Urban Decay

A Summer Solstice Look: Hot Summer Nights

June 21st, 2019 by Karen 12 Comments

Welcome to summer! (It officially starts today for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, in case you didn’t notice.) Although I’m not a fan of sweltering hot days (especially since we don’t have an air conditioner in our place at the moment), one thing I’ve always loved about summer is when the sun sets and everything cools down juuuuuuust enough so you can walk around comfortably in the evening wearing shorts and a tank top or a dress.

This look was inspired by hot summer nights, and by one of my favorite crimson lipstick colors to wear when the weather heats up: matte coral red. This particular shade is MAC Relentlessly Red, which is available in the permanent line.

I usually apply matte coral reds like this one straight from the tube, but this time I decided to try something a little different by lining my lip line with a slightly darker red lip pencil and leaving the edges mostly unblended.

I’ve been into the unblended lip liner Kelly Clarkson usually wears on The Voice, so I wanted to dip a toe into the look! I haven’t worn unblended liner since 1998, so it was fun to try it again, even if the red-on-red combo is subtler than the stark dark plum liner-frosty pale beige lipstick combo I used to wear in college.

Oh, and did ya notice the cooler-toned olive taupe smudged on my lower lash line? I went for a foil to the warm shades on my eyes, cheeks and lips… I like those unexpected contrasts in makeup looks, don’t you?

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Two $22 Liquid Liners Worthy of Wings

June 17th, 2019 by Karen 12 Comments

urban decay perversion waterproof liner — Easy to use and won’t quit on you.

I worked out hard for an hour at the crack of dawn, then showered in water hot enough to melt bones, AND THEN I gallivanted for an entire day wearing black cat-colored PERVERSION Waterproof Fine-Point liquid liner Eye Pen by Urban Decay, and not once did I look in the mirror and think, “Ew, gross… I should probably take this off.”

I’m now 100% convinced that I could enter my final resting pyramid (with all of my kitty companions, of course), explore the afterworld for 2,000 years, and then be discovered with my cat eye flicks shiny, glossy, pitch black and totally intact. Yes, this liner is that serious.

First, I should say that I’m a Clinique liquid liner fan through and through because of how easy it is to draw crisp edges with their flexible pen tip. I also love that their formula isn’t too runny and goes exactly where I want it to go. IMO, it’s the overall best liquid liner around, but I think UD PERVERSION is very nearly equally great. It matches Clinique’s iconic status, and it’s just as easy to use, but the final look has even more oomph. It’s blacker than Clinique’s, too, with a high shine finish vs. Clinique’s demi-matte, so it draws attention in a way Clinique’s does not.

Interestingly, both of them are also $22.

UD’s dries quicker, so you don’t have quite as much time to fix wonky wings, although you can always correct them with a Q-tip dipped in an oil-based remover, of course, or do what I do, which is just say, “Eff it” and go with it, man. Not everything’s gotta be Insta-perfect, and most of the time nobody’s gonna notice anyway, unless your wings are, like, totally perpendicular, LOL!

All told, I’d recommend the Clinique one if you want a subtle black liquid liner that’s totally foolproof, and the UD one if you want to make a bolder statement.

Either way, though, you can’t go wrong.

BOMB bread at Trader Joe’s

Now that’s a phrase I never thought I’d type, since almost all of the sliced bread I’ve ever gotten from TJ’s (with the exception of the brioche) has been nothing short of tragic.

trader joes organic whole wheat bread — Hella good

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Hot in Here

June 14th, 2019 by Karen 14 Comments

Let’s just say that grocery shopping has been challenging…

Things nobody ever warns you about but probably should:

If you’re going to fill your trunk with things to donate to others — things that no longer spark joy for you (like that pink paisley polyester dress from Bebe you haven’t worn since 1999), but that could still hopefully spark joy for someone else, you’ve got to get your booty in the driver’s seat, put the keys in the ignition, and drive to Goodwill LIKE RIGHT NOW; otherwise, you’ll be driving around town with metal mixing bowls rattling around for months!
The majority of “adulting” consists of paperwork…and biting your tongue.
When the bare skin on your thighs repeatedly rubs together over a long period of time, it really, really hurts.

