zalora, you're a money-sucking siren!

Sigh. As if I truly need all these.....

Okay, perhaps I do need that River Island Kimono Open Front Jacket - I need to pair it with the Nichii raglan jumpsuit I got cos I realized that I had no suitable cover to wear with said jumpsuit! Plus, that looks like such a versatile piece that it could probably go with everything, no?

And maybe that gorgeous quilted rucksack is really a necessity - also courtesy of River Island - since I'm carrying around so much stuff with me ever since KS left his job and I've had to pick up his slack. My Cambridge Satchel can't fit my laptop and the rest of the papers and documents I have to lug around with me constantly these days. Hehe, honestly, I got it cos it looks like such a nice, fancy, girly backpack in a very business-y black shade. I thought it was simply a fashion backpack that I would make my travel bag when I'm doing roughing it style holidays but after I bought it and was trying to grab the images off of the site, I noticed that it had a laptop compartment so SCORE! I was flip-flopping on getting a laptop backpack since I'm currently using a company-issued boring SONY brand backpack - which thus far has served me really well despite it's lack of fashion impact :D - but had resisted in the end. Then when I made a snap decision to get the quilted ag, turns out it's also a laptop bag so woohoo!

Truly, I'm starting to feel that I really needed the fancy Ipanema Gisele Bundchen Sunshine slippers cos I need to have fancy slippers when I'm going to Phuket in late November! If you're taking a beach vacation, then might as well do it in style with a pair of Gisele Bundchen designed slippers, no? I'm trying to channel my inner supermodel feet-wise :D

And who doesn't need a nice fancy oriental-ish dress. Overall it looks like a combination of a few Asian traditional costumes. A little bit of Vietnamese Au Dai, a little Japanese obi belt detailing, long sleeves and skirt for some Malaysian/Indonesian/Singaporean Malay modesty.....plus, the bright fuschia tone, the sparkly sequins, the pretty flutter sleeves and most importantly - the right price tag. It was just something I couldn't deny myself!

Lastly, the color-block green/black maxi dress and fuschia maxi skirt which I forgot to include in the collage above and thus shall insert it right here:

Well, really, these are investment pieces that I got to pair with the gorgeous River Island kimono jacket. I mean now that jacket has not only one but THREE pairing options! It's gonna give me my ROI in no time, hehehe.

I think the total came to a lil over 120 bucks with discounts applied and whatnot. Seems like every month there's some Zalora auling. It may seem I haven't been shopping as much as I used to but that's really not true. I've actually been buying more stuff than I've blogged about :D

first taste of.....cronuts!

Was in Bangkok recently for a work-related convention and on one of the days I made my way to my fave shopping spots, Siam Paragon. Whilst taking a break from the strenuous walking, we decided to try out Mandarin Oriental Shop's version of the now infamous pastry confection, cronuts. They actually spell it in a different way, which eludes my memory right now, due to the term "cronuts" being trademarked by the originator of the pastry trend. Ultimately, it's what the name suggest, the alliance of a croissant pastry shaped into a circle with a hole in the middle, cut in half and some filling in between the two halves. How this wasn't thought up sooner I don't know but kudos to the people who did cos it's now trending worldwide :D Oh, the lime soda was absolutely refreshing and just what was needed!

hot off the presses.....MY NEW TRINKETS!

Hehe, was trying to convey both the "hot news" as well as the "hot" arrival of my two new commissioned rings :D

I have a colleague whose a Myanmar national and he went back to his country for his annual leave and knowing that Myanmar has relatively great, high-quality goldsmiths, I decided to get him to special order a ring for me. I passed him two designs, one of the Hug Ring as it's known by InfinityDesigns off of Etsy and the other is the Tiffany Twist Ring. The Hug Ring on etsy is 14K and costs about $208 with shipping from Canada - those are last year's price though, I have no clue if the cost has gone up. The Tiffany Twist Ring is 18K and would set me back $500 if I were to get it. I really wanted both but knew I didn't have the disposable cash to simply splurge on them. Plus, I'd have to get them shipped back from the Americas continent - anything could happen and the worst case scenario of losing out on $208 or $500 or even $708 through the mail wasn't an apppealing prospect to say the least.

Hence, I came up with the ingenious plan to ask my colleague to seek out someone back home to make one of the rings for me. Another colleague, also from Myanmar, had scouted the goldsmith for me on his earlier trip back home and said the cost of the Tiffany style ring would be $200 for 22K, solid ring - meaning it's not hollow inside. Those were my exact requests - that it needed to be the highest gold karat possible and the band needed to be solid through and through. When I heard it was $200, I mmediately made sure I had my budget ready for when my other colleague was gonna go back. I ended up passing him $300 and the two designs, telling him to go with whichever would cost more.

