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March 29, 2012

Temburong Day Trip @ Sumbiling Eco Village!

Hey guys!

I've been pretty busy recently with school stuff so when my lecturer from one of the courses I'm taking this year suggested we go to Temburong for a day trip I jumped at the chance! We set out in the early morning and headed to Bangar.

We have the privilege of being escorted by Leslie, the owner of Borneo Guide around the town of Bangar, Temburong and he told us about the history of the people as well as the history of the district and it was really interesting! It's amazing how little I know of my own country but I'm glad that I get to learn something new about Brunei. :D

We get to go on the canopy walk and play in the waterfall! It was tons of fun and is probably one of the best experiences I have ever encountered! I also noticed that everyone in Temburong is super friendly. But that shouldn't be a surprise coz we all know Bruneians are friendly lol And the food at the Sumbiling Eco Village is very good too! Or maybe that's just coz I was too hungry so any food tastes good haha







March 24, 2012

Books: The Hunger Games - Catching Fire - Second Installment

This post is centered around the second installment of The Hunger Games trilogy, Catching Fire. Please click here if you wish to read on my thoughts for the first Hunger Games book!

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Gale, Katniss and Peeta!

Catching Fire tells us about what happened after Katniss won the Hunger Games. That's all I can say about the second book without giving out any spoilers lol basically it also tells on what impact the games have on her life back home in District 12. And also the sudden turn of the story towards the middle of the book which is really surprising!

What makes me wanna read Catching Fire ASAP is what Peeta said to Katniss at the end of the first book. Asking Katniss to hold his hand one more time for the audience. Here's how the author Collins describes it, "His voice isn't angry. It's hollow, which is worse." I don't know about you but that's what makes me curious as to what is going to happen to their relationship because throughout the first book we read of Peeta revealing to his feelings to Katniss in public. The first book also tells us how much he loves her through the things he said and the things he did for her. So... Yes I'm curious how he can suddenly be so emotionless towards her!

To be honest, out of the trilogy, I'm least fond of Catching Fire. Don't get me wrong, I love The Hunger Games trilogy but if you were to ask me which book is my favourite I wouldn't say Catching Fire is. Out of the three, Catching Fire is imho not the most exciting book but it is still very very enjoyable, of course. Don't be discouraged by what I say if you haven't read Catching Fire because it is still pretty amazing I'd say!

I'm pretty sure whoever who managed to read the first Hunger Games book will read the whole series because there is no reason not to especially when the story is freakin mind-blowing! I have yet to meet someone who only read the first book.

Catching Fire by Suzzane Collins

Please STOP reading if you don't wanna read any spoilers from here on out! I wanna share my thoughts to those who have read them. :)

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So... are you guys as surprised as I am to find out that Katniss has to compete YET AGAIN in the Hunger Games?? It's totally mad what Snow will do in order to destroy Katniss! Even I myself, wonders if she is gonna survive this time around but knowing that there's a third book assures me she'll survive. After all, we all know she's a fighter! Sometimes I feel like Katniss is emotionless. She does come across as robotic to me when she does things like attempting to drown Buttercup the cat when she first found it.

As surprised as I am about Katniss and Peeta going for another round of The Hunger Games, I love Collins for introducing new characters into the book. My favourite new character that she brought in in Catching Fire is Finnick! At first I was quite skeptical about him because of the way Katniss sees him but once they were in the games and finding out a little bit about his past he really doesn't seem all that bad! The only thing with characters in a book is that you have to make up your own mind on how they look like! It's hard for me to imagine because he doesn't exist in real life.

The saddest part of the book is... yes of course, when Mags the old lady from Districk 4 who came with Finnick sacrificed herself to spare Katniss and Finnick the burden of saving her life. When she kissed Finnick on the cheek and runs off into the poisonous mist it was already heartbreaking for me but finding out that she used to be Finnick's mentor is just... ugh. Why?!! Gawd. Collins is good at making me cry wtf

Towards the ending it gets really confusing for me. The part where she's trying to do things about that metal cylinder and stuff. I'm not following and I don't know what's really happening at that point because everything seems so hectic and messed up like too much is going on. Like one minute she was still in the games and the next she's at this hospital and the others were there too. I was thinking how come because I thought there were supposed to be only one survivor in the games. Maybe it's really not that confusing though, not really sure because it was already 4am+ by that time when I was reading and I was fighting to stay awake to finish the book lol Everything gets explained in the third book, Mockingjay so that's alright.

