An Inch and a Mile

I go through four stages with my hair.

• First, it's short and cute and I love it. I style it and I feel put together and awesome.
• Then, I get tired. It's too short to braid and put in a bun and I hate having to pin the little bits that aren't long enough to make it in a ponytail. I can't keep up the styling and I decide to grow it out. 
• After a bit of time, it starts to grow out and I can do things with it again. Buns that I think look like chignons, but probably not. Braids that fray by the end of the day. Messy ponytails when I'm sweaty. 
• But with a little more time, it's fairly long and it starts to get in the way. It gets to be heavy with the length and all illusions of volume disappears. It's way too long to try to style and I can only do one braid, two buns, and two ponytails, so I start to feel boring. But I tough it out for a few months more because it's almost long enough to donate and repeat the whole process. 

And that's what has happened in the past and it's happened again. I've been actively tolerating my hair since March. It's been too long. Long to the point that I would end up laying on it when I slept and waking myself up when I tried to move and failed. I really thought I could make it through the entire summer because it's much easier to put hair up when it's longer, for me, but I couldn't make it.

Ten inches gone and donated to Locks of Love.

I'm still really feeling the short hair. I'm trying to be better at taking the time to deal with it, but we'll see how long that lasts.

It took 40 months to grow that ten inches of hair. I don't know if I'll be able to pull that off again, but I'm glad that I was able to for the second time.

Star Wars Premiere Preparations

Like I did for Jurassic World, the week leading up to The Force Awakens was full of Star Wars themed outfits. If anything, this post can be classified as a lesson in how to take a piece and form an outfit around it to make it, at minimum, business casual.

On Monday, it started with a Star Wars t-shirt. I've actually worn this outfit to work previously. My black blazer, which is made of a jersey material and was on sale at Target for $10, is the most versatile piece in my wardrobe. Throw it over anything and it's immediately classy and intentional. Add in a nice piece of jewelry and there you go. The Converses take it in a more casual direction, so if you can handle something a little more uncomfortable, swap in some boots or heels.

Tuesday's attempt still needs some tweaking before I wear it again. Think Geek had a Black Friday sale and I got a great deal on this Jedi dress. It's so much fun to wear. The neckline can transform from shoulder covering to Jedi cowl and just about anything in between. I love it, but it proved to be very hard to dress up. My first attempt ended up looking a little Jedi and not enough 'workplace'. It's too cute of a dress for me to give up on making it work appropriate. It'll get there.

Wednesday, another t-shirt with another blazer. It's a great formula. It's not just for hipster tech-moguls. Anyone can pull it off.

Thursday was not Star Wars themed. It was a short week for me as Thursday was my last work day of the year. My tradition is to wear my Christmas sweater to my last day of work. And if you had a Christmas sweater as amazing as mine, it would trump Star Wars week, too.

At least my coworkers are starting to get used to my 'enthusiastic' fashion sense.

Halloween 2015: Nancy Drew

I know I'm behind, as usual. But, time for a post on Halloween!

I've had this costume in the works for almost a year. I don't remember how the idea got planted in my brain, but it stuck pretty good. And it was a straight-forward costume. For me, being a Nancy Drew nut, I went with the original 1930's version, not the revamped 1950's one.

The only items I didn't have for the Prohibition-era look were the hat (available here) and a magnifying glass. The make-up was simple: LOTS of eyeliner and sharp, lined red lips.

The hair became very complicated, though. After two attempts at hot rollers and another failed attempt Hollywood waves, I ended up using a small curling iron to make ringlets and then immediately pinning them to set. It ended up looking like pin curls, which was fairly time period appropriate.

This year was pretty low-key. My friend Bekah had another party. She's so good at them. And every year, she has a photo set-up. Here are some of my favorites.

Dan and I in character

Dan with matching hair

Nancy Drew saving Agent Coulson's hand from the Terrigen crystal

And when Nancy became a bit more like Bonnie from 'Bonnie and Clyde'

It was definitely a fun costume. I highly recommend it.

Jurassic World Preparations

For being a self-proclaimed Jurassic Park super fan, this space has been remarkably quiet leading up to the premiere of Jurassic World today. And it's not that I'm not excited (because I AM), I've just been trying to avoid all the promotional stuff before seeing the movie so it wouldn't spoil it for me.

