Sample Room presents: Pond's Pearl Cleansing Gel

Aside from plopping down on my bed and reading a chapter or two before going to sleep, one of my favorite parts of going home after a long day is washing my face. There's something cathartic about literally washing the day's gunk off and preparing for beauty rest!

The problem is, some facial cleansers strip your face not only of the day's dirt but also of the skin's natural moisture, causing dryness and wrinkles in the long run. I have since switched to cream cleansers, but it's always good to know about new innovations in beauty and skincare. I attended the exclusive Sample Room event in Aracama last week where its partnership with the new Pond's Pearl Cleansing Gel was announced, and we were also given the chance to try it for ourselves!

Gel skincare products are lighter in texture and generally have milder ingredients allowing its essential properties to dissolve faster and more effectively into the skin. Pond’s Pearl Cleansing Gel is the first whitening facial wash in gel formulation that cleanses your skin, making it whiter and fresher without drying it.

If you'd like to have fairer skin in time for summer, you'll be happy to know that the new Pond’s Pearl Cleansing Gel also allows for better absorption of its Pearl Essence, which is known and tested for noticeable skin whitening. With its oxygenated formulation, it cleanses and refreshes while locking in moisture, making skin softer and more supple. It is also perfect for sensitive skin as it has milder ingredients compared to whitening soaps that are normally drying.

I was able to try the Pond's Pearl Cleansing Gel during the event so I can attest to how easily it suds up. It's also easy to rinse, and you don't have to worry about a sticky after-feel. After rinsing, my skin felt soft and moisturized. I also liked its light floral scent.

I  enjoyed the event with my Sample Roomies and my twinnie Tellie!

What skincare regimen goes best with the Pond's Pearl Cleansing Gel, you ask?

It is recommended that you cleanse  with Pond’s Pearl Cleansing Gel, moisturize with Pond’s Dewy Rose Gel, and if you're going out, finish with Pond’s Flawless White BB + Cream for makeup and skincare in one.

Pond’s Pearl Cleansing Gel is available in two sizes: 50g (P85) and 100g (P155), but I have great news for you! You can try before you buy and get a free sample of the new Pond’s Pearl Cleansing Gel when you log in to Sample Room. You can also use the voucher code PONDSGEL and shipping fee will be waived! Now that's a free sample! This offer for free shipping is valid until March 6 only or until stocks last. If you check and there are no stocks available, just keep on visiting the site because they restock from time to time!

Physical beauty begins with having good skin. Clean and clear skin is essential because having the best and most expensive makeup palettes in the world will not amount to anything if you have a not-so-nice canvas to work with. Take care of your skin and put your fresh face forward!

Currently Vol. 9

As much as I would like to believe otherwise, I don't adapt *that* well to change. I prefer plans to be more concrete (e.g. what time I am expected to meet someone somewhere, what time the program is estimated to end, et cetera) and get upset when something I have been looking forward to gets cancelled.

Last Friday, I was on leave from work so I can edit my buqo YA story in time for the February 28 deadline. I suddenly felt I didn't like my hair anymore so I tried to set an appointment with Bench FIX in TriNoma. I couldn't contact them though, but knowing that my favorite Bench FIX hairstylist Pabs should be in (Wednesday is his rest day) I decided to go anyway. I also met up with my friend Michelle whom I haven't seen in a while due to a brief falling out.

When we got there, surprise surprise, Pabs wasn't in! He was on leave! There were only two other stylists available: Chad and one other guy whose name escapes me at the moment. I wanted a pixie cut but I could only trust Pabs or Jude for that. I had my hair cut by Chad before and I wasn't a fan of how he cut it too short. The receptionist suggested I just go back the next day if I wasn't comfortable, but - and please don't laugh at me - it was a huge personal dilemma because I really wanted to go home with a new haircut that day. Besides, Saturday was no good either because of buqo YA graduation.

Long story short, I let Chad touch my hair, and I LOVED IT. I even had my hair colored a lovely red-violet because I felt the color would suit the new  cut.

It wasn't really the cut I originally wanted (I wanted a pixie cut and this isn't a pixie cut. It's a bob.) but I think this is one of the happiest I've been about a haircut, ever! To think I wouldn't have had it if I refused the chance for a change.

All's well that ends well. Here is this Monday's Currently!

CURRENTLY Vol. 9

READING

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. Reviews said it's a creepier and grittier version of Gone Girl. I'm so excited to sink my teeth into it!

WRITING
None yet. I'm still waiting for final approval of my song for Tales from the Metro before I get started, so in the meantime I'm trying to catch up on reading.

