Resolution "LOW-BUY" 2014! Who wants to play?

[PixieDancer]

I have worn falsies for about 20 years -- before some of you were even born!

I am now in a pickle.. my hair has been cut -- short in the back, asymetrical, and some longer pieces on the side. It actually accents the angles of my face. The colour was perfected -- it is now the platinumy blonde.. that I wanted. Not because platinum is "in" .. no, I want to have it light enough so when my re-growth happens, I can keep it light and also throw in some low lights of a neutral brown level 5 (my natural colour).. so that I can finally grow out my Greyness. I think I will like it.

on another front, I had done a massive trashing of my clothing too.. and I am trying to streamline my wardrobe.. I so love my oldest jeans and it was hard to dump those. But many blouses, T's, and shoes went to the local charities. Today I had lunch with Bert, who

my new haircolour/cut.. and we went to replace some pieces of my wardrobe to make me look a bit younger.. lol. Anyway, I picked up a pair of navy wide leg pants, but they are all pleated -- and very slimming. They will work with a great navy lace shirt for a casual dinner, or with my white cotton blouses -- tied at the waist, or any white T shirt. I was kinda shocked cause Bert picked these out for me. I did not realize how savvy he is.. lol.

Other purchases I made were 2 new white cotton blouses -- shorter sleeves and asymetrical, and a tent shaped white cotton one which I loved the shape. Also a cream colour with navy/dark coral small flowers.. very feminine.. for me anyway.

I think all that I bought will integrate with my existing clothing and I can wear these many ways. I left a cream coloured pencil skirt on reserve because I want to make sure I don't have a dupe.. lol.

As much as I am working on my personal makeup, I am also working on streamlining my clothing -- and my life.

xoxo

p.s. congrats to all -- this thread seems to be moving at lightening speed and it seems everyone is making progress!

I LOVE staple tops like that! EXPRESS has those adorable portofino shirts on sale for 40% right now! I don't need anymore but it's a great deal on some nice blouses that will not be going out of style by next season! I have them in bold, bright, and staple colors as well as cute prints! Take a look at the polka dots and even cute little dragonflies! http://www.express.com/clothing/Apparel/Portofino+Shirts/cat/cat1040025

I ditto the request to see the new hair Miss HerGreyness!! I bet you look pretty sassy in your new hairstyle and clothes! Bert's one lucky guy!!

 

[veronikawithak]

Super proud of myself... added over TEN more lip products to my swap list! I got backups of lots of shades I don't think I'll ever get to with all the shades I have that have never even been swatched... on top of ones I actually use! My backup box is being conquered everytime I pull it out! NOW I just need to move this stuff out before it tries to sneak back in there! LOL

WOW! That's awesome!! You are just facing this head on - mad props to you girl! Yes, move that stuff out asap.. those makeup products are forever sneaking around.. into carts, out of swap baskets.. sneaky sneaky!

 

[lilinah]

I must say that photographing my 135 blushes and highlighters and my 150 violet-purple-pink lipsticks and glosses has helped me. If i'm tempted by a product, i look at the photos and i can see if i have something similar. I have enough lipsticks and blushes like those in FoF. So i didn't even go in to test them. All i got was the two Fluidlines, which was my original intention, by mail order. Saved by my plan.

I confess that Fleur d'Coral is sitting in my on-line shopping cart, because it looks like a color i will really use, along with several of the new P+P CC products, which i can also really use. I am tired of my red cheeks burning their way through my makeup. And that yellow compact sounds like something i will want to take in my purse. I did remove Touché Huggable lipstick, which was also in there, after reading several comments. Sounds like it feels really good, and would probably be a good color for me, but i have enough nudes that i rarely wear and blending them with some balm should do the trick. Saved by my plan.

The weather has been rainy and grey lately, which is a good thing, since we're in the midst of an historic drought. But that means that the light is bad for photographing my other 2 boxes of lipsticks and glosses as well as my 6 boxes of eye shadows and liners. So i recently bought at discount several NARS shadows that had been on my wish list for a few years. Not so saved.

I was feeling a bit guilty.

But i am on a LOW buy - i only want to buy things unlike what i already have and that i will use, and i didn't get anything in January, so i'm still doing OK.

