Entertainment
Nicki Sebastian’s Foolproof Eyeliner Trick (Even for Marathons)


Photographer Nicki Sebastian doesn’t wear a ton of makeup, except for her cat-eye liner, which she’s worn for 30 years, every day since eighth grade. “I’ve worn it through every occasion imaginable: marathons, snorkeling,” she says. “When I had leukemia, I wore it through every round of chemo.” Nicki’s look is remarkably easy to pull off — even for those of us (all of us?) who lack the fine-motor skills that eyeliner typically requires. Here are her simple steps…

“First, get a twist-up liner. My go-to drugstore one is Revlon ColorStay Eyeliner in Black Brown. It’s inexpensive and easy, and I used that one for years. But my current favorite is SOSHE Beauty Precision. It’s one of the thinnest liners available — only 0.5 millimeters — which is great for detail and control. I wear Deep Plum and get so many compliments on the subtle shade.”

“Start in the middle of your eyelid, right above your pupil. Using very light pressure, make little strokes along your lash line. This is key: Do not draw one continuous line, and do not press the pencil against your lid. If you do that, you’ll almost certainly veer off track. Just continue with little strokes until you’re just past the corner of your eye. Then go back to the middle and fill in the gaps with more tiny strokes, until the line is totally filled in. You can then continue in the other direction, extending the line to the inner corner with the same tiny strokes. It’s a foolproof method.
“For the cat-eye in the corner, use a super light touch to do one of those mini strokes, angling your hand slightly so the line curves up into a little wing. It’s meant to mirror the curve of your eyelashes. Start with the thinnest line possible, and if you want it thicker, just keep going back over, adding more little strokes of liner. If you mess up, just use a makeup wipe to remove that last stroke, and try again.”

“The only other makeup I wear is Tower 28 Mascara — it’s thickening and never clumps — and then I finish with Hourglass brow pencil and KS&CO brow gel. I’m obsessed with this gel; it makes them look so much fuller. When I wash everything off, I use Vanicream face wash.”

