Taking a Break...

I'll be taking a break for a while- something really horrible happened in my life and I need to catch up on things, take a breather, that's understandable in the situation.  I'm going to try to take it easy and think good thoughts.  I don't think I'll be posting again at all for at least the rest of this month.

Thank you and please do stay tuned!

New Eyeglasses...

I hate shopping for eyeglass frames, it is sooo hard and every shop has something different.  When It seems like I have to go back more than once before I know I found the right ones!

I usually only go with a couple of brands I know and trust, but one isn't available here at all and the other doesn't seem to have a wide selection or anything that suits my face.

I did find a shop that carries these, so I am thinking about going with one of them:

Halloween and Candy Corn Striped Nails Attempt

Since Halloween isn't celebrated here(and I don't think I'd dress up anyway), I'm just going to do my nails.  But what to do??  I don't want something too hard/complicated since I'm just wearing them for a few days.

I left the US just before Halloween last year so I have all the Sally Hansen nail strips, these patterns:

Or I have these waterslide decals:

I tried candy corn stripes with these:

Only it was really a lot harder than I thought- well, it took a long time anyway!  I didn't get it perfect, and the sunlight was going fast so I had to take a pic before a better cleanup:  

That reminds me- has anyone tried these??

I really love looking at Halloween makeup/costumes/nails especially since I'm missing out in person this year so I can't wait to see everyone's blogs!!

Rimmel Kate "Matte" Lipsticks

Amazingly I managed to get these even though they've just launched a couple weeks ago!  It makes me wonder why am I still waiting for Wake Me Up foundation that came out months ago??

Packaging is nice, red matte tubes:

The shades I got are 111 "Kiss of Life" and 106- no name but it's fuschia. 

The first thing I noticed about these is they're not matte!  I have and like matte lipsticks, but this one is more satiny, semi-matte at best.  I double and triple checked Rimmel's pics and other sites to make sure I had the same product and I do, but I think the description on their site is more accurate- velvety matte.  They also have a weird smell but it didn't transfer to taste when I applied.  I think they are very soft on the lips and not drying at all.  

They are called "Lasting Finish" and with that, I agree- I can wear them 5-6 hours and although they don't last through a meal, some colour still remains.  

The shades I chose are very bold so I'd highly recommend a lip liner.  I did a quick lip swatch with the red, but I don't know when I'll have the opportunity to wear it out!  

I might go back for one of the peachy or nude shades, because at the price of $7.50, it's very affordable.   

A Little Goodies Haul!

I got these nail stickers at a mall, for a couple of bucks.  I only saw them in the package but when I opened them, they looked familiar.... as in, the kind that don't work!!

I'll try them anyway, but probably a waste of time... oh well!  

But these are what I am most excited about- I've been wanting these for ages!! 

Yay!  I haven't used them yet but you can see them in action HERE.  I didn't get "Sweetie Pie" or "Cool Kitty", mostly cause I thought they were kinda expensive (when you're moving around a lot it's hard to keep track of currencies LOL!), but I am looking forward to trying these out.  "Oh, My!" are the heaviest ones, they look like they are furry- multiple layers, etc. The others look very much like real lashes- only long and full, so they should be great!! 

A Practice Pic

Thanks to the beautiful and talented Ashii at Beauty for Thought for helping me position my nails for photos.... I've had a really hard time with it since I have nerve damage in my left fingers, the middle one is most severe.  This is just a practice shot because I broke the middle nail earlier in the week and I was just trying to get my fingers and the lighting right.

I got a new camera last weekend (well I got two but thats a different story...) so maybe the pics will turn out better with it.  

Sally Hansen Nail Strips Haul

Some people love nail strips, others hate them for different reasons, but I fall into the "really like" category.  I used to do waterslide decals more often but they are a lot more time consuming.  Although I couldn't stand them all the time, I do nail strips about once a month- just because I don't have time or energy to do my nails every two or three days anymore.

I have had all my Sally Hansen nail strips for almost exactly one year.... amazing, I have still lots left, and yes, they still work!  I use them mostly for convenience though since the same old patterns are so tiring.  I think I'll always love the leopard one though.  But I finally found new ones!!!  I got all the new patterns I could see (I bought 12 boxes though) and I will definitely be keeping an eye on the Sally Hansen sections from now on...

I know these are old for some of you, but I never got any of the holiday or seasonal collections here so they are exciting for me!

I got Brattlesnake, Queen of the Jungle, Hear Me Roar (I may be an idiot but what animal is that one supposed to be- a jaguar???) and also I Love Lacey- a red and black lace pattern.

Brattlesnake is my favourite!

Thanks to the very nice employee who also tracked me down as I was nearing the checkout I also bought these two flower patterns, Aflorable and Spring Fever.

I think Tie-Die-For and Tattoo Much came out around the same time as these, so those are the ones I'll be looking for next.

But this is the collection on my wishlist:

I also got these- I will try to use them in a much needed, long overdue look very soon:

Maybelline Super Stay 24 Lipcolor

After I decided the markers aren't my thing, I was looking for another alternative for long lasting lipstick.

These are also dual-ended with a lip balm, but they are completely different than the markers.  