I’d like to file these things under “Lessons I’ve Learned the Hard Way,” especially item number three, which I figured out during my first half marathon. About halfway through, the friction between my bare thighs hurt so bad that I had a minor meltdown. I cried for three miles straight and had visions of the ground opening up underneath me and swallowing me whole.

I can laugh about it now, but it was like a raging garbage fire between my inner thighs at the time. This minor trauma taught me that whenever I wear something like shorts or a maxi dress, and I know that my legs are going to be rubbing against each other, it’s vital to have something to ease the glide between my thighs. I used to use a little Vaseline (I’d store it in an old contact lens case to prevent spillage in my purse!), but I got tired of it staining my clothes, so I just recently started using the Anti-Chafe Stick by Love AnyBody.

This unscented, non-sticky balm can be applied pretty much anywhere and everywhere your skin rubs — underarms, your neck, and the nook beneath your boobs — to stop chafing. It has vitamin E and aloe to soothe irritated skin, and no parabens or aluminum. The stick’s a little big and awkward to keep in a purse, but it’s convenient and doesn’t stain my clothes. I have a stick in my bathroom and use it in the morning, but I’m thinking about keeping an additional stick in my car because it’s kinda like deodorant or hand cream; it’s always handy to have extra around. I just whip it out and slick it on! Life changing, especially in this hot weather, I tell ya.

Another warm weather must-have I rely on: waterproof mascara. For YEARS, my go-to was Urban Decay Cannonball, which they discontinued a while back… Yes, I’m still hella salty about that, because why mess with a good thing?? Anyway, they replaced it with a waterproof version of their Perversion Mascara ($24). I’m totally on board with its dark black color, the anime ingenue curl and smudge-proof-ness (it was 99 degrees here yesterday, and there wasn’t a single smear underneath my eyes). Taking it off is also a cinch ’cause it slides right off with an oil-based makeup remover, so I don’t stress about my lashes breaking off. (Always a good thing.)

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Lady Unicorn

May 31st, 2019 by Karen 27 Comments

GIRL. I haven’t worn big lashes in how long? But it’s just like riding a bike!

I’m also wearing a lot of glitter in this lady unicorn look, I know.

I was inspired by unicorns because my daughter is obsessed with them at the moment, and, let’s face it, so am I.

Oh, and body glitter. I’m wearing it too because WHY NOT? FYI, body glitter has come a loooooong way since I wore it back in the day. This one from Urban Decay comes in a tube, and you kinda just put it anywhere — on your face, in your hair, on your arms, on your neck, your legs.

And, seriously, it does not come off! My goodness, I remember the old stuff lasting about 2.5 seconds in my clubbing days, so props to the sparkly scientists who finally discovered a way to get glitter to stick to yo’ body.

Eyes: Urban Decay After Dark Palette, Urban Decay 24/7 Pencils (Roxy, Electric Empire), MAC 75 Lashes, MAC Graphblack liner, MAC Princess Jasmine Palette (from the Aladdin collection), Urban Decay Glitter Liner in Disco

Face: MAC Studio Fix in NC42 mixed with Pinklite Strobe Cream, NARS Summer Lights palette (bronzer and highlighter), Urban decay Heavy Metal Glitter Gel in Saturday Stardust

Lips: MAC Honey Love Lipstick, Hourglass Prose Lip Gloss

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The New Urban Decay Naked Reloaded Palette

February 11th, 2019 by Karen 15 Comments

Dude, can you believe UD’s O.G. Naked Palette is almost 10 years old?

Wait — should that be in the past tense? Because UD phased out the O.G. Naked (RIP). They replaced it with Naked Reloaded, which’ll be out in less than week!

