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“It’s classy. Not trashy!”You may recall these glistening gems from your last buried treasure discovery…or from the last...
05/06/2020

“It’s classy. Not trashy!”

You may recall these glistening gems from your last buried treasure discovery…or from the last MAC Holiday collection, but if you don’t, or if you missed out the last time around, grab ye one from the new MAC Get Blazed collection. The glittery, glistening eyeshadows have a metallic base…which may sound a bit frightening if sparkly makeup isn’t your thing, but the glitter doesn’t go overboard, so they’re shockingly chic, fun and wearable (and NOT excessively frosty or ’80s).

Yup, even for daytime.

The trick is to apply them with a soft fluffy brush, and I like the MAC 217 for this. Applied with the 217, the shadows look sheer and shiny, as opposed to metallic, opaque and heavy.

I also like to keep them tight and low on my lids — just on the mobile portion (the part of your eyelid that moves when you blink) — and I don’t take them up too far into the crease.

Next, tightline, and then coat your lashes with loads of mascara.

Et voilà! A fun, fresh look that doesn’t require you to work overtime on your eye makeup.

Continue reading "Product Spotlight: The MAC Shiny Pretty Shadows From the Get Blazed Collection" on Makeup and Beauty Blog.

“It’s classy. Not trashy!” You may recall these glistening gems from your last buried treasure discovery…or from the last MAC Holiday collection, but if you don’t, or if you missed out the last time around, grab ye one from the new MAC Get Blazed collection. The glittery, glistening eyesha...

If there’s anything I’ve learned about my skin over the past few years it’s that…it’s keeping me on my toes. It never st...
05/06/2020

If there’s anything I’ve learned about my skin over the past few years it’s that…it’s keeping me on my toes. It never stays the same way for long, but I’ve definitely seem some general changes, for sure, with the biggest being the prominence of my “experience lines.” They’re much more prominent under my eyes, especially when I smile, which is why I’ve taken to wearing less concealer and color corrector there. Oh, and less powder too.

It’s just that if I pile that stuff on like I used to, everything looks heavy and…not super cute.

I’ve also noticed that my skin is getting drier and drier. I do still have my oily spots, like in the center of my forehead and around my nose, but my cheeks and my neck (especially) are getting drier as the years pass, and when I ignore it, it gets borderline painful.

Another thing — oh, my gosh! — pigmentation. Where do I even start with this? If I don’t stay on top of it with an acid toner or a serum to keep the pigmentation in check, I’ll get these uneven patches on my cheeks, and those patches, they’re aggressive, man.

Continue reading "What Are the Biggest Changes You’ve Seen in Your Skin Over the Past Few Years?" on Makeup and Beauty Blog.

If there’s anything I’ve learned about my skin over the past few years it’s that…it’s keeping me on my toes. It never stays the same way for long, but I’ve definitely seem some general changes, for sure, with the biggest being the prominence of my “experience lines.” They’re much m...

I might sound like a broken record…especially when I say, “I might sound like a broken record,” which is a phrase I know...
05/06/2020

I might sound like a broken record…especially when I say, “I might sound like a broken record,” which is a phrase I know I use all the time, but I think it’s important to be open about taking care of one’s mental health. I know the holidays can be a stressful time, so here are a few things on my “Positivity Playlist” at the moment, in case you need a little help this week.

Time for some Electricity on repeat…

I’ve discussed some of this before, but when I was going to therapy a couple years ago (just needed someone to talk to about work, life, self-doubt, motherhood, loneliness, aging), one of the things my therapist and I talked about was conscientiously trying to see the proverbial glass as half full, rather than half empty, and how it can take a LOT of work sometimes to see the world in a positive light.

I still think about this all the time because, depending and on how I’m feeling, it’s either really easy for me to feel positive and grateful for the things I have in my life (even though it’s far from perfect), or it’s really hard, let’s be honest.

Continue reading "Current Positivity Playlist" on Makeup and Beauty Blog.

I might sound like a broken record…especially when I say, “I might sound like a broken record,” which is a phrase I know I use all the time, but I think it’s important to be open about taking care of one’s mental health. I know the holidays can be a stressful time, so here are a few things...

Am I in my 40s? Yes. Do I still love wearing glitter? Yes… Is there a way to reconcile both of these things without 1) t...
05/06/2020

Am I in my 40s? Yes. Do I still love wearing glitter? Yes… Is there a way to reconcile both of these things without 1) trying too hard or 2) looking like I’m trying too hard?

