Finally!!

I was over at Beauty Addict this morning, and found out that the ban on carrying gels and liquids aboard flights has now been modified. Items under 3 oz. can be carried on board, assuming they can all fit inside a 1 quart ziplock bag. Read The Addict's helpful summary here.

The new rules have taken effect for flights out of both Canada and the US. The UK (THANK GOD!) and the rest of Europe are expected to follow suit in a few weeks.

Most importantly:

"... tests carried out by FBI ... have established that tiny amounts of substances cannot blow up an airliner."

Whew! Score one for SCIENCE.

(Yes, I'm posting. Again. Hey, this is important! Plus, I woke up at 6:30 to do homework. And now I'm going to go read a chapter on models (the boring kind). See? Hard at work!)

I Just Can't Stay Away...

aka: THE HOTTEST CHRISTMAS CD FOR EVER AND EVER IN ALL OF HISTORY AMEN!!!

Hi y'all. Okay, so I know you're all still just starting to contemplate fall cozies and knee high boots and whatnot*, but if you'll cast an eye to the festivites past Halloween, you'll realize that the Christmas Season is bearing upon us like a super-sonic Japanese bullet train.**

And! What better way to get you and yours in the Yuletide mood than with the BEST CHRISTMAS CD EVER? That's right. Emilie-Claire Barlow, my personal idol and hero, has announced a release date for her brand spankin' new Christmas album, titled "Winter Wonderland". On the morn of October 17th, you'll be sure to find me clawing at the door of my local record store to get my very own copy!



Pic courtesy of emilieclaire.blogspot.com

Emilie-Claire Barlow, in case you don't know, is an extremely talented jazz vocalist and voice actor. (Remember those spiffy new "Christmas at the Bay" ads last year? With the whole "Jingle Bells we shake / Fa-La-La we sing" jingle that was beyond infectious? Yep, that was our girl Em!) And yeah, I know many of you might not be into the jazz, but... well, try it, you might like it! Christmas is a jazzy kind of time anyway. At the very least, this will certainly make an impressive stocking stuffer for some lucky person in your life, or a cheery and polished soundtrack for those fabulous Christmas parties you'll no doubt be throwing. (And hello, the cover art is gawr-geous, yes?)

Her albums in the past have always packed some powerhouse talents in the band department as well, and from what I have heard of Winter Wonderland, it won't be an exception. Don't believe me? Here, take a listen!

So yeah, clearly I lurrrrve her. Her crystal-clear voice, flutey delivery, and super-tight articulation are just beyond compare. Add a charming stage presence to all that, and you can see why I let forth a mighty roar of despair when I found out that she's scheduled a show for Nov. 8th -- a date when I may well be far across the pond in Scotland. (Hi Erin!) Oh well, that's a ways away yet, so who knows?

Okay okay, I promise I'll go back to work now. Maybe. I just couldn't contain my excitement! Eeeeeee!



* Fall! I love Fall! Gloves! Scarves! Boots, people! For the love of puppies and kittens, BOOTS!!!!

** Okay, not really. Maybe it's more like a moderately-paced streetcar, or perhaps a tandem bicycle. Festive!

PSA: Thesis on hold due to big-ass crazy Sephora sale!

Hey everyone! I know I said I wouldn't be back here for a while, but this is some crazy big news that I just have to share: The good people of Sephora have officially lost their minds!

Oh yes, it's true. I went in there today to check out Tarte's new concealer "The Eraser" (since the wonderful Elke at The Beauty Newsletter raved about it so) and Bourjois' Lip Stain Pen (since Teri at Beautiful Makeup Search ... er, raved about it so). (Who, me? Lemming? Never!) Apparently, all of Toronto also likes to read these fab blogs, because Sephora was sold out of both these products.

Normally, I'd have been disappointed, but today, I was too busy foaming at the mouth in disbelief to care. Because folks, check out the prices on these quality perfumes:

- Gendarme: $6 for travel-size, $11 for 60mL
- Carriére: $10 for 30mL, $16 for 60mL, and $25 for 120mL.
- Comme des Garcons 2 & Comme des Garcons Parfum: ranging from $16 to apx. $30, depending on the product.
- Laila by Geir Ness: $12 for 50mL or $9 for a tube of scented body lotion.
- Comptoire Sud Pacific's Aqua Motu and Bois de Filao for $13, if I recall correctly.
- Chantecaille: Le Jasmin, Le Violet, Le Rose, and Le The for $9 to $13.

Seriously, I think I almost had a seizure just looking at the display. A seizure of joy and near-delirious desire, and an overwhelming urge to sweep things into my shopping basket, which the SA keenly handed me. (The drool coming off my chin probably tipped her off.)

I ended up buying Gendarme, Carriére, and Laila. I haven't worn any of them for very long, but I'll say a few words about each.



First up, Gendarme. I had thought that this might have been a nice gift for The Boy, because he doesn't have any proper cologne. (I mean, if anyone can make Axe deodorant spray work, it's HIM. But it's nice to have options.) Anyway, it's a fairly unisex scent... very much a fresh-soapy-clean smell. The listed notes are: Citrus, Verbena, Jasmine, Thyme, and Leather.

Remember how I was all gaga over Demeter's Laundromat? Gendarme is like Laundromat's more sophisticated, Armani-suit wearing older brother. That is not to say that this is a serious scent. In fact, it's very laid back and casual. But it has a soft comfortable elegance to it that Laudromat cannot even hope to achieve.

This is how you want your man to smell on a rainy Sunday afternoon when you're snuggled up on the couch having a movie marathon. Actually, it's how *I* want to smell on a rainy Sunday afternoon, etc. etc. Which is why I am seriously considering keeping this bottle all to myself.





