A month of Monday Monday

Happy monthaversary!

Technically the first one was on the 8th so you could argue that next week would be the anniversary of the posts but as it's a retrospective wrap up sort of thing I'm going to call it good.

It would probably be a good idea to do my weekly blogging on a weekend day when I've gotten more sleep but then the series would be named Sabado Sabado Sabado! and that would be really misleading as this is not a Spanish language blog.

Wow, yeah, I really *did* sleep like crap last night.

I digress.

First things first:

Someone in a cross stitch group tipped me off that Jo-Ann Fabrics is having a MASSIVE online sale on cones of DMC floss and has a cheap shipping coupon, so you better believe I snatched up a cone of 310. The entire background of my current project is columns of unrelenting 310 (black) so I've been considering this for weeks. Not sure how long that's on so jump on it while you can.

I got a message last week from my stylist Fran Nordstrom at Waves Salon (here, have a Groupon deal!) that she had a color refresher thing for me so I picked it up and tried it this weekend. It came out of the tube a bit more purple than it shows on my hair but the end result was spot on for the powdery, denimy blue I really wanted this time around.

I don't think the first pic shows the yellowing I was starting to get as well as it could, but the refresher definitely made a difference in the overall tone without changing the color or staining anything (on my bathroom or my anatomy). It was easy, fast, and pleasant as hair dye experiences go. My only complaint about it is that it has a fairly heavy lily sort of scent which I find a bit much even after a day, but I'm specifically sensitive to that sort of thing so I suspect most wouldn't have a problem.

I have no idea of the general availability of this product but I would definitely give it another go.

This was my main project start this week and so far I am enjoying the HECK out of it. My mom had some medical stuff going on this past week so I stayed overnight last Monday at my parent's house and brought this project with to keep me busy while we waited for updates (long story short: my Mom is all good so far). I had a bit of a false start (that entire top row of stars had to be redone) but once I worked out a counting snafu and got used to working over two again I was golden. Per my post from mid last week I learned a new (to me) stitch and as a result will be starting that #yearofstitch project hopefully this week.

I've stopped on that piece for the time being to focus on getting a page finish in on Shades of Red, but will be setting up to start #yearofstitch and possibly prepping fabric for the upcoming Bowie project this week as I think I've decided on my fabric. Now that I've gotten away from the relentless black stitching of the background of Shades of Red it is of course confetti city and is sloooooooow going ,no middle ground there. 

OH!!! I FINALLY GOT MY FABRIC FOR THE MOST RIDICULOUS EPIC SEVERAL YEARS LONG PROJECT I COULD POSSIBLY IMAGINE!! Look at that thing! I think I have sheet sets that take up less real estate. That is a 55x55 inch square piece of 25 count Lugana from Heaven and Earth Designs and for size reference I am myself all of 62 high x *mumble* wide inches.

The end result will be the design above - Four Seasons by Jacek Yerka as charted by Heaven and Earth Designs. The design is considered a supersize piece in max colors which will be about 40 inches square and contain 234 colors. The pattern is OVER ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY PAGES and at current speed a single page takes me about a month.

I don't know, I might be crazy but I just sort of fell in love with it, lifelong commitment to a single cross stitch project be damned.

What kind of house doesn't have salt?

So, there's this show called Supernatural.

Perhaps you've heard of it?

I uh, have some *feelings* regarding this show and so when I saw that Incidental Twin not only had SPN themed polishes but one PARTICULARLY FREAKING COOL polish I had to have it.

*cough*andabouteightotherpolisheswhichyouwillbeseeingallingoodtime*cough*

Every time I pick up one of the Incidental Twin polishes I'm not sure how it's going to work out. They're somehow just different from other polishes I've ever used... but at this point I've been impressed with the results EVERY time so I just go with it. I actually have a custom order in the works right now!

I hatched a plan to do a particular manicure for the final episode of season 10 using the Incidental Twin polish, a Supernatural themed stamping plate from Apipila, and Snowed In - a white stamping polish from Hit The Bottle which I bought off of Beautometry.

Those tiny black flecks, that's real CHARCOAL.

The hazy cloudy voids in the design, that's not a camera issue, that's SALT.

If there was ever a mani that needed a macro

A deep translucent charcoal jelly sandwich of protective sigils in a suspension of salt, charcoal, hex glitter in two sizes, and micro glitter "embers".

When I started I was REALLY dubious. I was sure that somehow I was going to mess this up. I was convinced that the polish was not going to layer how I envisioned, and that the stamps would be smeared and too busy, but I stuck with it and I think it came out even more amazing than I had hoped.

It's been a bit of time since I did the pics but I believe the base was CnD Stickey base coat, two coats of Salt And Burn, and a coat each of American Classics Gelous and Poshe topcoat to smoothe it out for stamping. 

I stamped each finger, sealed with Poshe again, put a final layer of Salt and Burn over the top to add depth, and finally smoothed and sealed with the same Gelous-Poshe combination.

I found a neat trick to use hairspray to keep the stamp from smudging From Youtube user Denisejohn65 - Nail Ed which seemed to work great! I'm pretty sure if I had to take this off to fix smeary stamping there would be salt from crying in the mix as well.

