App Happy

Not soon after I joined Twitter, one of the few people that follow me tweeted that if I like makeup (um, more like love), I should follow BeautyLish. I took her suggestion to heart and did exactly that. From there I downloaded the iPhone application, giving myself access to a seemingly endless supply of images of gorgeous makeup and nails with just simple finger swipe. But for serious people, these users have mad skillz. Yeah, I wrote skills with a "z." That's how much talent the BeautyLish members possess.

Then, just last week, I received an email for $10 off in their recently launched online boutique. Being the beauty junkie that I am, I happily obliged. See, I have this problem with discounts...it is nearly impossible for me to refuse them. Especially on the following items:

- Nail polish
- Makeup
- Shoes

When my package arrived, I expected to find exactly what I ordered: a very pretty lip gloss that I of course totally needed (purchase rationalization is one of my greatest strengths).

But what I actually received was so, so much more.

Personalized notes, free samples, what more could a girl ask for?

Customer service is a big deal, and BeautyLish nailed it. And because it would be selfish to contain my excitement, I felt it necessary to send a little love their way...and perhaps some new customers? It was the least I could do to thank them for the discount, sample, and lovely notes.

Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go check out their nail community page to see if I can get any ideas for a St. Patrick's Day manicure...

Hair Apparent

Now for what you've all been waiting for (with bated breath I presume)...

Before: (looking much redder than in reality)

After: This picture shows minimal gradient, but in reality the color is a bit more obvious.

After: Curls, back

After: Curls, side.

Above photos, color and curls by Jamie.

Curls, closeup

Curls, closeup 2

I love love love the finished product. While I made Jamie deviate a bit from the package instructions, it came out perfectly. As my hair was pretty light to begin with, the overall result looks a bit more natural and therefore not so drastic.

Ombré looks better with curls and I have much still to master, but I can't wait to play with my new hair. Boredom averted.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Exp-hair-imenting

When it comes to my beauty routine, I get bored easily. This is clearly exhibited by more-massive-than-necessary make-up and nail polish collection. I don't have an everyday "face," (read: I spent a fair amount of time playing with eye and lip colors in the morning) and a few years ago I dyed my naturally blonde hair dark brown on a whim. And while I absolutely loved it, in less than a year I was ready to make another change, slowly finding my way back to light blonde.

Unsurprisingly, I am currently stuck in a hairstyle rut. I wear it straight every day. I have not seen my colorist in almost two years. It is safe to say that I am suffering from complete hair ennui. (Boredom sounds so much more sophisticated en Français, non?)

In an impulsive attempt to remedy the situation, I picked up a curling iron at Target on Sunday. Then, on Tuesday, I marched myself over to CVS and bought the new Feria Wild Ombré for a "DIY Dip Dye" home hair color experiment. I may be light years late on the ombré hair trend, but it seemed like the easiest solution to my hair color conundrum. So many French words! I'm sensing a theme...

The Tools

This weekend I have enlisted my friend Jamie to help me with both the bleaching process as well as to teach me her masterful ways with the curling iron. (I have tried to use it 4 times this week, all complete and utter disasters.)

I am hoping for a final result similar to this:

Oh hi Lauren Conrad, I like your hair! Image Credit LuLu ♥'s Makeup

Stay tuned...