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

Sleep Well, Doughnuts and Pizza

November 19th, 2015 by Karen 18 Comments

I’ve been on this low sugar/carb, high protein temporary meal plan thingy for a couple days because I have to take something called a glucose tolerance test tomorrow (#pregnantladythangs), and I think that’s why these cray-cray pajamas from Target are looking EXTREMELY delicious and comfortable to me right now.

How cute are these though!?

I admit that they’re a little insane…but who cares? They’re pajamas, and Tabs says that I can wear whatever I want.

The button-down one with the doughnuts and coffee is a nightgown ($17.99), but the one with the melty slices of pepperoni pizza on it ($21.99) is a two-piece ensemble.

Between the two of them, we’ve covered breakfast and lunch. 🙂

In other news…how do you feel about grownups wearing pajamas in public?

Normally, I’m not a fan, because dude, I don’t need to see some grown-@ss man hoofing around Costco in his plaid flannel bottoms (seriously). Keep that to yourself, buddy.

Buuut I’m contemplating breaking that rule and wearing the doughnuts and coffee shirt with a pair of leggings.

Because it’s classified as a “sleep shirt,” and I read somewhere (I think it was Glamour or Allure) that sleep shirts are actually considered perfectly acceptable daywear attire.

So I’m going with that. 🙂

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

If You Like Neutrals, the Urban Decay UD Gwen Stefani Palette Is B-A-N-A-N-A-S

November 19th, 2015 by Karen 27 Comments

There should be a video in this post, but if you can’t see it, you can click here to watch it on YouTube.

When I open the new UD Gwen Stefani Eyeshadow Palette by Urban Decay and see all of the neutrals, I start getting ideas… My internal makeup monologue kicks in, and looks start running through my head.

They start simple, but that doesn’t last long. “I’ll just do a quick wash of color with one or two matte browns on my lids,” I’ll think, “then black winged liner with a red lip. Just like Gwen!”

But then I’ll think, why stop at just two browns? I should add a third one in the crease.

Ooh! — or why don’t I do a grayish brown smoky eye instead? Maybe with a touch of blue on my lids? Because that’s so Gwen!

BUT then I’ll remember that I almost forget about glitter! How could I forget about the glitter!?

Girl, you know how it goes. 🙂 What starts as a five-minute look spirals into 35.

It’s not me though. It’s not my fault. It’s because of all the inspiring neutrals in this palette.

Yup, this is one of those palettes, and to really feel the magic in the makeup (shout-out to No Doubt’s Return of Saturn!), you have to appreciate the beauty of browns and beiges.

I see this one as almost an extension of the Urban Decay Naked Palette family, except with the addition of a few brights, so if you’re the kind of girl or guy who’d rather wear electric teal shimmer, you might find the neutrals here a bit underwhelming.

Not me though. When I see browns and golds and mattes (and there are so many in this!), I get excited.

In the unlikely event that you were cryogenically frozen in 1993 and are only now asking yourself, “Who’s Gwen Stefani?” she’s a pop singer, fashion designer and current vocal coach/judge on The Voice.

I’ve always admired her casual So Cal punk style and cool girl vibe, and I kid you not, I was hell bent on being her in 1995.

I even designated a section of my closet for my “Gwen Stefani” outfits. My favorite was a pair of baggy navy blue pants with light blue stripes going down the sides, which I’d pair with a baby blue sleeveless crop top and baby blue stick-on bindis.

OH, LAWD!!

urban decay gwen stefani swatches 3 — Pop, Harajuku, Danger, 1987 and Blackout

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Paul & Joe Holiday 2015 Makeup Collection in Le Bal Masque 002

November 19th, 2015 by Karen 9 Comments

paul joe holiday 2015 makeup collection lebal masque — Paul & Joe Beaute Holiday 2015 Makeup Collection in Le Bal Masque 002 ($42, one of two nine-piece holiday kitteh-themed sets)

I have so many burning questions for Paul & Joe about the cat mask-wearing woman on some of the pieces in the new Paul & Joe Le Bal Masque Holiday 2015 Makeup Collection.

Like, where is she going? Is she going to a Thanksgiving masquerade ball, or does homegirl run errands around town wearing her cat mask like that? Because that’s something I’d totally do, which reminds me — why doesn’t this collection come with that mask? It seems like a missed opportunity…

Also, assuming that our masked maven is also a cat lady (it’s a safe bet), how many cats does she have?