I was worried the polish layers wouldn't stick on top of the hairspray but there were no issues with the technique as far as I could tell. I will absolutely be doing this every time I stamp.

A very Supernatural season ender manicure special

I've been sitting on this post for no reason for months but I figured the new season was as good a reason as any to get back on the horse!

Product fix: no more glistening like a pig!

Carmandized! via http://www.ajdeangelo.com/

I really enjoy the look of illuminators in real life. An ultra light dusting on the cheekbones, above the brow, on the nose, and on the chin truly does bring a glow to the face - just like Carmandy taught us! 

All the illuminators I had tried for years had a sort of super icy tone which was pretty workable in combination with my darker skin tone... in person.

But in photos? That icy ethereal Cate Blanchett elf look doesn't fly.
My cool, top-lit glow tragically translates into this sort of "mid August, waiting for the subway, all the humidity, should have worn shorts" sheen.

Thankfully I got a sample of "The Balm" Mary-Lou-Manizer in one of my very first Birchbox sets. This was the first illuminator that made me look gilded rather than just sweaty. I hesitate to call it warmer, but it is for sure neutral... er. *laughs*

Typically I go for the pale, champagne/honey toned Mary-Lou-manizer, but now that I have the cool white hair I like adding a bit of pink in to my face and have been leaning toward their subtly rosy/peachy Cindy Lou-Manizer.  

My hair and skin tone change all the time, but between the Mary/Betty/Cindy-Lou-Manizers and a couple of the new Nude Dude shades there are enough tones that I can use them in all of my different seasonal "coats". Also the packaging is adorable.

I liked the first sample so much that I snatched up a set of the full size illuminator and bronzer (i.e. Mary & Betty) when it went on sale at Kohls even though I don't have so much use for the bronzer and the pigment is milled so fine I'm STILL using up that first sample.

Not a recent pic, but it was actually hard to find one where I could tell for sure I was wearing illuminator! Which is exactly as it should be.

I'd show you a "before" but I didn't keep those.

I've gotten a number of shades as samples from different subscription boxes and so far I have been really impressed with their whole line. I always find a use for them and more often than not they become the go-to for that product type. 

They really brighten up a matte face full of make-up and add back in all the life and depth that a full coverage product can remove without making you look like you're gaining all that life and depth by running a marathon in the noonday sun.

Round two, fight!

Incense Oud by Killian
Guatemala cardamom, pink pepper, Turkish rose, Egyptian geranium, methyl pamplemousse, Virginia cedarwood, Indonesian patchouli, Indian papyrus, Somalia incense (oil and absolute), sandalwood, Macedonian oakmoss, Spanish cistus labdanum, musks.

"...boasts no actual oud in its list of materials. If Incense Oud lives up to the second half of its name, it is through the interplay between the woodiness of cedar, patchouli and sandalwood and the ambery, leathery accents of cistus labdanum and oakmoss. The incense, which makes up 25% of the formula, reads as a dark presence, its citrus facets magnified by geranium, methyl pamplemousse (a grapefruit-smelling material) and cardamom – the latter perhaps a subtle quote of the cardamom coffee popular in Arabic countries, its anisic facets combining with pink pepper to refresh the scent. Turkish rose oil, though highly dosed, is seamlessly worked into the blend as a counterpoint to the dark woody facets; a cocktail of musks permeate the scent with their soft animalic notes. Exceptionally smooth, polished and full-bodied, Incense Oud may just be the most darkly sensuous interpretation of its starring notes."

Initially surprisingly soft and floral, strong sandalwood and a really sort of... clean scent? Surprisingly little spice at this point. If you could think of the Platonic ideal of warm clean laundry fresh from the dryer that would be it.

After a short time it developed to a sort of minty overtone with sort of a sweet hay undertone, not strong but somehow pretty intense. I also smelled something almost like very clean fresh sweat which oddly kind of made it for me! I couldn't stop sniffing it to figure out what that smell might be.

With extended wear the floral is pretty much gone and it feels quite sophisticated. Nothing really stands out particularly at this point, it's just warm and creamy and quite spicy. I normally find this sort of spicy "Oriental" style scent really overwhelming and unpleasant but I feel like this is what this style of scent is supposed to be.

This definitely grew on me all day but I am not sure if it's what I was looking for as a signature scent. I will definitely be giving this subsequent wears and I actually could see getting a very small bottle for special occasion wear, but it's not what I would wear day to day.

It also bears mentioning that it's a whipping $236 per ounce, just under $400 for a bottle!

Un Bois Sepia By Serge Lutens
sandalwood, cypress, vetiver, patchouli, opoponax

"The cool, spicy and green top notes of cypress and vetiver conjure the memories of classic English fragrances. We find that unexpected touch of retro incredibly charming. The heart of sandalwood, velvety, deep and sensual, is pure luxury. The theme of unabashed decadence is continued in the base, where patchouli and opoponax create a dark, subtly animalic atmosphere. The contrast of the chilly, aloof top notes and the warm, sensuous base is irresistible."

Initially very sweet and powdery becoming spicier on drydown, I guess what I'm smelling is the opoponax?

My cats all really liked it and sniffed the spot I applied it really obsessively, which was a little weird. My husband couldn't smell it at all and it almost completely flattened out to a pleasant but very old fashioned scent after half an hour.

