I don't know why but I woke up today thinking of Young Adult, this film starring Charlize Theron and directed by Diablo Cody. There's a conversation in particular that stuck to me. Context: Charlize's character, Mavis, is a 37-year old woman who still thinks the world is one big high school and that she's still the queen bitch. In one scene she talks to an awkward woman who idolized her back in school (Sandra). Mavis feels that she needs to be a better person, but Sandra convinces her otherwise. 

Mavis: I need to change, Sandra. 

Sandra: No you don't. 

Mavis: What? 

Sandra: You're the only person in Mercury who could write a book or wear a dress like that. 

Mavis: Yeah, but most people here seem so happy with so little. It's like they don't even seem to care what happens to them. 

Sandra: That's because it doesn't matter what happens to them. They're nothing. Might as well die.

I can relate to Mavis, minus her nastiness. We're both vain and we both have pomeranians! Lol. But seriously it's her ennui that I can relate to the most.

I woke up at 2am today and decided to watch a movie until I felt sleepy again. I'm into period romance dramas these days, so I decided on Curse of the Golden Flower (2006) starring Chow Yun-Fat and Gong Li. Other than the gripping, operatic story, I loved the movie for its moving visual landscape, the costumes, and of course, the makeup!

I first watched Gong Li as the anti-hero in Memoirs of a Geisha - loved her there, and in fact I'm watching it again soon just to see her. In Curse of the Golden Flower, Gong Li cuts a beautiful, regal, and cruel figure in her role as the Empress of China during the Tang Dynasty. She is always dressed in exquisite silks and heavy, rustling robes with embellishments that tinkle as she moves. Her makeup is perfect, with a dewy, flawless face, angled eyeshadows, and full lips with gold dust.

Here are her best looks! Actually, I just failed to include two (one almost bare-faced and another in lilac makeup) because they weren't as striking as these.

This is her first look. She sports gold eyeshadow on the inner lid, with a plummy, slightly purple eyeshadow that goes up on her outer lid. Her eyes are lightly lined with a bit of mascara. The lips are a plum shade with gold dust patted onto the bottom.

Call me typical, but one of my favorite movies of all time is Breakfast At Tiffany's. A favorite scene of mine is the one where Holly Golightly wakes up late on a Thursday. She fumbles all over her flat for her shoes and her dress, rushing down the stairs to visit mob boss Sally Tomato in Sing Sing prison. Nevertheless, Holly was groomed in five minutes, finishing her look with a nude pink lipstick and a few spritzes of perfume.

Holly is the kind of woman who loves beautiful things, carefully chosen pieces that she can afford with her limited "glamour girl" money. She's also the kind of girl who isn't ready until she has lipstick. "Hand me my purse, will you, darling? A girl can't read that sort of thing without her lipstick," she says.

This memorable woman is the first person I thought of when I tried the Guerlain Rouge G Lipstick in Galia. The beautiful packaging looks just like something Holly Golightly would carry in her purse or keep in her apartment cubbyhole if she were alive today. Of course, I'm sure she would love the nude pink color of Galia, which is similar to the lipstick she's wearing in the photos.