on the eve of christmas eve

i can't breathe everytime i think about my trip.  i seriously can't breathe.  so i don't think about it anymore.  actually after i packed my bag last weekend i didn't touch it anymore.  but i count the days, and it is dragging on too long... which is what usually happens when you're waiting for something.

and i don't know why but i am nervous, which is totally different from the excitement i usually felt from my four trips back to manila for the past 6 years.

anyways, i had a cup of biguerlai tea two days ago because my stomach feels heavy and maricel said it will help me remove unwanted stuff from my intestinal track so i tried it.

unfortunately i don't feel heavy anymore, i feel pain.  so much pain and so many trips to the bathroom for the past two days and until now that tea still wages war against my stomach.  i am sticking to green tea from now on!


and, since my boss came back earlier than usual i am blogging my last blog before my vacation, probably, just to review my recent stuff ebay:

1.  coralista blush by benefit

" finally! i have been waiting for you for ages.  and i was not disappointed because you gave me so much sparkle on my cheeks that i don't have to use bare escentuals bare radiance anymore.  and your brush is so soft, and your color is so nice, its just the right orange-pink shade that gives my winter a little bit of summer-y look.  i really love the shimmers!!!"

from left to right: mikajy blush in rose, bourjoius blush in amber, benefit coralista, and thrrrob

from left to right: benefit thrrrob, bourjoius blush in amber, benefit coralista, and mikajy blush in rose

2. smashbox best of cream liner palette

the cutest thing in my cosmetic bag!  it is so thin, and flat, as wide and long as my credit card and only half a centimeter thick, but the liners are cost-efficient.  i only need a few swipes and a pop of colour goes into my eyes.  unfortunately the colors are not bright, and the amount of cream liners are insufficient (i probably need to restock every month or so) but if it is for handy cosmetic bags supply only, it is enough.

it is that small

and this thin!

3.  bourjouis maxi-frange waterproof mascara

mascara and cream liner

In Vert Honolulu, kind of blue green.  I only bought this because its only about $4 and the shipping is free coz it is from the same seller as the smashbox item, and i used this once yesterday only on the tip of my lashes, two swipes to give a hint of colour and already i can smell the strong scent of the mascara.  it lingered on for 5-7 seconds and it was not bad-smelling, just the usual smell of mascara multiplied by 10.  but the colour is awesome!  and until i was about to sleep it was still there, after two washes of soap and one wash of face foaming from belo.  but a couple of baby oil on a cotton pad removed the remaining tubes, i called them tubes coz they look like they coated my eyelashes on all surfaces, to lengthen, i guess.

first: extension extreme with that weird alien comb

next, volume maximum with a normal brush

and speaking of belo's whitening facial wash, i don't know if the fresh avocado face mask was responsible for it or belo or olay total effects moisturizer coz i started using them at the same time, but my face is noticeably smoother, and my pores are definitely smaller.  i am so amazed everytime i look at my freshly washed face coz i can't see the pores on my cheeks anymore.  and the facial wash smells good, too.  it reminds me of something but i can't remember.

that's all, i still have to go to cathay pacific's website to check-in online.  goodnight...

the weekend before christmas!

alu my sister!  i don't know if you're the only one reading my blog but its for all of you in manila to let you know how im doing here, kind of like my public diary exposed for all of you haha..

anyways, the night before the national day holidays, me, maricel, irish and her wanna-be suitor florin went to gosi and had coffee and finalized our schedule for thursday, which is, to have another city centre day.

and so we did go to bcc last thursday, from 11 am until 8 pm.  bambi said it wasn't normal, and i have to get my head checked for psychological problems.  hello, kulang pa nga yun e... di ko pa nalibot lahat-lahat.

(bcc photos)

anyways, bati na kami, but when he saw my post in facebook regarding jacob black this morning, his ears started to give off steam again...

i don't know why im like this, but maybe its because he left me to wander alone a lot of times while he's playing his computer games and so i looked for things to keep me entertained.  and here comes makeup and twilight.  what is he complaining about?  im a completely normal human being.

so while we were in bcc, i saw some shoes that were on sale.  i bought two for my brothers.  that's why i had to fix my bag today, to see if i still have space for pasalubongs and stuff.

i was originally planning to bring only one backpack since i already went home last may and i wasn't planning to give anything to anyone (kuripot haha), but these shoes changed my plan.  so i took a medium-sized stroller bag and included some clothes that were just sitting in my closet and thought that maybe they'll be of better use to my sister, the other one, rj makulit... she adores me.  i don't know why.

so i think i only have some small spaces left and im just gonna buy chocolates and stuff for the family tree... im bad in remembering them all.  i usually just buy stuff and let kristelle distribute them, otherwise i would probably forget the important people.  she wouldn't.  she's a family girl.  and she knows everyone.

