Gumdrop Mountain

Blue Lipgloss, eBay, MAC Dazzleglass

2008-04-23T10:53:00.000-07:00

I'm normally a bit of a paranoid germaphobe who would never dream of sharing cosmetics with anyone, but from time to time I buy cosmetics on eBay. I figure that as long as the seller has 100% positive feedback from thousands of buyers, I'm pretty safe.
And of course, the product has to be NEW, not, "Tested only once!".

So, I bought a California Kissin' gloss from Benefit on eBay yesterday, at $9.60 after S&H it was much cheaper than buying it from Benefit ($16 plus S&H).

Cool tones are very flattering to me, and I'm excited about the blue lip glosses that have been coming out lately. The only blue gloss I have right now is from Prestige (a cheapish drugstore brand), in "Ice". I think it is a discontinued color, actually.

The blue is a very white-blue, I can't wear it on its own because it makes me think of trashy girls with bad taste who wear very light lip gloss thick on their lips to make their tans seem darker.
I cringe when I see goopy whitish lip gloss. Who wants to look like a cheap porn star?
Now, when I wear this gloss over red lipstick- spread on very thin- it looks wonderful. It doesn't make the lipstick look purple (since the blue on top is thin and translucent), it just gives it a cooler tone and gives the color a sort of luxurious depth to it.

I'm excited about trying California Kissin', and MAC's new Dazzleglass in Comet blue- because they look like sheerer blues, without the white-icing look of my Prestige gloss.

I just checked MAC's website, and Dazzleglass is available! I'm ordering two, both in Comet blue. Funtabulous (violet) looks nice, and I may order it if there are any left Friday.
Dresscamp went so fast, I'm sort of paranoid about getting the colors I want before they disappear!

Drugstore Deals!

2008-04-20T20:31:00.000-07:00

I was recently gifted with a $50 Walgreens gift card, today after work I went and bought some goodies. They had some really good deals this week!

Top row:
Noxema bikini shavers, a 3-pack with a free 3-pack attached. 2.99!

Sinful Nail Polish in 'This is it' #832 (yellow gold). I'll wear a layer of Rimmel 'Dazzle' #606 (a sort of sheer, cooler toned gold) over it. 1.99!

Cool Water Summer Fizz, 3.4oz EDT. Nice and summery orange-ish fragrance. I don't really like Cool Water for women, but this is nice. $29.99.

Almay Oil-Free eye make up removal pads, about 5.89 each but they were buy one get one free, so I stocked up. About $12 for the four of them.

Middle row:
Rembrandt Toothpaste (wintergreen), on sale for $6, plus a $3 off coupon attached to the package. $3.00!

Neutrogena Age Shield Face Sunblock SPF 70, regularly $10.99 but 25% off this week, plus a $2 off coupon from my Walgreens Beauty Advisor- about $6.25!

Walgreen's brand container of 75 dual-tipped applicators, I MUST have these on hand to fix eye makeup and nail polish mistakes! About $1.30.

Bottom row:
All Almay was BOGO, so I got a Clear Complexion Concealer (which I needed- I can't use my regular under-eye concealer on the occasional breakout or it makes it worse), and Smart Shade Blush in Berry #030. I cracked open the blush, it comes out of the tube as a
sort of specked grey-purple-pink cream, and blends to a light berry stain, very natural-looking.
I tried a second layer for more color, and that looks pretty good, too. About $8.59 for the two.

Two pots of Ice Cream Dreams lip balm, one in Peach, one in Bubblegum. These are little containers of lip balm shaped like ice cream cartons, I mostly bought them because the packaging is so freaking cute. About $4.00 for the two.

Kiss Nail files, LE ones printed with names of different cities. I got Tokyo, London, and New York.
They also had Milan, Los Angeles, and Paris.
These are cute! So much more fun than a regular pink or black file. And they are only .99 each!
About $3 for the three of them.

I went about $25 over my gift card. I didn't need that fragrance, but I wanted something summery. If I skipped that, I would've had a bit left over on the card, but I did pretty good otherwise. Those BOGO deals are great! There are certain beauty supplies I'm willing to spend more on, but certain products that are available at drugstores are not only really good prices- they also are great quality products.
I've been using Neutrogena sunblock for a while now, and it is really gentle on my skin. Aveeno is another good drugstore sunblock, but there is less of a selection.
Almay eye make up removal pads work really well for me, the oil-free ones at least.

