Entries for Thursday May 31
Site gripe of the week: Tchotchke-vomit
If you follow me on Twitter, or if you’ve read my infrequent rants, you’ll know that I occasionally talk about ‘usability’. In simplest terms, usability refers to how easy something is for users to use without having to read the manual, or a site map. I first heard the term in the professional web design world, but it applies to just about anything: web sites, software, computers, home theater systems, cars…you name it. One of the basic tenets of web usability is: the web is not a medium where the designer is in control. The user is. The user can view the site through any number of browsers, any number of devices, at any resolution or browser size; and a good design will be as easy to use on an old black-and-white 13” monitor with 640x480 resolution as on a HD 1080pi 27” monitor at 1280x1120 resolution. Now that the internet is more than ten years old, most people who create web sites know not to have cyan text on a white background, or have music or video that blasts from the speakers the instant anyone lands on your site. But having a layout that’s clean, easy to read, and balanced between content and whitespace is just as important as avoiding “newbie” design mis-steps.
When you decide to place ads on your blog, stop and think about how many ads you want to have, and how large they’ll be. Then, test your site with no ad- or content-blocking software whatsoever. Make sure that your ads aren’t the first thing people notice when they come to your site. When people visit your site, your content should be what draws them in, and what they continue to read and remember…not the ads. Your ads will make money if they tread that fine line between “attracting attention” without crossing over into “hard sell”. Your ads should make sense, should be products that you’d actually recommend…and the ads should not be the most noticeable thing about your site. If your ads tip over into the “hard sell” zone, you’ll drive readers away. Or they’ll just block all your ad content (even projectwonderful and passionfruitads) because - trust me - we’re utterly sick unto death of being hard-sold everywhere we go: online newspapers, malls, . More than five ads on a page, and your layout is dangerously close to “carny barker” territory…if it isn’t there already. Popups and overlays can be useful, but they should be used carefully. If they’re generated by something the user does, that’s one thing. If they open up when the user lands on your page, that’s perceived as “getting in the user’s way.” Don’t annoy your users, or they won’t come back. (And then how will you make any money off of those ads?)
Entries for Wednesday May 30
OPI’s My Private Jet
- Manufacturer: OPI
- Availability: originally released as part of the Night Brights collection
- Color Range: black with multicolored shimmer
- Staying Power: 4 out of 4 stars
- Cost/Amount: USD$9 for 14 ml / .5 fl oz
- Would you purchase again: yes
- Similar shades:
Apparently, the first version of this was a black holographic polish. I do not have that version, but the re-released version that contains multicolored shimmer…but it’s barely dense enough to be noticeable, let alone holographic. It’s a nice enough formula, but it’s not a deep black, more like a dusted black. So one gets neither the rich black color, nor the holographic effects. If you have wanted to try black nail polish but stark black or “patent leather” is not quite where you want to go, this is a decent polish to try.
Zoya’s Parveen
- Vendor: Zoya/Art of Beauty
- Availability: originally released as part of Zoya's Bibhu Mohapatra collection
- Color Range: semi-opaque gold-tan shimmer
- Staying Power: 3 out of 4 stars
- Cost/Amount: USD$8 for 14 ml / .5 fl oz
- Would you purchase again: yes
- Similar shades:
Tan nail polish is problematic for me. If it’s too yellow, it really doesn’t look good on me. It can make my hands look red (see Going Nude, Eh for an example of a tan nail polish that Doesn’t Quite Work.) I was interested in the three colors in this set, but was a little concerned that Parveen might not look good on me. Parveen makes my fingers look a bit redder than I’d like…but I do like the quasi-glass-fleck finish on this one. I can use this as an accent or even possibly a layering coat. It is a little less opaque than most of the Zoya colors I own. I’d guess that this is about a 4 on Zoya’s opacity scale. It isn’t quite sheer or semisheer, but two coats doesn’t completely cover the VNL.
Entries for Tuesday May 29
Question Wednesdays: Changing Seasons
I came up with this week's theme and questions for Question Wednesdays...it only seems fair that I should put my answers out there!
