SUMMER Faves

Here are some random products that I'm loving this summer (aside from my sunglasses and a tumbler that keeps my drink colder longer than when a usual glass).

Blushes:  Ellana Lip & Cheeck Cream Icon and Nature Republic Shine Blossom Rose Blusher in 02 Coral Rose

I'm not going near the beach so I'll just fake a sun kissed skin with these blushes.  The Ellana Icon just makes my cheeks pinkish and reddish at the same time (as if I pinched myself) while the one from Nature Republic is like an old rose with a bit of a tan in color.  Most of the time, I layer these two for a reddish tan color (and for longevity too!).

Nichido Lip Blush in Forever Love

I heard about this lip blushes from a fellow blogger last year (but it seems like she's not blogging anymore) and got myself and orangey with a touch of pink one because it just brighten up my lips and it's moisturizing (and cheap too). It's not very pigmented like lipsticks which oddly, is what I'm looking for in a lip product.

IOPE Mild Sun Cream SPF 35 PA++ (link is just the for a similar product)

Finally found the sun cream that I really like.  It's liquidy which spread nicely on my skin, it has a nice smell, doesn't make my skin looking white, it's moisturizing and kinda already primes and it also gives my face a nice glow (a 15ml of this sun cream is included in my current giveaway).

Laneige Water Sleeping Pack

THIS IS THE LIGHTEST SLEEPING PACK THAT I TRIED, EVER!!!!  And it just makes my face glowing and of course moisturize that I wish I could use it every single night.  Now I know why this is a beauty favorite.

Happy Mother's Day to my mom and to all mothers out there, mwahs and hugs :D

January 2014: Starting?

Some people say that they will start the year right.  What if the first days of the year didn't go as planned?  Don't tell me your going to wait for another year to make things right?  I know I'm exaggerating but instead of postponing, why not make THIS day right?  Better right? or this is just my simple excuse for not starting the year right?

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Hello!  January 2014 gone by really fast, I almost missed it.  Just got productive at the middle of the month by finishing some backlogs, joining communities in Google+ although I'm still that active (hello to the members of Filipino Bloggers Worldwide) cleaning, baking, a little job hunting (failed by the way) and slowly sipping a cup of tea which is very enjoyable because of the cool weather.  Does cool weather equates to having an unexplainable nice sunset sky because look what I captured with my phone's camera:

looks like a painting

the clouds and the light from the sinking sun are a great combo

This week I watched the The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and I really enjoyed it and don't know why it has a low rating.  It's a..."It's never too late", "Go for it", "Just do it", "Let it go", "Life is an adventure, "You can do it", "Nothing can stop you" kind of movie.  And did I mentioned that the soundtracks are superb?  I just love Space Oddity by David Bowie and below is what was used in the movie.

I've been jumping from one topic to another, so I'll just continue with my usual monthly thing which I've been pondering if I continue to do so.  I have some projects in mind that I hope will materialize in the next quarter like binibining dalaga which talks about different kinds of basic make-up in a beginners perspective meaning my perspective (totally new to make-up) and I'm also thinking of just doing a one time big time haul post since doing it everytime I buy some random things annoys us (it annoys me now and I know it annoys you too or I'm just assuming).  I also want to improve the context of my review by adding the links where I bought it and stuff like that plus the description on my tabs which I should have done from the very beginning (my mind is in a constant mess so my tabs and topics keep on changing).  Anyway, going back  here are my empties for this month which is not much (and I actually thinking if I should just remove this portion).

january empties

I used the Mizon Snail Recovery Gel Cream mostly in my hands now as it helps in making it plump (my hands are wrinkled) then everytime I wash my hands after doing my business in the bathroom (which is like on an hourly basis because I drink lots of water and tea) I just use the Eva Vitamin Hand because it's the cheapest hand lotion that I can find in Watsons that is quick absorbent.  The Moringa Oil helps a lot these days in keeping the dry patches in my skin less itchy and because it's so tiny I already bought another one.  And finally, I managed to empty the Watsons Repairing Treatment Shampoo in Honey after many months, you can find my post about it here.