New Books, Crazy Home Decor, Makeup Update

2008-04-19T12:13:00.000-07:00

I've been pre-ordering books on Amazon. David Sedaris has When You Are Engulfed in Flames coming out June 3rd.
"Sedaris's sixth essay collection assembles essays on trying to make coffee when the water is shut off, associations in the French countryside, buying drugs in a mobile home in rural North Carolina, having a lozenge fall from your mouth into the lap of a fellow passenger on a plane, armoring windows with LP covers to protect the house from neurotic songbirds, lancing a boil from his backside, and venturing to Tokyo in order to quit smoking."
I LOVE Dave Sedaris (and Amy, too). He is just HILARIOUS. I have a thing about funny writers who come from crazy families.

Augusten Burroughs has A Wolf at the Table: A Memoir of My Father coming out at the end of this month.
His work is much darker than Sedaris's, and this looks even darker than his past work.
You can download a free chapter on Augusten's site. It really is a more than a bit disturbing.

In addition to pre-ordering those two books, I ordered Look Me in the Eye: My Life with Asperger's by John Elder Robison, who is Augusten Burrough's older brother. Augusten was born Christopher Robison, I didn't know that until a few months ago. Christopher Robison makes me think of Winnie-the-Pooh.
I'm mildly interested in Asperger syndrome- any disorders involving 'poor social skills', really.
But, what really interests me is reading about the same dysfunctional family from the viewpoints of two different family members. I'm curious to see what Robison has written, how it compares to Augusten's experience.

I've been working on making large silhouette wall art for my bedroom walls. I love wall decor that is big, unexpected, and unique. Right now I have a huge cardboard cut-out of a cat mask hanging above my computer desk, maybe 3' wide by 3.5' high.

I got it from the local Target store several years ago. For their Halloween decorations they had these big mask cut-outs hanging from the ceiling. I saw the cat one and knew I had to get my grubby paws on it one way or another. So, I pestered the Target people until they agreed to give me a call as soon as the Halloween signs came down.

I'm sure quite a few people would find my decorating style to be incredibly tacky, but I like fun things. I'm in love with this monster wall hanging:

But, it costs about $390, and I couldn't justify spending that much money on it. Maybe if it were twice as large- 8'x4' instead of 4'x2'. I would save for it if it were HUGE, and make it the focal point of a whole room.
Yoyashop.com, designpublic.com, and velocityartanddesign.com
all carry the wall hangings and the Fauna pillows made by the same manufacturer.
I think they're great but way over-priced. I love pigeons and they have a pigeon pillow:

I'm not willing to pay $48 for a 13"x10" throw pillow, however.
But it does inspire me to buy a silkscreen kit and whip up a whole flock of pigeon pillows. I have to say, while I like Fauna's photo images of animals, I really don't appreciate the cut-out shapes, some of their pillows look lumpy and awkward, like a middle-schooler's home economics craft project. They'd be more appealing on regular square or rectangle shapes, I think.

MAKEUP UPDATE:
I was pretty satisfied with the Make Up For Ever shadow. It lasted with no creasing (although I always use a primer with shadow, so who knows how it would be without). The quality was very good, but I don't think I'd buy it again. It isn't better than MAC shadow, and MAC is cheaper and has more colors (although MUFE has quite a few also). The color was pretty different from what Sephora shows on their site, Khaki Brown 148 is described as 'antique gold shimmer' and the swatch shown looks very warm-toned. The actual shadow is very dull brown-olive with some shimmer but not what I'd expected. It is a very flattering tone, but just for once I'd like the site's image and the actual product to look the same.

I ended up buying my Too Faced Lip Injection Extreme on Ulta's online shop. It is the same price as with Sephora, and I needed some other Ulta stuff. At $27.50 it isn't a cheap lip plumper, but it works so well, and I've bought Lip Venom frequently at $16 for a teeny little 0.12 oz vial. So, it isn't an awful price.

