Series: Do "off-brand" beauty products really work? & Weekend in review

Hello! Hope everyone's weekend is going great.

I've had a pretty slow weekend, my sister's friend has come to stay with us for several days, so I have to actually look like a human being for a few days.  Usually if I am just at home with my family I will wear whatever comes to hand and matches first. I DO NOT dress style over comfort at home... so I look kind of ehhh, not great. Since we have a visitor though, I kind of need to look decent.... 

But enough about that. 

I have been baking!~

How awesome do they look? I'm so proud of myself for taking this picture! 

Now if only they had tasted as good as they looked...

My next baking project is either going to be mochi or macaroons. Big dreams for someone who can't bake worth a darn... but I want to try! 

I've got another product review for you too! 

This time its Venus' Wrinkle Preventing Super Moisturizing Cream.  You can get it here (just to cover my backside, I've never shopped for that particular store before. I have however shopped with other stores on the Amazon website.)

It works on the basis that it is a product specifically targeted at young people, to give their skin all the good stuff it needs to stay beautiful before any age/ sun damage can occur. 

I give it a 9/10

I really do love this cream. It DOES super moisturize your skin, and I thought that I could see improvement in the little lines on my forehead and around my eyes and mouth. I do have skin that it just beginning to settle into ageing, and I'm trying my damn hardest to prevent it from happening.  I would use this everyday except for one big problem:

This stuff will clog your skin up!!!!!

Seriously, if I put it on two days in a row I get several bumps and pimples. Its sucks because for me, this product really does work, so I have to use it carefully. 

I think I paid about $4 for the jar, it is a medium sized jar I would say. The scent is really nice to, a light sweet citrus.

Friday night

Its Friday night! That means that my family and I are once again out and about searching for great food!
This week we went to the local hibachi type place...... and it was SUPER AMAZING AWESOME GREAT FOOD!!!!!!!!
First, what I wore:

Look ma, no pants! I really did feel a bit naked with such a short hemline... but I was wearing modesty shorts underneath.

The food... it was really great tonight. My sister and I split a bolgogi order and it came with the meat, a shrimp, large serving of rice, noodles and a salad and soup! It was an insane amount of food. The bolgogi  (is that even how its spelled.. idk) and shrimp was the only thing that we truely split, everyone else got two shrimp- and we got one each and then the beef was split. Oh, and we also split a spider roll. So wayyyyy too much food in total. Normally I'm known as the girl that ALWAYS has room for desert, but not tonight!

When we got home, I got my dad to help me set up the VHS/DVD player. I recently switched TVs with my sister, so I had to get another DVD player. The good thing about updating technology is that we always have an extra of everything laying around, even if it is slightly outdated. When we got a Blue ray player recently, it freed up another one so I can use it now.

Of course, the real upside for me is that I can now watch my favorite childhood movies in my room.

Yep, my favorite childhood movie is The Last Unicorn! 

When I was a child, I would rent the tape from the movie store so often that my mom finally just asked them to order a copy so she could buy it! 

Series: Do "off-brand" beauty products really work?

Good morning! (or at least, it should be when this post goes live...)

I mentioned in the lolita at work post that I've been planning a series of posts on those cheap products that you can find at many discount retailers for seriously low prices, about if they work or not. Here is the first in that series!

I'll start with the product that I have been using the longest, Elizabeth Arden's Deep Cleansing Mask.

Now Elizabeth Arden isn't a unheard of brand, in fact, it has been around for longer than I have been alive, I think. Despite that, I don't really know where it is usually sold, or how the brand is perceived by those who are really into beauty products, but I was happy to pick up this mask to try out.

I purchased it at T.J. Maxx for less than $10, I can't recall the exact amount. 

Since my face is oily/combination and congested (dead skin and such clogs my pores, ultimately leading to breakouts) I love anything that promises to get down deep and clean out my skin.

I would rate this one an 8 out of 10.

My reasoning behind the rating: I do feel that my skin is much less oily after using the mask- its like it just sucks up all the excess oil, without leaving my skin too dry. As for actually cleaning the skin... meh, it does ok. I usually use this mask first and then follow behind it with a wash to get the maximum cleaning. It does help to stop my skin from continuing to break out during a flare up of acne, and used regularly, it helps to prevent my skin from getting nasty. 

Probably for those with normal skin, or skin not prone to congestion, it would be a great cleansing mask on its own. For those with oily skin, or congested skin like mine, you may want to use it with a wash for the ultimate clean. 

One big concern over this product: I think that it may be out of production now, which makes me sad. I couldn't find it listed on the website when I tried to figure out the normal retail price for it. 

Shopping

So in the wake of all those clothes from yesterday, I just couldn't stay home today and do nothing... so I went shopping! I actually was quite good, I only bought 4 things, and I spent about $14 total. 

Rue 21 was having an awesome sale, I got a cami for $2, and a onepiece for $1. I was slightly on the fence about the onepiece, but for $1, I think I can make it work. 

I love the print! The colors are just perfect for the end of summer and into fall. It came with a big belt, but it was way too big for me, so I'll just use the one I already have.

I also went by Ross, my favorite cheap place for new clothes. I didn't spend near as much time there as I usually do, sometimes I go and I can spend 2 or 3 hours in there, sifting through stuff and trying on things. Ross can be quite junky, different sizes all mixed up, and hardy anything runs a normal size, so I have to try everything on.
Today I was in there maybe 20-30 min, because I felt a bit off all of a sudden and cut my trip short, but once I was out of the store, I instantly felt better... maybe somebody was wearing a perfume that I don't agree with or something.
Whatever happened to me, I still managed to get two shirts, one for my eventual job, and another that might work at work (pun not intended)  or it can just be a super cute everyday top.

I promise that this is 100% cuter in real life. The collar has ruffle roses! Don't mind how fat I look either, its just the angle that I used to get the pictures. Ross' dressing rooms are not that large, and the partition between them is quite low, so I was limited on how to get pics. 

See how low the partitions are? I'm only 5'3''! My face was kind of scary here, sorry. I didn't wear much make-up because I didn't want it to rub off on the things I tried on... so I looked super washed out under those nasty lights. 

I love that style of shirt so much that I have three of them! One in red plaid flannel, one in teal and black plaid cotton, and now this one if grey cotton. It really flatters me, I guess- and it looks really cute with a ruffle skirt underneath! I'll probably be pairing this one with my black lace and ruffle skirt. 

A group shot of my mini haul to show the true colors of everything. 

How to look at work, as told by me

Since I am currently seeking employment, I spend quite a chunk of my day online sifting through help wanted ads and various employment websites. When I'm not doing that, I am doing any number of other things, but searching out cute office fashions is a hobby of mine. I love the idea of combining some of the frilly lolita brands to create a super feminine look that stands out in a crowd. I see so often on other blogs that folks feel that they can't wear what they really want to to work just because it came from a lolita brand and it makes me want to jump up and down and yell yes you can! You just have to choose the right pieces. Sure you probably can't bust out your  favorite Angelic Pretty jumper skirt at your Micky Ds part time, but you can work on your office "casual" attire. Some uber strict workplaces probably won't be happy with any thing short of a full on suit, but for those that allow some personal creativity....