Review: Carmex Lip Balm

In one of my previous posts, I have already mentioned that I’m the type of girl who couldn’t leave the house without any lip balm in her bag. I’ve also mentioned that I have tried almost all kinds of lip balms available in the market and I always end up either regretting that I’ve bought that lip balm in the first place or feeling completely unsatisfied (err, maybe somewhat satisfied but not that much).

So basically, I’m still on the verge of finding out the most suitable lip balm for my taste. That’s the ultimate reason why I included a lip balm on my previous article entitled, “What’s in My Christmas Wishlist (2).” The brand of the lip balm that I will be experimenting on this year is Carmex.

During the time that I wrote the said article,  I just ordered those lip balms by Carmex online so it was still out for delivery. I couldn’t make any reviews yet during that time cause the product is still not yet in my own hands but I have heard a lot of good feedbacks from people who have tried using it. Saab Magalona for one has already tried this product and stated that it’s like “The Best” in one of her youtube videos. Probably she’s the reason why I got persuaded in buying and trying out this product for myself cause she’s like my fave actress at P.I.

Anyways, I got the package earlier this afternoon. Yay!

I ordered the strawberry and cherry flavored ones. I purchased it online but you can buy it at your local beauty stores like Watsons although not all the branches of Watsons have this product (the reason why I bought it online).

I bought these products at ebay. The online shop’s name is BaratMode.

Ebay :http://myworld.ebay.ph/baratmode09/

They also have a facebook page.

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/BaratMode

Sorry for the low quality pics, I was in a hurry so I wasn’t able to take a good shot of the products (reason why I normally post pictures which I browsed over the net LOL). So I got the cherry flavored one and I gave the strawberry flavored one to my mom.

She hasn’t tried it out yet so I couldn’t ask for her personal opinion about the product so I’ll just start with my very own observations after using it for like 6 hours already LOL. I think that should be enough. Hmm.

What I like about the product is that the product’s packaging is so simple. There are no deceiving designs, no complications in the usage of the product whether you’re a first time user like me or not etc. It’s a unisex lip balm so it was design to be used not only by women but also by men. As a matter of fact the creator of this lip balm, Alfred Woelbing, is indeed a man. He usually gets cold sores and chapped lips so he tried experimenting on a product and so this lip balm was created.

This lip balm from Carmex is extremely moisturizing and can be easily used as a based without all those worries of having your favorite lipstick ruined. My favorite thing about this lip balm is the tingling, relaxing sensation on the lips. Another thing is that it’s NOT WAXY. Yay! Well, yeah it’s thick but it’s not sticky unlike most of the lip balms I’ve tried. I personally don’t like those lip balms that easily dry up on the lips after several hours. I don’t know in the case of other people but for me, whenever I encounter these types of lip balms, I usually feel that my lips are like scaly and yucky cause the lip balm dries up in patches.

* Wearing Carmex lip balm only.

* Wearing Carmex lip balm plus lip stick

In addition, the lip balm has SPF 15, it has a safety seal on it, an expiration date and the best thing is that it is really inexpensive. You can buy this product for the cheap price of P99.00 tho I bought mine for like P150.00 plus shipping it’s alright the seller was really nice and she gave me a freebie too (wasn’t expecting this).

Finally, what I don’t like about this product is the strange smell of ointment plus strawberry or cherry. The smell is tolerable tho but I find the smell a little bit awkward. My own personal preference are those unscented lip balms but anyways at least this is the best lip balm that I tried and at a cheap price too! 🙂

Happy! 🙂 What do you think about this product?

Song Hye Kyo: Beauty Secrets, Healthy Habits, and Makeup Tips

Song Hye Kyo is a South Korean model turned actress who captured the hearts of many in her role as the tragic Eun-Seo (better known as Jenny in the Philippines) in the Korean drama Autumn in My Heart. I still remember watching that show and bawling in every episode. She is best known for her leading role as Han Ji-Eun  (Jessie Han in the Philippines) in the Korean drama adaptation Full House based upon the populay manwha (termed as Manga in Japanese) of the same title along side with co-actor singer Bi Rain.

