I was given $100 by a relative for my birthday and I've decided to put that towards a great hair straightener, because mine is just mediocre. Which hair straighteners would you recommend?

I've been off birth control for about a month now, figuring since I didn't need it it didn't make sens eto keep paying for it, and it's been really messing up my skin and playing havoc with my mood (I have depression so it's usually pretty volatile any way). I was going to get back on the pill but then I heard on the radio that there's a law suit going on involving the pill I'd been taking (it's called "Ocella"), apparently people have had heart attacks and seizures and such. So, I was wondering if I should go back on it (since before this I took it an entire year without problems) or if I should call my doctor and see about getting something else. If it were really serious wouldn't someone have called me though?
Sorry this question is only semi-beauty related.

I'm about to stop taking the pill, so my skin is going to turn into crap.
What are some good skin care regiments/products that help prevent breakouts, and some that help treat them once they've happened?
thanks!

i went to mac yesterday (in a rush) to pick up an eyeshadow that i could use every day, and the makeup artist suggested naked lunch, and she also applied it along with some other colors to my eye for a natural smokey effect.i have never had anyone do my makeup for me, but wow, she did an amazing job. i was in a rush so i just purchased it and was off. but, i am very interested in learning how to do this..it made my eyes really pop. i know i am going to have to watch some youtube tutorials to start, but i am curious as to what colors and brushes i should get, as well as some kind of gel/liquid eyeliner she put on me... it is hard to tell from the pics but there was a grayish/purple on the outer edge of my eyes. ( Read more )

I've had my hair colored (at a salon) for the second time. The first time was to cover blonde highlights that I just got tired of. I have medium brown hair naturally, and she used a combo of gold and very dark gold, and it made the highlights look gold/red without being OMG RED which wouldn't work with my coloring (yellow undertones but v. pink cheeks and a tendency toward red eyelids). I've been growing out a super short pixie cut at the same time, so I went 8 weeks without any salon visits. Yesterday I had her cut it and she used the same color--although I had almost nothing left from 8 weeks ago, this time the color looks a lot darker, like darker than my natural brown, probably because most of the highlights are gone now. I don't hate it, but I don't love it. I'd like to lighten it just a smidgen without stripping a whole lot of color or lifting only some part of the color, thereby changing it to weird and ugly. She advises using a sulfate-free shampoo...I've been using some regular drugstore-type brand "for color-treated hair" and it made the first color job last very well.

What can I wash it with once or twice today to lift the dark color just a little?

And after that, what can I wash it with to bring out the red/gold tones and not lift the color any more? I'm going to Target today, I could pick something up.

1. What are some universal tips for having really awesome skin?

2. Are there any products that have completely changed your skin?

I got a private clarinet recital from Lisa lkf03 today!
Today was uber lazy for me today. I did head out to Target to browse and to Michael's for some jordan almonds per Steve's request before stopping by HEB to grocery shop. When I came home, I made pho since Kimmy taught me how and it was super tasty! Then, I laid on the couch with the dogs and fell asleep while watching the Dirty Jobs marathon.

When I woke up, I attempted to make those "cookie recipes in a jar" since I have SOOOOOOOOOOOO many mason jars from my pasta sauce. It took 3 tries until I found a recipe ratio that fit the jar. Plus, I ran out of oats so, I'll have to get more at some point. Good enough for now :o)

I was chatting with Smecky hoodwink and Lisa lkf03 on AIM and then this video pops up and it's Lisa. So, we just started chatting via the video and she gave me a clarinet recital...lol. She played some song everyone would know, some xmas songs and some Coldplay...haha!

Ok, I should clean up the mess I made...bleh! But the jars came out cute!

( M&M cookie recipe jars )

Hello :)

I am itching to dye my hair blonde. My hair is naturally dirty blonde, but it's brown (or maybe borderline dark blonde, I don't know) right now.

I'm pale skinned, with blue eyes and freckles. This would make the blonde..work, right? The only thing I'm concerned about are my eyebrows. They are dark and I'm afraid they'd look silly if I just left them like this if I went blonde. Do I get my hair stylist to bleach/dye them too? Or do I use a brow powder? I really have no idea.

I made a public post in my journal a few minutes ago with a picture of my hair (and eyebrows!) now and how I'd like to dye it, if that helps.

