Picture That: Winner

Hi all,
I wanted to thank the few of you who entered into the giveaway contest.  Using Random.org, I'd like to congratulate Meri for winning the giveaway!
Meri, please send me an email with your shipping information (i.e. address) at your earliest convenience.

Everyone else, thank you for following!

Lengthen Your Lashes

Over the past few weeks I've been using Tarte's multiplEYE natural lash enhancer.  It is formulated without parabens, phthalates, sodium lauryl sulfate, and synthetic dyes and fragrances.

I'd wanted to try Revitalash or Latisse, but I couldn't really justify getting it.  I was scared of the reviews that claimed that using these products changed the color of your eye so who knows what else they could have done?  When Tarte came out with this product, I decided to give it a try.

My eyelashes are short and straight, but I definitely noticed growth after using this product.  It's a little pricey, at $65 for a tube that'll last about two months.

You definitely have to follow the directions exactly, so that means using it every day on clean eyelids, which was probably my downfall.  It also stings a little bit after application, but nothing terribly unpleasant.

So will I buy it again?  Probably not.  It did work for me, but it was hard for me to remember to put it on and failing to put it on clean eyelids meant that it wouldn't work.  However, if you know you're going to be diligent about it, it's definitely worth trying out.

Finally, I'd just like to remind all readers to enter into my giveaway!

Picture That: Giveaway

I am really excited to offer to my lovely readers my first ever sponsored giveaway!


This giveaway is hosted by CSN, which is comprised of over 200 online stores, where you can find everything from eco-friendly modern furniture to cookware.


Many of their websites have a "Go Green" link right at the top, letting shoppers know what items they're offering that are environmentally friendly.


I will be giving away one 16x16 piece of stretched wall art by Inhabit, which creates art from recycled polyester and comes ready to hang.  A lot of Inhabit's artwork is inspired by nature, with modern and artistic renditions of trees, bamboo, and grass.  I've chosen a modern interpretation of a coral reef in a gorgeous plum for one lucky follower.


To enter for a chance to win, become a follower (if you aren't already!) and let me know one way you're cutting down on your environmental impact this year.  This giveaway is limited to US residences only and the winner will be announced next week.

Getting Organized: Revisited

I thought that I had gotten organized before, when my brother pointed out that he couldn't tell the difference.


Granted, he is a boy and not accustomed to keeping all his eyeliner pencils in order, but I knew it was time to move on to a bigger organizer.


I ordered this Lipper International Bamboo Adjustable Drawer Organizer from Amazon and love it!  It can be used for office supplies too, but I think that it's perfect for my makeup.  It comes with some dividers built in, but 8 smaller dividers so you can customize the space for your personal needs.


Best of all, it's made out of bamboo, which is a quick growing grass - a renewable resource (when harvested responsibly)!

Freezing Hair

I've gone through three years of college without owning a hair dryer.  My roommates have always had them but I hated drying my hair because it was so time consuming and it gets just so hot - not to mention hair dryers consume a ton of energy.

I was at Target a few months ago looking for a lamp, and ended up with a hair dryer.  I hadn't planned on buying it, but I saw the "Eco" mode setting on this hair dryer, which promised to use less energy than a regular dryer and I was intrigued.  It has three add ons - a diffuser, a concentrator, and a beachwaver (shown in the above picture).

I have to say that I think all the different attachments will work better for someone who doesn't have naturally stick-straight hair.  I'm Asian, and my hair air dries straight - I can't even curl my hair without it becoming straight within a few hours, so most of the attachments left me with hair that virtually looked the same as if I had just dried it by hand.  I was, however, pleasantly surprised by the beachwaver, which left my hair tousled for the whole night.

Smells Like Back to School

I know I'm back at school when I come into my room smelling like geraniums.  I hate the idea of air fresheners in general (throwing away so much packaging, replacing so frequently, so many chemicals), but Mrs. Meyer's makes a great air freshener that smells delicious.

Best of all, all their products are biodegradable, 100% vegan, and don't contain ammonia, chloride, parabens, formaldehyde, or petroleum distillates.

Their products work (I also use their all-purpose cleaner in Basil to clean my kitchen) and smell delicious.

Second Skin

I previously blogged about my new Kindle, which I got as a Christmas gift.  Almost immediately upon receipt, I started looking for ways to protect it.  I knew that I wanted a skin to protect it from scratches, so when I found GelaSkins' charity:water collaboration, I knew I hit gold.

GelaSkins creates skins (stickers, essentially) cut to fit your electronics.  They offer products for cell phones, laptops, mp3 players, and gaming systems.  Their products use 3M adhesives, so you know they're quality.  The skins are super thin, though kind of annoying to put on (as with most similar products).  I had to reposition mine a few times, and it still sticks, though I'm wary of repositioning it any more.  Mine fits my Kindle perfectly and doesn't get in the way of any of the buttons.

charity:water is a non-profit organization that focuses on bringing clean water to developing nations.  Almost 1 billion people in the world lack access to clean, safe drinking water.  Unsafe water and lack of sanitations cause 80% of diseases, and 90% of the deaths that occur due to this are to children under 5 years old, who are especially vulnerable to these illnesses.  There are a million reasons that water is one of the biggest environmental disasters of our lifetime, some of which are explained further on their website.  (A documentary I recommend on this topic is FLOW: For Love of Water.)

All donations to charity:water go to water projects, while their operating costs are covered by private donors, which means that you know a donation will make a real difference.  All net proceeds from a charity:water GelaSkin go to operational costs.

I chose the water doodle skin, which was customized and cut for my Kindle, but there are lots of other great designs here.