Sephora Nail Polishes, Philosophy Cinnamon Buns, and Too Faced Extreme Lip Injection

2008-04-18T19:28:00.000-07:00

I got my order from Sephora in today- just some bodywash, nail polish, and an eyeshadow.
(that's my little Tortie , O'llie, up in the top of the picture. She likes to hang out while I'm experimenting with makeup, and never laughs if I try something really out there)

The bodywash is philosophy Cinnamon Buns, my absolute favorite. Using it is like rolling around naked on top of a giant cinnamon bun. Philosophy says it can be used as a shampoo also, but I don't think it makes a very good shampoo. :/

The nail polishes are Sephora brand. Lacquer polish L21 Mangue & nail polish #60 are the same exact orange.
Their turquoise blues in the lacquer and the polishes are the same, also.
Since some of the nail polishes are only $2 compared to $4 for the lacquer,
if there is a color in the cheaper one I get that, since I always use a base coat and a top coat anyway. The orange is nice, sort of pumpkiny, and bright without getting too bright.
The other polishes are nail polish #57 (lavender purple) and lacquer L23 Myrtille (what I'd call a deep periwinkle blue). All of the polishes are solid cream-types, no glitter or shimmer to them.
Sephora's polishes are great, and I like that they come in smaller, less expensive bottles- especially for the odder colors I probably won't wear often.

The eye shadow is from Make Up For Ever- I'd never tried their products but have heard good things about them. I bought a khaki brown color, it went on smoothly, has a lot of pigment, and blends very well. I'm waiting to see how it is on my lids after about six hours or so before I start raving about it and buying more.

OKAY. One of the samples included in my order was for Too Faced Extreme Lip Injection. I'm always looking for a better lip plumper... my lips are pretty full on their own, but I like a really full look. I dabbed on a bit from the sample packet- it is a thick clear gel- and right away my lips were a deeper pink color. In fact, all around the edges of my lips, where I got a bit messy with the gel, were also pinkish. I got suspicious and wondered if this was going to be like Smashbox's O-Glow, where they make claims about micro-circulatory effects but in reality the clear gel turns pink once it is exposed to air.
The Lip Injection remained clear when I dabbed it on my hand, however. "How odd", I thought, "if my lips are turning pink from the effects of the plumper you'd think I'd feel somethingGAAARRRRHHH!!!!". The stinging that I felt didn't hit until about a minute after I had put it on. it is unlike any lip plumper- tingling/ burning sensation I've felt. It was really like lots of tiny tiny needles stabbing my lips. I LIKE a bit of a burn, but for a few minutes until the stinging stopped, I wanted to run away from my own lips.
I wish I'd had thought to take a before picture. I really didn't think this stuff would have much effect, especially since it says on the back of the packet, "for maximum long term results, use for a minimum of 30 days- am and pm". That made me think it was more of a hydrating sort of treatment, to reduce lines and increase the volume a bit over time.

My top lip is usually quite a bit thinner than the bottom, as you can see in the above picture the Lip Injection evened things out a lot. The bottom is a bit plumper than usual, but the top lip nearly exploded. I LOVE this. This is so not the lip plumper for anyone with sensitive lips, but it has worked better than anything I've tried in the past.
My lips are still very full and it has been nearly three hours since I applied it. The only thing I don't like is how my lips are still an irritated-pink color at the edges, I will have to be careful applying this in the future.

*trots off to Sephora's site to buy a tube*

Pets, Cookie Magazine, and Etsy

2008-04-17T15:01:00.000-07:00

I've been watching my mother's pets since last night and have to give Jack, her geriatric pitbull, his insulin shots. There are few things I hate having to do more than give animals injections.
I kept saying, "sorry sorry sorry sorry" as I grabbed his scruff and jabbed him with the needle- he didn't even seem to feel it, but I was so paranoid I'd done something wrong.I had to keep looking in on him every ten minutes or so. "You alive?" Like he'd answer yes or no either way.

