From all the rave reviews for Cover Girl’s latest Lash Blast mascara, you would’ve sworn that this was the next best thing since sliced bread!

I didn’t think that anything would sway me from my favorite, tried and true, L’Oreal Original Voluminous mascara until I read The Makeup Girl’s review complete with before and after photos.

I searched high and low - well, maybe just the Cover Girl section of my local Rite Aid - without any luck for months. It wasn’t until a couple of weeks ago while doing my bi-weekly Target run that I saw that huge Cover Girl display complete with rows and rows of that orange mascara tube; I grabbed one immediately and tried it out the next day.

My thoughts? I’m not entirely convinced.

The Pros:
- the rubber-bristled wand

The Cons:
- the (fat) rubber-bristled wand
- the fat-arse tube that only a giant can easily grip

I like the idea of the sturdy rubber bristles because this helps to keep the shape of the wand over time. If you’ve noticed, sometimes the bristles inside other mascara tubes can get flimsy or clumpy after pulling it in and out of the tube a few times. I can say without a doubt that Cover Girl’s Lash Blast wand will keep its shape and give consistent results until that darn thing expires.

There’s a downside to the rubber bristles and that the wand is too fat. I found it hard to get to every lash and separate them with it since I don’t normally use a lash comb.

The other thing I don’t like is the big-arse orange tube it comes in. There is no reason why this mascara is oddly shaped, making it rather hard to grip - especially if you have smaller hands like me. Hey, I had to do extra piano exercises because I couldn’t reach certian keys on that darn instrument.

Overall, this mascara is a decent one that I’d recommend over some others that I’ve tried. It gave me some length, which is always good because I have super short lashes. It also provided some volume but not lots. Also, on this particular day it clumped a little bit. Maybe because I was in a hurry to apply a couple of coats. With a little more care, as The Makeup Girl suggests, I’ll get better results.

Bottom line: Lash Blast is a mascara that I will use again. However, due to its odd shape, it’s hard to say if I’ll actually buy it again - maybe if there’s a sale.

Have you tried Cover Girl’s Lash Blast mascara? What do you think about it?

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Happy Friday!

I hope where ever you are, that spring is starting to creep in like it has been in San Francisco. The weather has been sunny and amazing, making it feel as if we were in the middle of September!

And to celebrate, I thought it would be appropriate to wear a Fun’n Sexy pink lip as an ode to spring!

Eyes:
- Fafi Cash Flow Paint Pot (all over lid, crease)
- Fafi Eyes 2 Prankster (lower lid)
- Fafi Eyes 2 Bold As Gold (browbone)
- Cover Girl Lash Blast in Black (2 coats)

Cheeks:
- Fafi Hipness

Lips:
- Fafi lipstick in Fun ‘n Sexy
- Fafi lipglass in Totally It

How do you celebrate spring? Sassin’ it up with a new wardrobe or wearing fun makeup colors?

I hope everyone’s got some fun weekend plans too! If it’s still spring-like this weekend, the Boyfriend and I might go for a long walk down Fisherman’s Wharf

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Do you ever have those days where you just don’t know what makeup look you want to do? Are you going to go natural? Smoky? Bold lips? You still don’t know so you just pull out all the colors you have and just start slappin’ it on your face?

Well, that’s how I felt today. I just pulled out my Fafi haul and just started applying colors wherever it felt right on my face. And here’s what I came up with - a Rollickin’ eye that’s concentrated on just the middle of the lid. I gotta say, this is pretty far out there for me. Although, I don’t know why the colors never look as bold when I take pictures of them (this one was pretty colorful) and if anyone’s got pointers, I’d love to hear them

Eyes:
- Fafi Perky Paint Pot (brow bone)
- Fafi Rollickin’ Paint Pot (middle lid)
- Fafi Eyes 2 You’re Fresh (outer lid)
- Fafi Eyes 1 Hey (inner lid, over Perkey)
- Eye Pencil in Black
- Cover Girl Lash Blast in Black (2 coats)

Cheeks:
- Fafi Hipness

Lips:
- Fafi lipstick in High Top
- Lipglass in Bow Belle

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But Clairol Perfect 10 by Nice ‘n Easy can help us get on that path to perfection.

