bay area beauty love

Bay Area Beauty Loves: Everyone for Every Body, and EO Essential Oils

February 28th, 2019 by Karen 10 Comments

eo essential oils everyone for everybody — Marin County in the house!

Yay for the Bay! This is the last in this series featuring products from and around my stomping grounds — the San Francisco Bay Area.

“Be relaxed,” it says.

Jeez, my body oil is sooooo bossy?

eo essential oils lavender final — When body products make declarative statements…

OKURRRR!

I laugh every time I bust out this bottle of EO Essential Oils Body Oil in French Lavender, which is often, because I feel like it’s giving me tough love and telling me to chill-the-eff out, Karen.

Funny thing is, after I shower and slather my legs and limbs from tip to toes with this $15 lavender-scented body oil, I actually do feel very relaxed. After using it, I’ve fallen asleep on the couch at 8 (OK, 7:30!) more than a few times.

For the record, it’s quite hydrating, but it isn’t greasy, and the lavender scent isn’t obnoxiously powerful.

EO Essential Oils and Everyone for Every Body, their sister brand, is based here in my neck of the woods in the North Bay Area, Marin County. Both of them carry every kind of body care product you can imagine — hand soap, hand sanitizer, lotion, body wash, shampoo, conditioner, body oils, deodorant, face wash, the works — and their products are cruelty-free, made without synthetic fragrances, and affordable. A huge 34-oz. bottle of their Everyone 3-in-1 Body Lotion is $11! I’m a big fan of the Apricot + Vanilla and the Citrus Mint scents, which are spring and summer staples of mine.

And as an avid hand washer (some might even call me obsessive about it, but whatevs!), I’m also a fan of their liquid Hand Soaps. Lots of bubbles, but the soap is easy to rinse away, and it cleans without stripping my skin. My favorite “flavor” is the $8.99 EO French Lavender, which, by the way, also tells me to “be relaxed” whenever I see it, ha ha! If you like the liquid hand soaps from Mrs. Meyers, I bet you’ll like these, too.

Oh! — and they also do products for babies, toddlers and bigger kids! Connor Claire has a bottle of the 3-in-1 Soap Orange Squeeze, which is an $8 shampoo, body wash and bubble bath combo, in the tub, but El Hub and I shamelessly pilfer from it on occasion.

everyone kids soap coco — Orange Squeeze is her main squeeze.

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Bay Area Beauty Love: E.L.F.

February 22nd, 2019 by Karen 13 Comments

Yay for the Bay! In this series, for the month of February 2019, I’ll be featuring products from and around my stomping grounds, the San Francisco Bay Area.

A trifle of trivia for my friends who marvel at makeup minutia: Drugstore brand E.L.F. was founded in Oakland, California, in 2004. Contrary to popular myth, their name stands for “Eyes Lips Face,” and not for the classic Christmas film starring Will Farrell (which I’ve seen about a million times!).

WOW! That’s a lot of fun facts, I know! ? You’re soooooo welcome.

E.L.F. is low-key famous for doing a full range of super affordable drugstore makeup — color, tools, skincare, the whole nine yards — with plenty of products to choose from under $10. Whenever I have a beauty itch that needs scratching but don’t want to start a raging bonfire in my wallet, I’ll go to Ulta or Target and grab a few $2 doohickeys in the E.L.F. section for some instant gratification.

Granted, it doesn’t always work out for me, because I’m pickier about textures and finishes now that I’m in my 40s than I was in my 20s and 30s (a.k.a. the age when I could throw any shimmery shadow with the consistency of almond meal on my lids and be just fine), but sometimes I’ll find something great! Sure, it might not be the most perfect product in the history of the world, but it also won’t require me to take out a loan.

What happens when you “smize” and pop your hip in front of your garage… BTW, I’m wearing the E.L.F. Shadow Brow and Liner Palette and the No Budge Retractable Liner on my eyes.

Like their $12 matte powder eye palette with cool-toned mattes (YES!), which you can use to fill in your brows, shade your lids AND line your eyes.

Let me say that again: COOL-TONED MATTES. As in *no* orange or red shades. What a gem! I can do pretty much an entire eye look from start to finish with this palette (just add a tightline and mascara), and it works with practically every blush/lip combo around.

The caveat? Nil wear time…so I absolutely have to use it with an eye primer. If I don’t, the shadow vanishes in less than two hours.

Even with primer, it fades more and faster than higher-end shadows. But still…it’s $12! For that price, I’ll take it. I’m happy enough with the colors, the blending and the texture of the powders (similar to Urban Decay).

