Waveform Jewelry by Sakura Koshimizu, at Craftzine. Also check out the I Do wedding bands.

Uni-ball Kuru Toga, mechanical pencil that solves some of the issues with mechanical pencils, at Cool Tools

Japanese Colored Masking Tape, so pretty, at Better Living Through Design

Surprise Ball at Kiosk. This is what I remember surprise balls looking like!

Leather Tool Bag by DWR. I have a bag with the same shape that I use for small knitting projects, it was from the Isaac Mizrahi line at Target and I love it.

Fire Fork at Uncrate

Glass Salt Pot at Mighty Goods

Large pores on my face are getting me down. at Ask Metafilter

Freehands, winter gloves with fold back thumbs, made for iPhone users

Door Sixteen on her favorite mascara

rasp ring, for quick nail touch ups. I would accidentally scratch every expensive electronic thing within reach. At Outblush.

hollow spy coins! at Product Dose

LED Flickr Candles at Crate and Barrel

bullet ice cube trays, at Uncrate

Does anyone make a comfortable headband for women? at Ask Metafilter

Sugar Cubes Shaped Like Cinder Blocks at Neatorama

Tiltall Tripod at Cool Tools

Star Wars Boba Fett For Real Hoodie, despite the price and the fact that it would look terrible on me, I want

Nike Mary Jane NM Shoes at Outblush, kinda nice

How does Dr Bronner soap work? What are the 18 uses that they claim on the bottle? at Ask Metafilter

Why do Crest, Colgate, etc. no longer display the ADA seal of approval? at Ask Metafilter

What can I do now, as a young woman, to ensure I have beautiful skin when I'm older? at Ask Metafilter

I needed a straightening iron, but just for my bangs. I didn't want to spend a lot because the only circumstances under which I see myself straightening all of my hair are those of being really bored and stuck at home. The inexpensive straightening irons you can find at drugstores were monstrously large, and the smaller Chi models were just more than I wanted to pay for something I'm only going to use on days when I'm too lazy to blow dry my hair. And then I found the perfect thing, the 1/2 inch BaByliss mini iron. The plates are only 1/2 inch wide, and the whole iron is about 6 inches long. The description mentions that it would be good for travel, and that the smaller sized plates allow you to get close to the scalp but let's face it, this baby is made to do bangs.

This review video on YouTube is very helpful and shows the scale of the iron, though I swear it looks large in her hands. The iron is about 6 inches long, like a very skinny stapler. Amazon gave me a delivery estimate of a few weeks but it arrived in just two days. I'd take a picture of to give you a better idea of scale but my camera, TRAGEDY!!, is broken. Here is the Babyliss on top of a dollar bill:



Related note, I was looking around the house for something that would help me keep the iron perched on the corner of my porcelain vanity and found that a square silicone pot holder like this one (which honestly isn't much good as a pot holder) works great as a grippy and heat proof surface.

I got a Vermont Country Store catalog in the mail, the first one in years that I've been sent, and among the treasures from the past the Sweet Earth Solid Natural Fragrances in compacts caught my eye. They are three separate fragrances that you can mix on your skin if you'd like. Looking around a little these were originally made by Coty, the ones sold by the Vermont Country Store are reproductions, and I've found some good memories and some excitement to see that they are back. They have Woods (sandalwood, amberwood, patchouli), Flowers (hyacinth, honeysuckle, ylang-ylang), Rare Flowers (tuberose, jasmine, mimosa) and Grasses (clover, gingergrass, hay). I'm intrigued by these. Does anybody remember them?

Why did it take me so long to finally get myself into Zenith Supplies here in Seattle? It's only a half a block down from the Ravenna Whole Foods, I have missed out on so many opportunities to go and admire tiny lip balm containers.

In short, Zenith Supplies sells all the things you need to make candles, soap, lotions, balms, perfumes, things for your body, the bath and your home. I went in hoping to find some DPG for making my own reed diffuser scents and not only did they have it but they had a recipe, bottles, reeds, perfumers alcohol and a more than impressive selection of essential and fragrance oils. They have candle and soap molds, jars and bottles of all sizes, lotion bases and bulk oils, salts and dried herbs, more waxes and additives than I knew existed. But most thrillingly they had an excellent selection of small jars for lips balms and solid perfume including the elusive clear plastic compact. They had those old fashioned metal sliding tins, little rollerball containers for scents and teeny pipetts, small atomizers and all sorts of packaging supplies. You can buy just one of anything, which sounds awfully good to me, the girl who still has well over 100 pipettes from my lip balm making experiments. The store is large, clean and orderly and the staff was perfectly happy to answer all my inane questions. It is, as I had been warned by Yelp, a little hippy dippy, expect to find crystals and books on healing arts. I see a solid perfume in my future and maybe, maybe, some serious soapmaking.

From left to right we have:

#1: Labello Caregloss & Shine lip balm from Canada that I bought last year and loved so much because it was conditioning and glossy and didn't have a strong taste. This was apparently replaced because the next year when we went to Victoria all I could find was

#2 Nivea Caregloss & Shine. This was very similar but the formula had gained a cloying sweetness and the flavor of apricots. This still works really well but I just cannot put up with the flavor for very long. However I was pleased to recently find it being sold at my local Walgreens as

#3 Nivea A Kiss of Shine. This is exactly the same as the tube of #2 from Canada, I bought it hoping it wouldn't be so sweet but no luck. Still, I'm really glad to see more Nivea lip products in the US since I've become a fan of them in the last year or so. I found these in a display that held lip glosses as well lip balms:



And the Nivea site has a list of stores where you'll be able to find them soon.