Since then she starred in many a successful drama, become the face of Laneige which I have mentioned in my previous article, and is considered by many to be the most beautiful woman in Korea. Song is known for her porcelain-like skin and a lot of people have been curious about her beauty secrets and regimens.

First off, she gets it by maintaining a healthy diet. Song Hye Kyo’s secret is to stay away from food that is bad for the skin such as chocolates (aw! noooo!), coke, black tea etc. She eats lots of fruits, veggies and eggs. One of her favorite dishes is pumpkin soup, which she says is good for the health and reduces the body sores. She frequently hydrates her body by drinking water. As a matter of fact, Song recommends to begin the day by drinking two glasses of water on an empty stomach and to complete the daily mission of drinking more than 1.5 liters of water a day. She also pays attention to vitamins for moisture.

Song’s skin care routine is a mixture of high-end products and natural DIY treatments. As I have mentioned time and again, she is the face of Laneige, a Korean beauty brand that is immensely popular all over Asia. Her favorite product is the Laneige Power Essential Skin Toner, which she uses every morning and night. When it comes to skin care, she puts so much priority in moisturizing and firming-up the skin. According to Song, Power Essential Skin Toner is a good item to combat dryness especially when she is filming outdoors. She added that although it is a toner, when applied on the face, it feels like a serum that lasts longer. She also alternates the use of Laneige Star Pure Treatment Mask (sheet mask) and the Laneige Water Sleeping Pack to rejuvenate and refresh her skin after a rigorous day at work.

Now let’s move on with the natural DIY treatments that Song uses and among her favorites are the following:

1.  Egg White and Honey Mask for Whitening: Song whitens her face with a mask of one egg white mixed with a spoonful of natural, unprocessed honey (like New Zealand’s famous Manuka honey).  She applies the mask to her face and waits for it to dry before washing it off with water.  She does this once every two weeks.

2.  Honey Mask for Brightening: Song brightens her face with a mask that is one part honey, two parts water.  She massages the mask well into her skin and then rinses with water.  SHe does this every two weeks also.

3.  Ice Cube Press for Skin Firming:  Song massages her face with ice cubes in the summer to firm the skin and make her face seem smaller.

Finally, let’s talk about Song’s make-up preferences. Song says she doesn’t “try to cover the skin under thick make-up, I just pay more attention to giving it more radiance by accentuating luminosity.”  She famously popularized BB Creams in Asia and uses Laneige Snow BB Cream instead of foundations or powders.  BB Creams enhance the skin’s natural properties while providing light coverage for blemishes.  She usually doesn’t wear much color on her cheeks, just a very faint flush.  I would suggest Benefit Cosmetic’s Benetint or its lighter sibling Posietint for that glow-from-within look.  Add a bit of Benefit’s High Beam Luminizer on your cheekbones and down the middle of your nose for more strategic glow!

She usually only wears eyeliner and mascara on her eyes.  She uses liquid liner to draw a thin line with a slight thin wing on her upper lid and kohl to lightly line the rims of her eyes.  I would suggest Chanel’s Ecriture de Chanel Automatic Liquid Eyeliner, which is great for drawing a thin line, and MAC Eye Kohl.  Her mascara is always very natural-looking, with no clumps.  I would suggest Kiehl’s Marvelous Mineral Mascara, it gives a little length and a little thickness while keeping you looking natural!

 

What’s in My Christmas Wish List? (3)

Laneige

Moisturizing Trio Set ( For Combination/ Oily Skin )

Hello ! My facial skin is one of my greatest frustrations in life. Hmm. I remembered grown ups used to tell me that it’s part of puberty to experience acne breakouts, oily skins, blackheads, open pores etc.. but why doesn’t other girls experience the same thing at the same stage as I did? I totally envy those girls who have an almost-perfectly looking skin.

