April Empties

Well now, this month shows that I have less products to be disposed off.  Still, I'm glad that there's still a few things emptied for this month:

1. Dove Damaged Therapy Hair Fall Rescue Shampoo
I bought this as an alternate to the Human Nature Shampoo.  Mainly, I wanted to give this a try and see if it helps in the hair fall, or if organic products works better.  I won't compare it here, but what I do find is that it does work well as an alternative shampoo but it's not something to use on a daily basis for me.  Will share more in a different post.

2. TheBodyShop White Musk Too Shimmer Body Lotion
I got this as a Christmas gifts many eons ago and as you could see, it's barely used.  The reason is because it leaves my body feeling sticky even though the shimmers were lovely.  I just can't stand its stickiness though.  The smell is nice as I like the musk smell.  But this is definitely a no go for me as I dislike things that makes me feel sticky.

3. TheFaceShop Lip Gloss
A cute little present from a friend.  Like that it's not so sticky and was religiously using it for a period of time.  Am not able to really scoop the rest out so off it goes to the bin.

Maybelline Color Tattoo Metal Eyestudio

I've actually finished up the post and was trying to load the pictures and make minor amendments when, all of a sudden, the whole entry is gone.  (almost want to pull my hair out!) Arghhh....Anyway, I'll try to remember what I've wrote and recapture the essence of it for this post.

I saw these Maybelline Color Tattoo Metal Eyestudio Cream eyeshadows when I was at the Chemist Warehouse and I couldn't resist it.  It was truly a bargain, AUD12 for 2!  I know they are not here in Malaysia, well, not this range and they truly look lovely.

I bought 4 of them.  A google search revealed that there was one which is Golden Rush, but I didn't it at the warehouse, so I didn't get it.  Although, well, I don't think it's a color I can carry nor will I use often.  

Packaging
I don't see a difference in its packaging from the range that we have here in Malaysia.  It's the standard glass tub with a black plastic cover.  Simple and nice.  I like the fact that I can see the color when I flip them over and that is how I store them in my drawer.  This allows me to easily grab the one that I want to use (especially during the morning rush).  It comes in 4g and I have to say that this is a huge tub of eyeshadow cream.  Definitely can last me quite a while.  I've been using them regularly (especially Barely Branded) and you can only see a slight dip.

Texture
These darlings are easy to work with.  It's creamy in texture and is soft enough to allow you to work the eye shadows onto your lid without needing to rub it in.  However, just be careful not to press too hard as a clump of it can come out (as per pic below) and it may cause the application to be clumpy as well.

Being termed metal, these darlings scores high on shimmer.  Only Electric Blue is slightly less shimmery as compared to others.  I'd seriously would term them as serious shimmer!  So, if you can't take shimmer/ glitters, please, give this a pass.  As for me, it works out well to give me a bit of a depth to my eyes as I would use them with a darker colour to balance it out.

I'm not sure how long it will last before it dries out (hopefully never!) but we'll see.

Just to share, I tend to use the Electric Blue as eyeliner, given that it's kinda Cobalt Blue as isn't as shimmery as the rest.  It really does make my eyes stand out and I love it.

I really love these darlings.  I've been googling Maybelline Color Tattoo and I realised that it has such a wide range of colors.  I do hope that they will bring in more to Malaysia and not leave it as just the current range.

Simplicity of Love

I'm just digressing here from the usual post because I just felt like wanting to share with you something I wrote a few years back.

Given that it's Good Friday and it's in commemoration of the Jesus going to the cross to die for us because God so loved us and chose to demonstrate that love through this sacrifice, I hope this post will be a post that makes you ponder about love, the greatness of it, in its simplicity.

I hope this will be a blessing to you.

The simplicity of love, overclouded by the demands of humans, is sometimes seen to be something that is hard to seek.  In this world where we live in, it seems that love is about how much a person can provide for you, what the other person can give you, what the other person is willing to spend on you.  Living in these days whereby materialism seems to be the dominating factor, the simplicity of love seems to be hidden from us.  Human, I find, tend to see love as something that one can gain from, not something that one can give with no expectation in return.

