Winter Wonderland?

I love taking pretty pictures in the snow, but WOW! That must've been the biggest snow storm I have ever encountered! My family and I were driving back from a party and we got stuck in the middle of the road! (Thank goodness no one dared to drive in this weather)

We just had to walk one more block back to the house, but that was the hardest block I have ever had to walk in my life! The snow was about 2 feet high, plus the crazy wind, plus the freezing weather, and I think you get the picture. ;)

Don't you ever get that rush of adrenaline whenever you feel like you're about to die?

Oh, and I know I'm too late for this but...

Merry (belated) Christmas!!!

And while you're warming up near the fireplace and drinking hot chocolate, be sure to enter my New Years Giveaway! Just click in the picture at the top of my sidebar. :)

Jewels in the Sea - NOTD

Since it's nearing Christmas time, I thought I'd show you another NOTD! I've been experimenting with Konad lately, and I'm pretty satisfied with my results. :)

For the NOTD, I used 2 new polishes I got: the Sephora OPI Mermaid to Order (I fell in love when I saw in stores!) and Zoya Jo from a swap.

After using the Konad stamps, I just finished it off with a little nail sticker and revlon top coat.

Here's a close up:

Please share me your thoughts!

Also...

Jill Stuart Giveaway @ Makeup and Life!


Makeup and Life is giving away a few Jill Stuart items to celebrate the Christmas and New Year. Thank you so much! ^_^

Prize:
Jill Stuart Blush Blossom - 03 Amaryllis or 04 Seductive Rose (winner chooses one color of their own choice)
Jill Stuart eyelash curler - to enhance and curl eye lashes with extra refill pad.

Ends December 28th

Also, be sure to check out my New Years Giveaway! Just scroll up and click on my giveaway picture.

~*~*~ My New Years Giveaway! ~*~*~ CLOSED!

Today, I'm having my first giveaway to celebrate the upcoming new year!
Thank you so much to all my readers who continue to support me, this blog couldn't have existed without you guys!

My New Years Resolution: I would like to work harder in school and make and effort to blog more. :)

Now back to the juicy part...

What you can win:

~Nicola Magazine May 2009 Issue

~Victoria's Secret Scented Body Lotion

~ELF Bronzing Brush

~ELF Plumping Lip Glaze in Plum Pout

~Wet N Wild Shine in Brazed (swatched once)

How to enter:
1. Be a public follower (new or old is fine) and leave a comment about anything you want to tell me. Your resolutions, your secrets, suggestions to improve my blog, anything!

Be sure to leave an email so that I can contact the winner!
(1 entry)

Extra Entries:
2. Blog about this giveaway and leave me the link (1 entry)
3. Add my giveaway to your sidebar and leave me your blog link (1 entry)
4. Tweet about the giveaway and leave me the link (1 entry)
5. Add me to your blogroll and leave me your blog link (1 entry)

Feel free to post your extra entries separately or all in one post!

The deadline is Friday, January 7 (11:59PM est time). I will post the winner on the blog and email them. The winner has a week to reply to my email or else I will have to redraw.

Please be honest with your entries so that this giveaway can be fun for all of us!

Look What I Got!

Here's me with the two cd's (hehe, I'm in pj's!)
You might not know this, but I actually have a love for Visual Kei, which is a style of Japanese music. I love it so much that pretty much 95% of the songs in my mp3 are specifically visual kei. I don't know what it is, but the music, fashion style, and just the connection between the audience and the bands, everything about vkei just draws me in. Yep, I've got a ton of posters for various bands on my wall!

That's why when I won these two Alice Nine CD's from Kawaii Kawaii Sugoi Blog, I was happy beyond words. Although I don't really listen to that band much anymore(became mainstream), I still stay faithful to them because Alice Nine was the first that really got me hooked to Visual Kei. You could say that it changed my whole perspective on life.


That was just a little something I wanted to share to you guys, since I feel really lonely being the only one in my school interested in vkei. Just trying to spread the love. :)

Anyways, here's what else I got:



Got these in 3 Separate swaps:
-Kose Esprique Precious Liquid Eyecolor Stylish in BL900 (omg, gorgeous! I have to show you sometime!)
-NARS Orgasm Illuminator Sample (first NARS product!)