I would expect to experience this scent ghosting off of the furs of a proud elderly New York socialite but it didn't really do anything for me.




Still to try
Gaiac No 1 By M. Micallef
bergamot, jasmine, cloves, gaiac, vetiver, vanilla
Cadjmere By Parfumerie Generale
myrtle branch, sap, red tangerine, rosewood, Kenyan cypress resin, coconut milk, sandalwood bark, ambrette seed, vanilla
Tam Dao (Eau de Parfum) By Diptyque
Lime, Coriander, ginger, sandalwood, cedarwood, musc, vanilla, amber wood

Two perfumes enter! One perfume leaves!

Hinoki By Comme des Garcons x Monocle
Cypress, turpentine, camphor, cedar, thyme, pine, Georgian wood, frankincense, moss and vetiver

"Hinoki is a dry, woody-fresh scent with an intangible 'something' that gives it a mystical edge and the ability, much like CdG’s Incense Series, to conjure the exact emotion and feel of the idea behind its creation and name."

At first vetiver and moss with a hit of the lemoncake sweetness of frankincense, a touch powdery but clean without being soapy, masculine but not unpleasantly so. I have been known to to wear straight vetiver so I actually found this pretty pleasing.

Drydown was more cedery and almost ozone, fading very quickly but leaving a neat sort of orange bell pepper and water scent for a few hours. My husband couldn't smell it on me at all after two hours and even to my nose it was GONE within four.

Final verdict: Not THE ONE, but I'd wear it. Might be neat as a summer scent.

L'Eau by Diptyque 
cinnamon, clove, geranium, sandalwood, rose

"This iconic fragrance is an infusion of spices and flowers, inspired by a Middle-Age recipe. As diptyque's first eau de toilette, it is slightly magical and deliciously enigmatic..."

The overwhelming impression I get of this is like kissing the freshly shaved cheek of a dapper elderly male relative. At first strongly cinnamon but on drydown it has a spicy sort of lily(?) character. Soapy to the extreme and masculine but in a "my off-the-boat very old school Italian Great Uncle" way.
Not a *bad* smell, but so not even remotely in character.

Final verdict: Nopers

Still to try

Gaiac No 1 By M. Micallef
bergamot, jasmine, cloves, gaiac, vetiver, vanilla
Cadjmere By Parfumerie Generale
myrtle branch, sap, red tangerine, rosewood, Kenyan cypress resin, coconut milk, sandalwood bark, ambrette seed, vanilla
Incense Oud By Kilian
Guatemala cardamom, pink pepper, Turkish rose, Egyptian geranium, methyl pamplemousse, Virginia cedarwood, Indonesian patchouli, Indian papyrus, Somalia incense (oil and absolute), sandalwood, Macedonian oakmoss, Spanish cistus labdanum, musks.
Un Bois Sepia By Serge Lutens
sandalwood, cypress, vetiver, patchouli, opoponax
Tam Dao (Eau de Parfum) By Diptyque
Lime, Coriander, ginger, sandalwood, cedarwood, musc, vanilla, amber wood

Stampy McStamperson

I finally started poking at nail stamping and haven't posted my last two manicures so I figured I should let you know what I've been up to.

I got a Konad Coraline type B stamping set on a whim a few years ago along with a couple of random Konad plates (M28 and M60) and later received the Pueen 2013 plate set for a holiday gift. They have been very safely tucked away in a little decorative box and shoved in the back of my nail polish tools ever since.

I follow some AMAZING artists on FB and Instagram so I've been researching stamping on and off for a while, but have been too chicken to try until this past Valentine's day when I did the manicure just below. I wasn't terribly unhappy with the final result but it was immediately apparent that I was going to need a few more tools to get the effects I wanted. 

Well, not to mention of course practice. A LOT of practice.

Valentine's mani in a berry coloured creme with sheer stamped hearts on the ring finger and rose gold glitter on the pinky. 

I kind of wish I had left off the rose gold as it was so much higher visual impact than the stamping. I know this pic isn't the greatest but it was VERY hard to get a shot where glare did not wash out the hearts.

The sheer, faintly holo pink is very pretty, but wasn't really the effect I was looking for. I assumed that since it was a Konad polish it would be more opaque, but that's what I get for assuming. I lined this finger up pretty well but the left was a few degrees off.

This was also the absolute limit of nail length I could stamp with those Pueen plates, as I confirmed doing my next mani. The 2013 Pueen plates have a concave curve-in at the bottom of each design which frankly makes NO sense since it cuts a good couple of millimeters off of the usable length of the designs. It does look like this has been fixed with later plates but that doesn't help me much with the ones I already have.

My next attempt at stamping was a crocodile mani inspired by a really deep leathery green Sally Hansen Insta Dri polish I had just picked up.

Deep forest green creme mani with croc skin stamping over a pale green with a glassfleck finish.

This design doesn't look half bad from normal viewing distance but up close it is NOT the effect I was going for. The dark green reads more black than I had hoped and it turns out that at that scale a croc skin pattern just looks... kind of messy.  I feel like I should have put some kind of lizard stamp on another nail as a "this is what you are looking at" key.

