Squirrels, Tags and Kpop :)

To give you a small update on my life: oh man non-blog life has been busy -_-;;;   I've been getting home at 9pm (not including the commute :P *sigh*), became addicted to eating Trolli Sour Gummy Worms, and been taking LOTS of pics!  My heart quails at the idea of sorting through all of them actually...  But here's a little something in the meantime ^_^ 

This little charmer was sunbathing on our deck and I was lucky to get a clip of him.  Squirrels are so cute ^_^ I have a weakness for little rodents (mice, hamsters, chipmunks....some rats), a love only rivaled by my love for cats.  I'd love to raise a cat and mouse as friends!   I've heard it can be done but I admit I'll always be worried to come home one day and find a mouse carcass :(   I like dogs too (spitz particularly) but even in my imagination a spitz type dog + a cat + a mouse are not going to be a trio for long :(

A couple weeks back, Suzy kindly tagged me for a What's on My Nightstand tag...but be prepared to be disappointed:

I love that that frame ^_^  Anyway, that is a pic of me and my bro during the Blizzard of 1996 (East Coast, USA).  Virginia doesn't get much snow in general, so to get a legit BLIZZARD was nothing short of traumatic (aka fun for kids :) ).  Virginians are the type to stock up if you get 3 inches of snow....not exactly the hardy type. Oh man, I remember that blizzard.  No school for WEEKS, piles of snow up to my chest (literally)....it was great!  My brother super cute back then - he looks like a wee elf with his purple hood! As for me....there I am...looking suspiciously manly *sigh*

Anyway, yeahhhhh I don't keep makeup in my room. I'm hardly ever in my bedroom really, I just go in there to sleep ^^  Here's what I keep next to my closet though:

There are built-in bookshelves by my closet and that's where I keep the things that would normally go on a nightstand I suppose~  This is non-makeup stuff I use everyday:

1.) The Limited coupon + receipt - oh gosh I've been clothes shopping a lot lately.  Right now The Limited and Banana Republic have been my drugs of choice~

2.) Julu Jewelry earrings :} They are little dangle-y balls of pink and opal bi-cones.

3.) My glasses - If you are curious about how I look in my new glasses - you can also go here.   Fyi, I talk like I write aka A LOT~   So feel free to pop me on mute...except for the end!! Aziatix *heart* there's nothing like a little fan-love to bring people together right ;)?

4.) Watch from Walmart.  It was $10, I've been using it for 2-3 years and still works like a charm~ I've love to get a watch with a white leather band though :D

5.) Versace Bright Crystal - my "signature" scent of choice ahahah It's the only perfume I've worn regularly.  It has a nice clean scent, give it a whiff when you're at the mall :)

6.) And my ring!

This is a new acquisition for me.  I'm not a big ring wearer but this one I adore.  I got it from Kohl's while they were having this massive 60% off all Jewelry sale.  They had lots of pretty rings that were "open" and integrated into the design, but this was my favorite.  In general, Kohl's had a great selection of jewelry that I'd recommend taking a peek at if you're looking for some inexpensive high-quality pieces.  This ring is sterling silver and was $18.  I'm not particularly fond of sterling silver because it tarnishes but since I wear it daily, the tarnish doesn't have time to build up ^_^

I shall tag: Sincerely Mimi,  Beauty & Aikido, Lioness in Tokyo (I love expat blogs! And this is one of a chick in Tokyo.  She also has a beauty blog.), Hello qts, Love Tiffo, What iLike, Delyteful Speaks, Vanilla Sencha, Sweet Candy72, A Cosmetic Affair

Suzy (Dottilicious on YT) is cute as a button btw :D she's a relatively new discovery for me and she has that really lovely accent and sweet attitude.  I've pretty much dropped dead on the YT front because I just can't juggle a blog and channel at the moment but I watch the vids she posts on her blog. She's into Asian brands, which is obviously straight up my alley :)

