Adventures of Barbarella

How to have fun the right way: Party Etiquette I

DIANA
What is your party pet peeve?

PARTYGOER
Ugly people 

Give peace a chance. (requested: Self-Confidence)

This is the second time I write this, I'm hoping for spontaneity. I tried to bullet point earlier and I went on a four-page rampage on Feminism. Maybe I'll save that draft for my future Empire Manifesto. (In my future Empire, we will all dress like Cleopatra. Plotting the headpieces as we speak.)

So anyway- confidence. A lot of friends have requested I write this, so hey thank you. If you think I know anything about confidence, I'm flattered. It's not really something I give much thought to and I wasn't sure how to tackle this, it's such a huge subject, everything is connected to it.

This Summer I attended a Buddhist centre where we focused our study on self-healing practices and inner peace. For me, that is what confidence is: to be in peace with yourself. If you look it up in the dictionary, you'll find "to believe in your power and abilities" but you know what? If you are in peace, then chances are you believe in yourself. Why wouldn't you? The opposite would be to be in conflict and live in fear- coincidentially, the default status of modern society.

So to answer all the questions I get on "how to be", I would say, when you focus on being with all your energy, and you're positive, thankful, useful, honest, in tune with your spirit and your senses, then you'll be confident. 

Eye cosmetics: the 60s banana.

I always get teased when I go into makeup nerd mode. Because a) I don't work in makeup b) people can't explain why I have so much makeup and yet it never looks like I wear any. But I DO!

So today I was reading the September Vogue, and there's quite a spread on 60s bananas (again). This is something I have worn before but I haven't really gotten comfortable with. I usually just put a load of black on the crease and call it a day. It's become so much easier with the Chanel cake eyeliner (any other cake eyeliner would do, I suppose). I'll explain what I do if anyone needs the help or just wants to share the frustration.

Basically I draw a line with cake eyeliner where the crease would go. I have an "asian" crease as we call it in Spain which means it's not there. But you draw it anyway. It doesn't matter if it's too thick or not the right shape. Then you take a pointy q-tip dipped in eye makeup remover and clean up the shape from underneath. This is so much easier than it sounds. Half moon motions. I like the banana to be quite open.

THEN you get the cake eyeliner DRY and with a tiny pointy brush (I'm using a little Stila rounded pointy eyeliner brush), you draw over the line to soften it. This also softens mistakes and makes it look like you wanted it to look like that: "cool" and "modern" and a little scruffy. Which incidentally, we do.

Then I went crazy drawing lashes underneath. I draw lashes. I can't help it.



Tips from fans of the cut crease are very welcome

Sun-tanning: Beach favourites

I have to restrict myself not to carry all of this every time I step out of the house.

(Left to right)

Hawaiian Tropic: I just love the smell/look of this brand. And I MUCH prefer body oils to lotions. They feel better and look great, don't wash off etc. I wear that oil for moisturizing, not really for protection. I only wear that on top of some other sunblock, once I have a tan already.

Hei Poa hair oil: I drench my hair in this before going to the beach, and ideally would reapply after swimming but I never do that. I have the feeling that it stays in my hair until I shower though, so I'm not too bothered. What does it do? It keeps it from drying out in the sun, and from getting all frizzy while it's drying. It's so humid here, hair never quite looks dry anyway. I use the Hei Poa body oil too. More on that some other time.

Garnier body oil: I am an oily gal I told you! I love this stuff, this is probably my favourite all-rounder. It's not cheap, but it feels great, smells delicious but not overpowering, doesn't rub off, ever, even after swimming- which makes it particularly difficult to get the sand off yourself, it sticks to it like glue-. Very recommended.

Polysianes gel nacree SPF10: Another one of those moisturizers that you use purely for glitz and decoration. It's a gel-oil texture, completely delicious and indulgent. And it has a gold shimmer to it. Smells amazing. The whole polysianes line does.

La Roche Posay Anthelios SPF50+ for Face Tinted: This is a tinted cream which is great because it acts like a tinted moisturizer, and the protection is unparalleled. Favourite face SPF. My mom wears it too. You know it's good when your mom has worn it for thirty years.

I apply all of this (well, not all of it at the same time. I choose the high SPFs first) over my body before going out, and then reapply as needed. I usually stick to a 30-15 and always use high protection on the face because otherwise it starts feeling horrible. I think it's a good idea to listen to your skin, it should feel lovely and moisturized all the time; if it doesn't you need more cream. And if you haven't tried oils, i urge you to.

Happy beaching xxx

How to party: Pt.1

"Dear Diana, please could you do a post about Nightlife? I've just turned 18, and I don't know where to start. I would love to learn about it all. You are my inspiration. Love, Elizabeth x"

Exercise: Introduction and my routine

I'm going to write little articles about what kind of workout routines i perform, exercises I like doing etc. It will answer a lot of questions I'm getting by email and also help me to keep it varied, which is important. I do eventually want to make some videos on this for sure, but not for the moment.

How to blow your nose (for snobs)

1. Find a Manolo Blahnik hankie from Liberty

2. Blow

How to use facebook star-style: being invisible

1. Never post whether you're in a relationship or not. Do not comment on the "rumors". Single is fine but "It's complicated" is even better.

2. Do not post in anyone's walls or any other public places. At least not in those places of people you really care about, cause you never know who will interpret your words and quote you wrongly.

3. Untag yourself immediately if someone tags you! Deny you've been there if somebody asks. Don't tag anyone, they can tag themselves.

4. Don't stalk. There's no time and it's not worth it, since many people are really private, and half of the people posting are really fake so it gives no real account of what's happening.

5. The Send Message feature is your friend. The photos are best kept private and sent through messages, too.

6. Finally, don't post exact locations on your Status unless you're ready for some stalking.

How to survive hundreds of unread emails, by Diana

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