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

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

A Revealing Look at NYX’s New Clothing Optional Palette, Butt Naked Eyes

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Butt why, NYX!? Why so cheeky? 🙂

I can’t say I ever expected to see the words “butt” and “naked” appear on a makeup palette, butt there they are — all saucy and snarky on the front of Butt “Naked” Eyes, NYX’s new $25 holiday palette for the face, eyes and cheeks.

Judging by the name at least, it looks like the line had fun putting together this two-tiered palette of eyeshadows, blushes, a bronzer and highlighters, butt about that name…

LOL! Okay, I’ll stop.

I couldn’t help but notice that the name shares a word in common with the recently released Naked2 from Urban Decay.

Would that mean it’s also a possible dupe for half the price?

Let’s find out!

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NYX Butt “Naked” Eyes
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With Tocca’s Tiny To Go Eau de Parfums, You Can Fit Tuscany in the Palm of Your Hand

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“Who says bigger’s always better?” asks the 5-foot-1 girl typing this sentence. 🙂 (Incidentally, she’s usually the shortest person in the room.)

The new $15 Tocca To Go Mini Eau de Parfums combine teeny, tiny cuteness with Tocca’s signature fresh and flirty floral scents.

I stumbled upon three of these minis at the mall yesterday while cruising for Christmas tchotchkes. They were right next to a weird $500 white porcelain horse head in Anthropologie (so very Godfather!) and surrounded by a sea of $50 salt-and-pepper shakers.

Aren’t they cuter than cupcakes?

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You may recall these same three minis in Cleopatra, Stella and Florence from last year, when Tocca was selling them together as the $45 Eau de Parfum Viaggio set, but this is the first time I can remember seeing them available separately.

The official fragrance notes…

  • Stella — Blood orange, lily, white freesia, orchid, musk and sandalwood
  • Florence — Gardenia, bergamot, violet, iris and blonde wood
  • Cleopatra — Grapefruit, jasmine, tuberose, patchouli, amber and vanilla musk

I’ve been infatuated with Tocca ever since I met beautiful Bianca last year. I like to imagine their fragrances coming from a tiny estate-turned-perfumery in the middle of a field of flowers on a sunny Tuscan hillside, or someplace lovely like that. 🙂

They’re the kinds of scents that make me want to let down my hair and don a delicate dress and comfy shoes; I bet they’d make perfect stocking stuffers, too. To my nose, all three of them are like a breath of fresh air — girly, but not sugary sweet.

I also spotted these matching Cleopatra, Florence and Stella creams ($20 each). I put some Stella on before leaving the store, and I liked that it felt non-greasy and moisturizing.

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Dec. 5

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  • You might be wondering, “So what the heck is this Monday Poll thing anyway?”
    Well, it isn’t much of a poll. It’s more just a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past three years, which I guess makes this somewhere around Vol. 197. I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.
  1. Mood:

    2. Actually really great for a Monday. I got to bed early last night, and the extra sleep made all the difference in the world. Yea for Zzz’s!

  2. Do you prefer to do your own nails or have them done at a nail salon?

    3. As much as I lurve a good hand/foot massage, I’m super picky about my nails, and I find doing them relaxing, so I usually do it myself. And then there’s the fact that I like to change the colors I’m wearing every few days, which kinda defeats the purpose of getting a really good salon mani/pedi. 

  3. Sweet or savory?

    4. A little bit of both, please. I like the contrast.

  4. A challenge you’re working to overcome?

    5. I’m trying to stay out of my own way. Like a lot of us, I tend to be my own worst enemy, and sometimes when I’m frustrated about a task I don’t want to do, I spend more time fretting about it than it would take to actually do the task.

  5. Are you looking forward to anything this month? 

    6. Spending a few days with my family, eating tons of good food, and going shopping and ice skating (yup, ice skating in California) in San Francisco’s Union Square.

  6. Truth or dare?

    7. The dare! Nine times out of 10 I’ll take the dare. I’m adventurous that way. 😉 Plus, I like holding on to a bit of mystery…

  7. When was the last time you freaked out about something?

    8. Yesterday afternoon, and it was a heated one, too, with lots of stomping around the house, tears, crazy talking to myself, outfit changes — the whole nine yards.

    I was feeling very overwhelmed about the holidays and the weekend drawing to a close, but more than that I was also hungry and have PMS (a lethal combination!).

    Thank goodness El Hub was around to talk me down, and he said the magic words, “Why don’t we go to See’s to get you some chocolate?”

  8. What’s your favorite kind of weather?

    9. Sunny in the upper 70s with a light breeze blowing in from the ocean. Ah, Calgon… Take me to Oahu!

  9. What’s one of your favorite holiday treats?

    10. Baskin-Robbins’ peppermint ice cream, even though it’s that unnatural shade of pink that looks like Pepto-Bismol.

  10. Weekly goals:

    11. I missed a couple of workouts last week, and even when I have been running, I’ve just been doing the bare minimum to get by, so I want to get back on track. I also want to be extra sweet to Tabs this week because we haven’t been going for our walks outside as often as we did together back in summer.

Am I the only one who’s been struggling to stay focused lately? I don’t know if it’s just because of the holidays or what, but I haven’t been checking many things off of my to-do list…

Maybe what we need is a good dose of the Monday Poll. 🙂 We only have three Mondays left before 2012, so let’s makes ’em count!

  • To complete the Monday Poll, just copy the following list, and paste it with your answers in the comments.



1. Mood:
2. Do you prefer to do your own nails or have them done at a nail salon?
3. Sweet or savory?
4. A challenge you’re working to overcome?
5. Are you looking forward to anything this month? 
6. Truth or dare?
7. When was the last time you freaked out about something?
8. What’s your favorite kind of weather?
9. What’s one of your favorite holiday treats?
10. Weekly goals:

Are you attending any holiday parties this week? Wow, it’s hard to believe it’s already that time.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Sundays with Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 168

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Tabs for the Dolce and Gabbana Emerald Collection

So that’s where Tabs went when he disappeared last summer, down to Hollywood to film his cameo for the new Muppets movie. Now it all makes perfect sense. 🙂

We just got back from seeing the movie, and there Tabs was on the big screen in a scene with Neil Patrick Harris! Tabs says he would have gotten even more screen time, too, if it hadn’t been for that dang Selena Gomez…

Tabs had a bunch of fun kitty modeling gigs this week for Clinique, MAC, Dolce & Gabbana, Elizabeth Arden and Urban Decay. Here are a few pics from the jobs.

Tabs for Clinique Seasons Worth of Tabby

Tabs for MAC Tabby Danger
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What’s the Most Underrated Drugstore Beauty Product?

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Wearing NYC New York Color Liquid Lipshine in Big Apple Spice

OOH! So many to choose from, but the first, best one that comes to mind now is one I’ve mentioned many times before, one of my drugstore standbys for many years, Sally Hansen’s Diamond 12-Hour Lip Treatments. They’re just $6 each, sometimes less when they’re on sale, and I think they’re all kinds of great, like drugstore versions of a MAC Lipglass.

NYC New York Color Liquid LipshineBuuut, as soon as I finished writing that last paragraph, I remembered the NYC New York Color Liquid Lipshines, which sell for an amazing $2.49 each!

Yup, $2.49. Less than the price of a soy chai latte (mmm… chai). Like the Sally Lip Treatments, they’re light and non-sticky with lots of rich color, and they somehow manage to deliver at one heck of a bargain basement price.

What do you think? What’s the most underrated drugstore beauty product that comes to mind?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

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