EXO for Nature Republic - Lip Color Swatches

While walking past Nature Republic, I saw a poster... a poster I really wanted... EXO members all donned in light colored suits staring sexily (ok to me... ok?) into the camera... So with my beau in tow, I ran into Nature Republic frantically walking around looking for a sign of how to get this poster. A sales associate asked me if I needed help and I quickly brushed her off, still looking, then it hit me I can just ask her. At first she thought anyone can get it for free, but after she asked the cashier, it turns out you have to make a $20 purchase to get one.

My mission began as I dragged my beau around the store, testing every product I think I might like. Unlike Etude House, the packaging wasn't super cute. It was aimed for for that natural, organic (though  I don't think are not organic. They are however, 3 non added formula products) look. After tons of swatches, and contemplating between items, I decided on a lipstick and a lipgloss. I wanted a orangey nude lipstick like Ga In's in "Bloom," so I thought the two I bought would help me achieve this.

I misplaced my receipt, but if I recall the lipstick was about $13.60 and lip gloss around a $12 price range. A bit pricey, but worth it to get my pretty poster that I protected all night, making sure no one crushes or rips it. The lady almost didn't give me my poster until I had to remind her. I think she wanted to keep it all for herself :P Hey, even two pretty boys bought items to get the poster!

After obtaining my poster, I kind of forgot about these lip products I bought until a few days later. So upon opening the lipstick (Provence Long Lasting Lip Stick in CR111), I received a pleasant surprise. Since the tester in the shop has been so used up and had no cap, I did not see this coming. The lipstick tube design is a beautiful ombre from white to clear, which really contemplates the shape as it gets more slender at top. Then once opened, I get a even better surprise. The lipstick is carved into a rose design at the top! Made me kind of sad to use it, didn't want to ruin the pretty rose.

But looks can be deceiving. No matter how pretty the design is, the product itself wasn't so good. Swatched on my hand it had a bit of orange/peachy tint, but on my lips it was more just nude. Not only was the color kind of "dead" looking, but it was so matte that it was dry looking! However, it does provide good coverage. Upon using it the second time, I pressed harder and it performed better. Definitely not worth the price (I can find similar ones from American brands just without the pretty packaging, but half the price), but maybe a different color would have been better. The lipstick also looked a bit darker than in store, so it might also have been the sales associates gave me the wrong color.

The Provence Blossom lip gloss in shade 1 on the other hand was very juicy, but had a medicinal taste/scent to it. Kind of like cough syrup. It wasn't as pigmented as I hoped, the orange tint didn't show up as much. Though I do like how it is more moisturizing and plumping than the lipstick. The packaging is very modern and clean.

Although each product by itself wasn't as good as I wished it to be, I liked it used together. Slightly darker than what I wanted, but close to the look of what I was looking for.

Though I would've preferred the black suit version, but I didn't see those available in the one I went to.

Since EXO is the new face of Nature Republic, they also threw in product placement in their newest music video, "Miracles of December". Which is by far my most favorite song right now! I can listen to it forever and not get bored. I even got my beau to get addicted to it :P Although they showed more of Nature Republic in the Korean version, I like the flow of the Chinese words better, so I'm sharing that one with you on my blog. (Also to help them get more hits on that one hehe. And I like Luhan more than D.O.) And seeing as today is the last day of Christmas, I made this post just in time! (Actually I've been meaning to write up this review but got lazy... sorry, better late than never, right? :P)

2013 comes to an end...

Happly belated holidays/Christmas XD
Photography by AXL Photography (Alex Li)

One and a half day before the ball drops down in Times Square, and confetti will be flying everywhere, littering the streets of NYC. As the countdown nears, everyone is posting their best moments of instagram video. I am hopping on the bandwagon as well. More curious of which photos I had most likes (too lazy to scroll thru my page hehe) than anything else really.

