Take a look at this new ad we saw as we drove by Chin Chin Restaurant with our nearly empty gas tank. Isn’t this a smart idea?

Last Saturday, my husband and I went out for dinner. With a little gas left in the tank, we decided to eat at a nearby restaurant to save gas. If lucky we would try get gas after dinner. My husband thought the later the better. On the way to the restaurant, we passed our favorite BP gas station and found out it was open (3 days earlier it had been barricaded tightly with tires and yellow tape surrounding the gas pumps. It looked almost like a war zone).

Even though there was a fair line, it was not too long. I suggested we get gas before going to dinner or we wouldn’t get a chance at all. My husband didn’t like the idea. He didn’t want to think about spending our wonderful Saturday night waiting in line at the gas station. Far from romantic. But what choice did we have?

After my short sermon (I asked him to choose between a long sermon or short one and he chose the short one); he finally agreed to do it. We lined up behind the long train of vehicles. While cars moved slowly toward gas station, we passed the Chin Chin Restaurant. There’s a slogan on top of the building that we always laugh about when we read it. It’s “Chin Chin Restaurant, The best Chinese Restaurant in Town.” But we’ve rarely seen many cars there. It’s probably 4-5 max. 3 of them are probably the waiters’ and chefs’ It seems the slogan needs adjusting huh?

But the folks at Chin Chin never give up hope. I know they’re really a determined bunch. In order to market their restaurant, one of their tricks is slipping the menu into the doors of prospective customers’ homes. I don’t really like that marketing strategy.

It’s true, sometimes people see things as pain, but others see it as opportunity. There’s always Cin and Cang (Upsss!! sorry!) I mean yin and yang in Life. I really admire Chin Chin. They never give up hope. That’s the way to do business if you want to successful.

I am wondering how many people ordered their food while waiting for gas. So far I saw one. I saw a waiter run speedily toward a car with a delivery order a big grin.

Even though I have tons of lipsticks, it seems that it’s never enough. I want to have a complete color collection that matches all of my outfits. Or maybe it’s just my addictions. Several times en I bought a new color which I thought was a new cool color for me, I got home and found out I already had one of a similar color. Then I ended up having so many lipsticks in similar color or slightly different. That’s really bad bad bad bad ( like my 2 years old niece said) ….and a waste of money too–quite the opposite of my frugal nature ( I know that!!..I try to forgive myself for this

As you all know that we can’t keep cosmetics for too long. Let say for 10 years. There’s a limit on how long we can keep cosmetics for our safety reasons. The best sign on when to throw your make up away is when the color changes or an odor develops. Get rid off them. Most of cosmetic use preservatives to fight bacteria. The reason of color changes or odor develops is because the preservatives may no longer be able to fight bacteria.

Here’s a few simple guideline for how long you can keep your make up in

• Mascara: 3 months ( for this one is a MUST)
• Liquid eyeliner: 3-6 months (for this one is a MUST)
• Oil Free Foundation: 1 year
• Nail Color: 1 year
• Concealer: 1-1.5 year
• Lip gloss: 1.5-2 years
• Powder: 2 years
• Blush and Bronzer: 2 years
• Eye shadow: 2 years
• Eyeliner: 2 years
• Lipstick: 2 years
• Lip liner: 2 years

BUT…….In my opinion, basically, there’s no hard and fast rule on when to throw cosmetics out. I believe we can keep make up indefinitely as long as it looks and smells all right and the consistency doesn’t change. But there are some products that really sensitive and the rule it’s not working.

This season is about natural fresh looking color. Emphasize the assets that you already have Nude or natural lip color for lipstick is in now. I used to get really tempted to buy lipstick which is in season. But now since I have so many lipsticks I want to be more frugal and find creative ideas to use what I already have to create a new color to suit me.

