Girlie Girls' Beauty Thread!!

[Rissask]

Originally Posted by Heather

I think of myself as kind of mid-range girlie, and I find myself avoiding this thread most of the time because it makes me feel bad. Like, I feel like there are way more things that I should be doing, beauty-wise.

I already wax, dye my hair/get highlights, get manis/pedis, facials, etc...but I'm really lacking in the haircare and makeup product departments.

I am a cheap drugstore makeup girl, all the way. the most I spend is my hair and my gel nails (I keep them short- and I get them done mostly out of sheer laziness! I don't have to touch them for a month.)

I buy Great Lash mascara, for heaven's sake!

Olkay, and the Lumigan....but that is $16 a bottle that lasts 2 or more months.

I don't see a huge difference between MOST high end products and the drugstore equivalents, honestly.

[actran]

How do you get Lumigan? Is it an Rx? I use RapidLash and usually get it at Bed Bath and Beyond for $40 (after coupon) and it lasts 2-3 months. My lashes are super long but I still use mascara. Lancôme Hypnose Drama. But that's because I'm such a drama queen to start with.

[Rissask]

Originally Posted by actran

How do you get Lumigan? Is it an Rx? I use RapidLash and usually get it at Bed Bath and Beyond for $40 (after coupon) and it lasts 2-3 months. My lashes are super long but I still use mascara. Lancôme Hypnose Drama. But that's because I'm such a drama queen to start with.

Does that have bimatoprost? or not anymore?

Lumigan is the same as Latisse. My doctor wrote me a prescription. I only use it every three days now that they are long.

I admit I only don't wear mascara on the weekends if I am not going out.
I like the dramatic lashes too!!

[TAPPY]

My lashes are coming back
Very thick !!

[Friday]

Originally Posted by TAPPY

My lashes are coming back
Very thick !!

[Rissask]

Originally Posted by TAPPY

My lashes are coming back
Very thick !!

yay!!

[melliedee]

Originally Posted by Heather

I think of myself as kind of mid-range girlie, and I find myself avoiding this thread most of the time because it makes me feel bad. Like, I feel like there are way more things that I should be doing, beauty-wise.

I already wax, dye my hair/get highlights, get manis/pedis, facials, etc...but I'm really lacking in the haircare and makeup product departments.

I am a beauty product junkie, but I actually don't wear that much make-up. None on non-work days if I can help it. My SIL jokes around with me that she can't wait to get my discarded products. I try to spring clean my lotions and potions every year or two and pass along the BOX of stuff I no longer want to her. How many tubes of lipgloss does one girl need? Do I even use hair gel?

I buy drugstore stuff for moisturizer: Olay, Burt's Bees, L'Oreal, Avon. I do love the mail order mineral make up Gingele turned me on to, Alima Pure. It's no more expensive than the Bare Escentuals I used to wear and I like it a lot better. I will drop good money on scents, and I'm occasionally drawn in by the "free" gift promos from department stores (I just never think their stuff is much or any better than what I can get at Walgreens).

The big exception to the low cost rule, of course, is Sephora. That store makes me want to buy stuff I didn't even know I needed (or knew existed).

[Heather]

I've been a terrible nail biter since my early 20s. I've tried everything--one of the things I've tried is wearing acrylics for a while, then taking them off one my own nails had grown underneath. This never worked well because my nails were weakened by the acrylics and would tear/chip--which is a trigger for me to bite.

I recently did the acrylic thing for a month, hating it (they are too long for me to type and they are hard to keep clean underneath). After I took them off, I got the Shellac treatment...I LOVE my nails. They are durable and have NO chips after over a week. Plus, there was no drying time after she was finished--amazing. I recommend it!

[TAPPY]

LOVE to get a french manicure in Shellac.....it will last for almost three weeks and my real nails are not ruined (plus they are growing) !

[Rissask]

I still love my gel nails....have been getting them for over 2 years now. I just do a French and get them done really short, and they build the white down....3-4 weeks later when I am due for a fill they are long but not ridiculously long.

It's fairly cheap and I never have to do a thing with them in between fills, which takes about 35 minutes/35 bucks....well worth it. They never yellow or chip or break, or at least very rarely.

[jayjay]

Originally Posted by Heather

I've been a terrible nail biter since my early 20s. I've tried everything--one of the things I've tried is wearing acrylics for a while, then taking them off one my own nails had grown underneath. This never worked well because my nails were weakened by the acrylics and would tear/chip--which is a trigger for me to bite.

I recently did the acrylic thing for a month, hating it (they are too long for me to type and they are hard to keep clean underneath). After I took them off, I got the Shellac treatment...I LOVE my nails. They are durable and have NO chips after over a week. Plus, there was no drying time after she was finished--amazing. I recommend it!

I put on Shellac nail polish before I went to Playa, knowing that my nails would look awesome the whole time! I love it, too! And it IS amazing how quickly they seem to grow!!! I'm a hairdresser, and my hands are in water all the time - and the Shellac will last 2 weeks for sure. I love when I give a manicure to someone, and have to take their polish off - and mine doesn't come off with it!

[gingele]

I've been getting the POI gel color for a little while now and I also love it!

Besides getting a manicure that lasts for more than 4 days (yes, I'm that bad) - I can actually walk out of the salon without getting a chip or a ding or a smudge within 5 minutes of finishing my manicure! This is unprecedented!! I LOVE the fact that it dries and hardens immediately.

[actran]

Can't remember if I posted about this before. There is a DIY Shellac system. It's called Red Carpet Manicure. You can buy everything separately or buy a kit that has everything plus a bottle of candy apple red polish. It even comes with the UV light. It was $50 or $60, so it paid for itself by the 2nd time I used it. It takes me about an hour to put it on and about 40 minutes to take it off. I've bought several other colors and it seems like there are more every time I go. I got it at Ulta here in Colorado. If you like Shellac, but the price makes it hard to keep up with, check it out. No doubt you could find it online as well.

[gingele]

Originally Posted by actran

Can't remember if I posted about this before. There is a DIY Shellac system. It's called Red Carpet Manicure. You can buy everything separately or buy a kit that has everything plus a bottle of candy apple red polish. It even comes with the UV light. It was $50 or $60, so it paid for itself by the 2nd time I used it. It takes me about an hour to put it on and about 40 minutes to take it off. I've bought several other colors and it seems like there are more every time I go. I got it at Ulta here in Colorado. If you like Shellac, but the price makes it hard to keep up with, check it out. No doubt you could find it online as well.

A DIY shellac kit would only ensure that the nail polish that winds up on my elbows would be chip-free for over 2 weeks!

[actran]

Originally Posted by gingele

A DIY shellac kit would only ensure that the nail polish that winds up on my elbows would be chip-free for over 2 weeks!

LOL! You might have a hard time getting your elbow into the UV light though.