Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 325

Tabs puts a lot of time and effort into his kitty modeling shoots, but he doesn’t usually get into the mechanics of them in public very often (he likes to think of himself as modest). Still, it’s interesting to see what really goes on behind the scenes. Some of these shoots can be quite complicated.

Earlier this week he and I sat down briefly to discuss some of his favorite kitty modeling shoots of the year.

Here are his 10 favorite kitty modeling shoots of 2014, complete with the behind-the-scenes commentary.

TABS: “We had to go through dozens of hairpieces to settle on the caramel brown I wore for this shot. The costume department had me try on ? I think it was more than a 100 ? 70s-style wigs. Eventually, we narrowed it down to a rich obsidian black, a strawberry blonde and this caramel brown, which made the final cut because of how the color played off the gold glints in my eyes. I think it was the right choice.”

TABS: “Betcha thought this was me for a second, didn’t you? Nope, this is actually my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather cat, Franklin, one of the original trendsetters in the first feline print ads for cosmetics in the 1930s and ’40s. I must admit ? the resemblance is uncanny. Even I’m surprised sometimes by the depth of kitty modeling talent in my family.”

TABS: “I trained with Cirque du Soleil for two months in preparation for this shoot, which required precise timing and a keen sense of body awareness. If I’d been off a single inch, the entire shot would have been ruined. The photographer anticipated that we’d need at least 50 frames to get a usable amount of material, but I nailed it on the first shot.”

TABS: “I mean, really, who doesn’t want to wake up in the morning and ride a wild polar bear? I’m totally joking. This guy ? Edward the Polar Bear ? is a consummate professional and total Hollywood royalty. Edward and I became close friends on this shoot. You bond quickly with your coworkers when temperatures dip into minus double-digits.”

TABS: “I’d been in Paris on business when I got a call from Kate Spade’s camp to do a quick shoot in the city for their new line of accessories. That day happened to be my first day off in two weeks. I was at Chanel doing a little shopping (OK, a lot of shopping) when my assistant texted about the gig. I had Karl put my shopping list on hold while I went to do the job. Such is the life of a kitty supermodel… You never really get any time off.”

TABS: “A classic and straightforward beauty shot. I love campaigns like this because they allow me to really connect with the camera using my eyes.”

Tabs for Oh, Dear! Edible Cheek Tint in Fresh Zinnia

TABS: “The photographer wanted an untamed feel for this campaign, so the whole crew trekked several hours out into the middle of nowhere in rural Montana before sunrise to set everything up. I remember hiking through tall grasses in the dark and thinking about my kitten-hood as a stray cat in Mill Valley, and how I’d spend hours in the dark looking for something to eat.”

TABS: “This headdress was incredibly heavy and hot. Several of the young cats assisting the photographer on the shoot kept pawing at the feathers.”

TABS: “Yup, another vintage ad by Franklin, my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather cat. After I tracked down this print I contacted Ray Ban’s historical society and was able to procure the exact same pair of glasses grandpa Franklin wore for the shot. They’re prominently displayed next to my Oscar in my office.”

Tabs for the new Fall Favorites Cat Eyeshadow Duos in Turkey and Chicken

TABS: “I had a lot of fun on this shoot. I remember Steve [the turkey] and I having a good old time running back and forth repeatedly to get the shot. It wasn’t just fun and games though… It was a technical challenge because of my ears, and getting them to convey the proper sense of fear. I practiced for hours with my mentor, Tim Gunn, to hit the right angles.”

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addicts,

Karen and Tabs

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 349

The Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll for December 1, 2014

You might be wondering, “So what in tarnation is this Monday Poll thing anyway!?”

Well, it isn’t exactly a poll. It’s more of a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past seven years. (It’s like a kickstart for your brain.) I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.

What’s one keepsake you absolutely treasure?
I have this groovy dress that my mom used to wear back in the ’70s. It’s an a-line mini in a beige lace material with an oversized ’70s-style collar, pearl buttons and sheer sleeves.

She gave it to me when I was in high school, and I’ve kept it with me all these years, through 10+ moves.

I’m not normally very sentimental about my clothes, like it’s easy for me to say goodbye to clothes and pass them along to others to love, but I love this dress. My mom designed it for herself and took the design to a seamstress to have it made when she still lived in the Philippines.

I can see her now, my mom, a newly married young woman in the ’70s, tooling about town in her groovy mini dress. Maybe in some wedge heels!

