it's yay for spiegel

Yes, it is a yay for my Spiegel order. I did have to email them for an order status update but the point is - the order went through! This means I get my stuff soon-ish but only pay for them in January 2011. Yippee! I love when I can shop and pay later. Though since my local currency is actually stronger than the US dollar right now, the credit card forex rates are the lowest they've ever been so it would actually benefit me to pay now instead of later. This is assuming that the US dollar rebounds before January of course :)

Anyways, this means I can wait till after 6 November to get the other 5 Newport News stuff I wanted. Ok, yes, I'm still not done clothes shopping. I can't help it if there are still clothes out there that are calling out to me! They WANT me to buy them. I know that came off as crazy, hehehe.

Ooh, aside from that, my KMart, Walmart, Newport News, Chloe sunnies and Amazon stuff has arrived in Homeland so double, triple, quadruple Woohoos! I am so psyched! My family will be coming up for a visit this coming Saturday so I can get some of my stuff then. I'm still trying to pick and choose the items I want to see first. I just know I want my Nature's Cure acne system so I can see if it really works. I'm having really hard-to-get-rid-of blemishes and its truly annoying how slathering lightening moisturiser diligently morning and night is not giving me faster results. I can see a difference but not fast enough.

I am aware that the pills could not work for me as they did/do for many others but like I mentioned before, I am willing to try them out for 2 months to give them a fair shake. I am hoping the system will work for me. If not, I'll just maintain my current regime, which appears to be working, and hope for the best till I can get my hands on my Clarisonic Plus as well as Jane Iredale compact and Neutrogena cream when I go back to Homeland on the 20th.

when one site shuts me out.....

try and try again. Hmmm, somehow I think I screwed up that quote a bit :D

I think I'm gonna officially list "testing the limits of my AMEX on US e-tailers" as one of my hobbies. As my shoes.com order was canceled and I strongly believe the Spiegel purchase won't get through either, I decided to try my luck with drugstore.com and pay for the items that have been sitting in my cart there instead. So much for this comment about no more beauty buys, hehehe :D

As the landscape of my face is undergoing changes right now, I've been researching new products to try in my quest for control. I went to several sites and read multiple reviews before settling on the items below. I was particularly inspired by this and this articles. Yes, I am very impressionable. Oh, the Tide-To-Go stain remover pens are not beauty but they were part of the haul - I've always wanted them :D



First up, we have the Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle, Anti-Blemish Cream. Yeah, that's right. It's an anti-acne AND anti-aging product. Just that alone compelled me to buy it. But I did my due diligence. I didn't rely on the article from lemondrop.com alone. In search of this product, I went to the one place I knew would be the most likely source for this hard-to-find product - drugstore.com. This isn't the first time I've gotten stuff from drugstore.com but this will be the first time I'm doing the purchasing. That's how I know that my best bet would be to look here and I was right. I found the Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle, Anti-Blemish Cream and my first course of action was to read the reviews. I was mildly surprised by the general age-group that was using this cream as most were in their 40s, 50s but there were a smattering of 30-somethings in the mix as well. And the fact that the majority of reviewers were of a more advanced age, I deduced that this definitely was a product made for mature skin. I was convinced enough by the testimonials and I decided to go for it.

Next we have the Aveeno Active Naturals Postively Radiant Makeup Removing Cleanser. This is actually my current makeup remover cleanser. I first found out about it from my sis who was watching some beauty guru Youtube vlogger's haul vid and this product was mentioned. My sis got her pack-of-3 Aveeno Active Naturals Postively Radiant Makeup Removing Cleanser from Amazon.com and as she extolled the wonderful virtues of this cleanser, I managed to convince her to sell me one of hers. I have been using it every day that I'm wearing the Revlon PhotoReady foundation (which is practically all the time now) and it really does get the stuff off of one's face. I usually get away with a single pump of this foam cleanser but on the day I was wearing the Temptu airbrushed makeup, I used two pumps as the Temptu product was a bit harder to remove. Since this cleanser is getting some pretty heavy usage, I thought I might as well have a spare ready in case I run out.

Then we come to the Maybelline Lasting Drama by EyeStudio Gel Eyeliner in Charcoal 954. This item I got because I kept watching Macbarbie07's beauty how-to vids and she uses this gel eyeliner from Maybelline a lot and she looks really great. I actually selected the same hue as Macbarbie07's, which was blackest black, but as usual I have to hmmm and haw a bit before actually buying and ended up, the shade blackest black ran out of stock. Since I am adamant about not having to pay a backlog fee if I kept this item in my list of purchase (I didn't now such a thing existed!), I decided to look at the other shades in the Maybelline Lasting Drama by EyeStudio range and came across Charcoal 954. I figure its a bit of a greyish hue which I'm fine with. As long as it looks natural and blends in with my own lash colour I will be satisfied. This will be my first gel eyeliner and though I've heard they can be tricky to apply, apparently this particular one from Maybelline makes it a snap to work with. Here's hoping :)

Now I'm going to talk about the product that I was really after - Jane Iredale PurePressed Base Pressed Mineral Powder. Ok, I really wanted the other stuff too but I could have waited and gotten them some other time. I needed to get this now because at $49.50 it is a very pricey cosmetics product and I was entitled to a 20% off discount if I purchased from drugstore.com by 29/10. I had looked on numerous other sites and none were selling this mineral foundation powder by Jane Iredale for anything less than the recommended retail price. I was intrigued enough by this lemondrop.com article to go and scour the internet for this product. It's a bit hard to find as it is apparently sold mainly at spas. But if there's one site that will have it, it's drugstore.com :) So this Jane Iredale PurePressed Base Pressed Mineral Powder is supposed to be THE makeup product that premier US aestheticians use on their own faces. What really made me get this is the claims by numerous reviewers about the anti-acne properties of this Jane Iredale product. According to Cat Marnell, whose article I read that led me to this product, it's got sunscreen with an SPF factor of 20 that'll help combat visible aging due to sun damage, is oil-free so one does not look like an oil slick by mid-day and is super-highly pigmented which basically translate to getting great coverage all over. I'm actually a lil bit scared of mineral makeup despite the fact that I've read a lot of reviews that claim its the best kind of cosmetics for problem skin. I tried the Bare Escentuals RareMinerals powder three years back when I was going through a spot of spots (hehe) but I felt like it made my skin worse instead of better. Most mineral makeup are expensive so when my lil sample didn't seem to work for me, I shied away from using mineral makeup. Till now. I was very convinced by Cat Marnell and various other persons and decided to take the plunge and get myself the compact in the shade caramel. It took me quite a bit of time to suss out the shade that would match my skintone best and although I am happy with the colour I chose, in the end it will totally depend on how it will look on my face in person. Hopefully the compact will do all its purported to do and more :)

Last but not least are the pack-of-3 Tide To Go stain remover pens. I have read multiple blog posts extolling the work of this miracle pen. The way some of the girls whose blogs I follow wax lyrical about this stain removing pen, I'd say they'd gladly admit to it being the demi-god of stain removal. Its only a demi-god cos of its teeny tiny size. I just thought this would be a great item to keep in my bag, handy at all times for any stain-inducing incidents. Plus, like I mentioned, drugstore.com is THE place to search for this kinda stuff. I tried Target and Walmart but they never had it and was searching drugstore.com on a whim when I came across it.

I am really happy and excited by my drugstore.com haul as I saved close to 20 bucks. I had my 20% off welcome discount and the Tide To Go pens and Maybelline EyeStudio Gel Eyeliner each had an online $1 off coupon in additional to my getting the 20% off of the listed price.



So as can be seen, I paid $69.97 which I find to be a reasonable amount considering I had a big ticket item that retails for $49.50 sans discount. And since my order has shipped, I know that drugstore.com is definitely a viable option for me to shop for all my drugstore needs :D

oops, i did it again

It was 20% off and I really wanted them! I needed them! Ok, perhaps the use of the word need is excessive so I'll just stick to want. I seriously wanted these!


