Beauty: Save vs Spend

 

In an ideal world where money is not an issue, I wouldn’t mind all of my beauty products to be the creme de la creme of their category. In the real world, I am more prone to spending a lot on some items, while others make no sense for me to drop a small fortune on. Here are some of my suggestions on when to shell out the big bucks and when to be thrifty.

Invest in:

• Quality brushes: Trust me, quality makes all the difference. “Quality” by the way, does not necessarily equal pricy. I have a $15 blending brush by brand A and the same one by brand B that was $25. I like brand A the best and it’s $10 less!
• Foundation: Go to a counter or beauty store and get matched for color. Some places will even offer you a sample to try first so you can see how it will look on you. If they don’t do samples, see if they will apply it for you so you can see how it looks.
• Fragrance: Even this little luxury can brighten the gloomiest of days. If you can’t afford the whole bottle a lot of lines now offer less expensive travel sizes or rollerballs for much less. It you love the scent and want the best value, look for gift sets because they offer a lotion (and/or shower gel) along with the fragrance. Tip: Sometimes places like TJ Maxx or Costco will have the same fragrances at a lower price.
• Skin Care: Spring for acne or anti aging products.
• Sun protection for your face with both UVA & UVB protection (or broad spectrum).
• Brow, face, or body waxing: You usually get what you pay for in this category.
• Clothing staples: Investment pieces that are timeless, high quality, and go with everything.
• Handbag/Purse: Choose a style that is durable and has structure. Neutral colors are best. Or buy designer at a lower price from stores like TJ Maxx or from websites like Hautelook (membership is required and is free).

Save on:

• Sun protection for the body: Drug store is just fine. Still look for UVA & UVB protection (or broad spectrum).
• Lipstick: This age old mood enhancer is very cheap for companies to manufacture. A lot of drug store colors and textures are very similar to higher end lines.
• Brush Cleaner: Make sure to purchase brush cleaner to protect your investment. Most brush cleaner is fragrance and alcohol, so I say why spend $20 on a bottle when a $10 bottle has the same ingredients?
• Body lotion: Look for hydrating butters (shea, coco, etc.) and essential oils on the label.
• Shave gel, lotion, or cream: There isn’t a huge difference in expensive vs cheap.
• Clothing trends: Why spend $200 on a piece that will be out next year?
• Handbag/Purses that are trendy: Target usually has a good selection of trendy bags.
• Manicures (if not getting faux nails): Basic mani’s are done the same way at pricy salons and budget friendly salons.

Nordstrom Anniversary Sale

It’s my fave time of year- time for the Nordstrom anniversary sale! My vices at this sale are always shoes and jewelry and I am allowing myself to buy one of each. I have to keep myself away from the purses and Nordies exclusive makeup because my closet is overflowing with both! You can get more info about the sale and check out a sneak peak at the catalog here.

Rimmel 60 Seconds Nail Polish

A few months ago, I was wondering down the cosmetic isle at Target and, on a whim, decided to buy a new nail polish. I very rarely paint my nails and thought it might be fun to pick up a summery shade to play around with. Per recommendation of a friend, I picked up a Rimmel 60 Second nail polish in the color Sunnyside, a bright, shimmery, pinky-coral. It looked pretty in the bottle and I loved the promise of quick dry time.

I just used it today and I am disappointed. The formula was really goopy and didn’t paint on evenly at all. I always use my trusty Sephora base coat and top coats, and even with those it still looks uneven and streaky. The shimmer is also more of a glitter and looks strange. On the plus side, it did dry quickly. I will probably remove the polish tomorrow as I’m too lazy to do it today. I didn’t really blow a lot of cash on this item (I think it was under $3) so I’m not too disappointed but I will not purchase Rimmel nail polishes in the future.

Even Though It’s Still Only July…

Lets talk about a Fall trend that kind of creeps me out: Matte nail polish. To me, this feels entirely all wrong. I tried it once and it felt like I painted my nails with chalk. While it’s been slowly coming on for the past few years, I think the trend will really hit full circle in Fall 09. Brands like Zoya (above) and Man Glaze have been doing the mattes for a while, and I hear OPI will follow suit soon with a new version.

If you are into nail art (ala Konad and the like) I can see this bringing a very cool textural element to your mani, especially tone on tone (matte black with shiny black). We’ll see how the trend pans out and if it sticks around.

