Many, Many Thanks

I hope all of your Thanksgivings were filled with...

blotting papers, to keep you shine-free in every family photo


sweet floral scents, to help you survive the fifteen thousandth hug from that aunt whose name you can never remember


yummy holiday treats, both savory and sweet


and of course, a quality long-wear lipcolour that lasts you through every last bite of turkey and stuffing.


Happy Thanksgiving from Recessionably Chic!

A Beautiful Coach

I have recently taken to exploring beauty section of unexpected places...first Urban Outfitters, and now Coach. Coach has always been a wonderful place for bags, and I've often found myself either vigorously drawn to their styles (classic leather with lovely details) or vehemently opposed to their styles (any sort of repeated "C" print, especially when it's in different colours). Coach's beauty section is a tad bit lackluster, but I definitely do not blame them for cashing in on their name in the beauty market. I was going to give these products a try, but I swung by the Coach store on Michigan Avenue and sadly there were none that I saw. However, I'm not too disappointed; I really don't think I'm going to be grabbing any of these items anytime soon, as their allure comes more from their branded packaging than anything else.


First, there's the token "Coach scent." The site claims that this scent is "A unique blend of soft florals, combined with amber, vanilla, and precious woods." Now, I'm not exactly sure what "precious woods" are, but I'm assuming that this is a pretty safe, floral scent with a hint of musk. I'd have to try it out, but again, like most perfumes this is completely a matter of taste. It's pretty high-priced, but Coach probably just wants to use their name wisely in the fragrance market. Plus, the little Coach box that this $75 (for 1.7 oz) perfume comes in is totally cute.


Then there's another not-so-token lipgloss. I'm fairly sure that this gloss doesn't come with any sort of long-wear properties or special scents, but that the $22 price tag is for the outside packaging. And hey, if you are a heavy gloss user and want to be able to whip out a Coach gloss to wow your girlfriends, then this is totally the product for you. The shades below are (from left to right) Gardenia, Hibiscus, and Heather. I'm definitely going to give some kudos to Coach for doing Gardenia, which looks like a pretty bright gold gloss to me. Then again, it could be totally sheer. And I'm not going to lie, Heather looks like the perfect everyday shade for me...


Coach definitely made a good decision by creating these two clip-on-your-bag style products. They go along with Coach bags perfectly, and are a pretty handy little thing to have. I love the idea of a clip-on solid perfume, perfect for touch-ups. I also think a little lipgloss container is a fun thing to have, though I myself prefer reapplying lipgloss from a tube, rather than a pot you have to dip your fingers into. If I were Coach, I would have created a solid perfume in the same cute little heart container that the lipgloss is in...I suppose you can't ever have everything you want :)

Victoria's (Beauty) Secret

One of the more surprising places that I pick up beauty products from is Victoria's Secret. Though it may be known for its daring undergarments (though I'm not gonna lie, their bras are pretty innovative), I've found that Victoria's Secret's beauty offerings can be pretty delightful. Unfortunately, even though their clearance section boasts a lot of great clothing deals (check it out now if you haven't!), the beauty selections are pretty limited. So, surprisingly, I'm going to fish out my bargain buys not from the clearance section but from the -gasp- full price section.

First is a pick that I've already tried myself. It's from the Very Sexy makeup collection, which sounds sort of gimmicky and low-quality (and some of its products are). But this one is definitely worth the $12. It's essentially a felt-tip pen, except boasting eyeliner instead of typical ink. I used it a lot when I started out lining my eyes every day, and it made subtle daily eyes so much easier. The pointy tip makes it really easy to line very close to your waterline, giving a more natural look that just pumps up your lashes rather than adding a harsh line. If you're doing a smoky look, I would probably just use this as a base liner and then add a typical pencil liner so you can smoke it out; personally, I'm not a big fan of smoky eyes with a big harsh line.


Aren't these little flower-trimmed perfume vials adorable? They're only $10 each, and I completely want all of them! I think they'd be great to carry around in your purse, and if they're too long I would totally love to have the little flower sticking out. A word of warning -- definitely sniff before you buy with these. Makeup Alley reviews can be trusted for many things, but it's my firm belief that perfume is completely personal, and these Victoria's Secret scents can often be too girly and sweet for many people.


