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A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict

Karen

Two Ways to Win a $50 eGift Card from Sephora!

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  • WINNER: The giveaway is closed now, and the winner is RM! Congratulations, RM! If you entered but didn’t win this time around, keep trying, and click here to enter any ongoing giveaways before you jet. 🙂

A Makeup and Beauty Blog giveaway
Comment to win a Sephora eGift card

G’morning, friend. I just wanted to say hi, tell you that I love you very much, and wish you a wonderful day. 🙂

It’s still early here (just before 7), but it looks like it’s going to be a nice day. In a little while El Hub and I are driving down to the city to meet my brother and his girlfriend for birthday brunch (today is officially, officially my bday), which I’m hoping involves banana pancakes, mimosas and gut-busting laughter.

Yup, my brother — he’s six years younger than me — is one of only a few people in my life capable of making me simultaneously angry and happy.

LOL! I think that’s something they teach in sibling school…

“Okay, now if you push this button here, your sister will laugh. But this button will make her furious. And if you push both buttons at the same time… Well, we don’t recommend doing that.”

I hope today is the start of a great weekend.

Before you go, do you have time to leave a quick comment at the bottom of this post? If you do, you’ll be entered to win this weekend’s giveaway for a $50 Sephora eGift card.

What folks are saying…

“Thanks so much, Karen. Just in case you were wondering what I got with it, I decided to go with the Clarisonic Mia–I’ve been wanting it for years now, but have never purchased it because of the price. Your eCard helped me finally buy it! I look forward to using it. Thanks again!”
-Jane

“Shut the front door! OMG Karen, you have made my day. 🙂 I’m sick in bed with the flu and this has just cheered me up immensely!!!!!!!! BTW, I’m the one that sent you that pic of my pug in a wig a few weeks back LOL! Thanks again, honestly, I’m beyond giddy right now.”
-Angel

“Oh my goodness! Thank you so much Karen (and Tabs, of course)! I really appreciate this! I’d been eyeing the Anastasia brow pencil in Strawburn to match my red hair!”
-Chelsea (and Jiji the kitten and Quincy the bunny)

“Never before have I been so pleased to check my email right before bed!!! Thank you so, so much! I truly enjoy your blog and check it almost daily! Thanks again! This made my night!”
-Melissa, Edmond, OK

“Hi Karen. Oh my goodness! I can’t believe I won! :O Thank you so much! You, Tabs, and your blog are amazing! Thank you for keeping me updated on all things beauty and more importantly, for keeping me entertained! Keep doing your thing! 🙂 Thank you again.”
-Jacqueline

“Hi Karen. Thank you so much, I’m so excited, I’ve never won anything before. My name is Hana … I just turned 25 (today is my birthday!) Yay! Thank you.”
-Hana

Win a $50 gift card from Sephora

  • One (1) Sephora eGift card containing $50 sent to the winner by email (international readers, you may opt to receive $50 sent by PayPal instead).

  • There are two ways to enter, and you can do both of them for two chances to win. First, you can enter by leaving a comment at the bottom of this post, a comment about anything at all, like, do you have any siblings? How do you like to celebrate your birthday? Do you like ice cream cake? What’s your favorite flavor of birthday cake? Are you reading any books right now (for fun or otherwise)? — you get the idea.
  • Second, you can enter by following me on twitter Twitter @karenmbb and retweeting (RT) the following message:
    • Follow @karenmbb and RT to Win a $50 eGift Card from Sephora! http://bit.ly/JTFoPh

  • The deadline to enter is Sunday, June 10, 2012 at 11:59PM (PT).
  • Entrants must enter using a valid email address and/or Twitter account to win.
  • A maximum of two (2) entries per person — one within the comments at the bottom of this post, and a second entry via Twitter addressed to me @karenmbb.
  • Contest is open to individuals of any country who have reached the age of majority according to their local laws (18 in the United States with these exceptions: Alabama and Nebraska, 19; Mississippi, 21).
  • Sephora eGift Certificates can only be redeemed online and are not valid in stores or available for purchase or redemption in Canada. International winners may opt to substitute the Sephora eGift card prize for $50 sent directly to their email address by PayPal instead.
  • Tabs and I (heretofore referred to as “T-Money and K-Dawg”) will select one (1) winner at random from the entries either left in the comments at the bottom of this blog post or addressed to @karenmbb on Twitter.
  • The winner will be announced here within 48 hours of the deadline.
  • Void where prohibited by law.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

  • WINNER: The giveaway is closed now, and the winner is RM! Congratulations, RM! If you entered but didn’t win this time around, keep trying, and click here to enter any ongoing giveaways before you jet. 🙂

Sheer, These Benefit Ultra Plush Glosses Are Ultra Easy to Apply

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benefit ultra plush gloss bella bamba
Wearing Benefit Bella Bamba Boxed Blush and Bella Bamba Ultra Plush Gloss

Ever get a hankerin’ for easy-to-apply sheer glosses in shades that match your favorite Benefit boxes blushes?

