Thrifting Haul

Yesterday I went thrifting with K, or as we like to call it, Good Will Hunting. We are terribly clever. We were looking forward to heading into Philly for Minipenny's stoop sale, but it was rescheduled to next weekend so we ended up hitting many South Jersey thrift stores instead.

 First up was Village Thrift in Pennsauken. The thing about South Jersey roads is that they don't always run in a way that would be considered common sense so it took a bit for us to figure out how to get on the other side of the road, but with some hope, trust, and a little bit of pixie dust; we made it. The store is large and extremely organized with prices that were very good. Somethings, like a Lane Bryant high low skirt was ten dollars while a full dress could be $3.50. I think it greatly depended on the brand of clothing. Everything I looked at was clean and was great quality, so it could be worth the extra dollar to spend there instead of Goodwill because things don't smell like pee, and the items are organized clearly.

The first thing that I grabbed was this pair of jeans from Old Navy that still had the tags on it. I originally thought I would make them into cutoffs but after putting them on, they look really good as pants. I think I may take other pants I had and swap them with these instead. Old Navy jeans are at least 25 dollars usually, and I normally only buy jeans at their black friday sales, so this was a great find.

Next is what I have been calling my 1940's Safari dress. The label says it is Leslie Fey collections. I really loved this in the store but once I put it on I realized that it was altered and rather poorly. Instead of taking darts in the back to size the top, they folded over the fabric and hand sewed it up the side. I took all of those mindless stitches out and now it fits better, but is too large in the back and shoulders. I now have to take darts in the back, and if I am feeling ambitious, reset the sleeves. I was thinking of cuffing them to get that look, but they would still be too large and long even with a sensible cuff. I am still thinking of the cuff. I really like the cuff.

Also the skirt has this really strange piece of interfacing in the front that was folded over. It made no sense; another poorly done alteration. I seam ripped the front and  folded it under for the picture. My options are to re gather the skirt but it would be a lot of work, or I regather up until the pocket. I have to see if the skirt will be really affected with a tiny bit of less fabric in the front. I just love this dress, and know that when I style it, it will be fantastic. It is taking a lot of me not to buy a hat and a whip so I can Disneybound as Indiana Jones.

Who needs cheetah pants? I think the question is who can go without them. These are Jones New York and still had the tags on them. They fit really nicely, but because they are patterned, I think they will only serve me well as skinny jeans. I am going to take them in at an angle from the knee down so they will resemble more of 60's cigarette pants. I think I may sew in a half inch cuff at the bottom because they are a little short for me. I think they may be capris but since I am short, they fall at a strange place. When they are skinny though, it may look nicer to have a cuff at the bottom.

The last thing I picked up at Village Thrift was this green bowl. It looks like several crystal bowls that I saw at my grandma's house, but it may be made of glass. Who knows. What I do know is that it was the perfect size. The thing about having my own suite in the Residence Halls is that I can put my keys and shoes near the door as to not have them stray and be hard to find or forgotten. This will change very soon when I move up to the eighth floor and my roommates arrive. I needed something that I could throw my keys and change into every time I walk into the room. This is really perfect for that purpose.

 

The next place we went was Born to Shop in Haddonfeild. This place has more mature clothing than anything else, and they are much pricier than any of the other places. This being said they have a very nice selection of designer clothing. The women sitting there told me that someone came by and dropped off several pieces, and by several I mean their whole wardrobe, because they lost a lot of weight so they have a variety of sizes. All of Haddonfeild was having a sidewalk sale so skirts and dresses were half off while the rest of things were discounted. 

 

The first thing I picked up was this M.P.H. dress. I saw it and Instantly fell in love, but know that the breasts I am blessed with would not fit into the top. K suggested that I wear the top open and with a tank top underneath, but I really love the way it looks all buttoned up. I tried it on, and have decided to put panel down the center back and side seams. I would like to extend the waist about an inch as well because it is rough getting that over my boobs too. They are a gift and a curse, but most of the time they are squished. The length is perfect so I really would like to get this project finished to wear this before the summer ends. 

