Trying To Look and Act Human Even When Sick.

Bioderma, Clarins, the Omorovicza "mitt," the Sisley face mask, and the Elemis Papaya Enzyme Peel

I'm afraid I'm pretty ill at the moment. In fact, worried hubby stayed home to keep an eye on me in the AM - a rare occurrence - and I kept asking him for cups of tea with honey. Saying that I am not a huge fan of honey qualifies as an understatement: the last time I had tea with honey was when I came down with the bug that led to the CFIDS/ME/fibro - when my mom flew down to my university to "nurse me back to good health" - so my request for tea with honey pretty much scared the bejeebees out of hubby. I certainly hope the tea and honey work better now than it did back in 1975!

At any rate, when flying home, I came up with a few ideas that I think will be successful for me if I ever have to fly again, which I sincerely hope not, given the unsettling experiences I had coming back.  One day I may write about them, but for now I'm too "verklempt," as Mike Myers used to say on SNL.  I'm just glad I'm home, where I should be, recovering from it all.  (Lawdy! How DO I Manage to sound like such a drama queen!)
So, getting back to my thoughts and ideas. 

• A surprising and successful way to find use for something I didn't care for before:

I was just about to pop a mitt-like washcloth into my checked-in baggage, when I experienced a flashback to the skimpy warm washcloths on the plane that are occasionally passed around before meals.  I received said washcloth "mitt" in one of those trial-sized kits (Omorovicza )which, at the time I thought was a total waste of money.   Now, however, that said "mitt" has found its "calling," I'm more than thrilled that I have it.  
I simply wet it, wrung out all the water I could and popped the thing into a ziplock bag and slid it into the top - and thus easily accessible - compartment of my carry-on.  Every time I needed to wash off my face or hands, I turned to a clean area of the mitt.  

And good grief. This is not a germaphobe talking, just a relatively clean person: those planes are absolutely filthy! Even though business was much nicer (read "cleaner") than economy, still....  And since I try to stay away from the bathrooms as much as possible because of the germ factor, this damp washcloth turned out to be an inspired move. I liked that there was no stickiness after I used the "mitt." I find that any kind of wipes leave behind an unpleasant stickiness.  I can actually see myself using this trick even for a trip by car or train.

• The Bioderma worked out so well that next time I'm going to double the amount I take.  

(Did I say "next time"?  Excuse me while I take my temperature.  Yes, I'm quite delirious!)  I just need to put more cotton pads into the skincare and makeup bag I brought on board with me (hypothetically speaking, of course!)  In fact, I was so obsessed with the 3-1-1 rule of liquid contents taken on board that I kept getting completely confused and kept thinking I needed to take as few items on board as possible.  Fibro-fog really had a field-day with me!

• Skincare masks turned out to be a huge "face-saver."  

My skin was actually in better shape getting off the plane than it had been before getting on, thanks to constant hydration and fooling around with different products.  It made the time go by more quickly (well, almost) and kept me busy.  And yes, I'll be doing a review of the masks I've loved so far, as soon as I can get myself together and run a couple more experiments.  But I do love them completely!

So, there you have it: three ideas that really worked. I'm sure more will come up as soon as I can wrap my head around all that's happened, as well as once my fevers stop torturing me!

In the meanwhile, I hope everyone is doing as well as can be, "only better"!   


NOTE: I've corrected some of the content. Sorry about the errors. It appears that I was indeed a tiny bit delirious when I wrote this post: I've come down with croup, of all things. I sound just like a seal when I cough!

I'm back! Well, almost.

This ad in the basement of the Petronas Towers cracked me up!

Hi all! I returned home very early Sunday morning and am crashing badly. It'll take me a day or so to write a real post, etc. I sooo hope I'm not jinxing myself by saying this. In addition to "knock on wood," perhaps I should also add the Russian "tphoo! tphoo! tphoo!" since I used only "knock on wood" once I arrived in Chicago. Right after that, everything then suddenly starting unravelling and by the time I arrived in Pittsburgh it all became way too much drama for me!


The trip home was a "trip"! But fear not! ;) I have a few beauty products I bought in KL, as well as in duty-free, which will be tested. I also have some good travel tips, good for many, but especially for those with CFIDS/ME/fibro. And I have loads of adventures to describe. Oh! And I do need to organize my pictures - I wasn't able to put up any pictures with my posts, so that needs to be remedied!


Now if I could only get my body to stop hurting and for my brain to start clearing out some of the fog in it and sending that fog somewhere very far, far away - would it be too much to ask for it to remain away? Yeah! - well, then I'd be in business!


Finally, one teaser: one new beauty product worked magic on my face, a beloved product continued proving how much I love it and need to restock, pronto!


Later! Hope everyone is feeling as well as can be, but even better! (Fibro-brain logic!)

Putrajaya, where we stayed in KL.

The Uglies We Don't Want To Talk About

Because of a fancy Flower Show, each night there were extremely impressive fireworks.

Since this IS a CFIDS/ME/fibro/insomnia/pain blog, I should occasionally, at least, talk about some of the "nasties" out there.  Oh, and give my take on them as well.  After all, otherwise, why are we here, other than to hear about my wild adventures and experiences?  Yes, yes, I hear people all over saying, "no, no!  Be your charming self...we don't need the nasties!"   But proceed I will.  I do so hope y'all can forgive!  (This, I'm afraid, is my feeble attempt at humor!)

So on with it!

This year I've been getting a lot of aphthous ulcers in my mouth, otherwise known as "canker sores." I've not really had them a lot before, intermittently off and on over the last few years, though relatively rarely, usually after something silly like accidentally biting my tongue. But this year, they're so bad that my entire tongue has been affected by them, along the ridges of the tongue, the back, the sides, the front and throughout, repeatedly. They can and do affect the back of my throat, the roof of my mouth, inside the cheeks, and along my gum line too, but not as often as with my tongue. They are painful little monsters, and it's gotten to be so bad that when they're in full-blown force, I have trouble swallowing anything whatsoever, including saliva and water.

I've talked to my doctors about them, of course, and have gotten sympathetic nods of understanding and I've been told that it's not surprising that I've developed this problem, especially after the huge amount of stress our family's been under for the last two years. My body is starting to rebel, now that it sees that the fight-or-flight mode it's been in is starting to abate (KNOCK ON WOOD!). But understanding this isn't helping much, so I'm trying to be a bit more targeted in my approach to keeping them at bay, as I'm convinced that there is more here at play than "simple stress."

