Friday, December 30, 2011

Resolutions

Have you finished listing your resolutions for 2012? Let these words help you.
I'm still working on mine but I'm almost done. :)

Photo from Pinterest / Lilac Saloon.

xoxo





Thursday, December 29, 2011

More DIY Christmas Presents

This is my most ambitious DIY project to date. I am so happy how it turned out. My mother-in-law and grandma-in-law loved their presents!

Photo Tile Coasters
This set is for Inay, my husband's lola or grandma. I originally planned to make one tile for each of her great-grandchild but thought what would she do with so many coasters (she has 16 GGKs), right? So I figured, one tile per family would just be perfect. :)

my babies :)
The project itself was pretty easy but a little time consuming. I had a hard time looking for materials. I discovered that 4x4 tiles are very hard to find here in Manila - the smallest and most common you'll see is an 8x8. I've visited hardware stores and home depots and found none. Someone suggested to just have it cut but the store wouldn't cut it for you - they don't have the tools, I guess. For the detailed list of materials and instructions, click here.


Aside from the tiles, I also had trouble looking for the final coating spray. I wanted to check out the arts supply store in SM North EDSA but I didn't have time to travel all the way there and get stuck in the horrible holiday traffic. I just read the labels of the different sprays and got the one which I figured probably does the same thing. :)


*****

Aside from the tile coasters, I also made two more DIY Christmas presents:
Personalized "Ghost" Notebooks


I made a lot of these last year (Christmas 2010), I even had a smaller sized notebook, but was not able to take photos as I was rushing to finish them and send them out. I DIYed A LOT of presents last Christmas and I have learned my lesson. Hahaha.



*****

Personalized Notecards
with embossed frame and a letter cutout

Which reminds me, I need to make notecards for my own family to use. I often find myself getting rattled when I can't find a gift tag and there's no time to make one. I'll make different designs - one from the whole family, another from my two kids and another from my eldest (she has her own parties now, you know). :) Oh, plus the notebook my sister's been asking me to make and a set of notecards for a dear friend. :)

If you want your own photo coasters, "ghost" notebooks and/or notecards, you can order from me and I'll make them for you. :) Please visit my crafty online store - Bunch of Crafts - you'll find more beautifully handmade projects by yours truly! :)

xoxo

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

DIY: Kiddie Christmas Giveaways

Here's what I made for my 2-year-old's playschool classmates...

Homemade Star Shaped Crayons

Thursday, December 8, 2011

All I Want for Christmas (And My Birthday) is...

A BUNCH OF STUFF!!! Hahaha. Who in the world has just one item in their Christmas wish list? I don't think that's possible!

Well, my list is kind of impossible. I just hope I get at least one item in my list this Christmas. Oh, make that two since it's also my 30th *freaking out* birthday!


iPhone 4S. Sadly, I am still using a 3G model. Take note: it's 3G, not 3GS. My phone is really slow and apps crash all the time. Come to think of it, there's nothing else I can really do with it but just text and call. Taking photos is a pain, that is if I'm lucky to even get the camera running. And Apple has dropped the 3G model from their updates so the future of my phone is quite bleak.  I have been waiting for the release of the new model for months. I'm hoping to get my hands on one during our upcoming HK trip! *keeping fingers crossed*

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Time To Get Naked... AGAIN!

Oh.my.goodness!!!

Have you heard?

Urban Decay has another Naked palette -- The NAKED2.

OOOOOH MYYYYYY...
The palette comes with 12 neutral eyeshadow colors with five NEW shades - YAY! There are three shadows in matte and the rest have a shimmery/metallic finish. It also comes with double-ended eye brush and a travel-sized lipgloss.
Hop on to makeupandbeautyblog.com to view swatches. Just be prepared to drooooooool. :)

Price: USD50.00 or Php2,160.00. Of course, this is not available here in the Philippines (Boo!). It is currently out of stock at Urban Decay's website (but more arriving soon) and it's going to be available at Sephora and other stores soon.

My thoughts: This is another must-have just like the original Naked palette. You can't go wrong with the color choices available in this palette. But since I already have the original palette plus another big palette filled with more than two dozen MAC neutral eyeshadows and a bunch of single neutral shadows, I'm not sure if I really need this I don't really need this. (Wow, I'm really kicking the makeup shopping addiction! *patting myself at the back* hahaha!) Sure, I would really love to have it but not if I have to shell out for colors that I probably already have. Hmmmm, but maybe I can get this for myself (not for my kit)... Hahaha! I'm having mixed feelings! Anyway, we'll see... It's not like I can get my hands on it in a snap. I would have to exert serious effort to track one down...