Yup, these are a pair of Corso Como Festive Leather Ballet Flats. I have been silently lusting after these shoes ever since I tried on my sister's pair back in August. They are the most comfy pair of flats I've ever worn. I will admit to having a sizable amount of ballet flats (I might have about 5 or 6 current pairs) but have yet to find a pair I can wear with impunity. Most end up hurting the arches of my feet, rub my bunions or bite the back of my ankle. Or even worse, do all three :( With these Corso Comos, at the very least I know that the arches of my feet will have a lot of repreive when I wear them.

The best part about these shoes is the fact that they can be folded up and stuffed in my handbag without taking up so much space. I have looked at many different types of roll-up shoes and have come close to purchasing on various occasions but what stops me is the fact that these shoes are not leather. I have a bit of a phobia with PU shoes cos I hate it when they begin to peel. Rollasoles, fit in clouds, etc, etc. I have looked at all of them and just couldn't bring myself to pay the prices. Even though most of the roll-up shoes range from between $13 to $22 compared to a pricey $59.99 for these pair of Corso Como's, the fact that they are leather really swung the vote in its favour. And like I mentioned, I got a 20% off Fall coupon code so I was essentially charged $47.20. Shoes.com, where I got these, are selling it for $59. That's a savings of $11.80 for anyone who's counting - and that anyone is me!

I'm really pleased and don't regret getting the shoes despite the fact I will be skint for all of November cos of the amount of card charges I'll have to clear :)

Disclaimer: Image was taken from the Shoes.com.

Update:
The order got canceled. Boo hoo! Ah, well, shows the company does its due dilligence making sure the customer is legit :)

and i was doing so, so good!

Alas! Lol, the word alas is kinda funny when used in our modern times :) Back on topic, like the title says, I was doing so good on the unnecessary clothes shopping front. I wasn't doing any.

But damn the evil e-tailers and their irresistable coupon codes for discounts, free shipping and deferred billing codes. Their siren calls always, ALWAYS lure me into their murky yet enticing clothes-filled waters.

I caved, I caved, I caved, I caved. Sob. SOB. I couldn't help it. Spiegel, yes, Newport News' big sister, kept hounding me week after week welcoming me to the Spiegel fold with a 30% off discount. I held off and resisted for so long but there are limits to my endurance and Spiegel finally found it. I caved.

Ok, last coupla posts I did mention I was eyeing stuff off of the Newport News site. I kept resisting cos I wanted to wait for the AMEX's new billing cycle as well as holding out for a 30% off coupon. But as I kept putting off checkout, one or two of the items in my cart eventually sold out in my size, if not completely.

Yesterday I get another Spiegel email offering me 30% off and I finally decided to have a looksie at the site. I don't really fancy them cos their stuff is waaaay pricier and not as enticing as lil sis Newport News. But as I browsed the clearance section, my eyes fell upon the link header "Newport News Outlet". I grew really excited cos now I was in posession of a 30% discount I was willing to rethink the timeline for purchase. So I browsed in the hope I could find all the stuff in my Newport News cart on the Spiegel Newport News Outlet clearance section.

I didn't find everything - only two items were available (which I did put in my cart) BUT I did find something that I had been lusting over on the Newport News site that I thought too expensive a coupla months ago and as of last check, I could not even find on the main site. Yet here it was, in the Spiegel Newport News Outlet, and going for a very affordable price that I was very willing to pay. With no hesitation I clicked that piece into the cart. Then I saw something else that I had briefly seen on the Newport News site and when I looked for it a couple of times later I could never find it. I was a little bit hesitant that there would be no more in my size but luckily enough, there was and I clicked that into my cart as well. Then to round out the total to at least 75 bucks as to be able to qualify for the discount, I decided to get a shirt that I had been waffling over when perusing the Newport News site.

Now I have 5 items and I know I'm good for the discount. I decided to look around for a free shipping code and it wasn't hard to find. Once I put both the discount code and the free shipping coupon in, my total was $54.97. That's a really good amount but at this point doubts started to creep in. I was still unsure I want to go through with this cos that whole waiting-for-next-months-billing-cycle thing kept popping into my head. So on a whim, I looked for a deferred billing coupon code and just my luck (cos the Spiegel people want me to spend money on their site), I found a deferred billing code for January 2011. I entered that in and clicked 'Pay Now' and now I'm awaiting to see if the order with deferred billing will go through.

I kinda don't care either way. If I'm denied, ok, that's fine but if the order goes through I'll be cool with that too cos I'll only be paying for these items next January :) The funny thing is all the stuff I got was from Newport News - not a single item was from Spiegels.


A rundown of the items:

• Sequin Racerback Vest - $13.99
  This is the item I had wanted but wasn't willing to pay the price it was on the Newport News site which was 29 bucks. Original price: $49


• Sash-tied Blouse - $12.99
  This blouse is the item I wasn't sure I wanted to get when I was looking on the Newport News site. It served its purpose in rounding up my total here. Plus, the more I look at it, the more I'm liking the look of it. I got this in the colour Dahlia. The one shown here is Pink Raspberry. Original price: $49


• Ankle-length Shantung Skirt - $16.99
  This is actually one of the first items I was interested in way back when I first wanted to shop Newport News. But back then I wasn't willing to spend the 39 bucks it was going for as my trial buy so I forgoed it. Now at the current price point, I just couldn't pass it up. I got this in the exact shade as in the image - Pink Raspberry. Orginal price: $64


• Ruffled Blouse - $13.99
  When I first laid eyes on this I thought it was very Victorian and I truly liked it but the price was something I wasn't willing to pay. Then when I got savvy with the coupon codes and all, I tried to find this blouse again but to no avail. I was truly surprised to see it on the Spiegel Newport News Outlet as I thought this would have sold out eons ago. Guess not and that is my gain cos instead of paying $49 for this, I am getting it for about 14 bucks. The only colour available was black.


• Layered-Look Blouse & Cardigan Vest - $19.99
  Last but not least is this faux cardigan vest over a shirt piece. I just thought this would make a great officewear. I think its pretty and I love the combo of purple and black and the contrasting materials. This item is the priciest out of the 5 I chose. Orginal price: $64

And that completes the rundown. The only thing I need to do now is wait and see if the deferred billing request will go through. I have already got one deferred billing request for January but that came from the Newport News site. I don't think I should have any issues with approval for this but you just never know. I hope it goes through but if it doesn't, it won't be so much of a disappointment. Just a tad :). Anyways, pics are from Newport News and Spiegel.

when i get chatty.....

.....it seems there's no stop to it :D

I don't really have anything of note to talk about in this post. Maybe I am feeling so psyched having my Asus that I am finding a lot of excuses to use it and what better way than to natter on and on about frivolous things through the typing up of a blog post.

What shall I randomly talk about. Oh yea, I got this tin of Harrods Clotted Cream Strawberry biscuits and I must say they are divine. Really tasty. I didn't buy 'em but my sis handed off her tin to me since she was going back to Homeland and didn't want to bring it back with her. I'm posting a pic of it so I can immortalize the biccies on my blog forever, ever, ever......


Hmmm, I never did get around to saying anything about my Epson S7 projector that I got in August. Well, I've been using it quite sporadically. Mainly I get it out on Friday night and I'll use it throughout the weekend. Usually its to surf the net and watch my TV shows. Yup, you read that right. I hook up my projector so I can be all indulgent and have my whole living room wall transformed into a giant computer screen :D Makes the online shopping experience soooooooo much more satisfying. And why wouldn't it? You can see the clothes/bags/shoes details in all of its big screen glory. And reading the gossip sites is much better when projected on a white wall. I even use it to read my PDF mags and eBooks, hehe. Don't believe the awesomeness? Let me post a pic to illustrate.....and I'm throwing in a screenshot of Lee DeWyze standing in front of the AI judges after singing his version of Shania Twain's You're Still The One to boot.


Yup, I watched reruns of AI Season 9 on my projector so I can see Lee DeWyze in a quite life-size size :D *Sigh* That "aww, schucks" smile is just too precious. Looks like the Lee DeWyze crush is still alive and well. I have been listening to his single Sweet Serendipity over and over and over again these past few days. I was a bit meh the first 2 times I listened but then I really got into the song. It is really catchy and I love the chorus. His voice also sounds really good on this. Very, very intrigued to listen to the full album that is being released November 16 if I'm not mistaken.

