Beauty Wednesday: What Do You Keep Trying?

211 Comments

1. Kat, you’re not the only one — I make my mom do my hair all the time! Speaking of which, I have given up trying to french braid my own hair (something my mom used to do for me well through college and something I still make her do at least half the time that I visit).

   1. I can successfully french braid, but only on the left side of my head. Forget trying to do anything on the right, or on the back. I find this only slightly helpful.

   2. I taught myself the french and the fishtail and a couple of others using a children’s how-to braids book. I can’t do them on others, but somehow can do it on my own. So that’s an idea if you want to learn.

      1. can you link the book?

         1. Klutz had a braid book when I was a kid.

            1. I love the Klutz braid books! In addition to Braids and Bows, which came with a kit for making bow barettes, there was one just called Hair, which came with a set of fancy scrunchies. The outfits in some of the photographs are definitely very ’90s, but the hairstyles hold up very well and some of them are quite sophisticated.

         2. This looks like it. http://www.amazon.com/Braids-Bows-A-Book-Instruction/dp/187825717X

      2. I had a book called “Braids and Bows” when I was little–just googled, and looks like you can still find it. It was half craft kit to make your own hair bows and scrunchies (ha!) and half tutorials on how to do all these fancy braids. I still remember most of them, and if I could figure it out when I was 10, I’m sure it will help you.

2. I’ve stopped trying on the fishtail side braid. It’s adorable on other people (and maybe it would be on me too) but whenever I try, it always ends up so messy and falling out in pieces everywhere.

   1. Oh I’ve also given up on toner. I’ve used it, I’ve not used it, I’ve never seen a difference. So my face will just be forever untoned.

      1. I am your equally untoned sister. Never saw any difference either :-)

         1. Toner. Nope. Don’t get it.

      2. I’ve not only given up on toner, but also on moisturizer and washing my face at all. I just started not washing my face over Christmas (I just scrub with my hands + water when in the shower) and my skin is the best it’s ever been. Seriously.

         And yes, I do wear makeup (though granted, not a lot – just mascara and eyeshadow).

         I tried not washing my super wavy hair, but it got so disgusting when I skipped one day of rinsing that I couldn’t stand it anymore. Plus, I think it looks best with products in it anyway.

         I do love fake eyelashes for events, but I’ve totally given up on nail polish. It DESTROYS my nails.I don’t know how everyone can always have such cute colours on :(

   2. Me too. I cannot figure out the fishtail braid at all.

      Kat, as far as the eyelashes go, my experience was that I got better with practice. I learned in high school when I had to wear them for every dance competition so I was putting them on myself probably 10 times a year and then helping teammates do theirs as well. It was definitely a practice makes perfect makes situation. I just used the cheap brand that you can get at every drugstore.

      1. My hair is too slippery for either a fishtail braid or a sock bun.

         I guess a fishtail braid could work if I teased my hair enough, but then I’d have to cut it off.

3. I have given up on trying to do anything resembling a “smoky eye” look. I think it has something to do with the fact that I have small eyes and not much of my eyelid shows when my eyes are open. But in any event, I end up looking like a deformed racoon.

   1. I wish there were classes where I could learn how to do this stuff, because honestly I did not pick any of this up in high school or college. Now that I:m not on a student budget anymore, I wouldn’t mind splurging on something like that, that went a little beyond going to the make up counter and hoping I picked the right brand for a consultation

      1. Agreed! I can do a basic daily face and a passable smokey eye (my secret is “all the eyeliner”), but I’d really like to be able to do more different types of looks. I don’t have enough patience to do the whole YouTube tutorial thing, since I don’t own a lot of makeup, and don’t want to go out and buy things to try looks I don’t already know will look good on me. A makeup class, where you could learn different looks and try products under expert supervision, is absolutely something I would spend money on.

         1. Me too. I have no idea how to do my hair and can only do a basic daily makeup (2 eyeshadows from a neutral pallette, eyeliner, mascara, lip liner, lipstick). I don’t know how to tease my hair or why I would want to do that, and I don’t know how to use a blow dryer properly. I don’t own hair products because I don’t know how to use them. Concealer, blush, foundation, powder, color correctors, beauty balms, blush, highlighter, bronzer… no idea how to use those. I feel like there was an entire series of lessons in middle and high school and college on how to be a woman (sorry, Caitlin Moran) which I slept through and I am now behind .

            1. “I feel like there was an entire series of lessons in middle and high school and college on how to be a woman (sorry, Caitlin Moran) which I slept through and I am now behind .”

               Yes, yes, yes! I missed it, too.

            2. I would almost think that you are me, except that you can do three times as many make-up items! Oh, and I own two types of hair product — “root lifter” that is supposed to give me side-swept bangs that I remember to use once or twice a week and some kind of “gloss” that I use about three times a year. I also missed the training program.

            3. Glad to hear I’m not the only one! Hopefully there is someone out there listening. Professional women with (some) disposable income looking to pay for a service!

            4. OMG!!! I am SOO happy I am not the only one! Everyone around me can do miracles with their hair and makeup, and I’m over here just straightening my hair and doing simple makeup. It feels so good to have company!

            5. You don’t know how much better this post made me feel – I am getting better with makeup but still can only do a passable look which is completley gone from my face by 3pm, no matter the brand. I’ve had so many consultations, but again, it’s not a REAL lesson – it’s not like they show you and then have you do it to duplicate the look. I go home and try to replcate it and it never looks the same. Hair? it’s so fine that no look takes and by noon it looks either super dry or scraggly (is that even a word?)

               I wasn’t even aware until sometime in college that people wore jeans multiple times between washings – I had no idea! I always had to try to stretch them out before school so they wouldn’t be so stiff…..

         2. Yes, this. I’ve taken a makeup lesson at MAC where I learned how to do a smoky eye and cat-eye eyeliner. The makeup teacher picked out products in colors that went with my skin tone. She did half my face, then I did the other half under her supervision. I went to a brick and mortar MAC store (in Chicago), but the counters at dept stores probably provide the same service.

         3. A little late to the party here but some friends and I having a girls weekend in a couple of months. One of them knows a young freelance make up artist and she’s going to teach us how to do a couple of looks each. We are paying a token amount and if she’s good I’ll probably hire her for my wedding/recommend her.

      2. youtube

         1. +1

      3. ME ALSO! And now, sadly, I’m just embarrassed to DO anything about it because it all just seems overwhelming.

      4. When I got married I went to Sephora to get a makeover and the woman showed me how to do everything (I told her I would be doing my makeup myself). I’m not great at it (can’t do any of the liners) but I look much more polished now.

