Hi,
This week has been a somewhat of a rather joyful alignment of good things. For those of you expecting a rich and thoughtful comment of D&D related gubbins; firstly, sorry to disappoint, and secondly, is it okay to identify as Chaotic Fabulous? 🤓 My, it’s been a very long time since I’ve played any pen & paper RPGs. Still, perhaps there’s time to think about Baulder’s Gate and see what folk have been up to with that world.
Health
Ah, the joys (!!) of getting older. Still, much better than the alternative 😉 A series of health checks at the GP this week and results from some blood tests. Nothing to worry about, just helping remind me that the Jones 72 system has had many patches over the years, a few bug fixes, and the hardware is certainly starting to creak 🙂 But, so long as things can be checked and I follow the health professional’s advice, fingers crossed eh?
In related news, I’ve worked out I can sneak in a power nap – doesn’t that sound energising, dynamic, and go-getting? 🤪 To me, it’s forty winks post nom o’clock and then back at it for whatever the afternoon brings 😁
It’s either me slowing down a little – thing catching up? – and/or a side effect of the anti Don’t Panic, Jones! meds. But, hey, never look a gift sofa in the cushions. 😉
Made-up on make-up
Well, last week’s plan to try my new make-up beforehand never came to pass. Instead, I winged it via the magic of Big Girl Pants and… dare I say? I was quite chuffed with the new routine and foundation too. I’ll take those as a win 🙂
If you missed – or just zoned out on my usual waffle 😁 – last week, a trip to Boots and a very helpful Clinique MUA set me straight on both the right foundation for my skin, and how to apply.
For ladies, part-timers, and the fabulous of a certain age, there’s a risk of undereye crinkling. Yes, fine lines and all that. So, this week, I followed said expert’s advice and if you’re curious…
- Face scrub and moisturiser before setting off as per.
- Primer on my face and neck.
- New: Colour corrector under my eyes and then concealer on top.
- New: Foundation applied by brush but not under the recently applied eye area.
- Powder to set it all and then on with the usual routine.
Firstly, the foundation did feel different when I applied it and it didn’t have such a heavy feel on my skin or the same during application. It was a better match to my tone, so that dreaded ‘tide mark’ didn’t need to be blended out.
Val was kind to say she thought my makeup looked good, so I’ll take that compliment (thanks, Mrs).
There’s a photo later on because this wouldn’t be yet another transgender blog otherwise would it? 😉
Chams
The evening got off to a shaky start for me, as on the way in, I started to get flickers of those zizzy lines in my vision that precursors a migraine. 😮 Very much not ideal when driving and heading out to see friends. Luckily, I had painkillers and water with me, so I pulled over, gave it some time to settle and luck was with me.
The evening was fairly busy again and it was great to catch up with friends old and new.
We had a visitor midway through, who brought along a dozen or so bags of clothes, shoes, wigs, and whatnot. Said lady – ‘O’ – will not be named to preserve her anonymity. The items were all from a family member who’d passed away recently, and O got in touch asking if the group would like first dibs on them.
Well, there was a lot of items and the donations tin for O’s late sibling did very well, I’m pleased to say. I felt it was a wonderfully kind gesture of O, and I know I have memories about my jewelry (the gift of a watch from the Ever Lovely Mrs J), hair (finding the wig that was ‘me’ thanks to Nic & Steph), clothes, and shoes. I hope that members are the group will remember It’s kindness and in some way, the memory of O’s sibling will live on.
Rock
I was surprised at the number of wigs O had brought along. Many were brand new and the others had really been looked after. One of them, a deep mauve colour caught my eye, and I thought I’d give it a try for fun.
You can judge for yourself via the snap. After three “turn around, bright eyes…” 😉 Or maybe it’s more The Power of Love 😁
Izzy and Anne were taking photos in the corridor and had quite a bit of fun taking the Mickey. But, hey, what are friends for? 😁
I did feel very 80s in it and in a good, fun way. However, I decided against keeping it as I didn’t think I’d have much occasion to wear it. So, back it went and Izzy picked it up later.
Chatting
I had a good long chat with O about her situation and listened to her talk about her late sibling. She shared some photos with me from the 80s, and I felt a lot of trans folk where hiding in plain sight in the rock & goth communities.
