Friday, October 26, 2018

Discontinued Lipstick? Ellen Byron is on the Case!


INGRID THOFT

Today's guest is a renaissance woman of writing.  Ellen Byron wrote for TV, including "Wings" and "Just Shoot Me," has written plays and writing how-to books, and more recently, is the author of the award-winning Cajun Country Mystery series.  She also worked for Martha Stewart in a non-writing capacity!  Is there anything she can't do?  Yes, apparently, there is at least one thing that is stymieing Ellen at the moment.  I'll let her give you the scoop.


ELLEN BYRON: It’s super frustrating when your favorite lipstick color is discontinued. I’ve spent the last year on a fruitless quest to replace a shade Nars stopped making. (Curse you, Nars!) With the launch of my fourth Cajun Country Mystery, MARDI GRAS MURDER and a slate of personal appearances coming up, that quest became urgent.

I recently sold a second mystery series that revolves around a catering hall. My friend Kristen runs Pickwick Gardens, a popular Burbank party venue, so I paid her a visit to do some research. In the middle of asking questions, I noticed her lipstick—and couldn’t take my eyes off it. I finally blurted out, “I love your lipstick. What color is it?” Kristen responded, “It’s called Khlo$ - K-h-l-o-dollar sign.” She paused. “It’s from Kylie Cosmetics.”

I gasped in horror. No exaggeration, I really did. I’m not a fan of reality TV in general and that Kardashian clan, with their first-world problems, body enhancements, and vocal fry  really works my last nerve. Still, there was that lipstick.

When I got home, I fought a losing battle not to check out Kylie’s cosmetic website. “I’m just looking, I’ll never ever buy anything,” I told myself as I typed the address into my search engine. Seconds later, there was Kylie in all her surgically enhanced glory, looking right into my eyes with a Mona Lisa smile, beckoning me to click on “Lips.” Which I did. And let me tell you, whoever designed that website deserves the lion’s share of the gazillions twenty-one-year-old Kylie is raking in. It’s informative, simple, and seductive. 

Did I shop? Oh, I shopped, spending sixty-three bucks on two lipsticks and a Lip Kit. (It comes with a matching lip liner!) I wasn’t proud of myself. I would have been less embarrassed buying dinosaur porn. (Yes, that’s actually a thing. And now half of you will go look it up.)

I became obsessed with the website. I kept clicking on all the pretty pictures. I even watched a ten-minute video of Kylie putting on makeup, which was weirdly mesmerizing. She’s like an American geisha or something, which I hope isn’t insulting to geishas. Or America.
Okay, now to answer the billion-dollar question—because Kylie is like, the world’s youngest billionaire, thanks to people like me spending sixty-three dollars on three lipsticks –how’s her product?
It arrived in an unmarked box. (Which I assume would also be true of dinosaur porn.) And it arrived fast. I ordered on Thursday and had it by Saturday. The box sprang to life when you opened it, with a personal greeting from the gal herself. As to the lipsticks, on a scale of pouty lips, five being the highest, I grudgingly give Kylie three and a half—okay, maybe even four—pouty lips. 

She runs a crack operation, for sure. I loved the texture of the lipstick. The liquid matte lipsticks are so long-lasting I still had the sample swatch on the inside of my arm three days after applying it. (Which is kind of scary, to be honest. It’s more like lip glue than stick). None of the colors replaces the discontinued Nars, although that’s more my problem than Kylie’s. But there are no refunds or exchanges, and that’s a drag.

I’m giving the Khlo$ lipstick to Kristen because it looks better on her than me, and I sent the Nova to my daughter for the same reason. I’ll find a way to put the Ginger Lip Kit to use. But there’s still one question that needs to be answered. I bought Kylie’s lipstick - three of them to be exact. Now how do I get Kylie to buy a copy of MARDI GRAS MURDER?

This post is so timely!  Did you see the news this week that there's a shortage of TAB soda?  What product have you fallen in love with, only to have it disappear?  One lucky reader (in the U.S. only) will get a copy of MARDI GRAS MURDER!

Joan Emerson, you've won a copy of Michael Wiley's MONUMENT ROAD.  Please send your mailing address to ingrid@ingridthoft.com.

