SKINCARE STAPLES FOR ECZEMA

I have had eczema my whole life, and it's always been an issue for me finding skincare products that help alleviate itching, redness, and dryness. For years I went to the dermatologist twice a week for lightbooth UV therapy (it was literally a stand-up tanning bed) and I had prescriptions for several topical steroids. 

As well as eczema, I also have a rare auto-immune disorder called Dermatomyositis, which caused my skin to get even WORSE for over a year before I started on prednisone and other medications. If you've ever been on prednisone, you know that it's not something you want to take for an extended period of time. Since I have been off prednisone and a bunch of my other medications, I've adopted a skincare regimen that has proved to work relatively well. Right now where the eczema is the worst is my feet and calves, but I do have patches on my elbows, hands, and thighs.

In the morning and night, I use this beautiful product as a skincare "base coat", if you will. The alpha-hydroxy acid in it helps break down dead skin cells and it's wonderful. It was part of a regimen that my dermatologist recommended 3 years ago and I have stuck to it pretty regularly.

After the Eucerin cream, I slap on some of this stuff, which I've only been able to find at my UrgentCare pharmacy so I don't know how widely available it is. But if you can find it, it's awesome. Cutemol doesn't have much of a smell, and it's an almost glue-like texture, but once you get it on the skin it starts to warm up and melt down to a softer texture. 

BLOG SALE

I have deleted my old blog sale post so this doesn't get confusing, and if I do add more items, it will all be on this post so it's easier to link that way.

 How the rules will work:

1.  You must be 18 or older or ask permission from your parents (because I will need your address).
2. You need a Paypal account (it's the easiest and safest and quickest way to pay)
3. To reserve an item, leave a comment below with the product you want and what country you live in (this is international, I just need to figure out the exact shipping for your country).
4. Once I have put a crossthrough the item, it has been spoken for and is no longer available.
5. I will send items within a week of purchase, and when I email you about shipping, I'll let you know around how long it should take to get there.
6. I'd prefer sales be over $10 (so two or more small items), but they don't have to be over $10.

PLEASE NOTE: ALL THESE PRODUCTS ARE USED, SOME MORE THAN OTHERS. SO EVEN THOUGH I KEEP THEM RELATIVELY CLEAN, I SUGGEST DISINFECTING THEM WHEN YOU GET THEM IN CASE OF ALLERGENS.

OKAY! Let's get to them products.

The Balm Shady Lady Vol. 2 Palette (used 4-5 times)

$10

 Urban Decay Baked Bronzer (used ~ 10 times)

$10

Feel Good Inc.

This outfit literally has nothing to to with Gorillaz, but it's comfortable as hell. That's the theme for today's post - comfort. Now you may think, "Abby, those shoes are tall as SHIT. How can they be comfortable?" Well okay rhetorical person, let me tell you - in the larger scheme of shoes overall - no. But as far as tall shoes go, they're pretty damn comfortable. They are my new Sam Edelman Javis, and I love them. I'll definitely be rocking them with a ton of spring outfits (and spring is coming! It's supposed to be 68 and sunny this weekend!).

 

I got them from Ebay last week, but you can purchase them here. They were originally $160, and I got them for $60. Score! I am a bit obsessed with Ebay right now, can you tell?

LIFE LATELY: World of Color

I'm taking this song title thing seriously, and this post's song comes from a band I saw last weekend - Ravenna Woods, a band that I haven't seen in literally like two years.

 

I don't know what's wrong with me and why it took me so long to see them again, but it was a nice evening. I went out with Lana, as my wingman on my first concert outing as a single lady. I'm just glad I didn't have to go by myself.

As well as seeing Ravenna Woods rock the house, I got to see my friends Lost Lander open for them. There's a long story with me and Lost Lander, but I'll spare you all the details. I haven't seen them since September, and that's a pretty long time, seeing that I basically saw them every 2-3 months for a year up until September. I just really like them a lot. 

