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

The NARS Under Cover Summer 2016 Collection Dual-Intensity Blushes

April 22nd, 2016 by Adia Goss 26 Comments

NARS Under Cover Summer 2016 Collection Blushes — This packaging makes me so happy!

As part of the NARS Summer 2016 Under Cover collection, NARS released two Dual-Intensity Blushes — Sexual Content and Liberation ($45 each) — and they are, in a word, gorgeous! I love how NARS collections are always wearable but never boring.

The NARS Dual-Intensity Blushes have a very pigmented, soft formula that can be used wet or dry. When used dry, they’re softly luminous, but if you use them with a dampened brush, the shine is more intense.

These two blush duos are incredibly versatile and would work for a wide range of skin tones, and I love that both of the colors in each duo can work layered or alone.

NARS under cover blushes — NARS Dual Intensity Blushes in Liberation (L) and Sexual Content (R)

Sexual Content has a soft peach on the left and a medium pink on the right, and both shades are so pretty! I think the left color would be a great everyday blush for lighter skin tones and a nice sheen/highlighter for darker skin tones. The color on the right is even more universal. The swatches below are with a heavy hand so that you can really see the color, but these can just as easily be applied lightly for a wash of shimmery color.

Liberation has a cool-toned baby pink on the left and a warm rosy/terracota shade on the right. I think the shade on the right is very unique and gives a lovely natural flush. On lighter skin tones, it may also work as a bronzer. Either way, both shades are super pretty and wearable.

nars under cover blush — NARS Liberation Dual-Intensity Blush

[Continue reading…]

NARS Finally Makes Liquid Lipsticks…and Nails It!! Introducing the NARS Lip Covers From the Under Cover Summer 2016 Collection

April 22nd, 2016 by Adia Goss 39 Comments

NARS under cover collection — How gorgeous is the packaging for the NARS Under Cover summer 2016 collection?

I am about the new NARS Under Cover summer 2016 collection and the brand’s first foray into the liquid lipstick market.

Their new Lip Covers are incredible! They’re vibrant and long-lasting like a liquid lipstick, but with none of the dryness and discomfort, so basically exactly what you’d expect from NARS.

I have to admit that I am totally biased when it comes to NARS (here’s another post with my favorite NARS products), but even so, I really do feel these are awesome.

The Under Cover summer 2016 collection includes four of these new Lip Covers, four Dual Intensity Eye Shadows (I LOVE this formula!) and two Dual Intensity Blushes. This post is all about the Lip Covers, but stay tuned for reviews of everything else. For now, I’ll just say that the whole collection is gorgeous. If anything looks irresistably interesting, snatch it up! The collection is limited edition, and the products are available now at the NARS website (and coming soon to other retailers).

So, the Lip Covers — Do Not Disturb, Get Dirty, Members Only and Overheated — I really like this formula, and I hope they add more colors in the future (fingers crossed!).

I think the shades NARS chose to release with the collection are pretty interesting. There are two nude shades (Get Dirty and Overheated) and two red shades (Do Not Disturb and Members Only).

On the one hand, I appreciate that they’re giving us two variations on each color family, especially since it’s so hard to find a good nude, but on the other hand, I want even more variety, because the formula is that great.

Here are swatches of the Lip Covers, and I did these with a heavier hand so that you could see the texture and finish.

They look glossy in the pics, but once they dry down on your lips (which takes just a couple minutes), the finish looks more satin than glossy.

NARS Under Cover — Swatches of the NARS Lip Covers (L to R) in Do Not Disturb, Get Dirty, Members Only and Overheated

And here’s another shot with different lighting:

I think orangey red Do Not Disturb looks very similar to Maybelline Vivid Matte Liquid Lipstick in Orange Shot (which I reviewed a couple weeks ago).

Wearing Do Not Disturb from the NARS Under Cover collection. — Wearing NARS Do Not Disturb from the NARS Under Cover summer 2016 collection

[Continue reading…]

Bookstore Babe

April 22nd, 2016 by Karen 47 Comments

Baby's first visit to the bookstore — Baby’s first visit to a bookstore!

So, where do two book-loving parents take a little explorer on her very first “out-in-the-world” excursion?

A bookstore, of course!

Now that Connor Claire has passed the six-week mark, she’s eager to get out there and start exploring the outside world, beginning with literature.

Checking out Mom's favorite area -- the YA books! — Checking out the YA section (Mom’s favorite)…

El Hub and I headed to the brand new Novato branch of Copperfield’s Books, an independent bookseller here in the Bay Area.

