Sunday, September 30, 2012

My Week in Pictures

Hi everyone! Pardon me for my lack of blogging this week. I have been caught up with my volunteer work. It's pretty nice to have work for a change. To sum up my week, pictures will show you better than my words. 

Monday

Starting my accounting volunteer work. 


Tuesday

My go-to Muchi, muchi by essie always comes in handy when I just want adorable pastel colors on my nails to perk up my mood a little bit. 


Thursday

Just purchased these two babies from Sephora with $10 giftcard + 10% discount I got as a VIB - Very Important Beauty Insider which is Sephora's reward program. I've been looking for a good foundation, and I must say I really love this Naked skin foundation by Urban Decay. I will do a more in-depth review once I've used it for quite some time, but for now I can't complain. 

 Been craving curly fries for days. Love! @Bon Chon Chicken


Friday

Finally Friday! My friend came for a visit, and she wanted to eat ramen since there's no ramen in where she lives now. Orenchi is known for its looonnnggg line, but it's best known for its ramen goodness. We went there early, 10 minutes before the place was open yet people have waited patiently in front of the door. The ramen was good, especially the tamago (egg). Yummy!


Saturday

Heading out to San Francisco. I had a double date and went to Bakers' Beach then Japantown for snack. I love Sophie's Crepes especially the Japanese. It's really yummy. 
Then we had dinner at Thai Cafe. The fried calamari was really good. 

Makeup:
~Urban Decay Naked Foundation in 4.5
~Maybelline Color Tattoo in Barely Beige and Bad to the Bronze
~Sephora Rogue Shine - Just Married
~Dior Lipgloss - Sari Pink

Outfit:
~Tank - Forever 21
~Faux leather legging - Forever 21
~unbranded printed scarf


Sunday

Makeup:
~Wet 'n Wild Walking on Eggshell trio (pinkish color on my lids)
~Rimmel bronzer in Sun light
~Maybelline Dream bouncy blush - hot tamale and CoverGirl Cheekers in Rose Brick
~Physicians' Formula Happy Booster Powder in translucent (highlighter) 

Outfit:
~Pleated skirt - Forever 21 (similar one here)
~Fossil 


How was your week? 
( ˘⌣˘)ε˘`) kisses!

Friday, September 21, 2012

Sigma Brushes (Favorites and Birthday Present)

These are by far the best brushes I've ever used. 
Sigma unquestionably produces great quality makeup brushes. I love each of the brushes for very different and specific reasons. Price wise, they are pretty inexpensive. But for people like who loves makeup, think of it as an investment. Great brushes give you great application and looks too. Sigma Kabuki brushes for instance. These brushes can give you flawless foundation application. 


Pardon my dirty angled kabuki brush. I just did my makeup. 


Not only I love how dense the bristles are, these synthetic brushes are great for liquid/cream product application. They buff the products instead of just smearing them just like stippling brush normally do. That's why you would get flawless and even finish with this brush by keep blending and blending. 





left to right:
F35 - Tapered higlighter brush
F50 - Duo fibre brush
F05 - Small Contour Brush

Many people use duo fibre brush to apply liquid foundation, but I find that this brush actually just smears around product, but it prevents heavy product buildup.
I love the small contour brush to , what else, contour my face especially my cheeks. I usually use TooFaced Chocolate Soleil bronzer and apply it under my cheekbones. This matte bronzer is especially great to contour for people with lighter skin tone because the shade is deep but not deep enough for people with darker skin tone in my opinion. 
As for the highlighter brush, I haven't really tried it out yet since it's new. It's one of my birthday present. 




left to right:
E70 - Medium angled shading
E35 - Tapered blending
E25 - blending
I particularly love the E25 blending brush. It's similar with the infamous MAC 217 brush. Great for patting eyeshadow all over your lids and blending the shades into your crease. 


The Birthday Present \(ˆ▽ˆ)/

                 
 

from left to right:
E30 - Pencil brush
E55 - Eye shading
F40 - Large angled contour brush
F30 - Large powder brush
F60 - Foundation brush
E40 - Tapered blending brush
E65 - Small angled brush
I was really excited when I got this for my birthday. I especially love the color of the brush, blue and pink, two of my favorite colors. This Mrs. Bunny travel brushes are packed inside a cylinder faux leather case. 
Don't be fooled by the name. These are vegan brushes which mean that the bristles are all synthetic. The bristles are so soft and pack up colors and products really well. This kit contains essential brushes you need on the go. It includes a foundation brush which is good for cream or liquid product, a powder brush, and blush brush and eye brushes. You can also put the kabuki brushes inside the container since they are short enough. 


