I can’t stop staring at the glitter in Mer-Maid For Each Other, a new fall 2012 shade from Nicole by OPI ($7). Available now at Target.
Nails and This Polish Were Mer-Maid For Each Other
Go With Your Animal Instinct
The NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Custom Compact in Concrete Jungle ($4.99), from the new Fashion Predator limited edition collection.
The colors remind me of my in-law’s backyard in Hawaii, which I kid you not, was a straight-up jungle.
With the Tom Ford Eye Color Quad in Emerald Lust, It’s Our Moment to Shine
It was like one of those dreams where you’re falling, falling, and you just keep falling forever, and at one point you stop screaming and ask yourself, “Huh… Haven’t I been falling for a while?”
That’s kinda like how I felt today playing with Tom Ford Beauty’s new Eye Color Quad in Emerald Lust ($75).
Girl, can I just say that Tom and I had a really good time? 🙂
Who says teal eyeshadows should be reserved for special occasions? I think not! How about a special occasion like this: Tuesday. There’s your special occasion, LOL! Tuesday makes teal totally legit.
Now, before we proceed, a little backstory first…
When the Tom Ford Beauty line launched last fall, it had all the makings of a top-tier, high-end makeup brand (read: hella expensive premium products and luxurious packaging), and since then, it has exceeded my expectations. If ya lust after luxury lines, there’s some bonafide treasures here.
Do you recall the look we took a couple weeks ago at the new fall collection? Here’s a reminder: it was intense! Tom turned up the volume on everything this time around, with eye, lip and cheek colors so strong they could be called Herculean.
The entire collection is a color lover’s dream come true, and if said color lover happens to 
bold teal, fuchsia and plum, it’s like a great dream times 12 (starring shirtless Ryan Gosling, Ryan Reynolds and Jeremy Renner).
Now where were we…? Oh, yeah: lust! Emerald Lust, with its shimmery teal, blue, green and gold.
Glitter, pigment and shine? With this quad, Tom didn’t hold anything back. You can forget about blending into the background when you’re wearing this on your lids; there are no shy violets here.
As for the quad’s other bonafides, I have absolutely no issues with fallout, and I also find that blending these shadows is a breeze…
Next Stop, 1988! The New Tom Ford Beauty Cheek Color in Narcissist Evokes an Era of Big Hair and Bright Blush
What are you, Tom Ford?! Some kind of makeup psychic? Because how else could you have known that I’ve been desperately seeking an ’80s-style blush to wear with my power blazer (the one with the big shoulder pads) and slouchy leg warmers?
Your new Cheek Color in Narcissist ($55) is a veritable spectacle of intense fuchsia! — and it’s the first product from your new fall collection that I can honestly call a full-blown obsession.
And frankly, I’m surprised I like it as much as I do.
Why? Because it doesn’t exactly scream “natural-looking cheeks,” and if I accidentally apply too much, well, have you ever heard of Baby Jane?
If I’m careful, though, and get the application just right — that is, if I sweep my fan brush across the pan just once, and then dilute the color by swiping it across a paper towel before lightly dusting the brush on my cheeks — I love it. I get bright, radiant cheeks that last and last and last.
It reminds me of the way I looked a few years ago at the precise moment when I finished a half marathon…except without all of the perspiration and wicked chafing. There was a faint sheen all over my face, and my cheeks were flushed and bright.
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Share a Tip Tuesday: Get/Keep Those Pans in Great Shape With This Easy Eyeshadow Tip
Do you ever wet your brush heads when you apply powder eyeshadows? It’s one of my favorite color-intensifying tricks, and I’ll usually use MAC Fix+ or Charged Water. They crank up the color intensity and, if it’s a shimmery product, the shine as well.
Thing is, after taking a wet brush to a pan a few times, the pans can get crusted over, and the shadow itself can harden like clay.
To get around this, or at least to minimize it, when I use a wet brush, I work the same part of the pan every time. So, instead of swiping the brush across the whole surface, I swipe the same, small spot. It still hardens…but just in that one little area.
If you have an eyeshadow pan that you’ve been using with a wet brush, and it’s already hard like concrete, here’s something to try: gently scrape away the top layer using the edge of a spoon, with “gently” being the key word here.
Too much pressure, and you could shatter the pan into a zillion pieces…which would not be good.
Welcome to another fun-filled installment of Share a Tip Tuesday! 🙂 You were awesome in last week’s edition and left a ton of great makeup, beauty and brush tips in the comments. Here are some of the ones I’m eager to try…
The best eyeliner that I’ve found that stays put on my waterline and anywhere else is actually drugstore–Physician’s Formula! The ones that come in a set of three are my favorites. So easy to use and so dependable.
