Product Rant

I love, love, love CARGO products. You get a lot of product that last a long time. Take their lip glosses, for example. They come in a dual-chamber so you get two sheer lip glosses that you can mix or match or even blend together. In one crazed shopping spree a long time ago, I bought three pots of their lip glosses (Walla Walla and Bora Bora) and two of their blushes (Topeka and Mallorca, which sadly I think is discontinued).

However, although I love the product itself, I hate the packaging.

At first I thought their oversized tin pots were super cool. Now, they are the bane of my morning routine, and is partly why after all this time I still have these pots of make-up still practically unused. They are near impossible to open! You have to try and slide your nail under the tin top to try to lift it up and off. I have broken a nail or two trying to open it, and pity the fool with no nails - good luck getting it open.

Please CARGO, if you are reading this, consider a twist off cap. Make it easy for us ladies, will ya?

Posted in Beauty Products_

Vegas, Baby

I'm off to Vegas. My friend Selene said I needed to do a Vegas post before the trip. So, here it is - Vegas-themed cosmetics for you to try:

Try this Sugar cosmetic kit aptly named "Vegas" that comes with five lip glosses and five eye shadows that'll make you look like a Vegas showgirl. You just need pasties and a big feathery headdress.

This make-up guru may not have a snazzy website, but she does have a cool line of cosmetics that have a Vegas theme. Take this dice lipstick, for example. Pigment rich so folks can see your lips when you get on stage to do Karaoke on the Strip.

This pretty deep plum lipstick by Benefit is called "Mug Shot" which, aside from an empty wallet, some folks end up with in Sin City.

Described as being "as glittering as the lights of Vegas", this honey-flavored glittery powder is probably what Dolly Parton had all over her chest at this year's Oscars.

Gimme Elvis anyday, and a girl can dream about the King with Nars' shimmering champagne lipstick called - what else? - "Viva Las Vegas."

Though not as glitzy as its famous city, this dynamic duo consists of beige-y, oh-so-neutral eye shadows called "Nevada" by Cargo.

Mwah! Will write more when I return...

Fat Kiss by Too Faced

Free Gloss - Why Not?

Sometimes when someone is coming towards your lips with a wand of gloss, the best thing to say is "No, thank you." That's what I should've said on my trip to Sephora that was featuring a make-up artist from the fun make-up line Too Faced. The woman looked friendly and when she asked me, "Do you want to try this fabulous new gloss from Too Faced?" The gloss in her hand looked cute - like those 80's glossy lip glosses with a rollerball end. I said, "Why not?"

Well, they say hindsight is 20/20. Ladies, I can tell you now why not.

She dabbed the gloss on my lips and it felt thick and sticky, the way you expect a gloss to feel - sort of like the gloss that killed a bug that died on my lips, but ah, that's another story.

The woman stood back, admiring her handiwork, and said, "Gorgeous." She handed me a mirror. Here are the pros: It looked very wet and well, a tad bit slutty - I liked it!


What Happened Next

As she chatted on about how it only cost $18.50, the woman failed to tell me the gloss' name and why it was named that.

The lip gloss was called Fat Kiss (which for days afterwards I called Fat Lips) because it contains a special sauce that makes your lips look fuller.

About 5 seconds after she put the gloss on me, my lips began to burn. BURN. You know the band Flaming Lips? That aptly describes what my lips felt like.

I didn't hear a word she said as I scrambled. Sephora provides make-up remover which I pumped onto fistfuls of tissue as I wiped at my poor lips that cried, "Help meeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"

I've tried Lip Venom by DuWop and it doesn't make my lips burn nearly as much. In fact, I like the spicy scent and the slight pink tint it gives my lips. Fat Kiss was just a lip burner, but maybe it wouldn't have been so bad had I known that it would burn. I could've prepped myself for what my lips were going to experience.

So, that takes me to my tip:

When you go to Sephora, the make-up counter or any cosmetic boutique, don't just say OK if the make-up artist or salesperson wants to put a product on you. Ask what it is and what it does. Ask what the active ingredients are. Be informed, and you may save yourself the horror of flaming lips.

