Dang, it’s hot out here in Nor Cal today! It must be in the low 80s. That, or I’m just not at all used to the warmer weather yet.

To hurry up and get into the spirit of swimming pools and water parks, I thought I’d bust out a few of the new waterproof Make Up For Ever Aqua Shadows ($20 each) for my makeup today.

The Aqua Shadows, which are available now at Sephora, are a new line of long-lasting waterproof eyeshadow crayons. They come in 12 smudge-resistant shades designed to resist fading and creasing just as much as they resist water (more on that in a minute).

Apply, count to five (or 10, to be safe), and then bring on the water!

A few things about the Make Up For Ever Aqua Shadows…

• Easy does it with these. My lids turn into cake central when I over-apply.
• From my experience, they live up to the “Aqua” in their name, resisting water like our resident tabby cat. They also last all day long for me, but I do get some creasing when I wear them without an eye primer.
• They feel drier and thicker than some of the other shadow pencils I’ve tried, like Urban Decay’s 24/7 Glide-On Eyeshadow Pencils and the NARS Soft Touch Shadow Pencils, and take a little more time and effort to blend.

For this look, I also used a few other Make Up For Ever favorites that I recently noticed at Sephora — the Compact Shine On Powder highlighter ($30; comes in two shades), Sculpting Blush ($25; available in four shades) and Mat Bronze bronzing powder ($32; available in two shades).

Make Up For Ever Aqua Shadows from the left: 30E (a pearly pink beige), 26E (a pearly peach) and 4E (a matte taupe gray), $20 each

Make Up For Ever Sculpting Blush in 10, $25

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This is what happens when, after a week of heavy rains, the sun comes out in full force: everything blooms! The pollen count goes through the roof!

My allergies have been so bad today that I’ve had to lock myself indoors…which isn’t all bad, because NARS is keeping me company.

For my makeup today, even though it’s indoor-only, I went with NARS Summer 2012. I’m wearing the Marie-Glante Eyeshadow Duo ($34), the Calabria Soft Touch Shadow Pencil ($24), Libertè Blush ($28) and the Never Say Never Velvet Matte Lip Pencil ($24).

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“I use a technique one of the doctors suggested. I start with the simplest things I know to be true and work toward the more complicated. The list begins to roll in my head…” – Katniss Everdeen, Mockingjay

My name is Karen. I am 36 years old. My home is in Novato, California, also known as District 12. I have read the The Hunger Games twice. I am counting down the minutes to the midnight premiere of the movie tonight. I will be wearing makeup inspired by Katniss and Cinna as I chomp down on popcorn in the middle of the night.

Cinna’s trademark simple golden eyeliner was my jumping off point for this look, and then I tried to imagine what Katniss might look like if she were out hunting in the woods on a summer day. For that, I added bronze cheeks and a nude, slightly shiny lip.

On my eyes: MAC Eye Shadow in Soba and NARS Eyeshadow in Cyprus on lids; MAC Super Slick Liquid Eye Liner in Pure Show and Urban Decay Heavy Metal Glitter Liner on the upper lash line; Dolce & Gabbana Khol Pencil in True Black on the upper waterline; MAC Eye Kohl in Powersurge on the lower lash line and waterline; Urban Decay Cannonball and Buxom Amplified Lash on upper and lower lashes

NOTE: If you haven’t read the books yet, don’t worry. Like all most of my obsessions, this one (probably) won’t last forever.

But if you have read the books, aren’t they great!? I’ve always believed that science fiction ultimately isn’t about robots and aliens, even in stories where they appear. It’s about how ordinary people react in extraordinary circumstances. In The Hunger Games, I admire how the main character, Katniss, just a regular girl, rises to the challenges before her. She learns to face her fears and becomes stronger for others.

Cheeks: MAC Face Powder in Flower Fantasy and NARS Blush in Madly; Lips: bareMinerals Marvelous Moxie Lipgloss in Spark Plug

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I was looking through those pics of cherry blossom trees from my walk around the neighborhood last weekend, and this one down below, with the branches reaching for the sky, stopped me in my tracks.

Hmm… pink and blue. How very MAC Chenman!

So here’s my second take on a look inspired by that release. This time, I also incorporated a couple of my tried-and-true MAC faves — Feline Eye Kohl (which I love because it doesn’t turn blue on my skin!) and Dollymix blush.

Wearing just the eyeshadows alone, I thought my eyes in this look were subtler than they were in last week’s eye look, so I added swishes of black liner on my upper and lower water lines to amp things up.

EYES

• MAC Chenman Mineralize Eye Shadow in Superswseet (crease and lids)
• MAC Chenman Mineralize Eye Shadow in Love Cycle (upper lash lines)
• MAC Khohl Power Eye Pencil in Feline (upper and lower lash water lines; lower lash line)
• MAC Eye Shadow in Concrete (brows)
• MAC Zoom Fast Black Lash (upper and lower lashes)

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Okay…I went buck wild today with makeup.

So much MAC. So many swatches. I totally lost track of time while snapping pics and didn’t even think about my actual makeup look for today until I put down the camera for a few minutes this afternoon, and then I saw my raison d’être for hump day: a Force of Love.

Nothin’ like a hot pink lip to jolt you wide awake.

For this look, which I’m calling “getaway car driver with hot pink lips,” I mostly used products from the new MAC Chenman collection, which hits stores tomorrow (that’s just a few hours from now!).

EYES

• MAC Chenman Mineralize Eye Shadow in Pink Union (crease and lids)
• MAC Chenman Pigment in Naval Blue (outer third of lids)
• MAC Chenman Mineralize Eye Shadow in Love Cycle (lower lash lines)
• MAC Eye Shadow in Concrete (brows)
• MAC Zoom Fast Black Lash (upper and lower lashes)

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