Time for my wishlist which I'm now very excited about because my wish last December came true this January and I'm really hoping that my wishes materialize every month.

source

Okay I want a laptop but not specifically the one above (I just find the photo cool).  A simple, fast and easy to use laptop (with high quality sound effect) is all I really need/want and cheap too basta within my budget.  I also want a camera and I'm already okay with Fuji X10 or if my budget permits them maybe the X20 or the X100 will also be great (man, I really need to find a high paying job).

source

One of my favorites this month has been a surprised to me since I always pick a food as a favorite, this time around a wristlet is included in the league.

xoxo wristlet

celestial sleepytime herbal tea and oishi oaties milk

I love how creamy the Oishi's Oaties Milk and I am also enjoying it's introductory price.  The Celestial Sleepytime Herbal Tea keeps me warm and helps me have a deep sleep at night.  When I mix the two together, they make a really nice almost like chai tea only less sweet.

Going back to the wristlet,  I like that it's big enough to accommodate my phone, a pack of tissue, keys and some money but light enough that it's not annoying to carry it around.  It's convenient to have it when I'm wearing something without any pockets and suddenly my niece would drag me to the mall and I don't want to change, I just grab the wristlet and dumped  my stuff and I'm good to go (with bed head ahahaha).

source

The first photo from this post is just so cool- the lyrics is from Franz Ferdinand's Right Action and they are my "Band of the Month".

I first heard the band when I was in college with Take Me Out which for me is like a combination of different music generations: from my parents rock and roll, to my brothers' semi-hard rock, to my sister's alternative rock and today's pop.  Well it's just my opinion.

Now they are back with Right Thoughts, Right Words, Right Action which is their fourth studio album and Bullet is currently on top of Jam 88.3's Weekly Top Ten (I like the Right Action more though).

To know more about the band you can just click this wikipedia link or check their site at www.franzferdinand.com.

Made it this far?  Well, thank you...I appreciate it!

December 2013: Let's End the Year with a Bang! as in Big Bang!

Will my friend Pink will probably end it with some BigBang songs but not me, I will be ending mine with The Killers since I finally have the Direct Hits album, Counting Stars by One Republic and maybe with some OPM rock courtesy of my little brother because I'm finally going home to celebrate the New Year!

Another bang to end my year is the shock to many (myself included) that I quit my job without looking for a replacement.  Yup, I'm crazy and I actually wrote a whole paragraph to defend myself but I'll just bore you with it but overall, with my current job (I'm still with the company up to present but my resignation is already in effect) I think I became a grinch not just on holiday season but all throughout the year so I just have to leave before it sucks out all the happiness and "beauty" in me.

Speaking of beauty, I'm kind of ashamed of myself for not posting a lot of reviews and looking into my "mini department store" I have a lot to go through.  I'm eating too much this December and before I knew it, I'm already asleep (are you like this too?) and when I wake up, it's already time to go somewhere and can't blog anymore so expect a lot of posts this coming January 2014 so don't leave me okay and to those  whose still with this blog, THANK YOU VERY MUCH especially to those who always find time to comment and just sharing their thoughts (you know who you are :D) even though I reply in a weird way.  As a"blogger" it makes me happy that there's someone out there reading so it would be really nice to comment,  even a simple hi or hello fuels me.

On a regular note here are my empties, favorite and wishlist plus the band that has been my fave this month.

Kraft Caramels

Obviously, I love Kraft Caramels as evidenced by the empty pack up there ahahahaha I just love that it is chewy and very caramely...yum yum yum diabetes on the way.

first time

Well, almost empty for the The Body Shop Vitamin C Skin Boost and Skin79 Snail Nutrition BB Cream but I'll be bringing these two on my holiday vacay and I'm sure I'm gonna finish them before the year ends.  As for the The Face Shop lip gloss, well I have to throw it since it's already been a year since I first swipe it on my lips.  The color is actually really good but I'm not really a lip gloss person, sorry lip gloss.

