I haven't written in a while so I have a lot to talk about!

I have been kind of busy...

Some topics I'll address at some point in time: MAC Danse collection, companies with shitty customer service, how much I can't stand Linda Wells, niche fragrances, bad advice, bad makeup, B&BW semi-annual sale, Hanae Mori, interesting finds at TJ Maxx, makeup nostalgia...

Actually, maybe I'll address Danse right now.

I was originally planning on getting the After Hours holiday pick that I have been obsessing about. The day I went to buy it, it sold out. I called customer service and they said it would be back in stock on the 26th- also when Danse was supposed to be released.

Apparently people in Canada take off Boxing Day instead of putting the new collection on the website, just like they did with Lingerie.

Anyway, Danse is finally online two days later and I go a little overboard. I didn't get my After Hours (still thinking about it, though) but I did get Glissade, Lightscapade, Pastorale, Corps de Ballet, Pas a deux, Classical, Curtsy, and En Pointe. The only shadows I wanted were Rondelle and Jete, but they are too similar to other things I have. I'm kind of kicking myself for buying Curtsy and Classical now. They're ugly and I'm sure they will look like crap on me. Curtsy isn't so bad, but classical is this nasty color of... watered down salmon. It's like.. a peach milkshake? It's ugly and it will look like death on me. I haven't even tried it on yet.

So, Danse. Awesome lipglasses, I must say. I am impressed. I can't resist Mineralize Skinfinishes, and Lightscapade is just awesome. Boring and ugly eyeshadows, though. Seriously... French Grey? It's not grey, it's brownish taupe. And ugly. We don't need more taupe eyeshadows, MAC.

I really love the new skincare packaging! I am happy to see that Microfine Refinisher is still alive and kicking! The new pots for the Tinted Lip Conditioners are so much nicer than the old ones, but I still prefer the sticks.

I also need a new bottle of MV3. I can't believe it. I am actually going to finish a bottle of perfume. I have never done that, or even come close. MV3 is just THAT GOOD. I could wear it every day and not get sick of it (but I won't, because that's boring).

Unfortunately, Emeraldaire and Tarnished Love are nasty. I can't wear them. They are gross. At least they are kinda cool to look at, and match with the rest of my MAC fragrances.

I heard that they are going to release a new fragrance later this year. Charged Waters, or something like that. I hope it's better than Turquatic.

I have been noticing an abundance of perfume commercials on TV lately. Weird!



I've seen Armani Code, Aqua di Gio, Miss Dior Cherie, Euphoria and Bulgari Blu! So weird!



Is this going to go back to the 90s Obsession days?



Another observation: MAC changed the name of Refined Beyond
Bronze to Refined Deeper Bronze. I don't see how that's any
different. Meh.

Oops. I lied. I got distracted and forgot to post more porn!



Well, here's some more porn.






The fragrance everyone is curious about.






My Too Faced Quickie Chronicles.




Some of my Limited Edition MAC eyeshadows that I haven't put in
palettes. I'm too scared to try to depot these. I'm sure as
hell not depotting my Lure/Belle Azure stuff!






Super cute minis!







Tarte A-List Beauty Insider Exclusive pallete, flash and no flash. Looks very loved.






My stash of extra Villainess soaps...




And extra Isle of Eden scrubs! Those are stacked three deep, by the way. Obsessed much?



More later!

Okay, here it is... porn! Just like I promised.



Most of the pictures are a little blurry. My battery was dying so the focus was a little weak.







MAC Sheer Mystery Powder.

Tarte Rock Royalty! Looking quite loved.

Givenchy Lash Pearls and my skanky chipped nails.

The
shelf where I keep some of the perfumes I use most often. Yes,
you do see Britney Spears Fantasy and Paris Hilton. Some skanks
just smell good.

My Tour de Pink traincase, where I store some of my MAC lip products. Just the ones I use frequently.

I just thought this was a cool picture. Juicy Couture, Midnight Charm, Miss Dior Cherie.

Come on... that is a cool picture. All pretty and sparkly looking on my dresser.

I took exactly one hundred pictures, so I still have a couple more to post. More porn tomorrow!

I think last year I did one of those winter survival lists. I am
thinking about doing one this year, but all of the items would probably
be the same.


I feel like making a list of things I like right now. I have this weird urge to make lists all of a sudden.

So, without further ado, a list.


Things I Love Right Now

1. Sephora Indulgences Purifying Hand Wash in Vanilla Frosting: I
   originally ordered this to put myself into free shipping, fully
   expecting a crappy, generic hand soap like the Method I've been
   buying. What I got actually shocked me. A very thick,
   creamy, highly scented, lightly-lathering hand soap that does not dry
   out my hands and leaves behind an amazing scent. The Vanilla
   Frosting scent is better than I expected. This is the best hand
   soap ever, and I'll probably pick it up in all the other scents.
   It's a shame they discontinued Banana Foster and Chocolate Raspberry,
   cause those would kick ass.


2. Sephora Indulgences Whipped Body Delights: I
   have this in a bunch of scents. My favorite at the moment is
   Vanilla Frosting (which is shimmery!) closely followed by Marshmallow
   Fluff and Coconut Nectar. They're thick and creamy without being
   greasy, and they're excellent at locking in moisture. The scents
   are great. Again, would be awesome in Banana Foster and Chocolate
   Raspberry. Hear me, Sephora? Quit discontinuing the good
   stuff!!
   
   


3. Comptoir Sud Pacifique Vanille Extreme: Quite
   possibly my favorite fragrance of all time. It's the perfect
   lasting vanilla. It's not sticky, cloying, fake or
   overpowering. It's like vanilla beans and sugar, and it lasts all
   day. I could wear this every day. It layers well with
   pretty much everything. On initial application it smells a little
   weird, kind of like benzoin, but after about 15 minutes it settles
   quite nicely and remains the same for hours.