Let’s find out, haha! 🙂

Last weekend I went to a Sunday lunch at a fancy brunch place in town with the new members of the moms group I belong to, and I was really excited to go because when do I ever dress up anymore and enjoy a meal that doesn’t involve me getting food on myself as I feed or pet a little animal?

Answer: hardly ever.

I wanted to do something that felt a little glamorous and special, but, you know, for lunch, so I still wanted it to be somewhat reserved.

This look took 10 minutes, and I can confirm that it only took 10 minutes because that’s exactly how much time I had to put on makeup before I had to leave the house.

Of course, the original plan was to take my time and enjoy the process, leisurely get ready (that’s half the fun of going out, right?), but as usual, even though I woke up super early and had a detailed checklist, everything came down to the wire.

Continue reading "Subtle Spring Sparkle When You Don’t Want to “Go Big” With Glitter" on Makeup and Beauty Blog.

Am I in my 40s? Yes. Do I still love wearing glitter? Yes… Is there a way to reconcile both of these things without 1) trying too hard or 2) looking like I’m trying too hard? Let’s find out, haha! 🙂 Last weekend I went to a Sunday lunch at a fancy brunch place in town with the new members o...

Sometimes, less is more. A simple white pleather collar with a single silver clasp. A narrow navy blue or bright yellow ...
05/06/2020

Sometimes, less is more. A simple white pleather collar with a single silver clasp. A narrow navy blue or bright yellow nylon collar with a black plastic buckle.

But sometimes, like today, more is more, and you feel like reminding the world that you are totally willing to break fashion rules by simultaneously rocking multiple collars.

Bam.

Fashion rules really don’t apply to Tabs. There are just some cats who can wear anything and still look good.

So yeah, today was pretty uneventful except for a Harris sighting this afternoon. We’d gone back into the house after going outside on patrol — you know, inspecting the corporate property line. Tabs was doing his nails when we heard Connor Claire exclaim, “Mama, it’s Harris! Harris is on the deck!”

Tabs leaped to action!

Well, not really leaped… He slowly sauntered over to the sliding glass door, where he locked eyes with Harris through the glass.

Then, Tabs proceeded to meow, loudly, in protest, as if to say, “Guards, get the trespasser! Apprehend him!”

I ran to the front door, opened it and stepped outside, but by the time I got over to the side of the house/office, Harris was gone.

Continue reading "Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 544" on Makeup and Beauty Blog.

Sometimes, less is more. A simple white pleather collar with a single silver clasp. A narrow navy blue or bright yellow nylon collar with a black plastic buckle. But sometimes, like today, more is more, and you feel like reminding the world that you are totally willing to break fashion rules by simu...

Evaporation ponds at a potash mine in Moab, Utah, are dyed blue to quicken the evaporation of salts used in fertilizer.P...
04/06/2020

Evaporation ponds at a potash mine in Moab, Utah, are dyed blue to quicken the evaporation of salts used in fertilizer.

Pivot-irrigation fields carpet the land around Edson, Kansas.

Residential communities in Delray Beach, Florida.

The yearly Glastonbury Festival transforms Pilton, England, from a village of roughly 1,000 to a seething ocean of 135,000-plus music lovers.

Olive trees dot the land on plantations in Córdoba, Spain.

The mighty Gemasolar Thermosolar Plant in Seville, Spain, focuses 2,650 mirrors to generate green electricity.

The Dadaab refugee camps in 2014.

Beijing’s sprawling Forbidden City, built in the 15th century, has 9,999 rooms and a 171-foot-wide moat.

Satellite images that prove that humans enjoy geometry and so spend energy in order to decrease the entropy around them. ;-)

Mighty and Ominous Satellite Images of the Human Condition

Via CityLab

All images: Daily Overview / Satellite images © 2015 DigitalGlobe

Evaporation ponds at a potash mine in Moab, Utah, are dyed blue to quicken the evaporation of salts used in fertilizer. Pivot-irrigation fields carpet the land around Edson, Kansas. Residential communities in Delray Beach, Florida. The yearly Glastonbury Festival transforms Pilton, England, from a v...

