Tag! 11 questions

[Don't forget to enter my one-year giveaway!]

Hello, hello!

Today's post will be a lot of text. I was tagged by Vonnie :)

Rules that must be posted

* Each person must post 11 things about themselves on their blog.
* Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and create 11 new questions for the people you tag to answer.
* You have to choose 11 people to tag and link them on the post.
* Go to their page and tell them you have linked him or her.
* No tag backs.
* No stuff in the tagging section about 'you are tagged if you are reading this.' You legitimately have to tag 11 people.

1. I used to sort of be a social butterfly but now I only have about 5 real friends. But I'm actually very cool with that.
2. I am a Korean drama/variety addict, nothing will stop me. My current obsessions are: Brain, Ojakyo Brothers, Running Man, and Happy Together (my all time favorite).
3. I am an only child.
4. My current part-time job is my first real job.
5. I am a double major and I am seriously considering a double minor because there are so many things I want to learn of.
6. I have a dog =)
7. My parents spoil me and I am forever grateful for that.
8. This is the first blog I have maintained for over a year.
9. I am more concerned about skincare than makeup. I am also genetically pretty pale.
10. I have an obsession for wallets. I have a drawer full of wallets.
11. I like to re-read my favorite books even though I already know the story by heart.

Vonnie's questions:

1. What is your favorite book?
-My favorite book is The Woman Warrior. I think it's such a good book. I first read it in the 7th grade but I re-read it whenever I have time.
2. If you could be any movie character, who would you be?
-I would want to be Mulan, no joke LOL. Saving your country is a big deal!
3. What is/was your favorite school subject?
-My favorite subjects are politics, philosophy, english, and sociology.
4. Are you a night owl or an early sleeper?
-Definitely a night owl. 4-5AM is no biggie for me.
5. Who is your personal fashion icon?
-Ga-in from the Brown Eyed Girls, don't judge me! Lol or maybe not, she's very chic while I'm quite casual.
6. When you go out to eat, what is your preferred type of cuisine?
-Anything! Really.
7. What do you consider your best beauty discover of 2011?
-Hmm... interesting question. I would have to say it is my MAC mineralize skinfinish. I think it's very pretty :) in the packaging and on your face! Very flattering.
8. Do you have any pets?
-Yup! A dog.
9. Which style do you think best fits your personality?
-Casual.
10. What upcoming events in 2012 are you looking forward to?
-Spring semester! And hmm.. being freed from my shopping ban!
11. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live and why?
-I don't really have another country I'd like to live at but I'd love to move to the west coast for a change!

My questions:
1) When, why, or how did you start blogging?
2) Fast food. Yay or nay?
3) Are you more concerned about skincare or makeup?
4) What is a book that really changed your life (ie: the way you think/act)?
5) Would you rather save for a really high end brand or buy several "middle end" bags?
6) What is your one beauty rule you would never ever break?
7) Has blogging made a difference in your life? How?
8) Sephora or Ulta or drugstore (if you had a $150 budget)?
9) What is one beauty rule you cannot live up to?
10) If you could be any celebrity for one day, who would it be?
11) What is one physical feature on your face that you really love?

*Breaking a rule*
I honestly tag you if you read this. You have been tagged if you actually read this far. So please do it and link me back to your post! I want to see how many people actually do it LOL.

Thank you, Vonnie for this interesting post!

& a picture to wrap up this post:


I bought lip butters! But only two are for me, lol.

Have you tried lip butters yet?! Should I review them even though they're totally super duper hyped? LOL.

Pending.

Junk Food Game II going on! Check it out here

Unless it's going to be gifted, I will not be shopping at Sephora until 2012. For the past 3 months, I have shopped ~$50 each month and it's unacceptable (but in my defense, for two of those purchases I used 20% off & 10% off for the other one!...) Some serious self-discipline will be going on. I already passed up Black Friday shopping entirely and I really will not be shopping there till next February (unless it is going to be gifted, like I said before, which by the way, will still be blogged about ^_^).



But here it is. My last Sephora haul of 2011.

