I feel pretty, oh so pretty

[cleolinda]

Nnnngh. Still tired, mostly from running around all day doing errands. I mean, it's a good tired, but it's on top of the sneezing and the chills, so that's not so good. I did go try to spend my Sephora gift card, though. See, the value of actually going to a Sephora, instead of just ordering online, is that all the color swatches look great on the website, but then you go to the store and everything looks totally different. Not even bad-different, just... in the store, you get a better idea of what you'll actually be putting on. (And of course, there's all kinds of highlighters and luminizers and concealers and liners and it's like, look, what does this actually do? And you try it on the back of your hand because ew public sample germs and you're like... oh. That. Yeah. Well. I'm not spending $30 on that today, thanks.)

So what I really wanted was the Urban Decay eyeshadow primer thing--they have a new version that's a "champagne"-colored shimmer rather than just a plain neutral color, a Sephora exclusive, etc. The good news is, I got to test it; the bad news is, it was roundly sold out. And since it actually can be worn alone as a highlighter, I wasn't going to blow money on the original version.

So then I was like, okay, let me look at the eyeshadows, which for some reason never look as impressive in the containers as on the website, but I'll grab a couple of sample applicators and go to town. So by then a saleswoman--who also happens to specifically be the in-store Urban Decay rep or something?--has cornered me and we're testing various nearly-identical eyeshadows on the back of my hand, and then my mother finishes up her errand at Macy's and comes over and now we're all standing over my hand scrutinizing these three smears of eyeshadow.

We decide unanimously that we like Baked, the one in the middle.

Sephora is fresh out of Baked.

So I ended up going with the shadow that was a little more light peach and a little less gold shimmer because it was called Jones (naturally). What I would really like is a giant palette of all five hundred fifty million colors in tiny, tiny samples so I could spend, like, two months wearing all of them and deciding what I liked best. Or at least put some of the similar colors together as sets! DEAR URBAN DECAY: CONSIDER THIS.

So that's half my gift card. I kept meaning to try Cargo's lip gloss duo in Xai Xai; I need a lip gloss that's kind of peachy. I try some from the sample tin on the back of my hand; good times. Let's get one, shall we?

Sephora is out of Xai Xai. Of course it is.

So I look for the next closest thing; the Naples quad seems kind of peachy. I try a few smears on (and in case you're wondering if my hand looks like a Jackson Pollock painting by now, they do have applicator/makeup remover stations at each shelf), looks good. I get home; I open the tin. The quad's a little more... pink than I had expected. And by "a little" I mean "a lot." Given that I was playing with an actual tin of the stuff in the store, this is a bit odd. (And on the site, it looks orange.) I check the bottom; it is, in fact, a Naples quad. So I have no idea. The colors still look fun; I just can't figure out why my lip gloss keeps spontaneously changing colors.

(Actually, now that I look at the Sephora site, I'm a bit concerned--the Cargo lip gloss was all on sale for $14, and they hardly have anything on the Sephora duo page anymore--are they discontinuing them or something?)

Also, I now feel the need to apologize to all my straight male readers for what may simultaneously have been the girliest and most boring entry ever. You know, like the Oscar liveblogging all tomorrow night won't be bad enough.

A little linkspam to keep us from getting behind:

OSCARS CRISIS! Hollywood Frustrations And Fears Over Sunday's Awards; Stars And Advertisers Give Show Cold Shoulder:

For weeks now, they've been begging myself and the other journalists who cover the Oscars not to trash the planning and performances for this year's telecast like we have in years past. Because their frustration and fear is that, if Sunday's top-to-bottom reworked show can't bring back viewers after 2008's sunk to its lowest ratings ever, then nothing will. And the worst part is that not even Hollywood wants to participate in the Oscars anymore.

And then, among discussion of the desperate measures taken to spice up the show, there's this:

One new idea thought up by the producers that will be seen Sunday? Trophy boys. The result is that very handsome young men will now join very beautiful young women on stage carrying out the Oscar statuettes. If that's not an acknowledgement that the viewership for the Academy Awards these days is limited to only females and gays, I don't know what is.

The Oscar 11: Team aims to revive awards' telecast; I’m with the band! Oscars stage design revealed.

Jackman ready to be 'drunk, nude' for Oscars; VIDEO: Hugh Jackman's Oscars Rehearsal; Gervais Helps Jackman To Crack A Smile At The Oscars; Hugh Jackman's Jokes & Other Oscar Secrets.

