2012/07/31

Mori-Fairy-Kei Shoot + Aoi Bara - Rarutia (Fan Video)

Yesterday I did "makeup" work on two models for a photo+video shoot that Patsy (a close friend) and I have been talking about for ages. We've been planing this for so long but it only recently pushed through. I won't blabber on and on in this post... Just check the photos & the video at the end! :D

DISCLAIMER : All the following photos belong either to Rhea, Patsy, Kai and/or Patty.
Unfortunately I already had a lot of stuff to bring so my camera was out of the question! *lol*











And the finale, the video...

2012/07/28

Personal Post : My Folk's Wedding Anniversary


Hey you guys!
Today mark my folk's 22nd year of being married. *woot woot*
I decided to share this rather personal post with my lovely readers...

Here's the video I made for them last year when they celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary...


And here's the continuation...


I hope you guys enjoyed even if I do have mediocre video-making skills. *lol*
So anyway, personal question, how long have your folks been together?
Answer in the comment box below... *smiles*

Have a lovely day!

2012/07/27

RStyle Salon ~ A New Experience

Before I left for my Singapore trip last month, I had a quick trim & a protein treatment at a local salon. Due to the lack of time, I wasn't able to have a new color set into my hair. Needless to say, my hair looked terrible and I had to bear with it. It has been a long time since I last had my hair colored so I was really itching for a change. While in Singapore I saw an ad posted by my "twin" & close friend Shanne regarding a new salon back home. I decided to give it a shot...

So yesterday, at around 11 in the morning, I stopped by R Style Salon located along Pilar Street, Corner Villalobos, Zambaonga City. The salon is owned and managed by Shanne's close friend Roland & his family (Mallarez-Khalaf). The salon is a cozy little nook in the corner and is located along a very convenient spot in town with the bustling of several other shops nearby. After you get yourself pampered, you can simply take a 5 minute walk towards several shopping malls in the vicinity! Now that's what I call convenient...


Roland (far left) along with some of the staff...
Comfy sofa-like chairs...
Clean walls, sleek swivel chairs and huge mirrors...
PROMO till end of July 2012


Blow drying my hair after the initial wash.
Applying the dye...
Hair treatment. (I honestly forgot what it was called but it really left my hair soft & shiny!)

As you can see in the photo above, my hair was a disaster prior to my "hair pampering" session at RStyle salon... When I stepped into the salon with Shanne, we were greeted by the friendly staff & Roland. I then told them that I wanted to get a haircut & coloring for my hair and asked what shades/colors were available. I was handed a rather large color display and we went through the different color selections till I found a color I liked... I was initially planning to do an ombre-style but was too afraid to subject my already unhealthy hair to bleaching to I ended up with a shade under the "natural" category called light blonde. Ironically, it really didn't look blonde on the color board nor did it look blonde in real life but it was the color I wanted to go for. It's a very light brown-ish red that really brings out the "fairness" (or what's left of it) of my skin. Later on, I got a lot of compliments saying my hair made me look a lot more "meztiza"! *blushes*

After the initial wash & half blow dry, the coloring dye was applied onto my hair in sections. I'll admit I panicked a little once the dye (cream form) started setting in because my scalp started to tingle. It was a sensation I wasn't accustomed to so I asked it it were normal and apparently it was. It can be a little uncomfortable to some but the the staff beautician, Izah Mae, gently massaged my scalp to ease away the tingling sensation & my nervousness...

After a couple of minutes, the dye was rinsed out of my hair and the treatment was applied. Honestly I don't recall the name of the treatment but it made my hair really smooth & silk plus it smelled divine! At the end of the treatment, I was given a good blow dry and a lil bit of styling went into my hair then I was all set.

I liked my whole RStyle experience and paid P2600 for everything, including a huge tub of Cynos hair mask which I consider a very nice investment on my new journey to healthier hair. I plan to go back to RStyle salon very soon to try out some other services they offer there.






2012/07/26

Guest Post : Winning Duo By Carla Cee



I bought these two babies just recently because I got really worried about my very dry face. I use the Celeteque Facial Wash and Myra E Facial Moisturizer twice a day and I think my face was very happy about it.


Celeteque Facial Wash is sold at 119 Php and I guess it’ll last for a month or more. Cleansing your face is a must and should be included in your routine for all purposes. I mean your face gets a lot of dirt and it needs to be cleaned, right? You can buy it on any Watsons Store.