Who’s the most generous person you know?
El Hub. That man would give you the shirt off his back, even if it meant he would freeze to death. We’re having PB&J sandwiches for lunch! What kind of jelly would you like?
Raspberry for me! ? or strawberry, if we’re out of raspberry, and if we don’t have either one, marmalade will do.

Just please, no grape jelly. I’m NOT feelin’ that with my PB&J.

Which would you rather do ? spend an afternoon putting together a complicated piece of Ikea furniture with 500 screws, or spend an afternoon cleaning out boxes in a dirty, dusty garage filled with cobwebs, spiders and lizards?
Uh…both sound pretty miserable to me, but I guess cleaning out the garage? It would be dirtier, yes, but less mentally taxing. Something you feel passionate about?
Writing about makeup (obvs), and talking about it, and wearing it, and shopping for it, and taking pictures of it. After almost eight years of talking about makeup on a daily basis, I still enjoy it.

I’m also passionate about adopting strays and shelter animals. Every one of the animals I’ve been lucky enough to assist over the years has been a former stray.

There are so many great cats and dogs out there waiting to be loved!

Your turn. Just copy and paste the following questions into a comment with your answers. I look forward to reading ‘em!

1. What’s one keepsake you absolutely treasure?
2. Who’s the most generous person you know?
3. We’re having PB&J sandwiches for lunch. What kind of jelly would you like?
4. Which would you rather do ? spend an afternoon putting together a piece of complicated Ikea furniture with 500 screws, or spend an afternoon cleaning out boxes in a dirty, dusty garage filled with cobwebs, spiders and lizards?
5. Something you’re passionate about?

December…

I KNOW! It’s like it silently moonwalked into the room when I was looking the other way.

Have you put your tree up yet? I did go to Target last weekend and got some new ornaments, stockings and lights, but no tree yet. Hopefully, tonight or tomorrow. That’s what we’ve been talking about.

The new Christmas tree balls I got are allegedly shatter-resistant, but we’ll see about that… Tabs is the ultimate durability test.

He always swats at the ornaments and also LOVES to drink water from the tree stand, even though he knows it’s strictly forbidden.

Cats…

Have a good one today, whatever you’re up to. Try to stay warm out there!

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

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Should You Say Eye Do to Eyeko Makeup?

Bangs and a British accent are partly responsible for attracting me to Eyeko makeup.

I desperately wanted to believe that lining my eyes, coating my lashes and filling in my brows with Eyeko products would summon the powers of makeup magic, so that suddenly, one misty morning, I’d awaken with fab fringe and a bangin’ British accent like Alexa Chun, the stylish model/TV presenter/writer and face of the Eyeko brand.

Hey, man, you never know… Stranger things have happened.

If, one day, I’m pimpin’ Lloyd Christmas hair in my pictures and start a post with, “I fancy a pasty this morning and a spot of tea!” you’ll know the deal.

I’ve been using some of Eyeko’s permanent collection products lately ? a couple of their liquid liners, a mascara and a brow filler ? and here are a few thoughts…

This waterproof liquid liner’s thin, flexible felt tip says “meow!” to the part of me that loves kitten flicks and skinny lines (it’s a BIG part). It’s preternaturally precise, but I have to make quite a few passes with it to get the color fully opaque, and that’s a bit of a bummer.

I’ve been using Mocha, the brown shade, but it’s also available in Ebony and Marine.

From the left: Brow liner, Eye Do Liquid Eyeliner, Visual Eyes Liquid Eyeliner, Me & My Shadow in Charcoal and Eye Do Mascara

Now here’s a liner Cleopatra would have liked. It’s long-wearing, waterproof and darker than the depths of the Nile at midnight. The short, firm felt tip feels like a marker and makes drawing dots between my lashes a breeze… That’s mostly what I use it for, in fact ? to thicken my lash line, although it would also work for drawing thin lines and cat flicks, but I rarely use it for that, as crisp edges aren’t among one of this liner’s strengths. Available in black.

From the left: Brow liner, Eye Do Liquid Eyeliner, Visual Eyes Liquid Eyeliner, Me & My Shadow in Charcoal and Eye Do Mascara

Weirdly wimpy and sheer in swatches, Eyeko’s Brow Liner makes more sense once you get it in brows, where it’s great for creating a full, softly structured natural look. If, however, you’re going for hyper-defined brows with tails capable of cutting glass…you might not be into it.

Lasts all day, and it’s available in one shade, a sheer brownish taupe, that Eyeko refers to as universal.