I made an E.L.F. run last week because I needed a pick-me-up after going to the dentist, so I got…

A $3 No Budge Retractable Eyeliner in Black: Long-wearing and decently pigmented (although not as pigmented as the Maybelline twist-up, so I have to use two or three layers). It’s stiff, but it’s good enough for tightlining.
A $2 pack of Line & Define Tape: This stuff is juuuust sticky enough. You can even cut them in half to make a pack last longer.
A $4 Solid Brush & Sponge Cleanser: Pretty great.

An entire haul for less than $10!? How is that even possible!?

What are your E.L.F. faves?

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF!!!

Bay Area Beauty Love: H2O+ Beauty

February 20th, 2019 by Karen 15 Comments

Yay for the Bay! In this series, for the month of February 2019, I’ll be featuring products from and around my stomping grounds, the San Francisco Bay Area.

Why, yes, it amuses me to no end that whenever I need a tropical ?? scent fix, the brand I usually turn to (H2O Plus) isn’t located someplace tropical. Instead, it’s based in San Francisco.

I have no idea why this is so funny to me. ? I’m way too easily amused!

H2O+ Beauty has been a fave of mine for ages. I actually started using them back when I lived in SF in the early Aughts (back when I was all about the Milk lotion). Now I turn to them mainly for body products, like shower gels and lotions, but they also have a few really great skin care products too, like their $20 hydrating gel Elements Keep It Fresh Face Cleanser for normal to dry skin. I love using it after I work out because it totally takes care of the sedimentary layers of sweat without drying out my cheeks, which is no easy feat!

But my “go-to” items from the brand, by far, are the Coconut Verbena Body Wash ($18) and Body Butter ($22). I get them whenever I see them on BOGO at Ulta (which is often, and right now there’s a buy-one-get-one at 40% online). The scent is my favorite tropical scent whenever I’m going through Hawaii withdrawals like I am now.

It’s beachy without the standard sunscreen, piña colada or sweet pineapple notes. It has a strong bright lemon verbena tone that lifts it up and gives it a citrus-y vibe that’s very refreshing, but there’s also a plumeria note, so you aren’t walking around just smelling like lemons, LOL! The coconut is perfection, too, because it smells like freshly cracked coconut as opposed to that artificially sweet coconut candy.

Between the pair of them, my alligator limbs stand absolutely no chance. I am mois-tur-ized!

Chunky braid saves the day

I’m back from the party! I ended up going with a messy, chunky braid, and it turns out that it was the perfect thing for making the grays look purposeful. I did a deep side part to show off my silver highlights. ?
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Bay Area Beauty Love: Benefit They’re Real! Red On! Matte Lip Color

February 8th, 2019 by Karen 13 Comments

Yay for the Bay! In this series, for the month of February 2019, I’ll be featuring products from and around my stomping grounds, the San Francisco Bay Area.

This new matte cream lipstick from Benefit (a brand headquartered in the SF Bay Area) is the real deal. I would say “Get red-y for it” if I were a fan of puns (ha ha!), but instead, I’ll just do my best to describe it. It’s a red-olent, red-onkulously easy-to-wear matte red lipstick called They’re Real! Red On! Matte Lip Color, and it’s $20 and comes with its own little lip brush, which sits in that divot that goes across the pan.

Super fun and perhaps borderline gimmicky? Check and check. But it’s actually really good, and reds are hard, man. Especially opaque matte reds lipsticks like this. Most fall into the trap of being so bold and pigmented that they leave you no room for error, and the moment your lip edge goes wonky, there’s no turning back. I know that, at least for me, this is a turnoff, and it keeps me from wearing red very often.

Because — hello! — LAZINESS.

benefit theyre real red on swatch — R U red-y for it?

But Red On makes matte red lips easy, and not simply because of the little lip brush it comes with. You can actually apply this matte cream with a lip brush OR your fingers, and either way, it looks on point.

Believe it or not, I just applied it with a finger in this picture here. I just kinda smooshed it around, and it turned out perfectly.

The formula feels almost like a cream-to-powder formula, and the powder-i-ness (?) enables you to fudge the edges a little if you need to. So, even if your lip lines aren’t super precise, they won’t look that way (the whole world doesn’t have to know it, amirite?).

Red On also feels light and nice on my lips, and it doesn’t dry out my kisser or creep beyond the edges.

What a delightful surprise, really. 🙂 I think it’s a hidden gem in the Benefit permanent line.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. TGIF!!!!

Bay Area Beauty Love: Benefit Gogo Tint

February 7th, 2019 by Karen 8 Comments

Yay for the Bay! In this series, for the month of February 2019, I’ll be featuring products from and around my stomping grounds, the San Francisco Bay Area.

Question of the day: Is the “gogo” in Benefit Gogo Tint a shout-out to the Wham song or a shout-out to gogo dancers?