 The details of this dress are really beautiful. I don't know why; it may be the costume student and all around geek in me, but I feel like someone dressed like Ophelia at Ren Faire in this dress. I know it looks like a hippie love child dress, but I think it is that it reminds me of John Everett Millais' Ophelia painting. I just love this and want to start work right away.

 The last thing I picked up for this store was this Land's end sailboat skirt. This was perfectly sized which was by chance because there were clear darts taken in on the back seams. What a crazy random happenstance. The reason I couldn't let this skirt stay in the store was that it was the perfect size and reminded me of this seagull skirt  without the high price tag.

The last place we went was by happenstance since it was only two doors down from Born to Shop. Niffty Thrifties had a really excellent sale on their stock as well. All tops and pants were $5 and dresses and shoes were 10. They had a more contemporary selection than the one before, and we spent quite a while looking at what they had.

I first grabbed this Michael Kors tunic dress with this adorable blue print. It is sheer, but only because I removed the lining because it fits better that way. I am not sure what I want to do with this piece. I could add some panels on the side so that I don't have to wear the top open because of my boobs, or I could wear it open. I think it would be nice to have it button all the way up, but I will have to find a fabric that matches the blue perfectly in the same type of sheer light weight material.

Aren't the pattern and buttons just darling? I think it would look lovely styled with purple tights and boots. I just need to find the perfect fabric to extend the top.

Then I grabbed these big bird yellow capri pants from Talbots. I thought that these would be amazing as shorts because of the color and the button detail on the top. I wouldn't wear them the way they are now since they flare and hit my leg at a strange place. They are made of nice stretch cotton so they will be comfortable shorts.

This is a really wonderful top that is a super gorgeous color. The detail at the bust is braided and the sleeves are three quarter length. I am super happy with this purchase. It is perfectly wearable as is, but when I wear it with shorts I tie up the side so you can see the shorts otherwise it looks like I'm not wearing anything. It feels like I'm wearing nothing at all. Stupid sexy Flanders.

The last but never least things I grabbed was these loafers. They look like men's slippers. I wish I had a matching smoking jacket and a beautiful pipe to wear with these. They are very comfortable and are easy to put on. They have a leather sole, so I can wear them outside as long as it isn't raining, but I think they will serve me best as a quick show to slip on when I get calls and go on rounds. I could wear my crocs, but these are a bit more fashionable. Plus, I just love them.

I have a lot of work to do before I can enjoy all of my wonderful thrifty finds, but I think they will be really wonderful once I work them all out. The thing about thrift shopping is that you can find some wonderful things but if you don't know how to style or make them work for you, then you end up with a bunch of crap. Plus paying attention to your thrift stores to know when they are having their sales because sometimes you can leave the store with crazy deals.

LUSH haul

What's that smell? Oh, it's me, because I just spent the last hour bathing in a magical concoction made of shea butter, jojoba oil, and a little bit of happiness. And how did I come by this potion, you ask? Well, pleasant fellow, I took a trip to Lush Cosmetics! I had a specific purpose for this Lush trip so the products I purchased were all demonstrated on me in the store by a cool guy named Damian who coincidentally saw me in my university's production of Our Town last fall. He also had the softest hands of anyone in the world, which sounds creepy, but we held hands for a wile, while he showed me the luscious wonderful products that I ended up taking home.

If you don't already know about Lush Cosmetics; why, oh why don't you know about Lush Cosmetics? It is a completely cruelty free vegetarian company that utilizes the minimum of packaging and uses their influence in the world to campaign and do community outreach. The company has a strict no animal testing policy for both their products and suppliers as well as several charity products that give back to communities and causes they believe in. If you would like to know more, as I strongly suggest you should, go here to read and watch up on what Lush is all about.

I have been to five Lush stores in my life: City Walk, Philadelphia, Cherry Hill, Boston, and Valencia; and not once have I had a bad experience with customer service or had a question go unanswered. Every time I ever had any questions, Lush associates were always helpful and handy. Going into a Lush store is not like browsing for a new soap; the people at Lush want to make sure you get something that you need and will love. They ask you about yourself to be able to make educated suggestions and will demonstrate these products for you so that you spend your money on things you use and that you picked out for yourself. I can't stress this enough, Lush loves you and wants you to love them too. They will make a compelling argument every time you walk by, and you will have to try very hard to stay indifferent. The prices are steep, but you pay for the quality and there are box gifts that have discounted prices so you can try the products without dropping serious cash. 