-benefit BADgal lash Mini Mascara
-Lancome Le Secret Sample Eye Powder (holy crap, best color EVER!!! Scroll down for swatch)

-MAC Pink Opal Sample
-MAC Quick Frost Sample
-MAC Pink Pigment Sample (IDK the name)
I love MAC, but I can never afford it! Luckily, pigment samples are a lot cheaper and you get to experiment with more colors. :)



Also, I stopped by Chinatown last week and discovered a tiny store that sold phone straps for insanely cheap. I got 4 for $5, what a steal! If you didn't know already, I have an obsession with kawaii phone straps and my collection is always expanding!


As promised, here's Lancome Le Secret (layered over stila smudge pot violet):


and what is looks like in light:


AMAZING RIGHT? It's sort of like a mermaid kind of color, you get what I mean?
Wow, I think I might even buy the full product in the future!

I haven't experimented this with other colors yet, but I'm looking forward to it. xD

Have a great weekend everybody! It's difficult to blog when I also have 3 tests next week, homework, and fencing practice 3 times a week, but I'm trying!

Grace~

Major Konad Fail

Wow, probably one of the worst nails I've ever done. Period.

Originally, I was planning to wish everybody a Happy Thanksgiving with a new NOTD, but I did not see this "design" coming. Since I felt like trying to master Konad stamping, I didn't think it would be so bad. Turns out I was wrong.

After hours of waiting for my nails to dry, frustrating smudges, and uneven result, I gave up trying. I basically just slashed on some white nail polish and coated with sally hansen hidden treasure to try to cover up my mistakes.

Worst 5 hours of my life.



Actually, now that I look at it, it's not too bad. The flakies from Hidden Treasure kind of saved it, I guess. :)

Oh, and before I forget:



Everybody have a great last 7 hours of Thanksgiving!
I'll be going to a party really soon!

Thanks to all my amazing readers! :)

PS. Despite all the craze with Black Friday, I'm planning on going to Woodbury Outlet that day! I'm probably out of my mind though, because I've heard cases on the internet where they had to wait 2 hours just to get out of the parking lot!

A few sewing projects I've been up to

Isn't this so pretty? The base is actually real fur, which came from my great grandmother's fur coat.

All I did was stitch a long line of fur, attach some elastic, and glued on a flower from one of my shirts.

If you're interested in making it, you can ask me to explain more in depth. :)


(excuse my blah hair ;_;)

I've always wanted one of those cute Japanese bath headbands, so I decided to make one my self!



It was really easy, since I found the base somewhere in my house (originally an ear warmer). All I did to make the bow was sew a rectangle and wrap it around the base.

Both projects were actually reconstructed, since they all came from old clothes.
I find it amazing how ugly, unwanted clothes can turn into beautiful new things!
(hehe, I think that's why I'm hoarding too many of me and my mom's unwanted clothes)

I really need to preach this more, but sewing is not only for old people!

Tatcha Japanese Blotting Papers Review

It's been a while sine I've last done a review, so I thought I might talk about this product I received from a fellow beauty blogger (oops, I forgot who I won from!).



Wow, the packaging is so pretty, I'm impressed already!

Okay, so here's what the website says:

A 300 year old Japanese beauty secret for a petal fresh complexion revealed.
Removes excess oil and sweat without disturbing makeup or stealing moisture from the skin.
A powder and primer alternative that improves the wear of makeup.
For all skin types: oily, normal, dry & sensitive.
Ingredients
100% abaca leaf, gold flake.
Fragrance-free. Powder-free. Oil-free.
All-natural, biodegradable. No animal testing.
Handmade in Japan.

One pack 30 sheets costs $12, but it is really worth it? Let's find out! x3

Here's what it looks like inside:



The inside cover has a little story about how Geishas actually get their flawless skin from aburatorigami - Japanese beauty papers, which is exactly what this product is! How cool is that!

Close up of the paper:



Do you notice this little specks of gold?

Each sheet is so pretty that I an't even bear to ruin it on my dirty face!

So...

Here are the results I came up with!



Yes, very horrifying to see how much oil there is on it, but that proves how good this product is!
Can you believe that I only used this one sheet for my whole face? (you can use both sides!)

Overall, I was really impressed with this!

Packaging: A+ - Has a really unique and natural design while still aiming to be minimalist

Quality: A+ - Gold flakes and albaca leaf. As fancy as a sheet of blotting paper can get!

Effectiveness: A+/A - It's amazing how much oil these little sheets suck in, but may not last for the whole day.

Price: A - $12 for 30 sheets is not exactly cheap for blotting papers, but it's definitely worth it considering the amazing quality and usefulness!

General Experience: A+ - If you're looking for some good blotting papers, definitely try out Tatcha!

Grace~