Coastal Scents--Two Hits, One Just Okay

So, in our spare time at work, a couple of girls and I ordered from Coastal Scents. We all ordered the Silica Sphere Powder. One girl has the Make Up For Ever HD Powder, made of 100% fine milled silica powder. Guess what the only ingredient of CS Silica Sphere Powder is? That's right, 100% fine milled silica powder! It is $4 for 1 oz, as opposed to $30 for about .3 oz. It is seriously EXACTLY the same, for so much cheaper. I love it already. It is like a much better mineral veil, by Bare Escentuals, because it is more mattifying. I can only use it sparingly because it can be a bit drying, but it definitely gives skin that glow and airbrush finish. I use it with a mini kabuki brush I got in an Ecotools set from Long's Drugs. Perfection. The Make Up For Ever set of powder/brush is $39. The difference is in the packaging. The CS packaging is very cheap and bulky. I had an extra small sifter jar that I used to put my powder in, to store in my purse for a mid-day shine reducer. Shipping was only $4.70 for our order--including the powders, gel liners and liner brushes.

I had read rave reviews of CS gel liner, but unfortunately, it does not match the quality of my Bobbi Brown gel liner. On my upper lid, it didn't budge. The liner under my eyes smeared slighty as the day wore on. Very disappointing. My BB liner DOES NOT move all day. But, it is $14 more.

I have a Bobbi Brown Ultra Fine Eyeliner Brush that I use with my gel liner, but decided to try the $1.99 super fine brush from CS. I have to say that it is more accurate than my BB brush! I was so excited. I love finding bargains that are comparable quality to the splurge. I don't mind splurging on quality, but it is so exciting to pay less and get the same results!

Reese

Love this "old world glamour" coat. Such simple lines and structure, yet so elegant.

Pale Gray Polish

I'm still loving OPI You Don't Know Jacques, but Rescue Beauty Lounge in Stormy was the original gray that inspired me back last spring. Now, OPI's new Holiday line has a great gray (cheaper than Rescue Beauty, but also including a little shimmer...not usually my thing.) I need to see it in person before I endorse it completely!

OPI Sheer Your Toys

I still love the Rescue Beauty Lounge colors in Stormy and Concrete Jungle, but not sure I'm up for paying $18 for nail polish! I have a hard enough time with full priced OPI. I usually can find it at a beauty supply store for half off.

Concrete Jungle, Stormy

So much cuter than wellies

I'm in love with these boots from Urban. They look like equestrian boots, but are actually rubber boots. Now, wellies (standard rubber rain boots) are very handy, but are usually lacking any foot support...and aren't a very versatile look. These are fully lined and have foot support.

They are online only, so I'm going to order them and hope they look as cute in person!

Harmless, Shallow Fun

I know I've talked a bit about my sickness (Chronic Fatigue) that I have battled for the last almost three years. For ten months after I first got the crazy strong virus that caused this whole mess, I didn't work. About six of those months, I could barely get out of bed. Taking a shower consumed an entire day's energy. Not to depress everyone, because I'm SO much better than that now, but getting my nails done was the highlight of my world. The experience of a mani/pedi then wasn't the best part, because even going to a nail salon was so exhausting. It was more because I didn't have the strength to do my own, like I did before I got sick. It brought me such a shallow sense of pleasure to look down, while in bed, and see my freshly painted nails. It somehow made me feel like a normal person, and gave an illusion of control and achievement.

Well, I got my first pedicure at a day spa on Saturday. Let me just say that it was SO different than a regular nail salon. The whole experience was amazing. Everything was better--the foot and leg massage, the smells of lotions and scrubs, the careful application of a mask, the incredibly accurate painting and glossing...

I went for the OPI French collection "Parlez Vous OPI?", a current fave of mine. A twist on lavendar, somehow edgier because of its smokiness.




But, I took a break from OPI "You Don't Know Jacques" that I have written about a couple of times, and as my nails have been growing back, went with one of my favorite pinks--OPI "Pinking of You."

Another Great Blog

Check out The HippPrepp.

I love the creativity and style ideas. Hippie+Preppy= Great style. And it's all put together in a very visually stimulating way, with cute outfit combos. I wish I were so creative!

Saturday Spa Day

Most Saturday mornings, I make my own skincare spa in the shower--extra thorough foot pumicing, body exfoliating, careful shaving, skin detoxifying. Sometimes, I will dye my hair or paint my nails after...or even thread my upper lip.

This Saturday, however, I am actually going to the spa!! My very sweet and thoughtful long distance BF got me a gift certificate to a local place for my birthday. I am shocked that he even knew about spas. I am SO excited. I never do stuff like that for myself, as I am way too frugal. I get massages from this cheaper accupressure place, and a mani/pedi on occasion from your average nail place. Tomorrow I am getting an hour deep tissue massage, and an island pedicure!

Mid-Week Eye Candy

Beyonce

Rachel Bilson

Jessica Biel

Kristen Steward..."TWILIGHT!!!"

She's Back

Mindy Kaling's blog is finally back. She plays Kelly on The Office, and is also one of the writers. I love her enthusiasm, cynicism and commentary. You can also just hear Kelly saying all of these things. Hilarious.

