SPARKLE MOTION NEWS - JUNE 2012

[Madame Vita]

 

[One Witchy Woman]

Super Sweat Proof Make-up

Summer has officially arrived, and that villainous fiend SWEAT rears his ugly head. His mission is to destroy your make-up, but you can put a stop to his wicked ways.

There's no way to completely stop makeup from sweat damage, but there are a few ways you can make it wear more nicely as the mercury rises. To find out more, just keep reading.

First up, a list of the best rated products that will help your face beat the menacing melt caused by SWEAT.

A sweat-resistant foundation: Sun Protection compact foundation ($27) has SPF 34, which shields from both UVA and UVB rays. A powder foundation, this product also works to resist perspiration for hours. Lower-cost alternative: Physicians Formula's Healthy Wear SPF 50 powder foundation ($15).


A no-budge shadow: The crease-resistant Hydro Powder eye shadows ($25 each) are like potato chips, because once you try them, you'll want more. The cream-to-powder shadows are available in 13 bright shades perfect for the warm-weathered season. Lower-cost alternative: Rimmel's Glam Eye mono eye shadow ($4).


Powder-coated blotting papers: Shiseido's Pureness oil-control blotting papers ($18 ) are coated with powder to put shine to rest and help reduce excess sebum. Lower-cost alternative: Palladio's rice paper blotting tissues ($4).


No matter what you do, it's likely happened to you many times, about halfway through a long, hot day, your makeup starts to melt off. It becomes runny and looks like a complete mess instead of the pulled-together look that you left the house with. Just a little bit of sweat can ruin all of your makeup preparation. There is a way to keep your makeup looking fresh and new, besides hiding in air conditioning all day. Follow these easy steps to make your makeup sweat proof, and enjoy your day outdoors.


Things You'll Need

1 container face moisturizer
1 hair dryer
1 tube waterproof mascara
1 container loose face powder
1 large powder brush


Instructions

1. Apply two pumps of moisturizer to your face, including your neck area. If you have decent skin and no real blemishes to hide then a tinted moisturizer would work great here and you can skip the foundation.

2. Set your hair dryer to the cool setting. Lightly blow-dry your face to help your moisturizer absorb and set into your skin. You will only need to do this for a couple of seconds.

3. Apply the rest of your makeup the way that you usually do. Skip your regular mascara for now. You do not need to change the type or how you apply your makeup to make it sweat proof.

4. Sprinkle some loose face powder onto a tissue. Pick up some of the powder with the large powder brush. Lightly brush this powder over your face to set your makeup.

5. Use waterproof mascara to finish your look. This type of mascara will stay put as the sweat starts to run into your eyes. During the summer, a nice brown tinted mascara helps give you that sun kissed feel.

With these tips and tricks I know we can thwart the nefarious plans of the evil SWEAT.  

[Madame Vita]

Here are some fun ways to take on the feminine personas of some of comics books most vivacious and bodacious super heroines and Villainess'.

Here to help you with some inspiration is. Vita with Living Hero Fashion

 

[One Witchy Woman]

How To Make a Super-Hero Garden Gnome

Step 1: Choose your Hero

The first thing you'll need to do is determine your gnome's alter ego. Spend time with the gnome. Sleep with it if you have to. Look into its eyes...its soul. Look around your yard too. What type of issues are the yard inhabitants facing? Are there other-worldly invaders? Common street thugs? Neighbor's dog? This will help you determine if you need a dark vigilante type or a hulking all-powerful brute.

Additionally, you'll want to consider the physical feature of your gnome. Is it standing? Sitting? Does it have distinct features that lend itself to a specific superhero? In the case of the three gnomes I have here, there were definite characteristics that led me to choose the heroes I did. From here forward, I'll describe the steps to create a Batman, Robin, and Spiderman gnome set. These techniques can be used to make any garden hero.

Step 2: Supplies

Razor knives(x-acto knife)
Pencil
Scissors
Construction adhesive
Paint brushes
Assorted buttons and buckles and what-not
hemp twine
Ceramic garden gnomes
Sculpey (Super Sculpey is my preference but Sculpey III is good too)
Bondo body filler
Craft paint (any type that is rated for ceramics...some aren't. Read the label)
Spray paint (Clear, outdoor enamel)
Imagination
Razor knife (or Xact-o knife)
Oven (to bake the Sculpey, silly)
Aluminum foil
Baking sheet
Rolling pin (or piece of PVC pipe)
A smooth, hard surface (such as a sheet of glass or countertop)
Sand paper (120 grit and 200 grit)
Wooden spatulas or tongue depressors
Construction adhesive
Accessories: such as little buttons, buckles, twine, etc.

