I know it’s been a while and I recently started thinking about keeping this blog more up to date. I thought I’d start with some new kawaii cosmetics I found.

First and foremost is the new HELLO KITTY cosmetics line at Sephora. I was surprised to see a line because I thought the licensing was more lucrative for Sanrio. At this point thought, since kitty isn’t quite what she used to be and has capitalized on the adult market more than anything now (which to me has kind of ruined it), I guess Sanrio is taking every opportunity to make money with her.

Here are some of the cute things they offer:

This is sweet, just like a pencil tin that would be in the Hello Kitty line. It’s $28 which is a good value for the pencils, though they are not full-size. Unfortunately they are not the gel liner pencils that are so popular in every line now (even Cover Girl has them!)

 

This is a great palette in super cute Memoirs of a Kitty  cherry blossoms print. There are four eyeshadows and two blushes. $35 is a bit rich for what are most likely not the highest quality cosmetics but it’s still pretty darn cute.

 

Now we are getting pricey with the Glittercute Collection made with Swarovski Elements. You get the glittercute eyeliners and the brush set in a crystal container. This is really special and it comes with a ridiculous price – $495. That is not a mistake.

The Glitter Dipped Handheld Mirror also has crystals and a similar price tag of absurdity – $350. These are sweet and kawaii but unless you are Mariah Carey (who would get everything for free anyway) I don’t see anyone getting these items.

Finally there is a Hello Kitty fragrance. It’s inexpensive in this rollerball version only $18. Here is more about it.

Hello Kitty Fragrance Rollergirl Rollerball

You’re sure to feel sweet and fancy with this pretty perfume. Made with some
of Hello Kitty’s favorite things, its notes of green apple and Japanese fruits
will make you smile inside. As the fragrance’s heart comes forward, you’ll smell
rich floral accords and a wink of warm vanilla. A little hint of musk is present
in the base notes, adding a touch of glamour to a twinkling fragrance created
especially for the young-at-heart.

Notes:
Cassis Sorbet, Italian Mandarin, Apple, Magnolia Blossom, Freesia, Orange Flower, Tonka Bean,
Vanilla, Musk.

Style:
Sweet. Sparkling. Pretty.

 

I’ve been a huge Tarina Tarantino fan for well over a decade (remember she used to make those adorable little bejeweled barrettes?), purchasing her jewelry (lots of fun Hello Kitty stuff) and accessories. I was thrilled to see that she’s come out with a new cosmetics line exclusively for SEPHORA. Well done!

I haven’t gotten my products yet but I can tell you what I am most excited about:

Sparklicity Shimmer Dust  $39 – this sprays on to give a sheen of glittery goodness to your skin and hair. I just love the bottle and truly cannot get enough glitter in my life.

Kapinki: Face Brush $38 - I have a thing for kabuki brushes.  I have five of them. Maybe more. But a HOT PINK one? Oh my heavens – this is a must have. The kabuki brush is my go-to brush. I have ones that I use for blush, for powder, for pearlessence, for minerals. You can always use another.

Pearl Glow Primer $32 - I am as into pearlessence as I am to glitter and shimmer. That this is a primer is even better because it will give a subtle glow. I use a good primer from Smashbox that has a pearly glow to it but it is a little overpowering so I hope this works.

Sparklicity Luminizer $19 - Hey who doesn’t want to be illuminated? Or luminized? Whatever – if it means I will be glowy, I am there. Unlike most “refractive” powder finishes this is supposed to give glow but not glitter. We shall see!

Once everything comes in, I will road test and let you know how they work out.

One teeny-tiny grumble, I expected a little more from the packaging – a bit more sparkle. Also the price points are really high for a debut cosmetic line. And for a SEPHORA exclusive as well considering that SEPHORA’s own brands (and I am sure they are making Tarina Tarnatino’s too) are priced very reasonably.

Ahhh the madness of the season is nearly over so it seemed like a good time for me to re-cap some of the kawaii things I got for Christmas.

This was a stocking stuffer for me, a great set of STILA mini lip glazes. These are so sweet and portable and have yummy flavors too. My faves are the pearly and sparkly colors.

This great beauty kit is from POPBeauty and is much more vibrant than it looks in this photo. This is a treasure trove of festive colors ready made for parties and the winter months. You get five eye shadow/liners, two shades of bronzer, two shades of face powder, a multi-hued shimmer palette and eight lip colors, all in a velvet covered box.  It is called Cabaret Bouquet and was on sale at ULTA.

Another great make-up kit this one is from Pixi Beauty. I mean it has a little twee fairy on the box! All the colors are shimmery and sweet. You can get this right in Target and it was on sale to boot. You can also get it online at pixibeauty.com.

My sister-in-law was kind enough to get me this adorable Bare Minerals Sweet Obsession mineral powder eye kit. The smaller size jars come in a little foil candy cups. Arrragghhh – cute overload! So yummy I want to eat them!

Since I get cold tootsies in the winter (yes, even in Florida, what can I say, I am a big baby!) I looked for a pair of faux fur lined boots online and came up with these which were sent overnight from endless.com and arrived on my doorstep on the 24th. I’ve barely taken them off since. Except to put on these:

These are called Chastity Sweater Slippers and were $18 at Target. They are completely faux fur lined and delicious on cold toesies.

Hope your Christmas was loaded with kawaii goodies and joyful happiness. Remember to hit all the After Christmas sales too!

I’ve been away from the kawaii a bit so I have lots to catch up on. You’ll be seeing me more regular-like from now on.

