I Nuovi Professional's "Dollar for a Fan Contest"

Hi Everyone!

Another contest update! I love sharing finds such as these!

I NUOVI Professional wants YOU to earn a chance to shop absolutely FREE!

How?

Simply drop an email titled "Dollar for a Fan" to your friends explaining why they should join I Nuovi Professional on Facebook and cc mail@inuovi.com.

For every friend that joins them I Nuovi as a fan on facebook, you get to earn ONE I Nuovi (US) Dollar (Note: Maximum of 200 I Nuovi Dollars). Accumulate to redeem for products on I Nuovi website! So if you have 100 friends who joined them, you get 100 I Nuovi Dollars to spend! That's easy!

Please follow directions and please include these on the email for you to qualify:

1. Your name
2. Your FB username
3. Your country
4. Why your friends should join http://www.facebook.com/inuovipro

Remember to leave a message on their wall and let them know how many friends you have emailed. The top 13 fans with the most referrals will win! Goodluck! Contest will run til October 31, 2009.

This is one exciting contest!
Your speed and number of friends are votal to win this game!!!

Goodluck!
Keep smilin'
Stay happy!

Urban Decay 24/7 vs MUFE Aqua Eyes

Good morning friends! A space for reader's query! I've had this question so many times and I've been procrastinating with the answer, so sorry! I get lazy at times! :P Yes, its about eyeliner pencils! I know a lot of ladies have chosen their ultimate favorite, and you all know that these 2 brands have been fighting neck to neck for first place! Who's the winner? Read on ....

Dear Nikki:
I know you own both MUFE and Urban Decay eyeliners. Could you do a review on both? Which one works better?

True, I own both Urban Decay 24/7 Glide On Liners and Makeup Forever's Aqua Eyes, I've used both brands for months and I've chosen the winner! Please be reminded that I live in a tropical country with humidity as part of our daily living. I also have non-oily lids and very sensitive eyes. What works or does not work for me may be different to some of you. If you have something to say or experiences you'd love to share, click on the COMMENT section below, I'd love to hear from you! :D

Competition:

Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on Eyeliner in Zero (black) and Bourbon (brown)
MUFE Aqua Eyes in 1L (black) and 2L (brown)

Buttercup ready to fight! :P

Swatch without base

Shades:
UD - shimmery black and brown, the shimmery black is darker
MUFE - shimmery black and brown

Versatility:
UD - easy to create smokey eyes as the consistency is quite creamy, great to smoke up using a smudger brush
MUFE - ok to smoke out but not as smokey as the prior brand

Texture:
UD - very creamy
MUFE - creamy but not as creamy as Urban Decay's

Pigmentation:
UD - very pigmented
MUFE - very pigmented

Smudge Proof?
UD - smudge-proof only when applied on the upper lash line. Tightlining and waterlining? Smudges like crazy in less than an hour!
MUFE - smudge-proof on upper and lower lash line. Tightlining and waterlining? Smudges a bit but not as much as UD.

Waterproof?
UD - yes, not unless you rub SUPER hard
MUFE - yes, even when you rub it along with water

Urban Decay

MUFE

How long does it stay for both upper and lower lash line?
UD - whole day
MUFE - whole day

How long does it stay for waterline?
UD - approximately 10 minutes, then it starts to transfer to lower lashline
MUFE - approximately 30 minutes, then it starts to transfer to lower lashline

Removing eyeliner:
UD - with waterproof makeup remover, a bit difficult to take off
MUFE - with waterproof and makeup remover, a bit difficult to take off

Overall:
I've read raves and raves about Urban Decay's 24/7 Glide-on Eyeliners. But when I finally tried it on my own, I wasn't comfortable using it because it smudges like crazy and I have panda eyes 30 minutes after application. That's when I realized and understood why Urban Decay 24/7 Glide-on Eyeliners aren't available locally as for me, it's not even meant locally! The product was made for people living in the West. For countries with cooler climate and not as humid as ours. Think of Two Faced Shadow Insurance working perfectly for people on the other side of the world, while we down here complain about our creasing shadows! Same concept. Now, I've learned my lesson.. "A dress made for me is meant to be worn by me" ...now I think that's a good quote eh?

Overall, if I want my liner to last longer, I'd rather use gel liners or liquid liners. If I want to use pencils, I make sure to use an eye seal right after eye pencil application. That's how I deal with my pencil liners! How do you deal with yours?

Hope this helps! :)
Keep smilin!
Stay happy!

Nail Art Tutorial: Romantic Gradient Nails with Rhinestones

Missed my nail art? I hope you do! I haven't been playing with my nails because I've been super busy with a lot of things plus the fact that I broke my nail a week ago! Perfect timing though, as I got a reader request for short nails' nail art! Fact: the nails you will see are considered short! I have short fingers so super short nails isn't an option! And I don't like it when I type without the 'feeling' of my nails! Yeah, I'm weird! hahaha

Here's my Romantic Gradient Nails with added Rhinestones to make it more dainty. I know a lot of you uses the sponge method to create Gradient nails. I know it looks better but I am just too lazy to do so! So please feel free to create the gradient nails using a sponge!

Step 1:

Apply base coat prior to nail polish application. Apply 1 Coat of The Face Shop's Polish in light Pinkish Peach shade.

Step 2:
Apply 2True polish in Shade no. 12 French tip method.

Using Caronia's Base Coat or any brand of base coat, spread the light purple shade downwards.

Step 3:

Using Flashing Neon Sweet Cherry nail polish in Neon Red (from sis Aika), drop a couple of dots on the tip...

Again, using the base coat, spread the polish downwards. Does not have to be perfect!