I slipped Connor into her Moby baby carrier, and we browsed for books for about 30 minutes. Granted, she was sleeping most of the time, but I still think she enjoyed being surrounded by so many books.

Why yes, I'd love some temporary cattoos — Why yes! — I’d love a temporary “cattoo”

We ended up getting her a souvenir to commemorate the occasion, her very own copy of A.A. Milne’s Winnie-the-Pooh to add to her growing book collection.

Another addition to Connor Claire's book collection — Another addition to Connor Claire’s book collection

Yesterday was a day of firsts for Connor Claire. Other than her first visit to a bookstore, it was also the day she listened to her very first Prince song…

This song was always one of my favorites, but now with Connor Claire, it’s taken on new meaning.

RIP, Prince… I’m still in shock about his passing. His creativity has always inspired me, and it makes my heart heavy to think that the world has lost such a rare gift.

Oh, and did you know that Prince also wrote songs for other musicians? I found this story, “15 Great Prince Songs That Were Hits for Other Artists,” in Rolling Stone really interesting.

chanel summer 2016 — Here comes the sun…and Chanel Summer 2016

Today I plan to have my favorite Prince songs on heavy rotation while I play with Chanel’s Summer 2016 collection (I’m wearing it in these pics, by the way) — Raspberry Beret, I Wanna Be Your Lover, Little Red Corvette and I Would Die 4 U.

What’s your favorite Prince song? I think it’s impossible to pick just one.

In other, less sad news, today is also Earth Day, so happy Earth Day to you, my friend. I think Connor and I will celebrate by taking out the recycling.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Unsung Makeup Heroes: Maybelline Baby Lips Dr. Rescue Medicated Balm

April 22nd, 2016 by Jessica Revitte 22 Comments

The long-running Unsung Heroes series here on Makeup and Beauty Blog features some of our all-time favorite permanent collection products.

I’ve got dry lips.

Like, Sonoran Desert dry.

Many have tried to figure out why, I assure you, and many have failed. Between the overall dryness of my skin, to its tendency to eczema and how my lips aggravatingly seem to need to really get in the mood for our six-month winter here in the arctic tundra that is Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, my lips are wrinkled and peeling for way more of the year than I’d like.

I’ve gone through favorite lip balms like Taylor Swift goes through boyfriends. (Too soon? Sorry, T, just shake it off.)

I repeatedly feel like I’ve found “the one” and love it for weeks — months, even — and go through a whole slew of backups only to see my lips eventually reject the formula seemingly out of the freaking blue. It drives me nuts. What I don’t do is write songs about it… Maybe Taylor can help me with that?

Anyway, when Maybelline released their main Baby Lips line a few years ago, I tried one of the original tinted formulation balms and wasn’t that impressed. It looked great, but because of my lips, it felt like the balm itself was just sitting on top of my dry lips, rather than sinking in and really making a difference.

So I gave them a pass until I noticed a new product in the Baby Lips fam called Baby Lips Dr. Rescue, which I spotted while ~~getting some much needed “mommy alone time”~~ running errands. I grabbed the clear balm and applied it immediately in the car.

*queue angels singing*

It felt INCREDIBLE.

[Continue reading…]

The 5 Lip Liners You Need in Your Makeup Stash

April 21st, 2016 by Adia Goss 18 Comments

To be honest, I’m not the biggest fan of lip liners… I don’t use them on most days because it feels like an unnecessary step, but that being said, there are a few shades that I DO wear every so often and think are absolute necessities.

Here are my five favorite must-have lip liners. What are yours?

MAC Boldly Bare. I think everyone should have a peachy-nude lip liner. We all know that nude lipstick can be tough to pull off sometimes, so having a liner that can be a nice base, or help shape the lips, is major. I like Boldly Bare because it warms up nudes that are too cool (avoiding the dreaded dead lips look). Plus, it looks really good under a sheer gloss. It’s available at MAC Cosmeticsfor $16.50 .
NYX Chocolate. This Chocolate shade is very close to my natural lip color, so I like to wear it under more pigmented glosses to make them last longer. It also works under darker lipsticks when I want to make sure the outline of my lips is neat and clean, and it’s only $3.50 at Ulta!
MAC Cork. This is like in the brown skin girl’s makeup hall of fame! I swear, every MAC makeup artist has tried to sell this to me (and I’ve caved and bought it more than once!). But, it’s popular because it just works. A darker brown liner, it’s perfect for deepening other lip colors without drastically changing their hue. It’s also perfect for the ’90s brown lip trend! It’s available at MAC Cosmetics for $16.50.
MAC Lasting Sensation. This is sort of a wildcard because it’s a bright coral color, but I actually love it as a matte lipstick. Since it’s a lip pencil, it’s easier to get a neat and precise application. And I love that it lasts all day. It’s def a summer staple for me (I featured it in my Beach Inspired Makeup Post). It’s also available at MAC Cosmetics for $16.50 .
Boots No. 7 Precision Lip Pencil in Red. Red lips are gorgeous, but for me they’re kind of tricky. I almost always use a red lip liner when I’m wearing red lipstick because it helps keep the lipstick on my lips and not all over my face. Bonus points for this being a twist-up pencil that doesn’t need a sharpener (because I can NEVER find one when I need it). You can find it at Target for $9. And for help finding something to wear it with, here are my favorite red lipsticks.