I've only tossed a couple things - rancid drug store lipsticks and some drugstore glosses that feel like mucus. I need to prune some more. But at least i've started

 

[lilinah]

Quote: Originally Posted by veronikawithak Does anyone follow seasonal color analysis? What are your thoughts on it? Do you tend to wear what "should" look good on you or do you go against it? I've never been professionally "analyzed" but through trial and very much error with makeup/clothing I consider myself a Soft Summer. I came across this blog post with a description and photo (http://theeverydaybeauty.blogspot.ca/2013/04/summer-seasons-sciart-defined.html):

"When you think of the Soft Summer palette, imagine a fantasy landscape where misty tints of dawn embroider deeper, muted shades of post-twilight dusk." Um, yes please!

I missed out on the 4 season craze in the 80s which I know didn't work for a lot of people.. And obviously, I take even the new 16 color theory with a grain of salt.. (disclaimer: always do what makes you happy!) but I really do think different shades can highlight or enhance your natural features which is more the style I prefer.

I keep this close at hand to remind myself how awful and sick I look in high contrast or bright colors. Not going near the Playland thread with a 10-foot pole!! I'm even going to skip on the casual color I wanted and wait for them to come out in different shades. Apparently Bobbi Brown is supposed to be a good brand for SSs.. might check out their lip/cheek product instead!

My hair is finally grown out back to its natural color and I did get to have quite a few years of experimentation (most of it with terrible results, as my recently culled makeup stash can attest). I think I'm ready to settle down with the things I think I look best in!

Ps. I hope this isn't too off topic for everyone, but I figured since we don't have a specific collection to talk about here and we're all kind of doing our own thing, why not!



This actually works fine with a makeup low buy because knowing what colors look best with one's coloring can help avoid some of those makeup failures that have been mentioned here.

I remember the first Four Seasons stuff. I am absolutely NOT Winter. But with my light neutral skin tone and dark hair and hazel eyes, i didn't fit neatly into any one of the other three season. I don't look good in real warm colors (true red, orange, yellow) or real cool colors (icing sugar pink, mint green, ultramarine blue). Warms that lean cool are good, as are cools that lean warm (bright peach or coral, not good, but pinky peach or coral is fine; true or bright pink not good, but warm pinks are fine) - so i'm part Spring and part Summer. And some saturated colors, including black and dark brown, look good (high contrast), so part of Autumn. But absolutely NOT saturated brights like red or orange or turquoise (see, i'm not a Winter), which wash me out.

The new versions of the Season are far better, since skin tone and color are so variable and the 12 and 16 tone variations take that into account. But they leave out us neutrals again! So once again i'm kinda between several seasons. I'm muted and high contrast, but not really warm, not really cool.

BUT one thing about doing make-up WELL is that by toning blush and lipstick to lean warmer or cooler you can make clothing colors that might not work with your natural skin tone look OK or even good. Since graduating high school in the late 1960s I have always had at least two blushes, one warm and one cool, as well as warm and cool versions of basic lipstick colors, so i even though i'm no make-up wizard, i could make clothing that looked a little off on me work. I had some things i just could not wear with no makeup - for example, a lovely beige crepe blouse with inset openwork made me look grey with no makeup - but with the right color blush and lipstick i looked OK in it.

So i am with you, Veronikawithak, on skipping Playland. Too bright for me, wash me out. But saturated and high contrast are good on my, which is why i got all the lipsticks and glosses from Punk Couture.

 

[veronikawithak]

A couple of the nude OPI Brazil polishes came home with me today.. I'm not even going to say they sneaked their way in.. I flat out thought about it all day, went to look at them after work, and then purchased them. I was so happy to get rid of 2 polishes the other day and I just added the same number back! Ugh. I love them both and I know I'll wear them but still.. probably could have lived without them.

I'm starting to think I have more of a problem than I realized..

On the bright side, I left a friend's Fantasia party early to make sure I wouldn't buy anything.. lol.

 

[lilinah]

Here's why i should probably never buy another blush or highligher
MAC Cool blushes and highlighters

MAC Neutral blushes and highlighters

MAC Warm blushes

MAC Warm skinfinishes and highlighters

NON MAC

non-MAC cool - the pink stick in cream case (Max Factor) and the plum stick in pink case (Revlon) are from the late 60s/early 70s - the plum is dead, Jim. But the pink still seems usable - it is a translucent gel - and bears some similarity to Tarte blush sticks, although it makes no claims to being natural in composition.
non-MAC mauvy favorites (in Cool photo above). Yes, the one in the lower center is ombré
close up of favorites from cool photo at top

high-end Neutrals and some pinks from a NARS Multiple set and a Guerlain mini-Meteorites set
mid-range Neutrals (plus a Clinique GWP on far lower left that has both a warm and a cool)
drugstore Neutrals

non-MAC Warm
The little pot in the upper left is museumized Mary Quant cream blush from the early 70s and the oval on the far right center is Dorothy Gray - long out of business - gold face powder compact.
lower end Warm

I will be pitching out ALL the Clinque GWP blushes - my mother bought Clinique skincare and couldn't resist the GWP even though she didn't wear them. And that cute little square with the four colors at the top - from The Body Shop - because it is chalky.

