2009 Singapore Trip Day Two: Culture Day

Awfully late. I know! Hahaha. Here’s the 2nd part of the recap of my previous Singapore Trip.

I was kicked awake by bf to grab Highlander Coffee, he said it was the best coffee you can get at Singapore. But lo and behold! We took a bus journey from our hotel at Novena (I stayed at Value Hotel Thomson, btw. Cheap and good!), only to find that Highlander was closed that very Saturday for internal reason

So…we took yet another bus to hit our next destination: Maxwell Food Center. But as the result of a non-caffeine morning…we took the wrong bus! Hopped out the first stop we see, we opened a tourist map we got on a tourist center in Orchard the day before, and head to Chinatown…on foot LOL

We arrived at Maxwell Food Center at 12.00p.m. Just in time for lunch! We scanned the food court for our target: Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice. I read this place from Jenz. Didn’t take long to find it; it was the stall with the longest queue! Took us a whopping hour to sit and face our chicken rice SGD2.80 for the small portion, and SGD3.00 for the bigger one, not bad! We also ordered vegetable in oyster sauce, SGD3.00.

Tian Tian Hainanese Chicken Rice @ Maxwell Food Center, Chinatown

And yep! It was good. People praise the rice, but my mom can make rice as fragrant and tasty as that. What I like is the chicken, very tender The bokchoy vegetable was good too. And did I say that all the food are rather oily for my taste? Oil equals goodness, my friends

After that we didn’t have any particular destination, but just in front of Maxwell Food Center, there’s this impressive Buddha  temple. We read the sign and found out that it’s a tourist attraction too, being a temple and a museum, so we stepped in inside.

Buddha Tooth Relic Temple & Museum

Entrance @ Buddha Tooth Relic Temple & Museum

Google up the temple name and you’ll find very impressive shots of Buddha Tooth Relic Temple & Museum We spent quite some hours in there.

Sacred Statue @ Buddha Tooth Relic Temple & Museum

I read a lot of Buddhism-related stories when I was young, even though I’m not a Buddhist. And I revisited a lot of them in the museum

Before we left, we stroll around their garden first. Plenty of pretty orchids! I did some silly poses, too.

At Temple Garden

Grin!

Holy cow! Look at those craters. I was just applying powder with SPF to replenish my sun protection, but the Singapore heat immediately make it crack, I guess. Note the drippy hair too. Eww! This was just a week from my Bali Trip, so the tan was still visible

There was some time to kill before we met with friends, so we proceed down to People’s Park, bought Wall’s Coffee Ice Cream from a street vendor (SGD1 for a big chunk of ice cream!), which unluckily stained my silk shirt. More ewww! Thank God the dry cleaner here in Jakarta was able to take that out.

We took MRT to our next destination, Clarke Quay. It’s still afternoon so we walk around and eventually sit on the Singapore River bank and lounging while playing some games from my rusty-but-not-so-trusty iPhone, until it was time to have dinner with dear Maria (or pink^koala on FD ).

I really have to apologize here. No pictures with Maria n her fiancee, Fredy because all pics taken was blurry! We had dinner at Fisherman’s Wharf because my bf’s boss said that they have a great fish n chips, but my sea bass was not that great. Fishy Amis, that’s the Indonesian word I think Fish & Co offers (much) better fish n chips! However, I had great time with Maria and Fredy. We talked from skincare to makeup (the boys only stared at the girls to this points) to life in Singapore to our works. All four of us graduated from Computer Science, and subsequently work in IT companies, so there are lots to talk about!

At 9p.m, Maria n Fredy went home and me/bf went upto City Hall area to do some touristry exploration

Esplanade - Theatres On The Bay

Please, ignore my slick looking face. When the night approached, I have no reason to apply more SPF powder, so I just leave it as it is. The humidity really took a toll on my face, giving it a ‘real life Gaussian blur’, my bf told me

At Merlion

And there it goes: the signature tourist spot! I’ve come to Singapore, finally! The pretty round light behind me and Merlion is the Singapore Flyer. I haven’t had the chance to ride on it, but I want to Next time, hopefully!

