deleted post from earlier

hi all, a small handful of people got to see my pseudo rant earlier but i deleted it because, all is well now. the package came today, basically around the time i had posted the post..which, i probably should have waited another hour or so to get home before posting it. oh well, whatever. here's the photo that i included before; this is what the tracker still looks like, minus my doodle of course!

anyway; my item did come slightly damaged, but it's manageable. post related to this will be up soon. ~Lin-chan ^.~

july hauls

 

hi guys! here's what we gots' this month. i found the charcoal ink it eyeliner a few days after posting my june hauls post, completely fell in love with the walking on eggshells trio, had to get more simple products to try--loved the cleansing wipes, and the diamond dry topcoat is insanely fast drying--need to test it more for tipwear/longevity, but i can do anything within 10 minutes of finishing my nails with this stuff! and i've got a few other things that i've yet to try out here. ~Lin-chan ^.~

update: i also made changes/updates to some of my pages (the tabs across the top), if you're interested.

 

swatched over ud original eye primer

walgreens: covergirl ink it eyeliner in charcoal ink, wet n wild eyeshadow trios in walking on eggshells and sweet as candy. the hubz and mother-in-law approved of the walking on eggshells trio.

sigmabeauty.com: F86 tapered kabuki & P80 precision flat, & free mini spa glove. i'll have a review of the spa glove sometime soon, i promise! i've been slacking on using it lately. i think i'll do a comparison of the mini and the full size!

sephora: lady gaga fame perfume rollerball

sally's: emory board, american international prolinc diamond dry air dry topcoat (free!!), china glaze coconut kiss & turned up turquoise (see swatches below, turquoise dries matte, so i tried putting topcoat on half to show the difference..but i don't think it shows up very well in the photo. sorry!), 32oz acetone

 

drugstore.com: i had some reward dollars to use again! so i got more simple wipes: exfoliating & cleansing, and simple soothing facial toner. ....and i needed another real techniques expert face brush; this makes #3. =P (note: A, the "3rd" e.f. brush you saw a few weeks ago was actually the buffer brush)

gretna farmer's market/fleur de bees: lemongrass soap, honey & original lip balms

eyeshadow swatches over milani eye primer; 3rd nail has topcoat, 4th doesn't

walmart: beauty spoon (concept sounds great! we'll have to see!), wet n wild eyeshadow trio in silent treatment

walgreens: jordana fabuliner in black (2 swipes in the swatches; unsure about this pigmentation & control), wet n wild eyeshadow trio in to muse and carouse (limited edition, looked like a fun one!)

cvs: milani lipstick in nude creme

sally's: china glaze tranzitions in shape shifter

xanga update

hi all.

it's official. my xanga is now shut down. everything has been downloaded from it. lindsaydamodel.xanga.com is now gone forever, not to be migrated into their new pay-to-use system if their warehouse situation is resolved.

later. ~Lin-chan ^.~

dinner: "chipotle" barbacoa bowls

hey guys! so lately, i've been craving going to chipotle and getting their barbacoa bowls ($6.50?). basically, chipotle charges you based on your meat, so whether you get a bowl or burrito: it's the same price. but you actually get more food when you order a bowl..just no tortilla. these bowls are about two meals for me. so, anyway, we wanted to try to make it at home instead of going out every time. unfortunately, i didn't think about taking photos until after i was halfway through eating, after i mixed everything together. annnnd, it wasn't very pretty..so i decided post anyway, without photos. lol. regardless, here's the recipe we tried out tonight. it came out pretty awesome, but a word from the wise: if you halve this recipe, use only 2 chiles, not 3, unless you're ok with the spiciness. teh hubz is a meanie and thought 3 would be acceptable...uh, no. ~.~
~Lin-chan ^.~

barbacoa recipe (taken from here) [we halved this recipe]

⅓ c apple cider vinegar 3 tbsp lime juice 3 - 4 chipotle chiles in adobo [we used canned ones] 4 tsp minced garlic cloves 4 tsp cumin 2 tsp oregano ½ tsp ground cloves

1 tsp ground black pepper           1 tsp salt           4 - 5 lbs chuck roast           2 tbsp vegetable oil           ¾ c chicken broth           3 bay leaves

Directions:

1. To make the adobo sauce combine vinegar, limejuice, chipotles, garlic, cumin, oregano,
   black pepper, salt and cloves in a blender or processor on high speed until smooth.
2. Remove most of the fat from the roast and then cut into large chunks (approximately 6).
3. Pour oil into a frying pan and sear all sides of roast on medium-high heat until browned.
4. Place meat into Crockpot and pour adobo sauce over meat.
5. Pour in the chicken broth and add bay leaves.
6. Cook on high heat 6 hours or on low all day.
7. While still in the Crockpot, shred the meat with two forks and turn the heat to warm.

optional additions:
sour cream, avocado, mexican cheese, rice, lettuce,
corn, pinto beans or black beans [we used canned, drained]

pico de gallo:
2 tomatoes, seeded & finely chopped
½ white onion, finely chopped
¼ c cilantro leaf chopped
½ tbsp lime juice
about ½ mango, finely chopped/cubed
salt

mint manis for talia joy (notd)

hi all, as many of you may know, taliajoy18 (or talia castellano, of youtube) passed on earlier this week after many years of fighting cancer (NPR article). talia always posted photos of her manicures and her final manicure photo was of her, her mom and her sister's hands, with their nails painted mint. today, everyone is posting their mint manicures as a tribute to talia and her legacy. if you paint your nails and post photos too, the hashtags for facebook & instagram are: #MintManisForTaliaJoy #TaliasLegacy

i used wet n wild's i need a refresh-mint and i finally used these nail embellishments that i bought forever ago. i also used orly bonder (basecoat) and american international prolinc diamond dry air dry topcoat from sally's.

RIP Talia! ~Lindsay-chan ^.~

 

July 2013 ipsy bag & first impressions

 

yessssss! my July IPSY BAG* has finally arrived!!! (theme: beach beauty) this time wasn't too bad: my myglam room opened up this morning and my package came in the afternoon.

ranking the past four months, this one is tied for number 2. april is number 1, june is tied for number 2, and may is number 3. onto my impressions! ~Lin-chan ^.~

1. bh cosmetics california collection eyeshadow sampler (3 shadows--mini, ret. $11 for palette (16 shadows, 4 blushes) [~$1.31?]) -- these shadows are pretty nice, the purple from the hollywood palette was a bit difficult to swatch, but the other two are quite nice. i'm not super interested in their matching full sized palettes, so i probably would purchase other palettes from them in the future, but not these three.
• likelihood to repurchase: no, will probably explore other products from the brand
• update: passing it off to T
2. pop beauty pouty pop crayon in coral crush (3g--full size, ret. $25 for set of 6 [$4.17]) -- this shade is really nice, it's pretty close to my yes/no pink borderline, but i think it can work. it feels like a thinner version of a lip butter. it's very balmy.
• likelihood to repurchase: probably no, will probably explore other products from the brand
• update: passed it off to A, hubz didn't like how it looked on me (too bright)
3. coola suncare mineral face spf 20 unscented moisturizer (.23oz--mini, ret. $36 for 1.7oz [$4.87]) -- i'm glad i got the unscented one, i've posted several times on here that i hate rose oil/fragrances. i do like how it is literally unscented. like no sunscreen scent, no..nothing. i'm excited to try this but i probably won't repurchase this though because it's kinda expensive (plus shipping), when i could just go to a sephora or ulta and buy my usual stuff (clinique city block or urban decay bb cream).
• likelihood to repurchase: probably not..we'll see......
• update: product has been finished. it has a disguised sunscreen scent..don't like it. i'm sure it works great at blocking the sun and i haven't had an allergic reaction to it, but i don't like the scent.
4. sexy hair weather proof humidity resistant spray (1.4oz--mini, ret. $18.95 for 3.4oz [$7.80]) -- i'm not huge into hair setting sprays, but i will try this out. i like how the nozzle can turn and lock. the scent is only slightly less offensive than ordinary hair sprays.
• likelihood to repurchase: no 
5. nailtini straight up nail lacquer in mai tai (.05oz--full size, ret. $13) -- this red/coral-y color is ok. it's not really me. probably will give this to my mom because she loves shades like this.
• likelihood to repurchase: not this shade, but interested in exploring brand
• update: gave it to mom and she liked it
6. clear hot pink ipsy bag -- i really like this bag!! i'm not a huge pink person, but it's neon. and clear. i don't like how it's too short to put standard-sized makeup brushes and pencils into, so i'm not totally sure how i want to use this bag yet.
7. card with company info/discount codes
1. bhcosmetics.com/ipsy: 10% off california collection, code: ipsy (exp. 8/31/13)
2. popbeautycosmetics.com: 20% off purchase, code: POPluvsIPSY (exp. 8/6/13)
3. coolasuncare.com: 30% off any purchase, code: ipsy (exp. 7/31/13)
4. ulta.com: $5 off $25+, code: 108723 (exp. 8/15/13)
5. tinibeauty.com: 30% off any purchase, code: hot4ipsy (exp. 8/15/13)
6. demeterfragrance.com: 20% off any purchase, code: ipsydfl20 (exp. 8/31/13)
7. dermae.com: 20% off any purchse, code: ipsy0713 (exp. 9/31/13)
8. benefitcosmetics.com: receive a hello gorgeous trio with $35+ purchase, code: glambag (exp. 8/15/13)