MARDI GRAS MURDER
It’s Mardi Gras season on the bayou, which means parades, pageantry, and gumbo galore. But when a flood upends life in the tiny town of Pelican, Louisiana―and deposits a body of a stranger behind the Crozat Plantation B&B―the celebration takes a decidedly dark turn. The citizens of Pelican are ready to Laissez les bon temps rouler―but there’s beaucoup bad blood on hand this Mardi Gras. 

USA Today bestselling author Ellen Byron is a television writer, playwright, and freelance journalist. Her TV credits include Wings, Still Standing, and Just Shoot Me, and her written work has appeared in Glamour, Redbook, and Seventeen, among others. She lives in the Los Angeles area with her husband, their daughter, and the family’s very spoiled rescue dog. A native New Yorker, Ellen still misses her hometown and still drives like a New York Cabbie. This is her third Cajun Country mystery.

122 comments:

  1. Congratulations on your new book, Ellen. I’m looking forward to reading it . . . .

    I heard about the Tab shortage on the evening news . . . it made me wonder if Coca-Cola was discontinuing it, but according to the folks who make the soda, it’s only become unavailable in some areas.

    I commiserate with you over the lipstick plight, Ellen. It’s hard to find the one that’s exactly the right color and exactly the right texture. I had one I really liked from Circle of Beauty; unfortunately, several years ago, someone decided to discontinue the whole line and I had to find something to take its place. Who makes those decisions, anyway, and do they ever ask the customers first? It’s frustrating when you find something you really like and then it goes away . . . .

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    1. As long as I'm sharing my darkest secrets, this was my breakfast first semester of college: a Hershey bar, a pack of Starburst, a cigarette - and TAB.

      It's amazing I'm still alive.

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  2. I started using Dial for Men soap years ago when they were sponsoring a mud run. (I believe they had teams up with Spartan, but don't quote me on that.) It worked to get me buying it, right? It's been getting harder and harder to find, and sadly now it seems to be all gone, so I am on the hunt for something else (Although I'm thinking some of the regular Dial soap might actually be a good alternative. I'll be testing that theory soon.) (Did we come close to any TMI lines?)

    This new book is wonderful! (And please, don't enter me in the drawing since I've already read it.)

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    1. That soap is available at Walgreens, online. Was that weird I knew that?? 😕

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    2. A little weird Deb, LOL. but Mark will be happy!

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    3. Mark, this post paid it forward re: your soap! And thanks for a GREAT review!

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    4. The soap is listed on their website, but it is listed as being out of stock on line. Based on the research I did, it's been discontinued, so I doubt it will pop up again. :(

      But thanks for the tip, Deb.

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  3. Sixty-three dollars? My goodness. I mean, I hear you on wanting that SAME color that works for you. But as someone who only recently resumed wearing lipstick (and only to author events, mind you) after nearly fifty years away, if I can't get it at CVS, I don't need it. Sorry, makeup ladies! I'm just not a Sephora gal.

    That said, my favorite boat neck LL Bean knit shirts? Gone! I did buy three at once a few years ago, but when I went to replace them, I was orphaned. Same with my favorite 6-wide New Balance tennies. Grr.

    Can't wait to read the new book, since I just finished the last one. ;^)

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    1. Edith, trust me, that's not something I do on a regular basis! I went crazy! Never again, though.

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    2. I love it when you say Trust Me. xoxo

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  4. Can't help with anything makeup related.

    But in order to enter for a chance at the book giveaway, I will say that my most missed product is the Cheese Tidbits crackers from Nabisco. Those darn things were amazingly awesome. I could eat a box without realizing it.

    For anyone who doesn't know what I'm talking about here's a link to a pic of the box - https://www.picrail.com/l/42clmj/nabisco-cheese-tidbits

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    1. I loved TidBits too. But then I got addicted to Cheezits and cheddar Goldfish. . .

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    2. Ingrid, I prefer Cheese Nips over Cheez-Its. But I still would rather have the Tid-Bits.

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  5. Congrats on the new book and condolences on the Nars.

