Saturday, 04.20.2002.
Fashion Emergency.  If there's anyone in need of a Fashion Emergency makeover, that would be me. Joyce and I had been talking about getting a make-up lesson at the Malama Spa in the Ala Moana Shopping Center for some time now, but we finally made our appointments and took the plunge.

I've always been intimidated by those make-up counter ladies, fearing an episode like the one in the movie "The Truth about Cats and Dogs" where the girl goes to the make-up counter only to have every single flaw tactlessly pointed out to her, making her feel about as pretty as a pit bull.

My face is full of flaws, all of which don't need to be acknowledged by some cosmetician with perfect skin and make-up 3 inches thick. However, I figured that hopefully, in a spa setting that they might be less critical.

It took about a half-hour for her to do my make-up, explaining as she went along. I was happy with the results. The real test, however, will be when I get home and try to do it myself.

I went to Sephora and looked for comparable shades of make-up in the Shiseido line, my cosmetic line of choice. The Shiseido rep was present, hovering around the Shiseido section, waiting for someone to ask a question. She was one of those perfect Shiseido beauties, with her black hair pulled back tightly into a neat bun, accentuating the flawlessness of her skin and her impeccable make-up job. She quickly sat me down in the chair and proceeded to remove the make-up from half of my face and smoothed on the Shiseido products that she was recommending. Of course, nothing has a price tag on it, so assuming that the items were comparable in price to the Pureness line that I usually purchased from Shiseido, I took a basketful of items to the check out counter. I was missing some items, such as eyeliner, mascara, lip liner and lipstick, but I figured that I might get that somewhere else.

After the clerk was done ringing it up, my total was $172.92. Buyer's remorse was instant (I've been getting that a lot lately), but it was too late to take some items out. I simply handed over my credit card and signed the credit slip.  That was quite a bit more than what I had intended to spend on make-up, so I went back and forth with Joyce about whether I should return it or not.

We found ourselves back at Malama and I ended up purchasing the Aveda products, the very same ones that she used to do my make-over, and that it would help me to get results that were hopefully pretty close. Dual foundation/powder, blusher, eyeliner, mascara, 3 shades of eye shadow, lip liner and lipstick all found their way into my shopping bag. I found that I was able to get all of the items that I needed for less than what I had spent at Sephora.

I went back to Sephora and returned the Shiseido products. Unfortunately, I found myself back at the same clerk, who looked happy to see me until she realized that I was there to make a return. I was just hoping not to have to face the Shiseido rep, lest she try to hard sell me into buying the products by giving me a guilt trip or by telling me how badly I needed them. Luckily, I was able to escape the store without running into the Shiseido girl.

Plug: If you haven't been to the Malama Spa yet, I highly recommend it. The service is very good and they treat you like royalty. The atmosphere is calming and tranquil. I'm hoping to go back again, perhaps next time to do a facial treatment or manicure.

By the way: Joyce looked absolutely stunning with her make-over, but she made me promise not to post any photos of her. She's shy.  :-( 

We did some shopping for clothes, but didn't find anything that piqued our interest. Joyce and I play this little game where we always pick the most gaudy, unflattering items and tell the other how "it's so YOU!" and today was no exception. We always have fun shopping together, especially lamenting about how many of the styles these days are so very not us.

We also made a stop at Shirokiya, where they were sponsoring an Okinawa Fair. I picked up some konbu (dried seaweed) and a box of manju for Hubby. Unfortunately, they were all out of brown sugar candy, which is one of my favorite Okinawan confections. We did, however, see some pretty interesting things for sale.

So, we got the make-up lesson. Now the question is: will we be wearing make-up from now on? I guess that remains to be seen. Whatever the case, it was a lot of fun and I wouldn't mind going to the spa with Joyce again soon! It could easily become a habit.

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