Again I expected the green to stamp more opaque. I did try out the polish on paper a few times both for colour and to make sure my stamper was primed properly, and it looked okay there but the glassfleck just overpowered the dark green. The level of contrast here just did not do anything justice. Even though the stamping is the same polish as the rest of my hand it looks completely different and doesn't look tied together at all. I think I would try this again with closer coloured base under the stamping, or possibly even with shiny stamping over a matte base.  Also the Insta Dri nail polish dried really fast all right, but I don't think that was so helpful in this particular design.

The pattern was definitely too short for my nails. It barely covered my ring and middle fingers and would not have covered my thumb. Because it was kind of abstract I was able to restamp in a couple of places to fill holes, but obviously this would not work with a more regular design.

So what now?
This is going to be a limited technique for me until I get a few more tools. Luckily(?) I'm tired of winter and am engaging in lots of retail therapy so a few of those tools are already on their way. In the last two weeks I bought three stampers and six plates. All of the plates were either larger scale designs or all over etched plates.

The main issue I have is due to the shape of my nails. I have a wicked double convex curve to my nails and for a firm stamper like the Konad one to work I have to either squish it so hard I will distort the design (also that's really uncomfortable), or roll the stamper around in a spiral pattern (yeah, that's not going to get messed up) to cover top to bottom and edge to edge.

I love the way my talons look most of the time, but this makes nail art SUCH a pain in the butt!

I have similar problems with all stencils, tapes, wraps, and charms... pretty much any thing which requires a flat surface of any sort to work is a no-go for me. Also really annoying for touch screens because when my nails get long as I have to use odd parts of my finger.

Based on the issues I had with the firm Konad stamper I decided I wanted a supersoft XL stamper. I'm also really interested in trying the reverse stamping (kind of DIY wrap) technique I first saw via this video from Instagram user Sveta_sanders so I want a really large stamping surface.

For a really fantastic video of this process I highly recommend this video from blogger / youtuber / instagrammer Cassis Peach.

The first purchase was a large round silicone Creative Shop stamper from Beautrometry. Since this is currently back ordered pending a restock shipment from the Ukraine I also ordered from AU retailer Messy Mansion and got two XL rectangular stampers on the squishy side (one purple, one white) and three plates  (MessyMansion22, MessyMansion44 and Leadlight Lacquer05). According to the tracking site these are currently in Georgia so I should have them within a few days. I like that all of those stampers have deep curves to them so I think it will be easier to get reverse stamps to sit well on my nails.

A couple of days after that I saw a Facebook post from Lacquer or Leave Her on MoYou London's duochrome stamping polishes and found out that they have a David Bowie themed stamping plate (Rockstar09), so I finally bit the bullet and bought it along with two more plates (Festive15 and Fashionista11).

Yeah, like I wasn't going to buy this.

I had wanted to buy some of their duochrome stamping polishes but fiscal responsibility finally prevailed. Polish texture obviously makes a difference so I do want to pick up some stamping specific polishes. Cassis Peach apparently swears by a Mexican stamping polish called Mundo de Unas so that's going to be the next on the shopping list. It's very reasonably priced, but I've declared wallet truce until all of the stuff above (and a polish order form Lucky13 Lacquor) comes in.

Random Acts of Manicure - Storm's End

A complicated deep bronze manicure accented with stormy teal blue.

This is the trailing edge of a sudden summertime storm - roiling backlit clouds on one side of the horizon, rainbows on the other.

Nail Nation 3000 custom artisan 5free polish sucked me in with the a dead sexy purple glitter holo and caught me tight with my love of pets (and flakies).

This particular polish is part of the Rainbow Bridge collection where each rainbow drenched colour is named after a different beloved pet. A brief story of each namesake is listed on the site, and well, I'm a sucker for that kind of thing.

Penny's Holo is a sort of bronzed coffee tone which is very clearly PACKED with rainbowy goodness. I've been really into bronzes lately and Spectraflair is my JAM, so I really couldn't resist. It was a little darker/browner than I had expected when all was said and done, but still a gorgeous colour. It does seem to photograph a bit toward the bronze/olive side here but the pics on the site are fairly true.

It chipped fairly fast but I didn't use the Gelous nail coat for this mani and frankly I think my topcoat is aging out. Everything I wear is chipping within two days right now so I'm reserving judgement on longevity for the moment. The formula was surprisingly dense and could have possibly even covered in one coat if I had laid it on thick.

The stormy teal is Fashionista, which is the Revlon dupe for Essie 782 Go Overboard I mentioned in my last post. I think the accent really perked up the cooler tones in the spectraflair. It went on a little thinner than the Essie but it covers beautifully in two coats and seemed to have reasonable longevity. I actually tend to find Essie polishes a bit odd to work with texturally but they finish beautifully and wear well.

Bonus: sometimes removing colours with Spectraflair in them is a bit of a fight but this came off nicely.

Were you been all my life iCarousel Nail Polish Book App?

Inadvertent dupes. I think we've all done it.

You're in the drugstore, there's a polish you've been kind of stalking for a while but that brand is never on sale except just this once it's buy one get one 50% off.

You snatch up the holo glitter laden object of your affection and spy another shade that's pretty snazzy now-that-you-mention-it and finally you get it home to realize it's SO snazzy.....

