Ellis Faas Spring 2012 Set: Ramblings & Swatches

I couldn’t let the spring season pass without mentioning this lovely set from Ellis Faas.  To be brief, I love it, but you probably already knew that.*  After all, Ellis Faas has never let me down before in terms of product quality before.

The only other set I own from the brand is the Summer ’11 offering, which was not worth the price to me since I didn’t love all three products equally.  This set though, this set is perfect.  There’s a tube of Creamy Eyes (a life-changing formula if I ever met one), one of Lights (gorgeous, indescribable finishes), and the requisite lip product.  The colors remind me strongly of spring, but they can easily be worn year-round.  And they complement each other so perfectly, it’s almost as if they were made for each other.

Well, they were in a way.  That’s why this is a set.

*You didn’t actually think I was going to brief, did you?  When has that ever happened on this blog?  More behind the cut, people!

Victoria’s Secret Come Closer Quad: Review & EOTD

I have to admit, I was astounded by how many of you gravitated to the Victoria’s Secret Come Closer quad in my Summer Collection preview post.  I’ve been so busy falling in love with the bronzers (they impart an unbelievably pretty sheen to my skin) that I may have abandoned the eyeshadows altogether.  Sacrebleu!

Luckily, I finally came to my senses and pulled out Come Closer for today’s EOTD.

The quad comes in a sleek, copper-colored case that practically screams ‘summer!’  I’m not sure whether it’s made of light metal or heavy plastic, but it definitely looks lovely on my vanity (which if you think about it, is really the only thing that matters).  Like all shiny things, the surface is prone to picking up fingerprints.

Inside, there’s a champagne pink, robin’s-egg blue, taupe, and soft white.  The eyeshadows are all

Keep Calm and Smile on: My Teeth-Whitening Regimen

I’m officially confused.  Is it regimen or regime?  Because I hear regime so much that I’m starting to think it’s regime…except a regime is not the same thing as a regimen, is it?  I always thought it was regimen.  Anyways, I digress…

Senior year Prom is supposedly a big deal.  And I’ve had it in the back of my mind every since this Beverly Hills excursion, where I helped my friend pick out a gorgeous, floor-length Banana Republic dress.  Even though I was completely burned out by the time Prom rolled around, I eventually decided to go.  As I got in my car, trying to come up with a plan to shower/change/do hair & makeup in approximately 20 minutes, I randomly burst into tears and drove all the way home crying.  And then I got home and cried for another hour.  By then, I knew I wouldn’t make it in time.  So I sat on the floor and stared at the carpet, wondering how I was going to write an article on Prom without having been there.  The next day I thought it would be a good idea to drink strong black tea at 1 am to help me sleep (LOGIC).  I may have gotten food poisoning somewhere in there too since I spent the day after that in a nauseous blur, trying not to move too much from my perch on a classroom desk and munching a few carrots.  And today, mail!  Why do important college things always get lost in the mail and cause me major anxiety?  I’m sending everything by certified mail from now on.

I digress again…

Despite these minor setbacks, I’m still trying to smile at least 50% of the time.  Partly because I believe in the theory that when you smile, you make yourself happier.  But mostly because I’m vain, and have discovered the joys of drugstore whitening.  This must be shared, my teeth are so much nicer than they were just a week ago.

If that’s not a ringing endorsement, I don’t know what is.  So as promised, my teeth-whitening regimen!

Back in January,

Searching for Shampoo: A Melodramatic Review in 3 Parts

Part I

My skin, teeth, and hair all hate me right now.  And while teeth are an easy fix (I’ll get into my whitening regimen sometime next week), my skin and hair are locked in a perpetual battle of compromise.  See, I’m really into lazy beauty, the kind that lets you enjoy your extra 10 minutes of sleep in the morning.  This means I can’t be bothered to blow-dry, brush, comb, or fuss with my hair in any way.  It’s morning, ok?  I want to eat my Fage 2% with honey, pop in my contacts, and worry about the rest of my makeup as I drive to school be done with it.

What does this no-comb, no-blow-dry hair require?  Oh, just a shampoo that gives my hair a little extra help in the no-frizz-extra-smooth department.  I believe we also call that shampoos which contain dimethicone, at least in the drugstore world.  And dimethicone in shampoo wreaks havoc on my skin.

Part II

Have you ever tried to hunt down a dimethicone-free, non-clarifying shampoo at the drugstore?  It’s like an Easter egg hunt, only 99% of the eggs have already been trampled by the Easter bunny.  So far, I’ve only found one ‘cone-free, sulfate free shampoo, and that would be Pure+Simple Finesse right here.  They make one for dry/color treated hair, and my locks are neither dry nor color treated, so I picked up the version ‘for normal hair,’ whatever that means.

Part III

Senna Mod Muse Part II: Lips

The order you voted on: lips, eyes, face

Actual order of my reviews: eyes, face, lips

Hmmm, I think I spy a discrepancy!  Never mind that though, since today marks the end of my Senna Mod Muse series, and I’ve managed to cover everything.  ’Tis the goal that matters, not the journey, right?  Or is it the other way around?

Of all their products, Senna’s Lip Lacquers seem to get the most love in the beauty blogger world.  They’re known for their long-lasting formulas and wearable shades (see previous review here).  The shade I have from the S/S collection is aptly name Bloom, dark pink in the tube, papaya when swatched, and juicy coral on my lips.  Senna describes it as as ‘hot house coral,’ so I suppose we could just go with that.