REVIEW: Revlon Lash Potion Mascara

Posted on May 23, 2013 by wvfashionologist

Revlon Lash Potion Mascara, $5-7

I’ll admit it, I’m a sucker for a pretty package. I’m in the market for a new mascara and one just happens to come along in such a pretty coat, yeah, I’m going to buy it.

I have–and will always–declare Tarte’s Lights! Camera! Lashes! to be the best mascara available on the market. However, at $19 a tube, it can get pricey. Especially if you’re like me and keep forgetting to close the tube all the way. Oops.

In the past I’ve used Maybelline’s classic Great Lash mascara in the famous pink and green tube. It gives a lot of a volume but I wanted something that would give length as well. I’ve also tried Cover Girl’s Lash Blast Fusion with bad results, and L’Oreal’s Telescopic which is the wand with the little ball on the end. I like it but I can’t put it on in a rush, which is how I usually do my makeup.

Henceforth, the mascara in the sparkly rainbow tube made its way into my makeup bag after my last Walmart trip. I accidentialy picked up the waterproof version, which actually ended up being a good thing because when I rubbed my eyes it didn’t smear all over the place.

This is what Revlon has to say about Lash Potion:

Magically transform lashes to lush, long and lustrous. A potion with strengthening proteins drenches lashes for volume. Triple-groove wand combs through for clump-free length.

The brush consists of traditional nylon bristles set into a pattern I can best describe as similar to the Mercedes-Benz logo.

The mascara doesn’t have much of a scent, other than the usual sort of earth-y scent that most mascaras have. I found the formula was rather wet but dried quickly. The brush head is somewhat large for a mascara wand which made getting to the inner corners of my eyes tricky.

Lash Potion gave my lashes some amazing length, probably the longest I’ve seen. That, and the anti-smudge of the waterproof are the best qualities of this mascara. The first coat I put on just lengthed my lashes. The second coat added a bit more volume and some clump. The third coat was pure clump. This mascara gave me the worst case of tarantula eyes.

If you like to layer your mascara, then I’d highly recommend this mascara. It does give great length and the waterproof version doesn’t budge. However, if you’re like me and apply your mascara while driving down I-64 on your way into work, I’d skip it.

tl; dr: A high-maintence mascara that is good for length and nothing more.

Battle of the Face Brushes: Clarisonic vs. Olay Pro-X

Posted on May 21, 2013 by wvfashionologist

Clarisonic $119 + 20% off | Olay Pro-X, $25

I’ve had the Olay Pro-X face brush for going on two and a half years. I’d typically use it 3-4 times a week when my skin felt disgusting or I wanted to a bit of a deeper clean than just face wash alone. I had wanted the Clarisonic for years but was hesitant to pay the price for one when numerous blogs said that the two were pretty close.

Earlier this year I found a Clarisonic on Sephora’s clearance shelf and broke down and got it. You can read my story on that experience here.

I’ve been using the Clarisonic for a little over a month now, and it’s fantastic. It’s amazing. I wish I had bought it sooner.

The Olay Pro-X has a head that rotates quickly and has a hint of vibration. It has two speeds.
The Clarisonic head doesn’t move, but the unit vibrates with sonic waves. You rotate the brush manually to get the exfoliating action. My model, the Plus, has three speeds and a timer for the recommended 20 seconds each on nose, chin, and forehead, and 10 seconds each for the cheeks. I think the timer is pretty pointless.

The results I have gotten from the Clarisonic in the past month have been amazing. It’s been really helpful on helping to shrink the appearance of my pores and keeping my oily skin in check. I don’t have to use as much skin care products, which I hope will save me some coin in the long run. A lot of people have said it also helps with aging and wrinkles but since I don’t have either of those I can’t say.

Even if you can’t afford the Clarisonic, the Olay Pro-X is a solid must-have for your bathroom. It does help with exfoliation and makeup removal.

Either way, you can’t go wrong. However, if you’re in serious need of some skin help, the Clarisonic is the way to go.

