Another Saturday well spent with lovely bloggers in Alexis, The Gardens Mall. We were all here to find out how we could make my eyes shine and look natural at the same time.

The Acuvue team has set up a really lovely blue and white themed room in Alexis' special function room and it looks so warm and inviting. :) We are first separated introduced to the team, and we started off with a simple searching game as an ice breaker between us bloggers.



Later on, Acuvue's new range of daily contact lens were introduced by Carmen Lee, the Group Customer Marketing Manager of Johnson & Johnson. The Acuvue Define lens come in three different styles – Vivid, Natural Shine and Accent Style. They are designed in a way to define and naturally enhance the shine in Asian eyes, as the colours are subtle (not overly exaggerated like those anime fashion lenses) and have a very gorgeous shine to them. I am especially fond of Vivid Style which make my eyes look extremely bright and soft! The iris of the lens is specially designed to accentuate the eyes and brighten them too.

Other than looking pretty, Acuvue Define contains LACREON technology, which means you get a 20-hour cushion of moisture throughout the day to keep your eyes comfortable and bright. For those of you who wear contact lens, I'm sure you can relate to that irritating feeling of dry eyes at the end of the day when your contacts feel as dry as the desert. You don't get that with Acuvue Define daily lenses! Trust me, I've tried it for a full day, and even to the clubs where there's loads of smoke and possible irritants, and my eyes were perfectly A-OK!

Carmen Lee giving her presentation.

Did you know that some of the common eye infections are caused by the coloured area of your lens rubbing onto your eyeball?

One more contributing factor to Acuvue Define's comfort and safety, is the Beauty-Wrapped-In-Comfort (BWIC) Technology where the pigments of the lenses, are embedded in between two transparent layers of lens, so that it doesn't touch your eyes and cause problems. How your lenses are made, makes a difference!

Another added benefit is that Acuvue is the only brand that offers an international standard of UV protection. Just as your protect your skin from the sun, you need to protect your eyes too! Actually, your eyes are way more important as you only have TWO of them. I myself never knew the importance of protecting our eyes from UV rays, until now and I am so thankful that there is a brand out there which provides this level of protection.

Have I got you hooked already? I know I am, especially after trying them out. After all, comfort and safety should always come first before vanity. Jojo Goh, the brand advocate for Acuvue Define also agrees. She says,"After using Acuvue Define for more than 6 months, I can honestly say that I can't imagine my life without it," in her specially recorded video to all of us girls. You can watch the video here.

A screen still of Jojo Goh.

After the lovely presentation, we had a few more games before we hear from both Datin Angie and Ms SunpangPhithaksakorn from Better Vision, an optometrist outlet which has many branches all over Thailand and Malaysia. They both explained about the importance of proper and regular eye checks, and the special 12-step procedure available in their outlets, called BVAX. The gist of it is that like any other medical check-up for your body, a routine eye-check-up is just as important because we tend to neglect our eyes most of the time. If you're interested, I will be elaborating more on this in a follow-up post.




Our tea-time was provided by the chefs at Alexis, and I particularly enjoyed the Thai fried beehoon in cute little take-out boxes. The Acuvue team really took well of us, there was so much food! *happy, well-fed face*



After our noshing session, we were escorted one level up to the Better Vision outlet in The Gardens Mall, to get our eyes checked before we can take our Acuvue Define lenses home. The store is brightly lit, and well-stocked with many branded sunglasses and a whole shelf of Acuvue Define lenses. The Better Vision team readily welcomed all of us bloggers and proceeded to put us into order to get our eye check ups done. Girls, ALWAYS remember to take off your current contact lens before you go for an eye check-up, otherwise you'll have to wait a 30 minute grace period for your eyes to adjust before you can take any tests.

My test results were still the same as my current lens power, so there will not be any adjustment to my vision. I did find out that I have a slight astigmatism, but that isn't a problem.. yet. We were all generously given 2 boxes of each of the 3 different designs to try. Each box contains 10 daily lenses, and they are packed in thin, convenient strips that can easily be carried in a handbag! I have to say, I didn't expect this event to convert me into an Acuvue user, but I am very sure that I'll be using these for the long term.





This is me in my favourite, Vivid Style lens. Thanks Acuvue for the amazing, fun time and for making me look so naturally bright, even without makeup!

For more information, please visit their website, or their Acuvue Malaysia Facebook page.

That caught your attention, didn't it?

I kid you not! Bobbi Brown has stolen the spotlight from all the other makeup brands in Asia when they chose Claudia Kim to be their new face. You might remember her from The Avengers, Age Of Ultron as the scientist, Dr Helen Cho, who works with Iron man and the Hulk. *gasp*

Even before she had shot to international fame, Claudia was a hit in Korea, appearing in various TV shows and movies there. She has since become quite a hit in the US after her appearance in the ever-popular Marvel movie.