I've been reading through a copy of Cookie Magazine from my mother- she isn't trying to drop subtle hints as far as I know- the ladies at her work pass around magazines quite a bit. I thought it was funny how much I (a childfree woman) enjoyed this magazine.
It really is quite darling! I really got a kick out of the article on dollhouses- ducklings were included in the photoshoot-

Check out McDuckyPants inside the house on the back! Had they included close-ups, I'm sure it would've been CuteOverload-worthy material.
'Cookie' didn't, at any point, make me wish for a munchkin of my own, but I did keep stopping and thinking, "Oh, that would be PERFECT for ______'s kid". I like to keep a small supply of baby/ child items on hand for gifts on short notice, and I saw so many good ideas in 'Cookie'.

One great gift idea I found by browsing through Etsy- Baby Mohawk hats! They're from Infantile (and they have adult ones also, I think I'd wear a black one).

How cute it that? Very cute! But I would have to get one in a unisex color for my gift stash.
This is the sort of thing, where if no friends or co-workers announced an upcoming baby, in a year or so I could just say, "To hell with that, I'm keeping this and one of the cats can wear it".

It is easy to get lost on Esty- there is so much to look through! For those who don't know, Etsy is, "Your place to buy & sell all things handmade", the variety of products is amazing- from fine diamond jewelry to handsewn cat toys. Many of the items are one of a kind, this is a great site to
find unique accessories.

The sweetest shop I've come across on Etsy is Ugly Kitty's. Quasi is a rescued kitty with a smooshed-in face, and her human has raised over $1800 for shelter cats so far through her Etsy shop. I think Quasi is adorable, sort of a cat/ French Bulldog hybrid. Check her out!

Vogue, Superhero Style and Retro-futuristism

2008-04-16T15:38:00.001-07:00

I don't usually buy Vogue, but I'll be buying several of the May issue- check out some of the photos posted today in the LJ community 'fotodecadent':

This last one especially thrills me- what a wonderful piece of art that dress is!
It looks like she belongs lives in a retro-futuristic world where all the policemen carry
Atomic Disintegrators.

And of course, all the bad guys would carry guns like the one below by Weta Collectibles.

It is such a good thing that, at $690, this is out of my price range. Because if I could get my grubby paws on this baby, I would totally spend my days jumping out of alleyways and from behind parked vehicles, aiming this at passerbyers and making obnoxious, "PEWPEWPEW", 'raygun shooting sounds'.

Candy Review- Pocky Strawberry, Cute Fabrics and Totes from Japan

2008-04-16T13:48:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure if Pocky can rightfully be considered a candy, but I'm going to stick it in that category. In my mind, the cookie sticks only serve as a vehicle for the candy-like outer coating.
I bought these over a month ago at Cost Plus World Market, totally in love with the packaging- they make me think of Strawberry Shortcake in Strawberry Land.

The box came with four packs with six sticks in each one,
each pack has a cute print of little strawberries and the Glico logo.
When I opened the first pack, the strawberry scent hit me right away. The scent was so strong, I was surprised how mild the strawberry taste was. The ingredients list includes both dried strawberries (you can see the little bits suspended in the cream coating) and artificial strawberry flavor. The taste of the cookie stick actually stood out more than the outer coating.
I was a bit disappointed, but since I bought the box for the excellent packaging, I really can't complain.

I am trying to decide on what I'll order from Shinzi Katoh's website. If I had the money, I would order one of every item, but I can't do that. The tote bags are oh-so-adorable, and there are aluminum bottles to match quite a few of the totes. They also have some vinyl-coated bags, they cost quite a bit more than the totes
(around $50 compared to about $18 for the totes) but seem like they would be sturdier, and they are a nice, big size. This one with the Elephant/ Oranges is too cute!

I use tote bags all the time, since I like to carry my sketchbook with me. Tiny purses just don't do it for me, and I don't want to run into anyone with even a similar bag to what I'm carrying.
Here in Phoenix, it seems like every other girl and woman has a real or fake Coach or Louis Vuitton bag on her arm. It all strikes me as being so unbelievably boring.
Shinzi Katoh has a selection of fabrics, not a lot but the ones they do have are darling.
Another online shop carrying some Shinzi Katoh products, and a much wider range of cute fabric, is Nuno-plus, they have a lot of teeny-tiny adorable prints. The fabric can get expensive, over $20 for a yard, so check Reprodepot first if you are in the USA, they carry quite a few of the same exact fabrics at cheaper prices.