Aside from that, I have been trying to catch up on my TV shows but it seems I'm really running behind and have 2 weeks worth of multiple series queued up. But I wasn't in the mood today after coming back from a pizza lunch so instead I watched the Bruce Willis movie RED. Soooooo good. I love it and the best one was John Malkovich. He plays paranoid soooo well. Loved it! There is this one sequence where Bruce Willis's character is being chased down by this CIA agent and the car he is driving is spun around and as its spinning the driver side door pops open and Bruce Willis calmly steps out of A MOVING, SPINNING vehicle - barely avoiding getting clipped by the car door when it spins to complete a rotation - and starts shooting at the CIA's car. And Helen Mirren was sexy as hell toting around all those machine guns!

Ok, I'm quite tired, been mucho chatty and I'm facing a bit of a brain drain. So I'm just gonna post a pic of my 9 year old cat, Chomsky, for fun. Not named after Noam Chomsky in any way.


Isn't she a cutie? I've actually never seen a cat with orange eyes before her. Some people might think it's a bit of a creepy combo what with the black fur and the orange eyes but she's such a sweetheart. And anyways, she's a cross Persian breed, how can a fluffy all-black ball of fur with orange eyes be scary?

I love to scratch her belly and under her neck till she just can't take it anymore and either starts scratching at my hand to stop the pleasure-torture (sounds weird but that's what it looks like, as if she wants more but can't take it, lol) or she tries to bite me to get me to stop or both. I sometimes just keep going to see my threshold of pain to endure her scratches. Her claws are sharp! And we don't believe in declawing. She's been having issues with some ear mites and I keep rubbing on the Front Line and it gets better but the next time I go home, she's got them again. We let her roam around and I think the company she keeps are rather shady types, lol.

Isn't it cute how she looks like she's walking while holding my mum's hand? And that shot of her peeking from behind my mom's skirt is just too cute. Ok, seriously missing her smell, right now. Gonna chill and maybe watch some Dexter or SOA. LOL, those shows are really far from chill :)

recent likes in my arsenal

My beauty arsenal that is :) For the past couple of months I've been switching up my skincare and makeup regime. Firstly cos my charcoal soap just didn't seem to be cutting it anymore - products just don't seem to work on my skin after the 1 year mark. Second, I've been hit by a bout of hormonal acne - I read that this is common at my age. LOL, that just seemed depressing to even write.

Anyways, I've shaken up my skincare regime completely and there were some products that worked/are working and some that didn't seem to be doing much, if at all, for me. I still haven't completely settled on a fixed regime but I'm close. My only concern is that I might have to go through all this again in a year's time.


Right now I'm using the Lush Ocean Salt facial scrub as my twice daily cleanser. The one in the pic above is the small 120g tub I recently got. I still have the 250g my mum helped me get back in July but it's kinda finishing up fast. Yea, I know it's not really a done thing to be exfoliating twice in a day but it seems to be the only thing that is working to reduce my outbreak. I believe it's the sea salt property that is helping to reduce the tiny bumps and a couple of cystic, angry-looking acne that have cropped up on my right cheek and my left temple area. Right now I have 2 healing blemishes on my right cheek, one on my left cheek and a healing blemish on my left temple. Tres annoying. I'm ecstatic that the outbreak on my chin has disappeared and the marks there are barely perceptible (is this even a word?). I can't say that the little bumps have completely dissipated because they haven't but I don't have as many as before and I think that some areas of my face is REALLY, REALLY clear. Though there is this cluster of four minute bumps on my right jawline which is completely annoying me - it's been nearly a month and no amount of Mario Badescu Drying Lotion is making it vamoose :)

Another cleanser that I've been using consistently is the Aveeno Positively Radiant Makeup Remover foam cleanser. I truly like this. It was recommended to me by my eldest sis who was watching a beauty vlog on Youtube and some beauty guru suggested this. I love it cos it really does work well as a makeup remover. I can just use one pump and it gets all the makeup off. I usually follow it up with the Lush Ocean Salt scrub. I don't use this clenaser every day. Just on weekdays when I go to work since I've been using full coverage foundation for the past month and I didn't want to rely on my go-to makeup remover in case it broke me out even worse - Johnson's & Johnson's Baby Oil, lol. I know that it's not a proper remover but it did get all of the gunk off but considering I have oily, acne-prone skin right now, I figured my best bet would be to use a dedicated makeup cleanser and this one from Aveeno got some great reviews.

Toner-wise, I've been switching between the Lush Breath OF Fresh Air, Mario Badescu Special Cucumber Lotion and my old Boots Tea Tree + Witch Hazel. At this moment I've mainly been trying to finish off the Boots toner not only because it's the oldest one on my dresser but because I think this actually does something positive for me. I can't really give a yay or nay for the Mario Badescu Special Cucumber Lotion cos I can't really tell if it is doing anything good for my skin right now. I'll give a clearer definitive opinion once I'm all out of the Boots toner (which will be sometime next week, I predict) cos then I'll really have no other toner to rely on. And the Breath of Fresh Air by Lush seems more like a facial spray than a toner so I've really been using that to set my makeup or for freshening up after a couple hours - I like it as a facial mist but as a toner, I don't think so.

And I've gone back to my personal favourite drugstore brand for my moisturising needs. I'm using the Garnier Skin Naturals Light Overnight Whitening Peeling Cream. Hehehe, the name's a mouthful but if it works, I'll vouch for it. I truly believe that it's been helping to reduce the appearance of the acne scars and speed up the skin healing process. I also tried Palmers Vitamin E serum but I stopped after a few days. I don't think my skin is suited for oil-based serums. I had a similar issue with Bio-Oil last time. When I tried dabbing the oil on my blemishes to promote skin regeneration and healing, it always ends up aggravating the blemish and gives me a reemerging zit. Not cool. So I'm just gonna stick to this Garnier moisturiser. I even use it during daytime even though I own the day version that comes with SPF. Somehow I feel the night cream works better on me. Putting this moisturiser also helps prevent the peeling effect from any acne treatment I use on my blemishes.

Which brings us to the Mario Badescu Drying Lotion. It's basically a pink powdery substance that settles at the bottom of the bottle and is submerged in a liquid that has a strong benzoyl peroxide/salycilic acid property. The trick is to avoid mixing the pink stuff with the liquid. So I usually use a q-tip to extract a bit of the pink powdery stuff and dab it on any blemishes I visibly see or can physically feel. Using this is supposed to dramatically reduce the redness and swelling overnight. The question is: does it really? Well, honestly, yes and no. Perhaps I have more stubborn blemishes but there are time when the lotion only works after 3 days, sometimes even a lil more. And I can't say that the same area doesn't erupt again after treating with this lotion because I'm still having blemishes in the same place. However, I'm gonna blame that on my makeup session with my sis who, while trying to conceal these two particular blemish, really poked them with her concealer brush and I would hazard a guess that that aggravated the skin and thus, zit reappeared! Honestly, I do like it cos it does what it says it does - reduce the swelling and redness - and it does it pretty well. It is perhaps the only Mario Badescu item I would repurchase.

Next in my list of favourites is my new Bubblegum Lip Scrub from Lush. This was part of a gifted Lush haul I got from my friend who works in Oz. She knows I'm kinda a Lush junkie and surprised me with a Lush goodie bag. I love my friends :D Anyways, by nature, I have very dry lips. No amount of water that I drink helps to compensate for this. This is a major reason why I avoid wearing lipstick altogether cos it just looks horrible when my lips dry out. At that point, no amount of balm will be of any help. But now, I exfoliate every morning with this simply scrumptious sugar lip polish and after letting the sugar granules melt into my lips (or I "accidentally" lick them off) I'm left with soft smooth canvas ready for some colour. Admittedly, I've been using this a lot cos the taste is kinda addictive, lol.


