Papa's Pastaria

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Papa's Cupcakeria

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This is why I hate pressed powders

I prefer using a loose powder on the face just because I think it looks more natural than pressed powder and plus I think whatever they use to make the powder stick together like that would probably wind up making my face oilier.

But I went against my bias to try out a pressed bronzer and look what happened:

Totally smashed bronzer 

I dropped it!!! My heart practically stopped for a whole second, and makeup is the hardest thing to clean off the floor. The stupid pigment clings to the floor. Had to wash my hands twice after cleaning up.

This just proves my theory that loose powder is better. I don't need to worry as much about dropping it because the worst thing is, maybe I'll lose a bit of powder. Whatever.

I'm protecting my translucent powder now. I'm going to smash it and put it in a jar with a sifter so my heart doesn't have to go through the trauma again.

Don't worry, I won't let you die too.

Birthday Present

Yes, I finally figured out how to fix the camera problem! I'm really sorry but the pictures are all cloudy because the camera didn't work. Yes, I swear I ran back to get the camera, but first it didn't have a memory card. Then the memory cards didn't work. Then I was just like, whatever, I'm so excited that I'm just going to take some crappy pictures with my phone and make them real small on my post.

Get ready because this is a long, picture heavy post.

OK so it was raining and that's why the box is so wet. I felt bad for the mailwoman. (Yes, it was a woman not a man like you predicted. :D She was really nice.) I squealed when I heard the woman say 'Post Office' and my dad laughed at me.

Then I opened the box, pull out the box and took another picture. lol I know it's a lot of pictures, but I wanted to do a step-by-step show.

You were right, it was hard to open, I had to pull out the scissor.

And here I stopped because I was steaming breakfast at the time and had to turn off the fire.

Haha I was already taking pictures but I was using my phone here. I stopped and ran to get the camera because I wanted you to have good pictures... But that went to hell and I was so impatient that I just opened it. Here I got really hungry so I took the present with me to the table.

So here's your present, sitting next to me while I set up breakfast... I was so excited and happy!

So of course I laid everything out neatly, thrilled at every item I pulled out. You can even see my breakfast in the background! I had dumplings.

Here's the empty box...

And now I finally opened everything, swatched stuff, read your notes...

I haven't tried anything out for long term, but I will assure you that I love your present and I love that you thought of me for several months, buying all this stuff slowly. The lipgloss tastes like cotton candy, sweet and slightly sticky. I was worried it would wash me out, but it's just a nice sheer gloss with really nice pink glitter that hides all my lips lines. (Success!)

You read my mind on a couple of these gifts too. I also use that Clinique moisturizer. I like it, it's OK, best for winter but I like something lighter for summer.

I love pencil eyeliners; I sacrifice staying power for ease of use. Now I don't have to! I'll try it out and review it here if I ever remember. 

I really like the jewelry you picked out. I don't like to give jewelry since I'm sure everyone has different tastes, but I liked the ones you picked out. I love big earrings, but I rarely wear them since they clash with my glasses. When I get contacts I will be stocking up on lots of big earrings. I like the necklace too. Now I wish I remembered to wear it for the party. I was rushing that day to set up the food and it was really humid and disgusting. I'll pair it with an outfit and take a picture for you.

I laughed at the highlighter, what do you do, hand them out to people and say 'Join today for ENLIGHTENING opportunities!' ??

I already have that elf eyeshadow brush, but it's so annoying to wash, I really really needed more!

Quick note about the orgasm illuminator... I notice... nothing. Haha. I'm a bit shinier, but I think I'll keep trying it out and look at it under different lighting. The light in my bathroom is super flattering but too dark. I can't believe you even think of me when you're ordering stuff. Shame the blush/bronzer duo didn't work out for you. :(

When I try out the primer and eyeshadow and samples I will post about it. (Which reminds me, I must try to get some samples for you too...)

I ate one of the candies even though I was coughing, because guess what, I'm sick too! Our immune systems are both absolute shit :DDD Why am I happy about this?

So I'm happy that you sent me tea. I really needed it. I wish I took a picture of the tea I had but I was so desperate for relief I just drank it right away. I had the lemon one, which was a little too lemony for me... but it really cleared up my throat! Oh well, I don't like tea much, I just drink it for the health benefits. 

Thank you so much for mailing this to me. I know getting to the post office and paying shipping sucks, so thanks, you're the best best friend ever! I was so happy, it cheered me up. I had to spend that entire day buying stuff for the party. It was also humid and disgusting.

A picture of my MAN HANDS using your keychain. (My breakfast is half eaten in the background lol)

Lastly, a picture of my too big for me makeup collection, taken quite a while ago.

If you're curious about anything in here, you could ask me. I even included stuff I didn't like in here, to remember why I should never impulse buy. I own quite a lot of Physician's Formula... now that I realize it...

Thanks for being an amazing, supportive best friend. We haven't seen each other for like an entire year, god. I miss you so much. Hope to see you during xmas vacation to binge shop!

I love you. I hope you enjoyed reading this.

Makeup Review: L'Oreal Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara

L'Oreal Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara (7 out of 10)

My skin is so oily that all mascaras smudge on me, it's only a matter of time. I nearly gave up on trying any more mascaras...

And then I met my one true, almost-HG mascara:

L'Oreal Beauty Tubes


Want to know how much I loved this? After trying it out for a few days, I went back and bought TWO back-ups. It was love.

This stuff has not ever smudged on me. I've worn it for over twelve hours and it's still making my lashes look awesome. The secret is the tubing technology- It forms a black plastic-like coating that covers your lashes. This makes your lashes feel kind of heavy, but I LOVE it, makes me feel like I'm wearing false lashes.

But the part that makes the lazy girl in me happiest is the fact that it comes off with just water. Yep. Simple warm water makes the tubes slide off your lashes in less than a minute. This is amazing for my sensitive eyes that get so red after rubbing off stubborn mascara.

So why isn't it my HG? Well, this amazing mascara comes with cons. Really big cons.

1. It flakes. I get about 8-12 hours wear before it starts to flake a little. Not enough to bother me, but still. I've noticed that it flakes more when I put too many coats.

2. It kills your curl. Whether I use the primer or not, my lashes go back to being stick-straight. Other mascaras are much better at keeping my curl, but they smudge on me, so the choice is still a no brainer for me.

3. You won't get much length/volume with this mascara. It makes a natural, everyday look- my lashes definitely look longer and fuller, but it's not a dramatic change.

4. There is a definite learning curve with this mascara. It can get clumpy really fast. You have to play around with it- Use the primer, skip the primer, wait for primer to dry before using black side, use black side immediately, do one eye at a time, do both eyes, etc.

5. The packaging is really bulky and stupid. It would be better if it were in two separate tubes.

After some trial and error, I found this works best for me:
-first curl lashes
-use white side on both eyes, try to use as little as possible, mostly at the base of lashes
-quickly swipe black side on top of primer, work fast. Once this dries you can't add more coats
-look down for about 20 seconds so it can dry

*I worried that sweat would also make my mascara come off, but no worries. Sometimes I'm still wearing my mascara when I excercise. I get very sweaty, sweat drips down onto my eyes, but it doesn't budge the mascara. I think it's because I didn't rub my eyes, and the sweat is very little water. No idea what happens when you cry or get caught in the rain or go swimming? Haha

Bottom line is I still love this mascara, it's the cheapest tubing mascara out there, and it would be too expensive to replace a $30 blinc or trish mcevoy mascara every 3-6 months. I would definitely repurchase and recommend this mascara to others with oily skin. If you have no problem with oily skin, then you lucky, lucky... bird. Haha Try something more dramatic.

My vacation and book obsession

Dear Joanna;

I'm on vacation right now, so yeah, I'd say I'm feeling pretty chill right now. Nothing big happening, and I can sleep in every day without even thinking about school. It's awesome- I won't get huge breaks like this anymore when I start working.

To be honest, I was kind of disappointed when vacation first started... There wasn't much to do. I wanted to stay home and soak up the comfort of it all, and I also wanted to call up some friends and go shopping. By the time I got up the energy to want to get out of the house, I got sick.

I'm really sick now. Horrible nasal congestion that makes me sound like... a frog. Actually, a toad. A toad dying of thirst and choking on its own spit. I can't go outside, because my allergies make my throat flare up and hurt. (Yeah, I have allergies and for some reason, they haven't really affected me for the last two years, but they suddenly came back? Is this a medical thing?) And I don't have the energy to go out even if I were brave enough to get past the pollen. My mom is convinced this is a cold, so I haven't washed my hair for 48 hours now... And I've skipped showering and washing my hair today, so that makes 72 I'm going without.

I feel so... dirty.

Haha.

Since I'm stuck at home now, I have to entertain myself even though I feel so miserable and sometimes can't even laugh, that's how stuffed my nose and throat get.

One thing I wanted to show you was my present for my cousin's birthday- I thought you might be interested to see what kind of makeup I bought her:

As you can see, I got her a set of gel pens, two NYX jumbo eyeshadow pencils, an almay highlighting pencil, a mascara and a sharpener.

*** Since buying a new sharpener that fits the jumbo eyeshadow pencils, I love just sharpening them as opposed to depotting, which takes a while, is not worth it and is really annoying.

My cousin wanted to use something to highlight her waterline, so that's why I got her the three pencils. The mascara, though, is the closest thing I have come to a HG makeup item.

I want to post a review about it and sing my praises about the mascara, but that'll have to wait. Just know that it's the L'Oreal Double Extend Beauty Tubes Mascara, and it is honestly the best mascara I have ever tried. I'm so tired right now, and I need to go to sleep soon...

Have to start going to bed early because sleeping late gives me massive headaches, even if I get 9 hours and sleep in until noon. Am I the only one this happens to? Joanna, you have a weird sleep schedule too... Does it start to affect you when you sleep very late?

Before I go, I want to talk about my latest book obsession. I took this week to catch up on my reading. Since school started, I have been reading way too much from textbooks. A good novel always cheers me up- It's got to have a believable, entertaining romance with some flowery prose, an underdog heroine and a hero that sounds really hot but it kind of a jerk.

Anyway, I'm embarrassed to admit that I love-

Oh god, I feel bad for saying that I really, really enjoyed reading and mocking

The Mortal Instruments Series

7/10, Borrow it before buying

Why am I so embarrassed? It was a huge guilty pleasure read. The books exist in a world that was rich and believable with a lot of fighting. The series is about a race of people called Shadowhunters who are part-angel, part-human and they are the police force of the supernatural world. I love the fantasy genre, so this really called to me.

I first saw a bunch of copies floating around in Marshalls and I skimmed the back cover but it didn't sound that great... And I don't even remember how, but then I ended up borrowing the book from the library several months later to see if it was any good. (Same thing happened with the Vampire Academy series, but that's a whole other story I have to tell you later. Suffice to say, I own the entire Vampire Academy series, and I also feel a bit embarrassed by it)

I was madly in love with the first book, even though the biggest flaw for me was the heroine, Clary. She was a a total Mary Sue, which is a writer term for "Perfect character who has some incredible talent, is super pretty and almost everyone likes her, but she has a fatal flaw! Like clumsiness or stupidity that magically goes away necessary!". Clary is really pretty but she doesn't know it, and oh no, two boys are madly in love with her but I'm like, WHY???? (Do you think I'm jealous of her? Haha)

She was like a piece of cardboard to me. In the book, she'd get mad and slap someone, but I never felt her anger or her fears or her happiness. To me, it was like the author would tell you all you needed to know.

