Nothing but the Classics

What makes a product a classic?

• It never changes.....its perfect as it its....no need for improvements.
  
• It's timeless
• It always works
• It's always available
• all other products wish they were the classic, the og, the one, the only (you get the idea)
  

Here's one of the best:

Maybelline's Great Lash Mascara in Jet Black

Jet Black goes good in any era, any time, any style. Fierce eyelashes, always.

A Simple Pimple

Nothings simple not even my pimple. This planet that's growing on the side of my face is due not to oily skin, dirty skin, bad foundation but (tun tun tun) hormones! eeeeeek..........yep those pesky hormones sneak in and grow into mini jupiter to taunt & tease me and shout to the world "look over here! right here! look at me! loooook!!!"

I'm not a teenager anymore but every now and then I get a huge HUGE pimple right on my face. It reminds me of that episode on Family Guy, the one where Chris has a zit named Doug the pimple. It's a hilarious episode. Except mine isn't talking or conceiving an evil plan.....not yet anyways.

Being a self-proclaimed product junkie I've tried everything from ProActive to Noxzema, from expensive creams, masks and ointments to home remedies. Nothing has worked better than a home remedy.

So here it is. My handy dandy simple pimple home remedy plan. I'm not sure where I collected these remedies but they work.

Just a note this worked for ME and it may not work for you.

If you're a pimple popper then STOP. Popping pimples only leaves scars and can lead to infection. When I can't resist and must pop the white I get out my skin care tool from Sephora like the Double-Ended Blemish Extractor. One side pops the whiteheads, the other cleans the blackheads. I love this thing-a-ma-jig.

Now if I have a huge nasty pimple I use two home remedies. They both work, it all depends on what I have at home.

The first, is simple: An Onion. I cut a big chunk and tape it to my pimple for about 20 minutes. I don't know how it works but it does. It dries out my pimple and the swelling automatically goes down. The white puss dries out and the red only stays for a few hours.

The second is white tooth paste. It has to be Paste, no fancy gels or teeth brighteners or mini crystals. Just simple white paste. I dab a small amount on the pimple before I go to bed and it dries it out completely.

I always make sure I clean my face before and after. I also disinfect my little sephora tool too. I don't want any nasty germs creating a colony on my face.

If you want to see the Family Guy "Brian the Bachelor" episode click below. Trust me its freakin funny. You won't ever see a pimple the same way.

Freebies

Freebies from Redken
click here

I'll put a spell on you

I've just found this really cool product at CVS:

Dickinson's 100% Natural Botanicals Witch Hazel Toner

Witch Hazel? It turns out is a really good toner! I've tried other toners before and they have so much alcohol in them my skin turns into the sahara after one use.


With my new Witch Hazel toner my skin doesn't dry out and is there are absolutely no traces of makeup left. I have those round cotton pads and place a few drops of this liquid on them. Then just wipe away. Be careful on your eyes though.

The smell takes some getting used to. Its.....er......different. Not bad just different.

For not attacking my skin's moisture, for removing my makeup and oil and for leaving my skin clean and refreshed Dickinson's Witch Hazel Toner deserves

Need it, Want it, Gotta Have It

Elephant Pendants

So stop outbidding me on ebay!!!

Look at me smile :D

I recently noticed from looking through old pictures that my smile needs a little touch-up. I drink a lot of green tea and have that occasional cup of coffee. All this takes away from the brightness of my smile.

So every so often I purchase one of these:


It's Crest's Whitestrips (the Classic Version) .......aka The version that works just as well as the premium, takes a little more time but also costs a lot less!


For $15 dollars less I get the same results but I have to wait 7 more days. It's ok because my wallet is patient...trust me when my wallet will make me wait the extra week.

I've tried the mouthguard whiteners.........works but not as well. I felt like it didn't come with enough product. I've tried the whitener that looks like nail polish. Tastes gross and it ends up all over your mouth if there's any hint of saliva. HEllo! my mouth is full of saliva.



