind…

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Unsung Heroes: Benefit Skinny Jeans Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner

November 5th, 2012 by Karen 39 Comments

Aaand this is how much I love Benefit’s $19 Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liner in Skinny Jeans…

Yeah, THAT much.

I just picked up my umpteenth pot and figured it was high time I publically professed my love for this shimmery cream eyeshadow.

Why? Because these Skinny Jeans are astronomical! — in that they also moonlight as an eyeliner and an eyeshadow base.

Benefit describes the color as a “pretty pewter,” but I think Skinny Jeans is more complex than that. On my NC42 skin, it’s like an alchemist’s brew, an enchanting blend of khaki, gray and taupe.

So pretty!

Question: how are real skinny jeans like zombies? Answer: they keep coming back from the dead! Seriously, what’s up with that? Just when I think skinny jeans have gone out of style forever, they come back! Which reminds me…OMG! Last night’s The Walking Dead!!

I happen to love these skinny jeans, because unlike the tapered Guess acid-washed pair (with the zippers on the ankles) I wore in eighth grade, these always fit. 🙂

You know how a black blazer can really dress up a pair of jeans and a white tee? Well, that’s what I think Skinny Jeans does for my eyes.

If I’m wearing something basic and simple — like maybe a sheer lip balm, a dash of cream blush and a couple coats of mascara — Skinny Jeans on my lids and lower lash lines adds some polish to the look and turns things up a notch.

I’ll happily wear this Creaseless Cream/Liner any time of year, but because it has some smokiness to it, my favorite times to wear it are fall and winter.

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MAC Unsung Heroes: 33 Lash

October 24th, 2012 by Karen 20 Comments

The MAC 33 Lash ($16) is a bundle of joy — well, technically, bundles of joy — and my favorite false lash style in MAC’s entire permanent line.

See how the lashes are gathered into little bundles along the strip? And how within each bundle, the individual lashes on the sides are shorter than they are in the middle?

Also, notice how the biggest, baddest bundles are near the middle of the strip?

Now that’s just cool. And fancy. 🙂

“Well, hello there, young sir. Why, yes, these are my natural lashes, and yes, I do always look this wide-eyed and bushy-tailed, thank you for asking. I hope you don’t mind if I bat my “natural” lashes at you. It’s a nervous habit, tee-hee!”

I love that when I wear these, I can really see the difference in the length and thickness of my lashes, but I still feel like they could almost pass for natural. They’re big, but not crazy, totally outlandishly huge.

That said, these are not the false lashes I’d want to wear if I were otherwise covered in glitter at da cloob.… Not that I’ve done anything like that in, like, 10 years.

Seriously, if there were a cage, glitter and dancing in my immediate future (stranger things have happened), I’d probably opt for something more club-rageous like MAC’s 34 or 36 lashes instead.

These 33s are more like wedding day lashes — flirty, classic, beautiful and comfy. The super thin lash strip feels like nothing at all on my lids, and the lashes themselves aren’t so long that they make my eyes feel all droopy, which happens with some really ridonkulously huge false lashes.

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MAC Unsung Heroes: Shale Eyeshadow

October 22nd, 2012 by Karen 31 Comments

Ever tear into your makeup bag and think, “I need some color in my life!” But you’re at work, or you’re getting ready for work, and you still have to look responsible?

When you just don’t feel like wearing neutrals on your eyes but absolutely, positively must have a little color, try Shale…

No, not those little wafer-shaped rocks that you find along river banks (which are great for skipping, BTW).

Shale, as in MAC’s Shale Eyeshadow ($15).

I’d be willing to wager my MAC 217 that you may never want to pick up another brown or —

Okay…let me rephrase that, because I’m not about to risk losing my beloved MAC 217. 🙂

Once this pliant plum finds its way on your lids early one morning before school or work, you may never feel the need to pick up another workday brown or beige. That little cactus in your cubicle may never ever again see you wearing another neutral on your lids.

So what exactly are we talking about here?

Well, we’re talking about Shale! It’s a semi-sheer, cool-toned plummy mauve with subtle silver shimmer, and because it is fairly neutral (and consequently works well on warm- and cool-toned babes), but still has a little somethin’-somethin’ under the hood, it’s a great alternative to typical play-it-safe work shades.

Absolutely, there are much more intense plums and purples out there, even among neutral-ish shades, like Satin Taupe, Sable and Trax, but that’s one of the reasons I Shale.

Shale is a little sheerer than the average bear, which makes it almost fool-proof (perfect for me, LOL!), but it’s not so sheer that I feel like I have to pack on 12 pounds of the stuff to see it on my NC42 skin.

Say I wake up on a workday morning with plums and purples on my mind… If I only have a few minutes to get ready before zipping out the door, I’ll pat Shale on my lids with a MAC 239 and smooth out the edges with a 217.

Then, on my lash and water lines, I’ll add either a dark gray eyeliner like Laura Mercier Stormy Grey or a deep plum one like MAC Prunella.

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Unsung Heroes: Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation

October 18th, 2012 by Karen 41 Comments

Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation Review — Wearing Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation in 12

What’s lightweight, covers imperfections like a master painter’s brush and flatters faces with a flawless, natural-looking matte finish?

Is it A) your beloved Jason Voorhees mask from Friday the 13th, B) Tabs the cat or C) the $42 Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation?

If you answered C, yay! 🙂 Count yourself among the lucky crew of Skin Base fanatics.

I just recently discovered this full-coverage, hydrating foundation, and dang if it’s not all kinds of awesome, blossom.