         And I have some fancy higher-end makeup.

   2. Totally agree. I wind up with weird eyeliner thingys on my face b/c I think I’m supposed to bring it beyond my eye (sort of cat eye something or other). I fail every time.

4. Good tip on the teasing pre-spin pins! I’ll have to try that.

   Sort of related but not really: have people here done laser hair removal? what was it like/was it successful/how long does it last?

   There’s also some at home laser contraptions – anybody ever try any of these?

   1. I just finished a cycle of six and am kind of disappointed to be honest! experience was fine, it hurts less than waxing (or did for me anyway), takes like 2 seconds. but, while my hair is much much finer and sparser there is still a fair amount there, i.e. I still need to shave. I kind of thought it would be down to just an occasional stray but no dice. If it helps I have light hair so the place told me this is as good as its going to get realistically. I got mine done with a “deal” so I am happy I did it; if I had paid full price I would be majorly bummed.

      1. Part of me thinks that those deals only work if you’re using it for the first 3 sessions or so. I think they keep the settings low to make you come back. At least that is what I have found talking to my esthetician (who doesn’t do it but obviously is very connected with those who do)

   2. Laser hair removal works if you’re the right skin color/hair color. I have dark hair and very pale skin and it worked amazingly well for me. They’ll always tell you it won’t get everything, but I haven’t shaved/waxed in years.

      1. Laser hair removal worked really well for me too. I did my bikini and underarms—both areas with light skin and dark hair—7+ years ago. It did not get all of the hair so I probably shave my underarms twice a week (there are probably 10 soft hairs that grow under each arm and if I forget, it’s not really noticable because it’s so thin) and my bikini line every three weeks (again, about 10 soft hairs there too). I no longer get nasty bumps in either area after shaving. And I absolutely would do it again. Once they figure out how to remove blond hair from light skin, my legs are going to be hairless too.

         Not sure if it matters, but I did it through my dermatologist’s office; not a med spa.

      2. Another pale skin/dark hair person – Love the laser hair removal. It worked really well for my lower legs. One of the best things, beauty-wise, I ever did.

      3. I’m fair-skinned with very dark hair and have had a “meh” experience with the home laser device that I purchased from Sephora last year. Admittedly, part of the problem may be that I slacked off using it because I was underwhelmed – but if I had been more diligent, perhaps I would be sleek and hairless right now. I bought the device primarily with my bikini area in mind and found that using it required some gymnastic maneuvers that my clumsy self struggled with. So, all things considered, I will probably get professional lasering one of these days.

      4. This.

         The nurse told me that the lighter skinned you are and the darker your hair is, the more optimal your results.

         Going on a year later, I’m very happy with my results. Want to go back and do another area when I have $$ to spend.

   3. I had it done on my face at an aethetician’s office. It was expensive (I want to say $1500 or $2000– was about four years ago). The cost covered as many treatments as necessary. It was painful–especially the first session. And it took a lot of treatments–I would guess around 9 or so (the last one or two were literally to take off a stray hair). Was life changing and haven’t had any regrowth. Would consider it some of the best money I have every spent. (My skin is light medium and hair is light brown–but body hair is darker, which helps.)

   4. yes! I did undearms, bikini and lower legs and wish I had done it ten years ago. I used to get terrible ingrowns and/or razor burn, and waxing was painful and expensive. I do have some regrowth, but it’s not very noticeable and doesn’t seem to get as irritated when I do have to shave. I go in for a touch up maybe once a year (the place I had it done offers touch ups for life at a steep discount). I am fair skinned with dark, coarse hair, so perhaps that’s why I had such good luck.

   5. i had laser hair removal on my bikini line and upper lip – it took about 2 years of regular treatments, all-in. the initial package was 6-8 sessions, plus a “2 year guarantee” – meaning as many follow-up sessions as necessary to complete the hair removal during the two years following your last session. the first few sessions were every 6 weeks, then increasing to every 4 weeks as the treatments went on. upper lip took longer than bikini. treatments were completed sometime in 2009 and i’ve had very, very minimal regrowth since then – i consider it well worth it. i was a good candidate – lighter skin, dark coarse hair. the lasers are drawn to the contrast in pigments, which is why it doesn’t work as well for darker skinned/paler-haired people.

   6. Have had laser hair removal on both face and underarms. Face has been much more stubborn to treat but compared to the alternative…priceless and I have no regrets. Underarms I’ve seen almost immediate results. Like 1 treatment in and I might need to shave them once a week (in comparison my underarms used to always have the “5 o’clock shadow” almost immediately after shaving and if I had an event in the evening I would have to shave them 2x/day) Would love to get my lower legs done if I think I could bear the pain.

   7. I’ve had great results and less great results with laser hair removal, based on trying 3 different places (great results at 2 of them). However, I am the perfect candidate for laser hair removal – very dark hair and very pale skin.

      I also tried all the places through Groupon/Lifebooker deals, but after carefully checking yelp and other reviews.

      If anyone is looking in NY, I recommend Pulse (33rd & Madison) and Deify (in the old Limelight building). Also, if you’re on Pulse’s mailing list, they send out monthly deals for treatments, which sometimes include hair removal.

      1. I also had less than stellar results, 7 years later it’s like I never did it at all. I did have several mostly hair free years, but slowly it all came back. (Like it was stunned but not dead, lol)

         I do have fair skin and fairly light hair, but it’s definitely not blonde, it’s brown, just light brown.

         I also had hyper pigmentation issues when they tried to do my bikini line and had to abandon that area, and it took months of hydroquinine cream to get that patch back to normal.

   8. I LOVE it, but I have dark brown hair so i took to it well. I have very fair skin and have had no skin pigmentation issues with my (mostly) brazillian, underarms, legs and a little on my abdomen. I haven’t really had anything too much come back. I actually bought the TRIA to spot treat any rogue hairs that come back

5. Eyeliner. Honestly. I cannot get it on straight and it just goes everywhere.

   1. Eyeliner was a ‘5th tries a charm’ for me. Surprisingly, liquid eyeliner was key.

      But I still haven’t mastered putting it on the inside of my lid. Every time I try, I poke myself in the eye or the liner irritates my eye and I end up watering up and messing up everything.

      1. I don’t bother with the inside of my lids, and I’d consider myself a decently advanced eyeliner user. It just doesn’t last long enough to be worth it. Or it makes my eyes water. So you’re not the only one :)

      2. I use eyeliner every day on my top lid, but I can’t do it on the inside of my lids. I’ve tried, but it never seems to work very well and I can’t figure out what I am missing. So many people seem to do it….what’s their secret? How do they make it stick and do it without poking themselves? I’m a reasonably intelligent person and yet I can’t seem to figure this out. Total mystery.