*Fairy Drops Mascara -> $24
*Kat Von D Lip gloss -> $5
*Tokidoki Lip gloss -> $5
*MUFE Aqua Eyes -> $18
*Sephora by OPI -> $5

total = $57 - 20% = ~$46
jeez no wonder I'm so poor. DUH. It's because I spent ~$150 at Sephora over 3 months -_-
I am banning shopping for myself all together until 2012. Just food and necessities. I'm on week 2 (3rd week now! :P), I'm doing pretty well I think.

Like last time, a follow up post regarding this purchase will be made!

Also, I am thinking of introducing my one-year giveaway very soon. As soon as the junk food game is over, I will be holding my one-year blog anniversary! I started my blog January 15th, 2010.

The junk food game is over/I will announce the prizes & winners on December 7th.

I will probably make my post regarding my giveaway the day after so around December 8 or 9th?

Haha, I don't know - look at me getting all ahead of myself! But I'm really excited to be holding my own giveaway soon! I know I don't have much followers but come on, this blog is the only blog I was able to maintain for a year!

P.S.
-5th post of November, oh yeah!

What happened?

Nothing really, just too much work. Took my last belated midterm (my prof kept pushing it off) yesterday and now I am home free! Not really, finals are coming up right around the corner but UNTIL then, I will be blogging - oh yeah!

I FINALLY got a new camera. It's a Nikon (I had a Sony for 6 (?)years) and starting today's post, almost all photos will be taken with my new camera! I am in love with my new camera! Lol, funny story though. I calculated the cost of the camera + NY tax and came up with how much I needed. So I needed $X and I saved just enough but I seemed to have forgotten (yes I was that excited to buy my camera and I'm not that smart, apparently) that I need a memory card as well. So in the end, no I did not pay for EVERYTHING since my mom paid for my 4gb memory card. I am still such a child.

I'm still learning how to use my camera. Two things I'm still getting used to:
a) For my Sony camera, I typically charged the battery by itself (outside of the camera body) but for my new Nikon one, I must charge with the battery inside the camera body. I'm not sure if all Nikon cameras are like this but it's just different!
b) Same idea for importing photos. For my Sony camera, I only had to take out the memory card but now I need to plug it in my camera body to import.

BUT THE PICTURES ARE AMAZING! So much better than my Sony.

It was my mom's birthday last week and we went to the city to eat/shop. We picked up things she wanted but I didn't want to leave empty handed even though it wasn't MY birthday. So I asked if we can stop by h&m and we did! Picked up three things for myself:



A dusty pink bag which was $24.95, I don't know why the tag is flipped over like that lol. And two polka dot scarves that were $4.95 each (regular $6.95). Sorry for the black shadow on the left, my chair is REALLY black and it created this weird shadow lol.

Junk food post preview!

but it won't all be easy like this...

Love your city

Hi all, sorry for the lack of updates! I finished summer classes, got my grades, never seeing those people again, and started hanging out with my friends again.

Today I hung out with my friend in the city and had ramen, ramen that was $16 rofl. We got one a split it :) Did some shopping but only ended up getting things for my mom. Overall, it was a great day but I wore my new shoes out and it hurt my feet quite a bit. I just took a shower and as soon as the water hit my feet, I felt waves of stinging sensations lol.

Anyway, for some odd reason, I feel that some people want to "get away" or "move" from where they live. Common examples are: "oh, I want to live in France!", "I'd love to live in LA", "Anywhere in Europe is better than where I live now". But I feel that where we lived the longest is where our hearts are most comfortable at, if that makes sense. Sure it's nice to go on vacation once in a while or study abroad but permanently moving just seems a little sad. Today's post is dedicated to my favorite city: The Big Apple!

3 Reasons why I love NY:
- The city really never sleeps. I don't know that many cities that offer almost 24 hours of public transportation.
- People from literally ALL over the world live here :)
- Lots of crazy (but funny) people live here too! Kind of an "only in New York" kind of thing.