“My 13-year-old daughter is acting in Snow White right now, and I get to do her cat-eye. She’ll ask me to do a cat-eye for school dances, too — it melts my heart. I don’t consider my eyeliner necessary — it’s not something I need to feel worthy — but I enjoy adding a little pizzazz. Even after I lost my eyelashes and brows during chemo, I’d still put on my everyday cat-eye — it makes me feel like myself.”
Thank you so much, Nicki! We love your look and your generosity in sharing your skills with us.
P.S. More fun beauty posts, including a five-second blush trick and Gemma’s amazing lipstick find.
(Photos courtesy of Nicki Sebastian.)
Entertainment
NYT Pips hints, answers for March 25, 2026
Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the New York Times catalogue.
Released in August 2025, the Pips puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.
Currently, if you’re stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move onto the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.
How to play Pips
If you’ve ever played dominoes, you’ll have a passing familiarity for how Pips is played. As we’ve shared in our previous hints stories for Pips, the tiles, like dominoes, are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don’t necessarily have to match.
The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible – and common – for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.
Here are common examples you’ll run into across the difficulty levels:
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Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.
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Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.
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Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.
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Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.
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Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.
If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.
Easy difficulty hints, answers for March 25 Pips
Equal (2): Everything in this space must be equal to 2. The answer is 2-2, placed horizontally; 2-5, placed horizontally.
Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 2-5, placed horizontally.
Number (6): Everything in this space must add up to 6. The answer is 6-3, placed vertically.
Number (14): Everything in this space must add up to 14. The answer is 5-5, placed horizontally; 4-4, placed horizontally.
Equal (4): Everything in this space must be equal to 4. The answer is 0-4, placed vertically; 4-4, placed horizontally.
Medium difficulty hints, answers for March 25 Pips
Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 2-6, placed horizontally.
Mashable Top Stories
Equal (6): Everything in this space must be equal to 6. The answer is 2-6, placed horizontally; 5-6, placed horizontally; 6-1, placed horizontally.
Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 5-0, placed vertically.
Equal (5): Everything in this space must be equal to 5. The answer is 5-0, placed vertically; 5-6, placed horizontally; 5-3, placed vertically.
Equal (1): Everything in this orange space must be equal to 1. The answer is 6-1, placed horizontally; 3-1, placed horizontally.
Equal (3): Everything in this space must be equal to 5. The answer is 5-3, placed vertically; 3-3, placed horizontally; 3-1, placed horizontally.
Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 1-0, placed horizontally.
Hard difficulty hints, answers for March 25 Pips
Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 4-0, placed vertically; 1-2, placed horizontally.
Number (8): Everything in this space must add up to 8. The answer is 1-2, placed horizontally; 6-6, placed horizontally.
Equal (0): Everything in this space must be equal to 0. The answer is 4-0, placed vertically; 0-6, placed vertically; 0-2, placed horizontally.
Less than (3): Everything in this space must be less than 3. The answer is 0-2, placed horizontally.
Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 6-6, placed horizontally; 1-3, placed vertically.
Equal (6): Everything in this space must be equal to 6. The answer is 0-3, placed vertically; 6-5, placed vertically; 6-4, placed horizontally.
Greater than (3): Everything in this space must be greater than 3. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally.
Number (6): Everything in this space must add up to 6. The answer is -3, placed vertically; 3-0, placed vertically.
Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 6-5, placed vertically.
Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 0-5, placed horizontally.
Equal (5): Everything in this space must be equal to 5. The answer is 0-5, placed horizontally; 5-5, placed horizontally.
Number (6): Everything in this space must add up to 6. The answer is 3-0, placed vertically; 4-2, placed vertically.
If you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Entertainment
We found the best MacBook deals during Amazons Big Spring Sale — including the MacBook Neo
Amazon’s third annual Big Spring Sale runs from March 25 to 31, and the opening day of the sale already features deals on must-have tech — including flagship Apple products. Apple just refreshed and expanded its MacBook lineup earlier this month, and some of the new Apple laptops are already on sale.
The colorful new MacBook Neo with Touch ID is a whopping — wait for it — $9 off. (Don’t forget about the Apple Store’s $100 education discount.) Of course, there are better deals to be had.
Amazon’s biggest discount thus far is going to a 15-inch M4 model with 24GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, which is now $300 off — its lowest price ever. You can also score 13-inch M4 MacBook Airs starting at $899. Remember: Apple has discontinued the M4 MacBooks, so once supplies dry up, they’ll only be available on the refurbished market.
The brand-new M5 MacBook Airs and M5 Pro/Max MacBook Pros are all $50 off for the Big Spring Sale, and that’s probably going to be as cheap as they get for now. (The then-new M4 models got the same discount last year.) Look for better deals in a couple of months come Prime Day.
This is just day one of the Big Spring Sale, and Mashable will be keeping track of all the latest MacBook price drops. Check back to be the first to know about the top Apple deals.
Note: Deals marked with a 🔥 have dropped to a record-low price.
Mashable Deals
Best MacBook Air deal
$949
at Amazon
$1,199
Save $250
Why we like it
The 13-inch M4 MacBook Air may be a last-gen laptop, but it’s still an incredibly capable ultraportable, now $250 off for its lowest-ever price. It’s faster than much pricier Windows laptops, and it has the same 12MP Center Stage webcam, Liquid Retina display, and 18-hour battery life as its new M5 counterpart. This particular model is also well future-proofed amid the ongoing RAM crunch — thanks, AI.
Read Mashable’s full review of the Apple MacBook Air (M4).
MacBook Neo deals
More MacBook Air deals
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Apple MacBook Air, 13-inch (M4, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD) — $899
$1,199(save $250) -
Apple MacBook Air, 13-inch (M4, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) — $949
$1,199(save $250) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 15-inch (M4, 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD) — $949
$1,199(save $250) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 13-inch (M4, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) — $949
$1,199(save $250) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 13-inch (M5, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) — $1,049
$1,099(save $50) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 15-inch (M4, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) — $1,099
$1,299(save $200) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 13-inch (M4, 24GB RAM, 512GB SSD) — $1,149
$1,399(save $250) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 13-inch (M5, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $1,249
$1,299(save $50) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 15-inch (M5, 16GB RAM, 512GB SSD) — $1,249
$1,299(save $50) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 13-inch (M5, 24GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $1,449.99
$1,499(save $49.01) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 15-inch (M5, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $1,449.99
$1,499(save $49.01) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Air, 15-inch (M5, 24GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $1,649.99
$1,699(save $49.01) 🔥
MacBook Pro deals
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Apple MacBook Pro, 14-inch (M5, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $1,649
$1,699(save $50) -
Apple MacBook Pro, 14-inch (M4 Pro, 24GB RAM, 512GB SSD) — $1,799
$1,999(save $200) -
Apple MacBook Pro, 14-inch (M5, 24GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $1,799
$1,899(save $100) -
Apple MacBook Pro, 14-inch (M5 Pro, 24GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $2,149
$2,199(save $50) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Pro, 14-inch (M5 Pro with 15-core CPU/16-core GPU, 24GB RAM, 2TB SSD) — $2,549.99
$2,599(save $49.01) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Pro, 16-inch (M5 Pro, 24GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $2,649
$2,699(save $50) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Pro, 14-inch (M5 Pro with 18-core CPU/20-core GPU, 24GB RAM, 2TB SSD) — $2,749.99
$2,799(save $49.01) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Pro, 16-inch (M5 Pro, 48GB RAM, 1TB SSD) — $3,049
$3,099(save $50) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Pro, 14-inch (M5 Max, 36GB RAM, 2TB SSD) — $3,549.99
$3,599(save $49.01) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Pro, 16-inch (M5 Max, 36GB RAM, 2TB SSD) — $3,849
$3,899(save $50) 🔥 -
Apple MacBook Pro, 16-inch (M5 Max, 48GB RAM, 2TB SSD) — $4,349.99
$4,399(save $49.01) 🔥
Entertainment
Amazon Big Spring Sale 2026: Tablet deals are in full bloom with savings on the latest iPad Air
Best Big Spring Sale Tablet Deals



