So many instances this could have failed, but didn't. I didn't realize planning surprises are so much fun. We should do this more often. ;)

Happy 30th birthday. I love you. ♥

It's easy to get lost in the holidaze and forget one's self, but thankfully Strip's pioneer branch is just a block away from my office. One visit during lunchtime yesterday and I ticked personal grooming off my December to do list. (-‿◦)


What I love about Strip is that they continuously think of new fun wax variants to offer to customers. Aside from the usual Strawberry, Chocolate, and Lemon waxes available all year round, they have come up with variants like the New York Cheesecake, Shanghai Summer Orange, and Gingerbread, among others. This holiday's limited edition wax? It's the Mulled Wine Wax.


Strip says that the limited edition Mulled Wine Wax is perfect for those who are thinking of getting Brazilian or Boyzilian for the first time. It’s infused with the warm and festive scent of red wine, orange, cloves, and cinnamon, which is sure to get you into a holiday mood.

Feeling festive yet? Here are more photos!


I really love Strip's funky themed interiors. Not too girly/ frilly nor too minimalist with these.





That carrot pillow got quite a good beating squeezing from me. >_<


This is the Mulled Wine Wax. It smells like wine with a zest of citrus!


Cendy worked on my all-off Brazilian wax while talking to me and answering my questions like it's the most natural thing in the world. She was doing it in a very clinical yet casual way, like we were just doing a simple mani-pedi session with a side of gossip. Heh. I appreciate that because I was put at ease instantly.

Strip's services may be more expensive than other waxing salons here, but in the couple of times I've gone to them I've never been disappointed. Having body hair removed almost always equates to pain, but what I love about Strip is that the pain dissipates quickly. I'm not sure if it's just me or if it's because I took one Alaxan an hour before my appointment, though. But yes, over-the-counter meds or not, Strip has never given me extreme levels of pain. Unfortunately, the same can't be said about one other waxing salon that I tried. It was too painful, the wax was too hot, and I bled.

Thank you, Strip. Satisfied customer here!


The limited edition Mulled Wine Wax will be available until March only so I suggest trying it out just in time for the holidays! Cheers!

*Disclosure: I was sent a special package by Strip with an invitation to try the Mulled Wine Wax for my next Brazilian session but I was not required nor compensated for this review. All opinions are my own. Read my complete Disclosure Policy here.

I think beauty boxes are great since they give us a chance to try new beauty products that have just been introduced to the market, or get a bunch of tried and tested products at a discounted price. Sometimes if you're lucky you can even score beauty boxes that contain your old favorites as well as new ones that are potential faves. 

Subscription boxes are nice to get because it's like receiving a surprise gift each time, but personally before I spend money on something I'd rather know its contents first. So far not a lot of beauty boxes have jumped out at me enough for me to buy it, until Project Vanity released its Naughty and Nice Kit. I believe I'm one of the first ones to snap it up because I was worried it would get sold out quickly!

My kit was delivered a day after I paid for it, and OMG. I already knew it was a great kit hence my purchase, but holding it in my hands gave me such a thrill because OMG, what a great kit! For only P1,450, you get all these products worth more than P6,000, and unlike other beauty boxes that have filler samples [that may add to the box's value but not really because you don't get to use them anyway], the products included here are all winners! I mean, it blows my mind that you get more than what you pay for with just the Strip gift certificate alone!

Ladies and gentlemen, here are the contents of the Project Vanity Naughty and Nice Kit and my quick thoughts on each one.

I popped my Brazilian wax cherry with them and since then I've already tried a few waxing salons but Strip is really the best. At P1,598, a Brazilian wax with them doesn't really come cheap but you really feel the difference. I know I did.

I feel my prettiest after a brow threading session with Browhaus. #Instapretty realness, no questions asked.

My friend Alex swears by this brand so it must be true. This set contains sample sizes of the Shampoo, Conditioner, and Quick Dry Spray, and I will bring this with me to our barkada slumber party after Christmas!



I deep clean my makeup brushes as regularly as I can, but a spot cleaner is always nice to have. This product leaked a little in the bag though (good thing the gift certificates were not affected!) so I would suggest that the Project Vanity team secure this before including a bottle in future kits.

This is translucent and blends seamlessly with the skin after you pat it on. I apply it using a powder brush, and I think it did help set my makeup and made it last longer.



It was my first time to use a K-Palette product and I could say the raves were not unwarranted! I do feel it's too expensive for the amount of product you get, though, and I can't say I would purchase this again. I'll share my favorite eyebrow  products on a future post!



I got the shade She's Got the Mauve and it's such a beautiful shimmery color. What's amazing is that it didn't crease at all, even without primer! Now I think I want the Go Bronze pencil also. Heh.



Another OMG moment for me. I have a lot of eyeliners in my traincase but most of them give me raccoon eyes before the day is through, so using the Holika Holika 24HR Auto Eyeliner and feeling like I didn't have oily lids is A+++. It's also easy to remove with makeup remover, no tugging required. I will buy more of this in a heartbeat!



I got the shade Sweet Marsala. It's easy to apply and it's such a gorgeous color but it flakes on my lips. I have yet to test to see whether lip balm or lip liner can help.

All these [as well as a card with information on the products] are housed in a deep red pouch in jersey material. I like that it's something I can reuse, but I wish that beautiful painting by Liz (founder and EIC of Project Vanity) could've been printed on the pouch as well. Hee.

I can't say it enough: I love this kit! And to prove that all the products included are products I can use, here's today's face.



The only other product I used that is not included in the kit is the Maybelline Dream Velvet Soft-Matte Hydrating Foundation in Natural Beige that I used as base. I wish I was able to take better photos under natural lighting, though.

Aaand there you have it. Thoughts on the Project Vanity Naughty and Nice Kit? Were you able to get one? I saw from Liz's post that it's now sold out on Project Vanity but you can still get one from BeautyMNL. Good luck! ♥

Praise be to God and all His angels and saints, for I am finally free from the bondage that shackles me!

Me and my love for hyperbole. But seriously, if, like me, you've been wearing braces for more than a quarter of your life, then you'll find a lot of reasons to rejoice when they're finally removed.

Buh-bye, braces!

I first wore braces when I was in first year high school, which I wore all my high school life until my fourth year in college. Unfortunately, even that long span of time wasn't enough as I had to have new ones fitted again. I had it done two years ago, and today my orthodontist removed it! For good, I hope.

I keep feeling the inside of my cheeks and wanting to do a celebratory jig because it's so smoooooth. I'll never take this feeling [of running my tongue around my teeth unobstructed by metal] for granted ever.

This wonderful feeling will be short-lived though as I will still need to wear my retainers, but until I get it this coming Sunday everything's good.

My boyfriend wore braces before also. Now we're just a couple of nerds showing off our perfect chompers. Heh.

See you on Saturday if you're coming to the #BU12xWorldBazaarFestival Holiday Bazaar at the World Trade Center Tent! ♥ 

It's almost the end of the year (whew, about time!), but before we bid 2016 goodbye, let the #BU12xWorldBazaarFestival Holiday Bazaar sate your appetite for all things pretty this holidaze shopping season!


The #BU12xWorldBazaarFestival will be held at the World Trade Center-Tent on December 10 from 10 in the morning to 12 midnight. Expect loads of activities, exciting contests, and of course, great deals and shopping finds from your favorite bloggers!

I said numerous times before that I have a problem with letting go of my stuff but space constraints is now forcing me to do so. Add to that the fact that most of my clothes no longer fit my current age bracket (I turned 30 this year), body type (I've finally filled out in places I didn't thought possible), and lifestyle, so might as well give them to other people who can appreciate them better. Prices will range from P50 to P800 only! I'll be sharing my booth with Alexandra and I hope you can come drop by!

Coinciding with this December's event is our partner World Bazaar Festival, the biggest bazaar in the metro that started on December 3 thru 22 at the World Trade Center. Shop from more than a thousand booths at the grandest and longest running charity bazaar for the benefit of the ABS-CBN Lingkod Kapamilya Foundation!

This event is open for all! Tickets will be sold at the venue for only P80, via World Bazaar Festival's Main Hall entrance OR you can also follow me on Twitter and tweet me so I can give you a pair of tickets!


See you on Saturday!

A blink and what feels like one too many sighs, and it's December. 

I know I say this a lot, but seriously, WHERE DID THE MONTHS GO? Did we enter a portal days are less than 24 hours long? Did we somehow unlock the mysteries of time and make it go faster? I don't really know. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Since 2011, it has been a tradition for me to post my Christmas wish list on the first day of December in case Santa's feeling generous, but today I didn't even realize it was time to make this year's list if not for Timehop reminding me so. And so I spent the idle hours of this day thinking to myself what I want to receive this Christmas so I can start doing one of my snazzy collages again...

... and I came up with nothing.

I mean, sure, I've wanted a typewriter for so long and a white Kindle Paperwhite would be very, very, very nice to have, but, I don't know, in the grand scheme of things, with the amount of distress and political upheavals we've been having lately, I just feel like no one really cares if I get a paperweight or a new ebook reader or the Hamiltome for Christmas.

A visual representation of my brain cells having a bear-y important meeting

Now I don't know if this means I've matured (which is all well and good) or if I just became jaded (which I don't really want to be).

Am I too old for Santa's list?

Maybe. But still, that doesn't stop me from feeling festive and excited for this season. I just finished ordering presents for my aunts, uncles, and most of my friends, and I'm looking forward to distributing my gifts to them.

Last Tuesday we also had our office Christmas party, and it was a lot of fun. I think this was my favorite party yet because we were asked to invite our loved ones with us, and naturally I brought my love Miah.

Unlikely pairing: Super Mario and Vegeta, heh ♥ I won Best in Costume that night, by the way!

It's his birthday in a couple of weeks!

Speaking of birthdays and celebrations, you should definitely go to Freezer Burn in Bonifacio High Street as soon as possible and get Simbang Gabi, a special Christmas flavor that boasts of salted egg ice cream and freshly baked bibingka.


Who would have thought that one of our favorite Pinoy Christmas delicacies can have a twist as special as this? I wish I can get my old metabolism back and eat everything I want without worrying about the extra pounds. OH! Can that be my Christmas wish?

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

How about you, what are the items in your Christmas wish list? I hope you get your hearts' desires, as well as the wisdom to deal with them when you do finally get them.