Before starting you'll want to gather your supplies. Make sure you have everything ready. You'll also want to have a blank canvas. So if you are not using a brand new gnome you should take the time to prime it. That way all of the colors will be vibrant and uniform.

Step 3: Sculpting

A template helps to get the shape right.
Use a piece of glass (mirror) as a work surface. Perfectly smooth and the Sculpey doesn't stick to it.

First thing to do is sculpt the masks. For Robin's mask and Spiderman's eyes make a paper template. Next roll the Sculpey out into a thin sheet on a very smooth surface using a pvc pipe or rolling pin. A piece of glass makes a great surface. Use the template to cut out the masks using a razor knife. For Batman's mask just make a large rectangle; no template needed. Place the masks on the gnome faces and pressed them tightly into place. For Batman, drape the rectangular sheet of Sculpey over the gnomes face and cut away the excess. Pinch the nose between your thumb and index finger to create the pointed nose. Use your pinky to make the indentations for the eyes.

Make a little ball of Sculpey and squish it into a circle. Use it to decorate Robin's belt buckle.

For Batman's ears roll two Sculpey balls and shape them into pointy cones. Use your thumb to smoosh them into place on the side of the gnome's head. They'll probably stick there in place and hold on their own.

You should have excess Sculpey rolled out. You can use a razor knife to cut out a Bat-a-rang. Make a paper template if needed.

Step 4: Baking

Once the gnomes are decorated it is time to bake them. Sculpey is an oven-bake polymer clay. So it is soft and plyable until it's baked. First, heat the oven to 275 degrees F. While waiting for the oven to pre-heat put some foil on a cookie baking sheet. Then carefully put the gnomes on the cookie sheet being very careful not to let the Sculpey touch the sheet or the rack. Put the entire gnome in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Put the bat-a-rang on the sheet too. Since the gnome is ceramic it's safe to put it in the oven. The kiln that it was fired in was a lot hotter than your kitchen oven. When the 15 minutes is up take them out and let them cool completely to room temperature. Note: if your Sculpey pieces are thicker than about 6mm then you can bake it a few minutes longer than 15 min.

Remember, there is nothing holding the Sculpey onto the gnome (no glue or anything). But the Sculpey will probably stick to the ceramic really tightly anyway. I doubt that the Sculpey will stick to the gnome long term so you should carefully pry the Sculpey piece off and glueit back on with construction adhesive. This will hold pretty well outside.

Step 5: More sculpting

Bondo instructions say to use 1/4 inch hardener for each golf-ball-size of goop. You can just eye-ball it. The key is to mix it up good.

There were a couple of areas on the Batman gnome where you'll really want the Sculpey to blend in seamlessly with the ceramic. So you can mix up some Bondo to fill in the gaps.

Bondo is a two-part body filler material used in the auto body industry. It's like spackle but is really hard and durable when dry. Read the directions on the can. Mix it up in a plastic cup per the Bondo instructions. Then use a popsicle stick to apply it to the Batman ears and Batman mask where the Sculpey meets the ceramic. Let this dry a few hours. Drying Bondo smells great; it reminds me of being a kid when my older brother would work on cars. But you should probably heed the warning on the can and ventilate.

Step 6: Sanding

Once the Bondo is dry, sand it with 100 or 120 grit sandpaper. Feather it in really well so that the seam is invisible. Then clean all of the dust off of the gnome with a damp rag.

Step 7: Painting

For the beards, pour out blobs of several different colors next to each other. Then dip the brush in each and start painting. White, gray, and black work great. You can also try brown, orange, and yellow.

At this point it's ready to paint. But first you have to choose the colors. There is a process for color selection. You want to select "gnomey" colors. Colors that you could imagine a gnome wearing. You want Earthy colors and not bright colors. So you do not want to pick literal interpretations of the comic hero. So, for instance, don't use black...use burnt umber brown. Don't use red...use maroon. Not white...parchment. Etc.

For Batman, gather some black, gold, grey, and blue. For Robin, you'll need green, gold, red, and black. For Spiderman, white, black, red, and blue. For all of the gnomes, you'll need some colors for the beards, and some browns and greens for the shoulder bags and foliage.

