Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup

Rise and shine, morning glory! How was your Saturday? It was a pretty autumn day here in Novato. The leaves are just starting to fall, and since I can’t do anything to stop the coming winter, I guess that means I’d better focus on the positives and learn to live with it, le sigh…

If you ever get the chance to visit the San Francisco Bay Area, I really hope you make it up here to Northern Marin County. The rolling, grassy hills and oak tree forests look like something transported from the Loir Valley in France, except with ranch-style homes and Costco stores taking up places where epic chateaus and gardens would be.

That’s not to say it isn’t as pretty here, but the French do have a different perspective on suburban commercial development (they basically don’t allow it).

Speaking of France, being so close to Wine Country here gives us lots of quaint French bakeries, which resemble regular bakeries and sandwich places but have outdoor seating and the word “French” somewhere in the name. 🙂 The one we went to yesterday was lovely. We got salads and sandwiches and sat outside on their nice patio for lunch.

Tabs chose to stay home, of course, to work out on his new cat tower, which he has yet to master. There’s a carpeted basket at the very top, about 7 feet off the ground, that mocks him from above. He hasn’t built up the courage to climb that high up it yet because I guess he thinks the whole thing will topple over under his weight (a valid concern).

Or maybe he’d rather just marvel at it like we marvel at Gothic architecture.

What are you up to today? Starting tomorrow I won’t see much of El Hub for the rest of the week because of a big project he’s working on (he slays ogres and dragons), so I want to squeeze in some quality time with him today. For that to transpire, he actually needs to wake up, of course (ahem!).

Fill me in on the highlights of your week as far as makeup and/or beauty were concerned. Have you tried any new looks lately? I’m particularly curious about hairstyles right now. Have you done anything new with yours?

Before you go, here’s a little look back at some of the beauty products and topics we blogged about earlier this week:

GUERLAIN KISSKISS STRASS
ROSE DE LA REINE

Please tell me there’s room in the Lovely-Luxury-Lipsticks-That-Don’t-Last-Long-But-Have-Kick-Ass-Packaging Hall of Fame (or LLLTDLLBHKAPHOF for short), because I may have found their next inductee.

Llimited edition KissKiss Strass in Rose de la Reine ($31) is one of nine luxe ladies in the new Guerlain Les Ors holiday collection, pricey products from a line that’s been all about the bling since 1853.

Napoleon III’s wife loved Guerlain, so, ya know, budget’s not exactly their thang. Read more…

FRED FARRUGIA
MODULAR MAKEUP

The Semi Matte Lipstick/Matte Lip Powder Duos in 04 (a matte red) and 06 (a matte hot pink) are really rocking my world. This probably won’t come as a surprise, but each one comes with a creamy semi-matte lipstick and a pigmented lip powder. 🙂 Fred designed them to be used together. Using either fingers or a lip brush, apply a layer of the cream lipstick first, patting the matching lip powder directly on top. The result? A vibrant, highly pigmented, long-wearing matte lip look.

I can’t believe how easy these are to apply (I used my fingers in these pics). They’re non-drying and hang around all day long, even withstanding She-Ra sized meals! I just wish they weren’t so blasted tough to remove (not a big problem, though)… Good ol’ Kirkland wipes can’t take ‘em down, but Clinique Take the Day Off Balm can.

Another standout: Powder Blush in 07. It’s like a darker, more intense NARS Orgasm (a shimmery golden peach). The pigment in this peach does NOT mess around. The color leaps onto brushes that get anywhere near it, and even a small amount delivers a pretty flush. Skin also agrees with it, lapping it up like a sponge. But a word of caution: it’s so intense, SO VIVID, that it can be a little tough to control. My mantra’s been dilute, dilute, dilute! Read more…

BOBBI BROWN
BEAUTY RULES PALETTE

Last week a stranger, who was obviously one of the politest men in California and/or vision impaired, called me “a young girl” (I’m in my 30s, yo!), and I’m not gonna lie — it was awesome.

I remember being 14 and totally obsessed with makeup… My, how things change! 🙂 If I’d seen something like the Bobbi Brown Beauty Rules Palette ($45) back then, I would’ve been all over it in a hot second, assuming, of course, that I would’ve been able to talk my mom into buying it for me.