 

Possibly my favorite thing about the whole night (and perhaps the whole last month)was the conversation I had with Dave and Matt. Matt said during their set that Seattle was their favorite city to play in, and Dave said later that I could take 80% of the responsibility for that (*sigh*). Also, Matt changed up the setlist because he knew I would notice. And Dave said that I was "one of the team, and unofficial 5th member of Lost Lander." If there was any band that would consider taking me on tour with them at some point, it would probably be Lost Lander. I don't think I've ever had band love that was requited, so it's a big deal.

 

Black Gold Blues

I am a bit obsessed with vests lately. This one I picked up at the Bremerton Goodwill last week, and I have worn it at least three times, including as I write this post, three days after these photos were taken. It gives a hint of old lady nostalgia to any outfit, and you can wear it open or buttoned up. So many possibilities!

 

Sarah and I met down at the Metropolitan Market while we were both running errands, and went down along Proctor to take these shots. If there had to be one place in Tacoma to call cute - it would be Proctor. It's kind of like this vest - it's cute and old-fashioned, but still hip and relevant.

I paired the vest with this plain black bodycon dress from Target (it's slightly looser now since I was about 15 lbs heavier when I bought it two years ago). It hits me at just the right place on my thigh where I can wear it casually or dress it up. I was going for the casual look that day (obviously), so I brightened it up with bright blue footless tights, also from Target. These are possibly my favorite colored tights that I own, because they are so opaque! Even the American Apparel tights I have aren't this opaque.

Festival Fashion: Shoes Shoes SHOES!

We have the second installment of my festival fashion series - and now we're going to talk about shoes. They're essentially the most important part of what you're going to wear to a music festival, because it could mean the difference between feet that are merely tired and feet that are in excruciating pain.

For the last three years, I've been pretty much rocking combat boots nonstop during Sasquatch. After last year's festival, I retired by old combat boots; they were both disgusting and falling apart. That's what you get with cheap combat boots from TJ Maxx.

This year I'm keeping my options open. 

I know it won't be like this for everyone, but I like wearing socks during Sasquatch. I have dry dry skin and terrible eczema on my feet and calves, so going in flip flops just isn't an option for me. I have to wear heavy lotion most of the time, and if I don't wear socks - my feet collect dust like no other. And if I don't wear lotion, my feet literally hurt by the end of the day.

So I've provided you - and in turn, me - some options for festival footwear!

Acid Washed

This has to have been the coldest first day of Spring ever. I could see my breath by the end of the day, and I did not like it one bit. So I tricked myself into feeling like Spring by throwing on this great new top I got from Nastygal the other day.

Sarah and Lana and I found a few fabulous walls on 6th Ave today, and seeing that my outfit was pretty monochromatic, I settled on the graffiti'd wall. I like using graffiti in photos, but no offense to the graffiti garages in downtown Tacoma - they're way overused. I can't say how many times I've seen photos in those exact garages (I will admit, I've used them once before, but only once).

Weekly Etsy Roundup

Here are all the new listings that I've posted on Etsy this week!

Vintage 1980s "Pretty In Pink" Prom Gown - $90

Vintage 1970s Pendleton Reversible Pleated Skirt - $34

Vintage 1970s cream chunky knit sweater

Vintage 1960s White Long Leather Gloves

 
Vintage 1960s Amalfi soft paisley pumps - Handmade in Italy

  Vintage 1970s turquoise pump stack heel

  Vintage 1980s Gaymode black patent pumps


I've also added a bunch of new items to my 10 DOLLAR SALE section, so be sure to check those out. Spring cleaning!

 

Best wishes!

-Abby

Flower Shower Power

See the rain? Yeah, I was literally running around in the rain here.

It was definitely one of the harder shoots Sarah and I have done. We went down to the one of the old parking lots along Pacific Avenue in Tacoma - where ghost murals are more common than trees. You can see one behind me here.

It was cold and wet and I was bloated, so I had to brighten up my day with some sunny floral leggings. I got these from Target and I absolutely love them. The waist goes up high enough to where I don't have a horrendous muffin top, and the pattern is distracting enough that I can wear them as pants.