Oscars leaked Y/N? Academy says no.

M.I.A. Determined To Sing At Oscars - Even As A Hologram.

Producers Power Down The Oscar Grieve-O-Meter. Ah, the Death March of Deathly Death, yes.

The Dark Knight Breaks the $1 Billion Mark. The Dark Knight. Which is not nominated for best picture or best director. Even though it would not have been out of place. In a year where the organizers are desperately trying to reel in viewers. I'm just saying, Academy: it's not like it was Transformers or something.

2009 Independent Spirit Awards Winners.

'Twilight' exclusive: Chris Weitz will not direct third film, 'Eclipse.' Why? Because 'Eclipse' to Premiere June 30, 2010, and he's still going to be doing post-production on 'New Moon' when they're doing pre-production on 'Eclipse." Because these people are insane. And, in case you missed it the other day, 'Twilight'-Pandering MTV Desperately Attempts To Wring Paragraphs Out Of 'New Moon' Logo. "We can't wait for a slew of 'slow news day' mockups bearing the headline, 'Twilight Exclusive: What If We Wrote The Word "Eclipse" In Purple?' " Also: What last week's EW cover should have looked like.

MTV Half-Blood Prince Set Visit Footage Released Early; Exclusive: Head To Hogwarts With Our ‘Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince’ Set Visit!

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus - new poster, including tiny glimpses of Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, and Jude Law, who collectively took over for Heath Ledger.

Deadpool Figure! Thor's Resume! Dollhouse Clip! Lost Dirt! Terminator Dirtnap! [Morning Spoilers].

Want Coraline's Star-Spangled Sweater? [DIY]

Comments

[glenvorian.livejournal.com]

And the worst part is that not even Hollywood wants to participate in the Oscars anymore.

I had no idea things were THAT BAD. It'll take a miracle for ratings to go up again, methinks.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

What's so ironic is that they all still want to win Oscars.

[maramala.livejournal.com]

Well.

That explains RPattz (am I spelling that right?) and Zac Efron (sp? ...I don't follow celebabies these days) so very, very much.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Oh, asking both of them to present was a desperate grab for certain demographics, because they haven't revealed any of the other presenters.

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

The Dark Knight Breaks the $1 Billion Mark. The Dark Knight. Which is not nominated for best picture or best director. Even though it would not have been out of place. In a year where the organizers are desperately trying to reel in viewers. I'm just saying, Academy: it's not like it was Transformers or something.

Good or bad, I love the Oscars, but this would, of course, require the Academy to remove its head from its own ass. Amazing that they can whine and moan about nobody watching when they don't seem to get that if you don't give a shit about the nominees, you're less likely to watch the damn thing.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

And you know, I'm not even saying they should get all mercenary and calculating about their choices. I'm just saying, it feels a lot of times like the Oscars are kind of uppity and rarefied in rewarding a very specific kind of movie that may not hold up years later. Nobody should nominate the biggest moneymaker just because it did make money, but they shouldn't ignore it because it made money, either.

[mercat.livejournal.com]

I hate wearing makeup with a passion but whenever my sister drags me into Sephora the artist/costumer sides of me really wishes I did. (And then my wallet thanks me for not, haha.)

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

See, I hate wearing it on my face. Like, cheeks and forehead and chin. I hate powder and liquid foundation and all that. (And I don't really need blush--I flush too easily as it is.) But I love color, and I love eyeshadow and lip gloss.

[ciara-belle.livejournal.com]

I realize this would make the Oscars less "special", but I'd be more excited about the telecast if it were more like the Golden Globes. Not only because of the addition of TV stars (and therefore People Who Have Been in Things I've Actually Seen), but mostly because the Globes are 1.5 hours shorter and feature 10 times more drunkenness by the end. And there are no ridiculous musical numbers or interpretive dance sequences.

[apocalypsos.livejournal.com]

but I'd be more excited about the telecast if it were more like the Golden Globes

Isn't that the saddest thing? 'Cause it's SO TRUE. I'm not really for adding TV stars (since the Emmys are for TV and the SAGs and Golden Globes are for TV and movies and the Oscars is the big movies-only one), but the addition of People Who Have Been In Things People Have Seen would probably be the saving grace of the show, both nominees and presenters.