I was so thrilled when Bobbi Brown gave me this exclusive chance to meet her in person!

We gathered in the Bobbi Brown store in Mid Valley where we waited anxiously for her to arrive. While waiting, Bobbi Brown were kind enough to give me a shopping voucher (worth RM80) to use in their store while I wait.

I browsed through and talked to a few makeup professionals there to see what my skin needed the most. Not makeup, apparently. I have a massive freckle issue, which stemmed from my lack of knowledge in using sunscreen protection. "What? I though we only need sunscreen for the beach! I don't even see the sun sometimes because I'm stuck in an office all day!" That was my argument. But the makeup consultant told me that even when we drive, UV rays can creep in from the windows even if I drive a heavily tinted vehicle.

So, I got myself a special Bobbi Brown sunscreen that has SPF50. This is way more than my usual SPF30 at the beach. Maybe I should look into that..

While waiting for Claudia.. omnomnomnomnom..

The time came for Claudia to make an appearance and she is absolutely gorgeous in person, and so tall!! She looked even taller in her 5-inch sparkly heels, but she is really beautiful in person. I see why Bobbi Brown thinks she should be the first Asian ambassador. She is graceful and sweet and speaks very good English with a slight American tint. A short makeup tutorial was given by her Korean makeup artist who had done her glowing, dewy, all natural look. Her tips were very simple and she uses a lot of Bobbi Brown's natural browns and beiges to create this look.

And right after, photo op! She spoke to each and every one of us (and there were so many of us) and she is so accommodating. Look how Hobbity I am standing next to her!

Thanks for the gifts +Bobbi Brown Cosmetics

Speaking of ambassadors, their Western ambassador is currently still the gorgeous Kate Upton, and they are running a #LuxeLip feature competition to get into the Bobbi Brown gallery of fame. Check out these cool #LuxeLip entries on Instagram and hashtag your own Luxe Lip look to be part of the fun! The Luxe Lip range is now available in all Bobbi Brown stores at RM107 per gorgeous colour!




Once again, thank you Bobbi Brown for this amazing opportunity!

Amidst the crazy rush of Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week (KLFW), I managed to sneak in backstage (okay I lied, it was by invitation) to see how the official makeup brand for KLFW, Bobbi Brown, works make-up magic on the models. I did accidentally stumble backstage into the models changing room by accident though, only to find that the makeup area was 8 floors away from the backstage of the actual show. Ooops.

Anyway, I was given the free rein to walk around and watch the make-up artists at work and look into their thought process and working system. The system ensures that the make-up can go on without a hitch, in time for the models to totter 8 floors down to the backstage area to slip into their runway clothes. It wasn't as utterly chaotic as I expected, but it was the last day of KLFW so presumably everyone was a little more relaxed and ready to have the week over an done with. They have been at Pavilion all week from morning till night, and I don't blame them for feeling a little rushed and positively winded.









The makeup team consists of Bobbi Brown's finest from around Asia – Hong Kong, Korea, Malaysia, The Philippines, just to name a few. The girl who also taught me how to maximise my make-up during my Lessons with Bobbi Brown, Grace, was also here. She has the boldest, craziest eyebrows!

I had the privilege to meet another amazing make-up artist – June Tea, who was the lead artist for Silas Liew's show. I interviewed her about her inspirations and exchanged a few makeup tips in between. Read below for the full Q&A.

How long have you been in the makeup industry?
I would say 10 years, and that has all been with Bobbi Brown. I love the company's philosophy of creating natural looks.

What other reasons do you love Bobbi Brown for, other than their philosophy?
I love their products! Their skincare is amazing, especially their serum. Their makeup products too, especially their corrector & concealer, I cannot live without them! These are the key products I use personally, and in my work too. They are they main tools for perfecting any look!

What is your inspiration behind your looks?
For the upcoming Silas Liew show, I'm using a charcoal smokey eye that is very soft in the middle but defined at the edges. I balance it out by completing this look with neutral lip color. My style is such that I always pick a main focus and in this case, I draw attention to the eyes and mute the lips. Other times, I do things the other way round to get a different effect. Lip and eye must always complement one another, but only one can be the attention-grabber.

What part of the job do you enjoy most? Photoshoots or runways?
To be honest, I actually like both BUT my favourite part of my job is when I am working with regular people who are NOT models. I enjoy making people look beautiful and feel more confident about themselves. Because models are already beautiful, they only need a little bit of makeup to conceal and enhance their features. Whereas working with regular people gives me that challenge because they are not of the cookie cutter model looks, and the right makeup techniques will vary from person to person. You can call it job satisfaction!