^Central Park - Fall 2010


^7th Ave - Summer 2010


^Summer 2010


^Seaport - Spring 2011

Your turn! Tell me about your favorite city!

Rant: Snobby or Incompetent

Warning: today's post will be boring and mean.

You know, I always liked nice and sweet people. I try my best to be one too. But two people have been getting on my nerves lately and quite frankly, I don't like either.

At school: Ok. So there's this one girl who I'm paired up with and she's the really shy/quite/nice type. I'm totally okay with her except she is really, really, really dependent on me. Even if it's pair work, each of us should be responsible for a portion of the work. Instead she asks me "this is right, right?" after every sentence she writes. EVERY.SINGLE.SENTENCE. So while all the other people left, we were still far behind and ended up staying later after class (and I had work right after that specific day). Not only that but when we were brainstorming ideas, she comes up with ideas that didn't fit the criteria at all and she kept laughing because she thought she was funny. What? First of all, that wasn't funny at all. Secondly, we were working at a much slower rate because she kept asking me if she was right each time (and she wasn't, I had to fix her stuff each time). Lastly, her pronunciation is HORRIBLE. I know she can't help it but really, like, this is an advanced class... how the heck did she get here with her pronunciation? And we have to give a presentation as well, she's all like "oh huhuhuhhhh I'm so nervous I'm not going to say anything you say everything". I sure as hell am not doing everything, I can't stand her anymore!

At work: Ok at work I face a different girl. She does her work very well and even if she doesn't know how to do something, she will learn from watching over your shoulders as opposed to asking you if she's right every step of the way. But she's definitely a snob. Not particularly to me, but to my other co-workers. I understand she drives a mercedes and that she goes to an expensive university because her parents can afford it (personally not worth it for undergrad, IMO). I GET IT. WE ALL GET IT. Apparently she's only there for the "experience" as opposed to us who actually need this job. Also, I have a co-worker who brings in those Entenmann's donuts from the supermarket and she said her mom doesn't let her eat "those kinds of foods" except she ate a brownie from Starbucks the following Tuesday. Lol. Then my co-worker was showing us a NY&Co watch she got on sale and we were saying how it's a good value and really cute. She overheard us and asked "but don't cheap stuff like that tarnish easily?". Obviously she wouldn't know, wearing her Burberry watch.

So, tell me. A well-working but snobby worker or a shy and sweet but incompetent worker?

cutephotothatexplainshowIfeel is not mine :) credits to owner.

JUUUUNK FOOD GAME.

I am NOT a summer person. I'm more of a fall/winter person, I seriously cannot stand the humidity. But now I'm indoors and waiting for my dad to bring home dinner! He brings home dinner from work about once a month and I always look forward for it!

Today's post will be JUNK FOOD. YEAH! LOL. I was going through my pictures and I realized that I take a lot of pictures of food and they're all well, junk food. WHY are most tasty things so unhealthy?

By the end of the meal, I can only thank my Asian genes. Pft, people make fun of Asians for being short or flat (which is not true) but we fatten and age slower (for the most part)!!

Get ready for a heart attack, guys. And no, I did not have this in one day LOL. I'd love 5 meals/day of junk food LOL.

Ok. Now try to guess what they are. Some are obvious but some, not so much.
The prize will be this *SURPRISE COLOR :p * Essie nail polish I have as an unwanted duplicate because I'm an idiot. Two winners :) , if I have more than one participant LOL.
Number them in order and.. guess as many correct! :p Ends whenever it is that I post again.. whenever that may be.

NOTD + Long Reviews + New Planner! + Picture Heavy

Finally Thursday! No class tomorrow! Yayayayayay! Nothing is more exciting than that~ But I have a lot of studying to do over the weekend, but so far for spanish we've had 5 exams and I got a 100 on all of them!! But on the essays I keep getting 90s so my average is a 96.67% :( I don't understand why they count for as much as exams though...

Today I couldn't go past Dunkin Donuts because of the scorching heat -_- I ended up getting an iced tea for $.99 and it was pretty refreshing :) My bus came rather quickly and I don't have work today. Overall, a wonderful day so far!

I did my nails this sparkly pink color but it's more purple in the pictures aha :|
It kind of reminds me of those sally hanson nail strips thingy except mine aren't as good. But I can't imagine forking out $9 for something I can only use once!! And I wish I could grow out my nails but I'm so... anti-bacteria LOL. I secretly worry about bacteria that might be collecting under my nails even if I wash my hands often. I am SUCH a loser I promise I'll try to be less loser-ish from now on.





But it'll be a pain to take off later T_T

And since the fall semester is starting soon... I got myself a new planner!



It was pretty darn expensive but my friend knew the store (Banzai) owner so we got 30% off. I think I paid around $10 for this which I guess isn't thatttt bad since it's the binder type thing.




Pretty cute huh? I love the outside of it as well as the cute papers on the inside. I get so sad every time I write in it though, I feel like I'm tainting the cuteness of it all heheh~

PRODUCT REVIEWS:
So in my last post, I shared a small cosmetics haul and I received two requests :) Today I will be reviewing:



-Benefit's High Beam
-Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer

I will start off by saying that both products are SO EXPENSIVE!!!
But you don't need a lot of either product so I guess it's "okay" but... I can't get over the price. I know I'm going to repurchase both but ... I still need more time to get over the PRICE!

Benefit's High Beam ($23 at Sephora):


^I was surprised to see that the Smashbox Primer has more product in it...

I know there are TONS of reviews on this but yes, it is a highlighter. I use it on my brow bones and on my cheeks sometimes but it shows up less on my cheeks. In other words, it's a very subtle highlighter. It shows up more in the light (which my camera, unfortunately could not pick up) and it has a little bit of shimmer but overall it's very pearly, which is what I love about it. It blends quickly although I like to warm it up a little bit between my fingers before applying because I feel EVERYTHING goes on more smoother like that (except for primers -- I don't do it with primers for some reason lol).

However, there are a few things I don't like about it..

_The price ($23 for 0.45oz......)
_The applicator, as many have said as well. It's impossible to use every bit of it but I for one, will!! I'm going to cut a straw in half (the long way) and scoop it out until I use every bit of it LOL. Ugh, I just hate wasting stuff...


-The packaging in itself is awkward as well. Why... is it a nail polish packaging thing?? I'd love it if I can squeeze it out instead, maybe if people keep complaining about it, Benefit will change it? :P Wishful thinking~



That's about it!
Product itself: 4.5/5
Packaging: 3.5/5
Applicator: 3/5
Price: 1/5
Repurchase: Yes (4/5)



^Simply dotted



^Slightly rubbed



^What's left after application



^Swatch

Smashbox Photo Finish Foundation Primer ($16 at Sephora):
Okay, this one is VERY expensive as well. I can't tell which is worse, the high beam or this primer... lol. This isn't the full-sized one, I really didn't have the heart to fork out $36 for something I may not like so I got the small one for now.





I will first begin with my skin type/facts.

-Kind of pale (NC15/20)
-Redness around nose area.
-Dry-normal but I get acne sometimes :( but no blackheads.
-Small-ish pores.
-Quite sensitive to the sun.
-I don't tan but I burn very easily.
-I use BB cream and concealer. BB cream is a MUST for me, esp. in the summer because I am sensitive to the sun. SPF is very important.

With that said, I don't really need a primer in the winter because my foundation/BB doesn't really fade. I don't wear much to start off with but in the summer, especially in humidity, my face sometimes does look like it's melting even though my skin is somewhat dry in some areas. That really is not attractive at all. I'm going to wear it in the winter though, I just feel like it sets everything in place well because it has a matte finish.

On the other hand, my mom has oily skin and we share this primer. I noticed that this extends the life of my make up about 4-5 hours (and I never have to blot when I use this) and my mom doesn't have to blot for an extra 3 hours. My mom used to always be stressed out about how her make up does not last but after using this, she only has to blot once the entire day, only around the nose area.

So if you can't tell already, we love this product!! After we finish this we will buy the full size one, even though the price tag is hefty.



^look how small it is!



^ This is how it looks when it's squeezed out. I don't know how I feel about this but.. the feeling of it is very... silicone-y. Super soft, but silicone-y. My mom likes that feeling but I'm still on the fence about it.



^ This is my bare naked nose after I woke up. As you can see, there is a little bit of shine.



^ After using it on my nose, pores show less right?? As you can see it's matte, but I think it accentuates my dryness a little. Not sure if it's because I took too long today to moisturize after washing my face, but yeah. But it doesn't show once I apply the rest of my make up so that's okay.

Product itself: 4.8/5
Packaging: 5/5
Applicator: 5/5
Price: 1/5
Repurchase: Yes (5/5)


PHEW. Was this too long?!? I just wanted to be very thorough about it.
So, how was everyone's day today?!

When is it too old for braces?

So lately, my teeth have been bothering me like crazy. I don't even want to post up a picture of my teeth alone, but I do have some pictures and I will EXPLAIN what it's like.

When I was 6 years old, my second tooth on the top was loose so my mom took me to the dentist. My dentist had to remove 2 of my teeth on the top because there was little room for my other tooth to grow. So I left with three missing teeth. I was told I needed braces as well but I saw my cousins who had braces and they ALWAYS had a bleeding gums or something and always need to put some kind of wax to prevent the skin inside their mouth from bleeding. So basically I never got braces and now I regret it.

I don't have an overbite, but my teeth are misaligned. The center of your lips should be aligned to the center of your two front teeth. But for me, the center of my lips is where my left front tooth is. And I have have these awkward gaps between my upper teeth. Pictures below!




bad eyebrows, bad picture :( But that's a story for another day.

Nobody can tell my misaligned teeth unless I point it out and some people still don't notice after I do. BUT I NOTICE! I see it when I smile (thank goodness I don't smile widely). But I'm already in college and I feel braces should be for like those awkward middle school years. Should I go for invisalign instead? I'm no expert but I'm pretty sure invisalign won't fix this (I did some research). Or should I just leave it alone?.. It's pretty costly as well which I can't let my parents pay for but I know my part time paychecks can't pay half of it off lol. Am I too old for braces?

Mom, Angry, Omelette Rice, NANA's B - SHINee BB Cream

This entry was never published, was supposed to be published Saturday! :(

*Today kinda sucks so far even though it's only 30 minutes past noon :( I woke up to a nice big zit on my cheek, it's under the skin too. HUGE (literally -- it almost looks like a bad bug bite...) and under the skin. It's going to take forever for it to go away =( It's sore as well.. ugh so bad why do zits exist!??! Andddd my mama was mad at me (we rarely EVER fight and it really was not my fault today) so... overall a horrible morning. I decided I'd leave her alone because I know everyone has those angry days lol. But just now my mom walked into my room with this



so we automatically made up :) It's her omelette with an Asian twist? lolol.



And if you were curious, under the egg! Fried rice with mushroom, spinach, shrimp, shredded squid, carrot.

Speaking of my zit, I wanted to do a review of NANA's B - SHINee's BB cream. I know everrryone does reviews on them but I don't see so many on this particular one.
For starters, it was made by LG's personal care laboratory and Korean boy group SHINee endorsed it. It has SPF 20 so a separate sunblock is not necessary but it wouldn't hurt I think. Some of my other BB creams have like SPF 45, so 20 isn't that high at all. Apparently they use "Angel's tear" a natural phytosubstance that prevents and eases troubled skin. It is also recommended for adolescent skin.

Where to buy: http://yeppeunsonyuh.com/ (legitimate US/NYC seller - but she's going to Korea soon!)

Price: USD$19, +$2 shipping (which is really cheap by the way), or free with a purchase of $30. All international orders are $5 regardless of amount! And she accepts cash/money order for those who don't use paypal.

I compared it to my Lioele - Beyond the Solution BB cream. And this is where the pros/cons took place.

