10 Things I love on Etsy 5/12/2018

Abso-fuckin-lutely!!

In case you've been living under a rock and hadn't heard, Etsy is a community of crafts makers, artisans, and vintage fashion fanatics who share their wares on the Etsy platform, allowing consumers (like you and me, baby) to find their goods and support their dreams. Pretty cool, man, pret-ty cool. Antho and I have had our own humble little shop on the site for a couple years now, and as a way of giving back to the community I like to share some of the sweet stuff I've found perusing it in my downtime. All items can be shopped with the links provided!

1. Magical AF Glitter Pin 

Antho and I have been collecting pins and patches with the intention of creating a custom jacket for me in the near-ish future. As a result, I've found myself oogling a wide array of pins and patches from all over the place. We find ourselves in a mall? Pop in to Hot Topic to see if they've got any fun patches! We've found several of the Sailor Senshi symbols in patch form (so far I've got Mars and Venus), so I'm on a quest to complete my collection. This pretty pastel pin would fit right in with that theme! Love it! There's plenty more where this came from in their shop, if you'd rather not get your F-bomb on. 

02. Rose Gold Pineapple with Opal necklace 

Don't get it twisted- I love love LOVE pineapple, not Spongebob. Pineapples are like the taste of summer to me, and I'm never unhappy to find pineapple chunks available on a fruit tray. It's such a sweet, tangy fruit! I'm absolutely okay with the pineapple trend. Rose gold will forever be stunning, and opal is one of my favorite stones so this is an all around win! If pineapple isn't your thing, there's a ton of other cute items over in their shop!

03. Holographic tapes 4 pack

Second time now that the shop Lunarbay has popped up on this list. I guess maybe I was creeping their shop or something? They have a ridiculous amount of cute stuff, though! And I'm absolutely addicted to planners, and all the accessories to go along with them. I have a convoluted system of sticky tabs and tapes I use to mark things in my (pastel pink) May Designs for Blue Sky 2018 Daily & Monthly planner I got at Target last year, and I'm already eyeballing options for next year. I've had my eye on a Ban.do planner for awhile now... but this tape!! OH MY HOLO-LLUYAH!!! I love all things holographic, whether it's makeup, nail polish, bags, folders, what-have-you. I'm living for this whole Lisa-frank 90's nostalgia revival thing. 

04. Sailor Moon Crisis Compact Pin - Limited Edition - 

That's right babes, this gorgeous Sailor Moon pin is limited edition so that means you better get on it sooner rather than later if, like me, you need it in your life. My love for Sailor Moon is, like the meatball head herself, eternal. TheLanternGirl shop has a ton of other super cute pins, though, so definitely check them out! They're not all Sailor Moon themed, though a lot of them definitely are. 

05. Victorian Barf Abstract Art print knee length pencil skirt

How could I not love the name of this? And it harkens to my love of fluid painting, so that's a win. And pastels? Duh. This skirt would look super sexy~! In the description they mention it has four way stretch, which is a total win because a body-con skirt like this could feel like a sausage casing without appropriate stretchability. My biggest issue is that I like to take long strides and flounce about like a failed ballerina so this would be a smidge outside my comfort range for day to day but absolutely perfect for a date night! There are definitely some options to be found in the Abstractionist Shop, though, if you're not feeling the barf here. 

06. Dwight Mug

I've spoken before about my love of the Office, and Dwight is a character I'm especially fond of. I would have already bought this if not for the fact it's over $20 with shipping and everything... I'm not really at a place in my life where I can justify that just yet, especially since I already have an overabundance of perfectly good coffee cups in my crowded little cabinet. But hey, accidents do happen, and there's bound to be a day when this majestic mug will make it look like I have a mustache to give Stanley envy. NoahLovesIssy has a ton of cute stuff, so even if you're not a fan of the Office they've got something you'll enjoy!

07. Pink Bat Plush Purse 

Isn't this little purse from Uglyplants absolutely adorable?! He's just so fluffy and sweet! I think bats are darling to begin with, such underrated little cuties, so maybe I'm biased... but they have a ton of other super cute (or kawaii) stuff in their shop if you're not into flying squeaks, even when they're pretty in pink. 