Myra E Facial Moisturizer is sold at 99 Php its small and compact that you can bring it anywhere for you to use anytime you want. I have a DRY face so a MOISTURIZER is a NEED. J It has spf 15 so it protects you from the sun at the same time. How convenient!

I can say that this is a winning duo because the products are soothing, smooth and soft to your skin, I think they’re vitamins J I give the duo a rating of 4/5 and I am definitely recommending it to all of you. Thank you to Ms. Janna for letting me guest post in her beauty blog. More power to you Ms. Janna!




~ *** ~ *** ~ *** ~ *** ~

Carla Cee is a 21 year old Filipina living in Southern Philippines. She has an Undergraduate Degree and is currently having her review classes for a Licensure Board Examination come Novemeber 2012. She shares her life and interests in fashion, beauty & photography.

2012/07/22

Oh My Nails! ~ A Giveaway



Since I've been on a blog post roll, I've decided to announce a brand new giveaway as well. Last month my aunt gave me tons of nail art materials and I've set aside a couple of stuff for this particular giveaway. I'm not much of a nail art person, or a nail polish person (but I will be soon!) but I know for a fact some of my readers are really into nail art & polish in general. So anyway, before I start rambling on & on, here's a photo of what 1 lucky winner will be receiving...


As an additional prize, 1 lucky winner will also be receiving 3 surprise polishes from me. These polishes aren't shown in the photo, mind you. *wink wink*

The giveaway starts today and will run till July 31, 2012 and is open to all my Philippine based readers only. I will be announcing the winner shortly after the giveaway ends. To enter this giveaway check out the rafflecopter application. It's very easy to enter this giveaway! 


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck to everybody & enjoy yourselves!

Review : EOS G301 Max Misty Blue


It's been a while since I last reviewed lenses so I decided it's high time to do a review on my current favorite blue circle lenses. These babies are called the Max Misty Blue lenses or the EOS G301 and they were generously sponsored by my circle lens fairy Jhia or Red Jhelli Shop!


I received them before I left for my Singapore adventure and have been wearing them the past few days... These are my first ever pair of EOS lenses and I was super excited since I've heard great stuff about EOS lenses. 


Lens Information:
EOS G301 Blue
Manufacturer - EOS Korea
B.C. - 8.8mm
Dia. - 14.5mm
Lens usage - Up to 1 year
Water content - 38%-42%


Shipping / Packaging : 
As usual shipping was fast and packaging was superb. All Red Jhelli lenses come lovingly wrapped in protective bubble wrap inside a customized paper-case envelop-type container. This is my third (or is it fourth) time to receive Red Jhelli lenses and I'm glad that they still pack up the lenses the same way they did the first time. *thumbs up*

Color / Design : 
I've always had problems with blue lenses. Most of the blue lenses I had before (GEO angel blue, nudy blue, bella blue) almost always appeared blue-gray in real life & in photos. I was actually already preparing myself for a lil disappointment with the Max Misty ones but *boom*, once I had them on, there they were. As blue as blue can get. I was really surprised and happy that this pair actually showed up a lovely blue on my natural dark brown eye color. IMHO the yellow-ish inner circle complemented the blue and really made the lenses *pop*!

Enlargement : 
This particular pair has a 14.5mm diameter. A whole lot bigger than most of my 14.0mm circle lenses but does not deliver the enlargement my 15.0mm lenses give. But that's a good thing. Blue lenses already cause much attention, so having them this size gives me more freedom to wear them out often without having to fret that I'd look like too much of a "freak" as some may put it.

Comfort : 
Honestly, even if I did love the whole color & enlargement this pair gave me, it was such a pain to put on that I just had to give this a 3/5. First off I feel as if this pair's thinner than most of my GEO lenses so they tend to "fold" up on your fingertip faster than GEO ones. That alone made it difficult for me to stick them onto my eyes. *lol* Second problem I had was when I managed to put them close enough to my eyeball, they resist transferring from my fingertip to my eye! It took me more than the usual amount of time I take to wear circle lenses. I've practiced wearing this pair for a couple of times but I still haven't gotten the hang of it... *sigh* Wish me luck? Oh and just a side note, I didn't experience any drying with this pair till after 5 hours...

