Neptune Planet Power

Outfit details: 

Leather Jacket - South Korean Boutique

Plaid Dress - ASOS

Beanie - H&M

Bag - Prozena Schouler

I know I may be late on the bandwagon for colored ombre locks, but Chloe Ting's pretty colored locks stirred something in my heart. I decided to utilize my bleached ends and play with a bit of semi-permanent hair color. At first, I thought I'd go for something purple but my hair isn't a light enough blonde for it show up unless I went for a deep purple. I hummed and hawwed over pinks but then I realized the answer was in front of me all along... Michiru Kaiou a.k.a Sailor Neptune, Outer Sailor Senshi of the Deep.

Why would this fictional & flawless anime character influence me so? Well, when I first started making websites at the tender age of 11, my first big project was a "shrine" website dedicated to Sailor Neptune, called Violin Tide. Maybe it was her mature demeanor, her violin prowess, her affinity for the sea, her pink lipgloss or her wavy, teal locks, but I wanted to BE her at the height of my Sailor Moon-loving days. Despite my adoration of her, turns out that I am really nothing like her. I'm really more of a Sailor Venus-type to be honest. (Let me know your favorite senshi in the comments below, plz!) Ahhh, but I couldn't deny my childhood dreams any longer when I saw a bottle of Bleach London "Washed-Up Mermaid" in Boots -- in lieu of getting a hot, blonde girlfriend or violin lessons, it was follicles for the win.

"Bow down to my fierceness."

I applied the blue-green dye all over my tresses, because I have highlights throughout my mane (up at the temple and obviously at the ends). The dye took to most of my hair but there were some sections that it didn't, but I kind of liked this effect. The dye showed itself best at the very tips which were the lightest blonde. I left the dye in for about 2 hours, instead of the prescribed 15 minutes. It turned out to be more of a pastel, seafoam green but I was pleased with the results. 

Here is my hair hot off the presses. To check out my hair before please take a look at my Power Lip post. I really liked how the color turned out, I've found that it looks best with my hair curled a la Sailor Neptune. Merely straightened, it looks a bit drab. And curly (check out what my pre-dyed curls look like here!).... it looks downright witchy, unfortunately. Sigh! Being that I do like to wear my hair in its natural state to preserve the health of my strands, this means that my teal hair will have to be ultimately temporary. But while it's here and fades into an even more pastel shade, let's say, "Neptune Planet Power Make-up!" and embrace our inner Sailor soldiers. 

Get our own bottle of Bleach London 'Washed Up Mermaid", here!

So readers, if you were going to dye your hair an unconventional shade, what would it be? Tell us in the comments!

Style Substitute: Benefit 'They're Real' Dupe

 

Living in Japan as a foreign lady, your appearance is often commented on. It was a little disconcerting hearing some of my former elementary school students call me fat when I wore a chunky sweater to class or all of my female co-workers stroking the back of my head and saying how round it was. But perhaps the most interesting compliment was when my "charm point" was designated as being my eyelashes. A "charm point" can be best described as well... that thing about you that is charming or attractive to others! It could a beaming smile, a pretty beauty mark, or even a nice laugh.

In fact, my charm point must have been so beguiling to those around me that even my middle school aged students could not believe that my eyelashes were real and would sometimes tug on my eyelids to see whether or not I was lying to them. Abuse of teachers aside, what they didn't know is that my eyelashes are thin and stubby things with only the gift of being naturally curled. I am just fiend for mascaras and I have probably tested out every single type in order to achieve the pretty, long lashes I lust for.

About a year ago, I discovered Benefit 'They're Real' Mascara and I was absolutely amazed by its effectiveness in giving long, thick lashes. They never smudged or ran throughout the day and I thought well... here it is...THE HOLY GRAIL OF MASCARA. According to the Benefit website, I am not the only 'They're Real' lover, as one is sold every 10 seconds. Quite amazing!

But after so many years of bouncing from wand to wand, I still had a wondering eye for mascara. A couple weeks ago, my Benefit mascara was drying up rapidly and I was wringing my hands, not really wanting to spend almost 20 pounds on the next tube. I searched through Boots, examining all the display brushes for a similar style to the Benefit brush until I got to the most unlikely of sections -- Collection 2000! The Collection 2000 'Does It All' Mascara had a very similar to brush to that of Benefit 'They're Real'. I had to try it out!

