Get Ready With Me: Afternoon Coffee

Light, rosy makeup for an afternoon at a cafe--a makeup tutorial for Indian skin tones. If you know Japanese, please skip ahead to 9:10! I could use your help!

Here are the products I used:

1. Angled Eyeshadow Brush // Ulta // $12

2. Smokin Rose Eyeshadow Duo // Max Factor // $4

3. Lash Expander Mascara // Shiseido (Majolica Majorca) // $20

4. Flawless Face Brush // Bare Minerals // $28

5. Nude Lipstick ("Kinda Sexy") // MAC // $16

6. Medium Tan Face Powder (SPF 15) // Bare Minerals // $27

7. Lush Solid Perfume: I have no idea! If you know Japanese, please help me out!

Thanks for watching!

Namaste! (Get it? Because it means "hello" AND "goodbye"?)

Hi guys!

You might have noticed that this blog is no longer sowheresthemanual.blogspot.com, and is now grishmapolitan.blogspot.com

I figured I'd explain why I went with the name-change.

I started this blog while I was recovering from depression and anxiety, which is something I've briefly alluded to but never explicitly written about (I will someday, I promise, I just don't really know how to talk about it yet.) The name sowheresthemanual came from my realization that there's no prescription for happiness, and that it's something we must figure out as we go.

The core of my blog is still and always will be about living a happy, beautiful, meaningful life. But I don't want this space to exist separately from my other voices on the internet. So, I changed the url to grishmapolitan (thanks, Doug!) because... well... that's what I name everything else.

Speaking of which, you can also find me at other corners of the internet. Click on over if you'd like!

 

Medicine Cabinets for Minimalists

I'm almost done unpacking into my new apartment (almost a month later... but for a good reason! More on that soon.) But today I wanted to share what's in my medicine cabinet. 

I'm the daughter of anxious parents, so I've grown up with medicine cabinets that are stuffed full. My parents even put extras of medicine in other bags around their closet. Predictably, my own medicine cabinet was a well-equipped first-aid kit. That, and about a billion little bottles of lotion, chapstick, lip gloss, etc. etc.

I noticed that a lot of my medicine expired before I ever used it. Partly because I don't get sick very often, partly because I don't really like taking medicine. So, I began downsizing. 

I only keep pain-relievers, cold medicine, a thermometer, and some band-aids. I figure that I can buy everything else as needed. I've also dedicated the top shelf for travel-sized containers (so that they're easy to toss into a bag for quick packing.) One lotion. One lip balm. Replace as needed.

This might still look cluttered to some of you super minimalists, but here are my current essentials:

And here are some top picks:

1. Highbrow Tweezers//Sephora//$12 

I've used these for over five years and absolutely love them. The tips are angled sideways as well as inwards, so they hurt less than other tweezers I've tried. I wipe the tips with a small dab of hand sanitizer to disinfect them before use. 

2. Smith's Rosebud Salve//American Apparel//$4: 

I use them for chapped lips, dry areas, and--yes--cleaning.

3. Eucalyptus Spearmint Lotion//Bath and Body Works//$12: 

I don't use this as body lotion because it has a very strong smell, but I dab a little bit on my temples before a bath or when I'm trying to relax--it's really soothing.

4. Make Your Own Bandages//Urban Outfitters: 

Comes with 20 pastel bandaids, 3 markers, and makes wounds just a little less terrible. I wasn't able to find these online (I got these at a store in Boston a few years ago) but if you find these at a store please let me know in the comments below!