Celebrate CNY with the January Bellabox...

Gee, January is just flying by isn’t it? It wasn’t long ago we were celebrating the New Year - now it’s already the 18th, and it won't be long before we’re celebrating Chinese New Year.

The January box for Bellabox is actually quite cute in this aspect – themed “Celebrate CNY with Bellabox”, they’ve included items this month that are meant to help you look good ahead of your CNY celebrations. Even the wrapping in the box this month reflects this, detracting from the usual Bellabox logo sticker and bright pink tissue paper.

First up is a b.liv Feel No Sluggish Mask that is meant to help prevent the signs of aging by invigorating the skin with fruity essences – it’s supposed to be apple-derived too, which I happen to like. :D

Next up is something I’ve heard interesting things about – Macadamia Natural Oil Healing Oil Infused Comb – a comb that is supposedly infused with the Healing Oil treatment so it gets distributed evenly on hair without leaving a residue on hands. Will let you know once I try it out! Below it is a small “to be hung on your handphone” size of Sleek High Shine Lip Gloss in a pretty (if not bright) pink shade – as if I needed any more lip products, but it’s cute nevertheless.

There was also a trial size set of Skin Food’s Gold Caviar Toner and Emulsion, both of which I’ve briefly tried before and been ok with. The interesting part is that the toner and emulsion are infused with tiny flakes of pure gold. Go check it out – you’ll see what I mean. ;) There was also a small tube of Natura Bisse NB Ceutical Tolerance Cleanser which I’m looking forward to trying out. Skin Food also threw in a few sachets of their eye cream as a bonus together with a card for a personal consultation and sampling at their stores.

To be honest, this month’s box was a little bit disappointing apart from the mask and comb, but it’s still not too bad since there were items I was looking forward to trying out. Does anyone else share the same sentiment?

Scrub a dub dub, DIY style!

Happy Friday! Keeping in line with the feel of the day (everyone’s ready to kick back and enjoy the weekend!), I thought I’d feature something fun you can do over the weekend if you like. :)

A few months back, I had visited a Petronille booth at one of the Bellabox events, and one of the activities they had prepared for us was making your own salt or sugar scrub. It was a simple but fun activity, but also a nice way to make your own scrubs if you want to know exactly what’s in it or want a custom blend for your personal use or to give as gifts.

For approximately 40g of scrub, you’ll need the following:

• Salt/ Sugar – 1 ½ cup
• Oil – 1 cup
• Honey, coconut or cocoa powder (optional) – 1 tsp
• Pure essential oil – 3-4 drops
• Glass jar
• Rubbing alcohol (to disinfect the jar)
• Mixing spoon

There were a variety of options available for mixing, but really, the combinations are almost limitless depending on your skin type and preference for scents:

• If you want a stronger scrub, try Himalayan salt. For those with more sensitive skin, you may want to opt for brown sugar.
• You can choose between any non-scented or mildly-scented oil for this – at the time, the option was sweet almond oil or olive oil so I picked sweet almond.
• In order to make the scrub more moisturising, you can opt to include a teaspoon of honey, coconut or cocoa powder although this is optional.
• You can use any pure essential oil to scent your scrub – lavender for relaxing, tea tree for anti-bacterial, ginger to boost circulation…the list goes on and on!

The steps to making your own scrub are easy enough…if a noob like me can make it, anyone can! :D

1. Disinfect the glass jar with alcohol (important, as this will minimise the chances of your scrub going mouldy - the ingredients are natural after all, with no added preservatives)

2. Measure and pour in your salt or sugar into the bottom, then pour in your choice of oil on top. Please don’t do it the other way around, as you’ll have a problem trying to stir the grains into the oil and you'll get salt/ sugar everywhere (trust me on this, we saw this happen) Stir well to mix.

3. Once you have a nice blend of salt/sugar and oil, add in your honey (optional) and mix well. You should end up with a nice paste at the bottom while still having a layer of oil on top.

4. Last but not least, add 4-5 drops of pure essential oil to your scrub, and you’re done! Easy peasy, right? Depending on the essential oil you use though, your scrub may be stronger or milder smelling - just add a few more or less drops depending on your preference.

At this point, everyone was going “Does mine smell nice? Is it strong enough? Maybe I should add more essential oil…”

If you’re giving them away as gifts, don’t forget to tie a pretty ribbon around the jar (or in my case, strands of straw rope – since I’m kooky that way!), make a pretty tag and stick a small spoon for scooping out your scrub. These scrubs will last you a good 2-3 months, but I wouldn’t suggest keeping it beyond that…just in case!

Ta-daah! :D

I’m now wondering if I can attempt to do these with body oils and sea salt…since a lot of the body oils are already deliciously scented – I reckon it would be a good use for the oils that I found too rich or thick for my liking. Any ideas? :D

2012 - What. a. year!

It’s a bit late, but I figure it’s not too late to do a recap of 2012 since we’re still in January right? Right? I initially thought I hadn’t done all that much, but after looking through photos and matching events, hey, it’s still quite a list! (beauty or otherwise).