...that you already had one just like it (but maybe even a better formulation) and now you have a dupe. If you pulled the labels off your swatch sticks you'd be hard pressed to match them back up correctly but it probably wouldn't matter anyway, they're that close.

Wah wah.

I've been doing swatch sticks for all of my polishes which has helped identify holes pretty well, but that doesn't really help when you're at the store staring at those polish racks thinking "that's right I needed a different teal" but trying to remember if you have THE ONE PARTICULAR variation of teal you have in front of you. Heck, I recently ended up with two bottles of the same shade of Superman blue. Thankfully it was a cheapie (Sinful Colors Endless Blue, in particular) but still a waste, and also not the first time I've done it.

Luckily as a problem solving hominid with an exorbitant mobile phone bill which I might as well get the most out of I have cataloging tools at my disposal the likes of which the world has never seen! I did a search for IOS nail polish apps and immediately found Nail Polish Book which has pretty handily solved the entire issue.

These images ganked from the app's iTunes listing

If you like me are into fussy levels of organization this may well be the perfect tool for you. Well, except for the laborious data entry part. That kind of stinks and I'm only about halfway done, but I figure that's my penance for having so much polish. The data entry is pretty easy, you can add your own notes, and get in to individual entries after the fact to edit with ease. Sorting is easy by any number of parameters, and results show both visual and text. Bonus: it searches in notes so you could set up a whole extra keyword system if you like. I really like that you can add your own entries to the shades listing, For example I felt the need to add "effect topcoats", "flakies" "multicolour glitters" and "crellies" as groupings as I find those items really don't group well by overall colour.

This is a screenshot from my phone, even here those two polishes are grouped together!

OH, AND BY THE WAY IT'S FREE*

I can only think of a few features to add.
First and foremost while I appreciate that it natively groups "shades" together I really like to see my stuff in carefully curated rainbow order so tweakable item ordering would be AWESOME. That said, this app is super handy for note keeping and shopping, but for actual in the moment "what colour am I going to use today" decisions I will probably continue using my swatch sticks, which I already keep on binder rings in rainbow order so that's not THAT big of a deal.
I just figure if I'm going to be fussy I might as well go all out. 

It would seem I really like cool pinks and aquas.

It would be cool to have some kind of pre-filled reference-able database because lazy and because sometimes my pics don't come out quite right. You can however add pics from your photo album, so if I found a better pic online I'd just have to save it to my phone first. 

Finally I am slightly concerned over what would happen to my data if I lost/traded in this phone because entering my collection has been a fairly big time sink and I can't tell if this is data backed up anywhere other than locally on my phone.

So yeah, if you have too much nail polish, a fussy personality, and an IOS friendly device, get on that. I don't see a direct Android version but there seems to be a similar product. I haven't tried that one out though so caveat emptor.


*I am not being compensated in any way for this review. Stumbled on this one on my own.

Jan 2015 Ipsy Glambag

My Ipsy Glam Bag for this month came the other day and I have to say I'm not terribly thrilled.
(once again I get points if you sign up via the link - this is a standard Ipsy user situation)

I received
Astrida Naturals Orange Mint Lip Balm with Shea Oil
(MALIN+GOETZ) Mojito Lip Balm
LashFood Phyto-Medic Eyelash Enhancer
Probelle Into The Blue Nail Lacquer
Pacifica Natural Mineral Coconut Eye Shadow in Treasure
a sort of plasticy nautical flat zip top bag - the opposite side is white

My thoughts in brief - all products untested
I don't like mint so I suspect both lip balms are out. The ingredients on the Orange Mint one look okay but I don't like that "perfume" is practically the only recognizable ingredient in the Mojito one.

The eyelash enhancer is intriguing but I'm going to have to research it a bit before I'm willing to put it near my eyes.I hate removing mascara so a product that gives me more lash with less grindy rubbing at the end of the day is okay by me.

The polish looks nice and I like that it's 3free, but it's pretty blah as shades of blue go. Just sort of an enh greyish sky blue. It really wouldn't stand out against my skin tone very well at all and in fact I think the pedi I got for my wedding was almost exactly the same shade because that's all they had (I painted over it with a better blue when I got home).
I don't see myself ever reaching for it to wear on its own, but it may get some use in nail art.

The shadow is a pretty enough shade, but I am BEYOND set on coppery sand toned shadows, thanks.

The bag is a good size and seems sturdy, thought I do generally prefer the fabric ones,


So yeah, mostly more stuff for the trade pile... not that I ever get around to trading stuff out anyway! Though I do think that contemplating my Ipsy stuff has given me an idea as far as nail polish goes. I think I may have just solved the "what sort of flakie mani do I want" question.

My Jan 2015 Birchbox

I got this box from Birchbox on Friday and figured I'd go over the items.

My January 2015 Birchbox

My pick so far:
Essentiel Elements Wake Up Rosemary Body Lotion

A little light textured for my taste but I prefer an unusually heavy lotion. It does sink in very well. Not a scent I would pick but I don't mind it at all. I find many lotions overwhelmingly strong smelling and end up washing them off more often than not, but this is very clean and herbal. I would have liked a squeezable tube rather than a stiff bottle, but I like that this bottle will travel well.

The ohHELLno item:
Harvey Prince - Sincerely perfume

This smells like a college bookstore.
No, not in the good way.