Posted in Beauty Products_

Air Kiss by Paula Dorf

I'm so excited to go get this genius invention by Paula Dorf. Air Kiss is tiny sheets of paper that are smaller than a business card that deliver a perfect application of lipstick. You peel off the plastic cover, fold it in half, kiss down on it, and voila. The application is perfect so you don't even need to check yourself in the mirror. How fun! $24, available at Sephora.com.

Posted in Beauty Products_

Beauty Tip #2 - Toning Down Red Lipstick

Ah, red lips are bold and glamorous, but if you're not used to wearing bright red lips, here's a simple way to make the color more wearable. Add gold lip gloss on top of red lipstick. The gold softens the color while making the color look pretty.

Posted in Beauty Tips_

Beauty Tip #1 - Wet 'n' Wild's 666 Lip Liner

For about a buck, the best lip liner that matches everyone's lip tone is Wet 'n' Wild's lipliner in #666. The number may sound evil, but this lip liner works like a charm. Available at most drug stores.

If you feel like splurging...MAC's lip liner in Spice is also quite nice (heh, I rhyme!). It's also natural and works on everyone. The pencil lasts longer, too. So, the next time you're at the make-up counter and feel like splurging, this is an excellent choice.

Both pencils work equally well in cleaning up red lipstick. Because red lipstick is a bold, noticeable color, you want to make sure that the lines are straight. Apply the lipliner after applying red lipstick to clean up the lines.

Posted in Beauty Tips_

Lipstick on Eye Lids

I can't remember if it's my latest issue of Allure or Lucky, but one of these magazines (my gut feelings says Allure) has a blurb by a make-up artist who recommends mixing lipstick and lipliner on the back of your hand and using it to create eyeshadow. I'm not sure why a magazine of their reputation would recommend such a thing - lip care products aren't tested for eye safety. On top of that, ingredients that are safe for lipstick may not be permissible in eye make-up.

So, long story short, take care before slathering lipstick on your eyes as eye make-up, and just because a magazine or a make-up artist says it's OK, doesn't mean that it is.

ETA: It was the April 2006 issue of Lucky - page 159.

Posted in Beauty Tips_

Stila's Illuminating Powder Foundation

Really, this is my all-time favorite beauty product. After several years, I still can't go without Stila's Illuminating Powder Foundation. It covers beautifully and lasts 1/2 the day at least. It keeps shine at bay. You can also apply it wet for a heavier coverage simply by dampening the sponge. The silver case you see costs $20 and the refill costs $23, so your initial cost is $43 plus tax, which is a hefty sum for facial powder. However, after the initial cost, you just buy the refills which comes with a new sponge.

Unfortunately, I broke the mirror of my compact when it fell out of my bag onto the sidewalk. I've been living off just the refills with no compact, which has so far been OK since the refill comes in its own plastic case. The only problem is if it tumbles around too much in your purse, the plastic can pop open. But if you just want to leave it at home, apply it when you need it and then step out, you can try just buying the refill and forego the case.

I use it every day and it lasts me about a month to a month and a half. Although they say if you have dry skin you should apply it wet, I've found that it's best to avoid use if you're really dry and flakey. Even wet when I'm flakey because of the dry winter air, the powder just highlights the scales (I know, euuuw).

Comes in a variety of colors based on wattage from 10 watts to 120 watts. I'm 50 watts.

Posted in Beauty Products_

Lipstick Cocktail #2 - Valerie from Holland Cox Spills Her Lipstick Favorite

Our second Lipstick Cocktail comes from Valerie, the designer of Holland Cox, a purse company where each bag is painstakingly created by hand.

The Lipsticks: Revlon Super Lustrous lipstick in Deep Nude (#235), M.A.C. tinted lip conditioner stick with SPF 15 in Malt, and Mary Kay signature lip liner in Dark Chocolate.

The Process: "Apply a fairly thick application of Revlon's Super Lustrous lipstick in Deep Nude (#235), followed by quick blot with a tissue. Apply M.A.C. tinted lip conditioner stick in Malt. Then just on the cupid's bow and the center lower lip apply Mary Kay's signature lip liner in Dark Chocolate. I usually color in the lower lip to blend the liner in. Finish by vigorously rubbing lips together to blend and viola!"

Valerie's Skin Tone: "I'm black with medium-to-dark skin tone."