4. Bath and Body Works Warm Vanilla Sugar:
   Noticing a trend here? I'm a vanilla fiend. I just can't
   help myself. The thing I love about Bath and Body Works is that
   you can layer to your heart's content because they make every product
   you can think of in every scent. I have shampoo, conditioner,
   body wash, body butter, body cream, shimmer lotion, shimmer spray...
   You name it, I have it in this scent. It's not so strong that you
   overtake the room with your fragrance, and it layers well with other
   things. I used to hate it, but now I love it.
   
   


5. L'Oreal Volume Shocking Mascara: Screw
   Diorshow, this stuff OWNS! It is by far the best mascara I have
   ever used. It has a bit of a learning curve, but the end result
   is so worth it. I like my lashes to stand out, and this gives the
   effect of false lashes. Length, volume, everything. I have
   been through 8 or more tubes of this stuff and I don't plan on buying
   any other mascara ever again. Only disclaimers: You need a good
   metal lash comb, and try not to get your lashes wet because this stuff
   runs.


6. NARS Albatross: It's
   described as a "blush/highlighter." It's a subtle white-gold
   shimmer (more of a glow than a shimmer) and it's absolutely
   perfect. I can use it everywhere and it's the perfect amount of
   glow without being obvious, shimmery, glittery or shiny. I can
   put tons of it on and it still looks natural.
   
   


7. MAC Bronzer in Refined Beyond Bronze and Golden: I
   am very pale, so Refined Beyond Bronze seems like a weird choice.
   I think being pale is actually what makes this shade so great. I
   contour or slightly bronze with Golden when I want an extremely subtle
   effect. Golden is the perfect shade. But when I want to add
   a little drama or more definition, Refined Beyond Bronze is
   perfect. I just very lightly tap my bronzer brush into it, and
   buff it onto my cheekbones. Just that tiny touch of bronzer makes
   my skin look amazing and it's seamless. You can't even tell it's
   on, but you can. Makes sense, right?


8. Smashbox Cream Eyeliner in Caviar: I
   use an extremely short-bristled stiff angled brush to apply this, and
   it provides the most perfect, tightest line ever. It is only
   smudgeable (real word?) for about 15 seconds, and once it dries it's
   bulletproof. It's such a rich, dark black but it doesn't look
   hookerish.


9. Isle of Eden Sugar Scrubs: Yes,
   they're great for the body, but I've been a bad girl, using them on my
   face. They're thick, not the least bit oily, and they're very
   rough. It's maybe a little too rough for the face, and the
   fragrance oil burns like hell, but they make my skin absolutely
   perfect. I use one every day, sometimes twice, and my skin is
   incredibly clear, smooth and perfect. They rinse completely clean
   and they smell amazing, too.
   
   


10. Lip Fusion Lip Fusion XL: It's
    almost absurdly expensive, but it works. It plumps and smoothes
    and it DOESN'T BURN. Don't get me wrong, I love those burny ones
    (Lip Venom, Lip Injection...) but I hate having red lips. This is
    slightly glossy, plumps gently but effectively and keeps my lips a nice
    pale shade. Only downsides are the packaging which gets scratched
    easily, and the weird minty flavor. I don't want my lipgloss to
    taste like toothpaste.

Ten seems like a nice, even number. I think I can stop
there. I still feel like making lists. Maybe I'll make
another list... I feel like organizing things.



I've noticed that my blog is lacking in something very important.
Porn! Maybe I'll get out the camera and take some pictures (of
makeup, don't worry.) to go along with my babbling. Everyone
loves porn.

Apparently 90% of the people visting my blog are looking for Givenchy Lash Pearls.

Ah, Google.

Anyway, since so many people seem to be interested, I suppose I could provide a little review.

Givenchy Lash Pearls. So awesome.

They are a very thick crystal clear liquid, about the viscosity of corn syrup or molasses, and they come in a nail polish style bottle with a brush applicator.

You're supposed to apply them by holding the brush vertically and "dropping" a drop of the liquid onto the tips of your lashes. I find that the bigger the drop, the better. It looks smaller once it rounds itself into a little pearl, so don't be afraid to apply too much.

They stay sticky for a pretty long time, and don't ever seem to fully dry. It's a little bit like glue.

The end result is really gorgeous. Like little crystal drops of dew on the ends of your lashes. You can go from subtle to dramatic depending on how big you make the pearls, but they catch the light and draw attention to your eyes without being over the top.

So, there's my half-assed review of lash pearls for all you Googlers out there.

Also, someone was looking for the original price of MAC Mineralize Skinfinish. $22.

Hmm... what else have people been looking for...

Benefit. I don't have much to say about Benefit. I worked for them for a day. I hate their sales tactics and dishonesty. I like a few products, but they're gimmicky and the quality isn't anything wonderful.

Tarte blush. The only Tarte blush I have is the pink one in the Rock Royalty palette (love) and a mini cheekstain in Tickled. I like them both, but I never use the cheekstain.

Oh, and Vera Wang Princess. It smells good. Buy it.

I think I've covered all my bases for now!

Wow, how lame! In all my blathering about Juicy Couture and such, I forgot to yap about MAC Couture!!

I was very skeptical at first, as it's a little more expensive than MAC usually is, but I couldn't resist HEAVY GUNMETAL PACKAGING. WITH STUDS.

I splurged on the Sheer Mystery Powder, lipstick in Couture, lipglass in Prestigious and Richmetal highlighter in Arc Silver.

I'm not huge on the richmetal highlighter, but the compact is SO HOT. Everything else I love. LOVE. CAPITAL LETTERS!

Yes, I am shallow and a sucker for packaging. This is the coolest packaging MAC has had so far. I'm going to get the rest of the Couture lipglasses and maybe the richmetal highlighter in another color. Possible another lipstick. And a backup sheer mystery powder. One for my purse and one for home.

The packaging is heavy. It's so cool. So very, very cool.