The rest of the items:
Number 4™ Non-Aerosol Hairspray

I haven't tried this yet. I like that it's non aerosol but I'm dubious about the smell. I sprayed a bit on my hand and it smells somehow soapy, powdery, and Oriental at the same time?!? I have a feeling that's going to drive me nuts surrounding my head all day long. Once it dried on my hand I could see where I sprayed it but it didn't feel heavy or crunchy, so it seems like it would have a nice light flexible hold.

Cynthia Rowley Beauty Creamy Lip Stain

I received the colour Sugar which is pictured below against my hand. Normally I would pass on such a mauvey colour. It looks okay on me but I have a very similar creme lipstick. I'm curious how it will work as a stain though so I may keep it. However if I can find a way to swap for Valentine, Tulip, or Dahlia I will definitely do so.

COOLA Tinted Matte SPF 30 for Face

I'm pretty dubious about this one, because I have a somewhat unusual skin tone, so "One Tint Fits All" facial products rarely work for me. That said I really should wear more skin protection. I get lazy because I'm naturally tan but I'm sure that will catch up with me someday.

"Mineral" products tend to make my skin itch though so I guess it's good this sample is so skimpy. I won't feel like I'm wasting much if I end up tossing it. :/ I wouldn't even blink if I had just gotten a smaller tube in the first place, but to make a sample size tube and than not even half fill it is pretty weird.

Seriously, could you spare a bit more product?

I should be getting my Glambag within the next week or so and I'll comment on that haul once I get it.

Mail order surprise pretties

Have you ever considered a beauty subscription box? If you're the kind of person who can't even pick up cough drops without spending an hour and way too much money on random stuff in the beauty aisle (guilty) it may be just the thing for you.

Subscription boxes are a FANTASTIC way to try brands, colours, and formulations you may not have heard of much less bought full size or price. Makeup gets expensive FAST so it can be hard to invest in things you are not so sure about.

I get two beauty subscriptions every month, Birchbox and Ipsy Glam Bag. Both average about five samples per shipment and are a little more than $10 per month with shipping. I can usually expect to find one thing I really like and one thing of no use whatsoever per shipment, beyond that it varies month to month. Offerings are chosen based on a survey you fill out at joining (which can be updated any time) and as you review the things you get your orders get a bit more personalized.

FULL DISCLOSURE: both links above are my referral links and it would earn points for me if you signed up through those links. This is a feature of ALL memberships to both sites. I have no affiliation with either company and am not being compensated for this post.

On left, my January 15 Birchbox. On right my April 14 Glambag

I received my Birchbox subscription Friday and should be expecting my Glambag subscription within the next week or so, so I figured I'd talk about them generally here and then post with my shipment specifics.

I had gotten several months subscription to Birchbox as a gift a few years ago and liked it but was not impressed enough to renew on my own. Later I joined GlamBag and realised that as my interest in beauty products grew some of those previously untouched Birchbox items in the back of my makeup stash had now become my favorite products. I've had a number of moments where I just needed *one particular thing* to finish off a look and it ended up being some item I had totally dismissed when I first received it. I decided to poke around at their site again and was so impressed with the recent offerings I restarted the subscription.

Ipsy seems to lean more toward makeup products and Birchbox seems to lean more skin/haircare, but that may be the way I have my own preferences set.

One of the neat things about the Ipsy Glambag is that it comes with a unique makeup bag every month. At first this was kind of annoying as they seemed to be everywhere, but as my collection grows these bags have become essential for sorting my makeup. Off the top of my head I have separate lipstick bags for pinks, purples, reds, and copper/golds, and separate bags for eyeliners, moisturizer samples, my go-to five minute face products.

I particularly like getting lotions, masques, scrubs, nail polishes, lip products, and makeup products outside of the usual "five minute face" products (for example highlighters, shading powders, setting sprays).

I'm not interested in perfumes, pencils for the eye area (I prefer liquid liners, and powder products for both brow and shadow), and rarely get useful colours in the concealers, foundations, and eye shadows.

A friend of mine gets GlossyBox (not a referral link) and has been very happy with that subscription, but it is about twice the price of the ones I already receive so I have not yet taken the plunge. The items do however seem to be VERY nice quality and come in surprisingly large sizes so it seems like she always gets her money's worth.

I have thought about a few of the nail art boxes out there, but what I would really kill for is a hair product specific service! I had very long hair for decades which I completely babied and now have very short hair which I beat the crap out of and as a result I have bought more expensive and completely useless hair styling products than I like to think on!

How I feel every time I consider buying a new hair product

I'm tired of collecting $30 tubs of product I end up using maybe twice, so I make do with the same things over and over. I'm sure there are a lot of products I would buy in full size if I just got to try them first!

Anyone else get a beauty based subscription service? Is there anything you particularly like or dislike about them? Do you have a good swap community you can recommend for off-base products?

It's alive, it's alive!

I'm sorry, it's been pretty quiet around here as I continue to recover from the whirlwind of my wedding. 

I've been at an interesting point beauty-wise for the intervening couple of months which definitely deserves its own post, but for now I'll say I'm starting to feel like doing the pretty thing again.