Overall : 
I really like this particular pair of blue lenses and I'm willing to just practice on wearing them instead of giving up on them. I'd definitely dare wear them out in public more frequently so if you bump into me one of these days, be forewarned! *lol* I gave them 3/5 stars because I took points off "comfort in application". I'd recommend these lenses to people who are looking for a more adventurous pair of lenses. Just make sure you have the patience (and time!) to put them on...










Zamboanga Blogger's Meet Up ~ Round III


Remember when I blogged about the Zamboanga Bloggers Meet Up 3?


Well yesterday, July 21, it finally happened...
The last meet up was held at a local pizza parlor called Mama Maria's last February (I think) and we were too busy chatting to death to even do anything remotely productive... *lol*
So last month, before I left for Singapore, a couple of the bloggers started talking of another meet up. It was eventually decided upon and yesterday we finally pushed through. It was a small and intimate group of 10 gorgeous girl at Garden Orchid Hotel's Le Cafe. We definitely had a mix of bloggers present and even one lovely lady, Natasha, who I hope we've convinced to start blogging already!

Photo Credit
A couple of us were there at 3pm but we officially started around 4. We had sandwiches & fruit shakes while we exchanged ideas about our blogs & blogging. My dear "partner" Rhea of bebe-doll.net started off the meeting talking about how to start blogging and shared some tips & tricks as well as some guidelines with regards to blog advertising & earning from your blog...

Photo Credit
I on the other hand talked about something I've been very passionate about and that is beauty blogging. I started off with a short description about beauty blogging and what you'll most likely need to start a beauty blog. I encouraged them to look at beauty blogging in a clearer light & I ended my short "lecture" with some tips on how to approach & deal with would-be sponsors...

Photo Credit
After we finished up our sandwiches and drinks, it was time to pay the bill. How funny that I ended up sorting through the cash. Takes me back to my high school & college days when I served as treasurer and kept tabs on the class's cash etc. *lol*
Photo Credit
Since it was getting late, I had to make my quick exit, so we took a few snapshots before heading out separate ways... In the photo below I'm with Patty of lalalapatricia.info and Kai of kaigrafia.com...
Photo Credit
Here's another photo I grabbed of the other girls present... From left to right : Shine, Patsy, Ropa Jane, Kai, Rhea, Nelka, Cee & soon to be blogger Tasha. Gorgeous girls are gorgeous! 
Photo Credit

That's all for now... I'm preparing several other posts to follow this one. I'm super excited for more successful meet ups in the future!



2012/07/21

Elizabeth's Signatures Giveaway - WINNER!

I'll keep this post nice and short since all I'm going to do is announce the winner of my giveaway sponsored by the lovely Beth of Elizabeth's Signatures...


*drum roll*

And the winner is...


Congratulations! You have 48 hours to contact me with your details. Failure to comply will disqualify you from claiming the prizes & I shall draw a new winner. To everybody who joined this giveaway, thank you very much! Keep checking back in the next few days because I have several giveaways to be announced. *winks*

2012/07/19

Review : Krave Minerale Cupine Aloepa Facial Wash


It's been too long since I did a review on anything so as a treat to all my readers, I'm going to start doing reviews on products again. This time it's going to be Krave Minerale's Cupine Aloepa facial wash. This item was generously sent to me by Estilo Libre, an official Krave Mineral distributor.



Cupine Aloepa Facial Wash
NO SLS/SLES, Parabens, Irritating Chemicals.
Cruelty Free.
Contains cucumber, pineapple, aloe vera, papaya & mulberry leaves.
Each pump bottle contains 50ml.



Shipping / Shop Packaging : 
I received this facial wash, the day after I was informed that it had been shipped out. All my goodies, and most especially this facial wash was wrapped in a layer bubble wrap to keep it safe and sound.

