Primers vs. Bases, what's the difference?

     Today's post is going to be addressing the differences between primers and bases in the makeup world. A lot of us are familiar with these products, but sometimes it becomes pretty confusing as to what does what. This will (hopefully) make the differences quite clear for everyone.

Products shown, left to right: Urban Decay Primer Potion in Greed, Smashbox Photo Finish Hydrating Primer, Smashbox Photo Finish Primer Original, Maybelline Baby Skin Primer, Benefit POREfessional, Benefit Stay Flawless 15 hour Primer, Urban Decay Primer Potion Original.

Primers:

The main purpose for primers is to prolong the wear of your makeup; in other words, to prevent creasing, fading, slipping, and sliding all around. Not necessarily to improve colour payoff and help them appear more pigmented. Pictured are an array of different primers in my collection, I didn't want to show all of them only because I'm a primer addict and there are way too many in my collection. These are probably the most well known primers so I figured I would use these as an example. The swatches provided are just for eyes, but you get the general idea right?

Products shown, left to right: Stila Smudge Pot in Kitten, NYX Eyeshadow Base in Skin Tone, M.A.C Cream Colour Base in Bat Black, M.A.C Paint Pot in Blackground

Bases:

Here's where people start getting confused. Technically, a base is used only to give eyeshadow a different effect and/or better colour payoff. NOT to increase the wear time of a specific product. These are often creamier in consistency, and don't fully dry as primers do. They can still crease and fade if too much product is used, or if no primer is applied underneath. I have provided swatches below to show this.

Left photo in artificial light, right in natural light

Swatches from top to bottom (all using M.A.C pigment in Milk): Urban Decay Primer Potion Original, NYX Eyeshadow Base in Skin Tone, M.A.C Cream Colour Base in Bat Black, M.A.C Paint Pot in Blackground, bare skin on bottom

As you can see, UDPP provides no added benefit to the pigment itself. It does stick better since it stays tacky for a little while, but no different colour payoff is visible. Continuing downward you can see that each different base provides a different effect. The pigment also becomes brighter and more pigmented than if just used on bare skin or UDPP. Overall, you can use just a primer for a little more colour payoff and longevity when using products; and same goes for any base although longevity may be compromised due to the consistency of the product. It's all based on personal preference to which you use on a daily basis, I just hope this has given some insight into the key differences of a primer and a base

Skincare favourites

     Today I wanted to talk about all of my skincare favourites, and I suppose my overall skincare routine. Keep in mind, I'm a massive skincare junkie. I believe if you take really good care of your skin, any makeup (high end or low) will work well. Let's just dive right in so this doesn't become this MASSIVE post, even though I know it probably will anyway.

Makeup removers/cleansing:

To me, this is a strange part of my routine. I don't like spending crazy amounts of money on cleansers and makeup removers just because they don't stay on the skin for very long. Some may disagree with me, but it's just something that I go through really quickly and as someone who has bills (as a lot of us do), it hurts my wallet to spend $30 a pop every time I have to replace anything in this category. There's so many different ways of removing makeup, so I'll only show my preferred products I tend to use more often as opposed to my entire collection

Makeup wipes are probably the quickest and easiest ways to remove makeup at the end of the night, since they're so convenient I know a lot of us reach for our makeup wipes at the end of the day. My favourites are the Tarte Fresh Eyes wipes with Maracuja oil and the H2O Aqualibrium wipes. These two are the ones I've found that don't leave that sticky, dry residue that some wipes tend to. The skin actually feels quite nourished and moisturized after I use these

Liquid, creams and oils are also fairly quick to use; but they do require a little bit more to remove them completely. I know some people are going to go nuts that I use Bio-Oil to remove my makeup, but I hated it as what it's intended to be used for, and it's basically just mineral oil so it does well to remove everything and break all the makeup down. My other 2 favourites are the They're Real! makeup remover and the H2O+ Aqualibrium Dual Action eye-makeup remover. I'll do a more thorough review on the They're Real! on Thursay since it will not be released until 27 June. 

Last but not least in this category are the traditional facial cleanser and cleansing balms. I use these at different times of the day. Pictured here are my Philosophy Purity 3 in 1 facial cleanser and The Body Shop Chamomile sumptuous cleansing butter. I tend to use my Purity more in the morning, even though it supposedly removes makeup as well, and my Body Shop butter in the evening when I want to give myself a nice and relaxing facial massage. The butter also leaves my skin feeling so soft and moisturized, and the way it feels on the skin is so luxurious that I just want to rub it on my entire body.