And I also recently purchased this Stila Convertible Lip Color in the shade blush bloom from Strawberrynet. Basically it's a double ended lipstick/rouge stick. One end is for sheer coverage while the other end is for a matte look. The sheer goes on like one of those coloured lip balms and basically complements your natural lip colour while the matte gives a more fuller coverage - you actually look like you're wearing lipstick as opposed to a barely there hint of it. Personally, I prefer to use the sheer for my lips and swipe the matte for my cheeks. Yup, you can use this as a cheek stain as well. The shade blush bloom is a muted burgundy-like hue and I find it's really pretty with my skintone despite the fact I am in the warm/light dark category. My only complaint is that the tube of lippie ALWAYS rubs off at the top of the tube and I end up with lip colour on the rim. Now, I usually don't even bother to twist the lippie up and just swipe the colour off of the rim.

I've been using the Revlon PhotoReady Foundation in medium beige for about one month now and I think I've mentioned that this is a great foundation to provide a natural, complimentary coverage for my currently problematic skin. I don't even need more than one pump of this to get an even, full coverage. One of the good things about this foundation is that although it is a full coverage foundation, it applies feeling light. You don't really feel as if you have heavy makeup on - in fact you look like you have naturally clear, glowy skin. Yup, this foundation gives off a nice glow. It says it gives an airbrushed quality. It's good coverage but after using the Temptu, I'd say that it falls a little short on that claim. I love it all the same and have already ordered my second bottle from Walmart the other day. Also, it has SPF 20 and anything that provides coverage AND sun protection is a clear winner in my book. I think that due to the SPF, it has helped to reduce the pigmentation on the blemishes since the sun's rays can't reach the skin easily. This might be another reason my scars have been quicker to clear.

I've never really commented on deodorants before but I've been using this Rexona Naturals Bioprotection deodorant stick for a month and a half now. I like how it contains natural ingredients. As I'm made to be more aware of the chemicals contained in beauty products, I am trying to go a more natural/organic route. It's not always a hit but I'm when I find products that work, it feels good. Anyways, it does provide long protection though I can't 100% vouch for the 24-hr claim :) The scent is really clean and fresh, like good-smelling soap even. Also has a very green vibe :D

Up next is the Lush Happy Hippy shampoo/shower gel. I haven't used this on my hair cos I haven't had to but as a shower gel, I LOVE IT. This is also from the gifted Lush goodie bag and I was pleasantly surprised by this selection by my friend. It is a grapefruit scent that is best used in the mornings on working weekdays as the fresh, citrus smell will give you a boost. And it leaves the bathroom smelling simply gorgeous, hehehe. I really would repurchase this. The consistency of the gel is thick but it lathers well. It doesn't really foam up but more like suds lightly. I read that the best kinds of shower gels are those that don't foam a lot anyways. This will look like it'll leave a filmy residue but it washes off easily and you'll be left with a really great lingering scent on your skin. I believe it goes best with a shower puff since a little squeeze of the bottle creates a good lather. On the packaging it's described as: Mellow yellow hair and body gel with freshly squeezed grapefruits - Just the thing for centralising your aura. I agree in that it does leave you feeling relaxed and calm and awake :) Plus it's vegan which falls in line with my organic/natural thing I'm trying to incorporate into my life.

I also tried the Pop In The Bath bubble bar which is also courtesy of my friend. I put in a lil bit under half of the bar and it really suds up great. I got a lot of bubbles for my bath and its apparently scented with a bergamot, lemon and mandarin aroma though I found it to be more of a sweet vanilla smell, lol. I definitely could not make out a trace of citrus. But then again, I am not a perfumer and I was taking this bath at 2:30 am while listening to Oz and 1st-To-Marry chit chat so I wasn't truly concentrating on the smell. The bath experience was relaxing and really pleasant though!

Ok, that's about it on the latest favourites in my beauty treasure chest. I have to skedaddle cos the whole house is going out for lunch together at 12:30 and I have to clean off the drying lotion from my face :P Toodles!

meet my new love

After five long years, my fabulous, hard-working HP Compaq M2000 series laptop finally breathed its last breath and I was left devastated. Not only because I had to depend heavily on my lil Nettie that could but because it was on the Compaq that I've had the highs of highs of my career and its demise was bittersweet to say the least.

Bittersweet cos this meant I could get a new and improved work laptop with the latest specs. After overcoming feeling bummed about the Compaq, which admittedly took about a week and a half, I started my search for my next lil helper. I had a budget to work within, about 800 dollars, and I wanted something that would give me real bang for my buck. A laptop that would run a relatively fast processor with decent amount of HD space and a minimum of 2GB of ram. I knew I wanted a machine with more than adequate battery life and a bonus would be a dedicated graphics card running on its own ram memory. I wasn't too concerned about weight since it would merely be sitting on my desk/bed and its not really a travel item.

I spent a couple of days really researching for my version of the holy grail lappie and at the end of it, I had a couple of options lined up from different manufacturers. One of the things I swore I would do this time around was look beyond the HP range. I've mentioned that once I find something I like I'm loyal to a fault to that brand but I knew that at the moment, HP wasn't the leading major player in providing bang-for-your-buck laptops. That's not to say I didn't have any HP notebooks in my lineup. It was really pretty varied in terms of specs as I wasn't opposed to Intel or AMD processors. All I really fixated on was the fact that I wanted a fast processor as I do need to run an SQL server for testing on this machine.

When it came to it, I was truly interested in getting an Asus laptop. Few years back, I would NEVER consider them cos, honestly, what the hell kinda name is Asus. At that point they weren't really well-known and I was loathe to invest money in a brand that wasn't established. But they must be doing something right as their consumer base has grown by leaps and bounds. I usually hear great things about the brand, especially with their EE range of netbooks. Not to mention, they apparently make truly decent higher-end laptops. I had one particular notebook that was number 1 on my list from the A52J series.

Last Saturday while I was back in Homeland, I went to go get the notebook at one of my fave IT stores located in this well-known IT Mall in the city. Anyone and everyone go here to get the best deals in IT paraphernalia and I like to think that I know the 2 best places to get the best bargains :D I've spent an inordinate amount of my time there and even know the sales associates by name so I guess that kinda proves how geeky I can get over all things techie. However, once I got there and asked about this specific model I had my eye on - apparently it was no longer available. I made a sad face but my frown quickly turned upside down when the guy serving me presented me with the latest offering which had a faster processor and would be roughly 35 bucks less. It was lacking 140GB of space since the version I was looking for came with a 640GB HD but when I really thought about it, I could make do with 500GB of space if the trade off was a 2.53GHz processor compared to the other one which was just a 2.40Ghz. Yes, that 0.13GHz makes a difference! So, here is my newest laptop - of course it's company property but hey, it's still all my own choosing!


Ok, that's just me teasing the cover, hehe. The specs are as below and are pretty much standard issue:

• CORE i5 2.40GHZ(M460)


• 2GB DDR3 RAM


• 500GB HARDDISK


• 15.6" HD WIDE SCREEN


• DVD BURNER (MULTI-RECORDER)


• NVIDIA G310M 1GBRAM DDR3)


• WIFI B/G/DRAFT-N


• BLUETOOTH


• CARD READER


• WINDOWS 7 HOME PREMIUM

I've been using it for about a week now and so far it's been a great experience. This is my first Windows 7 machine and though there have been many times I've had to readjust from the comforts of my previous XP system (though Nettie is still on XP), I've had nothing bad to say about this notebook. This is also my first experience with a 64 bit laptop. One of the things I never truly realized I would appreciate till this notebook came along is how quiet it runs. I think my previous notebooks are noisy compared to this one. It's truly silent when it runs. I also love the fact it features a full keyboard complete with a numbers keypad. It has created a bit of confusion cos I keep trying to type like I do on my old Compaq (RIP) and Nettie but it's still all good. And the trackpad has that multi-touch thingy that the iPhone/iTouch has to zoom in so perhaps, if I learn how to get used to this, I might not be totally averse to converting to an Apple iPhone (though I think I'd rather go android first :P). Battery life is reasonable, it lasts at most 3 full hours on a single charge. This is while I'm doing my usual downloads, watching some shows and internet surfing. Yup, basically I'm using my work laptop to run my multimedia stuff, hehe. What else is new :D


So, with that, I bid adieu, I kinda have to write a number of other stuff and it appears as if I can wax lyrical about this Asus quite a bit. Here's a cute pic of my Big and Small side-by-side.


Yea, yea, I know it's excessive and environmentally bad that I have both machines running simultaneously but, in my defense, there are certain apps that run better on my Nettie.

i just took the plunge.....