I read in a few places that there are a few things that can contribute to the frequency of this condition and in doing a bit of my own research on them, here are some of the more interesting factoids/thoughts I've found and formed:

• Stress seems to be the unifying bad man - yes, stress, the mother of all evil, it seems, and to me, an all too often convenient excuse of science when something is not understood. Furthermore, stress is especially the cause of the proliferation of them. Mine can start with one or two and disappear, or the opposite, can, and usually, happens: they start multiplying and taking over like some weird version of a campy Japanese terror movie. I feel as if tiny little aliens are invading my mouth. Come to think about it, I suppose they are!
• Lack of sleep (the bane of my existence) can cause an outbreak.
• As disgusting as they sound, they are not contagious. (Whew!)
• They are often accompanied by swollen lymph nodes and even fevers...as is the case with me.
• And here I go with my political incorrectness - it's been a while! They seem to occur more often in non-smokers(!) Funny, I never had them before I stopped smoking, almost two years ago.
• Sharp food, such as toast or potato chips can trigger them, as in physical trauma. Actually, I've noticed cheese doodles are a culprit too. (Call me wild and crazy but every once in a while I'll get a cheese doodle craving...that'll have to stop!)
• Citrus fruit is a contributing factor. I forgot this one because it's so counter intuitive and got a terrible case, not surprisingly, on the plane flying to KL: stress, lack of sleep and orange juice was a winning (or is that losing?) trifecta. I also find this to be ironic because I so often drink OJ to boost my immune system. By the time I was on my way to Tokyo, my mouth was in such bad shape that it took everything I had in me to keep the tears at bay.
• Vitamin C has also been accused of being a culprit. I'm not happy with this little tidbit since one of my favorite facial treatments to reduce hyper-pigmentation (age spots!) and cause new cell turn-over, is full of Vitamin C. I've told myself that I'll watch it and not use this product if I have a break-out (THAT should be fun to see, given my memory, or lack thereof!) and I'll let you know how that comes along if there is anything pro or con here. I do know that what you put on your face does end up in your system, as I've tasted lavender oil, the papaya in a face mask or even the clay in a clay facial mask treatment.
• Because certain types of toothpastes (those with SLS) are suspected in contributing to these ulcers, I've tried changing my toothpastes a few times; I've also tried changing toothbrushes often, even though they aren't supposed to be contagious, as well as tried different types of mouthwashes, with alcohol - to kill whatever - and without alcohol - to just clean the area. Nothing, alas, seems to make a difference.
• These canker sores all too often are in for a long engagement, of at least three to four weeks, or longer. Worse yet, too often they'll be almost gone, and then bam! Right back again! For example, if I've not had sleep for a night and day (which is a frequent occurrence), they viciously come back.
• They also rob you of any energy. I couldn't believe that I was too tired to break the lock on the hotel bar and so had nothing to drink for close to 15 hours because I was afraid to drink the Chicago water: I'm not a prima donna...just someone who tries to realize how precarious my health is and, am, at times(!) reduced to being a slave to it!
• The lack of certain vitamins/minerals/nutrients (Folic Acid, Iron, zinc and Vitamin B-12) are suspected to be a cause...I laughed when I saw that - lack of Vitamin B-12 was funny since I get daily injections of Vitamin B-12 and my iron levels are fine.
• Celiac disease has been associated with these ulcers and my tests came back that I did not have it, just as I suspected. Neither do I have Crohn's Disease, nor do I wear braces.
• Dairy products are implicated. (When are they not?)
• Immune disorders are also implicated. I think we all know that one, but where does that get us?

So, what do I think? Really, I believe that no one really knows and that a lot of "causes" are thrown out there. I also know that I get rather annoyed when I see "stress" thrown into the mix because it comes all too close to throwing CFIDS/ME/fibromyalgia, and even sleep and pain, perilously close to the psychiatric wastebasket, just as "we" are climbing out of it!


In the meanwhile, I'll continue to monitor this nasty turn of events.

Notice the purple triangle up top and then the red one on the bottom.   This was a bridge that changed colors every few seconds, going from white to red to turquoise, to purple.... extremely beautiful as well as mesmerizing!

The Party's Over - With A Few Pictures...

Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur 

Now that the party is over, so to speak, and my adrenaline is completely depleted, I have absolutely no idea how I will be able to make it home. After a party, you're running on "wasn't that fun" fumes for a bit, but really, everything is a mess, the balloons are sagging and much air has gone out of them (metaphorically speaking) and you're suddenly exhausted, the kind of exhaustion that often causes involuntary tears, the CFIDS/ME/fibro kind, because it is so much more than exhaustion and simple sensory over-load, as well as being brain tired/fried/fogged. It's almost indescribably more.


That's how I feel today: it was a good party. I saw my first child get married on Sunday and on Monday I even managed to go with hubby and the newly-weds to the famous Petronas Twin Towers, did a tiny bit of shopping, and waited for the dark so we could see the beautifully colored fountains and breathtakingly stunning lighting of the towers.


But though my feet held up marvelously, they are full of blisters and are signaling me that it's time to go home, as I still have four more days here, days I know I need to gather up the energy to make yet another trip half-way around the world. The rest of my body is screaming for its own bed, but my brain is trying to figure out how we'll - body, brain and spirit - ever get there. Packing needs to be done. Changing flights will again be a challenge. Duty free shopping is, as I feared, impossible (thus, no fun!) and sitting on tarmacs for hours puts me in a mood that says, "it's just all too much."

But as I rest up today with my brain-fried, beaten-up body and try to rest up enough for the journey home, I can take satisfaction in that I accomplished two "superficial" things. I say "superficial" because the biggest joy by far - completely immeasurable - was meeting my son's now wife and her parents and siblings, not to mention the parents' many brothers and sisters. Everyone was so kind and gentle, words I'd use to describe the Malaysians in general. This is an experience I'll never forget and will always cherish. And the couple was kind enough to take us shopping while they had wedding plans of their own that needed taken care of, as well as spending time with us the day after the wedding, the only day they had off until their delayed honeymoon. And it was, truly, wonderful to spend time time with them, to see the interaction between this beautiful, young couple.

Nighttime display of colored fountains, KL has a stunning "City of Lights" look going on!

But my "superficials"? At the Petronas Towers we were almost overwhelmed by all we saw. It's a beautiful mall for the first 5 or so floors but since we were there on a weekday, it didn't have too many people, nor was it empty either. It was absolutely great not just for window shopping, but for taking in the magnificent architecture, and my all-time favorite activity, people-watching.