Tree Hugger @ In Front Of The Fullerton Hotel

With the stupid drunken pose, with the grand Fullerton Hotel un the background. Should have taken the pic of Fullerton with all its shimmering glory; as I obviously can’t afford to rent a room there!

And thus endeth my second day. Nice day, indeed!

Instead Of Haulin’…

I’m gonna show you something else otherwise

You know, most question that come with haul or palette pics is ‘do you really use them, or they’re just for show?’.

Well baby, I don’t know about other people, but instead of just looking at stuffs, I use them And in that spirit, I’m gonna show you my latest pans

Yep! I’ve get some pans again after a few month!

Stuffs....With Pans

Skinfood Apple White Pact SPF25/PA++. NARS Loose Powder in Snow. Stila Bud Cheek Color Pan, Stila Brow Sets in Medium.

OK. Oh well. At least the pic shows you that I use my stuffs. The pans are not that of a palette though, yes. But that’s because I have lots of palettes, I alternate between them.

And let’s face it, I couldn’t bear to see a pan in my palettes. You know how pretty those Stila palettes are. Scraping them to the pan seems to ruin it, I think Don’t you think?

*Yes, that’s the NARS Loose Powder in its glorious 45gram box, the same one in this post. People often ask me on how long does a box of NARS LP lasts on me. The answer is, it’s about a year.

Review: Philosophy Purity Made Simple

Philosophy Purity Made Simple

From www.sephora.com:
What it is:
A highly effective one-step facial cleanser.

What it is formulated to do:
Philosophy Purity Made Simple is a ph-balanced formula that rapidly dissolves dirt and makeup while deep cleaning pores. The best-selling cleanser contains infusions of sage, chamomile, and carrot.

What else you need to know:
Purity Made Simple is part of a collection of Philosophy products designed to soothe even the most dry and sensitive skin.

Best of Sephora Winner 2008.

My Skin Type:
Actually very oily, but surpressed with BHA exfoliator. Results in generally ranging from very dry to normal/dry skin. Generally dehydrated, very sensitive, and acne prone.

Packaging:
Simple yet functional plastic bottle.

Texture:
Like a thin lotion.

My General Review:
Popular cleanser, yet loaded with irritants Rosewood and Sandalwood anyone? And it uses surfactants as well. When my skin is dry or normal/dry, it’s very sensitive to surfactants. But when it’s oily (like now), I can tolerate surfactants better. That’s why I’m willing to try this one out

The texture is smooth, like a thin lotion. Very easy to spread around the face/neck. On me, it doesn’t foam. Rinses clean without any residue or overly tight skin. Instant clean, fresh face that is glowing with vitality. Temporarily, that is. Several hours later, my skin would oxidize if I use this cleanser. Ouch! Guess the Sandalwood and friends are a little too tough for my fragile skin

Since I can only use this on my oily days, I don’t know how well will it perform on drier skin. I don’t know whether it will dry me out in the long run or not, since I only use this from time to time.

If only they would leave out the irritants, this one is a great cleanser. Too bad it’s not. Clinique and Paula’s Choice have rinse-off cleanser with same effect like this too, without all the irritants at a (much) lower price points.

What Else You Need To Know:
Please note that I only use this as my morning cleanser, so I don’t know how well will this remove your makeup. At night, I always use makeup remover such as Clinique Take The Day Off products or cleansing oils.

Application:
I splash my face with water, massage a dime-size amount of Purity to my face, and rinse it with warm water.

Availability:
Definitely not available in Indonesia. I don’t know about Singapore or Malaysia though. If you’re in US it’s easily available at Sephora.

Price:
Pretty expensive. There are several sizes, from 30z to 24oz. Price ranging from USD10 to USD40. You only need a little to get the job done, so it should last a while.