    I use Clinique this and that, and therefore own whatever lipstick they include in their latest package deal. I love the little makeup bags that come with. However, no lipstick stays on me long enough to make a difference, and now I only wear it if I'm to be seen in public by people I care about. That's pretty much limited to Bouchercon and LLC! And trips to McKinney

    My mother used something she bought, no doubt, at "Walmarts". Whatever it was, it stayed on. She wouldn't be caught dead, literally, without lipstick. I still have one of her tubes in my makeup drawer, a drawer I rarely open these days. Once in a while I think how the killer could use it to write on the wall or something, leaving my dead mother's DNA at the crime scene, just to screw with the forensics.

    Feel free to use the above in your next book.

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    1. That was an AMAZING idea to put in a book!!

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    2. I love that idea, Ann! My mom was the same way, and after my sisters and I washed and dressed her after she died, my older sister (who also always wears lipstick) carefully applied my mom's signature red.

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    3. OMG, Ann, I'm with Deb - go for it!

      I used to buy a Lancôme undereye cream solely when they had giveaways. But the cream went up to like $70 or some insane amount. So bye bye Lancôme and hello, Target.

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  6. Dinosaur porn?? Good golly! I really do not buy tons of makeup. I do like nail polish. Looking down and seeing a nice colour always cheers me up. So when a favourite colour is discontinued or hard to find, I do go searching online. FYI: I would die before paying $63 for lip stick! Sometimes I seriously do not understand why makeup is so expensive!

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    1. Not only is it expensive. Seriously. The amount you get has shrunk. More glass, less stuff.

      Which reminds me, has anyone bought a Milano cookie lately? They've shrunk by at least half.

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    2. LOL, the things you learn in a writers room! (see: dino porn).

      And I'm with you re: cost. Now I do my makeup shopping at Target. NYX and ELF are good, cheap brands.

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  7. Hi Ellen and congrats on the book! Can't wait to read it! I sympathize with you on the lipstick. I wear a color called Amorous from Mac, and I would be devastated if they discontinued it. Also, I order my English Pears soap by the case from Amazon--I hate to think I'd have to bring it home from England...

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    1. Hi Deborah! I LOVE that you order your favorite soap by the case. Now I want to try it.

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    2. Ellen, it's cheap, and a case lasts us about a year:-) Pears Soap is a very English thing, although I think the formula we get in the US doesn't smell quite the same. It's a glycerin soap with a slightly herbal and very distinctive scent. It's very gentle and doesn't leave any residue on your skin.

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    3. Neutrogena soap--WITH fragrance. They don't make that anymore, I fear. I love that fragrance!

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  8. Oh, and Ellen, zydeco carols??? That, I gotta hear.

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    1. My friend Banu Gibson is a fantastic jazz singer. She has an album of them: Zat You, Santa? http://www.banugibson.com/html/bg_discography.html

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    2. I still have a 45 of Trosclair doing his version of the Night Before Christmas. For those of you who don't know, his accent was thicker than Justin Wilson's and he used to do TV ads in New Orleans in the 60s.

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    3. IMHO there is no bad place for zydeco. That music just speaks to me!

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  9. Welcome Ellen, and congrats!! I can't wear lipstick--I wish I could but my lips are addicted to pomegranate Burt's Bees and I panic if I forget it.

    The best shoes I found for supporting feet with plantar fasciitis--Asolo mantra--have disappeared. And that is a crime!

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    1. Oh,no, Lucy! I remember you did a blog post about those.

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    2. Nooo! That stinks. Good luck finding a replacement.

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  10. Oh, Ellen! You are too funny - and this is why I love your books.

    From my youth, I remember the lip color Cherries in the Snow. Revlon still makes it! Though I have long ago stopped wearing lipstick. Vaseline and lip balm.

    What I remember about wearing lipstick is that if I wore it every day, the day I forgot to put it on I looked sick. Literally pale and wan and sick. I know, a first-world problem.

    A Mardi Gras murder with sleigh bells jingling and a ticking clock -- perfect for me right now. AND a shout-out to Joanna Schaffenhausen (The Vanishing Season) who needs to see the cover of your book.

