Random post

Something random for today.

I'm looking forward to the looooooooong weekend! There're tons of things I've to catch up on and organise. Let's see ...

• I've to take photos of all my stuff from my Taiwan haul. Have been wanting to share with you but just couldn't keep up, wat with work and stuff. Perhaps it's also part denial - I can't believe I bought so much! Yikes.


• Review on my mascara haul. Can I confess something? Other than the 2 Rimmel mascaras, I also bought 3 other different mascaras. Oops.


• Sort out my bags


• Take photos, take photos, take photos

Sorry to sound fussy, I've just a thing abt light (or the lack thereof). There's this love-hate relationship with the sun. I'm glad when the sun's out in full force (yay, brilliant photos) but then again it can get really hot :( I'm not very enthusiastic abt taking photos at night as my room light looks really harsh and I'm not that good a photographer to work around that. So.

Weekend!!!!


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Now playing: Carrie Underwood - Just A Dream
via FoxyTunes

Eyelash treatments

So with my mascara haul, I thot I'd check out some eyelash treatments as well. You know, things which make the eyelashes grow lusher and longer. Being an Asian (or a Chinese rather), my lashes are rather stick straight and not as long as I'd like them to be. I also tend to have problems getting eyelashes to curl. The best I've ever done so far was to go for an eyelash perm, but that can't be a long term solution, can it?

Came across the Foltene Eye Lash & Brow Treatment while surfing online. Has anyone tried this? Does it work?

I'd be interested to hear any other tips or products to try for eyelashes. Do share :)


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Listening to: 이승기 (Lee Seung Gi) - 다 줄꺼야
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Nails this week

So, I sorta got caught up in a paint-my-nails fever after my nail polish haul and experiment last Sat.

After a multi-coloured week, I thought it's time to return to something more subdued. This was done using an old Fancl Clevance polish I had as a base, Sylvie #19 for the tips and Canmake Colourful Nails gold glitter for the accent.






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Listening to: Lisa Ono 小野リサ - Cheek To Cheek
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Rimmel is in Singapore

At Watsons Ngee Ann City to be exact.

Sorry I've no photographs to show as I was too busy talking to the friendly SA. And ok, I confess: I was also too shy to whip out my camera phone while there's an SA around.

There was just a standee within Watsons but I thought the range was rather comprehensive, though I don't think it's the entire range. I did see the entire minerals range; the full range of mascaras; most of the lipsticks and glosses plus the eyeshadow palettes. I'm not a very foundation nor blush kinda girl, so sorry, really didn't pay attention to that.

I bought the Extra Super Lash Waterproof Mascara in black ($13.90) and the Sexy Curves Mascara ($17.90) also in black ;P

What intrigued me really were the different brushes, the pricing (!) and of course their claims to give me the best lashes everrrr... :) *hiaks hiaks*

Will try to post reviews soon.


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Now playing: Sara Bareilles - Gravity
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Diorshow Iconic Extreme

Received this in my mailbox today: Seems like this is finally making it to our shores!

What caught my attention was the claim that it is totally rinsable with no eye makeup remover needed. Now that, I have to see for myself.

This product will be launched on 1 May at Raffles City. Read more about the product on Dior's website.


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Now playing: 바이준 (ByJun) - 당신의 사랑이 늘 행복하기를...
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Canmake and Sylvie nail polish haul

When I was younger, in that not so distant past, I got caught up in the manicure and pedicure craze which led to me signing up for nail packages with a rather reputable (read: expensive but ok) nail salon in town. After a while, the pain of sitting on my butt for 1 1/2 hours each time plus having to keep my nails long got to me and I decided enough, nice nails or not, I'm not doing this thing anymore.

Ever since then, I've been happily keeping my nails short and my nails on hand and feet have been merrily naked in their natural state. It helped that I've a doctor friend who's now into alternative medicine, warning me abt all the toxins we take in thru the food we eat, the environment and the things we use ... ...

Anyway, I was inspired once again to do something with my nails after coming across the Canmake standee on one of my lunch sprees. Here's what I did with the Canmake and Sylvie nail polishes I bought recently.


For someone who doesn't 'do' her nails, the amount of nail stuff I have is quite astonishing.


I started off with clean nails. For me, cotton pads work well to separate my toes plus I use them to wipe off my mistakes.


Sally Hansen is one brand which I adore for their nail stuff such as nail strengtheners, base coats and top coats. It's relatively cheap and fuss-free for products that work. I'm using this as a base coat. I like to think of it like BB cream for my nails ;P


This is what I use for the top coat.