How about you guys, what do you think of the Naked2 palette?


xoxo






Friday, December 2, 2011

Cosmo's November 2011 Man on Fire: Enrique Gil

I did grooming on Enrique Gil for Cosmopolitan Magazine's Man on Fire for November 2011.

Thursday, December 1, 2011

Cosmo's November 2011 Online Hunk

Oh no. I totally forgot to post this (and another work which I will post next) before November ended. I am so out of my system right now. o_O

Anyway, this is the grooming work I did for Cosmo.ph's online hunk for the month of November which is a month-long weekly feature on Mark Alejandro (the hunk) - a really nice guy who can actually speak Tagalog and Bisaya (his mom is Cebuana) which totally shocked us when he started talking in Tagalog while we were shooting! It's weird yet amazing to see and hear a foreigner speaking our native language!

Here's my favorite photo from the first week:


And the second week:


Third week:


And the fourth week:

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Letters to Santa and More

Here's another collection of free Christmas printables. I just can't enough of Christmas! I love Christmas!!! Aside from the fact that it's my birthday (well, technically it's the day before), Christmas is really the most wonderful time of the year! Not only do we feast on scrumptious food and give and receive presents but more importantly, we spend time with family and friends and make beautiful memories. :)

Anyway, if you have kids, here are some Santa letter templates plus other Christmas paper crafts to download and print.

 From Blush Printables, Santa letter and a gift box. Download here.

Free Christmas Tags

Sorry I have been neglecting my blogger duties lately. I'm sure everyone's feeling the holiday stress and it's just funny how every year I keep saying I will manage my time better the next time around yet here I am counting the days until Christmas while I try to figure out how I will finish everything I need to do. And can I just mention the traffic? Oh my goodness.

Anyway, I thought it would be awesome to share with you guys the ton of free printable Christmas tags I found online. I don't like to use generic ones. There are nice and cute tags in stores but I feel that making your own makes everything more personal. Last year I made an embossed gift tag and used the prettiest white pen to write on it.



I figured, if I make my own tags again this year, I'm just never going to finish anything. And I'm so grateful to all the super talented designers who share their wonderful works! It is indeed the most wonderful time of the year (minus the darn traffic)! :)

 From Orange You Lucky, download here.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Assumption Alumnae Bazaar Finds

Sorry for another bazaar post. Aside from gift items, here are the things my eldest and I got at the Assumption Alumnae Bazaar today.
Assumption Tarts :) - Php250.00 for a dozen

Harajuku Mini for Target FAIL

After the epic success of Missoni for Target, the bull's eye giant is launching Harajuku Mini for Target today, November 13. It's an entire collection for young fashionistas - from infants to tweens. I learned about the collaboration a month ago and immediately set an alarm in my calendar.

As I googled and stalked Target Style's Facebook account for more details about the availability of the collection online, I couldn't find out exactly what time I should be online to shop.


Ask and you shall receive (bad news - blagh!):

Shop @ The Fort Bazaar Finds

Until this year, I haven't been to a bazaar in a long time - probably around three years or so. I totally understand why people exert effort and visit bazaars. There are so much cool stuff to find at good prices.

I went to the Karl Edward International's Shop @ The Fort bazaar with the hubby yesterday to claim a pair of Sole Sister shoes which I scored for 50% off thru Deal Dozen. Since I picked it up, I didn't have to pay for shipping which would've cost me Php100.00 nor the bazaar's entrance fee since they gave free entrance to BDO cardholders! Yey!!! :)



Anyhoo, here's my new pair of shoes:
Sole Sister Sandra in Pink - Php499.00 from Php945.00 thru Deal Grocer

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Shiny Disco Skirt

I was with my cousin yesterday, who is a crazy shopaholic. We've been hanging out a lot lately, which loosely translates to: "I've been spending a lot lately" and after our Quiapo and 168 trip last Wednesday, we decided to hang out again yesterday. We had lunch, went to the salon and went shopping. I was supposed to shop for Christmas presents but I forgot my list. Of course, I didn't go home empty handed. Hihihi. :)