[elizardbits.livejournal.com]

Your links for Baked (http://www.sephora.com/assets/dyn/sku/614255/614255_sw.jpg) and Jones (http://www.sephora.com/assets/dyn/sku/998435/998435_sw.jpg) are borked; I've gone and corrected them for you because I am an enormous dork who actually codes HTML into handwritten notes absentmindedly.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Thanks.

[unicornluvr.livejournal.com]

I have a $50 Sephora gift card and I have NO IDEA what to buy. I went into the store in the Galleria in Houston and I was so overwhelmed and more impressed with my rumbling tummy that I just left after a few minutes.

[wednesday]

If you're overwhelmed, try heading for the Philosophy section and sniffing at the food-scented shower gels. Most of them range from "ooo, niiiice" to amazing.

[dmouse097.livejournal.com]

Speaking as one of those straight men, well, the only distressing part of that post is the amount of money you're paying for that stuff.

As for the Oscar stuff, you'll also notice there's been no news about leaked copies of movies like there's been in the past years... further proof that no one wants to watch the crap that's been nominated.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Well, to be honest, most of my makeup I get from the grocery store for a lot less. I really like Cover Girl eyeshadow and Maybelline lip gloss (not that you were longing to know that). But, you know, get a gift card, have a splurge.

As for the Oscar stuff, you'll also notice there's been no news about leaked copies of movies like there's been in the past years... further proof that no one wants to watch the crap that's been nominated.

Heh, I hadn't thought of it that way. Not that what's nominated is crap, but as evidence of what a huge divide there is.

[elisa0984.livejournal.com]

Hee. My best friend and I spent much of Valentine's night in Sephora trying nail polish. Which is one of the few things I'll purchase there. I'd love to try Urban Decay eyeshadow, but I seriously would need a gift certificate as opposed to plunking down the $18 for one eyeshadow.

[chulacabra.livejournal.com]

I'm weeping for Hugh. He's so incredibly talented yet even he won't be able to save this from being a debacle.

[arden-ranger.livejournal.com]

I plan on turning the sound down when Hugh's not on. He's the only reason I'm watching.

[robinmc.livejournal.com]

At this point I think it's almost better to be nominated and to lose (or not to be nominated at all). Because as soon as you win, people start griping that you deserve to win, but not for this film, or that you didn't deserve it at all and they're just giving it to your for god knows what reason. And I'm sure that's been going on since the beginning, but it used to be easier to ignore. Now EW makes it a point to go back over various years and gripe over who should have won instead, and as soon as you've left the stage, after thanking your mom, people start bitching.

Really, I think I'm just still bitter that Brokeback Mountain lost to Crash.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

The funny thing is, Brokeback Mountain is still a cultural touchstone, but Crash was almost immediately forgotten, as far as I can tell.

(I mean, yes, I know there's a TV series--like, on Starz or something? I haven't heard a thing about it since it was announced, though.)

[madeline-may.livejournal.com]

I don't think I've ever been more afraid for Hugh. I love him. But I'm just so scared.

Um, so, weird side-note - I had a really freaking strange dream involving both you and the Secret Life of Dolls. It literally woke me up in the middle of the night, mid-wtf.

Basic plot-line of the dream - for your new Secret Life of Dolls entry you had created - I kid you not - a Lord of the Rings themed maze... in your bathtub. It was for the dolls. You stood on the rim of the bathtub, shouting out movie-phrases ("One does not simply walk to the bathtub drain!") as all of your followers had to march their dolls through this maze. I distinctly remember a giant-sized (as in three times the size of anyone else) Galadriel doll benevolently watching over the proceedings.

Suddenly, you cried out (it should be interesting to note that you were wearing a cape), "Wait! We're on the third floor of my house; how many people can a bathtub hold before breaking through the floor? Ninety?"

There was a giant pause in the maze shenanigans as everyone looked at each other fearfully, during which I woke up, hanging upside-down from my bed, confused, and seriously concerned about your tub's structural integrity.

So... there you go.

[emmaorgana.livejournal.com]

I know this wasn't intended at me, but oh my god, that's the first thing to really make me laugh all day.

Thank you!

[wolfsilveroak.livejournal.com]

The quad's a little more... pink than I had expected. And by "a little" I mean "a lot." Given that I was playing with an actual tin of the stuff in the store, this is a bit odd. (And on the site, it looks orange.)

Now see on my computer, the website pic looks pink/mauve.}:/

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

Well, one of the shades looked orange on the site to me. Two of the others did look pink/mauve. And in the store? Totally peach. WTF.