Have you noticed how rare it is anymore to not know exactly what's going to happen in a movie before seeing it from all the freakin' trailers and teasers and posters and interviews and toys and etcetera?

Anyway, I have been prepping for this movie. {Sidenote: by the time this goes up, I will have already seen the movie and I'll write a post about it next week.} To get myself psyched up this week, it had been the week of dinosaur outfits!

Monday:

Classing up a Jurassic Park t-shirt with a blazer, some simple yet pretty earrings, and a pair of boots. My dinosaur-ness went unnoticed at work.

Tuesday:

Day 2 was a weird day. I had just gotten this skirt from Express and I wanted an excuse to wear it. Since I was going to be in meetings all day Tuesday and not in the lab, I paired the skirt with some pantyhose and a pair of heels. Since the rest of the outfit was so professional, I was able to balance out my cheap, juvenile Forever 21 dinosaur print tee.

Because the rest of my outfit was a bit over the top, one of my coworkers commented and I made the mistake of telling him that the fanciness was to balance out the t-shirt. It spread through that small meeting of four people of my intentions to wear dinosaur shirts all week.

Wednesday:

It makes sense when you wear a dinosaur t-shirt and a T-rex skeleton necklace to wear your pretend admiral jacket, right? I should also probably note here that all of these looks involve layering or blazers to class up the dinosaur shirts. In Tucson. In June. In a freak humid month. I'm now a liquid from melting.

One of my chatty coworkers brought up my outfit plan in a much larger meeting. My entire department is now aware of my plan. The pressure is on.

Thursday:

By Thursday, I was down to dinosaur sweaters and kid shirts. To keep it a little more mature, I went with a sweatshirt over a long sleeve shirt, rather than my Christmas sweater. I'm so warm I've gone past the liquid stage and am now a gas. I also added in my insect trapped in amber necklace.

Since almost everyone I work with now knows of my obsession, people keep trying to find me to see what I'm wearing today. One of my coworkers even brought in his son's Lost World toys to show me. We've officially reached critical mass.

Thursday Night (for the premiere):

Since I'm not entirely crazy, I thought it was best to change into my dinosaur costume right before the movie, not at work. I wore it over the most breathable clothing I have in case I needed to remove it for some reason. Although, at this point, my tolerance for warmth has greatly increased. I think Dan was probably embarrassed by me wearing this outfit while walking from the car to the movie theater through a busy mall, but if it doesn't phase me, why should it phase him?

I love this onesie so much. Here's a little teaser of what it looks like on before my full post next week.

So freakin' excited!!!! Eeeeeieeee! Any bets on how many times I end up seeing it by the end of the weekend?

Black Widow Cosplay

When the Avengers sequel premiered at the beginning of the month, the pub trivia I frequent had a special Marvel themed quiz. I'd done a themed quiz before, for Community, and Dan and I did incredibly poorly. However, I've got some friends who are huuuuuge Marvel fans and they talked us into joining their team.

Usually part of these themed quizzes is a costume contest and this one was no different. It was kind of a last minute decision to dress up, but I became inspired to be Black Widow.

For me, the costume was pretty straight forward. Black tight shirt, black tight pants, my Mara Jade harnesses, a black leather jacket, and some curly red hair.

For being kind of thrown together, I was really proud of my costume. I put a lot of time and effort into my hair and make up for the "effortless yet requires a crap-ton of effort" look.

And it totally paid off! I won third prize in the costume contest! It helps when you have Dan yelling in the audience and the winners are determined by crowd volume. I walked away with a pen sketch of the Avengers by a local artist and an Iron Man comic book. My friend Jeremy should have won with his Winter Soldier costume, but he took home second and a Punisher painting.

Image Source

Image Source

Image Source

While our team had the best costumes, we didn't do well at the trivia contest itself. A respectable seventh place. The questions just covered way more material than they told us to study. It was still a great night, though. We assembled well.

Fan of Friday: Week of 9/26/2014

Apparently, for the last couple months, I've been in love with blacks and grays.

Not exactly practical in 100 degree heat...

In the image below is every item of clothing I've purchased recently (minus two shirts from my England trip).

Maybe my inner spirit is in a mood, but I just want to wear black. I want to be a badass in black. I'm not. I'm not a badass at all, but black feels good right now. I'm Sandy at the end of 'Grease' in my tight black pants, sleeveless sweatshirt, and faux leather jacket.

