Binge Beauty: Tarte's Double Dose Berry Boost Lipgloss = Porn Star Lips, Now With Acai!

Dudes, dudettes, p0rn stars and p0rnstar wannabes: I just tried Tarte's Double Dose Berry Boost & Gloss -- and seriously, GET YOUR LIPS ON THIS for serious p0rn appeal without having to spend any time getting packed on your back (unless you happened to be there, doing that already, in which case, proceed!).

I've been using Tarte's Double Dose Berry Boost & Gloss in Acai Boost, and my lips look freaking PLASTIC. In the GOOD WAY! Plus, it's got no bad stuff (parabens, phthalates, etc), but it DOES have a million green, healthy properties and has acai in it, and everyone knows that porn and acai are two great tastes that go great together.

I have some of Tarte's basic glosses, and aside from their ha-lariously fun names (Zack & Kelly, Sandy & Danny, Ferris & Sloane FTW!), they're nice and not tacky but only provide a little hint of color and coverage.

On the other side of the coinage, Tarte's Tarte's Double Dose Berry Boost & Gloss is full-on major rager coverage, high-shine, mega-watt gloss with just a healthy hint of sparkle, AND the product smells like mint! Win/ WIN! For reals, you will have blow-up-doll/ porn lips minus the constant testing and the bored expression. Also, does the porn world NOT need more acai?

($21, Tarte)

This is the only time you should strive to look like L'il Kim.

... Plus, a video by one of my favorite pornstars-turned-disco queens:

... And one of my favorite non-porn porn stars, Julianne Moore in Boogie Nights!

Binge Beauty Buy: Ways To Cash In Your Sephora Gift Cards: Givenchy Pop Gloss!

($23, Givenchy, Sephora)

Of the 15 bajillion glosses in my bag, the one I dig around for the most -- and receive by far the most questions and compliments on -- is Givenchy's Pop Gloss (#444). It's a shiny, sparkly, glittery, festive (the fireworks-y packaging! so fun!), clump-free magenta, and it smells like pureed raspberries. It's like a berry party for your lips and you're totally invited. Actually, you're hosting the damn thing. It's perfect for what I like to refer to as "mullet makeup" -- toned-down, it's-oh-so-quiet eyes, big, crazy wow-pow-holy-cow lips. You know, party in the back, business in the front.

Another great Givenchy gloss is Crazy Beige #406:

($23.50, Givenchy, Amazon.com)

This one looks and tastes like honey and goes on smooth and, fortunately, does not attract bees.

Björk - New Music - More Music Videos

More Sephora gift card suggestions:

+ Philosophy Celebrate Set

+ Hourglass Concealer

+ Smashbox's Rapture Gloss Set

Binge Beauty Buy: Ways To Cash In Your Sephora Gift Cards: Smashbox Lip Gloss Collection!

If you're a lucky lady, you got a Sephora gift card or two this ho-ho-holiday. I didn't get one, but BOY OH BOYEEEEE could I rack up some goods... or, um, suggest ways for YOU to spend your hard-earned gift bucks. So, consider me your personal shopper! Like one of those annoying pop-up thingies that pop up in your shit when you're browsing stuff online. Except not as annoying!

Anyway, I HIGHLY, INSANELY, EXTREMELY recommend Smashbox's Rapture Lip Gloss set:

($29, Smashbox, Sephora)

Unlike some gloss sets, these aren't too-too mini -- none of that annoying two-uses-and-they're-gone business -- I've been milking mine for weeks upon weeks -- the formula is excellent, and there's zero gross gooiness! THREE WINS! My favorites are Ravishing (second from left), which doesn't end up looking quite as dark on, and Candid (third from left), which leaves a nice berry glow.

DO IT!
And, stay tuned for more FashionBinge Beauty Buys, featuring WAYS TO SPEND your Sephora gift cards!

Win a $25 Kohl's Gift Card, Courtesy of FashionBinge, 'Kay?

Kay!

So. Kohl's is doing this thing where they feature 25 holiday deals -- a different deal every day. Makes sense, no? And they gave me a $25 gift card to give ONE of you. Check out the deals (oy! such deals!), and enter to win. You've got until Friday, December 12 (it's a quickie!) to see how LUCKY one Binger can be!

And by the way, I HIGHLY recommend the American Beauty lip glosses sold exclusively at Kohl's. Specifically, you MUST try the Pretty Glossy Luscious Lipshine in Cherry Soda:

($12.50, American Beauty, Kohl's)

It's nowhere near as pinky as it appears online. And if you win, you can get TWO!

Enter belllowwww!

Beauty Binge: Natural Products Worldwide Lipgloss Pots, Cargo Plant Love & Jane Iredale

Packaging Whore. That should be the name of my next blog. Because I am one. A packaging whore.

Just take a second to consider whether you can even deal with the cuteness of Natural Products Worldwide's (a British gift and design firm) Naughty But Nice little pastried-up lipgloss pots. Just TRY to see if you can handle. Moving right along...