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    1. Now I need to go check out Cherries in the Snow at Target! I love the name!

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    2. Oops, I just realized that the description combines BOTH of my most recent books! Yikes!

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    3. Hi Ellen, I just fixed it! Sorry about that! FYI, when you click on the MARDI GRAS MURDER cover on the Crooked Lane site goes to a description of CAJUN CHRISTMAS KILLING.

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  11. Congrats, Ellen! I have a whole CD of Cajun Christmas songs and a children's picture book about Papa Noel in his pirogue towed by eight alligators.


    Travel toiletries, especially the CVS 3 oz bottles of saline I use with my contacts.

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    1. I have that book, too!! I wonder if you have Banu's CD.

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  12. I hate when products are discontinued! I'm starting a rule for myself - if I really like something I better get more than one because I know when I need it next time it will be gone! I had no ideal L'Oreal was discontinuing their nail polish. Why???? That wouldn't be so bad if I could find the shade I wanted from another company but I've looked and looked and come home with some really terrible things thinking they might work. Nail polish with sparkly things? No, not for me so I'll keep looking.

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    1. I know!! That's why I was so desperate I resorted to Kylie to see if THEY had a color match. But you can't hoard lipstick. Did you know it goes bad? And then it tastes horrible.

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  13. Laughed out loud! Still miss Mood Indigo, an amazing eye shadow color from Elizabeth Arden, discontinued years ago (I have NEVER found a replacement). And folks who have read Skeletons in the Attic know about Callie's cocoa butter lip balm addiction. Check! I have tubes of it everywhere (purse, desk, night table, car) and when I found out it had been discontinued, I went to the Body Shop's website and bought the last 13 tubes in stock. Yup. Still have about 10 tubes which I covet.

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    1. I'm so glad, Judy! But those tubes haven't gone bad? I'm a lip balm addict. Some of it turns.

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    2. Not so far...I hope not!! Btw, my friend bought some lipstick. It's black and turns a different color on everyone. She loves it. I don't wear lipstick but here's a link to it. https://www.sephora.com/ca/en/product/rouge-interdit-vinyl-color-enhancing-lipstick-16-noir-revelateur-name-tbd-P419605

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  14. I had the perfect summer pink from Revlon - a little shimmery, not too pale, not too young. Of course, I was never able to get it again.

    My sister and I were bemoaning the fact we're going to have to start buying all our lipsticks. Our mother was a dedicated Avon fan, and she was always buying us shades she thought we'd like or passing on ones that didn't work for her. BTW, Avon make-up is good stuff. It's not the cake foundation and scented powder of our childhoods.

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    1. I hadn't thought about checking out Avon for a color match, but now I will. Thanks!

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  15. I don't wear makeup, but I certainly enjoyed this very humorous introduction to the travails of those who do! Thanks for the morning chuckle.

    For what it's worth, I understand via a friend that the SeneGence brand is "amazing".

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  16. After reading your article about discontinued lipstick, I am so ready to read your books!! LOL funny, but also brought back memories of how frustrating it is to not be able to buy something you depend on ever again. 1. I'd have to say that when the perfume Replique was discontinued, a part of my identity as a sensuous woman was also discontinued. 2. Land's End cotton and spandex underwear. Don't laugh, okay, go ahead and laugh, but seriously, NO PANTY LINES!! Ever! 3. New Balance hiking shoes. Please don't tell me those sneakers are the replacement for boots! Anyway, Ellen, good luck with your new book. I am getting on web in one minute to look for the first book in your series.

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    1. Thank you, Judy!! And no laughter here - if there is anything that prevents pantyline, I am a fan!

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  17. I don't want to know about dinosaur porn.

    I finally got to the stage of my life where I could justify splurging on good tea. Bought myself a pot from Teavana and really loved their English Breakfast and Darjeeling teas. Then...poof. Gone. Not even online.

    I've lost count of the number of times I've found a pair of jeans that made me say, "Yes! These are perfect!" only to have them out of stock/fashion the next time I need jeans.

    I'm still using three "sample" sized lipsticks from a "nude" collection The Girl bought. Mostly I'm like Edith. If it ain't an Target, it ain't for me.