Save Money on Pedicures with this Lotion!

Posted on May 9, 2013 by wvfashionologist

I’ve been meaning to get a pedicure for the last month, but I haven’t gotten around to finding a new nail tech in Charleston. I usually do them myself, but when I was working at the airport the steel-toe shoes I had to wear destroyed my feet.

Now it’s sandal time and my feet look horrible. I was at Sally’s Beauty Supply the other day and I saw this lotion, Mr. Pumice Callus Terminator. It claims to get rid of calluses in minutes. So I bought it and a pumice bar and gave it a try. I soaked my feet for about 10 minutes, then applied the lotion for another five minutes then scrubbed like hell with the pumice stone. My feet look amazing, they’re soft, and I can’t be more thrilled.

I have to warn you though, this product contains lye, which is a very caustic cleanser. The directions say to wear gloves when applying the lotion or to rinse your hands immediately. The lotion doesn’t come off easily. No matter how much I scrubbed it refused to budge. I probably have the top two layers of the skin on my hands flaking off right now and it’s pretty gross. So, wear gloves and you’ll be golden.

If you’re like me and keep forgetting to get a pedicure or you’re cheap, $12 at Sally’s Beauty Supply will have your feet looking like new.

A Dress For All Occasions

Posted on May 7, 2013 by wvfashionologist

From 2008-2012 I worked in various aspects of the construction industry. This meant a lot of jeans, company polos, and Carhartt.
Then I had the world’s most unflattering uniform in the airline industry. Lots of baggy navy blue.
And now I’m an office manager.

This means an entire shift in my wardrobe. Still overrun with denim and faded tees, I have pretty much been wearing the same thing to work everyday: my navy pants from my airline uniform (a tad frumpy but OH SO COMFY) and a cardigan.

My mom even told me it was time I spent some money putting together a work wardrobe.

Sideswept jersey dress | Coldwater Creek $99-109 + 25% off

This dress comes in sizes 4-24, not to mention petites sizing. I pretty much love everything about this dress:
-Flattering draping across the bodice
-A color that goes with so much. Need to add a blazer? Black, red, brown, white, etc. would look great.
-So easy to accessorize!
-Made of jersey material, meaning no wrinkling, making this a good dress for business travel or to keep on hand just in case.

This dress just has a lot going for it. I’m finding out that work dresses in general are fairly expensive and that I can’t live in Old Navy as much as I’m used to. Yes, I can pick up a jersey dress from ON, but it’s going to be a thin jersey, as opposed to the thickness of the Coldwater Creek jersey. Not all jersey dresses are equal.

With this dress I could wear any number of my usual cardigans, purses, or shoes. I can’t say that about a lot of the work dresses I’ve looked it.

Ladies and Gentlemen…Break Out Your Whites!

Posted on May 6, 2013 by wvfashionologist

Madras | Land’s End $60
Lilly Pulitzer | Nordstrom $278
White Eyelet | JC Penney’s $42
Nautical | Modcloth $75

Traditionally, the time to put your whites and seersucker has always been Memorial Day. However, since it can easily be 90 degrees in Huntington at the end of April, that date has been moved up to the weekend of The Kentucky Derby. Why the seemingly outdated approach to wearing white?

It’s called appropiateness. It’s not appropiate to be wearing white gauze when it’s 50 degrees out.
It’s silly to be wearing nautical motifs when your boat is in dry dock for the winter.
Conversely, would you wear a black wool turtleneck in late July when the humidity is 100 percent?

However, there’s still those one or two things that are best kept until Memorial Day, when we all know for a fact we’ll be baking outisde on the Capitol grounds during the Vandalia Gathering:
Tropical prints and crop tops are best left to when it’s a steady 85 degrees and above.

Here’s a handy guide you can add to Pinterest to help you remember!

Gifts for the Fashionable Graduate

Posted on May 2, 2013 by wvfashionologist

I mildly despise gift guides. First off, every other damn blog features a gift guide. Most of the stuff is overpriced junk and the two things you actually do like are only sold by a store that is open for two hours a day on Mondays. It’s iffy if they answer the phone and of course they don’t have a web site. This is actually a true story, and the main reason I don’t do gift guides.

