Visit With An Old Friend

Once again, I'm going to have to make this post kind of quick...but that's my life right now.

I had to do something last weekend for a Government paper that I hadn't done in years...I actually set foot in a library.  I felt like an idiot because I actually had to remind myself of how the library worked (plus, I was at the Main Street Library and I'm not at all familiar with that one).  Seriously folks, I actually had to remind myself of the different sections of a library and the fact that I needed to look the call number up...it actually took me a few minutes to remember the term "call number."  I needed to listen to that dang Dewey Decimal rap the kids keep playing on youtube (Disclaimer: this WILL get stuck in your head, and you will sound like an idiot going around rapping about the library).

I felt guilty...like I had abandoned a friend and then run into them again on the street.  Or maybe, more accurately, like I had abandoned them and then had to call them because I needed something. 

Anyway, once I re acclimated myself to my surroundings I made my way to the reference area and remembered what it felt like to do real research...with books.  I really do think the internet has spoiled us.  The place was crawling with people because they were having some sort of event, so it was really hard to concentrate.  Finally, I was done in the reference section, upstairs, and needed to go back downstairs to find a regular non-fiction book.  I couldn't find the section at first...and then I saw another room behind glass doors.  It looked like some off-limits area...like Area 51 of the public library.  I thought "there's no way this is just the non-fiction section."  I opened the door expecting an alarm or something, but was greeted me was something both familiar and unexpected:

Silence...

and the smell of old books.

I love books.  Barnes and Noble is one of my favorite stores, and I could spend hours in there taking in the magic of being surrounded by hundreds upon hundreds of people's words, thoughts, and feelings.  Anyone ever seen the movie "Inkheart" where the books whisper they're secrets and contents to Brendan Frasier and his daughter?  It's like that...only, ya know...without audible whispering. 

Even more than that, though, I love old books.  The feeling of being connected to all the hands that once touched the pages and became the story...the Never-Ending Story.  Old books touch my heart and my mind and...*sigh* I don't know.  I wish I could describe it. 

I think it's the quiet part of my soul.  I am loud and social and happy and joyful and giggly and boisterous...but here, in this quiet place, with only the sound of the librarian looking at microfiche (yeah...remember that?!), I remembered the quiet part of me and embraced it.  I could still see the other side...I could look through the glass doors and see the activity, knowing that is a part of me, too, but for just a while I relished the silence and solitude.  I took a minute to take in the feel of the books...the large, old leather bound volumes at the top of the shelves and the volumes wrapped in paper and string to try to preserve their already worn pages.

I did my research and then joined the rest of the world again.  I left the quiet part of me and rejoined the ruckus, but I'll tell you this...this old friend and I are going to visit much more often. :)

Flowers, makeup, and reading...oh my!!

I feel trapped today.  I'm trying to read for my classes, but at the same time I have this information in my head that I feel I want to disseminate, so I'm distracted.  I decided the best possible way for me to get anything accomplished was to write a quick and dirty blog post (so no editing, yuck) and then I should be able to concentrate on my homework...hopefully.

What has me so distracted today?  Makeup.  I know.  You don't even have to say anything.  You know you're positively caught up in wedding land when all you can think about is flowers, makeup, etc.  So, today I'm makeup obsessed.  Let's just deal with that.

Honestly, I hadn't thought a ton about makeup for the wedding until this week.  I figured the makeup I normally wear would be fine.  However, I've noticed recently that my makeup doesn't really seem to last a long time, and after working on the timeline for the wedding, I've also realized this is really going to be an all day affair AND someone's going to be following me around with a camera all day (namely, my lovely photographer, Amanda Truth).  Thus, I started doing a little makeup research.  I found that while many people love Bare Minerals and other mineral makeup, it's not really the best makeup for photography because of the SPF content...it reflects light or something.  This new information sent me into Ulta this morning with a fresh clean face and lots of hope.  Here's what I discovered:

This first bit of advice is for anyone looking for new makeup, event makeup, etc...GO TO THE PROS.  By saying that, I do not mean you need to get your makeup professionally done.  I do my makeup every day of my life, and generally, I think I look pretty decent.  Therefore, I do not want to pay someone to apply it to my face.  However, these girls at Ulta really knew their stuff.  I also recommend going to a place like Ulta because there are tons of different makeup lines and each has their own particular strengths and weaknesses.  If you go to the Clinique counter at the mall, they're only showing you Clinique products (same goes for MAC, Estee Lauder, etc.).  On the other hand, at Ulta I was shown a variety of products from different lines that the girls there thought would work for me.  They were very knowledgeable and helpful!!  Thanks Sarah and Jenn!