.....and decided to go ahead and invest in a Clarisonic skin cleaning system. I had mentioned my intentions of getting a Clarisonic Mia but I had thought of waiting for the Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales events. However, great testimony on behalf of the Clarisonic system by my sister and my own observations of ow her skin texture has improved since she received her Clarisonic Pro system convinced me to just go for it.

Initially I was dead set on getting the pink Clarisonic Mia as I still wanted to start my shopping for a cause bit but when push came to shove, I ended up instead with the Clarisonic Plus Philosophy set with Spot Therapy Kit. For the exceptionally great price of USD203.50. I think that's really quite a bargain since the set retails for $225 for just the Clarisonic Plus Philosophy system. I got my set off of eBay and this seller was auctioning the Clarisonic Plus Philosophy system with two additional brushes. If I remember correctly, the system on its own comes with the body brush and a sensitive brush head but this also comes with one delicate brush head and one normal brush head.


Besides the skin clearing system, the set also cotains Philosophy's Purity Made Simple facial cleanser, Hope In A Jar moisturiser and a Cinnamon Buns 3-In-1 wash. The facial cleanser and body wash are to be used with the respective corresponding brushes in the Clarisonic system while the moisturiser is sorta like a bonus. Using the Clarisonic system, moisturising products apaprently will get absorb better and this will ultimately lead to better looking skin.

Now, if I'm honest, I'm ambivalent about the face products since I have tried the Purity cleanser before and I don't think it did anything for me and I think I still have some other Philosophy acne-related product that did not work for me either. So that makes it 0 for 2. But, with this new system, I am willing to give the cleanser another go. I have had great experiences with the Philosophy range of body washes so I'm completely stoked to get the Cinnamon Buns wash since I'm going through a phase of loveing ALL cinnamon-y scents and I've never tried this scent before.

The thorough listing for this Clarisonic Plus system is as below:

CLARISONIC PLUS PHILOSOPHY FACE AND BODY DELUXE COLLECTION

- waterproof, rechargeable sonic skin cleansing

- all skin types

- 3 speeds for the face

- one rechargeable Clarisonic Plus

- one body brush head

- one delicate brush head

- one sensitive brush head

- one normal brush head

- one universal charging cradle

- one purity made simple cleanser - 8 fl. oz. / 236.6 ml

- one cinnamon buns shamoo, shower gel & bubble bath - 16 fl. oz. / 480 ml

- one hope in a jar - 0.5 oz.

A description of the system reads as such:

"It cleanses so well that products absorb better, pores appear smaller, and your skin's tone and texture improve. Just one minute a day, for the best skin of your life.

Sonic cleansing is not just for your face anymore. This set includes the body brush head to gently care for areas of the body needibg extra attention.

Directions:
Use for one minute twice a day, every day. Waterproof, so you can use in the shower or tub.
"

I'm really curious and mildly excited to try this system out as I am intrigued by all the reviews and comments that mention the difference between simply washing your face as per normal and using this system. Apparently the skin will feel the cleanest of clean, if that makes any grammatical sense, hehe. Many have said that there's no going back after trying the Clarisonic systems. I have also read that there is a potential for breakouts to occur at the beginning of use but what further skin aggravation could cause me more skin woes than I'm already facing now? I'm game to sticking through any rough periods of usage for a maximum of two weeks. I'm also hoping that by the time I begin this system, my skin will have bounced back significantly because I'd have started my Nature's Cure Acne 2-Part System pills by then.

Actually, my skin has improved quite a bit since I last blogged about my skin issues. I think it's a combo of twice daily washes with the Lush Ocean Salt facial cleanser, the balance of my Boots Tea Tree + Witch Hazel toner, my Garnier Skin Naturals Light Overnight Whitening Peeling Cream and the Mario Badescu Drying Lotion. My skin has calmed down somewhat and I'm hoping the pills will help speed up the regeneration and healing process as well keep those hormones (or whatever else that is causing my breakouts) at bay.

Btw, the image is courtesy of the seller's listing and is the exact system that I won. And that's my most latest online purchase - I am super excited to receive it :)

October(clothes)fest

What else is new with me - of course I'm buying stuff, I wouldn't be Zlena if I didn't!


So this is just gonna be a clothes-centric entry since there are a few other things I wanted to post on and I think they should have their own entries. First up is what I've been calling my Pretty-In-Pink confection - the Macy's Material Girl pink lace bodycon dress. Thoughts: I do like the dress even if the neckline is too wide for me. I guess it's because I don't have the boobs to pull of such a low and wide neckline. Hey, I'm honest about any shortcomings :D Other than that, I think this dress is really pretty and feminine and it makes me feel just that: Pretty & Feminine. I even think that it looks really great for work when paired with my latest blazer buy that I got during Sunday shopping with my sis this last trip back to Homeland (yes, yes, I know I should STOP getting blazers; just couldn't help myself - that whole deconstructed, slouchy look, cotton/fleece material and the breast pocket reeled me in).


Another thing that I got from Homeland was this totally cute 3/4 sleeve oversized bow tee. Well, it really isn't an oversized style tee but I thought that with the bow design on the front it would make a better oversized shirt for me than a fitted one so I just got it in a much larger size - I think that's an XL. I like that the bow is a grey shade on a black background. It's simple and at a glance it would appear as if the bow was a simple screen print tee but it's actually made out of tiny velvet bits that come together to form a big giant bow. Sometimes I think it might give off the impression I'm gifting my boobs, lol, but that doesn't make me love the tee any less. It's been reaping its ROI since I got it. In this pic I paired it with my faux denim leggings and my patent black pumps.

Next up we have this quarter sleeve thin black cardie and floral print scarf. I got the black cardigan, initially, to wear over the Material Girl lace dress but when I put them together the combo just didn't work. So instead, I'm wearing it over my KMart Attention long tank in black and the same faux denim leggings. To add some break from the monochrome-ish outfit, I added this totally kitsch and fabulous floral scarf I got from the market for $1.30. I actually got a bunch of them but this and a blue leopard print are my faves. I think the scarf really makes the outfit, hehe.

I also managed to get my hands on my Shape FX seamless tunic tank and have selflessly decided to post this pic of me wearing it. I also happen to be wearing my Spanx Mid Thigh Smoother under the tank. I don't think I did a post about that after I received it. That could be cos I haven't actually used the Spanx purchases yet. I did take this Shape FX tunic tank for a spin when I went to my friend's reception since I was wearing a dress. I think that overall it does help to hold those jiggly bits and bobs I haven't seem to be able to work off yet in place but the hemline tends to ride up a little so I might have unconsciously pulled them down without thinking a couple of times in front of people. Nonetheless, it does the trick and I am happy I went with a small. My Spanx are in M and I think that in retrospect, I should have gone for a small. The Spanx don't seem to be shaping enough for me in medium.

Also in my October(clothes)fest despite it being more of a different category is my new Vince Camuto tribal-inspired sandals. OMG, I am soooooooo ecstatic that the sandals look EXACTLY like they do in images. I love the overall look of these sandals. I'm still trying to break them in since with it being new, the double ankle straps are on the stiff side. I think once I've worn them in a little more, they'll be more comfortable cos the leather will be broken in. I've talked about my bunions and the difficulty I've faced in fitting shoes and there have been many occasions whereby I have had to forgo getting a pair because of a narrow fit or my bunions stick out oddly but these sandals cover them up strategically and actually make my feet look slimmer than they are. Again, the leather is still on the stiff side so there were moments where it felt uncomfortable but I did not get any blisters since I had slathered on my Scholl balm beforehand.

Other than that, I got 6 pairs of undies. And a belt. That's it for this haul. I cannot wait to get my hands on my Walmart package since it contains the Signature by Levi Strauss Totally Slimming slim leg and flare jeans as well as my KMart packages with my other Signature by Levi Strauss Totally Slimming midrise jeans, Selena Gomez's Dream Out Loud olive belted tunic and my green sports bra. I am thinking of getting some more clothes from Newport News since they are doing major clearance sales but don't know if I will have anything to buy by the time my credit card's billing cycle for next month begins in two weeks time. I did get a few other things which I will blog about after this :)

baaaaaaack!