I think, after some reflection which really shouldn't be inspired by a post this shallow, that I've been feeling kind of tread on lately and black makes me feel stronger. Less weak. Even if it's just a black top with polka dots made of sleeping kittens.

I don't usually wear black with black, but if I start doing that, someone should really start to be concerned about why I feel so helpless...

Stitch Fix Review: The Possibility

Click here to read my first review of Stitch Fix and an overview of how the process works.

Click here to read my second review.

Click here to read my third recent review.

 Click here to read my fourth and most recent review.

If you read my last review, you will know that I was basically done with Stitch Fix. It has been six months since my last try and, again, if I didn't have a $25 off coupon, I wouldn't have given it another shot. I'm glad I did, though.

From my last couple of reviews, the bar was set low. Very low. Knowing that no matter what you set the costs at, you get things priced around $60, I requested classic wardrobe staples, hoping for high quality pieces I could use for a number of years.

Let's look at what they sent me!

While I don't know I would have classified the items they sent me as 'classics', the pieces included a lovely note explaining that the jeans are the same jeans sent in my second box, but in a larger size. And she called my 'feedback', which is really just me complaining on my blog, as actually helpful.

Johnny Skinny Jeans by Kensie Jeans, $88. Like I mentioned before, I already received these jeans once, just in the wrong size. They are so incredibly soft. They are definitely denim, not a jegging, but they almost feel like felt, but not in a weird way. After receiving them for a second time, I finally pulled the trigger and added some ridiculously expensive jeans to my wardrobe. And sang along with 'Let It Go' when it came on the radio.

Farah Fit & Flare Striped Dress by 41Hawthorne, $68. If you needed a nice, cocktail length dress for all sorts of occasions, this would probably be a nice dress for you, assuming you found one that was sewn properly at the waistline. However, if you are sewing two parallel pieces of fabric together with parallel stripes, any incorrect angling will stand out. Great in concept, poor in execution. Back in the box.

Carlita Jersey Maxi Dress by Loveappella, $78.I'm sure this dress would be lovely if you have a great tan. However, with my lack of skin pigment, anything pastel just looks like pajamas. And come on, it's a jersey maxi dress. I have one I bought at Walmart that cost me $15. Back in the box.

Selfridge Cowl Neck Long Sleeve Top by 41Hawthorn, $48.This is a nice top, which is why I own an almost identical top. Only my top was free, since my sister was getting rid of it, and it's not shear in the back. Back in the box.

Downing Striped Knit Shirt by Pomelo, $78. This shirt does not look good on the hanger. It's a big old box. And it's orange. I don't have anything orange. However, I really like it on me. It's definitely a casual shirt, but I think it has the potential to be styled up a bit more. Not that I've figured it out completely yet, but I definitely kept this one and I've worn it twice already.

This box was my favorite so far and the first box where I actually kept two things. And while I don't seem to have the same luck as most other reviewers, there have been some positives throughout my numerous boxes.

1. I've found the brand Kensie. The jeans I kept are from Kensie. The sweater I loved from my last box, but didn't keep it because of the cost was Kensie. Actually, with the sweater, I tried to find it cheaper online and couldn't, but I did find my bird shirt, which I love and my mother-in-law got it for half-off, so it was actually reasonably priced.
2. It's helped me realize that tops that look like ugly, tent boxes on the hanger can be great when on. Like judging a book by its cover, I judge shirts poorly when on a hanger. I need to try more things on that I don't love on the hanger.
3. I've been forced to incorporate more high-waisted, jersey pencil skirts. The fastest way to make a top work appropriate is to tuck it into a skirt. It's also forced me to shave my legs more, since they aren't hidden by jeans.  

I am more optimistic now to try Stitch Fix again. Probably later in the summer for some fall staples, but it will definitely be less of an experiment and more of a treat.

*This post was not sponsored by Stitch Fix. All opinions are my own.*

Valentine's Day Dressing

While Dan and I don't have any plans officially set in stone yet, Valentine's Day is quickly heading our way. I have let him off the hook, presents wise, but he will be forced to spend time with me. Since it falls on a Friday, and more importantly, a Friday that Dan is working, we'll probably car pool into work together and come up with a plan on the fly after work. A betting man would put money on a simple dinner and movie kind of night.

