What So Proudly We Hail’d

Sorry guys! This was supposed to go up last week, in time for the Fourth of July, but I had some internet issues, and I just realized it never actually posted!

Although the colors of the United States flag do not actually have specific meaning, they ARE significant in the country’s seal.

Red

Hardiness and Valour

Cosmetics à la Carte Sheer Balm Lipstick in Daiquiri

This lipstick has an incredible light, silky texture. It’s lightweight, softly glossy, and perfect for summer. While the color is a nice, bright red, it’s sheer enough to be easily wearable. It’s juicy, summery, and playful, just like the virgin daiquiris my sister and I used to drink with my mom and grandma, feeling very grown-up and glamorous. The lipstick is, indeed, glamorous, and only just grown-up enough.

*P.S. This company has TERRIFIC customer service. They are based in England, but they’re really attentive and excited to do business with customers from the States.

White

Purity and Innocence

Wet n Wild Wild Shine Nail Color in French White Crème

When I was in grade school, a good friend and I were obsessed with nail polish. So obsessed were we that we even cataloged our vast, combined collection, putting a swipe of each color on a piece of notebook paper and writing the name of the shade underneath, even including which of us it belonged to. Obsessive, yes, but we were eleven and had dreams of starting our own alterna-teen zine. One of our favorite polishes was a white one from Wet n Wild. I’m not sure if it was the same back then as it is now, but I still love Wet n Wild white nail polish. Often, white nail polishes are too sheer to really get a nice, flat shade, but this one is creamy, opaque, and perfectly thick. It’s different and funky, but never too loud or inappropriate. It goes with the trendiest of outfits just as well as with sophisticated and conservative ones. And, despite the seemingly contradictory nature of all these appropriate-isms, it is also oddly beachy. Maybe it’s a sort of seashell-type look. It makes your feet look tan.

Blue

The color of the Chief: Vigilance, Perseverance, Justice

Navy for Women perfume

My dad was in the Navy for twenty years, so my childhood was spent moving from state to state every year or so. I loved to hear stories of my parents’ courtship and engagement while he was attending the Naval Academy. When he returned from the first Gulf War, my mom, along with the other wives, draped a garland of Valentines over the submarine. 

He gave my mom this Navy perfume, and she always wore it. I would sit on her bed, watching her get ready for various balls, parties, and galas, and she would always spray Navy perfume at the end. When I was ten, my parents gave me my very own bottle, and I was thrilled. It’s sophisticated, warm, and classy, but never stuffy. It’s the smell of my mother, my childhood, and my heritage.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

 Your virtue is my privilege. For that

It is not night when I do see your face,

Therefore I think I am not in the night,

Nor doth this wood lack worlds of company,

For you in my respect are all the world.

Then how can it be said I am alone,

When all the world is here to look on me?

     -Helena, Act II, Scene I, lines 220-226

Hard Candy Just Nails Nail Color in Mushroom

Through the house give glimmering light

By the dead and drowsy fire,

Every elf and fairy sprite

Hop as light as bird from brier,

And this ditty, after me,

Sing, and dance it trippingly.

     -Oberon, Act V, Scene I, lines 391-396

During the night, the fairies gather in meadows and groves, on hilltops, and near streams, to dance and drink their fairy wine. In the morning, all that is left of their revelry is a cluster of mushrooms, known as a ”fairy ring.” It is said that any mortal who dances in a fairy ring will be driven mad. As a child, I searched through these mushrooms for any other signs of the fairies, whispering desperately, “I believe in you! I believe in you!” so that they might recognize an ally and trust me enough to show themselves. Sadly, it never happened. Sometimes, though, I do still look. When I found this nail polish, named Mushroom, I smiled at the memories it recalled. It is, indeed, a very mushroom-y shade of purplish-grayish-brown, and when I wear it, I carry a little bit of fairy revelry with me.

Rimmel London Spark It Up! Gleaming Eye Darkening Liner in Peridot

Your eyes are lodestars, and your tongue’s sweet air

More tuneable than lark to shepherd’s ear

When wheat is green, when hawthorn buds appear.