Catching Fire by Suzzane Collins

I guess that's all I have to say about Catching Fire. The clothing that Cinna the designer made for Katniss seems really spectacular from what I read! I really hope they manage to make it look as awesome as they sounded in the book! The dazzling dresses and the ones that are on fire...

Btw I watched The Hunger Games movie during its premiere at The Mall this thursday thanks to Jim and I gotta say it's pretty awesome! I give it an 8/10! They did quite well with the scene where Rue died and also during her training before the games. The only thing I'm disappointed with is her costumes but that's okay, I still love it!

March 20, 2012

Mezaik Double Eyelid Stretch Fiber

This is gonna start off really random but I was born with mono eye-lids. I remember growing up being jealous of my sister's eyes because she has pretty prominent double eyelids and I have always wanted them too. I'd pick up those double eyelid stickers and start using them for one or two weeks before giving up. Really a pain in the ass to stick em on my eyes every single day!

I heard from people that those are pretty effective but you'd have to use them for at least 6 months to a year EVERYDAY before you can see results! Imagine how many stickers you'd have to use! I still use them every now and then, just in case lol Coz I currently have one mono lid and one double eyelid which is kinda annoying because it's really obvious. I managed to get a double lid on one eye and that's because I used to wear false eyelashes constantly and the eyelashes created a crease in my eye. Left eye, to be precise.

A couple of years ago I came across this really cool double eyelid fiber which sounded really perfect for those who wanted to have creases. It's really thin and you can stick em on your eyelid and it won't be obvious unlike those regular ugly stickers! Finally ordered them through e-bay and it arrived 2 weeks later from Hong Kong. It costs me around BND$17. Kinda expensive, but I was curious!

Mezaik Double Eyelid Stretch Fiber

The one I paid for comes in 60 fibers per pack. If I'm not mistaken, Sasa.com sells these too for around the same price!

Mezaik Double Eyelid Stretch Fiber

Okay so I have no idea what the 'AB' on the box stands for...


The idea behind using such a thin strand is that you can use them on your eyelids and 1) they are not obvious 2) you can use makeup on top of the fiber! Unlike the sticker. I know a lot of people use makeup on top of the double eyelid sticker and that really spoils the whole look for me, especially when the makeup is really thick and suddenly there's this sticker on the girl's eyelid. So distracting!

Mezaik Double Eyelid Stretch Fiber

Basically all you need to do is pull the plastic cover and the fiber will appear and you just need to stick it on your eye, where ever you need your crease to be. Then cut off the extra ends!

Me before and after using the Mezaik Double Eyelid Stretch Fiber

As you can see from my before picture my right eye is mono lidded. The fiber did give me double lids but I couldn't get it to balance with my left eye. Need more practice I guess. Unfortunately, this fiber is said to work best on people who already have double lids and wishes to make the crease higher. For an entirely mono lid eye, I find that it works on me but it doesn't last that long at all! I give it a few hours tops. After that the fiber just loses its function and it'll just sit there on my mono lidded eye fml

Well, these are my two cents on the Mezaik Double Eyelid Stretch Fiber. I'm kinda disappointed with it. I keep wishing it would work for me so that I can finally do my makeup and go out with balanced double lidded eyes!

March 16, 2012

Swisspers Cleansing Eye Make-up Remover Pads

I just love strolling around Paloma looking for any cool stuff they sell there. Especially since most of the brands they are selling there is foreign it keeps me interested in going back to see what else they've got. I stumbled upon this make-up remover pad when I walked past one of their aisle and decided to get them. After using them for a while now I thought it was worth mentioning to you guys!

Swisspers Cleansing Eye Make-up Remover Pads

The cute little packaging caught my eyes instantly. I thought What the heck. Might as well grab it, might come in handy some day. It costs me BND$2.90 which I don't think is that expensive but I definitely won't be buying this on a regular basis just because I prefer using facial wipes which costs me BND$2 for 80 pieces. lol

If I'm not mistaken they have a variety of make-up remover pads, even one that comes in a facial wipe form but of course, that one's more expensive than this particular one. I think it's pretty clever how they only make this really small remover pads especially for the eyes. Makes you think if there are make-up remover pads made especially for the forehead or temples.


