How We Appear Is How We Are Perceived

My 2017 new year’s resolution was to put my best face forward. Over the last 6 months I have made an effort to put on my face and do my hair. I work in a male-dominated field and deal mostly with crooks and tweakers so it’s hard to get excited about wearing makeup or be perceived as a strong, vibrant, intelligent woman.

In November, I went to a seminar and in one of the sessions, there was an engineer turned motivational speaker and she was talking about how we appear is how we are perceived. She’s right, if I constantly wear jeans and t-shirts and never wear makeup or make an effort to do my hair then I feel ho-hum, I give off a ho-hum vibe and are easily overlooked and underestimated.

Still skeptical? I was too, she gave me three pieces of advice and for 6 months I have been following them religiously with pretty cool results.

#1 If you want people to look and listen to what you are saying, make your eyes and lips POP!

#2 Wear clothes that fit you, lost weight? Get out of your fat pants, gained a little? You’re not fooling anyone and you’re miserable – people can tell (luckily, I was in the first group but I was wearing slacks that were too loose in the seat and she gave me an earful).

#3 Find a flattering haircut – ditch the ponytail, ditch the bumpit in the front which is just as bad as a ponytail.

So I did all three. Here’s before and after.

Now let’s circle around back to #1. If you are like me, your makeup tutorial came from YM magazine which means that I never learned about proper application or color matching or that foundation doesn’t have to be cakey.

Well, just like me, makeup, makeup brushes and techniques have evolved since 1985. So 6 months later and I’m obsessed with three things, my makeup – ‘Younique’, my hair care products ‘Wella Root Shoot’ and ‘Verb Sea Spray’ AND Cool Makeup brushes like Start Makers.

The brushes even arrive in a great box!

Stepping out of my comfort zone has been transformational for me and confusing for the guys I work with, suddenly I’m a girl and that just weirds them out. My makeup bag went from being a small sad little pouch of three items to a jam-packed bag of brave new colors, higher quality products and lipstick – so much lipstick. I am NOT a girly girl but I will admit I love Selena 2.0.

Expanding my makeup selection has forced me to admit that my makeup brushes were too few, too cheap and too old. Enter the Start Makers 32+1 Piece Set. Holy cow this set has it all, I mean 32 pieces? That’s bananas! The only thing not included is the kitchen sink.

What I have learned is there are essentially 2 kinds of makeup brush, synthetic blends and natural. Synthetics don’t involve animals in any way and are terrific for cream based products (foundation, cream blushes, lipsticks, liquid liners), they clean easily and don’t lose their shape after drying and they don’t shed. Natural brushes are typically softer but they shed, are made of some variety of animal hair, are more difficult to wash because they retain pigment so deeply but they spread makeup more easily and are more precise.

The benefit of this set is that its plant-based, crazy soft brushes that blend beautifully, wash easily and THERE ARE SO MANY OF THEM!!!!

WHINES

My only complaint is that the brushes are not labeled and there is no indication in the rollout mat or box of what each brush is used for – but don’t fret, because Amazon explains what they are for.

This set is amazing, it comes in an efficient carrying case that looks good, stores easily and helps the brushes keep their shape.

Definitely worth your $

[ReviewDisclaimer]

Updating my blog’s SEO has officially entered the same category as cleaning behind the refrigerator. Necessary. Noble. Slightly horrifying. 🧹✨

Because nothing says “fun afternoon” like opening a five year old post and discovering half the images have vanished, three links lead to businesses that now exist only in memory, and somewhere deep in the code lives a font choice I definitely made during a caffeine spiral.

Welcome to my glamorous life.

Recently, I decided it was time to “freshen things up.” You know, a light polish. A little dusting.

Instead, I uncovered what I can only describe as The Ghost of PBnWhine Past.

This sneaky little phantom floats through my blog at night deleting pictures like a Victorian librarian with a grudge.

“Oh, you liked that step by step craft tutorial with helpful photos?”
Poof. Gone.

“That product review with beautifully staged shots?”
Vanished into the ether.

Now posts look like:

Step 1: Do the thing
Step 2: [image missing]
Step 3: Trust me

Very helpful. Ten out of ten. No notes.

And don’t get me started on the links.

Nothing keeps you humble like clicking a reference and landing on:

Error 404: This business has retired to Florida.

Apparently half the companies I worked with have closed, rebranded, or transformed into something called “Crypto Spoon AI Wellness Collective.” Time is wild.

So here I am, updating old posts like an archaeologist with Wi-Fi. Replacing images. Fixing links. Adding keywords. Whispering sweet nothings to Google like, “Please notice me. I have snacks.”

It’s not glamorous work, but it does make the blog faster, prettier, and easier to find. Which means more crafts, more reviews, more giveaways, and fewer digital tumbleweeds rolling through the pages.

Speaking of goodies…

While you’re visiting, check the sidebar for the current giveaway at
👉 https://peanutbutterandwhine.com

Because nothing pairs better with freshly polished SEO than free stuff.

And since we’re sharing treasures… have you tried Freebie Flow yet? It’s basically a treasure chest of random freebies and wildly discounted finds. Use code PBNWhine10OFF for 10% off:
👉 https://freebieflow.com

Also, please tell me you’re using Rakuten. Getting paid to shop feels delightfully rebellious, like cookies before dinner but financially responsible:
👉 https://www.rakuten.com

So if you see me muttering at my laptop and chasing imaginary ghosts with a broom made of metadata, just know I’m not losing it.

I’m “optimizing.”

Which is blogger for: battling invisible spirits, resurrecting broken links, and bribing search engines with fresh content.

Totally normal behavior. 😄