Well anyway going back to the topic, I first heard about Laneige way back between 2004-2005. That was the time where the famous korean drama Full House was broadcasted in Philippine televisions. I love Song Hye Kyo so much (especially her skin!). She’s so beautiful and the fact that her team up with Bi or more popularly known as Rain made the drama even more popular.

Speaking of Song Hye Kyo, she is the endorser of Laneige and that made me want to try this brand. I’ve been looking for skin care products that would improve, lighten and even out my skin tone for a while. I am overwhelmed with all the skin care products out there and do not know where to start. That is why I decided to give this brand a go for this coming holiday season.

I was browsing over the internet and found out that there is a Laneige store here at PI. The first store that was opened here is located at the M3 level/3rd floor of the Trinoma shopping mall at the corner of Epifanio de los Santos and North Avenues, Quezon City, just across Powerbooks. As usual, being the lazy-ass woman that I am, I don’t want to go to Manila just to buy one. I maximized the use and power of our internet and boom ! I found a website that is selling products from Laneige.

http://www.ph.strawberrynet.com

I’m going to try the Moisturizing Trio Set ( For Combination/ Oily Skin ). It costs around $112.50 but you’ll be able to avail a 7% discount so you’re only going to pay $104.50. No need to worry about shipping rates cause delivery is for free. Yay!

What you’ll get with the Moisturizing Trio Set (For Combination/Oly Skin):

• Moisturizing Trio Set ( For Combination/ Oily Skin ):
• 1x Power Essential Skin Refiner ( Light ) 200ml/6.7oz
• 1x Balancing Emulsion ( Light ) 120ml/4oz
• 1x Water Bank Gel Cream 50ml/1.7oz
• 1x Multi Cleanser 30ml/1oz
• 1x Water Sleeping Pack_Ex 20ml/0.68oz
• 1x Power Essential Skin Refiner ( Light ) 15ml/0.5oz
• 1x Balancing Emulsion ( Light ) 15ml/0.5
• 1x Water Bank Essence 10ml/0.3oz

I don’t have any reviews yet regarding whether the products are effective or not. I am going to buy this set on December 10 so I have nothing to say for now. LOL.

Anyways, if you have already tried this product please feel free to comment. 🙂

What’s in My Christmas Wish List? (2)

CARMEX LIP BALM

There’s nothing worse than dry, chapped lips. December is about to come and I can really feel my lips are becoming drier each day. Err! If there’s another thing that I can’t live without aside from my eye liners, eye shadows and mascara, it would be my lip balm.

Nothing drives me crazier than not having moisturized lips – it’s been a pet peeve of mine since I can remember! For years, I’ve tried almost every single brand of lip balm/chap stick.. the ones in the twist up tubes, the ones in the squeeze tubes, the ones in the pots.. medicated ones, flavored ones, waxy ones..

That’s why it’s no longer a wonder why I would include a lip balm on my wishlist. I want to try lip balms by Carmex this year. I saw one of the youtube videos of Saab Magalona entitled, “What’s in My Bag” (please do correct me if I’m wrong hehe :P) and she took out a lip balm from her bag. She said it was from Carmex and that it’s The Best. So here I am, out of my curiosity bought 2 Carmex lip balms on ebay (still on transit I think). Take note, you can buy this lip balm at Watsons, Department stores etc. I just bought it online cause when I asked the ladies at the nearest Watsons to my house they said it was already out of stock.

Being the lazy-ass woman that I am, I don’t know what came to my mind and bought it online LOL. You can buy it at around a hundred pesos if I’m not mistaken. By the way, I bought the cherry and strawberry flavored stick type ones. I still can’t make any review yet about this product because mine is still in transit so maybe that’s it for now LOL :))

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Saab Magalona is my fave actress and she celebrated her b-day yesterday. I was busy yesterday so I wasn’t able to tweet her a Happy Birthday 😦 Earlier this afternoon I was kinda bored in my class so I was thinking of her (as usual) and boom baby! Take Note: I’m not a lesbo peeps, she’s just soooo AWESOME! 😀 *Sorry for the poor quality of the pic I took this with my phone’s camera earlier this night.