Things I Bought that I Love

Gwnyeth Paltrow Inspiration

I adore Gwyneth Paltrow. I love her style, and also the way she closely guards her privacy and time with her family.

Well, I just read that she puts out a newsletter with style tips, recipes, life choices, etc. Check out these style tips...

Gwyneth Style

Makeup Application

I am not great at applying makeup. I love researching the best makeup, the key ingredients, the most efficient products...but, when it comes to applying it, I am too lazy to apply myself. That's why I love learning new tricks. A couple of months ago, I went to Sephora on a Saturday to pick up mascara (putting down Twilight book four "Breaking Dawn" for the trip) An employee there ended up playing with my makeup for about an hour. So fun.

Here are the results (I am just now uploading pictures from the last two months!) of her work. She used Benefit Big Beautiful Eyes palette, which I already have. She used DiorSkin Airflash foundation, and expertly used bronzer to slim my wide face.


I look so awkward in these, but didn't want to forget how she had applied everything. She even had me practice so that I could use the techniques.

More Coverage, Mineral Style

Photo: Garance Dore

This goes out to my friend Rae Lynn, who facebooked me with a couple of great questions. I'm going to field this one first:

you are a Bare Minerals-user, correct? do you ever use a foundation under the powder? do you have recommends for one that would work complementarily with it?

I'm going to talk in detail about using mineral makeup. I am a huge fan of Bare Minerals, have been for over three years. In that time, occasionally I stray to a couple of different types of tinted moisturizer. But, inevitably, I come back to BM (that's Bare Minerals, not to be confused with bowel movement.) One of the reasons may be that just when I feel uninspired, I happen to turn on QVC and catch a tutorial. Instantly, I am so thankful that I have a makeup with natural-yet-buildable coverage, that doesn't break my skin out and comes in a yellow enough shade for me. I also like the slight shimmer, because I don't want to look like I'm wearing full, matte makeup.

The key to flawless mineral coverage is prepping the skin. Mineral makeup (really any powder makeup) will accentuate any flakiness. I love BM Rev-er Upper because it has salicylic and glycolic acid in it (they chemically exfoliate the skin.) I use the Rev-er Upper, then my SPF 55, followed by a couple of spritzes of Mario Badescu rose water/aloe spray (read all about it here.) For my skin, I have to moisten it before applying powder.

Then, I follow with the standard swirl/tap/buff routine. When my skin is fairly clear, this does an adequate job of evening out my face. However, sometimes I need more coverage than the full mineral foundation can provide (including going back over the problem areas with the concealer brush.)

So, in answer to Rae Lynn's question, that's when I use a very sheer foundation or tinted moisturizer underneath the mineral foundation...to cover and to stay put longer. I use Clinique Almost Makeup, because that was my face makeup of choice for years before I started BM. I also suggest a very sheer foundation, like Prescriptives Traceless. Again, I like to cover what needs to be covered without looking like I'm wearing a thick layer of makeup. If you don't want to purchase a new foundation or TM just to wear under the mineral makeup, then simply use a damp sponge with whatever liquid foundation you may have...to make it a little more sheer. Or, make your own TM by mixing one part of foundation with one part moisturizer.

Coastal Scents...Budget Beauty

I am a big fan of Bobbi Brown gel liner. I have it in Indigo, and love the staying powder. No matter how much a pencil liner has claimed to be waterproof/smudgeproof/budgeproof, I always end up with racoon eyes if I wear it on my lower lashes. But, let's face it, Bobbi Brown is not cheap.

I haven't tried this yet myself, but read some great reviews of Coastal Scents new gel liners. Coastal Scents consistently gets good reviews, despite its super cheap prices. These are only $6.95 and apparently are as budgeproof as Bobbi Brown, MAC or Stila gel liners...

Sephora SALE!!!

Indecision

I am a perfectionist when it comes to making decisions. I agonize over the smallest of ones. It's a sickness. It is the reason behind my obsessive-compulsive search for the perfect wardrobe and beauty products/routine. Let me clarify, it is not that I want a dream wardrobe or beauty arsenal, but simply want the best and most efficient/realistic stuff for me.

I agonize over what the best deal is, where to find discounts on non-discounted beauty products. What to splurge or save on. What shoes to buy when I don't want to clutter up my closet with stuff that really isn't practical in my lifestyle. On one hand, I despise excess (having more stuff just to have more stuff) and, on the other, I am constantly agonizing over what the BEST stuff for me to research and purchase is. I want to look into the future and see what spur-of-the-moment purchases will end up being my go-to's--that sweater I always grab, those shoes that are perfectly versatile, that blush that I never get tired of, those jeans that don't show my love handles and go with flats or heels...

I know the solution to this problem is to simply be content with the stuff I have, and let it all go! But, since I battle with my health so much and really can't have too many activities in my life other than work, I just have to learn to research this stuff and not let indecision plague me.

Such as my search for my next body wash. Yes, it is a tiny, insignificant detail in the grand scheme of life, but--given the myriad of choices--turns into a game for me to find the perfect one. It's all very silly, and causes me undue stress. But, it also entertains me.

Sometimes, I need to learn to close my eyes and just pick one.