That was 2 weeks ago and he just arrived back to Workland. He came by my place to drop off my ring, was so excited since I didn't know which design I'd be getting, I loved both! When he opened up the ring box, I saw not one, but both designs and they looked absolutely gorgeous! then immediately I thought, OMG, he made both, how much did this cost???? Before I could ask, he said that he made both designs and I could choose either one and the other he would give to his mom. I asked him if my $300 covered the cost for both which I did find unbeleivable even though I did tell him before he left that it would be really nice if I could have some change back from the 300 dollars I passed him :P He did roll his eyes at me and told me the Tiffany design was $200 as stated by my other colleague but the Hug Ring was $210. I was baffled yet ecstatic. I mean frickin hell TWO RINGS costs less than the one Tiffany Twist Ring?!?!?! I asked him if I could take both and he said, of course I could :D

And that's how I ended up with my new HANDMADE gold trinkets! For the very special price of $410 combined - I could not be happier!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

my lunchtime activity - zalora hauling

Who ever first came up with the concept of shopping from a computer was an absolute G-E-N-I-U-S! To the detriment of wallets everywhere :)

Anywho, I got my first Zalora haul and I was happy with everything. Everything except for my Schutz platforms which could not accommodate my wide feet despite being billed as a size 8.5. Sigh, was disappointed cos the shoes were gorgeous. So, I made my first return to zalora - that was Monday. Got my store credit for the return just this morning so I'm very happy with the overall return experience. The return costs are borne by them and the processing of returns is very fast.

I also then received an email for a flash sale. From 3:00pm to 3:10pm local Homeland time, EVERYTHING would be 20% off! I got that email at about 2:45pm and immediately, I knew I was gonna take advantage of it. I had some stuff already in my cart and was simply waiting for some kind of discount event. In total, I spent $156.35 for 6 items.

The item I had been eyeing the most were the Cheap Monday Slim Chinos and River Island Black Stripe Envelope Clutch. I dunno why I have a thing for khaki cargos :) And the clutch, well, I just felt it looks really nice. Then I also wanted the geb long sleeves blouse. That's a versatile piece, can be used for office as well as casual outings. I have an upcoming trip to Bangkok next month for work and there's gonna be some kind of networking dinner so I thought I'd get the geb sequin collar blouse. It's a dressy yet still work-appropriate top and I'm gonna pair it with one of my numerous black maxi skirts. Lastly, during this same working trip, I will be attending a conference so I figured I'd get myself the raglan jumpsuit from Nichii. Pop on a blazer over and I'm work-attire ready :). Last but not least, I got the maxi skirt with the sequin band also from Nichii. No reason, just cos I wanted it. It's ral pretty I feel.

Right, that's it for now. I'll likely put up a post on something else that I had gotten via livingsocial.com and completely forgot to write about. Nevermind, the product is now in hand so it can be a purchase and review post AIO. Till then....

kitchen exploits

Been hanging out in the kitchen a lot more of late. Tried some new things from EntertaingWithBeth and Blogilates (though I forgot to take a pic of the no bake key lime pie I made with the recipe I got from her youtube channel). Also tried making some artisan bread. Don't want to talk too much, let's just do some pictures :)


Goat Cheese & Onion Jam Tartlets

Ribeye Steak with balsamic mushroom reduction sauce and baked potato, grilled asparagus & steamed cherry tomatoes sides

Wholemeal artisan bread

Been trying new things lately. This saturday am planning on making some roasted pumpkin ravioli so I'll likely put up a post detailing that exploit later in the weekend.

it's not that i haven't been indulging

What (or who) is Zlena and this blog if it isn't revolved around me and my retail therapy exploits?

I've just been lazy to blog them. And sincerely, can't particularly remember what new things I've gotten recently, hehehe. One particular purchase that is kinda hard to forget even if I wanted to would be this little get here.....

Oh, what's that? Well, let's have a look inside, shall we?

Yeah, I caved and decided to join the masses. That's my Samsung Galaxy S4, the GT-I9502 to be precise. Why do I have to be so precise with the model number and all? Cos I didn't just get the S4, I got the dual-sim S4 :D. I made a conscious decision to retire my N97 and my work blackberry and just go for one phone that would accommodate both my work cell as well as my Homeland number. And it's working a treat.

And if there's any wonderment about how I got my hands on a dual-sim S4 when it had such a limited release and by limited meaning released primarily in China? Cos Workland imports 'em. I've got the China Unicom logos popping up any time I reboot the phone. It's been a learning curve since I'm still new to android. Been trying to figure out how to do all the rooting and whatnot so I can try to use a custom ROM for this phone. I haven't been able to start though cos there'sthis specific ROM which I can't get to download fully so been stuck with all this China market specific bloatware. Will have to wait till I go back to Homeland in about a week's time before I can attempt another download - internet speed is waaaaaayyyyy faster back home.

What of my loving and faithful 4S? We're still partners, how can I part with my beloved iOS? I don't believe in being either or. I'm a "you can have your cake and eat it too" kinda gal :D Hey, just noticed my phones are 4S and S4, lol.

a break from F1 centric posts

Yes, my life doesn't revolve entirely around Kimi and what he does :D A good portion of it does but not all of it.

I got a "Miss Ya" coupon code from Zalora which ends tonight so decided to make use of it. I was thinking about these Melissa wedges which cost a lil over USD150 but after my 25% discount would be about 120 bucks roundabout. In the end I decided against it considering I can't figure out the Melissa shoe sizing online. The wedges I got last time in a 9 were too big and I have barely worn them at all cos they are loose. And the last time I tried a size down seemed it was too tight. There largest pair were an 8 - I just didn't want to chance getting an expensive pair of plastic shoes and not wear them. Again :)

So instead, I got myself these lovely pair of open toe leather booties from Zang Toi. These designer kicks were already on sale half off and with my additional 25% coupon, I paid a mere USD46.11.

As I was browsing more shoes, came across these chunky platforms by the Brazilian brand Schutz. They were about 75% off already and with my coupon code would cost only $13.61. I figured why not. I don't own any shoes in this hue (called coconut) and they were going for really cheap. Oh yeah, they're also FRICKIN LEATHER BABY!!!! Was cheap cos it was the last pair in 8.5. I was lucky :D

Next I went for some clothes. The site was having a sale section where everything was going for roughly $8.90 and under. I saw this cute colour-blocked, peplum-y top going for $8.90 and after applying the discount, would only end up paying $6.68.

Last but not least are these Reebok woven dance cargos. I think they look comfy. I've a holiday coming up where I'm gonna be gallivanting on foot through nature quite a bit so thought these might be worthwhile to bring along. They're lightweight and apparently very comfy from the reviews I read on Amazon. After all discounts applied, I paid USD25.14 for these.

So what's the total on this score you may (or may not :D) ask? A very frugal (by my standards) $91.54. Ok, as frugal as I can get for 4 items. In my defense, those Reebok pants alone costs $60 on Amazon and those Zang Toi shoes are D-E-S-I-G-N-E-R! Basically, I saved and that's what matters, hehehe.

UPDATE:
Loved everything but had to return the Schutz shoes cos even though the size was right, the shoe was too narrow for my un-dainty feet :D

and so it begins.....

I think the post's title was inspired by a line from one of Peter Jackson's Tolkein movies. In fact, I'm even gonna throw in part of the title of his last movie which was "There and Back Again". Cos that's exactly what Kimi Raikkonen has done. He went there, he left and now he's back there again.

Yup, he gambled on Red. Sigh. This means, as much as I loathe it, I too will ultimately pledge my allegiances there when next season rolls around. Hence, let's clear the air so to speak. I am going to write an open letter to the 3 main parties involved. We'll start with Blondie.....

 

Kimi Matias Raikkonen, you better well know what you're doing! If I get even a hint of discontentment coming from your side of the garage, I can't promise I won't get entirely upset and just ditch you to your own devices. There just comes a time when you have to tell yourself enough is enough. And if you did not learn any lessons from your first go-around there, then I can only tell you what you get is deserved. Be smart and play hard cos you can bet the other side of the garage will be doing their damndest. I will support you but I can't say it will be unconditional if you find yourself getting struck by lightning AGAIN!

 

To the Horses (LdM, SD et al.), if you do not treat him with the respect he deserves, I (and ultimately the other couple thousand Kimi fans) WILL definitely wish you more of the bad karma you've been enduring since your first parting of ways. You should understand by now the issues of the past and ensure there are no repeats in this regard between yourselves and the Kimster. I am willing to let bygones be bygones but lest you think I forget what's past, that does not happen - I have an elephant's memory. Benefit of doubt is the only thing I can extend. Fair play is all I expect of thee.

 

Alfredo, Alfredo, Alfredo. What can I really say to you. How about some frank honesty? I have never liked you. Throughout your first Renault stint, I would in fact say I hated you with a burning passion. I called you mean nicknames. Over the years though, that loathing has turned to indifference. Some of my old blog posts will attest to that. On the topic of your arrival to Maranello at my Iceman's expense - I cannot truly begrudge you shoving Kimi out of his Ferrari seat and ultimately depriving me of F1 but let's just say that karma is a bitch, aint it Fred? All those near misses I'm sure leave a scar on your samurai heart. Needless to say but will be said nonetheless, your psyche may have been affected too what with the ridiculous warrior stuff you love to spout. You're my age dude, stop being weird! Parting words: Let's be mature, let's do the politicking with the driving, ok Nando?

So cheers to this 2nd coming of the ice age to Maranello. May it yield good rewards for one (Kimi) and all (Ferrari - yes, a little for FA too, you can be just behind the Kimster, k?)!

Forza Kimi!

 

And I now end the crazy :-)

 

Sincerely,

Zlena
xoxo

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is Kimi really betting on red again?

The game of F1 seat roulette keeps spinning around Kimi and where he'll end up driving next year. Hehehe, was inspired to come up with a casino/gambling analogy based on something I saw on Twitter mentioning if Kimi will wear black (Lotus) or red (Ferrari) next season.

Back on topic, the rumours have been aplenty and now more than ever before, at Monza no less, it's reaching boiling point. From the outside, it really does look like Kimi has signed on for Ferrari again. Honestly, I don't like it. I don't like Ferrari. I never liked them before Kimi drove for them and I tolerated them whilst he was! I'm a McLaren girl if I'm thinking teams! Well, now I'm actually really liking Lotus and Kimi fits there! Gosh, why can't Lotus get the money to keep Kimi with them. He just wants you to be able to develop the car throughout the season, Lotus! Why did you drive him into the arms of Ferari?!?!? Your job was just to get enough sponsorship for the team, don't lose James Allison and provide Kimi the car to drive for wins with peerless strategy. Well, it's been hit-and-miss on all those fronts. Sponsorship, well, they recently got something from Emmaar but there's doubts about how much that will pump into the outfit. Some big sponsorship announcement made in early summer with Infinity has apparently not been completely worked out. James Allison is now working in Ferrari's garage. This weekend Kimi and Grosjean did not make it into Q3 of qualifying and are starting 11th and 13th respectively - all the Lotus development pieces did not make it onto the car. And well, strategy has really been Lotus's achilles heel usually.

Sigh. I just don't want Kimi to get swallowed up by that crazy Ferrari culture. They go on and on about how they are a family and Luca di Montezemelo is the "father" and drivers are his "sons" and their ears need to be tweaked when they act out of line. What the hell are you going on about, dude? You are head of a racing outfit and you employ drivers to race your cars. And don't get me started about his favourite analogy about buckling down and getting on with the job - it involves having knives between the teeth, apparently he LITERALLY sent out knives to Ferrari F1 personnel as a message to get their act together during the summer break. I truly hope Kimi has wised up since his first stint there if he truly is going to be driving for them next year. Plus, he really needs to watch his back cos if Fernando Alonso is going to be his teammate there, that dude will definitely bury a knife (perhaps the one LdM gave to him as a buck-up gesture? :D) in his back anytime he can. Yup, Alonso dislike is still alive and well - never really left.

So, Kimi, red or black?

sometimes i question my own mind ;)

As I've said many times before, I have a mild interest in Kimi Raikkonen and F1. As such, I always try to keep myself abreast of the latest news, gossip, tidbits of info that surround my favourite F1 pilot. But surely, there must come a moment where I actually stop reading/taking in these parcels of info/comments when all I'm thinking, rather loudly in my head I should add, is "WTF are you people on?!?!?!"

I've noted before that I'm a serial lurker on F1 forums - specifically PlanetF1 and Autosport - to the point I feel I know certain forumers "voice" (merely in reference to their opinions on things) and generally would agree or disagree. I know who are what is termed as fanboys/fangirls and those who are haters. I haven't truly seen anybody who posts without some kind of bias so really haven't "met" anyone who has been neutral in terms of F1 matters.

And honestly, the differences in thoughts is what makes a forum, no? The fact that, for example, 2 people can look at a situation and come to completely different conclusions on what it all means. That makes forums great, IMHO. However, I'm getting to that point where those who are pro and those who are cons of the general underlying theme of many a thread on Kimi - "Is Kimi really great?" are starting to wear thin on my nerves. I find myself thinking that these people really should get a life outside of debating the merits of Kimi Raikkonen as a top tier F1 driver. LOL, I may be a pot calling the kettle black here but in my defense, I'm only spending time reading these comments, not actively debating them.

Anyways, my opinion is, Kimi is definitely a fantastic F1 driver. Definitely top tier, never was a doubt in my mind about it even after his so-called underperforming stint with Ferrari. I don't understand the major flak he receives for his time there and I feel the POV I have on what went on during that time, which I've talked about in numerous posts whilst it happened as well as a couple of times after, is what is my truth of the events. Will I try to shove that down your throat? No, it's really your perogative to want to believe it or otherwise. I'd just appreciate it if I wasn't termed delusional for not believing in another person's "truth" on the matter. People put their opinions out there, you can weigh the comments, if you find it something you can believe in, by all means, believe it, support it but be aware of the fallacy that nothing in life is guaranteed. If you find you don't believe in it, say you don't and either leave it at that or come up with a more sensible counter-argument then stop believing in fairy tales :)

I guess the point of this post was just as an observation of F1 forumers, specifically Kimi supporters and detractors alike. If I were to say anything to these people - perspective is key, don't be so blind in your convictions that you cannot see anything but. On a side note, I'd like to state again that whoever is doing the race scheduling is not making it easy on fans/spectators with all these long breaks between races. Especially for the European legs, I mean the continent is relatively smaller than others, I feel a back-to-back race in Europe wouldn't be too bad logistics-wise. I feel there is a serious loss of momentum in between these 2/3 week breaks and it is hurting the overall F1 season experience. Hehehe, but really, I can talk till the cows come home but nobody's seeing this post anyway.

 

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SPA-Francochamps could not roll around fast enough!