      -Helena, Act I, Scene I, lines 183-185

 

This eyeliner creates a striking effect. It is a shimmery teal with a touch of sparkle. It makes my eyes look bigger and brighter, and incredibly glamorous. It’s smooth and creamy, and glides on easily, giving a slightly avante-garde, yet sultry, come-hither look.

Neutrogena Mineral Sheers Mineral Powder Blush in Illuminator

Four days will quickly steep themselves in night;

Four nights will quickly dream away the time;

And then the moon, like to a silver bow

[New] bent in heaven, shall behold the night

Of our solemnities.

     -Hippolyta, Act I, Scene I, lines 7-11

All of Neutrogena’s mineral products are fantastic, and this highlighter is no exception. It works over blush or bronzer to create a dewy glow, or on its own, to enhance your natural gifts.

Cupcake Lip Balm 4-Pack

Feed him with apricocks and dewberries,

With purple grapes, green figs, and mulberries;

The honey-bags steal from the humble-bees,

And for night-tapers crop their waxen thighs,

And light them at the fiery glow-worm’s eyes,

To have my love to bed and to arise;

And pluck the wings from painted butterflies,

To fan the moonbeams from his sleeping eyes.

Nod to him, elves, and do him courtesies.

     -Titania, Act III, Scene II, lines 166-174

Whenever I stayed with my grandparents during the summer, my grandmother would have tea parties for my cousin, my sisters, and me. Sometimes my mom came, too, and we ate little petit-fours and drank tea out of a tiny antique tea set painted an opalescent white. These adorable little fairy cakes are about the size of the petit-fours (similar in size to a chocolate truffle) and contain shimmery gloss scented like violet tarts and lemon pies.

 L’Oréal Paris HIP High Intensity Pigments Shocking Shadow Pigments in Intrepid

There sleeps Titania sometime of the night,

Lull’d in these flowers with dances and delight;

And there the snake throws her enamell’d skin,

Weed wide enough to wrap a fairy in

     -Oberon, Act II, Scene II, lines 253-256

 

I have always loved peacocks. My godmother has a peacock necklace that I used to stare at every time she wore it. I even chased some peacocks at the zoo once, until one of my uncles told me how vicious they are. But a peacock-colored eyeshadow? Viciously hot! This loose shadow shimmers between green, purple, and brown, depending on the shadows. For a truly dramatic effect, it can be applied to the entire lid using the brush that comes with it, or, for a subtler look, a flat brush along the lashline, or a smudge brush, for a shimmery smoky-eye.

 Jouer Lip Gloss in Glisten

Sweet Moon, I thank thee for thy sunny beams;

I thank thee, Moon, for shining now so bright;

For by thy gracious, golden, glittering [gleams],

I trust to take of truest Thisby sight.

     -Bottom (as Pyramus), Act V, Scene I, lines 272-275

I hate sticky lip gloss. Fortunately, this one is soft and moisturizing. The gold glimmer is truly flattering on all skin tones, and it makes lips look fuller and poutier. It is a sexier, more sophisticated version of the insanely glittered glosses I wore when I dressed up as a fairy and sold bubble wands as my job.

Paris Hilton Fairy Dust

…mark’d I where the bolt of Cupid fell.

It fell upon a little western flower,

Before milk-white, now purple with love’s wound,

And maidens call it love-in-idleness.

Fetch me that flow’r; the herb I showed thee once.

The juice of it on sleeping eyelids laid

Will make or man or woman madly dote

Upon the next live creature that it sees.

     -Oberon, Act II, Scene I, lines 165-172

When my boyfriend spent a month with his grandparents in Ukraine last summer, he took a bottle of this with him, to be reminded of me. It is definitely a romantic scent. It’s full of flowers, mainly orange-blossom, but does not smell like a typical “floral” scent, nor does it smell like Eau de Allergies.

Tarina Tarantino Pearl Glow Primer in Pearl Nude

To-morrow night, when Phoebe doth behold

Her silver visage in the wat’ry glass,

Decking with liquid pearl the bladed grass

(A time that lovers’ flights doth still conceal),

Through Athens gates have we devis’d to steal.

     -Lysander, Act I, Scene I, lines 209-213

This primer is awesome for evening out skin tone and creating a dewy, fresh-faced glow. It forgives a multitude of skins, like spending too much time in the sun, spending all night writing a paper the night before it’s due, or drinking with the girls until the wee hours of the morning, and it comes in such a cute, Barbie-makeup bottle.