approximate product value: $31.15

 

please excuse the horrid paint job; i quickly painted on 2 coats, took pictures, and immediately removed it

 

(shadows swatched over milani eye primer)

*Affiliate Link.

updated unii & z palette comparison review (pic heavy, updated)

hi guys, here's a photo update--primarily a size comparison view--for you guys. i still like both brands of palettes, with the same pro's and con's as before:

unii palette: large mirror only one size & price has a locking hinge closure lid tilts open to about 120° comes with "not a magnet" sheet comes with thumb grip casing is a bit thicker packaging contains detailed instructions for depotting

z palette:           large acryllic window           variety of sizes & prices (small, 4U, large, pro, dome)           has magnets along edge           lid can fold underneath palette           comes with round metal stickers           -----           all (but dome) are the same thickness/depth and store nice and flat           has a blog and information for depotting online

the z palette sizes i have are pro, large, 4U, and small. i don't feel the need to get a dome palette, since i don't really use that many baked (or tall "panned") products. aside from the depth/thickness, the pro and dome are the same dimensions. ~Lindsay-chan ^.~

pro black, large raspberry damask (makeup geek exclusive), 4U aqua/yellow, small striped

 

large vs. pro


4U vs. pro


small vs. pro


4U vs. large


small vs. large


4U vs. small

turquoise unii palette, aqua/yellow 4U z palette
 
interior: 4U z palette (top), unii palette (bottom)

update (4/29/14)

sephora dome palette vs. black pro palette (thickness)

notd redo: zoya ibiza & finger paints motley

hi guys! so most of you know that i had to update basically all of my posts because xanga (where i was hosting my photos) is potentially going down. in doing so, i relabeled all of my posts with the new disclaimer banners and stamped all of my old photos. ..[and even more] in doing so, i noticed how absolutely terrible my original photos of this polish combination came out. so i decided to give you guys some new and better quality photos! enjoy! ~Lin-chan ^.~

i used orly bonder as my basecoat and two coats of essence gel look topcoat. i couldn't decide which photo i liked best..so here are the good ones!

April - June Favorites

 

hi all! here's my spring-summer favorites. i don't have that many since it was during crunch time for school, with finals and projects, and i was in and out of a movie, it was our first anniversary, and gahhh craziness! lol. anyway, here's what i've got for ya.

theBalm time balm concealer in light
last year, i bought this concealer on a whim (both the shade and product itself) from hautelook*. and i used it for a little bit and then kinda quit. somewhat recently, i finished my mini pan of benefit's boi-ing (from the confessions of a concealaholic set). and i began using the revlon photoready concealer a lot, i'm still on my first one but i've slowed down using it since i've rediscovered this concealer. the real problem was that it got stuck in my bathroom drawer, out of sight out of mind. i've been using it nearly every day since i've pulled it out and i love it. it's really creamy, with light-medium coverage. it does dry out some with non-use but once you break through that top layer, it's good. i kept the little applicator sponge with it to kinda help keep it fresh. i love how small this little container is, but seriously, i've barely made a dent in this thing after 50+ uses. which is great, but i also have my other opened concealers i need to finish. ~.~

Be a Bombshell blush in sweet cheeks
ever since i got this in my april ipsy bag* (impressions post), i've loved it. it does need a light hand when applying because it can be too much. the blush can become powdery fairly easily, so be gentle when you dab into it with your brush or make sure you tap off the excess before applying.