However, my little sister is getting ready to graduate with two degrees and she’s more or less helped me put together this gift guide as a sort of “hint hint wink wink” to friends and family.

What do people actually want when they graduate? My little sister says they want nice, practical gifts that make them appear “grown-up.” They don’t want college-themed trinkets–they have plenty of those already–or anything branded with “Class of 2013!” Also nixed are those inspirational “Oh the places you’ll go” gifts. She says people have no idea how much stuff like that can hurt when one’s top job prospects involve folding jeans or delivering pizza.1. I call it a power purse, but a really nice bag tops my sister’s list. She wants something that convey’s “I’m here to work” or at least something that will make people take her slightly more seriously. Look for purses in neutral colors–black or brown–that are well-made in a sturdy material with simple styling.
2. A grown-up wallet. “It’s time to move beyond the lanyard.”
3. A grown-up watch. She thinks having a watch is a good idea because she’s under the impression you can’t check your cell phone for the time at work (she’s partially right).
4. A good going-out clutch. Again, look for quality workmanship and materials. If you can’t afford to gift someone a power bag, a clutch is less-expensive option.
5. A good piece of everyday jewelry. Pearls and diamonds are a bit clichéd, and gemstones can fall out of settings. A nice unembellished piece like the one above makes a wonderful gift, especially for someone you’re close to. This is something she can wear everyday and looks good with a business suit or a breezy sundress.
6. A grown-up keychain. My little sister thinks after graduation a beer-opener keychain is immature but as an actual adult I have to disagree with her.
7. Much like the power purse, any fashionable grad would adore a pair of power shoes. Get her something she can wear to work or an interview.
8. A gift card for work clothes. A giftcard to Macy’s, Nordstorm, or even JC Penney’s can help a grad out when they sudden have to drop a massive chunk of change for work clothes. If you find a gift card tacky (hi mom!), take the young lady to the store of her choice to pick out an outfit, and toss in a nice lunch.

You don’t have to spend a fortune buying a graduation gift. If I were to single out any one particular gift, I’d go for a nice piece of everyday jewelry. It’s hard to fake a good bag or pair of shoes, but a lovely stainless silver pendant can be had for an affordable price from Kmart. Stop by Michael’s or Hobby Lobby and pick up an elegant jewelry presentation box and no will be the wiser. All she’ll see on graduation day is a beautiful gift from a loved one.

STYLE EVOLUTION: What I Wore in High School 1999-2003

Posted on April 30, 2013 by wvfashionologist

I know it’s late April when I start seeing the sidewalks of Charleston and Huntington covered in pastel-colored ball gowns and too big tuxedos.

Then, I start thinking back to my prom, and then I start thinking about high school, and then I remember that this year is my 10 year high school reunion. Yikes.

I thought it would be interesting to post a little bit about who my fashion icons were at the time, and what I wore:

Liz Parker from the TV show Roswell | Joey Potter from the TV show Dawson’s Creek | Jackie O
Ali MacGraw from the movie Love Story | Everything from the movie Blue Crush

If I were to really describe my fashion sense during high school, I’d describe it as a preppy surfer girl, which more or less equals out to Abercrombie & Fitch, during its heyday. I liked simple clothes that were easy to wear, which I still do. I was also very much into vintage clothing, especially flares from the 1970s. I’m one of six kids, and at the time there were a couple of kids in college and some of us still in prep school so money was pretty tight. I couldn’t afford the Abercrombie that everyone else was wearing so when I was stuck shopping at Goodwill for clothes, I decided to really go ahead and embrace vintage.

