December 2019 – L'ensemble du jour

October 23, 2019 – La Maison-Blanche (OOTD #569)

Published on December 30, 2019January 5, 2020 by lensembledujourLeave a comment

If I were ever elected President, I’d turn the White House into a haunted house for Halloween.

I mean, they decorate it for Christmas and Easter. They’ve got the turkey pardoning at Thanksgiving and the the Easter egg hunt at Easter, so you can’t pretend that the White House doesn’t do trivial holiday festivities.

Think about it: you could have the ghosts of all of the old presidents and their wives. It’d be like those in-character history museum presentations, but cooler because they’re dressed as the undead.

What, you mean to tell me that having the zombie of Abraham Lincoln with a gunshot wound on his head reciting the Gettysburg Address would be “in poor taste?”

Unfortunately, during my class field trip of the White House, it wasn’t decorated for any occasion in particular. It was just a normal day, it seems, at the Trump Manor. Still, it was very beautiful to walk around and see some of the old furniture and decorations. I even got my picture taken with the portrait of George Washington from the 2014 George Washington meme era. It was worth the wait for that.

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life this semester in Washington, DC. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Jacket: White House | Black Market

Blouse: ASOS

Skirt: Zara (thrifted, Poshmark)

REVIEW: NYX Dazed and Diffused Blurring Lipstick in Roller Disco

Published on December 29, 2019December 30, 2019 by lensembledujour3 Comments

Influenster seems to love sending me products that are almost-but-not-quite right for me.

I mean, I love getting free stuff. I will never deny free stuff, especially when they’re makeup and beauty products. But sometimes, I just have to scratch my head: like, purple hair dye? Bar soap? I have nothing against purple hair dye and bar soap, but what about this blog makes you think ah, this girl could really use some purple hair dye and bar soap?

This time, Influenster decided to send me a purple lipstick from NYX’s Dazed and Diffused line. Everything else aside, I love that name — I kept calling it “dazed and confused” in my head because obviously, that’s the typical expression, and I love that it’s it goes an extra step to make a play a well-known phrase. It subverts expectations, or whatever.

In all other aspects, though, this product pretty much just meets basic expectations for a lipstick. It doesn’t subvert them in any way — good or bad. It’s an average lipstick.

The one part that attempts to be different from an average lipstick — the brush on the opposite end of the stick, which you’re meant to use to “diffuse” the lipstick to get a blurred look — is literally just a brush. I thought maybe it’d be one of those click-pen brushes that would dispense lipgloss or lip balm or something — something that would actually help to blur the lipstick — but no, it’s just a brush. I mean, I might as well just use my fingers to blend it out at that point, right?

As for the lippie itself, it’s okay. I don’t dislike this product. It’s got a nice, velvety texture and it lasts pretty well through a day. I don’t personally see the need for the brush attachment — seems a little gimmicky to me — but as a lipstick pencil, it’s decent.

My primary issue is with the color — it’s just too blue of a purple for me. I could see where someone with lighter or darker skin than mine (a light beige with cool undertones in the winter — not super pale but not particularly tan either) could pull it off, but I don’t feel like I can, especially for a product that’s meant to be blended until it’s faded. For me, I would need something much darker, like a dark purple or pink or red, in order for the diffused effect to actually be apparent. Otherwise, it just looks like a typical Barbie pink lipstick. And a somewhat dry one at that.

Have you tried this product? Or do you have any suggestions for your favorite lipsticks? Let me know your thoughts below!

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

October 21, 2019 – Cultured (OOTD #568)

Published on December 25, 2019December 30, 2019 by lensembledujour2 Comments

Do you remember that trend back in like, 2011 where people would wear fake nerd glasses in an attempt to look “nerdy” and “smart?”

Yeah, I definitely did that.

For a long time, before I actually needed glasses, I wanted them. I thought they looked so intelligent. My friend, Emma, once gave me an old pair of her glasses in a little pink plastic Barbie case with a pink plastic handle, and I’d take them out when I was alone in my room and just stare at myself in the mirror. I could barely see out of them, since they weren’t, you know, my prescription, but I was pretty sure I looked great.

Flash forward 15 years, and nothing has changed. I still get dressed without seriously considering whether or not what I’m wearing actually looks good, but I feel pretty confident that it does anyway. Except, now I do need glasses.

Naturally, though, I’m not wearing them in this set of photos, which makes this transition rather awkward. Oh well. Where would we be without awkward transitions in this blog?

The point of me bringing up the story about fake glasses is because I thought this outfit/background combination was reminiscent of my fake glasses days. I may not be wearing fake glasses here, but I am in spirit. I’m also wearing a fake handlebar mustache in spirit, perfect for twirling like a silent movie villain.

Coat: Vintage (thrifted, Ecseri Bazaar in Budapest)

Sweater: Forever21

Skirt: Vintage (thrifted, Street Scene Vintage)

October 17, 2019 – The Hill Has Eyes (OOTD #567)

Published on December 23, 2019December 30, 2019 by lensembledujour2 Comments

After a month in DC, I began picking up on DC lingo.

It’s the little things that make you seem like a local: for example, saying “to metro” as if it’s a verb. You don’t “take the metro” (or worse, “take the subway”) to get somewhere, you just “metro.” Oh, I’m going to metro to the game. I’ll metro and meet you there.

And another thing that DC people like to say — “the Hill.” It’s not Capitol Hill. It’s not the Capitol, or the Capitol Building. It’s just the Hill.

People work “on the Hill.” People who don’t work on the Hill go to meetings “on the Hill.” No matter what you do, you, or at the very least someone in your office, probably winds up “on the Hill” once or twice a month.

The same could be said of me while I was in DC. I went there for class, I went there for work, I went there with my friends on the weekend. I kept winding up there without really making any particular effort to go there; in a list of my top 10 favorite places in DC, the Hill area probably would not place, and it’s not like my apartment or place of work was really anywhere in that part of town.

But without fail, I would find myself near the Hill every couple of weeks, whether it was for lunch with my boss or to go to the Conservatory with my friends. And it wouldn’t be a DC semester without picture or two of me with that iconic dome (no, not that iconic dome. Or that one). I mean, if your LinkedIn headshot isn’t a picture of you on the Hill, did you even intern in Washington DC for three months?