So I came up with this idea…. If you have a lot of lipsticks in bold colors that are too bold to wear everyday, here’s the trick: buy a nude lipstick. First apply lip balm or moisturizer on your lips, then if you like to use lip liner, frame your lips thinly ( I don’t like to use this because if you are are not careful you can make your outer lips darker) then with a lipstick brush, fill the lips with bold lipstick color first. Make it even. Then apply the nude color on top of it, and you are done. Believe me you can have tons of new colors that you create by yourself. And you don’t need to buy a new lipstick that’s matchy matchy with your outfit. Simple but frugal.

Do you have some new tricks with your cosmetics? Anything related to cosmetic stuff. Please share yours. I’d like to hear them.

Last Saturday, I went to a nail salon to have my nails and toes done. It was the first time in my entire life that I actually paid someone to clean my nails–WHAT?? Where are you coming from? Even a GEICO cave woman does that. I know you won’t believe me. Well, it’s not that I am so cheap, but most of the time I don’t like to spend money especially when I know that I can do it myself.

But this time, my friend forced me to go. She told me that there is a big difference in DIY to DBOP (do it by other people). She insisted that it’s worth any penny. Well, because of my deep curiosity and to test her statement, I decided to go. I paid $30 to have my nails and toes done.

The owner was really nice. He even gave me a small therapeutic massage just to try it out. My only concern was the chair. It was too tall/big for me. Supposedly the chair’s function is to massage your back, shoulder and neck. I was too short for the chair. Instead of massaging my back, it massaged my back head and that made me dizzy.

My first manicure/pedicure experience was OKAY. It’s good though, but a frugal person like me always thought there’s no reason to waste money when you know you can do it yourself better. Besides that, $30 only last for 2/3 weeks. Then your nail and toes get dull and your nail polish get chips again. If you go trice/ twice a months you’ll spend $90. That’s a lot of money.

I think when we go to a nail salon to do a pedicure manicure, we pay more for relaxation and glamor. Instead of doing it yourself, you just need to lean back on your massage chair, read a magazine and let someone else do it all for you. Who doesn’t want to be pampered like that?

Some people are too lazy or don’t have time to do it themselves and would rather have someone else do it for them at a nail salon. There’s nothing wrong with that. But for me, I always think instead of spending my money for nails and toes, I’d rather spend my money for other things that are more important than that.

The reason I want to go to a nail salon this time is also because I want to see the process step by step. I want to learn so that I can do it myself, perhaps even better. I watched each step of the manicure/pedicure process carefully. My eyes ran around to read all the labels of the products they used. I asked them questions about some of the special products/tools that I’d never seen before.

My conclusion is… doing a pedicure/manicure is EASY. You can do it yourself at home in just 30 minutes. The pedicure manicure kit and essential products are available at many retail stores. Doing it yourself is a lot cheaper. For $50 you can get the entire pedicure/manicure kit and essential products which you can use for up to 5 or more times. That means you’ll save: $30 x 5= $150.

I personally think it’s good to do a manicure/pedicure at a professional salon at least once a year (especially after a dry winter). The reason is because there are certain products/tools the professional salon has that we simply don’t have at home such as melting wax, electric wraps, etc. After that, you don’t need to go to a nail salon once every 2 weeks. That’s a total waste of money. You can maintain by doing it yourself at home once every 2 or 3 weeks, or as many as you want. You can even do it everyday before having a shower if you want.

Here’s what I did. I bought all the pedicure manicure kits–the exact same ones that a nail salon has. I also bought, foot bath, foot cream, lotions, foot scrub etc… and wualllllllllllaaaa… I can have a beautiful nails and toes the whole year long without breaking my wallet.

For more details on how to do a home pedicure and manicure, check out these pedicure and manicure step by step

When was the last time that someone who you respect for his/her fashion sense told you that you looked great? By keeping seven basic principles in mind, you can look great all of the time.

Step 1: Know your body type
None of us is perfect so know your measurements and shape. Think about arm, leg and torso length and shoulder, hip, waist and thigh shape and width. Evaluate your overall body shape. One trick we like for this is standing in front of a mirror with someone tracing your shape on the mirror with soap. Ok, so you will have to wash the mirror afterwards but it gives you a great sense of your shape. Finally think about the areas you want to hide or accentuate.

