When:

Friday, January 29th, 2010 (How is it already the end of January?!)

Where:

Work, Errands, Dinner and watching the snow fall Yup, it has been snowing here in the Queen City since about 4 pm today and us southerners are loving every little flake. Hubby got the bright idea to stop by the grocery store for some firewood and you would think we were all gonna get snowed in and starve to death! I have never seen that many people in that store at one time, and not a loaf of bread, gallon of milk, or case of beer left on the shelves.

What:

Sweater - Banana Republic (This is probably one of my fave sweaters ever!)

Jeans – 7 for All Mankind

Boots – Steve Madden

Coat – Old Navy

Gloves – Target

Earrings -which I forgot to put back on after working out, F21

I am happy to report in the month of January not only have I not bought one article of clothing, pair of shoes or teeny little accessory; but I also stayed within a budget! Hallelujah, this is a new day in the PinQue household! Also I gotta say thanks for all the comments on my previous post, I will try out some of your suggestions in the upcoming months in my quest for clearer skin!

For the majority of my adolescent and adult life, I have been plagued with bad skin. After numerous dermatologists and medication use to no avail (and a whole heck of a lot of moolah), I am willing to give into any product that promises me clearer skin. I have taken a multitude of drugs that have probably altered my entire chemical makeup including every –cycline and  -mycin under the sun, Differin, Benzaclin, Finacea, Retin-A (hello snakeskin), Ortho Tri-Cyclen (hello severe depression), and even Accutane (should I even mention the side affects?) and Yaz. I have also used too many over the counter acne products to even begin to name, also with no relief. Surprisingly enough, Accutane was the most effective product, but that was almost ten years ago and government regulations have really locked down the use and distribution of Accutane by doctors. Yes I know the drug is very bad, but heck I think I’d smoke crack if I knew it would provide me the beautiful, clear skin I crave (ok, ok I AM JUST KIDDING!)

So as you can see, at the age of 28 I am frustrated and gullible. So when I saw the reviews for Clinique’s Acne Solutions I fell for it.

As a longtime user of Clinique and their 3-step skincare systems, I wanted to give the Acne Solutions 3-step skincare line a chance. The product promises “With daily, twice-a-day use, you’ll start to see clearer skin within days. With continued use, Acne Solutions Clear Skin System works to clear out the dead skin cells and excess oil that can start trouble by clogging pores. Leaves your skin feeling soft, smooth, comfortable. Just cleanse, exfoliate, moisturize twice a day. Clearer skin or your money back.” Now that I have been using the product for over six weeks, I gotta say I want my money back! I remain unimpressed and still plagued by horrible skin (might I even say worse than before?). The 3-step system comes with a foaming cleanser, clarifying lotion, and clearing moisturizer. None of which has cleared or clarified my skin and all of which bleached my nice new blue sheets an awful shade of yellow. I have used the system religiously day and night, hoping every night that the next day my skin will look magically clearer. Of course 6 weeks, one set of bleached sheets, and $60 later my skin is worse than when I started! Someone help a girl find her way to clear skin, please!

Has anyone else used Clinque’s Acne Solutions Skincare? Did it work for you? What acne products do you use?

When:

January 28th, 2010

Where:

Workin’ through meetings allllllll day. Anyone else feel like your always in meetings and can’t get any actual work done? Also went for an early lunchtime run at 11 (hello beautiful weather!) and realized that I lost my Nike+ foot pod yesterday I think it might be time for a Garmin Forerunner! Any suggestions?

What:

Purple Sweater – F21 (Anyone else feel like sporting violet after the State of the Union last night?)

Pink Top – J.Crew

Pants – GAP

Shoes – Naughty Monkey

Earrings – Express 

Doesn’t the blurry background make it look really foggy? I stopped down the aperture too much, but it looks kind of cool. The sunlight is lasting a bit longer every day, yahoooooo!

When:

January 27th, 2010

Where:

Work and home to play with my muffins (Cooper and Tillman) and bid on some muffins on my good friend’s site TheChicLife! Get on over there and bid on some baked goods too, all donations go to the Haiti relief fund!

What:

Skirt – Old Navy

Top – H&M

Shoes – dollhouse

Necklace and Belt – F21

Tights – HUE

When:

Monday, January 25th, 2010

Where:

Work. It rained cats, dogs, cows, horses and pigs last night and we awoke to a nice hole in the ceiling and water all over the floor! Not exactly the best way to start off a week.

What:

Dress – F21 (I thought this was a little too short for work, but none of my coworkers or hubby thought it was…opinions?)

T-neck – H&M

Tights – Target

Boots – Banana Republic

Coat – Old Navy