Tag Archives: fashion

what’s in a label ?

6 Aug

How good is it, when one you score that perfect piece of clothing …. and you’re not even looking ? Not like that endless search for the ‘dream dress’, when you know exactly what you want and can’t find it ……I mean those opportunistic moments when you just ‘see it and have to try it on ‘ … and then you do,  AND it actually fits like a glove!!!

The dilemma begins …….Do I or  Don’t I ? – The voice in your head saying ‘no you don’t NEED another jacket’ ... and the other voice shouts ‘but it’s perfect’.shopping2

So, off I go for a long lunch and a bit more shopping to quell the voices, but I’m compelled to return right on closing time and try it once more. Then it happened.

You all know it ….it’s a familiar scene…the echoes of the shop assistant and other women in the change room all oozing compliments, and ‘you just HAVE to buy it’ ... bla bla bla.

The dilemma remained, and THEN I saw the tag …. it was XS ….. me ? extra small? that’s ridiculous.

But that’s when I realise it’s a ‘curvy girls’ store so I  guess that makes sense …. and bang my decision is made  I NEED to buy it, clearly that label matters.

Oh what complex creatures we are . .. (well dressed …but complex)

P1000233

 

Tags: , , , , , ,

phew… it’s not just me …..

26 Jul

eyebrows are a worry everywhere …see what the fashion pundits are saying

you heard it here first

(I always knew I was a trendsetter… I’m 50 Something but not dead yet)

P1000181

Tags: , , , , , ,

beauty in a bottle..or tube..or jar….

20 Jul

Back in the bathroom and reflecting on the tough world of womanhood.

There are products everywhere to…clean, moisturise, tint, tighten, straighten, add body, strip colour, whiten, hold and shine, deodorise and sanitise… and they just keep coming even when you don’t buy them. Sample products that all look like a great offer (everyone likes something for nothing …right?) …and a chance to try something new …(but rarely do).beauty-sweeps

On Wednesday I left the hairdresser with yet another tube of cream styling stuff … my reward for having visited 10 times….. I came home and added it to the collection, wondering why I couldn’t have just had a discount instead.

Now the challenge is to figure what tube does what each morning as I prepare to face the world…. Being ’50Something’   means having the glasses handy so that I can actually read the labels.

The last thing we want is to moisturise with a styling cream that adds body and bounce…..to my face!

P1000168

 

Tags: , , , , , , , ,

back on the brow…

19 Jul

Way back in the early days of my year-long blog challenge, I made a number of observations about eyebrows…their purpose, their shape, their usefulness, and their contribution to finishing one’s face.eyebrows

Well here I am again, bemoaning the fact that mine are quickly disappearing. They have always been thin and fair…. but they appear to be fading into oblivion with my increasing maturity.

This past week has seen me searching each morning, to find those fine thread-like strands growing above my eyes…so that I could colour them in….you know, join the dots with a pencil from my palette before facing the world.

I’m not craving anything high fashion, nor expecting that the gods are about to smile on me and have me wake up in the morning with thick lush brows … all I want is to NOT look like the elderly women that we are all familiar with …you know the ones that draw a thin black arch over their orbits to replace what nature has so cruelly removed.

P1000146

 

Tags: , , , , ,

panda eyes…

17 Jul

Carrying on in a similar vein as last night ….. I wonder at what point you TELL someone about a personal mess or clothing goof up???

You know the sort of thing… an open fly, dress tucked into knickers, spinach in your teeth, loo paper hanging out your pants…

Well….today I was in a meeting and I became a tad emotional, angry and upset . I wasn’t actually crying however a sneaky tear escaped one eye….before it quickly dried and things moved along nicely.

I left the meeting, chatted to a bunch of people in the hallway, had a coffee with a colleague… then went back to the car where I caught a glimpse of the ugliest panda eyes you can imagine. A huge smudge under one and a corner full of black goop in the other.panda eyes

Bloody hell, why didn’t anyone mention that I looked like a traffic accident ?? (while I was busy feeling quietly smug, as I was sporting my new, fresh hair-do). What does it take for someone (in this case, not even strangers) to give you a quiet whisper telling you to pull yourself together??

Anyway, lessons learned  …

1/ don’t save waterproof mascara for the summer swim season… and

2/ if I ever come across a sister (or mister) who is sporting some unsightly malfunction….I will tell them.

Would you ??

P1000164

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

power to the redhead…

25 Jun

Growing up a redhead I reckon I’m well positioned to highlight the conflicted emotions that it brings…and to give a huge shout out to the rest of our special and different sub species. … (the REAL ones that is). Apparently we make up 1-2% of the world’s population which is clearly why so many women are  jealous and pay phenomenal amounts of money to join our elite club.

But it hasn’t always been so cruisey.  As a kid …and then right through high school,  I stood out like the proverbial dogs balls !redheadNot only did I have a thick head of red hair (as opposed to just a’ thick-head’) BUT I was always amongst the tallest in the class as well. What hope did I have of going under the radar ? or blending in with the crowd?