Lush Silk Stockings Body Colour

I with the Morning’s love have oft made sport,

And like a forester, the groves may tread

Even till the eastern gate, all fiery red,

Opening on Neptune with fair blessed beams,

Turns into yellow gold his salt green streams.

     -Oberon, Act III, Scene II, lines 389-393

This is a great summer moisturizer. It smells delicious and sexy, and it leaves a pretty, pinkish-gold glow on skin. It’s loaded with shea butter, which absorbs really quickly but sinks in deeply, to leave skin feeling as soft, smooth, and glowing as Titania’s.

If we shadows have offended,

Think but this, and all is mended,

That you have but slumb’red here

While these visions did appear.

And this weak and idle theme,

No more yielding but a dream,

Gentles, do not reprehend.

If you pardon, we will mend.

And, as I am an honest Puck,

If we have unearned luck

Now to scape the serpent’s tongue,

We will make amends ere long;

Else the Puck a liar call.

So, good night unto you all.

Give me your hands, if we be friends,

And Robin shall restore amends.

     -Puck, Act V, Scene I, lines 423-438

The Beached Margent of the Sea

Lilly Pulitzer Beachy

My dad was an officer in the Navy for twenty years, and as a kid, we lived in numerous coastal towns, from Virginia Beach to Kittery, Maine to just outside of Seattle. Being relatively close to the beach has always been a part of my life. This perfume perfectly captures the smell of beach-towns and little beachy boutiques. It has notes of watermelon and citrus, beachy flowers like frangipani, jasmine, and tiare, and just a little bit of vanilla and salt air. It smells fresh, bright, and a little preppy. It’s wholesome and pretty, and it practically dares you to be in a bad mood.

The Body Shop Coconut Body Butter

When my siblings and I were little, my mom would buy whole coconuts and let us throw them on the ground to crack them open. It quickly became a coconut massacre, as we became overcome with the berserkergang, and would smash them with meat tenderizers and baseball bats, or simply hurl them with all our strength against the ground.  When they would split open, we feasted on their insides like savages. The meat was creamy and rich, but not overly sweet.

This is THE quintessential summer moisturizer. The coconut scent is spot-on, and it moisturizes like crazy. It sinks right in, yet is still pleasingly thick and creamy. It moisturizes skin with organic virgin cold-pressed Community Trade coconut oil, as well as Community Trade shea and cocoa butters.

 Malin + Goetz Mojito Lip Balm

I tease my boyfriend constantly for ordering mojitos year-round, at every bar, even the seediest of sports bars. Often, the bartender will ask him to repeat himself, certain he misheard. My boyfriend will repeat, “Mojito?” as if the bartender is somehow simple. The bartender will invariably look at me, then back to my boyfriend, and then go to fetch the mojito, and a beer for me. Despite my incessant teasing (which, I assure him, only builds character), I order them with him during the summer. I can’t think of many things more refreshing than an ice-cold, minty, lime-y drink. This lip balm perfectly replicates the smell of a real mojito, balanced between lime and mint and some faint hint of white rum. It moisturizes lips using fatty acids, allowing the protection to penetrate skin more effectively. And it’s perfect for sticky-hot summer months because it’s a clear, lightweight gel that sinks in quickly and doesn’t leave a waxy residue.

Wet n Wild Wild Shine Nail Color in Sunny Side Up

I have always been a dress-for-the-occasion kind of person. In the winter, I love layers of sweaters and thick, furry vests, and in the summer, I’m all about bright colors and little sundresses. I figure, when in Rome, dress like a Roman. This nail polish is bright, cheery, sunny, summery orange. It’s the kind of color that makes me happy every time I catch a glimpse of my fingers (or toes). It’s a little bit of sunshine even on rainy, stormy days.

Anthology

Caress Evenly Gorgeous Exfoliating Body Wash

I love this body wash. It gently exfoliates, and moisturizes with burnt brown sugar and karite butter. It smells sort of sexy, in a soft, summery, brown sugary way. After I use it, my skin feels soft and smooth and perfectly ready for lotion. And the best part? It costs less than five dollars!

