I guess it's rubbing off on him...

The other night, a friend of ours asked me how long it would take me to spend $100 on cosmetics. I said that I could do it in less than 15 minutes (truth? I could do it in 2 minutes). My boyfriend chuckled and said if I came home from a cosmetics shopping trip having spent ONLY $100, he felt good about it. Fortunately for me, he's the type of guy who LOVES painted ladies and complains that I don't wear enough cosmetics at once.

There are other benefits to dating a marketing slut. For instance, I'd seen a new product on the shelves of my grocery store Cough and Cold aisle that I just HAD to try. Sudacare Shower Soothers are these tablets that you put in your shower. As the hot water hits them, they dissolve and fill your shower with mentholated vapors - making your stuffy head and body aches from colds feel LOADS better.

My boyfriend is always getting colds and has chest congestion. He usually just whines at me about how bad he feels. Since I'm much more solutions-oriented when he's sick, I made him take a shower with one of the Soothers. He was a total convert after one shower. I didn't feel the same way. The tablet dissolved too quickly and did not supply near enough menthol aroma to work on my stuffy head. A week or so later, I noticed a very strong menthol scent while I was showering. Looking down, I found that my boyfriend had put the tablet on the inside tub ledge. Since it didn't dissolve as quickly, it worked so much better. In fact, one tablet can last through 3 showers if you keep it out of the bottom of the tub (a much better deal since it's $6 for 3 tablets).

If you're like me and you don't like to take medication unless absolutely necessary, I can tell you these Shower Soothers and then chicken soup for lunch work great at making me feel better. My boyfriend loves them so much he stocks up on them AND he insisted I review them on this blog. There - I've told the world for him!

Part two of the Sephora trip Reviews

In an earlier blog, I raved about Kat Von D's new lipsticks and how a friend bought her True Romance eye shadow palette in Beethoven. Well, I still love the lipsticks and my friend LOVES that eyeshadow. After admiring her eyes every Tuesday night Girl's Night since she purchased the palette, I decided I MUST have it myself. It's a gorgeous array of cool tones and sexy neutrals (navy blue, black, dark brown, a couple of purples, gray and a great pale yellow called Tequila). The entire top of the palette has a great mirror and it comes with two double-ended brushes for easy application. I don't usually like the brushes that come with palettes, but these make it easy to line your eyes and/or to amp up your day eye to a sexy smokey eye while you're on the go. They're not really ideal for covering your whole lid with color, but that's what fingers are for!

I'd also been admiring her Rock and Roll eye shadow duos, but finally got sucked in when I read the color name of one duo: Sixxshooter. My boyfriend is a life-long Motley Crue fan and Nikki Sixx is his man-crush (although he's a little taken aback by Nikki dating the very much younger Kat, but I guess that's rock and roll for you). I did buy it just for the name, but I would recommend it to anyone. It's a glittery grey and a silky gunmetal duo. Grey is THE eye color for this season, so it's a good buy. Again, there is a fantastic mirror in the lid of the duo that's as good for shadow application as it is for touching up your lips. The duo and a lipstick would fit in your pocket or tiny purse and you'd be good to go for the night!

There were also a bunch of new glittery lip glosses added to her collection. The Lightning Lip Glosses looked almost as glittery in the tube as Urban Decay's Heavy Metal Eyeliners, but like the eyeliners, they don't have a whole lot of glittery payoff. (Thank you, Sephora, for lip gloss testers!) I guess they're ok as lip glosses go, but I didn't feel the need to buy one.

Let me confess that I'm a lazy lipstick girl. I prefer a softer looking mouth to a sharp, precise lip. Therefore, I don't buy many lip liners (with the notable exception of my one Chanel lip liner that I bought because of the attached lip brush). Since I get weekly emails from most of the cosmetic companies, I've been wondering about the Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On lip pencils. Since I have so many red lipsticks, I thought the brick red Gash would work well for me. Well, it sure does - there's quite a bit of pigment in the color and it does indeed glide on. It lasted through 2 ciders, a hot dog and three cocktails before I saw fading - and that was just me wearing the lip liner with lip balm to soften the color! I can't wait to see how it supports my lipsticks!

As stated earlier, I do buy many products based on their color name. I am a total sucker for a clever name and a good color. Nail polishes get me EVERY time. Now that Sephora has gone back to offering nail color in a big way with their Sephora by OPI Nail Polishes, I knew I was a goner. I bought It's All About Me (a softer hot pink), Opening Night (a dark, luscious navy shimmer), Never Enough Shoes (black with multi-glitter) and their base coat and top coat. Honestly, I'm not thrilled with them. It takes FOREVER to dry and too many coats to get the color that's in the bottle. I know I will keep buying them, but China Glaze Nail Lacquers are still the best value around.