    Mary/Liz

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    1. Mary/Liz, I order my loose teas from The English Tea Store. I like their own brands, although they sell others. I get their coarse leaf Earl Gray, and their Estate Borengajuli Assam. They have samplers they let you try different teas, too.

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    2. I order from English Tea store, too. I'm a tea freak.

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    3. Kindred souls, Ellen!! Which ones do you like?

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    4. I'll have to look. I'm using several types from Harney & Sons right now, but I'm always on the look out.

      Mary/Liz

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  18. Hi Ellen *waving*. So happy to see you here today. I've read all of the Cajun Country offerings, including the latest. Great fun! As far as makeup, I'm with Edith. Point me to the nearest CVS. I do, however, miss my favorite shirt from Coldwater Creek, perfectly tailored and in a range of the most beautiful colors. When they "reorganized" my shirt was a victim of the shuffle.

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    1. Hi, Lyda! Thank you! And my condolences re: that shirt. Sigh...

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  19. Whenever I find something I like such as food, a clothing item, I realize that unless I buy a couple they won't be there for long. This has happened with shoes,teas, soups etc.

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  20. Yay Ellen! So thrilled about the book. I am constantly in search of Chanel's Sweet Lilac nail polish and have paid ridiculous amounts of money for it on eBay. Thank goodness for nail polish thinner....

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    1. Hi, Wendall! Thanks. And I hear you re: that thinner.

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  21. Ellen, I can relate. Cover Girl had a very light, smooth concealer creme that actually concealed, formulated for "older" skin, and naturally they discontinued it. I called the company consumer hotline and they recommended another product, but it's not nearly as good.

    Jockey used to make the best panties, made of bamboo fabric, with a wide band that never gave me muffin-top, and that did not show under clothing. The fabric was amazing, breathable, kept its shape, and wore like iron. The elastic could not keep up, though, and when I finally went to replace them I found that Jockey no longer makes bamboo anything. Grr.

    Revlon used to have a liquid all-day lipstick, with a topcoat that smoothed, and I really liked it, but they quit making my color. Then I found their ColorStay Matte lipsticks. Sold at grocery stores and drugstores and Target, et al, keep my lips smooth, and the color stays on all day long. Lots of good colors, too. For once, a really, truly "improved" product. They're probably quit making them next week.

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    1. Sad emoji for the loss of the concealer and undies. I only wear Jockey, so I feel your pain. And now I want to try Revlon's ColorStay!

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  22. I can totally relate! I have the pale skin that comes from having reddish hair, and if I didn't wear makeup my features would totally disappear. So far they haven't discontinued my favorite Chanel eyebrow pencil (I have very faint eyebrows), but I'm sure that's coming. I'm OK with Maybelline mascara. But lipsticks are always a problem. I would love to find the perfect shade, but I usually find myself combining a lip liner and two lipsticks. I was particularly fond of Clinique's lip glosses, which were suddenly discontinued. I found a killer shade for half-price when they were liquidating them so I bought a couple more on eBay, but they are running out. Clinique's "better" replacements are too glossy, and after buying three, I still haven't found the right shade.

    Another issue is hairspray. I don't use much, and I like the lowest level of hold. They discontinued the one from Pantene, and there was an outcry about it. Just try finding something like it out there. I now use Aussie, but even though it says it's level 1 hold, it is heavier than what I used before.

    Ellen, I love your books and have read them all so far. Looking forward to this one!

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    1. Margie, try Clinique's hairspray. It non-aerosol, unscented, and does not leave your hair sticky.

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    2. Margie, thank you so much! BTW, I found a GREAT eyebrow pencil from Maybelline. It's liner on end and powder on the other. The powder part is wonderful. I live in fear of them discontinuing it. Okay, now I have to go to Target today and buy some backups.

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    3. Thank you, Deborah and Ellen, for your suggestions. I'll check them out!

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  23. Oops, I commented on the Deborah Crombie page first. If at first you don't succeed, try reading the directions!

    I miss my favorite kalamata olive tapenade. I used to buy it at Le Gourmet Chef which has closed its doors. I cannot remember the brand name in order to look it up online! I've searched recipes online to make my own but nothing is even similar.