One cat? Two? Four cats? Seventeen?? In other words, is she living the cat lady dream, and does she get as excited as I do when Paul & Joe goes buck wild with a new cat-themed collection? 🙂

Meow known as the go-to makeup line for CCLs (translation: Crazy Cat Ladies), Paul & Joe has it all figured out. Whenever they go all the way with a new cat-themed release, like they have here with Le Bal Masque, my tail automatically twitches with interest.

There are cats all over the place in this collection! — as there should be. There’s the masked lady on the makeup bag, who also makes an appearance on the Rose Balm tin (which you can use on your skin and/or hair); the kitties on the eyeshadows; the cream blush; and even the eyeliner.

SO MANY KITTIES!

It’s a beautiful thing…

Le Bal Masque is one of two new limited edition $42 holiday makeup sets from Paul & Joe this year, one of them warmer toned than the other. Le Bal Masque is the warmer option. The other one, Oh Carnaval 001, comes with cooler-toned pastels.

Both sets are covered in cats and available meow at Paul & Joe counters and online. Each one comes with nine pieces (like nine lives!!) — the cat lady bag, five Eye Color L Powder Eyeshadows, one Creamy Cheek Color L Blush, one Waterproof Eyeliner and a tin of Rose Treatment Balm.

Le Bal Masque, the set I’ve been wearing and loving lately, is the warmer of the two. First of all, the cat lady on the bag is totally talking to me…

Not literally, of course (that would be trippy!), but I feel like she and I have a certain kitty connection. I would also wear that outfit of hers with the mask any day of the week…assuming they had a maternity version.

Check out the eyeshadows…

Interesting packaging, yeah? It’s not often that you see powder shadows packaged in flat paper packaging with a plastic cover.
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MAC Mariah Carey Frost Lipstick in All I Want

November 18th, 2015 by Karen 31 Comments

There should be a video in this post, but if you can’t see it, you can click here to watch it on YouTube.

mac mariah carey all i want lipstick — MAC Mariah Carey Frost Lipstick in All I Want ($17, coming exclusively to the MAC website Dec. 3)

I don’t think I’ve been this excited about a frosty pale lipstick since the late ’90s. Seriously, all I need now is a plummy black lip liner, and then it’s “Hello, 1997!”

Say “seasons greetings” to new MAC Mariah Carey Frost Lipstick in All I Want ($17).

I have to admit that Mimi was the main reason I took an early interest in this color.

Did I mention I’m a fan?? I think I may have mentioned it once or twice… 🙂 I’ve been a fan of hers since the very beginning, and by “very beginning,” I’m talking about the Vision of Love days.

I mean, I don’t bid on locks of her hair on eBay or anything, but I did take my mom to a Mariah Carey concert once (I think she enjoyed it), and I did make my brother watch Glitter with me on opening day (I know FOR SURE that he did not enjoy it, haha!).

And I know almost all of the words to all of Mariah Carey’s songs…

mac mariah carey all i want closeup — MAC Mariah Carey Frost Lipstick in All I Want ($17)

So, yeah. Needless to say, I was pretty psyched when I heard about MAC All I Want Lipstick (it’s an online exclusive coming Dec. 3 to the MAC website).

On my lips, it’s a frosty, shimmery champagne with little bits of silver glitter in it for an extra element of cuteness, and coverage-wise, I can still see a bit of my natural lip color peeking through when I wear it.

Now, I’ve seen Mariah wear colors like this before, so it makes complete sense to me that it’s the product of a MAC/Mariah collaboration.

mac mariah carey all i want swatch — Wearing MAC Mariah Carey All I Want Frost Lipstick

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Unsung Makeup Heroes: NARS Reykjavik Velvet Shadow Stick

November 18th, 2015 by Karen 13 Comments

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

Reykjavik.

OK, that word is hard to spell. For me. It’s like “fuchsia” and “necessary.” In the 10 minutes I’ve been sitting here trying to write about this fantastic Velvet Shadow Stick from NARS, I’ve had to look at the packaging and mentally spell out the word (R-e-y-k-j-a-v-i-c) at least 10 times, LOL!

WHY CAN’T I SPELL THIS WORD?!

I should be able to. I want to be able to, because this velvety $28 matte cream masterpiece of an eyeshadow is SO PRETTY. It’s my NARS November smoky eye BFF, and one should be able to spell the name of their smoky eye BFF, right?