My findings: I found that both mascaras performed very well at providing for my thickness for my thin lashes. 'They're Real' gave a better curl, but had more clumps than the 'Does It All' Mascara. I also found it slightly easier to catch my little eyelashes with the Benefit mascara, because the tip of Benefit mascara has more defined spiked at the tip of the brush. Nevertheless, I believe they are comparable and with such a difference in price point (Benefit: �19.50 vs. Collection 2000: �4.99), Collection 2000 is the winner of this style substitute challenge!

I haven't been able to find a dupe for 'They're Real' that is from a U.S. brand, so if any of our dear readers know of some options, let us know in the comments below! 

Style Barometer: Halloween Edition

Happy Halloween, ghouls and gals! Halloween may be one of our favorite holidays as we really can't even say no to the opportunity to dress up in something outrageous, whether it be scary or fabulous! But as it is our favorite holiday, we have some developed some loves & loathes so we've ranked them up on our newest Style Barometer. 

We RFers have also started the tradition of Halloween nail art and Miriam's creation above will be hard to top this year. If you're looking for some Halloween nail art inspiration we recommend the following YouTube tutorials below that will surely bring out your Halloween drear~ 

Nail Art for Halloween: The Ultimate Guide by cutepolish

Halloween Witch's Brew by ArcadiaNailArt

Spider Web Nail Art by StefiBeauty

As referenced above, Take Back Halloween, will definitely be our newest resource for tutorials on inventive costumes. How about you, dear readers? What will be your costume this year or how will you celebrate? Lets us know if you have any Halloween-themed loves or loathes in the comments below. (cue eery music, lightning and cackling witch sound effects here!)

The Power Lip

Excuse my tilted engagement ring. More resizing necessary. It's getting chillier -- time to whip out the glitter nail polish!

My lovely Kris Jane silk scarf really added a lovely pop of color to mostly monochrome outfit. 

This magnificent church is in Ely, a very cute town in Cambridgeshire. 

Outfit details:
Striped crop top - Topshop (similar here)

Faux Leather Skirt - Forever 21 (similar here)

'Divine Emerald' Silk Scarf - c/o Kris Jane International

Black Sneakers - H&M

Leather Bomber - Forever 21

Maroon Hat - On loan from Miriam

Black Leather Satchel - PS 1 Bag

Double Crystal Ring - Urban Outfitters

Looking back on pictures from a weekend out, I noticed there was something off about my outfit. (Please tell me I'm not the only who conducts post-outfit analysis on Instagram?) I think I had all the right elements but something was amiss.... and then I had my a-ha! moment. It was my basically bare lips! As much as a pair of shoes or the right accessory can take an outfit from zero to hero, lip products are right up there too. This Fall I'm very excited to experiment with deep purple and berry shades -- something on The Craft level of lip color. Gosh, now I'm definitely going to have to watch that film tonight.

But anyway! The berry concoction I'm wearing above is Sephora Retractable Waterproof Lipliner in 'plum' with Revlon Lip Butter in 'Pink Truffle' on top. I'm learning that the lip liner might actually be more important than the lipstick itself. I want to say that I recommend this lipliner but it's actually quite crumbly and disappointing because it was quite pricey. It's only redemption is the lip brush attachment.

What lip colors will you be wearing this Fall? Let us know in the comments below!

The Curly Pledge

Siobhan's outfit: Tank top - Madewell, Loose Printed Trousers - Zara, 'Easy Does It' Flats - Chinese Laundry, Rings - River Island, Anklet & Necklace - Etsy, Tote Bag - Forever 21

Miriam's outfit: Speckled T-shirt - Topshop, Eagle necklace - Topshop, Basket bag - H&M, Gold Wedge Sandals - Office, Boyfriend Jeans - H&M

August 14th marks the world's first Wear Your Hair Curly Day and being naturally curly haired ladies, we had to jump on the bandwagon! For those with naturally straight strands, it may be a bit confusing as to why curly haired women would even need a day to wear their hair in their own natural state but anyone with curls, coils, or kinks knows that it's not so cut & dry. Many of us have made our straightening irons a psychological crutch during the 2000's (blame Gwyneth Paltrow) but recently curls have made a huge comeback and we think they are here to stay. Not just about a look, embracing one's curls is also about feeling confident in one's natural state which also may be a societal zeitgeist of the moment. Indeed in the past, we have reserved our curls for those close to us, but now we are more willing now to show our follicular versatility.