Speaking of, I love the stuff on Gmarket but ordering from that site has been a PAIN for me (aka I never succeeded). I am not sure why logging in and placing an order properly has been so IMPOSSIBLE...it just keeps saying my login is invalid etc etc.  I think it's my laptop honestly but it's such a hassle I've given up.   The horror stories I've heard about Gmarket communication pains me too - I hate bad customer service and when I'm mad, the only Korean I'm typing are cuss words -__- If anyone has a similar issue and has fixed it - let me know~

P.S. Suzy, I swear I'm doing the other tag video....but curse it I have the memory of a goldfish and keep forgetting ><

On another topic, I don't watch music shows very often anymore but here's a couple songs I've been really liking -

Lim Jeong Hee - Golden Lady

This is definitely my favorite song of the month! Such a feel good, girl power song ^_^ Love the vocals, the beat, and message.  She actually debuted in 2005, but I read that she was more focused on street performing rather than music shows, which says a lot about her natural talent and abilities as a musician I think :)  Also features G.NA (why must the 'i' be a period? *sigh*) who has a catchy song for herself that I like a lot, I'll Back Off So Yo Can Live Well.  

Baek Ji Young - Average

I really like the lyrics of the song.   The music video is rather boring (lots of running :\) but there is sexy Oh Ji Ho (Chuno), so yeah~   I still sort of miss her Sad Salsa days but her ballads are always solid and her vocals are great.  The songwriter for this song is the same as LJH's Golden Lady I believe (somebody's raking in the dough lately I bet ^_~)

Jay Park - Tonight

He does a lot of showing off of his dancing skills, it's rather gratuitous...but that aside this is just such feel good, happy song!  I still have my suspicions about his departure (I'm in the minority of fans that think he did something), but his career has moved nowhere but up since then and I think he's better off solo anyway.  He always sort of outshone everyone else in 2PM; 2PM definitely lost a chunk of talent without him for sure :\   Anyway, the MV is actually fun to watch and JP still walks that fine line between cute and manly like a pro :D He looks like a guy who'd be fun to be buddies with ^_^  He's got a lot of expression...I guess that's what makes him such a good performer :} I like this song a lot better than Abandoned for some reason; the hook is catchier I think.

MissA - Love Alone

awww I miss MissA already! They're definitely one of my favorite groups :) This whole song's sung in English and it's not bad at all~ I think this song was for Kim Yuna's "Ice Show." I was surprised how concise the pronunciation was, but since JYP himself is fluent I guess I shouldn't have been surprised :)

2NE1 - Lonely

Oh man, if I had a 2nd favorite song at the moment it'd be this one.  Promotions have been pretty low key but whatever, it's a good song.  This is how I like 2NE1, subtle, stylish, and focused on their vocals.  Their hook is so damn catchy too~  Everyone's looking great (except for Dara's awful hair in the first half, though god knows she could rock a paper bag if she wanted too).  Bom is still looking hot in those one pieces and if I adored Minzy and CL more, I'd probably be....creepier ^^;;

FT Island - Hello Hello

The subber did a fantastic job explaining the nuances of the word "annyeong" (the title of the song) so I'll just paste it here:

As you can get from the lyrics, the song is about the two opposite meanings of the word "annyeong", which means both hello and goodbye in informal speech. Therefore I couldn't really translate the word as either "hello" or "goodbye" because it was referring to the word itself, and not to a specific meaning, so if I had translated it, the song would lose most of its essence. That's why I just left it as it is.

Even with the upbeat air, this is a pretty sad song and MV :( but I love the dichotomy of hello/goodbye and the upbeat air/sad lyrics...  It reminds me a bit of CN Blue's I'm A Loner with fun little repeating catch phrases but that's no surprise since CN Blue said they were much inspired by FT Island :D

So yep, that's all!  Have a great weekend everyone!

Godiva Ice Cream Parlor Truffles

I have a peculiar love of taking macro pictures of food cross-sections (don't ask me why).  So of course when Godiva released a seasonal collection of chocolates that has me super-excited - it's called Ice Cream Parlor - I just had to take some pictures of it!