These little tubes of lip balm also fall into the "cute" category...I realize that $7 might be a bit much to pay for lip balm...but at least they're tinted. I think everything about them is adorable, from the PINK logo on the side to the heart stamped in the middle of the lip balm stick. I usually tote one of mine around and though it may not work miracles, it works no less wonderfully than any other lip balm, and imparts a hint of colour that's good for perking up your lips. Plus, I feel so much more stylish whipping this out to moisturize my lips than a tub o' Carmex.


Next up is a lip stain from the Very Sexy makeup line. It comes in a lot of lovely nude colours, and a really interesting plum colour. Now, I know that we're all supposed to be experimental with our makeup but really, I tend to stick to very natural-looking makeup. That's why I love the different nude shades this comes in, ranging from coral to blue-toned pink to brown. This lip stain is in a pen format, which allows you to use it as a lip liner, but personally I love using lip stains during the summer because it's way more natural looking and you don't have to worry about reapplying it all the time. Plus, in the summer my makeup is a lot more natural anyway. The lip liner is cheap enough for you to try out the different shades, since it's only $12.


Though I've heard some mixed reviews about the Patricia Wexler line of cosmetics, I'm really interested to try her Instant Airbrush Line Smoothing Super Concealer. I'm not really taken with the name of great proclamation, but I do like the brush structure of the concealer. I hope there are other places that carry this product, though, because I'm worried about the limited amount of shades that Victoria's Secret carries. But $19.50 is definitely not bad for a concealer, and I can't imagine it would be much worse than the drugstore concealers that I use currently.


Finally, I just wanted to end the beauty bonanza with a fun gloss. They're 5 for $20, and they come in all sorts of different colours. I love deals like this, because they allow you to experiment with different colours you wouldn't ordinarily try out, like a really bright fuschia or a glittery, shimmery pink gloss. It was actually a deal like this that turned me on to gold glosses...I always thought they would be tacky-looking on me until I tried out a gold gloss on a whim in one of these deals. So don't be afraid to splash out on something you wouldn't ordinarily buy.

Basic Face

Though my makeup "look" has remained unbelievably similar these past few years, I've changed a few things. First, I've ditched the waterline-lining idea. I've found that on me, lining my waterline with a dark colour makes my eyes look smaller, and it never really adds anything to my makeup look. Second, I've started concentrating foundation in areas where I really need it. Instead of coating my whole face with foundation, I put some on my nose (which sounds weird, but it's darker than the rest of my face!) along with some concealer under my eyes. I've started going for the less-is-more concept, with little flashes of colour for interest as opposed to bright, bold, eyeshadow looks. Up until my drugstore trip (as described in the blog post below), I essentially wore these three items, in addition to a limited amount of foundation and concealer.


The left-most item is Burt's Bees Lip Shimmer in Rhubarb. I've been rocking this as a basic summer colour for a while, even though it totally doesn't go with my skintone. A lot of my friends have been complaining about the Burt's Bees Lip Shimmers, because they bought the much lighter pink tones. My policy with tinted lip balms is: always for a darker colour than you think you need. It turns out that the cute pale pink Lip Shimmers make you look sort of sickly, while the much darker ones give a hint of tint. What I love about these Lip Shimmers is that they still retain the same tingly, cooling feeling of Burt's Bees Lip Balm, while also showing a bit of colour. However, I think I might try out the Jane lip balm that I posted about earlier for a while, as the colour is much more warm. The eyeliner in the middle is Wet 'n' Wild IdolEyes Retractable Eyeliner in Midnight Black. I know it's not the best eyeliner I could get, but it was super-cheap and I got it a little while back. It's actually got a fair amount of staying power, as long as I layer it with my L'Oreal Wear Infinite Eyeshadow in Lush Raven. It's definitely not the blackest of black eyeshadows, but I kind of like that since I'm layering it with a pretty black eyeliner and I'm using it to soften up the look and make sure my liner stays in place. I've found that applying black shadow over the liner using an eyeliner brush is a nice alternative to smudging the liner, because it stays longer and it looks more natural.

I'll update later as to how my new lip purchases fit into my slimmed-down daily routine...hopefully they stack up to my Lip Shimmer!

Drugstore Goodies

Here are some reviews and swatches of a couple of drugstore deals I found:

One thing that was on my list when I stopped by my local drugstore was a nice red nail polish. As far as my tips go, I'm more of a neutral person, and the loudest colour I'll put on is some sort of bronzy-beige shimmer. However, it's usually clear. My toes, however, have been the subject of many trials and tribuations. For summer, I wanted a cute red go-with-everything polish, which I found in the form of an NYC colour, Royal Red. I got it for around $1.00, and the colour payoff is really good! You probably don't want to see a picture of my foot, but since I never paint my fingernails, here's a shot...sorry if they're unkempt!