(Apprx $3.80 USD, npw.co.uk)

(Apprx $15 USD, npw.co.uk)

My awesomely thoughtful friend Elinor brought me this little four-pack from her trip to London earlier this year. While usually, novelty beauty products are heavier on the novelty, lighter on the beauty, these l'il guys -- the cream tart in particular, actually moisturize like champs. Sweet!

($20, Cargo, Sephora)

These super cuters Cargo "Plant Love" lipsticks aren't exactly new to market, but they -- and they're irresistible packaging -- are new to me. They're made from all sorts of... green... stuff (green is the new black!) like corn. Six of the shades were designed by celebritayze -- I like Mariska Hargitay's and Evagenline Lily's -- though I like the non-celeb shades best. (And the celebs are super random -- Kim Raver, Denise Richards, Sarah Chalke and Lindsay Lohan... um, probably at least three of them have slept with Charlie Sheen, but at least they've all got fame in common?) Best of all, $2 from each shade goes to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.


Finally...

($24, Jane Iredale)

See, I'm not JUST into the kiddie packaging -- Jane Iredale's Sugar & Butter Lip Exfoliator is totally sophisticado in its dual-sided ingenuity and pretty gold patina, and the product is superb. The brown sugar exfoliator works well, but the ginger and mint plumper is light, lush and lovely and leaves your lips unbelievably soft and smooth. Huzzah! And if you're not into the exfoliator (it does leave a few trace grains of sugar, but that was also because I was practically chewing it off its stick with sugary excitement), check out the regular lip plumper. It tingles but doesn't sting. Huzzah!

Is Heatherette Over? PLUS: Beauty Binge - Heatherette for MAC Sock Hop Lipglass

Oh bew. Has the mirrorball shattered at Heatherette? That'd suck but wouldn't be so surprising -- they pulled out of their last Fashion Week show. Apparently they're venturing down their own sparkly paths, which will surely be paved in glitter. But still, this split would be fairly unfierce. More at The Cut.

Also, uh, while you still can, you should check out Heatherette's "Sock Hop" Lipglass from their MAC line -- it's a spring-ready, salmon-pink coral gloss that doesn't reek of hot trannybotmess-ness:

($14, MAC, Macys)

It's totes sold out at MAC online, but SUUUUUP, Macy's -- you can still get it there, along with much of the rest of the collection. Better late than never. Check out more swatches and shots here.

OK, speaking of lates, it's bedtime. Happy Zs, FBs!

Oh, PS: Here's a slightly intoxicated me with the Heatherette dudes at a MAC event. Tee!

I Finally Met mark.

And seriously, we got along FAMOUSLY, I tell you. I got this mark. (the Avon-for-cool-kids spin-off line) lip gloss in a Makeup Alley swap -- it's a Shine Tube Hook-Up Lip Gloss in Butter Cream, but it looks like this one is an older product. Its newer iteration is Buttercreme Brioche -- which sounds much fancier:


Anyway, it's a really light neutral-goldish shade that basically just illuminates and enhances your lips with a light shiny glaze. It reminds me a bit of Stila's Lip Glaze in Vanilla, but honestly, I like mark. better (sorry, Stila!), as it's lighter and not as goopy and sticky. And, not to mention, it's way cheaper.

I couldn't find a photo of the product itself, but the swatch is above. Here's the same product in Crème Caramel:

($5, mark.)

I'd also deffo like to try the Sugared Almond -- you get a free connector to attach both products together when you buy two -- and for $5 each, I think I WILL!

Beauty Binge: MAC Fafi: Squeeze It Lipglass

Bingers, for those of you not really that into MAC, here's an SAT-style analogy to help you understand the subset of beauty enthusiasts who are completely die-hard:

MAC addicts : new MAC products

People genuinely obsessed with Lost : new episodes of Lost

Like THAT into it. Since MAC puts out at least one brand-new collection per month, there's much new material to keep MAC addicts busy -- and buying.

Buckets of beauty ink have been spilled, so to speak, over MAC's Fafi collection, which has been out for a little over a month now. And the build-up to its debut : the Pope coming to town.

For the uninitiated -- Fafi is an adorable French graffiti artist known for her Harajuku-esque Fafinette characters. She teamed up with MAC to create a limited-edition collection of Fafi-branded beauty products, with fun Fafinettes (Temptalia has a tremendous run-down of the collection, plus lots of pix) all over the packaging.

Anyway, while I appreciate a lot of the collection's colors, many are just too bright (think Rainbow Brite) for me, personally. With the exception of one of the Lipglass glosses: Squeeze It, which is now my very favorite lipgloss. Much of MAC's Fafi stuff is sold out (including the other three Lipglasses) yet this is one's actually still in stock.

Squeeze It is described as "brassy plum," but it's more like a ripe tomato/ strawberry. Like a shiny fruit basket for your lips. (Oh, and speaking of fruit baskets, is it really bad that every time those "Edible Arrangements" commercials come on, I kind of really want one? How trashy am I?)

I'd hit it.