Now, I don’t normally color my hair at home - it’s messy, smelly, and just takes too darn long. I have to sit there, careful to be very, very still for 30 minutes trying not to touch anything for fear that the color will get everywhere. And if you’ve colored hair at home like I’ve done in the past - you have that spot on your carpet or bathroom tile that just won’t come out - admit it.

So when I saw that Perfect 10 would give me all over color in just 10 minutes, it peaked my interest. And with 15 shades for me to choose from, I am bound to find something that suits me. Hmmm.. maybe it would be worth it for me to give it a try. After all, at drugstore prices, that sure as heck beats paying top dollar at the beauty salon.

Now, if only Perfect 10 could guarantee that I won’t accidentally get the dye all over my bathroom. That would make me a convert for sure!

What do you think? Willing to give the 10 minute at-home hair color a try?

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Okay kids, we’re halfway through our Fafi looks. This one is my absolute favorite, because it suits me perfectly - totally natural, yet sassy! It just proves how versatile the Fafi Eyes 1 quad is - LOVE it!

I originally wanted to do a pinky eye, but when I applied Pink Venus over Perky paint pot, I was like, whoa, Holy Pink, Batman! So I patted Howzat over Pink Venus on just the lower lids to create a slighty smoky eye, with a fun, pink twist. This look was super easy to do and I know it’s a combo I’ll wear over and over again.

Eyes:
- Fafi Eyes 1 Vanilla (brow highlight)
- Fafi Eyes 1 Pink Venus (all over lid and crease)
- Fafi Eyes 1 Howzat (lower lid)
- Fafi Perky Paint Pot (base)
- Technakohl liner in Black
- Cover Girl Lash Blast in Black (2 coats)

Cheeks:
- Fafi Hipness

Lips:
- Fafi lipstick in High Top
- Fafi lipglass in Sugar Trance

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Just looking at this photo makes me want spring to arrive right now! It’s fresh, colorful, and so fun. I’m not a wearer of pastel colors on the regular, but shu uemura’s REBIRTH collection just evokes so much playfulness, I can’t help but be intrigued. You know, I can (and did) wear green eyeshadow too!  And hopefully someday to this effect.

The colors in the collection are vibrant and refreshing. REBIRTH is aptly named after nature and the idea that everything is in bloom during the spring season - new, green and fresh from the winter.

REBIRTH is also the last collection that Mr. Uemura worked before his passing last December. The eyeshadows and blushes will feature a motif that he drew himself, signifying the budding growth of life during the spring season. This alone would make this a must-have collection for makeup addicts everywhere.

Keep reading after the jump for complete REBIRTH collection details.

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My wardrobe is extremely basic. I have lots of blacks and grays that I wear all year ’round and only update my closet seasonally with a couple pieces of color here and there. So when I opened up my closet today - I immediately gravitated towards this green sweater that I only usually wear when springtime rolls around. And so, I let it became my inspiration for today’s FOTD.

I used Cash Flow as a base all over my lids and with every stroke of my brush - I fell more in love with paint pots. The texture is creamy and is super easy to apply onto my eyes.

I thought You’re Fresh in the Fafi Eyes 2 quad would complement my green sweater nicely, so I decided I’d try to use all of the colors in the quad to see what kind of look I could come up with.

As I mentioned in my Fafi haul post, I was a little scared of Shockwave, so I just used a little bit above my crease and on the outer third of my lids, careful to not make it too bright. I finished off with Bold As Gold as a browbone highlight and Prankster on my lower lashline. Prankster is really pretty and the texture is nice for a more matte shadow and I think I’m going to wear it tomorrow!

I really love the lip combo as well. It came out a pretty and girly pink shade and Sugar Trance adds just the perfect amount of shimmer to my pout. I think I’m going to need to snag a backup tube of the lipglass because it’s definitely becoming a favorite!

