What I'm Reading, Week 12

Phew, 12 whole weeks into the year already!

I'm finally embarking upon Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles, which isn't technically a novel, but rather a collection of short stories. I figure it counts, though, because it's definitely in book form, with words that can be read. Honestly, this should be right up my alley, but I think I might need a little longer to get into it than usual. Having just finished The Romanov Sisters by Helen Rappaport, my head's in a bit of a different space than Bradbury's admittedly well-fleshed out Martian vision. I suppose there could be echoes of late Tsarist Russia contained therein, no? Or maybe I'm just being silly. Either way, I fully expect to enjoy this Bradbury adventure once I get into the swing of things.

Mani Monday: Keeping It Edgy

Hello, my lovelies. I did today's nail look with Revlon's basic formula, which is underrated, in my opinion. The purpley-pink shade is Oi Beautiful and the red-orange is Copa Sunset. Unfortunately, I'm pretty sure these were both a part of limited edition collections, but there are a million colors like this out there.

To accomplish this, just paint the edge color all over your nail, wait a bit for it to dry, and then use your other color to make a smaller shape following the border of your nail. Et voilà! You've got a really cool manicure that took almost as little effort as a regular one.

Happy Monday, chickadees!

Bobbi Brown Perfectly Defined Gel Eyeliner

I bought this because my boss did and I forgot and asked her what eyeliner she was wearing because it looked so good and the answer was this. And it's a pencil. Or a stylo, as it says on the side of the packaging. And it's been so long since I've used an eyeliner so easily, what with my penchant for liquid and gel lately.

Bobbi Brown really hit the mark on this one. It's beautifully long lasting and the shade I got, Chocolate Truffle, is the perfect everyday color. I'm glad I got a dark brown, I still feel like the black wouldn't live up to my desire for the blackest black eyeliner, but the brown is sharp enough without feeling like it's faded. This sucker lasted me through a pretty intense workout and none of my other makeup did, so I'm calling it a winner.

What I'm Reading, Week 11

I'm struggling, y'all.

I'm currently reading The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters, and despite being set in post-WWI England, it's just so awfully Lifetime scandalous. I've already read half of it, and in my quest to complete 100 books, I feel like I can't justify not finishing, but it's just not enjoyable. It's so tawdry and needlessly dramatic. Ugh.

I've also had a couple other books come off hold, so it's quite possible this one will just fall by the wayside. The ending is totally going to be absurd and overblown. Ugh, just, ugh.

Emerald Eyes: Rimmel KATE Gel Eyeliner

Recently, I wrote of the failure that was the limited edition colored mascara from Rimmel. Disappointingly, this limited edition eyeliner seemed as if it was going to follow in those footsteps. When I snapped this up at Walgreens and swatched it, I was really put off by how absurdly creamy it was. I didn't think the texture could possibly suit what is supposed to be a waterproof gel eyeliner, but I was absolutely incorrect.

 

I wore this for Chicago St. Patrick's Day this past Saturday, and it was awesome. It applied like a dream with the included brush (!!!) and, since I was bad and didn't was my face before bed, I can assure you that it lasted without turning patchy or smeary amidst sweaty dancing and sleep for a total of 20 hours. That is truly absurd. It's just the most beautiful rich green color with the slightest shimmer and I'm utterly in love with it. Add to that the extremely friendly price tag, I suggest you go see if you can snap this sucker up before it's gone.

Mani Monday: Cajun Shrimp

Sorry about last week, I just had a ton of stuff to do that didn't end up including keeping you guys informed of my very important beauty opinions. :|

I had a gift certificate for a manicure at a local salon, so I used the opportunity to try a color I do not own, which is OPI Cajun Shrimp. The brightness of this shade was really pleasing, but it is slightly translucent in two coats and that's not really my jam. I think Essie's Too Too Hot fills this orangey red spot in my collection, and I like the formula better.

What do you think? Are you ready for the transition to summer colors?

What I'm Reading, Week 9

I totally forgot I was still reading Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, but I did finish it this past week. Fun fact: read the entire thing thinking it was fiction. Turns out it's a non-fiction novel. I found it amusing. If you like a Southern Gothic atmosphere, this is right up your alley. Apparently, it's much better than the Clint Eastwood-directed movie of the same name from 1997. I can't tell if I would have enjoyed it more or less if I had known that it was non-fiction. Funny how that works, you know? I suspect I wouldn't have plowed through quite as quickly.

I've also jumped into The Light Between Oceans feet first (as it were) and, so far, it's a good read. I think it's gonna be a tearjerker though, and I've had a lot of feelings lately, so I don't know if I've got this in me. Could be some more trashy teen lit coming up after this one. It chiefly concerns a lighthouse keeper off the coast of southwestern Australia. Set in the early 20th century, it explores the echoes of decisions both big and small throughout the characters' lives. I know that's real vague, but it's a nice piece of fiction, if you care to take a look.

Miss Manga: Colored Mascara Redux

I kind of remember colored mascara being popular right when I first realized makeup was a thing, maybe ten years ago? And then it kind of faded away, except for with one of my cousin, who always seems to wear blue mascara (it looks good, FYI). But now it's back!

The L'Oreal Miss Manga Voluminous Mascara Color Pop has finally appeared here in the States. I know these have been around overseas for a little while, and I was excited to try them when I spotted 'em in my Walgreens since I love the black version of this mascara. I picked up Purple Pop, to set off my green eyes, and Teal Craze because I was feeling a little wild. There's also a cobalt blue color, but I figured I didn't need two different blue mascaras. I'm loving Purple Pop, it goes on my very dark eyelashes pretty vibrantly and dries down to a subtle purple that shows off the green in my eyes without looking totally crazy during the day. I haven't given the blue a whirl yet, but from what I've heard, it's the best of the bunch. These suckers say they're limited edition, although I'm hoping they're added to the permanent range after all.

A dishonorable mention goes to the Scandaleyes Mascara by Kate Moss in Eye Rock Emerald. This was so disappointing! The color didn't show up on my eyelashes at all, and the formula was so much drier than the regular Scandaleyes that it didn't even give my lashes any oopmph. Sorry, Rimmel, this one is definitely a miss for me.

Mani Monday: Classic French Manicure

Sometime, I just like a damn French manicure.

For this, I used Zoya Madison, and I'm glad I gave it a second chance. On my first application, I had extreme difficulty with self-leveling and streakiness in application, but it turns out I just needed to be a little more patient and wait a couple of minutes between coats. It turned out to be a really lovely sheer pink that I'm pleased to have in my collection. For the white, I used Essie Blanc, for its nice, thin consistency that wouldn't build up too much at the end of my nail.

The perfect edge comes from these nail stickers, which work really well. Purchased from this seller, they're quite sticky, so I like to stick them quickly to my skin before applying them to my nails to make sure my base color doesn't get removed. Usually, just to be on the safe side, I do the pink color one night and the tips the next.

Hope you all have a good week!