Museumized - two Biba creams and one Princess Marcella Borghese (aubergine frost)

 

[Naynadine]

lilinah, I am drooling. Nice blush collection!

 

[veronikawithak]

This actually works fine with a makeup low buy because knowing what colors look best with one's coloring can help avoid some of those makeup failures that have been mentioned here.

I remember the first Four Seasons stuff. I am absolutely NOT Winter. But with my light neutral skin tone and dark hair and hazel eyes, i didn't fit neatly into any one of the other three season. I don't look good in real warm colors (true red, orange, yellow) or real cool colors (icing sugar pink, mint green, ultramarine blue). Warms that lean cool are good, as are cools that lean warm (bright peach or coral, not good, but pinky peach or coral is fine; true or bright pink not good, but warm pinks are fine) - so i'm part Spring and part Summer. And some saturated colors, including black and dark brown, look good (high contrast), so part of Autumn. But absolutely NOT saturated brights like red or orange or turquoise (see, i'm not a Winter), which wash me out.

The new versions of the Season are far better, since skin tone and color are so variable and the 12 and 16 tone variations take that into account. But they leave out us neutrals again! So once again i'm kinda between several seasons. I'm muted and high contrast, but not really warm, not really cool.

BUT one thing about doing make-up WELL is that by toning blush and lipstick to lean warmer or cooler you can make clothing colors that might not work with your natural skin tone look OK or even good. Since graduating high school in the late 1960s I have always had at least two blushes, one warm and one cool, as well as warm and cool versions of basic lipstick colors, so i even though i'm no make-up wizard, i could make clothing that looked a little off on me work. I had some things i just could not wear with no makeup - for example, a lovely beige crepe blouse with inset openwork made me look grey with no makeup - but with the right color blush and lipstick i looked OK in it.

It's not easy being neutral..




I'm pretty light/neutral as well.. although I have the slightest cool undertone on some parts of my face. Wearing a neutral foundation I can pull off either slight warm or cool, but no brights and no super saturated darks. I have blonde-brown hair though and blue-grey eyes which fits well with Summer. You might be both a Deep Soft Winter and Deep Soft Summer? Both can pull off the muted and saturated colors but not brights. And being neutral would cover the slight warm/cool variations. I also liked this post on counterpoint seasons: http://diaryofacolouraddict.blogspot.ca/2013/07/counterpoint-seasons-freedom-of-choice.html

 

[Naynadine]

@ kermit

I had to laugh at this, this is me looking at makeup prices:

 

[Yogirl]

It's definitely true for Tom Ford!

 

[Yogirl]

Yesterday I resisted to buy some cooking books, I just love to buy them as I don't really cook.
But was tempted by a Diptique candle in light pink. Looks good, smells great, makes me feel good, so worth the price.

 

[charlotte366]

So proud of [@]PixieDancer[/@] in purging out her lip products 26 for sale/swap is amazing. Well done !!! I'm doing my final purge today, planning on throwing out drugstore stuff today and do a final organise, will try and post pictures later. Also hoping to follow [@]HerGreyness[/@] lead and make a start on my wardrobe! I want a more capsule wardrobe with quality not quantity to which I can add the occassional fashion lead piece each season! Excited to get started! Not sure what season I might be ? I have very dark hair and pale skin, more cool than warm and I look good in brights and jewel colours and awful in pastels !

 

[Audrey C]

Being neutral is a great thing! I'm envious of my daughter's skintone that allows her to branch into both warm and cool colours, if not those at the far end of warm.



I'm so far into deep Autumn territory that I can't pull anything else off. I do wear black/navy/grey suits to work, but I always make sure that i have a strong warm blouse with them.