Toners and exfoliants:

This is by far (to me) one of the most important parts of any skincare routine. Exfoliation removes all of the dead skin cells and reveals all the fresh, beautiful skin underneath that icky layer on the surface. I take this step crazy serious, so there's a lot to talk about.

Everything pictured: H2O+ Aqualibrium Toner, Benefit Refined Finish facial polish, Tarte Double Detox Amazonian clay exfoliating facial mask, bliss Fabulips sugar scrub, Tarte Maracuja lip scrub, e.l.f lip scrub, Peter Thomas Roth Firm Rx Peeling Gel.

I LOVE toning and exfoliating, this is where I give myself more relaxing facial massages and it sloughs away all the dead skin cells on the top layer of my skin revealing all that lovely, fresh, healthy looking skin underneath. I'm one of those people who uses some sort of exfoliation every single day. Bear in mind, I don't have sensitive skin at all. It's quite dry and very dehydrated, so this is an absolute MUST in my skincare routine. Depending on your preferences and skin type, you may need to exfoliate only a couple times a week. Toning is what I do after I have removed all of my makeup (nighttime) and have given my skin a proper cleanse. This is to remove any excess cleanser that may have been left on your skin. Some also exfoliate, have acne control, etc...another favourite not pictured is my Pixi Glow Tonic. There are physical exfoliants and chemical exfoliants. Physical being those that contain the little microbeads, chemical containing BHA's and AHA's (Betahydroxy Acid and Alphahydroxy Acid).

The main star of this category is my Peter Thomas Roth Peeling Gel. It's a chemical exfoliant so there's no micro beads in it, which can irritate if you have sensitive skin. Since using this, my skins texture has improved dramatically, and it's neat because you can see all the dead skin rolling away as you massage it into the skin.

Serums and moistuizers:

This is another important step in your skincare routine, since all of the exfoliating and cleansing can strip some of those natural oils the face needs to stay glowing and healthy. Moisturizer will restore that moisture and seal it in to ensure you have plump, soft skin. Serums are just an added step I prefer since a lot of them have specific skin benefits that not all moisturizers have. In this category I will also mention my favourite facial oil as well as my overnight creams.

Products include: H2O+ Aqualibrium moisturizer, Tarte pure Maracuja oil, Tarte C Brightener undereye cream, Mario Badescu Caviar Night cream, H2O+ Night Oasis overnight moisture lock, e.l.f Eye Restore.

This is where personal preferences come in, there are some who will use a facial oil as a daytime moisturizer, others, a cream, some use both. I use both a facial oil and a moisturizer just because I like the way my skin feels with both being used. This also applies to nighttime as I like to get all the moisture I can while I sleep. Undereye cream is also a personal preference, but seeing as I have undereye bags as well as dark circles, I use products that help with these issues; especially since makeup can accentuate all of these problem areas. We're almost done...promise. Only 2 more categories.

Face masks and treatments:

This is optional considering a lot of people are on a budget, but they are nice if you want to pamper yourself after a hard day at work. I only have a few listed here, but I also use sheet masks which can be hard to come by in the U.S as well as eye gel packs.

Products featured: Clinique Pore Refining correcting serum, Tarte Double Detox Amazonian clay mask, and Shiseido The Skincare Purifying Mask. Products not featured include: GlamGlo Thirsty Mud hydrating mask, Peter Thomas Roth Rose Stem Cell mask, and The Body Shop Vitamin C mask.

Like I said before, these are just things I use to pamper myself and give my skin a little treat every so often. These are the 3 that I use most, there are so many more I'd love to talk about but they tend to run on the crazy pricey side and I'm not here to throw around how much I spend on skincare. There are so many different masks for each specific skin concern, these are just the ones I use based on my skin type.

