CoverGirl LashBlast -- Cheap Thrills at Last!
Am super-hyped right now because I am actually LOVING my lash status. They look thick, and curled and dark and it's all thanks to my $7 investment in
CoverGirl LashBlast. Now, I'm a sucker for pretty packaging, so when I first saw this product I was revolted. It's in a hideous, gigantic, orange tube that's shaped like a rocket and the brush looks puny in comparison to the gargantuan tube. I am SO GLAD I saw past all that, because LashBlast seriously holds a curl.
Given the $11 difference between this mascara and my tried-and-true Tarte Lash, Camera, Lashes, I may have to make a little casting change in my morning makeover routines.
Labels: CoverGirl LashBlast, Mascara
Glam in 8 minutes: My BART Routine
My 40 minute train ride into San Francisco every morning consists of a little nap, some reading, some journaling, and this 8 minute makeover:
NOTE: it wasn't always doable in 8 minutes. This routine & product collection has been perfected over 6 straight years of BARTing into work. That's approximately 1,440 morning trips on Bay Area Rapid Transit!!
Here's a shot of my starting lineup (notice the packaging on some of these -- I use them ALL THE TIME):
The real beauty of this routine is it can be done whilst sitting on your ass, and without the use of a brush. All you need are your FINGERS! You'll have to get over the fear of everyone gawking at your audacity to conduct a full makeover on the morning commute. The truth is, everyone is either too sleepy or too engrossed in their Op-Ed to care. So, to the lineup. I've pictured them above in order of application.
Origins Quick, Hide! Easy blend concealer: I've been using this stuff for YEARS, and it's terrific if you don't like the full-full-coverage look. I like my skin to look real, so I only dab this on my problematic areas (lil under the eyes, down the nose, a few dots on the cheeks) and it works great. I use the 03 Medium shade. This takes a minute MAX.
Too Faced Lock Down: Apply this fantastic creme eyeshadow on your lids, and blend with your ring finger (it has the softest touch) up to as close to your brow as you like. I only use one color in my BART routine: Bedroom Eyes. Too Faced has perfected the creme eyeshadow, as far as I'm concerned. I use cremes 99.9% of the time, so I've tried a lot of them, and this one is by far THE BEST in terms of blendability and staying power (I NEVER need a touchup). Application takes 2 - 3 minutes, depending on how much you put on, how much you have to blend.
Makeup For Ever Aqua Eyes eyeliner: This doesn't provide as thin a line as I would like, unless I sharpen it before each use, but in terms of depth of color and lasting color, nothing beats it. I wear contacts, and this never irritates them (KEY factor in determining your eyeliner life partner!) I line my top lash line & lower water line. 1 minute.
Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes mascara: As I've mentioned before, this is my tried & true. Been using this for about a year and a half and all attempts to try other brands have resulted in me running back to this, and begging its forgiveness. Takes me back everytime. Sometimes I plus up my lashes with Estee Lauder's Lash Primer Plus. If you're looking for a lash primer, this stuff is the business:
If you add in this primer step, the mascara application takes 2 minutes. Mascara alone would take 1 minute.
MAC Paints in Architecture: I'm a fan of the chiseled & blushed cheeks of the 80's, so I use this cream to create the illusion of cheekbones. I smear & blend it right underneath my cheekbone. Takes 30 seconds!
Givenchy Gloss Interdit: As you know, I purchased two of these bad boys just recently. They're my newest edition to mission: BART beauty. I use the Coral Frenzy color more than Glamorous Fuschia, but I like them both. This takes 30 seconds, too.
And that's a wrap. Follow the steps above and you should be good to go & ready to work!
Labels: Make Up For Ever, Origins, Tarte, Too Faced
Diorshow was a No-show
So part of my makeup splurge last Friday included my first purchase of the fabled
Diorshow Mascara. With over 4,500 Sephora customer reviews averaging 4 out of 5 stars, and the hype I've heard from my gorgeous circle of friends, I thought I'd bite the bullet, spend the 24 bucks and do the Dior.
SADNESS!!! I WANTED TO LOVE YOU, I REALLY DID.
I don't think this product was made for lashes like mine (longish, but thin and stick-straight). I curl my lashes AFTER I apply mascara (a faux pas, I know, but it's the only thing that works for me), and Diorshow couldn't keep my curl. They actually started drooping 30 minutes after my initial application & curl. This lauded lasher did nothing for me, and I'm kind of bummed about it. I was in the mood to try something new, but it looks like I'm going back to my
Tarte - Lash, Camera, Lashes.