But maintaining pretty curls is a learning process and it took us years to refine. My hardest lesson was learned when at 8 years of age, I attempted to get rid of my frizzy halo by gleefully snipping off sections of my mane. My mother was suitably horrified and I'm just glad she didn't put me in a straight jacket. Anyway, here are our hard-earned tips. 

Miriam: 

•  I only comb my hair in the shower with my hair soaking wet. After my hair is fully detangled, I follow up with another rinse of water to encourage the curls clumping together. After squeezing out the excess water with a towel, I allow my hair to air dry. 
•  Since my hair is fine, I stay away from heavy styling products and simply apply Argan oil to moisturize my hair. 
•  Once a week I slather my hair with Argan oil and sleep it in overnight, washing it out the next morning. Argan oil is one of the only oils that can fully penetrate the hair shaft and moisturize the hair intensely. 
•  Up-dos and side-swept styles are my go-to show off my curls while also keeping them from going too Mrs. Rochester a la Jane Eyre. 

Siobhan: 

•  My hair drinks up conditioner, so I only use deep conditioner after I'm done shampooing with a sulfate-free shampoo. 
•  I also use a wide-tooth comb when my hair is wet, but not every day. Sometimes not detangling my hair allows my curls to better clump together and thereby reduce frizz. 
•  I apply a creamy leave-in conditioner (Mixed Chicks Leave-in Conditioner) and holding product (Tigi Curls Rock) in my very wet hair and then put my hair up in a towel to dry. 
•  I usually air dry but will use a diffuser on medium heat to speed the drying process. 
•  Never ever, ever allow a hair dresser use a razor to 'thin' your hair. Like punch them in the throat if they even suggest it. 

We challenge our dear readers to take the pledge as well and wear your hair curly tomorrow! By pledging your name on the Garnier Fructis website, you can also enter to win a trip to NYC and also send deserving girls to 'Rock Camp'. Sounds pretty rad to us. Happy curls!

Sheikha of Hearts

American Embassies might be closing here, there and everywhere across the Arab world, but for us there is a beacon of style drawing us to the Middle East; Sheikha Mozah (or Queen Banana) is  impossibly glamorous, perfectly put together and never puts a foot wrong as she walks the tightrope of dressing fashionably yet modestly. Actively involved in politics and listed as one of the world's 100 most powerful women -- never have we wanted to wear a turban more.

Clutch Bag - Nancy Gonzalez,  Eyeliner - Dior, Earrings - Arman Sarkisyan, Turban - ASOS

Frozen Spring

Miriam's Outfit: Buckle Brogues - Office, Camel Coat - Topshop, Dress - Zara, Gloves - Topshop, Scarf - Miriam's amazing mum knitted it!, Chambray - Forever 21, Beanie - H&M, Bag - Promod

Siobhan's Outfit: Sweater - Forever 21, Skinnies - Forever 21, Boots - Urban Outfitters, Beanie - Stolen from fiance, Coat - Tokyo, Japan, Scarf - Anne Taylor

Miriam came to visit last weekend and we were hoping for a beautiful Spring day (you know with it being the end of March) but lo and behold we were greeted by dainty snowflakes. You know the kind of dainty snowflakes that numb your ears and eyebrows and make your makeup melt off. But there is always a silver lining, since it made a very pretty background for our pictures. It snowed the entire weekend, which also made a great excuse to cozy up inside and paint our nails. 

We experimented with Miriam's Nails Inc Bling it On Rocks kit (highly recommended!) and while it created a successful manicure, I accidentally (and hilariously) glitter-bombed my crotch. I had the eery feeling that my butter fingers would strike and I'm still finding glitter in the apartment, but it was worth it for the awesome nail art effect. Pictures of nail-art manicures coming up soon!

Chilly Beauty

Makeup, one of the most fun and changeable accessories, is so much better in the F/W. Glitters are encouraged and so are exciting lip shades and eye looks. I recently picked up Essie's deep dark green Stylenomics and I paired it with a multi-colored glitter from Milani. Stylenomics looks like deep green in the bottle but on the nails it looks more black. 

Miriam and I are hardcore fans of cat-eye looks for the eyes, and I recently found an amazing dupe for the Japanese eye liner pens that we hoarded when we lived in Hiroshima -- Physician's Formula Eye Booster Liquid Liner. It has the same brush tip applicator as Japanese liners, and what's more is that it has lash lengthening serum in the formula. I can never remember to apply my lash enhancing serums before bed, but since I wear eyeliner almost every day this is great! I haven't noticed the effects yet, but I am hopeful.