LISTENING TO
Magic by Reese and Vica. Such a magical song.

WEARING

My new Black White Animal Camo Paseo from TOMS. It's such an honor to work with a company I believe in, really. Started by Blake Mycoskie to benefit the children in Argentina he befriended, TOMS is a company that recognizes a need and strives to answer that need. With every pair you purchase, TOMS will give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. One for One.

THINKING
Of a lot of things. Can over-thinking be a legit profession? Because I am awfully good at that.

FEELING

Endless CRAVINGS. It's that time of the month so give me all the sweets and all the chips!

LOVING
The new Maybelline HyperSharp Liner and Maybelline HyperSharp Wing I was sent last Friday. I put them on this morning and they stayed put with very minimal budging on my oily lids! Review will be posted soon. ;)

WANTING
To be able to find time to paint again. Without meaning to, I've become one of those people who live for the weekends. I read somewhere that you should "figure out what fuels your joy, then do lots of that." I am happiest when I make and whilst I'm happy that I am able to write, I also need to pick up my watercolor brushes again.

This is my first watercolor painting I sold
Thank you for believing in me and my art, Nikita!

NEEDING
To figure out what I'd want to do for my birthday this year. It's happening a little over a month from today! I went all out on my How I Met Your Mother-inspired party last year and I'm not sure if I'd want the same for this year. I don't even know if I want a party per se because 29 is an odd number to celebrate. Maybe I can just go out of town? IDK.

WISHING
It were January again. How could it be March already??

Wishing you a great start to your week and month! Hang in there. ♡ 

Writing for buqo YA

Started from the bottom now we here:

Finished editing my buqo YA story at 3 AM
6,402 words, baby!

So yes, today I went to Summit Media for our "graduation" and to meet with Mina and the rest of my classmates, as well as the peeps from buqo who will distribute our stories.

Hello, I am Krissy.
PR girl, blogger, crafter, watercolor painter, book sniffer, avid movie goer, and AUTHOR.
And yes, I also had my hair cut and dyed yesterday.

We discussed what worked and what didn't during our writing process, and I'd like to share some of them with you here.

• Always keep a notebook handy. I also always have sticky notes with me, and this partly inspired my story. When I'm in transit to and from during meetings and neither are readily available, I use my phone.
• Gather supportive friends who can give you honest feedback, and motivate you when you're feeling out of it. I'm lucky because I have cheerleader friends (my friends from high school, my Breakfast Club-mates, Ed), friends who can spot grammar lapses and can give me their comments without crushing my self-confidence (Alexandra, Anne, and Alvin), and friends who stay up all night and I can chat up when I'm writing and very tempted to just go to sleep (Vlad). Thank you!
• Invest emotionally on your characters. If you don't feel a connection with them, you'll produce a halfhearted story. No one enjoys halfhearted stories. From Ethan Canin, "Don't write about a character. Become that character, and then write your story." How did I write about high school students when I am no longer a high school student myself? I just remembered what it was like for me, growing up. I've always had a flair for drama and I tend to empathize a lot so it was not *that* challenging for me.
• Listen around you. You never know when inspiration will strike! This tip was also shared by Manix Abrera during the Philippine Literary Festival.
• Don't over-think, because over-thinking leaves much room for self-doubt to creep in. As I shared, I was over-thinking and procrastinating for three weeks before I really sat down and worked on my story, but the minute I decided to start writing and put fingers to keyboard, that was when the magic happened. 

• In tenses as in plot points, consistency is key. It's true that you'll have a blind spot when it comes to your own work, and that's where your beta-readers and editors come in.
• Just write. From Neil Gaiman, "This is how you do it: you sit down at the keyboard and you put one word after another until it's done. It's that easy, and that hard."

Mina also discussed future writing projects we can participate in. While I was working on my YA story, I came up with dialogues that would be too mature for Nate and Tanya but would be perfect for characters in a New Adult story. I drafted a WIP file and it now sits on my desktop, ready to be revisited and worked on. It's so exciting when a project gives birth to other projects!

I feel so legit.

With Mina
I'd like to thank her for being so awesome in organizing writing communities and paving the way for people like me who have always dreamed of finishing writing something and putting our work out there. Visit the Romance Class catalogue here.

With my Romance Class classmate Justine
We miss you, Bea!

With Ines, author of One Crazy Summer, What's in Your Heart, and Only a Kiss
She also contributed a story to Sola Musica: Love Notes from a Festival
Her daughter Addie is probably the first kid who ever noticed my dimples!!!
So cute ^_^

With my buqo YA classmate Six

With buqo YA classmate Ginny

I'm so excited to read what my classmates have written! I hope you guys can download the buqo app on your mobile devices and support our dreams. ♡ Thank you so much for this opportunity, buqo and Mina!