However, I do have a trick up my sleeve: an outfit change at work. The great thing about having my own office now [link] is that I no longer have to awkwardly change in the ladies' room. I've been looking for an excuse to break out my $8 Target sale dress and this'll 1) make it kind of a surprise for Dan since I won't be wearing it in the morning and 2) let me wear more comfortable, functional clothes all day before changing right before leaving.

It's not a pink and red cutesy Valentine's Day outfit, but it's a little more subtle, a little more adult and sexy. And it will inherently include a back-up saner version of shoes from the day outfit in case this unplanned evening ends up including any walking. It's not worth the torture of trying to walk in heels.

Blogmas 2013: The Holiday Dress

If you looked in my closet, you would never think that I am lacking in clothes. Off hand, I would probably tell you that I have maybe five or six dresses, but if I were to actually count them, there would probably be closer to two dozen. There's my little black dress, my Easter dress, some summer dresses, my Ponyo dress, my bird dress, and a bunch more. Unfortunately, nowhere in there is a holiday dress.

A couple of weeks ago, I needed a dress for Dan's award ceremony and nothing in my closet seemed to fit the bill. A young, festive cocktail dress. Afterward, I started the great hunt for a dress, I wouldn't be caught empty handed. This red one from Modcloth is so completely gorgeous.

The only problem is I don't have anywhere to wear it. My sister already had a Christmas party to attend and didn't have a dress so she borrowed mine. She wore it before me! One of my friends needs to bite the bullet and have a Christmas party already! I'll wear it like this:

And while this dress is very Christmasy and wintery, it could be suitable for warmer weather with some color blocking with some bright shoes, statement jewelry, tights, or a cardigan.

Stitch Fix Review: The Appeal

Click here to read my first review of Stitch Fix and an overview of how the process works.

Click here to read my second review.

Click here to read my third and most recent review.

If you read my last review, you will know that I was thoroughly disappointed in Stitch Fix. Throw-in-the-towel disappointed. It's actually been four months since I gave up on this concept.

If I quit the Fix, why am I trying again? Purely on the hope that any combination of the change in weather to autumn clothing or additional time to hammer out the kinks of their 'beta' phase will result in a box that is actually styled for me.

Look, I'm really not looking to be blown away. My expectations were very, very low. The only criteria I really had was that the box feel like it was meant for me. Meaning two things: 1) No flowy polyester tops and 2) NO FLOWY POLYESTER TOPS! After glancing over the content of my other Stitch Fix boxes, over 50% of the items were flowy polyester tops, even though I specifically said no polyester. Granted, I did end up keeping two if those blouses, but a large part of the decision to keep them was the fact that I'd lose the $20 fee for the box if I didn't keep something.

Now you fully understand my mindset, here's what they sent me!

Look! No, polyester blouses! A step in the right direction! Here's the break-down!

Santos Stripe Detailed Crew Neck Sweater by Tulle, $58. There were a lot of great qualities to this sweater. The knit was thick and dense. There was the cute detail on the back of the neck with a button closure. The colors were pretty and vibrant. Unfortunately, the pros did not outweigh the cons. The stripes were really unflattering, drawing all the attention to my belly. And a pull-over sweater is really not practical for Arizona. Back in the box.

Susanna Metallic Dot Crew Neck Sweater by Kensie, $78. I really liked this sweater. The knit was nice, the two tone affect from alternating the direction of the knit to form polka dots was adorable, and the yarn had metallic flecks in it. It was really nice, but it wasn't worth the price. I couldn't justify spending nearly $80 on just a top. A nice, structured jacket or dress, maybe, but not a simple pull over sweater. Back in the box.

Justin Floral Print Cowl Neck Tank by Hourglass Lilly, $48. I really wish Stitch Fix had more tops like this one. High quality cotton and slimmer fits. Unfortunately, I didn't keep it. I have a similar shirt from H and M for less than half the cost. The cowl neck was too low and the pattern was a little outdated. Also, the fern leaf right across my belly kind of highlighted it. Back in the box.

Zoey Interlocked Triangle Charm Necklace by Bay to Baubles, $32. I love this necklace. I have wanted one of these for quite a bit. The intertwined pair of charms. My eyes had been on circular ones, but the triangles are adorable. The chain seems a bit short, but I love the style and the quality. In a change of pace, the quality and price seemed to line up. It stays!

