Rolexish

Here's a complicated scenario for ya.
My older, misguided brother gave me a Rolex for graduation - or so it seemed.
I was promised a "used, from Ebay, but still very nice" watch from said brother and when it arrived in the mail I was surprised to find a Rolex box with all the appropriate paperwork and a Rolex-looking watch. However, research has led me to believe that this watch is not a Rolex, but an excellent counterfeit (it actually works exactly like a real Rolex, so it was very difficult to distinguish.) My dilemma is how I should respond. There are a couple of scenarios here:
1. Brother bought watch on Ebay thinking it was a real Rolex.
2. Brother bought watch on Ebay knowing it was a counterfeit but hoping I'd think it was real.
3. Brother bought watch on Ebay fully aware it was a counterfeit and assuming I'd enjoy a Rolex "replica" (the nice word for fake).

A few other facts - Ebay does not allow the sale of fake Rolexes; my brother is known for extravagant gift-giving; my brother and his wife are not really well-off (bordering on poor).

So how does one respond? If Scenario 2 or 3 were true my response will be vague and effusive thanks. But if scenario 1 is true, would he like to know so he can get his money back, especially since money is rather tight at his house?

My husband thinks I should insinuate by, the next time brother asks for the time, answering, "Well do you want the REAL time???" but I think this would take way too much planning...especially since brotehr lives in another state.

I do have a sneaky way I could gather info. My brother's wife and my sister are pals (they used to work together and my sister introduced the happy couple). My sister may be able to get a little extra info out of brother's wife.
Gah, why does this happen to me?
ANd what exactly does one do with a very good counterfeit of a Rolex?

Let's talk about LIPS

Let's hear some lip tips. Specifically...
1. You have thin lips. How do you amplify them? What look works best with narrow lips? Do you enjoy looks that fuller lips might have trouble pulling off?
Jessica Alba has full lips, and she usually wears a nude or warm rosy color. The image above is one of her darker lip colors.
2. You have big lips. Do you try to minimize them? How do you wear lipstick but avoid the clown look?
Kate Hudson, besides having a scary flat nose, has thinner lips and usually also wears pale tones. But that probably has more to do with her overall coloring.

So what's your lip look like? (hee hee) And what's your lipstick, lip gloss, or warm natural untouched beauty lip philosophy?

I graduated!

This is the story of my schooling.
1. Highschool: nonexistant. Homeschooled but "dropped out" of homeschool.
2. College: Had to persuade my way into a private college based on a good ACT score. I took time off to work before college so I could afford it.
I went to art school on art scholarships - all of which were won in competitions - for 2 years before changing my major to pre-pharmacy! The only class that transferred majors with me was my basic English!
3. I got accepted to several pharmacy schools and ended up in Monroe, La for one semester, but I transferred to Xavier in New Orleans to be closer to my then-boyfriend (I married him!).
4. Now I graduated with a 4.0! That's quite the long trail, no?

The picture is a photo of Xavier University's 4.0 graduates with the college president and the two commencement speakers, Donna Brazile (BOOOOO!) and Forest Whitaker. I'm in the middle of the back row.

Graduation party outfit

As promised, here's my outfit for my graduation party. Please excuse the no makeup/bedhead - I was trying to take a picture before I got dressed this morning so I wouldn't have to keep changing my clothes. I'm soooo lazy.
I made the necklace nad earrings last night. They are natural mother-of-pearl with Czech glass accents in kind of beachy colors since the party is at a house on the beach.

fake cop alert!

I'm taking a break from useful, helpful posts about how I fix my wardrobe to fit my not-so-orthodox body shape to tell you another complicated life story.
The other day I got pulled over by a fake police car!
I was driving on the highway and decreased my speed when I got to a bridge (long bridge over marsh - we call it the spillway - it is maybe 10 miles of alternating bridges and highway). I decreased my speed because - duh - the speed limit changed! Out of the blue this white Crown Vic hopped on my tail and started obnoxiously flashing headlights and tailgating. I got over as soon as I could, but there were slow dump trucks in the right lane so it took me a minute or two. To my surprise, the Crown Vic turned on an internal flashing light and pulled me over!
What did I do? Well, I was pretty sure this was not a police car because:
1. It was an older car
2. It had a tinted FRONT windshield, so dark I couldn't see in
3. It had HUBCAPS! Police cars don't have hubcaps!
But just in case, I pulled over anyway. However, I locked my doors! When the man in the car approached, it turned out to be a middle aged macho-looking guy in a T-shirt. I cracked my window and asked to see his badge - and he got very angry. He shouted at me that "slow grandmas [please, I'm 26] need to get off the road" and stormed away. But get this - when he pulled off, I saw that he did not have public plates. This was a "cop wannabe" who tries to make his car look like a police car just so he can pull girls over on the highway and feel important.
Now this was a potentially very dangerous situation, so I called 911 and reported the incident. Here is the advice the dispatcher gave me:
1. If you are being pulled over and you don't think this is a policeman, call the police and ask for a second squad car.
2. Don't get out of your car. Lock your doors and crack your window until you see a badge and know this is for real (once you're sure it is a real policeman do what he says!).
3. Fake pull-overs and impersonating a police officer are crimes!
So that's my drama for the week. Be safe gals!

I hesitate to wear strapless dresses because my I'm a major pear shape - my hips are way larger than my chest, so the tops are usually too big. I spend all day hiking up the top (totally tacky).
However, I dug deep into my inner Little House on the Prairie to come up with an easy solution to the problem that you can do even if you're not much of a seamstress. It only takes a minute!
I've illustrated it above using contrasting fabric and thread, but of course you'll want to match your thread closely to the color of the dress.
1. The idea is to sew a line of straight stitches in 2 places on the dress and gently gather them. So that the gathers are hidden, start sewing at the underarm seam and sew for about 3" towards the front of the dress. A good guidelines is start at the loops used to hang the dress and end where you'd attach removeable straps in the front (see first picture).
2. Sew a straight line about 1/4" from the top of the bodice. DON'T tie the thread off yet! (picture 2).
3. Pull the thread out 3/4" only (picture 3). Don't pull out any more than this of you will be able to see puckers in the finished product.
4. Tie the thread off by sewing the same stitch in place about 6 times and trim the end; arrange the gathers evenly (picture 4).
5. Repeat on the other side of the dress. This will take the bodice in a full 1.5" and you won't be able to see it when the dress is worn because the gathers are very slight and are hidden under your arm.
Cuteness!

I bought a sweater at Banana Republic and I paid for it with CHANGE!

There you have it - my $69.99 sweater that rang up for $1.79! I love it!