Step 4:

Using Prettynails' White Nail Art Pen, create 5 dots for flower.

Step 5:

Press in rhinestones. Your choice, I used multiple colors.

Step 6:

Top the nail art with any glittery polish. I am using gold polish to create a nice dimension. I used the Bourjois Gold polish from my blind swap with Cris.

Step 7:

Top everything with your choice of Top coat, applying more on the areas with Rhinestones to keep them from falling out.

I know! Dainty nails again! You can't blame a girl for wanting to
stay sweet :P

If you don't own any nail art pens, you can stop at Step 3 then apply glitter polish and top with a nice top coat. I'm sure it'll still be pretty!

Keep smilin'
Stay happy!
Happy Start of the Week!

Weekend Food Tripping at: LukFoo HotPot Restaurant

Happy weekend food tripping! I know some of you are looking forward for food posts and ended up getting hungry afterwards. I guess that's how human beings are! LOL We want to tempt ourselves!

If I'm at my mom's place and wanted to dine out, going down to Chinatown is a big hassle as its far and its super traffic, so to satisfy our Chinese food cravings, there's always Luk Foo Cantonese Restaurant located at Puregold Q.I. I'm glad they opened up another sister restaurant called Luk Foo Hot Pot. Same Chinese restaurant with added Hot Pot dishes in their menu.

First thing's first, order your choice of broth. There's 2 types, Plain and Sate. The plain one tastes...well...plain while the Sate one is on the spicy side. We opted to order for split, meaning, half plain and half sate! Best of both BROTHS! lol And for you to know, the broth are refillable! So drink til your tummy's content!

Make your own sauce. Of course, not everyone has the same kind of tastes so its great that you can create your own flavor. There are different condiments to satisfy your sweet, salty, sour or spicy tongue!

We opted to choose our own "fillings". They do have set menu but my mom is on medication so there are several dishes she cannot eat, we chose our own meat and vegetables.

Assorted meatballs, shrimp dumplings and corn on a cob

Beef slices and veggies



Throw them all in!
Leaving the beef slices behind,
make sure not to cook the beef slices too long,
overcook is no no :)

What I love about Luk Foo Hot Pot Restaurant is that you can still order meals from Luk Foo Cantonese Kitchen. We ordered the usual: Yang Chow Fried Rice, Shrimp with Orange Sauce, Fish Fillet with Soy Sauce and Birthday Noodles. Quadruple Whamo!!!

Time for cooking!!! This is a great time to enjoy sharing, chatting and just relax! Life is fun! Enjoy!

Have you tried hot pot?
Keep smilin'
Stay happy!

Something New: JnJ Clean & Clear Active Clear Acne Control Kit

To those who didn't know, I've grown up to have bad skin. It's not the usual acne skin but I grew up with some problem on my health so the effect was imbalance hormones so during my junior high years, I've got zits and spots all over my cheeks and forehead. Why does it have to be those years where proms are the most important events in our teenage life?

It did bothered me but I took some action. I purchased Bonne Bell's Ten-O-Six in a department store and it helped lessen my zits and I was dependent to it. I went back planning to repurchase and stock up and guess what? It was gone!!! The department store did not sell them anymore as it wasn't even known in our country! Rather than sulking... I've decided to find another solution for my bad skin! That's when J&J Clean & Clear came in. It was the Clean & Clear Foaming Facial Wash that helped me out for the rest of my highschool and college years.

FAST FORWARD....

I stopped Clean & Clear as I grew older and my skin turns drier. So it was sweet goodbye to J&J.

That's why when I got home from work and saw a package on my bedside with this... it was sweet reminiscing!

Clean & Clear Active Clear Acne Control Kit has 4 powerful acne-fighting products containing salicylic acid that works together to effectively help treat and prevent acne. When used twice a day, these 4 technologies are proven to work faster and more powerfully against acne:

• Active Clear Acne Control Cleanser - The first step of the acne-fighting regimen goes beyond cleansing to penetrate pores. It contains bacteria-fighting salicylic acid that calms and soothes acne-irritated skin.
• Active Clear Acne Control Toner - The second step is the highly functioning oil-free toner that works to reduce excess oil, while clogs pores, for effective pimple prevention. The combination of salicylic acid and natural botanical ingredients tones and balances skin.
• Active Clear Acne Control Moisturizer - The third step of the regimen is the use of an oil-free moisturizer that provides a hint of moisture to soften and nourish skin, while containing a breakthrough anti-acne technology to help prevent pimples. With salicylic acid to clear and prevent acne, the natural herbal vitamin ingredients in the Active Clear Acne Control Moisturizer also nourish the skin and prevent it from drying.
• Active Clear Acne Control Speed Gel - An exciting add-on to the acne-fighting regimen is a highly effective spot treatment that starts working immediately to reduce redness, pimple size and swelling in as little as 4 hours. The combination of salicylic acid and an herbal essence acne-fighting technology visibly reduces acne --- fast!

The new Clean & Clear Active Clear Acne Control Kit is the fastest and most effective acne relief system to have ever been launched by Clean & Clear. The effective daily system is now exclusively available in Watson's stores nationwide with a suggested retail price of Php550.00 (approx $11.70).

I know..I shouldn't even dare touch this with my super dry skin. But I can't help it! I twitted about it and you know what? I've decided to give this a go and try! We'll see if this is still a sweet reunion between me and the brand or it just works better for the youngters out there. Do check out for reviews on this in the future and I promise you, I will get someone with oily and acne-prone skin to try this together with me. It'll be fun!!! Thanks to Patty for this! :)

Have you tried this line?
How do you feel about this?
Do I have to go on and try or not?

Keep smilin'
Stay happy!