The older pigments had iron oxide in them. The newer ones do not. I had brows & lips done, & I love it. The brows did turn a pinkish brown at first, due to the body absorbing some of the pigment, but the technician, who had warned me that this sometimes happens, corrected it, & I haven't had a problem since. This was nearly 3 years ago. The way she explained it, the immune system tries to carry the pigment away; this is why your first application will pale. It isn't "fading", it's going deeper into the skin, & your 2nd application will correct this. Be sure you get a licensed technician: there are a LOT of unlicensed people out there doing really ugly jobs. My technician's neighbor had her brows done for $50, & she now has blue-black funky eyebrows that take longer to make up in the mornings than her old eyebrows did! As the above posts said, check before & after photos, be sure she has a license, find out how long she's been in the beauty business, & be sure you get to come back for a touch-up or follow-up if needed. Story: Janie, the hairdresser/permanent make-up tech in my building, has a lot of older ladies who have lost color, faded, had their eyebrows thin to nothingness (or never had brows to begin with). She did lips for a lady who always looked like she disapproved, 'cause she had no lips: it looked like she had set her mouth in a stern expression. Now, at the age of 68, she has beautiful lips! I just can't wait to get my eyeliner done! sylvia

According to GRIN taxonomy, Vigna catjang (Burm. f.) Walp. and Vigna cylindrica (L.) Skeels are both synonymous with Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp. subsp. unguiculata Biflora Group. They list several accessions, with photos of flower & seed. They are the same species as cowpeas & yardlongs, but a different group. I tried to link my GRIN search results for the subspecies, but it wouldn't work. Here is one of their accessions, you can click on the thumbnail photos on the bottom of the page: GRIN accession for catjang From this record, you can also click on the species (at the top of the page), then on the resulting page, click the "include images" box, and hit "list"... which will duplicate my search results. I wonder if the seller has adzuki in colors other than red...

Over time my eyes have become very sensitive and itchy. I've always worn eye makeup -- tons and tons. I never go out without eye makeup. Love it but the last few years, just putting on eye liner is very itchy. So I have some work arounds. First, I use Visine soothing drops before trying to put on any makeup. I like Make Up Forever Aqua Eyes liner pencils -- soft and not too expensive. Sephora has them. Then I fill in with Milani eye liner. It's inexpensive and has an accurate brush. Drugstore.com has it. I've gone around with mascara but always come back to Lancome. They have a base coat/lash conditioner that makes the mascara go on easier and say on very well without irritation. Another mascara that has worked well is Laura Mercier though it didn't thicken enough for me LOL. There are a few removers that work well. I find I need more than one. Lancome's Bi Facil is my longtime staple. It gets most any eye make up off very easily. But then I go over my eyes with the Eye Scrub Lyban linked above -- also from drugstore.com It's sterile in sealed pouches and removes the little bits. I also sometimes use Klorane Floral lotion which is very mild. My eye lids were awfully dry a few years ago -- my skin has become dryer over all. I use Mario Badescu Special Eye Cream V every night. It's sheer and doesn't irritate. Mario Badescu, in NYC., is a salon that makes their own products which are quite gentle. I order those online and usually wait till they have a % off sale and free shipping around holidays. Their emails let you know. They are the best quality/value I've found overall for skin care and the choices are extensive. They have 8 different eye creams depending on skin needs. They also give free samples with order. And their Glycolic Foaming face wash removes all traces of makeup after the two removers -- but leaves skin moist. But there's a whole menu of those too, geared to skin type. I also really love their face creams -- it's hard for me to get any that really moisturize but theirs do. So many suggestions! Will be interesting to see what you like.

Saturday I used make up for the first time since Thanksgiving. I've been studying tutorials and decided to try some tips I learned. While I was happy with the outcome more or less, I was not happy with how some of the products worked with my skin. I'm going to check out this Jordana stuff-but I have some questions about concealers and bronzers. The stuff I'd been using as a concealer is a liquid, but it seemed to have seperated, even though I shook up the bottle. It goes on like lip gloss-with an applicator. I think it's L'Oreal-some drug store brand anyway. When I put it on, it just caked. I used a lighted magnifying mirror to apply make up this time and I was really shocked at how much caking went on with my make up! I patted and blended to the best of my ability, but ended up washing it off. What do you ladies recommend for concealer? Do you have a preference toward blushes and bronzers? I just want something that will go on smoothly and not settle in to the fine lines and look cakey. I was really pleased with how my make up ended looking the other night and I thought maybe I'd try wearing it more often. Since I've lost weight my face isn't so full and my cheekbones are coming back into view (can't do much about the jowls, thanks mother) so I would like to make myself feel a little prettier now and then.