Blog Update

I'm sorry, I have not been good at keeping to the schedule.. I didn't realize how much work it is to keep up with one every day. We had some beautiful summer days that I took advantage of (to the demise of my diet, but oh well), and I literally wasn't even home, let alone blogging. I hope everyone has had a great week and I will try to keep up with this more, though I can't make any promises on the blogging every day as life happens.

On the formulating end, I'm still working on making a soap collection for TKB. I'm frustrated right now because all the colors seem too similar, and I'm trying to step back and be objective. I am going to keep making color blends until I have 6 or 7 that I like, that are unique enough from each other.. Then I will try them in soap and choose the best 5. If you are curious about this project, it is just a collection that I'm going to call the 'city of roses' collection, after Portland, where I am drawing inspiration from the rose garden. It will most likely be pinks and purples, with a couple yellow/orange blends. One I could already see as an eyeshadow, but I guess natural colors like that are common in color cosmetics. So I hope this inspires some people, it is really easy to find inspiration if you are looking for it.

What is in your area that could inspire you?

Weight Loss Update Wednesday: Week 4

Since Last week I have gained 1 lb. I had a bad week, and I guess 1 lb isn't as bad as it could be. Total I have lost 7 lbs, which is 23.3% to my short term goal of 30 lbs, and 12.7% of my long term goal of 55 lbs. This now throws off my average to 2.4 lbs/week, but is still within my original goal of 2 lbs/week. I'm trying not too be too bummed out about it.. Maybe its just approaching the dreaded *that time of th..* I will say no more on that subject though.

Diet: I do not know what has happened to me. Last week I had NO appetite, and now this week I'm craving bad things again: chips, sweets, you name it.. I caved a couple times, and had much more bread than in the previous weeks. Bottom line, I was not in control of my cravings. I guess I took it for granted how easily things were going, and as soon as I went out to eat and had drinks all the bad cravings and habits came back. I do not regret going out for dinner, or having some drinks when out to see a movie, because that is life.. But I also have to acknowledge that it isn't going to help me lose weight as easily as I have been in those earlier weeks. It is the other day when I just didn't want to do anything but watch movies and eat in my pajamas that I regret. I did make it to the gym that night, but I still need to have better control than that. I hate it when I eat just to eat, it is possibly one of my worst habits, and I will never understand it, because I'm not getting any pleasure from the food..

Exercise: I did alright this week. I think I only did 4 days though, but I went hiking on top of going to the gym, so I don't feel bad about not *technically* meeting my goal. The gym was way harder this week, probably because of my diet. At least I went, and that's all I can really say. I didn't feel motivated, but I was proud that I went and didn't fully fall off the diet wagon.

Measurements: I have lost inches this week, even though I gained a pound!? That is interesting.. It is in weird places too: my forearm and my hips. I lost .5" from my forearms, and 1.5" from my hips.. Does this mean my butt wants to disappear too! I hope I continue to lose equally in all areas, but I guess you can't always get what you want.. I actually wouldn't mind if I lost some inches off my chest, I have lots of bras that I can't quite wear right now that need some love!

MAC Rodarte Collection Rant by SP

Warning: this is not work safe and there is adult language.. But aside from that 'preach it sistah!' I'm getting tired of MAC too, but I don't regret buying those dazzle lipsticks..

Rant Thursdays: Etsy Sellers and Safety

Before my rant, if you do not follow Pixiwoo, here is a recent post that was awesome! So true, there can be a lot of talent behind a look, but it really only comes alive when there is a personality to match it.

Onto my rant.. I recently started following Phyrra, and stumbled upon this post. I had never heard of Hi Fi Cosmetics, but I was very interested. They have some amazing colors, and glitters, and at the time a great sale going on.. The color that I was most interested in was Live Large, so I followed the link and checked out their etsy store. They seem to be established with lots of positive feedback, cool names/pics/products.. so I figured they knew what they are doing.. Until I checked out Live Large (which apparently they took down, possibly because of my comment on Phyrra's blog?). Anyway, the ingredients listed were: "mica, titanium dioxide, carmine, red 33, cosmetic grade polyester glitter." You are probably thinking.. 'whats wrong with that?', well.. red 33 is not an approved colorant for eye products according to the FDA. The rest had this generic list:

“contains mica, may contain sericite, kaolin, iron oxide, zinc oxide, titanium dioxide, ultramarines, silica, carmine, ferrecyanide, fdc and lake dye, bismuth, and tin oxide”

which has now been changed to:

"contains mica and titanium dioxide, may contain sericite and magnesium stearate, kaolin and rice powder, fdc and lake dye, iron oxide and cosmetic grade glitter, calcium aluminum borosilicate and zinc oxide, ultramarines and silica, palmitic acid and carmine, ferrecyanide and bismuth oxychloride, tin oxide and boron nitride, magnesium myristate and hydrogenated polybutene, for a specific list of ingredients please convo or email"

I can understand having a generic list, that's fine.. But now she doesn't state what lakes/dyes that she uses, and I do not trust that they are the ones that are approved for eyes. I am not out to ruin her business or anything, but if you are going to go into business you should know the rules of safety. I hope for her sake that she has insurance, but if she can't learn the dyes that are safe for eye use (which are not very many), then I'm guessing that insurance may be too much of a bother too.