Have you tried Sigma brushes? What do you think?
What are your favorite brushes? 
Leave a comment below and don't forget to subscribe! 

kisses! ( ˘⌣˘)ε˘`)

Thursday, September 20, 2012

MyGlam Bag ✦ September 2012 (Ipsy.com)


 Hey people! It's that time of the month again. Time for myglam bag. But this month is a little bit different. MyGlam is now Ipsy. I don't know what 'ipsy' means, but the website has now new look and everything. Its slogan is now "beauty by you." I guess what it means is more personalization. They also promise to have more makeup.

This month's bag includes $20 off for JustFab, which is a beauty subscription for shoes. It's pretty amazing!

Carol's Daughter MONOI Split End Sealer

I'm pretty skeptical about this. I'm not sure whether there's a product in the world that can mend a broken (hair) end, but we'll see. I've been having pretty severe split ends. I trimmed my hair about 3 months ago, and the split ends have regrown. I don't know why. My Tresemme Split Remedy Conditioning Treatment has helped me a little bit, but we'll see if this split-end sealer will do wonder just like the site says. 

Jane Sparkle Gloss in Sparkle Pink

Another hot pink gloss is included. I haven't tried it on my lips yet, but it's for sure not sticky and the color is pretty bold. 


                           
Mirabella eyeshadow - semiformal

I love Mirabella's permanent eyeliner pen which was included in the myglam bag a couple of months back.
 I'm not too excited about the shade, but when I swatched it the texture was pretty creamy and smooth. I has satin finish. 



Circus Nail polish - Tightrope

I don't have anything to say about this particular product except that it's Andrea's new line of nail polish, and Andrea is one of the myglam, oops, Ipsy girls. 


Smudge brush by Soho

My initial reaction was "Cool, it's a pink brush!" After I actually felt the bristles, I wasn't too impressed. I don't know if I'll use this brush since I still find my Sigma brushes are the best. Let's just say, once you go Sigma, there's no more dilemma.  =p

So this is my very last myglam bag. I have unsubscribed because I think that for $10 month I can get stuff I actually like instead of piling on things that I might or might not like. Anyway, when I unsubscribe on the website, somehow I accidentally subscribed for a year. I immediately contacted the customer service, and they said that they wouldn't charge me if I cancelled the subscription before the next billing date which is the first of every month. It was the 30th and I confirmed with one of myglam people that I wouldn't be charged. Few weeks ago I checked my back account and I found a charge of $110. I was pretty irritated. I contacted myglam again and they told me the have issued a refund of me and I could expect to receive the credit back to my account in 3-5 days. And now 8 days later, still no sign. I went ahead and contacted them again, and they said the have reissued my refund. So hopefully I receive the credit back soon. 

 ♥  ♥  ♥ 

Monday, September 17, 2012

Hello Kitty Palettes

Hi everyone! 
I was busy enjoying my birthday weekend.
 My friends threw me a surprise dinner and we also played tennis. On wii. (Hey, it counts!) 
It was really fun, and I'm really grateful to have them by my side on my special day. 

I don't typically justify my shopping by cuteness, but these two Hello Kitty Palette are exceptions. I swatched some of the shadows at the Sephora store, and they were pretty pigmented. So when I saw these on sale online, I decided to buy them. Plus, I had a gift card, a present for my graduation, so it was a no brainer. 
These two were limited edition, so you might have to act fast if you want them. 

$42.00 $13.00


I love the pastel colors and how pigmented they are. The shadows and blush have matte/satin finish which is good for a day-to-day wear.

Hello Kitty Shimmering Powder and Eyeshadow Palette
$36.00 $11.00
Pretty uncreative name if you ask me, but that's what's written on the site. I really love the highlighter. It has a gold undertone, but it's not glittery which is perfect for me since I don't like glittery makeup. As for the shadows, the black one could be a little darker, but overall they are pretty good. I tried them out, and I liked it. 