Personally, I was far too scared and I went the other way. Ah, fear, internalised transphobia, and self loathing? Me? With my reputation 😉
I could say “those wasted years” but that may be an 80s metal pun too far 😉 Bonus points if you got that reference 😁
It seems O didn’t live too far away from Jones Towers, so perhaps we’ll cross paths in the future.
Winding down
All that was left to do was pack up what hadn’t been picked up and also get a quick round of applause for O’s kindness. The packing up took quite a while and I was certainly glad of my Clark’s Mary Jane I got from Vinted. So comfortable and pretty too. That’s a rare combination I can attest to 😉
There was just time to get a quick snap of the outfit (thanks Val) and then ‘deprincess’ 🪄 while the group chatted on, bless them.
After that, back into the rain and off home with a heart filled with happy thoughts…. and not just because I had Friday off being part time 😉
L x
Happy thoughts are good. Especially when you don’t have to worry about the next day.
Thank for the make up tip. I’ve seen that advice about avoiding foundation directly under the eyes before but using corrector and concealer instead.
That was a lovely gesture from O.
That wig did suit you, though it doesn’t look that that mauve in the pic. Hope Izzy has fun with it. She can always rock a striking hairstyle.
Wasted years in the 80s. Most of us of a certain age can talk about that. But you have to work with what you’ve got now, not what you wish you’d had back then. (hair, teeth, knees that worked, and a night’s sleep without a 4am bathroom visit).
Yes, to have any extra day at the weekend is a real treat. Yeah, it’s costing me salary, but what’s the point of the money, if you’re too tired – mentally and/or physically – to make use of it? It’s not the job, it’s just that point in life where there’s a lot going on. So, some slow down is required. Just glad to have the option to do so.
No worries about sharing the make-up tip. I’d read about the concealer first or foundation first discussion, but I’d not made the connection of not using base around the eyes. Luckily, the make-up artist shared her wisdom, so I’m just passing that along.
A very kind gesture by O, bless her. She certainly went out of her way to pack and bring the items over to us. O did say that she felt that helping others would bring some good out of the awful situation. I’m hoping she found that. I know I find purpose and comfort in helping folk at the group or just generally. I don’t help because it feels good; I offer help as it feels the right thing to do. Reflecting back, I guess you hope whatever help you offered made a difference to a person’s day.
You’re right, the darker mauve / purple hasn’t really come out in the photo. If Izzy has put a new photo on Instagram, perhaps that’ll pick it up better. I think it’s quite the going out do, so hopefully it’ll see more disco lights under Izzy’s care 😉
To make the best of what you have; yes, very much that. Plus, I’m not sure I was ready back then. Certainly not enough confidence and it may even have not been safe in the 80s/90s.
The photo of the deep mauve wig is giving Kate Bush vibes, you should have kept it.
Thanks, Cathy. That’s a much better reference! Perhaps I should have kept it, but I think Izzy will get more use. It was quite long and I found longer wigs – like long hair – require quite a bit more upkeep.
I’ll skip over any references to Wuthering Heights 😉
That deep mauve wig really rocks, or, in Old English, it very much suits you.
What you refer to as deprincessing, I call pumpkin time, as itbis like when Cinderella’s coach turns back in to a pumpkin.
Penny from Edinburgh.
Oh ‘pumpkin time’ is a good one! Ha ha! 😁 I’ll definitely use that, Penny. It may be extra accurate if a corset has been worn 😉
Thanks for the kind words about the do. FWIW, I’ve seen a few ladies of my age rocking really vivid hair colours. I think it’s great they feel comfortable and bold to to that.
I think the jury is in. That style really suits you.
I’m going to call a retrial. Where’s my gavel? 😉
Joking aside, after years of having straight hair, I’m really beginning to like a curlier look. Maybe it’s the current do, which seems to sit better with more volume and curl to it. The good news is, no one said “you look a right tit in that” 😁
If the rock number comes back, so be it. But it was set free for others to enjoy. I shall enjoy its exploits vicariously 🙂
Really enjoyed your post. You can feel the contentment in it. And I think “nom o’clock” may be entering my vocabulary.
Now, I don’t know how this happened but I posted on my blog yesterday and used the same title as you, “Alignment”. That’s been changed for the same reasons no two girls should be wearing the same dress at the same event. Spooky. The heavenly bodies must have aligned in a particular way to create that coincidence.