Etsy: Current Things I Heart

 

Top row, left to right:

1. Vampiress Couture Wrap from Lolashowgirl, $49

2. Small Aqua “Nest” from Heatherpalmer, $60

3. Michael Miller Print Purse from Mabels, $35

Bottom row, left to right:

1. Aceo Seaweed Print from Woolandpaper, $4

2. Wizard of Oz Ruby Slippers Scrabble tile Pendant from Tinytreesboutique, $6

3. Purely Sweet Necklace by Itsbeautiful, $25

Chica Girl Magazine

I did makeup for a photo shoot a while back for this awesome online magazine, chicagirlmagazine.com. You should definitely check it out if you get the chance. The issue won’t be out for a little while, although you can register for the site and read back issues. It features real women and girls with real stories to share.

Also, check out the newscast as well (I’m mentioned in the very end!) http://gooddaysacramento.com/features?articleID=55996

I’m Back! + Ugly $1100 Shoes

The sickness was much more serious then I thought, involving a trip to urgent care and the good old E.R. Oh, joy! After two shots in the bum, nearly three weeks of rest, eating nothing but soup and saltines, and three different medications, I am finally feeling somewhat normal again. Hooray! My health insurance actually turned out to be fairly decent, too.

I ate “real” food (not soup) for the first time in a while on the 4th of July and it was glorious. Other then that, my 4th was pretty uneventful as I was still feeling pretty out of it. I spent the majority of the party laying down and trying to avoid “excessive” sunlight (thanks, meds, for taking away what could have been a wonderful day floating in the pool).

I can tell that I’m feeling much better because I developed the strongest urge to buy shoes. I purged my closet of all of my shoe sins recently. Farewell, four inch pointy toe heels that I can’t even walk in! Goodbye, cute eyelet wedges that would slide off when walking. Adieu, Marc Jacobs knock-off sandals that were falling apart after only one wear (note to future self: don’t do knockoffs). I know there’s no point in buying new shoes right now, with all of the work I’ve missed, but it is very nice to “window shop” (er….browse online).

I was checking out my really bad super secret addiction (Hautelook.com) for designer shoes. Some were cute and some were really ugly, for example, these Bruno Frisoni Pertol sling backs. Horrid! Or! Perfect for your Little Bow Peep Halloween costume. I can’t even fathom paying $330 for these (and that’s the 70% off sale price), let alone the original $1100!  If you add up the combined total of all the shoes I’ve owned in my entire lifetime, it would not even be close to $1100!

*Insert space for dramatic effect:

I don’t even know what to think. Would you wear these?

New! “Sea” Necklace

This one is indeed for sale. To see more photos or to buy, click here.

Creative + Cute!

I just spied these on Etsy and had to share. These pretty little pins/broaches by Gulguvenc are made out of PET plastic, ensuring at least a few bottles will never make it to the landfill. Check out more fantastic pieces on her blog, especially the lamps which are amazing!

The gym shoe rant

 

Going to the gym is so not on my list of fun things to do. However, I am not one to just run around the block or even pop in a mundane exercise video. Having a gym membership, for me, means that I’ll go because I don’t want to waste money. Lately, my feet have been hurting after my workouts. Granted, my feet hurt from constantly standing at work, but they shouldn’t hurt all the time.

I purchased two new pairs of shoes to wear to the gym today. I had a really fantastic discount coupon and it’s been ages (November 2000) since I’ve purchased new athletic shoes. I’d say it was about time for new ones! I honestly didn’t think much or wearing 8 year old shoes. I figured they were just as great as the day I bought them. Well, I was wrong! They turned out to be the reason for my foot pain.

I tried on what seemed like a zillion pairs and it was like walking on air. Let me tell you, shoe technology has come a long way since 2000. They are light weight and bouncy! I ended up with a pair of Nike’s and New Balances. I always thought New Balance shoes were “cheap” (i.e. sold at K-Mart) but oh no my friends, I learned today that they are, in fact, quite expensive.

While picking out shoes, I noticed that manufacturers certainly produce a lot of pink shoes. I kind of like pink in moderation but it’s nowhere near my favorite color. I don’t even think I own a single piece of pink clothing (besides undies). It’s like shoe manufactures think, “All girls like pink! Lets make 90% of our shoes pink and they will totally buy them! We’ll sell them for $150 and they won’t even notice because they’ll be so happy to have pink workout shoes!” Omg. No. Just no.

Perhaps in another 8 years when I buy athletic shoes again, there will be less of a pink color selection. Now I remember why I would only buy my athletic shoes in high school from the little boys department: no pink! BTW: both pairs I bought today are blue and silver. Even the black shoes had a trace amount of pink!