Tag + Giveaway

Photo Tag - Tagged by Eki! Thanks :)

Rules:

1 - Open first photo foloder

2 - Scroll down to 10th photo

3 - Post that photo and story on your blog

4 - Tag 5 other (or more) friends to do the same

This is the 10th photo in my first photo folder, it is a Blythe doll!! My mom and I are obsessed with collecting these, but this picture was taken for selling on Ebay (this doll has long been sold by now). I can't see what doll this was from the picture, the name on the left bottom is too small to see.

Anyway we both still like collecting Blythe dolls but after 6-7 years of collecting, it is getting a little boring. But we still have the original FAO Schwartz re-issue of Mondrian and Hollywood.

Giveaway Reminder!! Last minute -- ending 12 AM tonight!

Mona's 200th Follower Giveaway - ending tonight

Rules:

1. Must be a follower

2. Tell me your favorite metal in your comment, i.e. 14k gold, sterling silver, rose gold, brass, copper etc

3. A link/post back to this blog on your blog (ok if you don't have a blog)

Prize:

1st prize

2nd prize:

Mona, I hope you are ok with me posting your pics for this giveaway contest to promote it!

UPDATE about me:

I'm in Bonaire scubadiving!! Sorry I haven't been commenting or getting back to anyone.. will be returning on Sunday morning. I'm getting sucked up by mosquitos at the moment!! My face is suffering T_T They are biting my face because that is the only area exposed when I wear my wetsuit, also my hands but not as bad. I have like 10 bites on my face and neck area... it is terrible. The mosquito situation is very bad because of the rain Bonaire had the day before I came, it is not humid but the mosquitos like this weather...

Hope to update again soon! Thanks for continued support.

In Paradise? Partially.

Updating with slightly slow internet from an island called Bonaire (one of the Netherland Antilles--Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire).

I am on vacation with my parents and we are scuba diving!

All sounds well except for the fact that the plane to Bonaire from Newark was a disaster!

I've been to Bonaire 5 times, this is the 5th year and I've never experienced such a problem with Continental airline service...

The plane's weather radar went kaput, and they were not allowed to fly the aircraft with such a condition, thus we turned back around after 30 min of taking off and flying. But the "turning around" took about 2 extra hours: probably due to making sure the new aircraft was ready and "turning around" = circling around.

Landed back to Newark around 3 am, left Newark around 12 am before. The crew promised to quickly board onto the new aircraft, which would take only 30 minutes since the flight was not full, capacity was 140, 70 passengers aboard. Another lie! -_-;

Everyone was waiting in the new gate when suddenly a woman pulled up with her handy dandy golf cart contraption. "I'm sorry but you'll have to take this flight tomorrow morning at 11 am."

Ok... supposedly the crew went illegal and were not supposed to fly within their hours. That's fine. But tomorrow morning at 11am? Why not earlier?

Then everyone went through the whole process of booking hotels through Continental and food vouchers, all that stuff. It's their loss! hahaha.

So I stayed in an airport hotel (luckily it was a nice one!). I didn't have any change of clothes but did have emergency necessities such as: toothpaste, toothbrush, skincare samples, eyedrops, etc etc.

The next morning we departed the hotel at 8 am to be at the gate by 9 am, then leave Newark at 11 am. Everyone was there... but two. I guess they missed the flight, and it took another 20 min for the staff to remove their baggage from the plane.

So, arrival time was 4 pm, lost a whole day of diving, but all was fine! It wasn't an awfully stressful experience at all... The people were cooperating so nicely because they were tired and understanding... haha!

So I'm not really updating on any beauty stuff since this internet is so slow to upload any pictures right now, and I'm ready to pass out any minute! :D

Hope to update again soon and thanks for all comments on my birthday! Love you all :)

Review: Hada Labo Hyaluronic Face Wash + Giveaway Winner

Today's review will be about the Gokujyun Super Hyaluronic Face Wash by Rohto. Phew, long name!

I got this in Japan because I forgot my facewash on my trip. I paid 732 yen in the drugstore, which is not too expensive.

This can be purchased online at these places for a reasonable price:

Sasa - Gokujyun Face Wash - $7.50 <-- cheaper!!

Imomoko - Gokujyun Face Wash - $12.00

So what is Hyaluronic Acid?

- It is a very common ingredient in skin care products and plays an integral role in maintaining and regulating moisture. Hyaluronic acid is naturally found in all body tissue, with the highest concentration in the exterior matrix of the skin.