         1. Or how they make it curl up at the ends, or do a cats eye, or or or. All I know how to do is follow the line of my eyelid, but I know I’m supposed to curl it up at the end or something so my eyes look bigger. And yeah, no idea on bottom eyeliner either… it looks so nice on everyone else. Sigh.

            1. Oh, I can do the curl at the corner, and the cat’s eye. I find it works way better with liquid eyeliner. It’s just the waterline stuff that eludes me….completely and totally.

            2. I use Bobbi Brown’s gel eyeliner. How did you figure it out, Nonny?

            3. The cat-eye things just take time and practice. I don’t currently own or use liquid eyeliner–I like the softer, smudgier look you get with a pencil–but when I did I’d have to re-do one side 3-4 times to get them to match up.

            4. Trial and error, my friend. Trial and error.

               Though I’m not saying it’s necessarily symmetrical all the time…

            5. Cat-eye, as I have figured it out, involves extending the line of the lower lid, not working from the upper lid. I like my upper lid as usual, then make a little uptick that extends the line of my lower lid, and finally fill in the triangle that the uptick and the regular line make when joined.

               Other than this one thing, I have no make-up or hair skills. Once when getting ready for a fancy dinner I had to get my husband to put my (regular, non-cat-eye) eyeliner on for me because I couldn’t for the life of me get it looking the same on both eyes. He was pretty good at it.

            6. *line, not like in sentence 2. boo typos.

            7. Whether using liquid or pencil liner, try making several
               Dots along the lash line, then connect them- works great until practice makes perfect :-)

         2. This is fascinating to me because I can only do it on the inside of my lid. And it’s frustrating because it wears off quickly. I can’t do it on the rest of lid, it’s all wobbly and weird.

      3. Wow, this makes me feel so much better.

         I’m getting the curl and cat eye down with practice (and, btw, it’s been worth it – really improves my small eyes), but the inner lid continues to be a disaster.

      4. You pull the lower eyelid down and out by pulling down on the skin just below. Then you can support the hand holding the pencil on the hand pulling down the eyelid. Those who seem to make the eyeliner stay probably touch it up all the time.

         I’ve never managed a good smoky eye with black eye shadow, but dark brown-purplish shades work a lot better for me. I apply the shadow with one of those “bias-cut” flat brushes, and then smudge it with a flat brush with a rounded tip.

         My forever fail in the beauty department is lipstick. It just crawls into the creases. Even lip tint does that. But I do love how put-together I look for about two seconds with some colour on my lips.

         1. Try Revlon lipbutters – it provides great punchy colour, but is balm-like so it doesn’t settle into creases like liptint and dry out your lips like lipstick.

      5. Unless going for a smoky eye, lining the inside of the lower/upper eyelid (a.k.a. waterline) only makes the eyes look smaller. The exception would be using a white pencil which gives the illusion of brighter and larger eyes.

   2. I practiced on nights I wasn’t going out until I finally got it.

   3. What about LIPSTICK?

      The manageing partner insist I wear RED lipstick alot, especialy when I make court apearance’s.

      It is VERY bad if I am NOT very neat in applyeing the red lipstick b/c it can smear all over the place. More importantely, I also have to be VERY careful what I eat when I wear this. One time I ate a pastrami sandwich at MENDY’s waiting for the manageing partner to go downtown, and the next thing you know, I have lipstick on my chin and on my nose, and mustard also. What a mess I am he said, and he made me go into the FITHY SMELLEY bathroom at Grand Central to clean up. FOOEY!

      I told him we should go out to the Morton’s near the station and I could ask to freshen up in thier bathroom, but he said NO, we need to go downtown soon. So I had to step through alot of wet stuff to clean up and the mirror was not even clean. DOUBEL FOOEY!

      It is NOT easy to look compeleteely put together in NYC, b/c I do alot of eateing on the run, instead of at 5 star restrunt’s. FOOEY!

      1. For what it’s worth, I saw this in Women’s Health this week: http://www.womenshealthmag.com/beauty/jessica-alba-lipstick

      2. Try Sephora brand cream lip stain in “Always Red” – it’s as close to a universally flattering red as you can find, covers as well as lipstick, and as long as you keep your lips relatively dry it won’t go anywhere.

         I’ll scrub my lips in the shower before I do my makeup and apply a little lip balm, then let it fully absorb before applying. A little lip liner around the edges in a color that matches my natural lip color, then carefully dab the lip stain on. Clean up edges with a clean tissue/qtip with a little moisturizer on it if necessary.

         Let it fully dry without touching – don’t add any lip gloss or balm over it. You may need to touch up by adding a little dab in the center of your lips after you eat/drink.

         I love red lips and this is the ONLY way I have found to make it work for a workday.

6. Drugstore mascara. It always leaves me with raccoon eyes but I keep going back for more.

7. Ditto on the sock bun. If you have any kind of layers, forget it. They will stick out everywhere, looking like Edward Scissorhands did your hair.

   1. This. I so desperately want to make a sock bun, but I’ve failed over and over. Not for me.

      1. There are great videos on youtube for how to do a sock bun. But of course it’s much easier to do on someone else than yourself. Also, lots of spray on the bun and gel on the surrounding hair, which may be cuter on a 10-yr old than an adult.

   2. You made me burst out laughing in the courthouse library. This is hilarious, and good advice.

   3. awe man is that why I can’t get it to work? I’m totally blaming my layers and not my inability to do anything with my hair beyond straightening it!

      1. My hair is very layered and I’m able to do a sock bun with vigorous re-tucking of the ends into the bun as I roll.

         It is mainly hairspray and hope keeping the bun together though….

8. I love the Curly Girl method! I’m sulfate and silicone free since 2009.

   1. Me too, although only since early 2012!

9. Bangs.

   I want them to work so badly, but my hair just isn’t right. I do it, regret it, then forget and try again two years later. My hairdresser won’t even do them for me anymore, lol.

10. Ditto on the spin pins. I attribute it to having 1) lots of hair and 2) slippery hair.

    On a similar note, I cannot master putting my hair into a bun with just bobby pins. Even when I think I’ve secured everything, one turn of the head and the pins start ejecting themselves.

    1. People can do a bun with only bobby pins??!?!?

       1. People who have fine, thinnish hair like mine. I can get a passable bun with only 2 pins. I can get a it-could-survive-an-earthquake bun with eight.

       2. Not sure if I would still have the skill, because I’ve been on team short hair for over 15 years now. But back in the day, I could put my waist-length, thick heavy hair in a bun with 4 heavy-duty bobby pins. The secret is to interlock them.