I know it's called "Silly Season" but this year's F1 rumour mill has been spinning out of control! And at the center of the teacup is my very own, Kimi Raikkonen :D

Kimi, Kimi, Kimi. Kimi to Red Bull. Kimi stays with Lotus. Kimi in Ferrari red again. And ubelievably, the latest "news" is that McLaren are courting the Iceman too! Kimi agrees to go to Red Bull. Kimi has signed some kind of contract with Ferrari. Kimi is waiting on Lotus to sort out their finances. Kimi and Alonso to swap driving seats (as if it were that easy *let me include major eye-rolls*)

I love Kimi in F1 and I totally expect him to be driving next season and I'm completely curious about the where/who he'll be driving but the 3-week break after the Hungary GP just made ALL F1 journos go a bit bat-shit crazy. I don't think I've read as many conflicting, outlandish "news" reports about the key cog (oxymoron, much?) in the drivers' market before this year. Even 2009 when, yet again, Kimi was the center of major speculation - as well as what I truly believe was a subversive PR war against him - the "newsmen" didn't get it too all over the place as it is now.

If there's something I could say to these F1 journalist - FFS, calm the eff down! We'll know when it's time. Yes, I have a burning curiosity but I'm not making a fool of myself every other day making "educated" guesses about Kimi Raikkonen's next drive in the mainstream media! The amount of about-turns I've read from some outlets is laughable. Seriously, Kimi, was this your intention? Let's play all these reporters and get 'em back for the shit they've thrown at you? I wouldn't be too phased if he was having a major laugh at the reports out there :D

Now that SPA is upon us, THANK YOU! Maybe we can get back to the actual racing instead of the watercooler gossip we've had to deal with for the past month! Oh, and if Kimi does land at Ferrari next year.....sigh.....you are really making it tough on me, Kimi, really tough.

UPDATE:
Think I was overstating the crazy reporting.....

I rest my case.

huge Cotton On haul :D

I'm not gonna say much 'cept I did go a little crazy. Shipping was free for orders above USD50 without a code and that meant I could finally use a 30 off code I had been holding on to that would expire in August. Total cost of this haul was roughly USD141.61 after conversion. On to the pictures, all screen capped from the Cotton On site :)

6 Unlined Lace Bras at $1.88 each. Total: $11.28

3 Lace Lined Wirefree at $1.88 each. Total: $5.64

2 Lace Unlined Wirefree at $1.88 each. Total: $3.76

2 Soft Unlined Wirefree at $1.88 each. Total: $3.76

2 Smooth Lined Wirefree at $1.88 each. Total: $3.76

5-pack Cotton Lace Boyleg at $17.53 (30%).

3-For-$10 socks though I actually paid $9.39 due to forex conversion. I got 1 in ditsy floral and 2 in the grey marle with charcoal tip. I know socks seem like a random buy but I do have a specific reason- am planning on taking up running outdoors and believe it or not, I do not own any proper socks!

Next, in keeping with the running theme - what Cotton On calls Runner Vest. Got this for $17.31 after 30 off.

Decided to get it in a brght blue so that I can be seen clearly since I'm running in the city and not some nice park. Also got this black, nondescript Flexed Fit Hat for $1.88 on sale. Again, I actually do not own any caps and figured a cheapie one would do just as well as something from Nike, Adidas, Reebok et al for exercise purposes :)

Next up, this lovely sleeveless white shirt that was on sale for $4.70. This is the Michelle Essential Shirt and the RRP is actually $18.50. I feel this would be great under blazers for the ofice and since they're sleeveless, you won't have that unflattering bunch in the jacket sleeves. There was also a floral version but by the time I was checking out, it had completely sold out :(

And last of the clothing stuff is this pair of jelly heels :D I got the Jessica Gladiator jellies the last time and when I saw these Jamaica Jelly Heels, I knew I had to have it. Got them in black for $17.31 after 30 off. These pair are totally reminiscent of my eldest sister's Guess clear jelly shoes she had yonks ago when the jelly shoe trend was all the rage - I feel that that was in the late nineties....

What would a Cotton On haul be without me getting stuff from Typo? I decided to collage the stuff instead of having them individual as this post is already image-heavy as is :D

Lol, I know the stuff I got seems totally weird. A wooden crate, a milk crate, 2 milk bottles, 2 mason jars, a ruler and a pot of acrylic chalkboard paint. I mentioned I'm redecorating my room and "farmhouse chic" is the aesthetic I'm going for hence all the white wood stuff. Except for the ruler which was on sale, the rest of the stuff I got 30 off with the promo code. I really scored on that considering these are the items that normally wouldn't go on sale so woohoo for moi!

Hehe, so that is hopefully the last of my Cotton On online haul for some time. Ok, confession, I did check the site recently, right before typing up this post actually, and, thankfully I can safely say, there is nothing that I possibly want right now, lol. But I feel that I am good overall on the lingerie front as well as the room decor stuff. Thanks, Cotton On for making my shopping soooo easy!

2013's working week makeup routine

I originally wanted to call this 2013's daily makeup routine but then I realized that I don't bother to put anything on on weekends so that would be like false advertising :D

Honestly, these products, aside from the Benetint, are all first tested this year, some longer than others. Counting out the Benetint which I started using in 2006, the Cargo blu_ray compact is the "oldest" product in the group while Benefit's The POREfessional is the most recent addition to the routine.

Right, you can tell I don't really put much on my face. Definitely no bothering with concealer or any eye product, lol. I've gotten this routine down to give or take 7 minutes inclusive of wait time.

Primer
It's new in the bunch but after 2 weeks, I can say, I'm liking it a lot. When I have more time I will actually do the priming properly but more often than not, how I put this on is by squeezing out a bit on to the back of my left hand then pumping a whole pump of the Naked Skin foundation onto it and mixing. Whichever way I use it, it always makes the foundation, and my skin, look so much smoother. It really does fill in the more noticeable pores by the sides of my nose to give the illusion that I have none :D The POREfessional is a PROfessional in that respect <- couldn't resist being cheesy :D

Foundation & Concealer
Urban Decay's Naked Skin. I wanted to really like this foundation, I truly did. I actually feel that I'm a little bit in love with it :) What can I say, it's light, this one, but the coverage is good. That's what I love about it, the lightness. I would say more of a light to medium coverage on this one. I don't know if you could do a full coverage as I've never gone more than a pump and even then I feel I have overused. As mentioned above, it's made even better mixed with The POREfessional. I apply this using my ELF foundation brush. Let me tell you, the combo of these three produces an absolute satisfied customer in moi. I wasn't feeling that foundation brush before this but now, can't do without it! Usually, when I'm done with the full face coverage, I'll have more than enough leftover for some concealing. I usually dab on some under my eyes and over the hyperpigmented areas of my face and it does the job of cover-up.

Lip/Cheek
Benetint, mi amor. I do love thee, my lil multitasker. I usually don't bother with my cheeks for work but when I do use this on the apples of the cheek, it gives a very natural looking flush and warms up the face. I mainly just use this on my lips primarily so that I don't look like I'm dying. The rose red hue gives my lips some life as well as covering the blackened areas of my lips. I know that sounds rather gross but I am trying to figure out how to lighten the sides of my lips so give me a break. I feel Benetint gives my lips a healthy look and since it's a stain, definitely lasts the whole day. One drawback would be tha if your lips get too dry and flake, well, stains in general never help to improve that look, hehehe.

Finishing Powder
I've written an entire post on the Cargo blu_ray HD powder as my HG pressed powder. It remains so. I do love using this to set my makeup. Granted, the lack of SPF would put some people off and normally I wouldn't be into that either but the finish this gives you is so nice and I always look better in photos because of it. I still love it, I do. I'll just get the SPF from elsewhere :)

LOL, doing this post has made me realize that there is no SPF anywhere in my skincare OR makeup routine. I was under the mistaken impression that the Urban Decay foundation had some SPF but it doesn't. Was going to type at the end of my finishing powder segment that that's what I have the foundation for but when I went to find out the SPF count, I learned there was none. No wonder I don't get any of that horrible white cast in photos :D I guess I'll need to add in the spf somewhere, just haven't figured out exactly where :p

2013's skincare routine

I feel it's time to jot down 2013's skincare routine since it has changed significantly from the last time I did one of these posts. These are the products my skin is currently loving -

Cleansers
I've got three cleansers my skin depends on right now. In the morning, I'll use the Neutrogena Healthy Skin Anti-Wrinkle Anti-Blemish cleanser. In the evening, I'll first take of makeup using the Korean brand Pure Beauty Perfect Cleansing Water for sensitive skin and follow it up with Soap & Glory's Peaches & Clean to ensure I've gotten all the days' makeup off of my face.

Toner
Forgot to put the toner into the pic above so here is it's pic gotten from Google Images -

It's Etude House's rather famous Wonder Pore Freshner. I like this toner, feels like it gets your face even more clean and readying it for the creams/lotions/serums you wanna slather on next. Plus, no tightness afterwards so it doesn't feel like your face is being stretched :) Yes, I'm a big fan of Korean beauty products.

Serum/Moisturiser/Lotion
Okay, I'm just using the Tarte Maracuja Oil for all the above. I do like it, it does absorb well and though I have naturally oily skin, it doesn't exercebate the oiliness further. I feel, for the past 6 months I've been using it, my skin has improved a lot. I don't get as much acne as I used to that's for sure. Plus, it looks like my pores have shrunk but again, it could all be a combo of the stuff I've been using.

Eye Cream
Currently I'm using the eye cream I got free in my Eco Bag from drugstore.com in May, 100% Pure Caffeine Eye Cream, Organic Coffee Bean. OMG, I love to use this for the scent alone. Smells so yummy, like a fancy cuppa for your eyes :D I think it's a nice product, it absorbs well into the area underneath the eyes and I feel like there is some improvement after using it. Let me finish off the tube and get back to you on it.

Treatment
Last but not least, Kate Somerville's D-Scar. Like I mentioned in the last post on the Sephora haul, a purchase that I didn't think too much about. I have been using this for roughly 2 weeks. I don't know if my eyes are deceiving me but that scar I talked about above my right eyebrow, I feel like it's filling in. But it could be my eyes and mind want to believe the stuff is working. I can't say for sure till the 8 weeks claim is up and I can indefinitely agree or disagree with the product. It's worth to note that I have only been using it at night cos I get lazy in the mornings. The product is not oily, absorbs well, has a nice scent.

