Thursday, October 18, 2012

Moving

I know I haven't been around for a long time, mostly because I've been so busy.  I've decided to move the blog.  You can find it here:  Little Strangeling.

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Grrrrrrumph

The boyfriend and I went shopping yesterday and today for some goodies for the house.  We found a rug I'd been eyeing for a while now on sale for $64.00.  It had originally been ninety some.  He picked up a perfect size little coffee table for $24.00, and we picked up a cute pumpkin harvest votive candle holder, as well. 

Today we found some very cute Halloween haunted house candle sleeves and picked those up, too.  Khols is getting ready to have a HUGE sale, and I found a cute handbag that I wanted that was going on sale.  So, while we were there today, I looked around for it.  I found the tiny crossbody bag (which, I realize are very "in" this season, but the chances of me fitting all my stuff in this tiny bag are small and none), but the full size bag wasn't in sight.  Needless to say, I was disappointed.  Here's the bag I was looking for: Krista Shopper

I guess I will wait and see if it turns up in the next couple days. 

Anyway...

We have a ghost tour this weekend and some shopping before we leave out for that.  I have quite a bit to do the next couple of days, so if I'm not around, you know why!


Saturday, September 8, 2012

Tips and Tricks to Cutting Your Own Hair

Hi guys.  :)  I do believe that I am coming down with a cold.  I've been lucky so far this year and not been sick so far, but now it's acting up.  I kept trying to tell myself it was just my allergies, but now I'm not so sure.  On account of my feeling awful, I haven't gotten to take any pictures for this post yet.  I hope you'll forgive me.  (Trust me, you wouldn't want to see me sick, anyway...)

I'd had the same long hair for years.  And yes, I loved it.  I'm totally not a short hair person.  I just don't like the way it looks on me.  I've never had hair shorter than shoulder-length.  I see some people, like my aunt and cousin, who have cute little bobs and wish I could pull it off, but I can't.  However, I DID want something different.  Thursday evening my boyfriend came home to find I'd whopped off 4 inches of my hair and cut choppy, shaggy layers and angled my bangs.  He asked me how much I'd chopped and, not thinking it was that much, told him I'd just trimmed it.  Then, I took it out of the bun and his jaw dropped.  Ooops. 

But, he raved about it.  He was the only one who noticed.  Actually, I wasn't going to anything too noticeable, but after a couple days, I wanted more, especially after he told me he thought it'd be cute right at my shoulders.  So, as of 10:00 tonight, two more inches were chopped.  Now, it's very noticeable.

Usually, I would have shelled out the regular $8.00 for an inexpensive cut, but I'm dead broke, and needed a change...FAST.  So, I took the job into my own hands.

Here are my tips.

1.  Get a pair of SHARP scissors.  They don't have to be salon scissors.  Mine aren't.  They're just little metal scissors. 
2.  Brush you're hair out.  It must be try for this quick, easy cut.  It's easy to tell how the layers look and if you've gotten it even since wet hair hangs differently than dry.
3.  Divide your hair like you're going to make pig tails.  Pull the sections to the front.
Put your fingers about half an inch above where you want your hair to hit.  Cut just below the fingers on both sides, checking after the cuts to make sure they are even.  You may need someone to help the first couple times. 
4.  To make it look not so blunt, take your scissors, hold then vertically, and cut INTO the hair.
5.  Cut some angled layers around the face if you like.  The best way I've found is to hold the scissors at a diagonal and cut the hair down, gently pulling.  This takes practice.  You may want to hold off on this until your second or third try cutting your own hair.
6.  For side bangs, comb the hair over to where you want the bangs to lie.  With the scissors at a diagonal, cut the shortest layer right under your eyebrow and getting longer as you go.

Some Advice:

Don't be nervous.  Shaky hands make shaky mistakes.  If you get your hair REALLY uneven, don't try to fix it yourself.  Wear it in a ponytail until you can get to a salon to have it evened out.  Trying to even it yourself could result in a cut much shorter than what you'd wanted.

This picture below is one I found on google.  My hair is actually just about an inch shorter than this.  It hung down to about my elbows before.  For me, it's a pretty big change.


Now, I must go medicate myself and go to bed.  Goodnight, world!

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Wednesday Roundup: Best Lip Balms

This past winter was the absolute worst on my lips. I have to admit that I'm usually pretty lucky, since my lips rarely get chapped, but the winter was bad. I tried several products and found a few hits that I will always turn to. Here, a complete list of those goodies I use in a lip emergency, and the tried and true bets I use as an everyday balm. Prices are estimations. These are the prices I paid for mine. It may vary by store and location.