Channeling Molly Ringwald

If I had a penny for every time I've been compared to Molly Ringwald, I'd probably have enough money to get a couple of gumballs from a candy machine.

To be perfectly honest, I used to have real short hair and when it was red, I definitely saw the resemblance. And there have been plenty of outfits in the past where I was embracing my inner Samantha Baker, maybe subconsciously looking for my Jake Ryan.  See video HERE.

 

The day before shooting this, I actually found this awesome midi skirt at our Goodwill in Gig Harbor. It was so springy and adorable that I had to get it. And guess what? IT'S A PRINTED DENIM! I'm telling ya, I've got a bit of an addiction. I went to the Goodwill in search of a maxi dress for festival season, which I didn't find, but I came out with a couple of great finds. I should be posting a haul of my recent finds on my channel on Saturday.  

Festival Fashion: The Perfect Dress

Ever since I heard about the lineup for the Sasquatch Music Festival, I have been planning my outfits for the fest. Seriously. It's not until the end of May, but I'm already trying to figure out what I'm going to wear on those four days. And since SXSW is happening this week and Coachella is next month, I thought I'd start my festival fashion series now so anyone else can start getting ideas.

I've been scouring web boutiques for maxi dresses under $50, and to be honest it's been quite hard to find something that will work for me. I'll explain in a minute. Here are a few that I've been ogling at the last couple of days from favourite online shops Karmaloop and Nastygal.

The two dresses on top are gorgeous (and both on sale on Nastygal), but the sizing is iffy on that website. I'm a 38DD in bra size, and a size 10 in pants and dresses, so neither of these at a size 8 would work. Sigh.

 

These next two would probably be a lot easier to fit because of the naturally loose fit, but the one main problem here is that I can't wear a bra with them. I ain't that confident to walk around Sasquatch with my sweater puppies bouncing all around. Sigh.

 

There is one on Karmaloop that I might give in after my next paycheck and get if there's a coupon code that I can use. I've said this before - I'm cheap.

Why have I been looking for a maxi dress specifically? Well, I hate my legs when they're bare. I have eczema all over my calves and they make me self conscious, so I don't rock short dresses without tights very much. Urban Outfitters has a whole festival fashion lookbook right now on their site that I've been drooling over.

I've been especially loving the flower headwrap look, and it will definitely go with my hair once I get this red out of it and I'm back to my natural dirty blonde and my bangs grow out a bit. I'm bored with this hair so much.

There are a couple of pieces that I have already for the festival - a rather ugly collared maxi dress I got from the Goodwill today that is too small for me to button up, but I'll wear it as a duster vest. And I got a fringe mesh (yeah both of them) tank from H&M. At some point I'll be doing an outfit post with these, hence the "part 1" at the beginning of this post.

But there are a couple of pieces that I've got my eye on from Ebay. This one in particular I LOVE. It's not a maxi dress by any means, but the pattern is so vibrant that it would detract any sort of attention from the red splotches on my calves. Plus it looks uber comfy. 

This whole shop Meat Market, on Ebay, is amazing. I'm also watching a pair of Dolce Vita heels from their shop as well.

I've never shopped on Ebay before besides one of my camera lenses, but I might have to look more, because I've found that the prices are cheaper than Etsy.

One last thing that I'm excited to add to my festival gear is this tank I just ordered today (when I say festival gear, I basically mean summer, I'll be dressing for Sasquatch all summer to be honest).

I've literally been looking for a tank top like this for months, and I finally found one on Nastygal for not an obscene amount of money, and it will look super cute with a pair of jeans and wedges for days when I'm not running up and down dusty hills with a giant camera.

Once I have found the perfect maxi dress (that's relatively cheap), hopefully I'll have more planned out for the fest and I can do a part 2!

Best wishes!
-Abby

GET READY WITH ME: Everyday Matte

I posted this video today using my Stila In The Know Palette for an everyday look on my channel. I really like the look. I hope you like it too!

