W misses Sephora.

It’s been pretty much a whole year since I last shopped at Sephora.  Well.. I’ll be honest, I did cave sometime in July and bought a couple of KVD lip liners (in my defence, one was for my sister in law as a little present after she’d given birth) and Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask.
Apart from that, the last time I REALLY shopped for make up was in December of last year. I’ve been good.. for the most part.

So anyway!
Yesterday I went to Sephora with a mission!
One was to claim my birthday present.
The other was to spend my accumulated points!

They have Kat Von D’s Beauty Addiction Set for 500 points in their Rewards Boutique and I figured that THIS is what I should use my points for.
The set comes in a small faux leather pouch with red lining. Inside are two eyeliners; her Ink Liner in Trooper and Tattoo Liner in Mad Max Brown.
There are also two of her lip products; her Everlasting Liquid Lipstick in Vampira and Studded Kiss Lipstick in Cathedral. All in mini size — perfect for on the go!

I’ve always liked her liners and liquid lipstick (and I have yet to own Vampira, yay!) but I’ve never tried her lipstick, so I’m excited! I don’t have any good reason to put on make up at the moment though so I’ll be trying these out as soon as I find an excuse.

By the way, to redeem the points you will have to make a purchase of any amount and that’s where the Soap & Glory hand sanitiser comes in (RM16).
I could’ve just bought one of Sephora’s sheet mask for RM10 but having a small child, I have more use for a hand sanitiser than a sheet mask!

This year’s birthday present from Sephora is by Tarte. They are minis of their Amazonian blush in Paaarty and Tarteist Creamy Matte Lip Paint in Birthday Suit, both are exclusive shades for this Sephora gift set.

Can’t help but wonder if I’ll be getting a present from Sephora next year since I’d been spending so little this year! hahahha! I am most likely to be downgraded to their White Card.
Oh well.. priorities change. I now have a membership with Mothercare.. who would've thought?

The “bonus” item that I got yesterday came from a friend, who got me the Lid Lingerie eyeshadow palette by NYX for my birthday! The palette has six matte neutral shades. I’ve never tried any eyeshadow from the brand but this particular palette has great reviews, I’m looking forward to try this one out!

Basically I’m just excited over my haul!
So excited that I decided to take a pause from writing about being a mother. HAHAHAHA!
You know how it goes.. when an entry gets too long, I tend to skip over them. That continuation after I delivered Nugget is coming, I promise!

Update -- December 22nd 2017
Put on some make up before I head into the office yesterday; LOVED the Tarte blush (of course) and lip paint (my kind of nude!). Also loved the brown Tattoo Liner, no surprise there and the third shade on the top row of the eyeshadow palette blended real well on my crease.

I'm not a Hoarder.

..or at least I try to not be one!

Here's a sad story.. my sisters and I see our mom as one. She really likes to keep things in case one day she'll needs it. That includes the free t-shirts she got from her company back in 2007. My parents live in a two-bedroom flat. I've stayed there for the most of my life, but I never had friends come over or visit me during celebrations because there really isn't much space with my mom's things lying around.

I mean, we joke about it a lot.. it's not like it tainted my childhood or anything. But some days I do wonder why she's holding on so hard to her things. I would've understood it better had she actually bought all of those things. I find it hard to let go of the things that I had bought with my own money.. or things that has some sentimental value in it.
My mom hold on to things for the sake of holding on to them, it seems.

Aaanyway, why am I telling you this?
Because as I've mentioned in my quick entry some time last month, I had spent one morning sorting through my make up collection and posted it on my Instagram Stories. Managed to trash a hefty amount. I was glad and proud albeit a little sad to be parting ways with a bunch of my favourite things..
So my mom saw that story and texted me; "don't throw out those makeup, keep it in one place and I'll play around with it when I'm there.."
*smacks forehead*
I threw them all out anyway. Despite my mom trying to convince me that the powders stuff should still be good -- as if I'm letting her keep my four-year old blushes! She would never throw them out and just add them to the mound of makeup that she already own.

That was a lot of makeup. It was brutal but it had to be done. I had to.

The first ones to go were the palettes. I realise that they don't look too battered and manky to get thrown out but the most recent I have here is the Urban Decay Naked 3 palette and I got that in 2013! ..and that palette was meant to be used within a year.
It was hard letting go of the two limited edition Nars palette. Remembering vividly that I ordered the Guy Bourdin One Night Stand palette off of the Sephora US site, and the Voulez-vous Coucher Avec Moi, Ce Soir? palette on a rainy day in Taipei. All before any news of Nars ever coming into Malaysia..
Then there were the three Sleek Makeup i-Divine palettes in Oh So Special, Vintage Romance and Ultra Matts V2. I truly loved them. They were really pigmented and still blendable. They were affordable too, and I wouldn't mind getting them again if I'm not so smitten by other brands at the time being.

On to the face stuff. I threw out the Farmasi highlighter that I rarely ever use as it was really chunky. Bourjois Healthy Balance powder that I bought in Hong Kong's Watsons yeaarsss before they came into Malaysia, and Tarte Amazonian Clay blush in Mirage that came in some sort of a set. If you look closely, the blush actually had some sort of life form on it.. yikes!

I also threw out my tube of Nars Pure Radiant Tinted Moisturizer in Groenland. It had a little left in the tube but it exploded in my make-up bag a while back and never been the same since. I also threw out a deluxe sample of Laura Mercier Tinted Moisturizer that I tried to love but after years of holding on to it, it just never sit quite right on my skin. Another item that I don't think I've used ten times since I got it probably two years ago was the Bobbi Brown Corrector in of the Peach shades. Despite being matched in the store, that thing was just TOO orange on my skin and creased SO BAD under my eyes! It just refused to work for me, and I refused to hold on to it any longer.

As for the eyes, I threw out three mascaras; Benefit Roller Lash, which I loved and has dried up, Tarte Lights, Camera, Lashes, which did nothing for my lashes at all! Would NOT repurchase. And Urban Decay Perversion which performed pretty well on my lashes.

Then there were three brow products; Benefit Gimme Brow in Medium, which I didn't love, smelled like old make up ever since I first got it, and was just not worth the money in my opinion. Then there was the Mary Kay clear brow gel that my mom gave me which was like glue.. literally. (Not what I prefer for my brows..) Lastly was an old favourite, In-2-It waterproof brow pencil that I'd recently took out from my "backup stash" and gave me a nice pimple on my left brow when I used it. Clearly I've kept it for far too long. hahahha!

Then I have some primers (that I rarely ever use) that I finally got rid of. I really can't review on any of them since I really didn't notice if they did anything for me on the rare occasions that I used them. Except for the eye primers. Both the Urban Decay Primer Potion in Original and Nars Pro-Prime Eyeshadow Base helped my eyeshadows to stay looking good on my eyelids for longer, but personally between the two I'd prefer Nars because it felt so light whereas I could feel the one by UD on my lids.

Two random things I threw out; Duo eyelash glue that I probably use less than five times (hahaha!) and a random tester of Hydraluron serum(?) which I liked but never gotten the full size because it's damn expensive!! This had a teeny tiny bit left but not enough for me to use on my full face and I don't know why I kept it for so long.
The eyelash glue worked well, by the way. Didn't feel funny on my eyes or anything. I'm just not a fake eyelash wearer and the cap was glued shut so I just didn't bother to salvage the rest of the tube's content. (If it hadn't actually dried up.)