After a quick roundabout in a couple of stores in Greenbelt 5, we headed to Forever 21. My cousin mentioned that she hasn't visited in a long time. And I found the cutest sequined mini skirt. Now, I need a perfect pair of bad-ass sexy heels. Help me and lead me to the right direction please? :)

Spangle Mini Skirt - Php1,025.00

My New Hair

I had my hair done yesterday. Actually, I had my highlights redone. I went to the salon last Monday, got a haircut and FINALLY had my hair colored! I had my hair digitally permed a few months back and my friends have been telling me to get a color job. My peg was Jessica Biel's ombre highlights. My hairstylist wasn't satisfied with the outcome of my highlights and requested me to come back (for free) and I happily obliged! :)

Friday, November 11, 2011

AFRAID!!!

Last Wednesday night, my husband and I decided to watch American Horror Story. I thought I was going to have a heart attack.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Review: Inglot Eye Shadows & Kevyn Aucoin Blush

Here is a mini loot I got from a makeup artist friend who came from the US with a TON of makeup stuff to sell. I firmly told myself I will not see him but after a week or so, I was texting him, asking if he has this and that. Since I was, and still am, on a makeup shopping diet. I just got a couple of things. What I really NEEDED from him was a Make Up For Ever empty magnetic palette (which I do not have a photo of at the moment as I am still trying to organize my makeup - hard work! Whew!). When I met him, he was with other makeup artists who were also buying from him. Surprise, surprise! He brought everything and I couldn't stop myself from looking through his goodies.

Friday, October 28, 2011

Bobbi Brown is Marrakesh Chic

'Tis the season to be makeup crazy as new makeup collections for Fall 2011 are out and about. I am always excited to see the new products and the corresponding makeup looks of the different cosmetic brands. DROOL!!!

Bobbi Brown's Fall 2011 Marrakesh Chic Collection is inspired by the makeup maven's trip to Morocco two years ago, particularly during a trip to the market of Marrakesh where there is an abundance of rich colors from items in the market - fabrics, rugs, spices, etc.

Aside from new colors added to the different lip color formulations, the collection debuts the limited edition Rich Color Eye Shadow in eight wearable shades. These have powder-to-cream formula and uses the Soft Press Technology which gives the powder its creamy feel. Waxes are evenly distributed and melted into the powder thus making the eye shadow smooth, soft and easy to apply. It gives an elastic, second-skin finish that melts onto lids with incredible adherence.
Clockwise From Top Left: Sand Dune, Pink Silk, Rich Kashmir, Wine, Coffee Bean, Royale, Rich Slate, Desert Lily

Thursday, October 27, 2011

A Birthday Card & a Challenge

I have a ton of scrapbooking materials and I barely use them anymore. I do not scrapbook but I love making paper crafts like cards, gift tags and whatnot. I love it when I am forced to bust out my supplies and whip up something for someone special. This time it's for the husband. It's his birthday! :)

I didn't know where to start so I needed some inspiration. I visited 365 Cards, it's a blog that challenges their readers to create a card based on the blog's featured layout or sketch. And they have a new one every single day, hence the blog name. I used to join card challenges quite often. Not to win but because it's a great place to start off and also be inspired by the works created by the readers. Check them out here.

This is the sketch I drew inspiration from:

Day 237: Super Sketchy Sunday

And here's what I came up with:

 



 It was pretty fun making this card. I hope to make more in the future. :)

To my amazing husband, I wish you happy happy birthday filled with lots of love! :)

xoxo




Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Becca A/W 2011 Trend Report

I recently attended a Becca event at Adora where the Australian brand launched their fall collection - Lost Weekend (more on that soon!). Aside from their new collection, they also talked about Fall 2011 makeup trends and provided us with visuals to take home with instructions on how to recreate the runway looks. Big thanks to the Becca team for allowing me to share the beauty report on my blog! :)


Beauty Tip # 11


Using the right kind and size of brush is important when doing your eye makeup.
For a dark and intense eye color, the smaller, the better.
A small pencil brush or a modestly sized tapered blending brush (see photos below)
is perfect for application and blending in the eye crease area.
Anything bigger or fluffier will just diffuse and scatter the eye shadow.
Make Up For Ever 14S Pencil Eyeshadow Brush


MAC 222 Tapered Blending Brush

Sigma E45 Small Tapered Blending Brush

Another thing to remember is to start with a light application.
It is easier to make your eye makeup darker than make it lighter.

xoxo