I just bought Juicy Couture. I can't wait to have it in my well-manicured little hands. The bottle is absolutely beautiful. The notes sound like they'll sit well with me- they had me at creme brulee.

I try not to buy perfumes just for the bottle, but sometimes I can't resist. Hence, Dior Midnight Charm that really isn't me at all but looks pretty in my cabinet.

I can't decide whether or not I like Betsey Johnson's bottle design. I'm torn between incredibly tacky or cute and sparkly. Hmm. If it wasn't made of plastic it might be less tacky, but something about it is cute.

I'm not entirely about packaging. Some fragrances I love have ugly packaging. Comptoir, Philosophy, MAC, plain unappealing bottles.

I bought MAC Emeraldaire and Tarnished Love and I have no idea why. Total impulse. Luckily they don't smell awful, but they're not really me. MAC MV3 will always be my true love. I've had a difficult time finding something quite as perfect.

Some things I used to think were tacky I'm actually starting to love.

I've had a love/hate relationship with Bath and Body works. I couldn't think of something cheaper and tackier than all the Cucumber Melon-Country Apple-Sun-Ripened Raspberry scented masses of skanky little teens and such...

There were a few things I really liked from them way back then... Red Currant and Thyme Tea (still like it), Tangerine Spice (remember that one?), and oh, how I loved the Tutti Dolci line.

I remember when I went on the choir tour, Chrissy and I went into Bath and Body works and we discovered this new scent- Warm Vanilla Sugar. I sniffed it in the bottle and immediately bought some lotion. It was heaven for about 29 seconds, and then it went overpoweringly strong and gave me a massive headache. Sad.

Flash forward to now. I'm walking past Kristin's office and I smell something really good. Turns out it's B&BW Warm Vanilla Sugar lotion, and it smells nothing like I remember. It smells sweet, smooth and creamy, very surprising.

I actually am impressed. I bought a bunch of Warm Vanilla Sugar stuff- holiday shimmer lotion in the very pretty sparkly champagne gold tube, beautiful bottle of holiday shimmer mist, body butter... It layers well with my favorite fragrances and it's no longer the overpowering perfumy stench I remember.

The new Exotic Coconut is also very nice. Mourning the loss of Tutti Dolci, I discovered the new Temptations line and those are also shockingly not gross. Pecan Passion is really unique and nice. Pumpkin Pie Paradise smells nothing like pumpkin pie but it's good. Crazy Caramel Corn has a stupid-ass name but it really does smell like caramel corn. So what if I want to smell like food. It smells better than flowers. Tastes better, too.

How about I share one of my beauty secrets. Okay, maybe it's not so secret, but it does make me prettier.

I know that I'm not supposed to do this because apparently it's bad for my skin... but I exfoliate every day.

I'm not just talking glycolic acid or some wussy gentle exfoliation that they always recommend. I have gotten into the habit of using sugar. Sugar and sometimes the (severly discontinued ancient) Urban Decay Joe Glow.

I've been doing it every day, sometimes twice a day for the past month or two and my skin looks incredible.

I'm using all the same skincare I normally do, but my skin has never looked this good.

So there's my secret. I don't even have to use primer anymore.

It does burn like hell for a minute, though. Hehe.

Oh oh OH! I remember!

I FINALLY GOT MY GIVENCHY LASH PEARLS!!!!!

I am so happy I was finally able to get my hands on some. Let me tell you- they are awesome.

It's a little tricky to apply. I ended up with a giant glob of goo on my face a few times, but once you get the drops placed perfectly it's a stunning effect.

My favorite look with them is shimmery silver eyeshadow (Urban Decay cream in Moonshine and shadow in Uzi if you can control the glitter) tightline with black liner (MAC Smolder eye kohl) tons of mascara ( L'Oreal Volume Shocking) with pale pink blush (MAC Porcelain Pink mineralize skinfinish) and pink gloss (Urban Decay Cosmopolitan or MAC Courting Rose). Add lash pearls all along upper lashes and let dry... Gorgeous. Like an ice princess.

My only complaint is that before they dry they get stuck to your hair, so keep your hair back until they dry.

So freaking cool.

I know, I am easily amused.

I really, really need to stop buying so much stuff. It's an addiction, and you know how addicts say "I can quit at any time"? I don't think I can quit. I can't imagine myself saying that I can quit.

The longest I've been able to not buy anything was a month.

Now I really have to be careful because it's time for Christmas shopping.

So... I made a giant order from Sephora. Makes sense, right? Cause from now until Christmas I have to buy presents for other people.

In the past month I've expanded my fragrance collection. I was on a big Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab kick (and now own probably 300-400 different BPAL fragrances...) but now I've been wanting to add to my high end collection.

I bought Guerlain Insolence and Aqua Allegoria Mentafolia, Vera Wang Princess, Dior Midnight Charm and Miss Dior Cherie, Givenchy Amarige Mariage, Stacked Style Rococco Rouge and Baroque Bleu, CSP Coeur de Vahine and Coco Extreme... I can't remember what else. I know there was something else.

I saw a picture of Blue Sugar and I'm buying it as soon as I can figure out who sells it. I also want Juicy Couture and Betsey Johnson (just for the bottle).

On the makeup end of the addiction, I've been really into palettes lately. Got all four MAC holiday palettes, a couple Too Faced Quickie Chronicles, the three Urban Decay palettes (even though I hate thier shadows... go figure), the Cargo Beauty Insider palette... Tarte Rock Royalty (AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME) and Onyx (sucks ASS)...

I'm starting to get obsessed with blush. I never wore it for years because I thought it made you look like a hooker, but then it dawned on me. The people that look like hookers suck at applying blush.

I'm absolutely loving the Tarte Rock Royalty palette and I'd recommend it to anyone. The perfect bronzer and the best shade of candy pink blush, with an incredibly velvety golden white highlighter.