My mom was another one of my inspirations. My mom grew up in San Fransisco during the 1950s and 1960s. Yes, she hung out at Haight-Ashbury during the Summer of Love. I loved going through the few pictures she had from those times and getting a sense of the styles that people were wearing and then trying to recreate them from the racks at Goodwill. I found the best vintage shop in Huntington around that time, it was just a little hole-in-the-wall by where the Village on Sixth is now located. I had no trouble finding the flares I loved so much there. I got all sorts of jeans, sweaters, and amazing tee shirts from there. It also sold the finest in head shop paraphernalia.

However, there was one little thing to keep in mind about my high school years. I wore a uniform from the age of 6 to the age of 18.

This is based off my senior year. I had to wear khakis or navy blue pants or skirts. We had polo shirts with the school logo on them that came in white or navy, and on cooler days we could wear a plain navy sweatshirt/sweater. My accessories included Wallabee shoes because they are the most comfortable shoe on earth, a yin yang necklace because that was the thing at the time, and I had a giant tote bag that I used instead of a backpack.

Here’s what I wore on the weekends:

Flares, camp shirts, and chunky turtlenecks were favorites of mine. For a few years I incorporated a hint of military into my closet because I found some old Army shirts at Goodwill and loved them. There’s the obligatory surfer-inspired gear all high school girls wear at one point. I had a crazy collection of messenger bags during high school, I still love them today. For shoes I typically wore my Wallabees from my school uniform, and the original Candie’s slides. This was back when they were $50 and sold at Nordstrom instead of Kohl’s.

I won’t lie, I would still wear 70% of the clothes I owned in high school.

Here’s one of my senior portraits:

Sweater? Check. Low-rise flares? Check and check. Converse? Check, check, and check.

The Battle For Flatlandia: Who Makes the Best Flats?

Posted on April 29, 2013 by wvfashionologist

In the country of Malli on the subcontent of East Retailia, an ongoing conflict known as the Battle for Flatlandia has consumed most of the female population for the past several years. After years of dictatorship by a man known to the nation as Pointy Stiletto (real name: Jimmy Choo), the women of the small but influential region in Flatlandia rebelled. While they were not successful in completely overthrowing Pointy Stiletto from Malli, they managed to gain a foothold in their native homeland. After a brief period of peace the residents began to turn on each other in a power struggle for dominance in the countryside, which was quickly filling with refugees from the Blahnik Mountains in the north, the Louboutin jungles to the south, and the Vivier river valley which was dangerously close to Flatlandia. The sudden influx of shelter seekers to the Flatlandia plains had originally confused the residents whom were often the butt of many a Mallian joke. Factions began forming, with five main groups controlling most of the Flatlandia Plains while dozens if not hundreds of much smaller groups remained in the shadows. Some of the groups, such as Madewell, J.Crew, and Gap were similarly armed in materials and workmanship but demanded high prices for “security.” Others such as Old Navy and Target were very popular due to their friendliness to the pocketbooks of the Flatlandia population, offering similar “protection” for much less cost.

flats-lineup
Target (similar) | Madewell | Old Navy | Gap | J. Crew

There is no absolute answer as to who makes the best flats. It really depends on what you’re doing in the shoes and your feet. All the shoes I featured above are the ones I wear the most, and most of them are at least six months old. The blue Target flats I’ve had for at least three years that are still going strong. I have several pairs of flats from the Gap that just keep going despite me walking to the moon and back in them. Let me break down the pros and cons of each:

Do keep in mind that details in flats can vary, even those made by the same brand.

Here are some of my other favorite brands for flats:

Jack Rogers

Land’s End

H&M

American Eagle Outfitters

Where are your favorite places to buy flats?

REVIEW: Eva NYC Shampoo & Conditioner

Posted on April 17, 2013 by wvfashionologist

Available at Ulta & Drugstore.com.
You can also buy it direct from the conmpany but it’s twice the price.

I’m running out of my beloved Joico liters and I’ve been reluctant to buy new ones. Considering I do nada with my hair, I really can’t justify paying $60-ish on just hair products. I can sometimes find them at Marshall’s or T.J. Maxx but I’ve been striking out lately.

While browsing the selection in Ulta, I came across these two bright pink bottles. They were made for all hair types and had Argan oil, so I figured I had nothing to lose, I was going to have to try something new anyways. I didn’t even smell them, I just grabbed them, paid, and left.