Ingredients:
Water, Disodium Lauroamphodiacetate, Limnanthes Alba (Meadowfoam) Seed Oil, Coco-Glucoside, PEG-120 Methyl Glucose Dioleate, Aniba Rosaeodora (Rosewood) Wood Oil, Geranium Maculatum Oil, Guaiacum Officinale, Cymbopogon Martini Oil, Rosa Damascena Extract, Amyris Balsamifera Bark Oil, Santalum Album (Sandalwood) Oil, Salvia Officinalis (Sage) Oil, Cinnamomum Cassia Leaf Oil, Anthemis Nobilis Flower Oil, Daucus Carota Sativa (Carrot) Seed Oil, Piper Nigrum (Black Pepper) Seed Extract, Sodium Trideceth Sulfate, Hexylene Glycol, Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Alcohol, Polysorbate 20, Glycerin, Carbomer, Triethanolamine, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Imidazolidinyl Urea, FD&C Yellow No.5.

Overall Rating:
4 out of 5. Good cleanser that does the job. If you’re not sensitive to rinse-off cleansers, or if you have normal to combination/oily skin, this can be one of your option albeit its price. Very sensitive skin, beware. This does contain needless irritants.

*This review will be cross posted in www.makeupalley.com under username Crescent_Shadow.

Palettes!

Let’s start the week with some makeup pr0n

There’s this thread in FashioneseDaily forum where we all talk about makeup palettes. And you guys who read here often must know how I love palettes! Of course, the others are palette lovers too, therefore they love to request collection pics. Sometimes I post my pic there, sometimes not. My room is a freaky mess, all things are in all directions so sometimes I can’t really locate things But last weekend I was trying to re-organize, and I pulled out my palettes to take a couple of pictures of them.

Palette Pile

Spread

90% of them are Stila, of course The rest are a tiny bit of Japanese palettes such as Coffret d’Or, Esprique Precious, Majolica Majorca. And very little selection of others such as Too Faced, Bobbi Brown, Revlon, Clinique, and Dior. Most of all my collection are limited edition.

So? Any specific palette you can spot in there?

Review: Paula’s Choice Essential Non-Greasy Sunscreen SPF15

Paula's Choice Essential Non-Greasy Sunscreen SPF15

From www.cosmeticscop.com:

Provides broad-spectrum protection against UVB and UVA rays

Extremely lightweight lotion is easily absorbed and will not leave a greasy or waxy film on the face

Can be used on the face (including the eye area) or body

100% fragrance- and colorant-free

My Skin Type:
Actually very oily, but surpressed with BHA exfoliator. Results in generally ranging from very dry to normal/combo skin. Generally dehydrated, very sensitive, and acne prone.

Packaging:
Large, opaque plastic tube with flip-top cap. Very convenient.

Texture:
Thin lotion, very easy to spread.

Sun Protection Level:
This product uses Avobenzone as its UVA filter, so protection is broad. With other filters combined, this product covers all harmful UVA and UVB.

Paula's Choice Essential Non-Greasy Sunscreen SPF15 - Protection Spectrum

Problem may arise if you don’t believe that Avobenzone is stable; as this product doesn’t contain Octocrylene. Me myself is torn between the 2: there are studies that prove Avobenzone is stable, other studies dispute it.

Read the ‘What Else You Need To Know’ section if you’re not familiar with photostability term.

My General Review:
I used to use the Paula’s Choice Essential Moisturizing Sunscreen SPF15 for my leisure at-home weekends, and loved it to bits. It was a combination between Octinoxate and Titanium Dioxide in a refreshingly fluid lotion. Yes, the PPD may be low, that’s why I only use this behind thick curtain and UV-filtering film at home. And it seems to keep my face nice and white (unlike the popular Clarins UV Plus!).

But the nice stuff get discontinued! D’oh. Ever since, I used other light SPF15 sunscreens from PC, and Essential Non-Greasy SPF15 is one of them.

It doesn’t disappoint. The texture is similar to the Essential Moisturizing SPF15, which I highly prefer because it makes it easy to apply tons of it evenly. The fresh texture means there’s no overly greasy/sticky residue, hence I don’t need to set it with powder.

I was dry then, so when I used Essential Non-Greasy SPF15, I always put heavy moisturizer underneath. So in the end, the feel is somewhat similar to the Essential Moisturizer SPF15. I personally think Essential Non-Greasy SPF15 can be used by normal/dry to combination skin.

As for the protection, I love that it’s broad, but I don’t prefer to use this for daily sunscreen as I tend to pick 3% Avobenzone product to ensure higher UVA protection. And, this product doesn’t stabilizer, so I don’t know whether it’s stable or not.

Aside from the stabilizer issue, the ingredient list is great. It contains antioxidants and soothing agents. Typical of Paula.

What Else You Need To Know:
Photostability issue is a condition where an UV filter breaks down under the presence of UV; essentially beats down the function of an UV filter.

Avobenzone has been quoted here and there as not photostable on its own, therefore it needs photostabilizer to make it work as a UV filter. Some of Avobenzone stabilizer are Octocrylene, Mexoryl SX, Tinosorb S, and Tinosorb M.

Application:
This can be used alone, but I prefer to use a separate moisturizer. Either way, always apply this liberally and evenly though.

Availability:
As always with Paula’s Choice, no good ole’ brick and mortar store available. You’ll need to order it online, if it’s available in your country or region.

Price:
In its home country, it’s sold at US$14.95 for 177ml. In Indonesia, it’s IDR295,000. Quite a difference! But there’s a lot of product in there, so it’s still quite economical compared to other products.

Ingredients:

Active Ingredients:
Octinoxate (Ethylhexyl Methoxycinnamate) 7.5%, Octisalate 5%, Avobenzone 2%, and Oxybenzone 2% (sunscreen agents).

Other Ingredients:
Water, PEG-8 (thickener), Arctium Lappa (Burdock) Root Extract, Chamomilla Recutita (Matricaria) Flower Extract, Centaurea Cyanus (Cornflower) Flower Extract (soothing agents), Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice (water-binding/soothing agent), Tetrahexyldecyl Ascorbate (Vitamin C, antioxidant), Phenyl Trimethicone (silicone-based skin conditioning agent), Phytic Acid (stabilizer), Cetearyl Ethylhexanoate (emollient), Neopentyl Glycol Dicaprylate/Dicaprate (thickener), Glycerin, Butylene Glycol (water-binding agents), Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Cetyl Alcohol, Polysorbate 20 (thickeners), Triethanolamine (pH balancer), Carbomer (gel-based thickener), Citric Acid (pH balancer), Phenoxyethanol, Methylparaben, Ethylparaben, Propylparaben, Butylparaben (preservatives).

Overall Rating:
4 out of 5. Lovable texture, good price, great ingredients, except for the fact that it doesn’t contain Avobenzone stabilizer.

I will be glad if Paula puts Octocrylene in there, it will give me more confident in the protection level!

*This review will be cross posted in www.makeupalley.com under username Crescent_Shadow.

Courtyard Terrace @ Plaza Senayan

It’s my first time to Courtyard. I’ve always been told by my friend that it’s expensive, but then I confirmed it in a forum and they tell me it’s cheaper than Duck King with pretty good taste. However, I think it’s only so-so. Not very bad, but not very good either. I’ve tasted better Ifumie before, I even think Chatterbox offers better Ifumie.

Appetizers

Chili Sauce

Soy Sauce

Fish And Apple Soup

Ifumie

Ifumie Closeup

Plus thing is the tea. They really serve us Tie Guan Yin tea. At other chinese resto, you can request for Tie Guan Yin and they serve you tasteless green tea. Not here. The Tie Guan Yin is of course not the finest grade (it’ll cost 2 arms and 2 legs), but it’s definitely pretty good; the nutty aftertaste is strong. My father loves chinese tea so I know a bit about them.

Chinese Tea (Tie Guan Yin)

Hate that they serve it in tea pot with no strainer though. Tie Guan Yin can be boiled with 100c water for a long time so the leaves won’t be burnt, but the longer you boil it of course the result will be more concentrated in taste.

By the time I finished eating, the tea  is overly bitter already

Review: LUSH Ultra Bland

LUSH Ultra Bland Cleanser

From www.lush.co.uk:
The most gentle but thorough cleanser ever.
Forget convenience and simplicity! Bring back an element of ritual to your bathroom habits. This brings us to Ultra Bland, the finest cleanser in the known* universe. To use this one you must melt a dollop of this peanut oil and beeswax cleanser between the palms of your hands. Then you must smooth it over your face so that the rose and benzoin oils soften your skin and the honey soothes it. Then you must run some warm water, wet a cotton wool pad or a face cloth in the water and gently wash off the Ultra Bland thoroughly. After that, stroke your lovely skin, marvelling at how soft it feels and how clean it looks. *Known to us at Lush.

My Skin Type:
Ranging from very dry to normal/dry. Generally dehydrated, very sensitive.

Packaging:
Black screw top jar made from 100% recyclable plastic. Mine is the old one, the cap doesn’t fit well and it can’t be 100% sealed. Very cute, yet poorly designed packaging.

However I recently bought LUSH Dark Angels cleanser and the jar is much better. It fits and can be properly sealed from water. So maybe right now they’ve re-engineered all of their jars.

Texture:
Creamy, easily spread around the face.

My General Review:
I bought this because LUSH is cute, and Ultra Bland have high rating in MUA. I checked the ingredients and found a couple of irritants in it, typical LUSH. Rosa damascena and Styrax Benzoin, for example. I persevered, thinking it’ll be washed away by water, but my skin disagreed. Oh well. It cleansed well, but with just a couple of uses, my skin was irritated and dehydrated.

Furthermore, this stuff is a hassle to use. You’ll need to wipe it off with a towel soaked in warm water. Rinsing it with warm water won’t do, it’ll leave greasy residue on your face. Okay…so the question is: why would I go toward all the hassle, when you can have an effective, non-irritating cleansing oil, which gets the job done in 1 simple step?

People said that Ultra Bland is very cost effective, but I disagree. I ran through half of the smaller jar in about 2 weeks. I’m pretty sure I didn’t use that much, I only took a blob with my index finger each time. So cleansing oil is more economical, I think.

And the final nail on the coffin? This stuff smells awful. Seriously. Nutty from the peanut oil, but it’s disgusting.

Application:
Take a bit of product with your finger, warm it up and spread it to your face. Then wipe it off with washcloth soaked with warm water.

Price:
At LUSH USA, a small 1.5oz tub is priced at US$14.45, while the bigger 3.5oz tub is worth US$29.95.

Availability:
LUSH already pulled out of Indonesia from 2009, it’s not available in Singapore either. However, LUSH UK provides international shipping service.

Ingredients:
VEGETARIAN, Peanut Oil (Arachis hypogaea), Rose Water (Rosa centifolia), Beeswax (Cera alba), Honey, Fresh Iris Extract (Iris florentina), Glycerine, Rose Absolute (Rosa damascena), Tincture of Benzoin (Styrax benzoin), Sodium Borate, Methylparaben, Propylparaben.

*Occurs naturally in essential oils

Overall Rating:
1 out of 5. This product cleanses well, but it’s expensive, a hassle to use, and irritating for sensitive skin. I threw mine to the bin after 2 weeks.

There are better, more efficient cleansers out there.

*This review will be cross posted in www.makeupalley.com under username Crescent_Shadow.

Broken Nail-ed

Although I feel that it’s improbable for other people to be as careless as me…may I kindly remind you to be careful while opening your car’s door.

Please, don’t be like me, who accidentally opened the door with the tip of my nail.

Result?

Broken

Yeah it’s broken quite deep. It exposes the skin below the nails, it bleeds. At the moment it’s ugly yellowy-brown colored  due to the disinfectant I applied. And I can’t remove the nail art either. Don’t want to imagine what will that sharp nail polish remover does the the wound.

It’s positive that I won’t be doing nail art in the near future either. Not until the thumb nail grows into a decent length

Review: The Body Shop Mango Body Butter

The Body Shop Mango Body Butter

From www.thebodyshop-usa.com:
The original Body Butter!

Best if you want to: Pamper your skin with a rich, deliciously mango-scented cream that softens and moisturizes for up to 24 hours.

Best for: very dry skin

How it works:

• Mango seed oil moisturizes the skin.
• Community Trade cocoa butter is an excellent moisturizer that melts at body temperature, leaving skin soft and smooth.
• Sweet almond oil provides essential fatty acids that help to repair skin’s moisture barrier, helping to restore smoothness and suppleness.

 

My Skin Type:
When it comes to body, my skin is dry all over. Very acne prone on the back too.

Packaging:
Wide mouthed plastic tub. Not the most hygienic packaging, but for this kind of product, there’s no way you could pack it up in a tube. It’s just too thick.

Texture:
Thick, but with some slip. Maybe because of the oils and emollient in there.

My General Review:
My first body butter. Expensive, yes; but it smells so good! I usually don’t like fruity fragrance, but the sweet smell of this product is not overpowering and is totally alluring to me. The moisturizing power is not disappointing. It may be heavy and greasy to some, but for my dry skin, I can slather this all over my body, and it sinks comfortably.

Of course, being a heavy butter, it does leave some residue. Maybe due to the oil content? But it’s much better than tight skin all over Overall, the moisturizing power is slightly above Jergens Ultra Healing.

The only downside (aside from the fragrance, which is delicious but may not be all that good for your skin ), is this butter doesn’t contain other skin goodness such as antioxidants. That’s a general problem with butter though…Even if they contain some antioxidants, the jar packaging will not be able to preserve it.

What Else You Need To Know:
Oh, if you’re a cheapskate like me, this product is downright expensive I’ve found cheaper alternative though, which I’m gonna share with you soon

Application:
Anytime I feel like slathering this on my skin Mostly after bath or prior to bed though.

Availability:
Accessible at all TBS stores nationwide.

Price:
US$20 for 200ml tub.

Ingredients:
Water, Mangifera Indica (Mango) Seed Oil, Prunus Amygdalus Dulcis (Sweet Almond) Oil, Theobroma Cacao (Cocoa) Butter, Glycerin, Cyclomethicone, Glyceryl Stearate, PEG-100 Stearate, Cetearyl Alcohol, Lanolin Alcohol, Phenoxyethanol, Fragrance, Methylparaben, Propylparaben, Xanthan Gum, Benzyl Alcohol, Disodium EDTA, Hexyl Cinnamal, Linalool, Amyl Cinnamal, Benzyl Benzoate, Limonene, Potassium Hydroxide, Sodium Hydroxide, Citral, Eugenol, Farnesol, Geraniol, Citronellol, Annatto.

Overall Rating:
4 out of 5. It moisturizes very dry skin and the fragrance is soothing. But it’s a bit expensive and it doesn’t contain antioxidants or anything advanced.

Well, something advanced will be rendered useless by the air and light anyway, if it’s put in jar packaging like this.

*This review will be cross posted in www.makeupalley.com under username Crescent_Shadow.

Nail Art: November 2009

I’m so bummed I can’t take a proper picture of this one, because I love love love the result!

Oriental Black

ETA: Another pic from my ol’ digicam, 3 days after the painting is done.  Care to find where it has chipped?

Anyway, my nails do grow fast, but the gap between the base of the nails to the polish is more noticeable than usual, I think next time the manicurist should paint it closer to the cuticles?

Nail Gallery's Design

My bro’s gf recommended Nail Gallery for nail painting, but I haven’t had the chance to visit Plaza Indonesia. Luckily, they also have a salon in Mangga Dua! I made this yesterday…I was planning on yellow or maybe orange nails…but there’s a black design that really catch my eyes.  I have always interested in black nails..but always afraid that it’ll be too pronounced/contrast. Turned out black is really fun!

The manicurist was kind and able to adapt the design to my nail’s shape/length/size. Even though she made a couple of mistakes and it need to be wiped off, but the end result is damn pretty. The pink/red flowers on black background gives oriental feel, and there’s a tiny flecks of silver glitters throughout that really give dreamy look to the overall design

Unfortunately, Nail Gallery claimed that they have their root on Korea. They also use mostly Korean product: Gionyx and Odyssey Nail System. My base black polish is from Gionyx and it chipped only in a couple of hours! I proceed with house chores and it chipped some more. Blargh!! And I wanted to preserve the design sooo badly

Overall, I think I’ll be back, maybe trying out their extension service? Or bring your own base polish from your fave brand to ensure it’s more long lasting?

Either way…FYI the manicure+painting fee is IDR110,000 Acrylic extension is IDR350,000, while gel extension is priced at IDR370,000.