–LILIANEHere is a tip Lisa Eldridge taught me (bless her for recommending so many amazing products, too) — using eye liner brush for concealing small blemishes. It works wonders actually!
–MARINAhave to say that my favourite brush is a tie between Lunasol Cheek Brush and RMK Cheek Brush S, as I’m only learning up proper eye makeup so can’t really comment on eye brushes (Am still on the lookout for good eye brushes). Anyway, both the Lunasol and RMK brushes are incredibly high quality and fluffy and soft, and work very well for loose powder or pressed powder application- foundation, compact, blush, bronzer, highlighter… anything face-related, really! Who says they should only be cheek brushes?
–STEPHANIE/YUKAESHIMy favorite favorite favorite multitasking brush is the smudger brush from Medusas Makeup. It retails for about $10 but it packs a punch! I use this baby to wing my shadow out, smudge liner for a smoky look, apply cream eyeliner, put eyeshadow along my lower lash line. This is possibly one of the best brushes that I own and I constantly find myself going back to it.
— SARAIt doesn’t matter what brand you have, having at least two good fluffy blending brush is a must. I have two because when I can use one for blending out my eyes, then another for putting subtle highlights on my face, blending out concealer, wiping out my lips, or contouring out small areas.
–KATE & ZENA
Thanks for adding to our arsenal of knowledge. 🙂
Now, today let’s talk about eyeshadow…
Like, what are your favorites (the shadows you keep buying over and over again)? And what about eyeshadow brushes — which are your must-haves? While we’re at it, can you recommend any bodacious bargain shadows?
Knowledge is power, so let’s pool our resources, okay? Leave your current top tips/tricks/techniques/awesome drugstore finds here in the comments, or tweet ’em to me on Twitter @karenmbb using the hashtag #shareatiptuesday.
Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,
Karen
Iris My Case
I can’t resist a nail polish with a bit of clever wordplay. 🙂
Say hi to Iris My Case, a new fall 2012 shade from Nicole by OPI ($7). Available now at Target.
What to Wear While You’re in the Concrete Jungle
Purple eyeshadow. Lots of it.
The NYC New York Color IndividualEyes Custom Compact in Concrete Jungle ($4.99), from the new Fashion Predator limited edition collection.
The Effects of This Venomous Vixen Wear Off Fast: The Sally Hansen Salon Effects Real Nail Polish Strips in Venom Vixen
True, I could give myself a manicure the old-fashioned way, brushing on a base coat, carefully coating each nail with two (or sometimes three) layers of polish and finishing with a clear top coat to seal the deal, all the while hoping that a stray strand of tabby fur doesn’t fall on my handiwork before it dries, but these are modern times.
The future is now! — and in it, I’m wearing nail polish stickers. 🙂
Yup, that’s right. Nail polish stickers, like these Sally Hansen Salon Effects Real Nail Polish Strips. Each $9 (or thereabouts) kit comes with 16 pre-printed strips in various sizes, a cuticle stick and a miniature nail file/buffer — all the fixin’s for a futuristic, laquer-less manicure.
Talk about handy (haha! — sorry, bad pun), and lately, they’ve been saving my butt.
Stylish nails on the go
Before my quick trip down to Southern California last week, I had every intention of painting my nails, but time got away from me, and I had to head to the airport with bare claws.
But I couldn’t bear the thought of interviewing Too Faced Cosmetics Co-Founder and Creative Director Jerrod Blandino with naked nails, so at the last second, right before darting out the door, I dropped a set of Sally’s dark red and black snakeskin nail polish strips (codename: Venom Vixen) into my overnight bag.
It’s one of four snakeskin-inspired sets for fall. There’s also a tan and brown one called Queen Cobra, a black and gray one called Snake Charmer and a green and black one called Hiss-Terical (I love those names!).
Ye olde airport bathroom test
I had some time to spare before my flight and still really, really wanted to paint my nails, but I wasn’t about to attempt that at the airport. I did, however, think I might be able to apply Sally’s nail polish strips.
And I did! Standing at the sink in the ladies’ room! 🙂
At one point, a woman using the sink next to me asked, “What are those? They look pretty cool.”
“They’re nail stickers,” I answered. “You stick ’em on bare nails, and then press them down, and file or just tear off the edge.”
They’re basically like nail polishes in sticker form, and when you’re ready to remove them, you can use regular old nail polish remover.
They took about 10 minutes to apply under less-than-ideal circumstances. Not bad. And the best part? — not having to wait for them to dry.