Below are products that I emptied (almost).  I left some for review purposes.

skincare empties

Is it a sign of aging to wish for some kitchen tools?  I can't help it, I'm just dreaming of a mixer and a blender (I actually also want a juicer).

kitchen tools source for the mixer / source for the blender

and some samples

I decided to just bring the samples for my vacay that will reduce my sample stash by 95% which is amazing because I just don't know how to empty my sample collection and finally I'm emptying it.

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I've actually have been liking Metric before I even knew their band name.  Their concert in Samsung Hall sometime 2nd week (or was it first week?) of December made me search for their songs and surprise I've been hearing them on the radio.  I specifically love "Blindness" in a weird way because it "downs" me yet uplift me at the same time.  Emily's voice is so unique, I just like the sweet raspiness and it's so cool that even in live (based on the youtube videos that I watched because unfortunately I didn't watched the concert) it's still has the same quality.

I love how quirky Youth Without Youth video below.

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I wanted to add in this post my new year's resolution/bucket list and whatever but this is just so long I have to end it here.

Let me greet you first a Happy New Year and Cheers to 2014!

Thanks for reading. Till then. Bye!  I really have to end it here.

November 2013: Clueless?

It's already been four hours since I started to type something about my tea time and me being an introvert but all I have is a single sentence then blank...maybe I'm just enjoying listening to Metric's Blindness and The Killers' Just Another Girl which kind of depresses me because the video is like a goodbye forever from them.

Clueless! Yes, I'm a clueless man right now as I still don't know what to do or how to act or whatever...it'll be Christmas in just a couple of days and then goodbye 2013 and it seems like I haven't done anything significant.

Speaking of Christmas, here are four items that are on my wishlist:

O.S.T. Original Pure Vitamin C20 Serum (source)/ Forever 21 Secret Rebel Combat Boots (source)/ Tokyo Love Soap (source)/ Diana Mini (source)

Been hearing a lot of good reviews about the O.S.T. Vitamin C Serum which is known as the brown bottle in Korea and I'm liking that it can brighten and help lightens pigmentation of the skin and yes my obsession I guess for brighter skin is coming back and would also like to get my hands on Tokyo Love Soap to make my skin looking flawless because I just have tons of scars all over my body because of my allergy and this soap is as they say just do the job though I'm hesitant to shell out more than 500 bucks for just a bar of soap.

I'm also dying to have a pair of boots although I don't know how to rock it plus the price of the one in the picture in the Philippines is almost twice than what is on forever21.com price.

I still haven't haven't decided whether to get a diana or la sardina but I guess it doesn't matter right now because I just spent 75% of my "toy" budget to Forever21 last friday.  I guess I'll stick with my Superheadz for the meantime, but if anyone out there wanted to sell their old lomo cam for a very affordable price then let me know ;)

my favorite treats

For this month of November I'm just loving the comfort that Griffins Mint Treat Mint Flavoured Biscuits is giving me.  This one is a biscuit top with mint filling then the two are covered in chocolate, simply yummy.  I buy this biscuit in SM for P99 and I will try the other biscuits from Griffins soon.

I generally like macadamia nuts covered in chocolate and I'm just so happy that my sister and brother in law gave me Hawaiin King Milk Chocolate covered Macadamia Nuts as a pasalubong.  I also like the one from Guam, forgot the name of the brand but it doesn't matter as long as it's macadamia in chocolate then I'm a happy kid :D (kinikilig mga ngipin ko)

And my hit pans.

white musk, collagen and lotion

There's actually a few products left on the containers but they are good for around 3 times so I'll just include them on my November empties.  You can find my The Body Shop White Musk post here and here for the Etude House Moistfull Collagen Cream which is by the way a dupe for Clinique's Moisture Surge (well that's what they say).