But we all lose the concentration of hyaluronic acid in our bodies as we grow older so it is important to replenish it with our skin care products! :)

This is how the face wash looks, it is a pure white color. The packaging says that there is no scent, no color, no alcohol and oil-free. This is great because I don't really like scented products, I'm very sensitive to scent and I get nauseous if they are too overpowering.

Spread out onto the skin, of course if you had more water it will become a little bit more foamy but I don't think this has sulfates so it doesn't foam up that much at all. The consistency is milky.

Here's the back of the tube with more information, basically it's explaining what Super Hyaluronan is, there's also a diagram that explains how there is a lack of hyaluronic acid on the surface of the skin, and if you use this face wash, it will increase the number of (molecules? lol idk what word to use). The first picture on the left is regular Hyaluronic acid, then the next picture is Super hyaluronic acid, which is 2x as more hyaluronan.

Pros

- Really moisturizing, no flaky spots at all. When I did a portion of my hand, only that spot was soft and the other areas were not as soft.

- No strong scent (maybe very mild soap scent), no colorant, no alcohol, no oil

- Not that expensive

- Hada Labo line includes many other products like moisturizer, face mask sheets, toner, and more (same Hyaluronic Acid type or others like AHA/BHA and etc.)

- Easy dispenser, tube

Cons

- Not enough product, when I bought mine it was like 75-80% full, now I only have like 50% left

- Japanese product so not readily available in the States but accessible through online retailers

Overall

I really love this face wash, it is very moisturizing, it doesn't strip any original moisture on my face. Also I love that there is no strong scent! The consistency is not that watery, more like thick milky texture. I have another facewash that I love, it is the DHC one. That one foams up more like regular soap but it is as moisturizing but it has an herbal scent (rosemary-ish).

Rating

4.5/5: 1/2 point off for not enough product

Giveaway Results:

Wow this giveaway was really fun, I liked everyone's answers to my questions and got a feel of what you all want to read about. I received 48 valid entries!

Like I said before, I'm going to try to answer everyone's questions in an About Me post.

Thank you to all old and new followers, I've now reached over 200. Hope to continue this great blogging experience for the future!

Sadly some people had to be disqualified because they were not followers and did not follow rules completely. Hopefully next time those will have a chance to win... :(

So as you can see, I used Excel to write all of the entries and if they were a follower or not, those who were not followers were deleted and I got a person who entered after it closed so that was not valid.

Also the winner was randomly picked by Random.org, you can see which number won!

The winner is Lisa from Shop n' Chomp! I'm going to emai you so please send me your address info before Saturday so I can send the package before I go on holiday... again... haha

Thank you for all who entered!! Hope you can win next time :D

And to all that tried guessing my age, only 1 person got it correctly.

Today is my birthday, I'm turning 17 years old... -_-

I'm always embarassed about my age because many people think that high school students do not have the capacity to associate with older adults in the same way. But thank you to all of you who like to read my blog, even though I may be a little younger than most.

Giveaway Closed!

Today is my birthday! It is 12 AM now. Actually my "real" birthday is 12 noon haha.

My giveaway is now closed, I will be going through the entries and picking the winner through random.org.

Thank you so much to everyone that entered! I'm going to answer the questions everyone asked through a FAQ or All about Me post. I really enjoyed reading all of the great entries.

And surprisingly, only 1 person got my real age correct!

Wow does everyone think I am so old? Haha I bet you will all be surprised how old I am... Maybe my writing style sounds so mature?

Anyway the winner will be posted tomorrow so look out for that! Thanks again for all who entered.

Weekend Update - West 14th & Soho, Haircut

I spent my Thursday in New York City, visiting Chelsea Market, shopping in Meatpacking district (window shopping of course! way too expensive there), and shopping around Soho and Greenwich Village. Has anybody been paying attention to the Next Food Network Star show? I didn't know Food Network was in Chelsea Market!! I wanted to go in but the security guard told us we were not allowed -_-;

Of course, Thursday is hardly the weekend but let's just say I'm a little lazy...

Sadly no beauty-related content today because my damn photos wouldn't upload correctly! I had a Lunasol FOTD and tutorial to show you all but Blogger would load them vertically instead of horizontally like I had saved them as. Frustrating!

Posing like Asian tourists in front of the Stella McCartney store :)

Aren't those robot heads smashing? And look how long my hair is?

Marc Jacobs Special Items store in Greenwich Village on West 4th

This is a Marc Jacobs store that sells cheaper items, very cute!

Haha close up of Marc Jacobs~

A very self-evident sign.

