Shmocktober...

Ooo, no posts for October yet. Well, fall isn't my best time of year. I get down. And stressed. And generally become a total poopy-head. So I've been getting myself together and praying a lot and trying to re-process and let go of stressors. But I have many frivolous postings waiting in the wings!

Aqua trio...

Zoya Wednesday, Maisie and Zuza!

Houston Galleria Sanrio store haul...

• HK x Wish Come True vinyl wallet
• Peach scented eraser in a Hello Kitty case
• Blueberry scented eraser in a Chococat case
• LTS chubby 3"-ish notepad. It has four different papers in it that I'll eventually remember to take pics of!
• (not shown because it was rolling around the car floorboards) Green glitter gel pen with HK and various fruits all on the barrel.

I've wanted a Hello Kitty x WCT *something* since its release. (I almost got an entire handbag LOL. But decided it was a little boisterous to hold my interest very long.) I'm already plotting what to use the eraser cases for later.

Starting from the bottom...

So many fun things to post- I'll start with the shoe haul ( but I don't know if I'll post the clothes. I can't find any online pics and while I love to look at stuff, I sure don't love to take the pics myself.) I was able to knock THREE pairs off my wishlist!

 I found the Steve Madden version of these at Marshall's! They are  a wonderful coral and a bit more casual than my old pair of coral wedges. (pic from urbanog.com)

Texas love...

OMG I had the most wonderful visit with family in Houston! Ten whole days too! I just love seeing the Sprout have grandparent/aunt&uncle/cousins time. He gets to give and get so much face-to-face love.

• He and my step-mom debated for days about what movie they'd see. (They go to lunch and a movie just the two of them every visit.) 
• He and grandpa didn't target shoot this time, though he did learn how to operate the complex sprinkler system in which he took great pride.
• My mom got him about six licensed character tees at Old Navy. (Yes he shares my t-shirt collecting!) 
• One of my cousins got in my aunt's pool in her sun dress to help him learn to swim better- that's how cool she is! (Ok, so, she only lives across the street from that pool but still...:-D

Of course there were lots of meaningful moments but one of the best fun parts was all the shopping my mom and I did together. We LOVE shopping-together-time, and I was thankful mom was feeling so good that she could run all over the malls with me and have a great time. She was the one who suggested most of the trips and kept going, "Wait, that's weird, we haven't bought anything yet!" after leaving the first few stores empty-handed LOL. But it's always fun to just look at the goods too! So LOTS of upcoming posts will be about happy new items I brought home with me...which are of course some of my favorite things to blog about:-D

Fruit mani...

*Why yes, I AM holding a mango*



I've been determined to go all out with the nail art lately! It's taken awhile for me to admit that I collect polishes and deco things and that, yes, This is My Hobby. (Well, one of my hobbies...) And in celebration of that, I'm indulging it to its fullest:-D
I'm going to at least leave the deco'd ring fingers until they wear off to see how long I can keep the fruit slices on- so far they've survived a load of laundry and a from-scratch bedmaking...LOL. I think a pinky-coral would look great with them too. This is Essence Peaches (from the Marble Mania T(rend) E(dition) layered over Essence Hazelnut Cream Pie (a Nude Glam shade.) Peaches is a milky jelly which is one of my fave finishes, but my nails aren't nice enough to show through, hence the layers. Some chain I have access to *better* get Essence's Fruity TE because manis like this neeeeeed a fruity-scented topcoat like the one in that collection!



Revlon Mint Gelato polish, hmmm...

The hmmm isn't because this is a new thing for me. I used scented polish all the time in the 90's. But I'm not sure I love it now. In fairness, this one's scent reminds me of that time and so I'm sort of judging based on that. But it's REALLY close to my HG light-turquoise, Essie Turquoise & Caicos, which I've wanted a better formula version of. Zoya Wednesday has called to me but my Ulta is 30min and a long, annoying road away. (Also, I'm not keen on ordering one polish at a time from Zoya online and it's the only color I want right now.) From studying online pics, I can say that one could do a lot worse than Mint Gelato as a dupe for Wednesday...

New foundation FTW...

Yay for finally finding a foundation that will make my skin look better instead of worse! With the help of some great online reviews, I've discovered Cover Girl Natureluxe Liquid Silk.

Really 34yo skin? Really...

