Review: Nu Skin Tinted Moisturizer in Honey

I've always heard good things about Nu Skin, but haven't really gone around to purchasing their stuff because of the ridiculously high prices. But then I got this good tip from Alex to try out their tinted moisturizer. So after meeting with Alec Dy and testing out the sampler they gave me, I decided to purchase a full-sized one at a discount (--price withheld haha). I'd like to thank Alec Dy and Jem Bayot for the discount, because the original price was a whopping Php 1,728 for a measly 40ml. 

(This better be worth it, Alex. I keed, I keed :D)

Naturally sheer color. Mirror and reflect your natural skin tone with Skin Beneficial Tinted Moisturizer. This lightweight tinted moisturizer uses microprism powders to impart an even, healthy glow. While highlighting your true color, it also delivers skin-beneficial vitamins A and E, oil-free moisture, and SPF 15 to help prevent environmental damage. It is transfer-resistant, long-wearing, talc-free and petroleum-free

Sizzling Pepper Steak and Shoe Shopping

I was basically craving for Pepper Lunch yesterday, and well, I may have left my brain at home because I inadvertently brought my sister and the boyfriend to Sizzling Pepper Steak in Trinoma. Doi. Usually we eat at Mann Hann, but today it had to be Sizzling Pepper Steak and cakes from Conti's.

the boyfriend obviously does not look happy with his Beef Pepper Steak :p

Don P-nut, The Dogfather

Lunch at the Ramirez residence one humid Sunday afternoon...

Don P-nut (Lord of the evil Chihuahua underworld) full from eating kibble, 
plops on my lap and starts discussing the terms of his inheritance with my Mom.

P-nut:  I want to receive half of the inheritance of my human plus ownership of the ancestral house. 

Mom: Over my dead body! The house goes to my dog (your niece), Missy.

Review: Balm Shelter Tinted Moisturizer in Light

I've been putting off writing about the tinted moisturizers (no that "S" is not a typo, I cheated -- I got two!) from the short list I posted a while back, because I knew it was going to be another lengthy review. I've been putting off a lot of reviews lately and been concentrating on my articles (trying to be a responsible adult here), anticipating the -ber months by making more items and delivering them to stores (the people over at Analog Soul will keel meeee) and trying to remain apathetic to news (the last one is the hardest so far).

Anyway, I've to get these off my chest so here's my review on one of the two tinted moisturizers that I am currently using:

Balm Shelter Tinted Moisturizer SPF 18 - Php 975

This is a good affordable tinted moisturizer at only P975/2.25 oz (that's roughly 75g of product!). It comes in Light, Light-Medium and Medium only, and I know I mentioned previously that I couldn't find any variant in "Light" even after visiting several Beauty Bar outlets. BUT! When I got to an outlet in Galleria, I was surprised to find the last of the "Light" shades available sitting on the counter. So needless to say, I grabbed the opportunity and bought it right then and there.

Treehuggers

I saw my sister grabbing a handful of these at our last trip to National Bookstore and got curious. What are these brown ballpens she's been hoarding? Until I saw them up close and then I realized I had to get some for myself too!

Treehuggers are recycled ballpens and pencils, a project made in partnership with the Haribon Foundation. For every Treehugger pen you buy, you are making a difference by restoring our indigenous flora one tree at a time.

The world needs saving, I'm doing my part. 
95% earth-friendly

The ballpens are for the purist at heart -- simple, no-nonsense and made of sturdy recycled cardboard (I don't know if the plastic parts are recycled too). The ballpens are refillable and cost only P20! Can you hear me out there? It's only P20 and for every purchase you help Haribon plant more trees. C'mon guys, it can't get any easier than that. This is a great way to start recycling or getting your kids involved in the environment.
 