I want a bunch of the NARS blushes. I really like the packaging. I only have Orgasm and it looks good on me, but I want a darker red color. I have the Primpin'/Golden Kitty blush duo from MAC and it looks amazing on me. I just want something a little less shimmery. Red blush... who would have guessed?

Oh. Benefit VIP glosses suck. They're too sheer and they smell like Bleu cheese.

I really, really need to stop buying so much stuff. It's an addiction, and you know how addicts say "I can quit at any time"? I don't think I can quit. I can't imagine myself saying that I can quit.

The longest I've been able to not buy anything was a month.

Now I really have to be careful because it's time for Christmas shopping.

So... I made a giant order from Sephora. Makes sense, right? Cause from now until Christmas I have to buy presents for other people.

In the past month I've expanded my fragrance collection. I was on a big Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab kick (and now own probably 300-400 different BPAL fragrances...) but now I've been wanting to add to my high end collection.

I bought Guerlain Insolence and Aqua Allegoria Mentafolia, Vera Wang Princess, Dior Midnight Charm and Miss Dior Cherie, Givenchy Amarige Mariage, Stacked Style Rococco Rouge and Baroque Bleu, CSP Coeur de Vahine and Coco Extreme... I can't remember what else. I know there was something else.

I saw a picture of Blue Sugar and I'm buying it as soon as I can figure out who sells it. I also want Juicy Couture and Betsey Johnson (just for the bottle).

On the makeup end of the addiction, I've been really into palettes lately. Got all four MAC holiday palettes, a couple Too Faced Quickie Chronicles, the three Urban Decay palettes (even though I hate thier shadows... go figure), the Cargo Beauty Insider palette... Tarte Rock Royalty (AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME) and Onyx (sucks ASS)...

I'm starting to get obsessed with blush. I never wore it for years because I thought it made you look like a hooker, but then it dawned on me. The people that look like hookers suck at applying blush.

I'm absolutely loving the Tarte Rock Royalty palette and I'd recommend it to anyone. The perfect bronzer and the best shade of candy pink blush, with an incredibly velvety golden white highlighter.

I want a bunch of the NARS blushes. I really like the packaging. I only have Orgasm and it looks good on me, but I want a darker red color. I have the Primpin'/Golden Kitty blush duo from MAC and it looks amazing on me. I just want something a little less shimmery. Red blush... who would have guessed?

Oh. Benefit VIP glosses suck. They're too sheer and they smell like Bleu cheese.

I am excited. I went to Marshall's today trying to find some of those Urban Decay shimmer powders. I heard rumors that they had them for $3.99 (they did, but I could only find one unopened one... Ick,)...

I totally scored, though. I found Stacked Style Rococco Rouge and Baroque Bleu, Comptoir Sud Pacifique Coeur de Vahine, Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Mentafolia and an Emporio Armani Night gift set. I bought them all for under $100. \/\/007!!

They also had Jean Patou ENjoy, but they were all opened. They had a bottle of Hanae Mori that was open. I saw Jolie Madame and I think a bottle of Fracas, but they were OPEN!! I hate it when people open the packages. They ruin it for me. I can't buy something that was opened and touched and used... ick. Even if it was just perfume.

Lately I've been wanting to wear Chanel No.5, even though it smells like grandmas. I don't usually like it, I don't know what's wrong with me.

I also bought (at Sephora) the Miss Dior Cherie gift set I've been drooling over. I really wanted the Guerlain Insolence set, but it was out of stock!! I'm gonna get the Vera Wang Princess set, too. I can't resist when things come in sets.

I'm generally wary of Guerlain fragrances (Shalimar, gag me) but I really, really like Insolence. I'm a fan of violets. It smells really, really good. I want the Aqua Allegoria Tutti Kiwi one, too.

And Hermes. I really like Un Jardin sur le Nil. It's not even my type of fragrance, but it's gorgeous.

Don't laugh... I also am really digging Heiress. By you-know-who. I do like her, and I did buy her first (hairspray-scented) fragrance. Heiress smells way better. It's a nice bright citrusy grapefruit scent. Not as much like hairspray.

I'm a slacker, I know it.

I've been using this blog as more of a wishlist or shopping list...

Maybe I should actually talk about stuff. Right?

How about a story.

I think I'm the only one on earth who actually liked the original Dessert beauty line. I have every product in that line, and I was very sad to see it go. Dessert Treats is still around, but that sucks ass.

Anyway. The stuff was all ridiculously expensive for the quality of the product, and one of the most expensive products was the Deliciously Kissable Sugar Scrub. I think the original price was $42, but I grabbed them during the second clearance round at Sephora for $5 each.

I liked all three scents and have the whipped cream and shake in all of them, along with the bubble bath and fragrances. I like to layer. Why not get the matching scrub?

My first time using it I was sort of impressed. The sugar was a very fine grain, yet still rough enough to do some work. The scent was nice and strong. Everything was going great, until I tried to rinse it off.

HOLY OIL SLICK, BATMAN!! This was easily the nastiest thing I have ever put on my body (and that's coming from me...). When the water hit my skin the sugar completely dissolved, leaving me with what felt like an inch thick coating of grease. It would come off in globs if I scraped it, but it absolutely would not rinse off. I could actually see it on my skin, that's how thick it was.

After three rounds with my trusty Philosophy showergel I finally got (most of) the grease off of my skin. Now it was in a weird grey coating all over my bathtub. I am so glad I only paid $5 for this crap.

The moral of the story is don't use the shitty Dessert sugar scrub unless you want the Exxon-Valdez reenacted in your shower.


Also, a common misconception regarding scrubs. Scrub on dry/semi-dry skin! People always get into the shower and get all wet and then decide to use a sugar/salt scrub, which then dissolves in about two seconds and no actual exfoliation happens. Scrub with sugar/salt + Water = Pointless.

I always scrub before I get in the shower. It also helps to keep water out of the jars.

Speaking of scrubs, Isle of Eden is pretty awesome. I hate the shipping, but the scrubs are great.