There is no need to prime. Just start painting. Another thing to consider is the costume. It's better to roughly follow the gnomes existing clothes than to crowbar in an exact interpretation of the comic book costume.

Download the characters' emblems from a Google image search. Use these as a guide to sketch out the emblem onto the gnome's cap using a soft pencil. The cap is the most prominent piece of clothing on a gnome. So it is best to put the emblem on the cap rather than, say, the chest. Once it was sketched out, paint the emblem in with a fine artist's brush and acrylic paints.

Step 8: Sealing

Use an outdoor enamel paint.

Once all of the paint dries you need to seal the gnome. This will protect it from the weather and make all of the colors pop. An enamel clear spray paint works nicely. Spray on 3 even coats of a satin clear coat and let it dry overnight.

Step 9: Accessorizing

Wrap the twine around the bat-a-rang and tack it in place with some construction adhesive.

Remember that bat-a-rang you made earlier in step 3? Use your acrylics to paint it "black" and spray it with clear spray paint. Then wrap the hemp twine around it in an X pattern and use construction adhesive to glue it in place on Batman's shoulder bag.

For Robin, take 24 inches of hemp twine and neatly coil it up. Then use construction adhesive to glue it onto Robin's shoulder bag.

Take some of the buttons and buckles that you gathered and glue them to the gnome's shoulder bags and jacket cuffs.

Step 10: Displaying

You can display the gnomes anywhere in your yard, but it is best to place them in an area where they can get a good view of the entire yard and any particular trouble areas. If you've modified your gnomes correctly, your garden should be in order within a few weeks. Any new threats can be handled with additional super gnomes or by forming a super gnome league or justice guild.

Take your gnomes inside during winter. The crime rate drops dramatically during the colder months anyway.  

[MidnightBlue9999]

Super Hero Factory. Make your own hero.
Click here to get started.

 

[Madame Vita]

Suggested Reading

 

[One Witchy Woman]

Gardening In Alaska

Growing vegetables in Alaska is challenging---but not impossible---for gardeners. About 90 percent of the state's food is imported; the sunlight is filtered; only a small portion of the land is suitable for farming; and fertilizer and farm implements can be expensive to have shipped in. But you can harvest many kinds of vegetables in the northernmost state, even with a short growing season.

Root Crops

Root vegetables, such as carrots, celeriac, parsnip and beets actually do well in snowy weather. The snow acts as an insulator, holding warmth in the soil as the plants continue to grow underground.

Cole Crops

Cole crops, such as cabbages, broccoli, cauliflower, collards, Brussels sprouts and kale, grow best in cold weather. Further south, warm temperatures would cause these plants to bolt (start flowering and stop growing), but in Alaska they just keep growing. Cabbages in particular thrive in the Alaska weather. Giant specimens weighing more than 100 lb., have turned up at the state fair.

Tomatoes

Tomatoes are a summer staple, even in the far North. The key to growing them in Alaska is to use determinate tomatoes, rather than indeterminate. According to Linden Staciokas of NorthernGardening.com, the more compact, bushy determinates flower within a short span of time, and the fruit matures quickly. Another important factor is that determinates have less foliage, which means more light and heat reach the soil.

Other Vegetables

Zucchini, string beans, snap peas and potatoes all can grow in Alaska. Mulch the plants heavily and use cultivars specific to northern climates. Peppers, cucumbers and herbs grow well in containers, which warm up easily and can be moved to take advantage of the sun as it moves throughout the season.

Tips

Start your plants early. Use a grow light or place them in a greenhouse at least six weeks before the last frost. The last frost in Alaska can vary from mid-May until June 6. Place black plastic over your soil and anchor it with rocks or ties. The plastic will trap heat in the soil, which will give seedlings an extra boost when you transplant. Use raised beds to help with drainage from heavy winter snows.

The last frontier is famed for its low temperatures and long winters, which makes it seem impractile to flower-growing. Still, Alaska's harsh winters eventually yield to summer sunlight (24 hours a day during midsummer), making cultivation possible. Southeast and South-central Alaska, with more moderate climates, are home to the greatest variety of flowers. But even in Alaska's interior, myriad wildflowers color the spectacular scenery during June and July.