This project is in line with Haribon's Million Hectare Walk program which aims to raise awareness and resources for the Rainforestation Organizations and Advocates to 2020 (ROAD to 2020), an environmental conservation movement to restore one million hectares of our rainforests using native tree species by year 2020. The goal is to reach 1,000,000 hectares by year 2020, and currently we are at 278.63 hectares. So we have a loooong way to go, basically.

Coincidentally, while browsing through Haribon's website I saw their Adopt-a-seedling program aptly named Give a Gift Tree. Instead of giving your relatives and loved ones the usual store-bought gift, why not consider giving them a gift to plant native trees? For only P100 you receive a commitment from Haribon to plant 1 native tree plus you are entitled to 1 Animalaya card/certificate.

For only PhP100/seedling, you can support the Haribon forest restoration activities in Caliraya Watershed in Laguna and denuded forests around the country. You are even welcome to plant your seedlings with them. Pretty cool huh? You can place your orders here.
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Treehuggers ballpens and pencils are available at all National Bookstore outlets. Ask for them if you don't see them displayed at the ballpen section :)

Action shots: The new PP :)

Wow, PP recovered faster than expected. She was up and about in 3 days! Ha! She beat all my other crabs who molted before her. Check out her pics below, notice that she got her red color back as she used to be a bit pale after she molted. First up, THE CLAW!

That's her old giant claw above. I think I'd like to keep it for posterity...

 Meet the rest of the family :)

Trafaluc + Zara = 100% Organic Cotton

So why is organic cotton eco chic and so much more environmentally friendly than your standard cotton?

Non-organic cotton is considered to be one of the dirtiest crops in the world, to produce one cotton tee would require 150ml of potentially lethal pesticides, so deadly one drop could kill you.

Organic cotton is obviously made without pesticides, environmentally sound, and safer for those who pick the cotton.

How is organic cotton different?

(click to appreciate)

This is my first Trafaluc 100% organic cotton tee. It's a bit pricey at Php 895 (my boyfriend just scoffs at me when I spend so much money on a basic tee), but it's ORGANIC! And I love the kitty cat print! And the felt heart applique! *shrieks with excitement* :D

Happy Father's Day!

To my one and only Dad, WE LOVE YOU!

Ukay Saturday

I don't know, I just felt a sudden urge to have Cafe Bola and go ukay. Needless to say the only place to go was Cubao. So off we went one humid afternoon to Fashion Delight, after having merienda at Cafe Bola and chatting with my favorite waiter.

The last time I've been here was early this year (I think around February), and the only thing I want now is a summer chiffon dress for my upcoming Dakak trip. So anyway, just to share with you dem dresses I found at the ukay store today:

A pretty polka dotted dress with tiny pompoms, lace and a ruffled hem. It was a dress size too big for me so I hid it pretty good amongst the other clothes. So if you find it, lucky you! :p

Hello strawberries!

On the left: a nautical silk dress complete with an anchor brooch. What a cutie! Pay no attention to the mannequin on the right, it's sorta "R-rated" LOL.

And I found a pretty nice chiffon dress that was [almost] brand new! The garters were still perfectly elastic, no rips or loose threads either. And best of all, it fit me perfectly!

I tried it on again when I got home and used my People Are People braided belt (wrapped around thrice) to cinch my waist. It's so comfy, and to think the dress only cost me Php 200 :)

And another interesting find:

Don't you just love this skirt from Zara? :D

P-nut's Morning Walk

I decided to take P-nut for a walk outside our house this morning. We had just finished our yearly blood chem exam at Hi-Precision Diagnostics, so while I was still dressed I might as well make good use of my time and take P-nut out for exercise.

I used to take P-nut for long walks at Congressional Village and at Mark's house in Marikina, but stopped when I got too busy. This day was perfect for walking cos it was still early and it wasn't so hot yet. P-nut clearly missed the adventure:

P-nut just turned 7 years old last May 23, he is now what we call a SENIOR! He looks so muscled and fit, don't you think?

 

 And that's my silly mother waiting for us to finish ("Kira pasok na ang init e!") Haha!