Right?

The word is also the name of the capital and largest city of Iceland.

NARS Velvet Shadow Stick in Rejkavic…

Wait — Reyk-ja-vic — works as a bad-@ss base for smoky eyes. Lots of different colors of smoky eyes.

At a glance, it can look like a dark gunmetal gray, but it completely depends on the lighting and any other colors you layer it with. Sometimes, it leans more toward a bluish gray; other times, a blackened gray. It’s a surprisingly complex cream shadow, and it works with a ton of different color combos. I’ve been wearing it a lot lately as a lid base for smoky brown, black, blue and gray eyes.

Yup, I’m kind of a smoky eye addict, as you’re probably well aware. 🙂
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Laura Mercier Master Class Colour Essentials Holiday 2015 Eye and Cheek Palette

November 18th, 2015 by Karen 15 Comments

The new 20-piece Laura Mercier Master Class Colour Essentials Collection eye and cheek palette ($125) looks a little like a day planner from 1998, or like a chic clutch you might take to an event where all the ladies are wearing dangerously high heels and carrying ridiculously tiny purses.

Still cute though, I think, especially with the brown and gold tortoiseshell-like trim.

The limited edition holiday 2015 palette comes with 12 powder eyeshadows, three blushes, two powder liners (for tightlining), a black eye kohl and two brushes, and it’s about two degrees of separation from Laura Mercier herself, because she handpicked all of the products.

I mean, it’s not like hanging out with her over tea and scones (I wish!), but it’s almost like having her do your makeup.

Almost.

LOL!

With such a wide variety of colors, finishes and formulas, the palette is packed with creative possibilities for endless looks ranging from day to night to nude to smoky.

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The 20-Piece $75 LORAC 20th Anniversary Collection Is a Cyber Monday Steal

November 17th, 2015 by Karen 39 Comments

There should be a video in this post, but if you can’t see it, you can click here to watch it on YouTube.

lorac 20th anniversary collection — The 20-piece $75 LORAC 20th Anniversary Collection set

It takes a doozy of a bodacious Black Friday deal to lure me away from leftover Thanksgiving pie.

Dude, seriously, nine times out of 10, I’d rather stay home in the comfort of my living room in a pair of flannel jammies than contend with the Black Friday shopping crowds.

You feel me?

Join me, and let’s stand together! — or, rather, lie horizontally — in our pajama-clad solidarity.

That said, if we choose to stay home cocooned on our couches on Black Friday this year, it doesn’t mean we still can’t take advantage of great beauty deals, like this one here. It’s one of the best Black Friday-ish deals I’ve ever seen in my life.

Black Friday-ish because it’s actually a Cyber Monday deal. It’s the 20-piece $75 LORAC 20th Anniversary Collection set, and it’ll only be available online, starting Cyber Monday, November 30, at loraccosmetics.com while supplies last.

This is one of those once-in-a-blue-moon kind of things, and it literally made my jaw drop.

It comes with a staggering 20 full-size LORAC lippies for what works out to $3.75 each (!), which is INCREDIBLE for LORAC. There are 10 Alter Ego Lipsticks (which usually go for $16 each) and 10 Alter Ego Lip Glosses (which sell for $15). Considering the quality you get with LORAC, that’s a steal.

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Clinique Pop Lip Colour + Primer Holiday 2015 Three-Piece Travel Exclusive Set

November 17th, 2015 by Karen 13 Comments

clinique travel exclusive pop lip colour

I miss the days when El Hub and I would go to Oahu to visit our family over Thanksgiving. His parents lived there (El Hub was born and raised in Hawaii), but now they live here in California.

So we’d visit every year, and oh! — the stories I could tell you about duty-free shopping. I can’t even remember how many times we’d be at the airport and I’d disappear into a duty-free shop while we waited for our flight.

El Hub would come running into the store, his eyes wide with panic, and say, “Sweetie! The flight is boarding NOW! Please put down the makeup!”

I always got a big kick out of it, but he was not amused, let me tell you. 🙂

We won’t be heading to the islands for Thanksgiving this year, but if you plan to do any air traveling, keep your eyes peeled for the Clinique Pop Lip Colour + Primer Holiday 2015 Travel Exclusive three-piece set, because the three lipsticks in it are beyond great superstars from the Clinique line.

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