pretty please

Why not give yourself a gift?

I have a confession to make.  I like to buy myself presents.  I love to find cute gift sets of products I've been meaning to try from Sephora and then get it gift wrapped for myself (it's free!) and even write myself a little note.  Ok, I do this all online, but perhaps it's still a little weird.  It's just nice to get something all wrapped up, even if it's from myself.  My latest gift to myself was the Stila Shine On Gift of Glaze.  It's a set of six mini Stila glazes (I la-ove Stila lip glazes) in different flavors and shades from Vanilla to Raisin.  It's such a handy little set and I love matching my lip glosses to the rest of my makeup rather than the same ol' clear gloss.  At $2 for the set of six, I highly suggest gifting this set to yourself! 

Favorite Pants

I've discovered a particular pair of pants from Banana Republic that I can't get enough of.  Over the past year I've acquired 3 pairs because I love the fit and the type of material. They are Jackson wool wide-leg trousers and I love that they are fitted at the hips and then float away but aren't too wide.  I think Stacy and Clinton of "What Not to Wear" would approve.  They're on sale for $74.99 at BR (ok, yes, a bit spendy but high quality and so worth it).  Do you have a favorite pair of pants?

Underpinnings

"Underpinnings" is the word Tim Gunn uses to describe what the rest of us call bras and underwear.  I love Tim Gunn.  Last week I went shopping in preparation for my new job.  Before I left the house I spent a little time looking through my wardrobe and figuring out what gaps needed filling.  I noticed that I needed another pair of pants for work that could be more of a light-brown neutral and that I needed new black and brown heels.  When I approached my underpinnings drawer I realized that there were some real gaps to fill there.  I had only been wearing basically two dependable old bras - the others didn't fit or had something funky going on that made me avoid them.  It was time to focus on my underpinnings again.  I tend to avoid bra shopping.  I just prefer to buy things everyone will see rather than spend good money on something so private. 

I ventured into Victoria's Secret that afternoon dreading the experience and realizing that I had no idea what size I was.  A sales associate noticed that I was putting like 3 sizes of every bra in my little shopping bag to give myself options in the dressing room and she suggested a bra fitting.  I warily agreed and pleasantly found that the experience was less embarrassing and more helpful than I thought it would be.  First of all, the fitting included none of the expected groping or old ladies comparing the size of my breasts to types of fruit (I guess this is how I'd always envisioned bra fittings!).  The "bra specialist" did some measurements (over my clothes...luckily I wasn't wearing anything padded or I don't know how that would have gone) and to my surprise, announced that I was a completely different size that I had ever considered (I'll spare you the personal stats!).  She then brought me an entire drawer of all types of bras in that size for me to try on and then decide which ones worked best.  I even needed an opinion a couple times and felt comfortable letting her my dressing room to  decide the verdict.  She then recorded my favorite kinds on a little card and showed me where the drawers were in the store with those types so I could select particular colors.  I ended up buying three really beautiful bras - different colors, gorgeous lace (much better than my typical nude-colored ones).  Wearing these new underpinnings makes me feel surprisingly fabulous.  There's something about knowing that what's under my clothes is sexy and sophisticated that makes me feel more confident.  So please...go buy a new bra today and get measured - it will make a huge difference in how you feel about yourself and probably how you look. 

An "Endless" Supply of Shoes!

While looking for some new sassy pumps last month I stumbled across one of my new favorite shopping websites and I simply must share this information with you.  Endless.com is the best!  They have a crazy supply of shoes that you can narrow down by size, color, brand, style, heel height...basically any possible variable.  What makes this website so outstanding though, is their FREE OVERNIGHT SHIPPING and FREE RETURN SHIPPING policy.  How awesome is that?  So, I've been picking out a couple different pairs to buy, then I receive the shoes the next day, try them on, keep the ones I like and return the rest for free!  I've bought 3 pairs of shoes from them (yes, 3 pairs of shoes in 1 month...back off, I needed new shoes for my new jobs!).  Oh, and Endless also has a great supply of bags and accessories too!  Go check it out!!

Imju Fiberwig Mascara

I've been looking for a good new mascara for awhile now.  I'd tried Diorshow (I thought it was overrated), Stila (it was ok but not the best, a little flaky) and I was ready for something new.  At Sephora last month, a store clerk recommended Imju Fiberwig Mascara - and explained that the little fibers in the tube would actually attach onto the tips of my lashes, making them at least 30% longer.  I was skeptical about how realistic this would look but honestly, it's incredible!  It's like I'm attaching little lashes on top of my own and it opens my eyes up so much more.  All I do is apply one or two swipes (or coats) to the length of my lashes after I use my eyelash curler.  I then apply the mascara while slowly twirling it to just the ends of my lashes, allowing the fibers to attach to the tips.  When I'm done with my makeup routine I curl my lashes one last time to really open up my eyes and accentuate the longer lashes.  This product lasts all day and even into the next morning if I don't wash it off the night before and rarely flakes.  It comes off really easily with soap and water.  I have really liked this mascara and plan on buying it again when it runs out.  It's $22 at Sephora and well worth the price if you want LONG lashes. 