08. Holographic Backpack 

This sexy ass space bag is by Yingliwong and they've got a pretty wide array of shiny bags to blind the poor folks who got stuck walking behind you on a sunny day. Hell to the yeah.  If you're not into the blinding bags, they've got some other fun stuff like a cute Panda shirt or this slick phone case. 

09. White Unicorn Brush Set + Holographic bag

Another holographic bag, but this one is for your brushes, and it comes with brushes! Double whammy! It's almost sold out, with only 2 left in stock at the time of this writing. Don't worry, though, they've got a bunch of other super cute stuff in their shop you can still get!

10. Virgo - Cactus + Sea Salt - Astrology Series candle

My sense of smell is, unfortunately, more or less non-existent... so, for me, candles are among some of the most flippant of fripperies. Most of the time I can't get their scent, and the few times I -have- been able to smell one it ended up giving me a headache... but I'm a sucker for anything that caters to my vanity about being a Virgo. It's silly, and I don't put a lot of weight into horoscope predictions, but I like the description of my signs characteristics and like to imagine that if I could smell I'd be appreciative of this candle. Also, I love the color they chose, so at least it would look pretty on my shelf and maybe it would impress guests with my classy sensibilities.  If you're not a Virgo, or simply not sold on the scent of salty cactus, don't worry- FIPcandles has plenty for everyone. 

That's it for this round!

Cheers!

💖

XOXO,

NAU

Makeup: Colourpop Supershock Shadows Swatches

Who doesn't love some new makeup in their lives? I tend to invest in some new makeup a handful of times throughout the year, if that, and this year has been especially minimal in terms of new purchases. Last year I was swooping up all sorts of Velvetines and liquid lippies and palettes (most of which I haven't reviewed yet), but for most of 2018 I've only picked up new makeup second hand (Antho brings me home something new he found) or out of necessity (ran out of mascara)... but it's been quite some time, and I felt like I needed to #treatmyself since I was starting to hit pan on some of my most used eyeshadows...that's the fancy way of saying that I've used so much of the particular shades in my palettes that I'm starting to unearth the bottom of the pan holding the powder. 

Naturally, Colourpop had a BOGO (buy one get one) sale and caught my eye. I'm always happy to score a good bargain, and Colourpop cosmetics already have a reasonable price point at $5 for each supershock shadow pan. They're pretty big! I got four eyeshadows for $10, plus $5.99 for shipping, which means I spent about $16 of my hard earned cash total for these. Not bad, guys, not bad. I picked up four colors: Bill, Kennedy, Set to Stun and Girly. I took close up photos in the sunlight to better showcase their colors because boy howdy are these beautiful to look at!

Set to Stun is a cool pinky-orange tone with blue and silver sparkles that I'm super excited to pack onto the center of my lid for an ethereal bling effect. It's described as an "icy rose" with blue glitter and that's totally accurate, I think. It's SO FREAKING PRETTY! I'm definitely planning to use this one often. 

Kennedy is right in line with all the warm, peachy tones profligating through various palettes- whether it's Lime Crime Venus II's "Mud" or Too Faced's Sweet Peach palette's "Puree", or one of the shades from Urban Decay's Heat, or countless other's- I think this will be a great crease and lid color for simple, warm toned looks. Given the consistency of this product, I'm also really excited to try layering it with my Sugarpill loose powder in Supernova! It's also going to be really easy to incorporate this one into my routine, so that's nice. 

Bill is this cool mauve matte tone that reminds me of Urban Decay Naked3's "Nooner", which is one of the colors I've depleted heavily. The consistency, again, is really creamy and rich and I'm super excited to use this as an all-over eye color with maybe some smudged eyeliner, mascara, and simple inner corner highlight. So in love with this! Could also say it's a pinker version of "Divine" from the Lime Crime Venus I palette. 

Girly is a hard one for me to try to swatch, because it pretty much dissolves into my skintone like butter on toast. Pale girl problems. It has this really pretty shifting gold-pink tone to it that I'm totally smitten with! I got this to try to use as an inner corner and brow highlight, but I think there's more possibilities with this one, so I'll have to experiment. This color is super pretty and reminds me of the color "Aura" in my Lime Crime Venus I palette with a little less chromatic effect.  