Happy Kawaii New Year!

I must be honest and say that although I read the Twilight series (all but the last book since I figured I could only be driven 75 percent mad by three books) and despised the books on every conceivable level (bad writing, bad plotting, bad fantasy, bad character names, bad smell of the paper the books were printed on), I have quite enjoyed the marketing efforts (nice book cover, great photos from the movies, cool soundtrack) that have been tied in to the Twilight brand.

In essence the dark gothic Lolita feel to everything Twilight seems somewhat kawaii to me (there it is again my very broad interpretation of kawaii) so imagine my excitement to find a very classy new cosmetics line debut called Twlight Beauty.

Twilight Beauty has two options – Luna and Volturi. Kind of the light and the dark side if you will. The products are high quality, innovative and unique as well as packaged beautifully.

Take a gander:

These gorgeous palettes contain 2 eyeshadows, 2 lip colors and a blush and are named for the female characters in Twilight (from top to bottom: Rosalie, Bella, Alice and Victoria). These are portable in a classic black imprinted case, reasonably priced ($28) and really do ring true with the characters they are named after. At least in what has been shown in the films thus far that is. The Alice kit is my fave and the most kawaii in my opinion.

The Luna  Moonshadow eyeshadow compact comes in a variety of pairings each with a cream shadow and a glimmery powder. I love double duty cosmetics!

My favorite product that I purchased is the Mortal Glow blushing creme. This is a new product for me in that I have never used a creme blush that has such an unusual texture. It is a creme but also a mousse and dries to a powder finish. Absolutely gorgeous on but takes a little getting used to. Make sure you glaze your fingers over the product and don’t dig into it (oops!) because you’ll get too much product on your fingers. A foundation brush might be a good way to work with this but I love the tactile feel of it.

These two Volturi lipglosses are bolder than they go on. They are perfectly sheer so you will not end up with black lips. The pink shade is raspberry flavored and the black is licorice. They are yummy and non-sticky and give an interesting tint to lips.

This is a tie-in with DuWop’s Lip Venom, they’ve made a Just Bitten shade that looks like drops of blood in a vial. Very cool looking. This is a blood red lipstain, so be careful when applying. Once it sinks in the color stays for quite a while. You need to shake the venom up to get the best color for your lips. It is spicy and gives you a bit of a bee-stung pout but it’s not a painful tingling. And really it is a conversation starter too when you take it out to re-apply!

The Volturi Reign Body Mist comes in four great scents and has a gorgeous shimmer suspended in the gel like spray. I got the Bella scent – a pure, yummy vanilla. It comes in three other scents too: Forbidden Fruit– woodsy fresh and fruity, Wicked – Spicy cinnamon delight and Romance – Fresh flowers.

There are a few other products that I haven’t tried yet that you can discover for yourself on the website. Considering there are two more films to go I believe the line will be around for a while. The products aren’t cheap but they are of superb quality. They are quite different from other cosmetics I have and I love the direction the line is going in. I am excited to see the evolution.

It is no secret that I do a ton of online shopping! I love to shop indie at Shana Logic and other cute boutiques online, as well as on Etsy for kawaii goods of all kinds. One of my favorite places to shop might surprise you though – it is HSN!

You might be thinking – what? Do they even have anything kawaii?

Well, listen up and listen good kawaii lovers – you will be surprised to find that in HSN’s CLEARANCE section  you can not only find adorable and fun things to satisfy your kawaii-loving self but for CHEAP too!

Here are a few of my recent finds from HSN:

This is theBalm Read My Lips Kit in Nude on Clearance at HSN for $10! (from regular price of $40). I don’t know if the company is still in business since I saw some of their cute cosmetics for sale at Sephora too. You cannot beat this price though for 2 lipsticks, a lip pencil and lipstain. Holy Kawaii Clearance!

Along those same lines is this sweet little kit from theBalm for your eyes. It comes with a luggage tag and is portable itself with a wee little mini-brush. You can actually use one of the shades as a blush if you’ve got a teeny tiny blush brush. This was originally $18.50 marked down to $5.00. No mistake there – that’s right – five bucks!

This Barbie Loves Stila Collection (in Jewel Doll)  comes in a paint can (so adorable) and includes a Barbie palette, yummy lipgloss and gorgeous black mascara. The original price was $40 and is on sale for $13.98. You must trust me that you will never find  even one single Stila item for this price let alone, three! These are full-size products too and you get a blush and two eyeshadows in the palette. Worth every penny!

They offer another kit too, so if you can just get both! This is called Foxy Doll kit and comes with a different mascara, palette and lip glaze. The kits mimic the make-up on the dolls to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of your favorite girly-girl Barbie.

I know it’s not Easter but since when do kawaii bunnies have anything to do with holidays? To be fair these are more retro kawaii. These are perfect for springtime or just to put out something cute. The plates are unfortunately sold out but the bowl is on clearance for $19.00 from $49.00. Great value. This comes from the catalog company Grandin Road on HSN.

This is the Garden Party ring from Hot in Hollywood, a costume jewelry designer brand on HSN. The enamel flowers are so sweet and the crystal stone looks like a piece of candy. This is on sale in two colors for only $29.95.

Also by Hot in Hollywood is this saints crystal bracelet. So completely funky and cool I just had to have it. It is on sale for only$19.95 and comes in four crystal colors.

Next time I will focus on finds from QVC, Sephora and whomever strikes my fancy. And has CLEARANCE! Polish up your credit cards girlies!