When I was first on my own, making my own money and buying my own clothes, I was easily hypnotized at the cosmetics counter. I’d see bright colors and shiny cases and hear the come-ons from the sales girls and then arrive home larded down with all manner of products, many of which went into my junk drawer, never to be used again (or else given to friends and sisters), because they weren’t very practical (or else the colors were hilariously wrong for me). One category of item that simply has never proven useful to me is palettes combining different types of cosmetics. Oh, they seem great in theory, but in practice, they can’t work unless you carry them around with you. After all, if they have lipstick or lipgloss in them, what good will they do you sitting home on your vanity table? You’re gonna need to reapply your lipstick or gloss at some point. And unless you’re one of those girls who lugs around one of those ginormous handbags orthopedists warn against (I’m not), then you can’t take it with you. (When you do, you risk banging the palette against something and breaking the powders inside and ruining the whole kit.) And who needs to keep reapplying shadow and blush and day and night anyway? (There is an answer to that question, but those girls most likely don’t read blogs.) (Or anything else. It’s hard to read on your back.) Read the rest of this entry »