Lush Strawberry Feels Forever Massage Bar

When I was little, my parents took my siblings and me strawberry picking fairly often. I vividly remember the smell of the strawberry farms: awful. I don’t know what could possibly make sweet, delicious strawberries smell so disgusting, but there was always a nasty, cheesy, hot smell over the fruity strawberry smell. Fortunately, the people at Lush have found a way to capture the yummy strawberry smell without the weird ickiness that I remember from my childhood. I could not imagine a cuter way to moisturize my body than this lotion bar. It’s made with real crushed strawberries, as well as an infusion of hibiscus flowers, and contains some of the same antioxidants found in red wine. All you have to do is warm it a little between your hands and then slather it all over your body, and it will leave you soft and moisturized and smelling sweet the entire day.

Tokyo Milk Dark No. 60 Coco Noir Lip Elixir

I asked my boyfriend what I should write about this week and he said, “The dark chocolate lip balm!” Naturally, I had to listen. This lip balm really does smell like dark chocolate. It’s cocoa-y, but not too sweet. I take after my mother in my love of dark chocolate; the dark chocolates always disappear from the sampler boxes first, particularly if they happen to be filled with coconut. This balm is a much healthier dark chocolate indulgence. It contains aloe leaf and vitamin e for softening and moisturizing. It’s great on dry lips because it doesn’t peel off or leave a tight feeling afterward. It just sinks in and makes lips softer and (I think) plumper.

Sephora Collection Nail Lacquer in Myrtille

I love it when I find a nail polish that just makes me happy every time I look at my hands (or feet). This one definitely does it. It is so blue it’s practically radioactive. Somehow, the bright color makes my skin look more tan. It’s different and edgy and summery, and reminds me of photographs of Greek cities against sparkling waters and insanely blue skies.

Redken Extreme CAT Protein Reconstructing Treatment for Distressed Hair

Oh thank goodness. As I’ve been growing out my hair, it’s been getting more and more difficult to get it to behave, so I’ve wound up using the blowdryer and straightener way more than I’d like. Consequently, my hair has gotten a little fried. This treatment brings it back to life. I spray it on after shampooing and leave it on while I shower. Then I rinse it out the way I would normal conditioner. The formula is weightless, so my hair doesn’t lose any volume, but it really takes care of the nasty ends. My hair is full and shiny, and it smells nice.

My Kingdom For…

Aveeno Smart Essentials Anti-Fatigue Eye Treatment

I just finished taking finals. They were actually my final  finals of community college before transferring to a four-year institution, and I was pushing for Ivy League. Needless to say, I was working hard. (I did manage to make it, though!) I pulled many looooong nights, finished many papers at two or three a.m., and fell asleep in many books. I was exhausted and cranky much of the time. Fortunately, I would roll on a little of this eye treatment in the morning and nobody else would be the wiser. And when the pressure would get to me and I would have a few moments of tearful frustration, a little more took care of the extra puffiness. Then I lined the inner rims of my eyes with NYC New York Color Eye Liner Pencil in White to take care of the redness, and I was just an annoyingly fresh-faced, straight-A student.

By Any Other Name

D&G La Lune

Every time I wear this perfume, my boyfriend says to me, “Mm, girlfriend, you smell so good!” The scent is a little innocent and a little sexy, a little mysterious, and very feminine. It is very, very slightly fruity, with hints of rose and tuberose, and a sweet, lingering musk. It conjures images of Juliet on the balcony, gazing into the night and pining for Romeo.

Burt’s Bees Rose Tinted Lip Balm

Fortunately for us, the people at Burt’s Bees do not seem to adhere to the credo, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” (And thank goodness, because that saying has an extremely high bad-grammar-per-volume ratio.) Their original lip balm is wildly popular, and now they have added a beautiful, subtle tint as well. The Rose shade gives lips a perfect, flushed tint that definitely does not look like makeup. This can be applied as often as necessary to heal chapped lips and will never look overdone or too bright. It also smells, very slightly, like cherry Twizzlers. (Also, don’t worry about kissing someone while wearing this, because it will not “mark your territory.”) And it has SPF 15.