Candy Reviews- Hot & Cold

2008-04-15T16:53:00.000-07:00

I bought a bar of Frey's Hot Chilli Pepper chocolate (described on their site as, "Extra fine dark chocolate with an extra hot kick".) last week. I've been holding onto it, because my dentist warned me about eating spicy foods after having my wisdom teeth out. I decided it was safe today, and tried my first square.

I let a small piece of the chocolate dissolve in my mouth. The dark chocolate is extremely rich and smooth. A few bits of dried chili (the fourth ingredient after chocolate liquor, sugar, and cocoa butter) trickled to my throat along with the melting chocolate, and created a slight 'burning' sensation. Once most of the chocolate had dissolved, I was left with most of the dried chili pieces in my mouth, and then I could actually taste the chili instead of just a plain 'hot' flavor.
The next piece I chewed and ate, and that created a better effect- the heat of the chili and the smoothness of the chocolate combined perfectly, and afterwards there was the slight flavor of chili in my mouth.

Now, Frey's website claims they are Switzerland's #1 chocolate. I have to wonder, does that mean they are the best? Or, if I were to tell a Swiss person I like Frey, would they think, "EEEEEEWWWW. Nasty."? I mean, here in America, certain things that are popular and considered to be '#1' are NOT always the best, they just appeal to the lowest common denominator. So I wonder....

After savoring the last of my square of Hot Chilli Pepper chocolate and pondering over what the Swiss like, I decided to finish with my last Ice Cube.

With an ingredients listing of: "partially hydrogenated coconut oil, sugar, low fat cocoa, whey powder, soy flour, hazelnut paste, lecithin, spice, and natural flavor", one might expect these to taste sort of nasty. One would be wrong.
These are the smoothest, meltiest chocolates I've ever had.
I used to get these all the time, they were easier to find when I lived in the NorthEast.
Here in the SouthWest, especially at this time of year, if I want them I have to order them online and pay extra for the shipping option that keeps them cold. So, I savored the last one in my stash. What makes these great is how they manage to make them taste cool.
It has to be that hazelnut paste.

Rescue Beauty Nail Polish

2008-04-15T10:28:00.000-07:00

I recently ordered a nail polish from Rescue Beauty Lounge- Recycle, a deep green.

I've been wanting a dark green ever since I wasn't able to get Nars Zulu last winter. I don't usually like paying a lot for a nail polish, MAC is usually a splurge for me at $10 or so.
Recycle ended up costing me about $25 after shipping, but I figured I deserved
a treat since I'd just had my wisdom teeth out, and my face was all swollen, lopsided and painful.
I have to say, I'm very happy with this product- two coats are enough for perfect coverage, and it dries fast to a high shine.
I'm already planning my next purchase- they have a great violet, Purple Haze, that is tempting.

Ah, and MAC's Dress Camp collection is out today.

This is the lipstick, "Too Fab":

Too Barbie-doll pink for me, I can't see putting that on my lips, it would make me look like a preteen. I love the package design with those zebra-stripes, though.

The compact is another story, however:

Bright pink blush usually works really well on my place skin, as long as I don't go crazy with it.
And the shadows look very usable for summer.

The Lipglass lip glosses are nice colors- a gold and what looks like a more silvery pink, but I don't like super-shiny lips, so they wouldn't work for me.

EDIT: Awwwww, same day and EVERYTHING is already sold out? I can't believe it, honestly. I suppose I will keep checking back to see if they miraculously restock- I know that seems unlikely but I've seen it happen at least with the little Fafinette figures, Ermine was marked sold out but then was available again (and now is sold out again, glad I got her when I did!). *prays to the makeup gods*

Lipstick Tube Art

2008-04-14T20:32:00.000-07:00

I have a problem buying makeup. I have quite a bit of makeup that I will never, ever, use, because using it would ruin the pretty design. Most recently I bought the new Relvon "A Floral Affair", the color looks like it is perfect for me, but I'll never find out because one
swipe of a blush brush and the pretty embossed design would be ruined forever.
I have a powder compact from Physcian's Formula that I can never use, because I can't bear to ruin the design with Marilyn Monroe's face on it.
So, I really prefer products with pretty PACKAGING to those where the product itself is decorative.
I'm noticing decorative lipstick tubes everywhere recently, I'm hoping this trend keeps up, because some of these designs make the product into miniature, collectable works of art.