Luckily for The Boy, I bought that bottle of Carriére (also by Gendarme). The 2 scents are remarkably similar... almost identical. Perhaps this should not be surprising: the listed notes of "Lemon, Lime, Bergamot, Lavender, Lilac, Jasmine and soft florals" mirror those of Gendarme's.

Again a wonderfully soapy and clean scent, it is slightly more feminie than Gendarme. For some reason, I am getting a whipser of Eau de Suntan Lotion out of this, but it's not in a bad way. It also seems a teeeeeny tiny bit creamier, although this by no means detracts from the fresh lightness of the scent. Despite all those floral notes, I wouldn't call this a floral perfume. It's much too airy and ... well, "non-flowery" ... for that. Gendarme has a more bracing quality to it at the start, but upon drydown, I can barely tell the difference between the two.





As for Laila, I'd actually smelled this fragrance sometime last year, and almost bought it full price at the Norway 'exhibit' at Epcot a couple months ago. Thank goodness I waited!

I haven't put any on tonight, but as I recall, Laila was all about the white florals. The first few seconds are almost stingingly sharp and sweet... with sort of a Calgon Body Spray-esque quality (freesia, maybe?).It mellows quickly to a clean white scent (notice a trend in my purchases??), but n comparison to the Gendarme fragrances, it is much more floral and not as soapy. It's the most feminine of the 3 that I bought. I was impressed enough to want to buy it then, so I hope I'll continue to like it. It might have just been all the Viking paraphernalia and Epcot funnel cake talking though -- something about being around Viking gear makes me want to procure loot and bounty and whatnot.


Hurray hurray hurray, I love getting new perfume, especially when it's such a steal. Run, don't walk to a Sephora if you can, and give these juices a sniff if you haven't already done so. You might find a new favourite at an unbeatable price! I might have to go back myself and get a larger size of Carriére, or buy another bottle of Gendarme just for me!

Alrighty then, back to the grindstone. Hope you all are doing well!

Product Review: DERMAdoctor Wrinkle REVENGE eye balm

Today's review is brought to you by Meg's Makeup. Go here to read a condensed version of the review, or to see what other gals thought of the product!

aka: The Road to Recovery, and a Farewell... For Now.

Hello fellow BrainSpammers! It's been a while, hasn't it? It looks like it's gonna get worse before it gets better, but first, a way super long-overdue review!

The kind folks over at Meg's Makeup sent over this lovely little jar of eye cream aeons ago. And I sure have taken my sweet time getting around to talking about it. But look! What lovely packaging! The glass jar feels sturdy, and its smooth curves convey both a clean modern sexiness and the sense of "Hey look, I was designed by an MD!" which makes me very happy indeed.




See, the thing is, with a skincare product, I like to use it a fair bit before reviewing it. Unlike a lipstick or a perfume, I can't really tell right away how effective it is. Add this to the fact that at 23, eye-cream has not quite made it into my daily routine yet*, and well... you can see that it took a while to get to know DERMAdoctor's Wrinkle REVENGE eye balm**.

Anyway. What with my recent late nights and vaguely jet-setting (car-setting??) behaviour, I was in need of some serious skincare repair. Constantly sleeping in makeup (BAD G!!) will result in unfortunate breakouts, and melodramatic evenings will result in itchy, puffy, and otherwise irritated eyes, no matter how valiant one's mascara may be.

As such, I found myself reaching for Wrinkle REVENGE quite often these past few days. I've used a few other eye-creams before, but none have felt as luxurious as this one. Wrinkle REVENGE goes on thick like butter, but doesn't feel heavy or greasy. It sinks in fairly quickly, and after 5 minutes or so, I'm good to go with putting on concealer and all that shebazz.

The best part about this stuff has to be how soothing it feels. I wasn't expecting this level of comfort from a cream... usually, I look to eye gels to soothe tired eyes. But Wrinkle REVENGE is truly a comforting balm for weary lids. It is also supposed to decrease puffiness (well yes, it does a bit, although I was not mega-puffy to begin with) and reduce dark circles (sadly, not so much that I've seen).

Wrinkle REVENGE is scent-free and seems like it'd be great for sensitive skins. And it has extracts of White Tea and Grape Seed, so that makes me feel all healthy-nature-goddess and stuff inside, which is good***. I vaguely recall that these things are hawked as good cancer-busting ingredients, although I don't quite know about that. The important thing is that I really love how it feels on my skin, because in all honesty, isn't that 7/9ths of the battle?

Oh, and for the breakouts? Clean & Clear's Advantage Acne Spot Treatment. It's not magic, but it's as close to it as I have found. Plus, it smells nice. Those of you in the States are lucky to be paying just $6 for it; up here, it's in the $10-$12 range. But it does work like nothing else I've tried, so it's well worth it.



It is with a tear in my well-moisturized eye-area, my friends, that I bid you adieu temporarily. Life (more specifically: thesis deadline and the new school term) is getting in the way of blogging. The nerve! Anyway, I will no doubt be back to blather away about all things makeup and Benji, but you will have to kindly allow 4 to 6 weeks for new posts to arrive. In the mean time, take care of yourselves! I will miss you, but I will see you soon!


Much love,
~Glitterati


* Yes yes, I know, "prevention". Dudes, I am LAY-ZEE, you know? But an eye cream this nice sure makes it easier to hop on that bandwagon.

** I do love the random CAPS in the title. I honestly do. I am of the firm belief that "revenge" should always be represented typographically as "REVENGE", with optional excalimation marks for atmosphere.

*** Holy sweet syrupy Moses, I just found out that 1 oz. of this is $68-freakin' dollars!!! AMERICAN!!! For that price, I should also be feeling WonderWoman-esque super powers. The bonus is that I am now compelled to use it every day, morning and night, as the though of letting such a pricey product go to waste is just appalling to me. Silky smooth eyelids, here I come!