Before, I thought anything that was pleasurable to my senses was an act of self-love, but not so recently. Loving yourself is doing what is best for yourself.
Hear me out, as I’ve got something for you to think about. If you stop and see yourself as a good friend, how would you treat this person?
Would you stuff your loved one with loads of junk food until she would end up feeling sick? Or let her descend into a mushy pile of laziness when she feels depressed? Or attack her body with toxic things like alcohol, cigarettes, and drugs?
I’m not saying a temporary act of any of these things are so bad that they will destroy you but what I’d like to propose here is, are these acts of self-love?
I stumbled upon a great article at the Happiness Project blog, called the 5 Most Common Happiness Mistakes. Please read it because it is so true. I won’t go into the mistakes as you can read them on your own but I’d like to point out that my favorite tip is not letting yourself off the hook when you are feeling stressed or down. However, I think I am guilty of all five mistakes and I want to make a difference to my daily happiness levels.
As a reformed bagaholic, my tendencies rear their ugly head when I spot cute bags as freebies in Japanese fashion magazines.
But it’s much kinder on my purse, I assure you.
At a Seven-Eleven convenient store, I bought a Kitson mook (a hybrid of a magazine and a book) and it came with a hot pink cosmetics case and a black eco bag, which I am using on my trip in Moscow now. Both are the perfect size and the black eco bag can be stuffed with an amazing number of things.
Hello from Moscow! I stopped by my beloved Singapore for 48 hours before I jetted off to Russia. It was a long flight but oh-so worth it.
This would explain me MIA-ing for the past week. “Love it when I’m in three cities in one week,” quipped my fiancé. He is quite the road warrior because of his work, so he was in Tokyo last Monday, Singapore on Tuesday and Wednesday, then a touch down in Moscow on Friday. I did the same and it does feel a little surreal but I guess that’s the only way to celebrate the last dregs of summer.
Let’s do a short one today in the city of borscht, onion domes, old world grandiose and a fast-paced nouveau riche lifestyle…
+ Red Square’s St Basil’s Cathedral (pictured above) is the ultimate icon of Moscow and it was truly majestic in person. It was built by Ivan the Terrible in the 16th century to commemorate the conquest of Moscow from the Mongolian Tatars.
+ Finding ever reliable brands like Head & Shoulders shampoo and L’Oreal Elseve conditioner which are my go-to haircare in any foreign land, from Bali to Sydney to Moscow!
+ A lovely birthday lunch at Botanika, a quaint natural foods restaurant in the quiet neighborhood of Tverskoy. It has an extensive veg-friendly menu with plenty of meat options plus a drool worthy dessert list. It was the fiance’s choice and I felt spoiled with cucumber sushi, Chinese spring rolls, grilled zucchini, a savoury mushroom and potato stir fry and a Belgian waffle drizzled with a mixed berry sauce, that was rounded off with a warm pot of chamomile tea.
+ Turning a year older and feeling good about it. I am loving that my confidence grows stronger as I go along this path called Life.
+ Tis a cool summer in Moscow, despite the dismal forest fire reports early on this month. It feels like spring in Tokyo where the afternoons are warm and the nights are cool enough for boots and jackets.
+ Gorgeous Russian folks. No wonder this country churns out models like no tomorrow. I don’t know what they do but I want to find out their beauty secrets!
+ Riding a terrifyingly twisty roller coaster at Gorky Park on a sunny Saturday afternoon.
Before I jet off to Singapore and Moscow (yeah!), I thought it would be fun to do a “peek into my life” video. Today’s video is about my daily beauty routine here in hot sunny Tokyo.
I use a mix of foreign and Japanese brands and lean towards more natural type products but not all. I love experimenting with different brands and this is just a snapshot of what I am consistently using this summer of 2010.
Hope you enjoy it and xoxox till my next post. Ta!
In order to save space in my small Ziplock bag during my July travels, I left out “secondary” beauty products like facial scrub, serum (I’m using Burt’s Bees Repair Serum), hair repair mask, clarifying shampoo, makeup primer, and eye cream (which I very seldom use, anyway).
But with over three weeks of non-stop travel, I am paying for it now. I feel and look a bit bloated, I fell sick (for five days), and my skin took on a dull sheen and was a little rough.
I juiced a whole lot and gobbled lots of raw garlic (it’s gross but it works, trust me), plus I’ve been scrubbing like a good girl.
The apricot seed kernels do a fantastic job of sloughing off dead skin cells and my skin sucked up my serums like thirsty dogs on a hot day. With the weather in Tokyo so hot and humid, I feel like a thirsty old dog most times.
The label at the back says this product was not tested on animals, formulated without parabens – yay! It’s also an Allure readers’ choice award winner.
I actually used this product all over my body and face throughout my college years and into my early 20s. I don’t know why I stopped using it — perhaps I was lured away by other yummy looking scrubs and then I moved to Tokyo where it is not sold. Thank goodness for the large size, 170g or 6 oz, so I’ll only need a top up a long way down the road.
What’s an old classic you absolutely love?
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I’ve been in Australia for over two weeks now so let’s do a Things I Love from the land Down Under…
+ Big white beaches in the Whitsundays and then the city pace in Sydney.
+ Crisp winter mornings and cosy rainy afternoons. I know it’s boiling hot in the northern hemisphere right now and I certainly appreciate the cooler clime here.
+ Warm personable peeps. I always hear, “No worries!” everywhere I go and it’s so charming.