So this is what I ended up with. I went in knowing that I wanted a hair care treatment for my dry and damaged hair and a face wash for my dry and sensitive skin. So when I walked in, I b-lined for a sales rep to ask for some help. They sat me down and massaged my hands with all of the products and my hands are still insanely smooth. 

The first thing I grabbed was H'Suan Wen Hua. It is a hair treatment used to strengthen and moisturize your hair. I was speaking to the 35 year old in disguise as a 20 year old sales rep, Miranda, who has been bleaching her hair for a long time. She swears by this, and let me touch her hair to prove the soft promise of H'suan wen hua. She prefers this over Marilyn, the blonde hair treatment also offered by lush. 

To use this product you massage it into your hair and scalp while dry. Leave in for 20- 30 minutes, Miranda says an hour, and then wash out. The reason you don't massage in while wet is because when your hair is wet it is already full of moisture to capacity, and when it is dry it is able to soak up all the delicious stuff in this product. This has egg, avacado, olive oil, and herbs ready to hug my hair into silky submission. Funiest of facts: The name is pronounced Swan when wah, and it is named after the Chinese goddess of hair.

 

This yellow wonder is Godiva, a solid shampoo bar. Lush is the inventor and patient holder of the solid shampoo, and it really is a unique product. This smells amazing plus it is both cleansing and conditioning at the same time. They suggest this type of shampoo for people who are on the go, because it is solid, a two in one, and long lasting. The tiny bar is supposed to last you 60- 90 washes depending on your hair type and how much you wash. I also bought a tin to hold it because when talking to Damian, who uses this product everyday, he said it can break apart with use, but the tin keeps it together. 

What you do is just later it up like you were using a bar of soap on your head. It cleans and moisterizes. It contains camellia oil to help with fly aways and frizz, which is the same oil used by sumo wrestlers. Gosh I am just full of the funist of facts. I am very excited because it is weird and smells so yummy, I want to live in that tin with it. 

Now this is Happy Happy Joy Joy, which smells like the way sunshine feels in a meadow on a picnic wearing a sundress of love. That being said the main purpose of this conditioner is to moisturize and perfume the hair. I expect to smell like a ray of sunshine all day after using this. It smells light and pretty; it uses rose centifolia and orange blossom water to brighten your fucking day. It is an aptly named jolt of happy. 

It is an almond milk and jojoba oil infused milky consistency that works like any other conditioner you are used to. This matched with Godiva will make my shower be a happy explosion of hair smells. Which sounds weird, but whatever. It is also very light so it won't heavy down my hair. This is exactly what I was looking for since I have very thick hair, and other heavy conditioners weigh it down. 

Well, well, lookie here, this is Big solid conditioner. This product was something that I couldn't leave in the store. I wasn't sure I would be able to use it since I have so much hair, but after smelling those entrancing jasmine and vanilla scents, and feeling how wonderful it felt being massaged into my hand, I thought to myself, 'Sean, you are weird and totally love this, so try it,' and then I took it home with me. The bar is made with no preservatives and utilizes sea salt to build up volume. The coconut oil makes this really soft, so even though it is 'solid' it is really squishy and melt-able.

To use this you pinch off a tiny bit and mush it up in your hand with water; it creates a paste and you work it through your hair like other conditioners. This is something that I was surprised by when I was in the store and even though it is unconventional I am excited to use it.

This was the product I came in looking for, not by name, but the purpose. R&B leave in conditioner uses these amazing oils to soften hair. This can also be used to style hair as it tames fly aways without making your hair really heavy and greasy. The product can be used on wet hair or dry, a lot or a little, frequent or not. It really is whatever you would like it to be. It has many flora smells and is very perfumed. One of the creators of this, from the group of UK managers, Shakira went on to create many fragrances for Lush, so it is not confusing that R&B has a very strong smell, that I suspect will follow you around all day. 

