TOPAZ HORIZON

I am on shoe-shopping mode. I haven't bought shoes in a while, mostly because there was no reason to buy new shoes last year since I hardly went out last year.

Woah. Did I just say there was no reason to buy new shoes? There is always a reason to buy new shoes! Who is this woman who says there's no reason to buy new shoes?!

Well, the old me must've stirred from her style slumber because I feel the itch to scratch the credit card on shoe shopping, and the first shoes that caught my eye are schu's new styles. Here are my favorites:

For daytime events...

For nighttime events...

For errands...

For meetings...

For when I want to feel pretty...
There are so many more colors and styles so perfect for the summer! You can check out all of Chocolate schubar's Spring-Summer 2014 line and the TYCA line at their Facebook page. But be warned: That's what I did and now I'm a mess, just thinking about shoes! All the styles are available at all schu shops so I guess I'll bump into you at schu if you shop for shoes, too!

*all photos grabbed from schu's Facebook page

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Shailene Woodley, star of Divergent and the upcoming The Fault in Our Stars (and Hollywood's newest It Girl), has a point.

Quote from a TIME article on Shailene.

I always told Vince, "We women are our own worst enemy," since we seem to be the first in line to pull down, put in her place, insult, shame a sister. I have been a victim of this for as long as I can remember. That's why most of my friends as I was growing up were boys. Of course, being surrounded by boys who really were just friends made the girls even nastier towards me. I have always tried to be supportive of other women. The only times I remember being nasty towards another woman is when Angelina Jolie got together with Brad Pitt, and when Kris Aquino was being annoying. But I have long since realized the error of my ways. Live and let live!

This Women's Month and forever after, let's please be kinder and more encouraging and more supportive of each other. We have to stop the hate. Peace, love and light to all!

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I was at a lunch hosted by P&G Beauty at Manila Polo Club. They were celebrating Women's Month (yes, March is Women's Month!). It was a small party for magazine editors, newspaper journalists, editors of lifestyle websites, and then there was little old blogger me.

I haven't been attending events the whole of 2013 (save for a few blog advertiser events because, well, I had to attend those!). It was my first year to be a stay-at-home mom and a full-time blogger. I tried working as a freelance writer and newspaper columnist, too, but, boy, I realized I can't juggle too many things after all. Something's bound to suffer, and I've since accepted that I am happier and more effective if I just slooooow down and just relish my awesome life! It won't be this slow forever (I doubt I'll be a housewife all my life) so I will enjoy this phase while it lasts.

(But it was still kinda nice to see old friends again!)
Big perk of being pregnant? Everyone wants to give up their chair for you, so that's how I ended up sitting between P&G's Country Communications Leader Clint Navales and super host Issa Litton.

The lunch was P&G's way of picking the brains of the media, especially the women of media who create media for women. P&G said they did a nationwide survey of Filipinas from all socio-economic backgrounds and found these surprising beliefs:

• Women believe that men should still get the higher paying job. In fact, between a man and a woman with the same intelligence and credentials, women think the job should still go to the man. WHY? Because men are the breadwinners so they should get more opportunities and more money.
• Women also think that, for the same job, it's okay for men to earn more than women, and to get promoted faster. WHY? Same reason as above.
• Women use beauty products not to attract and keep men, but to hide their age. WHY? Because young girls want to appear older while mature women want to stay looking, I dunno, 25 maybe! Just reinforces the issue that women are ashamed of their age!
• Men are hired and promoted for their potential, women for their experience. WHY? Women need to prove they can do the job. Men just need to show up.

There were actually more but I'm reeling. I am in total shock. It's the 21st century and the Philippines is a modern country but apparently our beliefs are still medieval.

I am living in a bubble.