Overview

What is it? Naked Reloaded replaces the now-defunct Naked Palette. It has 12 powder eyeshadows, and four of the pans — satiny beige Bribe, shimmery golden Barely Baked, matte orange-brown Boundaries and matte peachy beige Blur — contain more product than the others. Those are the shades UD thinks you’ll use the most.
How much is it? ~~I haven’t confirmed this yet, but I’m guessing it’ll be $54, which is how much UD charges for the other Naked Palettes in the permanent collection.~~ It’s $44.
Who’s it for? According to UD, errrrrbody, because the colors and textures are supposed to work for every age, gender and skin tone.
When can you get it? February 18th on the UD website and at Urban Decay stores, March 4th on the Sephora and Ulta websites, and March 7th at Sephora and Ulta stores.
How is it different than the original Naked? Reloaded has more mid-toned warm browns and fewer cooler, darker shades like grays and taupes. It also doesn’t have a dual-ended liner or a brush, and then there are the four larger pans.
Is it like any of the other Naked palettes? Yup, I think so. Naked Reloaded is like a warmer, powered-up Naked on the Run (without the cheek and lip products), with lots of mid-toned colors to make it versatile. The color temps are warm like Naked Heat, but nowhere near as red.
What about the eyeshadow formula? It’s what I’ve come to expect from UD eyeshadows. They’re soft and silky with fluffy powder particles that like to fly when I touch one of the pans with a brush. Based on a prelim arm swatch, most of them feel smooth, except for Angel Fire, which has huskier glitter than the other shimmers, so it’s on the chunky side.
What about that orange? MAN, I’m so over UD’s obsession with orange in their eye palettes… I like orange eyeshadow well enough, but it keeps popping up everywhere, and I’d just assume see something else in place of it.

urban decay naked reloaded swatches tan skin — I’m an NC42 in MAC.

urban decay naked reloaded swatches — Please note the Taylor Swift-ian references…

urban decay naked reloaded — In paw for scale…

Oh, and pardon me for going all X-Files for a moment, but IT’S CONSPIRACY THEORY TIME! Here’s why I think Reputation and End Game, two of the colors, sound like Taylor Swift song references to me: Because I think someone at UD is secretly weighing in on the Taylor Swift vs. Kim/Kanye feud that hit a couple years ago… Or maybe I’m writing too much into it, LOL!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Check Out Urban Decay Streetstyle Brow

January 11th, 2019 by Karen 6 Comments

You guys. I ascribe to the philosophy that if you ever feel like your life is spiraling, get your hair situation worked out, and everything will (probably) be OK.

Ludicrous? Perhaps.

Basically, get your hair outta that fun bun or that high pony and actually DO something with it. Then, fill in your brows, and the world will soon be right again. Hopefully… I mean it can’t hurt.

This held true at the gym the other night where I was wearing one of the new Urban Decay brow products from the Streetstyle Brow collection. Coincidentally, I had my hair down and done (because I hadn’t yet put it into my usual ponytail), and a couple of my friends in the class were like, “You look so nice today! What did you do?” to which I said, “Thank you! Brows and hair, babe. BROWS. AND. HAIR.”

So, obviously, UD’s brow products aren’t going to help you tame your crazy cowlick situation (that’s up to you, girl), but they will help you fill in your brows and make them more voluminous, fluffy and Insta-grammy (if that’s what you’re going for). You can do any brow style you like with something from this new collection of products.

BROW FINISH Waterproof Brow Gel ($21)

They’ve actually got some really innovative things, too, like this glittery brow gel.

(I know! It sounds absolutely bonkers, but stay with me.)

Essentially, Brow Finish in Midnight Cowboy is a clear gel with golden microglitter in it that you brush through your brows. It’s surprisingly flattering to have something sparkly above the lids. I don’t know the science behind it, but it’s super pretty. Obviously, I wouldn’t rock it to a job interview, but if I’m just tooling around town or going to Petco or a party, it’s good stuff.

By the way, it’s dries to a medium hold, so it isn’t super rigid, and there’s also a clear version called Ozone that doesn’t have the sparkles and also has a little weaker hold.

BROW BLADE Ink Stain + Waterproof Pencil ($26)

I’m also super impressed by their dual-ended Brow Blades, which have a sheer, flexible felt tip marker on one end and a fine brow pencil on the other. You can use each by itself or combine them together.

I think they’re great if you want to fill in your brows and have them still look natural.

Favorite thing about them? The felt tip pen. You can get a decent amount of color into your brows quickly with it, and the color lasts all day long…as long as you aren’t sweating like a mofo. It didn’t last through my HIIT workout at the gym, which was a bummer, but hey, I was dripping in sweat because we were doing the rowing machines, and those things kill me. So I do not blame the brows, LOL!