next step for me is to pick the important kikay stuff from my drawer, and from that, still i have to pick the ones i can't go without:

i really planned on going light, so ill just pick my favorite brushes, blush, favorite primer, lip gloss and so on.. they will go inside this cute hello kitty bag i bought from ebay:

it opens up like this and it has a mirror, too!

and i probably picked mostly everything, coz i don't buy what i wouldn't use.  but the fave among the faves are:

hello kitty contact lens case (from ebay.  it has sanitized tongs if you don't want to touch your lenses, and a small squirtable bottle for your solution inside)

Be givenchy.  bambi bought this in the airport last may before we went home.  in my excitement i forgot that i had no perfume on. how gross if i was hugged and i smelled like a 9-hour flight... and i only like a few fragrances, coz other smells gives me a headache.  this one's a dream.  but i specifically use this only when im in manila, kind of like a homesick scent...

1.  sephora eye primer

2.  nivea 10-hour lipstick & gloss

3.  mikajy lip brush (i love this!)

4.  loreal eyesmoker in black (my current fave eyeliner)

5.  benefit lip beads (lip exfoliator)

6.  maybelline xxl curl mascara (super long & thick lashes)

7.  contact lens case

8.  sephora face primer

9.  benefit high beam

10.  prestige ultimate brow definer (why i love it?  it has a liner on one end, and a mascara-like brush on the other end)

11. mikajy blush

12. 22k lip palette

13. bare escentuals mineral veil

14. benefit some kind-a gorgeous foundation faker

15. bare escentuals mineral foundation

16.  bare escentuals clear radiance (subtle shimmer without dewiness)

17. benefit blush in thrrrob

18.  olay total effects 7x (my new moisturizer)

1. colourland face brush

2.  bare escentuals flawless face brush

3.  colourland lip brush ( i use it on my eyeliner, and it totally uses every centimeter of it!)

4. colourland flat stiff brush

5.  colourland angled brow brush

6.  bare escentuals maximum concealer brush

7.  angled eyeliner brush (i got it from watson's)

8.  paula's choice pencil brush

9.  smashbox shadow brush

10.  nars smudge brush

im not planning to bring my konad stuff, although i would love to paint rj's nails... i just want to bring stuff that i wouldn;t bring back, coz i know when i come back i'll have a lot to bring.  so maybe next time.

and since i have been in manila earlier this year already, im not planning on splurging anywhere.  ijust want to spend time with my little monster...


to my officemates: thank you for covering up for me.  have a nice holiday!

ps. this is where im going:

manila ocean park*

market market*

sm bicutan*

sm mall of asia*

*images from the internet, no copyright infringement intentions!

breaking up is hard to do.

you have to let them go.  no matter how hard it is.  you'll be happier if you do.  and prettier.


ok, im talking about your makeup here, not your lovelife.


we all love to keep all things nice, but we should remember that nice things have an expiration date, too.  and whether you like it or not, sometimes you have to throw away some nice things because, erm, well, they are old.

the shelf life or makeup products are not generally taken into heart by most girls.  in fact, they hold on to the stuff they love dearly without realizing that it's been with them for a while.

but to prevent irritations, infections, and skin breakouts, sometimes you have to check your drawer and toss the items that you 'sometimes' use if they are way past their prime time.

only people get better with age.  makeup doesn't.

shelf life estimations of the makeup products that i use are:


foundation: 12 months
doesn't matter to me, i usually finish bare escentuals foundation within 6 months coz i use it in the morning and in the afternoon.

especially for cream foundation, pls don't use it more than 1 year due to bacteria build-up

concealer: 12 months
otherwise, that pimple you're trying to hide just might get more irritated.

blush: 2 years
yipee!  ok, seriously, who can finish a blush in one year?!?

my new blush called Minx from Mykajy (up) and my old blush (below) which,even after 1 year, still has too much

my previous cheek remedy for instant blush, the body shop's lip and cheek stain doesn't last for more than a month.

eyeshadow: 2-3 years
don't worry about throwing it out, that means you can now buy new colors!

irish bought this on sale.  this brand is called 22k, and they have all their cosmetics packaged in a fancy gold-plate style.  super cute! but remember, the reason why cosmetic shops have a seasonal sale is because they want to finish the items that have been sitting on their shelves.  so make sure you don't use them past their 'good time' if you bought them on sale.

mascara: 4 months
beware, eye irritations are serious.  don't risk your eyesight for a $15 worth of new mascara.  i am serious about this because of experience.  so i usually write the purchase date on my mascara now with a permanent marker to remind me when to buy a new one.

pencil eyeliner: 2-3 years
no matter how long it still is, buy a new one.  and sharpen regularly.

liquid eyeliner: 3-6 months
uh-oh.

lipstick: 2-3 years
that's why you should never have more than 3 lipsticks.  ouch.

