Nailed to the Couch: Black Matte

I have been searching for a black matte nail polish because I think it looks good. My man-husband is not a fan of black nail polish because he says it reminds him of goth stuff. And I guess he doesn't like goth style. You know, to each their own.

Anyhow, since I could not find a black matte polish in the grocery store - where I get all my stuff - I was going to. . .uhh. . continue looking.

The item

What I did find was Matte About You - Top Coats by Essie! I happen to be a fan of Essie. If you ever saw any of my beautiful nail air featuring an occasional accent nail and tons of varnish all over my dry, cracked cuticles.

The first thing I did notice about this top coat, because it is a top coat - or "taco" per that Christine chick on Simply Nailogical - got some serious packaging. I mean, did we need all that packaging?

Anyhow, I had Essie's Licorice which is a pretty sweet black. It's also very glossy.

I added this matte coat and - SHAAZA! Look at that action! I will also say, I don't often use a top coat and I found this made my polish last longer. Which is. . .I guess the point.

Anyhow, I am thrilled with this find because I can now turn any polish I have into a matte. I also picked up a normal top coat for glossy. I think the matte looks best on dark colors but I can wait to try more!

Buy Something On TV

Mission Level: Success

I can actually spend hours watching infomercials. How else would I know all the problems I have - like cooking pasta - and how there is a solution for $19.99 (plus shipping and handling) plus a free gift solution!

I ended up going with the Cami Secret because, so much like the commercial says, I like to have some coverage without adding bulk. Summer is coming and the last thing I want to do is be wearing two shirts in order to make sure no one sees my bra.

They have not invented a camisole for pit stains, let me tell you. Here is the commercial for your viewing pleasure!

Background
First, I don’t have the ample bosom of the lady in the commercial  I don’t think I actually have cleavage at all, actually. However, this doesn't mean I should have a top or dress that proves that. I have a couple blouses that have a sort of cowl-neck – a draped neckline that can slip in non-professional ways. There are times you can avoid flashing your undergarments. Like, 99.9% of the time.

I have used tape before to secure unruly shirts in place. The tape actually works great, but, it doesn't allow for as much movement as can be natural. It also leaves behind a residue on your clothes or bra. This can be really hard to remove. It’s great the tape really sticks – sucks that is really sticks.

Sometimes, life is like that.

What It Is

The product

The Cami Secret is a mock-cami. It’s just a little triangle of fabric that clips to your bra so it looks like you
are wearing a cami (and hiding some bits) without having a full on cami.

I bought mine at CVS. You can actually get them at most drug stores and food stores, online and wherever, really.I was not going to be calling over the phone for something, by the way. I believe the using and acquiring of the product was the real challenge - not calling some weird hot-line and giving out my information.

I did get them in the three standard colors - black, nude and BRILLIANT white.

Pros
It’s actually a good product. The quality is good. It does look like an actual camisole. It’s smooth and even the lace strip on the top is pretty nice. It’s not sloppily glued or stuck on there. It can actually look like a real lace cami and not a mock thing.

It works by having a little piece that goes around your bra strap and snaps into itself. It’s pretty secure – it’s not just a pin or clip.

You do get three colors – I am just not sure who wants to display a nude color. Really. Nude is . . . not a sexy color. No one is like, “You know what I need, a nude undergarment to bring the sexy.”

It’s not too expensive. All around, the pros are pretty strong.

Cons
I dislike the lace detailing. I wish they had just plain ones. The lace does not go with everything I have. I normally wear very plain spaghetti strap tops, so the lace is weird to me. It is also a little bit, maybe, old? I think a clean line would be more modern and versatile. You can easily find dressy cami for special outfits. Because of the lace, I really only wear the black one because it is less noticeable.

Since I am not a top-heavy girl, I also do not have any ability to adjust the amount of skin-to-cami ratio. In the commercial, they show how the girl can go from “I’m a nun” coverage to “$1s go in here.” I only have the “I’m a nun” setting. This is because the mock-cami will only slide as far up or down as your bra strap goes. Once the strap meets the top part of the bra cup, you’re done.

Future Thoughts
I have been wearing it to work for a couple dresses. I do like it, overall. I am happy with my purchase. I will have to get something else for my going-out dresses if I want a mock-cami since it’s a little too modest for my bangin’ hot red dress with a low-cut front that I just need about an inch of coverage on.

If anyone wants that nude one, though, it’s totally available.

Be Part of the Adventure
Do you have a suggestion or want to see me attempt something? Drop me an email at AdventuringAmanda@gmail.com with your suggestion.

Image Credit
Product image from amazon.com

Hair Care: Finishing Spray

I have been looking for a finishing spray for my hair. To back up a moment, I find the reason I struggle the most with finding products I want is that I do not know the proper term to call them. Oftentimes, I have to ask people what something is called or describe it to a bunch of people before I get other terms to use to search.

Really, half the battle in this world is agreeing on a vocabulary.

I ended up going shopping with my insanely amazing boyfriend and after spending about 30 minutes in the vitamin aisle, I moved over to the hair care aisle to see what I could find. I have no desire to change my hair routine. 

This is my routine:

• Shampoo with Brilliant Brunette.
• Condition with Brilliant Brunette.
• Smooth on some L'Oreal stuff – I think it’s this, but, my bottle looks different. Advanced Haircare Smooth Intense Frizz Taming Serum.
• Blow-dry.
• Get on with my life.

Unless it's the weekend, then it's anyone's game.

What I Want

I never had a complicated hair routine because when your hair gets really long, it just takes too long. When my hair is short, I just shampoo, condition and blow-dry. Remember, I donate chronically to Locks forLove (check out my Donate to Locks for Love post!), so, I’m really just a hair farmer.

Anyhow, I wanted a finishing spray I could use to help tame my frizz and give my hair some smoothness. I have pretty nice hair, I think. I don’t dye it or anything or overload it with stuff. I don’t know if I just lucked out or because I don’t do a lot with it, it remains healthy. However, I have wavy hair (use to be curly, after treatment it got less curly) and it tends to frizz out as it gets longer.

I don’t have nice, long hair. I have tangled, frizzy weird long hair. I even use a straightening iron on it without too much luck. In fact, I could spend an hour or more on my hair and it looks like I did nothing. I had an old co-worker ask me why I never did anything with my hair.

I died a little on the inside.

I use to use John Frieda Brilliant Brunette Satin Shine Finishing Creme (it's been discontinued) but I am not really that great with hair and makeup stuff, so, I would sort of get a couple clumps. I could never “work product through hair” so I gave up. I figured if I had a spray, I had a better chance of having some type of even control.

So, I purchased this Organix Ever-Straight Brazilian KeratinTherapy Flat Iron Spray.

The spray

Behold

I actually have been enjoying this product. It has actually tamed my frizz and I don’t have tons of fly-away or softly levitating hair locks.

What I do not like is the fact that my hair feels a little more weighed down. I am so not used to having anything in my hair (never used hairspray  gel, etc) so when something is in there, I feel weird. I does smell like coconut, and I like coconut, but I am not sure I enjoy smelling like coconut. It’s a small price to pay.

Be Part of the Adventure
Do you have a suggestion or want to see me attempt something? Drop me an email at AdventuringAmanda@gmail.com with your suggestion.

Image Credit
Spray from organixhair.com/