I mean, it’s sure not cheap, but talk about pretty starter palettes! The colors strike me as great ones for girls just getting into makeup (and for parents who don’t want to worry about their teenager looking like jail bait). Read more…

BENEFIT CREASELESS CREAM
SEPHORA SHADOWS & LINERS

I feel like I’ve been robbed of a Tuesday afternoon. Seriously, where’d it go? One minute I’m playing with a few of the new Benefit Creaseless Cream Shadow/Liners ($19 each; exclusive to Sephora), and the next minute it’s dark and I hear crickets outside!

Maybe I was just having so much fun finger painting my lids that time got away from me.

I know I’ve gushed over Benefit’s Creaseless Creams many times before. I’m like a broken record with them, “Benefit Creaseless Creams! Benefit Creaseless Creams!” Sorry. It’s just that I like ‘em that much. Read more…

TOO FACED
COMPLEXION PERFECTION KIT

I swear, this is just the coolest thing ever. As people, we get a lot of great makeup released specifically for us, so it’s refreshing to finally see a major cosmetics company like Too Faced release a palette designed specifically for cats! — BIG cats no less.

Okay, not really. To clarify, you do not have to be a leopard or even a cat lady who loves leopards to love the Too Faced Leopard Love Complexion Perfection Palette ($30). You do, however, probably have to be a girl who likes super sheer color.

Too Faced released it a while back with some other goodies for fall, but I only recently started wearing it out.

It comes with three different powder products — a bronzer, a blush and a brightener — and one of them’s already a star. The brightener, which goes by the name Pink Leopard, happens to be a big bestseller from the brand as a member of the permanent line, but the other two products are new — otherwise known as “previously undiscovered species of cats.” Read more…

CHANEL LES TENTATIONS
FACE OF THE DAY

Before I crashed and burned this afternoon, I tried the new Chanel Le Tentations de Chanel Holiday 2010 Collection on for size, and ooh, baby! — I’m lovin’ these chocolate browns and playful pinks.

Sure, the collection doesn’t exactly fit your standard holiday fare, but who cares? If you like it, you like it. And besides, it’s not like early October is the dead of winter, right?

In these shots here, that’s the Tentation Cuivrée quad atop the Fluid Iridescent Eyeshadow in Splash on my eyes, Tweed Fuchsia blush on my cheeks and Magnolia lipstick topped with Pink Pulsion Glossimer on my lips.

Even in my semi-conscious haze (NOTE TO SELF: Stop watching bad reality TV after midnight!), this wasn’t a difficult look to do because of how well the colors in the quad work together.

Oh, and I didn’t really appreciate this until I had it on my skin, but the light pink shade has the cutest little bits of glitter; I’m looking forward to wearing it as a single wash of color over the entire eye.

The dark brown shadow’s also full of surprises. It has this subtle duochrome quality to it where it appears to flash from dark brown to plum to bronze, depending on the light. SO HAWT! Read more…

BOOTS NO. 7
OPULENCE EYE PALETTE

Does your Target have a produce section? Isn’t that the most convenient thing ever? I was at ours yesterday, allegedly there to buy grapes, when I ran into the Boots No. 7 limited edition Opulence Eye Palette ($10).

It comes with five powder eyeshadows (four shimmers and one matte) in shades of gold, brown, navy, beige and black. The colors, Boots says, were inspired by Russian Tsarinas and the 1980s, because, ya know, those two things totally go together so well.

How would you wear this palette? I’m thinking a day look using the navy on the lid and the brown along the lower lash line, hmm… Read more…

CHANEL LES TENTATIONS
HOLIDAY 2010

In case you didn’t get the memo, Holiday is the new Spring. Well, at least it is according to Chanel. To the traditionalists out there, the new Les Tentations de Chanel Holiday 2010 Collection isn’t your typical holiday fare — you know, reds, golds and plums — but this isn’t the first time Chanel’s decided to mix it up.

Last year they celebrated summer for Christmas with blues, greens, golds and corals over the holidays. With a mix of pinks, fuchsias, browns and beige, this year they’re all about spring. Read more…

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen