Refinery29 on Interview Makeup

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This is a legacy post commenting on Refinery29’s Interview Makeup article. My content has been given a facelift; it has been edited for clarity and ease-of-reading, but is ultimately the same. I winced as I re-read it and the article that inspired it. WTF.

The other day I was reading various beauty-related articles when I came across this one from Refinery29 discussing Skype or other video-call interviews. Seeing the title, I was intrigued – this could be pretty useful to a lot of people these days.

The Players

The Refinery29 article is filled with advice solicited from Michelle Phan, Nic from Pixiwoo/Real Techniques, and Deepica Mutyala; a blogger/vlogger I was unfamiliar with until I read. I’m not a regular Refinery29 reader, but was looking forward to the content.

Knowing Your Interview Audience

It starts off with sound advice from Mutyala – that you should understand who you’ll be interviewing with. Obviously, if you are interviewing in a traditionally very conservative field, like law, you need to keep your makeup understated and very safe. Advancing to the topic of lighting, she makes a point to share that thoughtful lighting is key to a web conference-style interview. It’s no secret that cameras tend to pick things up a little differently than our eyes tend to on our own – webcams, especially ones built-in to your laptop’s lid, are certainly no exception. Throw in a less-than-ideal lighting arrangement, and people could use some help presenting themselves professionally – so this is good stuff, so far.

Keep the Focus on You, Not Your Surroundings

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Clothing Imitates Makeup – Urban Decay Electric

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Have you ever seen a piece of clothing that is so representative of something else (like…makeup) that it makes you do a double-take? Today, I did.

Behold:

This is the Milly Lou Lou Sheath in Tokyo Floral Print. If it strikes your heart in some kind of way, Off 5th has it for under $80 (down from $300+).

Far from fashionable or trendy, I stumbled across this dress entirely on accident and immediately thought,

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November 2017 Favorites

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November 2017 FavoritesNovember 2017 Favorites
1. MiroPure Straightening Brush, $40 / 2. Aussie 3 Minute Miracle, 3 for >$8 / 3. Drunk Elephant C-Firma Day Serum, $80 /
4. Vaseline Original, varies / 5. OPI I’m Not Really a Waitress, $8

American Thanksgiving has come and gone (somehow it was already like two weeks ago, WTF). The holidays are officially here. I have yet to decorate my apartment (because I have been drowning in work, as I shared on earlier this week). This weekend, I will get the wee tree up and then I will wrap all the things. I’ve been into tying gift bows lately and have some amazing peacock ribbon that I’m excited to use. Before we get into my November 2017 Favorites, don’t forget to check out (and enter, duh) my Real Techniques Sculpting Set Giveaway; there’s only a week left!

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Tree Hut Bare Moisturizing Shave Oil

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I’m already a fan of Tree Hut products, but I was triggered when I saw Tree Hut Bare Moisturizing Shave Oil several months ago. I waited to purchase until my No Buy was paused, though, because I didn’t need to replenish what I was already using. Waiting forced me not to impulsively try it and it enabled me to buy it on sale AND save 20% with my Platinum Perk.

I was already using an oil to shave my legs (I wrote about Shave Secret here). I like what I was using, but I wasn’t attached to it (like I am to Moisture Maniac). There are a few scents of Tree Hut Bare Moisturizing Shave Oil available; I chose Coconut Lime to match my favorite Tree Hut body scrub.

Packaging

Tree Hut Bare Moisturizing Shave Oil comes in an easy-to-use pump bottle. Compared to the tiny, screw-top dropper bottle of the product I was using, it is way easier to use. I don’t have to fumble with a tiny screw cap in the shower. The pump locks with a quarter turn, but is easily managed and operated in the shower.

Barrier, Glide, & Control

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Glambot Batch Verification

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This is a legacy post that has been giving a formatting facelift. I still feel very strongly about Glambot given this unsavory experience with them – three years later, I feel the same about not recommending them. If you weren’t around in 2014, here’s what went down.

Initially, I didn’t get much of a response from Glambot on their product intake and batch verification procedures I was seeking.

But I do now.

I reached out to Glambot and asked if they could clarify their team has some special batch verification process to see whether or not products are past their prime.

Glambot’s initial response, copied-and-pasted:

From our experience, MAC lipsticks loose their initial vanilla scent in about 1-3 years.  The exact amount of time varies with the specific color but I do believe that frost finishes, including those that have any trace of a metallic sheen, loose their vanilla scent the quickest.  Although we do not cross-reference each item’s batch number, we do handle customers concerns individually, as they come.

Well, losing a nice scent and becoming intolerable are two different things. MAC Cosmo is an amplified creme finish so the frosty/metallic information isn’t relevant. The vanilla wasn’t as strong as my new tube of Brave; even if it had no smell that would be one thing, but this was pungent. Not something I could stand to wear even not thinking it had expired.

Also – each item that comes in does not receive Glambot batch verification? Does that mean some some items do? I wasn’t sure; it was worded ambiguously.

Following Up

I followed-up, detailing my experience with my tube of MAC Cosmo I purchased from them back in June. It was reported to be in good condition, 80-100% full.

When I received it, it smelled okay, but between then and now it turned to a familiar foul, cheap-crayon scent. It is common knowledge that when lipsticks experience drastic changes like that, they are probably expired.

They came back asking how I store my lipsticks. I store them upright, away from light and heat in a closed drawer in a room that does not have significant temperature variance. They replied that I was, “doing everything right,” but left it at that.

Taking Matters into My Own Hands

At this point, I checked the batch number myself as it was clear to me that there was no interest in that on their end.

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Broken ColourPop Pans

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Recently, ColourPop entered a distribution arrangement with Sephora.  Now, its more accessible to the masses who didn’t want to only order directly from ColourPop, pay shipping, etc. If you have Sephora Flash, you don’t pay shipping at all past the $10 annual fee.

Heard it Secondhand

Seeing as I have enough eyeshadow to probably last my entire life, I’m not looking to add any to my collection even if they’re cute and accessible and inexpensive. So this isn’t my experience. I’ve never used ColourPop in my life.

A colleague of mine was looking for a pretty, low-effort shade that could be quickly swiped across the lids in the morning. Like me, she doesn’t have time (or the bothers to give) for a full face every.single.day. She ultimately chose a Colorpop shade.

DOA

What’s more sad than a shattered pan of eyeshadow?

A shattered palette well, also true but a brand new shattered pan of eyeshadow.

Disappointed in her broken ColourPop shadow, she reached out to Sephora. They pleasantly chirped that they’d send another out. At what seemed like long last, that other arrived…

…also shattered.

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