*takes a deep breath* and here we go!

January got off to a fabulous start spa-ing and doing a massive gift exchange with the evurl ladies – I think this was the only group shot we actually got all year! LOL…we’re terrible at taking photos like that :P Watched Ballet Revolucion.

Saw Freeze in Genting pre-CNY with the family. Had CNY dinner with the evurl ladies…for beauty bloggers, we sure focus a lot on food! :D Watched Swan Lake. Met the lovely ladies behind Bellabox, and have been a huge (okay, even bigger!) fan of theirs ever since.

Loved the i-Light 2012 show at MBS. Munched my way through classy food at Savour 2012, and still trying to recreate this 'ice cream crafted to look like a potato'. Re-discovered my love for blushes…especially the “it’s so pretty I can’t bear to use it!” ones.

Had even more classy food at World Gourmet Summit 2012 and been trying to recreate some of them at home with *some* success (will not subject poor souls to it until they've been perfected though). Bought my first ever Deborah Lippmann polish.

Descended on Tine and LeGeeque in Melbourne. Shopped till my wallet threatened to melt. Got my nails done by the awesomely talented Clara Hwang. Met Tinnipoo for the first time, and got a good workout from laughing too hard. Fell head over heels for my god-furkid, Coco (whose human mum will definitely protest she’s since become a total monster).

Tried rainbow eyeliner for the first time, inspired by Connie. Hit up Lady Gaga (paws up little monsters!) with Rinnah and Dom. Discovered how crazy Dom can be about food (or just in general).

Visited the Redken Rock the Runway show. Had a most fun and useful hair workshop with Jorge Joao in the lead up to the Redken show.

Took part in my first Standard Charted run ever (and survived!). Watched La Cage Aux Folles and laughed myself silly. Watched Comedy Masala and laughed even harder. Caught up with old friend and local comedian Kuah Jenhan and marvelled at how times have changed.

Headed to Cameron Highlands on my first fully-sponsored trip thanks to Strawberry Park Resort. Tried my first gelish manicure thanks to psawyerbeauty. Got engaged to a guy who makes me laugh till my sides hurt, and then some.

Hopped over to Batam for a day trip and ayam penyet. Moved apartments in Singapore, and fell in love with its rooftop pool. Did the whole fan thing and descended on the Harry Potter Exhibition at the Artscience Museum. Regressed even further back to my childhood visiting Universal Studios Singapore and loved every minute of it.

Made my first order of Stickygram magnets (won’t be my last!). Dicovered Mary Kay and some new loves. Watched Avenue Q for the third time (second in Singapore), and sang along. Got my feet tapping to Burn the Floor.

Bought my first Longchamp (at duty-free, no less!). Received my first Marc by Marc Jacobs item – an iPhone cover!! (larp you long time, you know who you are). Developed a love for Yankee Candles. Visited Batam once again (this time the posh side at Montigo Resorts!) on a company trip, and now want to go back there before the rates go up. Went to Bangkok on a belated birthday trip with the fiancé.

Had my first French degustation experience at Le Normandie at the Mandarin Oriental in Bangkok (yes, the irony of having French food in Bangkok…it was awesomely impressive though!). Gave the Thai economy a huge boost thanks to all my shopping there. Loved Fresh Sugar lipbalms so much, I ended up with a Fresh Sugar Christmas tree when Sephora launched their seasonal sets. Started doing up my apartment back in KL…I love my quirky lamp and blow-up reindeer! :D

And there you have it – when I was going through it, I realised I actually watched quite a number of shows in 2012…averaging out to about one a month! I love that they’re so accessible here (and it doesn't help that I just booked another THREE for January and May in 2013). :P

Here’s hoping your 2012 was as good for you as mine was for me. 2013 is going to be a huge year for me as well - bring it on!! :D

Maybelline Color Tattoo 24HR Cream Gel Shadows –now in Singapore!

While I was out and about last weekend in Singapore, I spotted Maybelline’s Color Tattoo 24HR Cream Gel Shadows – finally, the wait is over! There have been rave reviews about these online, so it’s nice to know they’ve finally hit the sunny little island (translated – within easy reach!)

There are a total of 8 colours available – Bad to the Bronze, Fierce & Tangy, Painted Purple, Tough as Taupe, Tenacious Teal, Edgy Emerald, Bold Gold and Audacious Asphalt.

I was messing about with the testers at BHG, and so far Bad to the Bronze seems to be my favourite out of the lot, with Audacious Asphalt coming in a close second. I’ve seen them available at BHG, Guardian and Swanston so far, so they shouldn’t be difficult to hunt down. They’re going for SG$15.90 each if I remember correctly, although you can get them for SG$12.95 at Swanston.

PS: A very belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Can’t believe we’re already into the second week of January, and I’m still editing photos from November (super fail, this one). First and foremost resolution for 2013 – get back to some semblance of regular posting! :)