Last, but certainly not least, I grabbed Stila's Convertible Color compact in Poppy. It's an orangey-red cream color that goes on easily. I loved the sheer wash of color on my cheeks and that I could build the color up deeper on my lips. Again, it has a great mirror in the lid so it's perfect for the girl-on-the-go.

I want to take a moment to talk about Sephora's Beauty Insider program. Like any frequent buyer program, you earn one point per dollar spent. Up until recently, you could only 'spend' 100 points at a time on a 'deluxe' sample. I like samples, but there hasn't been one that wowed me since I got the Hard Candy eye shadow single in Buttered Popcorn. Also, I NEVER spend less than $100 at Sephora (either online or in-person), so I kept my 'Beauty Bank' topped up all the time. Since I'm obviously NOT the only one who has a product problem, Sephora upped their game. Now, with a 500 point balance, you can spend it on a new 'gift'. I got a bare Escentuals travel palette with two brushes, a lip gloss, eye shadow, Mineral Veil and blush on this last trip to Sephora. I can't wait to save up more points!!

New Reviews from my latest Sephora trip! (part one)

Hooray! I have a bunch of new products to review! I had a blast with my girlfriends yesterday - we brunched and cocktailed and got into some retail therapy. None of them had ever been in an H&M before, so they had a great time discovering all the cute clothes with great prices (it made me nostalgic since I worked for H&M for 3 years). I did resist the temptation to buy tons of adorable accessories so I wouldn't interfere with my cosmetics lust money. Without further ado - the reviews:

Korres Pomegranate Lip Butter: I remember being excited when The Body Shop made lip butter versions of their popular Body Butter moisturizers. I wanted to love them; they tasted great and really moisturized. Unfortunately, they also turned your lips white. This would be cute if you were always rocking a 60's mod look, but who does that every day? The Greek company Korres has solved the problem by providing sheer or clear lip butters. The Pomegranate flavor is a sheer coral. The flavor isn't too overwhelming and it is VERY moisturizing. Because there is some tint to it, be careful to apply when using a mirror. Only the clear Guava flavor can be rubbed liberally over your whole mouth like a Chapstick.

Philosophy's Not The Pits Cherry Cola Shower Gel: Philosophy has the yummiest smelling bath/shower gels. They smell as real as Jelly Belly jellybeans taste. I know I've smelled every scent they have in the store, but it ended there since there wasn't a fragrance that I thought I could tolerate for a month or so in the shower (I'm talking to you, Egg Nog Latte and Licorice!) Then I smelled this cherry cola shower gel and was hooked immediately. It smelled like a cherry coke from an old-fashioned soda fountain, not like Wild Cherry Pepsi or Cherry Coke. In my shower this morning, a small amount gave mountains of creamy lather in my bath pouf and my skin feels very soft even hours later. I may have to go back and get the lotion, but I think I'll skip the lip gloss version. Philosophy lip glosses look lovely on but taste plasticky to me. Bleargh.

Bare Escentuals Mineral Veil on the Go: As promised, I DID get the Mineral Veil on the Go. As I'd hoped, it DOES solve all the portability problems I've always had with bare Minerals. The cap seals tightly, the flow-through brush dispenses product easily and it doesn't leak powder all over my purse. It's very exciting. Word to the wise: the product's box states that the product is non-refillable. This is NOT TRUE (and shame on Bare Escentuals for saying so, especially on a product with 'limited edition' status). The sales associate assured me at the time of purchase that it was indeed possible to refill it by turning the product brush-side down, tapping it against the counter to shift the powder to the bottom, then carefully unscrewing the clear plastic bottom in a counter-clockwise motion. Voila - a new beauty tool!

Tomorrow: More from Kat Von D, Stila and Sephora Nail Lacquer by O.P.I.

Did they really listen?

Ages ago, I complained about the lack of true portability with the bare Escentuals products. Well, they may have come up with something!

Sephora and bare Escentuals announced a new product: Mineral Veil On the Go

I am cautiously optimistic. I hate powder leaks in my purse more than anything. This Saturday, I'm heading to the new Sephora at Southcenter. If Mineral Veil on the Go is available, I may have to purchase it and get back to you.

I hope I'm not like them....

I don't know who reads this, but if you've ever clicked on any of the blogs I read, I hope you've noticed notalwaysright.com. I swear that this site is as necessary to me as my morning coffee. I read the stories of customer/sales associate interaction gone awry and think, "Well, at least my day won't go like theirs did!"