Best wishes!

-Abby

Damsel in Denim

You have no idea how many denim and vest puns I tried to come up with to title this post. I really invested a lot of time in it. *teehee*

Sarah and Lana (Sarah's sister, if you don't know) and I drove out to the Titlow Lodge down in University Place this week to try some cool new backdrops, and we managed to get a bunch of really cute photos - Sarah posted an assortment on her post from the shoot. It was a really fun day that I desperately needed.

REVIEW + SWATCHES: Stila "In The Know" Palette

 

I recently got the Stila "In the Know" Palette from the Birchbox website, where I needed to spend $10 in Birchbox points that had been sitting there for over three months. I'd been ogling at it for months and never buckled down and bought it. An all-matte palette from Stila? Yes puh-lease!

I AM SO HAPPY I BOUGHT IT.

The first photo is with daylight through my window, the second being the incandescent lamp lighting.

 I have used this palette every single day since I got it a week ago, and I love it. All the eyeshadows are super creamy, even though they don't swatch the greatest on my arm. That could be attributed to how hairy my arm is. Trust me, when using them with a brush, they blend so nicely. They aren't quite as pigmented as say, Urban Decay's matte eyeshadows, but because they are so creamy and buildable, they don't ever come off chalky.

 Not only do you get 10 matte neutral eyeshadows, you also get a smudge stick eyeliner in Halfmoon! I'm not a huge fan of grey eyeliner myself, but it can definitely be used with a subtle grey smokey eye. This palette also comes with one of those gimmicky pamphlets of look ideas, but I threw it away.

 The top layer is a lot of light colors and then the one dark one - Earth. I love the names of these shadows too. Clay, Rain, Driftwood - way better than numbers and some of the weird names that the Balm gives their eyeshadows. The lightest colors, Wind and Air don't show up on my arm, well because my arm is pale as hell and the shadows match the color of my skin.

 

L-R: Earth, Clay, Desert, Wind, Air

The bottom row is where the smokey looks can come from. You have your matte black, matte charcoal, a couple of browns - but then there is this fabulous brick red color. I mean WOWZA. Fire is a gorgeous color that doesn't look like anything I have in my collection or anything I've seen in a palette before. It's the reason I was so drawn to this palette in the first place to be honest.

 L-R: Ebony, Smoke, Rain, Fire, Driftwood

 I love how as a whole, this palette is warm-toned. The light neutrals compliment my eye color wonderfully and don't come off looking gray or sallow at all. My go-to eye with this palette so far has been Clay all over the lid, Rain the crease, and Driftwood in the outer corner. It's so soft and natural and lovely AHHH I LOVE IT.

At $39 for 10 quality eyeshadows and a smudge stick eyeliner - these Stila "In The" palettes are a great bargain. They're cheaper than the Urban Decay Naked Palettes (and I mean you do get 2 fewer eyeshadows, but still a great bargain). I'll definitely be posting a video at some point using this palette for a look or two, because it's such a great selection of matte colors, which is something everyone is always on the look out for.

Buy this palette:

Sephora

Stila

Birchbox

Best wishes!

-Abby

Sweet Mint

So I was trying to sit down and figure out what I was going to say about this outfit, but my day took a terrible terrible turn and I'm kind of at a loss for what to say right now. So here's my outfit, nonetheless.

 Top: Marshall's // Cardigan: Target // Shorts: TJ Maxx // Tights: Target // Shoes: Target // Necklace: Vintage // Bag: Thrifted

Gettin' Thrifty With It: Overalls?

So apparently overalls are a thing now. Who knew?

On this day Sarah finally made it out to Gig Harbor, and we met down at Skansie Brothers Park, where the marina sits and at Christmas time the giant tree in the yard. It's pretty much the most central of meeting places in this town.

The weather was beautiful, though cold. That's basically how our springs start here in Washington - it looks pretty, but it's deceiving as hell. Icy cold wind and a beautiful sun. Stupid mother nature.