Wearing Eyeko Brow liner, Eye Do Liquid Eyeliner and Eye Do Mascara; Lips are MAC Matte Lipstick in Damn Glamorous

Gotta say, not really feelin’ this cream eyeshadow…

Every time I open it, the shadow stick falls out.

No, literally, it falls out of the tube and lands on my desk. Then, when I do get it on my lids, it creases within minutes.

Grr.

The shade I’ve been using is called Charcoal, a sparkly gray, but it’s also available in Chocolate and Taupe.

This water-resistant mascara probably could have been called Drill Sergeant, because it really orders lashes around, gathering them into groups of three or four, so you get a spiked, anime-like lash look.

Very cool and different. I also like the lift and curl and how it doesn’t flake or smudge (although it’s not a volumizing champ).

It comes with a small plastic guitar pick-looking doohickey that you’re supposed to use to shield your lashes from your skin so you don’t get excess product on your lash lines…but I rarely use it. It’s cute though.

Available in one shade called Carbon Black.

So, overall, do I like what I’ve tried from Eyeko makeup? Ya know…Eye Do.

Eyeko products are available now at Eyeko counters and online.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

P.S. tgif!

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Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll, Vol. 348

The Makeup and Beauty Blog Monday Poll for November 24, 2014

You might be wondering, “So what in tarnation is this Monday Poll thing anyway!?”

Well, it isn’t exactly a poll. It’s more of a constantly evolving (devolving?), somewhat random list of questions I’ve been putting out to readers every Monday morning for the past seven years. (It’s like a kickstart for your brain.) I’ve always enjoyed reading your answers in the comments, and I hope you enjoy reading mine.

Ponytail, braid or bun?
Ponytail if I’m working out, braid if I’m chilling around the house, sock bun if I’m out and about.

You knew I couldn’t just pick one.

Tell me about the worst date you ever went on.
Ew! Eighth grade, when my first boyfriend ? let’s just call him “Bob” ? showed up at my house with a posse of friends, and they were all on bikes.

I guess they didn’t believe that he actually got a girl to say, “Yes, Bob, I will go out on a date with you.”

I think we went to Taco Bell after that… Just me, Bob and his homeboys.

Pretty dumb.

Shimmery shadows in the crease ? your thoughts?
I’m more into mattes in the crease, but I won’t say no to a good shimmer…even though they get a little harder to wear as I get older.

While we’re at it, let’s just throw some glitter in there too, ya know? Why not?

I like to put mattes in my crease because my crease isn’t naturally very deep, and so mattes, which you can use to make parts of your face look more recessed, makes my crease appear deeper.

Cool toned or warm toned?
Warm toned. I’m an NC42 in MAC (lately I’ve been loving LM’s Flawless Fluide in Chai), but I also wear cool-toned shadows a lot. My skin tone is warm, but I wear both warm and cool-toned colors, which I think goes back to the whole “mattes in the crease” thing. Cool-toned browns, especially those grayish browns, really make my crease look deeper. A place you’d like to visit again and why?
Oahu in Hawaii, because when El Hub’s parents lived there (he was born and raised in Hawaii), we were going at least once or twice a year to visit, but now that they live on the mainland, we rarely go back.

I miss my old haunts, like Matsumoto’s Shave Ice, which I hear they’ve completely changed, and Haleiwa on the North Shore, and Turtle Bay Resort, which is where we got married.

Your turn. Just copy and paste the following questions into a comment with your answers. I look forward to reading ‘em!

1. Ponytail, braid or bun?
2. Tell me about the worst date you ever went on.
3. Shimmery shadows in the crease ? your thoughts?
4. Cool toned or warm toned?
5. A place you’d like to visit again and why?

Let’s just hurry these first three days of the week along so we can get to the food quicker on Thursday.

I’m not really into the turkey, though… I’m more about the sides, and the dessert. I gotta have my pecan pie, man. It’s my thang!

El Hub and I were thinking about skipping turkey this year and having a crab-fest instead, because it’s crab season out here, which leads me to this question: how would crab taste dipped in gravy? Something tells me it might taste good.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

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Sundays With Tabs the Cat, Makeup and Beauty Blog Mascot, Vol. 323

Dear friends, fans and felines,

Yes! I think I finally figured out what makeup to wear to Thanksgiving dinner this Thursday.

What do you think?

I was sure you’d like it, so I put together this quick tabby tutorial.

There’s glitter, which you know I love ? you can never go wrong with a little spark and funky style ? but it’s also themed and holiday appropriate.

