Art and Vanity

2009-05-04T17:37:00.001+08:00

MAC Studio Finish Concealer SPF35

2009-03-24T15:05:00.006+08:00

I'm on the lookout for the best concealer out there. After much research, the candidates were:Make Up Forever Full Cover ConcealerMAC Studio Finish SPF 35 ConcealerLaura Mercier Secret CamouflageI was looking for a concealer that gives good and lasting coverage for blemishes, doesn't require a Master's Degree in Engineering to apply, matches my skin tone/color, and won't put a hole in my pocket.

Boyce Avenue: Apologize

2009-03-19T19:21:00.002+08:00

These guys rock! I accidentally discovered them on (where else?) Youtube, and WOW! They're good. I especially like their rendition of Apologize. Enjoy!P.S. They were in Manila lst Feb. 14 and had a concert, I didn't get to watch them, though.

Bye-Bye Blackheads!

2009-03-16T12:33:00.005+08:00

If you've ever been plagued by stubborn blackheads on your nose then I am sure you can appreciate the value of a good pore de-clogger. Unfortunately, I have never found any product in the market that could do this effectively and satisfactorily. That is, until I discovered baking soda and Cetaphil. How To Make:1. Mix equal parts Cetaphil and baking soda on the palm of your hand. (About 1/4 tsp.

Lois Battle: War Brides

2009-03-10T17:27:00.006+08:00

My sister and I were strolling in the mall yesterday and I saw my local bookstore was selling 2 books for a very cheap price. I couldn't resist. I bought a book about France that was supposed to be hilarious but instead I found annoying and tiresome. Didn't bother to read after a few pages. I'm seriously considering burnig that book. Now, on to the book that I want to review.War Brides is the

Sophie Kinsella: Can You Keep A Secret?

2009-02-17T15:35:00.004+08:00

First, a short backgound.Emma Corrigan. Twenty-five years old, Junior Marketing Executive in Panther Cola, flatmates Lissy (whom she's had a very lesbian dream about once) and Jemima (whose expensive clothes, shoes, bags, you name it!, she "borrows" all the time), hates G-strings but wears them anyway, boyfriend Connor who thinks she's a size 8 when she's really a 12, never been in love, has a

Daring Bakers August 2008 Challenge -- Diary

2008-08-31T15:44:00.011+08:00

Tuesday, August 12 9.30 am - I’ll be making the pastry cream first then the cream puff dough and then the chocolate glaze. I think I’ll make some caramel, too.10.10 am - Pastry cream is finished. I just remembered how good it tastes!10.28 am - Getting ready to make the dough.10.41 am - Measured out the ingredients and it’s ready to go only I have not prepared any of the tools I’ll need. Boiling

Mario Badescu and Me

2008-07-28T15:00:00.006+08:00

I have been using Mario Badescu products for about 2 months now; the Enzyme Cleansing Gel, Special Cucumber Lotion and Glycolic Foaming Cleanser. I am very sad to say that Mario and I just can't work out.My face has gotten worse; whiteheads on my forehead, jawline and cheeks multiplied. It looks very bad. I'm very surprised at the result becasue I've read many good reviews about MB products

How many countries could you name in five minutes?

2008-07-18T15:46:00.006+08:00

Were you listening to your teacher when she was teaching geography? Prove it.....75 Created by OnePlusYou

Dark Chocolate Cake with Caramel Meringue Buttercream

2008-07-17T12:58:00.008+08:00

I have no explanation for everything I do.Case in point: two days ago I just felt like baking a chocolate cake. So I did. It was a sudden urge that I had no choice but to follow. The next day, I was a little irritated with....oh, I don't know everything, so I did the unimaginable---I made Swiss Meringue Buttercream, or as popularly known in cake websites, SMBC. The dreaded SMBC. I've always been

Emu Oil as my Makeup Primer

2008-07-10T15:17:00.010+08:00

I first heard about Emu Oil from this site.Since I bought this product, I have been using it almost everyday as my moisturizer/primer. It helps my makeup last long, all day in fact. And I never retouch in the afternoon. In the evening when I come home my face still looks good---albeit a little less fresh looking but still presentable. I have an oily skin and EO(emu oil) does make it slightly

Danish Braid Recipe

2008-07-04T15:11:00.010+08:00

This is the recipe I used for the Daring Baker's June 2008 Challenge -- Danish Braid.Source: Sherry Yard’s The Secrets of BakingNote: I only made half of the recipe. The recipe that follows is full, not halved. There are 3 components to this recipe; the dough, the butter block and the filling. I suggest that you divide the work in 2 or 3 days because the work on the dough alone, will take you at