22k delectable lip palette in pink twilight

nivea extreme resist (10 hours lipstick, or so they say) in roselove and coral

makeup brushes: wash 2-3 times a month
i usually do this weekly by washing it in jared's baby shampoo.  my baby still has little hair and didn't use it anyway.  don't forget to let it dry lying on a flat surface, to retain their shape.

sponge: wash weekly and discard monthly
duly noted

nailpolish: 2 years
goodie goodie!

other stuff
if it smells funny, or if you're in doubt, throw it out.


i know, its hard.  but think of it this way:  who doesn't love shopping for new 
makeup?!?

more photos

update! one of the photographers gave irish one dvd where he burned some, as in some 400 photos of the costume party irish had.















actually i'd love to post them all here but you'll just have to see the rest at facebook.

anyways, i have given some stuff to friends coz they're just wasting away at my closet.  i don't want them to go expired so better give it to someone who can use it.

escada ocean paradise, given by my boss.  i had a headache when i first used it coz it was too sweet so i never used it again.  i gave it to sisterling.

sephora triple action mascara given to maricel.  anyways i compared it to body shop before and bs won.  it's also cheap coz it's on sale when i bought it, like 1.5 so compared to my daily food supply from maricel, she deserved it.  plus she gave me a good quality eyelash curler before which i still use until now.  i don't know if she loved this or not, i didn't get any feedback.

so this bourjouis amber blush which is suppose to be given to her also, is on hold.  im giving it to her coz i won another blush from ebay, my most awaited coralista:

this 'powder blush in tropical flush' is a shade familiar to nars' multiple o.

given to irish, who loved it so much that it didn't last one month.  i loved this so much before, but i have bare escentuals bare radiance now and i have no plans to switch back.

and irish gave me these when she came back from the philippines:  louis vuitton coin purse and what i told her to buy aside from jollibee hamburger - elf candyshop lip gloss

we are all happy barter traders :)

going bonkers @#&%^@ at sephora

i really love walking into sephora's shop in city centre.  they have all my most wanted cosmetics - benefit, nars, stila & too faced, and soon they'll launch bare escentuals in bahrain!

and also the fact that abby, francis' friend works there and gives me amazing freebies each time!

last saturday, to lift the monotony of our daily life, and also because it was irish' birthday, but that's not so important (haha! im only joking, irish!  you know i hate it when i like you too much but i do!), we went to city centre and again i went straight to sephora.  i always take a sample of nars multiple o blush, coz it costs 13 dinars ($34) and i don't allow myself to buy expensive cosmetics (fear of dependency).

anyways, my bare escentuals rev-er upper is half-empty, so i tested their smoothening primer.

and omg it really is smooth!  as in sliding smooth on your skin.  the sample i rubbed on my arm was so convincing that i bought one and told irish to get one, too.  (she did)

comparing it to rev-er upper, which i now use only on special occassions, sephora squirts out more than enough for my face.  or maybe because it feels silky that's why im thinking i have too much.  anyways its so small that i don't think it will last me a month, but the upside is that it delivers the same lasting effect as r.u.,  doesn't get my face oily and it also smells good unlike rev-er upper which smells weird.

but rev-er upper is still my number 1, because it complements the foundation i have (they're from the same company) and i can get it for $10 at ebay.  and it makes my pores look smaller and my cheeks matte and ready for mineral veil.

and i've found a cheap eyeshadow base there too!

this little pot costs $9.2, but i found it cheaper than what i had on mind - too faced shadow insurance or urban decay primer potion, which costs around $18 and up on ebay.

so far, it did make the eyeshadow more vivid, and it lasted for 5 hours looking like i just swiped them on.

and another brown eyeliner, coz i liked the one i bought before.


and the freebies i got:

really good samples, too.  i tried the eyeshadow sample two afternoons ago coz i woke up at 4:30pm (work starts at 4!) and i just put on baby powder and blush and half-ran to the office!

haha! late ka!!!

i love this black shade!  i just swiped these with my fingers when i arrived in the office.

the mascara is supposed to be lash stretcher, but i didn't see lengths like i did with bourjouis, although this one made my lashes beautifully separated and natural-looking, like you were born with it.  if i have extra money ill buy the actual product, that's how happy i am with the sample.

long and thin lashes are more natural-looking.

unlike my previous mascaras, which made my eyelashes thick,  except for bourjouis which made it long.

those were my product reviews! thank you. :)