I’ve seen love where one demands the other to be of a certain way, where one demands the other to change, where one demands another to give, where one constantly wanting to only receive, wanting to only take all the while selfishly keeping themselves at a distance.  I’ve seen love where manipulation is the key player; love where both parties put each other down so much and yet they do take in the abuse (yes, I see this abuse), love where one says, I’ve got no say because he/she is like that; I cannot voice out my thoughts or opinion because of the way he/she is.  I’ve also seen love where the other party became so weak just because of love, where she is no longer the person that she was. 

I am not saying that love is wrong, but yet, I believe that when one love, therein involves a sense of giving from both parties, a manner of respect for both parties, a sincerity of heart from both parties.  I’m not out to offend, but just to share my thoughts on love.

Love is beautiful, love is pure, love is simple, yet many times you see love being twisted to suit that particular person, and it can definitely be the heavy kind too.  We tend to twist it and say, I’m doing this because I love you, and I’m saying this because I love you, if you love me, you will… Things can get quite crazy sometimes.  Go figure. 

Living in Asia itself tells of a different kind of story too.  Asian culture isn’t helping when it comes to love, because our parents grew up in a life where words of love are not spoken, but words of reprimand and words of putting down others seems to be so prevalent.  I know, because I grew up living under this kind of love.  A love that doesn’t praise if you do well, rather, it seems to be expected of you.  Yet, a simple mistake not only attracts hurtful or reprimanding words, it also means that little bit of piercing in your heart.  I know this because I grew up with this kind of love.  Mind you, it’s not that I don’t love my parents, I love them dearly, but it’s sad to know that they aren’t able to profess their love to their children (my sibling and I) in a loving manner.   I believe too, this is a generational thing, because our parents grew up knowing only this kind of love and thus, it is through this kind of love that they show to their kids.  Something to think about eh, a generational issue.  Well, that in itself will be something to blog about at another time.Back to love; 1 Corinthians 13: 4-9; 13 never fails to amaze me in its definition of love. 

⁴Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. ⁶Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. ⁷It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. ⁸Love never fails. ¹³And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.It’s easy to read the above and say, woah, but I believe, love in perfection is great!  But in reality, many would say, “nah, it’s too hard”, “if I love like that, I’ll only be hurt at the end” , “even in love I should protect myself” and etc.  I’ve also read in the other extreme whereby, “aiya, it’s ok that he’s scolding me or stopping me from going out, it’s just him”, “he always scold me, but I can take it’ and etc. 

Back to the simplicity of love; if both parties are able to trust each other, able to protect each other, choose not to put themselves before their loved ones, keeps no records of wrongs, I believe one will be able to fully love each other, and that itself is the simplicity of love.  We love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).  Knowing that He chose to love us for who we are, we ought to also learn to love like Him.  What’s more, we are created in His image.  Without love, we will live in a world full of hate.  Can you imagine peace in such a world?  I honestly cannot.

I’m not talking about perfect love, because we are imperfect and we are living in a world full of imperfection.  I’m talking about the willing to love simply, to love how we are loved, to love others for who they are, to love ourselves for whom God created us to be, to love as God loved us.  I’m not asking you to be perfect, but even as we learn to love the way love is as stated in 1 Corinthians 13, I believe we will love in a whole different level.  When we choose to love as written in 1 Corinthians 13; I believe this love will change not only the person we love, but also ourselves too.  What is love if we only expect the other to change?  Love changes us because life overflows out of love.  Hope overflows when we love. Peace overflows when we love.  We may not be able to love as wholeheartedly, but any attempt that we take is a change too.

Bear in mind, we need to make that change ourselves first before anything else.  How can we love others well if we don’t love ourselves well?  How can we see what love is if we don’t even love, respect and cherish ourselves?  If we are able to love ourselves first and foremost, I am sure that when you choose to love others, it will be a different kind of love too.  Nonetheless, loving oneself does not mean loving only self and satisfying only self.  That, in turn is called selfish love.  Yet, if we choose to love ourselves as what’s written in 1 Corinthians 13, I believe it will bring love to a different level for ourselves and for those around us. 

Love is not just a feeling, but it is also a commitment.  It’s something you work at, and not just relying on your own feelings contrary to what the movies tell you.  Love, work at it, learn it and spread it.

