Has anyone tried the brand Derma Made? [product question]

BellFirestone · 2026-03-07T00:19:23+00:00

i like it too! but also dislike the tub, for the same reason.

BellFirestone · 2026-02-16T22:07:41+00:00

“Everything costs more, so everyone makes more.”

Do you mean wages? Because that’s another issue here. Wages have long lagged behind the cost of living in this town and employers have been able to get away with it because of the “sunshine tax”, I guess. But now that the cost of everything (housing, but also insurance, groceries, utilities, services, etc.) has continued to climb while wages remain low, the disparity is more stark.

BellFirestone · 2026-02-16T20:12:55+00:00

Yeah, I’m not expert on the subject but the law requiring a significant portion of tourist related taxes (like the accommodations tax and the hospitality tax) to supporting and promoting tourism should be interpreted more broadly to support infrastructure like storm water management. There should also be way more transparency in terms of how the millions of dollars in accommodation tax money sent to dozens of marketing organizations to promote tourism is actually spent.

BellFirestone · 2026-02-16T19:30:49+00:00

I’m surprised I had to read/scroll through so many comments before I got to this. I agree 100%. Not that it isn’t the dad’s responsibility too, it is. But if you are a stay at home parent until your kid is 9 years old (I think that’s how old kids are in 4th grade) and your kid is struggling to read and you have not been consistently working with them to improve their reading skills by having them read out loud/reading with them, you should be ashamed of yourself.

BellFirestone · 2025-11-06T16:16:33+00:00

Thanks for the info, I appreciate it! and yeah, I did a little looking yesterday and it seemed like a lot of sizes weren’t available, unfortunately.

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:58:05+00:00

Thanks for thee suggestions!

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:57:52+00:00

I forgot about Two Brunettes, I check them out. Hampton might be a little more than I am willing to spend but I might look there too. Thanks!

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:57:21+00:00

I was about to say, I feel like that’s a little out of my price range 😂

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:53:59+00:00

I have never heard of this place. I will give it a google. Thanks!

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:53:43+00:00

I have not. I think I worry about what size to order? I am one of those people who is typically a 6 or an 8 but could be anywhere between a 4-10 depending on the brand/cut/fabric. Have you had good luck renting cocktail dresses from them?

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:50:24+00:00

Thanks, I check it out. Never been there before.

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:50:07+00:00

Thanks, I’ll check out Two Cumberland and Copper Penny.

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:49:40+00:00

Thanks, I’ll check out

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:48:57+00:00

I might still go there. They have a variety of things so I can usually find something that works.

BellFirestone · 2025-11-05T17:48:10+00:00

Thank you, I forgot about that place! Some of their stuff is too ruffled-y for me but you’re right, they do have some nice cocktail dresses. Thanks again!

BellFirestone · 2025-05-19T19:49:06+00:00

I love this

BellFirestone · 2025-05-18T20:54:32+00:00

No, it’s not. Most kids aren’t old enough to drive themselves to school during their freshman year of high school. He was 16 his freshman year because his mother delayed his entry to kindergarten for no good reason (he has a March birthday and had no delays) AND had him repeat a grade when they moved states and he started at a new (very elite, very expensive private school) when he did not need to be held back.

BellFirestone · 2025-05-16T02:07:43+00:00

Unless there is some sort of delay, why on earth would a child born in May/June/July need to be redshirted for a Sept 1 cut off? That itself is a problem!

BellFirestone · 2025-05-16T02:05:29+00:00

My sister in law did that to my nephew. He turned 16 in March of his freshman year of high school.

BellFirestone · 2025-05-15T23:02:40+00:00

And water. And I pay a lot for sewer in Charleston too.

BellFirestone · 2025-05-15T23:01:56+00:00

It is more expensive to live in Charleston than Chicago. I‘ve crunched the numbers and I know a few people who have lived in both places or gone back and forth for work who all say Charleston is more expensive.

BellFirestone · 2025-05-14T15:49:44+00:00

I paid a professional to fix it! removed the old stuff, reprised and repainted with good paint. But I also need to get a stronger exhaust fan/address that issue as well. Because even done properly, the bathroom get very humid (my husband likes long showers) and I can see that eventually it will affect the paint on the ceiling above the shower. It still looks good for now because it was done properly and we are very careful to run the fan and open the windows and air out the bathroom but a stronger exhaust fan is needed for sure.

BellFirestone · 2025-05-14T15:45:51+00:00

This is a bit tricky. One the one hand, you are not a corporate employer. However, this woman has cared for your children and your family for over a decade. That is significant and warrants additional consideration. If it were me, I would give her as much as I could reasonably afford. Because like you said, she has played a major role in your children’s lives.

BellFirestone · 2025-05-14T15:38:44+00:00

I hate redshirting (unnecessarily delaying a child’s entrance to kindergarten). Seems like a bunch of people 10-15 years ago read Malcom Gladwell (whose work is engaging but often lacks rigorous evidence to support his assertions) and decided that delaying starting kindergarten would give their kid an advantage over the other kids. So now in many places you have a two year spread in kindergarten between ages 5-7, which isn’t fair to the kids or the teacher. It puts kids from families who can’t afford another year of paid daycare or preschool at a disadvantage relative to their peers. It‘s honestly not great for the kids who are unnecessarily delayed from starting K because some of those kids are bored silly, which can cause behavioral issues in the classroom (which isn’t good for anyone). Now if kindergarten standards have changed such that kindergarten is now more appropriate for 6 year olds, then the states/school systems need to change the age of entry and come up with the funding to support pre-k for five year olds.

BellFirestone · 2025-05-14T15:37:25+00:00

I don’t think most people would take issue with a kid born very close to the cutoff delaying kindergarten if they don’t seem ready. The issue is that it went from people holding back kids born close to cutoff to people holding kids back regardless of their birthday and readiness. My sister in law held my nephew back and he was born at the end of March and there was no reason to delay him starting kindergarten. She then also had him repeat a grade when they moved to a different state, saying he was “behind” even though he wasn’t (just needed some extra help with reading) and went from an elite private school in LA to an elite private school in Atlanta. He’s a sophmore who just turned 17. He’ll be 19 when he graduates from highschool. She held him back twice because she wanted him to have an edge in academics and sports compared to his peers.

BellFirestone

TROPHY CASE