Deliveries and Purchases

Hey dude,

Haven't done a video in a while...so here's my first one back!

Just a short thing on what I've gotten in the mail and what I've purchased recently. I enjoy reading/seeing these posts from other bloggers so I thought I'd try my hand on one as well. 

Tell me what you think! Any purchases/deliveries lately?

Pseudo-Szechuan Eggplant and Chicken

Sometimes I have a few ingredients in the fridge and I don't quite know what I'm going to do with them. I saw some eggplant and chicken and I was feeling like something salty and spicy so I mixed up this impromptu not-quite-szechuan-but-trying dish.

SPF Everything!

During my trip to Asia I didn't wear a lot of makeup because I knew that 40C weather with a humidity of 90% was a 'no-makeup' zone for me. Thick paint of make up? No thank! Sweat mixing in with my foundation? Gross. My preference hinged on two truths: puddles produced from the makeup that has slid off your face and more importantly the crispy skin look from sun burns is not attractive.  Truthfully, in such weather, sun protection is infinitely more important to me than 'looking pretty' but I was still happy to find that I could wear some lip color since the Maybelline Baby Lips have SPF 15. 

 I still find it difficult to find a light weight, tinted, moisturizing lip product with SPF and I really wish more companies would create such products. Though I have yet to really delve into Avon, I have to say I'm pleased that they have their Avon Beyond Color SPF 15 Lipsticks* ($12CDN, 3g).

Currently Reading #8: On Being Creative

It takes a lot to be creative. Unlike some artistic superstars out there, every word and photo for this blog is a hard fought battle where I have to pull, squeeze and wring from my brain the few drops of gold that are steeping there. But I still persevere and because I think creativity is a muscle, I have been playing around with some books to help me exercise that skill a little bit more.

Much Better than Before - Dior Blazing Gold*

*press sample

I like to think that as I age, I get better over time and I improve upon my mistakes. Sometimes you wish that of some other people too and sometimes you wish that of prodcuts. Though the Dior seasonal eyeshadow palettes haven't been a hit with me, this year's Holiday collection which includes the 5 Couleurs State of Gold Palette in Blazing Gold* ($70CDN), is much different from more recent releases.

DIY Makeup Storage Drawer Dividers

I think I finally have all the storage space I want to hold my makeup collection.

After considering the default blogger option (the 9 drawer Alex) I opted out for a two reasons:

1) more space means more unintentional hoarding

2) the tall set of white drawers doesn't fit in our bedroom

But I did end up with other storage that works. I stole a page from Zubie and recreated her desk for my own/David's space and opted for the shorter Alex drawer system (5 drawers) which I found off craigslist for $60. This gave me 7 drawers worth of space in a much more flexible configuration since we've tucked the Alex into the closet.

 Merely having space is but part of the equation. After staring long and hard into the depths of the internet for ideas on how to (as David puts it) making every inch of space as efficient as possible, I nixed the buying-plastic-drawer-compartments route, and chose the (somewhat) less expensive but more time intensive option of creating some DIY drawer dividers.