Last but not least, sun protection:

I use sunscreen like a crazy person. I fear the sun and stay out of it as much as possible, but that's just the way I am. For all of you who love the sun this also applies to you seeing as the UVA/UVB rays can cause crazy problems with skin in the long run. There's only one that stands out to me in this category and that's my Benefit Dream Screen SPF 45

I also use primers and foundations, BB/CC creams and tinted moisturizers that contain SPF...but that's a whole different post. There's chemical blocks as well as physical blocks when it comes to the world of sunscreen. Again, it's all personal preference when it comes to which you would use on a daily basis. I will tell everybody to use some sort of sun protection, especially for the delicate facial skin. Your face will thank you in the years to come.

I apologize for the length of this post, but I do feel very strongly that this is the most important part of being a beauty lover. We all want to take care of ourselves as best as we can, and skincare is just so important in our world. Please let me know if you want me to stick to shorter blog posts, or if you enjoy the lengthy and more informative posts. I want to make content that everybody will enjoy. I understand I can't make everybody happy, but I can do my best. There will be some who dislike lengthy posts and others who want more in-depth posts. I will do my best to try to include both types, but I also want all the feedback I can get. Let's make this blog a place for everybody. Kisses, loves.

Is it REALLY a dupe?

Product Smackdown

NARS Orgasm VS. N.Y.X Pinched

Everybody knows about Orgasm, right? If you don't...have you been under a rock? This was my first mid/high end blusher EVER. So of course, it will always have a special place in my heart. And why wouldn't it? It may seem like an ordinary colour to most, but it is by far the most perfect cheek colour to ever have been invented. But, at the $30 price tag, most of us would like to have a much more wallet friendly version of this beloved colour. Let the smackdown begin!

Warning: My poor Orgasm has unfortunately busted, thus it has inspired me to do this post. I apologize for the awful state my poor baby is in.

 Side by side in the pan you can already see a big difference in colour. Orgasm being on left, Pinched being on right. Orgasm having more of a gold sheen to it and Pinched...somewhat lacking in the sheen department. Orgasm also seems to be a bit more peachy than Pinched. Let's go to the swatches...this is where it gets fun

                                                             

Here are some swatches side by side, Orgasm on the left and Pinched on the right. Here's where you can see it's WAAAY off. Um, who even said this was a dupe in the first place? Pinched is much, much, much more pink; and it also lacks that beautiful gold iridescence that Orgasm has. Overall, I have to say, even though Pinched is a very pretty colour...nothing will ever beat my beloved Orgasm.

Side note: I found that if you layer Benefit Coralista over Pinched it will give you a similar effect, but who wants to buy two products that equal $33 when you can buy the original for $30?

N.Y.X Macaron Lippies

N.Y.X Macaron Lippies

I apologize for not posting all of the available shades as I only have one. Due to this I can only give an accurate review on the one I personally own. This was bought with my own money so all opinions are my own. Seeing as I'm a normal person and I have bills to pay this is the only colour that caught my eye. If you'd like to see all the colours in the collection you can view them at: http://www.nyxcosmetics.com/p-255-macaron-lippies.aspx

Now, on to the review.

When I heard that N.Y.X was going to release a collection with fun and somewhat out of the box colours I got way more excited than I should have been (makeup junkie problems, right?). Well of course when they arrived at my Ulta I had to go and have a play. I swatched until my little heart was content and I ended up only buying Violet (womp, womp). But after using it I've determined I need all of the shades! Although some of you may not be brave enough to wear some of the colours offered out in public, I'm the type of lady that has no shame walking out with odd coloured lips and eyebrows (I work with makeup everyday, there's no point if you can't have any fun!).

 As I'm sure everyone is aware, this is the packaging. It's very similar to the Matte Lipstick packaging; oh hell, I'm convinced it is the same packaging...I digress. For your convenience I have inserted a picture of the Matte lipstick to compare

The formula of the Macaron Lippies is super creamy and very highly pigmented. The only downside to this is it smudges EVERYWHERE. I'm serious, one tiny little touch and it will go all over everything. Aside from that little downfall, they're absolutely lovely.

Here is a swatch of Violet in natural lighting. As you can see, it's BRIGHT. Very smooth, no patchiness or uneven spots. It gives a very nice, opaque coverage on the lips and doesn't feel dry or sticky on the lips. 