If you do, Benefit’s latest launch might be of interest.

Why? Because it’s Ultra Plush. 🙂

The six $16 shades that comprise the Benefit Ultra Plush Glosses match some of the lines bestselling boxed blushes.

The Benefit Ultra Plush Glosses

  • Bella Bamba: a sheer, bright watermelon
  • Dandelion: a soft pearly pink
  • Coralista: a sheer coral
  • Hoola: a shimmering golden nude
  • Dallas: a dusty rose
  • Sugarbomb: a shimmering pinkish nude

Officially, they arrive at Benefit counters, stores and Sephora next month, but I’ve heard whispers about it being stocked at some Sephora stores early.

Here’s a brief look at three of the upcoming shades…

benefit ultra plush gloss boxes

benefit ultra plush gloss bella bamba
Bella Bamba

benefit ultra plush gloss hoola
Hoola
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If You Can’t Make It to a Spa Today, Bring the Spa to You: Skin Care Recommendations From a Bliss Spa Esthetician

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Bliss Spa Skin Care Reccomendations

Ya know, if spas were more like Starbucks, there’d be one on every corner, and the services would only cost $3-4.

I’d be able to tell El Hub, “Babe, I’m going on a quick spa run. Be right back!”

Instead, my trips to spas are few and far between, but on the rare occasions I do get to go, I always try to chat with the estheticians, because they’re great sources of skin care information.

Like last week at the beautiful Bliss spa in San Francisco, I cornered a friendly esthetician named Lillian, a 10-year veteran of the biz. Girl’s skin was flawless! FLAW-LESS. So I asked if she could recommend any awesome products.

Immediately, she started singing the praises of a line called SkinCeuticals. You’ve probably heard of it before; you see it in a lot of spas, dermatology offices and online skin care stores like Dermstore that carry niche brands and higher-end products.

I asked Lillian about anti-aging products, and the first thing she said was, “Pick up a bottle of Hydrating B5 Moisture Enhancing Gel and a tube of the Hydrating B5 Masque.”

Neither one is cheap, though. At Dermstore, the gel’s a whopping $70, and the masque costs $52.

skinceuticals hydrating b5 masque

But, both are designed to quench thirsty skin with hydration fortified with high doses of hyaluronic acid and vitamin B5.

The gel certainly seems to be working. I’ve been using it twice a day this week, and my cheeks definitely don’t seem as dry or flaky as they were.

The masque now, first things first? It feels so good! Especially right before bed. I slather it on, leave it alone for 15 minutes, and then rinse.

My skin feels about a billion times softer and more supple after.
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Outfit of the Day, Vol. 11: Current/Elliott Crazy Pants

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current elliott ankle skinny jeans in canvas

Full shot of the crazy pants! — a.k.a. the Skinny Ankle Jean in Canvas Boa.

They’re by Current/Elliott, and just like a real boa constrictor’s belly, they stretch.

That’s my favorite thing about ’em. They’re stretchy, and very forgiving when I’m feeling bloated…or when I’ve “accidentally” partaken of one too many free cheesecake samples at the Tuesday night farmers’ market, whoops!

But even though they’re stretchy, they don’t stretch out so much that they’re hanging off my butt by the end of the day.

Score! 🙂

I found this pair on sale last month at Hautelook. They’re not on sale there right now, but I did see them (unfortunately, full price) at Revolve Clothing and Bergdorf Goodman.

SINCE THE PATTERN IS KINDA LOUD, I usually try to keep the rest of the outfit simple, like with a loose-fitting white tee. This one’s by Caslon, the Nordstrom house brand, and here’s another one that’s similar.

Here I’m also wearing the shirt with a gray Band Oh underneath, and for accessories, a stack of silver bracelets/bangles and a pair of black platforms/sandals.
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