I love Philosophy's scrubs, too. Margarita and Gingerbread man. Mmm. Exfoliation.

Oh yeah, I was at Ulta on my lunch break and I saw the new KISS fragrance. Yes, THE KISS, like with Gene Simmons. Fragrance. KISS fragrance. It actually didn't smell bad.

My beginnings as a blogger

It was a rainy day in October 2006, I just had a tough break-up behind me and I decided to blog. I used a very simple template and wrote like 3 or 4 posts that month. I said to myself, I want to update regularly. But I just didn't. I wasn't so much into blogging back then. But in 2009, I became very passionate about blogging. It's amazing how many people I've found and how good it felt to write down my thoughts and see that some people really read it and like it. That's the reason I blog. And that's why I love it.

MKL, 2009

I've completely outgrown my cabinet. This is sad.

This should be my cue to stop compulsively buying makeup and beauty products... Instead, I'm going to go get another cabinet.

I tried reorganizing it today, after trying to squeeze in some extra items... It's just not happening.

The top three shelves are all fragrance, the middle is body spray ( I don't know why I freakin buy this stuff) and the bottom ones are all lotions/creams/butters/what-have-you.

I can not even fit my Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab collection in there. I had to buy a special box for that. With the 17+ bottles on the way to me, and the mountain of imps and frimps that follow, I'm going to have to find a Plan B.

I have a small mountain of product piling up, as it has no place to go at the moment.... I'm constantly knocking things over.

My lipgloss case is also overflowing, as well as my MAC Tour de Pink. I have stuff everywhere waiting to be put somewhere... GAH! It's taking over!

I have more things on the way, too. At least with the new job I'm saving more than I'm spending... But I feel the need to collect. I love to collect things. The things I've collected are collectively collecting into an uncontrollable collection.

I need suggestions. Storage. It's insane. I think I am going to have to move the furniture around to find an attractive way to store my stash.

It's kinda funny though, when I open my cabinet. It's like a Sephora or a little makeup store, with all the bottles and jars and such all lined up and on display.

With all that's going on right now, I'm in need of some good retail therapy.

I'm making a lot more money now, so it looks like I can afford some upcoming MAC collections.

Now, people have been hearing me rave about Sweetie Cake... I just saw something this morning that pretty much overshadows Sweetie Cake. Behold:





LURE.

Pretty much my favorite collection last year was Belle Azure (tied with Rebel Rock) and this seems to be Belle Azure : Revisited.

The shadows are completely different, but look! Limited Edition Packaging! Almost entirely identical lipglasses- I can finally have Elle and Pink Clash! New pearlizers! Did I mention Limited Edition Teal packaging?

I'm a sucker for packaging. It's bordering on tacky, but oh how I am CRAVING this right now. I absolutely can not wait!

Sucks that Black Tied and Idol Eyes are being repromoted AGAIN, but I'm so totally buying them cause this time they're special. I'll just keep them in the boxes for backups, I guess. Not that I could ever imagine running out of Black Tied, but... whatever.

So I may not end up buying much from Sweetie Cake after all. Maybe. Ok. I'll probably buy a lot, but I'm more excited about this.

AND! There's gonna be a collection with NEON LIQUID LINERS! I'm also buying all of those. Not only am I a sucker for packaging, I'm a sucker for neon colors.



Oooh, aaah! The colors, Duke, the colors!

On top of all that, I just won an eBay auction for Beaver Moon and it's the most orgasmically perfect scent. I'm obsessed with it now. I am on a quest to get as many bottles of it as I possibly can.

I'm hoping that the Monster Baits are somewhat similar. If in fact they are, I'm buying two more bottles of each.

I can't get enough Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab.

I took a bath with a LUSH Bathos bubble bar slice this morning, and now I need more of that. Violets... Mmm... Purple water... mmm... And somehow I think it took the brassiness out of my hair. A plus.

Between BPAL, MAC and LUSH (wow, how creepy. All caps. Huh.) I'm not going to have much money left over!

Also: I need some cute boxes. I need a rather huge one to move my lipgloss collection into. My already huge one is pathetically inadequate. I need another box for my Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab. And finally, I need another for my MAC stuff. It has outgrown the many homes it inhabits... It's just taking over...

I think I'm gonna go back to Ikea and get another cabinet. One just for perfumes, and one just for lotions. They're together in one right now, but it's dangerously crowded. That's sad. I need two 6.5'x2.5x2.5 cabinets to hold just my lotion and fragrances.

Hey.... maybe I should get one for my lipgloss, too!

WOOHOO! Sweetie Cake!

WOOHOO! Dragon Moon!

I dropped a paycheck on MAC and Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab in the span of 36 hours.

From Sweetie Cake I got:

Lipstick - Fashionably Fuchsia (Ok, so that's from Classic Coordinates. )

Softsparkle Eye Pencil - Ultra-Chill

Tinted Lipglass - Sweetie Cake

Pigment - Pinked Mauve

Tinted Lipglass - Pink Meringue

Tinted Lipglass - Mouthwatering

4 Sweetie Cakes (palette)

Tinted Lipglass - Petit Four

Pigment - Lily White

And when I pay off my car insurance I'm gonna get the rest of the Softsparkle Eye Pencils.

From the Dragon Moon update I got:

Dragon Moon
Neptune
Pluto
Shill
Midway
Torture King
Snake Charmer
Freak Show
Eat Me
Drink Me

From April Fool's update I got:

Enraged Bunny Musk
Monster Bait: Underpants
and an imp of Persephone

I shouldn't have to spend any more on Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab until the next update, so I'm gonna try to save.