Down one of the streets in the meatpacking district. Yeah... no wonder it's called meatpacking!

3 little pigs.

My very nice purchase from the Marc Jacobs specialty store. (Psst! $5 each!)

BEFORE: No I do not go to the Julliard School (my friends go to Pre-College and I have a friend who goes to college there too.)

AFTER: More sophisticated... and ostentatious.

My lovely Uniqlo t-shirt haul:

Yes I know this one is a little strange... What can I say? I love mice themed clothes and accessories (I am in love with the MJ mice flats and bags!)

Osomatsu-kun! My dad's generation of manga... :)

Ge-ge-ge no Kitaro. Another very old but classic Japanese manga.

I love Uniqlo t-shirts, they are so soft, last a long time and are kind of quirky. I got these $7.90 each! Next time I will show you my entire Uniqlo tshirt collection.

My new haircut:

As many of you know, I go to Michi located in Edgewater, NJ. I've been going there for about 5 years now, and my stylist is Miho. If you happen to be in the area, stop by Michi in Mitsuwa.

My new haircut is an A-line bob. I will post up my inspiration picture next time. The last time I had my hair short was like 4 years ago. It's a nice change for once.

Moderate layers to give it a flow structure.

Ok this has got to be the most unflattering picture of me T_T

But you can see what I mean by A-line bob :)

Sigh... ok side view. It's kind of a wispy feel. Very light, layered, and thinned out. If you have bob hair, it looks terrible if your hair is heavy and thick. You might risk looking like a lamp shade from behind. You want to have lighter layers and some movement.

My wonderful stylist to the left, Miho-san! :) I feel like a giant next to her because she is very short... but I am only 5'2"!

My FOTD that I can't post the pics of the eyes T_T

After a shampoo this is what my hair looks like naturally.

I bought an ice shaver. I'm wreaking havoc!

This is one of my favorite desserts in the whole world: Kakigori (Patbingsu in Korean) and shaved ice in English! I think I ate this dessert like 5 times within the past 3 days.

It's not that fattening because notice I only have a bit of red bean, mochi and condensed milk. Ok maybe it is a LITTLE fattening.. but the rest is basically water.

The green stuff is this homemade green tea syrup I made from sugar starch syrup (idk the Japanese name is Mizu Ame) mixed with a little water and some green tea powder. Ah so delicious! If I have time I will take a picture of my little ice shaver machine :D

Don't forget to join my giveaway!

Ok having major issues with the (Continue Reading thing) -_-;;; trying to fix it!

Does everybody see it? How come my post is still coming out LONG lol!

New Layout

Fuz helped me way back in May with my layout and kindly gave me tips on HTML and colors, etc.

So now my layout is much more organized and easier to read, I finally took the time to change things up a bit.

Thank you so much Fuz!!! I really owe you one :) I'm sorry it took so long.. T_T

I'm going to post something tonight so pls wait for that.

Also at first I didn't know how to change the font color for the post title (it is in pink now) but then I figured it out... I'm just leaving it the way it is for now because I'm so tired. But do you like the pink or should I change it to some other color? Any suggestions?

Weekend Update - Mitsuwa Summer Festival

So last Saturday 8/8, I went to the Summer Festival aka Natsu Matsuri (夏祭り) held annually at the NJ Mitsuwa in Edgewater. In Japan around the summer months of July and August it is Obon season. Although an Obon matsuri (festival) is a lively event, Obon is a holiday held to honor the deceased ancestors. Usually every weekend in Japan there is a festival in different towns consisting of fireworks celebrations, food vendors, taiko performances, and Bon Odori (bon dance). Unfortunately I wasn't able to attend one in Japan because it was a little too early in the season and I missed the really big Sumidagawa fireworks (also too lazy to go because it was so crowded).

So in these matsuri, usually attendees wear the traditional summer kimono or yukata. A yukata may look beautiful on the outside but actually it is quite painful to wear one... There are two cloth himo (ropes) that must be tied around before the obi (big belt) is put on. They must be tied on very tightly or else the yukata will fall apart. If they are not snug, then the yukata doesn't look nice. At first I felt like I couldn't breathe, but this isn't my first time putting one on so it wasn't that bad. Last year I was constantly nauseous because the obi was so tight but this year was not too bad. I got a little sick when in the car but the standing position is actually the best.

In total there are about 3-4 rope layers before the obi is put on. I put two ropes, then one flat shaped pad to maintain the smooth appearance of the front of the obi.

Here is how I look in my yukata.