Talking of heavenly bodies (see what I did there?), the dress is super (I think we’ve seen it before, but why not) and the wig suits you well. It’d probably suit me, too, I think.
Thanks for the (amusing) health update. Fingers crossed for everything. Have a lovely weekend.
Sue x
The nice thing about nom o’clock is it can be at any time of the day. 🙂 Ideally, not too frequently, unless one is stocking up for a gap, or you have your eating trousers on 😉
I did spot in my RSS feeds that your post had Alignment as a title, but that seems to be updating itself. I did feel a slight ‘ooops’ when I posted this and saw yours this morning. Clearly, we need to compare notes on outfit and blog post titles 🙂
Then again, maybe we should all post with the same title, but on different subjects. iTs teh tranns mAfiuh cOmSpracie! 😁
I wasn’t quite sure what to wear, so I followed the Richmond-Jones advice of ‘wear something that makes you feel good about yourself’. Which seemed to have worked 💜 I’m trying to rewear things and honestly, I’m not seeing a lot in my usual shopping gotos that makes me want to buy anything. Perhaps that’s a good thing for the planet?
I noticed that Sue. I thought there was glitch in my blogger listing. Lynn, you are seriously outvoted now and condemned to a life in Shirley Temple pins curls.
(I completely ruined one wig once trying to emulate Prof. Suzannah Lipscomb’s Pre-Raphelite locks.)
A topical reference there, Susie! 😉 BTW, I can say that ‘wet n set’ worked on my wig. A spray bottle of water and a number of foam rollers helped add in curls. I’m not sure how that might work with a synthetic fibre, but I do remember using some to put the hook back in a bob back in the day.
As to the Alignment coincidence, I think Blogger, the RSS collector here, and Feedly run on a schedule. I guess that’s to help avoid hammering blog hosting.
You did look good in the wig ! – I am considering it for LFF later this week 😁
Was a fab night, I really enjoyed it.
What shade of colour corrector do you apply btw ? I have a collection that I got when working out how best to hide beard shadow, but I settled on a fairly Tango-ish orange for that, and never used the others.
I’m guessing the concealer is not massively brighter than the foundation either ?
Glad to hear you had such a good time. Oh, and thanks for the kind words about the do. Hopefully it works for you at the next LFF.
I’ve been used a Nyx correction pallet. That’s got yellows, tans, purples, mauves, and browns to help with opposing colours. Then it’s a a Maybelline concealer – the one with the foam sponge tip and twist to pump.
Once the foundation is blended into the edges of the concealer and powder goes on, that seems to help.
You did look good in the wig ! – I am considering it for LFF later this week 😁
Was a fab night, I really enjoyed it.
What shade of colour corrector do you apply btw ? I have a collection that I got when working out how best to hide beard shadow, but I settled on a fairly Tango-ish orange for that, and never used the others.
I’m guessing the concealer is not massively brighter than the foundation either ?
Good to hear you enjoyed the night and apologies for interrupting your photos with Ann.
If not LFF this time, then perhaps Halloween and a touch of goth glam?
The corrector is by Nyx and with my undereye being fairly purple/blue, I use the yellow pallet. The concealer is the Mabeline one with the rounded foam applicator. Apparently recommended for those with mature skin 😉
Oh, I want to see those Halloween photos.
“I’d buy that for a dollar!” 😉
What a great post! So much to enjoy and admire.
Good health is nothing to take for granted. Congrats on yours. Keep monitoring it because once health goes, so does the quality of our lives.
Excellent makeup advice. I started noticing old lady undereye wrinkling and it depressed me until I realized aging comes for all of us. Better female age issues than male ones (although I have them too).
Nice photos. Thanks for sharing them.
Wise words on looking after yourself – body and mind. The joys of a good walk, beautiful scenery, and – if we’re lucky – a comfort break involving tea and possibly cake 😉
Thanks for the kind words re the photos and shared advice. If we can keep our skills updating as we change, hopefully that’ll keep our brains active too.
Hope you’re keeping well, SB 🤞
I kind of like the wig too. Reminds me of some mature (in age, if not behaviour 🙂 ) goths I have known.
Wasn’t expecting the Iron Maiden reference. Thanks for the blast from the past!
Good recovery, Pandora 😉 Yes, the senior gothic vibe is very much ‘in da house’. Perhaps I should keep an eye for a longer human hair number and look into having it dyed a punky colour.
Top metal points on getting the reference 🌟