Thank you for reading!
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Thursday, September 13, 2012

Nail Polish Favorites

I wan't big on nail polish because I used to be a nail-biter, so I never put anything on my nails. I tried to quit, but when it came to exam season I just couldn't help it. It was my way of releasing stress. But not anymore. Who knew the way for me to stop biting my nails was actually to put pretty colors on them? 

So here are some of my favorite shades.

OPI is by far the best nail polish I have ever used. Its consistency is just perfect. The application is smooth and easy. 
Love this color so much. It's a rosy nude color, which is perfect for Fall. 
1. OPI - Dulce de Leche

Essie comes second on my favorite list. The consistency is slightly thinner than OPI, but you can easily build it up according to your liking. The color selection is huge, and they are adorable!
2. essie - bikini so teeny
Love this color. It's a perfect sky baby blue for me. Look my cloudsky nails here

3. essie - imported bubbly

4. essie - muchi, muchi

This particular line from Revlon, Colorstay mimics OPI's consistency. I love how glossy the finish is. I also like the wider brush applicator which makes it easier to cover all you nails on a single coating.  
5. Revlon colorstay - Bare Bones
I had many compliments when I posted this shade on my toes a while a go (see it here). I like how the brush is so wide, even wider than the Revlon Colorstay, to make the application so much easier and faster. 
6. Wet n Wild - I need a refresh-mint

If you like chunky sparkly gliiter, than this Sally Hansen Gem Crush is perfect for you. 
(Look what I did using this glitter here)

7. Sally Hansen Gem Crush - Big Money

I wouldn't recommend to apply this alone on your nails unless you like the sheer glitter effect. The consistency is rather thin, but the color is just so pretty as a top coat just like I did with my nails of the day: sparkly sky blue.
8. Hello Kitty - Gold Sparkle

swatches in the same order

left: Love&Beauty from Forever 21
right: Maybelline Color Show -

These two particular products just do not make the cut to be my favorites. They're pretty bad. The Love & Beauty nail polish which you can get from Forever 21 is pretty inexpensive for $2.80, but for the same price I expect it to be a better quality. The finish is just dry. The nail polish is just drying your nails. 
As for the Maybelline Color Show, I love this metallic blue shade. It looks gorgeous and such a head turner. But it chips within only one day! I didn't bother to try on another shade. Plus, this particular shade is all messy when you try to take it off from your nails. 

Thank you for reading.
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Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Go Shopping with Me ♥ TheLimited.com

I was reading InStyle the other day, and my eyes were instantly caught with this colorblock satchel. This bag reminds me a lot of Celine Trapeze handbag. I wanted the bag so bad, but the price is just cra-zeh! So when I saw this, I instantly marked it and planned to buy it online at thelimited.com later. 


When I went to their site, The Limited was having a sale, Buy 1 20% off, Buy 2 30% off Buy 3 or more 50% off. The original price of the bag was $79.90. It was still pretty steep for me, so accountant that I am, I started do a little math and found the lowest price possible for me is to buy 3 items instead of just 1. The yay was it can be any item you want. I picked up knee-length socks which was originally only $9.90 and a $14.90 bangle. Everything was 50% off because I bought 3 items. The best part is when I found another coupon code online for $15 off. Score! 


Colorblock Satchel for $79.90 $28.50

The bag is such a great quality. It''s made of a soft faux leather. The lining is great and thick, not the kind of fabric you will find from a cheaper bag, say from Forever 21. Don't get me wrong, I love Forever 21 bags, but this is just really a steal for me considering the discounted price.

Bangle - Cobalt for $14.90 $5.31
They have it in 3 different colors - cobalt, acid yellow and pink. I picked out the cobalt one because I think it's more versatile.  


Flourish Trouser Socks for  $9.90 $3.54

Apart from the good pricing and all, I was disappointed for the length of time for my order to be processed and actually gone through. I ordered on Sept 2 and I didn't get any shipping confirmation until last night, Sept 11. I emailed the customer service regarding the tracking number and my intention to cancel the order and to get them at the store instead. Suddenly, I got a reply that my order was on the way. I checked the tracking number and it seems that they rushed my order. They just shipped in last night, and I got it this morning. I guess it makes up for the long processing time. 

My conclusion - I love the bag! °\(^▿^)/

♥♥♥


all pictures are from thelimited.com