And now, we celebrate.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookie a la Mode from Shakey's

Watch out for Once Upon a Sticky Note and more than 30 other stories from new authors, coming soon. ♡

GIFs were sourced from here.

Currently Vol. 8

I'm still on a high from being able to finish my buqo YA story on time! I woke up on the right side of the bed and sashayed to work excitedly despite clocking in only two hours and a half of sleep last night.

I have received really positive reception and helpful comments from most of my beta readers already, and that just warms my heart. Tomorrow, I start editing. The final class is this coming Saturday already and because I wasn't able to attend the first one, I would really try my best to attend this time. It would be nice to see Mina again, meet my classmates, and gush over our shared success together.

Meanwhile:

CURRENTLY Vol. 8

READING
The edits sent in by my friends Alex and Anne who concentrated on grammar and voice of the story. For fun, I am also reading Raymond Carver's What We Talk About When We Talk About Love. I'm not even halfway through yet so I'm not sure if this is a valid opinion, but I feel I liked Simon van Booy's The Secret Lives of People in Love more.

WRITING EDITING
My buqo-sponsored Young Adult story Once Upon a Post-It.

LISTENING TO
Yellowcard's Hang You Up and She's Only Sixteen's Magic on loop.

SMELLING
The smell of success. Hah.

WEARING
A big smile that I can't seem to wipe off.

THINKING
Of more stories I want to write.

FEELING
Thankful that I have a job that allows me to do things that feed my soul.

LOVING
The support the people around me have been showering me.

From my sunshine and serenade-in-a-box Ed last Saturday night. 

Excerpt from a very sweet email from my blog reader Bea last night

You don't know how much these mean to me. Thank you so much!

WANTING
To reward myself for this achievement but I don't know what to get for myself yet. A dress? Meh. Shoes? Meh. I'd like to go out of town but I don't think I have it in me to go alone. I need someone to plan with.

NEEDING
To get more rest because I've been subsisting on less than three hours of sleep each day for the past three weeks.

WISHING
I can watch Backstreet Boys in concert with my Mom. She's a fan of the boyband so I'm planning to buy tickets for us to surprise her. Sssh. ;)

May we never run out of things to smile about

Lots of things to look forward to this week: The Voice Season 8, Nate Ruess's new song, two TOMS events, a Sample Room event, and buqo YA's "graduation" on Saturday! Have a fantabulous week ahead!

I freakin' did it

And now I just want to shimmy all over my room with this Jason Mraz song on repeat!

I did it, guys. I finished my story for Mina Esguerra's buqo-sponsored Young Adult online class!

Save for my Creative Writing portfolio for my Intensive English class back in college, this is my first fictional work that I am putting out there, like, really out there, so this is kinda a big deal for me. Having said that, I am feeling so emotional right now. (ノД`)・゜・。

I always say I'm happiest when I make, no matter what form: a simple blog post, a crappy watercolor painting, or anything I DIY, but it's a completely different world when you create a completely different universe and give life to characters huhuhu. It's a different kind of high, and now I know how the authors I look up to were able to churn out book after book at a rate even I (who can't go to sleep without reading even one chapter) can't keep up with.

I'm so in love with life right now like you wouldn't believe. ♡

The online class started on January 24 and will end on February 28, which is the deadline of us sending the final draft. I have been sleeping less than three hours a day for the past three weeks, but if I'm being completely honest I only worked on my story for less than twenty hours. The rest of the time was spent either on work or procrastinating by watching movies and Will & Grace, reading endless articles all over the web, taking online quizzes, chatting with friends, and over-thinking every possible scenario about why I couldn't do this.

But hey, against all those odds, I was able to freakin' do it! Nate and Tanya's story, at 5,664 words. Most of my classmates have more than 10,000 words in their own stories, but I'm confident with what I have written. I think it has everything I needed to include, and Nate and Tanya were able to bring me to places I didn't think possible.

Pretty awesome feat, considering I started with this:

Now comes the next part. I have already sent my story to my beta readers and closest friends, and then I will wait for their honest comments about Once Upon a Post-It so I can apply the necessary changes, edit, and then prepare the cover. Until then, I will rest my hands and my eyes (the right side of my face has been twitching all afternoon, probably from lack of sleep) and hopefully work on my romance novella once my buqo YA story has been okay-ed.

I am so happy, you guys. ♡