i love bargains!

that's why im addicted to ebay ^_^.

these pump-dispensers (plus spray) are cheap on ebay, i bought the set for $3.  and only one piece of pump dispenser i saw in bcc costs the same!

yes, i labelled them, too.  i have monica-like oc-ness..

this is convenient for the nail polish remover, coz in nail art you have to keep the nail polish remover at your side all the time, and keeping the cover open vaporises it.

so using this, just pump the dish at the top of the bottle to get some NPR.  releasing the pump keeps the NPR on the dish, ready for a quick dip from your best friend, the cotton bud.  and the rest is safe inside the bottle.  bless them for inventing it ^_^

aside from this, let me share other bargain finds:

nail plates from a seller in Estonia:

three pieces cost only $7.6, and are almost the same as real konad plates, except without the engraved konad word at the front and the paper at the back.

real one at the top, fake one bottom

comparing to the $20.70 i paid for three real ones T_T

the fake plates are not blue, by the way, they are just plastic covers that you need to peel before using:

and the most recent one i found in our local mall:

see the huge discount!?!?

the cutest drawer with the sweetest price!! the only catch is the knob at the bottom drawer is missing:

but bambi fixed it already, and it may be weird looking but at least it works! ^_^

bambi found this knob from their own home fashion store

it now sits pretty on my table:

and the cheapest of them all:

these dangling earrings cost only 27 US cents at Accessorize during their latest sale!  what a deal, right?!?!!

i love shopping, but i love saving even more!

review time

ok, as promised, no more wallowing.  so im gonna do the second thing i most usually do in my blog which is to make a review of things i own so that you don't have to buy them and make the same mistakes i did.

(...there is laughing in my head)

anyways, nothing bad to say about the first thing on my list which is JML's wet straight pro.  its the hair iron that can be used on dry or damp hair.  because irish' very happy recommended it to me i never thought twice in buying it even though i already have:

philips 8-in-1 hair styer.  very helpful but it takes a lifetime to heat up and forever to finish styling your whole head, especially for curling.  even the simple straightener pisses me off.

conair plimatic trix stix hair straightener.  it heats up decently but my hair gets tangled all the time.  apart from the fact that it only has 3 inches of heating plate.

now we happily go to wet straight pro...

if irish is happy with this product, i am happier!  i can actually straighten my hair even if it is still damp!  (damp, ok? you'll electrocute yourself if you use it on wet hair... then you'd be back at one in straightening your hair :D)  and not only that, i also tried curling my hair and it took only 20 minutes without hurrying.  (for a tutorial on how to curl your hair using a flat iron, click here)  what's more, i did not notice any drying or stiffening in  my hair, which usually happens when your hair dries up from all the heat of the iron.  one morning when i did not have time to style my hair and just went to the office just brushing it, it was still straight and soft.  you can also select your preferred temperature.  i am so impressed...

the only disadvantage is that if you look at it, the buttons for the temperature and power is on the side, and i always accidentally push this every time i use it.  i have learned to avoid it, though the first times were a pain.

quick trivia:  i have read that the peace sign in photographs have been in fashion because the japanese started using them to promote world peace, then the rest of asia followed (that is why most teenagers in asia have photos with the peace sign in friendster and facebook) then the rest of the world.  so, let's promote world peace, everyone!

next review is for a hong kong-made MAC Hello Kitty eyeshadow that i purchased from ebay for just $10 and revlon 12-hour colorstay quad which is a gift from ariane.

yes, it's not really MAC, but who cares?  as long as that mouthless cat with a ribbon is on the label, id be happy to bid for it (lol), but seriously i was suprised to see that it was of good quality, the shadows are so creamy and the bright colors are so lovable!

even the applicator is so smooth and soft!

compared to the applicators i bought from lifestyle which looks spongy, i actually love using mac hello kitty's applicator.  it earned its space in my cosmetic case (i leave my big 120-eyeshadow pack at home and bring mac hello kitty for touch ups or for late mornings :)

meanwhile, ariane sent me this eyeshadow in hope that i might evolve without her knowing that i already did in less than a year when she left.  i guess san diego made her miss me so much that she even sent me a watch from style&co... thanks pokie!

anyways, the revlon eyeshadow's color is very helpful if i want smokey eyes, which is rare.  i tested it for a few days and the colors do have staying power.  and it did not crease or fade.  the only downside is that it came with this applicator that looks worse than my lifestyle sponges.

apart from that, she also sent me 2 nail polishes which i really felt bad about because maricel's pack only has a watch while mine has a lot, so i told her that i only had one nail polish.  ooops...

i love sally hansen nail polishes!

of all the blue nail polishes that i own, i love this the most!  it looks royal blue and my konad plates were happy too!  i began using them again this week..

i was so happy staring at my nails so i gave myself the same pedicure:

that's what i call happy feet! :)

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...

motto in ebay: "patience is a virtue"?

you'd think i'd be used to to receiving stuff by now, but im still drunk-happy when i see a package with my name on it!

