Alright – all of my nerd tasks are done and Beauty Skeptic is cut over to the new host! Thanks for bearing with me through the technical transition.
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Site Maintenance
Things might be a little odd, stability-wise, around here for a little bit.
In Exciting Nerd News
Beauty Skeptic is in the process of migrating web hosting providers! This is largely an exercise in tedium, but I am really happy to be breaking up with BlueHost. It’s been a long time coming.
BUT
It might be a little bumpy because ye olde day job is hectic at the moment, as is school. Ergo, whereas I would normally run this migration like any other project, I can’t give it that level of priority right now.
Thanks for bearing with me through this change.
Lush Sexy Peel
Lush Sexy Peel Soap, $6.95
It’s been a minute. Life caught up and it had to be the priority. Frankly, it still does, but for the first time in a while I had some inspiration so I wanted to capture it.
TL;DR: I switched soaps to Lush Sexy Peel soap and have been using it for about a year. As I age, my skin seems to be inching closer and closer to pickiness. For some reason, my skin started to be less of a fan of Dove bar soap. This was a disappointment, because it is inexpensive, accessible, clean and neutral smelling. It worked for me for ages! I started down the Lush rabbit hole a few years ago, dipping my toe into bath bomb land but have come to appreciate a few other products of theirs since. It is, in a word, wonderful.
At the end of June 2019, I headed to Lush to treat myself for my then-upcoming birthday. My haul consisted of a few things, most notably Lush Sexy Peel soap. I plucked this unassuming-looking orange-scented one from the shelf and whisked it to the register with me. The friendly Lush employee wrapped it in a piece of thick paper (recyclable, yay), packed it with my other purchases, and sent me on my way.
Assumptions
At the time, it was a frivolous, novel purchase – like basically everything I bought there – and I didn’t have high expectations for the soap. I assumed that as a largely natural product it would not last very long and that. I also assumed that, although it smelled nice, it wouldn’t do much for my skin.
Bzzt, wrong.
Quick Take: Benefit Gimme Brow is Coming Back
I was sad when the recall of Gimme Brow came out. At the time, it seemed as though the product was being discontinued.
Then, after weeks with a new product and almost as soon as my post about that product went live, I got word that Gimme Brow is returning. Rather, at this point, has returned for online sales for the most part. It will be available in most stores by Friday.
The packaging, price, and shade range appears to be the same. The product now has a plus sign appended at the end of its name so it reads: Gimme Brow+. To me, this implies a reformulation. Based on the earlier recall, a reformulation makes sense to comply with eye safety standards…but then why throw on the + sign? There don’t appear to be any claims of enhanced efficacy, hold, conditioning, or any of that jazz.
As for me…
I still intend to use up my Ulta Brow Tint. I also still intend to try Glossier Boy Brow. But I’m delighted Gimme Brow is back and definitely plan to repurchase to verify that havoc wasn’t wreaked on it. That said, at $24 a tube, purchases will be limited to infrequent VIB and Ulta Platinum sales.
Makeup Destash
If you’re a makeup or beauty enthusiast, you likely end up with some products that do not appeal to you in the way you hoped (unless you’re some kind of beauty wizard who somehow only manages to buy products that work for you). This doesn’t necessarily mean those products are bad, but maybe they weren’t the best for your skin type or maybe the color wasn’t flattering on you. These are the products we should destash, but often aren’t.
It is hard to get rid of these items – maybe you’re holding out hope that something will work after all. Maybe you just can’t (and I can relate) bring yourself to get rid of it because you spent your hard-earned money on it and don’t want to admit to yourself that it was a waste. In reality though, if you aren’t using or enjoying it, it is already a waste.
At this point in my life, I am not interested in a gigantic collection. I find the idea overwhelming, actually, and I’d hate to invest that much money in products that wouldn’t be able to be used and loved often simply because I had so many. That preference, along with the fact that I lack abundant space to store such things, means I need to constantly reassess my collection and make sure I am satisfied with the level of use my products are receiving; if I am dissatisfied, I destash.
Admittedly, I had not conducted a destash in a while – not since mid-August. A busy season of my life was ending and I looked forward to relaxing and not having a miles-long to-do list. Recently, a community I am part of challenged us members to share the contents of their collections in a photo series. Going through and staging products to take these pictures was a great opportunity to reassess. In doing so, I found:
MAC Cosmo – to be destashed
- A MAC lipstick from my Glambot haul, Cosmo, had gone bad. I haven’t worn it since my July wedding, so sometime between then and now it went from MAC’s signature vanilla to smelling vaguely of cheap crayons. (I won’t blame Glambot for this – it isn’t like they have an effective way to test the age of the lipstick. EDIT: I’m a derp, which Alex points out in the comments. I’ve reached out to Glambot to see if they check batches because, well, they should). No questions asked – detash.