Dear readers, I don't think we women should subjugate men. Neither do I think women are the superior sex. I just believe that we should be given the same opportunities, the same rights, the same accolades, the same encouragement and support, the same appreciation. I'm lucky to be married to a feminist who encouraged me to pursue my ambitions and then respected my choice to be a full-time mom when I decided on that. He never put me down or put me in my place or told me I can't do things because I'm a woman. I hope all men can be like my Vince and all women can have a dad or husband or mentor or friend like Vince!

Don't let anything hold you back, ladies!


Let's celebrate Women's Month by destroying the boundaries and beliefs that hold us back!

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Apparently, I've been using my Shiseido Ibuki all wrong. Remember my Ibuki review and I said, "Just a little product goes a long way. I've been using my Ibuki for 4 months and I'm just halfway through my bottles." Well, they're not supposed to last that long! The bottles have a pump and each pump dispenses the correct amount of product to massage into skin. If I use too little, it's not as effective. And I've only been using half a pump all this time!

All this I learned when Shiseido invited me to their beauty blogger event at Picasso Boutique Serviced Residences. It was my very first beauty blogger event, by the way! And I think I only got invited because I did the Ibuki review haha. I'm not a beauty blogger, you see, and I think you can see that from my picture above. I mean, I didn't even put on makeup or brush my hair haha.

I've been to beauty events, of course, but in my former life as a print editor. Beauty blogging events are more nerdy and take a much longer time. Why? Beauty bloggers ask so many questions! I understand this because when I read product reviews on beauty blogs, they're very detailed and comprehensive. Plus, since every blogger has to have great photos for their blog, they really go up close and shoot away, and even ask the presenter/model to do things slowly or again and again so they can get the perfect shots. Interesting!

Here are some of the bloggers at the Shiseido event:

My dear friend, Nicole Romero of Beauty & Sparkle.

From left: me, Rowena Wendy Lei of Animetric's World, Liz Lanuzo of Project Vanity, Nicole, Tara Cabullo of Chronicles of Vanity, Kikay Trekkie, and Shiseido's Momoko Isibashi.

Shiseido's Momoko Isibashi is here in Manila for a few months to help launch Shiseido's store in SM Fashion Hall. She also gave us a few beauty tips (with the help of Donnarence Masilungan of My Lucid Intervals):
There's a proper way to remove makeup. There's even a proper way to fold the tissue so that it's efficient and clean. Anyway, always use makeup remover before cleansing. Start with pressing the tissue moistened with makeup remover on eyes and then gently wiping off. Gently wipe off the makeup on the rest of your face.

Always use a spatula when taking out product from a jar. This is to prevent bacteria from getting into your creams. I never use a spatula!

For firm and healthy skin, massage your face. This is a model's secret. They love having their faces massaged. It not only keeps their skin firm, it also helps drain the face of fluid so puffiness goes away. I wanted to show you the massage via a video but I'm not so gorgeous today so I'll just do the video when I'm pretty again haha.

Donnarence said she loved how her face felt warm after the massage. I tried it, too, and my face also felt firmer. Momoko says you can massage your face every day!

And here's Donnarence fully made up again after the facial! It's just a very light makeup that anyone can do.

If you want to know more about Shiseido skincare and makeup, get a skin consultation and free makeover, get certified beauty training and more, check out Shiseido's beauty fair this weekend at SM Megamall Atrium. Have fun!
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This was all over Facebook today but I'm blogging it so I can always have it to remind me that Vince and I also were strangers when he and I met, then talked on a hotel rooftop in the chilly Baguio night, and finally melted into a kiss that sealed our fate 15 years ago.

I didn't even really know his name. When my Papa asked me if I met anyone at the writing workshop, I said, "Well, there was this guy. His name is Vince Salas, Santos, or something. Basta Vince."

"Is he someone special?"

I stopped for a while, thinking of the kiss. "Yes. Yes, he is. Possibly. Not sure yet. But we finish each other's sentences. That's something, right?"

And Papa said real quietly before he said good night, "Well, you better ask him his name again. You just might end up with it."

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I like the red, black and white color motif.

Hehe. Yun lang p0h!