Fresh Sugar Rosé Tinted Lip Treatment SPF 15

I love a tinted lip balm. That is a laughably drastic understatement. I am obsessed with tinted lip balms. I could probably buy a fancy car with the net worth of all the tinted lip balms I’ve ever owned. This one is amazing. It gives lips a sweet, innocent flush, while completely not looking like makeup in any way, shape, or form. It just looks like I have really pretty, pouty, healthy lips. And it smells INCREDIBLE. I had read tales of the mysterious power of Fresh’s Sugar scent, which spawned a legion of perfumes, soaps, scrubs, and lotions, as well as the Sugar Lip Treatments, but I was completely unprepared for the reality. It is so incredibly addictive that I wind up making this weird smushy-face periodically throughout the day, just to smell it on my lips. (Don’t judge me.) It is also incredibly moisturizing and softening, and feels like it just melts into my lips. And it won’t kiss off, either.

Korres Wild Rose Lip Butter

When I was little, I loved playing in my grandma’s bedroom. She had piles of paper dolls, bottles of perfume, cabinets of trinkets and curiosities, and enough jewelry to satisfy a whole ship full of pirates (i.e., my cousin, sister, and me). One of my favorite things was a rosary whose beads were made of real rose petals. She kept it in its own special little box with a picture of the Blessed Virgin on it, and every time I opened the box, the scent of dried rose petals would drift out. This lip balm smells remarkably like it. Not overwhelming or stuffy like some rose scents can be, it just has a feeling of soft, old-fashioned femininity. It is wonderfully moisturizing, with a really unique, creamy texture, and it feels weightless on lips. The color makes me feel like a heroine in some Elizabethan drama, giving my lips a just-bitten look, and it can be layered for a deeper tint.

Smith’s Rosebud Salve Balm

This is a cult favorite from an old family company, the Rosebud Perfume Co., whose factory is not far from where I used to live, in a fairly rural part of Maryland. It is great for lips and cuticles, and is way more glamorous than plain old petroleum jelly. It has a delicate rosebud scent that is reminiscent of childhood summers when we spent all day in the backyard. It comes in a gorgeous, vintage-looking tin as well as a convenient, hands-free (still pretty) tube.

Sonia Kashuk Luxury Lip Color in Sheer Rosebud

Not long ago, I went on a hunt for the PERFECT red lipstick. I tried a variety of shades and textures. I’m so glad I found this one, because it’s incredibly easy to wear. It’s not Lady Gaga crazy, but it is definitely Red Lipstick. It’s a little glossy (in a soft, creamy way), and smells like a box of Valentine chocolates. I feel like one of those fifties housewives that vacuums in her pearls.

Wet n Wild Megalast Nail Color in Undercover

This is such an incredibly pretty shade of rose. To me, it is Victorian ladies, calling cards, and sitting-rooms. Lest that seem stuffy, it also fits perfectly with my black lace-up boots and leather jackets. It is a truly versatile color that just about anyone can wear. It’s dusty and just a little unexpected. It is also perfectly opaque, dries really quickly, and stays on for a remarkably long time. Pretty impressive for under two bucks.

My Rosy Wish List

Brambleberry Rose Lip Balm

I have a very dear friend whose nickname is Brambleberry. Despite the fact that the picture on the tin is of a woman, this balm makes me think of him.

Mocha Rose Lip Balm

The combination of rose and mocha makes me think of dusty Parisian coffe shops and glamorously bookish bohemians.

Tokyo Milk Dark La Vie en Rose No. 42 Lip Elixir

I LOVE TOKYO MILK. This lip balm just sounds… sexy! Rosewater mixes with sweet orange, peach, and vanilla in an ultra-softening formula with jasmine, bee balm, aloe leaf, and vitamin e. And the packaging is perfectly fit for a gothic romance.

My Kingdom For…

Tweezerman Floral Print Mini Tweezers

I was always under the impression that tweezers were tweezers. It didn’t really matter who made them, they were always just tweezers. But I recently went looking for a pair with sharper tips, to get at tiny hairs and ingrowns. I found this teeny pair at Sephora, and they have completely changed how I look at tweezers. I honestly have no idea what it is that makes the difference, but they are amazing. They do indeed get at the tiny hairs and ingrowns, and they also seem to grip hairs better. Touching up my eyebrows is so much easier now! Plus- how cute are they?