Next on my quest for a good lip gloss that isn't terribly sweet, I've been advised to seek the Shiseido glosses.

history of the hobble skirt, via kottke

mustache necklace! at Swiss Miss

When I'm old I'm totally getting a big old tricycle like this, at the dirt on fert

Both Mighty Goods and SundryBuzz like shiny sheer lipsticks. These look promising, lipsticks with saturated colors make me look like a clown, or a crazylady.

Love Bottles, safe-for-you glass

CB2 is opening a store in San Francisco, yay, another reason to take a trip there soon

This collection of souvenir photographs is brilliant.

What item do you use all the time and wonder how you ever lived with without it? at Ask Metafilter

power plant mini from Perpara. It's a windowsill herb growing pot. Downside: it needs to be plugged in. Upside: you probably won't kill the plants. Via The Kitchen.

Schmancy here in Seattle has some small things I've been wanting to use for zipper pulls: Ninjatown Micro Plush and Kat Leuzinger Zipits

What's your favorite Sonoma winery? at Ask Metafilter

Bigelow Mentha Lip Shine, I must try this

What should I do to replicate the looks of Trinny and Susannah? at Ask Metafilter

O Hive Mind, point me to a fanny pack/belt bag/handsfree totage system that doesn't suck. at Ask Metafilter

Anyone know how to get "mad scientist hair?" at Ask Metafilter

So what's the protocol on switching stylists within a salon? at Ask Metafilter

Land's End medium slouch tote, marked here because there is something I like about the basic shape.

Krystalyn Kae Monarch Hobo Bag, I've been eyeing this bag for a while now. Maybe the Foxtrot?

Matt's Etsy picks. I'd love to see more Etsy lists from guys.

Tools for Life: The last [blank] you'll ever need to buy. at Ask Metafilter

Sunscreen SPF 30 or higher that won't make me break out? at Ask Metafilter

keep cool: a roundup of summer classics, drinks, outdoor projects, travel and style, at Shelterrific

Do pheromone colognes really work? at Ask Metafilter

Best Toilet Paper Evar at Ask Metafilter

Busywork points us towards this little green 6-Way Opener at Crate and Barrell. I think I need one.

What do I wear in central Italy this July so that I don't instantly look like a North American (Canadian) tourist. at Ask Metafilter

Instant Blossom at Product Dose

an entire wax dipped chandelier, cool, at NOTCOT

Bottle Shock: Better than Sideways? at Chow

If Nerds Ruled the World at The Park Bench

Purse contents for the perpetually prepared person at Ask Metafilter

Clue Premier Edition at Uncrate

The Pen Addict writes entries with the pen he is reviewing, via Doane Paper Blog

Cynthia Rowley pink garden hose! at Shelterrific. I've seen these in the store, instantly wantable.

Design*Sponge on The Regional Assembly of Text in Vancouver

My dog loves dried sweet potato chews. They go for $20 a bag in the pet store even though the only ingredients are potatoes. It must be that I can make them at home for the cost of a potato. at Ask Metafilter

Poppies! at Chez Shoes

spoon scale at Product Dose. La la la, for bakers not just for drug dealers, la la la.

I made the mistake of going into a Macys where I instantly fell for the (very delicate) Hadley drinking glasses from the Martha Stewart Collection.

Sniff Rare Device in Brooklyn is closing down.

A list of responses to "The Question" asked of all kilt-wearing gentlement: What's under your kilt? at Kottke

I need to look at every online women's clothing store in the world. at Ask Metafilter. This is how I shop too.

What do we absolutely have to see/do in Vancouver, Canada while we are there? at Ask Metafilter

decorated cups at How About Orange

Oil of Olay Warming Hydrating Cleanser at Sundry Buzz

Surprise! Dove's "Campaign for Real Beauty" ads actually kind of fake. I knew it!

Happy happy joy joy: Teva Women's Kena. Reasonably price, flip flop foam, no between the toe stuff. Thanks again Mandy!

Transparent Post-Its, oooh, for notes in books without ruing the books. At Cool Hunting.

Philosophy The Supernatural poreless, flawless, tinted spf 15

I dig this stuff. It doesn't hide everything, but it does give your face a soft focus (like it says on the back of the package), while providing some SPF. At first I wasn't sure how well it worked so I applied it to half my face (don't worry, I was home all alone) and the difference was pretty big. It's a bit too dark for my pale skin, so I have to be careful not to apply too much. While it's not a foundation, it's a great "just need to leave the house to go to the library" quick product. Despite the $$ and the not-this-not-that nature I'll be buying this again. Note: Some people react very badly to the silicone, so buy it somewhere you can return it if need be.




Benefit Bad Gal Lash mascara

As a mascara, I like it a whole lot, but there are problems. The big fat brush confounds my early morning self and I always end up with a bit of it smeared around my eyelid. (Afternoon self can manage to apply cleanly.) It's got the volumizing while still looking natural thing down, but if it's a day when I apply my (Neutrogena Ultra-sheer) sunblock it runs almost immediately. Will be banished to use only after the sun has gone down.




MAC eyeshadow, in Print

Nicely pigmented, no creasing, no smudging. Might be worth the price, just the way everybody is always saying it is.