       3. My secret for bobby-pinned buns is dirty hair.

       4. Yep, I was a bit of a “bunhead” in gradeschool/highschool. In ballet classes you learn very quickly how to make a good, tight bun. I can put my fine, waist length hair up with 3 large bobby pins and have stay secure through the whole class. Good for an evening of ballroom dancing too. My hair is too long for a pony tail to be not dangerous to my dance partner. It’s not fun doing the jive when he has to keep ducking to keep your pony from whipping him in the face every time you do a spin.

    2. I think the spin pin instructions don’t have you put your hair in a ponytail with a hair tie first. The only way they work for me though is if I use a hair tie because it anchors it somehow. If you haven’t tried that, I’d recommend it.

    3. I now like Spin Pins, but it took some adjusting for my thick hair with long layers. I have to put it in a low pony first, with a hair tie. Then I wrap the hair around. It also takes 4 spin pins and sometimes an extra bobby pin to secure the last end. It also helps if my hair is a bit wet when I put it up. Once it’s in though, it stays all day and doesn’t move. I even wore it like that to a dentist appt where I was essentially laying on the bun for 30 minutes and it didn’t move.

    4. I love spin pins. Much better than the hair pins I used to use.

       I use a non-slip ponytail band, wrap my bun like a cinnamon roll and anchor with 6 of the longer spin pins. Much more secure and comfortable.

       I also like that I can kind of artfully arrange my bun so that it lies attractively while the spin pins are anchored. It makes for a looser prettier bun than my old way.

       If I sometimes need to I’ll supplement the 6 spin pins with a few lightweight hairpins in a color that matches my hair.

    5. I have pounds and pounds of hair, but until it passes bra strap I can do french twists with jus tlittle bobbie pins just fine. Now my hair’s hopeless, though.

11. I’ve tried several tinted moisturizers and every time I’m like, “ugh my skin still looks horrible! This doesn’t have enough coverage!” and yet some how I always think another one will somehow be different.

    1. My problem with these is that they settle into my very fine lines, and also the color gets onto the collars of my shirts and coats.

    2. Same here. I’ve moved on to BB creams. I found one by L’Oreal that works well for me. It doesn’t provide as full coverage as foundation, but I like it for the weekends when I wear less makeup. Or on mornings when I’m running late and don’t have time to deal with foundation.

    3. I’m totally with you on the tinted moisturizer. I’m always like, “Ooh, I’m going to look so fresh faced and flawless” and then I actually use it and I end up having to put concealer over at least half of my face. I guess it’s just not enough for my fair, thin, ruddy skin.

12. I’ve given up on looking like Kristen Bell. It’s just not going to happen for me.

    And also the sock bun. My hair does not look good when I grow it out to a length that I would need for the sock bun.

13. With ya on the sock bun, Kat. They just don’t work on me. I’m going to try the headband curls tonight, though :)

    Other than sock buns, my biggest consistent beauty fail is with eyelash curlers. Maybe I just don’t know how to use them correctly? But it really seems like it shouldn’t be *that* hard.

14. I have a TON of hair (goes to about 3 inches above my knees), and LOVE spin pins. They work amazingly in my fine hair. I do tease quite a bit though, so maybe that is the trick! I also do sock buns, but I do them differently than every tutorial I’ve found. I put my hair in a pony, and slide the sock form over the pony. I then split my hair into two sections (one top, one bottom) and tease the side that will not be showing. Then I wrap an elastic around my hair, around the form, and twist the ends. I take the ends and pin them under/around the sock bun {mine show, but if you have less hair, it will show less (by show, I mean you can tell my hair is wrapped around the base.)} and voila…sock bun.

    I have to experiment with many updos to keep my hair from bugging me. The one thing I have not mastered is curling my hair, leaving it down, and having the curl stay. It never has (even when my hair was shorter), short of emptying a gallon of hairspray into it, so it looks fake.

    1. woah, 3 inches above your knees!!! Please tell me that you keep it that long for religious reasons. Otherwise it just seems like self-torture!

       1. Yep, it is for religious reasons. I’m so used to it though, that I’m not sure how I would function with shorter hair. It is so easy (and fast) to put my hair up, that I struggle trying to help my friends that want me to do their shorter hair.

          1. I feel ignorant — are there religions besides Sikhism that forbid haircutting?

             1. Rasta… but that’s the only other one I know of. And it seems like that would be a difficult religion to incorporate into a professional lifestyle. (Or the other way around, of course.)

             2. Oh I think there are more than Sikh and Rasta. I am Christian: there are several sects of Christianity that I know of that teach against hair cutting as well.

15. I haven’t been able to “train” my hair to produce less oil by washing it less. I know some lucky gals can get away with washing their hair every other day or less, but it just doesn’t work for me.

    My hair is fine in texture it gets oily at the roots very easily. I feel best when I have clean, styled hair. I know it’s irrational, but I feel disheveled if my hair is dirty.

    Having said that, I woke up late this morning and didn’t have time to wash and dry my hair. I keep dry shampoo on hand for days like this, but most weeks I end up washing my hair every day.

    I actually like the process of drying and stlying my hair. It’s sort of my quiet/me time in the morning.

    1. Me too. Despite my best attempts, I have to wash my hair every single morning or I look like an oil slick.

    2. Yes to all of this. Even when my second-day hair *looks* fine, and/or is covered in dry shampoo, I just feel gross!

    3. Same, but what helps me is still to rinse on non-wash days. Rinse & scrub with my fingers only and no shampoo/soap, and I can go a second day without dry shampoo. Three days is a no-go though.

    4. Day one is my hair-is-impossible day. Day two is my best hair day. Day three is dry-shampoo day. By day four I better wash it or it’s really not pretty.

       This schedule only works if I don’t work out, though.

    5. Herbal Essences “Drama Clean” shampoo in the green bottle is my new discovery. I was going to threadjack today and suggest this new discovery, but now it’s actually relevant! I have used various drugstore and salon brand shampoos over the years and no matter what, I’ve had to wash my hair daily due to oil and smell. I recently found a shampoo by accident that works so well I only need to wash once every 3 days! And there is no oily hair smell! I use a little bit of J&J Chamomile & Lavender baby powder in between washes, to keep the volume. I only hope that Clairol doesn’t find out–they may not have an incentive to sell you LESS shampoo!

       After using this shampoo I now suspect that other manufacturers actually create formulas that encourage oily hair. The biggest culprit in my experience is Dove. When I use their shampoo, my hair is oily before the end of the day (or oily by the next morning if I wash at night), and I am a very thorough shampooer. Not only is my hair oily, I also notice an oily smell. The oiliness and the smell aren’t as strong with other brands, but with Dove, it’s awful! I’m so glad to discover that it’s not ME, it’s the shampoo!