Limited Edition Ice Cream Parlor Truffles

Our limited edition Ice Cream Parlor Truffle Collection has expanded with 2 new delicious flavors, Banana Split and Black Raspberry, offered in the Boutique Chocolate Case. These truffles join your returning favorites such as Mint Chocolate Chip, Rocky Road, Neapolitan, Pistachio, Double Dark Chocolate, Lemon Sorbet and Pecan Caramel Sundae.

The website lists only 6 ice cream truffles but I know there are at least 10+ varieties.  It's been next to impossible to find a full listing of all the available flavors (either Google has failed me or Godiva needs to work on their SEO).  Whatever, this is a collection Godiva has done before so I'm sure there are many other delectable flavors floating around out there.

Neapolitan, Mint Chocolate Chip, Banana Split, Pistachio

My crap photography skills don't do them justice but gosh, these little babies just melt my heart....   I only got 4 this time around but I'm sure next time I pass the shop it'll be another four (or all the other flavors available ^_~).

Our Neapolitan Ice Cream Parlor Truffles feature a dual center of strawberry and vanilla ganache, enrobed in milk chocolate.

Neapolitan - It's supposed to be the classic vanilla, chocolate, strawberry mix.  I put this one first cuz it was my least favorite :P The flavor was so typical and aside from how purty the cross-section is, I didn't really enjoy this one.  It just tastes like any ol' chocolate+strawberry sweet.  The strawberry tasted really artificial too.  I don't really recommend this one. 

Taste aside, the dual center certainly does photograph beautifully though doesn't it ^_^?  Also love the creamy consistency.

Not on website.

Banana Split - Milk chocolate+walnuts+strawberry+banana (the bottom).  The banana flavor was surprisingly strong in this one, and overall this actually tasted like a Banana Split.  I rather liked this one - the creamy banana taste was fairly unusual and made this taste authentically "banana-split"-y.   My bro said he thought it tasted bitter though, which I thought was odd.

Our delicious Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream Parlor truffles feature mint ganache and Godiva chocolate chips, enrobed in a dark chocolate shell.

Mint Chocolate Chip - omg this seriously tastes just like a spoonful of warm mint chocolate chip!  If you like mint chocolate ice cream, you'll really like this one.  I will say the mint chocolate flavor itself is kind of prosaic (I mean the whole mint+dark chocolate thing has been done a million times) but the ice-cream-like texture really makes this truffle something special (to me).

Pistachio and white chocolate ganache is enrobed in a shell of rich dark and white Godiva chocolate, and sprinkled with crushed pistachios.

Pistachio - I don't actually like pistachios in nut form but I got this one because the lime green color charmed me so much~  Turns out to be probably my favorite among the four.  It just has that delicate, unmistakable pistachio flavor and the perfect whipped cream texture.  Twas delicious and is highly recommended ^_^

I hope you guys aren't grossed out by bite marks (because then you're probably barfing all over your keyboard now) :\  But I couldn't resist with all the funky centers ^^  Plus the texture of the cream centers were so exquisitely spot-on when it came to feeling like ice cream is melting on your tongue (albeit without the coldness).    Overall, I feel like the flavors can be a bit of a hit-or-miss and some of the flavors are definitely on the boring side :P  Real chocolate aficionados with a refined palate may want to pass on these truffles but for the everyday chocolate lover, these are definitely a treat :)   I'm no chocolate connoisseur and I suspect you can find far more complexly flavored chocolates out there.  But overall, Godiva definitely wins hands-down in the packaging and "charm" department.

*sigh* How could I have missed this collection before?