Daring Bakers June 2008 Challenge--Diary

2008-06-30T09:00:00.006+08:00

Tuesday, June 102:52 pm - I'm making half the apply filling. I wanted to try other fillings made with local fruits, like avocados, bananas or mangoes but I thought it best to start with the original recipe first to see how it will turn out, then I can tweak it.3:17 pm - I want my Dad who's diabetic and my sister who's watching her sugar intake to be able to enjoy this bread, too (provided it does

Daring Bakers June 2008 Challenge: Danish Braid

2008-06-29T16:07:00.009+08:00

Danish BraidI first found out about The Daring Bakers in a forum, I think. I can't really remember now. It was mentioned casually and I thought the name was very interesting so I decided to check it out. The idea of this club is simple. The host for the month will post a recipe for all members to try (all members are expected to complete at least 8 out of 12 challenges in a year) and then on the

My favorite meal is Breakfast!

2008-06-25T12:28:00.004+08:00

Bite me.Yes, I will.I lovelovelove breakfast. Best meal of the day for me. Sometimes I wake up in the morning just so I could have breakfast. now, I love the typical Pinoy breakfast---rice, fried egg, tocino or longanisa, atchara, danggit, ensalada, itlog na pula (salted egg), etc. Yummy. Every now and then I like to try Western breakfast options. Biscuits are on the top of my list. I seached for

Save me Mario!

2008-06-23T11:51:00.006+08:00

I have been having problems with my face lately. Whiteheads have decided to build a colony on my forehead, jawline and cheeks. I want to evict them.And so, I have been on the search for cleansers and other products to help me. I've tried "The Regimen" recommended in Acne.org---didn't wok for me. Though, to be fair, I think it would have worked if I had followed it religiously. The Regimen

"The Annest of Annes!"

2008-06-21T12:07:00.001+08:00

Have you every heard of the classic series of novels, Anne of Green Gables? If not, allow me the honor of introducing to you Anne Shirley and her her wonderful world of imagination.A little background: The "Anne books" were written by L. M. Montgomery. And to save myself from having to write a short background-biography of Ms. Montgomery, the words of which I'll probably just paraphrase from an

An Open Goodbye Letter

2008-06-19T16:10:00.005+08:00

It was love at first sight for me.I’m a very picky person, as you know. But the moment I saw you, I knew. You were the one, so I chose you. It’s funny how things work, don’t they? People spend hours weighing their options and choosing, but when the right one comes along….click. It’s so easy. That’s what happened to us. We just…clicked. We fit together so well. So I

Kiddie Party Cupcakes Part 2: Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Buttercream

2008-06-13T12:25:00.009+08:00

Aside from the Devil's Food Cake Cupcakes I made, I also made Vanilla Cupcakes. They did not turn out as well as I hoped. The recipe I used made cupcakes that were lacking in vanilla flavor. Maybe I should have used better quality vanilla, I don't know. But next time, I'm using my tried-and-true Yellow Cake recipe instead.The Vanilla Cupcakes looked good, though. And I think the buttercream

Kiddie Party Cupcakes Part 1: Devil's Food Cake Cupcakes

2008-06-11T18:49:00.009+08:00

We hosted a party last Saturday for kids and some friends. For weeks now, I've been itching to bake something, anything. And this party was the perfect excuse to tinker in the kitchen again. My family is not so big on sweets/dessert (gasp!). So whenever I do bake something we end up giving it away. And that's why I love parties. I get to bake anything I want and I know people will eat and love it

Lemon Bars and Tea

2008-06-10T16:59:00.005+08:00

One of my all time favorite snacks/dessert is Lemon Bars. I just lovelovelove the combination of tangy lemons and a sweet crumbly crust. Many of the store made lemon bars here, unfortunately, are sickeningly sweet. There's just a hint of lemon in the bars and you can mostly tell that it's a (surprise!) lemon bar because of the freakish yellow color. So I set out to find a "real" Lemon Bars recipe

Bananas!

