It's official! The first day of spring was a mere three days ago. Oh, how time flies! It seems only yesterday we were all cowering inside with our heaters on full blast. We would wake up. Go to work in the dark and come home from work, in the dark. Now the weather is getting nicer. The sun is shining longer. We are getting our fill of Vitamin D, whenever the opportunity beams.
This also means we need to deviate away from our knit beanies, classic patterns, boots and pants, turtlenecks, slouchy pants, and folk inspired outerwear. Spring means, COLOR! Colorful clothing, colorful fingernail polish, and colorful makeup. Most importantly colorful lipstick! This spring is all about a matte orange pop color to your lips! Which dismays A Blonde Half Jap. I tried rocking the coral/orange trend this last summer, and A Blonde Half Jap's Japanese Mother was not a fan. Whenever I would see her. And I was rocking the Maybelline Vibrant Madarin. She would comment, "I don't like your lipstick." However, she was a fan of Maybelline Shocking Coral. It looks orange in the tube, but pink once it is applied to lips.
Here is a comparison of the two colors on yours truly.
Mandarin
Coral
I find them both fitting and satisfying. I LOVE lipstick. I still have not mastered the art of eyeshadow. So I express myself through lip color. I do pinks. I crave oranges. I lust after crimson. I dabble in the purple. They're fun! They can make or break an outfit. They can say, "I feel sultry." Or, "I feel sexy." Also, "I feel HAPPY!"
This spring, the color is matte crimson orange. Tangerine, Satsumas, 7 o'clock sunsets, Oompa Loompa's, you name it. Orange is in. Rock it, put it on your lips, add some gloss, and go. The orange lip is a night and day shade. In the day time. Beautify the bright lip with neutral eyes and neutral cheeks. At night, give yourself subtle eyeliner and peachy cheeks. This is a versatile and "booshtastic" color that makes a statement and is completely wearable from work to play.
Spring is here! Go big and go bold Blonde Half Jap's. You have the skin tone, pigment, and hair color to do anything you please. Go crazy. When the sun is out. Embrace the shine and shine from within.
St. Patty's Day. It's an American tradition right? Haha, I'm just kidding, but not really. American's will celebrate ANY holiday. It can be relevant to our country's history or not! If it's a reason to celebrate and let loose! Sure! We'll make it a apart of OUR traditions! Let the booze, corned beef, and colcannon flow! Also, don't forget to wear green!
This is a conundrum for all you fashion friendly out there. To wear green, or to not wear green? It really is a St. Patty's day question. Do I want to be the person who completely abstains from the herd mentality and outwardly participate in this silly tradition? Do I want to not wear a spot of green? Do I want to simply tell people my eyes are green? Which means I'm always wearing green. Do I want to cleverly wear green eye shadow? Do I want to wear shamrock earrings? Or maybe just a shamrock sticker? Should I just lock myself away in my home until this day is over? There are so many questions A Blonde Half Jap has on "holidays" such as these.
I do have to give myself a little credit though. I'm pretty sure my Dad is a German/Scottish/English/ "mutt" (sorry Dad). There are rumors that there may be a little Irish there as well. Also, my husband is Scottish/Irish. So that makes me Irish by proxy right!? Haha.
There are three categories of St. Patrick Day celebrators. The "enthusiast", the "dabbler", and the "abstainer".
The St. Patty's Day "enthusiast" looks like this.
When you see a lady decked out in an obvious "St. Patrick Day" outfit. What do you think? Do you go into ultimate judge mode? Are you skeptical? Do you wrinkle your nose? Do you appreciate and think, "Yeah, nice outfit bro?" I have been through years where I was an "enthusiast". They were when I was in college. Frat parties are the catalyst for costumes. However, the past few years. I have been an "abstainer".
This is what an "abstainer" looks like on St. Patty's Day.
"What? Oh it's St. Patrick's Day? I totally forgot." This is a normal response from an aloof "abstainer". If you were to encounter a "hipster abstainer" the response would be completely different. It would sound much like this, "I do not conform to social holidays. Do you even know the history behind St. Patrick's Day?!"
I think I might dabble in the celebration. I mean, who am I kidding. I'm going to a St. Patrick's Day party tonight! I think I might try to incorporate green in an aloof, yet calculated way this year. Hence, the "dabbler".