Best and Worst Dressed list at the 2011 American Music Awards

The American Music Awards is said to be one of the most anticipated event of the year. It not only aims to give credit to those people who made an impact in the music industry but it is also a glamorous event for guests and artists to show off their jaw-dropping looks on the red carpet.

Some stars arrived in style, strutting down the red carpet in glamorous, timeless fashions. The biggest trend of the night was sequins. We saw sequin dresses in every form last night ranging from dresses covered in sequin textures to fashions simply accented with them. However, some celebs simply hit a sour note when it came to fashion at AMAs.

BEST DRESSED LIST

Selena Gomez

Selena who hosted 2011 European Music Awards in Belfast last month, appeared at the event. She looked very ravishing and resembled all things ‘old-Hollywood” on the red carpet. She wore a champagne colored Giorgio Armani dress with some sky-high Jimmy Choo sandals. I loved her swanky Judith Leiber chain-strap clutch! (Envy LOL)

Jennifer Lopez

JLo,looked chic and sexy in her see-through Giambattista Valli gown. She was honored with Favorite Latin Artist award at the ceremony.

Jennifer rocked a lot of sexy numbers at the awards show. Did you see her in that nude, sequin cat suit on stage with Pitbull? She looked hot!

However, my favorite look of hers for the night was the glittering, fringed Emilio Pucci mini dress. She paired the look with gorgeous Neil Lane jewelry and silver, sparkly Jimmy Choo pumps.

Taylor Swift

Taylor stuck to her normal look in a nude colored Reem Acra sequin gown. However, she changed things up by straightening her signature spirals. She wore a pair of stunning jade-green earrings with this dress that accented it beautifully.

Jennifer Hudson

Jeniffer rocked a metallic mini dress to the 2011 American Music Awards.  It was a svelte figure in a metallic Jenny Packham mini dress. The draping on this dress was exquisite as it accentuated her curves in all the right places. She paired this look with black, glitter platform heels and black bangle bracelets. She looked great in it.

Sarah Hyland & Julie Bowen

This hilarious TV duo looked anything but ‘Modern’ on the AMA red carpet. Sarah Hyland kept things flirty and fun in a sequin and studded mini dress with some platform pumps and a fabulous metallic clutch. Her hot on-screen momma showed off her killer bod in a horizontally striped, colorful sequin mini-dress with a stylish messy high bun to top things off.

Vanessa Minnillo

Vanessa, or Mrs. Lachey as we now like to call her, showed off her killer gams in a white draped, sequined one-shoulder mini dress. She paired the look with nude, suede platform pumps and gold earrings for jewelry.

Nicki Minaj

Nicki, didn’t leave the 2011 American Music Awards empty-handed. She was honored two accolades at the ceremony – Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist and Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Album. The eccentric dresser Nicki opted for a beautiful Oscar de la Renta dress to rock on the red carpet.

 

WORST DRESSED LIST

Katy Perry

We know Katy is a fan of showing off her, ahem, assets. But with the ill-fit of this dress, Mizz P is one sneeze away from having a wardrobe malfunction! Besides the too tight-in-all-the-wrong-places gown, the American Music Awards 2011 nominee’s shoes are just too over-the-top with the cotton candy hair and graphic-print of the frock.

Soulja Boy

Soulja Boy looked, well, like a little boy on the 2011 AMAs red carpet. The rapper’s tricked-out sneakers and wild, printed shirt and backwards cap were way too juvenile for a red carpet.

Mary J. Blige

Mary J was a hot, animal-print mess on the 2011 AMAs red carpet. The look is just too loud, and the missing sleeve just adds to all the craziness.

Karmin

We gotta give Karmin’s Amy props for taking risks with color at the 2011 AMAs. However, the ensemble doesn’t quite work. For starters, the wedges look vaguely orthopedic and clownish. And sadly, the frilly top and the black skirt looks severely mismatched.

