Sigma F80 Flat Kabuki Brush

Introducing a life-changer in my makeup routine! The Sigma F80 Flat Kabuki Brush!

 

If you watch makeup videos on Youtube often enough, you'd have heard of this brush before.

This is a very soft and dense brush and is primarily used for blending in foundation.

I've seen this brush for the longest time already, but I never really got down to purchasing it until I saw a video about minimising pores by using a foundation brush to blend in foundation. (Previously, I was just using my fingers to do my blending.)

The 'minimising pores' part really got to me because I'm really willing to try anything to minimise those annoying pores on my face. Hence, the purchase.

I must say, buying this brush is one of the best decisions I've made when it comes to makeup. This brush is really life changing!

As mentioned, it's so soft and dense, so you don't feel like it's poking your skin when you swirl your brush around the entire face while blending. The handle part is thick, so you can get a good proper grip of it, so it makes the blending easy.

The way I do my foundation now ever since I bought this is that I'll dot my liquid foundation on my nose, chin, forehead and cheeks first. Then I'll use this brush and swirl it in clockwise and anti-clockwise directions, especially around my cheeks where I have more visible pores. The clockwise and anti-clockwise thing is actually to blend the foundation in all directions so that it covers the pores.

The end result of this is I get a flawless look that makes it look like I have perfect skin and doesn't seem cakey or look like I have any foundation on. I love it!!

However, the downside to this is that you do have to use a bit of strength to manuveur the brush around your face because it's quite a big brush. And the dense bristles can be a hassle when you are trying to clean your brush and remove all the gunk that has accumulated over the course of using it.

But given the kind of results it gives, this bit of trouble is something that I'm very happy to work with.
This has officially become one of those makeup items that I must have with me, even if I'm travelling.

So if you are looking to improve your foundation routine, you can consider adding this into your makeup collection. Trust me, you won't regret it! ((^.^))

The LEGO Movie

I'm on leave today!! \((^w^))/
To kick off the day, I decided to go watch The LEGO Movie rather than spend the whole day lazing around at home.
I'm not actually much of a movie person. So when I really want to watch a certain movie or something catches my attention, I think it's probably saying something.


Obviously (or not), I'm not much of a Legos fan. Yes, I've played them when I was younger, but I'm not exactly those who would get extremely excited over a packet of building blocks.
But I thought the whole concept of having a Lego movie and the humour found in the trailer was enough to make me want to go watch the movie.
And boy, was I NOT disappointed!
This is actually a pretty good movie! I mean, what's there not to like? Simple storyline, humour throughout, items constantly being built in Legos, appearance of many familiar characters in pop culture that adds to the fun element in the movie, etc.
I must say, there is not a dull moment throughout the whole 100 min of movie time! It's funny, it's exciting, it's lame all at the same time, making it a good family movie IMO.
In addition to having a good laugh, I was pleasantly surprise to see that every single detail, down to the fire, smoke and water was made out of Legos! I really wasn't expecting them to be so thorough with the whole Lego theme, so this was definitely a plus point!!
Also, staying consistent with the Lego theme again, things related to Legos like instruction manual, order, creativity, building things and taking it down and building it again, etc, were also constantly seen throughout the whole movie. I'm not a Lego fan and I enjoyed seeing such relevance, no doubt a Lego would find it even more enjoyable than I did.
Because Lego toys has been around for so many years, and they constantly come up with playsets, it was also enjoyable to see them bringing in some of their past sets (like pirates, Star Wars models, spaceships, etc) and also other characters like Batman, Superman, Wonderwoman, Green Lantern, Abraham Lincoln, Hans Solo, Gandulf, etc, into the movie.
The mash of so many different characters makes it seem like some parody movie at first, but there is an entirely different storyline stringing all these characters together while retaining their personality but still injecting some lame humour into them that makes this movie nowhere like those lousy parody movies that I never bother with.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed myself at the cinema with a good laugh and a good takehome lesson of what playing Legos is all about. I would highly recommend this wonderful family movie but I'm sure the funny elements would only increase if you go watch it with your buddies too.
Be warned though! You might just feel like buying some Legos yourself after the movie and start building something! And you'll also have the song 'Everything is awesome!' stuck in your head. Lol.
"Everything is awesome~~! Everything is cool when you work as a team~~!"

Love, Peace, Joy

"But let all who take refuge in you be glad; let them ever sing for joy. Spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may rejoice in you. Surely, Lord , you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield."

Psalm 5:11-12 NIV

 

As per every year, I went back Malaysia with my parents to visit my relatives that I mostly see once a year. This year, since CNY overlapped with the weekends, it became a longer stay of 4 days 3 nights.
I'm not sure if it's because these are people that I don't see often, or because so many things just happened this year, or because I'm finally mature enough to realise these things, but this has been a very emotionally challenging trip.
And by emotions, I mean things like reluctance, empathy, sympathy, helplessness, love, peace and happiness.
I don't want to go into details about what happen because they are private, but I cannot deny the impact that has burdened my heart because of these events that happened in such a short period of time.
There are happy things as well as unhappy things, but regardless of whichever, it has really gotten me to think a lot more of what I can do that is humanly possible but limited, and what I cannot, which makes me feel so helpless and sad.
But here are some conclusions that I've drawn out myself based on my own reflections and thinking:
1. All parents in this world love their children. It's a given, but sometimes I do admit that I take that for granted or even take advantage of it. But if you ever get the chance to see it in the eye of a parent that kind of love that they have for their child regardless of what he has done, despite the anger/disappointment/hurt that leaks out, you'll probably understand where I'm coming from. At the end of the day, despite their frustrations and lack of expression of love, or even wrong or awkward expressions of love, they only want what's best for their children. The only thing is not to realise how much you love someone until it's too late. Sometimes, things can never have a second chance.

2. Every second is precious when you spend them with your loved ones. Since I don't go back Malaysia often, many relatives really only see me once a year. And I do have some relatives that I'm a lot closer too. So being able to see them and spend time with them is something that I value a lot. The truth is that no one lives forever. We will all die someday. So I guess what's most important is that we learn to treasure every moment we have with each other while we still can.

3. Money is not everything. There are other more important things. Naturally, when you think about CNY, you would think about red packets and the money inside. In addition, now that I'm working and earning my own salary, the financial independence definitely plays a significant role in my view of money. Not sure if it's a this year thing, but everywhere I go, the conversation always revolves around money and earning big bucks (everybody wants to 发财 during this period). But I guess the unfortunate thing is that I do not share the same sentiments. Rather than wishing someone earn big bucks in the new year (whether it's for formality sake or not), I would rather wish the person good health and wisdom, which is intangible but all the more important in my opinion. After all, these are just some of the many things that money cannot buyand replace.

So before the 15 days of Chinese New Year ends, here's wishing everyone 身体健康，快乐平安. ((^w^))