The texture on these is SO much fun! Oh my goodness. It's like a smooth, buttery cream and you only need to apply a little pressure to get a lot of color payout. I'm super excited to play with these and try all sorts of looks! I definitely had a palette in mind when ordering these, as the colors are going to work with all the palettes I already own- Too Faced's Sweet Peach Palette, Urban Decay Naked3, Lime Crime Venus I & Venus II. I tend to burn through my go-to shades pretty quick and have hit pan in a few of the colors close to these, so if these work out for me I'll be super happy. It's recommended that you use your fingers to apply for best results, so that's where I'm going to start. I've watched some Youtube videos and sought out blogs and reviews on them, too, to get an idea before diving in. Colourpop is an affordable brand and has sales pretty regularly, so there's no reason to feel intimidated by trying them! And holy cow their color selection is INSANE! They also recommend making sure you close the lids on super tight so the product doesn't dry out... it really has such a fun, wet to the touch consistency that it would be a shame to lose that. I'll be sure to follow up with some looks using these over the next few months. 

Thanks for stopping by!

💖

XOXO,

NAU

Art: Tie-dye photoshoot in Valley of Fire

Happy day-after-Valentine's day, guys!

Sorry, single friends, if our cheese is a little disgusting to you right now. I understand, I really do, but it's also a cheesy romantic time of year and we're a couple of sappy bastards so I couldn't help myself but to at least have some nod to romance here. And, not to sound too vain, but I think we look kind of cute in these photos. 

Here's something else to look at so as to ease your urge to vomit.  Our campsite out here at Arch Rock campground in Valley of Fire state park was quite photogenic and we found what was the perfect spot for us. The lighting was good for much of the morning and we were visited by an array of cute creatures over the hours. 

While we had spent the night previous relaxing and enjoying each other's company and a fire-cooked meal away from the city, once the sun rose and I had an adequate amount of caffeine and spontaneous cuteness in my system it was time for us to get to work. Luckily for us, the work involved here is modelling some of our finished tie-dye creations among the beautiful landscape. While in the past we've opted to keep our photoshoots on the simpler side so as not to draw too much focus away from the shirts, we realised that this approach is also a bit boring and doesn't convey much about our personalities or the kind of vibe we want our clothes to have. Since we're going to go camping anyway, why not bring along some of our stuff and snag some shots when the lighting is good? We were still able to enjoy most of our morning and the photoshoot didn't take so long as to keep us occupied longer than we would have been comfortable with. We were back in the city and the comfort of our own home by mid-afternoon, and that's even with the stop we made along the way... there will be a separate post on that, though, as it was too hair-raising for me to want to include among the outtakes from the photoshoot. The ones that we used for the listings are all up and visible on our Etsy shop, along with the items being modelled themselves!  

Lips by Lime Crime.

More photos below!

Hair: My experience with Lime Crime Unicorn Hair dye in Charcoal

My love for Lime Crime has been documented here before, and when I purchased their Unicorn Hair dye in Leeloo I also picked up Charcoal to give it a shot because, you know, two birds with one stone and all that. I was really excited to try this color because it's marketed specifically towards darker haired gals so you know the color pigmentation should be pretty intense! My natural hair color is obvious from my roots to about the top of my ear which is to say it's naturally pretty dark brown, while the rest from ear down has been bleached over time with multiple applications of 10 volume developer and PrismLites bleach in the purple shade. I've bleached my hair in the past using a 20 volume and toner the next day, so I know how my hair reacts with the 20 volume developer. I opted for 10 volume this time around as I didn't want to go so shockingly blonde so fast, obtaining more of an ombre sort of effect by going a little higher with the bleach each application. I don't apply it to my ends every time, either. Most people won't use 10 volume developer for anything more than giving a color application a little more oomph, but my hair has reacted well to this slow-and-gentle bleaching method. That being said, I had several shades varying from deep natural brown to a light yellow going on through my hair length prior to application of the Charcoal dye. Most of the Leeloo had faded out and I gave my hair a round with the bleach the day prior to brighten it up a little further. There were still some yellow tones left, but I figured that since it was intended to give color to brunette hair it would work out on the lighter parts. 

The dye itself looks sufficiently dark and once it was on my hair I was quite excited. I'd been sporting varying shades of pinkish-orange-blonde since the spring and wanted to tone it down and go cool for the winter months. In the end I succeeded in a way, though the end result wasn't quite what I anticipated. 

