Sponsored Review: Nail Decor

Been super busy with work as its been a real learning curve from knowing the products to how the office is run and stuff. It's a good thing that being a small company, there isn't much politics or a strong heirachy system since everyone's work differs from each other slightly so at least that's one less worry.

Today's review, kindly sponsored by KKCenterhk is about nail products that change your simple nail polish to something fancy and totally different from simply having plain, blah nails.  

No idea why blogger is being a bitch and refusing to let me turn the picture, but these were the items I chose for the review. Lovely nail stickers and ribbon decorations

I used a Dollywink nail polish (review coming soon!) for the bluish-green base and then carefully applied the nail stickers over it before sealing with a top coat. The ribbon was stuck on with nail glue

 Here's how my right hand design looked like, just some minor changes but the overall look is the same

The completed result! LOL only whilst taking this picture did I realise that the ribbons on my nails coincidentally line up when my hands are stacked this way

Picture of the completed result! From a different point of view 

My initial inspiration for the design of the nails was the manga/anime Paradise Kiss, and more specifically the dress the protagonist wore during the showcase of the team's final work.

You can clearly see why I chose the stickers with the butterfly and cloud motifs as well as the beaded butterfly decoration

What surprised me was how the eventual result actually looked pretty Oriental in design, kind of like a chinese porcelain vase motif or something. Oh crap I'm digressing again anyway here's the review:

Ease of use: 9/10 (just peel the sticker off the board and stick, I use a nail clipper to cut away the excess and I was done)

Effect: 9.5/10 (I loved the look of the stickers though it was pretty obvious that it wasn't painted on when viewed up close but there's only so many people who would scrutinise your nails from a super close range right?)

Lasting Power: 8/10 (being a rather rough person, I'm surprised it lasted a total of 4 days before I noticed the edges starting to peel off. A little tip is to seal the nail's edge with your top coat to try and make it last a day or 2 longer. The ribbons dropped off after 2 days but it wasn't surprising since the ribbon is fairly large and got in the way some times.)

Overall: 7/10 (really recommended for a special look like for an event or something but not regular use since it does take alittle more work on top of painting your nail polish.)

If you wanna purchase these lovely nail stickers or beaded ribbons or even other things (KkcenterHK has a wide variety of wigs, eyelashes & eyeshadows too!) do take a look at their online shop. Just remember this unique coupon code: somethingborrowedornew in order to get 10% off!

I'll be really really busy next week as I've got 3 different activities lined up. This of course means plenty of new material for you guys to read so till next time!

Post AFA Event

Still suffering from post-cosplay event syndrome though the event seems like it happened ages ago instead of a mere 2 days ago. The above picture is the collection of coscards I managed to get from friends/other cosplayers from this event, however, its a pretty sad collection compared to previous experiences. However, it can't really be helped since I did only have a day to go to the event as I had work commitments on Saturday.

I cosplayed Felicita from the anime/otome game La storia della Arcana Famiglia, who is the main character in the series. Being an otome game, I had my usual "harem" with me LOL, and was lucky enough to have a Malaysian cosplayer join my team specially for the event and shoot. 

 Made use of the Canon photo booth with lovely backgrounds. From left: Esther as Nova, Gabby (the Malaysian cosplayer) as Luca, me and Mini as Debito.

 Another picture but with a different background this time

There were alot of things to see at the event though I missed quite abit due to the sheer size and lack of time as well as having to fight the huge crowds of people all day long.

The Rurouni Kenshin movie prop and costume on display 

 Beautiful fan artwork of Cardcaptor Sakura on display. it was the only one and you had to bid for a chance to win it.

 [K] is this season's most advertised anime as well as Animax's most up to date series, so naturally lots and lots of advertising as well as these massive posters were on display all over the Animax booth

 Gabby being a fanboy of InuXBoku hahaha, he cosplayed Soushi before.

This cute statue of Kyubey was being used as a subject for photography at the Canon booth

Towards the end of the event, my team and I quickly rushed to a studio which we had booked and appointment with earlier for a quick photoshoot. We didn't know when Gabby would have the time or cash to head down to Singapore again, so we didn't want to miss the opportunity to have a shoot with him for the series.



 Playing on set while everyone was getting ready hahaha

A picture of my full team, Selicia and her sister joined us during the shoot as Pace and Liberta

Pictures from the shoot will be posted once Mini has edited them nicely.

Overall, time passed rather quickly, I was getting into the swing of things at the event only to realise that I had to get ready to leave for the shoot. Even at the shoot, we had to take group shots as well as everyone's individual shots within the span of 2 hours which is really really little time. However I did have lots of fun that day depsite not enjoying the event as much as I did for STGCC.

The next event I'm looking forward to is EOY (End-of-Year). I'll be with a partner and we'll be cosplaying characters from the series C The Money of Soul & Possibility Control. So look for me if you do pop by!

& a little funny extra during the shoot:

Good Things Come All At Once

As the title says, plenty of good things have happened in my life recently, and more speciifically within the the space of last and this week alone. Since it's too much of a hassle to post individual posts about everything, I'll just thrown it all into this post. So secure your seatbelt and check out the flurry of excitement I've had all week!

 Sweet Jo was in town last week due to some stuffs, so naturally she contacted me to meet up! I miss her whenever she's back in Indo as she's definitely the girlfriend to have for girly dates such as shopping or just hanging out and gossiping.

Outift:

Shirt: Snidel

PVC shorts: Salvation Army

Laced-up Sandal boots: Salvation Army (the brand is stated as Free People, but I just like it because it's like a suede rip off of the famous S/S 09 Ann Demeulemeester sandal boots)

 Finally got a chance to do full makeup with contouring and lashes. I love how much my green Geo Mimi lenses pop in contrast to my darker hair

Monday was a day that I had been waiting for ever since I finished my last lessons about 2 months back. It was the day of my University Convocation and I finally got to don my graduation robes and mortar board for the event. It was really eye-opening to see the Dean of the school and other top professors wearing their own fancy robes and donning the different headgears showing their education rank as well as watching 2 students recieve their certificates for doing PhD.

 My robes and Mortar board. I still can't get over how much the colour resembles Gryffindor house's colour, I'm just lacking the gold sash

 Me standing next to the school insignia and motto

 Obligatory picture of me with my proud parents

 With some of my University friends who made team work and going to classes fun 

 With Ellialyn and Melissa, who without them would have made school work a complete chore. Thank you guys for giving me the best last memories of school, I'll miss laughing and joking with you guys as well as quarreling about what we should eat for lunch.

 Outfit for Convocation:

Top: Snidel

Skirt: tailored for me

Belt: This Fashion

Nude stockings: rnadom Taiwanese brand from Watsons

Shoes: Giorgio Armani

If you follow my Instagram you'd probably seen these babies awhile back. But if not, these lovely beaded shoes were purchased by my mom specially for my Convocation as she insisted I wear something showy instead of ordinary black pumps. It's a good thing that they are insanely comfortable too.

On the day of my Convocation, whilst busy fretting about in preparation for the ceremony, I received a call from a company I liked and they offered me a job!! So now, I'm officially a graduate and employed! I'm not really superstitious but I do believe and fate and charms and stuff, but I really think God answered my prayers this time.

I'll be working in a small company (really small, there's like only 6 people, including me) that import and distribute organic foods like chocolates, chips and fresh veggies and fruits. The bad thing is that being small, I'll be doing alot of work including packing and sorting the stuff though my main job scope is to bring in and secure clients to sell our products to. I also have to work some Saturdays, so I'll be missing one day of the AFA event next week haiz. The boss is really hands-on (he packs and delivers the products himself), so I'm sure I can learn alot from him and my colleagues.

The best part is that being a distributor, the boss doesn't give a rat's ass about attire, so I can wear whatever I want to work as long as I wear covered toe shoes and no jeans with rips or patches or fancy designs. He also told me as long as I look presentable, my hair can be whatever colour I want LOL. I'll also be able to climb the company ranks faster as the company grows with time. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that all goes well. 

Bought myself this lovely water bottle/flask/ thermos from Franc Franc as a present for getting a job. I had been eyeing it since forever.

I also bought a dress to stash in the office in case of an accident on my attire. It's the perfect crease-free and any occasion dress, though it maybe alittle too fancy for my workplace (everyone wears jeans or khakis and a shirt to work) but I don't care, I still like it. I'll probably get a few more things to make my work alittle easier and make my cubicle more home-y. But for now, I'm just a a bundle of emotions, feeling excited, nervous and scared to be officially starting proper work on Monday. So crossing my fingers and praying that all goes well. 

I'll still be running this blog as its become like a diary of sorts where I list down the highs and lows in my life, but with full-time work and cosplay, the number of posts may drop. However, I'll still update whenever I can so I hope you, my dear readers, will carry on sticking around and reading. But in the mean time, thanks guys for reading all my nonsense over the past few years. 

Darkening My Locks

Quick post about my newest hair colour which I finally did today so tht it'll be "fresh" for my University convocation this coming Monday. No more hair roots to deal with!!

Sadly, due to Singapore's more conservative stance on what's appropriate for the workplace, I decided the safest bet for a new colour would be dark brown colours. But being the closet rebel that I am, I am adamant about not becoming a coporate clone and will fight tooth and nail for it!!! Office rules be damn! Okay, not really... but being still unwilling to totally give up my Gyaru roots, I found an old picture of Momoko Ogihara and used it as inspiration for my new hair colour.

 I showed my hairdresser this old picture of Momoko, back when she had dark brown hair in like 2010?

However, due to my previous hair colour, we couldn't get the exact same shade of colour as Momoko's hair and I also wanted to ensure that my new hair colour wouldn't fade out like before. So sadly, my only option was to go darker and I wound up with this:



It's a dark chocolate brown with alittle ashy colour as the ends due to the previous bleaching. Honestly, I just think it looks like straight on black in some light but thankfully it isn't as there is a slight orange-red tinge in certain lightings. 

I'm still trying to get used to looking at myself with darker hair colour but one thing I'm grateful for is that my hair looks really strong and healthy now as the dark colour masks all my damaged ends. Not to mention, I always though red lips looked better with darker hair as it produces a more seductive appeal. So I might just be breaking out my red lipstick once again!  

Sponsored Review: SexyLook Rejuvenating Duo Lifting Facial Mask

I've been down with a bad stomach flu for the past week or so and today is the only day where my illness seems to be getting better. I've lost about 2-3kg in water weight alone from all the vomiting and stuff as well as the lack of appetite, so I'm feeling pretty weak and lousy.

However, life goes on and I finally got round to reviewing this super late review of this fabulous mask I received. 

Introducing the SexyLook Rejuvenating Duo Lifting Facial Mask

Back of the packet. Ingredients include Bird's Nest and Gold Caviar to delay the aging process of your skin and repair damaged skin cells.

Inside the packet is an ultra thin facial sheet soaked in facial essence 

First apply the mask onto your face. Here's a very unglam pic of it slapped onto mine.

Make sure to use the innovative 3D ear hook design to securely hook the mask onto your face!

There's also a chin/neck patch underneath that you also need to secure with the ear hook!

First thing about this mask that I noticed was how tightly stretched it was!! The moment I hooked the masks onto my ears, I could feel it literally stretching my facial muscles back. It wasn't painful just alittle uncomfortable but still bearable throughout the 20 minutes that I left it onto my face.

The moment I removed the mask, I could feel my face was tighter and areas like my jawline was definitely sharper and more contoured. I figured it was simply a mixture of the tightness of the mask and the serum in it and the effects would be gone the moment the serum had all been absorbed. 

However, the very next day, the tightness was still evident in my face! I could see the difference all day long! My pores were also tightened and my face had a soft dewy glow all day, I was in love with everything this mask had done for my skin.

 My plan for this mask is to probabaly use it before my cosplay events or photoshoots, since most anime girls have defined chin and facial contours. However, it is good for anyone who just wants a more defined facial line anytime. This mask definitely has my stamp of approval!

To get this mask head to their website to order or you can check out their Facebook page too at Secretive FB, SexyLook FB & LoveMore FB

Tiger & Bunny Movie Outing

Late post again but I've been really busy with interviews and cleaning out my room and preparing for future review posts! So don't judge me!

Today's post is about a particularly fun outing I had with friends to watch the premiere of the movie, Tiger & Bunny: The Beginning. Tickets were sold out wihtin a couple of hours and luckily, Mini is a majorly huge fan of the series (no suprise since her "hubby" is one of the protaganists of the story), so she managed to grab tickets for us.

Movie posters on display at the cinema location

In the spirit of fun and fandomness, Mini, Selicia and I decided to cosplay as characters from the series! It wasn't that big a deal since the three of us had already planned on cosplaying Tiger & Bunny ages ago, but we just didn't have time to actually shooting the costumes.



 The cinema was filled with many cosplayers, anime fans and photographers. So it felt almost like a huge cosplay gathering of sorts LOL

 Picture of us three taken after the movie (picture "stolen" from Sgcafe lol)

 Mini and I hugging her home made Tiger & Bunny toys, so squishy!!!

 Selicia as Barnaby Brooks Jr. doing her best saleman pose whilst showing off the poster we received

 Camwhore time!! Mini and Selicia cosplaying as Kotetsu and Barnaby

 Mini and I, I'm cosplaying Karina Lyle whose alter ego is the hero, Blue Rose.

 Cute Esther, who managed to squeeze out enough time despite having a massive load of schoolwork to watch the movie with us

One last narcisstic camwhore shot of me LOL!!!

The movie was great! It was a re-hash of the first few episodes of the series but with plenty of additional scenes thrown in and a new enemy. It was also incredibly funny to observe the background of the show to spot Origami Cyclone doing the funniest things. If you're a fan of the series, it's a definite must watch!

I was so into the movie that after watching it and changing out of my costume, I rushed to the nearest Uniqlo shop and got myself this:

A UniqloXTiger & Bunny collaboration shirt

Barnaby isn't my favourite character (Origami Cyclone is!), but this was the best design out of the lot and luckily they still had it in size S! Though it's alittle annoying that it only came in male sizes like most of the nice UT shirts that Uniqlo produces >:(

It was definitely fun to cosplay to a movie, especially when I chickened out on doing it for the Harry Potter movies. However, I doubt I'll actually be doing it for all anime movies, haha! After watching the movie, my inner fan girl is now dying for the new movie to be released, however, it's only coming out late next year *gross sobbing* NOOOOOOOO!!!

In the mean time, I''ll just satisfy myself by rewatching the series again haha!

CyberJapan Bikini Night 2012 Singapore

Yet another super late post, but I've been really busy running to interviews all week building my new chest of drawers and slowly clearing and cleaning my room. I've still got two more backlogged posts so lets get straight down to the details.

Steph and I attended the Bikini Night party at Zouk. I hardly ever go clubbing but being able to see the CyberJapan girls was more then enough of a reason to go!

If you still don't know, the CyberJapan group is the most well-known go-go dancer club in Japan and they often attend events overseas as guest artistes. Some of the dancers also work as models (for magazines such as Nuts and HappieNuts) or brand ambassadors (like Skinny Lip)

The CyberJapan girls often make trips to Singapore as guest artistes for other performing DJs, but this is the first time I recall having 4 of them together in one night (most cases, only 2 dancers are present).

I was alittle disappointed that my favourite dancer, Rino, wasn't part of the 4 to come to Singapore this time. But at least I got to see the Watanabe sisters, Raika and my second favourite dancer, Hiroko.

 Promo poster in Zouk's bathroom LOL

Steph and I both wore our F21 dresses and heels that we had gotten during our KL trip. Basically, my entire outfit (dress, heels & bracelet) came from KL, my bag is the only exception haha. Steph wore her fab leopard print dress, I think it suits her really well.

 Lovely Hiroko, too bad her hair wasn't curled in the Mode style that suits her so well

 Steph's favourite dancer, Watanabe Kazue

We were barely able to take shots of the girls due to all the dancing, and the both of us were pretty much the only girls up close to the stage, the rest of the area were crowded with insane fanboys. Some were pretty sweet, I remember seeing one guy give Hiroko a bouquet of roses.

 Met two other friends and P during the event. We hung out at the bar and drank some more, though I was already pretty high and tipsy at this point in time.

Super fun girls night out with Steph. 

 Closer look at my dress (hadn't worn my heels and bracelet when this pic was taken)

Love the ruched detailing and the 2 "stripes" are actually zips exposing hidden panels with extra studs and beading details

Heavier eye makeup which I hadn't done in a long long time. No idea why my face looks so pink in this pic LMAO

After the event, Steph, P and I cabbed back to Steph's place where we hung out for awhile and it also gave me a chance to sober up alittle. I was so drunk, my phone "slipped" from my fingers and wound up being flung behind Steph's bed! It was hilarious watching Steph drunkenly cursing at me while fishing for my phone, haha I owe her big time for that.

Oh! I also forgot to add that I was clumsy enough to actually fall down some stairs just before the event started! The best part was, I hadn't even drunk a single drop of alcohol before falling down, hahahah!!! I had 2 spectacular bruises on my knees to remember that night for the entire week after. 

It was an incredibly fun night and definitely something I'll remember for a long while as it was also the first night that I had ever gotten that drunk and had a hungover the next day (I've got super high alcohol tolerance lol). However, I do hope that the next time the CyberJapan girls come to Singapore, Rino will be part of the troupe this time.