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Friday 30 November 2012

Where Have I Seen That Colour Before?

Don't ever say I'm not random on this blog. Last week I posted about cyclists. And this week I'm posting about lipstick.

Before we start I know the photos aren't that great - lighting issues.

Now just a lately I've noticed a lot of bloggers and vloggers talking about Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in the colour Black Cherry.

A lot of people have said you can use it more like a stain if you don't want it full on dark.

So I tootled along to Boots to do a swatch. So I swiped it on the back of my hand and I liked it. It's a nice colour.

Revlon Super Lustrous Lipstick in Black Cherry
So I thought I'd buy it. But Boots had the wrong colour above the tester and I couldn't see it anywhere else. But then I looked at the colour again and thought... that colour looks familiar.

So I went home and rooted around in my lipstick collection until I found this:

NYX Round Lipstick in Snow White
What did I say about the lighting - it refused to be consistent!

So this is NYX Round Lipstick in Snow White. Now in order to compare the two I did a swatch of the Revlon one on a tissue and brought it home to compare against the NYX one.


As you can see the NYX one is a teeny tiny bit redder than the Revlon one but it probably won't be that noticeable if you use it like a stain... plus the NYX one is cheaper :)

Monday 26 November 2012

Friday 23 November 2012

Cyclists: A Pedestrian’s Point Of View

Ever since Olympic cyclist Bradley Wiggins was knocked off his bike recently there has been a lot of talk in the UK of how to keep cyclists safe.


Now I do have a driving licence but I tend to be a pedestrian (or a passenger) more often than a driver. When driving and I approach a cyclist I become very cautious as though they might suddenly veer inexplicably in to my path. Given that I have approached junctions before and cyclists have pulled straight across in front of me without even looking.

But I’ve had more experience with cyclists as a pedestrian. And I thought I’d share some of my war stories with you – mainly things I’ve seen.

Now I’m sure that Mr Wiggins and a great many cyclists are actually very good road users. I’m sure they all wear helmets, have working lights, follow the rules of the road etc.

But there are some of you out there who do not. You know who you are. Yes I do mean you.

I’ve seen cyclists going the wrong way down one way streets. Speeding through pedestrianised areas. Speeding along with one or sometimes both hands in their pockets – it’s a bike - it is controlled by you but not telekinetically! I’ve seen them going down alleys (or ginnels or snickets or snickelways - whatever you want to call them*) when there is a perfectly visible sign telling them not to go down there on their bikes.
Riding of pedal cycles prohibited

The round white sign with a red ring around it and a picture of a bike means 'riding of pedal cycles prohibited'. That means either get off the bike and walk or go another way round.

One of my pet hates is the cyclist who approaches a lights controlled crossing that are on red (so we pedestrians can cross ‘safely’), and decide they are suddenly a bike-human hybrid. They go up on to the pavement over the crossing and then back on to the road.

My most physical experience with a cyclist was when I was at university. It was dark and I was walking on the pavement. As I turned the corner there was a bike coming towards me, also on the pavement.

I panicked. I was like a deer caught in headlights. Only I wasn’t because he had no lights for me to be caught in. He definitely saw me because he spoke to me. But he didn’t really slow down until he was about to hit me. He ran over my foot and the only reason he didn’t flatten me was because I put my hands out and put them on his handlebars to stop him.

As he then cycled away (after not asking me if I was alright) I was told that I had a ‘bloody cheek’ (he thought I was being rude not that I was injured).

It was hours later that I realised I should have pointed out the errors of his ways – no lights, cycling on the pavement – he didn’t even have a helmet on.

I appreciate that the roads are scary places and that drivers don’t always look out for you – but that doesn’t mean to say you should invade the pavement and act as though the pedestrians shouldn’t be there. The Highway Code applies to you too you know.

Although pedestrians can be just as bad sometimes.

I think everyone needs teaching how to look out for each other – not just drivers but everyone.

Maybe there should be sections in the Highway Code – How To Deal With: 1. Idiots In Vehicles (a) Pedestrians (b) Cyclists, 2. Idiots On Bikes (a) Drivers (b) Pedestrians, 3. Idiots On Foot (a) Drivers (b) Cyclists.