Makeup: Lime Crime Cashmere Velvetine Matte Liquid Lipstick review and swatches

One of my all time favorite things in life probably, like, ever is to come home and find a package waiting for me. It doesn't matter whether it's something as mundane as ordering vitamins from Vitacost or a scarf that your friend overseas was kind enough to send to you (thank you so much, Sam!!), there's something undeniably delightful about coming home (where the cute fluffy pets and boyfriend are) to find a mysterious box (or envelope/bubblemailer) with your name on it. In this case, Lime Crime goes discreet and mails your beauty booty in a simple white box. Don't let the plain exterior fool you, though, as upon lifting the lid you're greeted by the pretty blue lid with unicorns and floral loveliness. It's all pastel and pretty, with sky blue tones on the lid complimented by the soft pink paper encasing your goods. The insert is lovely, too. 

In this order I got three shades: cashmere, pink velvet, and beet it. This was my first ever order from Lime Crime and Cashmere was a free gift with purchase as a limited promotional offer, so I found it easier to justify paying 30-some-odd of my hard earned bucks for lipstick when I got three instead of two. I always try to keep an eye out for sales so I can stretch my beauty investments further, especially when purchasing from brands that cost a pretty penny. I know for some people $15-20 for a single lipstick is a laughably small consideration, but I live in the real world where I've got rent, bills, and shit to take care of so I try to put some thought into where my money goes. Lime Crime is vegan and cruelty free, which is fantastic. 

From top to bottom:

Cashmere (greige)

Pink Velvet (true pink)

Beet It (deep berry pink)

described by Lime Crime:

"Long lasting matte liquid lipstick in a deep berry-pink hue.

What it does: Makes your lips feel luxurious and velvety, like a rose. Lasts all day with minimal touch-ups, even through meals.

What it won't do: Bleed or transfer. Dry out properly moisturized lips. Ruin the perfect kiss.

TIPS: Apply lip balm 15 minutes prior; pat off excessive oils with a tissue. Apply Velvetines directly to lips (use a lip brush to refine edges). Remove at the end of the day with waterproof makeup remover or oil."

Review and photos continue after the cut!

Makeup: Sugarpill Trinket Liquid Lipstick Swatches and Review

In my previous post on Sugarpill's Kim Chi liquid lip, I mentioned an upcoming review on Trinket...and ta-da! Here we are! 

In all actuality, the two came in the same package. I've had them now for a few months and have dabbled with them enough to feel confident in giving my humble opinion based on my personal experience with them. I'm not a professional makeup artist, though I do know a couple and occasionally bug them for their sage advice. These are just the opinions of this girl, who buys these things with her own hard earned pocket cash in the hopes of feeling prettier and having a happier, sparklier life. 

Sugarpill describes Trinket as:

"Creamy matte mauve infused with luminous golden sparkles that shine brighter as the formula sets. Ultra-pigmented and super long-lasting. Our creamy, mousse-like formula never feels dry on your lips! Creamsicle scented."

Which translates to this, on me:

With flash, indoors. 

My personal, non-professional description of this lipstick color is "natural but better", because I find the base color so easy and comfortable to wear. It's close enough to my natural lip color to look almost as if I'm not wearing much of anything, but then that sparkle hits! I feel like this could be an easy go-to daily shade for any girl (or guy) who wants more sparkle in their life without wanting to go full-blown disco unicorn. You can definitely up the glitz factor by rubbing your finger gently across your lips to reveal more of the glitter, but that may negatively impact your weartime. 

No flash, indoors. You can see just a peek of the gold glinting through.

In the same lighting, with the lipstick rubbed in a bit so that the sparkles come to life!

I find this such a lovely shade and from the reviews it seems a lot of people consider it a flatter tone, so that's awesome! Personally, I find I don't reach for it as often as I could because it feels almost too tame now that I've gotten into more daring shades. It is an absolutely beautiful color, and for me the wear time was about the same as Kim Chi, which is to say 2-3, maybe 4 hours. Maybe I drink a lot of water, I mean, I do try to stay hydrated... But does that constitute super long lasting? Depends on your standards for that definition. The color will fade, especially if you eat/drink/smoke during that time frame, but that brings out the sparkles and it's such a near-nude shade that it's not going to look awful as it diminishes, so I'm not mad at them. They say it smells like creamcicles, but I can neither confirm nor deny as my sense of smell is pretty abysmal, but if I happen to get a whiff of something yummy next time I apply it I'll let you guys know! The formula is creamy and applies easily with one coat. It doesn't feel especially drying on my lips while wearing it, but I'm also aware that it's on, if that makes sense. It's not heavy or tacky, though, which I appreciate. I have enough issues in my day to day without my lips getting glued together, thank you very much. Sugarpill understands, and the texture of the lipstick is quite nice going on.  