Step 2: Be realistic
This works for all body types. Wear clothing that fit properly. Squeezing into a smaller size does not make you smaller. It makes you look like you have gained weight and didn’t buy clothing that are the right size. On the flip side, wearing baggy, bigger clothing in an attempt to hide things does not work either. You just make yourself look sloppy and larger. Don’t buy what you wish you looked good in, but what really does compliment you.

Step 3: Just because they make it in your size…
…does not mean you should buy it and wear it. Fashion is only fashionable if you look attractive in it, not because a celebrity is wearing it or it was in all of fashion magazines. Low-rise pants brought this point home more than any fashion trend in recent history. A few years ago, you just couldn’t be seen in public if you weren’t wearing low-rise pants/jeans. However, 75% (and that is conservative) of the women in this country should not have been wearing them. Now at this point we need to say that our opinion of low-rise pants may not be mainstream with the rest of the fashion industry’s opinions but we know what we see. Also bear in mind that there are different styles of low-rise pants and some of this disastrous fashion situation could have been avoided by changing the style of low-rise worn. Low-rise pants make long torsos look longer. The smallest amount of excess weight or flab in the middle is emphasized. Someone with no obvious waistline looks even straighter and less shapely. Large bums look larger as do wide hips. However, everyone rushed out to buy them and we have been subjected to rolls of fat, thongs sticking out the back and worse ever since. Moral of the story – wear a style that flatters not fattens and you will receive many more compliments.

Step 4: Know your colors
Black is not everyone’s best friend. Colors sold in the stores in a particular season may not be yours. Regardless of which method you use to determine the right colors for you, it must be done. If you aren’t sure, contact an image or wardrobe consultant for some professional help. It is worth the time and money. I had a client who went from people asking her if she was sick all of the time to people asking her if she was having an affair, all because she changed the colors in her wardrobe. Suddenly it seemed like her skin was glowing, her eyes were shining and she was well rested and ready to take the world by storm. People started to take notice. What do you do when your colors are not in the stores? Stock up on base pieces when the season or colors of the year are yours. When the main colors are not yours, you can usually still find accessories to complement your base pieces or check out last year’s clearance and discontinued items.

Step 5: Build a base
You have conquered the major challenges: knowing your body, knowing your colors and not becoming a fashion slave. So now you actually need to build a wardrobe. Your lifestyle will determine where the emphasis lies on the core elements of your wardrobe. However, here are a few suggestions on what you should have. You will need to adjust according to your life, but remember the key to any successful wardrobe is having items that can be mixed and matched with other items. Please note that we are not breaking up the list by summer and winter. Some of your items will be year round and some will be season.

Pants:

• 3 pairs of work pants
• 2 pairs of casual pants
• 1 pair of evening pants

Skirts:

• 2 skirts for work
• 1 skirt for weekend or fun
• 1 skirt for evenings or social events

Jackets/Coats: (Where you live determines the weight)

• 2 Blazers or suit jackets for work
• 1 casual jacket for weekend or fun
• 1 evening jacket or wrap

Shoes:

• 1 pair of tennis shoes (sneakers)
• 2 pairs of black, brown or navy (depending on your base color) casual or walking shoes
• 2 pairs of work shoes in black, brown or navy
• 1 pair of stylish boots for winter or sandals for summer
• 1 pair of evening shoes

Tops:

• One week’s worth of work tops/blouses
• 2 casual weekend tops and 2 tshirt tops
• 1 evening top

Dresses:
Not all shapes lend themselves to wearing dresses. However, if you love dresses, you should have one for work, another for play and a third for evening if you have a lot of social occasions.

Step 6: Think before you buy
Unless you are buying a new base piece, don’t buy an item unless you already have three things in your wardrobe with which you can wear it.