I got an invite to the Sundressing event in the mail today. It came in a cd-sized envelope and it was printed on a thick cardboard... coaster? It's pretty sweet. The makeup is 60's-tastic. Kinda tacky, but so awesome to look at. I haven't RSVP'd yet but... I'm going to. Is this the collection with Lure, Bait, Hooked? If it is I'm SO buying everything! (See previous post)

I decided against getting Apricot Pink pigment because it looked to similar to Deckchair and Goldenaire, both of which are kinda blah and I never use, and I only bought because they were LE... I may cave and get Apricot Pink just to have it, but... Bills. I wanna buy a HOUSE. And stuff like that.

Can you believe that this is the first time I've bought MAC since JANUARY? The last MAC I got was a Valentine's Day gift (Culturebloom!)! I feel... Kinda proud... I think. I can't remember what the last MAC I bought was... Thunder Eyes quad for sure... Tint Toons? Lingerie? Wow... That's... amazing.

I haven't bought anything from Sephora for about that long! I was gonna buy Miss Dior Cherie the night of the Culturebloom event, but Sephora was closing in... Well, it was closed. But they let me in anyway, because I'm a BEAUTY INSIDER (ha, ha...) Seriously... they did. I'm not kidding! I went in and sprayed it on my hand and fell in LOVE... But like I said, they were closed, so I got out of there before I spent another $75 on what is essentially stinky water.

I'm trying to kick the habit... I can quit anytime I want!

I bought stuff from LUSH intending for it to be here for Valentine's Day... and it's still not here. In fact, it's due to arrive on the TWENTY THIRD! I ordered it on THE NINTH!!!! WTF?!

Anyway, I ordered twice, because the first time I didn't know about the Big Frees OR the BOGO thing.

Soft Coeur (the Honeymooner)
Chocolate Whipstick
Honey I Washed The Kids Soap
Rock Star Soap

Snowcake Soap
MA BAR
Candy Fluff
Smitten Hand Cream
American Cream
Sea Vegetable Soap
Butterball
Sandstone Soap
Avobath x2 (my BOGO, although on second thought, I should've gotten HITWK)
Waving Not Drowning

All I can say is... They better send me my Big Frees and some samples! I've never tried LUSH and this is kinda expensive just for soap... I mean, a $6 bath bomb? Daaaaamn. You NEVER hear me complaining about expensive, so I'm kinda worried. I just spent $100 on a bunch of products from a company that I've never tried.

Did I mention that I got a raise?

I'm getting another raise sometime next month, too. More $$$ = More MAKEUP!

Really, it should be save more, but... I can't help myself...

I'm actually thinking about ordering Two Timing Tart, Soap Sod, Demon In The Dark Soap, Angels Delight, Cereology and another HIWTK and Snowcake. WHY?! I don't understand what my problem is.

I HATE waiting forever for orders. I haven't gotten a tracking number for CB or BPAL yet, and I haven't gotten one for my second LUSH order... I'm getting pissed. Now, I knew BPAL can take up to 2 months to ship, but the other two should have mentioned the long shipping/processing times somewhere... It seriously makes me want to eBay this stuff instead of buying it from the actual retailer.

Ironic... I see a lot of people selling their Big Frees gifts on eBay right now...

EDIT:

Ok. I caved. I got:
Demon In The Dark Soap
Angels Delight
Cereology
Snowcake Soap
Figs and Leaves Soap
Soap Sod
Blue Skies
Fresh Farmacy
Two Timing Tart
Mange Too

And that's IT! No more LUSH... Unless I'm hooked and I need more of whatever. I pretty much got all of what I wanted, save the few things I'm on the fence about. We'll see.

I had to get Waving Not Drowning cause it reminds me of a line from a Bush song- Are you drowning or waving? Need you to save me... I know, it's a poem by whoever, I saw it in my AP Lit book in high school, but Bush is close to my heart.

I'm having an issue with Lush on the name of Mange Too. I know that it's Mange- the word for "Eat" cause I'm Italian and you're always hearing your grandfather telling you, "Mangia! Mangia!" so I'm assuming Mange is French, like the Italian Mangia... I just can't help but think of mange.. The dog parasite...

Mange is kinda like lice and it's really not something you'd want to name a product after... It looks like a treatment more than an edible massage bar... But, whatever, I didn't name it.

Now to wait another 2 months for my damn orders to ship. No free shipping, either! I must be crazy.

I'm in a fragrance mood lately... I've been buying them like crazy this month. I've been rounding out my Comptoir Sud Pacifique collection, and finally got around to ordering my CB I Hate Perfume stuff and my first order from Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab.

In all:

Escada Pacific Paradise
CSP Vanille Banane
CSP Vanille Pinapple
CSP Vanille Extreme
mark. Karmala
mark. Luxe Fever
mark. Hollywood Pink
Aquolina Chocolovers

CB Burning Leaves
CB Winter 1972
CB Russian Caravan Tea
CB Mr Hulot's Holiday
CB In the Summer Kitchen
CB In the Library
CB M1 NARCISSUS

Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab (just Imp's Ears until I find out if I actually like them)
Black Forest
Hamadryad
Follow Me Boy
Whip
Asphodel
Black Tower
Tempest
Empyreal Mist
Leanan Sidhe
The Ghost
Omen
Hellfire

Did I go a little overboard?

The next one I'm gonna buy is Miss Dior Cherie. And then I think I'm done for a while...

I've never tried Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab before, but reading the descriptions of some of the scents really has me intrigued...

BLACK FOREST
This is the captured scent of a cold, moonless night, lost deep within the darkest wood. Haunting and desolate, this scent evokes images of fairy tale tragedy and half-remembered nightmares. Thick, viscous pine with ambergris, black musk, juniper and cypress.

THE BLACK TOWER
A sepulchral, desolate scent. Long-dead soldiers, oath-bound; the perfume of their armor, the chill wind that surges through their tower, white bone and blackened steel: white sandalwood, ambergris, wet ozone, galbanum and leather with ebony, teak, burnt grasses, English ivy and a hint of red wine.

EMPYREAL MIST
A hazy, soft, veiled scent: mist floating through twilit skies, curling gently towards the heavens.