PROS:
-Very light, almost mousse-like texture. It's actually kind of hard to call it a "cream" it feels much lighter than that.
-Blends easily.
-It has a very subtle scent, subtle enough not to bother me but also subtle enough for me to enjoy it. It smells quite nice actually. Not floral-y or too fruity.
-It does have SPF 20 so you're not completely unprotected from the sun.
-Of course, the pretty boys of SHINee.
-CUTE/SLEEK PACKAGING *O* I'm a sucker for cute packaging!
-They have a list of names of the teenagers/young adults who apparently took place in the laboratory studies on the side of the box, which I think is respectable!
-No white cast!

CONS:
-As you will see below, it is extremely light and I think it only comes in one shade, if not there probably aren't many other. I'm pretty sure this is the only shade as it does not indicate WHICH shade it is.
-Because it's light, I don't think many people can use it. I didn't have a particular problem with it because I am pretty pale but coverage is VERY light.
-My bottle was new but it had quite a bit of air in it. I don't really like how you have to squeeze it out either, wish there was a pump! They probably filled it with air BECAUSE you need to squeeze it out and they probably didn't want the cream to explode out on the first use. But still, air is.. air.
-Considering it was designed for acne skin, I don't think it did much to help my acne. But it didn't harm me either!
***This is up for swap if anyone is interested! Leave a comment with your e-mail if interested! ***



So here's the packaging, pretty sleek right?



And the list of participants as I mentioned before.



Pretty boys LOL. SHINee!



The actual bottle itself.



The side. I really REALLY REALLLLY like the packaging! I loveee Korean beauty product package :D 99.9% of the time, they are absolutely adorable.



So here 1) I spelled the SHINee part wrong hahah sorry about that. 2) I compared it to my lieole beyond the solution BB cream which I use everyday! Lieole isn't even that dark to start off with, so you can really see how much lighter the SHINee one is.



I .. can't explain the bad lighting. BUT you can still see that the NANA's B BB cream is still very light!
Repurchase?: No.

Overall: 3.5/5 (But I'm a hard grader!)

So yeah, that's about it! Hope this helps if you were interested in this particular bb cream at all :)

PS. I want a new camera (DSLR) and my birthday is coming up! From all the saved paychecks/previous Christmas money from my Uncle & Aunt, I think I can buy a camera AND have some money left over! Should I?!...... dun dun dun I don't know. I get so scared when I need to spend a lot of money LOL.

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with yeppensonyuh in any way. I purchased the BB cream with my own money and my opinions are of course 100% my own.

Done.

Hey guys, long time no blog! I actually sign on every day, read blogs and sign out. I stopped commenting for a while too. I was deciding on whether or not I wanted to keep my blog, I feel like some how it became "what did I buy recently" kind of blog which was not what I was aiming for (I'm going to do that anyway for the people who do not read LOL). I mean, I am a full time student and stuff, I know that's not an excuse but I know for sure that most people don't take 3 hours to get to school/come home (in total but that's still a lot) so, physically I am drained when I come home. I don't just transfer from train to train, I walk a few blocks back and forth for it and I don't know, I don't think I'm too absurd for being tired all the time lol. But I felt sad to leave so I decided to give it another go.

Finished first year of college! It was so much work.. all I remember is doing work but it was great meeting new people. I started a little notebook to write about stuff on the subway, I'm telling you!! NYC subways are the craziest and dirtiest places to be LOL. I'd take pictures of the gross stuff but it'd make everyone scream =( HEY but maybe I will... let me know what you think :p

Lately for breakfast I've been having only an apple and like I said, since I walk around a lot I guess I burn it off easily lol. So I felt kind of dizzy so I decided to have a hearty meal for breakfast from now on. I don't really do anything special to work out but it seems all the walking made me drop two pants sizes. I wore a 3 for juniors or a 4 for women but I'm pretty much a 0-2 now lol. My first year too!

I know I'm like, I don't know, ALWAYS saying this but... I WILL POST TOMORROW. Even if it's the death of me lol!

blahhhh doctor visit tmrw though :( BLAAAAAAAAH.

Semi-old picture of my dog and I! I miss our old backyard, whatever you can see in this picture =(