Ken Windowpane Print A-line Dress by Collective Concepts, $78. I really didn't like this dress initially. It was very boxy on the hanger. On me, though, the cut was more flattering than I expected, but not great. The material was terrible, polyester. And the print really wasn't doing anything for me. Back in the box!

This box was probably close to being my favorite, tied with the first box. However, I finally grasped the problems I've had with Stitch Fix during these trials.

1. This box was better than the previous three, but the price and quality really don't line up. I have my price setting to the $50 to $100 range, with the exemption of jewelry. I really wanted Stitch Fix to introduce me to high quality staples, but it has been mainly average quality trendy pieces.
2. They don't know how to dress women with different body types. While I do love my body and I am at a healthy weight and size, I will admit my shape can make me difficult to dress. I carry a lot of my weight high on my hips, it's who I am and I accept it (and detailed thoroughly in my style profile). Yet, the clothes I was sent tended to either be flowy, trying to hide it completely and turning me into a tent, or highlighted it, making me look worse. I did some research into other reviews from other women on Stitch Fix and the was a definite pattern to the ones who loved their boxes: their bodies were designed for clothes. No quirks. Slender bodies who could probably make anything look good. Take that how you will...
3. The lack of variety in the Stitch Fix 'closet'. Even though you have to take a style profile quiz before your first box, you better fit into the Stitch Fix 'style' before you consider signing up. I really hoped there would be more staple pieces, like classic button up blouses, cardigans, blazers, and trousers. The boxes tend to lean trendy and girly, in the cuts and prints. 

At this point, I don't know if I will try Stitch Fix again. Like I said last time, I may try again if I can get some proof that things have changed. That the odds of me being happy with a box have gone up. Right now, I just don't know. Not a strong appeal.

*This post was not sponsored by Stitch Fix. All opinions are my own.*

Review: Essie Matte Top Coat

A while ago, I bought L'Oreal's matte nail polish as a substitution for the Essie matte top coat, which I couldn't find in stores. I was disappointed with the L'Oreal version, so I finally pulled the trigger and ordered it from Amazon.

It goes on like any normal top coat, for me, after two coats of a color. It dries incredibly quickly, much more quickly than a shiny top coat. And, this my be a pro or a con depending on how you look at it, but if you are painting it over a shiny base coat, you can see where you've applied the top coat. Also, the polish was a cloudy white color until I painted it over a deep red and transfer tinted the bottle. Hopefully it won't taint any future colors I paint it over.

It's a nice top coat and it has a nice effect, but it's nothing spectacular. It's not as matte as the L'Oreal polish and quickly buffs itself smoother with normal finger usage (that's a weird phrase...). And it's not any strong or more protective than a shiny top coat, giving me about two days of coverage before it starts to chip. The following picture is after roughly 48 hours, the same amount of time when I took pictures for my L'Oreal review.

I would buy it again, but I don't know if it met my expectations. It needed to be more matte and more protective, but it'll be a fun novelty every once and a while.

What's In My Handbag?

A while ago, I asked the internet which purse I should buy: a teal satchel or a caramel messenger bag. I pulled the trigger and you should have know. Mama ain't afraid of no color.

And since Papa's got a brand new bag, let's see what's living deep inside of it.

 

1.  My sunglasses case. I don't normally carry sunglasses, but they do reside in my car. The case is storage when I'm walking around in stores.

2.  My wallet. A gift from Dan on my 23rd birthday. That was probably my favorite birthday. We rented a cabin in the mountains and it snowed the night before. We barely made it to the cabin due to the bad roads, but it was perfect. And I love the wallet, even now with the gnome missing half of his face.

3.  Gum. I am always within arm's reach of a piece of dessert Extra.
4.  Dinosaur playing cards because you never know when you'll be in desperate need of cards.
5.  A notebook of post-its. Nothing seems to get done unless it's tasked out on a post-it.
6.  My camera.
7.  My cellphone. It's probably about time to get a new one, but nothing's striking my eye so motivation is pretty minimal.
8.  My make up bag! And now, for a "What's in my bag within my bag?" Whoa...