Ok, so I've really been back to Workland for five days now but the blogging bug just wasn't biting. I wanted to but laziness got the best of me. As it always does :)

Anyways, I mentioned I was going back for a gal pal's wedding reception and the whole do was great. In fact, the whole trip was a blast. First day back was the sleepover we five gals had in one of the hotels in the city. We were minus one as the new bride needed her beauty sleep and staying with us would have meant gossiping till the wee hours of the morn - simply not good for looking one's best for her big do the day after. But all 6 of us did manage to have dinner together before heading back to our suite for a lil bit of talking till about 11:30 pm when Bride went home. The rest of us stayed up till one by one fell prey to fatigue - some of them were working that day. I was up till 4 am with Oz and 1st-To-Marry. We only decided to get some shut eye cos we had plans for the entire day and knew we should rest or else we'd be flat-out dead by mid-morning.

I managed to sleep till 8 am. That's when my body clock woke me up and I joined Dr in the living room. Dr had gone to bed super early - 10:30 the night before so she was well-rested. We had a chat while waiting for some signs of life to stir in the suite. Once 1st-To_marry and Glue awoke, we headed for the hotel restaurant; letting Oz sleep in since she didn't want to go for the complimentary brekkie. After getting some food, we knew we had better get a move on our day of leisure so all of us cleaned up (yea, we went to breakfast without showering - big deal) and by 10:30 am we were all checked out and ready to have a fun day of shopping and eating, hehe. Dr couldn't join in for this so it was us 4 gals.

So to iterate the day would make this a REALLY long post so I'm just gonna squeeze in the important bits. We were all excited to become ladies of leisure for the day and we shopped A LOT (ok, if I'm honest, I only got myself a belt and that was out of necessity since my Unionbay cargo pants were falling down constantly). We ate really good food; doing our ladies who lunch bit - yes, being ladies for the day seems to be the running theme cos we even discussed living life planning charities and doing flower arrangements, lol. And we ended our day by getting a 2-hr Balinese Aromatic Massage package at this great lil boutique spa. Totally heavenly - it started with a 5 minute herbal detoxing foot bath followed by a 2-hr Balinese massage with your choice of aromatic therapy oil (ok, it was only between lavendar and eucalyptus - I chose the latter) and it ended with a soothing cup of hot ginger tea. THE PERFECT WAY TO END A GREAT GIRLS' DAY OUT! Seriously, that was my first oil massage and I am in love! And best of all, it only costs 32 smackaroos!

Then we all went our seperate ways - I hadn't even seen my family save for my parents who picked me up from the airport and then dropped me off in town. I was sorely missing my lil kiddies and my sisters. So I went home Friday night and spent time with the fam. Saturday was spent going grocery shopping early in the morning and mid-morning I went to get my new work laptop (which I will post about in a seperate blog entry) and later in the evening my eldest sister did my makeup for the reception that night using her new Temptu airbrush system - I gotta say, airbrushed makeup is great for those big events one needs to attend. The reception started at 8 pm and I car pooled with Dr. It was somethng like a mini high school reunion since A LOT of our high school classmates were in attendance and it was great catching up with everyone. Got back at about 12 midnight and tried to go to bed but couldn't sleep cos I was busy setting up my new laptop to my liking :D

Sunday morning I spent with my sis and my eldest niece - we went shopping, I got a bunch of stuff (which I will also blog about in a seperate post). Then later that day one of my best gal pals whom I've known the longest (22 yrs if I'm not mistaken) came over and we hung out till about 7:30 pm - we took the kiddies to McDonalds for an ice cream sundae treat and some playground time. Then I just lay around the house playing with my nephew and nieces. Monday I spent trying to coax my nephew to revise his work for his exam later that day and before I knew it, it was time to head to the airport. And I arrived safely as can be attested by the fact there is a blog post saying just that. And that's that.

morning chit chat

Firstly I'd like to say I'm VERY proud of myself because I managed to avoid succumbing to my sometimes irrational shopaholic tendencies by not buying anything from the Mulberry For Target collection yesterday. Pat on the back, Zlena, baby steps :)

Second, I'd just like to say that I've had a relatively restful long holiday - been lazing around since Thursday - and am a lil bit sad that its coming to an end and I have to go to work again tomorrow.

Third, I'm glad it's just two days of work cos then I'm off back to Homeland for one of my high school gal pals wedding reception. She got married yesterday and her big reception is this Saturday night. What has me most excited is the fact that our lil girly clique will be reunited with all 6 of us being in the same country at the same time :D Usually we are missing two members - moi and friend based out of Oz - but this time the two overseas members are making the trek back to get together for the wedding. If I'm honest, I'm more thrilled about the slumber party we're having the day I arrive rather than the reception. I have completely missed Oz friend and can't wait to cath up with her. Last I saw her was when she came up for a visit to see me back in '07. It's been 3 years, our reunion was due :D

And last but not least, WOOHOO, let's Live It Up with Lee DeWyze! That's the title of his new album as well as the name of the first single which debuts this Wednesday on the Ryan Seacrest radio show! Was reading a quasi-review on the Billboard site and the 4 track sample they were sent got good feedback. Aside from the title track which is described as having the inspirational message that is usually attached to "Idol" winners' coronation single, they were also privy to Beautiful Like You, Me And My Jealousy as well as Dear Isabelle. I'm so glad the first impressions of the songs are positive and hopefully when the album drops on November 16 2010, the good times will keep on rolling for Lee :)


Ok, my morning has gone all rainy and its dark and my clothes are likely getting more than misted despite being under the portico. Hopefully the sun will come out blazing after this bout of rain so my laundry will dry. Truthfully though, I enjoy rainy days, it gives me a cozy/good feeling to be indoors enjoying some downtime while the world is being 'washed clean' outside.

last ditch effort

So my skin has definitely plateau-ed. It's not getting clear but it's not getting worse either. I still have the tiny bumps along my jawline and the occasional big bumps on my cheek. I can deal with it if the marks would disappear quickly but they don't and I am feeling really discouraged.

That's why I decided to just go ahead and get a 2 month supply of the Nature's Cure Two-Part Acne Treatment System. I'm just at my wits end trying to figure out what will make my skin clear up definitively so I'm willing to give this a try. If it doesn't work out, then I'm going to try BCP. I have heard great things about Yaz and will be going for that but am seriously hoping I won't have to so I really want this system to work for me.

I got it through Amazon and with shipping costs USD22.96. The Amazon description:

"Nature's Cure is best for people who have persistent mild acne or regularly occurring blemishes. You will begin to see results after only two weeks and often have noticeably clearer skin after just one month's use"

I've actually had it in my cart for ages but this holiday, after trying a combo of Mario Badescu's Drying Cream and Palmer's Cocoa Butter Vitamin E oil and still not seeing much of an improvement, I am just going to try this out.

Since this can be considered a shopping post too, I might as well disclose that my Amazon order also sonsisted of a pair of foldable speakers. Like the pills, I've had them in my cart for quite some time now and I figured I might as well get them together. The speakers are similar to a pair of white ones I already own but I wanted one in black cos it'll match my Nettie or N97 well, hehe. Ok, the MAIN reason is so that I can dedicate a set for my music player and one for my netbook without constantly having to switch around between the two devices. I feel the sound quality of these speakers are comparable to some of the more expensive speakers I've owned and I definitely can't complain about the $1.29 price tag since it normally would cost $19.99 for a set. With shipping it totaled USD4.26 so that's a major win-win for me :)


Ok, I'm done on the whole skincare purchasing. I can't conceive what other product I could use to make things better and I'm sure all the constant changes of product isn't truly helping the situation at all. I figure a product will show its working within a 2-week time period and if it doesn't, I consider it a loss but I'll usually stick by it for a month just to be sure. We'll just have to see with the Nature's Cure system. I'll probably only get started on it in November when my family comes up for a visit. By then I'll also be getting all my online shopping goodies so that thought makes me truly excited and happy and really not minding the wait. Always good when I can look forward to things :D

surprise, surprise

After 'seriously weighing' the decisions in the previous post and concluding there will not be an immediate purchase from the Mulberry For Target collection, I thought I'd go take a look at Walmart.com.