[foresthouse.livejournal.com]

Phooey on your straight male readers - *I* enjoyed the Sephora stories. I also like the looks of Baked - too bad they were out. :(

The Twilight movie folks are so insane. I have a feeling it's because they can sense that the crazy is like the dot-com bubble and other things that will one day suddenly disappear when something better comes along...

I saw the new Deadpool figure pic on The Deadpool Bugle the other day, and I am not so pleased at whatever the hell they are doing to him in the movie that makes the action figure be THAT (and here's a bigger picture for illustration (http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_0LhEeWdzFN8/SZ1hn7U7t9I/AAAAAAAAA0U/R3eotahhrjg/s1600-h/movefigure.jpg)). Wade never...ever...EVER looked like that. The closest he got to red eye patches was in the Funeral for a Freak mini-arc where one of his personalities had big pink glasses. And he's never had whatever-that-is on his chest. I am just...grr. My inner geek does NOT approve. Especially when they could at least have gone canon-Weapon-X and MUCH cooler by suiting him up in THIS (http://media.comicvine.com/uploads/0/77/430951-Deadpool_Georges%20Jeanty02_super.jpg). I mean, THAT is badass.

Also: the hand-blades thing? WHUT? Yeah, I don't think so. Deadpool's done a sort of brass-knuckle version of Wolverine's claws, but he's never had, what, swords tied onto his arms? I don't even know what that IS. Wait, I do. ridiculous is what that is.

OK, ranting done now. Whew.

[sabra-n.livejournal.com]

...I'm going to rationalize that action figure as Deadpool being insane and deciding to do a Wolverine impersonation by tying swords to his arms. Kind of like that time he wore a Marvel Girl outfit because he really really wanted to be an X-Man.

[dragonzair.livejournal.com]

HOW AM I THE ONLY ONE UNF'ING AT THE DOCTOR PARNASSUS POSTER?

Ok, I'll stop.

And that sweater Coraline wears. Oh man, I wish I could knit.

I wonder if I can beg my mom...

[darth-snarky.livejournal.com]

If by "unf'ing" you mean "going OMGSOFREAKINGCOOL OMGOMG HOW MUCH LONGER DO I HAVE TO WAIT WHY IS TERRY GILLIAM SO MUCH MORE AMAZING THAN EVERYONE?" then no, you're not alone.

[ailaes.livejournal.com]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't it the norm to have the previous year's winners present that category? Then again, I actually haven't watched in a few years and will watch tomorrow because I'm not working.

I just...yeah. I have huge issues with the industry these days, but good grief.

[cleolinda.livejournal.com]

It's always been the norm, although I think they sometimes swap genders (last year's Best Actor for this year's Best Actress, etc.). What the article was saying was that the producers felt like last year's winners (Marion Cotillard, Tilda Swinton, Javier Bardem, and to a lesser extent, Daniel Day-Lewis) weren't "famous enough."

[msilverstar]

Begging the journalists, that's a nice change!

If only Hugh could do it in gold lame trousers. I WOULD WATCH.

[faded-ribbon.livejournal.com]

"At the risk of reading too much into five words..."

Um, I'm fairly certain that at this point in the article MTV has crossed the line from "risk" to "plummeting from the top of a cliff." They're so desperate to be the OMG Supah Secret Receivers of All that is Unknown about Twilight that they have managed to make themselves pathetic. Maybe they should put their energies into producing interesting programs to entice their teenage audience back, rather than trying so fruitlessly to scavenge the bits that Twilight deigns to throw them.

Epic fail.

[swordmage.livejournal.com]

First off - I honestly don't think I've actually seen most (if any) of the nominees this year. And the husband and I blew off seeing Slumdog Millionaire earlier today so we could buy some silk for a project.

At any rate, and back to the subject, I feel that, to an extent, there's a growing disconnect between Hollywood and, well, everyone else. This leeches over into the Oscars. I'll spare the world from my rant about how they'll make Meet the Spartans, but Guillermo del Toro's got issues getting funding for At the Mountains of Madness or The Subtle Knife won't make it to screen. But the idea is the same - that what makes money is not necessarily good. And what's good doesn't necessarily make money.