Wildflowers

The Alaska state flower is invasive and banned in some states.
You cannot visit Alaska in the summer without appreciating lupine, fireweed and forget-me-not lighting up prairies and hillsides. Lupine grows up to 2 feet tall. Its pea-like purple flowers spread over Alaska's dry slopes and roadsides in June. Every part of the plant is toxic. As lupine marks the beginning of an Alaskan summer, fireweed signals its end. This bright pink flower shoots up to 5 feet tall in late July and August throughout interior Alaska meadows and woods. Forget-me-nots are the state flower, with clear, bright blue blooms. Please note that forget-me-nots are considered invasive in many states and are thus illegal.

Southeast Alaska

Lobelia grows particularly well in Southeast Alaska gardens.
Juneau, Alaska's capital city, is in the state's warm belt, USDA zone 6. Many more flowers prosper here than in more northern parts of the state. According to the Juneau Cooperative Extension Experiment Station, any southeast Alaskan gardener can grow alyssum, lobelia, pansy and fuchsia. If your garden is particularly well placed, you can add zinnia, verbena, snapdragon, sweet-pea, marigold, dahlia, calendula, carnation and petunia. Mount Atlas daisys are a ground cover that does particularly well in high elevations and is quite pretty.

Anchorage Region

Bulbs do well in Southcentral Alaska.
Tulips and daffodils prefer a region with cold winters, cool springs and cool summers, such as the Anchorage region. In cold areas such as Southcentral Alaska, plant the bulbs early, in mid-September, so that the plant can establish itself before the winter freeze. Mulch the flower bed after planting with a thick layer of hay or leaves to keep the soil warm and prevent freeze damage to bulbs. Snowfall provides additional insulation.  

[matcha-san]

Sparkle Motion Whamo!

IT'S A KICK IN THE FACE!

 

[Madame Vita]

Print and Draw!
Or
Digitize and pixelize.
You can either print this nifty template out and draw your own super hero. Or if you are good with photoshop or Gimp type programs you can get down with your bad self on your comp and make a pixelated master piece.

What ever you choose to do make it a super you!

 

[MidnightBlue9999]

Article Continued.

Super Fertilizer

Its starting to get warm and its time to plant your gardens, but how to defeat the evil that is plant starvation? Feed them of course. Common and strong chemical fertilizers are readily available at any nursery or garden supply store, but they are not the best choice for fertilizing your garden. Non-organic chemical fertilizers can have an adverse effect on the soil and can run off into the water supply. Chemical fertilizers may also harm the plants they are supposed to feed by releasing nutrients too quickly, causing plants to shoot up and become leggy and overgrown with an immature, shallow root system. Natural choices offer the benefits of fertilizer without the harmful side effects, making them the best choice for your garden.

Compost

One of the most basic garden substances, a good pile of compost is nothing but well-rotted natural refuse: vegetable scraps, grass clippings, dead leaves and dirt turned into a rich fertilizer with no harmful side effects. You can easily create your own compost at home, or you can purchase organic compost. Compost has many benefits: it helps improve soil structure, creates aeration, releases nutrients slowly and it won't lose nutrients to watering; chemical fertilizers are often washed away by rain or the garden hose before plants receive the benefits.

Fish & Seaweed

A combination of fish and seaweed products is better than standard chemical fertilizer, especially for newly transplanted vegetables. Add 1 tbsp. of fish emulsion and 1 tbsp. of liquid seaweed to 1 gallon of water, then apply generously, recommends Jeff Bredenberg, author of "How to Cheat at Gardening and Yard Work." Both fish emulsion and liquid seaweed are rich in nutrients that plants need, are gentle on the soil and will promote healthy growth and a deep root system. Both are usually available at nurseries or landscaping centers.

Manure & Manure Tea

Well-dried manure works in much the same ways as compost, releasing nutrients at a steady rate and improving the soil at the same time. In the vegetable garden, manure can be applied by side-dressing or top-dressing plants. For heavy-feeding plants, a manure tea is a way to supply nutrients at a faster rate, says Barbara Damrosch, author of "The Gardening Primer." Make manure tea by putting three to four shovel scoops of manure in a 5-gallon bucket, filling with water, covering and letting the "tea" steep for a few days to three weeks; apply the tea as a liquid fertilizer. Damrosch recommends manure tea for vegetable garden plants such as asparagus, cabbage, celery, corn, eggplant, squash and tomatoes.

 

[Madame Vita]