"Just Engaged" Nail Polish Collection

While the thought of marketing special wedding nail polish sort of makes me gag, when we were offered samples of Sally Hansen's new "Just Engaged" nail polishes, we said yes. We love nail polish. And free stuff.

I was skeptical at first. I don't always find Sally Hansen to be the best quality, but it's easy on my wallet. And I laughed out loud when I saw the bottles. Part of the Diamond Strength line, the bottles have faux gemstones glued to them, like the ones you see stuck in Troll dolls' belly-buttons. Still, I never turn down nail polish. My finger- and toe-tips have been the site of many a polish experiment.

The quality. It's pretty good. Vicky and I were both surprised that days later there were no chips. And we type and sew and cook and clean and do all sorts of things with our hands on a regular basis. Also, the gloss lasted for almost a week. We applied the polish on a Friday. On Wednesday I noticed the color starting to look less-than-glossy. I know you're not supposed to do this for optimum nail polish health, but I applied a second coat over the first one in order to pump up the gloss factor for a meeting later that day. This is a polish that you can put on a few days before the wedding and bring along on the honeymoon for a quick touch-up.

The marketing. It's insipid. The three colors we have are fairly neutral. They're nice for every day if you want some sheen but nothing that screams "Look at my nails!" They could have descriptive nail polish names like Cloud or Milky Way or Strawberry Mousse. But they have names like "I Do," "Sheer Magic," and "Sealed with a Kiss." The press release describes this collection as "The perfect complement to a ring." For Pete's sake, you should buy nail polish because you like the color, not because you are a bride.

If you can get over the marketing, you'll find good quality nail polish. The Sally Hansen "Just Engaged" collection retails for $4.75 a bottle and is available at drugstores nationwide.

(I admit that when we started this blog I wasn't thinking about reviews and free stuff. But if you want to send us something for review, we'd be happy to have a crack at it. Oh, and if there are any free passes to bridal shows in the D.C.-Metro Area, we'd be happy to take them off your hands. Email us at flamingtulle at gmail dot com.)

The Sun!

I've been very careful the last few weeks to keep my arms and face protected from the sun. My arms because my dress is sleeveless and I don't want have short-sleeve lines. I've been wearing either long sleeves or tank tops with lots of sunblock. My face so that it doesn't get burned and stays in nice, young-looking condition. I'm generally pretty sun-savvy so this hasn't been a big adjustment in my routine.

But today I noticed my feet! The tan line around my flip flops is visable around the straps of my wedding sandals! I'm telling myself it's not that noticeable and my feet will mostly be covered by the long dress. But it still bugs me.

You Glow Girl!

Since the 1920’s, when Coco Chanel made tanning fashionable women have been striving for that healthy golden glow on their skin. These days we know that that “healthy” glow is not so golden or good for us. We turn to searching for the perfect self-tanner. Truly a reckless pursuit indeed sometimes.

Each year companies roll out new self-tanners for face and body. Each year we are bombarded with ads and stinky new goo to slather on ourselves with the hopes that we don’t turn orange or stain our clothes. Each year we stain our clothes and smell like some sort of toxic chemical. This year I bring you two types of sunless tanner- a spray and a lotion that really work.

First is my old stand-by, Body Shop Fake It! Self-Tanner. It comes in varieties for the face, body, a mousse, and a great exfoliating mitt to do all the pre-work. You should always remember to exfoliate the area you want to self-tan. What I like about the Body Shop Fake It! is that it’s natural, is subtle, comes in medium to light and medium to dark, and leaves a nice glow in a few hours. It moisturizes and helps the forest and beekeepers many of whom are women. Your fake bake is also helping others. It retails for $16.50 and can be found at the Body Shop website

Next up is Arbonne’s Made in the Shade Sunless Tanner. The pump spray comes out a milky white, which makes it easy to see on your skin as you spray and rub in. The smell at first is a bit witch hazel like, but goes away quickly and won’t stain your clothes. The Arbonne Sunless tanner has SPF 15 in it as well and they make an excellent bronzer too. This self-tanner is very light and shows more after each application. It retails for $28 can only be ordered from an Arbonne consultant. To order Arbonne Made in the Shade Sunless Tanner, contact Vicky at veamason at gmail dot com.

Tanning is so 1985 and tanning salons cost more and more money over time and are still not healthy for your skin. Using a sunless tanner is the best bet for you and your wallet. If you want a beautiful healthy glow on your wedding day or any other day, try one of these great sunless tanners.

P.S. I’ve heard Orlane’s is great too – it’s more of a bronzy glow, better for people with a medium to dark skin tone and quite pricey coming in at $100 a bottle. Try Neiman Marcus for that.

Beautiful, Sensational You Dahling!

Ssh. Zip it! I’m going to talk about make-up and your wedding day and I don’t want to hear this- “I don’t really wear make-up!” Well, on this day you should. Your pictures will thank you. You will thank me later when you don’t have a shiny face in your photos. There is such a thing, as wearing make up to enhance and it not looking like you globbed on some orange paste on your face. Most of you ladies know this, but I had to say it.

Ever the planner I have to say that if you are one of those gals who doesn’t wear make up or much of it you still need to figure out what you will do with your pretty little face before the actual day. Why? Well, mainly because wedding’s can be chaotic. Problems and snafus will arise and everyone will be asking you what on earth they should do. You won’t have time to sit around and think about whether or not you need silver eye shadow or green. One great thing you can do is take a friend to a cosmetic counter in a department store and tell them what you have in mind. Tell them you want to go easy on your face. You don’t even have to purchase anything, but they can help you. I suggest Bobbi Brown or Stila, as they do tend to have a lighter hand in applying make up. Often they will map out what they used on a face sheet and let you take it with you. It’s a quick and easy road map of makeup.