Since nowadays nobody wears the kimono as daily wear, many people feel like they are more 'beautiful' when wearing one (in my opinion). It's almost like a treat to wear one and receive so much attention and compliments. After the matsuri I went to a restaurant and everyone was staring because I live in the US, and nobody wears yukata here. I got so many compliments though! It was actually a fun experience.

Here I am with my very good friend, we went together. Some traditional patterns on yukatas are flowers (mine are sakura), fish (like goldfish and carps), and other nature related patterns. My friend's yukata have small goldfish but you can't see in this picture. I also have another light blue yukata with pink goldfish but didn't wear it this time.

These little girls were so cute I had to take a picture! Their obi are not hard like mine, they are like sashes, much softer and more comfortable! The wooden shoes you see on the right are called 'geta.'

I wore my hair in the odango style, the cute white flower hairpin is courtesy of Eki! Haha and if you spot that white thing sticking out of my obi.. that is not part of my obi. It is a napkin I just stuck there because I had nowhere to throw it out! haha! :D

Here is the Bon Odori, as you can see, mostly old ladies are dancing. Oh and if you see that cute guy on the right side, he was really good at dancing! Even better than me.

Haha.. Me trying to keep up with the steps. I've done traditional dancing before in Japan one time, I even performed with my other friend (but we messed up and had to go on the stage twice -_-). Even though it looks so easy, it is quite hard to keep up!

This is the Taiko performance. Wow what an ab workout! I can't believe they have to lie down and hit the taiko... They must be so tired after doing two performances. Watch my video to see how they sounded.

Hm if you noticed in the Bon Odori video I said "Video tochatta" hahaha it means "Oops I took a video." in Japanese... I was going to take a picture but then ended up in video.. Oh well that is kind of good, I have something to show you guys now!

Well hope you enjoyed this cultural post, it was lots of fun!

Don't forget to join my giveaway, it ends on August 20th (my birthday!)

I promise to answer questions that all of you asked me in the entries, nice way to get to know me, right? :) Anyway, please try to spread the word and good luck!

Beauty Snap Giveaway - 150+ Followers!

I am going to introduce to you my first ever giveaway, celebrating my 150+ followers!

Actually I was going to do a 100 follower giveaway but then when I wasn't paying attention, it quickly grew to 161, where I am now.

Thank you very much to all who have supported me by reading, commenting, and visiting my blog! I never expected that anybody would want to read what I write about. I really appreciate all of the positive outcomes I got from blogging, I met so many new people, some who have become close friends! Once again, thank you so much.

As I have promised, all of the items are from Japan and were handpicked by me. The giveaway also celebrates my birthday which is on August 20th. There are 8 items in the prize which symbolize the month of August (8th month), the month of my birthday. There will also be 8 questions to answer.

Anyway on to the goodies...

THE GIVEAWAY PRIZE

1. KATE Diamond Cut Eyes Eyeshadow Palette in PU-1

Brand New with 2 shades of purple and 3 highting shades.

2. Bihada Ichizoku Face Mask

Aloe Vera and Cactus Extracts

3. Dariya Hair Velcro

To pin up your hair when applying makeup

4. Cross Type Falsies

Including lash glue

5. Silk Worm Cocoons

Sounds weird but good for cleaning pores!

6. Compact Powder Case

Great for travel, can fit a puff

7. Black Flower Hair Accessory

Cute for ponytails

8. Salon Style by Kose Samples

Including shampoo, conditioner, and deep cleansing pre-shampoo

How to Win

- Must be a follower to beautysnap.blogspot.com. If you are not a follower, please click Follow on the bar to the side. You just need a google account to follow, you do not have to have a blog.

- Leave a comment on this post using your blog/google ID. If you don't, you will not be qualified to win! You must answer these questions:

1. Introduce yourself and tell me some of your hobbies/things you like.

Example: I'm Mika from New Jersey and I love photography, scubadiving, and shopping.

2. Why do you like my blog? (Honestly please! ;])

3. What would you like to see from me in the future?

4. What do you have in common with me?

5. What colors do you suggest for my next layout?

6. Anything you'd like to know more about me?

7. How old am I turning? (Since it is my birthday on August 20th, just asking. If you don't know just guess... no penalty for wrong answer, just wanted to see what people would guess.)

8. Please provide your email address so I can contact you.

Rules

- Open to everyone worldwide.

- All comment entries not related to this giveaway or do not follow all directions will be deleted! If you have a question, ask in the C-Box.

- ONE ENTRY PER CONTESTANT! Multiple entries will be deleted.

- Winner picked randomly by a generator.

- ENDING on August 20th, 2009 12:00AM EST.

You don't have to make a separate blog post but feel free to advertise and spread the word!

Sorry to make so many questions but I want to make people work a little.. hahaha :)

Also I wasn't thinking about it at the time but I realized that 8 is the lucky Chinese number.. Hehe superstitions!

Once again thank you all and I wish everyone the best of luck!

Giveaway Reminders

Ok this is just a post to remind everyone of some ongoing giveaways:

JOIN AMY NAREE'S "DATE NIGHT KIT" GIVEAWAY

Win: 1 BNIB of Silk Whitia, 1 BNIB Coffret D'or Star Dazzling Eyeliner DB-03, 1 BNIB Paul & Joe Duo Mascara in Blue, 1 BN Revlon Lip Gloss in Toast of the Town, and 3 BNIB False Eyelashes

Ends Aug. 18th

JOIN YUMEKO'S GIVEAWAY

Win: 1 My Beauty Diaries mask box with 7 different types

Ends: August 12th

JOIN BLAIR'S GIVEAWAY

Win: "Blair's brand ahaha (blue themed Swarovski bracelet), Calvin Klein, Clean & Clear, Coogi, Daiso, Dr. Jart+, Elizabeth Arden, Maquillage (main prize!), Missha, My Scheming Beauty, Shiseido The Makeup, Shu Uemura, The Skin Food and Watsons."

Ends: August 31st

Note: Click on the pictures to access the giveaway links.

REVIEW: DHC Q10 Liquid Foundation + FOTD: Peachy Bronze

I was asked to do a review on the DHC Q10 Liquid Foundation quite a while ago by IchigoBunnie, sorry to keep you waiting!

I briefly reviewed this product in the past but never took any pictures of the product on my face. Also I reviewed it in the winter, not summer so the results may be different.

The shade I have is Pink Ocher 02, I was not matched by a SA. I actually received this from a family member who did not match this shade so I don't know if this shade actually is that perfect for me. So far it is pretty good match I suppose?

The bottle is not that big and it contains 1 fl. oz of foundation fluid. There is a nozzle so it is hygenic, you do not have to keep dipping fingers into a jar or anything like that. This is one of the features that I like about this foundation.

Site description: "Sheer and glowing. Not too heavy, not too light--sheer, moderate SPF 15 coverage that's just right. Enriched with age-defying coenzyme Q10, hydrating olive oil, and UV damage--fighting olive leaf extract, help even out skin tone and give yourself a beautiful glow. Non-greasy texture feels weightless on skin."

There's more info on the DHC site, access the link here. There is a variety of shades that match shades for all ethnicities, not only Asian complexions. The cost of this foundation is $17.50 USD.

Texture is quite runny, look at it dripping along my palm. This means that it provides sheer coverage. The coverage on me is sheer, does not cover any dark freckles I have (or beauty spots, whatever you want to call them).

Here it is blended a little on my hand. I got a little tan on my hand so it might not match perfectly on the hand...

Haha scary face~ No foundation, just moisturizer on the face. I am facing a window just in case you were wondering.

So you can see that it didn't really cover much. But it did even out my complexion a little. The finish is not exactly dewy but it is glowy. It is a little on the matte side? This foundation is not very moisturizing so it seeps into lines or dry skin. You might want to avoid that by putting on a primer beforehand. In this picture I did not use a primer and I did not use a finishing powder.

A little bit more closeup on the face.

Overall

After about 6-7 hrs I blotted around nose, cheek and forehead area. I get the most oily around the nose, other areas don't get that oily.

Pros:

- Sheer if you like light coverage

- Glowy but not overly dewy

- Natural finish

- Light for humid weather

- Lots of shades to match different skintones

- Easy access in US - order from DHC US website

- Nozzle application, not messy

Cons:

- Runny formula

- A little drying in the wintertime

- Settles into dry skin, need to use primer

FOTD of the day, Peachy Bronze look. I attempted a tutorial and I have the pics but didn't get to cropping them just yet... Hopefully I will post them tomorrow.

Eugh my cheeks are so chubby -___-;

Products Used:

Face

- DHC Q10 Liquid Foundation

Cheeks

- Canmake Cheek Gradation 3 Cheek & 1 Highlight in 02

Eyes

- Visee Brilliance Forming Eyes in A-1 Pink

- Sisley Phyto-Khol Perfect Eyeliner in Brown

- Clinique High Definition Lashes Mascara

Lips

- Maquillage Lip Essence EX

- Laura Mercier lipgloss in Petal Glace