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Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Valentine Collections


Valentine Collections


The following are the current Valentine collections from various indie companies.  While I have tried and support many, I have not tried them all.   -Anne

Sunday, January 22, 2012

Off Topic: Criminal Thinking Errors

In the past few weeks, a fairly well respected blogger (LeGothique) was revealed to be at the minimum a deceitful scam artist - who (allegedly) scammed quite a few people out of what appears to be a lot of money.  I don't intend to rehash that which has already been posted.  You can read more about the situation here and here.

Right around Christmas, "Grey" as she was known, disappeared.  Took down her blog and cut off pretty much all avenues of contact, with money in hand.  I lost no money.  I didn't buy any products from her blog sales, nor did I get a chance to get an Awesome Box.  A bit of digging by some folks uncovered a past wrought with deception - a proficient crafter for money - this was not the first time that she had cultivated a  well known and generally well liked personality that turned out to be a ruse.

I realize that it's rather pointless to mention that I didn't really care for her.  I thought she was pompous and arrogant.  You can't control other people, just how you respond.  Call it that sixth sense, I guess.

It seems that when we find out that we have been hoodwinked - and the perpetrator's facade starts to unravel, the first thing that we think is that this person must be mentally ill.  It's a reasonable assumption, and in some cases that is indeed the case.  There is a theory or school of thought that incorporates what are known as "Criminal Thinking Errors" to help explain the inexplicable.

I was first introduced to this concept by my sister-in-law.  She holds a Ph.D in Education - an expert in severe behavioral disorders of adolescents.  I could never understand how a person could perpetrate a crime and not appear to have any remorse or ability to self correct.  The concept of CTE is rather interesting and seems to have quite a bit of evidence based research.

1. Closed Channel Thinking 
--Not Receptive
--Not Self Critical
--No Disclosure
a) Good at pointing out, giving feedback on faults of others
b) Lies by omission


2. Victimstance 
a) Views self as victim (the criminal will even blame social conditions)
b) Blames others


3. Views Self As A Good Person 
a) Focuses only on his/her positive attributes
b) Fails to acknowledge his/her destructive behavior
c) Builds self up at others expense


4. Lack Of Effort 
a) Unwilling to do anything he/she finds boring or disagreeable
b) "I can't" meaning "I won't"


5. Lack Of Interest In Responsible Performance 
a) Responsible living viewed as unexciting and unsatisfying
b) No sense of obligation
c) Will respond only if he/she nets an immediate payoff


6. Lack Of Time Perspective 
a) Does not use past as a learning tool
b) Expects others to act immediately on his/her/demands
c) Decisions on assumptions, not facts


7. Fear Of Fear 
a) Irrational fears (many) but refuses to admit them
b) Fundamental fear of injury or death
c) Profound fear of put down
d) When held accountable experiences "zero state" - feels worthless


8. Power Thrust 
a) Compelling need to be in control of every situation
b) Uses manipulation and deceit
c) Refuses to be dependant unless he/she can take advantage of the situation


9. Uniqueness 
a) Different and better than others
b) Expects of others that which he/she fails to meet
c) Super-Optimisim - cuts fear of failure
d)Quits at the first sign of failure

10. Ownership Attitude 
a) Perceives all things, people, objects to possess
b) No concept of ownership, rights of others
c) Sex for power and control - not intimacy


*Source:Criminal Thinking Errors

Further reading:
Criminal Thinking Tactics
Thinking Errors Defined

Is this new for you?  What do you think about the concepts?

Dawn Eyes Cosmetics Giveaway! - Closed!


We are coming up on the consumer holiday known as Valentine's Day.  Whether you are madly in love, tolerating your SO, heartbroken, or in happy solitude - these pretties will suit you just fine.

Up for grabs is a deluxe set of  DEC Valentine's Collection samples and three handpicked full size shadows.  

You can see the swatches for the DEC Valentine's Collection here.

The three full size shadows are Frankincense & Myrrh, Peacock Teal II and Treasure Chest.  I selected the colors, I really love each one - and have my own full sizes.

Swatched over Tick:Tock's Infinity Eye Shadow Base in Milky Way.


Swatches below were applied over Ophelia's Apothecary Eyeshadow Primer.




And now onto the giveaway!  

This giveaway is open to participants in the US and internationally, unless prohibited by law. 
The approximate value of the prizes is $28.00 US.

The giveaway is open from January 22, 2012 - February 13, 2012 at 11:59pm EDT.