I began by looking for a primer, and I started with Smashbox because I know they have an "HD" line that was specifically made for photography.  However, because of the slight rosacea on my face and some other blotchiness, Sarah directed me to "Keep the Peace" Protective Color Corrector by Philosophy.  This stuff was not cheap ($30), but it was cheaper than the Smashbox primers and had some other added benefits.  Not only will this serve to even out my skin tone under makeup, it can also be worn on its own and is spf 20.  That won't affect my makeup the day of the wedding, though, because I'll be wearing other stuff on top of it.

For foundation, Sarah suggested I definitely go with the Smashbox HD line and she helped me find a color that would work perfectly.  I'm very pale and the lightest shade matched my skin tone very well.  However, by going one shade darker, I found that I could blend it very well with my current tone and it would blend will if I get any sun (and I plan on doing that in Nags Head in 2 weeks!!).  The foundation and powder looked GREAT on my skin.  Downside: the foundation is $38 and the powder is $59!!!!  Holy guacamole, people!  I cannot spend $100 on foundation and powder!  This is where Sarah's expertise comes in.  She pointed out a kit to me that Smashbox has.  It has slightly smaller sizes (about 2/3-3/4), but is $49 and comes with primer, foundation, cover up, and powder!  It comes in three different shades, and the "light" kit will work perfect for me.  They didn't have any in stock in my shade, but she recommended buying it online anyway because they currently have a "buy $50, get $10" deal online, I'd get free shipping, and they'll give me samples.  See what I'm saying here people?  This girl knows her stuff.

She also applied my foundation and primer with some brushes, and I don't have a foundation brush.  When I asked her about foundation brushes did she take me to the most expensive ones?  Absolutely not.  She took me over to the normal priced side of the store and showed me some brushes by Eco Tools that were very economical (about $12, I think).  She also recommended the e.l.f. brushes from Target.  She said that's what she uses at home, and they're really great brushes for the price - $3 each!  You know that scene from "Miracle on 34th Street" where the lady is in love with Macy's because their Santa sent her to a different store?  Yeah...I had that kind of moment.

At this point, I let Sarah go ring up some customers, but then the lovely Jenn came over and helped with the rest of my makeup.  She was awesome, too.  We did my eyes in Smashbox colors, that were great, but I probably won't buy them just because I have the colors at home, and it's really kind of secondary for me.  She did make an awesome suggestion regarding eyeshadow primer, though.  I told her my eyelids have a tendency to be a little yellow-orangish and she asked if I felt like they were oily at all...which they can be.  I told her I had used Urban Decay's eyeshadow primer, but I was out.  She said Urban Decay was a great choice, but instead of the original I need to use the mattifying (is that a word?) primer because of the oiliness.  Once again, these girls KNOW their product lines.  Ulta had me ultra impressed.

I used a pinkish blush from Smashbox that, once again, I probably won't buy because I have blush, but here's another thing I learned in my research.  When taking pictures, you'll want to apply a bit more blush than you would normally to avoid appearing washed out.  We're not talking Tammy Faye Baker here folks, just a little more than everyday wear.

For lips I used the "Be Legendary" lipstick by Smashbox in "Mandarin" along with their "Shades of Fame" gloss in "Papaya."  They're a little pricey ($19 each), so I was almost positive I wasn't going to buy them...but now I'm not so sure.  They felt great on, and while the color isn't as vivid as before, I still have a beautiful peachy shade on my lips seven hours later (after eating lunch and two cups of coffee).  Hmmm...we'll have to see.  I may decide to go with the lipstick, since I'm almost sure that's what has the staying power, and go over it with a cheaper gloss.

This is what the makeup looks like now (please ignore the fact that the rest of me is a mess and the cell phone pic doesn't quite do it justice).  Seven hours later and the makeup still looks really good. It's a really natural look, but in person, my skin just looks good, and I don't say that often.

In other news, I finished the moms' corsages for the wedding, and I'm really happy with how they turned out.  I used silk flowers for both of them so they could be kept.  Both are red roses, but my mom's is backed by small daffodils and Josiah's mom's is backed by dogwood flowers (both of their favorites).  This is what my mom's looks like:

All in all, it's been a pretty productive day...and now, I need to get back to reading!!!