Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

I'm trying out Bloglovin as an alternative to the Gmail reader.

Also, I have a lot of posts written. I just have no corresponding photos. I refuse to not have nice photos--that's what I love about blogs. I'm buying an SD card reader to night to see if it helps my motivation. There is something so demotivating about needing to get out the camera and its corresponding cords and deal with turning it on and uploading things...

So, where I used to fail in not writing things down, I am now failing in photography. Victory will be mine.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Spending Reality Check

Just some mid-afternoon thoughts as I snack on my lunch. I think my spending resolutions need a little update. I've had a couple of impulse purchased in the past couple of days. Time for some Notes to Self!

Flash Sales
I got into flash sales last year and it became a bit of a habit where jewelry is concerned. Because I learned how to make jewelry soon after, I resolved at the beginning of the year to stop spending regularly at flash sales...and I stuck to it! Today, I gave into a little impulse on Gilt and noticed I haven't bought anything there in 6 months. (Winning.) I have purchased a few things on other sale sites (Hautelook and MyHabit), but the cutback has been dramatic. I think I need to stop perusing the jewelry altogether. This is how I ended up with a pair of earrings today...I especially should not peruse the jewelry sections when they are labeled "bohemian".

Note to Self: this is a come to Nancy Reagan moment. I will not peruse the jewelry on flash sales. I will use flash sales only when I am interested in a specific brand. As you noted in January, your purchases of fashion jewelry are being curbed in light of the fact that you can now make your own (and use your Pinterest board for inspiration) as well as the fact that you have enough to Shop Your Stash each morning. Also, wear earrings more. You know you can't justify more when you so rarely wear them! You know you are already "bohemian" and you don't need another pair of earrings to prove it.

Cosmetics
Oh, woe, this is so hard. I need every color under the sun, especially where neutral eye shadows are concerned. I have also recently discovered that I can, in fact, wear color on my lips without looking like a clown. Last year's resolutions were to not purchase any new mascaras, as well as stick to only a few formulas of base (foundation, powder, concealer). The base resolution has been maintained. The mascaras, I have binged. Why, why when I go back to the same mascara I've loved since '96? A few formulas is fine...but my unofficial quest to try every mascara under the sun is unnecessary. And the justification that I can have whatever colors I want in light of the fact that I stick to basics elsewhere? I think that's a bit out of control. I can't give up color totally...but I can devise a plan. And nail polish? I wear it less than earrings. I thought that purchasing a few "wild" colors, as opposed to the neutrals that are my staple, would be liberating. Suddenly I think trend colors called "taxi cab" are a good idea. When do my nails need to be bright yellow? You're a sucker for the colors of the "season", old girl. And remember that Chanel polish you just had to have last spring? Disaster. In the drawer it sits.

Note to self: The jig is up on mascara. Stop it, stop it, stop it. Keep a few (and you know that a few means 3) and that's it. What more do you need than a day mascara and an evening mascara? Nail polish? Forget about it. You will be shopping your stash for nails until further notice. Keep up the good work on base. I know color is hard, and your birthday is coming up, so let's focus on those items you've wanted for a long time to celebrate your birthday. Let's take color in baby steps...one month at a time...and good finds at the drugstore recently, but you and I both know you've discovered all you can there for the time being. Let's give it a rest for the sake of your patience. Post on what you've already bought, start shopping your stash, and make your birthday list.

Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Get the Accidental Look: Robert Palmer Back Up Dancer

This morning I reached for a red lipstick to wear, inspired by my evening's agenda: viewing the movie Snow White and the Huntsman. (Which was fantastic, and I am pleased that K-Stew didn't ruin it for me.) Though inspired by the fairy tale, what I ended up with looks a little more Robert Palmer/Addicted to Love dancer. When I picked up blogging again, I vowed to take better photos as that is the biggest challenge to it all-taking great pictures AND uploading them. We won't talk about my few thousand India vacation photos that have been living on my SD card since March...tonight, too lazy to get out our amazing camera, I took a quick snap with Photo Booth on my Mac. As usual, it cast way too much light on me, further driving home the point that my look is straight up Addicted to Love. Yes, Photo Booth isn't going to cut it in the future, but the fact that the camera agreed with me on the Robert Palmer bit was worth posting.
Not that my fancy photography is showing things true to color, but I used Make Up Forever's Aqua Lip Liner in Red 8C and Revlon's Cherries in the Snow.
My latest favorite blog is Cami Loves Kiwi (and Dinosaurs). At some point I'd like to talk more in depth about my most favorite blogs, as I get so much inspiration from them. I am such a groupie for Cami. Long story short, Cami always rocks a red lip and mentioned how she walks taller and has a strut when she wears a red lip, and that she hears a theme song in her head while she struts. I'm disabled, so I don't really strut. At least, I don't strut the way I would like. However, I now understand the theme song bit. When I wear a red lip, in my head I shall be-bop behind Mr. Palmer. Preferably with a less harsh eyebrow and cheek combo like the original dancers...