So I turn to Crest Whitestrips whenever I
need to brighten up a little. They're these convenient strips you can carry around with you. There's one strip for your upper teeth, another for your lower and conveniently packaged in different colors. I've messed up before and put the wrong strip on the wrong set of teeth. The only difference is that one strip is longer, so I guess on that day a few teeth missed out on the super cleaning whitening action :)


It only takes 30 minutes and once you get the hang of it you don't even notice you're wearing them. I try to wipe my teeth before I put them on just so they'll get every inch of every tooth. I put them on either when Im putting on my make-up, blow drying my hair, working out, or just reading. It all depends on when you have a spare 30 minutes a day.

For Crest's money-back-guarantee, convenience, and white results this definitely gets a

Summer on my fingertips

I don't care if its gloomy outside. These new shades of nail polish alway brighten up my day and my fingertips! Now that summer is right around the corner I love to wear bright bright shades of pink, tangerines, sunny yellow and berry. Love it!


N.Y.C. nail polishes surprisingly don't chip off but they do start looking crummy after a few days. Well they are after all $1 :) These are my two favorites at the moment and I can't decide which I like better.

This one's called Times Square Tangerine Cream (112A)











This one's called Pink Promenade Creme (109A)

and sadly this one's discontinued....Taxi Yellow Creme (114A)

For NYC's affordable and summery colors, I rate them at

As Seen On...

I want this eye!

As Seen on Lucky magazine's Revlon Ad

Well not the eye literally but the makeup and the look. I looooooooove smoky eyes!

Another embarrassing moment

Don't you just love embarrassing moments? I guess you have to let those years pass when you can look back and laugh. I still kinda cringe at my lip balm moment.

As you know and have read (or will read) I am addicted to lip balm. At the very site of dry lips I can reach in my pocket, my purse, my desk or my car for a lip balm. I love them and can't leave the house without them. Whenever I see one I have to buy it especially when its on sale.

So one day I'm shopping in Bath & Body Works, restocking my supply of lotions. FYI this is a great place for impersonal gifts. Who doesn't have ashy hands? Plus it seems like whenever I go they are having their annual sale.

But anyways I digress. I stop by their Burt's Bees section and see this:



I've tried other lip balms by Burt's Bees and liked them. So when I see this I have to try it. It was the middle of summer and I had been to the beach several days and thought this would come in handy since its "Lifeguard's Choice". It also said it was for "Sun & Snow".

I'm at school one day and its the middle of midterm week. I've had little sleep and I'm coming down with the "Exam Cold". You know that "cold" that comes from stressing out over exams? You have all they symptoms, you feel like crap, you look like s**t and you just push through. The minute you finish your last exam you miraculously clear up and feel 100% normal? Yeah that cold.

So I have this cold and make my way down to the student clinic to pick up my prescription. Let me remind you that I look like I just woke up and threw whatever was clean on. I look like I've been living out of a dumpster. No, this isn't the embarrassing part because everyone around looks like me....well not exactly. Most of them look like they took a shower except for me :(

As I'm heading through the middle of campus I apply my new Burt's Bees Weatherproofing Lip Balm. My lips are dry and here's a chance to try it out. As I walk through the most busiest part of campus (its the easiest & shortest route) I notice that people are staring at me.

Ok so I look a little dirty, so what?! What the hell?! Sorry but I've been cramming my brain with about 12 books worth of information!!! Grr.

I enter the student clinic and wait patiently for my turn up to the window. That's when I get the weirdest stares. People are staring at me in disgust. Like I have hives on my face or something. Then when I go up to the window the guy looks at me like I have a disease and its staring at him in the face.

Wow I must really look bad if people don't even want to sit by me. Do I smell? Do I have something stuck on my face? Oh no, do I have some kind of sock or old bra stuck to me?

As I rush into the bathroom I see that my lips are WHITE as if I had put some kind of paint on them. This is the image that pops into my head. This is what I look like:

Greeeeeat! I looked like a crack addict.

I still cringe whenever I think about that moment. How embarrassing! All I want to know is Who is the target market for this product? only lifeguards? Who in their right mind wears this lip balm Burt's Bees? This lip balm that is as white as chalk. This lip balm that does not blend or fade but only sticks out like you just put super white Elmer's glue on your lips.