The lipstick side is really more like a lip stain, it is a bit liquidy but only as you apply it.  After that, you are supposed to wait two full minutes before you apply the balm side.  The drying is almost painful, so you definitely need a lip balm with this!  The lip balm that comes with it is not that good at all, mine completely broke off, but you can just toss that end of the product since it's removable.  I hate the packaging anyway but that's such a small negative for me     

I liked the first shade I got so much that I wanted to see if I could wear it without balm, but no chance- my lips felt like sandpaper, it was so bad.  Now it sounds like I don't like this product, when I actually love it.... it really does stay on, I even slept in it to test it and woke up exactly the way I went to sleep, it's amazing!  

The colour doesn't transfer at all, not even on the balm- not on a drinking glass, nothing.  Lip balm doesn't make the colour fade either.  Another plus for me is that no matter how many times I apply lip balm the colour stays on- love that!  

On the Maybelline sites they have 30 shades, but everywhere I've looked they only have about 6, so that's a real bummer for me.  I wish they had at least a cherry red here.  The first shade I got was Wildberry, which is a solid berry.  When I went back for more, they only had a brown one and all the rest were shimmery.  Honestly I do prefer the Wildberry as far as colour goes.  I don't know but maybe I'm over shimmery products these days!  

The other two I got are Rose Dust and Sugar Plum.  They both look really shimmery in the tube, but Rose Dust applied much less shimmery, and Sugar Plum really didn't show up well on my lips.  

Also just to warn you, DO NOT swatch these unless you just have to- they do not remove from skin well at all!! I had to use makeup remover, olive oil, and brush shampoo all to no avail.  I actually ended up having to use a kitchen scouring pad to get these off!  

A Few Recent Purchases

Sorry- some of these photos are really bad !!  My camera seems to be acting up for some reason so even if I did some more swatches I'm afraid they wouldn't show up very well!!

I got a couple of neat Barry M things- a "Croc Effect" polish, and a lipstick:

The lipstick is green: 

But it's not for Halloween- it applies light pink, and more like a lip balm texture: 

A couple of Maybelline things- the blush I threw out, it was so horrible, I totally don't recommend it at all.  

And MUA- two palettes, Undressed and Dusk til Dawn, a nail polish- a beautiful shade, smooth but on the thin and sheer side so I needed 3 coats, and an "Eye Dust", which is a really fine pigment- a pretty jade colour but it takes some building up and it's really shimmery.

I've used both palettes so far and I like them- very soft texture and rich colours.  

And finally- a big bunch of nail stamping plates: 

I was searching for the Hello Kitty one and came across this big bundle for an incredible price.  I got 22 plates total- I doubt I'll use them in my lifetime but they're really neat!  I also got some nail striping tape I'd been after, and I thought I was stocked up on nail supplies but I found a few more cool things from the same seller so I'll post that when they arrive!  

Some Thoughts on my Hakuhodo Brushes

I recently bought some more Hakuhodo brushes, well over $200 worth.  Honestly I think I selected all the wrong brushes because (and don't think bad of me please, I know how much everyone loves these brushes!) I wasn't very happy with my purchases.  Sorry cause my camera is a little bad but I am going to try my best to describe the issues I had.

The brush case- it was described as "beige pink" but it's really more copper.  And the inside does not feel very nice at all.

Here are the brushes: 

And here are all (except for the two brow ones I set aside for the bottom photo) the Hakuhodo brushes I own: 

The ones I am most disappointed with are the B162 (brow brush)- the hairs are just too soft, flexible, thick, and long to be an effective brow brush for me.  It would be more suitable for a soft brow fill in or application, rather than a more defined line and thicker fill in that I prefer.  I also did not like the G545- it is too scratchy and didn't seem to be made as well as the others.  The S113 (the larger orange handled one in the photo) is all right, it's really soft for goat hair, but it's also a bit flat, although it does apply highlighter well.  

My favourites are the K002 (super soft powder brush, I love it and it's one of the first Hakuhodos I purchased), the B214BkSL (the J214 is similar in shape but the Basic one is much superior in my opinion), and the J5549 eyebrow brush.  Those are ones I would definitely buy again.  The others I honestly think I probably should have done without.  I do like the G5544 a lot but it's so hard to clean that I really prefer the Sigma F80 over it.  

I had a few more brushes I wanted to order from them (and I own 135 brushes!!)- they were out of stock on the 210 blush brush, but now I am not sure if I'll order any more anytime soon, if at all.  Since I recently did a brush inventory I rediscovered quite a few really nice brushes I already have. 

EDITED TO ADD:  I really have an illness, I tell you!!  I went ahead and ordered the 210 and two others.  That's it, I swear I am going to block that site from my computer or something!!

A Stunning Duo!

Ciate donates 20% to Breakthrough Breast Cancer with this beautiful nail polish set.  The shades are absolutely gorgeous!!

If anybody has an opportunity to buy these, please share swatches!

October Birthstone- Pink Zirconia

I almost wish my birthday were in October just to have this pretty pink birthstone!  

October is also BCA month, there are so many ways to support that as well, year-round too.