The Bottom Line: "I like this color combo because it is all purpose. It looks like my natural lip color only a teeny bit pinker and a bit glossy, and the liner accentuates the shape of my lips well. I blend the liner very well, so you can't actually tell I'm wearing liner but the effect is there. I wear this combo no matter what - day time, night time, fancy or not - I just change my eye makeup accordingly." Don't forget the stylish bag!

The Scoop: We couldn't find M.A.C. tinted lip conditioner stick with SPF 15 in Malt. When we told Valerie, she said, "Oh no! I'll cry if it's discontinued." She looked at the M.A.C. website, and discovered that "the tinted lip conditioner in Soothing Beige is basically the same color. Hopefully they just renamed it. " Fingers crossed!

Posted in Lipstick Cocktails_

Strong Eyes, Pale Mouth

Keira Knightley, Oscar nominee for Best Leading Actress, was a perfect vision last night. Her make-up was a good example of the dark eyes/pale mouth philosophy, that reeks of sophistication. The focus is on the eyes, making it very smokey. Lipstick is kept pale, close to your actual lip color. This is a great make-up combination for fancy evening events.

Posted in Celebrity_
Posted in Beauty Tips_

Sharon Stone's Five-Foot High Hair

Sharon Stone is absurdly beautiful and sexy, but nothing was more absurd than her towering hair at last night's Oscar's. I wouldn't be surprised if during the breaks she was in the bathroom spraying her hair stiff with a whole can of AquaNet.

Posted in Celebrity_

Beauty Don't: Eyeshadow All Over Your Face

Lindsay Lohan's friend has a bad case of pink eye. Eye shadow should be on your eyelids, not over your nose. And let's not get started about the lipstick or the crimped hair that's so 1985.

Posted in Celebrity_
Posted in Beauty Tips_

Isaac Mizrahi Didn't Grope One Star Last Night

Fashion Designer for the stars and Target shoppers Isaac Mizrahi fondled Scarlett Johansson's breast at this past January's Golden Globes. Last night, Isaac was a good boy. He said, "I'm going to be so good I'm going to have a halo by the end of the night. I'm not going to talk about body parts anymore, or underwear. I've been warned." Thank goodness!

Posted in Celebrity_

Jennifer Lopez Is Orange

J-Lo's orange and has a mysterious white glow around her eyes. Her skin looks like what mine did when I was 12 and got my hands on a tube of self-tanner. Except my palms also turned orange. Suspiciously, J-Lo never flashed her palms to the camera. Hmmm.

Posted in Celebrity_

Blend, Dolly, Blend!

Oh dear. I was really rooting for Dolly Parton to win a Best Song Oscar for "Travelin' Thru" (from the movie Transamerica). Unfortunately, Dolly's pinkish-gold lipstick with the bold dark pink lip liner was a little too hootchie mama. She really needed to either use a lighter lip liner or blend the darker one so it wasn't so harsh.

Posted in Celebrity_

Lipstick Cocktail #1 - Kelly Meeker's Shimmery Combination

In the movie Kissing Jessica Stein, one woman tells the other that sometimes you have to blend to get the perfect lipstick shade. So, I took it to the streets and asked women what is the cocktail for their favorite lipstick shade. Who knows, maybe it'll be your new favorite, too!

Our very first Lipstick Cocktail comes from Kelly from Kelly Meeker Designs, a very stylish jewelry company that makes my heart pitter-patter everytime I visit the site.

The Lipsticks: Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer in Merlot and Nutmeg

The Process: "I first lightly dot the Merlot on, so you can sort of see through it. Then I press my lips together, so it's evenly spread out. Over that, I do a full swipe of the Nutmeg on my bottom lip and press. That's all, and it's great."

Kelly's Skin Tone: "I'm pretty pale (Irish!) with a natural glow about me. Think Snow White."

The Bottom Line: "I love this blend of lip shimmers because it is appropriate for day or night and it goes really well with my complexion. It's girly, but not overly so. The Nutmeg over the Merlot creates a very nice natural looking dark nude-pink and the shimmer in the Nutmeg makes it glitter day and night. It also goes really well with black eyeliner - I do the smokey look quite a bit in the evening, so the subtle color of the lip shimmer is pretty much perfect."

Posted in Lipstick Cocktails_