Tag: summer

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a few favorite summer lip colors, vol. iii: glosses, sheers, paints

Let’s ignore that I changed my categorizing criterion from color to texture mid-series. I do what I want.

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Origins Liquid Lipcolor in Juicy Details (w/ gold glitter), Lip Fusion gloss in Boca Babe, Estée Lauder The Lip Gloss in Coralée, Maybelline Color Whisper in Orange Attitude, Revlon Lip Butter in Tutti Frutti

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Revlon Kissable Balmstain in Rendez-vous, Korres Lip Butter Glaze in Pomegranate, Sleek Pout Paint in Lava, OCC Lip Tar in Banjee

OK, quickly:

Hardly wear lipgloss but when I do wear it, I wear these ones. I keep thinking I ought to give them more of a chance. They have that summer ease and swipeability about them, and have the virtue of already being in my possession. I especially like the Origins one, sheer with a bit of gold shimmer. Others in this Origins line are beautifully pigmented. Thinking of the red one.

Isn’t that Estée Lauder gloss packaging beautiful? What? Oh. Tom Ford designed it. Genius.

It’s like learning that Joss Whedon script-doctored Speed (which he did).

I like Maybelline Color Whispers more than Revlon Lip Butters. There, I said it.

And I like Revlon Balmstains better than either of them.

The Sleek Pout Paint is intense and exactly the color I hoped it would be. Lava is actually a pretty accurately evocative name, hue-wise.

I picked up the OCC Lip Tar in Banjee to mix with red (so I could determine my own red-orange ratios) but it’s pretty stunning on its own, a vibrant orange marigold color. It would be a slightly editorial look, but what’s wrong with that? In the grocery store. At the liquor store. In line for hot chocolate. Baffling small children. Etc.

See also vol. i: coral, vol. ii: orange.

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bikini of the day: neon striped bandeau

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Another little bandeau number from Victoria’s Secret, a few seasons ago now. I prefer this twist front bandeau to the ruched front that is so widely available and not quite so flattering to my eye. Tied bottoms are cute but also flexible given slight fluctuations in weight. Victoria’s Secret provides a basically ridiculous number of options, which I suspect is key to their swimwear success.

Bandeaus with halter straps like this, when you wear the halter, create this great trapezoid within the square (of your shoulders) figure that I like a lot. Not so young now, in the world of bikini-wearing anyway, I am aware of the challenge of making choices that are playful without being too childish, or too teenagerish. Or outright tacky (No jewels! Power to you if you like a bit of encrustation with your swimwear, but I can’t do it). This is such a fine line, I think, and one that shifts around from one person to another, from one age to another, and that shifts around on me all the time based on mysterious changes in my various inner microclimates. This example is well in my comfort zone but close enough to the line to make me aware of the line. Sometimes I don’t think a piece is quite as adult as I aspire to at least seem to be, but I just like it too much. What then?

Well, I will try it on. I can’t just ignore flat out liking something. It warrants reflection, at least.

This bikini, I admit, is just the kind of thing I would have picked out as a teenager… but I still like most of the things I liked as a teenager. I am really very consistent.