Thanks for all the followers (almost at 1000!) and all the likes. I really didn't expect myself to get this much likes on photos (I'm not one of those instagram addicts that slaps hundreds of hashtags on each photos to increase views/likes). I just post  when I feel like it :P So big thank you to everyone <3

Photo by Calvin Lee

Here is the last photoshoot of 2013 for me. It was a mix of street wear with lingerie, something I've been falling in love with recently. So glad I had two photoshoots this year to do this! I'll post more photos from the two streetwear x lingerie photos when I get all the photos :)

Looking back on 2013, I have accomplished quite a few things!
- Graduated from FIT (four long years of "sweatshopping" until 2AM)
-Started blogging again
-Learned bridal make up
-Got my own dslr (60D babyyyy)
-Reached my goal of 1000 fans on facebook (again I don't go around advertising my page as much as I see other people do, so it means a lot to me!)
-Got some gigs so I can start earning some money :P

What I want to accomplish in 2014
-Be more committed to hitting the gym.
I don't care much about weight, but I would like to look more fit! And feel more energized.
-Start filming vlogs or just videos (with friends/collaborations) in general
-Work on my photoshop/photography skills.
My composition is OK, but when it comes to tonal editing and such, I fail :( lol
-Blog more (at least once a week! I'm such a slacker!!)
-Reach 2000 fans at least on facebook, so I can start selling posters (a goal I set for myself) and donate part of it to charity :)
-Open my own "real" online boutique (I sell some clothes online, but it's not imported specifically for my boutique, so hopefully I can start this year!) It is my dream job since high school (though I didn't tell much people about it, until now)

I'm sure I had a lot of other goals I anticipated myself to reach in 2014, but I don't recall it all right now... haha but these are my most important ones that I want to reach for myself! So might as well list it all here as a reminder to my lazy self! :P

New York City Motorcycle Show 2013

Shot by AXL Photography.

Yesterday I joined two photographers (one event and one fashion) to check out the Motorcycle Show at the Javits Center. Although we arrived a bit late, an hour before closing time, we had a bit of fun "riding" the bikes and taking lots of photos. I recently got my 60D so this was a great way for me test drive it ;) As well as getting some shots of myself with hot bikes wahahaha... anyways...

Plenty of different brands from Suzuki to Harley-Davidson to Kawasaki were displayed across the convention hall. With ample space to walk around each model, we were allowed to hop on them to feel out the seats, grips, test the sound system and more. There were a few up on display stages with "DO NOT SIT" signs, which were disappointing as they were the most hottest ones, but understandable. All the other ones have been scratched up by eager attendees trying them out.

The bikes ranged from sexy red racing bikes to masculine road bikes to even speedboats. It was great to see a whole range of styles the brands offer, and get a feel of what fits your style best. Besides bikes for us adults to transport by, some brands even had little ones for children! So cute!!!

Along with the many different bike brands showcasing their latest models, there were also a lot of insurance companies, Geico and Progressive being a few of them. Safety always comes first, right? At the Progressive area (which was quite large), they had bikes on display, a painting station and model of mountains and bikers.

The time slot we went at, the Progressive stage was taken over by announcers and models for the paint job contests. There were many entires and were all on displayed out on the floor. All of which varied drastically in terms of bike shapes, colors and styles. No two were alike. It was really cool to see everyone's vision of their bikes, and so different from the ones the exhibitors were selling.

Unfortunately, one hour was not enough time to explore. We only saw half of the show, and didn't see many models :( However, it's still fun and I'll update with photos of me with the bikes when my friends send it to me! You can check out more photos I took at my flickr.

Little boys want to ride motorcycles too. He joined me when I was taking photos on the bike :P

Testing out the Kawasaki.

Sexy BMW....

Kawasaki water jets riding with Lori.

One of the winners of the custom paint contest. 

Interesting shaped bike from Star Motorcycles.

The little boy was an "exhibitor" :P 

Beautiful painted tank.

Painting station.

Reminds me of iron man haha...

Etude House Silky CC Cream Review & Photoshoot Photos

CC Cream has been the new craze in Asia when I visited this past summer. With so many different companies coming out with it, it's hard to choose which to get. Especially with the American market catching up, now there's even more!

Photos by Mark.

After a lot of research, and swatching in stores, I ended up getting the Etude House CC Cream in Silky. which had a matte finish. The other being, Glow, gives a more dewy finish. When I tried it on in stores, there wasn't much difference, but I only wore it for a few hours before I washed it off. So that might not have been that accurate of a comparison, plus my skin sin't too oily (I know dewy looks sometimes makes the skin look even more oily).

First off, it states it has a 8 in 1 benefit:
Wrinkle Care Essence + Stress Care Essence + Water Cream + UV Protect + Whitening Essence + Make-up Base + Primer + Glow Volumer
UV protection of 30/PA++
Comes in a tube of 35g

Before & After, sorry I look scary without make up haha!!!