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    1. Carol, Trader Joe's makes some great olive tapenades. I don't know if they have any stores in your area. If not, maybe you can buy it online.

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  24. Hi, all! This is funny - somehow the descriptions for last year's CCM - A CAJUN CHRISTMAS KILLING - and this year's -MARDI GRAS MURDER - got combined. Sleigh bells and such are in the former, not the latter. I stuff a lot of story into my books, but not quite THAT much, LOL!

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  25. Hi, Ellen! Your post cracks me up!!! I totally see the correlation of the fascination of Kardashian to dinosaur porn. Truly, that made me cackle. Losing a lipstick color is a tragedy. I have a friend who has worn the exact same shade of lipstick for thirty years. I even used it as a clue in an upcoming mystery!

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    1. Thanks, Jenn! (I bet you're one of the people who instantly looked up dino porn ,heh heh.) Now I HAVE to read your next book - (like I wasn't going to anyway, hah). GREAT clue.

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  26. I must confess. Every time I go to the salon, I cruise the Aveda discontinued products baskets and grab whatever is remotely in my color range. I had so much, I gave half of it to the kid with my skin tones and still had enough for all the lip gloss to turn to glue before I could use it. Sad face.

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    1. I love Aveda. But their colors never seem to work on me.

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  27. I feel your pain. I still have pants I bought from a Columbia outlet at least 15 years ago; discontinued. No new product remotely like them. Same with some LL Bean pants, except my pairs are long gone. As for lipstick, if I find something at the drugstore I really like it will be discontinued. Lately I've been wearing either Burt's Bees crayon or tinted lip balm. I did get one of their lipsticks but don't care for the texture. I loved Belgian Napoleon candies. They were tart hard candies with a liquid center. Lemon, lime, tangerine, any of the citrus flavors. They were sooooo good. Can't find them anymore. :(

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    1. Pat, www.baysidecandy.com sells the Napoleon hard candies.

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  28. Ellen, porn for me is footage of libraries and BBQ pork ribs (not necessarily together). Sorry for your lipstick loss. Clinique discontinued the lipstick I wore at my wedding, and I was sentimentally attached. My biggest discontinuation headache, though, is with shoes. If I find a shoe that looks good and fits perfectly, it always gets discontinued, like a certain model of Uggs lined boots that I desperately need living here in the snowy U.P. and would pay double the price if I could find!!

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    1. It, too, am lamenting a discontinued Clinique color. It was just perfect for me -- though dark in the tube, it didn't look any particular color on my lips -- it just seemed to give the natural color more intensity. Sigh.

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  29. Ellen, I completely understand your distress at your discontinued lipstick color. Some years ago, Lancome discontinued my go-to color, and I was left, like you, floundering in a sea of plenty with nary a love match in sight. Finally, after many sleepless nights (yes, I can be dramatic where lip color is concerned, hahaha), another Lancome lip color appeared through the fog and captured my heart, err, my lips. So, having used it for years now and having become dependent on it, I'm waiting for Lancome to pull the rug out from beneath me and decide to retire my lipstick soul mate. Maybe I need to buy some extra.

    What's funny is that yesterday I realized that I'd left my beloved lipstick at home, but I had a tube of inferior color in my purse (I wasn't cheating on my steady lipstick, I swear. I happened to have that other tube in there because I had misplaced my lipstick and had to have something, so I grabbed a tube I'd gotten in a promotion package). So, I put some of the lesser lipstick on before I picked up my nine-year-old granddaughter from school. After she was in the car, she commented that she liked my lipstick. Oh, my! She has excellent taste, so is it possible I now have a second color I can use? Hmmm.

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    1. Kathy, you can't be too dramatic when it comes to discontinued makeup! Is the second lipstick less expensive? You may have found a new go-to.

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    2. It's Clinique and is slightly less expensive, but it has a bit more shimmer to it than I usually am comfortable with.

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  30. I got so caught up in lipstick, I failed to congratulate you on Mardi Gras Murder. I'm looking forward to reading it. And, you wrote for Wings? I loved that show so much. In fact, both my husband and I watched it and loved it.