- What is your favorite season? What colors, scents, tastes, sounds do you associate with it?
They all hold their own appeal, and there are elements I like about every season; but when I was growing up, my favorite season was spring. The weather got warmer, things smelled green and alive, but there wasn't the oppressive heat of summer. And sometimes it would rain and be a little chillier, but then the next day it would go back to warmer weather. Now that I've moved north, I still like the same temperatures and time of year; but up here that's most often early summer (which normally doesn't really start here until June. Any warm weather that occurs before the last weekend in May is a sham, don't put away the layers just yet...) To me, spring is green and gold and blue and smells warm and alive and damp. It tastes like dandelions and fruit punch.
- What are your favorite and least favorite parts of each season?
In winter, I love the snow and those moments during a snowstorm - light or heavy - where the wind falls off, there's a lack of sound, and the whole world seems muffled. In a world with so much constant background noise, I always loved those "noiseless" periods during snowfall. I do not, however, love the winter winds. They're harsh and biting and dry out my eyes. I love the smell and taste of the air in spring, but I can do without the pile-of-slightly-mouldy-wet-laundry smell that many trees give off in spring. It's part of how they attract insects, to pollinate, so it's arboreal pheromones...but gah, what a musty heavy smell. One unfortunate snootful of that and I can't get the taste out of the back of my mouth for hours. I can also do without starling nesting season. Those little bastards get mean if you walk within five feet of wherever they're nesting; and in my area, they nest all over the place. They don't just scold or bully, like jays; they divebomb and strike with their beaks. And let me tell you, they're good at hitting their targets! - Do you have any seasonal disorders (SAD, allergies, the fall dread of school starting up or celebration of same...)?
I don't. My mom says that she has a harder time of it in the winter, when the days are shorter. She makes a big production out of every December 22nd, the day after the winter solstice, when the days start getting longer (though most people don't perceive the lengthening daylight periods until January 20th or so.) I have just as hard a time getting up early in the summer as I do in the winter; and if I'm sleeping in past 10am any time of the year, I either stayed up late on previous nights and am making up for it, or I'm ill. I kind of miss the seasonal start-of-school frenzy...though part of that is admittedly my addiction to office supplies, particularly pens. I have four packages of metallic gel roller pens, three of which are unopened, all of which are more than a decade old. That won't stop me from picking up a few more any time I'm in OfficeMax or Staples, though. (If any company ever comes out with gel roller eyeliners, I'm utterly and completely sunk.) - How do you change your beauty routine as the seasons change? Do you use different products, or just different colors? (Or less makeup during one season, or more during another?)
My skin dries out in winter, so I'll moisturize more conscientiously. I'll use SPF daily in summer - not so much in winter. I've also noticed that I'll tend to want to wear more elaborate makeup in autumn or spring, or the first days of summer. In winter I'm more prone to no-makeup days, or simpler makeup (foundation, a single eyeshadow color, mascara, and a lip balm.) - Share your favorite winter or summer recipe! A salad, a sandwich, a dessert, a drink...anything.
In winter, I love cooking crock-pot chili. You can change this to suit your personal tastes; and if you're vegan you can completely leave out any kind of meat whatsoever (maybe substitute in some larger-cut mushrooms for texture?) but the basic recipe is: 1 15-ounce can each of: black beans, kidney beans, garbanzo beans, chili beans (spiced pinto beans, essentially)
2 24-ounce jars of hot salsa (I usually get Safeway brand salsa, when it's on sale)
Rinse and drain the kidney, black, and garbanzo beans. Pour all the beans into a 4-quart crock pot (or a bigger one if you have it, but I've got the 4-quart one)
Add both jars of salsa, stir, and cook on low power for 4 hours.
At 4 hours, add cut-up bits of chicken (cut to suit your preference, but I've found that the best size is a 1/2-inch by 1-inch strip, or thereabouts. Larger, and they just get unwieldy. Smaller...well, make them smaller if you want itty bitty chickenbits in your chili.) I haven't tried ham or pork in the chili. I'd imagine that cubes of beef would also work just fine, if you prefer. Stir in the meat pieces so that they're all covered by the chili - anything sticking up out of the liquid will just dry out.