It also occurred to me today that I really like talking about cheese, and I have this handy blog thing here that I neglect, so I should totally like... do something with that. I'm not an expert by any means but I am QUITE a fan and I have been trying some pretty fun stuff lately.

My actual fridge the day after Christmas.

TL:DR - You may occasionally see posts about cheese. 

Hopefully my random-person opinions on cheese (rather than the words of some fancy frommagier*) will pique your interest.  

(*I made that up).

So, on to the usual "the Itsy Bitsy" thing...

I actually did a BUNCH of beauty related retail therapy yesterday.

I've mentioned Fashion Project here before, they re-sell higher end donated clothing at problematically good prices with a significant (listed) portion of each sale benefiting the charity of the donator's choice. It's catch as catch can of course, but they have a fair amount of product on a BEAUTIFULLY navigable site so finding something good tends to be a bit TOO easy.

They have "Personal Invite Links" which give the original linker a $20 credit if a person ends up buying through that link.
I'm not saying you should definitely use my link, but it would be pretty cool if you did!

I ended up picking up a very frivolous pair of Brian Atwood "Consort" heels in pink yesterday which benefited Breast Intentions and a very functional Dooney and Bourke black pleated leather clutch which benefited Canine Assistants Inc. They pull the listing once the sale is made so I can't get to the pics to link them here, but I'll post pics once they arrive. I spent less than 30% of the list prices on the two items so I consider it good hunting rather than poor decision making.

I had a haircut after work (as always props to Fran at Cactus Salon in Holbrook) and I finally went for it and cut off the last of the hair I grew out for the wedding. I'm now back in my super short pixie happy place, though the sides are buzzed, as is the style of the time (if Instagram is to be believed anyway). I shied away from short sides for a while because it can be harsh, but I love what it does for my cheekbones so I'm playing with it.

From there I went to Ulta and got my eyebrows done at the Benefit Brow Bar at the Patchogue store. This is the fourth time I've gotten my brows done there and I've been quite happy every time.

My brows are pretty sparse so I usually have a terrible time getting someone to do them so that it comes out evenly. Sadly I'm terrible with names and I can't find the card I got, but I'm pretty sure the woman I've seen every time is named Tanya, and I like how decisive she is. I went for a higher arch than usual this time and I'm not sure if I want to stick with that, but it does look quite nice.

While I was there I also picked up some Freeman face masques as I have become rather enamored of cleansing my face with anything but soap.  I picked up the Charcoal & Black Sugar Facial Polishing Mask and the Pineapple Facial Enzyme Mask because both seemed pretty straightforward in the ingredients and low on the eye stabbing perfume.

On the nail front I got two discounted China Glaze Pop Top sets for $10 each.
Full size China Glaze for $2.50 a bottle? Yeeeeeaaaaaah, couldn't resist that. So I got those in "Glisten Up" (the four colours on the left) and "Feeling Sparkly"(the four right).

I feel a bit indecisive about what to do with my nails next but I've had naked nails for two days now so I'll probably get on that soon. I keep thinking about going for a professional pedicure and then... not. Mostly because I've spent so many afternoons at the vet lately, but that's a whole other story.

I still have approximately 1/4 of the pedicure from my wedding remaining! Sexy!

Holy cow! Talk about fast service!

I put my order through at Fashion Project at 11:44 am yesterday morning and it was in my hands by 10:30am today.

Boston to southern NY in less than 24 hours with no rush or expedited shipping charge.

Wow.

I haven't tried anything on yet but it all looks awesome. My only complaint is that it would have been nice if the 4" stilettos were wrapped separately from the light coloured dress, but in this case it did not seem to cause a problem.

A fantastic budget fashion find

I tripped over a REALLY PROMISING site today and it solved a small dilemma. I really needed to pick up a nice outfit for some pre-wedding functions but it's hard to feel good dropping any kind of real money on YET ANOTHER wedding related thing at this point. 

I noticed a pretty dress while poking around on my Pinterest and followed the link to the original posting page. What I found was Fashion Project.

click on the above image to reach the website via my Invite link

It initially reminded me of Tradesy in the layout and in that both have listings for pre-owned items, but I quickly realized that this site was both considerably better organized and charity oriented.

Fashionproject is basically a charity thrift shop website. They re-sell donated fashion items at fantastic prices and then donate 55% of the net of each sale to charity. The charity differs from item to item and is noted on the search page. The amount of the charity contribution is shown on the listing. There is free shipping on all donations and orders over $100 and there are even coupon codes available if you dig around online!

The pictures of the items are professional and well lit from multiple angles, and the sizes are searchable and listed in the title. There are listings for clothing, bags, shoes and accessories.

I picked up a couple of things I really needed anyway for way less than I expected to pay AND supported a couple of charities in the process. I paid in the early afternoon and had a tracking number by the end of business hours!

They have "Personal Invite Links" which give the original linker a $20 credit if a person ends up buying through that link. *

I'm not saying you should definitely use my link, but it would be pretty cool if you did!

The dress I got is by Pins and Needles for Urban Outfitters (without actually giving any money to Urban Outfitters, which I feel completely sweetens the deal) and the other item was a pair of satin and leather pumps by BCBGMaxazria for a total of $54 with shipping (after a 20% off code which I found via Retailmenot). I've since found an Ebay listing for the same dress new with tags going for as much as I spent for the entire purchase.