You should only use a small amount because there are no fillers in this product and every little bit goes a long way. I am looking forward to this because of the styling purposes with the healthy stuff as extra  benefit. I am looking forward to being able to smooth my hair down with this, and if my split ends strengthen times three due to the olive oil, then good for me.

 

After getting an entire hair regimen, I asked about simple skincare for my dry and sensitive skin that sometimes gets pimply. My main man Damian came by with some cleansers that are non irritants and will work well for my baby paper face skin. Ultrabland was my instant favorite. It felt so wonderful going on and feels so silky. It is 20% rose water that reduces redness and makes the cleanser fragrant. Lush markets this as their makeup remover because it works so well.  

Funiest of fun facts, one of the co-founders, Helen, uses this everyday for the past 35 years, and she said that it is the reason that she wanted to become a part of the company. She was so impressed with this product she spent the rest of her life building Lush. This is a life changing face cleanser. I would like it to make my face super soft and moisturized so that after washing it doesn't get itchy. Here's hoping. 

My favorite this I purchased all day was Breath of Fresh Air toner water. The reason for this was that it is so simply good. My whole life is just a spray away from happy. The toner waters Lush makes open pores and closes them so dirt can escape and not make its way back in. After using this on my face just once, I just feel so good. It is one of the only instant effects I have experienced. My skin feels smooth and soft all over. 

It is both fresh sea and spring water with patchouli and rose. It is refreshing and there isn't much else that fits so perfectly.

 I then got Phoenix Rising bath bomb because I wanted Dragon's Egg but they were all out. My other Phoenix Rising broke before I got to use it, so I wasn't able to experience the whole thing, but it was still an excellent bath, so I went with this. It smells like Apple Pie and makes you so soft all over. It is like bathing in lotion, but the cinnamon spices you up and warms you.

 I was looking for a bubble bar that I had not used before and this one just smelled so wonderful. Creamy Candy Bubble Bar smells so sweet and sugary and has melty coco butter pieces in it that will make the bubbliest of bubbles and make you all soft and stuff. I got to pick from a yellow, white, or blue flower, but I had to go with the yellow. It is just so sunshiny. 

 The last thing I picked up was the Lush Times! If you would like to look at one for yourself, which showcases all of their products except for online exclusives, and explains all of the cool outreach, protest, and campaigning endeavors Lush is up to, you can pick one up at your Lush, or get it sent to you in the mail. You can sign up for that on the Lush website. Or if that doesn't work, then you can look at it on the website as well. 

It's bath time. 

Future Week 2

Week number two started out with a game night after dinner, which when I say consisted of a thousand pizzas, I mean people were able to take full pies up to their room. After dinner before the event Pradhan, K, David, and I played Uno. The hand I was dealt was not the most beneficial. We played this through the night and still I have no idea how we were able to sustain one game for two hours. I did not end up the winner, but I was able to play apples to apples with some of our residents while the others played the most joyous game of Life I had ever seen. While we were playing, some of our residents were having trouble with some historical figures and words. I was glad that they were able to learn something new through the game.The night ended with a questionable game of twister, which is just an awkward game to begin with.

On Tuesday we went to Funplex, where I sat idle by watching my friends go kart since my wrist was still banged up and I was advised not to drive or put pressure on it, and as these go karts like all others have no power steering, they were a no. I ended up sitting and watching families play mini golf for a long while, but I was able to drive the bumper boats which Pradhan and Traun took to mean getting everyone wet with the water gun party. What really set this particular night apart was the second prank where Pradhan and I took our winnings from the arcade together to get mini army men and robots to create an epic battle on K's desk. We wanted to have more army men but the woman behind the counter, and by woman I mean pissy high school student, would not allow us to go past the 20 maximum. So whatever, the next day I woke to an email that explained that an epic battle went on, needless to say, K has a wonderful sense of humor. The next time I was in the office, I saw that the paratrooper that I made using a long marshmallow skewer and the plastic bag the toys came in was still there. She said it was too good to take down. 