You are going to want to practice applying the look you want for your day. This applies to those of you hiring a make up artist as well. You should be having a consult or two before the wedding with the artist. This eliminates any surprises, tears, and I hate you and I’m not paying you moments. These practice sessions will help you become familiar with the products and gain confidence in doing it yourself as well. Minimal make up is good. You only want to enhance what you already possess. Blending is the key! Don’t forget your nails either. They should be neutral in color and filed to eliminate rough spots. Your hands will look great in photos now too.

Even if you don’t usually wear make-up, wearing it on your wedding day is a good idea. It will take out any redness or shine from your photos leaving you looking fresher and more put together and complete. Just a hint of gloss, blush and loose powder and you are golden.

Bridal Beauty -- Drinking Water

I was all ready to lament over my inability to drink 8 glasses of water a day. (Who are these perfect super women who can do that? Do they pee in bottles so as to avoid hopping up to go the bathroom every 15 minutes?) Since I started making a conscious effort to track my water intake a few weeks ago, I noticed I only drink the 8 glasses on a day when I go running. And I felt bad about that, thinking that if 8 glasses is for a regular day, then on a running day I should drink even more.

When doing some research I expected to find a bunch of articles berating me for not drinking 8 glasses--experts telling me I must be chronically dehydrated and have bad skin and kidneys full of toxins. (Actually my skin has been looking better over the last couple weeks...) But what I found was some studies saying that 8 glasses isn't for everyone (even Snopes, the urban legend de-bunker, is in on the debate). If you excercise, yes. If you live in an excessively warm climate, yes. If you're trying to lose weight, yes. But if you're a generally healthy-eating person at your ideal weight not excercising every day, then many days you get most of the "water" you need from your diet and other beverages, and may only need 3 to 5 glasses of straight-up water. Basically, if you're peeing clear, you're hydrated (that's what my coach used to tell us, too). If you're thirsty, then you're already slightly dehydrated and should start guzzling.

Everyone agrees that water is good for you. And you can't get too much of it (except in very rare instances). 8 glasses a day is a good guideline to start with, but if you can't do it, don't force yourself. Everyone's body is different and everyone's nutritional needs are different. If the 8 glasses regime works for you, then I'm in awe of how you do it!

What have I noticed since I started drinking my super amounts of water? I have to admit my skin looks better. But I also started using a new toner and night cream recently. I'm drinking less coffee. I guess that's healthy. I can't sleep through the night without waking up to pee. That sucks. I'm filling up with water and eating fewer fruits and veggies. I don't think that's too good. But now that I know I don't need to force 8 glasses upon myself, I can have a salad and skip a glass of water or two, so that should balance out.

Articles. Take 'em or leave 'em.
Snopes.com
CNN Health
WebMD
About.com Nay
About.com Yay

Bridal Beauty Dont's

Most of these are "no-brainers", but for some they do need to actually be brought up again each year. Here are som bridal beauty DONT'S.

1. Don't fake and bake up to two days prior to the wedding. If you do use a tanning bed or lay out in the sun give the redness time to tone itself down. Remember to moisturize too!!! No peely brides allowed!

2. Don't wax any areas on your body or face during the week prior to the wedding. That even means bikini areas. If you are a regular bikini waxer it is probably safe. If you are doing this for the first time for your wedding night or honeymoon, do it earlier to allow time for the area to heal. Swelling or bumps MAY occur. Just be on the safe side.

3. Don't try new make-up looks the day of the wedding. Just don't. Really. That electric eel green liquid eyeliner only looks good when applied by professionals.

4. Don't starve yourself for goodness sake!

5. Don't get a facial the day before of day of your wedding. Allow at least 2-3 days before the wedding. Redness and marks can appear after a facial, especially if extractions are done.

6. Don't dye and perm your hair at the same time. This applies for anytime not just bridal times.

7. Don't touch up your colored nail polish while in your dress.

8. Don't mandate what color make-up your attendants should wear.

9. Don't try to match your make-up to your weddings color scheme.

10. Most Important- Just don't try any new beauty regimes the week of the wedding!

File Under "Love Hurts"

Or maybe "Beauty Is Pain"?

It's Valentine's Day, and since my other half is out of the country right now, I'm spending some quality time with myself tonight. What does that entail? The follow-up to waxing my eyebrows last weekend. Yes, it's confessional time. Last weekend I waxed my eyebrows myself for the first time. I found this little guideline, How to Wax Your Eyebrows. I had the free time, and no plans to see anyone for a couple days (except the kids at Starbucks, who saw me through a really too-dark home-hair-dye job a few months ago), so I figured why not. I took the advice to do it in small patches because I was very afraid of erasing my eyebrows completely. Tonight I followed up with plucking. Why did I wait several days to follow up with the plucking? Because the waxing and the plucking freakin' hurt. I can handle the pain, but once my eyes start to water I have to stop.

Confession #2: They aren't even and I don't know how to get them even. I'm afraid to do more wax, but it's taking forever to pluck them. I don't think it's noticeable to anyone but me. In fact, the kids at Starbucks gave me more pleasant small talk than usual (thanks to the new eyebrows?).

I know this anecdote would be funnier if I had totally ruined my eyebrows and was brave about showing my face in public anyway (with plenty of time for them to grow back before the wedding). But my point is that with some care, even a klutz like me can tame the eyebrows successfully. If you've ever been curious about it, go ahead and try it. I'm just a regular girl trying to make it in this crazy bridal world. Am I victim of bridal peer pressure?