Tuesday, June 5, 2012

CVS Beauty Clearance Sale: A Rant/Why I Love High End Make Up

This lengthy piece is a two-parter!
My Love for High End Make Up
I am, in general, not the biggest fan of drugstore cosmetics. There are exceptions to this rule, but overall I tend to get my wares from department stores or specialty stores like Sephora. For the purposes of this blog, I'd like to formally state that I am a bigger fan of high end cosmetics, and my tastes run on what is probably defined as the low to mid range of high end cosmetics. (Clinique, Laura Mercier, and Bobbi Brown being the big 3.)
Since I first started using make up in high school, my capsule collection has always centered around high end/department store make up. While I had some drugstore cheap thrills, as that was what I could afford to experiment with, my old faithfuls tended to come from high end brands. This was for many reasons:
1. I could try things before I bought them. Even though they came with a higher price tag, I knew what I was getting. This was especially important in terms of foundation.
2. Department stores tend to have better return policies. There are drugstores that let you try and return and I remember how revolutionary it was when Rite Aide first implemented this policy in the 90s. But that still puts the onus on me, the consumer, to do the shade-matching.
3. I know that higher price tags do not always guarantee quality, nor does it guarantee it will work with your own chemistry, but for certain items like foundation I have found that you get what you pay for. At least, this has been my experience. (Hair care is another story for another day...my hair is a cheap, slutty date.)
I began reading beauty blogs about 4 years ago and now reading blogs and watching YouTube for beauty advice is as habitual for me as picking up an Allure magazine. It's wonderful to see the reviews of real consumers and airbrush-free swatches in normal lighting conditions. Since turning to the internet for beauty tips I have taken the advice of some of my favorite gurus on some great drugstore products and had great outcomes. I tend to buy colors for eyes and lips en masse, as opposed to bases and powders which I have one or two favorites that I stick to, but my online gurus have turned me on to products like Revlon lip butters. And now, since I have my own "real job" and make my own monies, I feel a little less guilty if I buy a product that isn't returnable and that didn't work out. (99 cent Wet and Wild lip pencil, I rue the day. I'm sorry, friend that recommended it to me, but I look like Kim Mathers wearing that pencil no matter what I do!)

And now, The Rant.
When I splurge on these cheap thrills, I tend to get them online at Soap.com or Ulta. I am big into online shopping because everything I want is at my fingertips. I usually don't have to worry that someone opened the package and stuck their dirty little fingers on it to test it. Usually, what I want is in stock.
I recently began reading the blog Nouveau Cheap. It's a great resource for drugstore cosmetics. Recently on this blog, there has been buzz about the CVS Beauty Clearance Sale, so I thought I would meander over to my local CVS and get a couple of items on my list. My trip just served to reaffirm why I hate shopping in drugstores when I'm on a mission.
First of all, clearly this is no fault of the aforementioned blog which alerted me to the sale. She's a real person just putting the word out. I love her blog! My CVS just happened to make my blood boil.
First, I went to pick up a L'Oreal Le Gloss I'd been eyeing since I saw it on HRH Collection. I located the shade I wanted (Baby Blossom). When I picked it up, I noticed that it was a shade lighter than the one that was still on the shelf. I confirmed that I had the correct shade in my hand and went to compare it to the shade that was still on the shelf. It was also Baby Blossom. As I held them in my hands, I noticed that while they were intended to be the same shade, they were not. One had clearly turned bad. Then I noticed that all 3 tubes remaining were sticky on the bottom, indicating that they had been opened. I opened the package to confirm this and noticed that the product had separated.
Disgusting.
Throwing these back on the shelf, I went to locate some Revlon lipsticks I had been eyeing up. They were completely out of stock of the shades I wanted (and have been for several months). This lack of stock went across several cosmetic brands for me. In addition, they were also out of stock of the particular variety of Venus razors I wanted. They had also run out of classic Noxema cold cream. I managed to snag the last Dove conditioner on the shelf and get the hell out of there. There is nothing more frustrating than apocalyptic shopping.
While I realize that I may have arrived late to the clearance party, I think the disgusting lip gloss was the topper to my evening. Could this have happened at Macy's? Certainly. But it hasn't yet. And consumers at these stores have testers to stick their dirty little mitts into, rather than the actual stock.
I understand that a clearance sale is done so that stock that needs to be moved will get sold. Judging by the amount of stock that was out, clearly it was a sale tactic that was working for them. But I think I found some items that should have gone out with the last clearance...or the trash.
Will I try again? Probably. I still want the items on my list, and I have some coupons burning a hole in my pocket. I understand that bad shopping experiences can happen anywhere. (Here's looking at the unhelpful MAC counter at my favorite Macy's!) In fact, earlier that day I had a streak of drugstore luck when I happened upon a Cover Girl blush I was looking for deeply discounted at Walgreen's. (Sigh. Yes, I was there for something else completely.) It was decently packaged and had not yet met its expiration date. CVS is also convenient to my house, for which I'm grateful. But, I'll be going with a harnessed qi and a reaffirmation that I'll be getting what I paid for.