Clary was angry. She threw things. They hit other things. (Sometimes I felt she got angry out of nowhere)

Clary was sad. She cried. She cried tears that leaked out of her eyes and splashed on the wooden floors. And then she ran away because it was all too much.

I would just roll my eyes when Clary did or thought anything because she was so lifeless. Her actions were so predictable and boring. I didn't give a shit about her.

I'm going to stop ranting, because you can tell it frustrates me. Even then, I kept reading because I loved the story despite it's gaping flaws.

I really, really liked the romance. Not the love triangle that was so stupid. (You knew from the first chapter who she would pick) It was amazing because the main guy was Jace, a misunderstood guy who is a kickass fighter with witty, sarcastic lines and a dark past. I'm a sucker for a badboy blond who is vain and proud, because that's just a hotter version of myself. I know, the narcisstic irony.

Plus... Clary and Jace love each other but... DUN DUN DUN They're brother and sister?!

I also loved the world of the Shadowhunters. I love that they draw runes on their skin, scarring themselves to give themselves special powers. I love the way it works, even if most of it is vague. Like, how are Shadowhunters trained? I saw no training happening in the book. Jace is too young to go out on battles but he can go out and hunt demons with his friends? What?

I love the floweriness of it, the poetic little things that sound beautiful... To love is to destroy and to be loved is to be the one destroyed.

But god, parts of the story also annoyed the shit out of me. Some things happened because they were so convenient to the plot. There were way too many secondary characters that blur together. Our best example of a female warrior is a girl who uses a whip... and no, she's not as good as one of the guys.

Do you want to know how much I couldn't put it down? I was supposed to be studying for midterms, but this book sucked me in. Did I mention it was the day before midterms? Midterms I hadn't studied for?

So I just want to recommend this series to you because even though the flaws drove me crazy, the books mostly made me happy and I think you should try them out.

If you want to hear more about the books I read, tell me. Even if you don't, I'm still at least going to tell you about the Vampire Academy series. I loved it, but the last third of the series makes me intensely dislike it.

Before I go, I bought one more present for a cousin, and it's adorable. ;)

It's plastic, squishy animals from the vending machines! Just realized it looks like the cow is sniffing the pig's butt.

P.S. Yikes, you're leaving May 2nd? I better mail your care package fast; haven't put it all together yet. Still need to buy some soda candy you can't buy in Jersey and maybe a book... from a used book sale. Does it bother you if I buy you a used book? Tell me before I waste money on it.

I love you. Hope to see you in the summer. You owe me a lunch and shopping trip!

Love, Wendy

Product Review: Missha Botanic Garden Purifying Sheet Mask

Missha Botanic Garden Purifying Sheet Mask in Acerola and Bamboo

You actually sent me two of these, and a Bamboo one that I can't remember because I used it already. You said you loved these, and they're very moisturizing, but for me they were just OK.

My face has been really dry this past winter. I fell into this habit of applying baby powder on my skin to keep it oil-free. That only made it super dry. It's gotten a lot better since I've stopped using baby powder, but it's still kind of dry. Anyway, I said dry too many times.

So I used two of the masks so far, Acerola and Bamboo ones. The masks smelled nice, and they were good at moisturizing, but not great. I think it's because it's a sheet mask, and can't reach every corner of my face, like the corners of my mouth and sides of my nose. I didn't keep this mask on the whole night like you did, only about 40 minutes. The mask was partly dry by then. I took it off, pressed the gooey residue into my skin. (Which felt so weird) I didn't have to apply moisturizer before going to bed but when I woke up my skin felt the same.

In short, I think you're wasting your masks on me, Joanna. They work like lotion does on me. I wouldn't buy these for myself, since my face is different from the cut-outs they placed. While moisturizing, I could have just put on lotion, which is a lot simpler for me.

Rating: 7/10
Pros: I really like the smell of both the Acerola and Bamboo, and this was pretty moisturizing
Cons: Can't justify buying this for myself; it's so much easier just to smooth on lotion
Buy again? NO