If you read my posts often enough, you’ll come to realise I like to distract myself from studying/doing important things.

This post is no different.

Recently, I’ve developed the habit of cutting, shaping and painting my fingernails and toenails. This takes a good 45 minutes, with the base coat, nail varnish and top coat. I love O.P.I and Sally Hansen :D

Instead of the typical one colour look, I prefer adding tips to the nails. Not your average white french tips, but more bold colours like pink, red and black against a coloured base – some call it a reverse french.

Some girls find it hard to paint their right hand (if they’re right handed), or their left hand (if they’re left-handed), but I strongly believe it all comes with practice.

I’ve never had much difficulty painting neatly, so adding tips is just a simple act of drawing a line across the white parts of the nail. I like to keep my nails fairly short, which makes it easier to type, write and shampoo my hair. So please don’t use the reason of: oh, my nails are too short to do tips!

this was inspired by the month of october: HALLOWEEN!

this was created when i felt like being more clean and sophisticated

As you can see, it’s more fun to play around with two colours than one. Painting your nails reflects the mood you’re in. Painting my nails makes me happy to catch a brief look at them when I’m writing my notes during boring lectures or study sessions.

Doing a self-manicure or pedicure helps me to save money, destress and feel good about myself.

A hint of advice: If you want to keep the colour on for long, I suggest using a less rich/vivid colour. A neutral base works best, but have fun with the colour of the tips. Apply a good topcoat every 5 days to maintain the colour :)

A black eye in a good way. I’m currently in love with Brown Eyed Girls’ Son Gain’s eyes! (That’s alot of ‘eye’ in one line!)

I’ve always envied girls with double eyelids…double eyelids which allow them to use all sorts of eyeliner to further enhance the beauty of their big eyes.

As for me, I don’t have double eyelids. Neither do I have single eyelids. I consider it to be a wrinkle/crease where a double eyelid should be.

Some asian celebrities swear that they never went under the knife to get their double eyelids. “Due to the use of double eyelid tape, gradually it just formed!” Yeah, right.

I’ve never liked the idea of sticking a plastic cutout onto my eyelid. It just looks too fake and obvious. On the other hand, eyeliner can do wonders to make one’s eyes and pupil’s look bigger.

One night, I caught an episode of one of the many interesting taiwanese variety shows. the theme of that night was: CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?

Basically, 4 girls appeared on the show, sans makeup looking totally normal, or even less than average (harsh, i know). But boy, did those girls know how to take full advantage of eyeliner and false eyelashes. True, they did look a tad overdone (doll-like), but they were so much prettier!

Over the past year, I’ve experimented with all sorts of methods to line the eye. From eyeshadow to liquid eyeliner, and I’ve come to love Shiseido’s Accentuating Cream Eyeliner. It comes in a pot filled with a crayon-like solid and a mini-brush. Simply wet the brush, slick on a few strokes and ta-dah! the eyes are lined and smudge free for a full day.

Some may ask, why not use eyeshadow? They can make the eyes pop as well. Truthfully? I’m just too lazy to blend 3 different shades on my eyelid. Plus, I probably lack the artistic skill to blend well and evenly. Ha!

In the meantime, check out the video down below. I’m not one to really try out stuff i see on youtube, but this looks easy enough! (maybe the coloured contacts give it an added ‘oomph’, but i’ll never shove anything into my eye!)

credits to : rosebabe888

Chanel should no longer be thought of simply being a fashion house. True, it is hard to deny the beauty and quality of its tweed jackets, 2.55 bags, pearl necklaces and fine watches. And it sure isn’t easy to resist the classic scent of Chanel No.5. But fans of the brand should be glad to know that the  French company has an excellent collection of  beauty products as well, ranging from gorgeous hues of nail varnish to skincare products.

I am a strong believer in cleansing all the dirt and make-up off my skin at the end of the day, no matter how lazy (or smashed) I am from a day out. Chanel’s Gel-Huile Pureté is a gentle yet effective cleanser, as it removes even the most stubborn waterproof mascara. My sensitive skin is left feeling clean and refreshed.

Out of the four cleansers available, only one has a lightweight gel texture, which I love. Somehow I’ve never found foaming mousse cleansers to be particularly effective. Maybe it’s a psychological thing, just like those instant foaming handsoaps.

The cleaner works within seconds upon application onto the face, no splashing of water required. The gel texture becomes a satiny smooth oil that removes all traces of make-up on the face, eyes and lips. Better yet, all the impurities and oil are also removed. The lotion rinses away easily, leaving my skin feel clean and oil-free, but not tight as I’ve experienced with other cleansers from popular make-up brands.

If you believe in taking good care of your skin, Chanel is the right brand for you. Its extensive range of cleaners, nanolotions, masks and whitening products are extremely gentle and pampering. Head down to one of the Chanel beauty counters and the consultants will analyse the needs of your skin and what products to use. The cost may be a bit more than you’d be willing to spend initially, but trust me, you’ll be addicted after your first try.

Tanaka White, Bio-essence’s latest line of Whitening and Firming skin care range has recently been launched in the market. The product claims to whiten, cool, firm and hydrate skin all packed with the potent goodness of Tanaka Tree Bark.

I have always been attracted to products that are derived from or inspired by nature, so this addiction naturally had me giving the new line a try. I took 3 of the products off the shelves and tested their Rejuvenating Whitening Day Cream, Renewal Night Cream and White Perfecting Lotion for a period of 14 days.

The product claims to whiten and brighten your complexion by reducing dark spots and evening out skin tone, firming your skin by strengthening and improving skin elasticity, fully hydrating skin with a cooling effect. Their secret break-through ingredient, Tanaka Tree Bark — purportedly a traditional whitening secret used by Myanmar women for 2000 years, cherished for its cooling and whitening properties.

After 2 weeks..

I am neither whitened nor brightened by the products. Overall there was a very slight lightening of spots, unfortunately it’s hard to tell if it is by my own skin renewing or by the product itself. I have no indications to tell if the firming qualities worked on me since I am still quite firm. * chuckles – Hence may not entirely be helpful for mid-twenties and below. I am perplexed however that none of the 3 products had the acclaimed ‘cooling properties’, they were not warm per se but they weren’t cooling either.

The Rejuvenating Whitening Day cream has a beige pinkish colour and like most other reviews I’ve researched on, I concur that it did make me look ‘fairer’ but I did not become fairer. Honestly, it’s the corrective colour in it that makes you look a tad lighter in shade. The cream has to be spread evenly with a little effort to blend the colour into the skin.

The White Perfecting Lotion, like many other sunscreen lotions, contains SPF in it. It is not greasy, a little on the thick side and has the same odd drying feeling after applying. Give it a few minutes and the drying feeling will cease once the lotion is fully absorbed. SPF a day helps the skin a long way.

The Renewal Night Cream is again like many whitening night creams: rich and indulgent on application. It spreads smoothly and is a little too greasy for me. Every morning, my skin feels suffocated with a layer of grease -  the cream is not entirely at fault here as I do have combination skin – which makes me despair that it didn’t work at the end after battling the sticky nights.

On hindsight, I did not get any mini breakouts more than I’m supposed to. As for the whitening bit, despite me hoping it would work, the products did not do what they claimed to be capable of. All in all after considering the slight lightening of some spots, I give this try a 2 out of 5 stars.