I let my legs out this week.

On my way to fill out paperwork for my new job on Thursday, I realized that this was the first time I'd let my legs out in the open in 3 1/2 months.  We moved to Walnut Creek in November and I've been looking for a job ever since.  Cutting back our budget to survive this time on one income meant that I avoided my typical beauty buys and thus severly lacked the motivation to post on this blog.  But...I'm back!  Starting tomorrow morning I'll be the new District Director for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.  I'm so excited to start and I'm so ready to get dressed up everyday!  My calves were so happy to get some air underneath my pencil skirt on Thursday! 

All this to say that I'll be posting way more frequently again!  Welcome back!

Anastasia Brow Powder Duo

Hello friends....I'm officially back in business.  I decided I needed some beauty treats to kick-start my blogging and was happy to partake in a deal on Sephora where I got 12 or something samples when I purchased a refill on my bronzer.  So, I'm back to reviewing beauty products (without having to spend major cash, which is good considering that I still haven't landed a job up here). 

I'll start with Anastasia Brow Powder Duo.  Now, I've confessed before that I don't know what to do about brows.  Mine are long and thin and any time I try to fill them in I feel like I look like I'm stern or like a porcelain doll.  However, I might be able to add a little umph to my brows without looking like Groucho Marx (he had significant eyebrows, I google-imaged him to be sure) by using this brow powder.  Eyebrow enhancement in powder form is just less intimidating in general, pencils make me nervous.  I used a Q-tip to dab a smidge of the powder into my brows and it definitely filled in the sparse spots without changing the look too much.  I like this powder duo business too, it's nice to be able to blend both similar colors in to find one that isn't obvious.  I might consider purchasing this one - it goes for $22 on Sephora.  I wore it to my job interview today.  If I get the job I may buy a truckload of this stuff. If I don't get the job I'm blaming it on my eyebrows and not my experience.

The Beauty in Moving

What's the beauty in moving?  Well, in the act of physically moving from one home to another, there's none.  Chris and I moved from our apartment in Summerland to a townhouse in Walnut Creek (Bay Area) last week.  I've never been through a move this big before and not only was it totally mentally and physically exhausting, my beauty regime took a bit of a hit.  I went days with my hair up, wearing the same yoga pants and black sweatshirt, not bothering to wash my face, just getting through it.  A couple days after we'd finished the heavy lifting I noticed that another part of my physical appearance had been affected - I was covered with bruises and cuts.  I was trying so hard to be tough, that I didn't notice that I had been hurting myself constantly.  I counted and I literally had 19 bruises on my legs and butt (not sure what that's about) and six cuts on my hands.  I'm finally healing up but am finding that I'm still more prone to injury this last week.  I think because of the move, I've become less careful with my body - resulting in more bumps and scraps - I pretty much walked into the license plate on my car while walking around it yesterday and really konked my head on the open door of a dryer.  I think it's time to move a little slower and be a little more careful with my body.  I'm not sure what this all has to do with beauty but I wanted to let you know why I've been MIA and that I'll be back in action (hopefully sans bruises) soon!

My New Suit

After several hours shopping (and forcing myself to focus on finding a suit rather than buying yet another shirt)...I found my outfit for my interview this week.  I splurged on a houndstooth two-button blazer and wide-leg pants from Banana Republic, along with a gorgeous purple top to go underneath (finally, I have some purple in my life!).  I think the outfit is both professional and contemporary and yes, I plan to stand like the model in the picture at all times.

What to Wear for an Interview?

Some of you may already know that Chris and I are moving in November (or rather, on Halloween) to the Bay Area.  Chris will be transferring to the San Francisco office of his company but I will be finding a new job.  So far, I've interviewed in person for three jobs resulting in one job offer I declined, one job that declined me, and one that I have not yet heard back from.  For all three of these interviews I wore the same thing - black and white long-sleeved, jersey, knee length patterned dress, black peep-toe heels, and minimal jewelry (just wedding and engagement rings).  I thought long and hard before wearing the dress instead of the standard interview uniform - a black suit.  I just don't feel like myself in a suit.  But after not getting the job I wanted, I'm reconsidering.  I'm interviewing for Development Director of a major treatment center that's part of a medical foundation on Wednesday and I think I need to step up my game a notch - so I'll be out looking for a new suit this weekend.  I think the jacket in the picture might look good - but it's still not a classic suit jacket.  What do you wear to interviews?