Keep calm and keep walking

And so I'm feeling extremely stressed up these few days. With the schedules i live by and my inherently dumb personality, I always feel stressed . I kept having random dreams when I go to bed at night which is always a lousy thing because I'm not getting sleep! Last last night I dreamt of Toni Starks plucking mushrooms -.-;

But this past month has been particularly trying.

In fact I would say this entire first half of 2013 has been.

Hard to believe 2013 is already half gone and I still feel like the same loser I was last year.

Oh, don't mind me calling myself a loser. It's just this thing I do to myself when I'm feeling down. No biggy! I'm not phishing for compliments , I'm just in a negative self thrashing mood and i need a place to throw all these negativity and stress out! Lol!

The thought about the year and my own approaching birthday had me asking myself "what have I achieved?".

Well to give myself some credit, this year I took part in 2 contest and emerged as finalist for both. And if all goes well, I will accomplish a milestone in life soon.

One of the contest I took part in is OMY. sg's Blogger's contest. I am running in the Vlog category. While I am extremely honoured to once again be considered good enough to be the top 10 vlogger in Singapore. The challenge entry that needs to be submitted by 9th June is having me wallow in defeat.

By the way guys, if you think my main blog; The Cosplay Chronicles is Worthy of a support , please vote for me here T. T you can vote everyday !


So 2013 had been an alarmingly fruitful year despite my lack of attention. Ok , I take my word back, all the fruits I gained are through all the hardworking I ploughed. So I guess I deserve them. But like I mentioned on my Facebook, I've always been hardworking but the past 2 years had been particularly exciting and fruitful and I think it's all thanks to God for bringing me to the right places at e right time.

Unfortunately this year also saw a lot of heartaches. I had people I believed in do or say things that made me felt really bad. Things which I felt was unwarranted and unnecessary. It wasn't entirely my fault but i always ended up paying the price for it.

Getting misunderstood is no stranger to me. But it was an old friend I thought I had sent away.

Goes to show how old haunts never fails to trap you when you least expected. It also shows that continuous self reflection is needed for everyone.

And It suddenly dawned upon me that this must be the pain God felt when we betray or reject him . Maybe all these unhappy incident was to make me appreciate His love more.

Every time it happens, I always felt like I could never forgive that person for his / her mistake. But then I realise God forgives so readily and never brings it against us once we confesses. Makes me feel both like an asshole and thankful. LOL.

There is so much I want to talk here but I have 2 exams, 1 event , 1 concept and 2 commission /contest videos to complete within 2 weeks. So I'm off to chase time !

Wish me luck in all things ><!

Review: Leaders Insolutions Mask ( Vita Bright)

Name: Leaders Insolutions Mask ( Vita Bright)
Bought from: Gmarket  ( for sale in Watsons & Guardian in sg) 
Price: $1.5 - $3+ 
Rating: 4.5/5

Photo credit: https://www.facebook.com/leadersinsolutionsg

Introduction:  Initially, I didn’t want to try this mask because it was twice as expensive as my usual ones. But a friend highly recommended it when we were in the middle of a Watsons Members sale. Seeing how it was selling at half price, I grabbed one and stayed a fan till now.

As a disclaimer, I’m not paid or sponsored for this review. I bought everything myself.

According to my online research,

“ LEADERS Cosmetics Group has owned and operated over 10 Professional Skin Clinics across South Korea; Seoul, Daegu City since 2001.

LEADERS InSolution is COSMedical brand that was created and tested by dermatologists of LEADERS Skin Clinic.

No.1 Dermatologist tested masks in KOREA! No Paraben, No Mineral Oil, No Silicon & No Artificial Pigment.”

 

Texture : Depending on the different mask type, the texture of the paper differs. But they are generally thin, translucent and adhere to the skin very well. The 'bright Up' one almost feels like water silicon. It just feels incredibly supple and ... for the lack of a better term; jelly-like. 

Look at the photo below, doesn’t the mask looks like it’s merging into my skin?!

 

Effects: This is my first insolution masks and the one that started everything. So it's not surprising I would have nice things to say about it. 

As the name mentions, it's a 'Brightening ' mask and it delivers that. Unlike some of the other masks I have used that brightens up my skin significantly after but the effects never last. This mask has a moisturising effect that lasts till the next day even though the brightening effect might not be alarming on first trial. The first time I used it I observed that my face was shine free the next day until late afternoon. Of course there are factors that attribute to that and it might not work exactly for you but it has been a mask i continuously reach for.

To explain a little on what 'Brightening' means, it doesn't mean whitening and changing your skin colour. It means deep hydrating and conditioning your skin to make it so much healthier, it glows. Dull skin is the biggest reason why my face is darker than my neck. 

It’s a nice overall effect masks for people who wants a bit of everything.

 

Pros: It adheres to the skin well, feels almost like your second skin and delivers what it promises.  It is also quite affordable if you know where to purchase. I always ship mine from this shop. 

 

Cons: It is hard and expensive to get in countries outside Korean. In Singapore, we can only get them from Watsons that sells it $3/ sheet. 

 

Conclusion:

Until I find something that surpasses it in terms of quality and price, I will continue to use it. I guess I might already have used 40 over sheets of it LOL!

If you are interested to purchase it, this is where I always buy mine. Yes, i might earn some commission if you buy via the link but I tell you, that is the store that sells it cheapest on Gmarket! Many other stores adds addition cost afterwards .  They take 2 weeks to ship though…. maybe it’s because I’m cheap and always opt for the $0 shipping option =x

As you can tell from my many facebook posts, I have purchased from them numerous times and with the exception of once (one of the masks leaked) they have never failed me. 

Hope you guys enjoyed the review and have fun masking!

What is smartness ?

When I was younger, I strived hard to be smart. But as I grow older with accumulated painful experiences, I started to learn to act stupid. I wanted to fit in. It was liberating at some point but I soon started to believe I am indeed stupid.

Was it a good trade ?

Life score

I really don't think I am a famous or popular Cosplayer. Whatever tiny fame or achievements I have are shamefully laughable.

But even for someone like me, there are times when I hope they agree with me because I'm doing the right things.  I hope people really like me for who I am and not anything else. As a friend they will defend, a bridesmaid at their wedding and a God-mother to their future kids. That is the kind of relationship I want with people around me. I have that with some and not with some. At the moment a 1:1 score LOL.

Chek Jawa @ Pulau Ubin

I went Pulau Ubin last weekend ! It was just a short half day trip but it was fun and tiring xD ever since a horrible cycling accident a few years ago, I have yet to step back to the island so I was pretty excited and couldn't wait to jump onto a bike.



But because my church mates tried cycling to chek jawa the week before and advised against doing it again , we just ferried a van this time . $2 per trip, $4 for a return trip. We paid the uncle $4 each up front and he told us to call him 15minutes in advance and he would come back to pick us up.

New shoes Hurt a lot x. X

Review: Hada Labo retinol firming + lifting cream

Name: Hada Labo retinol firming + lifting cream
Bought from: Watsons
Price: $28.90
Rating: 3/5

I ran out of my favourite Hada Labo moisturiser recently and decided to try their retinol firming one. I had previously done some research online and the bloggers mostly spoke positively about it. Only one particular blogger mentioned that the retinol lotion (which is kinda like toner) actually made her super sensitive hands peel and advices against using it in the day as it might react negatively with the sunlight.

I bought this 50ml product from Watsons for $28.90. Like the rest of Hada Labo's product, It comes in a simple plastic jar. Nothing fancy about it, no magnifying material or empty walls around the jar to make it look bigger than it actually is, which is good.

I've tried this cream for 2 nights and day and must say I'm not super impressed.

The cream is opaque white in colour and has a very viscose texture which made it really hard to blend. It is super sticky , probably due to the collagen ingredients and takes around 10 minutes for my skin to absorb it. It is so sticky that when I cringe my face I can feel the skin around my eyes stick together lol !

I'm not sure whether had I been using too much of it at a go thus the unwanted stickiness or it is really meant to be this sticky.

I have combination, dehydrated and sensitive skin. And I'm in air conditioned environment most of the time so I really appreciate a product that can keep my face from drying out.

Unfortunately with all it's viscosity and stickiness , it didn't seemed to hydrate my skin as effectively as I'd like. I still need my hydrating essence to boost its moisturizing effect. I'm not sure if it's just me not using the product correctly or my expectations were just too high. Either way, the product's not too bad but I guess I was expecting more.