Friday, October 21, 2016

The Friday Forum - October 21

As I write, a cold front is moving in. It will take away our glorious Indian Summer and bring cold, wind, and - from my perspective - the misery of late autumn. Within minutes, our day has gone from sunny and warm to a foreboding darkness. Plus, it's now raining - pouring actually - and the wind is wicked.

I had planned to write about Dustin Lujan today, but my day has not gone as planned (a reflection of my week). I promise I'll write about Dustin over the weekend. Please check back in Sunday. I want to do him justice, and at this point in the day, I won't have that luxury.

If last week was the "week from hell," this week was certainly the week from purgatory. It started Monday morning with the Verizon FiOS installer who actually showed up when he was supposed to arrive. He spent over five hours here, but did little to meet my expectations. I have to warn anyone being forced to convert from copper phone lines to FiOS. Verizon's sales people will tell you anything on the phone, anything they think you want to hear, but what they tell you seldom matches reality. If I describe all the details, I'll bore you to tears. Let's just say, it was installed Monday, re-installed (fixed) Tuesday, and I had to get my computer onto the network because they did NOTHING to help. That involves a Best Buy story that left me in something approaching a rage. It's all sorted out now, but at the cost of about five hours of my time with the computer and a total of 10 hours on the phone with Verizon. I am glad I sold my stock last year. Surely a little competition will bring them down.

I had a CT examination of my sinuses this morning. My follow-up exam with the ENT is Tuesday next week, so I'll find out then what I already know. I'm still not well. Sinus infections can leave you wiped out, and the fatigue that came with this one has been exhausting.

Mom's service was short and lovely, and the reception after was a nice opportunity to catch up with some of my relatives. I'm glad it was months after she passed. It made it easier for me to talk about her and listen to the stories others told. My friend Bara hosted it, and her beautiful home was the perfect setting to celebrate Mom's life. I'm very grateful to her for making my own preparations easier.

Tomorrow, Saks Fifth Avenue in Chevy Chase is having a by-invitation beauty event at 8:30 am! It's a good thing they have promised mimosas because something is going to have to give me a jolt to pay attention. I'll let you know what I learn. There are industry representatives coming to tell us about the latest trends.

I wasn't able to write this week; there were just too many things on my plate. I do hope to get back into the swing of things next week.  In the meantime, it's time for the Friday Forum. The Friday Forum has always been an opportunity to share information. Are you using a fabulous product and want to sing its praises? Tell us about it! Did you find a beauty product disappointing? Tell us why! Do you have questions others might be able to answer? We can help! Want to talk about skin care? I'm game. Just use the comments. We have busy weekends and slow ones on the forum. I hope to see you in the comments.

Photo courtesy of koko-stock

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear the weeks you had I hope things get better. I tried a anti
Brassiness conditioner for my ashy highlights. It's called EVO Fabuloso
Platinum. I got it to remove the warm yellow that creeps up and
was recommended to use this by some young hairdressers in my bar class.
I liked it! First off it's not as drying as those blue shampoos and it wasn't
Drippy
I left it on for 5 minutes rinsed it out I think it took
The brassiness down a third
I'll use it once a week just to tone it down gradually
It is a nice conditioner as well left my hair very shiny and really
Brought out the ashy highlights
Kris in Seattle

Charlestongirl said...

Kris, it's nice to hear one of those works well! I have highlights and made my stylist make them ashy. She knows I hate that yellow blonde on me.

Anonymous said...

I am glad to hear that your friend hosted the celebration. How kind of her. It is frustrating to lose so much time through the incompetence of service providers.
I have been playing with the Chanel items of the newest release. The architectonic palette and the eye liner are fun and the two tutorials on Chanel.com (France) are helpful for application. With the blush, it is a fresh, happy look for winter and year-round.
Tanja

Eileen said...

I've been wearing two new products all week that I can't stop raving about---La Mer's new foundation and Tom Ford's Spin Spin Sugar. For me, it is a combination made in cosmetic heaven :-) La Mer's new foundation has been a resounding success on my mature, dry skin. I really liked the old La Mer foundation, but it was rapidly becoming dated and was due for an overhaul. I'm thrilled that the newly reformulated one is a major improvement and is thoroughly modern in texture, finish, and in the types of pigments that are used. As for skincare claims, I've always been rather skeptical of foundations that make those, but La Mer's new foundation really delivers on that claim. It contains a good dose of "miracle broth" and other skin nurturing ingredients in a creamy fluid that glides on smoothly and evenly (I use my fingers), builds beautifully where extra coverage is needed, and dries down to a soft satin glow. It plays nice with all my skincare and sunscreen and looks stunning with a light dusting of Météorites (I haven't tried the new La Mer loose powder yet.). La Mer has always agreed with my skin and so this beautiful satin foundation is a huge win for me. Happy dance, anyone? LOL Caveat: This is not a foundation for oily to normal skin. It is for those of us with dry skin.

Spin Spin Sugar! In my opinion, Tom Ford creates the best highlighters on the face of the planet! How's that for hyperbole? LOL Seriously, no one creates highlighters with such refinement and elegance as TF; whether it is in powder, stick, or fluid form. He offers current yet classic chic without being trite or trendy. These new Sugar Shots are stunning examples of his artistry. When pumped onto a fingertip, Spin Spin Sugar looks like molten pearl. It has a glowing-from-within quality that brings life to the skin without a single speck of glitter. It can be sheered out for a soft and subtle daytime glow, used a bit more generously for some evening glamour, or built up for that dramatic spotlight look. It can be used under products, mixed with products, or applied on top. Talk about versatility! I have the feeling Spin Spin Sugar is going to become a cult classic along the lines of TF's incomparable Fire Lust.