Finished product - Right foot


Left foot


My painted toes in all their finery :)

I have shaky hands, so nail polish tend to go on unevenly for me. Any tips on how to minimise that?


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Listening to: Lisa Ono 小野リサ - Hello Dolly
via FoxyTunes

Longchamp Ceci Est Un It Bag

In some other news, this came in the mail today.

Front of card

Back of card

The invite

A drawing of Ceci est un It Bag clutch

This range has been launched a while overseas and is finally making it to our shores this Friday :) There's an excellent review on this by BagaholicBoy, so do check it out.

I'm not too excited abt this range tho I do love the cheekiness of it. So much for It Bags eh? However, I do think the clutch is rather interesting. Check out the entire range on Longchamp's website.


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Now playing: SS501 - Snow Prince
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Nails, colourful nails

I think I went a bit overboard in my shopping spree today. Haven't been shopping since I came back from Taiwan, so it's been abt, say, 2 weeks? Lol.

Decided I wanted some colourful nails when I chanced upon the Canmake standee in Watson's today. They've a new series called Colourful Nails - my, they're SWEET! All in pastel colours with a black, white, silver glitter and gold glitter. Best of all, each bottle of nail polish comes with its very own set of nail art bling.

I bought up every single colour in the range except for pink, which was out of stock :~( and the silver glitter as I liked gold better. Shall try out another Watson's outlet to see if I can find the pink.

While at Watson's, found a brand of nail polish going really cheap (cheap, cheap) at $3.90 for 2 bottles, so I couldn't resist and got them as well. Since I'm on a roll, I thot I'd buy a nail polish remover while I'm at it.

Since I wanted colourful nails, I thot I'd try out green as well. Now, this is one colour which I've absolutely never tried in my entire life. Chanced upon this colour at the Ettusais counter as the Canmake range did not include green. Here's how the tester looked. Should I get this or should I comparison shop some more?

Sorry the colours of the nail polishes didn't come out well. I was too lazy to bring out my DSLR and used my point & shoot instead. Oops. Will try to post pictures of my nails once they're done ... maybe this weekend?

Happy shopping everyone!

PS: There were some questions abt the Hello Kitty thingy. Another confession - As I'm bordering on being nit-picky abt the things I used on my face, I sorta used them as bath mittens instead. They lathered the soap-in-a-jar really well and felt heavenly against my skin. These things are really cottony soft, so I guess they would work on the face as well. I just haven't the courage to try it out on mine.


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Listening to: Lisa Ono 小野リサ - Baubles Bangles And Beads
via FoxyTunes

Hello Kitty cuteness from Shanghai

This was a pressie from my amazing sister beanie who'd just returned from trip to Shanghai :)

It's a pair of cotton mittens esp for removing dead skin cells off your nose. Washable and reuseable. How eco-friendly is that?

Each mitten has a Hello Kitty face embroidered on it. Too cute! Can't bear to use it.


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Now playing: JP Nataf - Mon Ami d'en Haut
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Hanskin Magic BB Cream

Got this as part of my Taiwan haul. There's been many reviews on this, so I won't say too much. Sufficient to say, I LOVE this. It's creamy (creamier than Lotree or Skin Food); it spreads well; doesn't irritate my skin, in fact it feels comforting my skin when I spread it; covers well ... and the list goes on.

I wanna try the Caviar Gold BB Cream! :) Did you know they also have a night BB cream as well? I thought that's really cool ;) Check out the site here.


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Now playing: SS501 - 하얀사람
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Anderson Soap Company: Lemon Meringue Soap in a Jar

Thanks to Bittenbefore who introduced me to the Anderson Soap Company on Etsy and Aichaku who helped me haul this together :), I'm now the proud owner of 4 Soap-in-a-Jars: namely Oatmeal Cookie, Pomegranate, Lemon Meringue and Pear.

I had a hard time trying to decide which 'flavour' soap to use first, so I took a while even tho Aichaku had passed me the stuff some time ago.

Finally decided on the Lemon Meringue as it's almost summer yeah ;P and I'm looking for something fresh smelling to perk me up esp after a day in the office.

To be truthful, I was a little put off when I smelt this in the beginning. The lemony yellow colour was lovely and I liked the swirling patterns which looked like fluffy whip. BUT. There was a very strong smell of almond oil (?) when I first opened the jar. I'm quite sensitive to smells, so this was an issue for me. However, I'm pleased to report that the oil smell fades after a couple of days. Wat I smell now is just pure lemon meringue. Yup, not lemon, mind you. Lemon meringue as in the dessert. No wonder I've been craving sweet stuff these few days. Lol :D

I've not used soaps for ages (years in fact), so it took some getting used to in the beginning. The jar made it rather tough to lather up the soap, so I've taken to scooping bits of soap out first before lathering. Is there a better way to do this?

