Friday, May 25

China Glaze Metallic Muse

From the Khrome Collection in 2009, China Glaze released Metallic Muse. It's a blue-green "seafoam" chrome, and highly pigmented. You could very well pull it off with one coat. Now on my wishlist is Millenium, a beautiful silver metallic from the same collection, but its no where to be found available.


Wednesday, May 16

summer wishlist



HENRI BENDEL Mykonos Necklace // MULBERRY Alexis Peach-pink leather bag // TULESTE MARKET Small Claw Bracelet // BERDOUES Violette Divine Eau De Parfum // MIISTA lasa Sling Back Flats

Since uni is over for me and got nothing planned for an entire month, I have been doing nothing but "window shop" online. These are just a few of the things that I am longing for. Time to urge my dad for my grad/bday present!

Tuesday, May 15

Hey, I put some new shoes on, and suddenly everything is right

So I used to think that the shoe stores in hk sold super tacky shoes, (eg. staccato, millie's, joy & peace..etc) but recently I have found myself liking their collections. Venilla Suite is a rather new brand that is under I.T. and last week I went with my mom and ended up buying 5 pairs of shoes! 3 for her, and 2 for me.

First pair is a python print wedge. I normally don't purchase heels unless I really like them, because I rarely ever get a chance to wear it. For one, I feel like a giant walking in the streets in hk, and two, because of the endless walking that I'd rather not do in heels. However, I tried these on for fun, and instantly fell in love. They are sooo comfy, I almost feel like I'm floating.




(Lol at Bootboot in the background)


The second pair, is a sandal that is from an italian brand which Venilla Suite carries: Pour La Vie. It's a little more expensive since it is a brought in brand. At first, my mom really liked it but then thinks its too 'young' for her, so she insisted I wear it. I love love love the hardware, makes it super edgy, but also quite chic, no?








Monday, April 30

Pharrell Williams and Angelababy for GAP in Hong Kong


GAP got good reception for their campaigns in Hong Kong featuring one celebrity from Hong Kong/China and one from the U.S. This one was released most recently, and I'm pretty sure Pharrell took it when he was (still is, maybe?) in Hong Kong for his talk at Liberatum. I must say I'm a little jealous of Angelababy at this point, not only is she considered to be Asia's hottest model and every guy's goddess, she got to shoot with Pharrell.

Topshop in Shen Zhen


I've always wondered why there isn't Topshop in Hong Kong, seeing as it's available in Singapore and Japan, both comparable metropolitan cities in Asia.. Anyway, news is that Topshop is going to be having a "pop-up store", in other words a temporary store in ShenZhen, which is really convenient to get to by MTR (Lo Wu Station) from Hong Kong. The store will open in May 1st at King Glory Plaza, Renmingnan Road, Luohu ShenZhen (深圳罗湖区嘉宾路铂金广场).


I am expecting a lot of people going to be there on the first day, as May 1st is labor day, and also cause they are doing a promotion limited to the first day, where if you gather 50 people to enter the store at the same time, you get 15% off your purchase!


For more information and updates, you can following Topshop's Weibo account (equivalent to Twitter in China) and the Popup store website!

Friday, April 27

Revlon Guava vs Mock Snob

The two polishes were both super pigmented and easy to apply. Could pull it off in two coats. However, one huge disappointment is that it dries significantly darker than in the bottle. I know a lot of polishes tend to do that, but it made me really sad since I originally bought them because of how bright they seemed.


Guava on forefinger and Mock Snob on the rest. Because of how it dries a lot darker than it is in the bottle, Mock Snob turned out to be more of a red-orange than a coral.



The brush for Top Speed in comparison to the Colorstay series is a lot thinner and longer. I think both are easy to work with, it just depends on your personal preference.

Wednesday, April 25

Revlon Polishes: Mock Snob, Guava, Buttercup

Yesterday I stopped by Watsons and picked up three nail polishes. Yesterday was their last day for 20% off on Top Speed polishes. The two I got from that collection is Mock Snob, and Guava. I also got from their Colorstay collection, Buttercup.


Left to Right: Revlon TopSpeed Mock Snob, Revlon TopSpeed Guava, Revlon Colorstay Buttercup



Buttercup is a really pretty pastel yellow. The formula is a little bit streaky but still workable. I applied three coats to get a better texture, even though I usually only like to wear two coats. The brush is really flat and thick, similar to the OPI ones. The Colorstay collection claims to last for 11 days, even though I would hardly ever want to wear a color for 11 days before wanting to switch it up. I'm quite excited to try Mock Snob and Guava in the next few days and will probably do a comparison swatch since the colors are a little similar, with Mock Snob more coral, and Guava pink.

Sunday, April 8

Butter London Tart with a Heart and Essie Lady Like

I used one coat of Essie Lady Like underneath a thick coat of Butter London Tart with a Heart. The photos really don't do the real combination justice because it is so much more glittery than is shown through the camera.



Thursday, April 5

Essie Lapis of Luxury

I think this nail polish came out in summer 2010. I bought it last year, and rarely wore it, but today I decided to dig through my nail polish stash and saw this gorgeous color. I think I've only worn it once since I got it, and am so glad that I found it again today because its such a pretty pastel to wear for the spring! The formula is quite sheer, if you want to go for a jelly look, you can just wear two coats. However, it looked a little too streaky for me so I did three coats for more opacity.