Oops, back to Squeeze It -- it's vibrant but not overly loud -- a wonderful everyday color, and I wish it wasn't limited-edition, but MAC does tend to sort of reincarnate past products into new products with different names, so I'll be on the lookout for that when-/however it's reborn.

Here's a photo of someone else wearing it:

(Credit: Temptalia)

Now get it, girl, get it get it girl, before it's gone.

Make Up For Ever: Fascinating Lip Gloss

Recently, I received the lovely Make Up For Ever Diamonds Forever Kit ($49 at Sephora). The whole kit was quite cute -- I really liked the Waterproof Lengthening Mascara it came with (I generally don't use waterproof mascara, but if I did, this would probably be my new fave. I am now, though, tempted to try Make Up For Ever's washable mascara).

Anyway, my favorite element was the Fascinating Lip Gloss Pearly Transparent 1. It's a sheer glitter shade, but fear not: this is no candy raver goop. (By the way, in the Trends section of Allure's Feb. 2008 issue, Michele Tacconelli of QVC was quoted as saying that glittery makeup is essentially out. Jump 28 pages, and you get a six-page spread on glittery looks. Uhhh, okay? Per Allure, shimmery looks are in. I say, shimmer = maybe. Glitter: almost never. )

It's much more of a glassy shine than a discoy-glitter gloss, if that makes sense. It's very light with absolutely not stickiness -- it's extremely light, which might explain why it comes off a bit more quickly than thicker glosses, but it's a fair trade for not having to unstick your hair from your lips. Because that's always sexy.

Oh, and the best part: it tastes and smells like fruit punch. Specifically old-school Hawaiian Punch.



The rub: The only photo I can find of the Pearly Transparent gloss right now is the pic of the Diamonds For Ever kit. But that's okay, because it's clear, so there's not much to see.

The gloss is $18, but here's the other rub: it's currently sold out on Sephora, but I've got my fingers crossed that they'll restock soon, because at the liberal rate at which I'm applying this ho, she'll be gone faster than a white line up Lindsay Lohan's right nostril.


Speaking of Hawaiian Punch, check this amazing vintage Punchy phone I found at Bigfootsden.com. There's never been a more compelling argument for me to spend 89 bucks.

Beauty Buys That Blow!

Styledash has the 12 beauty products that basically suck, according to TotalBeauty.com.

The funny thing is, I actually use about four of them. Here's their take versus mine, which is obviously far superior, because it is.


Smashbox Lip-Enhancing Gloss
Their beef: "Color only lasts through a half-hour commute, and it's hard to ignore the plastic aroma and grainy texture while you're wearing it."
My take: I agree that it doesn't last long, but I have their True Color gloss in Protege, and it's a perfect non-megawatt simple neutral gloss for daywear. And I disagree about any funky texture or smell of yuk.


Revlon Tourmaline Ionic 1875 Watt Hairdryer
Their beef: "... don't let buzz words like 'ionic' and 'ceramic' seduce you into buying it. Bad design and bogus claims had me ready to go back to the louder, heavier Elchim 1800. Despite having multiple settings, this dryer's heat was too intense and its frizz-fighting 'Ion Select Dial' futile."
My take: I agree that there's not much super ionic or tourmalinic (???) about this dryer, but it absolutely fights frizzos (and I should know), and it gets lotsa points for its lack of jet-engine-blast volume. And hello -- it's $35. Perf.


Redken All Soft Gold Glimmer Perfecting Shine Treatment
Their beef: "'Shine treatment' brings a serum texture to mind, but this was a thicker, gel-like goo infused with golden flecks. When sparingly applied from hair ends to mid-shaft, you can expect to get some separation and added texture -- which is odd because it's meant to soften and add shine to hair. (It didn't.)
My take: WTF? I absolutely adore this product. It's a frizz-fighting WEAPON OF FUCKING MASS DESTRUCTION! And it adds an overwhelming amount of shine with a minimal amount of gooey goopiness. The only thing I agree with here is yes, it does smell like a tropical isle. Which rules.


Maybelline New York Define-A-Lash Washable Lengthening Mascara
Their beef: "A mascara that promises "zero clumps" with "stunning length" and "clean definition" at this price sounds too good to be true -- and it is. The reason it doesn't clump? The formula is so thin, you'll need at least two coats to get decent lash definition. Then it starts clumping."
My take: Um, did we use the same product? Yes, this is a VERY thin mascara -- I'll give them that. And you need to use about four coats, not two. BUT, it's an indispensable tool for lengthening, lifting and separating. It's the Wonderbra of mascaras, if you will. I use it as a base and then add a thicker mascara on top of it for maximum effectage. Next to Maybelline's sub par, super-overhyped Great Lash mascara, this thing Speaking of thickening mascara -- I used to use Benefit's Bad Gal mascara, which nearly gives you Tammy Faye Baker eyes, in an awesome way, until my sister and I both concluded -- it ends up migrating from your eyelashes to your undereyes by COB, no matter what. Boo. So now I'm kind of back on the market as far as thickening mascaras go.


Anyway, tell us which beauty products you love/hate/feel indifference/ blind rage toward.