If you remember, my Mom got burned about 3 years ago. 
Her arm is healing nicely tho, thanks to Dr. Acosta of Makati Med :)

 

Wearing: my fave Dr. Seuss shirt

On my face: tinted moisturizer and powder 

Breaking News: My PP Molts!

Remember PP, my big crab? For weeks I've seen her (yes, it's a SHE) grow a jelly arm (when they lose a cheliped they grow a jelly arm first before the real arm) and just yesterday I noticed that it seemed bigger and more bulbous. Also, she's been eating and drinking a LOT. So those were telltale signs alright.

See her cuddled up inside? She's been inside the house since last night after they've had their exercise and regular bath. I also rinsed their old dirty substrate yesterday and so they're now enjoying  fresh and moist sand which is perfect for molting.

When I checked this morning PP was just bunched up in her shell, not moving a muscle. So I figured she must be asleep (crabs are nocturnal). However, when I checked again a few minutes ago (it's now 9:45pm), this is what I discovered:

These are very good molt pictures, if I may say so myself. I had to call my sister and my Mom so they could check her out, too. They like it when I have a newly-molted crab, they find the whole process interesting.

Now I've separated her from the rest and she's now in the ISO tank resting. She should be up and about in a week. Now only Gigantor and Hercules are the ones who haven't molted yet :)

We've got choo-choo-CHOUX

Our house smells like choux pastry! It's back to school for DLSU and my Mom has been baking up a storm...

tadaaah!

Crab Alert: Another crab molts!

Wow, the moist substrate really does wonders! This little guy molted on June 11 and is the last of the small ones to undergo molting (it's his first time). He still isn't named unfortunately.

 ye old exoskeleton

this is how it looked like a few days after molting -- see how translucent he is?

All dogs go to heaven - Brando: 2003 - 2010

Let us take a moment and bid farewell to Brando, Paolo's Basset Hound, who passed away this morning. He was P-nut's arch nemesis (aside from Courage the Doberman from next door).

Boy I've always been terrified of "Brandog", even though I found him cute. Whenever he sees me (or anyone for that matter), he'd run like there's no tomorrow and then pounce on me afterwards. Considering my small frame, pouncing was not an option. Many times I'd fall back because Brando was just huge...and slobbery.

P-nut, being the "alpha" dog that he is, considered Brando his arch nemesis. When they were both teeny puppies, Brando peered into our doorway and the Chihuahuas immediately retaliated by biting his nose. Brando only looked at them, oblivious to their barks and bites. Apparently he just wanted some dogs to play with. 

I know he is in a better place now, filled with doggie treats and an endless supply of kibble. And so Brando, we hope you're having fun chasing all the chickens in heaven (he likes chickens), and playing with your new found friends. We will miss you!

Are you selfish about giving out your beauty secrets?

(Warning: long post ahead)

Generally I’d say that I am a relatively stingy person (selfish is such a strong word). I mostly keep to myself and seldom share. I’ve been blogging since I graduated from college, and mostly my thoughts, raves or rants were posted on my previous blogs (God knows I’ve had several abandoned ones) as opposed to sharing them with the occasional girl friend or boyfriend.

But over time, I’ve learned to openly blog about more personal stuff like my favorite so-so and other mundane stuff. I mean, being selfish defeats the purpose of having a blog of which the main purpose is to SHARE, right?

If you’ve been following my blog you’d notice that I mostly write about skin care and basic makeup. Why so? Well growing up, I’ve always been fascinated with the perfect canvas. I wasn’t blessed with perfect skin (unlike my Mom), much to my dismay. I am prone to pimples, blackheads, oil – the whole enchilada. Basically I am just like any other woman out there living in the tropics trying to protect her skin from the sun, heat and the occasional breakout.

Happy Birthday G1bo!

Happy Birthday, Gilbert Teodoro!

You have changed us and Philippine politics forever.

May God bless you and your family!