I’ve been wearing it off and on for the past few weeks, both in pics here on the blog and out and about (Trader Joe’s pumpkin madness, y’all!), and I’m finding myself reaching for it more and more often when it comes time to put on my warpaint.

Illamasqua refers to Skin Base as “the ultimate foundation” and claims the moisturizing, matte formula smooths skin, controls shine and creates a skin-matched finish that still looks natural. Heck, they say it’s even undetectable in HD footage (ooh, I wanna give that a try…)!

Sounds like a lot of hype, right? Well, you know what? I’m a believer.

illamasqua skin base foundation swatches — Swatches of Illamasqua Skin Base Foundation in 12 (one of 17 shades) unblended on the left and blended on the right

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Unsung Heroes: Chanel Poudres Universelle Libre Natural Finish Loose Powder

October 12th, 2012 by Karen 23 Comments

chanel natural finish loose powder — Chanel Poudre Universelle Libre Natural Finish Loose Powder in 040 Dore ($52)

My buddy Kat was giving me a ride to the airport last week when we got to talking about what I like to call, “The Chanel Effect.”

Whenever I visit a Chanel counter only intending to look, or only planning to get one thing, like a lipstick, or snagging a sample of eye cream, but then one of the makeup artists says, “Here, try this on,” hands me a mirror, and I see in my reflection what can only be described as a makeup miracle, that is The Chanel Effect.

LOL! I made myself laugh… 🙂

I experienced it a few weeks ago with Chanel’s Poudre Universelle Libre in 040 Dore, otherwise known as Chanel Natural Finish Loose Powder.

It was a Saturday afternoon. Bloated and cranky, I’d been buffeted by a monster riptide of hormones, and through a veil of tears, I told El Hub that one of two things was about to happen. Either I was going to go to a Chanel counter right then and there, or I was going to stab him with a fork.

Wisely, he suggested the former.

At the counter, one of the makeup artists talked me into trying Chanel’s $52 Natural Finish Loose Powder, a sheer, light-coverage matte powder.

After seeing myself with it on, I shot the artist a look like, good gawd, woman! I had to do a double take. The girl staring back at me in the mirror looked like she was 26!

No wonder the stuff gets such consistently high marks, despite the price and the fact that it’s only available in three colors.

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Unsung Heroes: Laura Mercier Metallic Creme Eye Colour in Copper

October 8th, 2012 by Karen 38 Comments

I’m not saying I’m ready to raise my hands up to the heavens and yell at the top of my lungs, “J.K. Rowling was right! Magic is real!!” but I’m not ruling it out anymore.

It sure looks like there was wizardry at work over at Laura Mercier headquarters, also known as the Hogwarts of the makeup world, when they concocted Metallic Creme Eye Colour in Burnished Copper ($22).

If you’ve ever dreamt of a creamy version of MAC Sable or, perhaps less likely, imagined yourself smearing a magic potion made of melted copper pennies all over your lids, this warm reddish bronze, with its whisper of plummy gold, could be your dreams coming to life.

For years I’ve searched for something I could use as a base to intensify the copper, bronze, plum, gold and brown colors I love to wear in the fall. With Burnished Copper, I think I’ve finally found it.

Smooth and fluffy, it spreads across my combo oily/dry lids without tugging, and the long-lasting formula has incredible fortitude once it sets. It should last all day long on most skin types, with the possible exception of gals/guys with extremely oily lids, who may need the extra help of a primer.

laura mercier burnished copper swatch — Unblended (left) and blended (right)

Remarkably, considering how shiny they are, Laura’s Metallic Cream Eye Colours have always treated my fine lines with dignity and respect. How she manages to make them so shiny without going overboard on the frost is a mystery to me.

I like knowing that I can wear Burnished Copper all by itself, with just a swish of black liner on my upper and lower water and lash lines, without stressing out about it settling into the crinkles that show up when I smile.

Seriously, if that’s not magic, I don’t know what is. 🙂

Where cat ladies like to shop…

Yesterday afternoon, El Hub and I drove down to the mall to grab a burger (his was meat-ful, mine was veg), and after eating, we just sort of tooled around, first to REI to look at camping/zombie apocalypse supplies, like water purification tablets, hatchets and bags of freeze dried food (the Eggs Benedict stays fresh through 2018).

After REI, we walked into Urban Outfitters, where I haven’t been for a while (I feel like I’m too old for most of their clothes, truth be told), but I was really surprised by their big selection of gadgets and gizmos.

They also had a bunch of old-fashioned film cameras and other random tchotchkes and baubles…
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Unsung Heroes: Laura Mercier Metallic Creme Eye Colour in Alloy

September 28th, 2012 by Karen 17 Comments

Lately Laura Mercier’s Metallic Creme Eye Colour in Alloy ($22) has been totally twitching my tail.

I’m not sure if it’s more because I just recently re-discovered my love for Laura Mercier’s permanent line (oh hai, Black Gold and Stormy Grey), because Chanel’s new Harmonie du Soir Quad keeps begging me to find her an appropriate playmate, or just because it’s one of the best taupe products I’ve ever tried. Or maybe a combination of all three.

Whatever the why, with Alloy, the beauty gods granted all of my taupe eye makeup wishes.

Is it neutral enough to flatter warm and cool skin tones? Yup.
Does the finish look alive (and not flat)? Yes again. In fact, I think the glistening metallic finish is just luminous enough to qualify as awesome.
Does it last long enough? I think so. How does eight hours sound?
Does it spread, layer, buff and blend like a dream? Yes, yes, yes and yes. 🙂 All thanks to an epic creamy formula.

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