Sunday, August 29, 2010




The State of Makeup I
One Girl’s Opinion


I guess the most interesting thing about makeup these days is how many more choices there are, and how little I personally see women wearing makeup. Ok maybe they are wearing it, but it looks so “natural” that one can’t tell. My goodness what is the point of that!

Here’s a few random comments, but I remind you that I do not really wear anything from CVS, Target, Walgreens or the like. It’s not because I am made of money or I am a makeup snob…..actually it is because I am a makeup snob, I take that back.

Duty Free
I do a fair amount of international travel, and this was where I first got really good makeup. To be honest, it is not all that great of a bargain, but it does provide anonymity. And there is stuff I have gotten in the duty free shops that I never saw anywhere else, especially from brands like Clarins or YSL.

Sephora
Wow what did I do without them? Though I went to department stores and got stuff, and not always for “my wife” the ability to just wander around this makeup “supermarket” is wonderful. The first time I went into their New York store on lower Broadway (I think it was one of their first) I was blown away. I have two favorites in the Boston area, and whenever I go in, I come out a little poorer.

I am not sure exactly whet their relationship with “Make Up Forever” is, but some of the store have lots of it. “Make Up Forever” has outrageous colors, amazing lashes, and seems to have been designed for drag queens. Don’t miss it if you visit the store, but, they do seem to simply re-package some stuff. Look a little harder and you might save a few bucks.

Mineral Makeup
Ok, at the end of the day, if you wear mineral makeup you are wearing dirt. Sorry but this had to be said. On the other hand, the colors of the eye shadows are amazing, and I am addicted to them! An extra added attraction is that they can be pretty inexpensive as well. Here’s a few people, all of whom you can find on line, to consider. And remember I am only considering eye shadow.

Taylor Made Minerals
Really great colors, really big selection, really good prices. They are somewhat slow shipping, but always reliable. A favorite!

Lime Crime
Anyone whose tag line is “So bright it should be illegal” is worth considering. They have a limited selection of pretty good colors. At $12.00 they are high, but you get a lot of product. But I never use it all, so maybe that’s not a benefit, and I liked it better when the pots were smaller.

Special note: Lime Crime has the most amazing lipstick in the market today. At $16.00 it is a steal! Do yourself a favor and get all the colors the first time you order. I saw these in Bloomingdales so they are going “main stream”.

Medusa
Again, a lot of colors good prices and relay fast shipping. But for reasons I can’t accurately describe, there seems to be something lacking. But buy it with confidence.

Beauty From the Earth
I just ordered for them for the first time and they lost my order! But when it got here I was impressed with colors available no where else.

Next time…makeup Tutorials on You Tube.

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Various and sundry musings on a midsummer afternoon




I think the progressive Insurance lady would be a lot sexier without those silly sneakers!

I think Calvin Klein is discontinuing my favorite pantyhose "Invisible Control". I can't find them in stores now, but "Bare Necessities" has them so I stocked up. I did the same tihng in January when it seemed that CVS was discontinuing hospital sized tabbed sanitary napkins. I ended up getting more than 40 packages of them!

Gotta love that crazy flight attendant!

I broke my own personal record this week at "Sephora" by spending more than $300 on makeup. It had been a while, but still this was a lot. I did get 4 hard to find "Make Up Forever" loose powders. And this is with any eye shadow. then I went to MAC!

The mineral eye shadow one can buy these days is really good, inexpensive and comes in amazing colors.

My goodness the economy makes for strange bedfellows. Not only do I get great service at places like Sephora or MAC, but everyone is a lot more flexible. I go to consignment stores from time to time. I almost never get used stuff, but they often have new things too. A few months ago I got great service at an upscale one in Wellesley Massachusetts. She took all my info, and called me last week to tell me a woman had just dropped off 2 new long gowns. I went in, tried them on, and got them!