Cailyn Cosmetics line-fix gel eyeliner in iron/Sigma E05/Sonia Kashuk bent eyeliner brush
this eyeliner was an instant favorite from my june ipsy bag* (impressions post). it's waterproof and stays put practically for days. when i first got it, i swatched it on my arm, took pictures, waited a bit, then used an equate exfoliating makeup remover wipe in a sad attempt to remove it. three days and showers later, it finally faded and was no longer visible. it was crazy ridiculous. but i love it a lot. i'm not too keen on the price ($21+shipping) as far as trying other colors, but this was a definite winner for me. i've been using this eyeliner in conjunction with sigma e05 brushes or sonia kashuk's bent eyeliner brushes because i really like the application they both give.

Dr. Bronner's pure castile soap in peppermint (liquid & bar soap)
one of the many nail art/polish bloggers i follow (i can't remember who!) mentioned how much she loved dr. bronner's liquid soap for cleaning her makeup brushes. so, while i'm experimenting with different brush cleaners/cleansers, why not?! so i originally bought the liquid soap and i loved it immediately. what i don't like about it: it doesn't really foam up that much for mineral brushes, so it's kinda like..well is it clean or not?! like you can see the makeup coming out of the brush into the sink, but yeah.. (i haven't used it with foundation or concealer brushes yet to know how well it reacts..) it foams up quite a bit for my synthetic brushes. you do have to be careful with duo fiber brushes, more specifically, elf small stipple brushes. a little bit of this goes a long way, and these particular brushes soak this soap up. so even after they dried, they had an oily-weird feeling; so after rinsing them and letting them dry a second time, it's better. i've only used the bar soap twice so far, but i like it a lot. i feel like it's easier to get the right amount of soap onto the brushes (the liquid soap kinda pours out very quickly as it is an almost oil-like consistency). i haven't had the same problem with the elf small stipple brushes when i used the bar, so that's good. it is a little more difficult cleaning my eyeliner brushes with the bar soap, but just get a little onto your fingers and it'll work. i think that, for the price, i'm probably going to continue getting the bar soap since it will definitely last a lot longer than the liquid. don't get me wrong, the liquid soap will last forever too, in moderation. i think i'll try the other scents too, eventually, but i figured peppermint was a pretty safe scent to start off with.

Picross 3D for NDS
in the past few months, i rediscovered this game in the depths of my ds & wii accessories bin. i'm a puzzle and RPG person, and this game, i really like. there are varying levels of difficulty and an introductory tutorial. basically you start off with a 3D rectangle, divided into a bunch of cubes. each row and column of cubes have numbers on them indicating how many cubes must remain in the row. then you gradually remove all of the unnecessary blocks to reveal the final image (you can mark the ones that must remain, kinda like minesweeper). for example, the image in the cover is a dog. you can kinda see him in the shadow on the right corner (which shows how it should look at the end) and in the center photo where the blocks have been removed.

K-dorama: 200 Pounds Beauty (watch it on crunchyroll)
despite how the photo looks, both women are the same character & actress. the idea of this story is that the girl on the right undergoes plastic surgery because she feels self conscious about her appearance, blah blah blah. but she has the most amazing voice, she's a ghost singer for a lip-syncing pop star and a ..ahem....hotline voice. it's kind of a romantic comedy. anyway, i really liked this movie. her puppeh is so kyoot. >w<  i'm pretty sure T told me about this movie a long time ago, i just never got around to watching it until recently.


*Affiliate Link.

first anniversary & trip

hi guys! this post is late after getting put onto the back burner while i was working on my photo migration. i'm not 100% finished with it, but anyway here ya go. please read this as if i posted this on our actual anniversary date, 6/9/13.

hey guys! the past two weeks on the movie set have been super crazy and chaotic! here's what i did...
5/27: 730A - 530P work; drive back home
5/28: 710A - 9P movie set
5/29: 1115A - 230A movie set
5/30: called in sick with a major migraine
5/31: 5P - 5A movie set
6/1: slept a lot, hung out with friends
6/2: slept in, went to see star trek
6/3: 530A - 730P movie set
6/4: 515A - 830P movie set
6/5: 615A - 830P movie set
6/6: 430P - 630A movie set

6/7: after coming home from set, i took a shower and somehow got a second wind and was able to stay up a bit longer, and i drove us back to our apartment. from there, paul drove us to houston. got settled in at the hotel and then went to chipolte for dinner. i got a barbacoa bowl and i think that if i ever go to chipolte again, this is the way to go. $6.50 for something that is two servings for me. heck yes. paul finished his burrito before i was even 1/4 done with the bowl. then he helped me eat about half of it. then we went to see now you see me--i updated my prior post as for where i saw myself. and around 11 or so, i finally crashed. somehow i managed to stay awake for about 36 hours without caffeine, as i cannot consume it.