+ Feeling fresh and pampered by Aveeno’s shower cream that oozes lavender, ylang ylang, and chamomile. I packed pretty light but that meant I got to try new products!
+ Passionfruit, banana, berries, almond milk smoothies daily. Passionfruit is 60 cents a pop here – big sigh, that would never happen in Tokyo.
+ Dessert Essence organic jojoba oil – this truly is a lifesaver and I have raved about this before here. My chin had very flaky skin and within two days of using it, my skin returned to normal. It doubles up as a body lotion for me too because I’ve run out of my fave shea body butter from The Body Shop.
+ Catching up with friends over long brunches and meeting new additions to their broods.
+ Being wrapped up in my polka dot scarf and faux tan leather jacket and holding hands when it’s really chilly.
Don’t forget to join our awesome Summer Blog Giveaway because there’s only one week left to stand a chance to win three fabulous beauty goodies from us (one Meiji Amino Collagen Apple & Ginger Tin, one pack of Kose Vitamin C masks, and one pot of Hanayuki Gel Cream). Click here to find out more.
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When I think I’m going to get a cold or sore throat, I always think to myself, “I totally need a huge dose of Vitamin C right now.” Then I turn in early and sleep it off – always works like a charm for me. Or if I have a break-out and want my skin to heal faster, I would also make sure I pump more Vitamin C into my system.
Vitamin C is also essential in the production of collagen, just to let you know, and all the more reason to drink up.
So I whip out my old blender, of course, and set about to make this juice…
Hope you enjoy this juice! I love how this one puts me back on track when my health and skin aren’t doing so well. By the way, kiwis have more Vitamin C than oranges so it’s worth consuming these lil’ babies even though they can be a bit tart. Start off with one kiwi if you don’t like your drink to be too sour and the sweetness from the apple will help cover the tartness.
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Hello my lovelies, I am still in Australia as I’m writing this on my brand new iPad. By the time you read this, I’ll be flying from Brisbane to Sydney.
At first, I wanted a net book which is Windows-based but my “internal IT support team” aka my fiancé thought an iPad would be way more awesome as a business travel tool. Not complaining at all here!
Very excited to be so IT-savvy while traveling. So here’s today’s topic….
You wouldn’t believe this but my oldest brush was a MAC blusher brush (on the extreme right) bought in 2002 when I was in Toronto on holiday. The brush was so full that it could even be used as a face powder brush.
In the middle was my go-to eyeshadow brush that was taken from a Paul & Joe eyeshadow compact, while the blusher brush on the extreme left was nicked from a Chanel all-in-one travel compact.
They were functional but made poor bedfellows in my makeup bag. Everytime I used these three brushes, I would say to myself,”I should really get new ones. They are shedding hair!”
So on my Singapore Airlines flight out of Nagoya on my way to Singapore, I promptly bought a set of Shu Uemura brushes made out of sable, goat, pony, and squirrel hair.
This travel set cost SGD101 (USD73) and so far I am totally loving these soft, refined brushes. I especially adore the blusher brush that picks up an ever so tiny amount of product and spreads lightly over the cheek area.
Though I’m quite cost conscious in my expenditure, I think there are just some things that are worth spending more on quality. What do you splurge on that is worth every penny?
And it comes in a simple sleek case…
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As I mentioned, the month of July is full of travel and I’m saying hello from Daydream Island in the Whitsundays, which is a group of islands north of Brisbane in Australia. I’m totally digging my heels into the gorgeous white sandy beaches, turquoise waters, and gorgeous fresh fruit here.
Here are a few pictures to give you an idea of where I am…
I mentioned that I bought a Paul & Joe Protective Foundation Primer UV 02 a month back and after using it consistently for three weeks, I think it’s safe to say I’m a fan. Last winter, I found that my skin had many creases when I put on just liquid foundation and loose powder and read that a primer would help decrease the look of fine lines emphasized by foundation.
I chose this product because it was number one last year in its category on Japanese cosmetics ranking site, Cosme.
Yeah, I’m a sucker for ultra-girly packaging.
My thoughts: It has a thin liquid finish that sits well under my foundation and loose powder. My crease lines were reduced by 80 per cent so I’m very pleased with this product. Usually I have fine lines from my nose to my cheeks when I smile but with this primer, I don’t suffer from these at all. Yay.
The fragrance is a light rose scent which thankfully I love. I hate wearing makeup when I don’t take to the fragrance and it follows you every second of the day so it’s important to me what a product smells like.
Would I buy this again? YES! It’s affordable at 3,600JPY (USD37) and I only need a tiny bit daily so I can forsee this lasting for at least six months. Does anyone have positive reviews of other primers?
Here are the freebies that came with my purchase…
A small satchet of cleansing milk which I probably will use while travelling — I’m more of a cleansing oil girl so this doesn’t excite me very much.
Ooo, this one looks interesting: Protective Powder Compact Foundation. I’ve not tried it yet but will do so to see if this is something I would switch to.
Alrighty, time for me to head off to my couch again. We’re going to watch Avatar at the open-air cinema on the beach and munch on dinner from the pub next to it. Just gotta love being in an Aussie resort. Don’t forget to take part in our fabulous Summer Giveaway — you’ll get a chance to win a tin of Meiji Amino Collagen Apple & Ginger, a Vit C mask set (5 pieces), and a Hanayuki Gel Cream perfect for summer and has collagen essence!
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