Somehow my brain didn't go into sensory overload. When it came to finding a restaurant, for example, we left the first one, since the music was entirely too loud for me, and managed to find a quiet restaurant with, thankfully, few customers. The Indian food was delicious and the wait staff was superb, which I have come to appreciate in this beautiful country.


I even made a few purchases: a couple of books about Malaysia's history after WW2 dealing mostly with how Malaysia did not succumb to communism....fascinating and I now regret that hubby put the books into his luggage to spare me the trouble. Yes, he's left on an early flight back to work and my son came by also before flying up to his job. (The party IS indeed over.)

The groom is trying to figure out what he wants to eat at an Indian restaurant.

Then to the fun part, the decadent part of the shopping: I actually bought the Sisley face mask and a travel size assortment of Sisley products. After seeing the Sisley booth in duty free in Singapore out of the corner of my eye as I was whisked from one terminal to another, Sisley has been haunting me! One thing to check off my list!


And, finally, though we have our own mini Sephora, which I've never been to, there was a real one on our way out of the tower and at one point I thought I'd died and gone to heaven! I especially loved the lay-out of the store: so organized and not at all overwhelming but fun.


So, it's been a bit of an action-packed eight days, so different from my usual style! I'm sure bits and pieces of the trip will find their way into my posts for a while, especially as I have access to my pictures and am sent even more pictures from the young couple and as I think about what I saw and learned. But for now, I need a few days of rest as I wait for this body of mine to gather up enough energy for the trip home, back to my bed!

The fruit platter was always full, no matter what you ordered.

Does anyone know what the leaves with the golden cherry tomato look-alike is?

Malaysia and CFIDS Travel (with 3 beauty tips)

Looking outside my balcony.

What people - friends, family, doctors - don't seem to realize is just how ill we with CFIDS/ME/fibro truly are, and with me, at least, it IS my fault to a certain degree. I don't know about others, but part of it is that I just can't seem to be able to allow anyone to see me at my worst. I just have this strange thing about people seeing me when I'm so ill and looking like death warmed over. In a hotel, for example, I won't even allow housekeeping to come in to change the sheets and towels on my bad days and I am a fanatic about sheets and towels - ask any one of my college roommates!

Not surprisingly, the hallmark of this dreaded disease, post-exertional malaise, has hit me hard, really and truly stepping in, full blast, three days after arriving. The ulcers in my mouth were out in full force even on the first planes and by the time we were in flight from Tokyo to Singapore, it was almost impossible to even swallow water. (Hopefully, I'll soon address this CFIDS/ME/fibro problem in a post.) Now my muscles are aching to the point where I don't even know how to describe the pain. My eyes are burning, red and raw just because...because they ARE! My lips are blue turning to white, and just the thought of moving from the bed to the balcony or bathroom makes me want to cry.

You who have CFIDS/ME/fibro know exactly what I mean. It's not crying like a baby or spoiled brat, nor even the tears of anger or anguish. It's involuntary tears flowing because you know that there is much that needs to be done, though you try to tell yourself that constantly thinking about it will only make things worse and desperately try to convince yourself that somehow things WILL get done. The only chance you really have of recovering from "overdoing it," in order to "overdo" it yet again, to function enough to participate in a huge/important function, is to let go of thoughts of things that need to be done and mellow out. Yet this is almost an impossibility because so many of us are Type-A personalities. And so, Fibro-brain, the partner to pain, excruciating fatigue and all the rest, definitely slips in - in my/this case, the day I started this trip - and like a little terrior won't let go.

I'm in bed, but am I resting? Of course not! In the back of my mind there is a never-ending computer going on saying, "if you do this, you won't be able to do that!" every step of my day and night, constantly recalculating. It's not obsessing, I hasten to add. It is a complete necessity if I'm to survive - but it certainly is tiring.

On the bright side, I hope that I have my fall over and done with. You see, ever-observant hubby has always said, "you've fallen in all the great cities of Europe!" as described in the noted post. Now he can say, "you've fallen in almost every continent!", as described in an earlier post.

Yesterday was devoted to shopping for a dress for me as mother-of-the-groom. Given that my Viking blood coexists with my Mongol blood, it was quite the hunt. I'm almost 5'8" and ugh! - I've gained at least 10 pounds since I left home. Somehow I always think food will cure whatever ails me, and I've been, let's say, doing a lot of curing! Thank heavens I brought quite the selection of shoes with me since I doubt that even Asian drag queens would have feet as quite as large as mine.

But back to the fall. Yes, "the fall" with a deepening of the voice as you say it (Ha!): "The Fall." My son and his bride-to-be were trying to meet up via their cell phones in the mall and so I decided to sit down on a bench. Kaboom! I went crashing onto the floor, somehow miscalculating how long the bench was. My son was so shocked that he just kept talking, offering no help, as if he were watching this on TV instead of in person.

So, add yesterday's intense going out experience to my not having rested enough from the whole getting-here-fiasco with cancelled flights, etc., and I'm just dead.

I sit in my hotel room and am sooo mad at this stupid illness. I want to go see places. I'm in Asia, for heaven's sake, a continent I never expected to visit. With Malaysia I'm in a beautiful corner of the world and there are so many sights to see. Particularly I enjoy seeing how hard this country is working to turn itself from a developing country to a country that wants to be counted in the world.

There are such beautiful sights. Last night I was able to take pictures of a bridge I can see from my balcony. It changes colors every few seconds from red to blue, purple, green, aquamarine. Each district, as you drive through, has its own unique lamppost so the driver always knows which district he's in. What a cool touch!

I know that what always happens will happen here too. Even though I've been to Australia three times, I saw almost nothing. Here too, this will happen.

Don't get me wrong. I am so thrilled to be here. And it allows me to breath easier knowing where my son is, although he works four hours from Kuala Lumpur. Still, I'll have some sort of idea, some frame of reference. Better yet, I'll be able to meet some of his students and colleagues at the wedding. I'll now know who is who when he writes to me to tell me of a funny incident or whatever...I'll now be able to put a face to the name.

And to complete the happiness, hubby was able to reschedule his work so that he could fly here for the wedding, and spend a couple of nights here before heading back!!! Consider me jumping for joy in my mind, though I must admit that when I DID see hubby coming out of the security area into the lobby, I found myself jumping for joy. This is just too big an event to not have the father of my child standing beside me.

