Catching up with you: Loved things over the past couple of months & a quick FOTD

I wanted to take a moment today to catch up with you. I have been away for quite some time... half a year, almost? I took a self-declared hiatus from all things recreational for several months since my arrival to Singapore. I haven't even had a chance to meet some of my close friends here in Singapore, yet alone, manage the time to frequent the gym/yoga etc. All reasons aside, I miss blogging ALOT. I miss the small thrill of seeing a comment in my window. I miss expressing my thoughts of superficial vain things and taking camwhoring pictures of myself. :-D

In all honesty, I completely lost interest in makeup in the first few months. Then the stress accumulated, and the online shopping also compounded over time. Ha! So what has become from my makeup diet has turned out to be quite the opposite! I have lots to show you... soon! 

I have discovered this wonderful site called SpaceNK... they did an awesome GWP full of deluxe sized items from brands I have never heard of or do not have access to. 

I have become utterly obsessed with body care products. My bare shower stand, which used to stand maybe 1-2 things at most, is now crowded with a (#*$load of different shower gels, shampoos, conditioners, masks, scrubs. I rotate the scents as I feel; some shower gels I'll use when I am having the most horrendous day (i.e. the Beautannia Brideshead Bath & Shower Gel). 

My summary of loved products these few months can be seen below... 

From left to right: Diptyque Baies Candle, Giorgio Armani Lasting Silk Foundation, Illamasqua Satin Primer, Philip B Lovin' Leave-in Conditioner, Rouge Bunny Rouge Seas of Tranquility, Alpha H Liquid Gold, Beautannia Brideshead Bath & Shower Gel

The first worthy mention include this godsend Alpha-H Liquid Gold, which was recommended by amodelrecommends. I use this on alternate nights, applying a small amount on a cotton pad and pressing gently on to my skin. I skip the moisturisers and serums after this. The next day my skin is so clean and clear. The first few times I tried this, there was a slight burning sensation, but on subsequent tries the feeling was no longer there. So far I am loving the results of this treatment and would recommend it to anyone who wants to achieve gentle exfoliation as part of their regular skincare regimen. 

And secondly, Philip B Lovin' Leave-in Conditioner would be my second worthy mention. This small tube (0,5 fl oz) was part of SpaceNK's massive GWP some months ago. A small dollop of Philip B's leave-in conditioner on slightly damp hair before the flip-your-head-over blowdry makes the perfect silky texture. It's lightweight, non-greasy and gives all the love my hair needs. I have since purchased the full size (6 fl oz) from SpaceNK, but you can also get this at the salon on the 6/7th floor of Ngee Ann City if you reside in Singapore. 

I am also revisiting old makeup products... things I just have owned for too long. They are indeed lovely things. I participated less of the Spring Collections, but I just can't help it when summer collections are here. I have a terrible addiction to bronzers and illuminators. 

I am learning to get the most out of burnished red eyeshadows. It can be tricky to apply, but with some eyeliner and volumized lashes, you can minimise that punched-out eye appearance. Shu Uemura's Karl Lagerfield's eyeshadow palette (although limited edition), has this interesting brick red eyeshadow on the bottom right, which turned out quite nicely today. 

On my cheeks I have RMK's Jelly Cheeks 02-Apricot. Whilst the texture of these blushes reminds me of a cream blush, the pick-up is somewhere like a light powder blush. Using a blusher brush didn't quite work out with this blush, so I had to resort to using my fingers instead. 

And yes what you're seeing there is a the pan of my Anna Sui's pressed powder. Rejoice! Ha! (No, I am not insane. :-) I am just hopelessly in love with makeup.)

I'm not a big fan of the YSL rouge volupte lipsticks, but I have since discovered the YSL rouge volupte shines and they are simply exquisite! 

A few things are nearing it's end-of-life, including my Giorgio Armani Lasting Silk Foundation and Illamasqua Satin Primer. The combination of these two bases make the most glowy dewy look. These have been my staple base makeup products lately. 

I hope you are all doing well and to those in the Northern Hemisphere, have a wonderful summer!!!

Nostalgic sights from Paris

Hi everyone. 

Wow - where should I start? It's been almost 3 months since my last post and I deeply apologise for the sudden hiatus. 

In short, life hasn't been too gentle on me. Stress took a major toll on me and I would often wake up to nightmares. Yeah, those crazy nightmares that deters me from staying in bed. 

The whole transition back to Singapore became such a shock to my system, and I had to switch from being a reasonable work-life balance person to working 90-hour work weeks. I'm shaking my head in disbelief as well, trust me. I didn't think I could do it, but somehow I am. 

Thanks for being ever so patient on me and I truly look forward to coming back to my blog when things are more settled - hopefully in April. For the time being, I have a few pictures of Paris hiding in my backlog of photos. Going through them now reminds me of the better things in life, and how precious those moments of freedom can be...

Shopping in Vienna ~ Inglot Eyeshadows

Christmas shopping in Vienna is delightful - shops displaying their latest christmas merchandise, streets alit with glistening lights, stalls serving hot wine and chocolates and Austrians flocking to the stores ticking off their christmas shopping list. Temperatures have been hovering above the zero mark, making it a lot easier to venture around the off-beaten paths. Above is the main shopping street in the middle of Vienna called Stephansplatz, aptly named after the main catholic church.

Vienna reminds me of quintessential Copenhagen, but perhaps in a more grandeur style; there's always violins and cellos on the streets and the way that the buildings stack up next to each other ooze this cozy feeling that you're still living in the 19th century. And, there are two fragrance shops you must visit when you're ever here to visit. One, Duft & Kulture on a street behind Petersplatz, and two, Le Parfum right in front of the Petersplatz church. I purchased quite a few of my fragrances here, with the most patient sales person. I can't wait to show you the fragrances that I picked up, but I want to test each one first before I express my thoughts. Once my fragrances unite with the rest of my others, I will of course show you what I own. I love my perfume is all I can say. 

I also discovered Inglots' newest store in Vienna, located quite a bit away from the city. I was dead set on getting those darn eyeshadows that everyone is raving about. Curse the blogosphere/Youtube space because I was on a mission like no other. Even it if meant that I had to jump on 3 trains to get there...

After reading reviews of the Inglot eyeshadow palettes, I was informed NOT to get it. 

Instead, I used MAC's new pro 15' palette. Here's the caveat: inglot eyeshadow pans are NOT magnetised which means that you had to source for your own magnetised sheet. It was worth all the effort eventually. But, I'm just too lazy to care about building a stash of eyeshadow palettes. 

I picked up a total of 11 eyeshadows. The eyeshadows are so beautifully pigmented and there's just too many to choose from.

I had also considered getting a Z Palette - it's cheaper and they give magnets too. I couldn't be bothered to purchase them separately online anyway, so I settled with the MAC. The fit is not perfect - there's about 1 cm gap left on the width and about 2cm on the length. 

Here are all the swatches of the eyeshadows for reference. Each inglot single pan eyeshadow costs 7 euros.

What are your thoughts on inglot eyeshadows? Are they worth all the craze?