In the last year my skin...! I've had to change everything I use on it: cleansing routine, day and night creams, foundation, powder, body lotion, you name it. I've also had the fun of finding out what I most definitely should NOT change. (Deodorant? Secret. Unscented. kthxb.) Turns out I needed to start doing the opposite of what I thought was good for my face. Instead of choosing products to soothe redness, I need to keep my pores super clean and use things that won't irritate in the first place. Srsly, nothing I use now has "sensitive" in the name (except my Lumene that I now use as an eye cream since it still works there.)
Here's my new routine:
p.m.~

• Cetaphil Moisture Lotion wiped with a cloth to remove makeup
• Noxema Triple Clean Cleansing Pads
• Garnier Moisure Rescue Gel-Cream
• Lumene Sensitive Touch Night Cream as an eye cream (can't use it all over anymore so waste not, want not)

a.m.~

• Noxema Triple Clean pads if I see any blackheads
• Garnier Moisture Rescue Gel-Cream
• Garnier Moisture Rescue UV lotion

(*UPDATE*
whenever~

• Neutrogena Rapid Clear acne treatment pen
• Simple Revitalizing Eye Roll-on)

So here's some of the new goods:

Garnier Moisture Rescue to the...rescue! Lightweight UV Lotion that doesn't look or feel like it's there. WIN. No white film, no itchies, no lotion boogers (pilling from overapplication), AND feels like you've moisturized. The Gel-Cream really just has gel qualities IMO, but is still amazing.

It's supposed to hold moisture in the skin for 24h, and though it doesn't for me, it's also supposed to improve moisture balance long-term which it does. Two weeks ago my skin was so messed up and dry that I had to apply this a bunch of times throughout the day. Now? Two or three max! And it feels so nice I might be addicted to it. It's cold and bracing and I imagine keeping it in the fridge would be the highlight of one's scorching August.

My face is visibly smoother with almost no blackheads. Now I just have to contend with acne scars and some genetically XL pores, but I have new makeup that makes those look better instead of worse...which leads me to the next post:-D 

Spring pooped on my nails...!

 

W'n'W Bow in My Presence + W'n'W Black Creme + SH Raspberry Race + Konad plates s9 and s10 + essence micro marbles

Recent beauty fun...

Ulta has wonderful sales right now- 40% off Nyx makeup for one. They're already not terribly expensive. It's a brand I've wanted to try more of for ages, and the closest Ulta just expanded to carry their whole line of color cosmetics. I got...

Liquid Crystal glitter liner in Crystal Pewter- tiny silver, lavender and light blue sparkles.
Ultra Pearl Mania in Jade and Space- loose shimmers. Jade has a golden cast and Space is a medium, cornflower shade.
Jumbo Eye Pencil in Milk- a matte white. I've heard it makes an excellent base for shadows of all kinds.

Great Googlymoogly...

Today's Google Doodle- by Marimekko! Suh-weet.

OMGmusthave...

I've LOVED the last two years of summer collections by Zoya. 2010 was the year of the Sparkle collection which I have four of (and will get a fifth- the purple one, Mimi.) It included Charla (of ten-dupe fame) the aqua-delicious hight of gorgeousness. In 2011, Zoya did the Sunshine collection of gold-shimmer infused colors. I have Rica (perfect, sparkly coral) and Faye (pinky-purple enigma). Even the ones I wouldn't wear, I love to look at in swatch picks. And I'm beyond excited to see...



Tracie looks very close to Sinful Colors Olympia which I just got but I'm hating the formula so I might have to get the Zoya instead. AND ZUZA?? If it's not my next most-byootyfull-polish-in-the-entire-world-ever I'll be really surprised. Can.Not.Wait.

I'm the Noxzema Girl...

Not really, but those commercials were so silly when I was growing up! Anyway, I really have started using good ol' Noxzema and it's reputation is deserved. It rocks. My insane skin has become a lot less pore-rific yet not grown scales from overdrying. I've had some minor purging pimples but it's not too scary. Sometimes the classic/no-gimmick products are the best. (If also the stinkiest and least-interestingly packaged.)

aaaaiiiieeee!

My uniform...

*ok, I don't wear converse, but if my feet wouldn't destroy them I would!

MOAR heels...

Another pair I've loved for ages are mine now, by Kiss & Tell...



OMG they look like a 70's couch! They're satin and super-comfy. I'm so glad I finally grabbed them!

Real, genuine Kork-Ease...

After reading lots of reviews about their quality and comfort I finally splurged and got the real deal. Plus, my knock-off pair is not in nice shape. Mr. BFF had to put his manly skills to work repairing a strap and they're just very stained and ooky. They're around six years old though so no complaints! Anyway I got the Bette style...

They do indeed have a nicely squishy footbed and have the overall no-frills-bordering-on-old-lady-comfort-shoe look that I adore. The only drawback is the toe-straps being VERY tight. I almost returned them, but after reading more reviews online, I've decided they're likely to stretch. In fact, I've been wearing them for a few hours and they already feel better. Or my toes have gone blissfully numb. (But whatevs, they're supah cyoooooot! LOL)

New heels....

Wheeeee! I don't wear heels in the winter because being a pedestrian in the Pacific NW makes them too impractical even for me. Nor have I really liked what was available for a couple of years. So now that footwear fashion is fun for me again...!

These are by Qupid...