Here you can see it on the lips, still very opaque, very smooth with no patchiness or uneven spots. It doesn't appear very vibrant in photos but I assure you, it's very bright and fun. It's the perfect spring/summer colour seeing that anything lilac or orchid is on trend, so why can't violet join the party? It glides on very smooth and doesn't settle into those pesky little creases we all have on our lips. I've also included some swatches showing the finish compared to the matte lipstick

Here you can see how glossy the Macaron Lippie is compared to the N.Y.X Matte Lipstick (shade is Indie Flick). Although I do prefer the staying power of Indie Flick, Violet is a perfect, fun lippie. I've found from wearing it to work, where I do a lot of talking, it does start to wear and fade. It also does transfer quite easily, so beware. Overall, I really am impressed by these and it looks like I'll have to run out and purchase more of them. I've always been impressed by all of the N.Y.X lip products. You get amazing quality for the price. I hope this inspires all of you to break out of your comfort zone and give these a try, you won't be disappointed <3

May Favourites

     Hello Lovelies! It's now June, so that can only mean it's time for my May favourites. These are all the products I've been loving for the past 30 or so days; some body stuff, skincare and of course...MAKEUP!
Let's get rolling, shall we?

     Disclaimer: These pictures won't be of the best quality, and I am sincerely sorry. My computer decided to die every single time I tried to edit a photo. Hopefully in the future my pictures will be much better. Please keep in mind I'm still very new to the blogging community so it'll take some time to make everything absolutely perfect <3

First up is the L'Oreal Infallible pressed pigment in the shade Amber Rush.

I've been loving this like crazy! Super duper pigmented on it's own, very buttery and smooth texture, easy to blend, just absolutely perfect! I love this when I don't want to do a whole eye look, but I want to have some sheen on my lids. Pair this with some mascara or falsies and you're good to go run errands or whatever else!

Next on the list is the E.L.F Shimmering Facial Whip in Lilac Petal (I think, I've lost the packaging! Oh no!). I've been absolutely loving this underneath my foundation to give my skin a slight sheen where I would highlight. I've been loving dewy skin now that we're moving into the warmer months, actually, I just love dewy skin! It's not overly frosty like some highlighters can be, by putting it underneath my foundation it takes down any excess shimmer anyway creating perfect glowing skin. The colour is more pink than 'lilac' with a slight silver sheen (leaning more towards cool), but beautiful nonetheless. I've been reaching for this more often than my beloved Sun Beam. Sorry, Benefit!

On the subject of dewy skin, I've been obsessed with my Urban Decay Naked Skin foundation. Since it's super humid here in Georgia I don't like the feeling of a full face of foundation on my skin, especially if I'm going to be running around all day or under some crazy hot lamps at work. Nothing is worse than having really thick, heavy foundation sliding across your face all day. I love this because it has a super thin, watery consistency to it and when it dries I can't tell I'm wearing foundation at all! It isn't as dewy as I'd like it to be, but it does have a natural finish to it unlike my L'Oreal True Match Lumi foundation which is the epitome of dewy skin. This foundation doesn't settle into my pores like most other foundations, and since I have more dehydrated skin it doesn't cake in strange places like some foundations can. Personally, I prefer using a damp sponge to apply this all over (the Real Techniques Miracle Complexion sponge is my favourite, but I forgot to picture it here, oops!)

Rolling with the face theme, next is my Maybelline Fit Me! concealer. This reminds me so much of my NARS creamy concealer, but at a much nicer price point. I tend to use this under my eyes more than anything because of the super fluid consistency of it. It doesn't crease on me as much as most other concealers do and has a more dewy finish to it. It's a more sheer to medium coverage, but it is build-able and does a nice job of covering any discolouration I may have. I normally use my finger to apply it in a V shape starting under my eyes going straight down the side of my nose, then bring it up to my cheekbone/temple area, then blend in patting motions with my ring finger to smooth it out. It acts as a lovely highlight as well

Continuing on the subject of highlighting, next in line is the Hard Candy Baked Bronzer in the shade Tiki. I don't buy the whole bronzer thing, I don't even think the palest of skin could use this as a bronzer, but it does make for a lovely highlighter. I normally like to set the E.L.F facial whip with this to add that extra sheen to the high points of my face (tops of the cheekbones, centre of the forehead, down the bridge of the nose, etc...). It isn't too powdery so there's no caking of product as you can sometimes get when you layer cream and powder products. It's very fine as it's a 'baked' product. I would assume you could use it slightly wet as well to get a more shiny effect, as you could with baked eyeshadow. I've given myself an amazing idea! I can't rave about this product enough.