First, from Cargo (off topic, but they make a great blush), we have Planet Love lipstick:

"A lipstick tube made entirely out of corn - a renewable and abundant resource. This environmentally-friendly innovation also emits less greenhouse gases, which many scientists believe to be the major cause of global warming. The outer carton is made of flower paper embedded with real flower seeds. Simply moisten, plant, and wait for a bouquet of wild flowers to grow!"
How awesome is that? I think it is just crazy- almost the equivalent of a lipstick tube you could eat once the lipstick is gone. Except, with pretty design printed on each tube, I'd be saving mine.

Next, from Paul & Joe, check out their 2008 spring collection's packaging:

Such pretty designs, I had a bit of a hard time finding a shop that sells these.
One online store hqhair.com has their products, including the ones pictures above.

Besame Cosmetics has their exquisite little gold lipstick cases that could make anyone feel glamorous:

I'm in love with MAC's Fafi line, a lot of the colors are sold out on their site by now, but not HighTop, my new favorite lipstick color.

It looks more orchid-ish in the picture, but on my lips it is a cool gray-purple with aqua-blue shimmer. The art on the tube is great, the Fafinette featured on the package is Eriko, I love her orange hair.
Their Heatherette line has some nice packaging, too. I'm not into Heatherette- a lot of their designs just make me cringe- but I'm glad to see that they're not just using boring black tubes.
I'm very excited about the upcoming MAC LE lines (THANK YOU temptalia.com, such a great resource for sneak-peaks).

The orange tubes of their Neo Sci-Fi collection are making my mouth water....

Ink Portrait of Walter and his Cat

2008-04-13T17:30:00.000-07:00

I first saw Walter's photo in a LiveJournal community. There is something about this portrait that struck me as being so sweet, and it hit me pretty hard emotionally. On pain medication after having my wisdom teeth pulled and still hurting from the loss of my cat late last year, I got all weepy and imagined a bleak back story to the picture where either the cat had died and Walter was devastated, or where the cat was still alive but very old and sick. I was inspired to attempt an ink portrait of Walter and his cat.

It didn't come out exactly as I'd hoped, but I think I captured quite a bit of the feel of the original picture. It looks quite different from most of my other drawings- I'm not used to doing portraits. I hope that if Walter saw it, he'd be flattered or at least amused by it. He seems like a cheerful and fun guy, so I'm guessing he wouldn't be upset.

But, anyway, I was inspired to try more portraits and I started an ink drawing of my Mummy from one of her old school pictures. If it doesn't come out looking hideously unflattering, she'll be getting it on Mother's Day (but don't worry, she'll get something nice, too, HA).

The Elusive Happy-Faced Mug

2008-04-13T14:22:00.000-07:00

Early last year I found this adorable little mug on FredFlare and bought one for my cat to drink his water out of (my cats prefer cups to bowls, no, they don't pick them up and drink out of them, but only because they lack opposable thumbs. If I had me a polydactyl cat, I tell you I'd have it not only picking up their cups, but also using little forks and knives to eat with. Oh yeah.)

On the other side it says, "Bonjour! Ca Va?" Cute, isn't it? Yes. Yes, it is.
Anyone who knows me very well knows I adore anthropomorphic kitchenware. I grew up in a household where we named the toaster. We named every damned kitchen appliance we had. I can hardly remember anything of one year of HS French beyond, "Bonjour! Ca Va?", but I will never forget that my family's first microwave was Mikey the Microwave.
While such an environment in my formative years may have meant a lifetime of madness for a weaker-minded individual, I am made of stronger stuff. I just put a lot of wiggly-eyes stickers on my belongings and collect stuff like the above mug.

I decided I had to have more happy faced mugs before they stopped selling them. And, Oh! FredFlare now carried them in green and blue in addition to pink. But they always seem to be sold out, and $9 seems a bit high for a little plastic mug. So I started looking for other happy-faced-mug-suppliers, and found these sites.