HAMADRYAD
...Seven dry woods with mossy lichen and a gentle breeze of forest flowers.

LEANAN SIDHE
...Her perfume is a crush of Irish herbs and flowers, Gaelic mists, and nighttime dew.

OMEN
Deep, mysterious, and full of dark portents: oakmoss, juniper berry, myrrh and patchouli.

TEMPEST
A crisp ozone-tinged breeze. The scent of the first gentle rain before the storm.

THE GHOST
A thin, sinuous, creeping chill, the scent of glee-filled undeath: white iris, osmanthus, Calla lily, tomb-crawling ivy and a coffin spray of gladiolus, lisianthus and delphinium.

WHIP
Agony and ecstasy: black leather and damp red rose.

ASPHODEL
The grey and ghostly flower that fills the fields of Hades.

HELLFIRE
A swirl of pipe tobacco, hot leather, ambergris, dark musk and the lingering incense smoke from their Black Mass.


I really can't wait to smell some of these. I've had a craving for rich, woodsy scents and some of these sound incredible. We'll see, though. They were cheap, so no loss if I hate em!

Hopefully they don't all smell like headshop and stinky hippies.

Tomorrow is the Culturebloom event that I was invited to. I RSVP'd and they said they'd give me a confirmation call with a time slot, but they haven't yet... Ummm? It's tommorow and I'd like to know when I'm supposed to come. If not, I'm not too upset about missing it... I can wait three more days to get my hands on the collection.

I think I'll save my money for Sweetie Cake, since I just saw all the pictures of it. I think I like it better than Culturebloom now. Hopefully the quad isn't blah and boring like all the recent ones have been.

Boudoir Hues, I'm so disappointed in you. You too, Thunder Eyes. Laze Eyes, I'm not even gonna go there.

I actually don't feel the need to compulsively buy makeup right now. Amazing.

I can't help but feel a strange sense of glee when I open up my... what should I call it? Beauty Cabinet. Yes, I have one of those. It's around... 6'.5 x 2' x 2.5'-ish (yeah, pretty damn big) and overflowing with product. I don't keep my makeup in this, but I do keep most of my non-makeup beauty products. It's so full, I'm actually thinking about buying a second one.

My makeup, on the other hand, is stored in two different places. Lip products are in two large cases. Non-MAC are in a very cute makeup case that my mom got from QVC and gave to me for Christmas a few years ago... And MAC lip products are in my Tour de Pink traincase (which is full.) All low-end (Bonne Bell stuff, you never get too old for that!) are in a box that a Juicy Tubes gift set came in. And then there's my MLS which I've had to divide between 3 cases because my collection is getting out of hand. Whatever isn't in those places is in my purse/car/vanity/pockets/wherever.

Non-lip products, which includes facial skincare, foundations, concealers, blush, bronzer, beauty powder, primer, eyeshadow, liner, mascara... you get the picture... Are in a large roll-top desk which I use as a vanity. I'd also consider this to be overflowing with product. Between my vast collection of MAC eyeshadows and brushes and drawers of stuff I rarely use... I have enough for 4 lifetimes.


On to the point here... Yes, there is a point. The reason I'm mentioning all this is because I'm the only one who knows about it... Besides you, cause now you know. And knowing is half the battle! Er...

I don't have any friends that wear makeup. I have my mom, who got me my first makeup ages ago.. It was a complete Victoria Jackson set. She's now LOLA cosmetics... But I remember all of that first stuff. She started me out in high-end makeup (I suppose VJ was considered high-end) and I've never looked back.

I could say that two of my friends wear makeup, but one is the wrong-foundation-color and brown mascara type, and the other is the poorly applied orange bronzer and smudged-on-the-eyelid mascara type. I don't even consider that makeup... there's no beauty in that.. Unless you consider orange lines on the side of your face beautiful.

Yes, I am completely alone in my addiction. It's difficult, because I have no one to share it with. When I've tried, they just call me crazy. K always wants me to go shopping with her, and usually I oblige her. We go to the mall for HOURS at a time, I wait patiently in The Limited while she looks at clothes and shoes and who knows what.... We go into the Gap, Old Navy, New York and Co... And I am patient, as a shopping companion should be.

When we finally pass MAC, or Sephora... or hell, even Bath and Body works... Oh boy. I go into MAC for five damn minutes and I hear, "Is that guy wearing mascara?!" "$14 for that little thing of eyeshadow?!" "Who would wear that color?!" "I would never spend that much on makeup!!" "You don't need that!!" "You already HAVE a lipgloss!"

Never mind the fact that she just bought $300 worth of shoes that she'll probably wear once, and they pretty much all look the same. We won't even go into how much she spent on clothes. But nooooo. I look at the one thing I choose to spend my hard-earned money on and suddenly I'm the crazy one.

I guess I'll find someone eventually... But for now, I just have to deal with the fact that I'm insane.

My enormous product collection has become my secret dirty pleasure. I know that no one else I know has any of the things I have. It's my way of being a snobby bitch without even trying. I just loooove being able to open my cabinet and not be able to choose which perfume to wear today because I have so many of them... I love having 30 different kinds of shower gel to match my every mood... I love being able to wear 9 different colors of eyeshadow at the same time and make it look amazing, like a multi-faceted gem glimmering in the sun.

But one day, if someone comes along... Someone just as crazy as I am... I'm never gonna let them go.

You know... As much as I love my fashion/beauty magazines... They give some pretty bad advice.

I was reading the new issue of Allure today, and in the section about brights, they tell you to, get this, "Dust powder over your eyelids before applying shadow." Uh... yeah. And that's gonna help you HOW? By making your expensive high-end shadow (like a $48 Dior palette!) so sheer it just looks like drugstore shit?

I mean... that's the LAST thing I'd tell anyone to do. The reasoning they had for that was that a creamy base would cause your shadow to be blotchy... Yeah, blotchy if you're a dumbass and can't apply it or blend... Yeeeesh. Who writes for these magazines?!