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    1. Thanks! And yes, I wrote for the last three seasons of WINGS. Some classic episodes to be sure.

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  31. Congratulations on Mardi Gras Murder. I would enjoy the book. As far as discontinued items go there have been so many which disappeared and are gone forever. Alas I will have to locate replacements for the goodies and clothing which is difficult.

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  32. SO BEHIND! I am in CA and at a conference and sneaking this. But I am laughing so hard! I found out that Trish McEvoy as discontinuing Inferno. OH NO. I --I confess--called the Trish HQ and said--there must be some of that someplace--can I buy it where ever it is? For WEEKS, literally, WEEKS, package arrived on our doorstep form all over the country with a tube or two. My husband would not even speak, he was so aghast. I keep it in the fridge. SO, Ellen, I already knew you and I were soul mates--now I am even more certain of it. xoxo

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    1. Okay, now I'm laughing at lipstick arriving for weeks and your husband's nonplussed reaction. And so excited to be your soul mate!

      Speaking of husbands, thank God mine doesn't read my posts. He'd pass out if he knew I spent as much as I did on any makeup products, no less ones that are Kardashian-adjacent.

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  33. I would pay twenty bucks a box if I could find Post Cereal's Fortified Oat Flakes, but alas, they have been discontinued. Oh boy, did I love them...

    Speaking of Post, fun post, Ellen! Though I've never heard of Nars and have no idea who Kylie is. As for dinosaur porn, never knew about that either. You are such a fountain of information, girl!

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    1. LOL, Ellen Byron, Fountain of Useless and Sometimes Disturbing Information!

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  34. This is hilarious! My daughter has order some Khloe cosmetics and loves them. I had a bottle of hairspray that my daughter made off with. It's no longer made but she found a bottle on Amazon for $98.00!!!! She didn't order it. Have you tried Tarte lipstick? My daughter gave me two sample sets and I love them. Good luck!

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    1. I haven't, but now I will. I did find a very close match, a color from Urban Decay. Ya gotta love these makeup names!

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  35. Ellen, I assume your favorite Nars lip color isn't listed here? https://www.narscosmetics.com/USA/lip-discontinued-favorites

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  36. I have not yet found the perfect lipstick, which translates to continuous shopping for lipsticks. I would not even go to the mailbox without pretty lips....The only time I was ever punished as a child was for getting into my grandmother's Avon samples. I was 3. I was at her dresser--one of those old-fashioned three mirror ones--covered in red slashes. She almost had a heart attack when she saw me until she realized it was lipstick. This proves my fascination with lipstick started young.

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    1. LOL, I have a similar story about our daughter at the same age. She wandered into the office, where I was working, covered with a brown substance. Panicked, I called Poison Control. While I was on the phone, I noticed an open lipstick on the floor - NARS MOROCCO!!

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  37. Ingrid or Ellen, confess: which one of you is responsible for the pun that titles today's Jungle Reds? Thank you for the ouch and the smile!

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    1. All the credit goes to Ingrid on that one!

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    2. Ha! It wasn't on purpose, Elisabeth! Glad you enjoyed it!

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  38. You are so funny, Ellen. As for products I love that have been discontinued, the list goes on and on. I used to buy these fair-trade shoes from a company that went out of business about seven years ago. I managed to find another fair-trade shoe I liked even better, but there is exactly one store in the US that carries it (the shoes are made in Europe). Fortunately, they will ship anywhere. Makeup is another one. Of course, I don't wear a lot of it, so I kind of expect whatever product I've been using to be discontinued by the time I get to the end of a bottle or tube. For food products, I could probably list dozens of items Trader Joe's used to carry that I loved but are no longer available. But I keep hoping some of them will show up on the shelves again one day!

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    1. Thanks, Marla! And yeah, Trader Joe's is a HUGE offender when it comes to discontinuing items. I've lost count of how many things I like from there are gone forever.

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  39. I used to use Drixoral for allergy and sinus problems, and it worked but it's been gone for many years. Claritin doesn't work as well. I bought several Skin So Soft bottles when the local Avon store closed but I'm on my last one and no longer know any Avon ladies. Probably I can get it on line. It's frustrating when they get rid of your favorite products just like favorite TV shows or even mystery series!