P.S. Samsung vs iPhone? Sino ang may mas magandang picture pala?

*Oscars photo from WSJ, local version from Philippine Star

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Okay, I know it all seems to be fashion and beauty on this blog lately. And books, too. Well, I'm a stay-at-home mommy who's getting a wee bit too pregnant to roll her round self all over the city so I have nothing exciting to talk about except for my fabulous fashion and beauty finds!

Anyway, I'm super duper excited to finally get my Epilady!!!

I bought them from CashCashPinoy last week. My friend, Nicole of Beauty & Sparkle, knows I've been looking for epilators but I balked at the prices in PCX (heller, 7K!). So when I saw that CashCashPinoy had a bunch of these on sale, I snapped them up for only P3,898!

Grammar edit! Correct: "is". The subject is "payment"!

An epilator is a device that removes hair. I used to own one in the early 2000s but it conked out on me around the time I got married (one must be hairless on one's honeymoon and my honeymoon lasted almost three years so the poor device died on me!) so I've been looking for Epilady since.

I bought my first one from Watsons but they never restocked. So I've just been going to Strip for my hair-removal needs. But Strip is soooo expensive. So I can't be hairless all the time. Then hooray for online shopping!

See all those tiny tweezers? They make for super fast and painless hair removal. Well, painless for me because I only use this for my body but not for my nether areas. I hear from fellow epilator owners that that kind of pain removal is intensely painful!!! So for that sensitive area, I still prefer going to the waxing salon.


I also got a facial epilator for the imaginary hairs on my face. Yup. I must really get rid of that magnifying mirror. So now I have shopper's regret because there's really no hair on my face. I used it on my (imaginary) unibrow but I darn near pulled out all of my eyebrows.  

But I'm happy! Super happy! Now I don't have to spend a ton just to be smooth and hair-free! So freaky with waxing salons because they charge you by the body part. You know, like lower leg, whole leg, underarms, chest, tummy, forearm, whole arm. And since it's so pricey, I always just say, "Just the lower legs please."
But now with my Epilady epilators, I can do my whole body in the privacy of my own home for soooo cheap. Hooray!!!

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Vince and I have been attending a lot of weddings lately. We love dressing up, especially for weddings, because it's not just a reflection of our style but a show of respect for the wedded couple and the occasion. But it's really hard to look perfect  in a a suit and a dress when you're chasing after two little boys. I just tell myself that we're going for the British look lately—stylish but disheveled.

Then I saw these at Vanity Fair's Oscar after-party.
Reese Witherspoon in a black-and-gray paillette embroidered silk dress from the new Fall/Winter 2014 BOSS runway collection. I love her hair! But if I'm to wear this (and not to a wedding hehe), I need to not eat for a month.

Adrien Brody in a perfect Hugo tux. Sigh! He reminds me of Vince! I really like skinny guys with prominent noses!

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While the OK! magazine staff have all gone our separate ways and are all the better for it, when something big happens in Hollywood (like a hook-up, a marriage, a divorce, a birth, a death), we all still discuss it like we're still making a living out of it! The current discussion was, of course, on the recently concluded Oscars red carpet fashion, and started, of course, by our former red carpet columnist, Jay Santiago, with this video.



I am oh so glad that my fashion idol, Hal Rubenstein of InStyle, finally said what I've been thinking all along: that the red carpet is oh so boring!

"The myth is that the Oscars is the biggest fashion show in the world. Not true. When we go to a fashion show, what we're looking for is innovation, fresh ideas, new concepts. The red carpet is about familiar garments, the glamour that we were brought up on in the movies. Do something odd, do something different, do something tilted, and the viewers get shocked."

I couldn't say that when I was still a Hollywood celebrity magazine editor haha. I mean, what kind of editor would say, "Oh hey, guys, it's red carpet season again and guess what? It's all so boring!"

Since the rise of the stylist, there is no personality on the red carpet anymore. Save for fashion-forward stars like Tilda Swinton, Kate Bosworth, Sarah Jessica Parker and my favorite Cate Blanchett, there's just glamour on the red carpet. Just glamour. Style is gone. Gone are the swans of Bjork, the men's shirts of Sharon Stone, the safety pins of Elizabeth Hurley, the threads of Rose McGowan, the homemade designs of Demi Moore.

Ok, these are not all from the Oscars red carpet but just wanted to point out that style can be crazy!

Everyone looks gorgeous and glamorous and divine. Well, that's what movie stars are supposed to look like! I'll just watch the Grammys then. You can always count on musicians to be authentic (Rihanna! JLo! Lady Gaga!) and to give us all a spectacular show!

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I started using Shiseido Ibuki in mid-September last year when BDJ Box sent me samples. I was encouraged to use the line after Project Vanity's glowing review. And you know what? I'm now an Ibuki girl! I love it sooo much!

Ibuki is the new skincare range from Japanese beauty giant Shiseido. They launched it mid-last year. I started using the samples from BDJ Box in September, was wowed so much that I bought the full-size products in October. I've been using it exclusively since.

Ibuki is meant for anti-aging so its market is young women (and men!) in their mid-20s who are working too hard or too long, live in the polluted city, and enjoy life a wee bit too much. You're still young enough so that your skin can take all that abuse but once you hit your 30s, BAM! You'll look awful. So Ibuki aims to build the skin's resistance to our daily stress, protecting it from pollution, UV rays, dryness and unhealthy lifestyles. Now, I'm 37 years old, 36 when I started using Ibuki, so I'm not the target market but I tried it and loved it! So I decided to do a review!

Important note: This is not a sponsored review. All the products featured here I bought with my own money. Here's proof!
Haha, defensive! Sorry, this is my first real beauty review ever and I don't want it to be tainted just because I'm sooo in love with Ibuki!

Okay, here are the products that I got. The only one I didn't get from the Ibuki line is the eye cream. I know, I know. I should use an eye cream. I'm nearing 40, for heaven's sake. But I keep skipping it! So, knowing my beauty habits, I didn't get the eye cream since I didn't want to spend an extra P1,800 for something I'm definitely not going to use.

Gentle Cleanser - P1,495 for 125ml tube
Most beautiful lather I've ever experienced. Ever! It's almost poetic how such a small pea-sized amount can transform to something so soft and creamy and light but dense and cleansing and perfect. My skin loves this cleanser! My skin feels really clean but not tight and dry.

If your skin is oily or you wear a lot of makeup, Ibuki has another facial wash, the Purifying Cleanser.

Softening Concentrate - P1,600 for 75ml bottle
"What is it? Is it a toner?" That's what people keep asking. Since we Filipinas are more familiar with the Western way of skincare (wash-tone-moisturize), a softener is confusing because it's another product to add to your regimen. But to Asians, especially the Japanese and Koreans, a skincare regimen has five to even eight steps (read this mom's skincare routine, for example!). Crazy, right? But their skin looks perfect!

So what's the Ibuki Softening Concentrate? It's a lotion that softens your skin after cleansing (and toning, if you do that) so that the next products you apply will be better absorbed. If you notice, skin can get a bit tight after cleansing and toners tend to close pores so the softener is the pre-moisturizer because it helps prepare your skin for the serum/treatment and moisturizer. Wow, right?

If that all sounds unnecessary, it isn't. Trust me! This is my ultimate favorite Ibuki product. My skin really drank this up and I'm so soft and smooth because of it! If I don't have any budget, I'll still scrape together something just to buy this again!

(Day) Protective Moisturizer - P1,950 for 75ml bottle
I like that this is light on my face and is easily absorbed. But I don't think I'll buy this again. It only has SPF 15. How is that supposed to protect me from the Manila sun?! So I always need to add sunscreen on top of this and I really don't like piling on products. I'll finish this whole bottle but I'll switch to a moisturizer with a stronger sunscreen (SPF 30 at the very least) before the summer months come rolling along.

(Night) Refining Moisturizer - P1,950 for 75ml bottle
I love this moisturizer! I use it at bedtime and the scent is so relaxing. I feel like I'm giving myself a spa treatment. I love that it's light and easily absorbed, too, since I don't like pulling and tugging my skin just to get the product absorbed. This one penetrates quite quickly.

My skin really became refined. I also don't feel the need to exfoliate anymore, probably because this moisturizer already does that really well. I used to have dry spots on my cheeks and sides of my nose but those are now all gone. My skin looks finer yey!

If your skin is dry, you can use the Refining Moisturizer Enriched cream.

Here's a side-by-side comparison of what I looked like before and while using Ibuki:
Though my skin looks whiter in the right, Ibuki has no whitening effect. The reason why I think Ibuki doesn't whiten is because (a) my foundation shade for both Bobbi Brown and Happy Skin is still the same and doesn't need to be changed, and (b) my acne scars and sun spots are not fading at all. So my skin looks whiter in the right photo because... well, must just be my hair turning really red. That's what happens when my hair is super red—my skin looks whiter. Or maybe my camera's white balance is off? I didn't adjust these photos, you see. No Photoshop! Just my naked face!

It's not really seen in the photos but my skin changed dramatically in just two weeks' use. I started in September. It's now February and my husband has since been constantly saying how soft and young I look. Guys, I just turned 37, and I'm pregnant and exhausted. I'm supposed to be looking rougher and older but I look great! It's not the "pregnancy glow" because my skin always freaks out when I'm pregnant, a combination of angry pimples and dull, dead skin. But with Ibuki, my skin is softer, smoother. I'm not oily at all. I'm not breaking out, except for the occasional pimple now and then that I know is caused by my hormones. My skin does look refined. And though I'm a busy, tired mommy, my skin doesn't look it!

Summary:
Here is my most recent photo with my favorite Ibuki product, the skin softener. Like, I took this pic a few minutes before publishing this post. I'm wearing no makeup, just eyebrow powder. As you can see, my skin looks great. Not flawless—my acne scars are still there (sigh!) and I really do need eye cream for my dark circles and crow's feet.

I LIKE... 

• My skin is really so nice now! It's firm and yet soft, moisturized yet not oily. I look so much better now! 
• Ibuki is not cheap but it's not as expensive as Lancome, Kiehl's and Estee Lauder either. Plus, just a little product goes a long way. I've been using my Ibuki for 4 months and I'm just halfway through my bottles.
• Every review I read complains about the "strong floral scent." I think the Ibuki line has a delicate fragrance. Quite elegant actually, unlike products from some French and Italian brands which are infused with nauseating perfumes. I love the smell of Ibuki! It relaxes me and makes me feel rich haha. 

I DON'T LIKE...

• Though I really think it's not expensive, I'm aware that for a lot of girls in their 20s, the price of each product is still painful. Just look at it this way: The basic products (cleanser, softener, moisturizer) is like a nice pair of shoes or a good handbag, but the products last for months and months and make you look fabulous every day! That's a great investment!
• It didn't fade my acne marks and sun spots so boo. 
• The protective moisturizer has SPF 15. That's ridiculous in the tropics! Not protective at all!

MY TAKEAWAY: I've found the basic skincare range for me! I know it's targeted to younger women (it's supposed to prevent aging and I'm already there haha) so I guess I can still use this for a couple of years or so before I need something more potent.

I'll just use the cleanser, softener and refining moisturizer from Ibuki. Yup, just the basic products. I think I'll need to use my SK-II Facial Treatment Essence again (after cleansing) then add a brightening serum after the softener (I'm looking at Lancome) if I want my acne scars and sun spots to go away. And I'll need another moisturizer with higher SPF for the day (maybe go back to VMV Armada). And even though I hate applying eye cream, I know I need it. I just haven't seen enough reviews of Ibuki's eye cream to plunk down almost 2K for it.