At any rate, I just have to figure out how I can trick my body into believing it's up for a wedding. But not to disappoint, I am including a bit of beauty tips:

• I put on the Omorovicza illuminating moisturizer (no tint) the other day and liked it well enough, but wasn't IN love, though I'll continue to play around with it. I'm seriously considering getting the Laura Mercier illuminated tinted moisturizer. I hadn't realized that there were now two LM tinted moisturizers, the normal one and now the illuminating one. The regular one, which came out ages ago, just did not suit but I think my skin is in better shape now than it was, say 10 years ago, so I'm rethinking the tinted moisturizers since it IS summer. (Granted, because this DD has made it hard for me to make any decision, I might not make a move on that until NEXT summer!)
• I used my Dr. Jart+ BB cream and loved it. We weren't out in the sun - like an MS patient, my body simply cannot tolerate the heat and sun exposure - but the BB cream went on very nicely and didn't feel heavy, yet evened out my skin tone. And, of course, I'm madly in love with the SPF of 50! The color blended in very nicely.
• I'm in love with my new Clinique Cream Shaper for eyes. I tightline the brown I use, and it's a more subtle look which makes your eyes pop. For an idea on how this can be accomplished, my pinterest board shows a picture of how it's done here .

I hope everyone out there is doing as best as can be, only better! Till next time!

Beauty products and "The Suitcase Test"

When you travel half-way round the world - literally - and realize that you really need to scale down what you're going to carry with you, it makes one realize just which products you really love, rely on, and can't do without. With me, the obvious are Dove soap, which I've used religiously since high school, and Créme de LaMer, which I've used as often as I'm up to it, since at least 1996.

I do always love to experiment with other products, some successfully, some not. Since I've started this year's resolution to look "more human" (darling hubby would quibble about that but he just doesn't get a woman's need and desire to look the best she can and besides, as I believe he's still in love with me, he thinks I look good all the time - gag!), I've tried a lot of new beauty products. I'm trying hard to at least give myself a psychological triumph over the constant battle with CFIDS/ME/fibro. And since I started this blog and it's taken a decided beauty direction (who wants to read about lumbar punctures, migraines, BP regulation problems, endocrinological concerns, etc, right?), I've tried even MORE beauty products.

The interior of the Petronas Towers

So, I thought I'd mention a few products that have become firm favorites of mine, which passed "The Suitcase Test":

Liz Earle Cleanse & Polish Hot Cloth Cleanse:

I've already mentioned this product but I wanted you to know just how much I really do love it. I find that I use it anytime I do not want to think about experimentation and want to go into automatic pilot - usually! - or when I know my face needs some TLC, yet a good scrub. I definitely wanted it on this trip and have used it twice daily since arriving. You apply it to your dry face (that took a bit of getting used to, I must say!) and it's so gentle that you can spread it all through your eye area and it will dissolve all eye makeup. After that, getting rid of anything else on your face is a breeze! A muslin cloth is used to wash off all the mess and as you take it off, the bit of "texture" from the cloth works to gently exfoliate your skin. I took my large bottle with me, not bothering with decanting into a smaller pot...I knew I'd consistently use it and couldn't be bothered with figuring out how much I'd need. It's a bit difficult to find and I've ordered Liz Earle's prize-winning products through the Liz Earle USA website. The Brits have absolutely gorgeous skin, so I must admit I do have a bias toward using British skincare products, but I absolutely think going through the extra bit of trouble of ordering is really worth it. See my review here .

Alpha-H Liquid Gold with Glycolic Acid:

This is part of an Australian line of products that are also worth the trouble of hunting down. The description calls it an "overnight facial in a bottle” and for once the words are true, not hype. It "revitalises, firms and gives radiance in a single application." I find that it evens out the skin tone and since I have a few age spots and very old freckles, this has been really successful in terms of making them appear less prominent and truly making the skin more, well...radiant! I don't use a moisturizer after I apply this to my skin and for some reason my skin will produce just the right amount of moisture needed, all on its own. When I finally (!) got to my hotel room here in KL, the first thing I wanted to do after giving my face a good scrub was to apply the Liquid Gold. I knew it would address the slight dryness and dehydration I had (only "slight" thanks to the DYI facials I gave myself during the flights, as well as drinking tons of water). When I first started using the Liquid Gold, I bought the "beginner's kit," which included a prep that allowed your skin to get used to the glycolic acid gradually, but I think I could have gone straight into it, really. I normally use this every two or three nights, leaving it on overnight. Love it! I haven't found a source I'm enthralled with. I just order from a reputable place when there is a free international shipping promotion. Cultbeauty.com is one such source. (Ah! A rain is coming down. Perhaps I should stick myself out on the balcony for a nice moisturizing mist to work its magic! Whoops! Thunder and lightening: perhaps I'll stay in!)

Phytodefrisant Botanical Hair Relaxing Balm:

This has been around for quite some time and I cannot imagine what I'd do without it. I'm so paranoid about not having it when I get out of bathtub or running out, that I have about four or five tubes of it, stashed in overnight bags, each bathroom and in the back of my hair cabinet where "extras" of any products are kept. Given that I'd read that KL is humid, I was so paranoid about forgetting to take this product that I found that I'd somehow stashed TWO tubes in my luggage. (Fibro-brain, anyone?)

This relaxing balm has not only won countless beauty awards, but like my beloved LaMer, has even been put into at least one hall of fame in order to allow other products to have a chance of winning an award. I smear a bit of it all over my (very short) wet hair and since I started using it about twenty years ago, I have no frizz problems, even when my hair was a bit long. It does have silicone in it*, I believe, or something that makes my scalp itch at times (this is definitely a CFIDS/ME problem, not a "normal" problem, because my scalp area has a tendency to swell up and I then need to take a medication that will bring down the swelling - a normal "water pill" doesn't help). At any rate, I avoid getting it on my scalp, just applying it to my hair, especially the areas that will get wet from sweating; often I look as if I've just gotten out of the shower, my hair is so wet after all the work involved in getting dressed, putting on the minimum of makeup and sunscreen. I can get surprizingly close to the roots with no added problems to the "swollen head" concern (oh, I can just hear the jokes!). It works so well, I don't care WHAT it has in it but luckily, all Phyto products are botanically based. I buy mine at drugstore.com (at the beauty.com part) and it last forever since such a small amount is needed.

I'll be experimenting with cosmetics today, hopefully, as I continue to rest up after this trip and try to build up as much energy as possible for the shopping of an appropriate dress for the wedding, as well the for the wedding itself. I realized I needed to know exactly which cosmetics I'd wear on the big day, no fooling around at the last minute, which robs one of said precious energy. I'll let you know which of my favorites make the cut!

