Hot Tip: Blotting Papers For Cheap!

Pinky McLadybits via Lainey

You know those thin face blotter papers that cost a bunch of money for a little envelope of them? Toilet seat covers do the EXACT same thing. So, you can grab a few of those and cut them up & keep them with you to blot your face when it's getting greasy/shiny, or if you're super classy like Lainey, just pull one out of the package and use it as-is.

You can also use tissue paper, like the kind used for gift bags, or Kleenex to blot the oil from your face.

Lainey's List for the Picky, But Practical (and Lazy)

Lainey

I guess I'm hard to shop for, at least that's what I've been told.  Many times.  Many,  many times.  It's weird, because I think I'm pretty easy to shop for, but if the gifts I've received from my dad or from former boyfriends is any indication, either they're just not even trying or perhaps I am a tad picky.  Fine.  I'm picky.  I'm also practical when it comes to gifts.  I know it's fun to give sparkly, shiny baubles and stuff, but really, I'd rather pick those out for myself.  Also, if it's something I'm going to need to dust, you can keep it.  I have enough crap taking up space.  But, um, thank you for the thought!


For a gift, I would prefer either something I can really use, or something that I can use to pick out something for myself, or something that I won't go do because I have a chronic case of the Lazy-As-Fuck.

Trader Joe's Tuesday: Cranberry Crack... I Mean Relish

Lainey

I'll save you some time right now - if you don't love, or even like, cranberry - don't bother reading this.  I'm not going to change your mind.  However, if you do like cranberry, oh, read on, my friend.  Read on.

I LOVE cranberry.  I like dried cranberries in my salad or mixed with a handful of nuts.  I like cranberry juice, mostly with vodka, but plain, too.  I like that cranberry jelly in a can that has the can ridges imprinted on it.  Suffice it to say, I am a fanberry!  (Shut up, it was funny, and you know it.)

The Heat is ON: Thermacare Heat Wraps

Lainey

I am old.  I try to ignore it most of the time, but I have arthritis in my back and really, that makes it pretty hard to ignore the old.  Also, not at all related to being old, but it is the one thing I'm looking forward to getting rid of as I get older - I get wicked cramps and low back pain every month, like horrendously painful.  Anyway, now that I've actually written an article wherein I sound like my grandmother, let me get to the actual point for you.

Trader Joe's Tuesday: Lemony Love

Author: Lainey

I like lemon.  A lot.  Lots of lemon.  I'm mostly a fan of lemon in sweet foods.  Lemon curd, lemon gelato, lemon muffins, etc.   I don't tend to seek out lemon in savory foods.  I think it's because an old roommate made lemon pepper chicken once that was so awful, just peppery sourness, it almost put me off of lemon after that.  (And yes, I ate it anyway, because I didn't want to hurt her feelings, but ohmygod, you don't even KNOW how awful that shit was!)

The Best Advice on the Internets!

Lainey

Do you want to make more money so you can buy more stuff?  Stuff we review here, for example?  Or just, you know, pay your electricity bill?  Then I *highly* recommend you check out the site Ask a Manager!

Allison Green writes this amazing FREE blog with helpful tips for interviewing, resume writing, salary negotiation, and tons and tons of  information  for getting a job and succeeding in it - from a hiring manager's perspective.  She gives you straight talk and actual useful, timely, and effective advice for navigating the stressful and frustrating challenges of job hunting.

Trader Joe's Tuesdays: Mac & Cheese Adventure!

Author: Lainey

I’m not big on trying new things.  Ummm, here’s my confession – I lived 40 years without ever having eaten macaroni and cheese.  YES, that’s what I said!  My dad didn’t like it and wouldn’t allow it in the house when I was growing up (side note, he also vetoed tuna noodle casserole, but my babysitter really liked it and she brought it to me to try and once I tried it, my whining became louder than Denny Bobainey’s insistence on a tuna-noodle-free house).  When I was in college & in my first place, I REBELLED and bought that instant blue box stuff.  I was SO excited to make it and be a grown up!  I cooked it and added the powdered “cheese”, and the fluorescent orange color combined with the noxious odor grossed me out so much I dumped it down the garbage disposal and never ate a single bite.  I lived mac and cheese-less for the next 20 years.

Figgy is Insane: Philosophy Hope In a Jar

Author: Lainey

Ok, first of all, I feel like I need to state that Figgy... well, she's ALWAYS wrong.  I don't say that to be mean, it's just a fact.

I've used Philosophy's Hope in a Jar for 3+ years.  I use it morning and night, except in the winter months when I switch to Philosophy's The Miracle Worker for the nighttime application, because I need a heavier cream when it's so dry outside.   I love the way it goes on and my skin absorbs the Hope in a Jar cream and doesn't feel greasy, but it feels saturated.  I'm not sure how to explain that.  It feels like my face is cool and damp, but it doesn't feel like the moisturizer is sitting on top of my skin waiting to slide off my face.  Does that help? 

Trader Joe's Tuesday: Candyman, Candyman, Candyman!

Author: Lainey

Do you like salty and sweet?  Do you like crunchy?  Do you enjoy some dark chocolate?  Ok, then get in your car (or on your bike, if you’re one of them healthy folks) and getchoo to Trader Joe’s.  Buy a container (Or, you know what?  Buy two.  You’re already there.) of the Sea Salt and Turbinado Sugar Dark Chocolate Covered Almonds.   Seriously, buy two.  You’re going to be pissed when you have to make a second trip.  They’re addicting.  Not addicting in the “Ummm, I just ate the whole container” way.  More like “I need a couple of these today”.  (Not a couple containers… just you know, a couple of almonds.)  They’re quite rich.  And salty.  Like big chunks of sea salt and big chunks of turbinado sugar.  And lots of rich dark chocolate.  THEY’RE SO GOOD! 

Ok.  I’m done.  Just go get some.  You can send your thank you card to me here.

PS:  While you’re there, pick up some Dark Caramel Wedges.  They’re in the little tins by the checkout lane.  They’re circular tins of caramel-filled dark chocolate wedges and they’re damn tasty!  Two wedges is a serving and it’s like 60 calories and they’re perfect for when you just need that little UUUMPH of chocolate.  You know how that goes.  Crisp, smooth dark chocolate and that little gooey UUUMPH of caramel.  Yeah, you know.

Ok, no for real.  I’m done.  Go on.  Get out of here.  You could be halfway to Trader Joe’s by now.  HURRY UP!

Love the Skin You're In - Even in Winter!

Author: Lainey

I love fall and winter – really, I even love winter, but one thing I don’t love in winter is my skin.  I have dry skin.  I mean DRY dry skin.  It’s gross.  And itchy.  It’s not fun.  I have tried all of the different lotions, potions, and oils I could get my dry, chubby hands on and until now, it’s been pointless.  I shower, put on lotion afterward (while freezing my ass off and doing a crappy job, because I want to hurry up and get in my jammies), and it either sticks to my clothing or it works for an hour or two and then back to the itching and dryness.  I’ve also tried the oil that you put on when you’re still wet from the shower – hello, broken hip!  Yeah, that just mostly got my shower floor slippery.

You Can At Least Smell CLEAN If You're Not Going To BE Clean

Author:Lainey

I like things that smell like fresh laundry.  My Bounce lint roller is one of my favorite things, because not only is it functional and removes lint (ok, fine, cat hair.  It removes cat hair), but it also makes me smell like I just walked out of the dryer.  One of the ladies was talking about the CLEAN line of fragrances and it sounded like something I would like, so I bopped over to Sephora.com to check out their product lines.  I settled on a dry shampoo and a deodorant.