Put the lid back on the crockpot, cook for another four to five hours on low power.
I ladle mine into 2-cup plastic containers (good old Gladware). That much chili will fill 8-10 containers, and each container is a single serving. They keep for a few months in the freezer (probably longer), then just switch them to the refrigerator the night before you want to have some for dinner. Serve with cornbread, crackers, whatever...but this is a good way for me to have chili on a day when I know I'm going to be too tired to cook, or when I know the weather's going to be particularly cold.
Entries for Monday May 28
My Pretty Zombie’s EJPCreations
- Vendor: My Pretty Zombie
- Availability: part of the Darksider collection
- Color Range: rich bright red shimmer
- Staying Power: 3 out of 4 stars
- Cost/Amount: USD$5.00 for 1.2 grams
- Would you purchase again: yes
- Similar shades:
I’ve tried red eyeshadows from various makeup companies (mostly indies), and the results have been a bit uneven. Either the color will be too orange-based, or the pigmentation levels will be disappointing…or the red will be gorgeous, exactly what I’m looking for, and a limited-edition color. EJPCreations has good color payoff and adhesion, and thankfully it’s a part of the regular line. It is a little bit brighter than I expected from the shop photography, but not widely different.
Meow Cosmetics’ Streetlight Shimmer
- Vendor: Meow Cosmetics
- Availability: part of the Feliners collection
- Color Range: silvered deep navy blue shimmer
- Staying Power: 4 out of 4 stars
- Cost/Amount: USD$8 for 1.2 grams
- Would you purchase again: yes
- Similar shades: Aromaleigh v1's Dominion
This one’s right on the border between black and dark navy, with a great color payoff. It doesn’t leave a sooty residue behind, like some eyeliners do; but it does have pigmentation level similar to what you’d expect from other companies’ darker eyeshadows. I liked finding a cool black-navy with the shimmer to it. It’s similar to Aromaleigh’s Dominion, from the now-discontinued Rocks! Sonic Eyes collection, but with more black and less blue tones. (The shimmer is also definitely a shimmer, not a sparkle.) If you’re looking for a solid black, Meow does have two others that are pure dark black with no cool undertones: Catwoman, and Thunder. I have Catwoman, but I like Streetlight Shimmer just a little bit better.
Aromaleigh v2’s Vera
- Vendor: Aromaleigh v2
- Availability: released as part of Aromaleigh v2's Fall Tapestry collection
- Color Range: soft medium-light brown shimmer
- Staying Power: 3 out of 4 stars
- Cost/Amount: USD$7 for 1.2 grams; $1.00 for a sample baggie
- Would you purchase again: yes
- Similar shades:
About the same color as chocolate milk, or cafe au lait (heavier on the milk). The pigmentation level is decent, but not the best color payoff Aromaleigh has offered, in either incarnation. Vera is a neutral brown - I think that people with obvious olive undertones in their coloring might be less able to easily wear this shade because it is a softer brown…but I may be wrong. It is a pretty neutral shade, no overt warm or cool undertones to it. The shimmer is fairly apparent in both wet and dry application.
Entries for Saturday May 26
Saturday Soundtrack: Ragnarok (Corvus Corax)
Entries for Friday May 25
Happy holiday weekend!: late May musings
Happy Memorial Day weekend, USians! (And to the rest of the world: Happy Weekend in May!!) Spring for the northern hemisphere, fall for the southern, hopefully it’s a nice bit of weather wherever you are.) I’m going to spend half the weekend porting content over on the blog, and the other half lying about and relaxing. I start a travel-writing gig next month, and a new contract after that, so things are going to be busy-busy-busy. I’m really glad, now, that I have a backlog of photos ready to go! I also have several new items to photograph and write up…and the rate I go, it’ll probably be August (and time for GeekGirlCon!) before I get to post the Aromaleigh and Love Hues stuff I’ve recently received. And that’s if I go in reverse order! The backlog of products to be written up is truly immense. I’ve got three Aromaleigh v2 collections to profile, Shiro’s Tributes collection colors to write up, nearly a dozen colors from Love Hues, more amazing eyeshadows from My Pretty Zombie and Silk Naturals, some Fyrinnae colors - eye, lip, and cheek - and of course the nail polishes. It would almost be terrifying, except that I’m a cataloging-and-tallying junkie. I don’t know if there are any jobs for a professional taxonomist, but if there are, that thing is so MINE.