Finally we have lippies and liners which was the hardest to let go. Notice that I didn't part ways with ANY of my Nars lipstick? I just refuse to throw them out until they start giving me a bad reaction! hahahha!

EOS lip balm that I bought when it was all the rave on YouTube some years ago. Kept it for far too long. It wasn't even that good. Didn't really help with my constantly dry lips.
Then there's Origins and MAC lipgloss that I didn't care for. Just not into glosses. And these two were really thick and kinda made my lips stuck together. I loved Too Faced Melted Liquid Lipsticks but I've had them for far too long, I believe. Used to REALLY love Clinique Chubby Stick Intense but I've accepted the fact that they weren't very moisturising for my lips, for what it's supposed to do. Loved the colours though. The final lip balm was the Tarte Energy Noir that transforms from clear to a berry shade. Didn't love it as much as the original Energy lip balm somehow. Same as the rest of the lip products, I threw it out because I've had it for way too long.

Finally we're at the lip liners and eye liners. Loved the lip liners by Sleek Makeup and NYX. They were both smooth and didn't tug on the lips. Then we have the eyeliners by Nars, NYX and Urban Decay which were all good. Although I probably prefer the ones by UD best. Depends on the kind of day I'm having, I think. The ones by UD were softer and easier to put on, but they didn't stay as well as the ones by Nars, but those are a little harder and tugs the eye a little sometimes. The one by NYX was soft too but as you can see, I had it in a shade of green so I never really use it and I honestly cannot remember the last time I actually did.

So that's it!
You've survived an entire post of me rambling about the makeup I've put in the trash last month. Thanks for staying put. Hope you've somehow enjoyed this entry.
I probably won't have anything fun to write apart from my pregnancy now that I'm so close to the end of it. I'll try to write as much of it (or anything) as I can.

'Til next time!

I Covet Thee..

You know what.. the thing is, I feel like I haven't been splurging for myself for SO long that now whenever I see something remotely nice, I'd make a mental note of it and they're suddenly on my wishlist.
I just threw out a bunch of makeup (yes, I know I said I was going to blog about that whole ordeal, believe me it's coming, but it's turning out to be so looong that I got bored mid way so I had to put that aside for a bit) but here I am.. wanting.. coveting some more makeup.

Let's start off with some new things by NARS, because who will I be if I don't start out with them? heh.

Here we have the new Powermatte Lip Pigment which is a matte liquid lipstick by Nars. I mean, most of you probably know my obsession with Kat Von D Everlasting Liquid Lipstick by now, so when I got word that Nars had came out with a liquid lipstick, you know.. I am just going to have to try it!

By the way, Sephora Malaysia finally has the new shades of the KVD liquid lipsticks and lip pencils! I'm torn.. I'm torn..

Nars also released a special Velvet Matte Lip Pencil set for Nordstrom. There are two sets of four limited edition shades; Mustang comes with four red, bold shades while Tribulation has four nude, neutral shades. Now, do I need four almost similar shades of matte lipsticks? Of course not, but that doesn't stop me from WANTING them, does it? hahahha!

Then I don't know how, or why Hourglass always ends up in my wishlist, but I saw the Confession Ultra Slim High Intensity refillable lipstick and I just want it. Obviously it's the packaging, but damn! hahahha! Perhaps I'm attracted to them because they seem as dangerous as Christian Louboutin's lipsticks but I know I can never justify buying those!
Hourglass on the other hand, seem achievable. We'll see how it goes. I still have my thoughts on the GIRL Lip Stylos.

The fact that I threw out a couple of palettes while I was spring cleaning (you'll know once I finish the post I promised..) means that I now have room for some new palettes! (yayy!)
I was sort of on a palette no-buy and I've been pretty good so far. I mean, last year I only bought that NARS Jetsetter face palette if I remember correctly.

Since I've been keen on warm tones, it's only natural that I'd be drawn to the new Urban Decay Naked Heat palette! But my eyes aren't only drawn to that palette..
I am also eyeing the new Marc Jacobs Eye-conic Multi-finish eyeshadow palette in Scandalust.

I think they're both equally gorgeous and if the new Marc Jacobs palettes are anything like the ones they've had before, I reckon they're going to feel really awesome. There will be a price difference, I'm sure but I'm pretty keen on trying out something new!

No idea if I'll ever get to put away my wishlists. The things that are on my previous wishlist are still very much on the list! In a way I am proud for not going out immediately and get anything and everything that I want. It's almost like I can now prioritise! HAHAHAHA!

Oh well, I do see myself splurging some bits when I'm finally going back to work. It's kind of a psychological thing. Like those times in school days, you'll be excited about going back to school after the long holidays when you know you've got a spanking new pair of white shoes and new coloured pens and stationeries, right?
I will be needing that kind of incentive after this long of a break from work..

Insta-stories.

Basically, here's what's coming in the next couple of days.. (--or weeks..?)

(In case the video doesn't show on your browser, as it didn't on mine 😓 it's my Instagram Stories of me trashing some of my beloved makeup..)

What's In My Handbag?

-- pregnancy edition!

I've been ditching my trusted Rebecca Minkoff Mini M.A.C for a slightly larger bag since probably March, I wanna say. With the amount of things that I was carrying -- or wanted to carry, my Mini M.A.C simply couldn't handle it.

So I began my quest, searching for the right sized bag that I wouldn't hate carrying. I had considered getting one of the diaper bags that I'd been reading up on, but they were way too big for pre-baby. I was very keen to get one of those Longchamp that had the shoulder strap, but hey.. I'm on unpaid leave so I shouldn't be spending Monkey's hard-earned cash willy-nilly! hahahha.

Then one day Mumu brought me out to Pyramid and we randomly went into the Converse store and saw this black PU leather shoulder bag.
It looked super simple. It has a pocket slip in front, and a zippered main compartment.

Didn't take long for me to decide to just get it. I knew I could fit my pink book in it somehow and that's good enough for me! The size was right, also it was on offer that day so I got it for RM90! bahhahaha I'm cheap!
Well, it suit its purpose and though carrying a Converse bag immediately reminds me of my time in high school, I have no complains!

So we'll start from what I have in the front pocket;

I've got my pink book -- which isn't there everyday, but it was on the day that I took the pictures for this entry. I have it in a clear plastic folder so it wouldn't get wet in case water gets to it somehow.
Then I have a hotel writing pad, in case I'd like to jot down some stuff. Shopping lists, most of the time.
That red thing is a bluetooth remote for taking photos with your phone. Not that I whip it out a lot but I've had plenty of times when I'm without it but wished that I had.
I've got an old, faded and tangled long necklace that I got from Lovisa.
A Dolly Dim Sum voucher that I should've used when I was there just few days ago with a friend, but forgotten that I had it with me.
A Shah Alam parking booklet so hubs and I don't get fined during our check-ups in Umra, and random.. SO random stirrers from Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and fruit-fork thingamajig that I'd trashed as soon as I was done taking the pictures for this entry.