Ellie Goulding

Elle was a cautionary tale of how to not to appropriately dress your body on the 2011 AMAs red carpet. The belly-baring ensemble cheapened the look, while the white hair, pearl earrings and demure heels aged the young singer.

Heidi Klum

Heidi hit the red carpet in this futuristic Giles Deacon dress. Although that’s a bodysuit behind the cut outs, we really feel like we’re just looking at her underwear. And that is a guaranteed way to make it into a worst dressed list.

Well, more to come ! I have a lot of errands to do for now 😀

Ventosa

Hi there! Last week my body was feeling so heavy because of tonsillitis so I have to get a massage as soon as possible.  Talking about ASAP, it was my vacant period that day and all my friends had their own respective classes so I was like left on my own and that’s when I decided I’d go and have the massage I truly deserved HAHA.

I noticed one spa parlor named “Body and Sole” and I kinda went a little curious since like it was new to me so I entered this spa and I was really surprise with the cheap prices they offered for their services.

Of course compared to other spa parlors I’ve been to, I gotta admit I was really surprised and I kinda hesitated at first to try it out cause their service might not be good. But curiosity wins and I chose to try out their Ventosa with 1 and a half hour massage which cost me 500 pesos.

Well actually the staff persuaded me to try it out since I have my SIPON and tonsillitis daw. HEHE.

I remembered when I was younger and I was like nursing a fever and had runny nose or cough or back pains, my mom would always take me to a “Manghihilot” – an old lady trained in the Filipino traditional massage. The manghihilot would then massage our back and chest. She would use coconut oil (If I’m not mistaken) that smelled like “latik” and I would say I smelled awfully weird that I would really want to take a bath immediately after the “hilot” ends. But my mom would say NO, I shouldn’t take a bat after a “hilot” cause “lamig” would enter our bodies.

Now the traditional hilot has been modernized and is now available in spas.  If you have back pain and colds that won’t go away, you are likely to have “lamig” in your body. This is extra air that sometimes gathers in our body that goes and stays inside the muscles. This “trapped air” sometimes results to muscle and body pain.   The solution would be to help the body heal itself through a massage therapy called ventosa. It’s a  form of massage therapy performed by placing glass in specific accupoints on your back with a technique used to create a vacuum inside the glass. The vacuum created will “suck” out excess and unnecessary air that is inside your body. The result?  Instant relief and a sense of well-being.

So remember, next time you feel a cold coming on, don’t reach for that cold medicine just yet.  It might be best to load up on vitamins instead and get a ventosa massage.

I gotta admit, it was really effective and I got the service at a cheap price. One thing I hate about Ventosa are the marks that will be left on your skin that looked like you’ve just been through a hazing or something hehe.

*Pictures are not mine again, browsed it over the net again. Just the same old lazy girl who doesn’t want to take pictures of her own. LOL

What’s in My Christmas Wish List? (1)

Belle de Jour 2012 Power Planner

Belle de Jour (pronounced ‘bel duh zhoor’) is a French fashion lingo for “IT GIRL” – a super woman achiever who dares to achieve her goals, lives her dream life, makes a difference in her community all in a great style!

Belle de jour is also the flower “Morning Glory” in French.

It literally means “beautiful by day” (eg, the “beauty” -as in beautiful girl- of the day)

Who doesn’t want a Belle De Jour Power Planner?

It’s sleek, stylish, keeps you stay in fashion and most of all, it suits every girl’s personality and lifestyle. I just know you wanted one yourself! 🙂

Ow, the picture is NOT mine. I just browsed it over the internet since my very own Belle de Jour 2012 Power Planner is still in transit. Can’t wait!

Doin’ Nicki Minaj’s part. This is the last one my voice is really husky now. Err. HUMILIATION. ;))

Doin’ Nicki Minaj’s part. This is the last one my voice is really husky now. Err. HUMILIATION. ;))