Even though I can't generally wear cool tones, I have discovered that I can wear some cool toned blush. I have a few pinks (Dollymix and Launch Away) that look great - like a very natural flush. I couldn't pull off a lipstick the colour of Dollymix though. I've just started branching into some warm pink lipsticks (Morning Rose and Out For Passion) for the first time in my life. There's no colour that's more naturally flattering than a strong warm red (I wore Studded Kiss yesterday - LOVE it), but as I'm aging I'm finding more muted lipsticks and glosses to be more flattering. A lot of the dark mattes and frosty metallics I wore 20 years ago are aging now, so I avoid them. It's not a makeup 'rules' thing (no glitter on women over 35, etc.) but a matter of choosing finishes that look better on me.

Black liner is ghastly on me - I never wear it. A deep chocolate brown serves the same purpose on me. I also avoid grey like the plague. Why not stick to colours and finishes that are more flattering? There's still plenty of choice.

 

[PixieDancer]

So proud of [@]PixieDancer[/@] in purging out her lip products 26 for sale/swap is amazing. Well done !!! I'm doing my final purge today, planning on throwing out drugstore stuff today and do a final organise, will try and post pictures later. Also hoping to follow [@]HerGreyness[/@] lead and make a start on my wardrobe! I want a more capsule wardrobe with quality not quantity to which I can add the occassional fashion lead piece each season! Excited to get started! Not sure what season I might be ? I have very dark hair and pale skin, more cool than warm and I look good in brights and jewel colours and awful in pastels !

Thanks girl! If you're anything like me... It was kinda tough to get started, but as my swap/sell/giveaway bag started to grow... I got more amped up to put more in it! When you see how much you actually have... It's easier to purge! Pulling everything out of train cases, Zuca bag, makeup bags, boxes, etc. and organizing it all into my new Elfa system was a real eye opener. Not even a spreadsheet inventory affected me like seeing it all laid out & placed in my system! I knew instantly that to bring anything new into my collection AT ALL I needed to get serious about what I'm actually using. Most of my sale/swaps are backups! I have barely started in on purging my main stash! And w over 30 unused lipsticks, 16 unused blushes, 20+ unused lipglosses, too many unused eyeshadows to even count... I'm sure there will be MUCH MUCH more going into that sale!! Good luck girl!!! I'm excited to hear how your process goes!!

 

[veronikawithak]

Good luck girl!!! I'm excited to hear how your process goes!!

Clearing out definitely has a domino effect! When you're finished I'd love to see what your storage unit looks like!

 

[ma146rina]

Does anyone know if the too faced Chocolate Bar palette is limited edition? I want to get it but if it's permanent i don't want to rush

 

[honey b]

Does anyone know if the too faced Chocolate Bar palette is limited edition? I want to get it but if it's permanent i don't want to rush

According to Temptalia's post, she said she's pretty sure it's permanent. I think it's been discussed somewhere on the forums too (just can't remember where) and the general consensus seems to be that it's permanent.

 

[User38]

I think it's permanent too.

 

[myfavoritePA]

Here's why i should probably never buy another blush or highligher
MAC Cool blushes and highlighters

MAC Neutral blushes and highlighters

MAC Warm blushes

MAC Warm skinfinishes and highlighters

NON MAC

non-MAC cool - the pink stick in cream case (Max Factor) and the plum stick in pink case (Revlon) are from the late 60s/early 70s - the plum is dead, Jim. But the pink still seems usable - it is a translucent gel - and bears some similarity to Tarte blush sticks, although it makes no claims to being natural in composition.
non-MAC mauvy favorites (in Cool photo above). Yes, the one in the lower center is ombré
close up of favorites from cool photo at top

high-end Neutrals and some pinks from a NARS Multiple set and a Guerlain mini-Meteorites set
mid-range Neutrals (plus a Clinique GWP on far lower left that has both a warm and a cool)
drugstore Neutrals

non-MAC Warm
The little pot in the upper left is museumized Mary Quant cream blush from the early 70s and the oval on the far right center is Dorothy Gray - long out of business - gold face powder compact.
lower end Warm

I will be pitching out ALL the Clinque GWP blushes - my mother bought Clinique skincare and couldn't resist the GWP even though she didn't wear them. And that cute little square with the four colors at the top - from The Body Shop - because it is chalky.

Museumized - two Biba creams and one Princess Marcella Borghese (aubergine frost)

Oooh pretty! Thanks for sharing. Question: what is the blush with the checkerboard pattern in the non-MAC mauvy favorites pic? Is that Neutrogena?

 

[myfavoritePA]

Clearing out definitely has a domino effect! When you're finished I'd love to see what your storage unit looks like!

Me too!

I drove by The Container Store today and really wanted to go in, but that place is like crack for me. For a while, I was spending more in that store than I was on makeup, so I had to ban myself for a bit.