January 28, 2013 - 2:07 pm
You can’t go wrong with a set of Charm makeup brushes. They’re the locally recognized mid-range makeup brush brand consigned in quite a few locations around the city like in Glorietta and at Pure Beauty in Serendra. The brand has also been cited several times by magazines like Cosmopolitan. Top blogger Sophie Uy has done a superb job of championing her brand! I use these brushes often on wedding jobs and advertising shoots and they just really deliver…without shedding.
Use coupon code PH-Twentyoff on all transactions until February 28, and get a whopping, happy 20% off on all items from Beauty and Minerals!
They’re having a sale over at the brushes’ online home Beauty and Minerals, be sure you don’t miss out! I think the discounts are only for online purchases. If you’d like to know what I’d put my money on other than the retractable brushes, which every self-respecting girl on the go needs, it would be this.
The J&C Super Clean Solutions Brush Spray Cleanser (which I’ve reviewed here is part of the SALE as well! I plan on getting more than 1 bottle of the stuff because it works so well and smells great.
November 25, 2012 - 1:16 pm
Like a cool cobra in the shadows I was waiting for just the right moment to strike and restock on my Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer. That moment came around when a StrawberryNET “We Miss You” Discount email alert came in (it comes when you’ve taken awhile to purchase again with them), promising an additional 8% on top of an exising 5% loyalty discount I already have plus a 1% discount if I chose 2 products. So given that 14% discount plus the lowered Php value of the US$ in the past weeks (41 to 1) I knew today was the day! I also remembered that this is the last day (you’ve got time) to avail of a special Korres gift with purchase. In my life I’ve consumed 2 full tubes of LM Tinted Moisturizer, it’s been the go-to item I throw in my bag for outings where I don’t want people visually nitpicking at what I have on. It evens out my complexion, knocks out the need to “prep”, I can put it on with hands, and it makes me look fresh without shouting “makeup”. I ran out of it at the beginning of this year and this time I chose the oil-free formula because reportedly, Kate, aka the Duchess of Cambridge, was spotted buying a tube of it shortly before the Royal Wedding Day (in which she did her own makeup).
I also had been planning to put money down for a very long time on my first ever NARS blush via StrawberryNET HK. I actually wanted NARS Madly, but it was gone when I checked this time and I thought MAC’s Trace Gold which I own is already quite like that so it was fine that I couldn’t have that. So I decided on NARS Zen which is the MAC Harmony of the NARS world or quite like NARS Laguna without the golden shimmer. Don’t get me wrong I don’t have anything against pink or peach I’m just on a neutral kick right now. So all in all this was a strategic maneuver to avoid the overhead markup of local cosmetic counters. Because the items I chose were not ON-sale items on StrawberryNET they still had on-hand markup, like LM Tinted Moisturizer is US$42 (Php1720) on the LM website but without discounts on Strawberry NET it’s $54 and the NARS blush on the NARS site is US$28 but here it was listed for $32. Directly from the brand sites both items in total would cost $70 but that’s not inclusive of the steep shipping fees. Wait, I know what you’re thinking “then WTH did you save if StrawberryNET had markup?”, I’m almost there…LOL, before you think I’m a twit let me finish. So basically what my 14% discount did was knock out the StrawberryNET on-hand markup and bring the $86 StrawberryNET total of both items down to a grand total of $74. It’s as if I was able to buy both items directly from BOTH brand websites without any shipping fees or overhead mark-up PLUS I got a KORRES compact powder of $44 value for free. For the Korres compact I deliberately picked a darker shade because I was running out of pressed powder for dark skin in my professional kit. So to wrap up, I paid under Php3100 for both an LM Tinted Moisturizer and a NARS blush plus I got a Korres gift with purchase! What I absolutely love about StrawberryNET is discounts can be compounded, so these discounts apply even on top of already discounted Christmas specials available right now on the site. It just turns out what I wanted weren’t on sale in the end. Today’s the last day for the gift with purchase offer and if you’re a StrawberryNET shopper you may have overlooked the “We Miss You” discount if you haven’t shopped for awhile, so better check your inboxes!
November 20, 2012 - 2:46 pm
Who is Ellis Faas? She’s a Dutch make-up artist whose professional expertise, ingenuity, technical skill, and keen creative craft eventually spawned her self-named makeup range which is nothing short of chic, high-end, and futuristic all at once. The Ellis Faas makeup range starting from November is now available here from StrawberryNET HK, which means…hello…we have access to it! Hers was one of those product launches that hit the news near the end of 2009 before it was officially released in February of 2010 and when I caught wind of it it felt like the sort of brand I’d never ever get to touch because it’s just so…far up there. It’s even way more up there and exclusive than the luxury brands at boutique counters you can waltz over to in high street department stores. Ellis Faas only happens to be one of the best and most gifted makeup artists in the world.
Photo from ianthayu.com
Having worked for many years in her career with top designers and brands like L’Oreal Paris Ellis is most famous for her own range of products which exactly presents itself as the world’s ultimate makeup arsenal like no other. Read more to see what the products look like and what I mean when I say that. I’ve also included a video review by Lisa Eldridge on this product range at the end of the post.
November 7, 2012 - 11:13 am
I didn’t expect to find a uniquely classy bag I could afford at this point, but trekking to Citygate in Tung Chung, the 30-min last stop on the orange train line from Hong Kong central, made it possible. I’d ventured out to visit a friend based near the fishing community of Tai O (a charming, rustic place) and on my way back to the city I scored this absolutely charming, illustrated Anteprima tote at Citygate, for 30% off at the final price of $HK 976/approx. Php5200.
“The brand was conceived by Izumi Ogino in year 1993, in hope of creating a brand for a modern woman with an appreciation for timeless luxury and contemporary style. A woman who can exist anywhere in the world, her flair transcends borders.The ANTEPRIMA woman, as created by IZUMI OGINO. She has captivated the fashion world since the label’s debut – as its name means in Italian – at Milano Moda Donna in 1998.” – ElementsHK.COM
I liked the brand Anteprima the first time I laid eyes on the boutique in Singapore. It’s a brand that absolutely gets me. Anteprima basically means “a preview” or “debut” in Italian but it was created by the effortlessly beautiful Japanese designer, Izumi Ogino in the mid 90s. She absolutely loves Italy and works mostly with materials from that region and always presents her collections in Milan. Izumi’s dainty but modern creations remind me of a more delicate Asian take off from luxury brands that know women inside out. These brands get that it’s not about being full-blown regal 24/7, it’s also about being elegantly chill in those moments when you need to be. Brands like those aren’t afraid to get playful in terms of design and know how to do it properly, NOT AT the expense of taste, like for example Chanel or Kate Spade.
Anteprima is mainly known for its famously pretty and dainty “wire bags” as well as shoes and dresses, but those were off the budget for me. Read more to get the full review, a closer look at the bag’s features, and my musings on this bag that I’m quite happy to own.
November 2, 2012 - 11:59 pm
Sorry it’s been quiet, I’ve been a bit…
…preoccupied, if you don’t mind my saying so. There’ll be lots to tell, soon. Wink*
Rae (4)
Bea (3)
Beauty by Tellie (2)
Belle (2)
Irene Fe Saren (2)
