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

My makeup collection is a little out of control. There are blushes on my desk, palettes in random bathroom drawers and lip liner in all the wrong places (I just found my Honey B. Cremestick liner, which was MIA for weeks, in my car the other day!). Makeup is quickly threatening to take over my existence.

For the past few months I’ve been storing stuff in Sterilite plastic craft drawers located in different rooms at home. I like that the drawers are cheap and easy to clean, but I’d still like to be able to keep it all in one central place. I was cruising Sears a few weeks ago, ’cause I had to buy some vacuum bags, and found a possible solution to the ever-increasing makeup madness: a Craftsman rolling tool chest! It’s tall, has several long, shallow drawers (perfect for eye shadow pans and palettes) and has enough storage room to hold everything.

Unfortunately, it’s a few hundred bucks, ugly, and really doesn’t match my bedroom furniture. Trust me, if I had a place to store this away, like a huge walk-in closet, I’d have this bad boy filled to the brim with makeup. The quest for more makeup storage continues, sigh.

How do you store your makeup? Help your girl out, please!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Bow Down!

I’m not one who usually falls for product hype but damn, Lancome Bi-Facil is good. I’m talking fresh brownies, extra sleep and Christian Bale in a tuxedo good. So good that peasants gotta bow down and shake before the mighty baby blue bottle! So good that … Okay, okay. You get the picture.

Fear Bi-Facil’s wrath

WOOT-A-RAMA!

I picked up a bottle of Bi-Facil on a whim when I popped by the Lancome counter in Union Square to see my favorite Lancome artist, Erin, who is not only a sweet person, but also a fierce brow shaper. Yes, it killed me a bit to throw down the $24.00, but this stuff works, and you barely have to use any of it, just a few drops, to remove even waterproof mascara.

It doesn’t leave me with overly slimy lids like Almay pads. No cloudy vision, either, which was the alarming side effect of Neutrogena’s Oil-Free Eye Makeup Remover.

Even the toughest of eye makeup challenges — Fluidline, MAX Factor 2000 Calorie Waterproof Mascara, MAC Paints — slips off easily. No tugging, no sliminess, nada. I give Bi-Facil a few good shakes, put three drops on a cotton pad and then whoomp, there it is, two buck naked eyelids in a few swipes.

I know the $24.00 price tag is a bit tough to swallow, but, because you only need to use a few drops, a bottle should last a while. I wear eye makeup every day and guess that one bottle will last me between four and six months, which breaks down to about $4-$6 per month.

I like it so much and think it could even replace my former holy grail eye makeup remover, Sephora FACE. This might be true love!

Speaking o’ lurve

Have you seen Enchanted, the new Disney movie with Patrick Dempsey and Amy Adams? I was feeling pretty junk this weekend, but seeing Enchanted lifted my spirit. Now I feel so much better. You can’t go wrong with Disney. It’s a live-action, romantic comedy musical that plays on the Disney princess theme. Just so funny and sweet.

Team McDreamy!

I can’t wait to add it to my cheesy movie list (Brown Sugar, Knotting Hill, My Best Friend’s Wedding) once it comes out on DVD. If you’re in the mood for a happy, curl-up-on-the-couch-on-a-rainy-day kinda movie, check it out.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

If you obsess over sleek, silver packaging, then Lancome’s got a few holiday products you can’t miss.

My favorite is Lancome’s Colour Focus Palette in Black Tie Affair ($40.00), a fantabulous purple eyeshadow quad.

If you’ve followed this blog for a while you know I sometimes feel too purple to function when working the shades o’ eggplant. But, alas, all four colors in Black Tie Affair are so creamy and buildable that even the clumsy (ahem, like yours truly) can easily use them to do a purple smoky eye.

Mad crazy big hearts for:
– Hot chrome packaging! Love it!
– Shadow texture. All four shadows are finely milled, smooth and soft. They also have *fantastic* color payoff. These shadows remind me of my beloved shadows from the Chanel Garden Party Quad.
– Blendability.
– Color Flexibility. The colors are matched well, giving you plenty o’ combination options. For a daytime work look, I’d apply the white color on my browbone, take the light purple from the lash line up into the crease, wet a MAC 266 brush and apply the black shadow on the top lash line. It would also work for a light smokey eye! I’d do the same browbone and lid colors and then apply black shadow on the lashline, fading the black into the darker purple color as I moved into the crease. Many looks await you in this quad, oy!

Itty bitty hearts for:
– Brushes. Honestly, why do cosmetics companies even bother? I feel like applying these shadows with lil’ plastic sponge brushes would be a travesty.
– Price. Oui, oui, it’s pricey but you do get a lot of eyeshadow for your money.
– Fingerprint factor. I know this is kind of knit-picky, but the cool silver packaging, unfortunately, picks up all of my fingerprints, which makes it look dirrrty.

Um, not that kind of dirty.

You might heart it if:
– You want to try more adventurous eye looks but need help coordinating colors (hey, I know I do!).
– You like Chanel quality shadows but not Chanel prices.
– You’ve been wanting to do a purple eye but have been too intimidated to try. The Black Tie Affair quad makes it really easy.

A girl’s best friend

Got a girlfriend obsessed with gloss? Get her Lancome’s Precious Carat Lip Gloss Jewel ($40.00). This cutie pie is cut like a precious diamond and made from Swavorski crystals. The color, Diamond Splendor, is a clear gloss with big glitter sparkles.

Mad crazy big hearts for:
– Packaging. The diamond packaging and crystal top give this gloss elegance. There’s also a very handy mirror on the inside of the cap, useful when you’re admiring your bad self glossing it up.

Itty bitty hearts for:
– Sparkle. I’m very particular about my glitter. Although I like the color of the glitter in this gloss — peach, pink, green and gold — I find the chunks of glitter too big for my taste.

You might heart it if:
– You like a “big glitter” look.
– You collect cute gloss.
– You want to hint to your significant other that you’re ready to get engaged!

Get the look: Purple smokey eye and neutral lips

Hallelujah! Finally, a purple eye that doesn’t make me feel like a drag queen. I used both the Black Tie quad and Precious Carat gloss to get this look.

Eyes

All the shadows I used are from the Black Tie Affair quad.

Browbone – white shadow
Lid and crease – light purple shadow
Outer crease – dark purple shadow
Lash line – black shadow
Lashes – three coats of MAC Plushlash
Lower waterline – MAC Fluidline in Blacktrack

Cheeks and Lips

To keep the emphasis on the eyes I kept the cheeks and lips soft.

Cheeks – Neutrogena Soft Suede Blush
Lips – MAC Honey B. Cremestick Liner
Lipgloss – Lancome Precious Carat Lip Gloss Jewel in Diamond Splendor

Did I mention that this look is easy? Makeup newbies, you gotta try it!

Misery, all alone in the moonlight

Remember the MISERY GRIN from yesterday? Well, it was in full force today. At work our internet connection was out, and it took three hours and eight phone calls to a call center half way around the world to get it up and running. The entire experience was about as pleasurable as gouging my eye out with a blunt, rusty nail.

So glad tomorrow is Friday. I’m going into SF to peep MAC’s new Stylistics collection and attend a Chanel event. Yeah, my wallet’s throbbing.

I hope your day was technologically sound … and that your brows looked extra cute.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen