Merry Christmas from PINKSUNSPOTS + Win a Britney Spears Fantasy Perfume!!!

Merry Christmas everyone!!! I'm taking this time to thank all the readers who have been reading this blog, which has already garnered over 15,000 hits!

As a thank you gift, I am having a small give-away!

Before I was such a big k-pop idol, I had one woman whom I looked up in her music and just everything she did--BRITNEY SPEARS!

I love her because she's an amazing performer and creates great music, but I also admire the way she has pulled herself together, surpassing challenges and invasions upon her privacy. She has been successful in every trade she immerses herself in, and I have to say I am also a big fan of her perfume line. One of my favorite scents is her FANTASY line (currently using Midnight Fantasy now).

So now as a gift to all my readers (Philippine-based only though, sorry guys!), I'll be giving away a 100ml Britney Spears Fantasy perfume to a luck winner who comments in this entry!

(note: photo above was taken from Google, my own give-away prize is sealed tight!)

MECHANICS:
1. Open to Philippine readers
2. Comment on this entry with your name and e-mail address.
3. Answer the following question: Why will 2011 be a better year for you? Keep it short!
4. Winners will be chosen through RANDOM. ORG.
5. Contest ends on January 3, 2011 so the perfume can reach up in the early days of January!

Get your comments in because I honestly love love love this perfume, I've already used up 2 bottles of this stuff because I think the scent is just perfect. Also, this contest isn't being sponsored, I'm just giving it away because its Christmas!
Also as proof that the perfume is with me and is brand spanking new:

 Sealed tight!!!

Merry Christmas again and don't forget to thank the Lord when you can, he is the reason for the season, right?^^ Stay warm! 

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The New Philippine P20 Bill!

My good friend Danny G gave me the new P20 bill on the first printing! So happy I was able to get my hands on one of these because it isn't even out yet!

The front shows Manuel Quezon as well as the establishment of Filipino as our national language. Malacanang Palace is also there plus Noynoy's signature as President!

Notice how young Quezon is here? (And guwapo? Hahaha!)

I have to say that apart from all the criticisms, I'm glad they found the need to change and modify our bills. Its always refreshing to see new ideas coming forth to make our country better.

And the back which features the Banaue Rice Terraces and the animal right there is the Palm Civet.

Note though, that these bills have not been issued in Metro Manila or in any of the provinces, so you can't get your hands on the new bills yet. Hopefully they take all the criticisms and make the appropriate changes.

As for myself, I'll probably be framing this P20 bill as a memento! Are you guys excited for the new bills? I know I am!

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Choosing the Right Red Lipstick + How to Keep It Lasting Long!

The holidays always call for a fun bright look and before the year ends, you should totally try the BRIGHT RED LIPSTICK trend that's been going on for quite some time.

I've heard that most Asians have a hard time choosing the right shade of red to go with their skin tone. But its really all about choosing the right red with a hint of blue tones (if you're fair Asian like me) or a red with golden shimmers (if you're on the darker side of Asian) plus the added confidence you need to pull the look off.

I only have 2 red lipsticks that I own, and here they are:

LEFT: Avon Ultra Moisture Rich Mini-Lipstick in Lava Love; Left: OPI's Hey Vito, Is My Car Red-y?

I don't really go out of my way to buy red lipsticks because these do the job! Unlike when I wear my pink lipsticks, I don't find the need to cover my original lip color in concealer prior to applying red lipstick. I also find that it helps if you use a lipbrush--you should make sure your red lips look neat!

A tip I got from Jen of FrmHeadtoToe on how you can make your lipstick last longer (and look more matte) is that you can set it with powder. How to do it? Here's how:

1) After applying your red lipstick, grab a single square of toilet paper. Make sure you just get a single ply (if it's 2-ply like mine, just peel it off)!

2) Place that single ply over your lips.

 3) Then using any powder (can be loose or press!), pat it on using a foam or brush over the tissue.

4) When you're done, just take the tissue off and repeat steps 1-3 again. I swear by this procedure! It really helps your lipstick stay in place for a longer time.

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Etude House Missing U Hand Cream Review

Have you guys seen Etude House's newest set of animals to grace their hand creams?

Isn't he suuuuuper cute?!!?!?!? GAAAAAAH CUTEST HAND CREAM EVER!

This little guy is a Harp Seal! Etude House launched a set of hand creams as well as lip balms that features four endangered species, namely the Harp Seal (Green Tea), Fairy Penguin (Baby Powder), Panda (Peach) and the Pink Dolphin (Cherry Blossom).

What Etude House says:

Missing U Hand Cream is formulated with natural mixture of herbs, Shea Butter and Olives to moisturize, heal and soothe hands.

Pear shaped container features one of four available endangered or near endangered animal friends

Directions: Apply cream onto palm and rub hands together, massaging to all areas: palms, wrists and fingers. Also applicable to arms.

This hand cream is pretty small, as all Etude House hand creams are:

Inside the seal is a plastic cover for hygienic purposes:

 

Lift up the plastic cover and smell how good it is!!!

The hand cream gets absorbed easily when you rub it on your skin, the green tea smell isn't overpowering. The smell also disappears after a few seconds (or maybe I washed my hands too soon after testing it out).

A percentage of the profits of these hand creams and lip balms go to save the endangered species they feature. So you get a nice hand cream plus help out the animals!

The Etude House Missing U Hand Cream is available at any Etude House store at P278!

And lastly, I couldn't resist taking a snapshot of my own baby seal and the new addition to the seal family:

Happy Holidays everyone!!!^^ Stay warm!

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Revlon Matte Eyeshadow in Venetian Blue Review

I love how people know that Christmas is a time to give me things I love--make-up! Expect plenty of reviews to come your way, I think food reviews will be given a rest for now because of this sudden surge of new fun stuff to try!

This is the Revlon Luxurious Color Eyeshadow MATTE. Expect no hint of shimmers here! I am a huge huge fan of eyeshadows, especially if they have great color pay-off at a low price. Read on to find out how this one was for me.

What Revlon says:

Soft, suede-like texture glides over lids smoothly and evenly.
Provides high-impact color and a soft matte finish.
Feels smooth and luxurious on the eyes.
Satin shades provide a smooth shimmering finish
Perle shades provide a sparkling crystallized finish
Matte shade provide a creamy rich finish
Try them all!

Mine is in Venetian Blue and looks very vibrant in its case (comes with a small sponge applicator):

Plus a swatch of the color, only swiped a finger across the shadow and placed it on my arm:

I have to say I'm not such a big fan of this eyeshadow. The color is smooth but when applied to the eyes, you have to pile the shadow on to re-create the vibrancy it has on the pan. Its a bit too sheer for me.

I don't really recommend this one, but if you like the color, then try it! I think the satin shades have better colors though.

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Happy Lemon: Keeping Me Happy One Drink at a Time!

I love love love milk tea. I cannot live without that drink no matter what. If there's milk tea on your beverage menu, I most probably would order it. But I like things simple, I'm satisfied already with milk teas that Ersao or Som's serve. But if offered a chance to try other milk teas? I'm always game!

Finally, a much-needed visit to Happy Lemon! My friend and I have been planning this visit for so long and the time finally came!

Happy Lemon is actually a drinks franchise from Hong Kong which serves over 40 varieties of hot and cold tea drinks. Just another milk tea fad? Read on to find out!

Interiors are really cute and fun! The place is brightly lit and their tagline, "Happy Everyday!" is emblazoned everywhere. When went there, the place didn't have that much people and we were able to get our orders quickly.

After ordering from the counter, you're given a number so they can prepare your drink fresh and serve it to you.

As per my friend's recommendation, I tried the Lemon Yakult (P100 for large, P90 for regular). This is definitely a drink for Yakult lovers! When I drank this, memories of my childhood days spent chugging down Yakult and hearing the bell ring from the Yakult peddler came back.

The drink has lemon zest inside, which was kind of a hindrance for me because I didn't know if I should chew them or spit them out (crazy, I know!). But the drink was good--I would definitely order this again when I come back if I don't have an inkling to try another flavor. Also tastes like a slushie Yakult with a hint of sourness that's not too overpowering.

If you're not a big fan of Yakult don't order this one.

My friend, Danny G, ordered the Burnt Caramel Milk Tea with Pearls (P90 for large):

My first sip was..."di ko gets." But eventually on the second sip, I got the taste! Tastes mostly tea-ish and the burnt caramel was a nice touch. Don't expect the drink to be too sweet though!

Pearls are small, sago-sized. I thought there was a good amount already put in. Mix the ingredients around to get the full effect!

And a final photo of us very satisfied with our drinks! We'll be sure to come back and try more drinks soon!

Ending note: I actually reviewed the place because one of my former employees are actually working here. Congrats to Chris Tiu for a new successful business! Try try try Happy Lemon guys, its good!

Parking may be a bit of a hassle in Greenhills during the holiday season, but you can drive by and let your driver idle for awhile because they serve the drinks pretty fast. Also wanted to add that we paid for our drinks and none of these were for free.^^ 

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Som's Noodle House: Thai on a Budget!

Have you guys noticed that my posts have involved food lately? I think its the Christmas season affecting me--there's always this inclination to eat, eat, eat!

Som's Noodle House, serves Thai food at a cheap price! This is located at a walking distance from my house, a few seconds away from Rockwell. Anytime I need hot Thai comfort food, its a go-go to Som's!

A word of advice first though, when going to Som's, do NOT have high expectations. Just think your regular restaurant inside a house. The interiors are pretty simple, chairs and tables that can accommodate a few people outside (with umbrellas) plus more on the inside.

We always get our usuals:

Yellow chicken curry (P102), good for 2-3 persons then we just get rice and that's enough for us!

Thai milk tea (P40) which I do do love because its bottled so you can buy a lot of quantities. Doesn't taste too milky so its good!

Plus a new dish we tried, Spicy Squid (forgot how much this was but costs kinda the same with all the ulams). This was too spicy for me. I think I was only able to eat a few bites. If you can take the heat, its pretty good as well.

And that's it! I swear I'll be posting something about something related to make-up soon! Happy Holidays everyone!!!^^

Som's Noodle House is located at 5921 A. Alger St. Poblacion, Makati. You can reach it by going straight to Kalayaan after Rockwell and turning at the first street. They also serve barbecue at the side you can order with your meal.

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Charlie's Grind & Grill: Comfort Food at It's Fatty Best!

My boyfriend has been telling me to try this burger place called Charlie's for the longest time ever (since its located so near his house), but since I'm not a burger person, I would usually decline.

But on one fateful day I was immensely craving a fatty midnight snack and came across so many blogs heaping praises on the food. Without any hesitation, I called my boyfriend up and headed over to Charlie's!

I was so so happy because they had buffalo wings (most favorite thing to munch on at night) on the menu! They also have an array of burgers, milkshakes, cheese steaks and sandwiches to choose from. They also offer cold American Premium beers! Midnight snack perfect-ness!

I got myself a Chocolate Milkshake (P150) because I was feeling extra fatty that night. Its basically Hershey's chocolate syrup blended with vanilla ice cream. How'd I know? I saw them making it. I had to remove the cherry (I don't eat them) but everything else tasted excellent.

Boyfriend had the Black Angus Burger with Fries which costs P175. Charlie's bestseller and a must-try for anyone who first visits the restaurant.
I found the burger really good, which is a huge deal coming from me, a non-burger person. It was tender and very flavorful. They serve the burger with the top bun to the side.

I had a Half-dozen Buffalo Wings (Hot) for P170. Hot is actually their mildest hot flavor. I'll probably try the next level next time I visit because the spicy factor of this one was pretty mild. They serve it with blue cheese and veggie sticks--thought this was a good idea because the carrots, celery and singkamas offset the spiciness of the chicken.

 

The wings had a lot of meat--so good I was able to finish 5 wings all in all. I think attempting to eat all 6 would've made me too full already. The skin was excellent, it retained its crispyness plus there were no signs of soggy buffalo wings here!

Also got an extra basket of fries (P60). These are 100% hand-cut! Very good but really filling. I had to put in a bit more salt to enjoy them.

This was a definite bang for buck! There's no service charge and the service was good. I haven't experienced the crowd that most share when they eat there, but I will definitely be coming back and trying their cheese steak next time.

Charlie's Grind & Grill is located at 16 East Kapitolyo Drive, Pasig City.

How to get there: Charlie's can be found along the road where Cafe Juanita is located. You need to drive past Cafe Juanita, Three Sisters and Good Burger. You have to park in front of the car wash or have your car washed. :) I'm always having a hard time scheduling a car wash because I felt it's a waste of time. But now I have a good reason to do it -- to enjoy the best burgers in town. (courtesy of OUR AWESOME PLANET)

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Books I Love to Read

I have to admit that I'm not a huge fan of books that take too long to read (or too deep?). Its probably because I'm already a law student and burdened with reading so much technical law books and cases that I don't think I want to submerge myself in anything that would make me think for my leisure reading, know what I mean?

On the top of my list has to be The Georgia Nicolson series, as I call them, which is written by the absolute top-notch comedy author, Louise Rennison. Talk about addicting, I impatiently wait for each of these books to come out and even buy everything in hardcover!

These books are about a girl named Georgia, who records her daily (crazy) life as a teenager growing up in England. Her adventures are hella funny and very entertaining. I think I started reading these books when I was in high school (let me see, which was around 7 years ago) and I continue to re-read them whenever I can. Whenever I read this, you can always see me laughing out loud--because its just too funny! Although I think you have to appreciate the British comedy angle to like this one.

The series actually has a spin-off named Withering Tights: Misadventures of Tallulah Casey, also written by Rennison but is about Georgia's cousin. I have been racking the local bookstores for ages looking for a copy but to no avail.

Anyway I've also been into a series of books made by Lauren Conrad. If you guys don't know her, she's started out as a reality TV star on the show, The Hills. The series is entitled L.A. Candy, which is actually about the life of Jane Roberts, who moved to Los Angeles with her best friend Scarlett to work in a famous events-planner company and were discovered to star in their own television reality series.

I'm on the third book already and I have to say its an great read! Don't expect anything hard-hitting, but its a fresh take on young adult literature (past all those Gossip Girls-over-privileged girls series) and I do encourage anyone to give it a try. I tried reading L.A. Candy because I just needed another book to read, saw this at the local bookstore and voila! Now I've gobbled up all the books!

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Maybelline Pulse Perfection Waterproof Vibrating Mascara review

So I got a new toy a few days ago because Maybelline is having a sale. I was extremely fascinated with this one because its definitely different from the usual make-up products offered.

What is the one thing that you never thought a mascara should be doing? For me, it has to be...VIBRATING! 

Here's the new Maybelline Pulse Perfection Waterproof Vibrating Mascara. The saleslady told me the reason it was made to vibrate is to prevent clumping. What's my verdict? Let's go to the details first:


What Maybelline says:

It’s our first vibrating mascara. Transforms your lashes to perfection.

Patent-pending elastomer brush vibrates 7,000 times per stroke

Provides clump-free definition, intense color, and shine

Waterproof; also available in washable formula

Builds lash volume, length, and adds curl

Buildable formula

Ideal for All Skin Types

Contact lens safe

Instructions are in Japanese! But here's the translated version:

How to use:

Step 1: On the mascara cap, pull plastic tab to remove it completely, then discard.

Step 2: Press the button to activate pulsation. Release the button to stop.

Step 3: While pressing the button, place brush at base of lashes and move slowly towards lash tip. Continue applying coats to achieve preferred lash look.

Step 4: Repeat for lower lashes

The brush is made up of tiny, tiny bristles:

The tiny button makes the wand vibrate--A LOT. But surprisingly, you don't feel the vibration when you apply it to your lashes.

After applying, how it looks like on me (get ready for some scary eye shots!):

The main question is, DOES IT PREVENT CLUMPS? I have to admit that it does NOT. See how my lashes are still a bit clumped up? I had to wave the wand a bit more even while it was vibrating to remove them. I honestly don't see the need for the vibrating wand, because you can achieve the non-clump look by not making it vibrate and just applying it as you do with other mascaras.

But still, who can resist buying a different mascara?^^
Good points about this mascara is that it does last the whole day, does not smudge and really elongates my super short lashes.


The Maybelline Pulse Perfection Waterproof Vibrating Mascara is available at any Maybelline kiosk for P699.00 (got mine with a 30% discount, so hurry and buy while their sale is still on!).

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