* Honorable Mention: MAC Nightmoth. Just like with red lipstick, deep vampy colors are high maintenance. This is my go-to for when I want dark and dramatic lips. Another MAC classic.

[Continue reading…]

OCC Spring/Summer 2016 Magnetic Fields Collection Lip Tars: Florals With a Psychedelic Twist

April 21st, 2016 by Anna Oh 12 Comments

This is not news to anyone, but Obsessive Compulsive Cosmetics is crazy.

To be specific: crazy cool, crazy passionate, and crazy aspirational.

OCC is one of the most notable brands pushing the limits of color and expression all while being 100% vegan and cruelty-free. And you’ve probably heard of or seen the Lip Tars. Now repackaged in a standard lipgloss tube, they’ve been made even more convenient for…whenever you want green lips!

For Spring/Summer 2016, OCC has taken the idea of the ubiquitous bright lip and mixed it with a psychedelic palette. This is the Magnetic Fields Colour Collection ($16 each), and there are 3 new solid colors plus 3 new iridescent metallics that can be mixed or used individually.

lip-tar-magnetic-fields-artifact — Wearing Artifact OCC Lip Tar

lip tar magnetic fields ss16 — OCC Lip Tar Magnetic Fields: Magnolia, Lily, Wasabi, Artifact, Rime, Indrid

[Continue reading…]

Mona Lisa Smile

April 21st, 2016 by Karen 35 Comments

Connor Claire is seven weeks old now, and she’s doing more and more cute baby things as the days go by.

Now when she wakes up and sees me, she smiles, and it melts my heart into a pile of warm, sticky goo. She also coos and gurgles and makes all sorts of adorable baby sounds that’ll make your ovaries flutter.

And she’s growing! A few of her clothes no longer fit anymore. She has these snap-up shirts that fit now like scandalous crop tops from Urban Outfitters.

Would you believe that my 6-pound teacup baby is almost 10 pounds now? It’s only a matter of time until she hits double digits.

Seeing her get bigger is bittersweet, too… Part of me wishes I could press “pause” and have her stay this age a little longer.

But the other part of me can’t wait to see her personality blossom and bloom, because from what I know of her so far, she’s a sweet, gentle and happy baby. I fall deeper and deeper in love with her every day.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Here’s My “Light Bright” Busy Mom Makeup — How Do You Get Ready in a Flash?

April 21st, 2016 by Jessica Revitte 27 Comments

Hurry fast rushing 10-minute makeup — Me getting ready, every day that ends in Y!

I’m pretty sure it’s no secret that I’m a working mom. I’ve mentioned this aspect of who I am in several posts because it is a CONSTANT struggle that I’m forced to confront on a daily basis. I would do anything to be home full time, but that’s not our reality, and as a result I find myself regularly coming up with ways to look awake! alert! peppy! — you name it. It’s something I think about.

I also think it’s no secret that your world gets turned upside down when children bless your life. Fellow mommies know that things change in both anticipated and unanticipated ways. I knew, for instance, that the morning struggle to get ready would be far different after my maternity leave, but what I couldn’t have guessed was that I’d find teeth marks on my YSL lipstick tubes (my son thinks they’re great for teething!), or that I’d look up from cleaning to find my daughter attempting to sneak into my makeup collection to play because she was “looking for something [she] lost in [our] bedroom.”

Suuuuuure…

Before I had children, I promised myself that makeup would still be “my thing” as a mom. Everyone needs an escape, and a “me time,” and this would be mine.

Unfortunately, “my thing” is also a hobby that happens to overlap with the hectic morning rush, so I’ve started to gravitate toward products that I refer to as my “light bright” favorites.

Why, do you ask? Because they’re light and bright and make me look awake! alert! peppy! (I think I’m trying to convince myself that I’m all of those things by typing it more than once… *drinks more coffee*)

[Continue reading…]