Shifting focus back to eye products (I know I'm very scattered in this post, please forgive me!), it's time to talk about the ever popular Better than Sex mascara by Too Faced. I'm a little bit late on this one since I feel like everybody hopped on this bandwagon forever ago. It was hard for me to justify $23 on a mascara since I normally toss them after about 3-4 months just to avoid any eye ickies, but this was absolutely worth it. I thought I had found love with the Benefit They're Real! mascara, but for some reason I've fallen out of love with it. The Too Faced mascara has a consistency that reminds me of a mousse as opposed to most wet mascara formulas like the Benefit one. I have naturally long lashes, but they aren't very full, and I've found this product really volumizes them and makes them look more full without the clumpy effect that other volumizing mascaras can have. Whereas the They're Real! almost makes my lashes look very thin and spidery. If I'm feeling extra flirty I will put They're Real! over this to give me the false lash effect, but overall Better than Sex will always be a mascara I will have in my collection

Another eye product I've been loving is the Too Faced Chocolate Bar palette. Again, I'm late to this party but I'm glad I showed up eventually! As pretty much everybody knows, the shadows contain real cocoa powder in them so the palette smells absolutely DIVINE (and I'm not a fan of chocolate). The shadows themselves are quite pigmented even though I felt like they would be chalky and hard to work with when swatched straight from the pan. Super smooth and easy to blend and with 16 colours it's so easy to create multiple looks with. I will say I prefer my Amber Rush to the gold that's in the palette, but it is really nice to add over top and give it some dimension and a little bit of extra oomph. The two lighter browns remind me of Cork and Wedge from M.A.C, maybe even Soft Brown? Amazing crease/transitional colours in my opinion. Overall, I love this palette so much; but it was really hard to choose between the Naked 3 and this one. Since the Chocolate Bar has a bit more of a shade range I figured it would be a little bit better to talk about, even though I'm obsessed with anything rose gold at the moment :)

Next is the Urban Decay Revolution Lipstick in the shade Anarchy. This is probably the most gorgeous hot pink I've ever found. The formula of these lipsticks are absolutely amazing! So creamy and pigmented, and they feel very moisturizing on the lips. The staying power on these is incredible, also. From talking up a storm to eating and drinking, these babies don't go anywhere. They do transfer a little bit, but it's not enough to bother me personally (the SO doesn't approve of kisses while I'm wearing this, haha). I've been loving brighter colours this summer and this really packs a punch. I own a lot of these lipsticks but this one is my absolute favourite <3

Moving along to the more random favourites of this month, I can't get enough of this Sonia Kashuk Body Butter in the scent Purple Seductia. I'm a sucker for anything pomegranate and rose, so obviously I had to pick this up while I was at Target. It's so thick and moisturizing without that sticky/oily feel to the skin. I can put this on straight out of the shower and it sinks in so quickly and makes my skin feel absolutely lovely. The scent also lasts for so long. If I don't want to wear a fragrance all I have to do is pop some of this on and I'll smell amazing for the rest of the day. It's not overpowering or sickly sweet, very subtle but noticeable if that even makes any sense? This has quickly replaced my Body Shop body butters, and at $11 dollars it sure beats the $20 for the Body Shop name. Thanks, Sonia!

Next up is my H2O overnight moisturizer. This is a really strange product to me. I'm used to overnight creams being really thick and greasy feeling, which don't get my wrong, my dry/dehydrated skin absolutely loves them. But this has a gel consistency which made me think it wasn't going to do much for my skin. It sinks in super quickly and leaves this barrier over my skin trapping all the moisture in as well as pulling moisture in the air to continuously hydrate my skin throughout the night. It also has these little oxygen beads in them that pop while you massage it into your skin giving you a subtle invigorating sensation. It's quite pleasant and almost cooling on the skin. When I wake up in the morning my skin feels so smooth and hydrated. Such an amazing product, this is probably the best that I've found of the H2O line.  