On Wednesday, we hosted a movie night with plenty of refreshments. We were able to use the club room in our new building so the movie was nice and big projected on the wall. We watched Madea's Witness Protection, or as I like to call it: Tyler Perry has conversations with himself, Oh and Denise Richards is here too. The movie was dumb, but our residents really enjoyed themselves. They all were able to have seconds on candy and I was able to snag an extra Kool-aid or two. When we asked them what they wanted to do, they all said that they wanted to hangout and chill. So that is what we did, we chilled, watched a ridiculous 2 hour movie and ate our weight in candy.

 On Thursday, we celebrated my Grandfather's 75th birthday, which meant I was spending some time with my family and eating cake. My grandfather got himself a gift, a new car. Which when we all went out to crowd around and look at the shiny new toy, all of my younger cousins got in the backseat. Just to try it out. I was able to hitch a ride back to the college with them and it was a lovely car, so I hope beyond hopes that he likes his purchase.

The next night I was dying for some chicken wings and my girlfriend Alexis was dying to go to a bar and dance, so we went out to PJ's. The wings were divine, and I wish I had more because sitting here writing about them makes me want to eat them. My mouth is watering. I am a chubby person, this is how we do. The DJs at the bar were these two skinny boys who loved to jump up and down. They switched off between rap and techno music so it was hilarious to see how the people dancing would shift each time the song changed. Alexis and I stayed strong though, dancing through both types of music. We made it. Another week down.

Crayola Haul and Review

During my trip to the Crayola Factory I picked up some products: Some I was dying to try, some old standards, and some that I needed to replace because I used them up. The largest purchase was a Crayola Factory exclusive where you choose a tin and for $14.99 you can fill it to the brim with whatever crayons and markers you can. The wall of color that you could choose from had colors that everyone needs, like black, red, and blue; but also metallic yellows, sea foam and teal greens, and skin colored markers. With some clever packing and stacking I was able to grab everything on the wall, except for a few markers that I knew were already in my collection. The problem with this method of filling your tin was that there was only one size of tin instead of having smaller or larger so that you could have a way to spend less for the colors that you want rather than fill the box because you would be loosing money if you didn't. There was no way I could purchase one or two crayons, which for the enthusiast, might be a cool feature. I did not mind since I was looking to stock up my crayon and marker collection, but if that wasn't the case, I would have had to purchase a whole box to have a certain color. The box I chose was the vintage Crayola tin, which you could purchase alone for $9.99. What I can say, is if you would like something like this from home, you can check out the customized box product and make your own art chest products on the Crayola website.

The first and obvious choice is Crayons! Crayola Crayons are the best in the land and as far as I am concerned they always will be. If I could be perceived as any art product, excluding stickers, I would want to be a crayon. They are the best, and you are wrong if you think otherwise. The tin was filled with every color they had available, which by no means is even close to all the colors that Crayola has.

My favorite colors that I picked up were radical red, Caribbean green, electric lime, robin's egg blue, and the ever wonderful macaroni and cheese. Fun fact that I learned at the Crayola Factory was that out of the top ten favorite Crayola colors, 6 of them were a form of blue.

In the name of Crayons I grabbed a packet of Twistables, which was not included in the tin. These were in Extreme Colors, mostly bold neons and such. I have always loved Twistables, due to the fact that they are really difficult to break, have smooth application, and come in all the same colors that I love. These were attractive to me because I already have so many, and wanted something different. These colors are so bright it is hard to see some of them on white paper, but they work on dark paper well. They are not conventional colors and I am sure I will use them at some point, but they are not the colors that you would normally use, or even buy. I am glad to have them, but I suggest getting the standard colors first, and these as additional colors. You can pick these up here.

 In the twistables family is the next item I picked up, the 12 pack of Twistables Slick Stix. I saw these items elsewhere when I mistook them for the window crayons that I love so much, but I saw that they were more like oil pastels in a twisty crayon form. I passed on them previously because I thought I would use them as much as I use my pastels, which after my art class is absolutely zero, and I don't know if it was the elated feeling of being at the Crayola Factory, or whatever, but I purchased them this time. I believed they would be benefitial for my Resident Assistant job where I make door decorations, bulletin boards, banners, and flyers all the time; these would be good for easy bold and large lettering and coloring. My fear came from my thought that the color would leave a residue and these would run even after a bit of time, or smudge if touched, but I was pleasantly surprised. The color goes on smooth and doesn't run or smudge or stick at all.

