Weekly Poll: The Reverse Poll #2

WHY IS IT ALREADY WEDNESDAY AGAIN?! Three day weekends are sort of nice because I get to spend more time with Stan, but then I lose track of what day it is and fall into a swirling vortex of uncertain time and "OH SHIT I FORGOT TO DO THAT THING" so yeah. Um, how are you?

Anyway. I've decided to devote most of my Wednesday to catching up on e-mails and cleaning up my incredibly untidy apartment, so rather than write anything complicated today, I'm opening up the floor for another "Ask Me Anything". Want to know something about me or this website? Not sure what color socks to wear tomorrow? Need advice on whether or not you should ask that cute boy to the dance? Ask away in the comments. I'll do my best to answer.

Disclaimer: Answers not guaranteed to be free of silliness.

Etude House Fresh Cherry Tints in OR202 & PP501. Limited Edition!

Affiliate Links Bought It

Etude House (the super-adorable Korean brand) recently released a couple of new Fresh Cherry Tint colors in celebration of their fifth birthday. Whether or not you care about Etude House and their birthday (or what kind of princessy pink cake is bound to be served at an Etude House birthday party), these new shades are pretty on-trend. And even if you don't care about trends, they're just plain pretty.

Of course when I saw them online, I couldn't resist. I'll be sharing some swatches and stuff, so if you like what you see, grab them while you can! They're still available on eBay and whatnot for the time being.

#HPBScentOfTheDay Challenge Roundup 3/4

Another week has passed and more perfumes have been chosen. I've noticed that the sweatshirt I sometimes wear to bed is developing a strange odor around the cuffs—this is what happens when the residue of over a dozen different perfumes gets rubbed against it and combined, I guess. Good thing laundry machines exist.

Want to know what's making my shirt smell so peculiar? Read on for this week's fragrant picks!

Indie Friday: The SA List - Sweet Anthem Perfume Subscription

Bought It

Have you ever thought to yourself "Man, I wish there was a subscription service for indie perfume samples!" Anybody? (Just me?) Well, thankfully for me and my need to smell everything ever, such a thing exists.

Meet The SA List, from craft perfumery Sweet Anthem. This is their summer box.

Weekly Poll: The Musical

How's your week going so far? Learn anything interesting?

I've been spending way too much time this week reading up on famous disappearances - where U at, Hereward the Wake? A Google search about home audio recording equipment lead me down this path somehow - those internet rabbit holes run DEEP, man. Anyway, at some point "research" just turns into plain old time wasting, which I guess brings me back to the original subject of my search (and the poll topic of the week in a roundabout way):

You're suddenly able to play any one musical instrument with great proficiency. Which one do you choose?


Let's assume you retain the ability to play any instruments you're already good at. I'd probably go for the violin. I actually took violin lessons for a year or two when I was younger, but I never really practiced enough to get good at it, and then my teacher randomly upped and moved somewhere in Africa one day, so... yeah. So much for that. They sure do sound nice when other people play them though.

So how about you? On which instrument will you write your ballad about Louis Le Prince?

Nerd Style: Pretty in Pixels (via ShopLately)

Affiliate Links Press Samples

Newsflash for anyone who thought I was cool: I'm kind of a dork. But maybe dorky is the new cool so that's OK? Anyway, once in a while I go through phases where I really, really like to play retro and retro-inspired point-and-click adventure games. What could possibly be cooler than that?! (Probably lots. Ahem.)

My latest phase has been going on since December - at what point does a phase turn into a full-blown obsession? Probably when you start browsing around ShopLately for jewelry inspired by pixel art. Yeah, that's a thing you can do. If you also want to turn your boring 3D jewelry existence into an 8-bit bauble paradise, read on. Level up!

Gold stars for anyone who recognizes this game.

Blog Tips: How to remove the navigation bar in Blogger

Hey, so remember when I said I was in the process of moving to Wordpress a couple of weeks ago? Well, I'm still working on that. It's taking me a while because I'm new to Wordpress and there are a lot of fussy little things that need to be fixed manually (blah), plus I'm posting new stuff at the same time so I don't fall totally behind. This stuff can be time-consuming, yo. Anyway, rather than whine about that endlessly, how about I share a quick tip for bloggers who use the Blogger platform?

Let's talk about the Blogger Navbar. Not sure what I mean? This thing:

Right click - open in new tab to enlarge.

Sometimes it's transparent. Sometimes it's blue. In any case, I don't like it. If have the Navbar on your site and you do like it, feel free to ignore the rest of this post. But I'm going to explain how to get rid of it for those of you who want it gone. It's very easy!

The Mudsplosion: My Accidental Home Spa Day with Adovia

Affiliate Links Press Samples

Tell me if this has ever happened to you: You're using skincare that comes in a tube, so you're squeezing hard to get everything out, and then suddenly the ass-end of the tube pops open and all of the product gets pushed out the wrong side and onto whatever is in front of you. Splat.

I guess I must be a vigorous squeezer, because this is something that has happened to me more than once. And it happened again just this weekend as I was testing out the Adovia Purifying Mud Mask. But I decided to turn lemons into lemonade (rather than be a sourpuss) and incorporate that mask into a whole-body spa experience instead - and what an experience it was!

#HPBScentOfTheDay Challenge Roundup 2/4

Sorry there wasn't an Indie Friday this week - I ended up taking a short-notice journey to a cemetery in New Jersey to visit some long-deceased relatives yesterday instead. My dad was in town and wanted to go. Fun for the whole family?