Looking at my wardrobe I realized I don't have any green colored pieces. So I might even take a more subtle "dabbler" approach. I do have green eye shadow! However, I feel like green eyes and green eye shadow are completely taboo. A big no-no! So, I decided to look up pics and tutorials of green eye shadow and green eyes.
First off, yes I realize this lady has hazel eyes! Close enough! This look is a going out look. I'm going to a house party. Where, I'm sure nobody would think differently if I showed up in falsies and dramatic St. Patrick's Day makeup. I feel, I would be more comfortable in something like this.
I realize she has brown eyes, but I think this would look great on a green eyed Half Jap. She adds on the fake eyelashes at the end. Although, I love fake eyelashes. I feel like her look is a wonderful St. Patrick's Day makeup without them.
I'll post a pick of my outfit and makeup tomorrow (I know that sounds weird, but I got off work one and a half hours ago). I'm still not sure if I want to be an "enthusiast", "abstainer", or "dabbler" this year. I think I will definitely try out my green eyeshadow. It's sadly untouched. What a perfect day to try it out!
I have been wearing makeup for at least a decade. I still have yet to master the "art of applying makeup". It's my biggest everyday struggle. I see white girls walking around with their big lidded eyes, long lashes, pronounced cheekbones and I get green with envy.
Big eyed white girls, or "round eyes" is what I like to call them can walk into the cosmetics department. "Round eyes" can pick up any old mascara, apply it, and "boosh" hello beautiful lush long eyelashes. This is not the case for A Blonde Half Jap. In my adult life I have probably been disappointed by at least fifty different kinds of mascara. However, there are none that I have fallen in love with. By being half white I do have the luxury of having slightly long eyelashes. However, this creates a problem. My eyes are hooded. So my lashes touch my eyelids leaving a black smudge. Even if I wait for the mascara to dry and wipe off the black smudge. It always reappears throughout the day. I also get this clever little smudge under my eyes because my lashes touch below my eyes as well.
Here are a few mascaras that I have tried over the years.
Bobbi Brown makes beautiful products. They are a little on the expensive side. However, I feel with most of their products you get bank for your buck. First off the packaging is always nice and sleek. Upon opening my Everything Mascara I was a little dismayed. The bristles were natural. For me, natural bristles always have clumping potential. Which means after every use, you need to wash your wand. One thing I do like about this mascara is that it does have a natural look to it. In the end I stopped using it. It smears and flakes constantly.
Intensifying Long-wear Mascara creates very natural looking eyelashes. This mascara does lengthen your lashes. However, it has no voluminous effect. I prefer to apply this mascara to my bottom lashes. The small brush allows the ability for more definition. However, like it's sister mascara. It tends to smudge.
Covergirl's Lashblast Mascara boasts non-smudge, and non-smear proof. This mascara did not work for me. I'm glad it was less than $8.00 because I gave it to one of my girlfriends. Their "patent pending" brush was gigantic. I could not apply this mascara without hitting my top or bottom lids. I also felt that it didn't curl or add volume to my lashes. It simply created large clumps and made a mess of my eye lids.
Maybelline's Volum'Express Megaplush is one of my favorite mascaras. I have had the most success from this product. I have also purchased it multiple times. It has a gel mousse formula leaving your lashes feeling lightweight. It's brush also has a plastic pivot at the base, giving the wand a more fluid application than using a rigid straight wand. It does not smear and it makes my lashes long and adds the ideal amount of volume. The only down side of this mascara is that it dries out quickly. I feel like I have to purchase a new one every single month.
This is my all time favorite mascara. It never clumped. It curled my lashes. It added volume and lengthened my lashes. I love love love it. However, it has the "tube" technology. When the mascara gets wet you can simply gently take a hold of your lashes and pull the mascara off in tubes. Which makes washing your eyes a very simple process. The mascara doesn't flake or smear. The only downside is if your eyes get watery or you cry you end up getting spider leg looking lash tubes under your eyes.
I have just recently discovered a love for false lashes. After I mastered the application process and got used to wearing heavy plastic butterflies on my eyes, I ended up being a fan. False lashes are not for everyday wear. They are big, bold, and sassy. If you are going out for the night, they are a must have! They don't smudge, smear, or flake. They will fall off if you did not apply them correctly. So practice, practice, practice!
Here's a picture of me out the other night rocking the falsies.