This bums me out because I was interested in trying her stuff, but I guess some things are 'too good to be true'. I have not spent too much time on etsy, but I suspect it is even worse with some other sellers. Sometimes I wish I didn't know so much about this, then I could enjoy those bright vivid colors.. but then again, I like my eyes, so safety first :)

Weight Loss Update Wednesday: Week 3?

I started this diet on the 5th, so it is a little longer than 2 weeks in, but not quite 3 weeks.. I was going to the gym before that so I guess I'll call this week 3.

Since Last week I have lost 3 lbs. I was at 4 lbs, but I was just dehydrated and gained the lb back the next day. So total I have lost 8 lbs, which is 26.7% to my short term goal of 30 lbs, and 14.6% of my long term goal of 55 lbs. I have been averaging around 3.5 lbs/week, so if I stay at the same rate I should meet my short term goal around the beginning of October, and my long term goal in the middle of December. These are just extrapolations and I know I will plateau at some point, but it is good to know that it isn't in the too distant future. I will be in school by then and hopefully the stress and being busy wont be too much of a hurdle..

Diet: I have been doing fine at staying within my calories.. I drink lots of water, but probably not enough on days that I don't go to the gym. I did have one real foul-up this week: I drank beer. It was so good, but I got hungover and felt like crap the next day. I guess I just don't eat enough to handle drinking anymore, so I'll limit myself to one or two from now on. I have lost my appetite this week for some reason, so I have been probably under on calories. I think I have just lost interest since I don't eat anything that I crave anymore. I need to shake up my diet a little to make it more interesting, and start bringing snacks with me so I don't forget to eat.

Exercise: I did really good this week. I met my goal of 5 days, and I felt like I really pushed myself. I even went on the day I was hungover. It is getting easier too, so I may have to start doing something else to push myself harder. I am thinking of training for the "Run Like Hell". They do 5K and 10K, I'd be really proud to say I could do a half marathon, but I'm not sure if I am a runner, lol. I'll see how I do, and start running if I end up liking it. I probably wont run in my area though, because only the pretty people run around here.

Measurements: I have only lost inches in my waist so far, though I feel better in my clothes.. I guess it will just take more time to see the real difference.

Link Love Tuesdays

Karrie Welch of Fortunate Face Minerals just started a blog for the makeup artist side of her life. Check it out and follow her here! She is very talented :)

My BFF Travis just started a blog for his art and inspirations. We went out and sketched the other day at the rose garden. Get artsy fartsy and check out his blog here.

If you haven't heard of Fresco Phyrra, you should check her out. She is like the temptalia of mineral makeup! Here is a link to her blog.

Music Mondays: The National, IAMX, and Bat For Lashes.

The National has a new album out.. I never realized how depressed these guys are, but I love their music. The tracks I like are "Afraid of Everyone" and "Bloodbuzz Ohio", though they are getting lots of radio play for Bloodbuzz Ohio which is burning me out on that song. You can check out their myspace to listen to Bloodbuzz Ohio, or there are clips on iTunes of the whole album.

IAMX is a band that you may not know of, but it is one of my favorite bands. The frontman is Chris Corner of Sneaker Pimps. He is just pure genius. I haven't listened to much of this album yet other than the hit songs. Here are some links to the videos: My Secret Friend (feat Imogen Heap), The Tear Garden, and Think of England. Here is their myspace page where you can stream some of the songs.

Bat for Lashes is not necessarily new, but kinda new to me. I remember hearing one of their songs last year on fluxblog, but it didn't do much for me. I don't know what has happened since then, but I am liking it now. She is kinda like the new Kate Bush. It is really mellow, so probably better for at home than the gym.. "Daniel" is the most popular song, but I really like "Glass". Here is a video, and their myspace page.

Swatchy Sunday: Dazzle Lipsticks

During the Anniversary Sale at Nordstrom, I often go crazy on the Mac collections.. But this year I was kind of disappointed. Instead of doing the eyeshadow palettes, they are doing pro pans (most of which I could just get at the mac store). Plus I just don't buy eyeshadows much anymore since I could make most of what I would want. I did however fall in love with the new dazzle lipsticks. I bought a couple and then had to go back for more. I shouldn't be spending the money, but I had a nordstrom note, and it is double points right now, so of course I shop like a good little consumer with my magic card..