I research the hell out of anything cosmetic/beauty-related before I buy it, so trying something from a brand I’ve never even heard of is a new experience for me.

I’m really impressed with both of these products. A lot of products claim to work on oily hair but really don’t. This one tamed my oil without drying my hair, and also made it super shiny and soft as well. The only test it did fail was my “can I get away with washing my hair every other day.” Summer’s coming up and with my hair going from just oily to BP-in-the-Gulf-Oily, I’m going to have to wash my hair everyday so it’s not a big deal.

Did I mention how amazing this stuff smells? The shampoo has a vanilla scent with a hint of florals. It smells good enough I’d wear it as a perfume. The conditioner actually doesn’t seem to have a smell to me.

There’s a whole product lineup, some of which Ulta sells, including a dry shampoo which has been added to my shopping list, an Argan oil hair oil, and a deep conditioning mask amongst others.

They also make hair tools. This flat iron is so freakin’ amazing I may have to get it to replace my Remington Straight-to-Wet from 2005 (I straighten my hair twice a year).

NEW SERIES! Wear This, Not That: The Black Blob

Posted on April 16, 2013 by wvfashionologist

I’m really excited to introduce a new series on the blog today: Wear This, Not That! I was inspired to start this series because I see a lot of women in West Virginia wearing the same outfits that appear to be good ideas, just poorly executed.

The first in this series is an outfit I call The Black Polyester Blob. As you’ll see below, this is a common outfit often seen in downtown Charleston and Huntington on any given workday, and occasionally at nicer events on the weekend. This outfit reminds me of those crappy polyester gowns you have to wear for graduation, nobody really looks good in them. This outfit is the same way.

I understand why people like this look. It’s easy care and easy to wear. However, this is a very dated look and isn’t as flattering as it appears to be.
1. Either a drapey waterfall cardigan or a cropped cardigan of some sort2. A tank top with lace trim on the bottom band
3. Polyester wide leg pants, sometimes with large cuffs on the bottom
4. Satin pleated shoes

What’s wrong with this outfit? Firstly, there’s too much polyester. Polyester is best in moderation, when you’re wearing so much of this drapey material, you get an effect similar to wear a graduation gown, which is why I made that remark a minute ago. A lot of women assume drape = concealment which isn’t always true. This outfit gives no definition to any part of your body, making you look like a giant blob.

2.The tank tops that have the elastic trim at the bottom need to go. Very often the lace is in bad shape and when that happens, the top is basically ruined, which is why I don’t advocate people buying them in the first place.
3.The wide leg pant can be a tricky item to wear. A rule of thumb is that if one piece of clothing is drapey, say a cardigan, the other item of clothing needs to be fitted. If these were cotton or poplin pant, this outfit would look much better.
4. I remember when these pleated satin shoes came out. I was like 14-16 at the time, and they were originally meant for 12-year-olds to wear to their first school dance. If you’ll look for them in stores, they’re typically made by brands specializing in junior’s clothing such as Bongo, L.E.I., and Candie’s. These shoes look very juvenile and should be avoided no matter the outfit.

Here’s how to make this outfit look so much better:

1. I kept the waterfall cardigan as it’s a good piece for any wardrobe.
2. I traded the tank with lace trim at the bottom for one with lace trim at the top. I chose lilac because it’s a great shade for spring.
3. What really saves this outfit is the fitted pant. This particular pair is very flattering. Yes, you’ll probably have to spend four hours in a dressing room to find a pair that looks this incredible on you, but it’s worth it.
4. To add some definition to the body, I chose this cute belt in a bright cantaloupe color to complement the lilac. I would wear the belt on the outside of the cardigan to make the bright punchy color stand out.
5. Matching accessories are always key.
6. I chose simple black shoes with slightly pointy toes because A) they’re more professional looking, B) they make the leg look longer, and C) they’re meant for adults and not the those with One Direction posters on their walls.

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