Oh, Charlestongirl, I took one look at the picture for your post and have to say I haven't seen weather like that in years! We did have two days of cool weather and even a light rain, but it's back to 90+ and it looks like this is going to be another year of drought in So Cal :-(

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone.

Charlestongirl said...

Eileen, I want that foundation! I don't need it, but I was already intrigued. I'll pick one up tomorrow.

Terrible day today. Very windy. Headache is horrible. I don't know whether it's my sinuses or a migraine. I am seriously considering taking an OxyContin. I don't see the ENT until Tuesday, but I have the CT CD. Maybe I'll take a crack at reading it. :)

The beauty event was fun, but a bit elementary. I'm such a snob! Anyhow, it gave me a chance to get some brand new Armani beauties, breaking my no-spending rule. The new palette is really pretty.

Gotta go call in the migraine drug.

BookGirl said...

Kris in Seattle, I'm going to get a bottle of the EVO Fabuloso Platinum you rec'd. I have dark hair with ashy highlights. Last time my hairdresser freshened up the highlights, she said, "I'm going to put some toner on here to take out any brassiness." She didn't mention that it would cost an extra $30. I've never seen any brassiness in my highlights, but I want that product on hand just in case. Thanks.

Eileen, you're making me want the TF Spin Spin Sugar.

CG, hope you got some migraine relief. I suffer from them too. They really are horrible. Hoping the new Armani palette you picked up is the one with the lavender-gray eyeshadow. I'd love to see a swatch of that color.

Have a lovely weekend, everyone.

LadyJicky said...

Hi CG..... I hope you are feeling well . I suffer migraines and I find sometimes when there is going to be a thunderstorms (especially in summer) I can have a migraine - something to do with barometic pressures!
Its spring here and yet we are having the same sort of weather you are having - tons of rain and so Cold!

La Mer has brought their powder and foundation to Australia finally but ...they are so lovely but super expensive here - for one La Mer foundation I could buy two Armani Lum. Silk foundation bottles! :(
Still ... I might just indulge one day! LOL - true makeup junkie here :)

Tom Ford's Spin Spin Sugar sounds fabulous Eileen !

Eileen ...... Coco is giving a Big wag of her pekingese tail to your two huskies!!!
AND a Big wag for Charleston Girl too :)

Charlestongirl said...

LadyJicky,

It's very possible the change in barometric pressure caused my headache. It's gone for now.

I did a feature on Spin Spin Sugar. Scroll down for a swatch photo. It's pretty cool!

La Mer is expensive here too. Its loyal followers will pay anything. :)

LadyJicky said...

So glad your migraine is gone... they are shockers.... I have had them since I was 8 and now I am 60 . One doctor told my Mother and I "she will grow out of them" .... Huh! LOL
Do you get the "migraine aura" ? I hate this the most .... loss of vision and some things I cannot stand to smell - like boiling milk and eggs and when its a "bad migraine" I cannot stand anyone to touch me!

Eileen said...

Hi Charlestongirl,

I hope La Mer will have a good color match for you because at $110 it, like CdP, is just too expensive to not have perfection. I was lucky. I was Ivory in the old formula and am Ivory in the new. It applies a tad light and then melds with the skin as it dries down so give your color swatches a chance to set. The new foundation is divided into cool, neutral, and warm. Nordstrom online (and other dep't. stores, too) has a good La Mer color chart that shows the shade groupings and their depth of color so you can get an idea of where you might fall before going to the counter. My wonderful La Mer lady told me I still looked like I'd wear Ivory (light neutral) but she wanted to swatch a few colors to be sure. Ivory it was! Perfection in a bottle :-) She also gave me a very generous sample of the next darker neutral shade called Natural to mix with the Ivory in case I picked up a bit of sun during our protracted Indian Summer. How sweet! I love finishing powder and so I apply a whisper light veil of my Guerlain Voyage or my Chanel Les Beiges #10 over it. I asked my La Mer lady, who is always honest with me, about the new powder but she felt it was a step backward. Since then, I've read a lot--and I mean a lot--of negative reviews about it. That's such a shame because the old powder was the gold standard. Anyway, I hope you can find a good foundation match.

Eileen said...

For all of you who were as bewildered as I was by Chanel's non-holiday holiday collection (Synthetic de Chanel), Chanel is now releasing some more unrelated items that are also being billed as Holiday 2016. There's a powder called Poudre Lumière Glacée, an eye palette called Ombres Lamées de Chanel, and some cheek and lip products that contain a lot of repromotes. This randomness is making me not want to buy anything for fear that something better might come out weeks later. I must be getting old! LOL In any event, for those of you who weren't fans of the Synthetic collection, perhaps some of these other items will seem more like holiday. Pictures of them are beginning to pop up online.

Nan P said...

I'm glad your migraine is past. I've had my share over the years - for a long time they were estrogen driven and came appeared for a few days each year like clockwork. Imitrex helped but I stopped taking it when I had a rapid heartbeat once as an after effect. Now a dramatic change in barometric pressure can trigger the headache and I do nothing but try to muddle my my through. I hope all goes well with your visit to the ENT this week!

I have plenty of foundation to work my way through so no near future plans to buy any. La Mer sounds tempting but by the time I would need it, it will be summer and my skin won't need anything that rich in the swampy humidity of central NC. Right now I'm loving Armani Crema Nuda in #2 and surprised that I can get sheer coverage (which is always my preference) from it.

It's rare that we have a fragrance discussion. I'm careful with what and how much I apply and never in my office! but I love fragrance and would love to have a discussion on it sometime on your weekend forum, if others are interested. I'll give myself a little dab of Diptyque Tam Dao and Eau Duelle before bedtime tonight. Sweet dreams y'all!

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