On to the things that are in the main compartment. Let's start with the "beauty" bits;

Monkey bought me a few packs of wet wipes in case I needed to wipe down toilet seats while I'm outside, and in that small Kate Spade jewellery pouch is where I keep the actual girly things.

That samurai thing is actually one of those stainless steel mirrors.
The non-make up bits are Soap & Glory anti-bacterial hand gel in the Sugar Crush scent, ReNu rewetting eyedrops, and another super random thing that I just happen to carry; a March Harriet minifigure from the Lego Batman Movie.
As for the actual make up, I am still carrying way too many lipsticks for one handbag! I've got Soap & Glory Sexy Mother Pucker Matte-Lip in Chocco Berry, Shu Uemura Supreme Matte lipstick in PK376, Maybelline Color Drama lipstick in Pink So Chic and NARS Matte Lip Pencil in Bahama, Provocative Red and Dragon Girl. Three of Nars.. Of course.

Practical things! My customised Touch 'N Go card that Dida made me and Nina a while back  heh. My extremely battered Rebecca Minkoff small purse where I keep my money. And two card holders from Fossil that holds my IDs, insurance card and bank cards while the one by Kate Spade holds my memberships and point cards.

Some bits that I can't categorise; I have a slim Lenovo powerbank that I've probably just used twice since I changed phones. I'm mostly carrying it in case Monkey needs to recharge his phone now. Then there's a hotel pen, my Rayban, a split cable for headphones.. in case I'm pulling a "Begin Again" scene with Monkey. hahahha!
A lighter!.. a force of habit. heh
And a foldable shopping bag I got for free from buying some Origins skincare. Well, my shopping bag changes every so often. Previously I was carrying one from Lululemon but I just had to threw that out after an incident I had carrying rendang from Dida's place. Tried to wash it, but that totally ruined the bag. It was upsetting.. I loved that bag!

Now on to the things that made this a pregnant lady's bag;

My Joseph Joseph water bottle because I'm supposed to drink three litres of water a day.. hah! I try.. I try.. (haven't succeeded as yet, unfortunately.)
A bag of Farley's Rusk cookies, because why not? I love the taste! hahahaha! A small ziploc bag of dates and raisins.. because basically, I'd hate to go hungry or thirsty.
Lastly, I have some back up Iberet because I HATE being outside then suddenly remember that I hadn't taken my supplements. Usually happens when Monkey and I were at his mom's place in Puncak Alam.

And that's all there is in my bag!
Sorry the photos are kinda crap. Could've taken them again but it was getting really warm on the balcony where I was taking these photos and I just couldn't stand it for too long. hahahha!

To splurge.. or not?

I am the type of person who likes having back-ups. More so of my favourite things.
When it comes to beauty, I find that there are only a few things that I refuse to skip out on.

Since I haven't had to put on a full face of make-up for a while now, it just got even more obvious when it comes to what I NEED and what I don't really care for.
It may not come as a surprise, but what I need are eyebrows! I don't step out of the house without them. I can ignore my dark circles.. and my pale lips..  but I simply cannot ignore my barely-there eyebrows.

So here's a little story. I haven't been with my favourite Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz for monthhsss now. I've tried Benefit's Precisely, My Brow and was not entirely impressed. Loved the colour of Shade 3 but I feel like it ran out too fast. I found an unused In2It brow pencil that I used to LOVE so much (a back-up that I never got around to use, go figure!) but I think it had went bad because a spot popped up in my brows the very next day! hahahha

I've also tried the brow pencil by Anastasia but I feel like it is waay too pigmented for my liking and I  really do prefer a thin nib for my brows.
Recently I've used up the brow pencil by It Cosmetics and similarly to Anastasia's brow pencil, it's very pigmented and most of the time I'd end up with harsh brows -- for something out of a pencil. Also, the spoolie at the end was not that great.

Currently I am using my Tarte Amazonian Clay brow mousse -- that is about three years old and incredibly dried up. hahahha! I am feeling super stingy at the moment, can you see?
I do worry that it's going to give me a pimple to my already sensitive skin since I've been pregnant so I have been contemplating to just go ahead and repurchase a Brow Wiz. Oh, how I miss it.

Then as I was going through my make-up collection, somehow I found an Urban Decay Brow Beater still new in box! When the hell did I bought that, I had no idea! hahahha! Made me feel a little better for not having to fork out RM100 on a brow pencil -- also thankful for my silly habit for keeping back-ups of things. hehe.
Now the question remains.. will this back-up give me a pimple? hahahha!! Guess we'll find out in a couple of days. Suppose if it does I'll just bit the bullet and purchase a Brow Wiz. Hopefully I won't have to, though. I have other things on an actual list that I need to get.

God knows how glad I am to have a brow pencil at hand, though! The brow mousse was fine, but if ever I'm travelling (like I was in Kuantan -- when I found out that the It Cosmetics pencil had come to its end!) I much prefer a thin-nib pencil that has a spoolie on its other end.

I am currently staring at my makeup collection.. thinking that I should really have a clear out very soon. (Apart from finally washing ALL of my brushes!) I reckon I haven't used most of them for over six months. I know I need to throw out a couple of mascaras. Probably get rid some of my lippies too. Wish I knew how I could clean NARS' packaging! Mine are all sticky and dusty.. ick!

The other day I found out that my skin shade has changed. I was putting on concealer and two that I have was waayy too yellow on me!
I probably need to buy a whole set of my base makeup when I go back to work in a few months.
Kinda excited.. kinda sad..
Mostly sad that I have to say goodbye to some makeup in the next few days.

I mean.. I really shouldn't still be holding on to the Nars palette that I got in 2013.. right?

Pregnancy Woes

When I created this blog, I never meant it to be anything specific.
Not when I was still in school, not when I was crazy about my work, and not even now that I'm pregnant.
But I feel like I've been almost distant while I'd been writing about my pregnancy. Suppose it's mostly because in my mind, I had wanted to share "informations" instead of "feelings" so.. that's what happened.

So here's an entry where I'll yap and ramble random things about my pregnancy!
Beware!

This entry in particular will focus on my complaints while carrying this lil' bub.
(May sound negative, but helpful -- I swear!) You have no idea (or maybe you do?) how reassuring it is when you found someone else who shares the same problems as you do! hahahha

I'll say that my pregnancy hasn't been too hard so far. There were some bits of change and "woes" throughout, but I didn't get that typical morning sickness that people tend to talk about.
I did feel gassy through Weeks five 'til about eleven.
My skin had definitely changed, I was getting spots on my chin and cheeks. I also have tiny bumps all over my forehead that looks not too different from baby's heat rash.

Oh! Constipation! Apparently it's really common, and a real bitch. Constipation whilst pregnant is a real thing, folks!
And since I've been taking iron for supplement, my stool has turned black! That was.. amusing, when it first happened. More so when I had diarrhoea that one time. hahahha!

Then there's back pain while travelling for too long in the car. That lasted throughout the first trimester. Wasn't so bad as I entered the twelfth week somehow.
But constantly feeling like a walking heater.. that hasn't gone away unfortunately. Wish I could wear sleeveless all day everyday! Even cuddling with Monkey felt so uncomfortable some days.