What I liked about it:

• Sunscreen, I don't have to apply an additional layer of product
• Light weight, did not feel like it's going to clog my pores
• Light/Medium coverage, it covered the red acne scars on my forehead and chin pretty well, though if you want extra, you would have to put on concealer
• Whitening, made my face a shade lighter but still looked natural
• Very Matte, as I dislike too dewy/oily look (even though that is trending now)
• Light floral Scent
• Comes with a pump, a lot more hygienic
• Adjusts to your skintone, has little black and red beads in white cream that blends together
• Easy to blend, not very streaky
• Long Lasting

What I didn't like about it:

• Not very moisturizing, therefore have to apply a layer of moisturizer beforehand
• Powdery finish, not everyone might like this
• Pump sometimes hard to push out product

With final make up.

Compared to a Taiwanese CC Cream (Beauty Mate, it's not a very big brand), Smashbox and Dr Dennis Gross (the above three were all travel size ones I tried), this is definitely my favorite. It makes my face a lot brighter and more glow, compared to the American brand ones that were more like tinted moisturizer and had now glow effect. It was was long lasting; I was out under the sun, and at midnight when I got home, my face still looked fresh. My second favorite was the Beauty Mate, but it had a more pink undertone, whereas this was more white. Funny, I think Asian brands really cater their CC Creams towards us Asian market, and the American brands formula doesn't.

How the cream looks.

However, my most favorite face product (BB, CC, foundation, tinted moisturizer, etc) in terms of lightness, color and staying power is the Estee Lauder Double Wear Light. It is also matte, but a bit more moisturizing. The only downside is no SPF compared to the Etude House CC Cream.

Here are how it looks in studio and natural light, photos taken by Mark. I love these natural shots he took of me :) I do pre-order on the white dress and black sweater (comes in other colors too!), leave a comment below if you're interested!

"Finding Mr. Right" Screening and Q&A with Wu Xiubo

The second third film of the New York Chinese Film Festival 2013 was a romantic comedy "Finding Mr. Right," starring Wu Xiubo (who looked completely different from day one! He looked very polished and reminded me very much of his role in the film). The film is fairly recently, released on March 21, 2013 and I was lucky to have caught it on an airplane flight.

At first the movie just seemed like a girly cliche comedy about a high-maintenance pregnant women (Jia Jia) who demanded everything to go her way. Jia Jia came to Seattle so she can give birth to an American citizen son to win her boyfriend (who is already married) over. Upon arriving, she meets the driver Frank (Wu Xiubo) who takes her to the maternity house. Right away, she demands the biggest room even though another pregnant women was already occupying to prepare for her birth. However, as the story unfolds, you see the real side of Jia Jia, shedding light to the deeper meanings and connections viewers can make to the story. You see that she actually cares for the other women in the maternity house, as well as Frank, someone she thought was just a friend that helps her out in the foreign country.

Frank is a gentlemen but is called a DB by Jia Jia's Ob-gyn, which Jia Jia later discovered is for Dead Beat. He originally was a doctor as well, but upon moving to the US for his daughter to have better schooling, he gave up his job. Instead, his ex-wife became a well-known doctor, and the daughter's main financial income. As Jia Jia goes to Frank every time she needed help (as her English wasn't very good), she starts to have feelings for him.

The movie somewhat portrays the feelings of how an immigrant from China might feel. Jia Jia needed to find a Chinese American community (the house and Frank) to help her at first. As Wu Xiubo explains, Frank's story is similar to what some of the older generation have to go through as well - give up jobs in their homeland to take on an occupation completely unrelated, so that their children can have a better life. It also portrays modern romance, as they showed interracial couples, children, and falling in love unexpectedly.

Since the movie was focused on love, Wu Xiubo talked about his opinion of love during the Q&A session. He says in order to love, one must learn to understand oneself first. His tip is when taking a shower, just breathe and listen to yourself. It is the a time when its just you, and the only other thing is water so it gives you a chance to understand yourself.

He joked (or maybe he was serious?) about studying English. The first thing he asked the blonde English teacher was "Are you ready to be pregnant?". Therefore, he was able to get a hang of all the pregnancy talk in the film.

Photo credit Peshean Zhang