After last weekend’s giant Thanksgiving to-do, this week’s actual Thanksgiving dinner will just be a small fete for the employees here at the office…mostly just my assistant and her man servant/significant other.

I’ve met him before. Nice enough chap… Strong hands.

I just couldn’t handle another big party, ya know? Not with everyone saying, “Tabs! Tabs! Tabs! Look over here! Look at this!” And there’s always that one person scratching at the floor to get my attention or waving something around. I can’t help but look, of course, even when I don’t want to. It’s exhausting.

Oh! And then someone always has to bust out the laser toy or my feather stick, and then I end up running around and jumping at the walls like a fool.

I just have to be smarter than that and not put myself into those kinds of situations…

Anywho, I really hope you give this look a try. I think you’ll look great.

xoxo,

Tabs

STEPS:

Apply a metallic bronze loose pigment to the inner half of your lids with a flat eyeshadow brush (I wet my brush first to really amp up the color). Clean the remaining eyeshadow on your flat eyeshadow brush with a paper towel. Then, rewet the brush head, and apply the copper loose pigment to the outer half of your lid. Now wait for both eyeshadows to dry…Seamlessly blend the bronze and copper eyeshadows together with a tapered crease brush. Trace your upper lash line with black liquid liner, and flick out the edge, going up and out.Draw a little autumn leaves flourish just above the bronze and copper eyeshadow with a brown, and yellow (or gold), liquid liner.Finish with your most flirty, fabulous pair of false lashes.

P.S. Really though, please do not try this at home on cats. I know you already know this, but Tabs does not advocate putting actual makeup on cats.

This post is sponsored by Purina Pro Plan #proplancatpartner. For information about my posting policy, please see my Disclaimer.

Tabs may appear loving and playful and funny and adorably fluffy and chubby and more squeezable than a bunny! ? but he’s also a ravenous monster. Purina Pro Plan fuels him through his busy kitty modeling schedule.

If your feline friend also aspires to kitty modeling greatness, try Purina Pro Plan. Their wide range of dry and wet cat foods and snacks, sold exclusively at pet specialty stores, comes in three unique nutritional platforms ? Savor, Finesse, and Focus ? with each designed to provide advanced nutrition to help bring out the superstar in your cat. For more information, visit www.proplan.com, and follow Purina Pro Plan Cat on Twitter @proplancat.

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Unsung Makeup Heroes: Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in Fantasme

Party ready in less than 30 seconds! Wearing Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in Fantasme ($36)

Fantasme…

Why did I just picture Penelope Cruz saying that, like from one of those Nespresso commercials?

“Nespresso!”

Are we really almost at the end of November? I can’t believe Thanksgiving is only a week away, but it reminds me that now is the time for holiday makeup.

There’s Thanksgiving next week, and then a couple get-togethers around Christmas, so I’m trying to think of ways to look dressed up that don’t require a lot of effort, like by using products I can layer on top of whatever other makeup I may have started the day wearing.

Say “happy holidays!” to Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in Fantasme. This sheer, glittery white cream wunderkind ($36) makes getting party-ready looks as easy as three pats of a finger.

Well…three or four.

Chanel Illusion D’Ombre Long Wear Luminous Eyeshadow in Fantasme ($36)

Wait ? don’t walk away just because I said glitter! This is Chanel glitter, so it’s classy and refined (think: expensive chandelier), and it’s precisely the kind of glitter I imagine Choupette the cat leaves in her wake when she prances around her mansion.

Fantasme is one of those deceptively fantastic pieces… It pretends to be boring and nondescript in swatches, but it turns into a concert violinist on lids.

The long-running Unsung Heroes series features some of my favorite permanent collection products from a variety of bodacious beauty brands.

What I like to do is pat Fantasme in the inner corners of my lids with a finger.

Sure, you could use a brush, but I like using my fingers because it seems to cut down on the fallout…not that there’s very much of it anyway.

I just pat on top of whatever eye makeup I happen to be wearing. Doesn’t matter what colors or kind of look it is, either. Fantasme cranks it up.

Here I’m wearing it on top of teals and blues from the Urban Decay Vice 2 Palette…

Here I patted Fantasme into the inner half of my lids with a finger

It literally takes less than 30 seconds. Seriously, the quickest party eye look ever.

Fantasme is available now in the Chanel permanent line, dazzling and glowing at Chanel counters and online.

Your friendly neighborhood beauty addict,

Karen

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