Second trimester brought in some new hardship.
The gassiness went away, but I started getting posterior pelvic pain at around week twenty. I try SO hard to hold out 'til I really have to waddle but I'm afraid I started early in that area.
It felt like my butt cheeks were out of place.. like how sometimes when your arm feels sore but you could stretch it out and it feels fine -- but no matter how much you stretch, your butt cheeks still feels uncomfortable.

So uncomfortable that I rarely ever turn when I sleep. And the only way that I can walk comfortably is by waddling. It isn't cute. Then of course when I'd been sleeping on one side for a whole night, I'd wake up with an ache to that entire side! I just can't win.
Then not too long after that I experienced my first round ligament pain. That was a real "pain". Bearable, but really worrying when I first had it.

It'll happen when I'd make sudden moves or suddenly change my positions. The first time I had it, I was trying to get up from a reclining chair too fast. Then I keep getting it every once in a while if I'd been walking too fast or too long.
Uncomfortable and alarming, but no biggie!

By the end of second trimester, I experienced my first heartburn..
That was not fun.. at all! It literally felt like my chest was burning and it always came around at night when I was ready for bed. That was total shit. But that didn't last too long, I think! I had it for a few nights and it sort of just went away..
Kinda expecting it to come back in the third trimester.. but I'm not hoping. Not at all looking forward to it. Just expecting since I keep seeing it coming up in articles. sigh

My Ramadhan had been going well until I started getting gassy again. I keep forgetting that now my belly is growing bigger, my stomach gets pushed upwards. As the fasting month goes, I always end up falling asleep only after suhur and naturally, whatever that went in wants to come back up after a few hours of lying down.
Stupid.. and disgusting, I know. So my best solutions so far is to stay up even longer than I want to -- or put up several pillows under my head so at least my neck is higher than my chest.

[edit] Oh! I just remembered that there's that one time when I got a real bitch of a leg cramp in my left leg during my sleep. One that got me moaning loud enough that it woke Monkey up whom then helped me to try stretch that leg out. Bless him.
After that episode, I haven't gotten any leg cramps *knocks on wood* but I have had a few times when it had threaten to come back -- but I quickly changed my legs' positions, and saved myself from that pain.

Now as I enter the third trimester, I was introduced to pubic bone pain -- OH MY GOD!
It's probably the most uncomfortable thing I've experienced so far. It's a sharp pain on my pubic bone that feels like I had bikini wax on the same spot, several times in a short period of time! It stung and ached and moving around was torturous! It's like that pain I had on my butt had decided to move forward -- except worse.

This one was the worst yet. Basically it stings whenever I move my legs separately. Like when I'm trying to get out of bed, or put on pants, or get out of the car. I also have to walk real slowly..
It also made it painful to turn in bed. Basically having a good night's sleep is -- no amount of pillows could help me now.

I suppose I was sort of amused that my aches and pains keeps moving around and not stay for too long.. or happens at the same time. I am grateful for that at least.
I asked Kina if she had any pregnancy woes throughout her five pregnancies and apart from the first week of gassiness when she had first found out that she was pregnant, she had no such pain at all! Bitch. HAHHAHAHA!

Some of my friends had told me to drink milk to avoid any sort of bone related ailment but I have been drinking milk! Even manage to finish a tin of Enfamama!
I'm quite confident that my aches and pains weren't related to calcium deficiency. Perhaps my bones and ligaments in my pelvic area are just too good at loosening up and getting ready for the baby.
Just my pelvic area though. Personally I'm still nervous about being in labour.. while being so excited about holding Nugget in my arms!

Can't stop feeling amused everytime I feel the baby moves. I get a little out of breath sometimes but it's.. weird and magical at the same time.
I do feel blessed for this experience, despite all my complaints so far. I've been pretty emotional every now and then but Monkey's been great and really patient. He'll make a great dad, there's no doubt that Nugget will favour him more than me. sigh.

I think that's pretty much it from me when it comes to complaints.
I suppose there's Braxton Hicks contractions to look forward to. Well, who am I kidding? I am surely NOT looking forward to any sort of pain, but I am mentally preparing myself for what's coming in the next few weeks.

Just weeks to go from here. Where did all the time went?? I really am beginning to freak out..
I pray things will go on smoothly from here.. insyaAllah.

Nesting.

Approaching Week 30 of my pregnancy..
I'm debating if this entry should be under the "pregnancy" category but I digress.. This feels more like a life update than being pregnant-specific.
BUT! They're very closely related.. We'll see.

I am actually looking forward to re-do the smallest room in our apartment and turn it into the baby's room. Currently it's more like a storage/cram whatever/guest room. It's a weird sort of room, very dusty as we don't go into it that often but I am really excited about moving things around in between the smallest room and the second room.

So far we haven't really bought much baby stuff apart from a carseat, foldable baby tub and a playpen because we haven't got a place to put them in yet.
We decided to go with a portable playpen instead of a traditional baby cot since we're due to move out some time next year and the one that we bought seemed easy to pack up in between rooms or houses.

There is a single bed in the small room which I think will remain there for late night feeding or to catch some sleep. That room has almost no natural light coming in which is perfect for sleeping at any time of the day. Monkey had mentioned that he wanted to get a kiddy-curtain for that particular room. I find that amusing since that never really crossed my mind.

We also need to switch up the curtains in our room. It's been the same white curtains since we moved in a year ago because I like having a diffused light coming into our room, plus it makes the room a little more spacious than it really is. But hubs is REALLY concerned about getting enough sleep, so we'll be looking into thick, dark curtains soon.

As much as I hate having everything from IKEA, it's just SO easy to get things that I need under one roof! Seems like they have expanded their range in the baby-category in recent years and I do think we'll be buying some baby related things there.. of all places!

I do have my heart set on the Trofast storage system.
I had mentioned to Monkey about getting the boxes with lids in several sizes for different things. Smaller ones for the teeny tiny clothes while the larger ones to store other things. Then maybe after the move to a more permanent place, we'll get the frames that the boxes will fit into.

I'm actually really excited about that. Excited about organising baby things and see what we have enough of, or what more do we need.
Well, we need a heck lot more! Hubs and I haven't really got into that shopping mood just yet although we have bought some random bits and bobs.. a couple or two clothes from the sale in Mothercare that is currently ongoing 'til second of July.
I still have my heart set on picking up some Aden & Anais swaddle and blankets because I keep hearing so much about them, so I'll be waiting for that baby expo coming up at the end of July.

Hopefully I won't be too huge and tired to walk around by then!
We really do have a LOT to do around the house and I just pray that Monkey won't end up having to do everything by himself.

I've been told to start making a list of things that I'll need but I just can't seem to get around to it! Seems so REAL and SO MUCH MONEY! hahahaha! Do you have any clue how much a good breast pump would cost?! And diapers too!
Suppose I'll make the list before the expo in July so we could get a good discount on things that we really need.

So far the house doesn't feel any different. While the second room is still occupied, there really isn't much that can be done. Except maybe sort our wardrobes to make room for.. whatever really. I'm starting to get that feeling to nest, but it's frustrating to not have the room for my ideas.

Hopefully the lil' kid isn't planning on a surprise and arrive too early. I mean, everyone has warned me that the first pregnancy usually gets delivered ahead of the due date.. I am wrapping my head around that. But not too early please, Nugget!
I hate the thought of us running around the house like a headless chicken, trying to get things as organised and settled as I had hoped it would before the baby arrives.

