Friday, August 6, 2010

Some cheap creme thrills: Jordana Rich Green, ELF Smoky Brown, and KleanColor Brown

This morning will be dedicated to proof-reading a manuscript that my advisor has co-authored with another (former) graduate student. I'm always so flattered when she wants me to do things writing-related for her because she thinks I write well. Thank goodness I'm good for something. :)

I was less than "thrilled" with these but they were still pretty good for being $3 and under.

Jordana Rich Green
Grass green creme. Three coats. Awesome color but I didn't like the formula much.

ELF Smoky Brown
Dark taupe. Or somewhere between greyed-out purple and greyed-out brown. Brush wasn't a broom, surprisingly. These polishes separate like crazy and you gotta shake them up real good before using. Three coats.

KleanColor Brown
Two coats. In which universe is this considered "brown"? The photo does make it a touch brighter orange than it appears in real life BUT it's just a duller orange in person. Pretty nice polish though: two coats. But this was just a swatch and according to Piff, these polishes never dry...

I'm doing a new incentive program to get my ass in shape again. My weight has been a bitch for most of my life -- on again, off again, on again, off again -- and being in an on-again stage is a serious drag on my life right now. It wasn't a drag the last time but it is this time. So this is my plan: for every day that I exercise in one month, I get to haul one polish in the next month. But the value of the polish dependent on the amount of time I spend exercising:
  • 90 minutes or over = a polish that costs over $14
  • 60-89 minutes = a polish that costs up to $14
  • 45-59 minutes = a polish that costs up to $8
  • 30-44 minutes = a polish that costs up to $4
  • Under 30 minutes = a polish that costs up to $2
And no roll-over polishes: if I don't buy one month, I can't save it up for a big haul next month.

So far this month: Aug 1st (60m bike ride), 2nd (45m cardio+strength), 3rd (60m cardio+strength), 4th (45m yoga), 5th (15m run). In September, I'm going to reward myself with two fall Essies, two holiday Orlys and maybe a Confetti polish. ;)

The funny thing is that when I'm in "work out mode" I work out nearly every single day -- a regimen I kept up for almost 3 years at one point. (Which is why I put price limits on the polishes I'd buy! Otherwise, I will definitely be broke.) About one workout a week goes over an hour. Two workouts hit at about an hour. The other four days usually oscillate between 15-45 minutes, depending on how tired/busy I am. Some weeks, all four days are 20-25 minute cardio sessions; some weeks, half of those days are 45m cardio+strength. I rarely have a week where I push my body further: it's not productive to not have some recovery. Many people suggest that you take a day off a week to recover: I personally think it's just as restorative to be on a recumbent bike playing Scrabble or Carcassonne on my iPad for 20 minutes once or twice a week.

I used to reward myself with massages: "if I work out for 21 days straight, I get a massage" type of deal. But my yoga place has a deal where for $65 a month, you get as many professional hour-long massages as you can schedule in (which comes out to 2-3 massages a month). So nail polishes it is.

Yes, I'm crazy. Why do you ask?