I would recommend Brow Blade to anybody who wants natural-looking filled-in brows. Also good if you have gaps between your brows, or if you want to extend your brow tails. t’s fabulous.
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The Easiest Way to Wear Red Lipstick

December 12th, 2018 by Karen 17 Comments

urban decay tryst lipstick — —-> I’ve found your new favorite way to wear red lipstick. ?

Nine times out of 10, I’d rather wear a nude lip than a red, because I just don’t like having to deal with the precision, man. I don’t want to spend the time loading a lip brush or dealing with red lip liner, or correcting any wonkiness with concealer. I just wanna put on some lipstick, quickly, and get on to living my cat’s best life, ha ha ha!

Be that as it may, this doesn’t mean I don’t ❤️ wearing red lips because I totally do! — especially during the holidays. ‘Tis the season for red, after all, so I have a workaround way to wear red that I’ve been loving lately, and I think you will too.

Note: It’s SUPER easy.

I’ve been doing it a lot lately with Urban Decay Vice Lipstick in Tryst ($18), a charming creamy reddish fuchsia.

Here it is straight from the tube. No liner, no lip brush.

urban decay tryst lip swatch — Crazy for crimson (but not the time it takes to apply it)

I like this red full-on by itself, but it does take some elbow grease to get everything all even, and to do it semi-decently in a moving car, which is where I usually put on my lip color these days, because I’m always cutting it this close to getting somewhere on time.

So lately I’ll start with a layer of nude lipstick (Honest Beauty Blossom is my current fave, but any nude should work) instead. Then, after I get a layer down, I apply a thin layer of red lipstick on top, directly from the tube. Then I rub my lips together to mix everything, and feather the edges with a finger.

urban decay tryst on top of honest beauty blossom — You can totally do this in a moving vehicle, I swear.

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Hanging With “Makeup People,” and Thoughts on Looking Like You’re Trying With Your Makeup Even Though You Really Haven’t Tried at All

November 9th, 2018 by Karen 15 Comments

Last weekend at a children’s birthday party, which was held inside an art studio, I got to make pinch bowls with ceramic clay (I asked El Hub if he wanted to recreate that scene with Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore from Ghost but he said no). At the party, I bumped into a fellow makeup person (hey, Shakun!), and as our kids devoured birthday cake and buzzed around the room, naturally, the conversation drifted to the makeup we were wearing, because that’s what you do when you are a “makeup person,” as opposed to a standard “makeup civilian” (yes, I’m officially coining that term right now).

Big surprise! — I was wearing neutrals on my lids and lips, but because it was a party and I felt like I needed to try a little bit, I also drew some shimmery blue winged liner at the last minute using two colors for an ombre effect. I used a light teal in the inner part of the lash line (Urban Decay Deep End) and a darker sapphire for the outer third and wing (LSD, also by UD).

Not one at that party — not even El Hub, who was the person who probably spent the most time looking directly at my eyes that afternoon — noticed that I was wearing two shades of blue liner, except for Shakun.

BAM! Right off the bat, she pointed out the ombre effect and asked what I used. Funny how it’s like that when you’re hanging with a makeup person, right?! They notice the details right away.

I complimented Shakun on her bright red matte lipstick, and she said that she was wearing red lips because she didn’t have a lot of time to get ready, but she still wanted to look like she tried because it was a party. LOL!

That got me thinking bout the things we do as “makeup people” when we want to look like we tried, but we’re still pressed for time.

I definitely have a go-to bag of tricks for these occasions, like colorful liner, of course, which is so easy, and it’s even easier if you leave out the winged part of it. Anything jewel-toned and shimmery, I like, but purples are what I reach for the most. And GLITTER! A glittery liquid liner, or a glittery eyeshadow top coat (Urban Decay Diamond Dog!), always works wonders and doesn’t take a lot of effort. And, of course, a bright hot pink or red lip. All of these things pop with hardly any effort.

False lashes also up the ante, but at this point in my life I reserve them for special events and holidays like Halloween.

Thanks for being a fellow makeup person. 🙂 Because sometimes I really need someone more interactive to talk to about these things than Tabs…

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF!