Vietnamese Coffee

ilustrasi diambil dari http://heavytable.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/vietnamese-coffee.jpg 

Hi ladies and gentlemen, how are you in this weekend? Sebagai seorang pecinta kopi, aku ingin menshare pengalamanku meminum vietnam coffee. Yang lalu-lalu sempet coba di kafe st Marc, Olivier, sampai roti bakar 88. Dihitung-hitung budgetnya lumayan juga sekali minum kopi IDR 40-60an ribu, makanya kemarin hunting alat-alat vietnam drip dan belajar videonya di youtube. I am proudly making my own Vietnam coffee, dan rasanya enaaak (hemat-hemat ^__^).

Jadi bahan yang diperlukan:

- Robusta coffee  karena rasanya yang pahit dan deep, cocok untuk espresso

- Vietnam drip  beli di tokopedia/buka lapak 

- Susu kental manis/ condensed milk, kalau mau pakai gula pasir jg optional

- Gelas yang imut usahakan bening

- Air panas 90-100 C, kalau saya pakai yang 100 C, karena ngedrip nya lumayan lama

I am using mug warna biru gelap ukuran 250 mL, kalau mau lebih cantik, pakai gelas kopi yang bening, biar keliatan mewah ala kedai kopi nya. hohoho...

gambar diambil dari http://www.cikopi.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/viet.jpg

caranya:

- rendam set vietnam drip di air panas, biar yakin all is clean, kemudian angkat dan lap bersih

- siapkan gelas, tuang 2-3 sendok makan (SDM) susu kental manis.

- taruh vietnam drip set di atas gelas, keluarkan dulu dandangnya dan taruh 2-3 sdt kopi medium ground, (kopi masih sedikit kasar), lalu letakkan dandang di atasnya

- siram dengan sedikit air panas sampai kopinya settle di bawah, tunggu 30 detik, lalu tuang sisa air dan tutup

- dengan cara ini, kopi akan menetes pelan-pelan dan menjamin keluarnya rasa yang kuat, istilahnya minyak kopinya keluar semua

- Siap dihidangkan!

Selamat mencoba Vietnam Coffee di rumah anda.

Repit Magic Brush Iron 2 in 1

Hi ladies and gentlemen! Today, I would like to review one of best investment for hair styling tools. Yup, Yup, actually my hair is short already, but I am a lazy girl who want to style hair in less then 15 mins >.< and I cannot stand hair dryer heat.
So accidentally, when I went to AEON, they have their little REPIT booth in beauty section. The SP kindly offered me to try its new product, the REPIT Magic Brush Iron 2 in 1, and me as a sucker for beauty technology took the opportunity. It is a beautiful product which can be used even by the most inexperienced person in hair styling.
Additional bonus, it produced little heat, the heat rod covered by brush stick which eventually reduced heat exposure on your scalp, also ion which keep your hair smooth and healthy.
It has 4  heat modes, depend on your hair condition ( if you have brittle hair, use the least hot mode)

1.  110 C
2.  140 C
3.  170 C
4.  200 C 

Also 2 diameters:

1. 24 - recommended for shorter hair, it creates smaller curls

2. 27 - for longer hair, it creates volumes and big wavy curls

Even when I used it without hairspray or any foam, it creates natural look which last for around 6 hours (my hair is just super straight which is great for me).

There is a switch on it which can open the brush and made it into straight iron tools, great for bangs and tip of your hair ^__^, the quality is so great so when you use straight iron, it does not tug on hair. Easy to use, you press 1 button to change the heat, press 2 button to turn it off.

The downside is on the price which is quite expensive, around IDR 1,800,000 in big department store (AEON, SOGO, METRO) it offered 1 year warranty. Fortunately I have got mine from tokopedia, for around IDR 1,300,000 but without 1 year warranty and different color from the official distributor (rose gold).

My overall conclusion: MUST BUY ITEM 5/5 for all the function and value it has offered

it really save your time.

When to Clean your Makeup Brushes?

Hi Ladies! As we know today, the makeup world is blurred to painting world. No more we only use sponge and finger, we have additional brushes for more beautiful result. They have their own specification: foundation, stippling, fan brushes, concealer, even the eye brush has minimum 5 kind of brushes to apply. Today, I will not talk about brushes but the principle of cleaning your favorite tools.

Important to know that brushes will trap material, oil and skin residue on it. The more you use it, there are bigger chance it will be dirtier than other brushes. I know there are many makeup brushes out there, personally I love Real Technique because it is affordable yet has great quality.

I seldom use makeup with brushes, but I clean my makeup brushes every 2 weeks. And I have great help with Brush Egg (a gift from my dear friend)

How to Clean?

Instructions:

1. Run your brushes under lukewarm water, rinsing out all of the residual makeup. Focus on the actual bristles while avoiding the part of the brush where handle meets the head, as this can loosen the glue over time
2. Fill a bowl with lukewarm water and a squirt of baby shampoo or baby wash, and gently swirl your brush tip in the water or tap it on brush egg.
3. Rinse the brush tip under running water once again. Repeat steps two and three until the water runs clear from the brush,
4. Use a cloth to wipe your brush clean.
5. Lay your brushes flat on a cloth to dry.

URBAN DECAY NAKED 2

Hi ladies and gentlemen, I would like to review my favorite eye shadow. Naked 2 from Urban Decay is my dream come true, I remembered last year, I was contemplating to buy it. as an efficient buyer, the things that I bought should have the best value of its price. Fortunately, the price itself give the best quality, and the shades spoke true to its color, pigment, and really long lasting. If I should describe Naked 2 color, it consist of beige, natural, dark smokey color which are suitable for either daytime or night time.

The packaging is like your elementary school pencil box,

 Its DOMO kun >.<

it made from metal, sturdy and has "the lock", unlike Naked 1, so you can safely keep it without spilling.

If I could describe the colors;

Foxy : White, ivory shade great for highlighter or inner eye, it does not show on my skin because the similiar skin tone despite 5 x application

Half Baked : golden shimmer

Booty Call : naked ink color shimmer

Chopper : pinkish gold shimmer

Tease : mute mauve color

Snake Bite: Favorite 1 brown neutral with a bit of simmer

Suspect : very light brown with great pigment

Pistol : light grey with amazing finish

Verve : nude pink and sexy

YDK : mix of Half Baked and Chopper, but unique on its own

Busted : Favorite 2 dark brown with hints of light purple

Blackout : Your favorite black eyeshadow!

I bought it on September 2016 in Urban Decay at Central Park Mall, the price IDR 810,000. Its quite affordable compared with other high end brand, and it has 12 shades!

Overall

Packaging: 5/5

Color : 5/5

Pigment : 5/5

Long Lasting: 5/5

Value: 5/5

Will I buy it again? yes!

D'EYEKO: SITY LIZA EYELASHES

Hi Ladies and GentleMen! Rasanya sudah umum kalau dikatakan mata adalah jendela jiwa, apalagi kalau framenya bagus pasti jendela rasanya makin kinclong hehehe. Singkat kata, this is my 1st attempt to use fake eyelashes. Di Indonesia sendiri sudah banyak produsen lokal yang menghasilkan premium brand fake eyelashes, salah satunya adalah D'EYEKO. 

Setelah berbagai penelitian dan pencarian Eyelashes yang pantas untuk pemula, saya memutuskan untuk membelinya di Watson seri SITY LIZA seri Seroja, kalau gak salah harganya IDR 70,000 dapat 2 pasang, lumayan hemat karena 1 pasang bisa dipakai sampai 8x. Tidak kalah pentingnya adalah lem untuk bulu mata palsu, karena lokasinya yang dekat mata, wajib hukumnya aman dan nyaman. Merk DUO menjadi pilihan pertamaku, karena harganya tidak terlalu menguras kantong, reputasinya juga baik. DUO kubeli di Sephora dengan harga IDR 149,900 (lumayan bangkrut nih beli 1 set ini berhubung banyak kondangan bulan September).

Merek DUO ini bagus, karena warna lemnya hitam keabuan, jadi waktu ditempelkan sangat menyatu dengan bulu mata natural kita.

How to Use?

1. Ambil bulu mata, ukur di mata kita apabila kepanjangan atau bagaimana, biasanya bisa dipotong dulu

2. Oleskan tipis-tipis lem bulu mata palsu, tunggu kira-kira 30 detik biar 1/2 kering

3. Dengan Pinset, aplikasikan mulai dari bagian dalam mata, disusurin ke arah luar (pakai pinset dan jari supaya lebih rapih

4. Kedipkan cantik matamu biar terasa pasnya.

5. Jepit dengan Eyelash curler biar menyatu, dengan bulu mata natural kita

6. Tambahkan Mascara bila suka

Pada prakteknya, susah-susah gampang mengaplikasikan bulu mata palsu, 4x coba baru rapih...

Well Practice makes Perfect, memang harus lebih banyak latihan, mudah-mudahan bisa jadi expert 

>.<

If I become better, I will buy another set of Fake Eyelashes

Thank You so much 

FACIAL OIL: HUMAN NATURE OVERNIGHT ELIXIR

Hi ladies and Gentlemen! This is one of my favorite thing in beauty regiment... Facial Oil, from human nature: Overnight elixir. I bought it around PHP 1000 for 30 mL around October 2015 (promotion price). For me, its ingredient and its price is a great deal, because usually, facial oil is sold for around > PHP 1500

It has 9 oils:

Caprylic/capric triglyceride (coconut-derived), Helianthus annuus (sunflower) seed oil, Rosa canina (rosehip) oil, Passiflora edulis (passion fruit) oil, Glycine soja (soybean) oil, diheptyl succinate, capryloyl glycerin/sebacic acid copolymer, Persea gratissima (avocado) oil, olus (vegetable) oil, tocopherol (vitamin E), fragrance (rose-derived), glyceryl caprylate (coconut, palm and glycerin-derived), Lavandula angustifolia (lavender) essential oil, farnesol, linalool, Canarium luzonicum (elemi) essential oil, Rosmarinus officinalis (rosemary) essential oil

Aside for regular application, I usually use it to massage my face and eyes or to pull off dirt or remaining makeup. It is so effective that after I put exfoliator and mask on my face, I can still pull out some of dirt. 

Because my face is oily and has many problem, I use it 3x/week every night when I have extra times to do beauty regimen.  For only 3 drops/use (instead of 4), I really saved this oil, it is almost 1 year but I have not used more than 1/2 of the bottle.

Surprisingly,  this oil has calmed down my face, My pimple and blackhead are reduced, my pore is cleaner, and skin become supple.

I would recommend this oil for everyone (please see the exception on my previous post), Including people who has combination skin or acne prone skin.

OVERALL

Packaging 5

Ingredients 4

Smell 4

Value 4.5

Price 5

Will I buy it again? YES

 

KOREAN'S GIFT

Thank you my dear cousin, you understand me so well, 3 masks to try and 1 hand cream... It is so cute that I don't want to open it yet.
Snail and Rose, it is hip right now, but I am kinda hesitate with horse fat mask, if it would smell awful or nice instead.
I hope I can go to Korea next year, trying to save my money for other purposes >.< Playstation neo 4.5 (sigh).
She said the cosmetics in Korea is a lot cheaper, the price is about 50-60% from official counter in department store. Actually I want to try REPIT 2 in 1 iron brush, I am a lazy girl who prefer sleep instead doing my makeup, so I often sacrifice my hair regimen for a nice and clean makeup instead. I prefer short-to medium hair, so it is not a big deal for me. If I have my REPIT 2 in 1 iron brush, I will put some review here in my blog.

NATURE'S REPUBLIC: Real Nature Mask Sheet Rose

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen, last month I have received great gifts from my cousin who recently had trip to South Korea. She gave me 3 masks (horse fat, snail, rose) and 1 hand cream. As a skin care addict, I cannot wait to use one of these mask. While watching the king and the clown, you know that 2005 movie which depict the live of tyrant king and his jester troupe (aah beautiful Lee Joon Gi with his extraordinary performance) there is no better match than using Korean mask.

How to use:
1 Clean your face
2 Use Toner
3 Apply mask on your face for 10-20 minutes (mind the holes)
4 Pat dry the remaining moisturizer on your skin

The smell is a big plus for me, although ideally, a makeup or skin care should be neutral, but I cannot resist the fragrant rose smell. Even my husband said it smell great. It felt cool on my face, and wet but pleasantly soaking, the nose and eye parts are okay, it fit my face and my big nose. After 30 minutes application (10 minutes overdue), I just pull off the mask from my face and throw it to the bin, then I pat the remaining fluid on my face, it cannot completely dry, even when I went to bed, it still left sticky residue. 

Regarding hydration power, I don't think this one is special, because when I woke up in the morning, my skin felt only slightly better but otherwise normal.

OVERALL:

Packaging 5

Smell 5

Texture 4

Effectiveness 3

Price 5 

Will I buy it again? probably, for once in a while if I wanted to pamper myself with its rose aroma.

DERMABRIGHT intensive whitening serum

Hi ladies and gentlemen, sorry for the slow update... I have a rather unproductive weeks last month. As I have promised, I would like to review my personal experience with DERMABRIGHT INTENSIVE WHITENING SERUM. It is a light weight serum and easily absorbed into your skin, after a regular application every night for 3 weeks, my skin tone is become better. The texture and its pore look smoother and plush, also I noticed that my oil production is reduced, maybe because better hydration. I also have lighter skin tone and it is a big plus for me, because I can use my mom's foundation. Trust me if I said there is nothing bad in this product based on my personal experience.

It has great design, we don't need to pull off the cap, just roll it on other side and the pumper will come out. The color and material scream expensive product, but its price is quite affordable. I bought it in Martha Tilaar counter for IDR 345,000 with bonus a facial cleanser. I definitely will buy it again because for a serum, it is such a great product with attractive price.

OVERALL

Packaging 5

Ingredients 5

Texture 4

Effectiveness 4

Price 5

L'OREAL PARIS: GENTLE Lip and Eye make-up Remover for waterproof make-up

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen! How do you cleanse your make-up? Let us imagine a face with thick mascara, foundation and matte lipstick, I found it is quite hard to remove all of them with just water and soap. Especially mascara, because eventually it will run out and create black shades around eyes. Our eye make-up is one of the concern because the skin around eyes are gentle hence we need proper care to cleanse it.
L'Oreal is one of my trusted brand, the quality and price is quite affordable, also readily available from drugstores to department stores.
Applied it on clean cotton and wipe it on your eyelids, eyebrow and lips, then followed with cleansing oil to all areas except eyes and lips.
It cleanse well without leaving greasy area, it did not irritate my eyes, if we kept our eyes shut tight >.<
 I bought it on Guardian for around IDR 95,000 last August 2016 (125mL).

Overall:

Packaging: 4
Price: 4
Effectiveness: 5
Value: 4

LIP ICE SHEER COLOR WITH BEESWAX

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to share one of my favorite lip balm: LIP ICE SHEER COLOR WITH BEESWAX

According to Wikipedia:

Lip balm or lip salve is a wax-like substance applied topically to the lips of the mouth to moisturize and relieve chapped or dry lips, angular cheilitis, stomatitis, or cold sores.

The primary purpose of lip balm is to provide an occlusive layer on the lip surface to seal moisture in lips and protect them from external exposure. 

The older generation used earwax to put on their lips before they invented lipbalm >.< 

Even though I live in practically tropical country, I work in full air-con environment, as in 24 hours a day (My husband is such a polar bear cub, he cannot bear a little bit of heat). Also my habit to use matte lipstick worsen my lips condition. In Indonesia, whenever u mention Lip balm, usually we think NIVEA, they are the pioneer of lip balm ever since I was an elementary school student. When you grow up, your world suddenly open up, and you wonder the magical world of makeup, where you can find lip balm in rich variations. It may contain SPF, petroleum, Beeswax, Camphor, Paraffin. Also the colors and flavors! (yipeee)

As I mentioned in my previous post before, I prefer lip balm to give natural sheen on my lips compared with natural color lipstick. Although the staying power is lesser than lipstick, it can be fixed easily because a girl always bring her lip balm in her bag/purse everyday ^__^, and I tend to leave my lipstick at home (a matter of habit I think).

And here I would review LIP ICE SHEER COLOR WITH BEESWAX, Natural color.

It moisturize enough with good amount of natural pinkish red color on your lips. It is great kind of sheen that can be used in your everyday/school look. 

If you compared Lip Ice with of Nivea Essential Care, it cannot deliver moisturize power unlike Nivea, but the color and sheen made up its weakness.

  

OVERALL

Packaging: 3

Staying Power: 3

Effectiveness: 3

Value: 5

Price: 5

Will I buy it again? YES

FACE or FACIAL OIL

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen :>! I would like to share my passion about Face Oil, Yes, you heard me right, I have greasy, oily complexion yet I love Oil on my face. Face/Facial oil is a long business in beauty regimen, before all the hype, our ancestor used drops of olive oil or maybe virgin coconut oil on their face, lips hair, bodies. Yet today, the hype is coming again, and we have so much varieties: grape seed oil, sunflower, jojoba, almond oil, argan oil (remember the hype?).

These kind of oil are different with essential oil, (the one with aromatherapy and fragrance). These oil usually plant based and has no irritant base like the one in fragrance oil.

And here are the most asked question about facial oil:

• Why do you need oil on your face?
• Our face has natural oil, which is produced by our lovely skin, yet in our 30's we started to lose its production. When you give natural oil on your face, it will protect your skin, penetrate deeper and give nutrients on skin, it also make your skin supple in the morning after, and amazingly it reduce my oil production and evened my skin tone.
• Who needs facial oil?
• Everyone can reap benefits of facial oil, especially the one who have dry skin. It controls oil production and enhance hydration on face. For someone with combination and oily kind of skin, this is tricky questions. Because when I use a few drops (2 drops per used, 3x/week) my skin become better, smoother, healthier. But when I use more than that, My face felt greasy. 
• When to use?
• Facial oil is an additional product, yet important, you cannot use it alone but it will enhance the power of your serum and moisturizer. My usual step: cleansing -> toner -> serum (wait 10 mins) -> facial oil (wait 20 mins) -> moisturizer. Although we can use it twice a day, personally I love to use it after my evening shower, because I need time to make it completely absorbed on my skin.
• Benefits of facial oil?
• free radical protection
• plumping skin: oil is lipophilic, it loves fat and can absorb faster and compensate for lack of oil
• improved skin tolerance: some have anti irritation properties
• better absorption: it can deliver molecules of our moisturizer easily. 

Best facial oil? Oh there are so many out there that not all facial oil created equal. Almond, Rosehip and Jojoba oil are the most frequently used, so you can try them first.

RECOMMENDED for everyone who loves skin care and want to try its benefit.

MAYBELLINE: Eyeshadow Quads

Hi Ladies and Gentle man, I would like to review Maybelline Eyeshadow Quads... I remembered when I was a senior high school and just learn how to do your makeup, Maybelline is a must brand for learning, aside from cheap, it has many varieties. I love their lipstick, then I tried to buy the other products which is Maybelline: Eyeshadow Quads

(picture taken from beautygala.com)

My verdict about this eye shadow: sadly disappointing
Packaging is okay, but the pigmentation, color, power is 1.5/5

I guess they have decent lipstick, but for eye shadow they have to extend their research to make one which is affordable yet has better quality.

They have their nude palette which was released just last year 2015. I have not tried that one. They compared it with Urban Decay, but because of my bad 1st experience with Maybelline Eye Shadow, I don't think I will buy another one.
Still their Mascara and Lipstick are one of my favorite ^__^

KANEBO IMPRESS: Cleansing Cream

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to introduce you to one of my favorite facial cleanser, the famous Japanese brand: Kanebo. For facial cleanser, I tend to rely on Asian brand, especially Japanese brand, because they have long reputation to make products with excellent quality and more compatible with Asian Skin.

For this past 3 years I have used Mario Badescu, Olay, Ponds, Shinzui, but almost all of them have (except Mario Badescu) successfully dried up my skin, then I remember one time that my skin have perfect condition was when I used Kanebo Cleanser from my Mom (I forget the series).

Kanebo is one of the high end brand from Japan, aside from Shiseido. Impress series has a vision to:

 For Impress, beautiful skin is defined as finely textured, clear, translucent, and firm. These are the very qualities attained by the two unique approaches of Impress – “Normalization of the skin blueprint” and “Normalization of the binding and adhesion of the skin structure.”  (from kanebo.com/brands/impress.html)

I bought Impress Cleansing Cream on May 2016 at Metro department store, Jakarta

Price: IDR 350,000

After 1 month usage my skin feel supple, more thoroughly cleaned, more even skin tone, and it is just from 1 pea sized for all my face. I think, If I used it carefully, one bottle could last for 6 months, so I spent around IDR 59,000/ month for facial cleanser (A girl needs to think her spending)

Overall:

Packaging: 5

Texture: 5

Effectiveness: 5

Price: 4

Value: 4.5

Will I buy it again? YES

L'OREAL Paris Lucent Magique Blush Palette

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen out there! Blush On is one of the staple part in my everyday makeup, for natural look, it is good to keep our makeup down and simple, a face powder and 3 swift of blush on could make your face awake. Combine your natural look with lipbalm and eyelash curler (and a little bit of mascara) is enough to make you presentable in your classroom or workplace.

Today I would like to review L'Oreal Blush On, the Paris Lucent Magique Blush Palette. It came out around early 2014 or late 2013 if I were not mistaken. It has 4 colors

• Duchess Rose
• Fuschia Flush
• Blushing Kiss
• Sunset Glow

The Duchess Rose and Fuschia flush are ideal for warm toned, dark colored skin, Blushing Kiss for cool toned, and Sunset Glow for Neutral skin tone.
I bought the Sunset Glow at SM Supermall Philippines, discounted for around PHP 400 or IDR 120,000 but in Indonesia, we can buy it for  IDR 180,000.
It has shimmer and good for dry skin with small pores, but for me, it enhance my already big pores >.<
Sadly it only last for around 4 hours on my skin, maybe because my skin is oily. The pigmentation is not really strong, I need 4-5 swift to make the color pop out, even though the color is gorgeous.

 

 Overall:
Packaging: 5
Texture: 3
Power:3
Pigment: 3
Price: 3
Will I buy it again? No

L'Oréal: Voluminous Miss Manga Mascara

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to review one of my favorite brand for makeup: L'Oreal. 

L'Oréal is one of the best drugstore brand who can deliver great result that can be compared with high end brand, personally I love their foundation and powder. It also easily available from drugstore to department store.

Mascara is a must in your beauty routine, one magic swift of mascara wand can make your eyes glitter and open. Even the most natural makeup needs magic touch of mascara. Why I love L'Oréal mascara? Maybe because it is affordable and have great result. Mascara is one of the product that I never use more than 6 months (as recomended), because of that, I cannot think to spend so much money for this product (big NO), my budget for mascara usually less than IDR 200,000  or < USD 16, unlike lipstick or eye shadow (you can use it up to 12 month- 2 years).

Miss Manga by L'Oréal is designed to make your eye lashes look like Japanese manga or anime character (remember rose of versailles and glass mask?). Not literally like those things, because you need false lashes to create those glittery butterfly effect, BUT for simple mascara, it gives one of the best result. My eyelash become darker, thicker and looks longer, combine it with Shu Uemura eyelash curler, and you get perfect combination.

Price:  discounted in Watson's for PHP 400 or IDR 120,000

Overall:

Packaging 5

Power: 4

Result: 4

Price: 5

Value: 5

Will I buy it again? YES

SHU UEMURA: Eyelash Curler

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen out there, today I would like to review my all time favorite eyelash curler, yes the legendary SHU UEMURA eyelash curler.
Because I am an east asian descendants who has small eyes, eye look become an important factor in my everyday look. Eyelash curler can instantly open up your eyes, and make your whole face different.
I NEVER have any accidental pinching with this eyecurler, I have tried other brands, from drugstore, no brand eye curler, but shu uemura is the best (Price don't lie).
I bought it in Shu Uemura Philippines for around PHP 1300, or IDR 420,000 but I think you can find cheaper price in some online shop or beauty bazaar. You will have an extra pad for the curler, I think you can use 1 pad for 1-2 years. Make sure to clean it regularly.

Overall:
Package: 5
Design: 5
Value: 5
Price: 3

NIVEA, FRUITY SHINE WATERMELON

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to introduce you with NIVEA Fruity Shine Watermelon

Lip balm is a must in my purse, when I want to have natural look on my face, I would rather apply lip balm than lipstick (compared with having natural color lipstick). It give natural gleam on my lips also moisturize my pouts. I like Nivea because it is a well established brand, it has many line of skin care and lip care, although I always lost my lip balm :D.

This is a shiny lip balm, which gives off sweet, gentle, watermelon smell. It is glittery, but the con: did not have the moisturizing power compared with the intense moisturize one (the classic one with blue tube).

The price is around  PHP 120, or about IDR 36,000, Weight 4.8 gm.
I bought it in Watson's Philippines. Hopefully I can found it in Indonesia.

Overall:
packaging 4
texture 4
smell 4
effectiveness 3
value 5
Will I buy it again? YES

Bio Essence: BIO SPRING WATER

Hi Ladies and Gentleman! I would like to introduce you to this sweet product from Bio Essence: BIO SPRING WATER, that I just tried since last month. I saw it on Guardian, with discounted price (Maybe just launching) for about IDR 120,000 I got 2 bottles 100mL + 30mL

I am one person who is a bit skeptical with this kind of product, because I always think that, this is JUST water that you spray on your face, its a scam. Even when my friends bought Evian in my high school era, I did think that this kind of thing is fake, and they were stupid to buy these products. Until curiosity hit me then I decided to try this stuff by my own, no harm done with IDR 120,000 I got 2 bottles.

In the morning, I put it on my face after makeup and in the evening,  I put all the creams first then spray it later, surprisingly it works!

My face felt smoother, more supple in the morning after I sprayed this water on my face and neck. I bring the small bottle in my everyday bag, and the big one on my vanity desk :>

If you put it after you make up, It will become more natural looking, and your skin is glowing.

I always have combination yet dehydrated skin, hence this product is perfect for me, and I recommend this products for all people out there who wants some added benefit.

OVERALL

packaging 5

texture 4

smell 5 (no smell)

effective 4

Will I buy it again? YES! 

AZTEC SECRET Indian Healing Clay Deep Pore Cleansing Facil Mask

Hi Ladies and Guys out there! I would like to introduce you to this amazing product, It is cheap, it is part of DIY, and it works!

Ingredients: 100% Natural Bentonite 

Mix with: according to label: water and apple cider vinegar (for oily big pores); for me you can also add drops of coconut oil, lemon, cucumber juice (anything)

Tools: non metal spoon, bowl

• What is Natural bentonite? 
• it is ash from volcanic eruption.  
• How it works?
• It draws out impurities made by heavy metals to our body (cadmium, mercury, lead, benzene). It also contains rich amount of minerals like Magnesium, Calcium, Copper, Iron, Potassium. 

When you mix it I use 1 by 1.5-2 combination, examples: 1 tsb clay, mix with 1.5 tsb apple cider vinegar until it form paste that is easy to apply. Put it on clean skin, let it stay for 20-30 minutes, and I swear you will feel pulsation on your skin, it will become so hard that you cannot smile or move your facial muscle :P. It is so strong when you pull off some of the flakes, you can see few soft comedoes on it.

You can prepare warm water and cloth to wipe off the mask, then after you clean all of it, you can put toner then your regular serum, and moisturizer

I don't know if its just me, but every time I use it, my face become reddish, but it disappear overnight.

The price is a BIG YES, for around PHP 400 or IDR 120,000

OVERALL

packaging 4

texture 4

smell 4

value 5

effective 5

Will I buy it again? YES! 

L'OREAL PARIS REVITALIFT ANTI WRINKLE + FIRMING EYE CREAM

Hi ladies, today i would like to give you my opinion regarding L'Oreal Eye Cream. This is one of the most forgotten cream in our daily routine, that you won't realize its importance until you see those small wrinkle near you eyes (gasp!). The texture of skin around your eyes are soft and thin, it has many blood vessels, hence it is really sensitive towards biological changes, even lack of sleep could make those eye bags more prominent. We need to start this regimen in our early 20's because when we hit 20 years old, our skin will start to lose collagen.

Ideally once opened, you need to finish this cream for 6 months, but eventually I finished it after 1 year >,<. Even I don't use it regularly, I still feel the differences on my eye bags the morning after. it felt smooth and the color become more even, it felt supple, moisturized and hydrated.

The price around 800 pHP or around IDR 240,000. You can find it on leading department store or big drug store.

Overall;

packaging 4

texture 4

smell 4

price 4

Will I buy it again? YES

FOOD TRIP: GADO-GADO

Hi ladies, last week I was in dire need for vegetables, those busy schedule made me unable to even cook my own vegetable dishes. I love all kind of greens, (include bitter gourd here). My household always point out the importance of vegetables and fruits. When I was just a little girl, my lunch or dinner always had 2 kinds of meat/ fish, and 2-3 types of vegetable dishes. Therefore if I missed my daily vegetable/ fruits, I felt uncomfortable, headache kind sensation.

Around 500 meters from my workplace, I found this great GADO-GADO, recommended by the nurses in my workplace.

GADO-GADO is an Indonesian dishes, originate from Sunda/ west Java, it is popular in Banten, Jakarta, West Java. Central and East Java has its own variant, named PECEL, and Pecel usually use galangal in its sauce.

Gado-gado is the equal term of Salad in european country, usually the vegetable is blanched, the vegetables that can be found: spinach, kangkung, bean sprouts, green bean, chayote, corn, cucumber.
Additional: tempeh, tofu, potato, boiled eggs, crackers
Sauce made from ground peanut, tamarind water, lime juice, terasi, palm sugar, chilies, salt, water.

You can eat the vegetable plain, with lontong or rice. (I know :D full of carbohydrate)
Relatively, it is a low calorie food if you can limit the peanut sauce.

This Gado-gado stands near gondangdia station. I went there around 1 PM, straight at lunchtime, the queue was around 5-8 people, usually office worker. But the vendor is helpful, smiling (despite hot weather), and earnest on his job.

I went to nearest Indomaret (our minimarket) to buy some cold black coffee to wards off the heat and waiting for the food. He still remembered my request: add the vegetable, less sauce, no eggs + half rice and just adjust the price :D
It is served on top of plate and banana leaf, true to its traditional value.

For only IDR 14,000 I was quite full, it tasted good, and I am happy with the experience.

FOOD HUNTING PASAR PAGI: KERAK TELOR, MIE CELOR, CENDOL

Hi ladies, and all the folks out there. Have you ever wander other  city just to hunt for certain food? in this past 2 months I have been so busy that I missed PEKAN RAYA JAKARTA, it ended at 17 July 2016. Sadly, I have not be able to fulfill my craving for kerak telor or any traditional Jakarta food. 

When my schedule with my husband were match, I decided to use train and Busway to go to Mangga Dua, because my husband would like to know the recent PS4 price deal :P.

I prefer to hunt food in street food, although I am quite picky, and choose the cleanest street vendor that I could find.

And here I found what I was craving for

Kerak Telor with chicken eggs: IDR 17,000, you can change it with duck eggs but sadly it was sold out. It is a heritage of Jakarta/ Betawi people, made from small amount of ketan (sticky rice), mix with eggs, cooked with heat from charcoal, the finishing touch? sprinkle it with serundeng (shredded coconut), shallots and ebi. My review with this one that I have bought from Pasar Pagi, was disappointing... It is really different with the one that I have tried with my Oma and Opa (grandmother and grandfather) when I was just a little girl.

Mie Celor: IDR 18,000 big yellow noodle with gooey gravy, from coconut milk, boiled with ebi (dried shrimp), or fresh shrimp. Ideally for finishing touch, it was sprinkled with bean sprout, shallots, ebi, shrimp, boiled eggs. It comes from Palembang/ South Sumatra Region, a bit disappointed that this Mie celor was bland, no shrimp or any coconut milk trace from its gravy, not true to the original one that I have tried once in Palembang.

Cendol: IDR 11,000 it said to come from Java Island? in Java you call it Dawet , in Sunda/ west Java, you still call it cendol :-D this one is the best deal from these 3 food. it is sago (rice flour) which is mixed with coconut milk and palm sugar. The sweetness is kinda mellow, aromatic, with gentle smell of coconut milk. I love this traditional beverage.

Hopefully, I can find another great food on my next food trip.