Neither? Both?

Seeing as how the very first Benefit stain was a nipple tint made for exotic dancers…I’m gonna go-go with option B, ha ha!

It’s been a minute since I’ve worn one of these. They’re $30 liquid lip and cheek stains, and this newest member is a vibrant matte cherry red that looks like an intensified version of the original Benetint I loved like heck in my early 20s.

benefit gogo tint 2 — Wake me up before you Gogo!

Gogo Tint isn’t as watery as the O.G. one. The liquid formula is milkier and creamier (similar to the ChaCha and Lolli tints). The thicker consistency makes Gogo user-friendlier because, unlike the original, it doesn’t immediately drip or roll down your cheeks. It’s also smoother and easier to blend.

I also feel like the slightly creamy consistency makes it less patchy than the more viscous original and easier to blend, which I usually do with my fingers.

Like all of the Benefit Tints, you can wear Gogo on your lips, too. It’s a bright matte red that looks like just-kissed lips, and it’s beautiful if you can get it to apply evenly. Although I appreciate its multitasking prowess, I’m not fond of wearing it on my lips because the tint grabs on to the center areas more than the outer edges, so I end up with an unintentional edgy gradient effect.

I mean, it would be cooler if I were a high-fashion gal, but when I’m out and about in a sweatshirt, stretchy pants and messy bun, as I am 99% of the time…it just looks like I forgot to touch up after lunch.

More deets…

Wear time is about 5-6 hours.
Doesn’t taste or smell like anything.
A little drying on the lips, but not drying on my cheeks, though.
Best on bare skin or skin prepped with BB or CC cream, or tinted moisturizer , can be streaky on a full-coverage base).
Always make sure that the cap is sealed shut; otherwise, it could spill all over your makeup bag.

benefit gogo tint swatch — Gogo Tint, blended (top) and unblended (bottom)

I see this as a great blush for low-maintenance gals and a good option for first-time blush wearers, or anyone who likes makeup that doesn’t look powdery or obvious. A large 0.33-oz. bottle is $30, and a travel-sized 0.13-oz. mini is $12. You can find Gogo at Benefit stores, Ulta and Sephora.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Geez, why are these chairs so comfortable? Is it the chair, the shave ice, the hibiscus flowers around them, the fancy swimming pool? Or all of the above?

Aloha again! This has been a very low-key trip so far with a definite lack of adventure sports and water activities. Yup. Connor, El Hub and I all came down with viruses, so we haven’t been pushing the envelope in terms of activities, but it’s still been wonderful to just hang out, rest and take in the atmosphere (and consume large quantities of shave ice, fresh papaya and pineapple).

I’m gonna go get another shave ice now. What can I get you? You can mix ‘n match any flavors you want…

Banana, Vanilla, Bubble Gum, Cherry Coconut Cotton Candy, Watermelon, Grape, (Sour) Green Apple, Green Tea, Guava, Yuzu, Lemon, Lemonade, Li Hing Mui, White Cake, Lilikoi (Passionfruit), Lime, Mango, Lychee, Melon, Mizore, Orange, Papaya, Pickled Mango, Piña Colada, Pineapple, Raspberry, Root Beer, Strawberry, Peach, Ume, Banana Cream, Coconut Cream, Strawberry Cream

(*Cream flavors have condensed milk pre-mixed into the syrup.)

Sugar-Free Banana, Sugar-Free Strawberry, Sugar-Free Vanilla

Bay Area Beauty Love: Benefit Punch Pop!

February 5th, 2019 by Karen 5 Comments

Yay for the Bay! In this series, for the month of February 2019, I’ll be featuring products from and around my stomping grounds, the San Francisco Bay Area.

My idea of the perfect party punch involves strawberries, and if they aren’t in there in copious amounts (mashed or sliced, doesn’t matter to me), I’m out. There’s a Strawberry version in the new-ish Benefit Punch Pops, so YAY for me and my red berry addiction, which I blame on a childhood spent obsessing over Strawberry Shortcake (the doll, not the dessert…although I do love both).

For the life of me, I can’t figure out why the boxes say “Liquid Lip Color,” when really, this new-ish line, which came out last fall, is made up of straight-up lipglosses.

*shrugs*

Slightly confusing marketing aside, the glosses are fun, functional and best of all, cute, which is what Benefit, a beauty brand based outta SF (my old stomping grounds!), does best.

This line of non-sticky, full-pigment glosses is supposed to be cheeky and fun and not meant to be taken too seriously. You stick one in your purse, wear it everyday for two weeks straight, and then after that, occasionally take it out whenever you do a deep dive into your bag (“Oh, so THAT’S where it went!”) and touch up with it before moving onto the next thing.

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