It probably wouldn’t help though…

Here endeth the rant!


*I personally tend to say ginnel and occasionally snicket

Monday 19 November 2012

Random Quote #110

The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.

Mahatma Gandhi

Friday 16 November 2012

Random Videos

I usually think up these Friday posts during the week. However I am in the midst of NaNoWriMo so all I've been thinking about is that.

So this week I decided to post a couple of my favourite videos that I have found whilst travelling around YouTube.

Enjoy!

World's Best Bartender


Eddie Izzard - Lego Deathstar Canteen


Confrontation Mashup


Monday 12 November 2012

Random Quote #109

Common sense in an uncommon degree is what the world calls wisdom.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge

Friday 9 November 2012

Random Thought #44 - What Is With All This Spam?

I never used to get spam on this blog (or my other blog come to that).

But just before the A To Z Challenge started up this year I decided to make it easier for people to comment by letting anyone comment (included those who wish to remain anonymous) and removing the word verification thing.

And within the first week I had spam appearing in my inbox.

But it was only like a spam comment a week.

But in the last couple of weeks I'm getting spam comments nearly everyday - usually with some websites listed where I can either get a virus for my computer or buy something that may or may not be fake.

The only spam I like comes in a tin!


Update 16/11/12 - I'm currently getting about a dozen spam comments a day! A DAY! So I am currently getting all emails that alert me to comments sent to my junk mail folder. And then each day I have a quick scroll through the new ones to see if there are any legitimate comments.

So if you leave a comment anonymously (and you are not a spammer) I might not notice for a while

Tuesday 6 November 2012

Teaser Tuesday


Taking part in Teaser Tuesday is simple. All you have to do is:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Then head over to Should Be Reading and add your link to the comments.

Here are my teasers for the week:

Shaun, on the other hand, is a moron and had gone zombie baiting in nothing more defensive than a cardigan, a Kevlar vest, and cargo pants. He won't even wear goggles - he says they "spoil the effect".

Page 9, Feed by Mira Grant



This book counts towards three of the reading challenges that I am taking part in this year.

Book Chick City
Book Chick City
Literary Escapism


Monday 5 November 2012

Random Quote #108

You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you.

Ray Bradbury

Friday 2 November 2012

Halloweeny Nails

Well it would seem that all of my posts this week have had a Halloweeny feel to them in one way or another so I thought I might as well see out the week in spooky style.

Now eagle eyes readers of this blog may have noticed the title and be saying:

But Chippy you said you weren't going to buy any more nail varnish for a while!

That is true - I did post a couple of weeks ago that I had placed a ban on myself when it came to buying nail varnish and lip balm but what I used for this nail art I've had for quite a while anyway.

It was kind of difficult getting the flash just right so you could see the actual pattern - but I have recently discovered the 'macro' setting on my camera otherwise this picture would be very very out of focus. But if you can see past the flash you can see that my nails are silver with black spider webs on them. And you will also see that I didn't do them myself.

No I used the Sally Hansen Salon Effects Real Nail Polish Strips. I don't know if you can still get this particular design anymore as I got these from a discount make up shop. I saw these and just had to get them - and in the shop in question they were only £2.99!

So they were easyish to put on. Peeling them off the backing paper was a bit precarious - you know how tape loves to stick to itself? Well if you are not careful these will do the same. You get 16 in a box, which are split in to 2 packets.

The instructions say once you open them you have to use them or throw them away because they will dry out otherwise. However I got around wasting most of a packet by only opening one and then cutting a couple of strips in half to use on more than one nail (that works best on your shorter nails). This also means that I can do my nails like this again sometime in the future.

They were a little fiddly at first but I got the hang of it... eventually. And as they are supposed to be 'real nail polish' I put a top coat over them.

So endeth the Halloween festivities - next stop Christmas! (unless you are in the US and then it's Thanksgiving)

(actually I tell a lie - in the UK we have Bonfire Night coming up on 5th November... but then it's Christmas!)

Update 16/11/12 - these lasted about six days before they started chipping. On the seventh day I got fed up of the edges that were lifting up catching in my hair so I removed them. A word to the wise the spider web bits are a bit like glitter polish - a pain to remove!