16. I would love some of your ladies’ collective wisdom. I’m in big law and I have been considering switching jobs recently. Because of project commitments, I definitely can’t leave my current position until at least May.

    Of course, that means my dream job (that is seeking someone exactly like me) just was posted online 2 days ago. It’s for an in house position and I know I’m a candidate they would take seriously. I assume that they are looking to fill the position immediately. Would it make sense to throw my hat in the ring? I haven’t really jumped jobs before, I’ve been at this firm since I was a summer, so I don’t really know anything about the politics of switching jobs and how to plan for timing/transition. Any helpful insight?

    1. If it means anything, the position is at a nonprofit. thanks in advance for any thoughts!

    2. Don’t take yourself out of the running before you even apply. I would try to get in touch with people there or maybe even apply so you can get a better idea of the position / workplace, etc. Who knows, maybe it is not as dreamy as you thought. Or maybe it is, and they can wait a little bit for you, or you can work something out with your employer currently. A lot of unknowns, yes, but hopefully it can work out.

    3. IMO, you need to do what’s best for YOU, not your firm. And you can’t get any job you don’t apply for, so go apply now. Worry about leaving your current firm after you get an interview or an offer.

    4. Honestly, most employers would push an employee out the door tomorrow if they have a business reason to do so. I wouldn’t use your work commitments as an excuse to stay until May (unless there’s a well-earned bonus with the end of the May commitments).

       Throw your hat in the ring now. Worry about timelines later.

       1. i realize that i am probably offering the firm more loyalty than they would offer me, but i just couldn’t fathom leaving before getting through the commitments i’ve already made. i basically AM the trial team for a case in April. but like i said, i’ve never jumped jobs so i don’t know how normally someone deals with something like this? i had planned to start looking casually in a few months.

          1. If you are totally irreplaceable and the firm would collapse if you left, then the firm is not managed properly. Because what if you died? Would the firm die? If that’s true (and it is true for a tiny number of people), then the firm would (1) have made you sign an iron-clad employment agreement with a non-compete and lots of heavy terms, but would also have compensated you well for your loyalty and (2) would have some serious key-person insurance on your life. These things typically apply to a firm’s managing partner, heads of departments, superstar rainmakers, etc. You sound way too young for any of that. So unless they asked you point blank “are you planning to switch jobs before May” and you said “no, I will be here through May,” then you leaving before April is a risk they know they live with everyday. And if they don’t know it and haven’t planned for it, then you should get the h*ll out of that firm because they don’t know how to run a business.

             1. I thought noncompete agreements weren’t allowed for attorneys in many states. (Always made sense to me, as a preeminent law firm would clearly have the upper hand on a fresh JD grad desperate for a job.)

             2. Totally agree – the timing is NEVER perfect, especially not for dream jobs. Go for it!!

                PS, I speak from experience…don’t want to go into too much detail here, but basically I felt incredibly guilty leaving my old job for my dream job, received many, many phone calls from the execs at the dream job persuading me, finally decided to leap, and am incredibly glad I did. In hindsight, I don’t know what I was thinking to not take it. Most people hiring for a job won’t bother to call and cajole you to reconsider once you’ve declined an offer, and i mean, if you don’t apply, they’ll never even know you exist! You need to look out for yourself here.

             3. Agree with all the comments that you should apply. Maybe the new place lets you defer (lawyers know trials are rare and valuable experience, so it may be willing to suffer a bit to let you finish it). Maybe the trial date gets moved. Maybe it settles. Be extra-organized in your trial prep and create a great trial notebook and folders for each witness/issue, so that if you do have to leave before May, someone else can take over. If that happens, rather than being mad at you for leaving, your current place will be impressed that you were so organized and made it so easy for the next person to get up to speed!

                You’re never as indispensable as you think you are, and in fact part of doing a good job is making yourself less indispensable by organizing your files so that someone else could take over in a pinch.

          2. +1 to all of this. Don’t be naive. They would drop-kick your, uh, self out the door in a red-hot second if it suited their purposes and they know you are an at-will employee who could leave at any time. Look out for Number One.

          3. +1 to TBK. It is not fair for an employer to put everything on you. If the firm is totally going to ne gone because you left then it’s a mess already and why would you want to be there? More than likely though, the employer may take advantage of the fact that you are committed / loyal to make you feel like they JUST.CANT.MAKE.IT without you. Don’t let this be a factor in your job search. I did that for one of my old employers and waited way too long to look for a new job. When I finally left, things moved on, and they were just fine.

       2. +1. Your current job’s timelines have nothing to do with when you can switch jobs, especially when that would mean putting off the job search for months. Moving a start date by a week or two once you have an offer, so you can wrap up projects at your old job, is totally expected, but not applying for 3+ months is crazy.

       3. +1 million Justin Biebers.

          1. RAWRING with LOLs over here.

    5. Depending on the employer, you could actually wind up with a May start date, by the time they wait for applications, schedule interviews, interview people, interview them again, make a decision, and get out an offer letter and start date. So, definitely apply.

       Also, if someone would die if you left your firm before May, I agree you should stay until then, but really very, very few people are irreplaceable. I agree with Sweet as Soda Pop that generally you should do what’s best for you, not the firm.

       1. I also agree with k-padi.

       2. This. It could EASILY take 3 months for them to get through the hiring process.

    6. Throw your hat in the ring, and if you have a contact who can get your resume looked at someone with hiring influence do that pronto. Its really hard to visibility without a contact because for every opening you get so many resumes, that the contact ends up being the first round screen…..

    7. You knew we were all going to tell you to apply, right? GO FOR IT, YO!

       1. thanks for the encouragement! i’m super excited about the prospect, but not quite ready to jump in since i had been planning to wait a few months. guess this is the kick i needed!

17. Blow drying my hair. Every time I try, I end up with way too much volume. When I had shoulder length hair, it would literally stick at least 6 inches straight out. With a pixie cut, my hair literally stands on end when I try to blow dry. I’ve tried diffusers, brushing hair downward during drying, adding product (before, during, and after), adjusting the temperature/force of the blow dryer, and waiting. Honestly, it sticks straight out until I take a shower–even 12 hours later.

    Funny, everyone who has dried my hair has had no problem and comments on how easy to manage my hair is.

    1. Me too, kp. No idea how to blow dry my hair.

    2. Same! Can’t blow dry. Gave up years ago. It just winds up making my hair look flat, frizzy and dull (it’s naturally wavy). I tried that round brush thing but just couldn’t figure it out. Oh well, one less thing for me to worry about.