I've known about ReproDepot for a while, but I have no idea when they started selling housewares. Apparently the mug manufacturer is Cram Cream, and ReproDepot has a whole section of their goodies. They aren't quite the same style as the ones sold at FredFlare- these are stackable and come in a wider range of colors. Also, there is a winking happy face on the reverse side of the mug.

But even though the bottoms are tapered a bit to make them stackable, I don't think they'd be easily knocked over. So they are still suitable cat-cups. And, only $6.50 each.

The next place I found these mugs was at The Glitter Workshop. If I wasn't on an obsessive quest for cuteness, I wouldn't have come across this little shop, and that would've been too unfortunate.
They carry the stackable mugs (in cream-color) at $6.00, and the pink and blue ones identical to the ones sold at FredFlare- for only $5 each. They had a better image of the stackable mug on their site, lookit that face. D'awwwwwwwww. Who could resist?

Besides their OBVIOUS function as cat-cups, these could possibly be used for small children as well. Not the ones in the sippy-cup phase, but the ones who can drink from a cup without making a slobbery mess who need a small cup for their little hands.

Lemon Yellow

2008-04-12T20:29:00.000-07:00

I'm very into citrus-y, tangy, lemon yellow right now. It puts me in a summery mood, and the scent is just very refreshing now that it is starting to get unpleasantly hot out.

I love a good lemon scented lotion, any lemon-y skincare product actually.
My favorite that I'm using right now is Booth's 3-in-1 Multi-Action Body Lotion in Lemon Sugar.

I got it at my local Walgreens, it was a new item they were just setting out, a 32oz bottle for 9.99.
It has alpha hydroxy acids and caffeine to firm the skin. The scent is wonderful, like a buttery lemon cookie. This seems like a hard-to-find product. Usually I can find something online before I see it on store shelves, but the only place I've seen this is at Walgreens. Their site doesn't have it, but they do have a coconut-fig version of the same product.
Walgreens also has a good lemon lotion in their Apothecary line. The scent is a bit more tart, less sugary and buttery than the Booth's lotion, and the price isn't as good, it is about 7.99 for an 8oz bottle.
They also have a lemon cuticle balm that is almost an exact copy of Burt's Bees. Burt's Bees calls theirs a "lemon cuticle creme", but it is more like a wax or balm than a cream.

Even though I have an open tin of the Burt's Bee's brand stuff, when I got a gift set containing the Walgreens lemon balm last holiday season, I had to open it to do a side by side comparison. I couldn't see or smell any difference, so I looked up their ingredients lists, and they are both the same: Sweet Almond Oil , Beeswax , Lemon Oil , Tocopheryl Acetate , Tocopherol - Vitamin E , Cocoa Butter , Candelilla Wax , Rosemary Extract , Beta Carotene. Exactly the same on both!
So, I might just start buying Walgreen's version in the future, it costs $3.99 compared to about $5.99 for BB's.

Another yummy lemon-scented body product- philosophy's Frozen Lemon Custard.
It doesn't have a strong lemon scent, more sweet and... custard-y. It has that good-enough-to-eat scent a lot of philosophy's products have. And like their other 3-in-1s, it makes a great body wash/ bath gel, but kind of sucks as a shampoo. :(

Makeup-wise, the only yellow product I own is in a L'Oreal HIP shadow duo, #538 Flamboyant. I've used it,
and it isn't terrible, but it really is hard for me to use yellow without looking sickly.
Yellow nail polish just makes me cringe. I don't want people to wear yellow nail polish around me. And I see yellow polish on the toenails as a good indicator of poor taste. *EEEWWWWW*

Moving along. For candy, because you have to have candy, two great lemon candies:
Ferrara Pan Lemonheads. You can visit their site and take a mini-virtual-tour to see how they are made! Pretty fascinating, no? It involves a lot of machines that look like you could lose an arm in them, and a lot of swirling around to get that nice shiny yellow exterior.

For a more sophisticated candy that it less likely to leave hard candy deposits in your teeth after chewing, Frey chocolate in Citron & Poivre is excellent. I try a different flavor from the brand whenever I visit Target, this flavor is described on Frey's site as, "Extra fine dark chocolate with a refreshing dash of lemon and black pepper". I know this may make me weird, but I wish I could taste more black pepper in it,the citrus taste was more obvious to me. But, the whole combination worked out quite well.