Step 7: Budget
Spend the bulk of your budget on the base pieces. You will thank me later for this advice. Quality base pieces will last and will remain fashionable. Fill in your wardrobe with accessories with the remainder of your wardrobe budget. These items are often the trendier or more seasonable items and have a shorter shelf life in your wardrobe. And for those of you who do not have a wardrobe budget – get one. The easiest way to have an out of control closet or overflowing shoe bin is too just go shopping willy-nilly without a plan.

We cannot possibly cover all of the do’s and don’t of fashion in one article but these seven steps should get you started. It is important to have a plan, make a list of what you have and stick to it. It is even more crucial to know your body, be realistic and wear what was made for you, not what was made for a super-model. Happy shopping! 

The color of this autumn

Black color is in fashion. Grey and brown color spectrums are also relevant colors for this season. Deep blue and violet colors have also appeared in collections. Designers recommend pure red and scarlet only for evening but dilute brown and red and cherry color tints are leading in trimming and leather accessories. Here dark green is appropriate.

Snow white will become fashionable closer to winter but golden winter is well-disposed to creamy and lacteous colors and pearl to grey color spectrum.

National motives

Elements of native ethno style should certainly be in autumn wardrobe of every fashion woman. Trapeze- like and sand-glass silhouettes, skirts with big creases, coats in ethno style are very popular this season. Embroidery and application are also welcomed.

Balloon

So fashionable oval silhouette has still been very popular this autumn – but now a coat-balloon is a pink of fashion. There are different variations of it but a sleeveless jacket is especially popular. And even a severe waistcoat has an oval silhouette now. A skirt and a dress-balloon are still relevant but only made of chiffon and satin. They are great for a black tie event.

Kilting

Feminine and decorative kilting is able to add slight coquettish mood even to a sad day. A kilting skirt is one more fashion must-have of the season. There are different kinds of satin kilting skirts both for everyday wear and for special occasions.

Quilts

Quilted clothes are very relevant today. They make jackets, coats, skirts and even dresses quilted. Especially stylish duets look: a dress-coat and a skirt-jacket. It’s even possible to find a quilted tie that makes you look funny but very original.

A cardigan a la mere

A cozy “grandma” handmade cardigan has substituted all others cardigans and sweaters. There are a great number of sweaters and cardigans: small jackets-bolero, short-cut jackets with coquettish strings instead of buttons and long body-fitting jackets-dresses.

Short-cut pants

This autumn women shouldn’t hide their shapely pairs of legs under pants. Designers have began ignoring shorts by letting fashion ladies wear short-cut pants during cold period. The minimal length is Bermuda shorts and bridges below knees. One more fashion trend – leggings. They can substitute mini-pants for those who have ideal legs but the most fashionable variant is to wear them with skirts and dresses.

Raincoat and Coat

Military trench coat is a demi-season classic. Some designers advise fashion ladies to replenish their wardrobes with thin sateen coats – for romantic walks during cool autumn evenings. And of course every high society woman must have gorgeous silk and lacy coats. Accessories

Choosing fashion clothes for autumn and winter don’t forget about accessories. First of all remember that your bags have to match your clothing very well. Forget about bright summer jewelry-choose something more neutral. Buy comfortable stylish shoes.

One more fashion trend is your watch. Very often people forget to pay enough attention to their watch and this is the reason they look is not perfect. Nowadays designers advise to choose a watch that will be matching the whole your style. But it is not so easy because genuine brand watches cost enormous prices. But there is a great idea for you – buy replica watches. They are of a very good quality, but their price is far more moderate.

You will have an opportunity to have various watches of different colors, styles and designs to match all the clothing you have in your wardrobe. Namely in this case your image will be complete. So don’t hesitate buying a replica watch and make sure of their quality and beauty and accuracy!

Article source: Chopard Replica watches
About the Author

Anastasia is actively involved in writing Web content mainly about a wide range of prestigious replica watch brands and their most popular watch collections. The author’s articles are published at sites that contain information about wristwatches or dealing with selling watches on-line: Chopard Replica. Anastasia also studies