What Oscar winners will stand up over time, however, seems to be entirely hit or miss. Unfortunately, the majority of the general TV-watching public, at least IMO, are not the type to go to the Oscar-nominated-type movies. Look at this year's list - we've got an Aronofsky flick, a film production of Doubt, and other somewhat off-the-beaten-path-type movies. WALL-E and The Dark Knight are probably the most-seen movies. Well, Iron Man as well, but I don't think it's up for any of the biggies...

If I'm not making sense, blame the NyQuil.

[robinmc.livejournal.com]

What really makes no sense is that for most of the year, Hollywood is all about peddling crowdpleasing crap in the name of making a shitload of money. But, come Oscar season, suddenly they're the champions of "important"/"artistic" films that the masses don't want to see. And then they act surprised when no one cares about the Oscars.

[ipomoea.livejournal.com]

The Sephora-exclusive UD Sin primer is really lovely, shame they were out of it. I have a slight Urban Decay addiction. That and Benefit, those are the two sections I cannot stay out of at Sephora or Ulta.

[jennnk.livejournal.com]

this is going to sound insane, but...

i remember you posting something about mama jones buying a car & her negotiation strategy was "either you sell it to me or someone else will." i want to link to that to make a point elsewhere & i can't find it & i'm starting to think i imagined it (it doesn't help that i really do have dreams wherein i read blogs).

[gwynnywonk.livejournal.com]

See, I think another problem with the Oscar Contenders is the time at which they're released. For example- Slumdog Millionaire just came to my town this week and I've been itching to see it for MONTHS. I bet it makes a lot more money after it (deservedly OMG SO GOOD) sweeps tomorrow, but a lot of people haven't seen it yet because of precisely that. Oscars are great PR for films, but all this last-minute releasing for the sake of a memorable Oscar bid is total crap.

Why not release films in the spring more often? Let the word get out earlier, or even have the films on DVD by Oscar season, heaven forbid. I would think MORE movies would stand out if they released some in the spring, for heaven's sake. Then there wouldn't be so many Good Films piled on at the same time in Nov-Jan. competing for the same audience of Good Film buffs. Those people would then be able to get the word out by Oscar season, and more people would be more invested in the films, which would equate to more Oscar viewership and more DVD sales.

Perhaps that's not as profitable, but it could be a way to get your Good Film seen, especially if it's a "Wrestler" buried in a release-time pile of "Milk"-s and "Benjamin Button"-s. (Not that they all aren't uniquely interesting films, more that some are more likely to be seen than others)

[bumblebee-1983.livejournal.com]

Agreed.

I think though that once the Oscar nominations come out, the nominees get a wider release.

That's what I figured with Brokeback Mountain anyways. ::shrug::

[sugarplanet.livejournal.com]

Don't buy the urban decay primer potion, buy Too Faced Eye Shadow Insurance instead. I've used both and too faced stuff is way better AND it comes in three colours!

[ccr1138.livejournal.com]

The Oscar people are suffering from major cognitive dissonance. On the one hand, they want their awards to go to the films and people who do the best job *according to people in their own industry.* Fine. I'm sure there's a reason why film industry people think Slumdog Millionaire is a higher quality film than The Dark Knight. I'll accept that the general movie-going public doesn't have the experience to really judge these things.

On the other hand, the producers want big ratings for their awards show. Can they not see how these two ideas don't go together? You give out awards based on your insular, professional, rather exclusive worldview, but you want Joe Q. Public to drop everything and salivate to see you give each other awards for stuff we haven't seen and aren't interested in?

BUCKET. OF. DUH.

Also, I love movies, and even though I haven't seen most of the nominees I am interested in the outcome. But I'll wait for a report on the internet, because I have no intention of subjecting myself to another 4-hour snoozefest peppered by a bunch of narcissistic bubble-heads spewing their political opinions.

I think they could make the Oscars better by explaining to the viewers exactly WHY the Academy thought those films deserved to be nominated. I mean, explain it to us, please? I know there must be a reason.

[cmdr-zoom.livejournal.com]

Alternatively, if it's For Them, Not For Us, take it off the air and make it private.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_stormthesea/]

There are two things I am gay for: ladies, and makeup.

I never wear anything other than a base and powder (curse you, neverending scourge of acne!), but I have been known to spend about twenty minutes in rapture staring at lipstick in Sephora. SO PRETTY

Seriously, I think this is a problem. I love everything about makeup. I love how it smells, even. And yet I never wear it. I am like someone desperate for a child, but indifferent about taking care of it.