I'm particularly keen to try one of these truffle cones - it's $2.50 for literally one truffle (lord knows I'm paying for that thumb sized cone and little dribble of chocolate around the edges) but they are so frikkin cute!!  I have a bad feeling that it's going to become an obsession of mine to try every flavor xD

Well...enough of that :)  I hope everyone enjoyed their Memorial weekend!  My weekend was pretty chill...my fam went to a little beach in VA, grilled hotdogs and pork slices (how Asian), ate watermelons and cherries, caught a few crabs, and just relaxed in the cool breeze blowing off the lake.  I made a little vid which I may post later this week - it's really short but kind of funny because I basically made a twin sized bed out of one of the picnic tables ehehe

Asians in Commerical Advertising

Asian models have been showing up fairly often on the runway and high end fashion for years (yah!). Unfortunately, it's also quite well known than runway models (generally) need only be 5'7+, thin, and capable of walking the walk - the face is inconsequential since there's makeup and runway models are essentially, I quote, "human coat hangers."

To do commercial work, models need to have more "mass appeal" and be "mainstream pretty" - the "face" is definitely not inconsequential.  That said, it's nothing new to say that there's always been a distinct dearth of Asians in commercial modeling in the US; obviously this is due to (somewhat) equal parts Asians being a minority (thus not worth targeting) and a shortage of Asians that "fit" the look American brands were looking for.

I'm not particularly interested in writing a long-winded essay about the stereotypes of Asians in American society, I just wanted to write this post to say I've been seeing a sudden leap in the number of Asian models in commercial work for some quite well known brands :D!  To see Asians modeling for brands that are targeted towards mainstream American teens/early 20s (not niche markets or high fashion) shows how (forgive my idealism) truly diverse - or rather accepting - America has become.  Maybe 'accepting' is too optimistic a word, but at the very least there is now a need for marketers to to target the Asian demographic and embrace the fact that there are many definitions of beauty.

American Eagle Outfitters - heyyy an Asian chick, on the homepage no less :D  I thought that was pretty cool.  And a guy too!  The fact that an Asian guy is modeling for "rugged" style brand in a manly-man way speaks volumes for how far Asian guys have come breaking free of the old stereotypical nerdy/waif-ish/unstylish geek.  He's pretty hot ...too bad he's younger than me (21 :( ).  Oh man, these scamps get younger every year *sigh*

Jarah Mariano (IMG) - She's a reasonably popular commercial model already I think.  Her name has been floating around ever since her stint with Victoria's Secret.  She's pretty smoking hot and done a lot of commercial work with Abercrombie & Fitch, MAC, Armani Exchange, Sephora, Roxy Quiksilver, Redken, H&M, Avon, Old Navy, Dereon, Levi's, Pac Sun and Rock and Republic.... so I'm not surprised she's modeling for AE now.  She looks commercial.  She reminds me of a younger Hyori, with her...bust....tanned, sun-kissed skin tone, and the ability to balance cute with sexy very well so it's no surprise she's picked up quite a following in Korea too - though I bet the fact she's Hawaiian/Korean helps.

Jae Yoo (Major) - WHY HELLO.  6'2, ripped abs, SEXY LIPS - where have you been all my life?  He seems to be really new on the scene but he's already modeled on the runway and done print work for Calvin Klein and Vogue.  This dude has it going for him and I feel like we'll definitely be seeing more of him in the future (YESSS).

Also Hyoni Kang (one of my favorite models, her dimple is so cute) modeled for AE in the Spring/Summer 2010 AND Fall 2008/Winter 2009 campaigns - dost I see a trend?!

Ann Taylor Loft - I don't know the name of the model but her pic shows up a lot on the LOFT site.  She has that mature, professional look Ann Taylor seems to favor...so yeah :) I love Ann Taylor and browse there often and it's nice to see her pic pop up.

Banana Republic - HYONI KANG (Ford) I adore this chick, she has such a cute face.  She catapulted to fame after placing first in the 2008 Ford Super Models of the World competition and has been working busily since.   I honestly think she's one of the first Asian models to regularly do commercial work in America (forgive me if I'm wrong, I say that as a very casual observer of the modeling world).  She has great range in my eyes, she goes from couture to commercial so well ^_^  She's modeled for VS Pink, Lacoste, DKNY, AE, and Tommy Hilfiger.  And Target, you can't get more mainstream than that ahaha.  I've actually seen her campaign in-stores too so she's not being used for just print work in Asia, which is cool to know :)

EDIT --> Estee Lauder - Speak of the devil, I just coasted into the Estee Lauder site to look at some makeup for my mom and Liu Wen (Marilyn) is staring right at me :D!  I dug around a bit and this is for EL's S/S 2011 collection :)  I consider her more of an upper-end commercial model rather than...I dunno "mainstream" than the ones above (if that makes any sense at all).  But I couldn't resist mentioning her because she is so successful.  I distinctly recall the first time I noticed her - she was the first (East) Asian to runway model for Victoria's Secret!  Apparently she is the first Asian to be a face for EL too :}



Anyway, that's all.  Kind of a random post ^_^ Btw a great blog to track Asian models is....Asian Models :)  It's a fun site to browse, so check it out~

Have a good weekend everyone!

Korea Trip 2010, Part 13: Emergency Road Services + Samsung AnyCall MVs

This is a continuation of Part 12: A Buddhist Temple in Seoul
To start from the beginning go to Part 1: Flying to Tokyo

This was originally a food post....but I got carried away (you'll see what I mean) so this post mutated into a short anecdote with a massively long tangent about Samsung's AnyCall commercials.

Anyway, I'm sure many of you have heard of (or experienced) the miseries of dealing with road-side emergency auto repair services....having to wait several hours by a high way in the middle of the night for a tow truck to come, the expenses, the unfriendly service people etc.  Consequently, I would to share this story with you....

Stupid camera :(! So blurry...

My aunt's car wouldn't start in the parking garage.  It had been fine a couple hours ago but since she might have left the lights on or something, the car had completely died.  So my aunt called her car service on her cell and literally within 10 minutes the Samsung AnyCar arrived.

Massive Tangent: And yes, Samsung AnyCar as in the famous Samsung AnyCall AnyMotion, AnyClub, AnyStar, and AnyBand music videos.  I quite enjoyed these infamously long "commercials" (crazy long MVs) so here they all are :D Oh man, Hyori was is so hot....  It's no wonder Samsung phones got so popular xD These were my favorite MVs back in the day~  So fun to watch!  And oh boy does Hyori bring out all my body image insecurities xD~  Btw sorry about not being able to find subbed versions of all of them, but they're all pretty self-explanatory.

The first 3 are all one storyline arch - mostly about making it in the dance world and lurve~   AnyBand was a project group (BoA, Tablo, Junsu, Jin Bora) using music to break free of a dystopian world.

Part 1: AnyMotion
Feat: Hyori, Eric Mun

Oh Eric, why so cute ^_^?

Part 2: AnyClub, Part 1 (2005)

Feat: Hyori, Eric Mun, Kwon Song Woo (lookin' all sleezy if you ask me xD)

Part 2: AnyClub, Part 2 (2005)
Feat: Hyori, Eric Mun, Kwon Song Woo



Part 3: AnyStar (2006)
Feat: Hyori, Park Bom (2NE1), Lee Junki

I love Park Bom either way...but PB looked SO much better before she went nuts with the collagen injections :( She looks so fresh, spunky, and can show actual facial expressions in this MV.  *sigh*

AnyBand (2007)
Songs: Talk Play Love (TPL), Promise U, Daydream
Feat: BoA, Tablo (Epik High), Jin Bora, Junsu (DBSK *sigh*)

I forgot how good Tablo's lyrics are "music she saved my life, so I'm loving her both day and night" :} I always thought AnyBand could've done with a sequel (what with BoA and Tablo doing the whole "staring at each other longingly thing") but oh wellz.   Jin Bora is a jazz pianist for those who don't know who she is btw.

That's got to have been the world's longest tangent ever...

So to continue: Even with crazy Seoul traffic, the Samsung AnyCar dude was there in 10 minutes.  Apparently he used some sort of GPS device to find my aunt's car so there was no need for her to even say where she was.  This dude drove up, took a look in the car, fiddled around, and the car was working in 5 minutes flat.  He also brought us bottles of ice cold water as a service - yeah, I don't this would even occur to American auto services - WITH NAPKINS (to wipe off the condensation) to drink while we waited since it was a summer day.  My aunt told me during the winter they bring tea since it's cold -_-;;   While my mind was busy processing the bottle of water that the car dude was telling my aunt that her car was fixed and commented that he was glad we didn't need a battery replacement although he had brought an extra battery just in case.   My aunt tried to give him a tip for coming so fast but he turned it down and said that it all a part of the company philosophy (hear that, that's the sound of my mind being blown), thanked US for being so patient (cuz we waited for a grand total of 15 minutes from start to finish), hopped in his car, and that was it.   As we drove away I commented to my aunt that I was very impressed by the service, to which my aunt replied that the kind of impeccable emergency repair service I had just witnessed came free with her car for as long as she owns the car.  Maybe it was just me but my mind was boggled by the whole event.  I feel like you'd have to pay a small fortune for that kind of auto service in the States.

Anyway.  That's my story ^_^ I hope this post wasn't too random xD

Continue to Part 14: Seoul Food P0rn

Ebates 12% off + Being in K-Dramaland

Hi everyone! I hope that you all are having a good weekend.  The weather has been really nice this weekend in DC and I've been busily shopping for the past 1-2 weeks for spring/summer work clothes.  I'm not very adventurous when it comes to clothes, I tend to wear my "favorite" pieces over and over again xD But speaking of online shopping - I wanted to share this with you:

Ebates is having a 12% cash back promo for their 12 Year Anniversary!  Basically that's 12% off of The Body Shop, Sephora, Banana Republic (sadly, Kiehl's is not included), and quite a few other places.  That's 12% off on top of any discounts the individual store has :D   So if you haven't signed up for Ebates yet, now is good time since this 12% off thing is libel to disappear at any moment.  If you don't mind using my referral link, I would be very honored :} but if not, just take a gander through the Ebates homepage and you can sign up that way too~  I just received my Ebates cashback last month - it was deposited promptly into my PP and so now I can definitely say this site is legit.

TBS has been the place that has been tempting me the most though because their B3G2 Free thing is still going on.  Unfortunately, now it's restricted to certain items (before it was site-wide) but still it's a pretty good deal especially with the $50+ Free Shipping and 12% cash back :)

How to Get the Best Deal on THE BODY SHOP
1.) Go to the Ebates The Body Shop page.
2.) Click through Ebates.
3.) There is a Buy 2 get 1 or buy 3 get 2 free promo going on. No promo code necessary.
4.) Add as close to $50 to your cart to get Free Shipping.  No promo code necessary if your cart is $50+.
5.) Confirm purchase.

Sephora and BR don't have any particular sales going on but it's Free Shipping on both sites for purchases $50+.  This is heck of a lot better than Ann Taylor/LOFT who only offers free shipping for purchases $125+ (...how generous :P).

I've been in such a shopping mood lately so I just wanted to let you guys know about this!

On a different topic, who here has been watching 49 Days and/or Romance Town?  I'm so excited for the 49 Days finale :D :D :D [SPOILER] omg she woke up! Will she remember? Who is the last tear?! Maybe it'll be backstabby In-jung semi-redeeming herself! [/SPOILER]!  I also popped in to watch Romance Town which seems quite promising indeed and I am hearing many good things about Best Love...arghh!  I'll prolly just read the recaps for Best Love.....  My drama-obsession comes in phases - I watch 3-4 dramas all at once than take a break for a couple months ^_^   The last drama I watched in full was My Girlfriend is a Gumiho (LSK and SM were so darn cute :D)

It was a very easy watch with two very charming leads.  It wasn't as interesting to me as Chuno was (heartheart) but I fell under Shin Min Ah's spell of cuteness:

And with Lee Seung Ki being cute as a button too, I couldn't resist:

It's a "Totoro" reference!!!

He's got a million dollar smile that boy ^_^!   I think LSK+SMA are among my Top 5 Favorite Couples xD  They just suit each other so well :D  And speaking of Totoro...I want:

  
Anyway, 49 Days is SOOOOO good right now.  My heart is so torn between Kang and Scheduler and I'm actually very curious to see how this will end.   I love how fast this drama is moving - I hate it when dramas draggggg~ out the climax :P  After a long dry spell I'm back in crazy drama land and it's NICE PLACE TO BE INDEED!

NOTD: Jill Stuart Love Scandal #109 and HAIR :}

I was lucky enough to win Ashura (Clover Beauty Inn)'s Jill Stuart giveaway.  I was really excited to win because I've never tried any Jill Stuart products and JS's gorgeous packaging has always intrigued me.   I feel like I'm holding a magic potion ^_^!  This polish is Jill Stuart Love Scandal #109, which is from the Jill Stuart Valentine Love Collection LE 2011!  You can see swatches of this whole LE collection here. 

LT: No flash.  RT: Flash/Sunlight.

No base coat.

Jill Stuart Love Scandal #109 - 2 coats

OPI for Sephora Flurry Up

It's a gorgeous rich red -  definitely the best Valentine's-red color ever :}  Besides being my first JS polish, it was my first "jelly" finish polish.  I love the jelly finish - it adds a translucent delicacy that such a vibrant color normally wouldn't have. 

And of course, the packaging is gorgeous - I love it.  The jeweled cap just really captures my fancy ;)  The sweet, girly, finely detailed packaging is very luxe in my eyes without being saccharine. This the the kind of "fake gem" Holika Holika should put on top of their Aqua Muse Watery lipsticks!

The brush is flat (tho not as wide as the Lioele Ice Cream polishes) and pretty easy to use.  The jelly polish is a little more watery than I'm used to but it wasn't streaky at all.   This polish also removes very cleanly and does not leave stains even though it's quite a bright color. 

My only real complaint is that it wasn't very long lasting.  I had to remove this color for work so I only got to wear this for the weekend so I didn't use a base coat, but even without a base coat, Zoya polishes last 2-3 days but this one started chipping by the end of day 1.  I haven't tried this polish with a base coat yet though, so it may not be a big deal.  Also, if you want to buy this they are 75 HKD aka ~$9.65 USD, which is a tad pricey for a tiny bottle of polish. You're definitely paying for the packaging. Overall, it's a lovely color in a gorgeous bottle that looks oh-so-pretty on my dresser ^_^

Also I got a haircut a few days ago :D  I'm not particularly sure how I feel about my new bangs but it just feels really good to have my hair re-layered.  I also trimmed off the split ends and overall, my hair feels a lot lighter and manageable :) But my mom said that this cut makes my face look fatter O_o so I guess that makes me wonder if this is a flattering cut ^_^;;;

Here are a few of the hairstyles I've had before. Which bangs should I get next time?  Should even get bangs at all?  I've been thinking of just growing out my bangs out completely like this:

Also I was having a lot of fun on Taaz, which is a website where you can put in a pic of yourself and virtually put on makeup, colored contacts, and different hairstyles :D!  I seriously used to kill SO much time on that website while procrastinating in college xD  Anyway, which hairstyle do you think I should get next time?

I'm kind surprised how much I like #1 and #11 :D I don't think I have the heart to chop my hair that short yet but maybe in a few years I will.  #5 and #9 please me too.  I've been thinking of lightening my hair color for spring but I haven't dyed my hair since....freshman year in HS.  I streaked my hair light red my senior year of HS too but you couldn't even see it so it hardly counts -_-  Anyway, let me know what you peeps think :)!!

And last but not least . . . .

H a p p y  E a s t e r !

NOTD Rainbow: Zoya Sunshine Collection + Swap

Are these not the most perfect weekend nails everrrrrrrrrr~?!  I've worn these crazy nails two weekends in a row even if it's a pain to apply 5 different colors.  During my ridiculous Zoya binge, I ordered the entire Sunshine collection (except for Reva) since that looked a lot like slightly darker version of Kimmy to me. People may have seen me raving about this on Twitter already ^^

Temptalia and Scrangie were both lukewarm about this collection's formula, but with VampyVarnish's not-quite-raves but good review, I bought them all anyway ^_^  And omg I love them :D!  They're not perfect though:

Pros:
1.) Absolute glitter bombs - all the polishes have a ton of gold micro-flecks.
2.) Easy to build from sheer to opaque.  Some have complained that these are sheer polishes but seriously, they really aren't.  Yes, at one coat they look suspiciously sheer but all the polishes are opaque by 2 coats.  Tanzy and Rica may take 3 coats though.  Kimmy is actually opaque enough to get away with one coat if you want :D
3.) Pretty long lasting. The first time I wore these I didn't use a base or top coat and they lasted 3 days anyway.  I haven't worn them for a longer length of time yet though - crazy as I may be, even I don't have the guts to wear 5 sparkly polishes to work all at once xD
4.) VampyVarnish says these colors aren't that unique but me being a relative polish newbie, I have no dupes of any of them.  Especially Faye and Rica which are pretty universally considered unique to this collection.

Cons:
1.) Formula is admittedly not as good as the Summertime collection (cream finishes) but I think that's a consequence of just being total glitter bombs.  The formula dries a hair slower than the typical Zoya polish, but it really isn't a big deal. It's like a difference of 5 minutes but for watching-TV-whilst-applying polishers like me, it's no big deal.
2.) Downside of these polishes being choked with gold glitter is that when you remove them, you get little gold glitter flecks everywhere :P So you have to wash you hands afterwards 2-3 times to get rid of all that residue.  That said, for a glitter polish these are really easy to remove :)  Not like the Sally Hansen Rockstar 05 which is by far the most painfully annoying polish to remove -_-

Anyway, enough with the chatter! I took a lot of pics because I just love this happy look ^_^ Just looking at my nails make me feel chipper!

LT: from LT to RT - Faye (pinky), Reva, Tanzy, Apple, Kimmy (thumb)

RT: the top hand in reverse.

These colors remind me of Lifesavers or summer fruits :D

Faye: a plum or fig.
Reva: sugared pink grapefruits.
Tanzy: sunkissed tangerines!
Apple: ....granny smith apples. Duh :}
Kimmy: sun-ripened strawberries.

Oh mannnnn, Faye is definitely a winner here.  It's such a lovely, unique plum with gold flecks.  From reviews I've read, Faye has been been a universal favorite and I can see why.  Reva (the pink grapefruit) is a close second with Kimmy (the strawberry red).  That's followed by Tanzy - the perfect orange color imho then Apple.  Honestly, I really like all of them though.  I think they all go so perfectly together :D

And don't they just look so glittery in the sun ^_^?  I accidentally shrunk this image down too much so it's hard to see details but yeah~

And what it looks like from far away :)  My hands look a little too yellow in the pics but for those with yellow-undertones and have trouble finding an orange that doesn't make your hands look sallow - Tanzy is a fantastic orange color.  It goes quite well with my yellow undertones and reminds me of mandarin oranges ^_^

And last but not least~ Awhile back Elisa (of Memorable Days) and I did a face mask swap and she sent me a couple MBD and Dutch masks :}

It was pretty cool to get a package all the way from the Netherlands ^_^ And the Hello Kitty marshmallow candies were really good; they were filled with strawberry jam.

So far I've tried the Natto mask (orange-y :D) and am probably going to try one of the Dutch masks next.  Elisa was being mad cute and stuck little translated directions everywhere ^^

Looking back I noticed I haven't been doing many "personal"-style posts and I think I'm going to focus on that for awhile now.  I still need to finish my Korea Trip series (backlogged for almost a year now -__-) and I feel like I'm becoming a little impersonal :P Anyway~ it's FRIDAY. Have a good weekend peeps :)