Until then, I hope everyone is feeling as well as can be!


*CORRECTION: It doesn't appear that there is any silicone in the Phyto.

A few beauty flying tips from my KL flight.

I used my Elemis bag by Temperley all the way to and from KL... a very "successful" choice!

I'm finally in Kuala Lumpur! It was an incredibly long journey with more than a few things that went topsy turvy - long delays, canceled flights, and rerouting - sounding entirely too much like fiction by the end of it all. There were huge up's and down's but I'll try to spare you the finer points and hit the highlights only.

I'd flown to Chicago on Friday morning and boarded the next plane in time, thanks to wonderful transport people, aka (in my mind, that is), "the wheelchair squad," who were fantastic on every step of the entire trip. After sitting on the tarmac for four hours (I'd already done my DIY facial out of sheer boredom and since my neighbors started talking, it was a fascinating time - very JOLLY, in fact!), the flight was cancelled. I'll just say that I'm glad that *I* didn't have to do the explaining as there was a sea of unhappy passengers, an understatement. There was much drama, including my trying to help a poor Chinese woman who spoke no English, was traveling with some sort of injury, to a mother who was either sick or dying - our sign language was failing us - and no cell phone. We were glued at the hips for a few hours as I tried to contact her family on my cellphone and I think she wanted to share a hotel room since she kept telling everyone we encountered - in sign language, that is - that we were traveling together and I had to explain what was really going on. Helpful I am, but sharing a hotel room, I thought, would have been too much. (She was given her own room, I'm not a heel!) And can you imagine just how much sign language would have been needed when I whipped out all my meds? I'm not sure any kind of language could ever have explained that! Insomnia woman here - me! - managed to fall asleep for an hour or two when someone tapping on my door at 4AM awakened me and then that was it: no way of falling asleep again.

Things started to go a bit sour Saturday morning, when, as I was about to be directed to my gate, I found out that I was going to be sent to KL via Tokyo and Singapore instead of by way of Beijing. I was now on an even longer flight with an extra stop, coming into KL Monday morning. Bear in mind that I was originally to arrive in KL on Saturday night, so I was beginning to think this whole trip would never even begin, especially after sitting on the tarmac for three hours on Saturday. At one point it even looked like they were going to cancel the flight on Saturday, too, when there was a hiccup with the radar, and I seriously considered turning around and flying home, wondering if the stars were trying to tell me something, like "stay at home, you crazy woman!"

I must say, this post is starting to sound suspiciously close to the "What I Did On My Summer Vacation" assignments in grade school we all had each fall, though I don't remember DIY facials and alcohol being part of the equation! Ah yes, the booze! I hasten to add that there was no alcohol on my part, since like most of us with CFIDS/ME/fibro I, too, can't tolerate any alcohol, but my fellow passengers imbibed. However, there were MANY moments when I so wished I were part of the soused crowd! To add to the madness, I was again refused water a few times. I was told I could have as much liquor as I wanted though, but that water took up entirely too much room! Despite having a note from my doctor saying I needed to drink a LOT of water, I did not bring it out, feeling that would have sounded too petty and having learned in Chicago, the hard way, that the airlines did NOT like to be told what to do by doctors, a LONG story I'll spare you.

No sleep, as my English (as in "British" vs. English language, though he did speak English too ) fellow passenger and I spent the twelve-hour flight talking. By the time we arrived in Tokyo those from our flight were so late for the connecting flight to Singapore that everyone on this leg of the journey seemed to be angry and grumpy about too many problems and I saw no one talking to anyone. My swollen feet found relief in the wonderful 180 degree sleeping pod - what bliss!

Finally, after a huge lay-over in Singapore, I luckily discovered that the business lounge had shower facilities and they were wonderful. It absolutely KILLED me that I wasn't able to hit the duty-free shops we passed in the motor car - EVERYTHING was there and in massive amounts and I understand it is THE best shopping airport in the world! But back to the business lounge: beautifully but simply decorated, equipped with first-class products (I remember L'Occitane) I was able to wash my hair, change clothes and put on fresh makeup for the last leg of the journey, less than an hour flight.

What I took away from this part of my trip thus far:

1. Keep the TSA and airlines happy, but don't cheat yourself. I almost disregarded the cardinal rule of having a change of clothing with me. Since I wasn't allowed access to my checked-in luggage once my flight was cancelled, it was a good thing that I'd thrown my change of clothing back into my carry-on bag again at the last moment after trying to taper down how much I carried in order to make the TSA happy, not to mention the airlines. I don't think I'll ever forget deodorant on my carry-on again and since I was afraid of the hassle I might have in carrying a syringe with me, all were packed away when I needed to give myself a shot that night in the hotel, a most unfortunate move.

2. Bring along products whose smell you know and like. This actually goes for all products you'll use on the plane. I was ready to gag from the smell of the facial wipes used on this trip. The facial spray was an unfortunate selection, too, since I had men sitting next to me on each leg of the journey and if *I* thought the smell too floral and old-lady-ish, I can't begin to imagine what *they* thought. In the end I used the wipes and spray as infrequently as possible, which sort of defeated the whole purpose of bringing those products in the first place. I'm going back to my water-in-a-can Evian or Avene on my return flight.

3. Be sure to use tried and true beauty products! I'll always pack my Dove and LaMer in my carry-on from now on, which was a good, though unfortunate, lesson for me. I left the Dove in my checked luggage and since my skin hates any other soap, between the starch and hard water washed linens of the airport hotel and unfamiliar soap, my entire body was abraded, red and sore. I threw in a tiny sample of LaMer cream at the last second and should have stuck by it. The valuable space the other serums occupied was huge and they did not hydrate - thank heavens I finally thought to try my LaMer. Healing began as soon as I remembered it. Bioderma, too, did not disappoint and was a lifesaver.

Finally, a note: I've found a way of posting from my iPad...I hope it works. It's a bit frightening hitting the "publish" button and so, a warning: any craziness in typo's, dropped words, convoluted sentences and grammar (more than the usual, that is) can't be fixed from my end, I'm pretty sure, so apologies in advance. I can see/feel my OCD starting in already! :) Eek!

Three beauty tips as I run off...

When Cabbage Patch dolls were all the rage, building a make-shift home for them . The "little" one I'm flying to see is sitting next to his sister, who helped me get organized and packed.