The make-up remover pad is in a squared shape which covers your entire eye area so that's good. One pad is enough for both eyes; one eye for each side of this pad. They are pretty wet too so I don't think there's gonna be any problem of them drying out anytime soon.

As far as I know, the scent of these wipes isn't very strong at all! It has this subtle lavender smell to it which smells quite pleasant. :]

Okay this is the aftermath of me removing my eye make-up!
The result of wiping my eye-makeup twice!

I think it works pretty awesomely! What I did is place the make-up remover pad on my eye and wait for around 5 seconds before wiping them gently on my eye. The make-up comes right off!

This is before!

After using the eye make-up remover pad! Mind you I only use one piece!

It's pretty impressive, took all my eye make-up right off! This is actually my first time trying out make-up remover wipes of any kind. I'm pretty sure there are a lot of other good ones out there but Swisspers' works just as well. :D Totally recommend these. But to me they are still a luxury item. Nice to have, but not really necessary I guess.

March 12, 2012

Blue Heaven Kajal Eyeliner

So Kenny has been telling me about this eyeliner that she swore by saying that it's really one of the best that she's tried so far and is very very cheap so I asked her where she got it.

"Oh, India!"

I knew right then I will probably never get the chance to try it out. Unless I go to India or something lol But being the sweet Kenny that she is, she bought one for me when she went there recently! It's not even funny how cheap this eyeliner is. BND$0.30!!

Blue Heaven Kajal Eyeliner

I was pretty excited to try this out because before this I have never tried any Indian beauty products before! The product itself is small so it's easy to carry around in your purse. Especially since kajal eyeliners are usually creamy so you'll need it to touch up your makeup throughout the day. But only if you want to, no pressure. lol

The description at the back.

Kenny mentioned to me that once you applied the eyeliner it will have this cooling effect. She said they made it that way because India is scorching hot so the eyeliner helps with cooling the eye down or something.

Made me go all...

Blue Heaven Kajal Eyeliner

This is what the product looks like. It does makes me wonder what's gonna happen when the tip becomes blunt. Maybe I should sharpen it with a cosmetics sharpener or maybe I could just use a brush to pick up the product and line my eyes with it. I haven't figured out that part yet but for now, it'll do.

But it really looks like a black crayon, doesn't it? :D

Blue Heaven Kajal Eyeliner swatched

Look at the intensity of the black kajal in comparison to Maybelline's Shadow Liner!! It's crazy how black the kajal liner is! It reminds me of Urban Decay's blackout eyeshadow. Super black. What's even better is the fact that it's a kajal liner meaning it's really easy to smudge out the eyeliner if you wanted to create a smokey look to your makeup. I've always preferred the smudged out look in comparison to the clean black line anyway so this eyeliner suits me just perfectly!


Here's a couple of pictures of me wearing the Blue Heaven Kajal Eyeliner. I really like it! It's super easy to apply because it's so creamy and it just glides on without much effort. I wouldn't say it's super long-lasting though, perhaps just enough to last for 4-5 hours maybe. But if you want it to last longer you can always apply a black eyeshadow on top of the eyeliner. :)

And btw, it really does have this cooling effect to it!! Not like the extremely minty feel which made my eyes water LOL but it has this subtle cooling effect and it feels really refreshing to my eyes! Maybe if I ran right after I wear it, it will feel even cooler? Curious. However, after a while the cooling effect wears off though.

I don't know if they sell these in Brunei but I'm assuming they're not? Maybe in Malaysia? Either way, I just wanna share my experience with this product. Definitely not something that you get to see everyday here. For me at least. haha

March 8, 2012

Skin79: BB Cleanser O2

Skin79 Brunei launched the new BB Cleanser O2 late last year along with the new Vital Orange BB Cream and I was very excited to be given the chance to try out the new BB Cream! You can click here to check out my review on the Vital Orange BB Cream.