I was also looking for some sheer, shimmery colours for summer when I came upon the Revlon Illuminance Creme Quad Eyeshadow. While doing my usual bout of internet shopping, I had seen many of these. Of course, I was curious to try them but was worried about their staying power and colour payoff. I picked up the quad in "Precious Metals," and was...well, I don't know how to describe it. These definitely aren't the best creme shadows out there, and their colour payoff is pretty low. However, the quad itself was around $4.00, which means it's $1.00 per shade. So, for the price...not bad at all. When I first looked at the quad, I figured that I would like the grey shade the best, because I've been looking for a shimmery grey shade to use with smoky eyes. It turns out that that's my least favourite colour. The shade I was expecting to dislike, the brown shade on the right, was the one that I liked the most! It's perfect for a sheer wash of colour on a lazy day, or as a base for other neutral-coloured shadows. The middle two shades go wonderfully in the browbone or in the inside corner of your eye. The staying power of these shadows is pretty good...they might have some trouble if it begins to rain, but besides that I would recommend this quad to anyone looking for some simple shimmers for summer.



Finally, I grabbed four simple pink lipcolours for varying occasions. The swatches are, from right to left: "Princess", from the Cover Girl LipSlicks line, "Toasted Rose" from the Jane Lipkick Lipstick line, "Rose Petal" from the N.Y.C. Ultra Last Lip Wear line, and "Pink Quartz" from the Jane Be Pure Mineral Lip Balms. The two lipsticks are swatched twice; the bottom swatch is just putting the lipstick on normally, and the top swatch is the shade that is achieved when you dab the lipstick on lightly (I love doing this on my own lips to get a more natural look).


The first one I picked up, Princess from Cover Girl Lipslicks, was a classic favourite. As I've mentioned before, I really don't like sticky, tacky lipglosses and my favourite lip products are tinted lip balms and dabbed-on lipsticks. This doesn't give a ton of colour payoff, but it's nice for daytime, or with smoky eyes to balance things out. Plus, it looks so much like a gloss it's pretty hard to believe that it's so light on your lips. I might go for a darker colour next time, but I'll definitely be keeping this one around for a while.



The second item I picked up, Toasted Rose from the Jane Lipkick Lipstick line, was a great basic lipstick. It's kind of like the opaque lipstick version of a dark coral lipstick, which is great for a "no frills" look. There's no glitter, shimmer, or even shine, but it's nice for a more business-y setting. I like to think of this colour as a very "Bobbi Brown" colour, because it's not that unique, but it's still very universally flattering. I love the colour that I get when I dab this on my lips, because it's a nice, basic colour that almost makes it seem like I'm not wearing anything on my lips. At the same time, it's so basic that it's a great canvas for a funky lipgloss, in pretty much any shade imaginable.


The third item I picked up, Rose Petal from the N.Y.C. Ultra Last Lip Wear line, has kind of a misleading colour. In the tube, it appears to be a really dark, typical, teenager-y lipstick. It's sort of fuschia looking, with some artificial shimmer. As you can see from the swatch, it's a little more adult-looking that it seems at first glance, and is a fun twist on a typical red lip. In addition, the colour that I got when I dabbed it onto my lips was great! It's a more shimmery version of the Toasted Rose dabbed colour, which you can't really see in the swatch.


Finally, I decided to end with the surprise product of the day, Pink Quartz from the Jane BE PURE Mineral Lip Balm line. Tinted lip balms are great for summer, and this one is no exception. The pretty peachy-coral-pink colour is universally flattering. It would go wonderfully on someone who is very pale, and yet also works great on my own lips, even though I'm pretty tan. The staying power is nice, and there's this great sweet vanilla smell that isn't overly cloying but still lasts a little bit. I love this product! I was able to get this and the Jane lipstick in a BOGOF deal at Walgreens, so that made those two products even sweeter. One warning about the Jane products; they're completely sealed, so you can't actually see the colour of the product inside. I'll try to swatch more if I can, but for now try to use these swatches as a guideline -- and remember, when going for a balm always try something a little darker than you would think!