Engineers at Princeton found that by carefully shaping the area to which energy is delivered within a laser can dramatic...
04/06/2020

Engineers at Princeton found that by carefully shaping the area to which energy is delivered within a laser can dramatically improve the laser’s performance. The researchers developed a mathematical approach to optimizing the pattern of energy delivery to achieve a desired outcome. In the case shown, pumping energy into a diamond shape produces powerful directional emission of light from the laser.

Credit: Omer Malik, Tureci Group, Princeton University

Source: Turning loss to gain: Cutting power could dramatically boost laser output (Phys.org)

Engineers at Princeton found that by carefully shaping the area to which energy is delivered within a laser can dramatically improve the laser’s performance. The researchers developed a mathematical approach to optimizing the pattern of energy delivery to achieve a desired outcome. In the case sho...

In case you were wondering if HomeGoods has been slacking on their affinity for the cat ladies (otherwise known as “my p...
04/06/2020

In case you were wondering if HomeGoods has been slacking on their affinity for the cat ladies (otherwise known as “my people”), I’m happy to report that they’re not. I was just at the one near my house, and even on a Sunday night (by which time everything has been picked over, and pretty much all that’s left are the dregs), there were plenty of things for feline enthusiasts.

I’m trying to chill on new cat lady purchases, because I’m borderline right meow, but I deeply regret not getting the “Are You Kitten Me?” mug (she has lashes!) and kitty tea towels…

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. Happy Humpday!!!!!

Continue reading "Cat Ladies, HomeGoods Got Your Back" on Makeup and Beauty Blog.

In case you were wondering if HomeGoods has been slacking on their affinity for the cat ladies (otherwise known as “my people”), I’m happy to report that they’re not. I was just at the one near my house, and even on a Sunday night (by which time everything has been picked over, and pretty mu...

As you know, cats have been strong supporters of the U.S. Armed Forces since before the American Revolution, providing l...
04/06/2020

As you know, cats have been strong supporters of the U.S. Armed Forces since before the American Revolution, providing logistical “lurvy” support to service members, veterans and their families, as well as providing volunteer pest control on bases and naval vessels.

This year, to show his support, Tabs designed and commissioned a special commemorative Memorial Day cat collar, which he wanted to model… 🐱

As far as Memorial Day holiday festivities tomorrow, Tabs wanted to keep it low key, so he invited a few of the neighborhood cats over for a barbecue of trout and turkey tenders baked in catnip leaves.

Mmm…

Tabs was also kind enough to give me the day off (whee!), so we’re heading to the East Bay to meet my fam for lunch. Hope you’re doing something fun. Talk to you soon.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

Continue reading "Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 503" on Makeup and Beauty Blog.

As you know, cats have been strong supporters of the U.S. Armed Forces since before the American Revolution, providing logistical “lurvy” support to service members, veterans and their families, as well as providing volunteer pest control on bases and naval vessels. This year, to show his suppor...

You sometimes (translated = ALL THE TIME) find yourself going to the bathroom with the door open, and you have absolutel...
04/06/2020

You sometimes (translated = ALL THE TIME) find yourself going to the bathroom with the door open, and you have absolutely no qualms about relieving yourself in front of anyone anymore.

You can carry on three simultaneous conversations while washing dishes, making dinner and planning out the next few steps on your conquest/world domination plan.

You sneak in a cat nap during every single movie you go to, even the ones with your kid (or kids). It doesn’t even matter if it’s the most stressful, intense movie that’s ever been made, either. If you’re in a dark room in the middle of the day, YOU WILL FALL ASLEEP.

You learn to accept that, on any given day and at any given time, you’re guaranteed to have some combination of dried crust on your clothes comprised of bits of snot, food or other bodily functions.

Speaking of bodily functions, you’re no longer grossed out by them. And yes, I’m talking about NUMBER TWO. 💩 One ceases to be disgusted by it after a baby goes through the “poop is so much fun to play with!” phase, or after the umpteenth time you’re forced to rescue a toy that has been gleefully dropped into a turd-filled toilet (and it’s ALWAYS filled with turds when this happens).

Continue reading "13 Unexpected Side Effects of Motherhood" on Makeup and Beauty Blog.

You sometimes (translated = ALL THE TIME) find yourself going to the bathroom with the door open, and you have absolutely no qualms about relieving yourself in front of anyone anymore. You can carry on three simultaneous conversations while washing dishes, making dinner and planning out the next few...

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