1. Smith's Rosebud Salve
This stuff is incredible. It's been around for years and women trusted it then and still do.
Where to get it: Sephora, Mast General Stores, online
Cost: ~$6.00

2. C.O.Bigelow Rose Salve and Lavender Salve
An easier-to-find alternative to the one above.
Where to get it: Bath & Body Works
Cost: ~$5.00

3. e.o.s. (evolution of smooth) Smooth Spheres
These cute little eggy/ball shaped balms are easy to carry and come in several flavors. I found that the lemon yellow one has a bit of soft grit to it that exfoliates, as well.
Where to get it: Walmart, Walgreens, drugstores
Cost: ~$4.00

4. Aquaphor Lip Treatment
Just like the old trusted skin cream but formulated for lips. THE balm that saved my lips this winter.
Where to get it: drugstores, discount stores
Cost: ~$4.00

5. The Body Shop Lip Butters
These all-natural butters taste like real fruit and are thick and creamy. ALSO: Born Lippy: a more clear, thin bank. Both work wonderfully!
Where to get it: The Body Shop
Cost:~$6.00

Monday, August 27, 2012

Hard Candy Reviews and Fame Perfume

I was looking for a good inexpensive makeup primer to try before fully committing to one. I wasn't quite sure why I even NEEDED one.

What exactly is a face primer? It's pretty much like an eyeshadow primer except it's made to go under your foundation. It's the first thing to go on. It pretty much primes the face and makes it a smooth, easy to work with canvas.

I found Hard Candy Sheer Envy Primer for $8.00 at Walmart and decided to give it a try.

It comes out of the tube like a paste. It's white and filmy. When applied to your face, it's clear and leaves a silky texture. Makeup goes on smooth and evenly and it cuts down on the amount of foundation you need to use.

The only bad thing is when it gets just a little too warm where you store your makeup, the primer thins a tiny bit and the tube leaks a little. Nothing major, and the primer firms to original consistency once it cools. But, to avoid the thinning to begin with, store in a cooler place.

I rate it 4.5 of 5 stars.

Next, I tried Hard Candy's Glamoflauge heavy- duty concealer. The package claims that the concealer can even cover tattoos. I'd read it was great, but couldn't find a review to list pros or cons enough to fully convince me. I spent a spare $6.00 to try it myself.

Included are a concealer pencil and a tube of cream concealer. To cover a tattoo, the package says to outline the tattoo with the pencil then color it in then top it off with the cream and set with a powder ( not included). Repeat until covered. I don't have any tattoos (yet), so I proceeded to cover my blasted bothersome under-eye circles. The dark bains of my existence. After applying my primer then foundation all over my face, I outlined and colored them in with the pencil then covered with the cream and reapplied a line of pencil to my inner corners and blended. Now, this is just MY method, but my circles vanished!!

Pros:
🔴 A little concealer cream goes a LONG way. The tube will last a long while.

Cons:
NONE

5 of 5 stars

Lastly.....Lady Gaga released her perfume, Fame. The bottle is lovely and structured, and the perfume is black liquid that turns clear once sprayed.


The scent is amazing. A little sweet. A little exotic. She really outdid herself!!

A large bottle costs about $80 and a small bottle about $55. My boyfriend liked it so much he's decided a bottle will be my next birthday gift!



Confetti Cake Nail Experiment and My Essentials

I pulled out a bunch of random polishes the other day and played around to see what I could come with. I didn't care about perfect dots, I more wanted a look like sprinkles, with little imperfections. So, I used a toothpick to make the spots, dots, and lines.

I used NYC nail polish in French White Tip as my base, then just dotted my random colors on. Once all the dots were dry, I painted on my clear topcoat. Finished!! Image at the end of this post.

Besides nail stuffs, I decided to compile my list of my essentials in my makeup case.
Hard Candy Sheer Envy Primer
Hard Candy Glamoflage
Hard Candy Eyeshadow primer (sadly, only available in the kits)
Estée Lauder Double Wear Foundation
Estée Lauder Micheal Korrs palette Bronze Goddess bronzer
e.l.f. To Go Single palette in Spotted and Sporty
Clinique Superbalm lipgloss in raspberry
Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Pink Pout
C.O. Bigelow rose salve
Wet n Wild Color Icon liner pencils in black & dark brown
NYC Showtime glitter liner in black
Wet n Wild mega protein mascara
Cover Girl professional loose powder
LA Colors Pressed Powder ( for touch ups)
LA Colors liquid eyeliner in black
Bath and Body Works Body Cream in Secret Wonderland
Bath and Body works fragrance mist ( currently using citrus sunflower but it's no longer available :( )
Equate (Walmart brand) makeup remover wipes
Goody Bobby Pins
No-metal hair elastics
Pantene shampoo and conditioner, also hairspray
Bath and Body Works shower gel

These are the ones I usually try to keep stocked.

What are your go-to products?