Got a question? Now’s the time to ask it!

I’m taking your questions and answering them today. You can feel free to ask any question you’d like, beauty-related or unrelated. Feel free to answer other readers’ questions, too :) The more the merrier!

Go ahead, ask!

Some Frequently Asked Questions (aka FAQ)

There are always a few questions that I get asked more often than others, and I imagine that now would be a good time to do an updated FAQ to more quickly address some of those questions.  I don’t mind answering something I’ve answered before–trust me, I don’t expect anyone to scour the archives or read every post/comment–but I think it would be nice to put a few of these questions on record and in a more accessible spot!

Who is Temptalia?  What does Temptalia mean?

Temptalia was founded and continues to be written, edited, etc. by Christine Mielke, aka me.  The one you see in photos, that’s me!  If you see an arm, that’s me.  If you see a set of nails, that’s me!   Unless otherwise noted, various body parts for swatching purposes, eyes, lips, or full face photos are all of me and my beauty battle-tested body, ha!  Temptalia is a made-up word (by me! when I was like sixteen!) that is supposed to mean the perfect woman–she’s smart, sexy, confident, and totally amazing.

Who is “we”?

Even though I am the writer and face “behind” the blog, it takes more than my effort to make Temptalia everything it is today.  First, my boyfriend handles the back-end tasks for Temptalia–this is web design, coding/programming, managing our servers, editing videos, and other technical details.  Big deal, you know!  All that code would make me dizzy!   Then there are my parents and family, who lend me tremendous moral support, and without such, I think I might have given up somewhere along the line.  But also?  You!  Without the people who read, comment, and participate on the blog, there just wouldn’t be a blog.  It wouldn’t be where it is today nor would it have a future.  I just feel it’s shortsighted to say me, me, me, because I feel like we’re a community and it’s WE, WE, WE!

How old are you?  Where do you live?  What do you do?

I’m 23, and I live in California. I am a full-time student in a JD/MBA program, which is a combined graduate program for law and business.  I have about eighteen months left until I graduate (which still feels like forever and a day!).

What is your eye color, hair color, skin tone?  Do you wear contacts?  What is your ethnicity?

I have hazel eyes, brown-black hair, and a medium complexion with warm undertones (I am MAC NC25 for reference).  I do not wear contacts!  I don’t even own any, though I imagine in the next year or two I’ll need to wear my glasses often enough that I’ll want to give contacts a try.  I’m half Vietnamese, quarter Swiss, and quarter German.  I don’t speak any of the languages associated with my ethnicity, unfortunately.  I know a little French (though I took four years of it during high school), but I consider myself a language loser and only know one: English!

What camera do you use? video camera?  Any photography tips?

I use a Nikon D90.  I have several different lenses (they’re all Nikon lenses), including the kit lens, a macro-specific lens, and a portrait lens.  I use a Canon Vixia HF S100 for video.  For photography, I recommend reading photography blogs as well as your camera’s manual.  Seriously – I couldn’t take a photo worth a penny until I read my manual.  All sorts of lightbulbs went off when I finally got around to reading through it!  Oh, and macro mode.  That’s always good!  And if the flash washes things out, try to lower it through your camera’s settings or diffuse it by putting a tissue over the flash itself.  But honestly, just try taking your camera and taking photos of the same object but with different settings.

A few more Qs on blogging…

How long have you been blogging?

Temptalia began in October 2006.  If you consider services like Livejournal a blog, then somewhere around ten years.  If you don’t (and I don’t), three and a half years.

What blogging platform do you use?  Where did you get your layout from?

Temptalia is run on Wordpress and has been since it began!  The design and look of Temptalia is coded and designed from scratch by my boyfriend, aka the Tech Guy.

What tips do you have for new bloggers?

Do it because you love it.  This is especially true in such a saturated niche like beauty.  I’d also suggest working on your writing if you find you are not perfect out-of-the-box, because it’s important to stay true to your voice, but if you can convey it with a good grasp of the language you’re writing in, so much the better!  Oh, and don’t jump the gun – be patient.  Very few blogs skyrocket to success, so it’s important to remember to keep on bloggin’ and cultivate patience while you grow your readership.

Do you receive free samples?

Yes, I do.  All posts have a disclosure statement as necessary to let you know if the product was provided by either a public relations firm or the brand itself.  Samples allow me to review a broader range of products, but they also allow me to review products that you request without completely emptying my wallet!  You can read our full disclosure and policies here.

Do you get paid to review products?

No, I don’t.  I do not accept offers for paid reviews.  In case there’s confusion, I consider paid to be cash compensation, not merely supplying a product.  Whenever product samples are provided, they are on a for-consideration basis only.  This means that a public relations firm or brand sends the product without knowing whether the product will be reviewed.    You can read our full disclosure and policies here.

Got a question? Now’s the time to ask it!

I’m taking your questions and answering them today. You can feel free to ask any question you’d like, beauty-related or unrelated. Feel free to answer other readers’ questions, too :) The more the merrier!

Go ahead, ask!

Got a question? Now’s the time to ask it!

I’m taking your questions and answering them today. You can feel free to ask any question you’d like, beauty-related or unrelated. Feel free to answer other readers’ questions, too :) The more the merrier!

Go ahead, ask!

Got a question? Now’s the time to ask it!

I’m taking your questions and answering them today. You can feel free to ask any question you’d like, beauty-related or unrelated. Feel free to answer other readers’ questions, too :) The more the merrier!

Go ahead, ask!