It even goes with my keyboard cover!

Saturday, March 24

Rescue Beauty Lounge The Fan Collection

I received this in my inbox 50 minutes ago and was in awe. RBL has launched their "The Fan Collection"  (where RBL fans submitted and voted for their "dream nail polish color") and is ready for preorder from Mar 23, 12pm- Mar 25, 12pm (EST). All four colors are so incredibly unique and beautiful that I want them all. 


Each bottle sells for USD20 each and shipping to Hong Kong would be another USD18.5, so if I were to order all four bottles including shipping it would equal to about HKD765. That is quite a sum for four nail polishes but I am so so so tempted to order. (Maybe I'll secretly forward this email to my bf and see if he's sweetheart enough to maybe gift it to me.)

You can view beautiful swatches via alllaquered up here. At first I was most lured in by halcyon but the swatch of it appears to be more murky and grey than I was hoping it to be. Aqua lily, on the other hand, surprised me with how bright and pretty it looks on the nails. Cuprum seems to be a bit more common, although the copper sparkles really do make it extraordinary. Orly came out with Sweet Peacock in their Birds of a Feather Fall 2011 Collection that is also an electric blue but with a foil finish which makes it not an exact dupe but a little bit similar. And ikb:2012 seems to be so pigmented that I don't think there are any other bright blue with the same quality and formula out in the market.

The collection will be available for purchase at the end of April.

What do you think of the colors? Are you as amazed as I am with them?

Sunday, March 18

MAC Play Day Nail Lacquer

I received this in the mail two days ago and was so excited to try it out. There was some disappointment because the formula is a disaster, but the color is so gorgeous. I was actually searching for a bright coral lipstick but found this nail polish instead.




Play Day is from the MAC Vera Collection for Spring 2012 and it is described as a pale coral milky creme. Usually coral colors don't look very good on yellow based skin tones but this color works because it is has more of a pink base. If you're one of those people that love to look tanned, this color would definitely help you out. The biggest disappointment though, is the formula!!! This is the first MAC nail polish that I've ever owned, and it's scares me how terrible the formula is! I am aware that cream colors are the hardest to apply evenly but I don't think I've ever had so much trouble applying nail polish before (especially applying with my left hand..). Even after three coats, I was still in streakville. The formula isn't goopy or thick, but maybe if it was more opaque it would help with the unevenness. Overall, with a lot of patience and steady hands, you could get a great spring/summer manicure (and I can imagine pedicure too) with this color!

Friday, March 9

my spring polishes!

Left to Right:
Butter London Tart With a Heart
OPI Excuse Moi
Lunasol EX19 Luster Gold
Zoya Kelly
Essie Lady Like
Zoya Anchor Basecoat
Deborah Lippmann Mermaid's Tears
Orly Rage
Essie Cocktail Bling
China Glaze Ruby Pumps
China Glaze Atlantis

So unlike Matilda, I can't control the urge of buying new nail polishes... and recently I had a nail polish spree and bought 11 new polishes that I hope to rock for spring/summer. For now, I've only worn Atlantis and Mermaid's Tears, and love them both. Hopefully all the others will turn out well too. If not then I'll auction it off on yahoo, take that money and buy more polish, haha. 
Anyway, for now I can definitely say that the Zoya base coat is surprisingly good! I was contemplating between the Orly Bonder and the Zoya Anchor and chose Zoya only because I hate the Orly bottle. I only buy Orly if I really, really like the color. For example Rage, which has really good reviews and looks so amazing on alllaqueredup. It also reminds me of Deborah Lippmann's Glamorous Life which is also a rose gold but with a metallic finish. 

Breaking the cycle

Every so often, I will go on a streak and update the blog a lot. And then I reach a point where I stop and never update. And of course, I'm back again now. Who knows how long this will last. Nothing that exciting has happened since I last posted. Well, I guess Forever21 has opened, but that was rather disappointing. COS and J Crew will also be entering into Hong Kong. In terms of my personal life, I am now the proud owner of a toffee Alexander Wang Prisma tote and a white Phillip Lim eyelet peplum top.



And also some nail polish.

Deborah Lippmann Stairway to Heaven (source: Revolve Clothing)


Deborah Lippmann I Know What Boys Like (source: Deborah Lipmmann) I love how unique this shade is. It has a hint of purple in it and it's also dusty.

I do have a problem with nail polish though. For some reason, after using it just once, I'm just not excited about them anymore. I'm not saying I'd give up I Know What Boys Like or Peridot, but there are just so many products out there to try. The problem is that it's such a waste to buy so many and not use them up, though I've been quite good about it, I only own 15 bottles!

What's actually interesting is how my willingness to pay for nail polish has gone up so much in the past two and a half years. I still remember in my first year of college, I decided to "splurge" on a bottle of Revlon. Now, I will easily pay $180 for Deborah Lippmann. Actually, in general I've been obsessing over cosmetics rather than clothes, even skincare. After interning at a cosmetics company and really learning how to take care of my skin and the basics of makeup, I'm eager to try out a bunch of products.

Next on my to buy/try list is a nice red lipstick, gel eyeliner and some proper eyeshadow. Been reading Temptalia, which has tempted me to try MAC's Fluidline. I also want to try Bobbi Brown's eyeshadow. Maybe I'll go and shop tomorrow. I'll update on that...the next time I'm not too lazy.