I have to say, I'm so far really pleased with the combination of products I've got right now. I used to suffer from worse acne along my jawline even up till last year but whether it's the products/diet/aging, I haven't had to deal with anything too devastating. They've been tiny and easier to handle. Hopefully I can stick with this routine for longer than others I've documented on this site.

hauling Sephora - Bath & Body, Skincare and Makeup

I was back in Homeland at the end of June and needed to restock some essential (maybe I'm stretching here) beauty products. I had a 10% discount from points I accrued on my Sephora card which was ending in August so decided to make use of that coupon on this trip. I got the following -

What I really needed was only the Peaches & Clean cleanser, the rest was really more of a want than a need. As can be seen, a lot of Soap & Glory products. I'm a big fan of their stuff. From the set I got last year, I've finished off the Sugar Crush body polish, hence why I got a new one (different type - it's Flake Away - cos Sugar Crush isn't available in body scrub form at the Homeland Sephora) even though I still have a halfway full bottle of Dove body scrub, and I'm at the very bottom of the bottle for the cleanser. I'm nearly done with the body wash as well. I decided to get the Scrub Your Nose In It cos my sis and the gal pal I was shopping with raved about it. The Glad Hair Day shampoo and conditioner I decided to go for the full size versions trading up from the travel ones I got last year.

I also got the tube of Kate Somerville's D-Scar. It's supposed to promote skin regeneration for scarring that has occured on the facial surface. I was convinced by the SA to try this out, it was not in the list of things I wanted to buy but she gave a good enough sales pitch that I caved and got it. The product actually claims to repair even old scars so I'm putting that to the test - I have an ancient scar above my right eyebrow that was caused by a rope burn and we'll see if this formulation is as miracle as it purports to be :D

Finally caved and got Benefit's The POREfessional. Was actually looking at the Posietint but when I tested it out, I didn't like the thick consistency of the product. The formulation is definitely thicker than my all-time lip stain Benetint. A different SA manning the Benefit display than asked if I wanted to give The POREfessional a go. I deliberated for a few minutes before putting it in my basket. I have been looking at it for the longest time, since my Hong Kong trip in 2011 so I guess 2 years on, I should just get it with a 10% discount :)

Lastly, as I was paying at the counter, I saw Benefit had the tint trio called Get Cheeky (small tubes of Posietint, Cha Cha Tint and Sun Beam) which is this -

I forgot to include it in the collective above so I just got the image off of Sephora. This means that image is not mine :) Anyways, this was the best way to try the other variations of the stains without committing to a full bottle and then not liking it. After testing it out, I actually find myself liking Cha Cha Tint.

Overall, the entire haul cost me about USD145 after discount was applied. All my shopping qualified me for another 10% discount expiring in January 2014 so when stuff needs to get replenished, I'll have another coupon at my disposal!

hauling Cotton On - home decor et al

I'm a HUGE fan of Cotton On's kitschy decor store Typo. I usually want a lot of things from the store but like I've mentioned before, the things are rather pricey.....until they go on sale that is - that's when the rock bottom prices make me go nuts wanting to snap up everything :D

Am currently in the process of redecorating my room back in Homeland. Yes, I still live with my parents when I go back there - what's the point of having your own place if you're not even there to live in it? Anyways, I've decided that my attic room will have a black and white decor which is the reason most of the stuff I got were in those hues. I'm going for a classic English country style. I haven't gotten round to it yet but I'm gonna get the white Hemnes daybed, the Musken 2 door/3 drawer white wardrobe and the Koppang/Hemnes 3-drawer white dresser all from Ikea.

Ok, on to the typo stuff. Although I haven't decided on a desk, I got some office supply items. Since the theme was white and the stuff was cheap, I got these old wire style desk tray, magazine holder and pen cup.....

And also these old school/retro style stapler and scissors.....

Also bought this lovely baroque mirror.....

This absolutely adorable cuckoo clock.....

These cute yet functional building blocks calendar

And the last of the stuff I could find images of on Cotton On are these silicon heart-shaped cupcake moulds.

These next few things I got off of various pinterest boards but all pinned from the Cotton On site. I got this white birdcage shelf.....

A decorative but functional tea for one set like below but in black.....

And a monster alarm clock in black.

I'd say the most expensive thing was the cupcake moulds. The rest of the stuff were all under 10 bucks. That's defintely an absolute deal right there :)

DISCLAIMER:
All images are from Cotton On's site or pinned from the Cotton On site, I own none of them.

hauling Cotton On - clothes

My first Cotton On online purchase was made back in early January of this year. Since then I think I've gotten stuff from them online a total of 4 times and in store once. I like their stuff and when it goes on sale, it can get really cheap. This wasn't one haul but spans one in-store purchase and two online hauls that included both clothing and home decor so I decided to break things up into 2 parts. This, as the title suggests, will concentrate only on apparel and accessories.