Labels: Diorshow, Mascara, Tarte
Look who gave in!
I couldn't help myself. I bought this on Friday after a relatively upbeat day at the office, the weather was glorious and I just found out my sisters were dropping in for a surprise visit. In other words, I was feeling GOOOOOOOOOD! And I'm the opposite of typical retail therapy patients - I don't shop for pick-me-ups, I shop when I'm high as a kite. So, I ended up buying the gorgeous Givenchy gloss in Coral Frenzy & Glamorous Fuschia. I used the later at the Paolo Nutini concert I ushered at this weekend (fun show, a real up-and-comer). Here's me with my new lips on -
Labels: Givenchy
No Dinero to Spare-O? Sally Hansen Color Quick to the Rescue!
If your mani/pedi funds have evaporated with your 401k, scoop this product up right now. It's dubbed a "Fast Dry Nail Color Pen" and that's exactly what you get -- just click twice and paint on your nails. It comes in a portable size, so you can carry it around for touchups and best of all, the formula dries in about 3 minutes. It's
on sale at CVS right now for $6.79 - hop to it!
I bought it in Sheer Pink. It's a great clean-cut color:
Labels: Nail Polish, Sally Hansen
Smashbox Gloss, plus Macy's vs. Sephora!
So I *sorta* got my lipgloss fix. Not the Givenchy one that I was pining for, but something similar in silhouette:
It's
Smashbox's Lip Enhancing Gloss (photo cred Sephora.com). I got it in Afterglow, and LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it. It's a perfect everyday color. It's not sticky at all, and it leaves my lips moisturized. My normal liptone is on the pale side, but this gloss gives me the perfect pinch of color. Here's me with it on (bursting at the seams with excitement!):
I picked this up at Macy's, went there thinking they carried the Givenchy cosmetics line. Have you noticed how their cosmetics department has been redesigned to look exactly the same as a Sephora store? Well, Sephora noticed it too and is serving up a big fat lawsuit against Federated Department Stores (Macy's parent company) on the grounds of copying Sephora's "layout, the attire of sales associates, the interior design, the displays, the alphabetical arrangement of brands, and the overall impression of the shopping experience." Read more about it at
allbusiness.com.
There's even a blurb in that article about Macy's employees taking pictures of fixtures and lighting at Sephora stores, spy-style. DRAMA! Hope the girls learn to play nice -- they're in too pretty an industry to keep those sour faces on!
Labels: Macy's, Smashbox
Need this Now!
It's
Givenchy's Gloss Interdit Ultra-Shiny Color Plumping Effect. I checked out the product in-store, but decided to wait on the purchase until I had a chance to read the reviews online. Now I'm kicking myself because consumers love the hell out of this gloss!
An open letter to Sephora --
Dear Sephora,
If you're out there reading this, I think you should find a way to feed online customer reviews in your brick & mortar stores. You know the majority of the reviews are positive, so this won't be destructive to your business. Many times, your employees don't have an opinion on a specific product that customers are interested in. (Me: Can you tell me anything about this Givenchy gloss? Sephora Rep: Well I don't use it personally, but I've heard good things ...) It's nothing against your staff -- there are a million products out there, it's hard for even addicts like me to keep up! It would just be really helpful to be able to reference other consumer's perspectives in the store.
I remain your loyal devotee and you, my house of worship,
EBoogie
Labels: Givenchy, lipgloss, Sephora
Trouble in Paradise
My skin's freaking out because I've had less than 5 hours of sleep every night for the past 7 days. Observe the damage (it's all over my forehead as well, but thought I'd spare you the extra imagery):
I have an arsenal of product lined up to come to the rescue. On the front line is
Mario Badescu's Calma Mask. This is supposed to be a rinse off mask, but I use it as an overnight spot treatment, and it removes blemishes without scaring.
I'll use this for about 3 days, and if that doesn't do the trick, I use a dab of rubbing alcohol as on-the-spot treatment. If THAT doesn't work, my skin will be even more freaked out, and I'll have to bring in the big guns:
Elemis S.O.S. Emergency Cream. This product works wonders on random skin irritation, but I only break it out in emergencies because it costs $79!
Will keep you posted on how this works out ...
Labels: Elemis, Mario Badescu, skin irritation
