Monday, July 23, 2012

Makeup Mondays: I'm selling my stuff

Yep, that's right!  I'll be selling a good bunch of my MAC items and other things (UD Naked palette #1 if I get a good offer??).  If you're interested, click here.  You'll find a separate blog with all the items going up for sale and the latest of updates of what's left and what's new.

It hasn't officially started yet but feel free to browse.  I will post here and on Blah's Blahg Sale once it's all set to go!

Monday, July 9, 2012

Makeup Monday: More Moisturizing Mileage

Yes, Mondays may become my weekly post on something makeup related.  I know my track record doesn't give much hope but eh, I'll put it out there in case I actually do keep up with it.

As some of you know, makeup is a hobby of mine and as such I do/did join forums and websites which discuss uses of cosmetics and related products.  One trick I learned from the more frugal section of the makeup community pie is that the last of your tube of lotion - be it moisturizer, cleanser or mask - doesn't come with the dreaded wheeze when you squeeze.  In fact, almost another 15, maybe even 20 uses can be found!

How do we dig up this gold?  By cutting the tube.  That's right, bring out your sharpest scissors and cut the tube in half, NOT lengthwise.  Just take the shortest cut, don't make this harder than it needs to be.  You'll then discover product stuck in the top of the tube, along the sides, and right at the bottom to the sides of the opening.

I know, it's a Eureka moment eh?  It amazed me the first time I did this to see just how much product might be left.  It has stretched my dollar many times; in fact, I can post pictures of the tube I have currently done this with tomorrow.  The full 10 mL of Korres Evening Primrose eye cream shall all be soaked up by my eye lids.

How to keep that all from going bad?  There are 2 ways of storing this:

1. Scrape out what you can with a clean finger or sterilized makeup spatula and put it into a sanitized smaller pots or jar, like the sample pots from MAC (not Sephora, those don't usually close tight enough) or pots/jars from finished items.

2. A bit lazier of a method but still sanitary and keeps things well is scraping the product from the top and into the bottom half, then pinching the bottom half at its top edge so it folds a bit and inserting it into the top half.  What you end up with is a stubbier version of the original tube.  I've "sealed" my product in well enough this way; if the tube was cut in proper half, not one end bigger than the other, then the top half usually sits below the slight fold, creating a tight enough seal to keep the product from spoiling.

So there you have it.  May you enjoy More Moisturizing Mileage in the years to come.

**edit**  Okay, so here are pictures.  Sorry so late!

Tube cut in half.

Here's what's inside.  Mind you, there was 3x this much when I first cut it!  This is after 2 weeks of use post-surgery on tube.  I also scraped product from the top half into this bottom half.


Just squeeze the bottom half a bit till it "folds" and an be inserted into the top half.  Ta-da!  Semi-sealed and easy to store.  Germaphobes may want to scrape product into a separate jar.

Sunday, July 1, 2012

So apparently I've been wearing the wrong size

Bras.  We love 'em, we hate 'em, they make us feel pretty, they constrain us.  And I just found out I've been wearing 4 sizes too wrong for me.

I won't list my size (privacy, please!) but for years I thought I was XX, even buying nursing bras around that size.  Now I'm told I'm YY, which I stare at skeptically still.  Especially when - excuse the graphic which may pop in your head - the rib cage band is smaller than what I usually wear and, ahem, allows for some fleshy spillage above and below the band.  I originally thought for this reason alone I was XX and would never, EVER, had thought that I was YY.

Having been gently scolded otherwise by the consultant, I picked up 2 cheapie bras to start my replacement of XX's to go with the halter I was buying for a dress I'm wearing at a wedding.  Buying cheapie means buying flashy though, especially with the new La Senza since the Victoria Secret take-over (as in, the company owning VS bought LS).  I rather liked the demure, understated sexiness of La Senza, and the quality was decent.  I know that the trend now is to show your bra without fear of being labelled trashy but I really don't like paying more to have to show less.  It's like we're forced to be "non-trashy" unless we have enough dough to acquire otherwise.

I shall test-drive my cheapie YY tomorrow and see how things fare.  Perhaps I'll feel prettier but with a smaller band, I'll definitely feel more constrained - except for that inevitable spillage.  What to do with that spillage?!