First up, my first in-store buy was this gorgeous, comfy robe. This wasn't the colour I got, I can't find mine online anymore which is a nice shades of blue and green polka dots that I'm actually wearing right now as I type this post up cos it's cold in my air-con room. I originally got this thinking I could use it as a bathrobe but since I only noticed once I had gotten it back home and taken off the price tag it's a fleece, blanket-ish material and the label did say "sleepwear", I figure I'm using it as a wearable blanket, hehehe. Okay, for comparisons sake, I'll take a pic of my robe. This was about USD18.89 from the RRP of about $25. I know it wasn't such a great discount but I really wanted it.

I also got these jelly sandals I had been eyeing online. When I saw these Jessica jelly gladiator sandals I thought they were perfect for where I live and work - it's the rainy season here right now and I am not too keen to ruin my nice, sometimes tres expensive, leather shoes :) They weren't on sale though and weren't that cheap either considering they're jelly shoes. I got these for about USD15.43. They've been good to me so far so perhaps they are well worth that price tag, hehe.

I also got this chic patterned blazer. This is the Simba blazer and it's officially my first patterned blazer in a style that are not vertical stripes :D. I feel it gives off a Hugh Hefner-ish, playboy mansion robe kinda vibe, lol. But I like it and it's really versatile in terms of how to syle it. It can be casual and office-appropriate. I've been wearing it to work over a black chiffon maxi dress or paired with a white shirt/sleeveless blouse and wide-leg black pants and I've also worn it over a cotton tee with jeans combo. And since it was roughly USD9.45, well, I have to say - SUPER DEAL!

Another piece I got for USD4.72 is the Charmed boho dress in the shade gardenia. Managed to fit myself into an XS for this, surprisingly :p

I think there was only one other thing I got, a crochet overlay sleveless dress but I can't find the image on Cotton On's site or anywhere else and I think I left it in Homeland. Anyways, that was a deal as well for about 5 bucks. Oh yeah, and I got some charity bracelet thing to help poverty or hunger in I wanna say Uganda but I can't remember right now. So, that rounds up the in-store purchase.

I'm always looking for nice, comfy, basic loungewear. So when I saw these Annika slub linen oversize long sleeve tees in both black and white going for about $4.72 each, I got 'em.

I would have gotten all the colours but it was only those 2 on sale but the next tee I got from a different style, the Divided oversize long sleeve, was also selling for the same price in the shade dazzling blue so I got that instead.

The next piece I got is what I will term as "Granny Chic" and what my sis simply refers to as "Granny" :D It's the Bernice Intarsia cardigan. Hehe, I love the naming system Cotton On has going for their products.....

And now to another footwear purchase. I found these lace crochet espadrilles so tres cute. And they were $4.72, I figure why not. These are the Nessie espadrille.

The sizing of Cotton On shoes are rather weird though. I normally fit an EU39 but that's too tight for me for Cotton On. When I tried the 39 for the jelly sandals, it was a fit with no room so I got the 40. With these, I also tried them in store but didn't get them then cos they weren't on sale. I tried the 39 and again - too tight so when I got them online in this gorgeous red I went for 40. On my right foot it's too loose. Sigh. But it's 5 bucks so can't really complain. I think this ends the first clothing haul from the online purchase. The rest of the stuff was home decor.

Next up from the start of my second online haul, this gorgeous blazer caught my eye. It's RRP was around $40.62 but it was on sale for USD9.45. LOL, I thought that was already a major score.

I was having issues with completing the purchase last week on my mac so when I finally realized it was likely a Safari browser issue, I used my Asus windows-based laptop to get my order in. By the time I got to the checkout cart and was looking over the total to be paid, I noticed that the amount had gone down from $128 to 92 bucks. So I was kinda flummoxed thinking that quite a few things in my cart were now OOS even though usually there'll be a message telling customers that things have been taken out of their cart due to the inventory not being there anymore. Then I looked at the list of stuff and noticed that the price of the jacket had gone done by 50% more. It was now going for $4.72!

And so was this one.....

And this one too.....

So I decided I could get one in another colour :D This is called Robinhood Green.

Other stuff that were going for USD4.72 were these bikini top and bottoms.....

Then I got these 2 sheer bras (black and white).....

and one unlined lace bra in a black and leopard print mix.....

For 94 cents each, lol!

The only truly pricey piece of clothing I got was this slinky gown. It was originally $39 but was on sale for about $24.88.

Yes, it's another robe BUT this one I can wear after a shower :D See, there's a MAJOH diffy.

The absolute last apparel in this haul was this chambray bomber. I honestly don't know why I got this other than cos it was 10 bucks. Lol, I was already way past the free shipping minimum but for some reason could not pass this jacket up.

And thus completes this absurdly long, graphical posts. I'm too lazy to tally up the clothing haul but it doesn't add up to more than a hundred smackaroos I bet :) Okay, disclaimer time - aside from the 2 pics that have the blog's watermark, all other images were borrowed from Cotton On's website for illustrative purposes :D