especially when these arrived, coz it was packed in a big box, and i thought it was the other one, with the hello kitty gloss, blush and lip balm.  turned out it was just a brush!

im still impatiently waiting for my other stuff.  apart from above, i still have a hello kitty eyeshadow, borjouis maxi frange waterproof mascara, smashbox cream liner palette, coralista and justine case in a plane or a post office somewhere.

anyways, quick review, for the nars smudge brush, i was expecting it to be soft and cute, and i wasn't disappointed.  although im not using it everyday coz my smashbox shader brush almost does everything on my lids, this is still a good brush to keep, maybe when i learned how to do that smokey eye thing...

i can't get over how long this brush is!

next is the pencil dome brush, which is suppose to be used on the outer half of your lids, for lining or smudging the liner... it's cheap and i can't complain coz it's soft, too.  no shedding when i washed it.

smudged purple liner on the outer half of my eyes.  suppose to make it appear bigger.

and apart from ebay, my new product of choice is the maybelline xxl curl, which makes my lashes look fake, it is seriously thick and long.. i love it so much!

i wasn't born with it, it's just maybelline...

and my newest aha! moment:  i replaced my bath salt's container for my yoko milk salt!

basically, i want to use this every night.  it really makes my arms smooth super fast.  and it's heaven to put lotion on smooth skin.  but it's a tedious to dip my hands inside everytime.

so the glamourflage bath salts have this cool "salt and pepper dispenser" look, and i just placed the contents on a small jar and put yoko bath salts inside and voila!  hindi na ko tatamarin every night! hehe

im a genius (toinks!)

100% macbaby

i squeal everytime i see a mac on a movie.  it's just that mac users are a limited few, and i love to see someone using a mac coz i know how happy she is, or will be once she knows the ins and outs of mac computers...

so i also squealed like a piglet when i saw a pink macbook like mine on 'confessions of a shopaholic', and though macs are generally white (or that black macbook that kc concepcion owns), i was happy that she also used a case to beautify her baby.  i got mine from ebay and it's a hard case covering the top and the bottom, but hers look like a clasp-on thing...

since 2003 i have been hooked on apple and never got back to pc.  my husband bought me and ibook before, and two years ago replaced it with a newer macbook, and it is one machine i can't go through a day without.

i have more than a hundred applications, from simple time displays to serious house renderings, and basically anything that can enhance my usage.  i use it when i cook, when i want to watch a movie, when i want to emote with love songs, when working, when vacationing, and in my waking hours, 4 hours will not pass without my hands touching a mac.

i super super love it.  and i will not replace it with a pc ever...

benefit booties

the first thing they gave me this morning was my parcel from hongkong.  i shrieked, these were my benefit items from ebay!

that totally made my day... my seller shipped them so fast, coz i remembered paying for these just last november 11!

first things first before you buy cosmetics from ebay:

• research the seller first.  it is important to know if she has negative feedbacks regarding her products because fake items can easily be bought from ebay.

      so far, my seller has tons of positive feedbacks.  so that's a good sign.

• after your item arrives, check the expiration date.  if you can't find it, search the internet coz some cosmetic items can easily be checked by special codes made by the manufacturer. 

• next, make sure that your item is sealed, unless you agreed to buy an opened item.  i always search for BNIB which means brand new in box, or NIB (new in box), so i know that they haven't been poked by anyone.  

• even though your makeup brushes are sealed, don't forget to wash them first before using them.  especially for eyeshadow brushes. 

• and last, swipe a small amount on your arm, or your neck to check for allergies.

here, back to my loot:

^_^ i love new makeup!

my new foundation

*review* i have switched!!! as much as i love bare escentuals' foundation, i can't believe that benefit made my pores look smaller and my face look smoother, plus it evens out my skintone and even diminished redness around my nose.  my new fave!!!

super pink blush! i tried it this afternoon and it was so sheer, i looked translucent to my medium skin.  but when i use it after benefit's some kind-a gorgeous foundation faker, it comes out nicely, like a natural blush!

new lip scrubs and lip balm. im so excited to try them out!

*update*  nothing dramatic.  maybe because im used to scrubbing my lips with toothbrush so i don't have anything to exfoliate.  it's still good to try out though... and handy in the office if i have dry lips!

and my new eyeshadow brush.  it was stated a travel-sized brush but if you were expecting small, travel sized brush, it was, in my opinion, a medium-sized one.  perfect if you bought it as your main eyeshadow and couldn't afford the full-sized one, but if you were expecting to put it in your eyeshadow case (like me), then shove it somewhere else.

*update*  i love the softness!!!  apart from being multitasking (i can use it for base or for blending, but mainly for blending coz it's super good), this brush is also super-soft!

(i was planning to put it here:)

ok, this one's fake.  but i couldn't help it, hello kitty is there!

pft!  my artistic moment:

and those pink round things? i've found those to put in my eyeshadow stand because it helps them be straight and not side by side, which confuses me in the morning and it takes time looking for the right one if they are squeezed together like they're dorks about to be photographed:

my day just got a little brighter...