Neutrogena Oil-Free Acne Wash
Originally uploaded by nightpost

I’m not one to describe a face cleanser as “yummy,” but, well, things change. This week I picked up a bottle of Neutrogena’s new Pink Grapefruit Oil-Free Acne Wash, after my old facial cleanser ran out. I’ve been a fan of Neutrogena ever since a group of my girlfriends all agreed they love it. Plus, this one’s pink, and if that ain’t girly,,,

I’ve used the face wash for several days now, and my skin definitely feels smooth and clean. My pores even look a bit smaller. But the greatest thing about this stuff? It smells so much like Jell-O, I want to lick the bottle.

I’m serious!

Since I stay at my boyfriend’s place quite a bit, I had gotten used to regular old bar soap for my face. Well, that’s about to stop. I think I’m in love… with a cleanser.

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Mean Girls at Zappos

Tags: video, zappos, shoes, funny

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(Thanks for the link, Mom!)

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I’m not the kind of girl who does the perfectly defined, lined lips with a blend of shades and a gloss to top it all off. Heck, I can’t even apply cherry chapstick without looking in the mirror.

I’ve owned several - rarely used - lipsticks in the past. I also have a huge lipgloss addiction, which has led to a drawer full of odd or expired gloss shades and sticky balms.

But no longer.

I finally found a non-sticky lipgloss: Lancome’s Color Fever Gloss. It’s so light and perfectly glossy, with a hint of a flowery scent, I immediately tossed ALL of my old lipsticks and lipglosses. I’m not exaggerating… I really did!

After trying the deep lipsticky red of “Combustible,” I ran out and bought a “day” shade called “French Rose.” Both were about $24 at Macy’s. It’s a lot of money for my lips, but it gives me a flattering color for nearly every situation.

Now my hair doesn’t immediately stick to my lips after applying, either. And that’s worth every penny.

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Maybe this is cheating, but I figured out a solution to my lack of blowout ability. I got my hair cut! I told the stylist I wanted to go a bit shorter, but that I didn’t want anything that would require me to do anything with my hair. (She winced when I explained that the most I would consider doing on a daily basis was to blow dry my hair.)

She kept the layers, which had been giving me grief when my hair was longer. I haven’t been able to master flipping them under with a blowout. With the shorter haircut, they’re *supposed* to flip out. Yay! Problem solved!

Of course, this doesn’t help those of you who are looking for blowout pointers, so I’ll keep working on that one. I also picked up a “dry shampoo” today at Sephora, which will supposedly allow me to wash my hair every other day despite my super-oily scalp. I’ll let you know how that goes…

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In the meantime, I’ve got a nagging question. I have two pairs of chocolate brown pants I love, one dressy, one casual. I don’t have brown shoes that really go with them, aside from sneakers, so in the past, I’ve paired them with black tops and black boots. Yet, at some point I remember hearing that I shouldn’t do this.

So, what should I do? Buy brown shoes? Buy totally different shoes? Keep on mixing the two colors?

I searched the web and found arguments on both sides. The best advice seemed to be along the lines of, “If someone’s going to criticize you for wearing black and brown together, then she has no life.”

What do you think?

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Recommended Product:
shu uemura Mini Eyelash Curler $17

Going Girly: Lash Curling How-To from Melanie Orndorff on Vimeo.

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Going Girly Review: Sephora Heated Lash Curler from Melanie Orndorff on Vimeo.

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As I ease myself into the girly lifestyle, I’ve started to become more aware of the maintenance routines I haven’t started. I cut my hair only when it’s absolutely necessary. I never get manicures. And I rarely worry that my teeth aren’t white enough.

A recent visit to my dentist got me thinking about that last one. As always, I got the pitch for the latest dental procedure that would knock my socks off. This time, it was teeth whitening. Now, I can’t bear the thought of spending close to a week’s salary for teeth a few shades brighter… but I could consider a home whitening option.

At the drugstore a few days later, I swung by the toothcare aisle. I’d used Crest Whitestrips years ago, probably after facing a similar pitch from a dentist, and had pretty decent results. Who wants to wait 2 weeks for sparkly teeth, though? The Rembrandt 2 Hour Whitening Kit was similar in price, but oh so appealing in time savings.

The Rembrandt whitening kit aims to provide a luxury tooth care experience at home. The instructions - carefully typeset and printed on quality paper - even state “… you are about to embark on the short journey of whitening your teeth.” I waste no time preparing for my voyage by changing out of my pjs and into something slightly more presentable.

The tooth whitening process begins with the task of molding two plastic trays into an imprint of your mouth. A quick dunk in hot water is enough to soften them, and I found it pretty easy to shape them to fit.

It got even easier from there. The whitening procedure involves filling the trays with one-use capsules of whitening gel, waiting 20 minutes, rinsing, then waiting 10 minutes before starting all over. I completed my two hours of lather, rinse, repeat; looked in the mirror; and saw…

No change.

I swear, my teeth are the exact same shade they were before the 2 hours and approximately $30. The steps were so simple and clearly spelled out, I can’t think of what I might have done wrong. Maybe I have different enamel than others? Maybe I drink so much Diet Coke there’s no turning back? Either way, I can’t recommend Rembrandt for anything other than possibly creating a fake mouthguard to wear to your next boxing class (and even that’s questionable).

Ratings
Ease of use: 9 out of 10
Girly results: 1 out of 10
Worth the money: 1 out of 10
Worth the time: 1 out of 10

Overall rating: 1 out of 10

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Check out the site for previews, info, and even full episodes. (I don’t have cable, so you know I’ll be logging on).

Anyone else watch this show, too?

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