May the Good Lord’s love continue to envelope you dearly as you learn to love yourself and to love others as He love us.  

Use of Vaseline: Oh my poor lips, let me help relieve you from your dryness

I've always have been struggling with dry lips since.... like forever, I think.   I've tried various methods, from drinking loads of water to even applying various types of lip balms to no avail.  It actually came to a point where I just accepted the fact that my lips will always be dry and peeling.  That is, until a couple of weeks ago where my friend was telling me that my lips looked dry and wrinkled!  That was a shock to me because I became so immune to how my lips look like that I didn't realised that it was getting wrinkly.

The first product that came to my mind was Vaseline, partly cause I have a huge tub sitting on my drawer which I wasn't using.  I saw this technique by Lisa Eldridge in one of her videos at her website, where she uses a cotton bud and Vaseline to get rid of the peeling skin gently from the lips without bruising it unknowingly.  I've been practicing this every night and it works.  I realised that my lips are no longer as dry and it does not peel anymore.  I love it.

Vaseline is actually petroleum jelly and it functions as a moisture barrier.  This is good for us who are always in air-conditioned rooms, because as you know, air-con makes the place cooler and drier, which in turns dries our skin as well.  My biggest symptoms is really my lips and no matter how much lip balm I put on my lips, sigh.... peel it goes.  So, with Vaseline, it kinda seal existing moisture of my lips.  I can feel it happening because when I wake up the next morning, I can still feel the remnant of Vaseline on my lips.

What I also do is, occasionally, I will rub some macadamia oil on my lips first, followed by Vaseline.  I do this with the mind that the Vaseline will seal the oil and works as a barrier to allows my lips to absorbs the macadamia oil.  I like the fact that my lips look better and plumper than usual.

One awesome thing about Vaseline is that it is cheap.  I bought this tub in Singapore for around SGD2, if I'm not mistaken and you can sometimes get it for less than RM5 in any of the pharmacies.  It's huge size makes it lasts forever, and right now, I'm working it hard so that I can finish my tub before it hits expiry date.

Make Up Removal Series: Bioderma Sensibio H2O Micelle Solution Sensitive skin

I first saw this on Lisa Eldrige's video on Make Up Removal and was utterly fascinated by it.  To think, this wonderful product seems to be able to remove all make ups and is in water form.  Sadly, it's not available in KL back then, and so I left it as it is.  Later, when I was in Hong Kong, I saw it and was a little reluctant to purchase it due to the price.  It was selling at HKD188 back then, a price that I wasn't very willing to pay.

Nonetheless, a friend of mine made a trip to Hong Kong and I asked her to look for it at Bonjour.  She told me it was selling for HKD108 (with original price sticker showing HKD396) I told her to just grab it for me, and that is how I ended up with a 500ml bottle of this Bioderma Sensibio H20 Michelle Solution Sensitive Skin.  Really, the name is long, so I'll refer to it as Bioderma Sensibio H20.

I like it's unassuming packaging.  A simple see through packaging that provides ample information and a sturdy enough cover to ensure no leakage.  I've carried it up and down with me to a number of places and have not experienced any leakage at all.

As per direction given, I take a couple of cotton pads and pour the Bioderma Sensibio H20 onto it, ensuring that it's wet enough (but not too wet, else it'll be difficult to use) and slide the pads all over my face.  I usually use 4 regular cotton pads for my whole face.  The initial 2 is the first run on my face, ensuring that most of my foundation and eye make up is removed, whereas the last 2 is just another round to make up everything is gone.


This is what I like about it.  It is easy to use.  It's as easy as putting water on cotton pad and wipe.  It also does not leave my skin feeling dry after the removal.  Sometimes, when I just wanted to get the grime off my face before I head to shower like an hour or two later, I will use the Bioderma Sensibio H2O to remove the make up and splash some water onto my face.  It helps.  Of course, I double cleanse and I use my facial towel to clean up when I shower later, but as a temp, it works without drying my skin as compared to using cleansing oil.

I've definitely stocked up another smaller bottle when another friend of mine was in Hong Kong last year.  Also, I realised that I can purchase them online at a couple of website that ParisB recommended, so I'll definitely be checking them out once I start using my other bottle.  Can't do without a backup!