Prizes for this giveaway were purchased by me.  Dawn graciously upgraded the deluxe samples to jars at no charge.




a Rafflecopter giveaway



Dawn Eyes Cosmetics Valentine's Collection




Earlier this month, I picked up the DEC Valentine's Collection.  Sweetness & Light, Red Red Rose, Mi Amore, Be Mine and Candy Kisses.  These shadows aren't show stoppers for me.  Don't get me wrong, these are very nice, well pigmented shades - but none knocked my socks off.

Sweetness & Light is a pinkish duochrome with some glitter.  It can fool you at first, thinking it's a baby pink with sparklies - but that magenta shift is very pretty.  Red Red Rose is a really nice shade of red, it reminds me of exactly that, a red rose.  Mi Amore, Be Mine and Candy Kisses are sparkly but more opaque than I like.  I feel that this collection definitely has a "chromish" feel to it.  You can't go wrong with her shadows, good product - just the colors didn't move me this time.



Individual pictures are swatched over bare skin.  The group photo swatched with water.









Monday, January 2, 2012

More Dawn Eyes Goodness!


Part of my Black Friday haul included Dawn Eyes Cosmetics.  Her stuff is hard to resist.  I tried to pick colors that are out of my normal realm.  Based on Dawn's information, many of these are best sellers.

  • Faerie Dance - A lush medium beige pearl dancing with borealis sparkle. Takes on a distinct golden undertone over primer.
  • Silver Sparkle Mauve - Satiny light mauve pink, liberally scattered with silver stars. (FABULOUS)
  • Tropical Seas - A very pale translucent blue almost obscured by pink, gold, blue, and purple sparks. (Very unusual.)
  • Flame Dance - This deep metallic red/orange absolutely drips with golden sparkle, very bold! (This is a good shade if you like to make a statement.)

  •  Jeweled Pewter - A dark pewter gleaming with a subtle rainbow of sparks. (Less sparkle than I would have liked, but the color is absolutely spot on for pewter.)
  • Glittering Aquamarine - A deep aquamarine graced by borealis sparkle. (Nice middle of the road shade.)
  • Shock Value - A beautiful hot pink saturated in silver sparkle, sure to live up to its name! (For some reason I expected this to be bright like a neon., very much a raspberry color to me.)
  • Metallic Golden Copper - A gorgeous, bright copper metal drenched in golden glitter. (This is a neat shade, metallic but depending on the angle it can look coppery or gold.)

  • Provoked - A bright sassy purple glistening with pink, blue, and copper sparks.  (This has a lot of sparkle despite the swatch.  This along with King's Robe were similar.  Not exactly the same, but close enough that you could own one or the other.  To a purple aficionado the differences may be more pronounced.  This shade needs a bit more base as well.
  • Champagne Soireé - Coppery pale champagne with subtle shimmers of pink and violet. (I had pictured this as a champagne peignoir.  Sheer, wispy and sparkly. Not as sheer as I would have liked.) 
  • Blurple - This awesome shade looks like a metallic blue head-on, but stuns with a deep magenta heart and a profusion of purple sparks. A must have for lovers of both blue and purple!  (This is one of those shades that makes you stop and think if you have ever seen anything quite like it.  Purple fans do not miss this.)
  • Twinkling Teal - A medium teal sparkling with green sparks and lit up with gold sparks. (Somehow I seem to have teal and aquamarine quite similar in color.  You could easily get the teal or the aquamarine and consider it done.)
  • Merry Go Round - Is it gold, is it blue? With Merry Go Round it's up to you! Can even be seen as a green, this golden blue sparkles with gold and blue shimmer! (This shade is really unusual.  The description is right on.)
  • Olive Sands - Medium olive satin with hints of blue, green, and gold shimmer. (Eh, wants to be Olive Orchard, but just can't get its green on.)
  • King's Robe - A beautiful royal purple showered with borealis sparkle, fit for Kings and Queens alike!
  • Naughty Girl - What happens on vacation stays on vacation! This black-based deep plum satin has coppery undertones and a hint of purple, and is lit with bright sparks of pink and purple, perfect for a naughty night out!** (Part of a retiring LE collection.  I don't care for black based shadows, having said that - I think this color is quite common in various companies repertoire.  This can retire without much concern.) 


You've seen all of these before, Silver Sparkle Mauve in this review.  I was testing if I liked swatching over eye shadow base, wet or a regular primer.  I'm still up in the air.  I draw your attention to Treasure Chest which is such a great color.  You want to own this one.

My picks, Silver Sparkle Mauve, Tropical Seas, Blurple and Merry Go-round.

**Discontinued 1/6/12

Do you own any DEC shadows?