Last but not least is the Bliss Fabulips sugar scrub. Once again, super late to the Bliss train, better late than never. I'm not a huge fan of lip scrubs you can buy from companies normally since there are so many ways to make lip scrubs at home, and they're usually overpriced (in my opinion). It is more convenient to buy them packaged, but sometimes the quality lacks. Not with this scrub! First, it smells heavenly. It reminds me of candy almost, very sweet smelling. Second, it does the job so well! The sugar in it is coarse enough to remove all my flaky skin, but not overly harsh. I was kind of afraid of the walnut shell in it since I thought it would scratch my lips and cause a whole lot of trouble (looking at you St. Ives apricot scrub!), but it's so gentle that it doesn't irritate my lips. It's also so nourishing and feels amazing. The 'balm' part of it feels so luxurious on my lips I don't want to wipe it off! I normally let it sit on my lips and let everything sink in for smooth, silky feeling lips. Definitely worth the $16 or so dollars they charge. And the packaging is so cute. It seems really small for $16, but you need so little that this tiny jar will probably last me AGES.






    So that's it for my May favourites. There are so many other things I could talk about, but I figured I'd narrow it down to the items I've been using on a pretty much daily basis so this post wouldn't go on for ages and ages. Again, apologies for not the greatest of quality photos and the scatterbrained approach to the order of the products. We'll get there eventually. But for now, thank you for taking the time to look and hopefully it's inspired you to go pick up a few things. Please let me know of your favourite products and keep fueling my beauty addiction! I'd love to hear what everybody else is loving. Until next time dearies, stay beautiful <3

As always, we need some awkward introductions

Hello Beautiful <3

     Welcome to this mediocre (at best) blog of mine, let's get all these awkward (and probably not necessary introductions)

I've tried starting blogs under various names and I can just never get the hang of it, but this time I'm serious. It's going to be a bit rough when we first start, but we'll get there, so bear with me please?!

Hopefully we'll all have lots of fun learning about the amazing world that is makeup/beauty/skincare together! I know there are blogs around that can be hard to follow along with (I know I have a hard time following some), so I'm hoping that this will turn out to be a somewhat simple but informative place where people can feel comfortable asking things that may seem silly to some, and catch the interest of others. Just a quick rundown of things I'm planning to do with this page:

*Review postings: We all know what these are, right? They're when we sit down and have a chat about products that EVERYBODY and their grandmother has probably already reviewed since there are so many bigger blogs out there that will tower over my tiny, humble, baby blog. And maybe some that haven't been reviewed yet (I hope)

*Swatches: These will always be a part of my review postings. Everybody needs swatches of pretty things right?!

*Daily Looks (face outfits for the day): This is going to be a tricky one. As of right now I have 3 days off during the week; Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. These are also subject to change since I work retail (if you could call it that) and I can be called in whenever. I want to do the majority of my posts on these days if I can. For the time being my posts may not come consistently until I can get a good rhythm going, again please bear with me

*Favourites of the month: And sometimes, just in general. If I find something amazing that I must shout from the highest mountain I will be sure to do so. But, I do want to give a general overview of items I've loved throughout the month. Mini reviews, more swatches, all those wonderful things

*Tips and tricks: Just small things I've found that work for me, more well known beauty hacks, the works


     Last, but certainly not least
*Questions and Answers: Any questions you may have can be posted as a comment and will be answered all right here!



     I'm probably missing a whole lot of things, but this is a work in progress. I look forward to jumping in to this and sharing everything with everyone else <3






*Disclaimer*
     I am in no way, shape, or form a makeup wizard nor do I claim to be. Just an ex-hairstylist who turned out to really hate hair and jumped in headfirst to the world of makeup and skincare. Please do not take anything said here as the only way or the right way to do anything. Makeup has no rules, and if they did they're meant to be broken anyway. If it works for you and it makes you feel amazing, DO IT. Don't let anybody bring you down or make you feel any less valuable than you are. This is a place to feel good about yourself and escape from the real world for just a little bit, everyone who reads this is beautiful. I know things focused on beauty is so superficial and can come across as bragging or shoving things in peoples faces. There will be things that are on the steep end of prices and the low end, that's how everything is in the world of makeup. Brand name isn't important, everyone else doesn't have to know you're wearing a foundation that costs more than a bottle of coloured liquid should, or an eyeshadow that you found in the clearance bin for a dollar. Sites like this can seem stuck up because I'm talking about an eyeshadow palette that costs $54 or a lipstick that costs $22, but I promise I will give everything equal love and I will NEVER tell anyone they're not important because they can't buy those things.

     This is probably starting to make no sense since it is now 1:45 a.m, so I'm going to stop rambling on for tonight