I'm going to add a video later with the actual swatches and individual pictures.. But as you know videos take a bit longer than just taking pictures ;)

This is just a video showing the new dazzle lipsticks that I got at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. My favorites so far are Troublemaker, Win-Win, and Hellraiser. They are fairly sheer, but really pretty in natural lighting. This video does not do them justice, but I didn't have the patience to mess with my lighting and re-record over and over again. I really like the formula, and the glitter does not feel gritty. As the lipstick wears, the glitter tends to stay. I definitely prefer this to the dazzle glasses because it isn't sticky. It would look really good over a stained lip, or other lipsticks.

My Schedule

So here is what I have come up with so far, which hopefully will inspire me to post more!

Sunday- "Swatchy Sundays" I will probably either review anything new I get, or post some pics of stuff in my collection.

Monday- "Music Mondays" I want to get more into music, so I am going to challenge myself to find some great new artists/songs at least once a week. This will keep my ears happy at the gym too :)

Tuesday- "Link Love Tuesdays" I will post some links to whatever I'm into at the moment.. May be articles I read, videos I liked..etc.

Wednesday- "Weight Loss Update Wednesdays" I will update my progress with the weight loss, how I've been eating, maybe post some recipes I've tried.. stuff like that.

Thursday- "Rant of the Week Thursdays" Who knows what I'll be ranting about, but I'll try to keep the ranting to once a week :)

Friday- "Formulating Fridays" TGIF! I know this will be everyone's favorite day..

Saturday- "Soapy Saturdays" This is where I will be posting about my new found love of soap.. May be more about researching at first, but maybe I'll get creative with some melt and pour.

Of course I will post other things too, but I thought this could give me somewhere to start until I get into the rhythm of blogging.

Diet of Doom

I recently started a diet, I mean *ahem* a 'lifestyle change', and so far it is going pretty well. My goal is to lose 55 lbs, however my short term goal is 30 lbs. This is week one and I have already lost 3 lbs! Before I would have laughed at that number. I use to lose weight so easily, but it has gotten much harder this year for some reason. I even went to the doctor because I thought I had a thyroid problem, but thankfully I don't. It was probably stress and depression working against me (I recently was taking weight lifting and kickboxing, yet continued to gain weight). But at last I am free! I have been really watching what I have been eating, and avoiding simple sugars.. I have finally stopped craving sweets, which is an amazing feat if you know me..

I was a bit worried that I wasn't going to meet my goal of 2 lbs a week because I didn't go to the gym as much as I had hoped this week (I went 4 instead of my goal of 5 days this week). It was miserably hot here, and we aren't use to heat so we don't have things like air conditioners.. I couldn't get myself go to the gym. The cardio machines are on the top floor, and so unless I go at night, it is like a sauna. It all worked out though, I am proud that I made it 4 days at least.. Now it is a new week and hopefully I can meet my goal and make it to the gym too. I have stopped doing weight lifting and am focusing 100% on cardio, though I may switch it up in a few weeks.

So, I don't know if I will be blogging too much about it, because I know it can be annoying to hear about diets and such, but maybe I'll do a weekly update on my progress :)

Here is a tip for drinking more water: make some iced tea. I found out that you do not need to brew it, it is so easy! You fill a pitcher with water, then add 2 tea bags, put it in the frig and it is good to go the next day. It infuses all on its own! I did this with Stash Raspberry Green Tea, and it was so good. It smelled sweet like a juice, but tasted like tea.. As much as I love water, it can get boring sometimes :)

The Vet

I took my cat into the vet today... I was pretty sure that she was in good health and didn't really need to go, but she was due for her shots, so I wasn't expecting a crazy bill or anything. Boy was I wrong. I got the minimum of what she needed and it still came up to $170, even with a coupon. I guess I just didn't have a realistic idea of what it costs to really take care of a cat. I still need to get a dental cleaning for her, and that is going to be $350 (plus I have to get blood tests before that). So I am a bit overwhelmed right now. I find it kind of embarrassing that I spend money on makeup so easily, but that I even think twice about spending money on my cat. I guess part of it is that I wasn't expecting it to cost so much, and if I was prepared to spend that much money I wouldn't be so overwhelmed right now. The veterinarian said that I could wait about 3 months to get the cleaning, but I shouldn't wait any longer. I didn't feel too pressured because I knew that she needs a cleaning since the lady that I got her from informed me that she had teeth removed before I got her. .. She is an older Siamese cat, so I don't want to mess with not getting it done, but I am a little freaked out about them putting her under for it ;/

So I guess I'm going to have to work more, or save up for a few months to get this done. I bought her some t/d special cat food so that should help. I also bought some cat toothpaste and a toothbrush a few months ago, but she will not let me brush her teeth. I'm going to try again, but I'm not expecting any miracles. I have been looking into this insurance for her, and I'm starting to think that it is a good solution for me. The quote I got was $47/month for her, which covers 90% of bills with a $50 co-pay. This comes up to $564/year, which is a lot, but if she needs a cleaning every year, or anything else happens, then it will pay for itself. She is 8 years old, so it is probably a good idea (especially since I think you can't get insurance after they are 10, you can only continue insurance after they are that old).

Here is a picture of Lila, the best cat in the world :)