What are the challenges you have faced so far?
I face challenges everyday because not everyone is the same in terms of skin texture and shape. I like to educate my customers and my junior artists as well. I not only want to educate them, I want to empower them to have that drive to go out there and help customers as best as they can. Our challenges are all faced in the store and during all our Bobbi Brown Makeup Lessons that are available in-store.

What is your favourite beauty trend for the season?
Eyebrows! These strong brows that are a Korean trend that you can see in magazines these days. We have a Bobbi-Korean-style specialty artist too! (Grace whom I mentioned earlier came over to chat for a bit, and her eyebrows are as usual, amazing!) They are great because you can always play around with them. Sometimes they can be bold, sometimes fine. But I like defined eyebrows, which is a little strong. I personally don't even need eyeliner and mascara, as long as I have strong brows, my concealer and corrector.

If you are not a makeup artist, what would your dream job be?
I would like a job that has no stress! *cue laughter* But I am a mother of two so.. stress is part of the job. I think even if I am not a makeup artist, my dream job would still revolve around the beauty industry as I am a person who always likes to look good. Call me a vainpot if you may, haha. I pride myself in doing my skincare routine right and I never miss a step.

[I told her that I'm usually lazy with skincare regimes. She then lectures me about my obvious neglect in getting my skincare steps right because I admitted that I usually skip a step or two. She stresses that you can NEVER EVER skip toner and serum. Trust her girls, she knows her stuff.]

What advice would you give to aspiring makeup artists?
My advice is to try doing makeup on as many different types of face textures, shapes, angles and features. It's how you become a better makeup artist, by learning – we never stop learning.

If I have not raved enough yet, Burt's Bees is one of the most amazing, all-natural brands out there – and they are striving to expand their range to suit any woman (or man) out there. From royal jelly products to harnessing hydration from a desert plant and perusing everyday flowers like daisies to bring out the best in our skin, there is no shortage of inspiration from Mother Nature to allow Burt's Bees to do what they do best.

This time around, a bunch of us lucky gals were invited to their Make Your Lips Smile Blogger Party, to play with their lip-products – featuring the new Lip Crayon and the Lip Shine range. (PSST! There is also a special discount promo for all my readers. Deets at the bottom!)

Held at the cosy ensconce of M Marini Caffè, we dabbled in lip transformations surrounded by luxurious marble tables, a mock-statue of David and gilt-covered decor. We were served canapés which we wished we had more of. The setting definitely emulates the la dolce vita sophistication, if just for that moment.






The new products are one of the best the brand has rolled out yet. The Creamy Matte Lip Crayon is handy and comes in irresistible shades. They come in enticing shades of Carolina Coast, Napa Vineyard, Niagara Overlook, Redwood Forest, Sedona Sands and Hawaiian Smolder. I especially like its smooth texture and pencil-like application, which makes it so much easier to apply, even without a lip brush.

You can also twist the bottom to push out more of the product when it has worn down with use, and there's quite a lot of it so one crayon can probably last you a long time. My only quip with this is that the crayon-like texture, smooth as it may be, does not apply well onto dry/chapped lips. You must first use a lip balm to create a smooth canvas before applying the crayon onto your lips, to ensure even distribution. Nonetheless, my favorite shade is the one I tried on below, Napa Vineyard. Dark red is so sexy!



The new Lip Shine, Lip Gloss and Lip Shimmer is also just as impressive, as they complement the Lip Crayon shades perfectly! The Lip Gloss is rich and pearlescent, which comes in 12 shades, packaged in a typical lip gloss applicator tube. Going for a less 'glossy' look but with a more toned-down shine? Then opt for the Lip Shine, these babies comes in 6 shades and is applied from a squeezy tube. They deliver a decent shine, without leaving your lips looking overly oily – perfect for daytime events!

Last but not least, for a subtle touch, use Lip Shimmer. The colors are more luminescent and works well against a base lip color or none at all. They come in 12 lip-smacking shades and are the best for daily use.



Make-up extraordinaire Polly, gave us some tips on layering the colors for a specific look or theme. Everything, from garden-parties to work – a gorgeous look can be crafted with Burt's Bees lip range.

#TIP: Match the shades of a Lip Crayon with a similar one from the Lip Gloss, and you will have gorgeous, pouty lips in less than a minute! (For sexy red siren lips: The Napa Vineyard Lip Crayon + Summer Twilight Lip Gloss)

If you are keen on giving these shades a try, head on over to any Burt's Bees outlet and try them out. The retail prices are as follows: Lip Crayon (RM81.50), Lip Gloss (RM81.50), Lip Shine (RM65.80) and Lip Shimmer (RM43.50). For the month of June, you guys get a discount too, read on!