Design / Effectiveness / Scent : 
First off I love the fact that this comes in a pump type bottle. It makes dispensing the product a breeze. I can control the amount of product I pump out for my personal use. Next I like how sleek & travel friendly the packaging is. One thing that usually puts me off on a product is bulky packaging so extra points to this facial wash for being easy to carry around. Next thing I like about this facial wash are the ingredients in it. All natural and good for the skin. Nothing to cause worry. I also love the smell of this facial wash. It's refreshingly light and leaves you feeling invigorated after you use the facial wash. As for the product's performance... Well I've been using this facial wash for 3 weeks now, every morning, as a replacement to my Kiehl's facial wash. It has kept the pimples at bay and the pimples that I did have prior to using the product eventually lessened in redness and disappeared after continuous use of the product. Now I've yet to mix this up with my other skin care so I can't totally say I love this product but it's definitely a product I'd like to keep using & observing till I get the most out of its potential...
One problem I did encounter with it is that it doesn't lather as much as I would have wanted it to. It seems to me, that this product tends to "sink" into the skin faster than you can urge it to lather... Another problem for me is the fact that it costs P265 for a 50ml bottle. A bit pricey for my taste...

Overall : 
Overall I like this facial wash and what it does for my skin. I would have given it a 5/5 but the price is a bit of a downer plus the fact I like my facial washes to be able to lather up well... But would I repurchase? Definitely because I'm actually planning to completely switch to this product and see what other wonders it can do for my skin.


Pump bottle! Yey!

Comes out a translucent light green gel-like product.



Disclaimer : Product was sent to me by Estilo Libre for review purposes but all opinions stated are unbiased and my own.



2012/07/18

ZC Bloggers Meet Up - Round III


Zamboanga Bloggers is having round 3 of their meet ups &  you're invited!
Who : Zamboanga-based Active Bloggers
When : July 21, 2012 - Saturday
Where : Garden Orchid Hotel, Cafe
Time : 15:00 - 17:00

If you are an ACTIVE, Zamboanga based blogger who still isn't part of this group (Facebook) please contact Miss Rhea B. for further information on how to be part of our growing family.
Hoping to see all of you! This is certainly going to be fun, fun fun! *wink*

EnCara BB Cream Giveaway ~ WINNER!

Hello there! It's been a while, hasn't it? I've been really busy the past few days since I took a short vacation in Singapore to spend time with my family. But I'm back & the first post I'm gonna do is the announcing of my EnCara BB Cream winner. I know a lot of you have been waiting for this ever since I posted my review about my beloved EnCara BB Cream!


So without further ado.... *drum roll*
The lucky winner is:


As for the referrer with the most points, I'd like to congratulate KAREN "Kai" GRAFIA.
Kai will be receiving a FREE blog post feature on my blog.

So, congratulations again to the winners. You have 48 hours to contact me with your details. Thank you for joining my giveaway. Watch out for more giveaways in the near future! 


2012/07/09

Shop Feature : Flawless Beauty Online

Yet another shop feature! This time I'm featuring one of my FAVORITE online beauty & skin care shops, Flawless Beauty Online... Read on for a short, but informative, background of this wonderfully affordable beauty shop!



"Flawless Beauty Online (formerly Flawless Beauty Online Shop) started as an online seller of dermatologically tested skincare products in the defunct Friendster site which had its official launch in June 2009. Since then, Flawless Beauty Online following its success in selling skincare products online and offline had also ventured into marketing apparels, perfumes, bath and body, bags and accessories.
Flawless Beauty Online is operated by me, Lei with my husband, John Arsad, and a partner based in Quezon City, Philippines. So your orders may be shipped from either Bongao or Quezon City depending on our stocks availability. I am in charge with sales and marketing, John with the Finance and our QC-based partner with the production.
Flawless Beauty came into existence because of my passion for beauty and wellness. When i gave birth to my eldest son 4 years ago, i have developed an ugly melasma that are practically black patches all over my cheeks and upper lip. Then i found this beauty regimen whic i initially tested on my mother's face. It was not before long that I have seen dramatic results on her face. That gave me the courage to follow suit. When friends and relatives noticed our glowing skin, they wanted to buy the kit. That's when I started selling my beauty regimen to others then the rest is history." - Lei Arsad

The shop offers a variety of beauty products that are all natural and definitely great for yourself or giving away as gifts!

One of my all-time favorites are the Gluta Strawberry Milk Bars which I did a review on a couple of months ago. I'm still saving up for more scrap soap packs of this baby as well as actual bars of soap since I love it so much!

Also available are different beauty sets from the shop! You guys should definitely check those out.




So, what are you waiting for?
Affordably priced beauty products that are all natural and great for you.
Head on over to Flawless Beauty Online and let the pampering begin!