And I'm on my way out the door in just a couple of hours on my wild adventure to Kuala Lumpur.  I've lost count of how many times I've "yelled" and "screamed" - "I don't know how I'm going to do all of this!" as I tried to do the simplest of things and would break out in a sweat, shaking and so forth.  On the other hand, I try telling myself that the worst part of anything I ever do is getting to and out the door and that's almost accomplished.

Because I'm not sure if I'll be able to post anything while I'm gone - leaving the blog without its mom is a bit frightening - I realized, "Oh wow, I can always make comments in the comments section of this post and on my facebook page (see side for addresses) as well.  And if I get desperate enough, or the separation anxiety gets to be too much, who knows, I may even tweet!

But here are a couple of CFIDS/ME/fibro tips just as I'm heading out the door:

• I ran into a couple of red and hot areas on my chest doing a trial run yesterday morning and the Green Balm I described ages ago really worked well.  Check this link for my earlier review.

• I was upset that I wouldn't be able to take my huge pot of Chanel bronzer on board because of the TSA 3-1-1 restrictions, so I put a bit into a tiny pot.  If anyone could be in love with a product, this would be it. I absolutely love the way I can contour with it.  I don't use it as a makeup base, just as a cream bronzer and it blends beautifully.  It can be found here .

• I was also mourning not being able to take my Bioderma micellar water, but after a sloppy job of putting on mascara, a swipe of a couple of Q-tip moistened with the Bioderma got rid of everything.  I also had a very dry and sensitive area on both cheeks and nothing helped. When I took out the Bioderma to take off everything I'd put on it (serum, etc.) the dryness disappeared. AMAZING!  And so I found room for a decanted tiny bottle of the the Bioderma and it'll be with me on board - if the TSA guys don't get upset with how much I crammed into my 1 quart bag.

Hope everyone stays as healthy as can be!  Must run - well, "run" CFIDS/ME/fibro-style.  :)


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Fighting dehydrated skin (especially on long-haul flights)...

I've been scouring the Internet in order to find or put together some magical formula as to what I should pack for my trip to Kuala Lumpur (KL) and when I forget that I'm trying to find beauty tips in order to do a long-haul flight, it's actually been a lot of fun.  I mean, I can read beauty "stuff" all day long (and often do!).  It's only when I remember that I'm not looking for theoretical information, that I actually have a mission to accomplish, that my stomach goes all topsy turvy, with more than a little bit of anxiety thrown in.

And with this trip, I have the usual worries with an added factor, which is, actually, NOT so minor: it's the first time I'll be flying alone in at least 15 years and I'll have to be wheel chaired from one airline to another - twice! - going there as well as coming back - and in huge airports.  To make things a bit more disconcerting, I feel that I'm at a huge disadvantage not knowing the languages involved.  No, I don't speak Italian, Spanish, German, nor even Greek for that matter, but Asian languages are a whole different ball game for me.  I know that English is spoken "everywhere" there are tourists, but it's still an unsettling feeling - though I'm certainly trying to turn it into an adventure.

At any rate, I thought I'd pass on a few of the tidbits I've run into that I have found interesting, for one reason or another:

• Dry skin vs. Dehydrated skin:

I've felt for the longest time that I didn't really have dry skin, but I've never really been able to put my finger on what else it could be when, in the grand scheme of things, I have so many bigger problems: like trying to figure out my whole sleep mess.  But I've always felt awkward saying that I have "dry skin."  Even saying "combination skin" somehow made me feel like an impostor.  I wasn't sure what I had, though I certainly knew I had sensitive skin of some sort, but what else?  Then after a hospitalization a few years ago - with the Intensive Care Unit thrown in - my skin really turned on me and with my whole compartment syndrome hospitalization six months ago... that didn't exactly help matters either.

This wasn't flabby skin (though heaven knows I have more than I'd like of that) but skin that wasn't young and plump any longer.  To complicate matters, I happen to be one of those people who really, really does not like cream on my skin, other than on my face.  I've tried just about everything out there (or so it often seems to me) and have pretty much hated everything I've tried, save my Dove soap (OK! OK! "beauty bar"!  Sheesh!) and the LaMer Hand Treatment, which I use on any dry parts.  However, in the last few years, even my Dove and LaMer have not been of much help.  Out of desperation I've turned to other products, enduring them in hopes of their helping turn things around a bit, with not much luck.

• Hyaluronic acid:

I've been hearing about hyaluronic acid for a while now but somehow it never really clicked that I should give it a try, especially since it is great for dehydrated skin.  (I suppose because of my ongoing war with my pores!  How many battles can be fought at one time?)

But evidently hyaluronic acid, which is a naturally occurring substance in our body fluids, found in joints, for example - could be the answer, or a step in the right direction.  As we age we a) produce less and less of it and b) it gets broken down faster.  I've learned a ton of facts about it in the last few days, but the key factor here is that it locks in moisture.  If I go into the science of it all, we'll be here all night, so at this point I'll just say that I'm thrilled that I have made this discovery, especially since cabin air is so horribly drying.  I'd like to NOT look like I could easily pass for King Tutankhamen's only slightly younger sister when I get off the plane in KL.

• Clarins HydraQuench Intensive Serum Bi-phase:

Heavy on hyaluronic acid, I'm going to give this HydraQench serum a try, as well as the cream mask.

• Spritzing my face:

In my fight to stay as hydrated as possible, I'll hopefully be able to spritz my face with my Avene "water in a can" and/or my Omorovicza facial mist.  

The strange thing about this whole water problem is that in order to keep my blood pressure high enough, I need to eat a lot of salt.  Given how thirsty we who have CFIDS/ME/fibro are to begin with, the salt further complicates the whole dehydration issue.  Agh!!!!

At any rate, these are the newest weapons in the arsenal to fight against my crepe-y skin and thirsty skin issues. Hopefully, they'll work out nicely and not prove hubby right when he said, "shouldn't you have tested those things out before-hand?" followed by "what if you have an allergy to them?" 

Oh how I hate logic at times!  I'm trying to ignore him, though I'm giving them a try-out even as he goes off to bed, the smug little...killjoy. ;)

"Asleep: The Forgotten Epidemic..."a medical mystery.