2008-06-08T16:44:00.006+08:00

So, we just harvested some bananas from our very own backyard and oh my goodness...they taste really good. Very sweet and plump. There are a lot of variety of bananas here. For example we have lacatan (this is the variety that comes to mind when I think of bananas), senorita (really cute and tiny bananas), latundan (yummy!), saba, etc.Saba. You need to steam or boil this first before eating. Yeah

Applying Blush According to Your Face Shape

2008-06-05T11:00:00.009+08:00

Where you apply your blush depends on the shape of your face. Blush does more than just puts color on your cheeks, it can also contour your face.To determine your face shape go to this website.( http://www.hairfinder.com/tips/faceshape.htm )It is equally important to have a good Blush Brush and a blush color that matches your skin well. It is said that the color of your blush should be more or

Titanic...in 5 seconds

2008-05-31T09:40:00.003+08:00

The movie Titanic has a screen time of about 2 hours, more or less. If you can watch what the whole movie was about in just 5 seconds, would you? Here's your chance.Ladies and gentlemaen, I present to you, "TITANIC" in a nutshell....

Silver, Grey and Black Smokey Eye Tutorial

2008-05-29T14:30:00.004+08:00

I always end up looking like a panda after everytime I try to do the famous Smokey Eye Makeup----then this video came along and rescued me. Now watch and see how professionals do it!The woman doing the tutorial is awesome!

Sonya's Garden

2008-05-27T11:18:00.010+08:00

There are few places my family visits again and again. Sonya's Garden is one of them.One of my favorite spots in Sonya's Garden.We first found out about this secret place in Tagaytay through my sister's in-laws. They brought us there for lunch, and the rest is history. We've been there countless of times bringing families and friends with us. The menu is simple and it never changes. At lunch time

Chicken Breasts with Sour Cream Gravy

2008-05-21T17:04:00.009+08:00

I don't normally meddle with cooking and preparations in our house. I mostly leave that to those who actually know what they're doing. But last week, I decided to care. So I made dinner.This is a tried and true recipe that I've had for years. It doesn't take a genius to put it together and it is delicious. I always tinker with the ingredients; as far as I can remember I have never followed it

The Search is Over: The Chocolate Cake Recipe That Never Fails to Satisfy

2008-05-19T14:32:00.008+08:00

Chocolate Cake is probably the most popular cake in the world. There are so many variations and recipes of just this one cake that looking for the ultimate recipe is nearly impossible. Choosing just one recipe is hard enough. There are flourless chocolate cakes, cakes with melted chocolates, cakes with cocoa powder, cakes with ground nuts in them, cakes with alcohol etc. etc. Well, all those

Olive Oil Scrub

2008-05-13T11:37:00.003+08:00

If you've read my other blog posts then you know that I don't have the most flawless skin in the world. I have been doing research for about 6 months now looking for THE regimen that will finally bring an end to all my skin woes. This Olive Oil Scrub is part of the regimen I have been using now for about 2 weeks. So far, so good. I don't have any new pimples anymore, but I still have some white/

Maybelline's Great Lash® Waterproof Mascara

2008-05-13T11:34:00.006+08:00

Great Lash® Waterproof MascaraAmerica’s #1 mascara. Waterproof. Conditions as it thickens.Yeah, right.This was the first mascara that I ever bought back in the days when I was still going through puberty and knew nothing about makeup. I read in so many reputable magazines that this is THE mascara to buy. A must-have. Here's my real-life experience with this product: It is so difficult to apply.

Watercolor Painting: "Gentleman in the Park"

2008-05-13T11:25:00.002+08:00

I'll just say it now. I'm not a professional painter. I never went into art school, taken short art classes or anything of the sort. In fact, everything I know about painting I learned just by reading books, looking at pictures, surfing the net and using lots of imagination.Now that's done I want to show you what I painted a few days ago. (Time for show and tell.)I forgot to take pictures before

Mineral Makeup Series: Brushes

2008-05-13T11:19:00.003+08:00

How many makeup brushes do you own? I have eight right now. Just wanted to show them to you and explain a little about them and what I use them for.(From left-right: Blending/Eyeshadow Brush, Eyeshadow Brush, Large Concealer, Small Concealer/Eyeshadow, Spot Concealer, Blush/Bronzer, Flawless Face Brush, Grand Kabuki. I use that pouch, which is actually a pencil case, to hold my brushes when I

Mineral Makeup Series: Mineral Makeup!

2008-05-13T11:05:00.004+08:00

I don't wear makeup.Why? For several reasons.First, it makes me breakout. I don't understand how some people can wear any makeup brand, even the drugstore kinds, and still have gorgeous skin. It' not fair.Second, I know as much about makeup-application/techniques as I know about brain surgery. Which is nothing.Third, when I do try to put on makeup, I always end up looking ridiculous. You should