       I also have never figured out eye make up other than mascara. Eyeliner and eye shadow seems to just make my eyes look smaller than they are, plus it rubs off and leaves creases. Eh, whatevs.

    3. I use a huge-barrel curling iron like a flatiron because I’m too lazy to do my hair with a round brush every day.

    4. I don’t use it now that I have short hair, but I learned an easy blow-drying method that worked really well when my hair was longer. It’s called the 360-degree method. Make the blow dryer follow the brush, and use a round brush to sweep your hair all the way over your head and around to the other side in a big circular motion. Do this from all directions (top down, bottom up, left to right, right to left, diagonally, etc.)

       1. My stylist taught me this method, but called it “the wrap dry.” You’re basically using your head as a roller.

    5. Oh.My.EFFING.God finally, FINALLY there are some that also don’t know how to blow-dry. I feel so… connected. I despise trying to learn; when I’ve tried I end up with this huge fuzzy, puffy sheep’s wool looking MESS that just irritates me for having spent so much time trying to do it. (If I let my hair air dry I get the wooly look so having that as a result after attempting to blow-dry style it is frustrating.) I’ve given up and found that what works best for me is blow-drying it to dry it and then using my beloved Chi to flat iron curl it. That way I get silky, touchable hair with volume and curl AND no frizz. Thank god for the ceramic action of those clamping plates!

       1. What I’ve been led to understand is that you have to blow dry ALL THE WAY to Sahara-dry. Leaving even a little dampness behind means you don’t get any of the benefit.

          My arms get tired, so I don’t even bother.

    6. The only way I can blow dry my hair (and I do it every day, even with dampened second-day hair) is using a dryer that has a comb attachment from Vidal Sassoon (there are other brands but Vidal works best for me). I hold the dryer in one hand and position my hair with the other.

       I could never figure out how to use a “regular” blow dryer and brush because I just don’t have a 3rd hand!

       I’ve been doing it this way off and on for 25ish years. In the off years, I had my very curly hair cut short and could do the wash-and-wear thing. But for the past 1o years or so, I blow dry and flat iron it straight and wear it shoulder-length.

18. Lower lid eyeliner. I have dark circles so it just makes me look even more tired. Doesn’t stop me from trying to pull it off occasionally, though!

    At home manicure. I cannot do it for the life of me. Or, if I do a half-decent job, I then run my fingers through my hair or something and ruin it. I stick to getting my nails done 2-3 times a year at a salon.

    1. Me too – regarding the at home manicure. I get impatient waiting for my nails to dry and end up ruining the finish. Also, I wash my hands a lot, and cook and clean and my nails start to chip after a couple of days. I have heard good things about Seche Vite top coat, but haven’t tried that yet.

       1. I use a different quick-drying top coat, not Seche Vite, but it has really helped with the whole “Oops, did my nails, have to go to the bathroom, how to navigate zipper of my jeans?” issue.

          1. I am terrible about this, and never do my nails. When I got a manicure at the mall for my senior prom oh so many years ago, i had my car keys in my pocket and didn’t know enough to think to get them out ahead of time… I ended up finding a classmate (that I really didn’t know very well, definitely not a friend) in the foodcourt and asking them to get them out of my pocket for me. They did it, but I think I totally weirded them out in the process.

          2. Do your nails naked!

       2. Essie Good to Go top coat is the bomb. Dries really quickly. Also, when I do my nails at home, i don’t but hand cream on right before painting them or use cuticle removing cream. The less moisture before painting, the longer your manicure will last.

          1. Ha – after yesterday’s thread on this, I went out to get some quick dry and this is what I picked up last night. I. love. it. My nails were dry and ready to go in like thirty minutes. After those thirty minutes, I did things like emptying/loading the dishwasher and a load of laundry. I also pet my dogs, which is my “run my hands through my hair” equivalent. :) Converted!

    2. Me too regarding the lower lid liner. I know people do it for smoky eyes (and even smudge it), but on me it just makes me look (more) exhausted.

    3. I have the opposite problem, I don’t think I’ve ever left the nail salon and not ruined my nails practically before walking out the door. I went on Saturday, thought I waited forever for them to dry before leaving, then messed one up putting on my watch as I stepped out the door. I felt bad and headed towards my car, but decided to ask them to fix it. They did, I waited forever again, but still messed that nail up a couple minutes after leaving. Somehow that many layers just don’t work for me! I’m lazy, so when I do it myself I don’t use base and top coat just the color, either one or two layers, and that ends up working 100x better.

       1. I have never once left a nail salon with perfect nails during a regular manicure. Now I get gel manicures because it works SO much better for me since they’re dry and unchippable basically right away.

          1. I haven’t tried gel yet, I’m curious but not sure I like the idea of the UV exposure and difficult removal.

             1. The UV exposure thing I don’t love (I usually put on sunscreen beforehand) but I haven’t found them difficult to remove at all (if you wait a long time I’ve found they chip off just like regular nail polish, or you can soak them in acetone and carefully rub them off — I usually take them off myself, at home, both so the salon can’t charge me for removal and because sometimes they are way rougher than necessary.

             2. I LOVE have done nails and I can’t get out of the salon without mucking up a regular mani. I’ve been doing gel for nearly 2 years. Once a year, I go about 6 weeks without to let my nail bed totally regrow, but thus far, i haven’t noticed any serious degeneration in my nails. (that said, i have really strong nails. I might be short and plump, but my nails are strong, baby.) i love it–and get lots of compliments.

       2. I take my own quick-dry top coat to the nail salon. It helps avoid those little nail tragedies!

    4. I can’t do my nails for the life of me. Sally Hansen nail stickers are the way to go. Even when I get a professional mani, it doesn’t last very long for me. The Sally Hansen nail stickers last a bit longer. There’s somewhat of a learning curve. Read up on Makeup Alley.com or something. They are awesome and go on sale at CVS quite frequently

       1. Oh and duh, the biggest pro about Sally Hansen nail stickers is that there’s no dry time. I manage to mess up my nails half the time I get a professional mani bc I need to scratch something or touch my hair. When I’m at home it’s even worse bc I’ll inevitably need to go to the bathroom.

19. Sigh. That is the THIRD coworker that has said to me today “You look SO tired! My goodness!”

    I AM tired. I KNOW I am tired. Stop pointing it out!

    1. Ugh, I hate when people do that! I find it to be rude.

    2. Argh. People say this to me all the time. Yes, I know, I have a 4 month old baby, I am tired. But clearly not succeeding in my attempts to look not tired.