The donation from my shoes went to NEADS/Dogs for Deaf and Disabled Americans, and the one from the dress went to Suited for Change. Based on what they listed 33% of the gross went to the charities. The site is run out of Boston so many of the charities are Boston local charities.

After I posted the link in my personal Facebook one of my friends found a *gorgeous* Sue Wong dress for literally 1/5 of what that label tends to go for. I will definitely update with my impression once I receive the items and with pictures once I wear them.



*The owner of this blog is not compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. The "Personal Invite Links" for this particular page is standard to all users. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely that of the blog owner.

Review: L'Oréal Mousse Absolue permanent haircolor in 300 - Pure Darkest Brown

About a year ago I decided I wanted dark hair for my wedding and started growing my hair out a bit to open up my style options. I'm used to my hair being extremely dark espresso brown with almost purpley undertones. Not the sexiest colour, but it set of my skin tone fairly well.

I've noticed my hair colour getting lighter and more mousy over the last several years, but now that I'm not growing it long I rarely keep my natural hair colour for more than a few months so I was never terribly fussed. Now that I'm keeping it dark the amount of change in my hair colour has become REALLY OBVIOUS. Suddenly it's kind of... blah with blah undertones?

May 20 2014 - my hair completely virgin with fairly minimal product
This is the day that convinced me it was well past time to tweak the colour

I thought most people get darker hair as they get older (aside from the grey thing) but perhaps I'm just weird like that? Oddly my Fiancee's hair has also gotten lighter as he ages. Though I am sure part of it is due to the hair on the crown of my head being darker than the hair on the edges (the different cuts show off different hair), part of it is very likely due to heat damage, and I even wonder if a bit of it is due to using a tea tree shampoo (lately I go back and forth between Giovanni and a Trader Joe's clone of the same).

I had a really hard time finding a non-permanent hair dye in a colour I liked so I finally bit the bullet and picked up a permanent colour in early July... at which point I promptly banged my head on a shelf hard enough to split my scalp (no stitches or anything, but still no fun), delaying the hair dying for a good week and a half while that healed.

While I do look great in all shades of black hair - from cherry, to soft neutral, to blue black - these shades can look a bit stark on me. They really amp the olive in my skin tone and make me look extra exotic and I always feel sort of "Gypsy-ish" with black hair. I wanted to keep things a bit softer so I opted for a neutral-to-cool toned dark brown - L'Oréal Mousse Absolue permanent haircolor in 300 - Pure Darkest Brown.

Colour aside I chose this brand primarily because it is reusable! With the (notable lack of) length and thickness of my hair, mixing a huge bottle of dye at once is a massive waste. I was really excited to find something I could literally rinse off and put back on the shelf until I was ready to use it again. The reviews weren't particularly awesome, but I'm not worried about covering grey and a bit of damage actually makes my hair more manageable.

There are A LOT of detailed descriptions of the packaging out there so I'll leave that bit to everyone else, except to say that I think it worked out really well for me and look to see more products like this in the future. It comes out in a mousse texture which was very easy to work with and didn't drip in the slightest. It was also a comfortable size for my hands and the dispensing button was easy to use through gloves and with long nails. The packaging was easy both to setup and to breakdown for cleaning and storage.

I've used it twice now and probably have enough left in the bottle for a third application, so I definitely got my money's worth. The colour is EXACTLY the "just this side of burned" roasted coffee bean colour I had wanted and my hair feels noticeably thicker. It seemed to fade a bit fast but I wasn't doing anything in particular to preserve the colour and also spent a lot of time in the sun this last month. I'd rather have something that faded fast then something that left a fakey regrowth line.

Day after dying - blow dried with only a Carol's Daughter heat protecting leave-in applied

Caveat: this is the weirdest smelling hair dye I've ever used.

I always wonder why hair dyes are so perfumey and now I know. This literally smelled like something that liquified in the bottom of a vegetable crisper. While I personally can tolerate that better than the massive perfume aisle stink bomb I'm used to with hair dye your mileage may vary. No one else has mentioned this in reviews so maybe I got a weird bottle?

The provided conditioner did a good job of neutralizing this dye smell without (again) the usual massive perfume aisle stink bomb effect. I think I would call the scent fairly similar to lilac but not at all overpowering.

Pros: 
cheap - about $11.00 at Target
multiple applications in one bottle with shorter hair or root touch-ups
multiple sets of (nicer than usual black nitrile) gloves provided
no annoying mad science mixing and shaking with your finger over that hole in the end of the bottle
no wasted mixing bottle packaging
I liked the resultant colour
easy to use mousse texture
faded naturally (no fakey line of regrowth)
no horrible flower smell (however: see cons)
thickened my hair up a bit
nice shine
plenty of provided conditioner
did not piss off my sensitive scalp

Cons:
Smells like hot garbage: literally
seemed to fade fast (with the caveat that I did NOTHING to prevent this)
slightly long developing time
I imagine the mousse texture would make it harder to pinpoint greys for root touch ups if you were doing it without assistance

Disclosure: I purchased this product and all other mentioned products with my own money and this review was not sought or compensated for by L'Oréal Paris or any other entity.