WHO'S IT FOR: Anyone looking for a basic skincare regimen but is willing to graduate from drugstore brands. They're marketing this towards young professionals so if you're in your mid-20s to early 30s, this should do nicely.  

You can buy the Ibuki line from Shiseido boutiques in Greenbelt 5, Greenhills, Glorietta 4, Power Plant Mall, Shangri-la Plaza, Trinoma and Eastwood.

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My novel for February is John Green's The Fault in Our Stars.

I only wanted to read it because the movie's coming out and I only wanted to watch the movie because of the guy playing the romantic lead. I first saw Ansel Elgort in the remake of Carrie, and though it had Julianne Moore and Chlöe Grace Moretz in it, it was Ansel who caught my eye. That kid can act!

So since I wanted to watch the movie, I had to first read the book. I read it just before Valentine's Day so I was feeling very loved up. The book, very easy to read (in fact, you can finish it in a few hours), is not intimidating at all. Intimidating? Yep. It's about teenagers dying of cancer, a story not everyone finds thrilling. But read it read it read it!

The story begins with a girl and a boy meeting at a cancer support group. Hazel Grace Lancaster has thyroid cancer and Augustus Waters has bone cancer. She didn't set out to fall in love. She just wanted to live the rest of her life in peace, not wanting to form any relationships because that means more people will get hurt by her eventual death. But Augustus broke down her walls with this:

Newly colored.

Now, 5 months after coloring.

Yep, it's been five months since I had my hair colored. It's not an angry red anymore, more like a red brown. With 2 inches of roots yuck! For someone who insists on coloring her hair red, I don't go to the salon as often as I should. I go maybe every 6 months. Yep, just twice a year! So people ask how I can care for my red hair. Here's how:
1. I use hair products specifically made for colored hair. My favorites are Kerastase, Kiehl's and Pureology.
2. I don't wash my hair often. Every time hair gets wets, color molecules are washed out, so I try to wash my hair just twice a week. This is possible because I'm just home all the time so I don't get sweaty or my hair doesn't get exposed to pollution.
3. I use cool water for my hair. Hot water opens up the hair shaft, making the color seep out faster.
4. I don't go under the sun. The sun's rays bleach color!

I wrote more about taking care of colored hair in Working Mom's July issue last year. Dedet Panabi, the editor-in-chief, definitely picked the right girl for the job since I've been coloring my hair since I was 18! I know what I'm talking about!

I really think girls (and boys!) should just have fun with hair color. Try a different color every now and then. It's just hair! And when you find the perfect color for you, you'd be amazed at how it can completely change everything—your attitude, how people perceive you, your looks, your confidence!

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I'm blogging about this because while I love the idea of bloggers collaborating with brands, I want to point out that Camille Co is actually a real fashion designer. She designed and sold clothes under her Coexist label way before she became a blogger. I've also wanted to do brand collaborations before, mostly create maternity and nursing wear, but since I have no fashion design background, I just don't know if I can actually do it (Elin.ph, maybe we can discuss this? Haha).

Now I don't follow Camille's blog but I don't really follow fashion bloggers waaaaaay younger than me. I know of her because I've read about Coexist in magazines and I admire her talent and business acumen. So when I talk about Camille Co designing a line of dresses for Cole Vintage, it's because I know it's a good collaboration!

The dresses were launched a few weeks ago but are still available today. Here they are:
 And here is the dress I'm dying to have but can't because it's no longer available on their online store!
I love the flirty hem, the bold color, and that deep deep V in the back! Dear Camille and Cole Vintage, please please please make one more like this for me!
The Camille Co line is exclusively available at Cole Vintage stores at The Ramp Glorietta, The Ramp Shangri-la Plaza Mall, The Ramp Trinoma, SM Makati, SM North Edsa, SM Mall Of Asia, SM Aura, SM BF Paranaque, and at The Podium Mall. Visit www.colevintage.com to see more colors and the prices.