Could you tell me what color blond this is called? (picture heavy)
( Read more... )

I present to you sweet potato blondies. Seriously delicious and best of all, vegan! From the latest book Vegan Cookies Invade Your Cookie Jar by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero.


( 2 pictures and the recipe )

I`m a fan of the Baby Phat clothing line and I`m searching for other urban style clothing lines that are similar. I used to see alot of the cute "baby girl" and "55" t-shirts in the mall and that type of clothing seems to be hard to find these days, unless I`m not looking in the right place. Any stores you recommend, online or in person? (Though here in Reno, Nevada we do not have a large selection of stores so I prefer online)

Has anybody used this color:


post pictures so I can see how red it is going to come out. I'm about to dye my hair this color but after googling some pictures it seems REALLY intense, and I'm used to more of a red/strawberry so I'm skeptical.


If no one answers within an hour I will probably delete this post, soooo GO.

Does anyone know how many ounces the "full-sized bottle" you get with the gift certificate is? I'm asking about the $75 version. TIA!

Hi there! I've just newly discovered this community so I've got a couple of questions for everyone out there.

First up, does anyone have any experience of facials and any advice for someone who's new to that. I'm in my mid-20s and I've never had fantastic skin, it's not awful but it could definitely be better.

My skin is still quite "young", I suppose - I still get spots way more often than I'd like and my skin is, in places, quite prone to greasiness. But, just to complicate things, in other places it can be very dry - I get stress-related eczema at the sides of my nose and at my eyebrows and hairline.

I've wondered if facials would have any benefit - but I'm also not sure about something that would make things worse before they get better because of my job. I work in tv - which is why I'd like to improve my skin, but I don't know if I could hide away in the meantime lol! Sorry to be so long-winded!

My other question is, for skin like mine, would anyone recommend mineral foundation or not? I currently use Max Factor Miracle Touch (the one that comes in like a solid block and becomes liquid when you apply it) but I've wondered if minerals might be good. It's supposed to be non-clogging, but I dunno if it might be drying ... Any suggestions welcome!

Thanks for any help! :)

hi all! I looked through the memories but the only post I could find on this was for Canadians.

can anyone recommend a good drugstore flat iron under $100? or, really, any good flat iron under $100 (do they exist?). I would prefer to be able to run out to somewhere like Target and pick it up, but I'm cool ordering things online too. :] I have one now that's just awful and it always leaves my hair feeling fried.

so... fire away! and thank you in advance. :] also, for what it's worth, I have verrrry curly hair so if any curly girls out there have specific suggestions I'm happy to hear them.

Lunch for today: mini meatball sub.
Dang... As soon as I ate it and saw the photo, I knew it would have benefitted from something green. But it was tasty...



Meatball, sauce and mozzarella on bread, apple slices, apricots and a Reeses cup. :-)

Could you guys give me product ideas instead of telling me to wash my hair/ how to fix it myself? Shampooing it constantly to fade it is just going to damage it more and I'm not doing any correction myself! I need moisture products.

I went to dye my hair a deep brown, only it turned jet-black on me! Like, there is no brown hint what so ever, even in sun light and artificial light. I am completely devastated.

I'm going to the salon tomorrow to get it fixed. I know i'll have to get it stripped...

Thing is, I have really long wavy hair, bleach ALWAYS damages my hair and makes it frizzy and not as wavy. If anything, it just looked nasty and frizzy.

I've been growing my hair for two years now and it's down to just above my waist. I want to cry. I don't want to cut it at all because of damage. I've never trimmed my hair. I've always just maintained the split ends and they never got worse. My hair before the dye was nice and soft, even with dyed hair. I didn't put anything in my hair after I showered. I air dried and just let it do its thing. It was awesome.

I'm just wondering what I can use to help retain moisture in my hair after the bleaching? What will I need to do? I don't want my hair greasy, but I don't want nasty flat-frizzy damaged hair!

hi everyone! sooo i fell into bleach's awful wrath. as much as i love having my hair the light blonde that it is, it is just taking forever to grow. i miss my long hair and i would do anything for it to grow again. i want to go to a salon and get a reverse treatment and maybe go back to my natural color with foils. what do you guys suggest i tell my stylist to do so my hair starts to grow evenly and at a quick pace again? thank you so much!

edit: what i mean is, what should i do to have my hair stop breaking off and for it to retain its length again? i know a trim might be in order, but i dont want to cut off like 6 inches or something, you know? thank you:)