And lastly music.  I'm listening to many "old" songs lately not that they are old to hear but they are from the 80's or 90's yet they are like awesome (I don't know how to describe them best) but I have to give this month to Yolanda Moon.  Yup, Yolanda and I have to admit that I feel guilty of remembering the band because of the typhoon (bless and help the victims) and I'm very surprised when the band favorited my tweet about it  (sorry guys).

I first heard Yolanda Moon on Jam88.3 last year and their laid-back, soothing sound just catches me.  They are known for SmallTalk but the song that really attracted me to them is 73.

Check out their cool video:

Happy Holidays!

Thanks for reading. Till then. Bye!

October 2013: The Rise of the Blog

During All Saints or All Souls Day (sometimes both), by the time that the night bites the rays of the sun our family light candles all over our yard and home (around 15 to 20 candles), our neighbors too (and probably our whole barangay although not as much as the candles that we light but most put the candles in their gates) do the same thing and the street in the province that I live in just look pretty with all the candles around.  Most of the time too we make this foggy/smokey effect (with the dried leaves and newly cut grass that my siblings collected and sometimes incense) and turn off the major lights in our house and from the outside our home (with the smokey and candles) look so magical but of course to others it's looks spooky.  *Sigh* a snippet of my childhood that I miss because I was in the office, working during November 1!!!

Hello everyone, I hope you had a blast with maybe all the halloween parties that you attended (hmmmp, I didn't attend one) and in just a couple of weeks it's Christmas/Holiday Season na (which means vacation time too and I badly need one). Now this October I'm just so amazed that I'm regularly (on a weekly basis) posting, just when I thought that by the end of the year this blog will totally shut down but nope it rises.

I know during month-end's I usually post what food that I like and other whatnots but I do not have any so I'll move on with my empties and soon to be empties.

my sister's really amazed at how I empty a lot of products

I'm just so happy that I made a blog post for all of these stuff which been rare of me lately but hell yeah I'm catching up with all the products that I have.  Except for the eye cream, I'm loving these products especially the Zenutrients Anti-Cellulite Oil because of it's soothing properties.  The products are (click product for links to my posts):

1 Etude House Nutrifull Shea Butter Sleeping Pack
2 Mizon Ultra Repair Wonder Eye Cream
3 The Body Shop Macadamia Body Butter Duo
4 Mizon Ultra Repair Wonder Cream
5 Zenutrients Anti-Cellulite Oil
6 The Body Shop Cranberry Joy Body Polish

Also in just maybe 3 to 5 uses or so, I'll also be emptying these products and will, I don't want to stock the containers in my already cluttered closet.  Anyway, I'm pretty sure that I'll be done dealing with these products before the week ends.

1 Hair Treats Hair Spa
2 Purebeauty Exfoliating Gel (review soon)
3 Za Total Hydration Dewy Moisturizer
4 TonyMoly Panda's Dream Good-Bye Dark Eye Corrector (i'm using it as a hand and foot cream now)
5 A generic sponge from Landmark

I also just keep on playing the songs that are on my phone which is weird for me because every now and then I keep on searching for songs that suits my mood/taste.  Anyway two songs of the The Killers (I know I keep on mentioning the band since last month) caught my attention when I saw their respective live versions.

The first one is A Dustland Fairytale.  I'm okay with this song when I first heard it and all I said was "nice...decent and clean"  I only appreciated it's meaning and connect with it when I'm pondering what to do with my life.  Totally fell in love with it when I watched the Abbey Road live version, my eyes just turned watery and feeling just keep on surging for so many reasons.  The song is actually very personal to Mr. Brandon Flowers because it's about his parents and about Nevada but the song is just so versatile that I guess anyone who'll hear it will have it's own interpretation and connection (I read some of the comments and I'm somehow right about this).  I wanted to share the video here but it's not allowed anymore, so just click on the links.

Strong and Magical!