This time around I will be reviewing instead the BB Cleanser O2. I wasn't aware at that time but as it turns out, the BB Cleanser O2 has been receiving a lot of attention and has thus far sold out twice already in Brunei since its launching! It has so much hype build up around it and I wasn't sure why but now I know... IT'S AMAZING! It's so very in demand that anyone who wanted to try out the samples have to request for them on Skin79 Brunei's facebook wall if they wish to get their hands on 'em!

Skin79 BB Cleanser O2

I really like the packaging! It comes in a shiny plastic tube with a baby-pink cap and pink-colored font. It also comes with a pump so you can just pump the product out. Cute! Based on the packaging I'd say it's suitable for teenage girls as well ;)

This cleanser claims to provide deep cleansing to the skin, using the oxygen bubbles to remove impurities from the skin including BB Cream, eyes and lip makeup! It also claims to naturally brighten the skin after cleansing whilst replenishing moisture back into the skin. It is also gentle enough for daily use! I cleanse twice a day using the BB Cleanser O2. :)

(Click to enlarge!)

The cleanser is in a gel-like texture and it has a very yummy floral scent! Sometimes I like to open the cap just to smell it lol

Anyway, immediately after you first apply the gel-like BB Cleanser O2 onto your skin, bubbles will start to form and the instruction on the packaging asked to wait for one or two minutes for sufficient bubbles to form before massaging the face. But it took less than that for me; around 45 secs probably. As stated by Skin79, the purpose of the bubbles is to deliver oxygen to the skin. Yes, Skin79 has managed to make the process of facial cleansing fun!

Here's how I use it!


I start off with a wet face. I heard that you can use it dry as well but for me it's easier to massage my face when my skin is wet so I opted to wet my face. I normally do this in the shower anyway so my face will be wet no matter what lol By the way I have on foundation in this picture before cleansing..

Here I go!


Then I apply the BB Cleanser O2 onto my skin and wait for bubbles to form. Tip: If you get bored of standing in the bathroom waiting for bubbles to form, brush your teeth! That's what I normally do. ;)


After waiting an ample time for the bubbles to finish forming I massaged my face with the BB Cleanser O2! This normally takes me about one minute or more if I'm wearing any foundation or BB Cream. Gotta make sure I take 'em all off!

Right after cleansing!

One thing I love love love about this cleanser is that your skin feels so smooth when you wash off the bubbles! After patting my face dry I will just go on to my normal routine of applying the Skin79 A.C. Clinic Anti-Trouble Skin (Toner) and then the A.C. Clinic Anti-Trouble Lotion (Moisturizer)! Skin absorbs the moisture so well and it prevents my skin from having dry patches. :)

I guess the only thing about this cleanser is that the lettering on the product wears off after a while, just like the Skin79 Hot Pink BB Cream. Other than that, I love this thing!

Skin79 BB Cleanser O2

This is undoubtedly one of my favourite Skin79 product thus far! I'm so grateful for the opportunity to try out this amazing product.The Skin79 BB Cleanser O2 retails for BND32.90! If you haven't try this out and is curious you can request for some samples at Skin79 Brunei's facebook wall or better yet, go purchase one! You won't regret it, I promise.

March 3, 2012

Books: The Hunger Games - First installment

After feverishly reading The Hunger Games books over the week, I knew I have to blog about them. Too good, too good!

I knew these books have been out for a while now and my friend Jim has been pushing me to read it every single time the mention of books are brought up. But I was always "ya ya I know, it's awesome." or "Laterlah..." or "Really that nice kan?" haha Till the point where he had to send me the links to download the pdf format of the three books so that I have no excuse not to read them. I mean, I know I will read them eventually because I trust what he say is a good book but gawd I don't like reading e-books!

So I finally gave in and went to Best Eastern at The Mall to reserve them once I found out they are shipping them here to Brunei like finally. Thank God I did! Now it's my turn to annoy my sisters and telling them it's really good and they're all "ya ya I know, it's awesome." Circle of life wtf

The Hunger Games by Suzzane Collins

If you haven't read The Hunger Games, well it centers around this girl called Katniss living in a post world war 3 country I guess. After the destruction of America, they started everything all over. They called the society a Dystopian society because of the amount of control the government holds over the people and how poverty is very common everywhere. They called the government the Capitol and there are 12 districts in which each of this district is in charge of producing certain products. Katniss is from District 12 and they produce coal, for instance.