6/8: went and got dim sum at ocean palace. yum! for those who don't know, dim sum is a chinese small-plate style brunch/lunch. when you go, it's usually around lunchtime on the weekends. ladies (and sometimes men) push carts to your table and show you what dishes they have, and they put a stamp on your bill to tell check-off how many plates of what cost you had. we got short ribs, duck, shrimp shumai, shrimp rice noodles, and sesame balls with red bean paste inside. it was aproximately $30. afterward, we went to the hong kong market and bought goodies: philippines brand dried mangoes, strawberry pocky, garden strawberry wafers, biscotto strawberry wafer sticks (these have surpassed my beloved love letters! *gasp!*), haw flakes, a japanese-style grater, and my favorite brown rice by nishiki.

 

afterward, we drove over to ikea. can i say, oh my god whoever thought of this was a genious! houston ikea is basically the closest one to us---at 6 hours away---but we were so confused and surprised when we drove up. i mean, why is the parking lot a mini version of disney?! there's lamp posts with section markers on them! whaaaaaat!? oh and not to mention, there were a crapton of people in there. i was totally expecting like a one on one type experience, like a mom and pop furniture store. no. A CRAPTON of people were inside as well. so we're super confused and we just followed the traffic inside and up the escalator. we grabbed a map--yes a freaking map!, pencil, and disposable measuring tape--so cool! and you go through the display area, and it's all set up fancy, some areas are like minis of rooms inside your house, or the section we paid particular attention to was set up like any other place that sells desks. then you keep making your way around, hardware like knobs etc, and kitchen stuff like dishes etc, wall decor, lighting, everything! and a food area! whaaaaa?? then you get around to the end and it's self service. so you grab a palette-cart and go find the items you wanted to buy (the displays are marked with what aisle they're on and what number on the aisle, you just have to write them down before leaving the showroom). then you check out and try as you might to pull your car within reasonable distance to the loading area. i swear, this place was almost like a theme park..for furniture! we were in there a good 2-3 hours, spending about half of that time in utter confusion, trying to wrap our heads around what we were seeing. as far as product selection, this place is like bed bath and beyond, but with furniture and less really random stuff. [we purchased 2/3 of my new desk, will update when i get the other 1/3 (a 59" table top)... my car isn't long enough...........]

then we went to the container store because we don't have one of those either and it, too, is the closest one... and i got 2 acrylic lipstick holders (24x) and a small acrylic drawer box. so again, omg at this place too. the organization-freak in me wanted to BUY ALL THE THINGS. it was crazy. but i had to keep saying: we need a house first. lol. i loved it in there, but teh paul was being very watchful about what i was picking up. >.>

and for dinner, we went to pappadeaux's. which is funny because we're in texas eating louisiana food. *mind blown* anyway, i got paul to try frog legs for the first time. and they were pretty good. i think they mixed some tony's into the batter because they were a bit spicy for my taste. for our entree, we shared the halibut duo, which was two halibut fillets, a small lobster tail, and some grilled shrimp. it was derricious. >w< and the drink i got was pretty good too: the strawberry lime sparkler. we've got to replicate it at home. yummm. so get this..this place gets sooo busy, they have their own freaking parking garage. really?! ..well, i thought it was crazy.

 

afterward, we wondered around the galleria mall and got a few shirts at wet seal (5 for $20!), and some dessert: a starbucks strawberries and cream frapp.

6/9: got up early to go to the bao store! yess. so we drove out to king bakery in chinatown to get lotsa bbq baos. my mom wanted some and so did we, and we also got a cream bun which was basically a buttery cream (not buttercream icing!) with their bao bread. if you ever go, remember that they're cash only! afterward, we went on a hunt for animal crossing (it was released on this day) since it was too early to go to the nearest game stop and another didn't have any that weren't reserved...we finally found one at target. yay~! we went to lunch at schlotzskys--since we don't have any of those anymore...and drove back home. before the night was over, teh paul already ate two baos out of our dozen. ~.~ [i forgot to take pictuers of the baos to show you guys....] and we opened up and finished our champagne from our wedding reception.

 

anyway. that was our trip. hope you guys enjoyed. ~Lin-chan ^.~