"God gives us hope But we still fear what we don't know The mind is poison"

The next one is Sam's Town.  Now I hate this song when I first heard it..Still not into it the second time because it sounds too theatrics which I think is unnecessary but again as I go deep into the lyrics I started to get the song and has been in my fave playlist the fifth time I heard it.  I like to hear the live version and saw their Albert Hall concert on youtube and man it's as i f I'm transported and time-spaced in the hall and I started to sing as if I'm with the crowd and The Killers.

"Why do you waste my time?  Is the answer to the question on your mind  And I'm sick of all my judges  So scared of what they'll find But I know that I can make it..."

So have you ever seen the lights?

Thanks for reading. Till then. Bye!

Random Wish and Favorites

Last February, I shared about the food, music, wish and things that I like and wanted to continue doing so in the following months.  This month (March actually) it's still all about food, music and wishes come true!  Plus some summer sunset photos.

Let's start with food.  I love spicy noodles and for a quick fix, I sometimes buy ready to cook like what is in the picture below with different characters all over that I ca't understand (and glad that I'm not allergic to it).  One thing that I put in my spicy noodles to make it creamy is CHEESE!!!  Weird for some but it's just so addicting, I can't stop putting more cheese in the soup.  Also got a chocolate with almond inside from Lotte, ~yummy~.

spicy + sweet + cute

I also got myself a big bowl with a cute/naughty cat design.  I thought of Naruto eating ramen when I saw this  bowl in a Japan store.  Took the picture with my new phone.

not the latest but at least I have an android phone

Yes, finally I have an android phone (my friends would not tease me anymore) not the latest and hippest but with the price and simple design and good camera, I'm contented with it and I mentally slash this on my 2013 wish list.

photo from http://puritti.uninsomnia.org/?p=317

Another simple wish do come true, is having a Laneige product.  I chose the Power Essential Skin Refiner because I thought it would refine my skin but looking now into different kinds of reviews (which where confusing at first), I came into a conclusion that it just a toner.  I still have a lot of toners but it's okay at least I have a lot of spare.  It's still on transit though, to be specific it's in customs:  Customs please just deliver it to my friend's house.  It's for personal use and please stop corruption.  I'm begging you!

photo from http://www.pinkspage.com

Music sets my mood/emotions.  I sometimes cry just by listening to a good music (don't judge me).

photo from http://www.rollingstone.com

This month, I've been in love with music from Fun., Pink and Bloc Party.  I also like Sextapes by Deftones and Explosives by Bond.  I'm also a regular listener of Jam88.3 which is a local station playing different kinds of alternative music (they are also in UStream) and I thank them for introducing me to different kinds of bands like Black Keys, Alt J, Bloc Party and many many more.

photo from http://blocparty.ru/files/bloc-party-main-big.jpg

Oh I almost forgot about the sunset photos.  Same spot from my previous photos but the sky is extremely orange and there's a natural bookah on the second photo.

orange + plus clouds

look how big the sun is

Summer is definitely in the Philippine air.

Thanks for reading. Till then. Bye!

Holiday Food/Drink Favorites

It's December, it's holiday and it's time to eat a lot!!!  Diet is not an excuse.  Here are some of my favorites that can't get out of my head (and belly!)

Peppermint Attack
I love food with peppermint although many find it weird.  It's just refreshing and minty with just the right sugar (although I know it's made out of lots of sugar!)These candy canes are not just yummy but they look festive too with the colors of Christmas of green and red.

bought it from Candy Corner

Another Limited Edition from Mogu Mogu (why are the products nowadays have limited edition printed on it? great marketing strategy by the way!).  This drink has strawberry flavor with Nata de Coco so it's refreshing and filling at the same time.

Mogu Mogu Strawberry Juice a product of Thailand

And look how cute the cap is.  Kyot kyot talaga!

cute cap with my spare glasses

Any favorite you wanted to share?

Thanks for reading.  Till then.  Bye!