Makeup and Beauty Blog | Makeup Reviews, Swatches and How-To Makeup
A beauty blog blooming with fresh makeup reviews, swatches and beauty tips from your friendly neighborhood beauty addict
Your nephew/my employer welcomed me home last night with disdainful side glances and faux disinterest.
Apparently, he was REALLY cranky about the Kauai kitties temporarily hogging the spotlight.
You know how he gets when he’s not the center of attention…
He made up for it this morning with headbutts and purring, although I suspect it was just a ploy to get treats.
Complete with a convenient see-through cap, so you can quickly pick it out in a crowd (and won’t have to spend DAYS rifling through the other lippies in your purse to find it), a universally flattering soft shine and sheer coverage, gorgeous and affordable Covergirl Lipslick Smoochies Lip Balm in Luv U goes from the office to date night without skipping a beat.
This berry balm is a snazzy solution to the question, “If I want an effortless lip look, how can I update my makeup bag for fall without breaking the bank?”
Only thing is, you have to be cool with a 1-2 hour wear time. And a waxy flavor and scent, as Luv U has ’em. Luckily, both fade pretty quickly (within about 10 minutes).
Yeah, I may have gone a little overboard with the french fries. And the shave ice. And the ice cream. And the —
Whatev! I was on vacation.
But now that I’m back, I want to get fit, like this blush by Maybelline.
It’s called Fit Me Blush in Light Rose… Get it? Fit Me? Fit?
Sorry! Weak pun. I’m still a little jet-lagged.
Every time I see the word “Fit” on this sheer matte neutral pink blush’s cover it reminds me that I should probably go for a run to start working off all of those bowls of saimin I had (it’s a noodle soup like ramen, only taken to the next level with lots of delicious toppings).
Along with acting as a gentle reminder to get my butt moving, the blush also leaves my cheeks with the same soft pink post-workout flush I get after sprinting through the finish of a 30-minute treadmill sesh…except without the heavy breathing and perspiration.
By comparison, it’s effortless.
When all I want is a basic pink flush — something that won’t compete with my eye or lip makeup — Light Rose hits the spot.
Like Maybellinne’s other Fit Me Blushes, it’s very sheer, so if you grab it expecting NARS-caliber color, you might be disappointed. I really have to build it up in layers to see the color clearly on my skin.
I wonder where Merveille hath gone…
Wonder — as in Merveille, which according to Google Translate means “wonder,” and that it is. If you like lightweight, slick plum glosses, bear witness to Merveille!
Dior Addict Gloss in Merveille ($29.50), part of the fall Mystic Metallics collection, may be a little tough to track down online right now… It’s currently listed as unavailable on dior.com, but you can sign up to be alerted when it returns.
Pretty darn saturated and opaque enough for my pigmented lips, Merveille also has a hint of red that I like. It keeps it from going too CSI on me (an issue I have with some plum glosses).
To quote Yoda, another wonder/marvel, “A ripe and juicy marvel, this plum gloss is.” 🙂 If that sounds good to you, keep your eyes peeled and your pout plump next time you hit up a Dior boutique or counter.
Hmm… Ya know, I never quite understood the whole Maybelline Great Lash Mascara thing. I read somewhere that a tube of it is sold worldwide every 1.2 seconds!
I mean, that’s some crazy devotion right there. I’ve tried it a few times over the past 20 years or so and, well, I just don’t get it.
It smudges on me and doesn’t lengthen anywhere near as much as I’d like.
Certainly has a cute tube, though! 🙂
All products are hyped to a degree, but are there any makeup or beauty products you feel are overhyped?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
P.S. I’m baaaack! Back in the Bay, babe. We got in last night around 11. I’m not quite awake yet, but I feel pretty good, jet-lag notwithstanding. Tabs has been lavishing me with welcoming lurvies, which I’m lapping up greedily.
Ooh, GUUUUURL! I’ve shed many tears over my hair, but by far the worst waterworks occurred after one particularly bad haircut in the summer between third and fourth grade.
I needed a haircut, badly, so my mom took me to the neighborhood “Asian salon” (That’s what we called it because everyone who worked there was Asian, and everyone who went there was Asian… I guess we weren’t very creative at the time when it came to naming things.) at a nearby shopping mall.
I was a quiet kid, a people pleaser, so I usually did what was told without protest, which is what I did that day, even though I had a feeling sitting in the chair that things were about to go very wrong.
Wait! — I’m getting head of myself. Let me start at the beginning…
When we walked into the salon that day, I expected to get a quick trim of my Dorothy Hamill hair, which I’d been rockin’ since kindergarden.
I sat down expecting business as usual, and I was okay with that. I figured I’d leave with my standard bowl cut that turned all the boys’ heads, LOL! Totally joking. I was an odd-looking kid, far from the “pretty girl” of our class, whose name was Betina. Betina had straight, beautiful brown hair so long that whenever she sat down, it fell just beneath her butt.
Anywho! Back to the salon…
There must have been some miscommunication somewhere along the way because the stylist kept cutting and cutting, and my hair kept getting shorter and shorter. AND SHORTER.
I started to freak out a little in the chair but was too afraid to say anything until it was way too late.
When it was finally over, my hair looked exactly like Ralph Macchio’s from The Karate Kid. The same center part, same wings over the ears — everything.
It was awful.
When my mom and the stylist asked if I liked it, all smiling with glee, all I could do was nod, “yes,” because I didn’t know what to say. I was in shock.
After we left the salon, my mom drove us to a Hallmark store to get some cards, and while we were there, I saw a display of heart-shaped pins with girl names on them. I started looking for my name when the lady behind the counter said really loudly, “I’m sorry, honey, but those pins are only for girls, not boys.”
Aaaaand that’s when I lost my sh*t.
I started sobbing like a crazed animal! There was slobber and snot everywhere. I think I even foamed at the mouth.
After about 10 minutes, I’d calmed down enough to function. My mom and the Hallmark lady must’ve felt really badly because I got one of the heart-shaped pins for my shirt.
Didn’t exactly make up for my Ralph Macchio hair…but it was a cute pin. 🙂
How about you? Have you ever cried over a bad haircut?
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Truth be told, I feel a little goofy wearing Illamasqua Lipstick in Posture ($24)…
I’m sure that somewhere out there, a gal/guy/space alien exists who can pull off this matte, cool-toned mauve with much aplomb, buuuut not I.
Posture, part of Illamasqua’s summer Paranormal collection, is one of those artsy colors that could look really neat if you have the right attitude and style to pull it off, but for your average 30-something-year-old cat lady, it’s kinda hard, LOL!
Posture is available now, definitely not slouching in its chair at Illamasqua counters and online.
Just to prove the HG-ness (Holy Grail-ness) of this concealer, in the picture above the tube is completely extended. I am almost at the stage where I have to dig the stuff out with a brush, and I’m close to tears. After all, at $95 these things cost an arm and a leg to replace.
Said concealer, Le Métier de Beauté Peau Vierge Correcteur in Light/Medium, is the first concealer I would ever use up. Prior to this, my favorite concealer was by Cle de Peau, and though that concealed discolorations and under-eye circles very well, it felt a little dry, and the blending wasn’t as seamless as I hoped it would be.
LMdB Peau Vierge Correcteur is creamy, but not heavy, and from the get-go it merged with my skin as if it were a part of it. I may never know whether it’s my eye cream or the Peau Vierge treatment in the concealer that keeps (most) of my dark circles away, but you won’t see me chancing it by changing my routine.
(It’s just my luck that when I had to take an important picture, a giant pimple popped up.)