I mean, we're planning to move the wardrobe and bookshelf from the smallest room into the second room, so Monkey better not have to do all that by himself!
Aaanyway, Eid is coming up and all we could think about is channelling what we have towards the baby's arrival. It's hard to swallow, but for the first time in my life I won't be getting a new outfit for Eid this year!

Well, it really is no big deal. But I am a lil' wee bit sad, still.
Priorities, though!
I'll get over it.
Happy that I'll be spending the holidays with family! Even Monkey will be around for a couple of days! yayy! I'm already imagining all the good food.. SO excited!

Pandora.

I honestly don't know what made me do it..
But I do own a Pandora bracelet.

I remember when everyone was so crazy into them and I honestly can't figure out why anyone would spend so much on a silver charm bracelet of all things.. Silver!
I mean, I get the pull by the charms. I've always loved the idea of a charm to commemorate an achievement or a memory.
But, silver!

So I was in Darwin and these Pandora things were slightly cheaper in AU than in Malaysia. My supervisor had called me to accompany her to look at the bracelets and the charms. At first glance, yes, I like the simplicity of the bracelets. Then as my supervisor was looking at the charms, I saw it -- a BUNNY!!
And I thought it was the most adorable thing in the world!
Hence the story of how I got sucked in. hahahaha

But a bracelet with a single charm looked a little lonely.. (ha!)
And I saw an intricate looking lacy heart charm with a coloured stone in the centre. I understood that they were differently coloured according to birthstones, but being born in December though, I was never crazy for the colour turquoise.
So I decided to get the heart charm in my favourite colour -- even if it was meant for someone born in July. Oh well!

Thus my splurge in Darwin. They didn't have a monkey charm 'til this day, unfortunately. I do hope that one day they'll make one! They have a barn's selection of animals in their collection and some more like fish, elephant, and tiger so I don't see why they can't make a monkey!

My third charm happened a little later in 2016.
I found out that they had an exclusive charm made every year as a "Pandora Club" charm and when I saw it, I knew -- I had to have it.
It was another intricate heart charm (I realize that I don't particularly need two heart charms on one bracelet) but it had a delicate diamond in the centre on one side, while the other side was engraved with the year, "2016". Somehow just seeing it.. my mind made a connection between the charm and my wedding earlier in the year. Super gedik, yes, that's me.

I looked high and low for this particular charm! I went to several stores here in Malaysia and they were all sold out. Luckily Bestie had an Aussie flight coming up and was able to get the charm for me in Perth!

So three charms so far. I honestly don't know how other girls got their bracelets so pretty and colourful. I wonder if they just build it to however they like it to look or every charm had meant something to them? As much as I want mine to look pretty.. I really can't bring myself to get random charms that has no personal connection to me.
Can't even imagine getting more than one bracelet because I'd hate to choose a "favourite".

My charm collection may grow one day, it may not. But a part of me have accepted the fact that it'll probably look forever-awkward and seemingly makes no sense. I'm okay with that, though.
As long as it made sense to me, that's all that matters to me most.

Anyone reading this is crazy about Pandora?
Perhaps you're more of a Thomas Sabo person?

Chatty May!

Well, I don't want to JUST talk about my pregnancy so I'll do one of these once in a while.
Pregnancy - random - pregnancy - beauty.. maybe.
This blog has always been about my life in general. My mental health, even. hahaha! And I would normally get bored of anyone who just talks about ONE single thing at any given time, so I don't want to be someone who just talks about her pregnancy all the time.
I'm trying anyway.

But a part of me wanted to get the posts on the first trimester over and done with because that was the bit where I got most confused with when I first found out that I was pregnant. Now that I've done sharing about that first trimester, we can talk about something else! I do feel bad for shoving that much info on anyone, but I had wished someone had shared with me their experience for that very FIRST visit.
Oh well, I hope I'd helped someone with that entry.

Anyway, a fair warning -- things might get into pregnancy stuff again because I pretty much have a single-track mind at the moment. It's sad, but that's just how it is I suppose.
As much as I would love nothing more than to talk about shopping, the only reasonable things that I could possibly shop for are baby stuff.

I wasn't even looking for strollers just yet but it's hard to not admire the Stokke Xplory once you've seen it.

Sexy, but I'm definitely not spending over 5K on a damn stroller, NO WAY!

So I've been looking at something fun like diaper bags!
I've always had this idea that I'll splurge on my bag since it's going to be something that I will use. And knowing that I'll most probably spend most of my money on this kid in the future, I feel like I deserve this one thing.

I'm not going to lie, I went as far as looking at the diaper bags that Prada, Burberry and Gucci makes. HAHAHAHAHA!
They were fun to look at but I reckon I'm too rational to be spending that much (also over 5K!) simply for their name.

I don't know about you, but I just can't see myself spending almost six thousand Ringgit on a bag that isn't even made entirely out of leather! I just can't do it. Sure, if I DO have the money then I'd probably say differently.. but would I really?
heh.

Then there's the slightly more affordable range by Kate Spade and Marc Jacobs.

But I honestly can't picture myself wearing bags by Kate Spade or Marc Jacobs! I don't know why. I mean, okay, I've never been keen on Marc Jacobs to begin with, but I ADORE Kate Spade's jewellery and home decors! Still I can't picture myself purchasing one of her bags.
Perhaps I will always have an issue with paying anywhere over 1K for a bag when they are not made of leather. Plus, they're tote bags! Can anyone remember the last time I was wearing a tote bag? No? Me neither.

Then there's Rebecca Minkoff Knocked Up Baby Bag -- which is over 1K, and not made entirely out of leather, which totally makes me a hypocrite for saying what I said in the previous paragraph! hahahha! But we're talking about Rebecca Minkoff here. I LOVE her bags! Six (which is the number of her bags that I own) is not enough! HAHAHAHA!
I've always pictured myself getting this particular bag one day, if I'm being honest. My love is deep, guys. So deep.

What's stopping me from getting it is that it's not readily available. The only way I could get it is online. And I kind of wish that I could at least touch and have a real look at it before I fork out my money. I love that it's black, I love the double-way strap/handle, I love Rebecca Minkoff! But seeing it compared to my body with the neat feature on her website -- the bag looks HUUUGE!

The last designer bag that had crossed my thoughts were ones by Tory Burch. I was really keen on the Thea Messenger Bag. Went as far as going into the store in KLCC to check it out but was told that they don't carry it anymore. Made sense since the first time I saw it was on the "sale" page of their website, so it's not exactly "current".

I do love the style. I think I'll forever be a sling bag/crossbody wearer. But the new style is made entirely of nylon.. so.. yeah.. I'm ridiculously picky! hahahha!
For a while, that was the bag that I had wanted the most. (In the diaper bag category, that is. I still REALLY want that Rebecca Minkoff Darren Messenger Bag hahahha! But it's not made to carry baby stuff or we wouldn't be here for this entry!)

So basically what we've learn from this entry is that I am very picky when it comes to diaper bags that I plan on using as my handbag as well -- but obviously, OBVIOUSLY noone really makes them in leather because rationally, diaper bags should be made out of something washable and easy to clean!
Naturally I went on Google to type "best diaper bag" and went ahead to read many.. many articles on the subject. What I found out was that most of them, if not all, looked like diaper bags!
Not exactly what I was looking for.
I mean yes, I am looking for a diaper bag, but can I have one with a little more style pleaaase! hahahaha!

I was on Nordstrom a lot because I like browsing through what they have in store. I have been admiring some diaper bags by Diaper Dude, Pacapod, Skip Hop, Stokke and a couple by Storksak -- who actually makes leather diaper bags! But none of them REALLY caught my heart..

So the search continues.
Or I could just give up now since Monkey is keen on getting the Doona carseat stroller for the baby so we could just get the All Day Bag that is obviously compatible with the pegs on the stroller.

Not the prettiest thing, but it'll meet the purpose and Monkey-approved! I imagine he wouldn't mind too much if he needs to carry this bag instead of me, so I'm cool with that.
We'll just see later, won't we?

2017 Wishlist.

As you may have known, the last time I bought something without much care was in December.
Being a stay-at-home wife in my current state, doesn't seem right to go around to shop my heart's desire. Of course, I don't really need any new handbags or make-up (especially when I don't really reach for them these days) but the keyword here is HEART'S DESIRE.
hahahaha!

Despite my changing hormones and the emotional roller coaster that I've been on, I am still pretty rational. I can still think logically. I know I don't need these things but I would still love to own them. So don't mind me while I list down the things I'm coveting.

NARS came out with ten new shades of their beloved Velvet Matte Lip Pencils. Three really caught my eye; an oxblood burgundy shade called Endangered Red, Mysterious Red that's described as crimson red and there's another shade that intrigued me called Do Me Baby which is described as a chestnut rose shade.
God knows how many of these I already own, and STILL I want MORE. gahhhh!!

I am also extremely curious of their new Soft Matte Complete Concealer. I've always been in between the shade Custard and Ginger but I think sometime last year they came out with some new shades and Macadamia seemed like a shade smacked in between my two typical shades.
Would love nothing more than to try it out, but I hate going into the store and not get anything! hahahha! Especially two of the associates in Midvalley and Pavilion are familiar with me.

Another lip product; Hourglass GIRL Lip Stylo in Liberator which is a deep berry shade. Honestly there are plenty of shades that I would love to get but Hourglass is such an expensive brand! And somehow I feel like getting several Nars lip pencils are justifiable than getting several Hourglass lipsticks. heh. Not that I'll be getting any of them anytime soon.
I've swatched them in Sephora and they felt SO creamy and lovely and aahhh! Maybe next year. hahahha!

I haven't bought an eye palette in yonks! Oh, perhaps last year when I got the Nars Jetsetter palette. I was keen on the Smashbox Cover Shot Eye Palette in Ablaze when I first saw it coming out. It consists of eight beautiful warm shades, and I don't know.. that warm red and terracotta shade really calls out to me.
Good thing that somehow I'd never seen this particular palette stocked in Sephora here. Makes it easier to not crave for it too much. (I still keep a look out for it though.. can't help myself.)

When cushion foundations first came out, I was never really into them. Didn't even cross my mind to swatch any of them. But since I've been using less make-up lately, they seemed like a good option? hahahha!
I mean, pregnancy has been making my skin spotty. Some days I'd like to have them disguised, but most days I couldn't be bothered with spending the time putting it on during the day and washing it off later at night.. but the idea of having a little coverage that I could put on quickly really intrigued me.
So here comes in Lancome Teint Idole Ultra Cushion Foundation.

I'd never pictured myself as a handbag collector, but when I first saw Rebecca Minkoff Darren Messenger Satchel in Bangkok some months ago, my heart just fluttered. Stupid, really. I've always loved Rebecca Minkoff's shoulder bags.. I shouldn't have subscribed to the newsletter now that I'm pretty much on a no-buy ban! So now I'm left coveting..
It's especially hard since there's also a red Mini MAC and a black MAC on their sample sale going on right now. haihh..

I suppose that's what's been on my wishlist since the beginning of the year.
I mean, I KNOW these are things that I don't need, so it'll stay at the back of my mind for now.. but you know how it is for me when I want something. I just can't quite forget about them.
Perhaps next year.
If I'm lucky I'll completely forget about them and replace them with something that I actually really need! heh.

MY Pregnancy.

Thought I'd talk about my experiences with this first pregnancy.
I remember when I first found out, I wanted to know how to get on about it. Where and when to actually get an official test done and perhaps, share some random details that only I care about. So yeah, hopefully this entry would be of some help to others out there.

This entry is most probably going to be just me talking about random things leading up to finding out that I was pregnant.
Check back next time if you're interested to know about my first trimester.

So, a little back story,
WERE WE TRYING TO GET PREGNANT?

I had an IUD inserted a while back and I had been meaning to get it removed for months before finally having the time to go to the doctor's in September.
Anyway, he asked if I'm trying to get pregnant is why I'm having it removed.
I honestly don't know how to answer that question.
I mean, my husband and I are knocking boots, that's for sure. Were we consciously thinking about procreating everytime we do it? I for one definitely didn't. But we were fully aware that it could happen. We were in no rush, but we do want kids eventually.

FINDING OUT.

So my IUD was removed in September.
October's period came as per normal.
November's was late, so it did make me think, "is this it?' -- but it was just that.. a week late.
Kinda hit me then that perhaps I was trying after all. I was also getting worried if I may have passed my prime age to get pregnant. Being a flight attendant for the past seven years didn't help with the worry -- you know, radiation.. hard landings.. lack of exercise (not existent).. being a smoker..
I mean, I wasn't expecting to get pregnant immediately, let's be real. But I also hadn't anticipated feeling the way that I'd felt.
I had worried about being old and neglected to properly care for my body.

December, my period was even more late than it was in November. I was on a work trip with an especially difficult supervisor (whom was known for his laziness, and get this -- he knew that he's known for it! WTH!) and it was SO exhausting!
Didn't help that I had diarrhoea throughout that last day of the trip. (Still that supervisor didn't do all that much, the asshole!)
I was thinking of doing a home pregnancy test at new year's. I don't know, I just felt like what ever the result is would be a good ending to 2016, and a good start to 2017.
But as I got home to my empty apartment that night (Monkey was in Jeddah, arriving the next day), feeling crushed and all in all tired.. I grabbed one of those home pregnancy test kit (I'd stocked up some a few months leading up to this, hahaha!) and peed on the stick.

TWO LINES.

So....
The stick indicated that I was pregnant.
Then my mind was racing.. when do I tell the company?
Oh wait, HOW do I tell Monkey? When do I tell him?
We had planned on heading to Melaka for a wedding once he got back from flight. So the plan was for me to meet up with him at the airport, then we'll drive to our friend's place in Nilai, leave the car there and make our way to Melaka all four of us in their car.

The next day I got to the airport a little early and made my way to the clinic there before he arrived. The doctor asked when my last period was then I was asked to pee in a cup.
I suppose he knew the airlines' procedure when it comes to pregnancies so he wrote me a little note basically just saying that I'm how many weeks pregnant and my expected delivery date for me to hand to my HR department.

TO DECLARE OR NOT TO DECLARE?