Current Read

I've fallen in love and more than ever want to travel to another country thanks to a book I just picked up:

Eat, Pray, Love is about a woman who makes a dramatic change in her life by moving to Italy. She's going through a horrible divorce, has no direction in life and the passion for life is rather dim. She moves to Italy and falls in love with life. I've just started and already I can't put it down.

Need It, Want It, Gotta Have It

Sephora's Midnight Train Case
$90

Benefit's Pocket Pal

This little tool called Pocket Pal by Benefit is supposed to be handy for those on the go situations when you need a blush, a lip gloss and a tint of red all in one.

Cool beans! right?

Not really. Don't get me wrong I like Benefit's Benetint in its original packaging. You know the little bottle that looks like a nail polish bottle?

The Benetint side (the red liquid stuff) is cool and it works. It's like a stain. Just imagine you sucked on a cherry popsicle, it leaves your lips stained in a berry shade for quite a while. I love this during winter days. It looks so natural like you woke up with a natural berry lips. You can also apply this to your cheeks for a blush instead of pinching. Yeah I've been known to pinch.

On the other side there's a clear lip gloss to go over your tinted lips. The lip gloss is sticky. Not good. Also when you use the lip gloss applicator over your tinted lips the clear lip gloss is no longer clear. It becomes this washed out pink color and continues to look gross the more you use it on your red lips. After two weeks you just stop using the gross pink red gloss. It looked dirty.

I just stuck to the tin by itself. Next time I'll just purchase the Benetint bottle by itself.

Get lippy

I can never pass the Body Shop without going in. It's addicting and I can rest assured my purchases have not been tested on animals.

5 Reasons why I love the Body Shop

1) Against Animal Testing

2) Support Community Trade

3) Activate Self Esteem

4) Defend Human Rights

5) Protect Our Planet

Not only is this a great place for gifts but I can always stock up on sales, find some of my faves, and experiment with the new and good for you stuff.

My recent purchase: Their Born Lippy lip balms and their Lip Butters

I use the lip balms when I need a soft shimmer shiny lips. They give just the right amount of color to leave your lips soft with a hint of glowing color. Perfect for spring.

I use the lip butters when my lips are super dry and need some tlc.

The lip balms and lip butters come in different tastes.......uhmmm I mean different smells ;)

Anyone for a bit of dry skin shavings?

You know those As Seen on TV products.....well I just wait till I see them at CVS or Walgreens.

I saw the Ped Egg late one night on some infomercial. Then when I saw it at Walgreens marked on sale it was a sign that my feet needed some extra attention.

If you've seen the infomercial you've seen that its this handy little egg that resembles a cheese grater.

Step 1: Rub and grate your dry callused feet

Step 2: See the magic

Step 3: See the nasty dry skin shaving left inside the egg. Ewwwwww!

Step 4: Empty, wash, repeat as necessary :)

This little egg works. I never wear shoes around the house so my feet grow an extra thick layer. Gross, I know. This little egg made my feet smooth and soft, made me cringe as I exfoliated and made me gag as I emptied out the large amount of dry skin.

Smooth feet just in time for spring.

Women of Color?

When I first saw this "Women of Color" I thought it meant Not White. I guess I would fit that category. According to wikipedia I'm right but according to Pantene I'm wrong.

Pantene has this new line called

Relaxed & Natural for Women of Color.

When I first saw this I was excited. Finally a product that is geared toward those of us who have thick or thin, frizzy & fuzzy, curly unruly dry hair. For those of us who aren't caucasian, those of us who don't have stick straight fine hair.

Yes! Jojoba oil you say? Never tried it but ok. Coconut oil? oooo sounds interesting! Pro-Vitamins? always!

It's a cream moisturizer that's supposed to be put on after you shower. So I did.

I felt like taking another shower after.

This stuff left my hair feeling OILY. My curls looked like they had been licked by a cow. My hair felt dirty, felt heavy, felt icky.

So I guess I'm not a woman of color? Did you mean to say African American Pantene? Why didn't you just put that on the front of your product?!?!

A google search of this product only shows black girls promoting this. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure there's non-black girls out there who use this product, maybe even love it. I'm not one of them.