These aside, I do like the lemony smell (tho I do wish it were a little stronger n linger longer after the shower), the soap lathers well :) n get this: it doesn't dry out my skin. Moisture is something I look for in bath products or almost all my skin/body care, so I was pleasantly surprised at how un-drying (is there such a word) this soap is :)

In a nutshell: Well, I loved the novelty of the soap in a jar n they do have interesting 'flavours'. Extra points for the product when I learnt they're vegan and paraben free. I loved the suds too but I guess I'm still more of a shower gel/cream type of girl at the end of the day. This should work for people who love soaps tho :) Still, I can't wait to try out the other 'flavours' I bought. Was at the site just now and realised they're out of all except Pomegranate.


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Now playing: 郭靜 - 大玩笑
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Coach - Bonnie Cashin Collection

Ok, so I've a soft spot for handbags. But you ladies already know that ;)

Was at Coach over the weekend. Oh my, oh my. So much for saying that I'll switch to Kate Spade from now on; I'm over with Coach ... yada-yada. I'm in love again.

There's a new collection in stores now and it's lovely! (In my opinion ;P). The colours are right up my alley. I esp adore the tongue-in-cheek, fun doodles and the bag shapes look classic. I'm already secretly plotting to lay my hands on the Cashin canvas tote.

Take a look here and let me know what you think ;)


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Listening to: 苏打绿 - 相信
via FoxyTunes

Reviews and stuff from Taiwan

What with work and being sent on courses by my company and family (yes, my mum said I don't talk as much to her as before ... go figure) and stuff ... whew, I feel like a juggler with many balls in the air. The past week got me thinking on this blog and my myriad posts. Plus my hauls from Taiwan and some presents and the arrival of some other hauls, I think I've a lot of material to blog on til like, June? July? ;)

Anyway, was thinking that, henceforth, I'll share more reviews on stuff that I really like and leave out the so-so stuff. Unless it's stuff that's really BAD, which I think I've to put the word out in my little corner of cyberspace too ;)

Here's some photos I took on my recent Taiwan trip. Believe me, I thot I was in heaven ;) Enjoy and have a great week!

This was the DFS counter at the airport before I boarded the plane to Taiwan. Had my first struggle here: should I start buying stuff now, or should I wait for Taiwan in a few hours' time? *kekeke*

A Victoria's Secrets section I came across at DFS. Arrrggghhh, lookit, pretty packaging n PINK!

My Beauty Diary Strawberry special pack for Valentine's Day, consisting of Strawberry Yoghurt mask, Whitening Pearl mask and Eye mask. I saw this at Cosmed, one of my fave shops in Taiwan. At that point in time, I did not have any luggage space left, so don't ask me why I didn't buy this. I'm still sorta kicking myself!

Have you ever regretted not buying something?


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Listening to: 8eight - 참지마
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Ahava Dermud for sensitive skin

Ahava is a brand I discovered while travelling in Israel last year. This is a range of skin and body care products which gets all its good stuff from the Dead Sea minerals. Below is an excerpt from the company's website:

Created at the Source

The only cosmetics enterprise indigenous to the Dead Sea region, AHAVA is driven by a deep passion to unearth the secrets of the revitalizing effects of minerals on the skin. Our dedicated scientific approach has helped us to acquire an unrivaled expertise on the subject, which has culminated in the development of an international network for ongoing academic research. Moreover, we have translated this deep knowledge base into a series of superior skincare product lines, based exclusively on the rich resources of this magical region. AHAVA’s second vocation is to learn and decipher the rich language of the human skin. As a living organ, the skin receives information and stimuli from the outer world and communicates it through specific reactions, helping to protect, nurture and clean its cells, retain moisture and fight the aging process. Minerals have an extraordinary capacity to act as “intercellular messengers” that transmit information to skin cells and positively impact their health and vital functions. At AHAVA, we are committed to unraveling the syntax of these crucial biological phenomena in our ongoing quest to produce the finest Dead Sea mineral-based products available worldwide.

Anyway.

Received this promo offer in my Inbox today and thought it too good not to share. Currently, I'm using their Body Sorbet Caress Syringa - Green Apple, which I really love as it works like a body butter but lighter (perfect for our humid weather) and is lightly fragranced. Think it's very reasonably priced too, for the huge tub and how long each tub lasts.

Check out the Dermud sensitive skin range promo offer below:



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Listening to: Carrie Underwood - That's Where It Is
via FoxyTunes