Anyways, every year the Capitol arranges 2 people from each district, a boy and a girl to compete in The Hunger Games. Rule is simple: The last one standing wins. They choose the participants from each district using 'lucky draw' style. Not so lucky for the people unfortunately. Somehow in the end, Katniss is to compete in The Hunger Games.

This books basically lets you in to her mind and you get to know what she was thinking in her head. It's an amazing experience where you feel like you're right beside her in the games and you see what she sees. Really gotta applaud Collins for her creativity! She created a world out of words and when I'm reading them I really feel like I'm watching a movie wtf

If you haven't read The Hunger Games, go buy a copy now!! It'll be one of the most amazing journey you go on! In your mind only of course, but it's good for you. ;)

Okay, please STOP reading if you don't wanna read any spoilers from here on out! Coz I wanna share my thoughts to those who have read them :)

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Honestly, I am quite surprised at first of how Katniss seems to be oblivious to the fact that the guys have feelings for her when it's so darn obvious to the rest of us! But seeing the life that she's living and what she's been through I guess it's not really her main concern.

The saddest part of the book for me is when Rue died. Gahh it's so sad I literally have tears rolling down my cheeks in the middle of the night at like 3am in the morning! haha Collins is good with developing her characters and it's really sad because we get to know the characters and sometimes we grow fond of them so I felt very wtf (and betrayed) when Collins killed her off. But then again, we all knew Rue will die sooner or later. Sigh The lyrics of the song Katniss sang to Rue when she died is priceless. I hope they made a real song out of it!

Also, Katniss pulling out the berries so she and Peeta can die together when they changed the rules is such a small gesture but it offsets something so big. Why should Snow blame her when she and Peeta are supposed to be madly in love anyway. It shouldn't be a big deal because that's what people who are madly in love do.

After the end of the first book I was really anticipating to read the next one because I was so curious as to how Collins will play out the second book of the installment, Catching Fire. I'll do the review on another blog post that's for sure. :)

The Hunger Games by Suzzane Collins

The hardcover design is so much more impressive than the paperback ones! :(

March 1, 2012

Maybelline Long Extreme Stiletto Mascara

Hey guys!

So I just typed a whole post on this mascara and turns out it wasn't saved and stuff so everything's gone and I have to re-do this. =/ But that's okay because I like blogging and sometimes I feel like I'm talking to you, whoever you are. lol

Anyways I recently threw out some of my old mascaras and went out to purchase a new one. Decided to try the Maybelline Long Extreme Stiletto mascara this time around. I've actually wanted to try this out for a long time now and as usual, Guardian is finally carrying it! This retails for BND$16.90. Initially I wanted to get the Maybelline Falsies mascara as well but those are selling for freakin BND$27.90! Come on! Why is everything so overpriced here in Brunei? Ugh.

Maybelline Long Extreme Stiletto mascara

I really like how they designed this mascara to look like the heel of a stiletto! It looks really sleek with the shiny black packaging and all. Also, the angular shape of the tube makes it easier to twist open the product than the regular round tube.

This is a waterproof mascara which is good because with non-waterproof mascara I always tend to get flecks of black on my cheeks by the end of the day and sometimes it gets smudged below my eyes. Not a pretty sight! The smell of this product kinda puts me off though. There's no other way to describe it; this mascara smells weird. lol Doesn't really matter to me because once it dries down it won't smell like anything.


The bristles are made from natural fibers and the wand isn't really as flexible as the Falsies mascara but again, I don't really care for these things. The most important thing is whether it lengthens and/or volumizes, right? Right?? As for volumizing, not really honestly. =/ For me, I am always on the lookout for mascara that volumizes my lashes because they aren't exactly thick and luscious lol But it does lengthens my lashes so that's good. I always make do with 2 coats of the mascara. :))

Maybelline Long Extreme Stiletto mascara

Overall I think this is an Okay mascara. Not bad, but not awesome haha I don't think I will repurchase this mascara. I'd still go for Mabelline's Volum' Express Cat Eyes mascara instead. ;)

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