A couple of years ago, I happened upon a lecture on Book TV which broadcasts on C-Span 2 during the weekend.  A relatively young lady (sadly, any woman younger than me is a "young lady") was giving an incredible account of a sleeping epidemic I'd never heard about, nor ever read about before, encephalitis lethargica (EL) literally meaning, "the encephalopathy that makes you sleepy."  Immediately I had to order the book and then after reading it (in one long "sitting") I made one of my doctors read it.  He loved it - and I then ordered it as a Christmas present for my GP and for my neurologist.  Yes, I'm such a wild and crazy gal when I give out Christmas gifts.  I'm pretty sure the latter two didn't read it and it's a shame because had they started reading the book, they wouldn't have been able to put it down.  Actually, perhaps that's exactly why they didn't read it - the time factor!  But, really, how could I resist something like this book when sometimes all I ever crave in life is to sleep?  

And yet, all joking aside - and the joking is about as funny as someone saying to "us," the CFIDS/ME and fibromyalgia people, that they too are always tired and wish that they could also stay in bed all day, "hardy har har!" -  Asleep: The Forgotten Epidemic that Remains One of Medicine's Greatest Mysteries by Molly Caldwell Crosby was riveting for many reasons. On the TV broadcast I watched Crosby deliver a very polished and entertaining "lecture," along with a questions and answer period.  And I admit it's because I suffer from severe insomnia - the opposite of what the "key factor" in this sleeping illness was - that I stopped at the channel.  Yet it was the story that was in and of itself compelling and the way that the book forced the reader to stay glued, once I stared reading the book, was amazing.

This strange and mysterious illness started showing itself around 1916, peaking in 1920, then had a second wave hit in 1924, and it affected as many as 5 million people world-wide, one million of whom died.  The key symptom was a huge sleep, from weeks, to months to even years.  All too often the real victims were the "survivors."  And yes, the movie based on Oliver Sacks' book, Awakenings, touches the teenist tiny bit of this story, picking up where Sacks came into contact with a few of these victims in the 1960's. But though the movie is great, as is Sacks' book, please don't go into this one with that story in mind because this is a completely different kind of read.

The problems were various, from Parkinson's-type symptoms to tics, seizures, slurred speech and huge personality changes - even violence and insanity - and there was a huge "spectrum," to use a word that is so popular today, perhaps even overused.  The illness came out of nowhere, there was no physical trauma that started it, no infections that could be seen or identified.  It started to fade out around 1926, also almost suddenly, though it was scary in that it did pop up here and there over the years.  And one was never really "over" it.

As I read this compelling, often gut-wrenching story, there were many parts that reminded me of the CFIDS/ME saga, with the frustrations of trying to figure out what was going on with these patients, and by what means this was attacking people, whereas other parts of the story fascinated the history-loving part of me. Crosby, for example, captures the spirit, sounds, smells and the history of New York City in that era in ways that had me sigh at her ability to craft a sentence or paragraph.  In fact, her writing was so eloquent, yet so spot on, that I did something I've never felt compelled to do before: I actually googled her in order to see in more depth who had taught her to write so well, document and research so doggedly and to capture her reader and not let him or her go. And Cosby did have a compelling reason to investigate this story: her grandmother came down with this illness in 1929, and though she survived, there were life-long problems.  To add to my admiration of her writing abilities and research devotion, the book is richly multi-layered.  Cosby divides her book around several cases, including J.P. Morgan's wife, who was affected by this malady, and then weaves other stories around them: about WWI, the world-wide pandemic flu that followed on the heels of that war, the technological advances that were made in the 1920's and then the stock market crash and the Depression as a result of it, and, as they used to say in movie trailers, "much, much more!"  

As I read the book, my thoughts were all over the place, sometimes frantically so, and I had to start marking up my hard copy.  Almost all the major events in my life took place in NYC from being born and baptized there, to meeting my husband, working at my first "real" job, marrying, and finally having my first child there.  It's obviously been a huge part of my life, though I didn't grow up in NYC - that sounds odd when you see all the "firsts" in my life that occurred in it, doesn't it?  At any rate, I first started to suspect that there was something definitely wrong with me when I was living in New York and did mention it to various doctors I had to see for normal problems, as well as some pretty weird ones.  And just as I'm fascinated (and frustrated) by the way my brain can't deliver on sleep and that no amount of reading, going to specialists, thinking everything through as to why this is happening to me and failing to find an answer, I'm fascinated too by the opposite problem, why a person can't stay awake.  This book was almost tailor-made for me, I often thought.  

It's sad that the book didn't get to the New York Time bestseller list because there is so much in it for everyone. For example, it shows how much this "sleeping sickness" - as much a misnomer as "Chronic Fatigue" is in its many ways - changed the face of medicine.  Unlike CFIDS/ME, this illness was very famous and infamous.  Indeed, this illness was a huge catalyst for the new field of neurology.  The book is divided into seven chapters, each dealing with a fascinating story of how a certain person was affected and, woven into each case, are incredible stories that just don't stop drawing you in.  I loved the chapter that dealt with J.P. Morgan's wife because it showed how much financing and influence, as well as a big name, are needed to push an illness to the forefront: and yet, even with that the story has been dropped and forgotten.  "Darn it!" I kept saying to myself - or something close to it - "this kind of thing can't happen to 'us'!" though in many ways it has and we keep hitting our heads against walls.  

I also couldn't help wondering if the reason that this story had been forgotten by the medical community at large is because it showed such a failure on their part.  Who likes to live with these glaring mistakes, these huge reminders of the way in which medicine and the body/brain may never be fully understood?  It's not an accusation. It's simply thinking about the nature of the way the mind works. 

In the end, this book also delivered what I absolutely live for in the book world of my life: the story that I can't quite seem to forget, no matter how many books I read, no matter how bad my memory becomes.  I may get details off, forget some of the really interesting things that as I'm reading I think I'll never forget, and then do. But the basic thing just STAYS with me.  Anyone who can still read should read this book: it teaches and entertains on so many levels.  It makes you think...

...and I love to think!

The paperback version is now available at Amazon for $6.00 and no, I don't have any reason to endorse Amazon...I just happened to notice the price on one of my usual journeys through their website:

  http://www.amazon.com/Asleep-Forgotten-Epidemic-Medicines-Mysteries/dp/B005B1H6P0/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1339997308&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=asleep%2C+molly+cosby

My eyebrow miniseries: Part 3

My Mally Eyebrow kit.

Just a few moments ago I opened up a box with an order I'd placed a few days prior on one of my favorite drugstore/beauty websites.  I'm always so excited when I receive a package.  It's about the only time, you see, that my poor memory works in my favor: I get to see what the surprise in the box is because heaven forbid I manage to remember something from one day to the next, often one hour to the next.  Receiving a package in the mail reminds me of Christmas, before I learned that there was no Santa.