Well, it didn't take long for me to tell Monkey. I had thought of maybe doing some elaborate scheme to let him know but I kinda needed his thoughts on when to declare my pregnancy to my company.
After Melaka I had one last flight of the year; a three days trip that didn't seem too hard. January roster had came out and I was on Delhi flight on the second.

Also, being a smoker -- a HEAVY smoker, I reckon it'd be weird if Monkey sees me not smoking. Or if I was smoking, I needed someone to keep me in check and remind me that I shouldn't be smoking!
So I told him in the car, just as we got to Nilai. SO not the way I'd imagined it, but my brain was thinking all sorts of things so I really needed his brain in on it.

IDEALLY..

I had wanted to quit smoking before we actually start "trying".
I had also wanted to clear my credit card debts and have a little bit money saved up. Maybe fly a few more months before I actually declare to my company, knowing that they'll put me on no pay leave once they knew.

But my previous trip was SO tiring -- may be caused by the supervisor or might be the pregnancy, the idea of another trip was kind of scary. And Delhi! Even if I was in perfect health, I am not too keen on flying that way.
I was scared of being exhausted, and Monkey insisted that I shouldn't risk the pregnancy.

So begins.. 2017.
My no pay leave.. The stay-at-home wife part of my life.

Twenty-plus weeks in today, and it's been a tad bumpy.. but not too bad.
We'll get into that in the coming entries.
I promise that I'll talk about check-ups in the next pregnancy entry.
Until then, thanks for stopping by!

"Too much time".. konon.

In case you'd noticed me mention about having a little too much time in my hands lately..
Some may know, have guessed from my random Insta-stories and lack of travel pictures on Instagram really, Monkey and I are expecting!

We were not exactly trying to hide it or anything, but for what ever reason I do feel like it's a BIG secret up to the point where I (sorta) announced it on Instagram yesterday. I'll be honest, before then, anytime anyone commented on my feed mentioning about the pregnancy, I couldn't help but delete the comment! HAHAHAHHA! Am I horrible??
I just think it's weird when someone else talks about me being pregnant when I haven't said a single thing (well, except for the little hints here and there) about it myself.
Feels like langkah bendul, like dat. hahahahha!

I mean, anytime anyone asks about it, hubs and I would have no trouble talking about it.
But to actually start talking about it feels kinda.. weird.

But yeah! We're happy and excited to meet our little Nugget. I find myself talking to Nugget every so often now. Almost like a crazy woman, but I know I'm not since I am actually talking to another person! I mean, ignore the fact that Nugget doesn't have a clue what I'm saying, but it's the thought that counts right?
And yes, I am calling the baby Nugget for the time being. Or may be forever!

So what have I been doing since January?
Nothing much really. Some days I do feel like I'm going insane. I haven't missed flying yet, but I miss having my own money. hahahha!
Suppose I should explain. Being a female cabin crew, once you've declared to the company (my company at least) that you're pregnant, they'll put you on "pregnancy leave" which is basically No Pay Leave! You read that right. NO PAY. Not even our basic salary. Makes sense really, why would your boss pay you when you're not doing anything for the company, right?
Yeah, so basically I've just been chilling at home, attempted to cook every once in a while and let Monkey be the man that he is and SUPPORT me.
BAHAHAHAHAHA!!

Well, I'm not crazy about that to be honest. I've been supporting myself for almost a decade now and we've always been pretty much fifty-fifty when it comes to finance.
I mostly HATE that I can't go around and shop my heart's desire. I keep feeling the need to report back to Monkey how I've been spending HIS money.. so yeah.. I'm finding it tough adjusting to that.
Also having to make a shopping list for him whenever I need something from somewhere outside since I can't go get it myself.
I really miss shopping.
Monkey is perfectly aware that his wife is itching to shop, and he does let me get away with some random things sometimes but I just feel bad about it. I just bought two pairs of maternity pants from H&M the other day (not so random) but I still feel bad.

Kina did hand me down two of her pregnancy pants but even Monkey chuckled when he saw them. They were still in great shape, but my taste and Kina's are so different that it's funny. I do appreciate the gesture but I really can't imagine myself wearing a cream-coloured pants and a bootcut jeans. heehee. I honestly have no idea how to pull them off.

Anyway, back to shopping -- the last time I shopped in Sephora was in December!!
GAWWWDD!
Months of just looking and not buying anything is almost heartbreaking. But I really have no use for any new make-up! Since I am not required in the office, I really haven't been putting much make-up at all! I simply can't be bothered with it, to be honest! hahaha!
Most of the time when I go out, I just have my eyebrows on and some kind of a lip product. When I'm feeling a little extra, I'll dab a bit of concealer.
So really.. as much I would LOVE to get some of the new releases from Sephora and NARS, I simply couldn't justify them. So I'll just keep on looking.. coveting..

So with my spare time, you'd think I should be able to blog more right? hahahaha! Well, that was kinda the plan. But I honestly don't know where my time went. Well, maybe I do. I've been lazing watching YouTube, catching up on Candy Crush (ha!) and just wasting time, really!
Perhaps in the next coming months I'll be able to manage my time better. I'd like to catch up on some reading, organise my wardrobe, sort my bedroom (it's been a year that we moved in, and I haven't really put away everything!) and also sort my make-up collection!
It's probably time that I throw out some stuff that has passed its prime.

I have been journaling a bit more, though.
I was wondering if anyone would be interested if I start blogging little details about my pregnancy. I mean, I would anyway. I remember going on Google when I first found out that I was pregnant, wanting to know more about check-ups and stuff but I didn't find much about them. Or not as detailed as I would have liked. So yeah.. hopefully that's coming in the next few weeks.
I am also journaling for Nugget on top of my Moleskine. I mean, this is my kid we're talking about. Nugget will probably want to know some stuff later on and I may have forgotten about the little details.

So that's what's new with me and what's in store in the near future for the blog.
Nothing about work, nothing much of shopping and beauty stuff, and a little about pregnancy and baby stuff!
Hope it wouldn't be too much of a drag.

Have a lovely May, dear readers!

Another Empties Entry.

I swear I am trying to be better at this.
I am trying to manage my time better and hopefully update this blog more than what seemingly to be once a month.
Sometimes I do wish that my thoughts would somehow just magically type itself and publish on its own on this blog. Would save me a whole lot of trouble from all the guilt by not writing anything on this blog.

So anyway, it has been six months since my last "empties" (products I've used up) blog, I thought it's a good enough time to update you on what I've finished up since then!
Mind you, I've been collecting for six months and hubs have been making funny comments about me putting aside garbage. Understandable, really. I myself got tired of looking at my pile of rubbish for the past six months.

BODY CARE.

So let's talk about the stuff that I have the most of in this picture; Bausch & Lomb Renu Fresh Multi-Purpose Solution; four bottles of the 120ml and two of the 60ml (normally what I carry in my travel toiletries bag) in the course of six months, I think that's a good number. I definitely did not use one for longer than it should be used.
Then there's also one of the ReNu MultiPlus Lubricating and Rewetting Drops. I should probably have more of that but I have multiples of it in many of my handbags that I don't go through them as fast as I probably should.

