Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Monthly Edit | September 2014

September has always been a special month for me because it's my birthday month. It's always something to look forward to every year regardless of what I ended up doing on d-day. This September has been such an eventful month full of joy and blessings. 

 I had most of my weekends filled with exciting things. I didn't share as much as I wanted what was going on throughout the month, but let's recap!

Finally watched the famous Wicked musical. So glad we decided to spend extra to get a great seat. 
It was totally worth it! And I'm still in love with the Ann Taylor trench dress. Best purchase of the month!

Our impromptu date to Filoli. I posted all about it here

I went ziplining at Mount Hermont. It was fun! You can read more here
My birthday lunch with the girls at work. We had a feast at Mandarin Roots, Palo Alto. The food was really good!


My church was having a church dedication since we just purchased a new building. My youth fellowship was in charge of decoration. I am so grateful for this group of people! We had carnival-themed decor with colorful balloons and streamers. The food was delicious. It was exhausting but thank God for the beautiful day!

Later that day, my friends surprised me with a belated birthday cake. My boyfriend cooked dinner for us. I was so tired from the carnival event, I didn't even pay attention anything weird going on. He covered it up so well!

A matchy-matchy kinda Sunday


Our friends' baby girl Sophia was 30-day old! I'm so glad we got to celebrate it with her!

Another Friday feast at Sancho's Taqueria. The fried fish taco was da bomb!


Our friend got married to his short-time girlfriend. Haha. It was an express courtship, and we were all surprised, but still we pray for the best for him and his wife. I was really looking forward to the wedding just to dress up and hang out. I also managed to do my own hair in less than 10 minutes. Thanks to Kate from The Small Things Blog. She also has a youtube channel with the same name. I tried her 'undone french twist' and it was a success!

How was your September? 



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Saturday, September 20, 2014

The Weekender | Filoli

Seems like weekend always feels so short.
 Last Sunday, my boyfriend and I visited Filoli in Woodside, CA. He bought a groupon for $20 -for-2-adult entry. The regular entrance is $18 each, so it was quite a bargain.

I love going to public gardens. Taking a stroll in the middle of beautiful flowers and plants relaxes me (Check out my visit to other gardens in Mendocino, CA and St. Louis, MO). Lately, my boyfriend also has taken an interest of house plants. He made several cute purchases from our visit. 










Tuesday, September 16, 2014

Happy Birthday to Me! | 2014

It's been customary for me to post  something on my birthday. I don't have any extravagant to share this year. I didn't celebrate early over the weekend last last year. Instead, I'm on bed rest today due to my sprained foot. Yep, sprained foot.

I had been so busy for the last two weeks at work, so I haven't been to the gym for quite a while. I promised myself on Sunday that I would start working out regularly again this week. So I did. And later at night I found that it was hard for me to walk, and I looked down to find my right foot is swelling up. It wasn't hurt at first, but then it's getting worse. The pain woke me at 3 in the morning, and I have been in pain since then. I decided to take a day off today for the sake of my sprained foot. 

  • I am grateful for what God has and hasn't done in my life. 
  • I am grateful for Ocep - he completes me.
  • I am grateful for my family and friends
  • I am grateful that I have a job.
  • I am grateful I passed all my CPA exams. Finally!
  • I am grateful even for my sprained foot because it means I am able to walk - although not well at the moment.
  • I am grateful for my passion in beauty and fashion, my blog, my readers - YOU!
Thank you for reading my blog. Hope you all have a wonderful week!



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Saturday, September 13, 2014

The Weekender | Ziplining at Mount Hermon


Two Sundays ago, we went on a surprise ziplining trip for my friend's birthday at Mount Hermont, near Santa Cruz, CA. I've done something similar before back in Indonesia. We call it "flying fox", with less protection and height. Haha..I love getting adrenaline rush like that, one of the reasons why I like riding on roller coasters. 


If you're afraid of height, then this might not be for you. If you're trying to overcome it, then maybe. The guides explained everything and showed us how it's done before the real thing began.  We had a quick trial run on a mock zipline about 5 feet from the ground. Ziplining is surely exhilarating. I just "slide" and watched the view for some seconds and waited the person on the other side of the tree caught me. They told us when to start breaking or not to break.

Sunday, September 07, 2014

Ann Taylor Trench Dress

Trench Dress size 4P - Ann Taylor, Perfect Shirt - Ann Taylor, Boyfriend Jeans - Loft,
Crocs Walu flats - DSW
Not too long ago, I posted is on my Ann Taylor shopping list. The sleeveless trench dress is an online exclusive, so it wasn't available in stores. My obsession in finding the right trench coat for the past weeks has died down a little bit because of this. Ann Taylor features this as a trench dress on the website. I think it would make a really professional look, it was never my intention to wear it like that. 

I immediately think of pairing it with a basic white top and jeans and wear the trench dress as a 
open-button long vest, it's like a coat, but sleeveless. I really love the casual chic vibe this look gives. 

Friday, September 05, 2014

Recent Discovery #4 | What's On My Hair: Tangle Teezer, Batiste, L'Oreal


I found my love on hair products lately. I have naturally fine straight hair. Although I'm grateful for my low-maintenance hair, my hair does lack of volume and it makes second or third-day hair look extra thin and lifeless. I like curling my hair for giving it tousled-wave look, but it will look so unruly by the third day. I feel like these products help me to get the hair I want and maintain it longer. 

Wednesday, September 03, 2014

Beauty Review: Laura Mercier Smooth Finish Flawless Fluide

I've been a fan of the legendary Laura Mercier silk creme foundation. When I found out they launched Laura Mercier Smooth Finish Flawless Fluide, I was eager to try. For the price tag of $48, I could not commit on buying before trying it out first. I went to Sephora and asked for one of the ladies to give me a sample of that in the shade 'Ecru'. Sephora is pretty generous in giving out sample. It can last me for 3-4 uses.


The first time I applied it on my face, I instantly got the very smooth feeling. At first I thought applied too much because it felt a bit too slippery for a foundation. Soon enough, it set to a velvety finish which I was so impressed. I can literally see the foundation blur out my blemishes and other imperfection. It doesn't accentuate my dry patches which is due to my acne treatment, and 
it also doesn't emphasize my zit. 


Not only that, it also makes my pores appear less obvious. Does anyone who have tried this feel the same way? I can see how the foundation blends flawlessly onto the skin and blurs out my pores. 


7 hours since application

I had my makeup on for a good 14 hours, and it still looked pretty good. I did use MAC skinfinish natural powder when I applied my make up in the morning but didn't touch up ever since. The foundation did wear off around my nose and cheeks, but I could still see the blush and bronzer which is indication of a good base of foundation. 

Have you tried it? What do you think?


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