A SPECIAL READER DISCOUNT, APPLICABLE AT ALL BURT'S BEES STORES IN MALAYSIA
Okay readers, there is a special 20% discount promo for all of you! Just head to any Burt's Bees store and repeat this promo #bbmakeyourlipsmile to get your discount. :) This promo is valid until 30th June 2015, so make your way over right now! Enjoy, your lips deserve it.

I am so excited to bring you news of the most amazing range from Bobbi Brown, from their latest #LONGWEARLIFEPROOF campaign.

Think beach, water, fun – but your makeup starts running the moment you hit the water. Beach selfies? Forget it. You can now have fun with ease, because with the new Long-Wear range, you can rest assured that your makeup worries is taken care of, and you can enjoy your sea and sunshine with no worries. But of course, this is not limited to just beach vacays, it can last you in extreme conditions too like snow, or rainstorms (dancing in the rain perhaps?)

Photo courtesy of Bobbi Brown's Instagram.

The #LONGWEARLIFEPROOF campaign is in partnership with four of the world’s greatest female extreme athletes:  American World Cup alpine ski racer and Olympic Gold Medalist Julia Mancuso; three-time Olympian and seven-time X Games Medalist, snowboarder Hannah Teter; World Surf League Longboard Champion and professional surfer Kelia Moniz; and world record BASE jumper and shark diver Roberta Mancino.

Outfitted with a GoPro camera, each athlete captured raw footage of herself in her sport wearing Bobbi Brown Long-Wear eye makeup and foundation, showcasing how they live life to the extreme and how—throughout it all—their Long-Wear makeup remains water-proof, smudge-proof, sweat-proof, and above all, life-proof.



JULIA MANCUSO, American World Cup alpine ski racer and Olympic Medalist
This woman is out in the snow all day, and the harsh, cold weather cannot be good for the skin. Her footage of her downward slope descent is crazy though, check out her video here.



HANNAH TETER, Olympic and X Games Medalist, Professional Snowboarder
This girl's got attitude! She snowboards the way I always wished I could, but end up flopping face-down into the snow. Her snow bank spins are just awesome, see her in action here.


KELIA MONIZ, World Surf League Longboard Champion, Professional Surfer
Mahalo! I love this girl, mainly because I have heard of her before back when I was watching a few surfing competitions on the tele with my cousins. Surfing is also something I want to learn next time, so her video really appeals to me. :)


ROBERTA MANCINO, World Record BASE Jumper, Shark Diver
Extreme sports is her forte it seems, because I could never dive off a plane with such ease like her. I like her suit though, looks like a flying squirrel, doesn't it? And you have got to see the footage of her petting those sharks underwater, so cool!


One of the products I am most excited about in this range is their first-ever long-wearing brow pencil, Perfectly Defined Long-Wear Brow Pencil, that has a 16-hour staying power, and a convenient dual-ended design. It’s the perfect tool for Bobbi’s low-maintenance, natural take on this season’s coveted, well-defined brow look. I'm all for brows and so far, have not found a reliable product for them.

Below I have a makeup-routine-sheet for use with the new range, courtesy of Bobbi Brown. Enjoy!




The Bobbi Brown Long-Wear collection will be launching in May 2015.

Burt's Bees, one of the best natural brand in the beauty market, gave me the most lovely surprise – they sent me flowers! Well, daisies to be exact, along with two potted plants for me to care for. Besides that, they also sent me two of their latest products to care for my face.

Daisies are the star of their new Daisy White range. The people at Burt's Bees believe that one should not be retouched by a computer (eg. Photoshop) but rather, by nature itself! Which leads to the creation of this new range, that helps 'retouch' your dark circles and pigmentation – naturally. Of course, one should not expect overnight results, but rather, a sensible timing of 4 weeks.

If you decide to follow the Daisy White regimen, you can fully expect visible brightening of skin in 4 weeks – which includes lightening of pigmentation or discoloration, reduced appearance of dry lines and and improvement to surface dullness.



I especially love the Daisy White eye cream, which is easy to use, thanks to its well-designed applicator (which looks like a pencil) and all you have to do is dot the bottom of your eyes with 3 dots and smooth them out. Since using it every morning and evening, I find that it has definitely kept those eye bags away. The scent is also pleasantly floral, which I love.

I obviously do not have any results to show you yet – but give me another 2 weeks to test this out, and you can probably see visible results then. Within this range, you will find that it comes fully equipped for every part of your facial routine – from the facial cleanser, eye cream, serum, facial toner and the moisturizing cream – you are set to achieve that daisy-white fairness that is coveted.

The eye cream retails at RM159/10g and the moisturizing cream retails at RM159/50g. As usual, all products are natural and can be found in any Burt's Bees specialty stores nationwide.