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heirloom

Heirloom Peacock Necklace

christinahopgood
My grandfather died a few weeks ago.  He was very old and sick, so it was not unexpected, but he was also very loved.  Anyhow, my parents had to go through his stuff and they found this necklace that belonged to my grandmother (also deceased).  Mum thought I should have it.
It’s the most beautiful pendant I’ve ever seen!  These photos do not do it justice. 

Such delicate filigree work!
bodyline, bolero, mod, sewing

Bodyline Bolero Modification!

christinahopgood
So a few weeks ago I took my old Bodyline bolero and altered it.  I bought the blouse on my first trip to Japan.  It was in my first lot of Lolita purchases!  I bought a whole outfit that day – skirt, blouse and bolero.  I’ve already altered the blouse, which is now much more wearable!  I wanted to alter the bolero because I actually haven’t worn it ever.  According to my mum, it looks like a bedjacket!
Here’s the stock photo from the website.  She looks so cute in it!
This is a slightly embarrassing photo of me in my purchases the day I bought them.  In our hotel in Japan.  Drinking tea and reading GLB!  So not cute.
So as you can see, it’s really frilly!  It has faux detachable sleeves, a bow at the front, bows on the sleeves, and lace down the front.  So frilly!
I took the faux sleeves off so now the sleeves are little cap sleeves.  I also removed the bow from the sleeves, and the lace from down the front.  After:
Now I have these bits left over.  What should I make with them?  I think I’ll make little hairclips from the bows but the rest… any suggestions?
makeup, product, review

Product review – Garnier Caffeine Eye Roll-On

christinahopgood

So as we all know, I’m a little sensitive about my eyes. I often have kind of wrinkly, dark circles. So my friend recommended this stuff: Garnier Caffeine Eye Roll-On!

The stuff comes in a little plastic tube with a big silver ball at the top – kind of like a giant ball-point pen. You roll it under your eyes and it claims that it tightens the skin, reduces dark under-eye circles, gets rid of puffiness, and refreshes your skin. Sounds super great! However, it’s kind of sticky and you have to make sure it dries properly before applying any makeup – or it’ll roll off in gross sticky chunks.
It is a pretty good product, but I have to admit, the reality is only moderately great.
Claim 1: Tightens the skin. I think this is actually true! It leaves a thin film on your skin, which really does seem like it tightens the skin. It could be that it’s covering up any wrinkles and making them stay put. This might be enough for some people!
Claim 2: Reduces under-eye circles.
Not at all. My dark circles are as dark as ever! The tightening of the skin might give the illusion of reduced circles, but I don’t think it works really. To reduce dark circles I think you probably need bleach!
Claim 3: Gets rid of puffiness. I don’t really have puffiness so that doesn’t apply to me. Puffiness is what I want. I suspect it would work though, because there’s caffeine in it. Or something?

Claim 4: Refreshes the skin. This is true! It feels really nice to put this on! It’s super cool the first few seconds and then it starts to feel warm, at least for me. I really like the cold then hot feeling. It is very refreshing for tired eyes.
Do the results last? No. As soon as you wash it off, the skin returns to its previous state. This is okay, I guess. But it does mean that there’s no opportunity for real improvement, and that improvements are only as good as the amount of product you put on your eyes. It’s just like a prep for makeup, or if you eyes look just a bit lame today.
My friend thinks that maybe different people have dark circles for different reasons – allergies, tiredness, genetics. Mine are because of genetics – my mother and grandmother both have them. So perhaps if your dark circles are because of lack of sleep, or allergies, or something – this product might work better on you than it did on me.
In a couple of weeks I’ll review that super expensive stuff I was conned into buying the other day. I’ve tried it out and it is SO NICE OMG. My face feels so good.
Uncategorized

The Savvy Salesperson

christinahopgood

She got me! Today I spent $150 on beauty products that I didn’t intend to buy.

I was walking in the shopping centre to get some groceries, when this girl stopped me. I’m polite, so I stopped to hear her out for a little while. She sat me down at a beautifying station.
“What is your name?”
“Christina.”
“Ah! Christina! It’s a princess name! Princess Christina! And how old are you?”
“23”
“23!! You look 17! You are amazing looking! You are a beautiful woman! But you look like you have dry, sensitive skin, especially under your eyes. You have darkness under your eyes.”
What can I say? I do have sensitive skin, and I do have dark circles under my eyes. “Yes.” I agreed. She told me the stuff they were selling has minerals from the Dead Sea, which apparently makes you beautiful.
She rubbed some exfoliating stuff on the back of one of my hands, and then some moisturiser, and it came up looking amazing. “See, compare your hands. Which one would you like your face to look like, Princess?” Obviously the shiny, glowing, smooth one. So, how much is it?
Only $140 each. What? I tried to excuse myself… “That’s too expensive, I’m just a student!” But she had another discount up her sleeve! For students they throw in an extra eye cream that will make my dark circles disappear!
“But that’s still really expensive.” I had her there. She told me she’d do a secret thing, that I must not tell anyone, because she likes me and wants me to be beautiful. She made the eye cream and exfoliating thing $75 each. That’s like half price! And she made me promise that in two weeks I’d come and show her the improvement in my eyes. She kept saying “Look into my eyes, Princess Christina” before telling me some home truth. So I bought them. $150.
She saw me coming and thought, there is a girl who has bags under her eyes. She must be sensitive about her eyes. I will target that sensitivity and get her to buy the eye cream.
And now that I think about it… the bags under HER eyes were much worse than mine. Why is she telling me about that when she hasn’t fixed her own? Maybe the stuff doesn’t work? I don’t know. Even if this stuff is miraculous, I feel really dumb. They preyed on my insecurities and made me feel obliged to buy it.
Moral of the story: Just keep walking, even if they call you a beautiful princess. Find out about beauty products for yourself, instead of being hoodwinked. I learnt this the hard way!