Then we have Original Source Body Butter in Vanilla & Raspberry. I've talked about this brand and this particular scent in their body wash form in my previous empties blog, so when I saw that they have it as body butter as I was randomly walking around in Boots in Bangkok months ago, I just couldn't walk away! Loved it while it lasted. Wouldn't mind having it again, but as I mentioned previously, when it comes to body products I really don't mind trying out different things.

A favourite, Vaseline Intensive Care Spray Moisturiser. So perfect for days when I couldn't be bothered to smother myself with proper moisturisers but knew better than to go without it. Basically it's a lotion mist that you spray all over your body then you're all set! It's so easy to the point that Encem uses it too. We are currently going through another one of this.
Not sure if you can find it here, but I got it from Priceline in AU. I do hope we have something like this over here!

Something basic and boring, I 'd gone through another tube of Colgate Optic White. We currently have a normal toothpaste in our bathroom though. I feel like YEARS of using a whitening toothpaste is making my teeth a lil' sensitive. Just a little. And I'm not even sure if it actually works! hahaha! I mean, years of drinking coffee, tea and smoking.. I hadn't expected much to be honest.

Finally for body care products, I've finished up Bath & Body Works Shower Gel in Winter Candy Apple and the Deep Cleansing Hand Soap in Golden Pineapple Luau. Winter Candy smelled nice; kinda like apple pie, smelled of apples and cinnamon. Golden Pineapple Luau smelled great. I feel like everytime I wash my hands the whole room would smell like pineapples, LOVED it!

SKIN CARE.

Feels like I'd gone through a bunch of skin care stuff in the past six months.
There was the tub of Origins Make A Difference Night, Make A Difference Plus and also the sample size that I travelled with. Loved them. I always go back and forth between the Make A Difference and GinZing range, so they are one of those things that I will repurchase.

I'd also finish up a deluxe size of First Aid Beauty Ultra Repair Cream, and the Facial Radiance Pads. The cream is pretty basic, but I do love the fact that you can use it anywhere; from the face to all over the body. I didn't hate it, but I don't see myself repurchasing it when my heart is just stuck on Origins.
The pads however, I loved. This was my second tub and I just hadn't gone around to repurchasing it. I don't usually use toner for my skin but this stuff makes it so easy that I couldn't not use it.

More moisturisers -- Lush Million Dollar Moisturiser. Too heavy, doesn't really absorb into my skin. Also, I think there are teeny tiny glitters in it. I mean, my face didn't exactly look glittery but they were almost shimmery. Just not my thing.
A glow would be nice, but shimmers is a bit much.

Now we turn to cleansers, I've finish up a travel size of NARSskin Gentle Cream Cleanser. Basic. Nothing much to talk about. I never have much to talk about cleansers. Except that this one doesn't really foam. But my skin did feel clean afterwards.

After years and years of working on it, I've finally finish up the Bourjois Micellar Cleansing Water! I swear I got this YEAARRS ago when I made my very first purchase of Bourjois makeup in Hong Kong and got this for free.
Well, it worked like any other micellar water. But I don't really reach for micellar water that often which is why it took so SO long to get through.

Then there's the sole Simple Kind To Skin Cleansing Facial Wipes. Like my contacts lense solution, pretty sure I've used up more than just one packet of it but perhaps too lazy to keep it aside.
Loved it. Will always repurchase.

HAIR CARE.

So I've finished up my second pair of OGX Biotin & Collagen shampoo and conditioner. Apparently biotin is good for your hair and this particular range smelled really nice. I got these while I was in AU (naturally) while they're on sale. Pretty sure I'd seen the brand here in Watsons though.
I'm not particular enough to notice if it made my hair stronger or anything like that but I love how the scent lingers in my hair.

Another favourite, Josie Maran Argan Oil Hair Serum. Unfortunately our Sephora no longer carries Josie Maran and the last time I was in AU and looked for it in Mecca, they didn't have it in stock! Kinda upsetting because I would love to repurchase this. It feels a little silicone-y but it has such a lovely smell and it worked for my hair. Can't complain.
Trying to find ways to get more of it. I do have a little bit of it in a travel size but it is SO precious that I couldn't bear to use it.

Something I bought because I couldn't get a hold of the Josie Maran hair serum; Ouai Hair Oil. I don't think my hair responded as well to the hair serum. And it smelled of Jasmine flower, which I'm not crazy about. I suppose it helped a bit with my dry ends, but it's just not good enough for me to repurchase.

Lastly, I'd gone through my travel hairspray; Kao Cape 3D Extra Keep hairspray that I always stock up whenever I'm in Japan. There are a few variations of these hairsprays and I never seem to notice the difference between them, but I always have them in my work bag to tame my fly-aways as best as I can. As long as it's small, doesn't smell funky and doesn't make my hair feel crunchy, that's a good enough reason for me to keep repurchasing it.

MAKE-UP.

I'd gone through the last of my Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz. I'd also gone through Benefit Cosmetics Precisely, My Brow Pencil in shade 3. Between the two, I MUCH prefer the Brow Wiz but it's a little harder to get a hold of. Also, I think it is slightly cheaper than Benefit's brow pencil and lasts much longer. I feel like I went through Benefit's SO quickly!
I am currently using It Cosmetics' brow pencil and I think I'll go back to Anastasia once I've run out. I really do miss it.

I'm also getting rid of a sample size of Tarte Gifted mascara. It was fine, didn't exactly wow-ed me or anything. I remember the formula being a little dry which didn't do much for my eyelashes. Perhaps I got a bad batch or something but it just didn't impress me.

RANDOM BITS.

We're near the end, guys!

I used up a pack of Sephora Soft Touch Cotton Pads that I got on a whim. I did enjoy that it has different textures on its two sides. One was soft, the other was kinda exfoliating. I used it with the micellar water but now that I've run out of that, I suppose I have no need to repurchase the cotton pads.

Something for the home, I'd gone through the Bath & Body Works Wallflower that I only kept one of. I threw most of them out consciously knowing that I was going to feature them in this blog but I pretty much use one up every month and I have them in my bedroom and living room so I don't see the point in having ten to twelve of them for this entry. (Different than my contacts solution because I never knew how much I was using them before this. hehe. Now that I do, I won't be keeping multiples of the empty bottles for my next empties blog.)
Oh, I do love the stuff. Probably not very economical but I really like getting a whiff of it everytime I enter the room.

Super random; Method Home Dish Soap in the Cucumber scent! hahahaha! Never thought I'd feature a dish soap on my blog, but I do love this stuff! Yes, pricey, but it's naturally derived and I especially love that it doesn't smell like your average dish soap. I don't know about you but my hands don't feel as dry after doing the dishes and I do appreciate that.
I'm the sort of person who used to wear gloves whenever she does a load of dishes -- true story. My hands would get so SO dry, Method dish soap is such a life saver!
Would repurchase -- have repurchased. (This is my second bottle even, currently going through my third.)

And that is it! Damn, this is a long entry.
So that's all the crap that I can happily throw away and stop Encem from giving me funny comments about me hoarding trash.
Suppose I'll do this again in six months but I have a feeling that the collection will be more or less the same. I'll try and make it short and sweet if it does.

Thank you for staying and reading this through.
Let's hope that I'll have a more exciting entry next time. (I'm hoping anyway.)