          1.  Hair ties and bobby pins. (Hehe, first time there was a typo, 'booby pins')
          2.  Eye liner, Jemma Kidd in the color 'Supermodel'.
          3.  Rimmel Show Off Lip Lacker in 'Celestial'.
          4.  Cover up stick.
          5.  Compact mirror. Present from my mom ages ago.
          6.  Revlon Balm Stain in 'Romantic'.
          7.  Maybelline Colossal Volume Mascara.
          8.  Rimmel Show Off Lip Lacker in 'Aurora'.
          9.  Chap Stick, SPF 15.

...and back to the other bag!

9.  My work badge.
10.  Some pencils for trivia.
11.  My keys! I'd misplaced most of my extra keys when we moved house, so for the longest time, I just had my car key and my house key. A couple of weeks ago, I found them all again! My tiny pocket knife, the one my Dad bought me to replace the first one he bought me after Ohio airport security took it away from me (what damage could anyone do with a knife that small?). The 'Carolyn' lanyard my sister bought me for watching her cat. The 'I'm Not Sorry' lanyard that got me through grad school.

I've written about it before, but my advisor in grad school was a horrible person. One of the worst people I've ever met. To survive that year and a half, I had to apologize a lot. It was all about stroking his ego. I routinely swallowed my pride and said I was wrong and I was sorry, but this lanyard reminded me that they were just words to get through it as quickly as possible. That I wasn't really sorry. That I knew I was right.

Anyway, that's all I've got!  The bag could probably hold a bunch more, but this is all I could ever really need. After a month or so of carrying this bag, the Sydney Satchel by Fossil, I'm pretty impressed and it deserves a little review. I wish it was a little more structured, but I imagine it would be stiffer if I carried it like a satchel, not like a cross-body. The quality is high, the zipper is strong, and I haven't noticed any dye transfer from the leather.

I made a good choice.

Transitioning Your Wardrobe to Fall

If you're like me, your closet is just full of bright colors. Love me some vibrant tones. They are my wardrobe samples in spring and summer, but they are so much harder to incorporate in fall and winter.

But I think I've figured out the trick for making them work all year: surround them in neutrals.

My bright coral Ponyo dress is suddenly appropriate for the cooler weather when it is the only non-neutral in my outfit. Cover it a bit with a breathable blazer, a big necklace, and some ankle boots and you've got yourself a cute little outfit.

While the green tone of my satiny, billowy top is definitely on the cool side and more appropriate for the upcoming months than my coral dress, the cut makes it much easier to style for warmer months. By layering over another tank top that's tucked into a high-waisted, knee length skirt, it adds the necessary layers and coverage for fall. Pair with some ankle boots and a bright lip if you're feeling daring.

Lastly, the year's staple: bright jeans. In summer, I would probably color block these with a top in a completely different shade, like cobalt or indigo. However, for fall, I like to make it a bit preppier by topping it with a crisp white button up and if it's really chilly, my moto jacket.

Other tips for dressing for this time of year:

• It's all about the ankle boots.
• Keep your footwear neutral in color.
• In my brain, fall is for gold jewelry, winter is for silver. 
• Be careful with flowy tops. It's very tricky to layer over a flowy top without it looking scrunched and messy. Save them for the top layer, if possible. 

Granted, take my tips with a grain of salt as "fall" in Tucson means the temperature is finally under 90 degrees.    

Review: L'Oreal Matte Nail Polish

I have been on the hunt for matte nail polish for months. Although I've had this Essie top coat saved on my wishlist, I just couldn't force myself to pull the trigger. I don't know, I never really intentionally buy nail polish. It's always an impulse purchase on my way out of Target. To order it online somehow seemed like a big commitment.

Anyway, true to fashion, walking around Target I discovered that L'Oreal carries now two matte polishes: one in deep teal and one in black. Dan talked me out of the black one, but I happily skipped along home with the teal one.

There are a lot of great things about this polish. It goes on like regular polish, but it seems to be more pigmented, so one coat is enough. Also, because it's matte, you can tell when it's dry when it goes from shiny to matte. And it dries really fast.

However, there is one very big downside. The stuff chips like crazy! This is after less than two days of wear!

And you may say that it's because I only applied one coat, but I did apply two on a couple of nails and they look just as bad as the rest. The twisted thing is that there is no way to seal them, either. Any top coat I have is shiny, completely negating the matte effect.

I'll probably try to keep touching it up for a few more days, but it just refuses to hold up. Next time, I'll just pull the trigger and get the matte top coat, giving me the ability to just make any color I want matte.