Meow Cosmetics has re-released one of its summer-seasonal collections, Caribbean Escape. No additions this year to this collection, but they’re holding a Memorial Day weekend sale. Register for their mailing list to get in on all of their sale information. They have a new collection coming out June 1 (in a week) that looks interesting! I think that this year I may just get samples of everything, and then buy the full sizes that I want next year when it makes its seasonal reappearance.
Zoya wants people to re-pin their choices for a mini-trio, from among the summer Beach and Surf collections. The colors pinned the most will be put into the trio, and two thousand of these trios will be given away…provided they reach 20,000 repins total. They’ve already topped out 12,000! You’ve got to hand it to the companies who find more and more excellent ways to get their fanbase energized to providing them bursts of free advertising like this. (And yes, I kind of envy them. How to do that with my business…? Actually, I don’t know that the tool can be used that way. Web hosting isn’t colorful or sexy or sparkly. When it’s working well, it should just work and otherwise be invisible.)
Nouveau Cheap has a great roundup of drugstore weekend sales - including the Revlon 40% off sale starting at Rite Aid this Sunday. I plan to check out a few local Walgreen’s, the Rite Aid, and possibly trip through Sephora just to see what’s what. I’ve got the huge backlog of products to review, and I just bought Thierry Mugler’s Womanity perfume (I love it!!) so I don’t have any purchases planned. I don’t even have any current lemmings, or things I really want to pick up. (Let’s hope that attitude carries through IMATS LA next month or I’ll have to check a 2nd bag to get home!)
IMATS LA is in four weeks! Who’s going? I’ll be there, passing out discount cards to celebrate my tenth year as a web host. I’m looking forward to seeing several beauty bloggers! I tried to make it to IMATS LA last year, but wasn’t able to attend. This time around, I’m all set! I’m taking a few days off of work, flying down, got a hotel room, and plan on seeing some friends who live in the LA area. I’m not a beauty or makeup professional, but I’m looking forward to seeing different techniques and learning things, getting a look at some products that I don’t otherwise catch until it’s already plastered all over the beauty-blogosphere. (If you’ve been thinking about getting off of Blogspot and onto a self-hosted WordPress site [or some other CMS, I only mention WordPress because that software is free] see if you can find me and score yourself up to six free months of shared web hosting, plus $25 bounties for every client you refer to me.
Tarte’s Lipsurgence in Fiery
- Manufacturer: Tarte Cosmetics
- Availability: part of the Lipsurgence collection
- Color Range: medium-bright red creme
- Staying Power: 3.5 out of 4
- Cost/Amount: USD$24 for 2.6 ml / .08 fl oz each
- Would you purchase again: yes
I had a sneaking suspicion that Fiery, a red matte, might be just a bit too much for me. I was right. It’s a nearly fire-engine red, but when applied it loses some of the color depth and becomes a little too bright for my preferences. It’s still a bright red with a decent color payoff, but it’s almost garish. It’s not quite a neon hot-pink, nor is it really a vivid red. It’s kind of between the two. This is a matte color, so the color payoff and adhesion is fairly good compared to the Lip Tints or Shimmers; but the resulting color…I don’t know. In some ways it reminds me of kiddie lipsticks in American drugstores: the color’s just that bright and garish. I can use this under pink or tan Buxom lip polishes to soften the red and add some color to the lip polish, and then the color isn’t a (for me) total loss.