Or like when they say to apply moisturizer before your self tanner... So that your expensive bottle of self tanner is practically useless? So none of it absorbs into your skin and you have to reapply 20 times to get any color? So you're streaky like some kind of skanky zebra? Yeah, if you know how to apply self tanner, you won't have a problem. But apparently the writers of Allure don't know how to do anything...


Well, I guess if you've seen pictures of the people who write for these magazines I guess you'll understand. They all look like lazy, greasy moms who don't shower or wear makeup... Yep. That definitely makes you the authority on beauty, eh? Isn't that right, Stinky?

Seems like this beauty blog has just turned into "Scrangie's Haul Blog". Which is okay, cause it's news to me! The only news items I've heard of lately are just previews of upcoming MAC collections. (Culturebloom!!!! WOOOHOO!!!)

Well, here's my mother-of-all-hauls.



M·A·C Tour De Pink
Prep + Prime, Lip
Iridescent Powder/Pressed, Belightful
Powder Blush, Mocha
Eye Shadow, Black Tied
Eye Shadow, Da Bling (already have this one.. Oh well.)
Eye Shadow, Dazzlelight
Eye Kohl, Smolder
Lip Pencil, Dervish
Lipstick, Plum Dandy
Lipstick, Politely Pink
Lipstick, Fetish
Pro Lusterlong, Lustrebloom
Tinted Lipglass, Pinkarat (Pinkarat is a lustreglass.. uh... Hello MAC?)
Lustreglass, Garden
Chromeglass Show Coral
Chromeglass Pinkocrasy
Chromeglass Uberpeach
Chromeglass Already Fab!
Chromeglass Prize Shine

It's not so bad! It's only a dollar a day... For the rest of the year.... >.>;;

And, I got some MLS... Panty Raid 6 pack, New Year's 6 pack and Bondage Babe call me balm. Heh.

Now I have to be extra good. Cause I have to pay my car insurance in march, my cell phone in february and my damn license plate sticker... today.

And Culturebloom!!!! CULTUREBLOOM!!! New Lustreglass and an LE BRIGHT GREEN!!! Can you tell I'm excited?

Current Sephora clearance haul:

Aquolina/Body Milk/16.9 oz Caramel Cream
Mor/Sorbet/.52 oz Lip Delight
Sephora/Camo Travel Bag Collection - Pink & White/Brush Set (x2, one for me, one for K)
Eyeko/Super Size Shine/2
Eyeko/Shea Shine/1
Jaqua/Cafe Collection - Sinfully Rich Body Butter/Chocolat
CITY Cosmetics/CITY Lips/SantiaGlow
Sephora/Stain & Gloss/Fig
Dessert Beauty/Taste Deliciously Kissable Fragrance/1.7 oz Eau de Toilette Spray (Backup!)
Dessert Beauty/Deliciously Kissable Hair & Body Mist/7 oz Dreamy
Dessert Beauty/Taste Deliciously Kissable Plumping Lip Fragrance Gloss/Delicious (Another backup!)
Dessert Beauty/Deliciously Kissable Plumping Lip Fragrance Gloss/Creamy (I only have the mini of this one!)
CITY Cosmetics/CITY Lips/Lush Vegas

I think I'm gonna get the rest of the Dessert line while it's all on clearance, cause I'm a sucker for stuff that smells like food. And I'm on the fence about the large camo tote bag, cause they just released the black and pink one and it's much cuter.

I'm definitely gonna jump on the MOR stuff if it ever comes back in stock. MOR Gelato is so amazing. And Nougat. And you can't beat ten bucks.

I really wanted another Jaqua buttercream body butter and the Chai Latte foot cream, but they're sold out.

YAY FOR CLEARANCE!

The countdown to Catherine Deneuve and Chromeglass: 3 days.
Culturebloom: Got a month at least.

I also heard a rumor that there's gonna be three new pigments coming out sometime soon.

Seems like MAC is releasing a new collection every two weeks now... I don't know how I'm gonna be able to afford this much longer.

Ok, I keep caving and buying more, even though I said I was waiting until Chromeglass:

Body Suit lipstick
Push-Up Plum lipstick
Daisy Daze
Coquettish Clarice
Miss Bunny
Cleo's Coral Kiss
Luv-4-Ever Pro Longwear Lustre
Luxuration nailpolish
Rich Ground fluidline
Dipdown fluidline
219 Brush
Boudoir Hues quad

So... the only things I didn't buy from Lingerie were... La-Di-Bra!, Bare Fetish, Pink Maribu and Sunday Best.

Ouch.

I also got some Bed Head body stuff, which I've never seen before. Oatmeal Cookie set. OPI Italian Love Affair, A Little Less Conversation, Essie Sugar Daddy, Essie set with a new crystal file, a hot red polish, a lotion and a cute bag, and Urban Decay Primer Potion, even though I hate Urban Decay. And a bunch of clearance Bonne Bell stuff, cause I don't care if it's for 8 year olds, you can never get too old for pink frosting flavored stuff in sparkly packages... Hehehe.

I think from the Catherine Deneuve Icon collection I'll get the Thunder Eyes (or was it Laze?) quad, one of the beauty powders in the cute compact, and the light pink lipglass. And from Chromeglass, I'll get whatever is cute.

I will be buying all of Culturebloom, except for the ugly brown lustreglass and lipstick, and the red lipstick. And probably the cremesticks, cause... I hate lipliner.

It's a good thing I'm making more money this month.

I also hit the Bath and Body Works 75% off sale. Got Apple Torta and Amaretti body souffles and the three Tutti Dolci glosses I didn't have (Mango Sorbetto, Raspberry Granita and Pineapple Chiffon.) And... I could swear I got something else, but I can't for the life of me recall exactly what it is.


But, it's not like I have an actual hobby.