Since I've been a product slut for as long as I can remember, I started working as soon as I was old enough to earn money for my Kissing Slicks and Raw Silk Designer Imposter perfumes. My early experiences in customer service involved working in a Hallmark store, then scooping gourmet ice cream. It was at the ice cream store that I first dealt with completely irrational customers.


It was tedious explaining to tourists that a milk shake in New England is just syrup and milk; you need to order a frappe if you want ice cream in your beverage. I could tolerate the 10,000 times I was asked "What's in creamcycle ice cream?" (orange sorbet and sweet cream ice cream). But to have someone throw a cone of pistachio ice cream at me because "It's not green! Pistachio ice cream is green!", well - that was just ridiculous. I threw the cone in the trash and told him, "Pistachio ice cream is only green if you put food dye in it. We don't use artificial colors and flavors in our food. If you would like GREEN pistachio ice cream, you are free to go to Brigham's next door and get it - but you might like to know that their pistachio ice cream has only walnuts in it. "


A woman who always wore gloves would come into the drugstore I worked at about once a week. She'd hold all her purchases in her arms and read the prices to you. If you touched ANYTHING, she'd put it back and get a different one. You couldn't put anything in bags for her, either. I just couldn't understand it - every single item in the store was handled by tons of different people. Why were only the cashier hands too dirty to touch her items?


The weird customers were always good for a laugh, but the rude people and the thieves were really hard to take. Women would leave their kids in our drugstore while they went to the grocery store without them. Other women would let their toddlers knock all the pantyhose eggs out of the display while they shopped leisurely on the other side of the store. I can't tell you how many times lost and crying children would come to me to find their mom, then we'd find the mom in a store ACROSS THE STREET.

At a home store job, one woman specifically told me that she was buying these fancy sheets for her 'hot date' that night. She brought the sheets back the next day in all their hair-covered, wrinkled glory and was angry that we wouldn't let her return them. Another woman tried to return a toilet seat that was broken - after she'd been using it for a whole year (according to the date on her receipt)! When I called my boss to explain the situation, he freaked out and screamed "Don't touch it and don't let it touch anything else!", ran downstairs and let the customer know in no uncertain terms that she could take her used toilet seat right back to her house.

With that, I'd like to take a minute to explain some customer do's and don'ts - at least as I see them.

Don't raise your voice, curse at the staff or threaten violence. The minute you start yelling, the staff stops hearing you and is less likely to help you.

Do politely ask for a manager or supervisor immediately if you're trying to get a refund. This will save you and the underpaid cashier from unwanted stress.

Don't poop in the fitting room. Don't pee in the fitting room. Don't leave your used feminine hygiene products in the fitting room. I know it's a small room with a door, but it is NOT a bathroom.

Do pay attention to your bodily functions and use a public restroom BEFORE you have an emergency. This especially goes for mother's with small children who are potty training. If your child is saying "I have to go potty!" twenty times in a row, drop the items you're shopping for and get that kid to a potty before he goes on my floor.

Do return faulty merchandise to the store within 10-30 days of the original purchase. If something is still under warranty and breaks after 30 days, then DO contact the manufacturer about getting a replacement. Most times, the store didn't manufacture the product that you purchased, so they are not responsible for long-term maintenance.

Do read and make sure you understand the store's return policy/the warranty rules/terms of use etc. etc. It will save everyone headaches if you know what you're responsible for.

If you are unhappy or disagree with a company's policy, don't harangue the underpaid cashier/customer service agent. Do ask for a manager or write a letter to the head of the company. As long as your request is reasonable, it will almost always work.

Do plan your time well when shopping. I promise you that you would not like it if I prevented you from leaving work for 30 minutes to an hour after you were supposed to stop working. Please have the same respect for other people's schedules.

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

Nordstrom's Fall Cosmetic Trend show is here! For those not in the know (or who haven't read previous blog entries), Nordy's does two cosmetic trend shows per year. For a very reasonable $15, you get the runway show, a tote bag or cosmetic trunk filled with breakfast and free samples, and a free makeover at the cosmetic counter of your choice (by appointment). Sometimes, if you time it right, you can get a mini-facial from the Philosophy people before you get your makeup done. Then, they'll take $15 off your cosmetic purchases that day. It's lovely!

This year, I'm getting my makeup done at the NARS counter. While I am passionate in my love for their lip stains, blushes and eye shadows, I'm a little nervous about their foundations. If they are as pigment-heavy as MAC foundations, I don't think I'm going to be happy. Ah well - one must experiment!