Anyway, I guess I'll be skipping Indie Friday until next week, but in the meantime here's the latest installment of my #HPBScentOfTheDay challenge, which features many indie fragrances.

Madison Reed Hair Color Subscription Service + Discount

Affiliate Links Press Sample

Before I start this review, I guess I should tell you that I have a long and storied history with home hair dye kits. I have been dyeing my hair at home by myself since I was twelve years old (that's eighteen years ago, for those of you who are bad at math and/or haven't read my "about me" section). I've tried temporary dyes, permanent dyes, kits, self-mixed colors, bleaching, you name it. If there's a thing you can put on your head to make your hair change color, I've probably tried it at some point.

With all that said, I'm thrilled to introduce Madison Reed, an at-home hair color subscription service. Why so thrilled? Because I had an excellent (I mean it!) experience with it. Keep reading to learn more...

#HPBScentOfTheDay Challenge Roundup 1/4

Happy Friday everyone! I hope everyone will get a chance to kick back and relax this weekend. Personally I'll be tweaking my Wordpress site because I want to be done with it already, but I'll save my ranting about that for another post.

Anyway, in case you missed it: I started a "Scent of the Day" challenge last week. You can read all about it here. Want to know how I've been smelling for the past week? Keep reading...

Weekly Poll: Bejeweled

How's everybody's week going so far? Sorry if I haven't been as quick to reply to comments lately - I've been working on that Wordpress switch I mentioned a few days ago. Plus I'm still trying to write new posts semi-regularly while I do that. Fun stuff.

Speaking of writing blog posts, I was just taking photos of some fun jewelry (which you'll likely see posted here in the next few days) and it got me thinking about sentimentality and objects and all that. So here's my question of the week for you:

Do you own any pieces of jewelry with sentimental value? If so, care to share what they are?

As I was snapping pictures and thinking away, it occurred to me that I actually don't have many sentimental pieces. Most of the jewelry I wear is more costume-y, and on the rare occasion people give it to me as gifts it's usually more of the silly variety (like this awesome sloth ring). But then I remembered that my great uncle gave me two necklaces when I was a kid: One was a silver locket (that I lost many years ago), and the other was a small, brassy-colored key hung on a chain.

My (great) uncle passed away when I was sort of young so I always wondered about the significance of the key - did he make it? Did it go with some treasure-filled locked box in his apartment that we somehow didn't find after he passed away? I guess I'll never know. In any case, I still have the key necklace, and ironically enough, it's locked inside a jewelry box right now. Where's the key to that box? Also inside. Oops. At least I know it's safe, I guess.

Review: Crave Naturals Glide Thru Detangling Brush

Affiliate Links Press Sample

Today's post is dedicated to the subject of frustrating hair and a product that helps me deal with one of my many hair frustrations. Got hair frustrations yourself? Well then come commiserate with me.

The product of the day is the Crave Naturals Glide Thru Detangling Brush, which promises to vanquish knots and tangles on all hair types. But does it work? Keep reading to find out...

No FORK IT this weekend - I'm packing up my internet boxes

I think the title of this post is pretty self-explanatory, but in case you weren't sure: I won't be doing a FORK IT (foodie) post this weekend. So sad. The reason why isn't sad though - I've decided to pack up and move my site over to self-hosted Wordpress, and I need time to get that all set up!

Your consolation prize: Go For Pie.

I've never worked with Wordpress before, so this process has been... interesting. Also, I'm also really glad I have some knowledge of CSS, because otherwise I'd be completely freaking lost. Hooray?

Anyway, my posting/commenting frequency might be a bit more sparse over the next week (or however long it takes). And if anyone has some awesome Wordpress tips for me please do feel free to leave them in the comments. In the meantime... GO FOR PIE.

Indie Friday: Notoriously Morbid Douglas Firs Eyeshadow (it's magical!)

Bought It

Happy Friday! I hope it's starting to feel like spring wherever you are - I was NOT a fan of the sudden temperature drop earlier this week.

Enough whining. This week's Indie Friday is about a very special eyeshadow - Notoriously Morbid's Douglas Firs. A whole post dedicated to one eyeshadow?! That may seem like overkill, but it really is that special. Want to know why? Keep reading...

Scent of the Day Challenge - JOIN ME! (One of us, one of us...)

Hey, it's a different month now! How about a brand-new beauty challenge?

If you're anything like me, you have billions dozens of perfume samples tucked away in a drawer somewhere. Or hell, maybe even full bottles. My fragrant hoardpile comes from an unyielding love for testing out indie fragrance oils and signing up for beauty sampler boxes - and thus the vials piled sky-high.

Now of course there are certain fragrances in my collection that I love and wear all the time, but there are plenty of others that I tested maybe once or twice and forgot about. I was organizing my collection when it hit me - why not do a Scent of the Day challenge?


Here are the rules:

• Challenge participants must wear a different fragrance every day in the month of May - no repeats!
• Things like body sprays and heavily scented lotions count.
• The challenge should be documented some way - in a blog post, on social media, whatever. I'll probably write my daily choice on Twitter or something and then write a weekly blog roundup.

I have no idea if a similar challenge already exists, so please excuse me if this idea isn't terribly original. But I'd love it if y'all also wanted to participate - use hashtag #HPBScentOfTheDay so I can stalk your choices on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram etc. And if I'm the only one who ends up doing this... homeschool high-five.


Will you be participating in the challenge? Am I the only one who has more than 31 individual perfume samples? Maybe I need help.


PS If you're wondering about my final post for the April photo challenge, I'll be putting that up at some point later today.