- My only Milani lip product feels great going on and smells like Kool-Aid – but the shade, Fruit Punch, is just not flattering – not when I have color from self-tanning, not when I’m pale. It went into my, “destash,” pile.
- I have two tubes of Rimmel Apocalips/Show-Offs: one in Solstice, one in Comet. The colors are very similar, definitely in the MLBB range (for me) but Solstice is cooler and has shimmer whereas Comet does not. I can’t remember even wearing Solstice (in fact, I purchased it on accident – a Solstice tube was in a Comet slot), and couldn’t think of a time soon where I would want to because I don’t care for shimmery lip products. Destash it is.
- This e.l.f. Studio Blush in Pink Passion is going in the destash pile because it is just too dang pink and looks silly (I think) on my face).
As for what becomes of the items I relegate to destash, it depends on why they’re being destashed and what they are. The MAC lipstick is being kept separate from my collection for Back2MAC. The Milani and Rimmel lip products, along with the blush will go to my younger sister who enjoys makeup. If it has gone bad, it goes in the trash unless a Back2MAC thing applies. If it is a prestige item that is still good and can be sanitized, I may try to trade it somewhere like /r/MakeupExchange or sell it to Glambot. These are some examples of what you can do to destash.
Identifying unused items is easy for me because my makeup collection isn’t very large. If yours is, or you just don’t know where to start, you can adapt the reverse-hanger trick that you might use in a closet to identify unworn clothes. Stage your makeup upside down or put it in a separate organizer, only returning it to its, “proper,” home after you have used it at least once. After a predetermined period of time (at least a month, but no more than three), anything left upside-down or in that separate organizer is what you should destash. (Give foundation/concealer some grace at your discretion if it is just a shade-match matter).
To avoid amassing a collection that is effectively beyond your use, try to keep things organized. Instead of stuffing everything into a battered makeup bag, you can get some (very inexpensive) organizers from Target, Wal-Mart, or wherever you please. The Container Store and IKEA are also good resources for this. Keeping things accessible helps you use your collection more effectively and helps keep you aware of what you have so you don’t wind up purchasing unwanted dupes and such (which helps you avoid needing to destash as often).
You should not feel the need to keep items you aren’t using–they will just wind up expiring. Even if it isn’t from disliking that product, if you aren’t using it it is just taking up space; it is one more thing to keep track of, organize, and so forth. It isn’t worth the time, and someone else might really enjoy that product (whether regifted or resold). Don’t become a hoarder!
WTF, Express?
Saturday’s Sass:
Express, what the actual fuck were you thinking?
Before I get into this, I’d like to point out that this is not a fashion blog. That being said, the two subjects are related so there may be some overlap. I don’t make a point of seeking things like this to write about, but I couldn’t help myself when I saw what I saw.
Backstory: I recently decided that I would like to invest in a decent blazer at some point. I have a blazer but it isn’t sturdy and isn’t versatile. I opened a few browser tabs to get an idea of what is currently available from various retailers. The Express website, www.express.com, tosses you onto a landing page with some current promotional info and where you then choose if you want to shop Womens, Mens, Sale, etc. This is what I was greeted with when I clicked the, “Womens,” link:
Nopenopenope. On the left – let’s not try to pass off drawstring, elastic-waist pants worn with a crop top and stilettos as chic. Especially not when those pants have tapered legs and what really feels like an athletic stripe down the side. Protip: Contoured cheekbones do not make you stylish. Neither does simply standing in what appears to be New York City.
On the right – jumpsuits (that are not intended as an occupational uniform) are against my religion, and they should be against yours too because they flatter no one. They’re awkward on the model, and they’re ridiculous on people who do not resemble matchsticks. Can we talk about this? This specific jumpsuit is called their, “Strapless Track Pant Jumpsuit.” Hot damn, what’s more stylish than track pants? Obviously track pants with a shapeless, drapey tube top attached. Listen – I used to run competitively. Please run just 50 meters in that. Bonus points if you don’t ditch the heels. Let me know how it goes for you.
The, “About,” section of their website states the following:
Express is the must-have sexy, sophisticated fashion brand for work, the weekend, or going out. It’s what’s new and what’s now for young fashion-forward women and men.
Really? Interesting. For most people, work clothing =/= sexy. The above is neither sexy nor sophisticated. Fashion forward? Maybe – but things like this are why my eyebrow is raised near-perpetually when it comes to fashion. I swear the designers just run out of ideas every now and then and make things like this to troll people. Don’t be the guy that designs or buys this nonsense.
Until writing this final sentence, I never did check out their blazers – none of their inventory appeals to me…but I’d be lying if I said that nonsense above didn’t leave a bad taste in my mouth. Keep trying, Express.