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    1. Sally, I just ordered some Skin So Soft bug guard for my daughter off Amazon. Also, I think you can go to avon.com and find a rep near you. Good luck!

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  40. Congratulations on the latest release, Ellen. I keep promising myself I'll get started on this release, what with a mamma-in-law who grew up on NOLA. My greatest discontinuation tragedy--a face cleanser. I have troubled skin and the BEST cleanser I ever used came from my dermatologist. They had a line of products that they had labelled for them and the Creamy Foaming Face Cleanser was the best thing ever! And cheap--sixteen bucks for a bottle that lasted for six months. But, alas, it is gone now. Phooey! And I'm jealous of you folks who can wear lipstick. I can't get it to stay on my lips for any length of time. Maybe if I actually learned to apply it, with a liner and all. . .

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    1. sheesh. . . correction "started on this SERIES"

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    2. Melanie, I am sorry for your loss. ;-) And I bet your mamma-in-law has some great stories!

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  41. Such a funny post but I admit I've been mesmerized like that and bought things I didn't need from sellers I didn't want to buy from. My favorite product isn't quite gone yet but it's slowly moving off the shelves from the high end department stores to (sob) Walgreens. It's Anais Anais perfume. Since I have been wearing it forever I thought it would be around forever. We call it catnip in my house because my husband likes it on me so much . . . And it does seem that when I want to start a collection of something like dishes, flatware, Christmas dishes, suddenly it's discontinued. Congrats on the latest release and sorry about the lipstick, it's hard enough to find one that looks good.

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    1. Thank you, and agreed! Perhaps your perfume will drop in price now that it's moving...

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  42. There have been so many products that I loved that they discontinued. I love this series. Thank you for this chance!

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    1. I'm so glad you love the series. Thanks, Robyn!

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  43. That has happened to me a couple of times now, and it really makes me mad. I KNOW that I am not the only one who was buying that particular color because it was always out of stock! There have been other items that have gone away too. Thanks for the chance.

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    1. Good luck! And may you find excellent replacements.

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  44. There was a tea that was so delicious and they quit making it. It tastes like root beer!

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    1. Okay, now I MUST know the name of that tea!

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    2. There is one called Nelsons tea, thats like root beer.

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  45. Never had anything discontinued. I've had book series I liked that were dropped. 😢 Looking forward to reading this addition to your series. rgp1950@yahoo.com

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    1. Thank you so much. And I know what you mean about series being dropped. It's painful on author and reader alike!

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  46. Ellen, welcome to Jungle Reds! Stopping by a day late! I have a favorite product that was discontinued. I loved this perfume that you could buy in a dime store. Jane Seymour aka Dr. Quinn the Medicine Women was the model for this perfume. Several years later I was on a ferry from Holland to Denmark and I found a bottle of this perfume in a little shop on the ferry. You could buy hot dogs, drinks, headache pills, perfume among other things you usually find at a minimart at the local gas station.

    I totally understand wanting this lipstick. I have difficulty shopping for things that fit me and it is discouraging when they discontinue something that fits. Because this happened several times, I try to shop more than once a year! I think they discontinued it because it was not profitable.

    Diana

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    1. That's so funny you could find the perfume on the ferry! I used to love a fragrance called Tatiana by Diane Von Furstenberg. You know where I found it a couple of years ago? The dollar store!

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    2. Yes, that was funny! I remember the Tatiana perfume, I think it was named after her daughter? That's funny about finding her perfume at the dollar store. Now there is a perfume I love from Clinique or Estee Lauder called Happy or Beautiful. Or perhaps I have both.

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  47. Chocolate toffee latte, what we would call a stick drink. It comes un a thin packet you open it up pour the powder into a cup and add hot water, its delicious and they dont make it any more. My daughter got on the case and found out where they sent the remaining packets to and bought every packet they had left. So now I have 56 packets of 10 sticks, I am one lucky Mum ❤

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    1. That daughter of yours is a keeper! Hey, see if she can track down Nars Morocco lipstick. ;-)

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