Amazon’s Big Spring Sale kicks off on March 25. The seasonal sale, which runs through March 31, focuses on seasonal transition items – think cleaning supplies to freshen up your home and camping supples to get outdoors. However, it wouldn’t be a sale without tech deals, too.
Ahead of the sale, we’ve spotted early savings on tablets, good timing considering Apple just dropped a brand new tablet. The Apple iPad Air with M4 chip just dropped this month, and the good news is, it’s already on sale. But if iPads aren’t your thing don’t worry, there are plenty of other tablet deals to shop.
Here are all the best tablet deals to shop ahead of Amazon’s Big Spring Sale.
Best Tablet Deal
$559
at Amazon
$599
Save $40
Read our full review of the Apple iPad Air (M4).
Apple’s latest iPad drop is the iPad Air with M4 chip. It’s one of the retailers speediest, most efficient tablets, scoring 13,176 on the Geekbench 6 test, which puts it ahead of most laptops. When Apple released the new iPad Air, they didn’t raise the price, keeping the midrange tablet at $599. However, it already receive a price cut at Amazon.
Ahead of the Big Spring Sale, get the Apple iPad Air with M4 chip for just $559. While that’s only $40 in savings and less than 10% off its list price, it’s still a great deal considering it’s a brand new tablet.
So while we might like this deal best, if you want some bigger savings, there are plenty more deals to shop.
More tablet deals
iPads
Mashable Deals
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Apple iPad, 11-inch (A16 chip, 128GB, WiFi) — $299
$349(save $150) -
Apple iPad Air, 11-inch (M4 chip, 256GB, WiFi) — $649.99
$699(save $49.01) -
Apple iPad Air, 11-inch (M3 chip, 1TB, WiFi) — $979
$1,099(save $120) -
Apple iPad Pro, 13-inch (M5 chip, 256GB, WiFi) — $1,199
$1,299(save $100) -
Apple iPad Pro, 13-inch (M4 chip, 512GB, WiFi) — $1,299.99
$1,499(save $199.01)
Android
Kids tablet
