Hey there! Just a quick review to prove to you that I haven’t quit blogging, and to prove to myself that there’s more to life than watching American democracy go down the toilet while I revise my dissertation abstract for the dozenth time. Today we’ll look at a product I’ve been using and enjoying for… Read More Kiko Long Lasting Stick Eyeshadow in Golden Mauve
Three-quarters of 2016 is gone, you guys! What happened? Well, at least one thing happened: I bought some makeup. And I spent the weekend on postdoc applications, so I didn’t get around to this post until now. Here we go: New Makeup/Polish: Essie Playing Koi: $9 NYX Matte Lipstick in Up the Bass: $6 Urban… Read More Low-Buy Progress Report #9: September
Earlier this year, I attended a department dinner in honor of a visiting speaker. One professor decided that the best topic on which to engage the graduate students near him was opera. He held forth about the various operas he’d seen recently in New York, and it turned out that quite a few of my… Read More Marc Jacobs Rei of Light and Bonus Super-Fun Class Anxiety
NYX expanded its matte lipstick line at the beginning of this year, adding some trendier colors to its extensive but mundane collection of reds, pinks, and nudes. The new shade that immediately caught my eye was Up the Bass, a medium purple with a large dose of gray. Because we were heading into spring at… Read More NYX Matte Lipstick in Up the Bass
…oh, and two eyeshadows, but who cares about those? I took a lipstick inventory six months ago and got rid of six products. But that didn’t come close to eliminating all the lip colors I no longer wore, and I returned from my travels last month with a clearer sense of what I could trust… Read More I Destashed 15 Lipsticks
A lot of stuff here! Let’s get into it: New Makeup/Polish: Marc Jacobs Le Marc Lip Creme in Rei of Light: $30 Studded X mini duo (Kat Von D Studded Kiss + Formula X) in Mercy: $7.50 NYX Velvet Matte Lipstick in Midnight Muse: gift from my mom NYX Jumbo Pencil in Black Bean: ditto… Read More Low-Buy Progress Report #8: August
I’ve struggled with eyeliner for my entire makeup-wearing career, which now spans six years. One of my first ventures into makeup involved a black Maybelline pencil eyeliner, with which I drew awkward, thick lines across my upper lashline. To my credit, I soon figured out that this looked terrible, but my second attempt wasn’t much… Read More I Guess I Wear Eyeliner Now: Urban Decay 24/7 in Demolition and Kiko Intense Colour in Black
I just finished The Scar, the second book in China Miéville’s Bas-Lag trilogy, which takes place in and around the diverse, sprawling, corrupt city of New Crobuzon. I love fiction about cities—not just set in them, but about them—and Miéville clearly shares my passion. The Scar centers on the linguist Bellis Coldwine, ex-girlfriend of the… Read More China Miéville Lipstick: NYX Velvet Matte in Midnight Muse
I’ve spent the past two weeks in dissertation jail, bouncing between several of San Francisco’s fine coffee shops while completing an extensive rewrite of my chapter on Thomas Hobbes. With the help of massive doses of caffeine, sugar, and k-pop (I’m good, I’m hot, I’m fresh, I’m fly!), I wrapped up the damned thing yesterday… Read More Beauty Shopping in San Francisco’s Japantown
After my little spending spree in the UK last month, I decided to go on a replacement-only makeup/polish no-buy for the month of July. I’m happy to report that I didn’t need any makeup or polish replacements and had no trouble avoiding new purchases. I don’t know why, but it’s much easier for me to… Read More Low-Buy Progress Report #7: July
Auxiliary Beauty 