But sometime in my later teens the penny dropped that I had something others wanted….and at least I could say mine was natural…cop that cheats!… (they say revenge is sweet).

redhead1There’s a lot written about us… and lot’s of ‘less than flattering’ name calling (ranger, blue, ginger, carrot top…just to name a few) There have been hate crimes against redheads… (redheadism) …and as recently as 2011 one of the worlds largest sperm banks actually stopped accepting donations from red headed men because there was no demand for red-headed babies … how sad is THAT? (almost as bad a Hitler banning marriage between consenting redheads ….for fear the coupling would produce more ‘inferior’ offspring  …)

BUT hey.. were’re tough and resilient bunch… with higher pain tolerance that all you other softies, and apparently we can even manufacture our own Vit D.

So before you let fly with some racist redhead  comment …. just remember …as YOU  fade to grey …WE will gradually transition through all the beautiful shades of faded copper to rosy-blonde colours, then finally to silvery-white. No grey for us !!!

CAM00202

Tags: , , , , , , ,

one for the sisterhood…

24 Jun

Rushing around before work this morning and I was left  with no time to ‘put my face on’ before I raced out the door !

aaagh panic… naked face…work day…. NOOOO!!!!makeup

I managed to slap some mosturiser on, and figured I would do the rest  at the traffic lights en route…then add  finishing touches as soon as I arrived at the office. But when I was fifteen minutes down the road I began to sweat with panic … I was suddenly convinced I’d left all of my make-up at home.

There I was naked lashes, no eyebrows, pale lips and shiny moisturised ’50Something’ skin.

makeup2I was torn whether I should go back home (and then be extra late for work) ….. or dive into a store along the way to grab some basics….I’m glad to report that common sense prevailed and I pulled over to REALLY look in my bag, and there it was, my makeup purse with all the requisite supplies. phew!

I remember the days when my skin was youthful enough to be seen naked in public, and I even had enough colour in my lips to just add gloss…. but I’m embarrassed to say I have not left the house without mascara since I was 13!!! …yeah yeah …but I’m a redhead OK?

Anyway… all was well in my world once I had those basics sorted.

~I’m 50 something ….but I’m not dead yet~

CAM00268

 

Tags: , , , , , ,

it’s a fine line between pleasure and pain…

4 Jun

hairdresser1Those of you that have been following my musings, will know of my hairdressing dilemma. How to break in a new one that I…  like.. trust… can get to easily every 3 weeks… and that I can communicate with (especially given my vocal limitations).

I found ‘Ms J’  and, while she will never be able to ‘fill the scissors’ of my old super-hairdresser… she is lovely and ticks most boxes. However…there is a new dilemma.hairdresser

You see, she has a school-based apprentice working in the salon, who is a shocker….surly, unfriendly and really really ROUGH.

The first time I was treated to her fingers at the basin, I found myself wishing that I was having hot pokers stuck in my eyeballs… but I cut her some slack because she was so young and new.

The second time I was hoping for an improvement, but alas no !… More pain, less gain and the best part of a salon visit had been reduced to torture.

I finally found the courage to have a quiet word with Ms J and was happy (but not surprised) to hear that many had gone there before me. PHEW …I wasn’t imagining it… and it’s not just ME  that she doesn’t like.. she really is awful at her job, and yes… she is ‘being encouraged to do better’

THAT was 3 weeks ago.

hairwashingSo tonight I went expecting to find a slightly less aggressive approach with the suds …(I  even dared to look forward to it)…  You can imagine my disappointment when  she jumped in and  started ripping at the roots while scrubbing the same spot round and round in circles for what felt like 2 minutes of sheer agony. By the time we progressed to conditioner, to her credit, she did ask ‘is that pressure ok?’   … so I guess you could say that’s an improvement.

Having survived the basin Ms J asked me what I thought,  so I replied that perhaps she should encourage her young charge to consider a career change….as a hairdresser she would make a great accountant (or anything really, as long as it doesn’t involve touching another person).

IMG_9297

 

Tags: , , , , , ,

good luck ….

19 May

Those of you who have been keeping up with my daily nonsense will be aware of my fear around changing hairdressers…. this might just help you to understand the reason for some of my anxiety.

P1130797

Now I didn’t set foot inside.. I just parked at the door… but hey if I was an Age Persioner  I might just be tempted.

(my three favourite topics…hair…signage …and spelling errors… all in one post!)

P1130791

Tags: , , , , , ,

the curse of curvy calves

1 May

For as long as I can remember I have been well endowed in the calf area. As a young’n I recall being desperately upset when long zip boots first came in fashion and I struggled to find a pair generous enough to accommodate my meaty mid-leg.

curvy calvesIt’s true that my dimensions are not exactly petite… but nor would I say that I am obese. No matter whether I have been in peak shape in need of some trimming … my calves have been a constant. In fact I would go so far as to say that the curvy calf is somewhat of a family tradition, with Mum’s looking like the best ‘baking leg’ you could buy.

Curvy calves are a curse, and for women that share this affliction, exercise becomes fine line….too much walking, jogging, cycling will pump them up even further  and soon have us looking like we are on steroids.

Anyway the reason for this reflection is my current skinny leg jeans attraction. I have a couple of favourite pairs, they fit and feel good…however I find as the day goes on that the lower leg begins to twist and I end up with a side seam somewhere up the front of my shin…worse on the right than left. Now originally I blamed the production process, thinking that the fabric had been cut crooked … however, not so… it is the power of the curvy calf that causes the constant creep.

BUT I will not be beaten… nor will  I give up my favourite jeans!.

IMG_9254

Tags: , , , ,

← Older Entries
Newer Entries →