I had mentioned wanting two pairs of jeans from the Signature by Levi Strauss Totally Slimming collection and thought since I was not going to get the bag and I had about 29 bucks from the KMart cancelation, I'd go see if Walmart wanted my business.

I wasn't totally serious about getting them today but when I took into consideration the upcoming Black Friday/Cyber Monday events, I figured I'd rather be paying full price than missing out on the jeans completely. So that's how I ended up with Signature by Levi Strauss & Co. - Women's Totally Slimming Slim Leg in Raven and Signature by Levi Strauss & Co. - Women's Totally Slimming Flare Jeans in Baltic. Both jeans can only be found at Walmart. I have tried google shopping them but the results only turn out one site :)


Personally, I don't know which pair I'm more excited about. I'm loving the thought of a shape control pair of skinny jeans and what better colour than black to give off that overall slimming effect. I am intrigued to see if the slim leg cut will be flattering for my body shape and am sincerely hoping that I can pair this with both flats/heels and still look good either way. So far when it comes to skinny jeans, I can only carry them off with heels cos otherwise, my legs look kinda stumpy :P I truly wanted this particular style really badly and am glad that I got it now.

The flare is something I got mainly because I did not see this cut anywhere else and I thought it looked tres cute. I am very much liking the design - it is very 70's chic and I can see a Rachel Zoe-esque vibe going on here. The colour is a completely retro light blue and I think the cut of the jeans will be flattering despite my concerns about the tapered leg. A reviewer commented that the leg opening was too tight and though it has me wondering if the sizing will be spot on like the pair I got from KMart, I'm still loving the look of these jeans. The price was $19.95 each which totaled to $39.90.


I was okay to check out but I thought I might as well have a look at the beauty section for a re-purchase of my new favourite foundation, Revlon PhotoReady Foundation in medium beige. I have been using this every working day for the past 3 weeks and so far I think this is one of the best foundations I have used bar none. Looking at some Youtube beauty vlogs, its been said that this foundation is the duplicate of Makeup Forever's HD foundation line. I have never used Makeup Forever but if the claims are true, I am majorly happy with my drugstore version. The best thing about it is that it doesn't cause my face to break out. It covers facial imperfections nicely and I love how it makes the skin look dewy and smooth. Icing on top is its SPF20, fragrance free and oil free - all lovely buzz words for a sensitive skin gal like moi. I am a fan and that's why I decided to get another bottle and I got it for the great price of $11.97.

All in all inclusive of shipping, I was charged $54.78 which I consider a reasonable total for my Walmart haul.

decisions, decisions

Well, I've finally narowed my choices down to the Large Pebbled Tote and the Cerise Leopard Mini Messenger. One costs $49.99, the other just $14.99.

I'm a fan of the large tote primarily cos its roomy, its faux leather and its a relatively cheap bag for heavy duty activities. Living in a tropical country with rainstorms, I do prefer my bags to be cheap yet sturdy. As well as fashionable. From the multiple images I've seen of this tote, the construction and material used look to be of really good quality. One gripe I would have is that its not a zip top. There is just a buckle clasp that comes over to close the opening, it will not prevent the inside from sticky fingers or from raindrops when caught without an umbrella. Many have mentioned it has the look of a diaper bag. Personally, I think it looks like a classy, non-descript functional work tote. Big enough to carry all sorts of work junk including a laptop. I like it.

My other option is the smaller sized crossbody bag in hot pink leopard print. This is the choice I'm going for just so I can have a piece from the collection in a completely out-of-character kind of print. I love the cerise leopard iterations, I just don't have a clue if I can pull off the animal print look without looking like a big, giant FAIL :) So, I think I should start small, with just the crossbody. It won't be too overwhelming and it'll serve as a small yet fun piece to complement neutral outfits.

I am definitely not gonna be getting both. It's an either/or thing for me. I'll admit, I have had a few mishaps with the handbags from Target's capsule collections. For example, even though I love to death the Botkier For Target black satchel, it really was not too well-constructed. After two months of usage, the stitching at the base of the handle started tearing. I was upset and tried to save the bag many times by sewing and gluing and multiple other DIY measures but to no avail. I was disappointed but it did not deter me from trying something else from other 'Made For Target' lines.

Next was the Anya Hindmarch For Target gold hobo. When I received it, I'll admit, I was disappointed with the overall look of the bag. The faux patent sheen was just too plasticky and it came off looking more sporty rather than glamorous as the images on the site portrayed. The colour combination looked much better on the site than it does in reality. Other than that, it is a nice bag. I just wished I hadn't been so hell bent on the gold and had gotten the black faux python instead, I think that would have looked so much better and would have gotten more rotations.

My last purchase from a Target handbag diffusion line was the Flight Tote from the Hayden Harnett collection. I had high hopes for this bag. I figured this would be the ultimate tote for my air travel jaunts. The reality is, the bag is simply too big, things get lost inside, the strap is too long - the top of the bag hits below my butt - and the handles are too small and flimsy (as is the case with the long strap). Aside form the Botkier which I totally loved but it got ruined waaay too quickly for my liking, I was underwhelmed by the other 2 bags. So far, I am 0 for 3 on the 'For Target' lines.

Which is why I will not be buying either of the bags from the Mulberry For Target collection immediately after the release. I'm going to wait a coupla months - maybe December - and if there's still some in stock online, that's when I'll get it. I don't want to pay full price for this if I'm going to end up not liking it so as much as I want to get one this Sunday, I refuse to pay full price and will just wait for the price to inevitably fall.

it's a lil bit early but.....

I am currently deciding on next year's birthday gift to myself and I believe I've settled on a great choice.

Next year is going to be a milestone birthday for me (that's plenty revealing, isn't it?) and I want to commemorate it by getting something truly special for myself. This means nothing frivolous like a handbag or shoes or sunnies. I'm turning to good old fashioned jewelry and I'm looking at good old Tiffany for it.

I've talked about wanting a Tiffany piece for ages and I've never taken the plunge - mainly cos I could not justify buying pretty trinkets for myself on a whim. But with my upcoming birthday, I'll have a really excellent reason to splurge.

I've mentioned my love for the Tiffany Signature ring and the Tiffany Bead Bracelet but I feel these 2 pieces are inadequate for my milestone birthday and so I looked around for better, more meaningful options and finally I settled on the Tiffany Link clasp bracelet. It's a basic link clasp bracelet in 18k gold and is 7.5" long. The links open and close making it the perfect charm bracelet. I decided on getting just the bracelet and buying a charm of my own choosing instead of going for one of the already paired pieces. The bracelet retails at USD1800.


I plan on my first charm being the Tiffany Notes Letter Disc Charm. It goes for USD250. I feel that this is most appropriate as my first charm as it gives my (potential) bracelet its sense of identity. I love the cursive script of the Tiffany Notes design. The combo of the two is understated and elegant - just how I like to portray myself, hehehe. Basically, I just don't want people to instantly recognize the pieces as Tiffany jewelry.


I plan on adding at most 6 charms - one a year - and am thinking my next one will be either the Eiffel Tower, San Fran tram or NYC taxi to signify my love of travel and a place I've stepped foot in. Or I could get the bejweled suitcase charm for that. Other charms I'm interested in include the four leaf clover charm for luck (:D), the fish charm to represent my sign and an Etoile heart charm as a symbol of love. A last piece I would add if I could be extravagant would be the Jean Schlumberger Egg Charm with diamonds which retails at USD7500, lol. Perhaps that will be a buy for another milestone moment - who knows :)

Disclaimer: Images are from Tiffany.com

watching.....Letters To Juliet

My first thought at the end of this movie was, "Awwwwww, so sweet". I liked it, I like how sweetly romantic it was. It was just a feel good movie all around.

I'll admit I like Amanda Seyfried ever since she was in Veronica Mars. In her role as Sophie, she sold it to me. She was touched by this long forgotten letter and wrote back a heartfelt reply. A reply that basically conveyed what she wanted in her own relationship. It signified all that was lacking between Victor and herself.