    3. One of my coworkers told me I needed coffee today. I was too stoned on my meds to make a comeback. Shrug.

    4. my boss told me that I looked like I needed a nap yesterday… I guess I should start working less and sleep more?

20. Making the left side of my hair match the right. No matter how much I do or don’t play with a hairdryer, round brush, curling iron, flat iron, hair product, whatever – one side curls under or out or lays flat and the other does something different. Its usually the right side that is uncooperative, so if I figure out what it is going to do that day I can sometimes get the left to look similar, but they never have the same degree of curl/flip.

    I’ve gotten on & off the ‘no poo train so many times I can’t count. When I stick with it for a few weeks/months it usually pretty good, but then something comes up and I wind up back on the shampoo and under or over conditioning cycle over and over.

    1. My hairdresser says that’s just the way my hair grows. My hair wants to point to the right. Left side curls in beautifully, right side will permit itself to be blowdried curled in and within 20 minutes is flipped out and pointing to the right, even when my totally amazing fancy downtown SF hairdresser does it. It’s become a running joke for us.

    2. Ditto on the hair! My hair is naturally stick straight with the exception that one side likes curl under at the ends, one side likes to flip out. Same result if I air dry or blow dry. Even when I use a flat iron, by the end of the day it’s generally back to looking like I dried my hair by standing sideways in a wind tunnel (all the hair swooping in one direction).

       1. Might you sleep on that side, flattening it?

21. Hair styling doo-dad things (like spin pins or French twist forms). Teasing (this wasn’t a thing when I was a teenager or early 20s and I feel too old to learn now). Non-neutral eye-shadow.

22. Has anyone purchased any maternity workpants recently they can recommend? Was going to go for a pair from the Gap or Old Navy, but they seem so bell-bottomy. Need to longer in-seams though, so may have to try them anyways.
    Thanks in advance!

    1. I swear by Gap maternity pants and I also have to have a long inseam. I loved the skinny work pants from Gap. The other boot cut pants are a little flared/bell-bottomy, but not so much that I can’t wear them. Wait for some type of sale, you can normally get them around $30 or so.

    2. I tried on the Old Navy ones the other day and they were straight leg, fit great

    3. LOFT maternity. I’m 5’10” and they were long enough with flats/low heels. Comfy, too. Only online though.

23. False eyelashes. They look terrible. My solution is divaderme fiber mascara. It’s a great substitute and basically two coats of that and three coats of ordinary mascara = false eyelashes.

24. This no shampoo thing is intriguing. My hair gets so filthy when I don’t wash it for a few days (4 is about my absolute max). I mean, it looks really dirty. It reminds me of the newscasters in the Michael Keaton Batman movie when all the cosmetic products were tainted. Dull, frizzy, flat, greasy and dry looking at the same time. Is there a hump to get over where it improves? It gets worse before it gets better? What about sweaty workouts? Just rinse and condition?

    1. Yup. You just have to commit. It’ll be gross for a few weeks, but then it’ll acclimate. When I was doing this dry shampoo on my roots was essential.

    2. I can’t even go one day. And dry shampoo does nothing for me. My hair just looks extra flat and limp, but still greasy, if I use dry shampoo.

       1. Me too, TBK. Thought I was the only one!

    3. Depends on your hair. I co-wash (conditioner only) every 3-5 days (longer in winter). You still do the things you do when you shampoo – ie… scrub scalp with fingertips etc…. I use a lighter conditioner for my “wash” rinse and then apply a heavier conditioner that I leave in (I de-tangle while wet) and then I “plop” witha t-shirt and then air dry, or diffuse if its winter.

    4. It just doesn’t work for some people. I tried for 8 weeks and my hair still looks disgusting if I don’t wash it everyday, even if I dry shampoo. I attribute it to daily sweaty workouts. I was really hoping I could stop washing my hair everyday because it is such a time suck, but it’s not in the cards for me.

    5. I agree that over-aggressive shampoo can make your hair produce more oil than it needs to. But this no washing thing? Eeeeeuw! Maybe you can get it to look ok in the mirror. But you sure can’t get it to smell like anything but unwashed..

25. 1. Brow drying my hair straight
    2. Bronzer
    3. Lipstick

    1. I was just going to post about bronzer! Hate it. My mom gave me most of a bottle of Smashbox bronzer. Even the smallest pump comes out with a dime-sized dollop, which is WAY MORE than I need on my face. I looked like John Boehner.

26. does anyone know of any good jewelry stores that sell diamond jewelry in manhattan? people seem to think that tiffany is waaay overpriced. thanks!

    1. b/w 5th and 6th — ie the diamond district

    2. Sulli Jewelers on bowery + canal. Yes, I understand it sounds strange to go to Chinatown for diamond jewelry, but my engagement/wedding rings are from there (as are many of my mom’s pieces) and they are great.

27. On a related topic – anyone have a way to stop thinning hair? FWIW, I’m 27 and have always had fine, thin hair, but lately it seems thinner, especially on the top front of my head. I use a mousee and also just started taking prenatal vitamins (DH and I are thinking about trying later this year), and try to be very gentle when i brush and was my hair in order to keep any more hair from coming out.

    My doctor ran hyroid tests on my several years ago, and everything came back ok, but I am wondering if I should be tested again.

    Any advice is appreciated!

    1. I would reccomend being tested for thyroid issues again. When I first started getting bald patches of hair, I got a blood test but thyroid results were normal. A few years later, I got tested again and was diagnosed with hypothyroidism.

       I saw my dermatologist for the bald patches and they were able to inject a medicine into my scalp to help stimulate hair growth. I don’t remember the name of the medicine, but I remember it also came in a cream that I could apply to my scalp.

       1. Thanks so much for the advice – I have a doctor’s appointment scheduled next month and will ask for this test.

    2. Second the recommendation for thyroid testing, general blood panel, etc. If you’ve recently lost weight, that can also be a factor. My sister had great luck with the Aveda Invati line.

    3. Same thing happened to me last year. Went to my derm and she suggested taking biotin 5 mg a day. It’s been a big help.

    4. Isn’t Rogaine supposed to help with this? About 10 years ago, my friend’s mother was using it for her thinning hair. (A doctor prescribed it.)

    5. I have the same issue and was tired of finding hair all over the apartment. The Nioxin shampoo and scalp treatment have helped. I am also planning to start taking Biotin,which seems to be working well for my mom.

       Definitely consider getting the thyroid test again. I had a test several years ago, which the doctor told me was normal without elaboration. It turns out, I was at the bottom end of normal. I now take daily hormone replacements, and I feel much better at the top end of the range than I did at the bottom.