The colors in the ten pack were pretty basic, but the silver and gold stix have sort of a metallic sheen. Like I said, they are smooth as the name states and they will serve their purpose wonderfully. While sitting there using these I thought to myself, 'maybe they could work on skin,' and needless to say I ended up with some wicked tattoos, though I don't suggest doing that yourself. They work on skin, and will be messy. They feel like lipstick, but don't smudge. Maybe Maybaline and Crayola should get together. How brilliant would a lipstick line of Crayola colors be? They could give Lime Crime a run for their money. Now I am really disappointed that those lipsticks don't exist. When they do, will I be getting some in the mail since I came up with the idea? I can only hope; give me a call Crayola.

I was happily wrong about this product and am looking forward to using these over and over. You can order these for yourself here. 

Next were the markers that I picked up with my fill a tin, tin. The Crayola washable marker has been a household staple for years, and there isn't anything better than these bright colors that will wash off your hands and clothing as quick as it got there. I love these markers, and the selection of colors really made these stand out. As I said before, I wasn't able to get everything to fit in my tin, so I had to pick and choose. I ended up with quite a few beautiful colors, and a black which everyone knows you cannot live without. My favorite of the bunch were electric lime, teal, flamingo pink, and sea foam green. The electric lime is my ultimate favorite just because of how bright and interesting it is. See!

 The markers are wonderful as always, but I was especially impressed with the beige and bronze colors. These colors are part of the multicultural marker collection which utilizes all the shades of skin, which normally are reduced to brown and beige. I was assuming the color would be too dark, like some markers can be, and that it would not be worth it to purchase the whole pack, so I grabbed the two that were at the wall and that was it. Now looking back at it, I wish I picked up those markers too. The color is clear and light, and the slight differences between the browns are noticeable but subtle when they need to be. I think it is a revelation, and really wish I got the whole box. What if I want to make a doodle for all of my residents this year? What would I do then if they didn't have these? They also have these in multicultural crayon and pencil form.

The next product was something that I heard a lot about from my Costume Design professor. She does renderings with watercolor as her favorite medium and she always said that these provide definition and control where a brush can't always detail. So, when I saw them, I had to pick them up.

These came in a pack of 24 and have all the same colors that colored pencils have. The colored pencil has not been my favorite means of coloring, but they do serve a purpose, to be able to be detailed. My favorite colors from this product were magenta, yellow, and aqua green. I haven't used these very much since I don't want to use them for something they were not meant for, but I do know that they have a very good consistency and act as normal pencils until the magic happens. Just add water!

In the picture you can see where I scribbled the pencil before using the brush to blend it out. The redish color is actual watercolor to show how the color looks blended with another product, and how the purple by itself looks like water color. I am excited to start working with these since they are a non conventional way to paint, but they could be the answers to my eyes and lip definition problem. They have a lovely color, and blend nicely.

The last thing I purchased was something that I had used up over the last school year and was excited to replace. The Erasable Highlighter is something that theatre students from across the land have been begging for. It bugs me to no end when I have highlighted a line by mistake and forever have to look at that bolded yellow line over something I don't need. That might just be a pet peeve, but the Crayola gods have answered this clumsy theatre kid and given u the erasable highlighter. The highlighter has two ends: Yellow for highlighting, and white for erasing.

Now, I give this product a thousand flying colors, but as you can see, it does leave a tiny bit of a shadow of where it was highlighted, which is only amplified when on thinner or older paper. This shadow doesn't bother me at all, in fact it makes me feel better since I know my highlighter eraser is working. I suggest everyone who has ever felt this way about false highlights, should pick this up.

That concludes my Crayola Haul and review. If you have any questions or would like to see what I think about the other products I have used, Crayola or not, please leave a comment below. 

 I just f*cking love crayons.