Glow by Lady E

I was eyeing another shade. I fit both and I was surprised that this looked better on me.  That’s an advantage of shopping in person I enjoy browsing online shops. It’s convenient, I can compare products without leaving home, and there’s always something interesting to discover. But given the choice, I still prefer shopping in person. There’s something about being able to see a product with my own eyes that no amount of scrolling can quite replace. Colors, for one. A lipstick that looks like a beautiful rosy pink online might turn out to be much warmer in person. A blouse that appears lavender in a photograph might actually lean toward gray. Even the lighting in a store can change how a color looks, but at least I can examine it from different angles. Then there’s texture. I like being able to feel the fabric of a dress, examine the finish of a notebook cover, or see how substantial a bag really is. Sometimes a product looks wonderful in photographs, but the material tells a ...

I ’ve been reaching for cream makeup more often lately. My skin is very dry, so cream formulas have become particularly appealing to me. I generally find them more comfortable to work with, especially when I want makeup that doesn’t emphasize dryness. That’s why a recent eyeshadow purchase surprised me. I tried the BYS Mallow Touch Bouncy Clay Eyeshadow palette, expecting something closer to the cream eyeshadows I’ve enjoyed using. The colors are lovely, and the palette certainly looks promising. But the application wasn’t quite what I expected. Instead of looking smooth on my eyelids, the eyeshadow appeared noticeably dry. It was also difficult to blend, which made the application less enjoyable than I’m accustomed to with cream formulas. What surprised me most was that this isn’t usually how cream eyeshadows behave on my lids. Or was I just having an extra dry day? 😆 Of course, not every cream formula is the same. Some have a softer, more emollient texture, while others fee...

I skipped these palettes. They’re very pretty, but won’t work on me There are colors I find absolutely beautiful but rarely wear. An eyeshadow palette might have the loveliest arrangement of shades. A lipstick might look irresistible in its packaging. A blouse might catch my attention simply because the color is gorgeous. But I’ve learned that admiring a color and actually using it are two very different things. Some shades look wonderful in the pan but don’t translate quite the same way on my skin. I was told coral would look lovely on my skin, but it just turns into a gaudy orange! 🙄 Others look beautiful on someone else but don’t flatter me in quite the same way. And sometimes, a color suits me perfectly but doesn’t work with anything else in my wardrobe. That’s the difference between a pretty color and a useful one. A useful color doesn’t necessarily have to be neutral or practical in the conventional sense. It can be bright, unusual, or wonderfully dramatic. It simply has to...

I got this POND’S Healthy Hydration Watermelon Glass Skin Alive Toner from Watsons in Vigan. And then I didn’t use it. 😅 I’d been having several heavy skin flares since Vigan, so introducing something new into my routine wasn’t exactly high on my list of good ideas. Vigan was actually where one of those episodes started after I did some pretty aggressive treatment, although, strangely enough, the Vigan sun also helped my skin clear up quickly. But I digress. My skin finally calmed down enough for me to start trying things again. And then I started reacting to the toner I was currently using. More on that in another post. So I finally reached for this watermelon toner. I don’t apply toner with cotton pads anymore. I transfer mine into a little spray bottle and mist it all over my face, being very careful around my eyes because they’re ridiculously sensitive. I honestly wasn’t expecting much. But I’ve been using this for several weeks now and my face has been surprisingly ha...

  Look at that pink. It looks like it should arrive before I do. But it doesn’t. A few light swipes give me just a soft flush of pink. If I want more, I can build it. And perhaps that’s what I like most about it. It lets me decide how playful I want to be that day. The first surprise was the color. The second? It smells like candy. EJ, my Dior ambassador, recommended Rosy Glow when I asked him to choose something for my Fun & Flirty issue. He told me this shade wasn’t only flattering on fair complexions. It works beautifully on morena skin, too. He was right. On me, it’s playful without looking juvenile. Pretty without becoming precious. And subtle enough that I don’t feel as though the blush entered the room five minutes before the rest of my face. Unless I want it to. Then I just keep building. 💗 Bright pink in the pan.  Soft on my cheeks.  Buildable when I want more. And it smells like candy. Which may explain why I have privately renamed it my Ki...

  I used to choose things because they’re pretty or affordable, but I end up hurt.  Like two brands of slippers that shall not be named.  Now I choose things that are kind to my body. Soft, supportive, gentle.  Especially after my foot ached for better.  I think I’m learning to apply that standard to more things. Pretty is lovely. Fun is lovely. And I will probably always be drawn to something that sparkles. But I don’t think beauty should require me to tolerate discomfort just to keep it around. That applies to something as small as a pair of slippers. Or a hairbrush. This new brush is still glittery. Still pretty. Still something that makes me smile when I see it sitting with my things. But it also feels good. The bristles glide through my hair without scratching my scalp or catching strands between broken tips. It does what a hairbrush is supposed to do without asking me to endure something first. And maybe that’s one of the quieter forms of self-respect. Not...