In the past few days a lot of random things I wanted to say just piled up in my head (and in my folder in which I plan my blog entries), which is why I've decided to write them down in one single post.

In a comment, Chililady asked me what kind of camera I use, and here's the answer:

It's a silver Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ8 and it looks like this:


It's a fairly good machine as far as I know and the only reason why my photos still suck is because I'm still a complete noob when it comes to photography. 'Tis the first time I have a digital camera in my hands (can you believe that???) and I still have lots to learn so please bear with me. Even Dad knows more about how to take a decent picture though he only ever used traditional cameras in his life. :-)

I recently read about a self-tanning line in a beauty blog, Talking Makeup, which, by the way, is a really nice beauty blog, and in case you haven't been there yet, do check it out. Here's the actual passage:

Aqua Tan sets a new bar in the self-tanning category. Created by the beautiful Katianna Nightingale, Aqua Tan is a self-tanning line that is actually good for your skin. Katianna stopped using tanning beds after getting skin cancer and was looking for a better healthier solution to tanning, Aqua Tan was born.

I might be the oddball here but when I read the passage I was like: "Who in their right mind would still want to put an unnecessary load on their skin after getting skin cancer???" I mean, it's one thing that we tend to put all sorts of things on our skin as it is, but would you gals really want to continue putting on all that after battling skin cancer and winning?? I know it says it's safe, but I don't really believe that anything that affects your skin color can be truly safe. As for me, I think I'd stick to jojoba oil to pamper my skin from then on and thank whatever higher being I believe in for successfully getting out of the whole ordeal alive... Or am I totally missing something here?

It's just that my Dad has had skin cancer many times in the past few years, and I know one thing: it's not something you take lightly, and definitely not something after which you just shrug your shoulders and continue as if nothing had happened.

What do you think? Would you still want to be tan (even with the help of self-tanning lotions) after being diagnosed with skin cancer?

***

Another thing I wanted to tell you about is the reception of mineral makeup in my family. I might have hinted already at the fact that my Mum is very skeptical when it comes to makeup and cosmetics, so much so that she took great care to prevent me from owning even a tube of tinted lipbalm when I was a kid. (Heck, even when I was a teenager...)

Yet, when I finally told her about my first order from Everyday Minerals and also told her about the numerous benefits of mineral makeup, she practically patted my head and told me I was very clever for finding out about it and for not damaging my skin with liquid foundations. Can you believe that? She was actually cheering the fact that now I'm actually ordering makeup from the US instead of being content with what we have in the stores. I mean, there's a huge selection of makeup in the stores already, but nooo, I have to buy my makeup from a US based company and have it shipped to me for ridiculously high shipping fees... :-D

Hey, don't get me wrong: I love my Mum to bits, but this was hilarious. :-D


Let's continue with my impressions of EM's makeup after using their samples for more than a week:

• I have Olive skintone. Who would have though, right? I'm almost certain now, especially after examining my Mum's skin very closely: her skin definitely has yellow and greenish undertones and I mostly take after her when it comes to my skin and eyes. So next time, I'm ordering the 3 lightest shades from EM's Olive color family.
  
  
• Using a foundation that is lighter than your skintone will inevitably result in a chalky, artificial finish. A few days ago I tried Medium Beige Neutral, which I first tossed aside as I thought it was too dark for me, and I found that using the "right" shade makes all the difference. Well, it's not the right shade for me but it's dark enough. Mixing it with Fairly Light gave me pretty good results.
  
  
• I have no idea what kind of blush to use with that Olive skintone of mine... It finally turned out that Deep Wine wasn't that good of a choice after all as it's a warm shade which turns almost orange on my skin. Which I hate. So I need to figure out which shade(s) to order next time. I was thinking that perhaps something cooler might do the trick, but I'm not sure. As always, I'd appreciate it if you threw in your two cents and made your suggestions.
  
  
• Now, about those eye-shadows: they'd probably look great under sunlight or artificial light but inside four walls they just don't show up at all, even though they're both very shimmery colors. (Spin Cycle and Baby Bath) I'll just wait for spring to finally come then...
  
  
• I love the Mint Concealer!!! I do, despite the fact that I'll probably cover up my zits with a skin tone concealer in the future... Why do I love it then? Let me explain. My zits recently decided to throw a party on my face and invite their friends too, which left me with no other choice but to use my 3% benzoyl peroxide gel. The result: red, irritated skin all over my already tortured face. The solution: a few light dustings of the Mint Concealer with my foundation brush and voilà, no redness, nope, nada. Yay!!! Moral of the story: ladies out there who are suffering from redness and rosacea, do invest in a jar of this stuff. It's a miracle!

Ermm... I know you're probably bored to death already (and if not, then you surely will be now), but I've managed to take some new shots of my Everyday Minerals foundations in a much better light. And I've also managed to pry open the jars, see?... :-)