    6. I used the Nioxin line for a while there (shampoo, conditioner, vitamins and scalp spray) and noticed some improvement. The best thing I found was using sulfate free shampoo and washing every other day. I like Aubrey Organics which you can get at Whole Foods.

    7. Hair thinning–someone on youbemom raved about Kerostase hair thinning shampoo and it has worked wonders. Highly, highly recommend. worth the cash.

    8. Thank you all – this advice is helpful and appreciated! I am definitely going to check out Nioxin and biotin, and have some tests run at my next doctor’s visit.

    9. Try EFA’s (essential fatty acids). They help with your skin, nails and hair. DMK, Danne Montague King is a paramedical skin care range that sells them. They are incredible and will really help. You take two in the morning and two at night.

28. I’m another one who can’t make the sock bun work. It makes me look like an extra from Little House on the Prairie.

29. DH and I want to take a long weekend in May and have narrowed it down to San Francisco or Austin. I’m leaning towards Austin because it is closer and we only have 3-4 days.

    We are foodies and I will ask for food recommendations later, but right now I’m just trying to find some hotels to choose between. We both like more modern, clean hotels like a Mandarin Oriental or a W, but we are trying to keep costs down on this trip. Not really interested in somewhere like a Holiday Inn, etc. Would like to stay somewhere in either city where we can easily get around. Suggestions?

    1. Wanted to add our budget is about $350 a night after all discounts, etc.

       1. Check out the Clift Hotel, SF. Location is quite central, lots of foodie options with-in walking distance, parking often included. As a resident, I put my family there when they’re in town. I adore the very SF vibe: you’ll know you’re in San Francisco.

    2. I stayed at the Hilton in downtown Austin recently. Nice hotel; within walking (or pedicab) distance of lots of great stuff.

    3. I recommend the Mansion at Judge’s Hill. Absolutely gorgeous b&b, and well-known.

       1. Ditto. It is really lovely.

       2. It is very pretty, but not what we look for in a hotel. We are looking for something much more modern, no antiques, etc. My husband doesn’t like anything that looks “old”.

          1. I think there was a travel article in GQ about Austin not too long ago that showed some cool hotels – perhaps check their web site?

    4. The Hilton downtown is great, as is the W. I’ve also stayed at the Four Seasons but the firm picked up the tab, so don’t know if that would be within your rate. The Driskill is nice and “old”ish, but the location can’t be beat.

       The Hotel San Jose sounds like it would be right up your alley. Directly on South Congress, which is a great location, and an easy cab ride to downtown. The hotel is a great place for locals to chill on the patio and drink, eat, etc.

    5. I love the Omni hotels, though I haven’t been to the Austin one. I am not a fan of W. I think they are similar in price, style and amenities but here’s the difference between the two chains: I stayed at a W on my wedding night. We clearly said at booking that this was a special occasion, I was wearing my wedding dress, etc. and we got a curt check in without so much as a congratulations. Vs. Omni, where I stayed for my birthday and told them the occasion and there was a plate of chocolate dipped strawberries with happy birthday written out in chocolate sauce waiting in our room at no charge.

       1. Oooh, Omni Austin has a heated rooftop swimming pool!

    6. Hotel saint Cecilia on south congress.

       You’re just outside of downtown, and s congress has great restaurants and shops. The hotel is beautiful as well.

30. You guys, forget using an actual sock to do the sock bun thing. There’s a spongy form thinger you can buy from Conair or at the local H&M. Make a pony, put in a hair elastic, then slip the form over it. flip your head forward so your hair falls over it like waterfall and spread it around evenly. gently tuck the ends under the form and secure with pins. alternatively, if you have those ends that like to stick out, take a clear elastic and slip it over the tucked bun, it will help hold it in.

    1. Also on Sock buns – it can have a lot to do with the sock – I have one sock that is perfect, one that is hard and one (that is made actually out of a nylon) that doesn’t work at all. Men’s thin-ish cotton dress sock does the trick…but heavier sock is too stiff.

       FWIW – I have fine but thick (as in lots of skinny strands) middle of the back hair.

31. 1. Complicated hair stuff. If it involves pinning, teasing or manipulating of any kind, forget it. Drying with a round brush is all I can handle.

    2. Tinted moisturizer is a bust. It looks worse than if I’d done nothing at all. Long live medium-coverage foundation.

    3. I can do a decent home manicure, but I can never force myself to make the time for it. The trimming, the painting, the DRYING … ugh. Love nail polish, but in reality, my fingernails are painted about once a quarter.

    4. Anytime I attempt a smoky eye, I regret it and want to take it off immediately. In addition to not really having the skillz to pull it off, heavy eye makeup just doesn’t feel like me.

32. Lipstick, I just can’t manage. That includes lipstains, lip butters, even tinted lip balms dry me out.

    A few days ago, I would have added “keeping my eyeliner from migrating up to my browbone,” but I think I’ve solved it! It involves eyelid primer, concealer or foundation, eyeliner, and powder, in that order, but my makeup stayed put for 12 solid hours. Victory!

33. Curls. My hair will not hold any curling iron/straightener/hot roller/beach look for more than a few hours. I can’t focus on shows like Nashville and Revenge. I’m too focused on bouncy curl envy.

    1. You should check out some tutorials for heat free curls on youtube – there are some great ones! You mostly just have to be willing to sleep on soft curlers, but the curls stay in much longer during the day I, too, have hair that hates to be curled, and overnight heat free methods are the only ones that will stay for more than about 4 hours.

34. Another one here who’s given up on the sock bun. That style does NOT get along with my layers! And my thin-but-lots-of-it hair does not hold a curl or wave for more than a few hours without being shellacked in hairspray. :(

    Also, any sort of eye makeup more complicated than “lid, highlight, crease”. I can just about do pencil liner, but liquid always looks like I’m coloring outside the lines or something. Those ones where it’s three shades in one thing and you swipe the big brush over the shadow and then over your lid and it’s supposed to do all the colors at once? Yeah, hahaha NO. Ugh, I looked like a clown!

35. I cannot curl my hair. I want the loose waves that it seems everyone can do these days. I have tried with a curling iron and wound up with way too tight, springy curls. I tried with a flat iron and ended up with trashy-looking kinks.

    I also cannot figure out the smokey eye. I just end up with tons of eyeshadow and eyeliner and pretend it was intention.

36. Thanks so much for the link to my Curly Hair challenge! It is such an up and down process, but once I finally got in the habit, it totally works!

    As for what I’ve given up on-that would be foundation. I have never been able to smooth and blend it in enough to not look like I did in high school-horrible and not worth the try!

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