Makeup: Sugarpill Kim Chi Liquid Lipstick swatches and review

Something you may not know about me is that I've had a long running off and on affair with makeup. There will be long stretches of time where I dabble and experiment constantly, making an effort to do my face on a daily basis so I can figure out which colors and formulas work best for me and which aren't doing me any favors...then there will be months where I couldn't care less and go naked faced into the world, for whatever variety of reasons suit at the moment. 

While I was living in Korea, a mecca of makeup and skincare, I found myself going a bit more simple with my looks.  This was due to a few factors, like being away from my boyfriend (who calls me gorgeous regardless of what's on my face) and feeling less of a need to get dolled up ("who am I trying to impress?") plus feeling a bit frumpy with my hair as it grew out, but also a bit of intimidation when faced with the plethora of items available and my linguistic lacking. My grasp on Korean is abysmal so unless I had my host or my friends along to help play translator I would struggle to communicate what I was looking for in a product... To be honest, though, this was also partially due to the fact I was, simply put, pretty broke in the beginning. Moving overseas is a big change of lifestyle on top of location, and there can be an adjustment period before you settle in and your new paychecks start rolling in that a sense of financial security starts to develop. Once I felt a little more stable in my funds I did eventually begin to dabble a toe in the large and varied most wonderful world of Korean cosmetics...  The style of makeup in Korea tends towards a more natural look, too, from what I saw while there. I really enjoyed seeing the different makeup looks the girls I'd draw at Fun Caricature locations would wear, as they often looked put together and pretty but fresh faced, too...a stark contrast to the heavy contour and smokey eyes looks that are so popular here in the US. I love both approaches to makeup, but while living there I tended to stick with a routine of just: BB cream, smidge of eyeshadow (maybe), dash of eyeliner and mascara. The first time I wore a peripera lip stain, about 3 months into my stay, one of my male coworkers asked if I was wearing makeup to work... for the first time. 😂

(indoor lighting)

So, how does this bring us to American indie makeup brand Sugarpill's lipstick that was developed with the help of Drag Queen (or goddess) Kim Chi? 

(with flash)

(indoor lighting)

Well,  this lippie, and the Queen, is given the name of Korea's most eponymous food stuff. Spicy, intense, in-your-face and bold, the signature food is a fitting moniker. While I've never watched RuPaul's Drag Race I did some research and I can dig it and have absolutely no problem with any of my pennies going towards Kim Chi's pockets if it meant having this lovely shade! Slay on, Queen.

Review continues after the cut!

Las Vegas: Fear the Watching Dear premier party 2015-08-23

Antho and I were recently invited to participate in the Fear the Watching Dead season premiere party hosted by Fatbeard and the cast of Evil Dead the Musical at Shakespeare's Grille & Pub. It was a freaking blast!!!

If you didn't know already, I'm a huge fan of all things horror! 

Ever since I was a little kid horror movies have been a favorite of mine, with The Thing, the Fly, Alien & Aliens, American Werewolf in London, the Evil Dead series, and the Nightmare on Elm Street series among my favorites, but I've also got a big sweet spot for zombie flicks. Shaun of the Dead, Dead Alive, Night of the Living Dead, Zombieland, Warm Bodies and more all hold very near and dear places in my heart. One of the biggest draws to the creepier side of the cinematic world for me is the practical effects utilized in a lot of the older movies. I was raised on a heavy diet of Jim Henson's astounding creations and was absolutely fascinated by the process I caught glimpses of in behind the scenes clips. Working in the world of creature effects and practical monster makeup has always been something of a dream job for me, and I geek out hard on videos showing how a talented team of professionals can turn a pretty little model into a crawling corpse. However, I'm currently much better at drawing, so I do! Being invited to events like this is always a great privilege and honor, and I'm happy to announce that we were invited back for the season finale! Yay!

Check out my art blog, Deviantart,  if you're curious to get a glimpse of some of the creepy stuff I love drawing, haha. Might not be suitable for the easily spooked. ;) 

More photos from the event below!