Eyes:
- Fafi Eyes 2 Bold As Gold (brow highlight)
- Fafi Eyes 2 Shockwave (outer lid, above crease)
- Fafi Eyes 2 You’re Fresh (all over lid)
- Fafi Cash Flow Paint Pot (base)
- Fafi Eyes 2 Prankster (lower lashline)
- Cover Girl Lash Blast in Black (2 coats)

Cheeks:
- Fafi Hipness

Lips:
- Fafi lipstick in Utterly Frivolous
- Fafi lipglass in Sugar Trance

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NARS has just created a essential oil-infused bath soak with Bolivian Rose, Chilean and French sel gris (gray sea salt). It combines fortified mineral salts, skin-nourishing botanicals, and antioxidants that help to strengthen and restore nutrients back into the skin leaving you hydrated and refreshed.

It’s great for all skin types; all you need to do is add a scoop or two of the bath salts to running water, breathe in and relax!

NARS Essential Oil-Infused Therapy is available now at your local NARS counter or online for $75 US.

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Ladies and gents, I broke into my Fafi stash and created my first look today!

I love that MAC has face charts for their collections on their website to help folks like me create looks without much thought - this is especially good for me since I have limited time to get ready in the mornings before I head into the office. It takes the guesswork out of makeup so that I can get out of the door on time. I reserve the weekend for experimentation and mixing and matching colors.

Today’s FOTD is inspired by Sassed-Up. I’m a fan of darker eyes, and using purple to create smoky eyes with a more natural lips. I don’t often reapply lip color throughout the day so my natural lip color with some lip balm still gives me the overall look I want.

Creating the eyes actually took a bit of time for me since I usually work darker colors from the lashline and go lighter as I go up. The left-to-right thing was definitely a challenge, but I made it work (channeling Tim Gunn!). I really loved the gradiation from dark to light with this eye combo.

Using Nice Vice paint pot, I found that the texture was easy to work with. It glides on my lids easily and doesn’t dry quickly like other pots I’ve used (hello, Quite Natural). The quad shadows are also very pigmented, I got a lot of color even with a light hand. I could have made this look way more dramatic - although I might have looked a little too drag if I did so!

Eyes:
- Fafi Eyes 1 Vanilla (brow highlight)
- Fafi Eyes 1 Howzat (outer lid)
- Fafi Eyes 1 Hey (middle lid)
- Fafi Nice Vice Paint Pot (inner lid)
- Technakohl liner in Black
- Plush Lash mascara in Black (2 coats)

Cheeks:
- Lancome Color Design Blush in Model Mocha

Lips:
- Fafi lipglass in Sugar Trance

What looks have you created with Fafi? What are your favorite combos? I’d love to hear!

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Who doesn’t love peace? The Scent of Peace from Bond No. 9 is sure to convince me that peace on Earth may exist after all. I personally think that this would be a great fragrance for me to wear, just in time for spring. Normally, spring frangrances are clean and fresh. But I love the floral notes to remind me of the new season, and The Scent of Peace really did it for me.

But, while I enjoyed the fragrance, one of my friends didn’t. Here’s what she thought:

This perfume kind of gave me a headache - literally. The first impression is of overwhelming sweetness, and then it mellows out somewhat when the musky notes are revealed. I envision this for someone who is girly, but there was also something “old lady-ish” and fussy about this scent too that I didn’t like.

The Take-Off:
- Grapefruit, the non-partisan citrus fruit
- Black Currant berry of brotherhood

The Heart:
- Lily of the Valley, flower of instant détente
- Hedione – effervescence that won’t say no

The Bottom:
- Pacifying Cedarwood
- Musk, because… what’s more sexy than peace?

The Scent of Peace retails for $130 US for a 1.7 oz. bottle and is available now exclusively at Saks Fifth Avenue stores nationwide, on Bond No. 9’s site and at their four New York boutiques.

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