The surprise was a new mascara that I'll be trying.  There have been several companies now that have come out with mascaras using the new technology of forming a tube around each lash, instead of "painting" mascara on lashes.  I so wanted to try it on immediately but remembered that tomorrow I will (hopefully) be going up to get my hair, brows and lashes done and I don't want to risk any residue on said brows and lashes to interfere with coloring/tinting.  But considering the fact that I often forgo mascara and hope that liner will suffice (it never does) this is a biggie for me. My eyes are always turning red for this reason or that and I've grown tired of mascara as one of the contributing factors to the redness. This latest attempt to find a mascara that I LOVE (as opposed to "love") is an on-going project.


But to continue with the adventures of trying to grow more eyebrow hair and lashes - or trying to deceive the world at large that I DO have them at all....


This past winter I actually started using men's foaming Rogaine.  It, Rogaine, is something I've tried on and off for years, although I'd be embarrassed to tell you the number of cans of just-started Rogaine cans/pump bottles I threw out when we had to move ourselves and everything we owned when vacating the second floor for the remodeling. Actually, the old Rogaines would probably have made a great exhibition of the progress Rogaine has made since it hit the market big-time; there seemed to be new packaging with each "improvement" to the formula.


I think my biggest problem is that I'll use it but then something will happen (a flare, a relapse, a crisis) and when life gets back to "normal," I forget all about it.  We've just started moving back into our bedroom and bath and already, as my life is slipping out of control a bit - OK, more than a bit, but more controllable than what's been the norm in the last two years - I'm finding it hard to remember to take my meds, much less remember to work Rogaine into the needed areas of my head.


However, the Rogaine on my bald spots, as well as my eyebrows, has worked out well.  And since I'll soon be mother of the groom and because I want to look my best in order to not embarrass child number two, I've moved my trip to get my hair done, etc. to now rather than later.  And I can't wait to hear from my stylist if she thinks there's been an improvement since she last saw me a couple of months ago.


Continuing with the brow-growing adventures/sage... after a while, I got a bit lazy with the Rogaine on my eyebrows routine (it DOES take a bit of concentration and focusing, not something a person with CFIDS/ME/fibro has in much abundance) so I ordered one of those eyelash enhancers.  I can see that my brows are a little bit fuller (doesn't take much...I'll never be a "before and after" picture) but whether that's from Rogaine being applied to my head and that some is getting to the brow area because of the chemicals going around, who knows?  Actually, that's a rather frightening thought, isn't it?


I have to admit that I have no idea as to why I chose the "Smartlash" eyelash enhancer over the others on the market. I do know it was from reading one of the beauty columns out there and somehow I felt I could give it a go with the brows.  After seeing that I hadn't grown a third head, I've started using it for its intended purpose, on the eyelashes.  I have noticed that the eyelashes, BTW, are a tiny bit thicker and darker, this despite the fact that I'm easing into the eyelash routine.  There are indeed two reasons for the hesitation.


Somewhere, I'd read that one of the products could change blue or green eyes to brown - and permanently.  Aside from the scary part of putting something so close to your eyes that can change your eye color, I've been hesitant because so much of my identity is tied up in the color of my eyes and I don't really want to mess things up.  If I'm in a great mood or feeling good, my eyes are green, their default color.  The better I feel and the better the mood, the greener the eyes.  If I'm in a lousy mood or very ill, the color changes to blue.  Back in the 80's, I bought green contact lenses, when they first came out in various colors, and my ever-observant hubby didn't realize I'd been wearing those suckers for at least a month.  When I asked him how he could manage to miss this, he answered, most sincerely, "I just thought you were in a great mood this past month."  I'd hate to mess up a system that my family banks on in order to judge how to treat me...gingerly or badly!  (Just kidding about the badly...somewhat?)


Getting back to brows, I've also somehow fallen into the eyebrow "shadow" approach for the past two decades, thinking that the pencils were too harsh and fake - but let me add that I'm not the greatest artist in the world!  Stila has a brow set that I think is rather nice.  My only problem is that my skin tone changes day to day and my hair color changes every time I get it done (or as it grows out!) and I need a bigger selection of colors to choose from.Stila has two colors in each of her pots, one for the lighter side and one for for the darker side of the spectrum of your hair color. However, here too, my blending skills are just not good enough for my satisfaction.


Consequently, when Bobbi Brown came out with her chocolate palette of eyeshadows a few years ago (not brow shadows, but close enough for me!), I snapped that up quickly because of the various shades I could play with.  I've got a few quads too, like Dior and Smashbox, which have brown shades included which I like to experiment with also.


Now Colorscience came out with the cutest, most convenient little brow kit I've ever come across, but the colors do NOT suit me and I'm embarrassed when I think that my second most frequently viewed post is a picture where I'd used the Colorscience.  I can't tell you how often I've wanted to change that lousy picture and wonder if I was on crack the day I posted it - JUST JOKING about the "crack" bit!!!  But I was fooling around with trying to learn how to take a picture of myself that day with my iPad, not keeping in mind that HOW I looked mattered too.  At any rate, if I could repot this compact with tins of colors I like in the right size and shape to fit the "compact," I would. I love the very slim case (and I've had many over the years), with its brushes, one my favorite miniature slant brushes for brows.  I just dislike the color immensely for my skin.  But others may find it suits, especially if there are brow hairs to begin with and only "filling in" is required, not building brows with almost no hairs, that is, having to almost start from scratch. This kit is perfect to throw in your bag.  And because I'm always losing the tiny slant brushes, I often carry the kit with me just for the brush alone.  (I know this makes no sense to the "normal" person out there but to the CFIDS/ME/fibro's I think this is somehow understandable.)


Not too long ago, I saw that Mally had come out with a nice kit, made of fabric, that holds a compact of brown brow color and an ivory highlighter.  It also holds a brush with two different brush heads on either end, and her black pencil eyeliner, which I love - it does not move after it's had a chance to set, though there is enough time to smudge it if you like before it dries completely.  I also like the kit because it can't be lost easily (it's a shiny lime-ish green) and because I can throw in one or two other (small and thin) products.  It's a bit too bulky though, so for something like flying, it most probably won't make it to my carry-on bag, though the jury's still out on that.


I think I still have one more post to do and we'll be finished with the "brow miniseries."  I've found a couple of gems that I'll describe next time.

Until then, I hope you are doing as well as can be and are going to have a great weekend!   Until next time, when, hopefully, I'll be back with great-looking brows!