The letter finds its way to England and when its recepient, Claire, receives it, she responds by coming over to Verona to search out long lost love Lorenzo. She brings along with her a reluctant and surly companion, her grandson, Charlie. At this point, from the moment Charlie and Sophie meet, the back and forth word spars being traded between them, you know they will end up together by the end - fiance Victor be damned. You could even figure that Claire will find her Lorenzo and that Lorenzo and Claire's union after 50 years apart would bring about the union of Charlie and Sophie.

And as predictable as the movie was, it still came off as a completely enjoyable film. Happy endings all around - well aside from Victor who got dumped but he's completely obsessed with his restaurant so he'll be okay. Letters To Juliet was a story worth telling.

after all that talk.....

I've decided I'm forgoing Mulberry For Target. Yup. After all that ballyhoo I made, I've come to the difficult decision to forgo getting anything from the Mulberry For Target collection when it launches this coming weekend. The collection is supposed to be available through to December and usually the prices will have gone waaaay down but I can't guarantee the ones I'm interested in will still be in stock by the time I am fiscally able to splurge on them.

But I sure am excited about my new Chloe Paraty II sunnies in black that I just got off of Ideeli.com! Yessiree, I am forgoing the Mulberry For Target collection cos I just made a spontaneous sunglasses buy on Ideeli.

It all started because my sister is in this phase where she's doggedly trying to channel Rachel Zoe's style down to a tee. The Chloe event on Ideeli supposedly featured a pair of sunnies that Rachel Zoe has and was gushing over in the last epi of this season's The Rachel Zoe Project (btw, can't believe RZ and Brad have parted ways, will truly miss you, B!). Upon her request, I went into said event to take a look at these majoh pair and gave my seal of approval.

Then I spotted a pair that I fell in love with - the Chloe Paraty in tortoise. I told my sis that if she was getting a pair then I wanted the Chloe Paraty in tortoise. This convo is going on via a long distance phone call in 2 different countries. She looked and wanted to confirm the model was Chloe Paraty and not the Chloe Paraty II. I hadn't noticed there were two iterations of the Paraty and had another look and when I saw the Paraty II, decided that this is the better fit for me.

The difference is subtle - the Paraty has a more square frame while the Paraty II is more rounded. The colour choices for the Paraty II are better than what's available for the Paraty although the tortoise version of the Paraty II did not appeal to me and that's why I went with basic black. I actually loved the old pink shades but I can't invest in a pair of designer sunnies sight unseen and without trying. By default, black sunnies goes great on every skintone so I knew I was taking the safer route by picking black.


Retail price of the Chloe Paraty II is USD355. Ideeli price for the Chloe Paraty II is USD99. NINETY NINE BUCKS, Y'ALL! Can you believe this? I got these great shades for 99 bucks. That's a whole lotta savings for which I'm just too lazy too count! And the best part is - Made In France! None of that Made In China stuff, it's bona fide coming from the shores of Francais, woohoo!

So that's why I will not be getting anything from the Mulberry For Target line this Sunday. You can tell I want to from the number of times I've mentioned the collection but even I know there's a fine line between frivolity and stupidity. But its worth forgoing when in exchange I get to own my second pair of designer sunnies paid for by myself - at least this time, it's brand spanking new :D

Disclaimer: Got the image off of Ideeli.com

sucker in da house

Oh KMart. Have you been talking with Newport News about me? How did you know I'm gonna get taken in by your time limited Family & Friends Online Only offer and end up spending USD62.36 in my attempt to take advantage of such a great deal?

First I was lured in by the 20% off of clothing items. Then I was reeled in further with the KMart5OFF50 coupon code but I was hooked with the Free Shipping for purchases above $60. You played me and you played me well cos before I knew it, I had an order of 3 pants, a tunic and a sports bra. Hmmm, this is my fifth online sports bra purchase, I'm sensing a new obsession :P


Anyways, I can now strike off the 2 blue jeans that I previously mentioned I wanted from KMart. I was actually waiting for Black Friday/Cyber Monday but since I could not guarantee I would still be able to get the jeans in the colour and size I wanted, I thought I might as well take advantage of this deal. So I got the two Signatue By Levi Strauss Totally Slimming Midrise Bootcut in Stone - short - and the Totally Shaping Bootcut in Preston - regular. Normal price is $19.99 and $21.99 respectively but with the discounts, I was charged $15.99 and $13.59 (the $5 off $50 was applied to this item).

As I was browsing to up my total to 50 bucks, I found this cute skinny cargos by Route 66 in a shade named Beluga - it looks like a bit of an olive/ashy gray colour and I thought the cut looked good. For $18.74 before discounts applied, I already liked the thought of it but with the 20%, I paid only $14.99. And I get to add to my now growing collection of skinny leg cargo pants :)

At this point I'm still shy of 50, I really hate paying for shipping (even though it'll only cost me $6.95 but it goes against some long-held principle of mine) and I absolutely want to cash in my KMart5Off50 coupon and free shipping rebate. So I look around Tops for something and I find this cute plaid ruffle front tunic top from Selena Gomez's Dream Out Loud line. I know its in the Juniors section but there are some really cute stuff to be had from that department and I truly do not mind wearing an L if its gonna make me look cute. In this case I got it in XL cos I wanted it to have an oversized feel to it. Paired with the beluga hued cargo pants, this olive shade plaid tunic will look so cute worn with the Cynthis Vincent For Target cognac gladiator wedges (am really milking these shoes for all their worth).

Now my total is $57.++, am still not reaching the 60 bucks target so I dive into the Intimates department to find the cheapest thing I could get so I would qualify for the free shipping and it turns out that this Hanes Seamless Comfort Micro Pullover sports bra that I already had in black was the cheapest thing I could pick. There were two shades available cerise and green. Initially I picked cerise but I dilly dallyed too much and by the time I checked out, the cerise in my size was all out so I quickly selected the other colour just so I could complete the purchase. I also quite like the green :)

Completed all the necessary steps and charged $62.36, I'm now thinking how to maneuver the charges in order for me to be able to get something from the Mulberry For Target collection dropping next Sunday. I figure, by that time, the new billing cycle for my AMEX will have started so I believe I can squeeze in a bag purchase. I am awaiting Thanksgiving sales for my Wal-Mart purchase of the Totally Slimming Slim Leg jeans and then I will be done with pants. I still am not over shoes and have fallen in love with a pair of Steve Madden Motorcycle Rain Boots that retail for $78 as well as coveting a pair of TOMS shoes, the wedges I talked about in my shopping for a cause post, in the colour ash. I'm hoping they'll still be available in November when I can finally make a new shoe purchase :)

Disclaimer: Images are off KMart.com

UPDATE (07/10/2010):
A bit bummed, pissed and confused. Two of the items from the above order got canceled, the reason given: out-of-stock. However, as I have repeatedly gone back to KMart.com, the two items supposedly not in stock is still being offered for online purchase - Totally Shaping Bootcut in Preston and Route 66's Skinny Leg Cargo. I emailed them and got the spiel about the items not being available but then that was two days ago - update your online stock inventory and stop making the items available for purchase! On a positive note, this kinda gives me some wiggle room on the whole Mulberry For Target collection. I saved around about 29 bucks from the cancelations, this could mean I could get something from Target after all :)

kitchen endeavours

I realize September was kinda an off month on the blogging front what with my being away a lot so I've decided to come out swinging for October :D

Since I don't have anything of particular note to talk about, I figured I'd go to my standby strategy and just do a collage. And this time, instead of shopping hauls, I decided to put up a pictorial of my latest kitchen endeavours.


As you can see, it's nothing too crazy, in the past week I made my very first homemade chicken paprika pizza (cheated a lil by using wholemeal pita bread as the base), IKEA Swedish meatballs complete with a side of lingonberry sauce, chicken paprika tortillas (noticed the paprika is a running theme) and a batch of peanut butter cookies courtesy of a Betty Crocker mix (notice I've improved on the whole cookie baking front, yay!). Aside from the Swedish meatballs which I got from IKEA when I went back to Homeland and the Betty Crocker Peanut Butter cookie mix, the pizza and tortilla wraps were me taking creative license. Be that as it may, I thoroughly believe I pulled it out of the bag with both. In fact, the past week has been a successful one on the stove front - totally disregarding the whole aerosol spray fire incident of course, hehehe.