This Post Is About So Much More Than Mascara

Lil Bunny answered C.'s original reader mail in March. She sent in an update which we are of course delighted to share. We'll add, preemptively, that the MFA waitlist is the only place to be this year.

Hello Miss Bunny...
I thought I'd give you a bit of an update on me and all the help that you (and your beautiful readers) lovingly suggested...
I didn't make it into the grad program here in Houston but I'm totally fine with that.
The program was too generic.
I've actually set my sights even higher and am going to a HUGE mass audition in New York in February (you audition for about 40 schools all at the same time).
SO hopefully next summer I'll be living somewhere else and taking the necessary steps to get my MFA.
Don't know where, it's all up to who wants me...
Kind of exciting when I think about it. In a roll of the dice, go where the wind blows you, romantic type of thing.

As for everyone's suggestions...
Here are the things (from the suggestions as well as your other reviews) that have made it into my daily line up:
Diorshow Blackout mascara: LOVE IT!!!! LOVE LOVE LOVE. It now lives in my purse and goes everywhere with me.
Philosophy skin care: I don't think I can say enough about the Makeup Optional set. My skin is soft and all glowy (is that a word?) and I have had very little problem with sensitivity. I do have one small issue and that is that Hope in a Jar seems to give me a TINY amount of breakout on my forehead every now and then. So what I've been doing is using Hope in a Jar a few days a week and then a lighter moisturizer from Origins (the one with mushroom in it) the other days and that seems to be working fine.
Cosmedicine's Opti-mologist Eye Cream: I don't know how much of a difference this is making, but I continue to use it anyway because it seems  to be doing something. I also really like how soft it makes the skin around my eyes feel.
Smashbox eyeshadow in flirt: This has become another purse dweller. I feel it's a bit too sparkly for work, so I've been doing the Stila smokey eye palette in bronzes  for work wear, and then after work, adding the flirt over the Stila... works like a charm and I actually had one of the Houston Grand Opera makeup artist go crazy over my eyes the other night. (One caveat about the Stila palette... It talks to you. Seriously. You push this little button and it tells you how to use it. Weird. I find that very very weird.)
Clinique's Almost Lipstick in Black Honey: As you can guess, this one is an every day staple as well. It works on SO many levels with all different outfits and eye shadows and moods... In fact I've let many a friend borrow it while we were out and I've made a believer out of four of them.
Fresh Sugar: This makes me very happy. Happy like when I was a little girl and my mom would dab her perfume on my wrists so we could smell the same. It makes me feel special and light and radiant. It's so odd that something so small that does nothing for how you look makes you feel so different. I don't use it on a daily basis, only when I'm going to dinner or out or feeling a little down. It's kind of like that drug high that people talk about, I don't want to use it so often that it loses it's euphoric effect on me.

Some things that I have added on my own:
Stila Lip Glaze in Grapefruit: Perfect for work. I also love to use it if I do really dramatic eyes, it give just enough pale glimmering gloss to the lips without adding TOO much and taking away from the eyes.
Smashbox Brow Tech in Taupe: I am really fair and have almost non-existent eyebrows. The wax/powder combo scared me at first, I didn't want to look like I had the forties shaved and drawn back in eyebrow. My fear was totally unfounded. It does take a light touch, but with a little practice mastering a natural look is quite simple.

As for clothing:
I followed Z's advice and took all my expensive clothes and the clothes that I love to a tailor and had them all altered. Yes it cost me about 400 bucks, but I feel like I got a WHOLE NEW WARDROBE! And if I had try to purchase everything again in my correct size I would have had to spend ten times that. (BTW, I went from a size 14 to a size 4!!!! I cried when the tailor told me.)
I'm choosing brighter colors (jewel toned blues, fun bright pinks) and more fine fabrics (I have discovered an obsession with silk/cotton blend blouses).
I bought two pairs of jeans that have become my wardrobe staples:
A skinny jean from Forever 21 and, to my surprise, a higher waisted flared legged jean from Banana Republic that makes me look really tall and thin.
AND although my body will most likely pay for it later, I have restocked my collection of high heels. I choose mainly wedges, but the higher the better.
Nothing feels better than to put on some slim dark jeans, a feminine (but form hugging) blouse and some sky high heels... it's become my superhero uniform.

I know that was a lot, but I really wanted to let you know that I took your advice seriously and appreciate every bit of it.

I do have a of follow up question though:
1. I know you don't do the eyeshadow thing often, but I'm looking for a combo that will make my blue eyes SCREAM blue... I mean at the top of their tiny, non-existent lungs!

Thank you again and keep you the wonderful work!!!

C.

Comments

[Anne (in Reno)]

Oh my God this is the best follow-up ever! SO glad everyone's advice worked out for you and things are going so well! You totally rock! Glad you managed to find a good tailor, that's amazing that they could redo so much of your wardrobe for such a good price! And rock those heels!

[jess]

Wow, this is amazing; thank you so much for keeping us all updated! I'm wondering, LB, if it's possible to put up a link to the initial post, too?

As for C's question: I don't know what type of blue eyes you have, but mine are dark blue/gray (slate blue?) and the eyeshadow color that makes them stand out the most is bronze. My go-to eyeshadow is laura mercier in "Temptation" - that plus mascara and (when I remember) gray eyeliner.

I think it works because the contrast between blue and bronze fits into the primary colors contrast of blue and orange - so maybe just trying an eyeshadow that has some sort of orange-y undertones could work? I hope this helps and good luck with your auditions!

[A.]

Oh, this is lovely. Congratulations, C., for all your good news and accomplishments. As for eye shadow, my eyes change color along a blue-gray-green spectrum, and a light copper on the lid seems to emphasize the blue. I think a heavy metallic colored eye shadow would be horrific, so I mean light as in a hint of color AND as in using a light hand. I use a sort of champagney beige highlight under the brow and in the inner corners; then light copper on the lids (it doesn't scream copper, believe me) and then brown in the outer corners. I looked at your Stila palette; the shadow they describe as "a golden bronze shimmer for the lid" is less coppery than what I'm describing, but overall I'd say that combination is similar and you're on the right track. This is the copper I use; it's much less saturated in reality than in the picture: www.aromaleigh.com/decopuhucowi.html

[LB]

You know how celebrities are all, I'd give up everything I have to save a dying child/puppy/rainforest? That's how we felt, a bit, with this update! And it made us cry just a little.

Here's the original post:
http://www.bunnyshop.org/bunnyshop/2008/03/reader-mail-a-c.html

[Kathleen Lawson]

Yes ma'm. That's my baby! Isn't she great? I've been telling her this for years, glad you think so too! - Love MOM - PS I don't remember, did she send you her picture? You should see it, and she is as beautiful in soul as body.

[k.]

i'm so happy for you :)

[LB]

We did get a picture from Ms. C, in fact. We remember being like, this girl needs no help - she's absolutely adorable on her own! But we understand the need for change and whatnot sometimes, so who are we to refuse!

[Clara]

Wow, that's awesome! Good luck with your auditions!

[lauren]

I have green eyes, but it may work for you, too: I have found a matte eyeshadow from MAC that seriously makes my eyes POP. It is pretty adventurous for work (but sometimes I do it anyway, just to shake my fist at The Man a bit) but it can be really interesting. My advice would be to try out a bunch of different things from MAC. The people at the counter could probably tell you more.